Rough Cut Two

Audience feedback

Charlotte Morrison-18
Positives

• Good use of non diegetic sound
• Good integrated titles
• Good range of camera angles, tilts, pans and close ups
• Obvious genre

Negatives

• Could have varied camera angles
• Shaky camera at some points

Mollie Rose Turkentine-17
Positives

• Non diegetic music made story clear
• good fast pace
• Story line was clearer and easier to understand
• Obvious genre

Negatives

• Can tell actor is reading
• Pill bottle out of focus
• Days should have been made clearer

Caitlin Scott- 17
positives

• Music matched and enhanced mood
• Liked the integrated titles
• Obvious genre

Negatives

• Untidy handwriting
• Sometimes it was unfocused (camera)

Steven Adcock- 16
Positives

• Good use of lighting
• Props were effective
• Good music

negatives

• Writing could have been neater
• days should have been made clearer

Feedback gathered by Olivia Saltmarsh

Rough Cut One

Audience feedback
Mollie Rose Turkentine- 17
Positives

• Good alarm clock framing
• Liked the camera angles, especially pans

Negatives

• Non diegetic sound would make story clearer
• Very slow paced

Steven Adcock- 17

Positives

• speech was clear
• Liked the different lighting
• Liked titles

Negatives

• Not enough happened in the time
• Music would be good

James Dye- 15

Positives

• It built tension, wants to see the rest
• Webcam scenes made him feel like the character was talking to him

Negative

• Needs music
• very slow not a lot happened it would be better if things were quicker.

Feedback gathered by Olivia Saltmarsh

Our target audience

Our film is going to be certified as 15, this is because most of the films we had researched were of a 15 certificate. We will make sure that our film adheres to all the protocol given by the BBFC to make it suitable and reduce the need for censorship. After looking at certification guidelines its clear that our film will make it into the 15 brackets, mainly because there will be minimal physical violence in our film, as we are making a psychological thriller the violence will mainly be psychological. The violence included will not be glamorised and portrayed in a negative light. We have also considered the way we are portraying Harry's medication. We have made sure that the pills are obviously prescribed and when he comes off the pills we have made the reaction a negative one so to show his anger in a negative light.

Our film will be geared more to the male demographic as I found from my audience research that thriller films usually appeal more to the male market. As our film is a 15 its left it very open to most of the population to be able to see it. It's not much of a worry that we lose people under the age of 15 because we found through our research that people under the age of 15 are more likely to watch a comedy or rom-com.

Alfred Hitchcock is one of the most influential psychological thriller directors of our time and his film's are inspiration for ours, his films Psycho and the Birds are bother certified 15 so I'm confident our certificate and target audience are correct.

Our film is likely to appeal to the social demographic C1, C2, D and E. This is because people of demographic group A and B are more likely to want to watch something more educated and possibly policital. The top layer of this film could be associated with the hypodermic needle theory but members of the demographic group C1 or E may be able to find the under layers and find the uses and gratifications of the film. Our film is going to be certified as a 15 so it will have to mainly appeal to demographic group E. most teenagers are automatically in demographic group E because most of the time they are students and even if they do have a part time job they will still mainly relay on other for income.

Olivia Saltmarsh

Filming day two

Our second filming day was on the 25th of March. We had learnt from our mistakes of our first filming day and made sure we were completely organised and ready to film. Before we went to our location to film we made a definitive plan of what we were going to film when and how we were doing our titles. It was decided that it would be best to film as much of it as we could in chronological order. We acknowledged the fact that this could take us longer to film but due to our problems before we thought it was important to make sure our titles are in the right order.

We chose to do it on the 25th because it was the start of daylight savings time. This meant we had an extra hour of light which we needed because we quickly ran out of light on our last filming day. It also meant our lighting would be more continuous because we wouldn't have to increase the amount of artificial lighting we used as the natural lighting faded. We also wanted to use as much natural lighting as we could to give the film more realism which is a convention of independent film.

We understood how to use our equipment better in this filming session. we used the tripod more efficiently when filming as before we hardly used it. This wasn't much of a problem but there were sometimes wobbles when someone was filming by holding the camera. By using the tripod more and making the bulk of our film look smoother when we moved into the hand held part of it the difference would make more of an impact on the audience. Also after looking at some of the clips we filmed before we noticed that there was some background noise when we zoomed. In some clips there will be music playing over the top and the clip can be muted so we can get around that but in some clips we need the internal sound so we decided to re film those bits and physically move the camera instead of zooming to reduce the whirring.

