Friday, 26 September 2014
Shot List
Below I have made a list of shots and given examples from various films and television shows of the shot types I intend to use in my trailer.
Friday, 19 September 2014
Friday, 12 September 2014
Location
Location
For my trailer I will
be using two locations, both of which are in and around Cairns, Australia.
The location in
which I had done most of my filming is a small creek on the outskirts of Cairns
and Redlynch in Australia, this was the perfect place to do my filming because of
the surroundings.
The creek is shelter
by the outskirts of a rain-forest canopy, this works excellently in terms of
lighting when I can capture the dusky sunlight through the leaves as the sun
sets, as well as this the background sound will work well in my trailer as the rain-forest setting makes for some great wildlife sound such as lorikeets,
crickets and the sound of geckos commonly heard in the evening in the rain-forest These sound combine this the sound of the running creek will make
for some unusual tropical background sounds.
I chose this particular
area because just outside is a small tunnel running underneath a main road, as
it got dark I thought that this would be a good place to film some creepy and
secluded shots of the actors running through the tunnel.
The second location
that I sued for my filming was in the Cairns suburbs, I chose to film round the
back of a house in a place called Trundle Terrance, it was perfect for my
filming as it is right on the edge of the rain-forest canopy so therefore blends
the perfect amount of urban and natural setting. I chose to film the back of
the house because I wanted to show variety in my trailer and to show a
progression in the story line as the actors try to “escape”. I filmed in this
location in darkness, there was a single street light next to the house which acted
as a spot light for my actors and added an extra eerie element to this section of
the trailer.
I am aiming for my
creek location to look something like the images below:
Age Restrictions
Age Restrictions
Films are given age
classifications in order to protect children from potentially upsetting and
unsuitable material in the film industry. In the UK film classifications are
decided by the BBFC (British Board of Film Classification) according to the
BBFC classification guidelines set, based on general context (plot, characters,
outlines of individual scenes), timings of key moments (including camera
angles, type of shots and on/off screen moments), bad language, sexual
references and drug taking.
Of the films that I have studied the BBFC awarded
The Woman in Black a 15 for strong supernatural threat and horror, Shutter a 15
for strong supernatural horror, threat and gore and The Blair Witch Project a
15 for frequent strong language and horror, as the trailer I am planning to put
together will contain mostly the same themes as the 3 films I have studied e.g.
supernatural horror and strong language.
The BBFC list the
guidelines for an age 15 certified film as the appearance of strong
violence, frequent strong language (e.g. 'f***'), portrayals of sexual
activity, strong verbal references to sex, sexual nudity, brief scenes of
sexual violence or verbal references to sexual violence, discriminatory
language or behaviour and drug taking. Strong threat, horror, supernatural
horror (as long as no prolonged focus on sadistic or sexual threat).
Distribution and Box Office Takings
Distribution
The distribution of the film is
very important in terms of how well the film subsequently does in the box
office. As for picking a distribution company for my film I have looked at
other horror films containing similar themes to mine in order to find the right
distributor for my film. The Woman in Black was distributed by Momentum
Pictures in the UK, Shutter was distributed by 20th Century Fox and
The Blair Witch Project was distributed by Artisan Entertainment.
Momentum Pictures
Moment Pictures is one
of the successful independent motion picture distributors in the UK and
Ireland, on average distributing 20 independent films a year. Momentum are a
critically acclaimed film distributor with successes in the Oscars and the
BAFTAs with films such as The Kings Speech, P.S I Love You and The Young
Victoria, making it a leading film company for the distribution of independent
films.
20th Century Fox
20th Century
Fox are one of the big 6 American film studios, as well as distributing and producing
films, 20th Century Fox also produce and distribute TV programmes
such as How I Met Your Mother, New Girl and Modern Family. Some of the most
successful films that 20th Century Fox have been credited for are
X-Men, Alien and Predator. The success 20th Century Fox and other
subsidiaries have received mean that they tend to work with films that have
large budgets and are able to push the films towards the main cinema companies.
Artisan Entertainment
Artisan Entertainment Inc. is an American independent film
company at the time The Blair Witch Project was made, however it was brought by
the Canadian film company Lions Gate in 2003. Previously Artisan Entertainment
produced films such as Reservoir For Dogs, Suicide Kings and The Blair Witch
Project along with many other independent horror/thriller films. Lions Gate
produce far more mainstream films for a wider audience, their film portfolio
consists of the films produced by their subsidiary companies; Artisan
Entertainment, Trimark Pictures and Vestron Pictures such as Dirty Dancing, The
Princess Bride and Young Guns.
