Nine-Frame Analysis

This is a Nine-Frame Analysis of the Opening Sequence of The Women in Black. The Women in Black is one of the two films that inspired the story-line of my Film Opening.

SHOT 1: This shot  represents their childhood and what they did in their childhood, which further portrays their innocence. Later on in the Film Opening they step on these toys and crush them, therefore in the process destroying their childhood before their death.

SHOT 2:  This shot also portrays that they are only young children playing, so therefore the audience may sympathise with them and be anxious for the children as because it is a horror, they know something bad is going to happen to them because of the normality that is being shown, which is another convention of Horror film.

SHOT 3: This is the first shot that shows all three children. They look young, so this increases their vulnerability and innocence. It also makes the audience feels sorry for them as they seem oblivious to what is going to happen to them. 

SHOT 4: This shot again shows the innocence of children in horror films. This portrays that they do not deserve to be killed and make the audience sympathise with them. This idea will be shown in my own Film Opening to emphasise the fact that children in horror films are usually shown to be innocent and care-free.

SHOT 5: Here the two girls smiling faces portrays that they have no idea of what horrors are going to happen to them. It also shows that there is happiness even when their young lives are about to become no more due to a ghost seeking revenge.

SHOT 6: This shot also portrays happiness and the normality of the children's lives. This normality is playing which all children do. However, the sight of the ghost will destroy this happy scene and force it to become dark and miserable.

SHOT 7: This shot shows the three girls looking up to the camera which represents the ghost (which the audience does not know what they are looking at). As they do this, the mood and atmosphere of the film opening changes from happy to tense and mysterious, which is also shown through the more serious expressions on the girls faces.

SHOT 8: Here it portrays the three girls going towards the window, on whatever they have seen orders, to open it to jump. This sets the scene of the movies dark and murderous tone due to the loss of innocence.This also makes the audience more tense and horrified of the suicide that the children have no idea is happening to them.

SHOT 9: This shot is the last shot of the sequence and portrays an over-the-shoulder shot of the woman in black looking at the three windows the girls have jumped out of. This shows that she has not completed her revenge and also makes the audience more scared of what she is going to do next and how horrific the death is of her next victim.

Shot-list

Here is the Shot-list for how many takes I am approximately going to take for each shot and what is going to happen in each shot:

Audience Expectations

I asked five people about what they expected to see in my film genre, which is Horror. This helped me gain an idea of what my audience would like to see, so I can work my film around their expectations or maybe make my film opening more original. 

Here is what I found out from my Audience Research:

Final Storyboard

I redrafted my Storyboard in order to make the story-line of my Film Opening clearer to the audience and more interesting. I also, added a few shots to make my Film Opening the correct amount of time. Lastly, I included more types of shots in the Film Opening to gain a sense of location and what is going on throughout the Film Opening.

Here is my Final Storyboard:

Audience Research

I asked Grace a few questions on her interests to find out what my target audience are generally interested in. Doing this helped me understand if my target audience would be able to relate easily to the characters in my Film Opening.

Here is my Audience Research:

Psychographics

My target Audience will be like The Explorers as they search for new experiences and challenges, so my film would give be brand new and exciting for them as they are more energetic than other psychographic types. 

Costumes for my characters

THE MOTHER

Past

• Casual clothes - jumper, jeans and trainers.

Present

• Again Casual Clothes, a little more modern 

THE SON

Past

• T-Shirt, jogging bottoms and trainers.

THE GHOST

Past

• Long black dress.
• Black wig.
• Cuts and blood all over her face.
• Black shoes.

Present

• The same clothes she wore in the past as she is a ghost, so will keep the same clothes on throughout the years.

This is similar to what I want my ghost  to look like.

Film practice at my location!

Over the weekend I filmed parts of my film opening using two out of three of my actors. Instead I used stand in actors for the parts where the actor playing the ghost could not be in. On the whole, my practice went really well and I think using a skateboard to push my actor into the wal works well. However, for the skateboard there is a small risk that my actor may fall off, so I will make sure the skateboard moves at a slow and controlled pace.