We realised that the mise in our first set of clips was sometimes not quite right, for instance we still had some posters on the wall of our location this made our film look more armature and less organised as the mise wasn't right and some of the props didn't fit. We decided that it was really important to put this right so on our second filming day we re-evaluated the mise of the room and changed some things around to improve this.

We have one or two scenes left to film after this session. On of them is on a different location and is to be filmed outside, we have considered the health and safety aspect of filming outside near a road so have decided to film during the day on a street we know will be quiet. A good thing about doing it during the day is that all of our actors and our crew will be in the same place all day which gives us scope as to when we are planning on filming. We are also considering re filming a few scenes to improve the look and continuity of them.

Olivia Saltmarsh

Filming Day One

Our first day of filming was a learning curve. We had to stop off at someones house to get costumes, wasting time and light. This has shown us that we should have the desired costumes at hand, and have over come this by keeping the costumes at our location.

We have decided to integrate our film titles into our film. This means that we need to be more organised a know exactly what title we want in what shot and how we are going to integrate it. However, we were not prepared for this and did not have all of our titles premade. We also did not film in chronological order, making it difficult to judge where the titles should be. This has shown us that we should have all of our titles ready when we are going to film. We are also going to film in chronological order to ensure that we have the titles in the correct places.

Lighting was another issue we encountered. As filming went on, we lost the continuity of light. As a result, we tried shading various lights however the continuity did not improve and we shall re film certain shots to gain this continuity. As the clocks go forwards, we will have more natural light and therefore more time to film.

Becky Rose

Film Schedule Sunday 25th March

We decided to film on Wednesday 21st March from 4.00 till 7.00 pm, we filmed quite a few scenes but due to natural light and some organisation problems we have decided to re-film some of the footage to improve each shot.

We are Filming again on Sunday 25th March and to combat the problems that occurred on Wednesday we have decided to organise and plan this film more, we Have created a film schedule in order to have every ready and film quickly without wasting time deciding what to do, we have planned the order in which tasks will be carried out in order to take full advantage of the natural light.

Sunday 25th March will also be a good day to film as the clocks go forward an hour on midnight on Saturday 24th giving us an extra hour of natural light to take advantage of when filming

Schedule

• 4.00pm - Filming starts and everyone is going to travel to the film destination where the equipment will already be set up to save time when filming.
• Re-film - We will start off by re-filming the first set of titles we have integrated into our film, this includes the main actors' and actress' names and the title of our film, we filmed these on Wednesday although we are not sure of the quality of the footage produced and whether we will be using it, we have decided to re-film so that we have a variety of footage to choose from and cut together for optimum quality in our final used footage.
• We then decided to film the shots in chronological order as we are integrating our title and this will stop us from getting confused about the placement of our titles.
• First Morning Routine - we are shooting our first morning routine in order again so that we can take advantage of the lighting in order to improve from Wednesday's filming, this will include: The awakening scene, Shower scene, The Pills scene, Harry getting dressed and having breakfast.
• We will then film both the Monologues for Harry videoing himself as this is the only real use of dialogue in the entire opening and it will be easier for us to film these both together as the lighting will be the same for each and we will be using the same equipment just having our main character changing costume.
• lastly we will (judging on natural light) film one of our last scenes in which our main character charges out of his house with a handheld camera, we will use a match on action shot in order to professionally complete this scene and to complete this we may use two cameras so that both pieces of footage will fit together well.

 Robert Thurgood Phillips

Film Schedules

When we as a group had discussed completely what to film for our opening sequence we decided to film,  we filmed for three days, Wednesday 21st of March, Sunday 25th of March and finally the following thursday 29th April 2012, after completing filming on these days we had almost all the required footage to create a very professional film, we encountered a few problems with organisation, but we figured our a solution to these problems and developed as a group in order to prevent these problems in the future.

Wednesday 21st of March. 

We had completed our planning and were ready to film our first lot of footage for our opening sequence, we had our full film synopsis and also our opening sequence synopsis completed and we knew the footage we needed to get, we planned to walk back to our primary film location and film the scenes in chronological order. 

The filming equipment was in hand and there was no confusion as to how we were going to film our footage, it was 4.00pm we we arrived at location and once our actor for Harry was in character we were ready to film, we filmed the waking scenes and the alarm clock scenes, each about for times in order to have plenty of footage to choose from when editing. 

we also filmed the bathroom scenes, of which parts were chosen for final footage, we had then realised we were not entirely co-ordinated and prepared for which scenes to shoot or how we were going to go about it, therefore this had to be decided and agreed on before filming could continue, and a majority of the opening scenes were not filmed at all.