Box Office Takings
The Woman in Black was made on
a $15 million budget, it was a success in the Box Office making $127, 730, 736.
During its opening weekend the film made $20 million, making it the biggest
American release ever for its production company Hammer Productions and earned
significantly more than the $11 million - $16.5 million that it was expected to
bring in, also making it the highest grossing British horror in 20 years.
Shutter
Shutter was made on an $8
million budget, after receiving mainly poor reviews from critics it made a
surprising $47,879, 410. Making only $10,447, 559 on its opening weekend in
March in cinemas, reached 3rd in the box office.
The Blair Witch Project
After being shown at Sundance
Film Festival in 1998, Artisan release The Blair Witch Project in July 1999
after months of publicity leading audiences to believe that the film was a
recording of real events. The films budget finally finished at between 500, 000
and 75, 000 after reshoots and an increase in sound editing. It, however
grossed 248, 639, 099 worldwide, making it a milestone in modern cinema due to
its box office success.
Wednesday, 20 August 2014
Character Profiles
Oscar- a 12 year old boy. He goes down to the river to skim stones with his older sister Martha. He lives in the area surrounding the rain forest the group are in. He loves exploring the local wildlife which is the only reason they go down to the creek in the first place. For this reason he is dressed in casual summer clothing, shorts, a t-shirt and trainers due to the terrain and climate.
Martha- a 15 year old girl. Follows Oscar down to the creek to skim stones with him. She lives in the local area around the rainforest. She believes the stories about the Japanese ghosts haunting the rainforest and is superstitious about the whole thing. She is also dressed in casual summer clothing. She is the member of the group to go missing as she, makes a run away from the rainforest after she gets scared.
Rebecca- a 13 year old girl. A close friend of Martha visiting from England, she is called down to the creek by Martha when Oscar finds the first sign on a log by the creek. The first one to notice Martha's disappearance and is easily scared. Again dressed in casual summer clothing.
Hector- a 17 year old boy. The eldest sibling to Martha and Oscar, so also lives in the near by area. He is called down by Martha and arrives at the creek with Rebecca. As the eldest he holds authority over the group and therefore takes charge in trying to keep Rebecca and Oscar calm after Martha goes missing, although this ultimately leads to his downfall.
Hector- a 17 year old boy. The eldest sibling to Martha and Oscar, so also lives in the near by area. He is called down by Martha and arrives at the creek with Rebecca. As the eldest he holds authority over the group and therefore takes charge in trying to keep Rebecca and Oscar calm after Martha goes missing, although this ultimately leads to his downfall.
My Idea and Synopsis
The symbol I am using in my film is
Japanese. æ» or Shi was it is written using the English alphabet means death in Japanese. I chose to make the story line revolve around this
symbol because of the area I chose to film my trailer in. I filmed in Northern
Queensland, Australia, this area of Australia has a rich Japanese history after
a huge amount of Japanese troops were placed in far north Queensland around the
deep rain forests that surround the area. However there are several legends
that surround the Japanese history in this area, stories say that because of
the remoteness of the Queensland rain forest that the troops never got word of
the end of the war and continued to kill people who wandered into the rain
forest and into their camps. Even long after, and to the present day many of
the inhabitants of Queensland believe that the spirits of the Japanese troops
haunt the rain forest and haunt and kill the people how walk through the old
camp sites. Therefore I decided to base my trailer idea around these legends
and stories of Queensland.
Synopsis:
The story begins in World War 2. Many Japanese
troops were stationed in the tropical north Queensland in Australia. During the
war the Japanese troops fought through the difficult terrain of northern Australia
with little success, when the war finished the Japanese troops never got told
and very little effort was made to remove them from Australia due to the remote
stationing of the troops.
Legend has it that after the war Japanese
troops continued fighting in the rain forest and to this day gun fire can still
be heard in the depths of the forestation from the souls of the troops that
died there.
In 2014 there are many, many houses built
in and the rain forest, a brother and sister, Oscar and Martha, venture into
the forest as they have many times before. The two of them discover a strange red
marking “æ»” and call their friends, Hector and Becca, to come and see what they
have uncovered. Their friends tease them for calling them down, Hector tries
his best to scare the others whereas Becca believes that the others are playing
a trick on her because they know how easily scared she is. All of the group
begin to get scared as the ordinary sounds of the rain forest begin to sound
more and more horrific.