Here is what I filmed at my location:

Film Opening Practice

For my Film Opening I needed to find a way to push my actor (Daniel) into the wall as safely as possible. I tried several different ways using a camera stand and tripod. I then went on to using Lauren and a skateboard. I came to the conclusion that I need to have Daniel pushing of from the wall and then I could reverse it in editing to make it look like he has been pushing into the wall. 

Film Company Idents

What is a Film Ident?

• A film ident is a short section of a film which are usually shown in trailers or in a Film Opening. 
• Film Idents are also used in Television Programmes because audiences can understand who is responsible for a the film of the Television Programme.

Why do we need a Film Ident? 

• Film Idents show the audience who is responsible for the production of the Film or Television programme. 
• Film Idents could be an animation, logo or company name.

Here are the different types of Film Company Idents:

Props

Props I am going to use:

• Toys scattered around the room and used for playing with.
• Chairs
• Tables
• Skateboard
• Various Kitchen equipment scattered around the Kitchen.
• Clinic Bed.

Age of the Mother in my Horror Film Opening

I have changed the age of the Mother in my Horror Film Opening from 38 years old to 48 old in the present day as it would be more realistic as she would be 38 when her son died and 48 10 years later in the present day in which my film is set in. 

StoryBoard for Film Opening

Here is the storyboard I created for my Film Opening. It shows every shot that I am hoping to accomplish and the voice overs and sounds I am going to add to each shot: 

PAGE 1

PAGE 2

PAGE 3

PAGE 4


















I made a storyboard to allow the process of filming to be easier and I will know where I want each shot to be and how it is going to be acted out by my actors. It also allows me to know the positioning of each character throughout the filming process. 

Children in Need Video

We filmed a Lip Sync Battle for Children in Need. We filmed some teachers Lip-Syncing to various songs and then edited them in X factor form. I learnt how to use the camera and use different techniques especially editing techniques as well. 

The Woman in Black 2: Angel of Death Film Review

A group of children move out of London because of the war into Eel Marsh House 40 years after Arthur Kipp's left to carry on schooling them and to keep them "safe". Eve who is a teacher starts to notice odd occurrences as the children in her care begin to be killed, after they bullied one young boy who always carries around a doll he found in one of the rooms. The audience know that he has been possessed by the Woman in Black, who seems to want revenge on Eve for getting rid of her own child. Eve enlists the help of a pilot to help investigate what she wants and why...

I like the Angel of  Death as it tells the audience what happened to the house after Arthur Kipp's left 40 years previously. It is a sequel of the Woman in Black (2012) film but tells the tale of the same woman but this time from a more horrific point of view. As children disappear in this film it tells the audience that Jennet Humfryes has not forgiven for the death of her child and is carrying on her revenge. This relates to my Film Opening as it contains a ghost that is seeking revenge by killing innocent children. The special effects in this film make it more scary, realistic and believable.

Here is a trailer for The Woman in Black 2: Angel of Death: 

Treatment Video

Here is a video of my Treatment presentation including the questions that were asked during my treatment:

Logo!

Here is my Logo for my production company for GreenApple Productions:

Certificate Ratings and what they mean

•   Not suitable for persons below 12 years of age. 
• In a cinema, they have to be accompanied by an adult, to watch the film. 

• A PG is suitable for viewers in General.
• However, some scenes will not be suitable for young viewers. 

• Films are not suitable for viewers below the age of 15.
• Viewers below 15 are not allowed to see the film in the cinema.

• No one younger than 18 can see the film in the cinema.
• Adults are free to choose their own entertainment.

For my Film opening I will us the age rating of 12A as some scenes are not suitable for those persons that are younger than this age,.

Locations for Film Opening

I will film my whole Film Opening in my Grandmas house. I will film the scenes where the son is being killed in the living room as it looks old and there is lots of space. There is also a suitable door which I can film the action through.

To film the scenes with the mother in I will use my Grandmas clinic room, as it is the setting that I want to make it look like she is in a hospital where they are treating her condition. 

Overall, I chose my Grandmas house as it has been standing there for years, so it looks and feels very old. It is also very spooky as there are many dark, musty and small rooms which add to the scary atmosphere that I could create in my Film Opening. 