After realising the problem at school and also noticing the natural light for our waking scenes was not able for use we decided that we had to prepare better for the next week, throughout the rest of the week, jobs, timings, costumes and props had been planned out and created in time for the next scheduled day of filming.

Sunday 25th of March. 

Once we had completed our first film day we realised our weaknesses and learnt very quickly how to combat them for our next shoot.

I created a film schedule for our second day in order to create some sort of plan for how we would go about it in order to remove chances of confusion which we had experienced the day before. 

Lighting was also taking into effect when planning within the four days between both days, we took full advantage of the clocks changing on the night before our filming on this day as it gave us extra natural light which we would have needed in order to make our film top quality. 

Our full film schedule complete with reasons of creation is located on a different post which will explain in full detail the plan of filming. 

 Lots of useful footage was produced on this shoot due to the massive improvement of organisation and our knowledge of what to expect from this task which we gained from our last, more unsuccessful shoot, we filmed much utilised final footage including lots of our integrated titles.

Although we prepared more for this shot, as we started filming at 4.00pm and finished at 7.00pm we realise we were probably too optimistic for the amount of useful footage we would receive, and although we filmed a lot of footage and this helped to raise our confidence after the first shoot, there were still problems that needed to be overcome, albeit smaller and rather more manageable problems.

Thursday 29th of March 

This was our final film day, and although no film schedule was created, rough notes and to do lists were created, although we all knew the shots which were left to do were manageable within this time frame, the last of our props were managed to be included and our integrated titles and actor were completely ready, this filming day, although the shortest was completed with the most fluency as i believe we had finally adapted to this type of task, we walked to the location directly after Sixth form and started filming roughly 4.30pm after a problem regarding a practical joke involving the camera delayed progress slightly.

The natural light was very good for our kitchen scenes and could be used to portray morning extremely well, we filmed all of the scenes within the kitchen and the antagonist's video diaries and managed to finish all of our footage to a brilliant standard ready for the editing task. 

The filming of the footage was the most fundemental part of production and although problems were encountered they were quickly overcome in order to finish with the superb footage we needed.

Robert Thurgood Phillips

Health and safety considerations

Before we start filming we have to think about the safety of both our actors and ourselves. Although they might seem like obvious things we still have to think about them to make sure everyone is safe and our filming runs smoothly.

As we are filming some aspects of our film outside by a road we have to be really careful about cars on the road as we may not be concentrating hard enough on the road as our priority will be our film so we will just make sure we are always keeping a look out and consider using a street we know will be quiet like down a cul-de-sac and try to film these scenes at a time that roads will be quiet like in the morning after the school run and commuting times. This will also reduce noise pollution in our film.

We will potentially be using at least one actor under the age of 18 so we need to make sure we get consent forms signed by their gaurdian under the child protection act as we need permission from an adult to let us film someone under 18. Without these we won't be able to film that person. We may also have an actor over the age of 18, we will need consent forms from them too but for a different reason, there is a chance that once filming is over an actor might not like the film or just change their mind and say they dont want the footage of them to be used or that they didnt give consent in the first place. If we have the consent form its like proof that they did give consent and that they dont have the right to withdraw content. This is all explained on the consent form so when the person signs it they have given informed consent.

We are using a lot of equipment that w have to be really careful with. We have to position cameras, tripods, dollys and cables really carefully to ensure no one would walk into them and hurt themselves, we will have to make sure everyone is aware of what equipment is where.

Olivia Saltmarsh

Final Script

For our second rough cut, I condensed the script down. By doing this, I hoped that the lines delivered would have a greater impact and that it would appear that Harry is blaming Penny for his insanity. Script Second Draft Script and post by Becky Rose

Final Shot List

This is our final shot list. Due to timings, we are also considering showing Harry going about more of his morning routine such as breakfast, however feel that these shots will probably take too long. However, we may also decide that our film may get too repetitive and therefore decide to show him a breakfast to add in variety and make the film more interesting to watch. We may also reduce the time of some of the shots to ensure that our film is faced paced which is a convention of a psychological thriller. Final Shot List Shot list and post by Becky Rose

Considering Sound

Sound is an important element while filming. It can help to create an atmosphere and help to determine the genre.  It is important that we use the correct music in order to create the music we want but not to use similar music to other psychological thrillers. I have been looking at royalty free music websites, and have discovered slow strings help to create an eerie atmosphere, however, I believe it will not make our pain protagonist, Harry, appear to be the antagonist but will also not portray him as innocent. The music should also be low as that will add the the sinister atmosphere we would like to create.