As
the group are walking home they spot the sign again on the side of a walk way,
after teasing Becca for panicking they soon realize Martha is missing, everyone’s
phone signal is down and no one can make contact with her. As they are calling
for her, the group hear a scream and run home without their sister.
Everywhere
the group go they are haunted by the signs. Hector, as the eldest takes control
and looks up what the sign means, they find that it is the Japanese symbol for
death, Shi. Hector is convinced that this is an elaborate prank set up by
Martha and leads the group home, however when they return there is no one in
and the front door is locked. Hector advises Oscar and Becca to wait while he
tries to get in through the back. He is gone for a long time, the outside
lights are flickering. Suddenly they hear Hector scream. The lights go on in
the house. They hear him calling them into the house telling them it is safe. He
talks to them as they make their way round to the back of the house, however when
they get there they find him out cold with æ» cut into his chest,
however he is still “talking” to them. All of the lights go out in the house.
Monday, 21 July 2014
Film Company
I have tried to find a suitable film company that would realistically produce and promote my film, I researched various film companies and tried to find one that already produces films of the psychological thriller sun genre that I will attempt to produce, because of this I came across Hammer Films.
Hammer Films have produced a variety of horror films, they began in 1934 with the first film The Bank Messenger Mystery. However some of the most famous Hammer films are The Curse of Frankenstein, Dracula and The Woman in Black along with the hit film The Quiet Ones, all of these contain deep psychological thriller elements that I would like in my trailer. With Hammer being involved with film giant Warner Bros Studios, they have the ability to promote the film on a large scale. With the long and successful history of Hammer Films and the large scale success of it's films not only due to the strong links with huge film studios such as Warner Bros and being able to still maintain its status as an independent film company means that I think that a company like Hammer would be the kind of company I would like to produce my film.
Tuesday, 8 July 2014
Tuesday, 1 July 2014
General Questionnaire Results and Audience Profile
1. What is your gender ?
Male Female
In this general questionnaire I asked the gender of the people that I gave questionnaires so that I could give some idea of which gender would prefer to watch films and took a interest in find out about new and upcoming films.Overall I asked 9 females and 6 males and found there was no real difference in how frequently they watched films, however a greater difference may have been found if I had doubled the sample size.
2.
How old are you?
12-15 17-21
22-30
30-45 46+
The second question I asked was the age of the sample size, this was so that I could find out what age of people are more likely to watch films of any genre. 47% of my sample group were aged between 17-21, I found that this group were also more likely to watch films more frequently with the 12-16 age group were more likely to hardly ever watch films.
3.
Do you often see film
trailers?
No,
never Occasionally Yes, often
I asked how often the people who answered my questionnaire see film trailers in order to see what kind of reception my trailer would receive if it was released. As can be seen 53% of the sample said that they often saw film trailers.
4.
Through what media do you usually see trailers?
TV Social
networking sites (Facebook, Twitter)
YouTube or other video sharing sites
Through this question I was able to find out how my audience would most frequently view film trailers, where I found that 53% of my sample saw trailers through TV and only 20% through video sharing websites, however i think i will stream my trailer on as many mediums as possible in order to allow a large audience access to my trailer.
5.
How do you think films are
most advertised?
Through
trailers Posters or billboards Online campaigns Magazine/Newspaper adverts
Through this question I was able to find out which form of advertising was most popular with my sample, it turned out 47% thought that film trailers are most advertised through film trailers but none thought magazine and newspaper adverts were used most frequently when advertising films.
6.
Do you often watch films?
No,
hardly ever Every now and
then More often than not All the time
The aim of this question was to find out how prominent the film industry is according to my sample, I found that 53% of my sample which films every now and then, which will help me decide on what my trailer should reveal.
7.
How long do you think a
film trailer should be?
30
seconds or shorter 31 seconds-1
minute 1 ½ minutes to 2
minutes 2.1 -2 ½ minutes 2 ½ - 3 minutes 3 minutes +
I asked this question to my sample because i wanted to get some kind of idea what length my trailer should be in order to keep my audience interested in the trailer, asking this question allowed me to find out the best length for my trailer to be is 2 - 2 and a half minutes, therefore this is how long I will make my trailer.
8.
You you think a film should be promoted through…
Various
mediums Just one medium to simplify it
This question relates to many of my other questions in this questionnaire and is more about the way in which films are advertised and how popular the mode of advertising is. through this I found that 73% of my sample think that films should be advertised through more than one media type.