Here are pictures of the Clinic Room I am going to use:

Here are pictures of the Lounge I am going to use:

My Treatment

Here is my Speech and Prezi presentation, for my Treatment, of my Film Opening: 

Nemesis is the Title of my Film opening, as it means vengeance. I chose this to be my title as my Film opening is about a ghost that wants revenge because she was killed by her husband, so thinks that no family that enters the house can  be a happy family, which is what she wanted before her untimely death.

I have three characters that are going to appear in My Film Opening. My Main Character in my Film Opening is the Mother. The Mother is a single mother who Is 38 years old, her name is Tessa she is going to be played by Margaret Carruthers, she was widowed two months before moving into the house where my Film Opening is set. She moved with her son after her husbands death for a fresh start. Her Son is called George, who is going to be played by Daniel Carruthers, he is eight years old when he is killed by the ghost. He is killed two months after moving into the house. My other main character, is the ghost. She is called Ariel, who is going to be played by Rebecca Clarke and she was 25 years old when she was killed, she came back as a ghost and wanted to fulfil revenge by tearing any family apart that tries to live in the house where she was killed in. She kills George as he is seen as innocent and vulnerable as he is young. The death of Tessa’s husband was also a factor to her condition in the present as she lost both members of her family in the space of four months, so she is filled with regret, remorse and guilt.

My Film Opening is set in the present day 2016. It is about a young mother who is haunted by her past, which is going to be set in 2006. In my Film opening she Flashes back to her sons death. In the Flashbacks she is watching her son being viciously killed through a locked door, in an old house where they were living. Her son is being killed , by the ghost of a 25 year old woman who was killed by her husband. Therefore, she wants to tear apart any family that tries to live in the house that she was killed in. The room that the son was killed is significant as it was also the room that Ariel was killed in, hence why she was haunting that particular room. The son was playing in the room two months after moving into the house, when the dreadful deed happened. These events have driven the mother mad with guilt and the fact the ghost is still haunting her in the present day. Therefore, she is not allowed out into society until she had fully recovered from her condition.

 If I filmed the rest of the Film, it would be about how the mother  tries to get rid of Ariel, who is still haunting her after ten years. She would also be let out into society once more, before her condition takes a turn for the worst when she cannot cope with her past haunting her. All these events lead to her eventual suicide.

The age rating of my Film is going to be a 12A as it contains moderate scenes of violence. It also, contains some scenes that viewers may find upsetting. I am directing my Film opening at both genders, as they would find it entertaining, scary and action packed , all ethnicities and Religions. I will also aim my film opening at middle-class citizens.

I chose Horror to be the genre of my Film opening, as I am always watching Horror films as it is one of my favourite Genres. Also, I felt like I could explore more camera techniques and mise en scene techniques to make my Horror Film. Firstly, I got my inspiration for my film opening from the Film, The Messengers. It gave me inspiration to use grey-scale colour grading in the flashbacks. It also gave me inspiration to have a family killed in an old house, this time by a supernatural creature. I also, got my inspiration for my ghost from the 2012 film The Woman in Black, as it is based on a ghost seeking revenge.

Thank you for listening, are there any questions? 

Age Ratings and Characters for My Horror Film

I am thinking I am going to make my Horror Film a 12A as it contains moderate Violence but it is advised for younger viewers to watch with an adult as most scenes will contain scary scenes and other scenes which they may find upsetting to watch.

The Characters in my Film are:

A Mother, called Tessa, age 38. Portrayed by Margaret Carruthers, who is  also going to be the make-up artist for the characters, in my Horror Film Opening. 

Her son, called George, age 8. Portrayed by Daniel Carruthers 

A Ghost, called Ariel, age 25. Portrayed by Rebecca Clarke 

Iconic Sounds in a Horror film opening

1.  Squeaking door: This may happen in the background of a scene in a horror movie. This is usually portrayed as a ghost opening a door. This will make the characters and the Audience more tense and apprehensive. 

2. Demonic Laugh: This will usually come from the villain or the ghost in a Horror Film. A Demonic Laugh will intensify the scariness of the Film.

