We were given the task to watch the clips and analyse them. We have watched the opening clips from the different type of thrillers.
As my view the most successful clip was the thriller named 'Collateral'. The most successful editing was when the briefcases got changed. The exchange of briefcases was when the suspense was created because it gave us an question about what is inside the briefcase? Why did they exhange it?.
To conclude this clip, it was fabulous and it gave me an excellent idea on how to do create suspense towards the audience. I will take this account and may use it in my thriller shooting.
Thursday 18 December 2008
Tuesday 16 December 2008
Monday 15 December 2008
The Editing Begins
Now that the filming side of the practice was now complete it was now time for the group and i to edit the peice to create our final short film. After a long and interesting lesson with Mick on exactly how to edit we had a short practice of editing on a peice of film where the class had the opportunity to edit down a peice of film and create various scenes using the clips available. This was very supportive as it enabled us to have a larger amount of experience in relation to edting and allowed me to gain ideas on how the shots that we had filmed could work together. later on in the lesson when the editing practice was complete the group and I focused on our short film and started editing the shots to create our final peice, fortunately this didnt come to be very difficult as i had focused on the lesson with Mick and it was therfore easy for me to understand exactly what was need to be done and begin.
Saturday 13 December 2008
Carrying on the Editing(Friday 12th December)
In todays task we were told to carry on the editing which was incomplete from the previous lesson. Dan wasn't in today so Tony took over instead of him. After the advices from Tony about the course we started carrying on the editing.
We putted all our shots in order then checked it if it was okay. We had couple of mistake like when we put the shots together it seems like its just fading to an another shot. So we cutted the little piece of it then we tried to put in the correct order in order to make a successful short film.
After doing all the editing, when we thought it was finished then we founded error on one of the shots. The shot was very long and seem to be boring so we shortened the shot and made it more interesting. After doing all the editing and we thought it was all done, there was one last thing left and that was to find the correct music for this short film. After looking for the right music then we founded a music which really suited to scene and we replaced the music in the scene.
Overall today was really challenging because it was really hard to find a suitable music for the scene but at the end I handled it. The new thing I learnt today was how to put music inside the scene. After watching the scene again with the music on this time, we have uploaded it to the blog.
We putted all our shots in order then checked it if it was okay. We had couple of mistake like when we put the shots together it seems like its just fading to an another shot. So we cutted the little piece of it then we tried to put in the correct order in order to make a successful short film.
After doing all the editing, when we thought it was finished then we founded error on one of the shots. The shot was very long and seem to be boring so we shortened the shot and made it more interesting. After doing all the editing and we thought it was all done, there was one last thing left and that was to find the correct music for this short film. After looking for the right music then we founded a music which really suited to scene and we replaced the music in the scene.
Overall today was really challenging because it was really hard to find a suitable music for the scene but at the end I handled it. The new thing I learnt today was how to put music inside the scene. After watching the scene again with the music on this time, we have uploaded it to the blog.
The Editing(Tuesday 8th December)
After making a thriller with the poker cards in Dan's lesson, our task was to edit on the shots we took in the previous lesson. Before doing editing for our shots, we firstly learned how to do editing with Mickey then done a little task to see if we were doing okay. The task we dones was a short film and all the shots were mixed up so we neede to put them in the right place and put the right music.
We started doing editing on our shots, we had couple of diffuculties at the beginning on how to do the editing. All the shots were mixed up and we needed to put them together so the short film will make sense. When we started doing the editing we couldn't do it probably, then we got a hand from Micky.
Shaneen and Lauren was in for this lesson, so we started working together with them because them two were the ones in our group.
In this lesson I have learnt about the editing. The group and I couldn't complete the task for today because we still had time and we are going to carry on the Dan's lesson.
We started doing editing on our shots, we had couple of diffuculties at the beginning on how to do the editing. All the shots were mixed up and we needed to put them together so the short film will make sense. When we started doing the editing we couldn't do it probably, then we got a hand from Micky.