The aim of this questionnaire was to understand the general idea of what an audience made up of a wide range of people, the questionnaire below is more specific to the horror genre which I have chosen for my trailer.
1. What type of
horror film would you rather watch?
Thriller Zombie
Supernatural Gory Comedy
I asked my sample this question because I thought I needed some sort of idea of which type of horror sub genre an audience would be most interested in, through this question I found that 46% of my sample thought that a thriller/horror would be most enjoyable to watch.
2. How often do you
watch horror films?
Never Every now and then around 4 times a
year Once a month maybe All the time maybe once a week
I used this question because I wanted to know how popular my chosen genre of horror is, i found that 33% of my sample watched horror films around one a month.
3. What kind of
qualities in horror film trailers make you want to see the film?
The tension, if the trailer scares
me I’ll watch it A scary
villain If its gory and gruesome
A good sense of story-line If it leaves me waiting and
wanting to find out more
To find out what my trailer should contain or what my audience think it should contain in order to appeal to them the most.Through this question I found that 45% want mainly tension an fear to be the main quality in the trailer, so this is what I will aim to put in my trailer when it is created.
4. Do you prefer to
see trailers for horror movies that let you know the film is…
Completely fictional Based on a real story It doesn't bother me either way
I asked this question so that I could see if my audience would have wanted a true story in my horror film, I thought this would give me an idea of what the actual plot of the film would be about and if the plot being true mattered to the audience, it turns out that 60% of the sample didn't mind whether or not the plot was true or not.
5. What type of
villain do you find scarier?
An older woman An older man A younger woman A younger man
A masked or unknown villain
I asked my sample this question because I wanted some ideas for the plot of my trailer and for what kind of horror film trailer I wanted to create, from this question now I have decided to use a masked or unknown villain in my trailer, as 60% of my sample said this is what they would find scarier.
6. Do you enjoy
watching horror films or horror trailers?
Yes No It depends on the genre and film
I wanted to find out from my sample how much they enjoyed horror films, from this I found that 40% of my sample enjoyed watching horror films in comparison to 19% who said they did not enjoy watching horror films or trailers.
7. How do you come
across horror film trailers?
Hardly ever Occasionally All the time
I wanted to know from my sample how regularly they come across horror film trailers so I could see how easily they are accessed I found that 34% hardly ever came across horror film trailers, this to me means that I need to look at where my trailer is shown and on what platforms.
8. How much of the
plot would you like to see revealed in a trailer?
None at all Some, I have to see if its worth
watching Majority of the plot
Everything so I know what in for
I asked this question to help me with the creating of my trailer, this question has given me an indication of how much my trailer should reveal.
9. Are trailers the
only thing that inform you of a film?
Yes Yes, with a mixture of other
things No, other online campaigns
and TV (websites and promotions)
No, through posters and adverts in print
Through this question I wanted to find out which way my sample most commonly came across a film and whether or not trailers is the most frequently used. I found out that 40% of my sample most commonly found out about films through online campaigns and TV adverts (trailers), therefore this would be where I would make my trailer most accessible.
Monday, 30 June 2014
Thursday, 19 June 2014
Questionnaires
I have created two questionnaires for people to fill so that I can gather more information on my target demographic, trailers and also horror films in general .
The first questionnaire i have designed is fairly general so that I am able to see what kind of trailer I should produce in general:
1.
What is your gender ?
Male Female
2.
How old are you?
12-16 17-21
22-30
30-45 46+
3.
Do you often see film
trailers?
No,
never Occasionally Yes,
4.
Through what media do you usually see trailers?
TV Social networking sites (Facebook,
Twitter) YouTube or other video sharing sites
5.
How do you think films are
most advertised?
Through
trailers Posters or billboards Online campaigns Magazine/Newspaper adverts
6.
Do you often watch films?
No,
hardly ever Every now and then More often than not All
the time
7.
How long do you think a
film trailer should be?
30
seconds or shorter 31 seconds-1
minute 1 ½ minutes to 2 minutes 2.1 -2 ½ minutes 2 ½ - 3 minutes 3 minutes +
8.
You you think a film
should be promoted through…
Various
mediums Just one mediums to simplify it
The second questionnaire I have designed is so that I can gather more of an idea of what a horror trailer should be like from the perspective of the viewer:
1. What type of
horror film would you rather watch?