3. Children Giggling: In horror films a dead child's laugh is seen as scary. Especially is it has an echo effect. Most people may find small, ghostly children in Horror films frightening.

4. Footsteps: Directors in Horror films usually use Footsteps to create a scary atmosphere and to increase the tension for the Audience and the fear and sense of threat for the characters as well.

5. Children Singing: As well as a child's laughter, they often use singing in a horror film. This increases the creepy atmosphere and the tension in the scene that it is being used in.

Setting and Title of my Horror Film Opening

I am going to film the mother in a clinic room to show that she is in a hospital and is not allowed out into society. I will film the son and the supernatural entity in the living room of an old house to show that the house is haunted. The room will be full of junk e.g. toys like children's and other pieces of furniture scattered around the place.

The door will have a window on it so I could film through it in the mothers perspective of watching her child being killed by a vengeful ghost. 

I have decided the title of my Film Opening will be Nemesis which means vengeance as the ghost wants revenge on anyone who tries to live in the house.  

Idea for the Story Line of my Film Opening!

Here is the story line of my Film Opening:

The Mother's story

A mother talks about (in her head) and flashbacks to her young son's death, six years previously. She is not allowed out into society, because she has been driven mad by guilt and also the fact that the same creature that killed her son now haunts her. When she is allowed into society, it all gets to much for her as she keeps seeing the same ghostly figure everywhere she goes. This leads to her eventual suicide which would have been at the end of the movie if it had been a whole movie.

Why the Ghost killed her Son

The Ghost is of a young Woman in her twenties, who was viciously murdered by her husband. From her death, she has vowed revenge to tear apart any family that tries to live in the house (as a ghost). Therefore, when a mother and son move into the house (this would take place two months before the time when the film is set) she haunts them before killing the son, whilst the mother is watching, helpless.

Where it is set

The film opening is set in one room of an old house, which is the room the son is being killed in, whilst the mother watches on through a window. She is unable to do anything, however.

Ideas For my Horror film opening...

I have taken inspiration from the horror film, The Messengers in order to have a rough plan on what my film opening is going to look like, sound like and what the story line is going to be. Even though I have not figured out my story line just yet, I have figured out what colour-grading I want to use and what sounds I want to use. 

I would like low-grade lighting for my film opening to make the audience know that it is going to be a horror film opening. I also would like the sound affect of nails scratching against a floor, like someone being dragged away. This is a picture of Lindsay Rollins in The Messengers being dragged away: 

I think I would like to base my story on a family being killed, like in The Messengers, however, I would like a supernatural entity to murder them instead of an alive person, to make it more spooky and interesting. This is what I would like the base the face of my supernatural, ghostly being on:

This is a young boy that was killed in the opening sequence of The Messengers,who made a ghostly appearance in the film. However, I would like to edit it to make it look older and use a woman instead of a man or a young boy, to alter the story line of my film opening, 

The Messengers Film Review

The Messengers starts with a grey-scale screen of a family being killed and tortured by an unknown entity. The screen then flicks to a coloured screen with a family of four driving towards the same house. Little do they know the dark occurrences that  happened in the house years before. It was six years since the Rollins family left with no reason (even though we know from the opening sequence they were killed)  The Soloman family then move in to the house to rebuild their lives after their young sons accident which caused him to be hospitalised due to Jess' (Kristen Stewart) drunk driving. When they settle in to the house strange occurrences start to happen which seems to have an affect on the youngest son. Jess to realises something strange is happen, but her parents will not believe her. The Soloman family meet John Burwell a drifter, but Jess soon finds out something about him that will change everything, could he be what the supernatural creatures want? and why? And what are the significance of the crows? Can Jess persuade her parents that something terrible is happening? Can she save them? 