Shaneen and Lauren was in for this lesson, so we started working together with them because them two were the ones in our group.
In this lesson I have learnt about the editing. The group and I couldn't complete the task for today because we still had time and we are going to carry on the Dan's lesson.
The Card Game(Friday 5th December)
On Friday 5th December in Dan's lesson we were told to make a short thriller. We had to make the scenario on the playing cards that were given to us. Before the task given we had a tutorial lesson previously on how to use the camera. After having a learning session on how to use the cameras perfectly, we started planning our scene which had to include various of shots inluding the Over-Shoulder shots, Establishing Shots and Close-ups in order to have a sense of tension. After having long conversation on what to do, the only thing that was left for us to is we needed to find a good location to impose our ideas.
After looking for a good location, we finally decided that we should use common room. The reason we though it was the best option is because it was quite, empty and dark which signifies one of the props of the thriller. As the group decided me and Layla were the ones who would be acting, Karess and Naseema would be focusing on the camera. After everyones role were given we began the shooting.
We used to many shots throughout the scene but the most successful shot that was used was the shot when the camera was moving smoothly around the characters perspective, which Micky liked about it as well. The long shot which was usen at the beginning signify the setting. Karess and Naseema has used the Close-up technique at the end to show the emotions of the both of the characters which one of them wins and the other looses. I think there was a gender discrimination in the scene because rest of the group apart from were females and because they made the girl won.
We had few problems as well while we were filming. One of the biggest problem was the light because it was dark and there wasn't a switch for us to turn on the light. Later we had solved the problem by opening the curtains and got a bit of brigtness to the place.
As my point of view group and I worked well, and I think we had successfull shots. Shaneen and Lauren wasn't in so we've used Layla and Naseema to replace them for this scene. Only one thing left and that is the editing.
After looking for a good location, we finally decided that we should use common room. The reason we though it was the best option is because it was quite, empty and dark which signifies one of the props of the thriller. As the group decided me and Layla were the ones who would be acting, Karess and Naseema would be focusing on the camera. After everyones role were given we began the shooting.
We used to many shots throughout the scene but the most successful shot that was used was the shot when the camera was moving smoothly around the characters perspective, which Micky liked about it as well. The long shot which was usen at the beginning signify the setting. Karess and Naseema has used the Close-up technique at the end to show the emotions of the both of the characters which one of them wins and the other looses. I think there was a gender discrimination in the scene because rest of the group apart from were females and because they made the girl won.
We had few problems as well while we were filming. One of the biggest problem was the light because it was dark and there wasn't a switch for us to turn on the light. Later we had solved the problem by opening the curtains and got a bit of brigtness to the place.
As my point of view group and I worked well, and I think we had successfull shots. Shaneen and Lauren wasn't in so we've used Layla and Naseema to replace them for this scene. Only one thing left and that is the editing.
Friday 12 December 2008
Monday 8 December 2008
The card game
It is important that before we begin shooting the thriller the group and I practice using the camera for scenes as much as possible, and this is what we were told to do during my previous Media lesson with Dan. After having a learning session on how to use the cameras correctly we were asked to plan a scene where there is a game of cards in progress, this scene had to include various shots including Extreme close ups, tracking and an establishing shot as well as having a sense of tension and anxiety within the scene. This didn’t come to be difficult as we all had a large amount of ideas that made the scene successful. After brainstorming our ideas and making the final plan of the shots within the scene it was then time for us to find a location and start shooting.
After short deliberation the group and I thought of a perfect location which was the college common room, we thought that this was the best option as it was dark and had the props needed for our scene and as we where the only college students permitted to be in their it was silent allowing us to focus on our filming.
As a group we decided that Layla and Ufuk would play the two characters playing the card game and me and Nasima would focus on shooting the scene and work behind the camera. With this planned we quickly began shooting as we had limited time before the common room would be inaccessible.