Thriller Zombie
Supernatural Gory Comedy
2. How often do you
watch horror films?
Never Every now and then around 4 times a year Once a month maybe All the time maybe once a week
3. What kind of
qualities in horror film trailers make you want to see the film?
The tension, if the trailer scares
me I’ll watch it A scary
villain If its gory and grusome
A good sense of story-line If it leaves me waiting and
wanting to find out more
4. Do you prefer to
see trailers for horror movies that let you know the film is…
Completely fictional Based on a real story It doesn't bother me either way
5. What type of
villain do you find scarier?
An older woman An older man A younger woman A younger man
A masked or unknown villain
6. Do you enjoy
watching horror films or horror trailers?
Yes No It depends on the genre and film
7. How often do you come
across horror film trailers?
Hardly ever Occasionally All the time
8. Where do you most
often see trailers?
TV Online (includes social networks
and YouTube)
9. How much of the
plot would you like to see revealed in a trailer?
None at all Some, I have to see if its worth
watching Majority of the plot
Everything so I know what I'm in for
1. Are trailers the
only thing that inform you of a film?
Yes Yes, with a mixture of other
things No, other online campaigns
and TV (websites and promotions)
No, through posters and adverts in print
Wednesday, 18 June 2014
Shutter Trailer Analysis
This trailer for
the remake of the Japanese Horror Thriller is made by Regency, who are famous
for other horror films such as “Mirrors”, this type of information sets up the
audience to realise what kind of film they are about to see. From the very
beginning there is a slow but continuous rumbling sound in the background, this
sound is usually connected with the horror genre.
The establishing
shot of the trailer is of the Tokyo landscape, revealing the setting of the
film immediately. The rumbling sound in the background uses the seemingly
innocent shot of the cityscape to allude to something more dangerous with the
sinister music background.
This next shot zooms in on the camera as wit
takes another picture, the same effect is given on the audience. Due to the
amount of screen time given to the camera the audience will now realise that
this film will revolve around this camera.
Again the screen
cuts to black, therefore slowly increasing the tension in the trailer.
This
is the final shot of the camera it zooms in to an extreme close up, it flashes
and the screen momentarily goes white, in stark contrast to the cutting to
black. After this there is a narrative voice over to introduce the main
storyline, the tone used by the narrator is serious and deep therefore does not
give the impression that the story will be light hearted or happy.
This is followed
by a series of picture, with the voice over then goes on to explain the significance
of the pictures. This sequence uses a transitional cut from one picture to another,
so though flicking through pictures in a photo album, this fast pace and fluency
encourages the audience to continue watching the trailer. Along with the voice
over there is a loud screeching noise in the background to contrast the
rumbling sound and bringing the tension to a climax, and therefore implying to
the audience that this is the part of the film or trailer they should be afraid
of.
After this there
is another flash of light, this time bright red which has connotations of blood
and danger, implying that the camera is the thing that is most dangerous.
The next sequence
on the screen is someone flicking through a series of pictures whilst the voice
over introduces the idea of spirit photography. Through the photographs the audience
can see a spirit crawling along the floor, this image is not only spooky but is
also slow moving, again building up the tension. After this the is a jump cut
back to an extreme close up of the camera lens, again using “the bomb theory”
implying to the audience that the camera is the one that is picking up the spirits
in the photographs.
Directly after
this there is a short and quick sequence of images, the first is a quick zoom
in of a man sat alone in a chair in an empty room and of the skeletal face, the
two linked together give the impression to the audience that the man in the
chair is being haunted. The fast pace of this sequence adds to the tension as
the audience do not quite see what the sequence is and only really see the
skeletal face, this is created to make the audience jump. The background to the
sequence is a loud screaming noise that resembles a scream, again after the sequence
it cuts to black and the screaming sound cuts out with it, this then brings the
tension up again before cutting to black.
After this the
trailer then goes back to the “spirit photographs” using special effects such
as a flash that goes across the screen, giving the effect of the camera taking
pictures, each is designed to make the audience jump.
The next few
clips are fast paces and show the main on the chair in various circumstances,
the lighting in these clips are contrasting from light to dark, almost as
though in a photography studio to a dark room, in keeping with the photography theme.
After this fast
paced sequence the loud build-up of music cuts to quiet and the name if the
film fades up, similar to the way a photo appears in a dark room, again in
keeping with the photography theme in the film. This last shot is in contrast
to the rest of the trailer, therefore making the trailer seem more frightening and
shocking.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)