I like the Messengers as it is full of mystery and horror. It also makes you want to watch more as it makes the audience question everything. I also liked how the film started with a grey-scale colour grading to inform the audience that the opening scene is set in the past and then flicking to a screen full of colour to signify the present. I also liked how one of the Rollins family is dragged away in the opening sequence, this makes me want to use this in my own film opening and also it makes me want to think about whether I want my own film opening to be in greys-scale or in colour to represent the past, present or possibly the future. Lastly, I also like how the audience is kept in the dark about what is attacking the Rollins family in the opening sequence of the film. The audience will assume that it is a ghostly or supernatural entity that is attacking them, but by the end of the film they will learn that it was something very very different, which will shock the audience as all the questions they were asking will finally be answered. 

Here is the Film trailer of The Messengers: 

The History of Horror

Here are some facts about the History of Horror:

• Horror films first found their inspiration from Gothic Literature.
• The term "Horror" was not used in films until the 1930's.
• Several experiments were carried out on silent film-making in the horror genre. This included the first Frankenstein which was adapted by the Thomas Edison studios in 1910 and Dante's inferno by Giuseppe de Liguoro in Italy in 1911. 
• Horror is an ancient art form. 
• Since the first communication in man, the horror genre has been used to scare and frighten others.
• Horror is not just in the form of films, it is also in the form of novels, comics, stories and television shows.
• The 1920's and the 1930's were the first decades to show scary films. In this period, there were remakes of classic stories, for example: Brams Stoker's Dracula, Nosferatu, Frankenstein, Bride of Frankenstein and The Mummy.
• In the 1940's there was a steep decline of horror films. There were however some horror films released such as; Wolf Man, Cat People, House of Dracula and House of Frankenstein.
• The 1950's saw films such as; The Wasp Woman, The Beast from 20,000 fathoms and It cam from beneath the Sea being released.
• The Birds, Carnival of souls, Blood feast and Night of the Living Dead were released in the 1960's.
• In the 1970's films like; The exorcist, Jaws, Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Carrie, The Omen and Halloween were released.
• The 1980's saw Hellraiser, Nightmare on elm Street, The Fly, The Thing and The Shining being released.
• Horror films such as; Se7en, Silence of the Lambs, Misery, Candyman and Sixth Sense were released in the 1990's.
• Lastly, in the 2000's films such as; Final destination saga, The Ring, The Grudge and the descent being released.

The Horror Genre is very popular, especially amongst teenagers and young adults. I could use inspiration from all these different films, to use in my Film Opening to make it more lively. Also, I like some of the ideas used in these horror films and therefore want to use them in my own. 

In my opinion, horror films have got more complex and scarier over the decades because of the increasing number of fans and the increasing amounts of different technology they could use to edit the films to make them scarier. 

Here is a trailer from one of my favourite horror films, which was released in 2012. This Horror film is called the Woman in Black based on Susan Hills story:

Top Ten Camera Shots

Here are 10 different camera shots I could use in my Film Opening for the genre, Horror:

Top ten camera shots from Kathryn Thornton

Evaluation of My Preliminary Task

For our Preliminary Task, we had to film two people in conversation with each other, one walking through the door in the first few shots. Firstly, I filmed Alainah walking through a door, then I cut the shot. Then I filmed her walking through the door again, this time I was on the other side of the door filming her coming in to the room. In the next shot, I filmed her walking over and sitting opposite Lauren before cutting the shot again. I then filmed Alainah in conversation with Lauren from behind Lauren. Then I did the same thing but this time filmed from behind Alainah, therefore I could edit this into a shot - reverse - shot conversation. Overall, I found the task relatively easy to film, but slightly more complicated at the editing stage. I found editing the conversation to make it a shot-reverse-shot , as it was difficult to section each line in the correct places.

In order to film my Preliminary Task, I used two actresses, Alainah and Lauren, I used a school video camera and a Tripod, a door and a Desk and two chairs. In order to use the Camera and Tripod correctly, we were taught to attach and detach the camera from the Tripod and also how to adjust the tripod in order to gain the correct height for filming with. We used Movie Maker to edit our film. As I was new to Movie Maker, I was taught how to use it, after that I learnt howto edit each shot to gain the shot I wanted and the order I wanted it to be in. I also learnt how to cut out or silence sounds that I did not want in my film, and replace them with new sounds over the top.