Sound ideas

Post and PowerPoint by Becky Rose 

Non-Diegectic Music For Our Opening.

Due to copy rights I made a song under two minutes long to match the criteria of the exam board. The songs consists of minor chords giving away the idea that its a sad story line, this meant that it went with our opening because its sad seeing someone mentally ill. The lyrics are about how he feels about his daughter Penny and i got my friend to sing it as though he was her dad so you get an idea of how he is feeling hence why he takes drugs every morning. We chose against using this song as a group though because we cant prove that No one else in the world used those chords in that order and we dont want to be penalised for copyright at the last minute so we have chosen music from royalty free which suits our opening better.

Jordan

Shot List Second Draft

Shot List TwoSecond Draft By Jordon Kenneally

This is the second draft of our shot list. The location and time column have now been completed, allowing us to see what shots we are expected to shoot where. We have said that all of the shots are to be filmed in the morning but this may change due to the timings of our shots and when our actors are available.

Becky Rose

Animatic Storyboard

We created an anematic storyboard in order  to see how our film would run. This will allow us o see howlong our shots would be and if the film would be too repetitive.  Through dong this, we have established how long we are going to hold all of each shot for. However, we are now realising that our film is very repetative which would not make our film appealing to watch, especially for our target audience who have a short attention span and do not like repitition. As a result, we are considering chaning some of the shots of the morning routine to ad variety and to make our opening more interesting to watch.

Storyboard by Bob, Livi, Jordan and Becky
Post by Becky Rose

Shot List First Draft

Shot List One

This is the first draft of our shot list. I have been unable to fill in the location and time columns as we have yet to make a final decision. The location will determine what time we will shoot because we need to account for time to get there and back in one lesson. This is not very detailed, so I shall now show this to my group and we will discuss what props we shall use when and the forms of lighting we can use. This will help to make our shot list more detailed.

Our shot list will help is to be organised and ensure that we have everything we need for each shot and when we need to film it. It will also ensure that we do not miss any shots when filming. The shot list will help us to see where we need to film each shot to ensure that we film the correct shots in the correct location. This will help ensure that we will not need to revisit a location as we forgot to film one shot, saving us time.

Becky Rose

Final Props List

When we are filming we will need to ensure that we have the following props:

• Litter to make Harry's room appear messy and unkempt. This will show that he is not looking after himself and enhances his dependence on Penny. 

• Scrabble for one of our titles and to make it appear that he has been playing with his daughter. Scrabble is made up of dark colours, connoting the sinister atmosphere we intend to create in the opening.

• Baby photos showing Harry remembers his daughter. By having the picture on the wall, it connotes that he loves his daughter and that he always has. This connotes that he still does which is partly so desperate to find her.

• Picture his daughter drew, acting as a title and showing he had a good relationship with his daughter. The picture will be drawn in bright colours, connoting that the child was happy. The people in the  picture will also have smiles to connote that the family were once all happy. This will help to create a furthur sense of myster and encourage the audience member to continue watching because they want to find our how the family became broken.

• Alarm clock to wake him up and show him going about his daily routine. As the days go on, it will take Harry longer to turn off the alarm, connoting tiredness and that he has given up now that Penny is not with him, thus connoting her maturity for looking after him.

• Pills and pill pot as the lack of pills will show that he is mentally unstable. We will also show a title on the pot. The pot is going to be dark brown or dark orange. This connotes that the pills hodl negative connotations which are seen later in the opening.

• We decided to use cereals instead of bread. This is because children typically prefer cereals to toast, making in appear that Penny has recently been living in the house. Through the cereals always begin present, connotes that Harry has not given up hope and that he believes Penny will come back.

• Carton of juice to show a title and him going about his daily routine. Light colours will be used on the carten, connoting that he is happy going about his daily life and that his mental illness does not effect him in this aspect of life.

• We will use teabags to show a title. This also connotes that the child might be slightly older, as teenagers typically drink tea. However, with the juice being earlier shown, shows that the house is lived in by both an adult and child. The everyday props used such as the tea bags and cereals will be brightly colored, connoting that Harry is normally happy going about his everyday life.

• Newspapers to show he is looking for his daughter and to include a title. The text will be red, connoting that dangerous information he may find in the paper, such as the news that his daughter is dead.

• To do list to show the lack of activity in his day and how this activity decreases the more mentally unstable he becomes. We will also show a title on this list.

• Sticky labels and pens to help create the titles

Becky Rose