We did the shots that we planned on shooting which are as follows:
Long shot (LS); We planned on using this shot as an establishing shot allowing the audience to gain the knowledge of the setting and this shot conveys the characters in relation to one another
Close up (CU) on both characters; We planned on using this on both characters to give visual effect on there facial expressions
Pan to over the shoulder ; we thought this would be a great shot to use as it enabled the viewer to see the cards in the characters hands as well as facial expression.
Extreme close up (ECU) ; This shot builds up the tension in the scene allowing the audience to see the intensity and atmosphere within the scene.
The planning in class was done well enough that there were not many difficulties apart from the fact that we where aiming for quite a dark effect but with the lighting in the common room it was either to bright or much to dark, we worked together and managed to solve this problem by pushing the curtains up and placing the scene in an angle that allowed us to gain additional light. We also had an issue with a shot that we desperately wanted in our scene which was the pan to an over the shoulder shot, as we where unable to slide the tripod on the floor without creating a shake this was a major problem but was quickly solved this as I thought that this could be done by placing the tripod on a table that easily slid on the floor without any shakes and push the table in the right direction to create the pan during he scene.
I feel the group and I worked well together and looking back on the footage I feel that we where successful in filming but the final edit was not complete and it is there where we will find out how good or bad the footage really is.
After short deliberation the group and I thought of a perfect location which was the college common room, we thought that this was the best option as it was dark and had the props needed for our scene and as we where the only college students permitted to be in their it was silent allowing us to focus on our filming.
As a group we decided that Layla and Ufuk would play the two characters playing the card game and me and Nasima would focus on shooting the scene and work behind the camera. With this planned we quickly began shooting as we had limited time before the common room would be inaccessible.
We did the shots that we planned on shooting which are as follows:
Long shot (LS); We planned on using this shot as an establishing shot allowing the audience to gain the knowledge of the setting and this shot conveys the characters in relation to one another
Close up (CU) on both characters; We planned on using this on both characters to give visual effect on there facial expressions
Pan to over the shoulder ; we thought this would be a great shot to use as it enabled the viewer to see the cards in the characters hands as well as facial expression.
Extreme close up (ECU) ; This shot builds up the tension in the scene allowing the audience to see the intensity and atmosphere within the scene.
The planning in class was done well enough that there were not many difficulties apart from the fact that we where aiming for quite a dark effect but with the lighting in the common room it was either to bright or much to dark, we worked together and managed to solve this problem by pushing the curtains up and placing the scene in an angle that allowed us to gain additional light. We also had an issue with a shot that we desperately wanted in our scene which was the pan to an over the shoulder shot, as we where unable to slide the tripod on the floor without creating a shake this was a major problem but was quickly solved this as I thought that this could be done by placing the tripod on a table that easily slid on the floor without any shakes and push the table in the right direction to create the pan during he scene.
I feel the group and I worked well together and looking back on the footage I feel that we where successful in filming but the final edit was not complete and it is there where we will find out how good or bad the footage really is.
Friday 5 December 2008
Thriller Homework
The most important points in the extract ‘Let ‘Em Play God’ are the following:
-the ingredient to keep the audience is SUSPENSE
-the audience knows what everything from the start, character knows nothing
-puzzling the audience is the essence of suspense
-try to scare the audience by making them shout every time the character goes near the danger zone i.e. Will Jimmy get killed before he discovers the actual crime?
-the characters have to be believable because if they are unbelievable you will never get the real suspense, but only surprise
-the house is filled with shadows, the weather is dull and stormy and the doors are creaky.
The Shining
What Scares Us?
There are many things that scares us in the films and in the shining, few scenes made us get scared and shout. Those scenes can include the chase between the child and the dad, because the dad had an axe on his hand and we did not want to see the murder of the child with an axe and full of blood.