I planned the task by using a storyboard to carefully plan each shot of my film. I drew each shot out and wrote down what the actresses were going to do, where they were going to stand and what they were going to say in each shot. I used the storyboard to get my actresses to do exactly what I wanted them to do. Having a storyboard helped when filming as I could get the filming process done quickly and how I wanted it to be acted, with little mistakes. However, I did revert slightly from my storyboard to include the 180 degree rule. In my storyboard, I had Person 1 (Alainah) walking in the door in front of Person 2 (Lauren), In my actual film I decided to have Alainah coming in from the door at the side, so I could incorporate the 180 degree rule. Overall, I stuck very strictly to my storyboard during filming.

I faced little challenges throughout the planning and construction of my Preliminary Task. However, I did face some challenges whilst editing it. After re-watching some of my shots I realised that Alainah and Lauren had started talking once Alainah had sat down, when I just wanted Alainah to sit down before I cut the shot. I overcame this during the editing. During editing I completely cut the sound out of that shot to silence the talking. However, when I watched the film I noticed that it was too silent after the previous shot, as the previous shot had background noises. To overcome this, I cut and pasted the sounds from the first shot into this shot to make it sound more realistic and it fitted together with the rest of the film.

Mrs Williams' friend Axel, came in to watch our Preliminary Tasks and to give us feedback on them. He said that one of the main issues with mine was the headroom with the first shot. He said that the top of Alainah's head was too low down from the top of the door. To overcome this problem in the future I will make sure I film from lower down to reduce the headroom. He also said that there was too much space on the right side of Lauren and Alainah, in future if I am filming two people talking, I will film them sitting at a diagonal to each other. The last thing he said about my Preliminary Task was that the camera was too high. In my actual film opening I will make sure that I film at the same level as each persons eye-line. I found his advice very  useful and I will make sure that I include all of his advice in my actual Film Opening.

Overall, I am very pleased with the outcome of my Preliminary Task as I learnt new camera techniques and how to use the tripod and video camera correctly. I have also learnt that you need to draw out each shot on the storyboard in great detail as it will help your filming easier on the day. I can apply all the camera techniques that I have learnt in order to film to best possible film opening.

Here is a picture on shot-reverse-shot:

Harry Potter Tour Film

Here is short video of our tour around the Warner Bros. Studios, the making of Harry Potter. Here is some of Mrs Williams' footage from our trip. We had a lesson and learnt about the different marketing techniques that companies such as Warner Bros. did to promote their films.

Conventions on Film Openings

Here is a short slideshow on what I found about Conventions of Film Openings

Conventions of film openings from Kathryn Thornton

Help from a camera man

On Wednesday in our lesson, Mrs Williams' friend who is a camera man came in to critique our Preliminary tasks and instruct us on how to make the perfect film opening. He also showed us how he would film our Preliminary tasks and corrected us on our mistakes. 

What I learnt from him about how to make the perfect film opening:

• To maintain headroom and to either have a mid shot, close up or a shot of the whole person, not in between, especially as they were walking away from the camera.
• To film at each persons eye line.
• To use up as much space as possible to avoid empty spaces which are not needed.
• To call for action after rolling the camera in order to capture all of the action - you can always cut the director saying "action" during the editing stage.
• Never cross the 180 degree line.
• Finish each shot completely before cutting. 
• Frame the shot when a person sits down. 
• Have the camera at the correct height. 

Foley Sounds

Foley sounds are sound effects which are added to a film or any other media source in order to enhance the quality of the audio. Foley sounds are created in the editing stage.  These sounds can be:

• Swishing of clothing or wind.
• Footsteps.
• Squeaky doors.
• Shattering glass.
• Knocking.

Foley sounds are used in the film Hunger, especially when the doctors puts the duvet over the main character. Foley sounds are also used through footsteps in the hallway in some scenes of the film. However, we would expect to hear these sounds as they sound realistic and they contrast whats happening to the main character. This contrast is the noise of the hallway compared to the silence that surrounds the main character when he is on his deathbed. 

I can used Foley sounds in my horror movie to enhance how realistic it is. For example; I can use footsteps to increase the tension of some scenes in order to make the audience feel tense and scared. Knocking can also be used to create this tense and scary atmosphere I intend to accomplish when making my film opening. 