The scene when the dad goes to the room and a beautiful woman lying down in the bathroom and when she turns into an old woman it makes us get scared for a moment. The other scary part was the pace of the murder on the black guy when he is walking down the corridor and gets axed on his heart from the dad. These scenes were not scary for me because I am not the audience for it.
-the ingredient to keep the audience is SUSPENSE
-the audience knows what everything from the start, character knows nothing
-puzzling the audience is the essence of suspense
-try to scare the audience by making them shout every time the character goes near the danger zone i.e. Will Jimmy get killed before he discovers the actual crime?
-the characters have to be believable because if they are unbelievable you will never get the real suspense, but only surprise
-the house is filled with shadows, the weather is dull and stormy and the doors are creaky.
The Shining
What Scares Us?
There are many things that scares us in the films and in the shining, few scenes made us get scared and shout. Those scenes can include the chase between the child and the dad, because the dad had an axe on his hand and we did not want to see the murder of the child with an axe and full of blood.
The scene when the dad goes to the room and a beautiful woman lying down in the bathroom and when she turns into an old woman it makes us get scared for a moment. The other scary part was the pace of the murder on the black guy when he is walking down the corridor and gets axed on his heart from the dad. These scenes were not scary for me because I am not the audience for it.
What scares us based on The Shining
There are many things that scare us in life and it is important that these are used in horror and thriller films to scare the audience and create a fearful effect successfully. This was shown in the film ‘The Shining’ that I watched during my previous Media lesson. Based on this film I learnt many important features that scare the audience and these where as follows.
QUICK AND RAPID CHANGES WITHIN A SCENE
Rapid changes within scenes happened throughout the film where there is a quick change whether it be changing to an object or a totally different scene altogether. These changes are unexpected and form a shock to the viewer creating a frightening atmosphere.
UNPREDICTABLE MOMENTS
During the film there where many unpredictable moments where the audience do not have the ability to guess what will happen next this makes the actions occurring a lot more alarming and more fearful as it is known that an audience feel secure when knowing what is to come and this film breaks that rule making the audience uneasy.
A BUILD UP TO A CLIMAX
The Shining featured many scenes that contained a build up of atmosphere to create a climax. There was one scene in particular where this occurred which featured a young boy being chased through a maze by the villain. The constant tracking used following both characters and the increase of speed creates a frightening atmosphere as the audience are aware that the climax is nearing yet they do not know how this will strike.
FAST DRAMATIC MUSIC
Music plays a major role in the film and this proves to be the key feature of thriller and horror movies that the audience find very scary as this sets the scene and gives the audience the knowledge of the atmosphere within the scene. The music almost tells the viewer how to feel as the style and pattern of the music whether fast, loud or up tempo is designed to make the audience feel a certain way resulting in them in this case afraid.
QUICK AND RAPID CHANGES WITHIN A SCENE
Rapid changes within scenes happened throughout the film where there is a quick change whether it be changing to an object or a totally different scene altogether. These changes are unexpected and form a shock to the viewer creating a frightening atmosphere.
UNPREDICTABLE MOMENTS
During the film there where many unpredictable moments where the audience do not have the ability to guess what will happen next this makes the actions occurring a lot more alarming and more fearful as it is known that an audience feel secure when knowing what is to come and this film breaks that rule making the audience uneasy.
A BUILD UP TO A CLIMAX
The Shining featured many scenes that contained a build up of atmosphere to create a climax. There was one scene in particular where this occurred which featured a young boy being chased through a maze by the villain. The constant tracking used following both characters and the increase of speed creates a frightening atmosphere as the audience are aware that the climax is nearing yet they do not know how this will strike.
FAST DRAMATIC MUSIC
Music plays a major role in the film and this proves to be the key feature of thriller and horror movies that the audience find very scary as this sets the scene and gives the audience the knowledge of the atmosphere within the scene. The music almost tells the viewer how to feel as the style and pattern of the music whether fast, loud or up tempo is designed to make the audience feel a certain way resulting in them in this case afraid.
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