Here is a trailer of the Film Hunger:

Warner Bros. Studio Tour

On Thursday we went to the Warner Bros. Studios where the film Franchise Harry Potter was made. We toured around the studios and saw all the different props, costumes, make up and sets that were used in the making of the eight films. It was interesting to see how many props and costumes were made for the characters or sets in the film and how many props that were expensive to make but hardly ever appeared in the actual films.

We also had a lesson on film marketing where I learnt how they story boarded each scene in each movie very carefully and with lots of detail. I also learnt that the director used cardboard models of various sets to plan out what he wanted it to look like and also where he wanted to stage the actors and actress and where he wanted them to move to throughout the scene. This was a good way to plan in advance so both the directors, producers, actors and cameramen knew where to move to and which spots they should be standing or sitting in. This plan would also be helpful to the cameramen so they know where to position their cameras to get the best shot.

I can apply what I learnt to my own Film Opening as I can plan out exactly what I want my actors to be doing the day I film my Film Opening. This will help me film the scenes more accurately and easily. Lastly, I will storyboard in great detail what scenes are going to be where and how I want each scene to be acted.

Here are a few pictures I took on my tour around the Warner Bros. Studios: 

Digetic and Non-Digetic Sounds

In our previous Media Lesson, we have been learning about Digetic and Non-Digetic sounds are.

• Digetic Sound: Sounds which exist within the film. A character in a film would be able to hear Digetic sounds. Digetic sounds could be a door slamming or footsteps along a hallway etc.
• Non-Digetic Sound: Sounds which no character inside the film can hear. These sounds could be music playing in the background or a voice over portraying a characters thought for example.

An example of Non-Digetic sounds can be heard in the Film hunger. When Bobby Sands dies sad music can be heard playing in the background. There are also examples of Digetic sounds in this film when the prison doors slam and there are footsteps in the hallway. Lastly, when Bobby Sands dies the audience can hear the faint sound of birds flying away from the tree, this is another example of a Non-Digetic sound.

I can use both Non-Digetic and Digetic sounds in my Film opening. As my Film Opening is a horror I can use Digetic sounds such as footsteps and loud crashes and bangs to amplify the fear of the the audience and to induce jump scares more efficiently. I could also use Non-Digetic sounds such a scary background music and a voice over to show the audience the characters fear. 

Mise En Scène

In the last couple of lessons we have been learning about Mise En Scène. When analysing a sequence of Mise En Scène, you have to look at how the different elements and techniques work together in order to:

• Tell a Story
• Evoke and atmosphere
• Give the audience information
• Provoke the audience to respond
• Highlight key themes.

In Chicken Run, the sky is red when Mrs Tweedy - the antagonist of the film - enters the Chicken Cage. The sky is red to signify danger. When Edwina is carried off to be killed the sky goes dark and the mood changes the scared. After Edwina has been killed, the Sky behind Ginger reflects her sadness by turning a dark blue. I can use different effects to make the sky different colours in my own film opening. As my film opening is a Horror, I can use darker and more sinister colours such as black or brown.

Also, Mise en Scène is used in the film, The Duchess. In this film, different settings are used to portray her departure from civilisation to pure isolation. The settings that are used are:

• The streets of London.
• The courtyard of Devonshire House.
• The hallway of Devonshire House.
• The bedroom where The Duchess awaits the arrival of her new husband.

The streets of London are presented with brown colours, to give it the look of uncleanliness compared to Duchess' carriage which is pristine. Shen then travels through and archway to the courtyard which is clean and more richer and well kept than the streets. Going through the first archway signifies one more step into isolation. She then goes through another archway into the hallway. The hallway is big and grand, this signifies herself in total isolation. The bedroom where she awaits her new husband is small and dark which portrays her as trapped and isolated. I could use different settings in my Horror film opening, to emphasise isolation from Civilisation like in The Duchess. 

Cinematography

In Chicken Run Mrs Tweedy is film from a low angle shot to portray her power over the chickens. This low angle shot portrays her a tall and makes her the evil character due to her facial expression. The chickens are relatively small compare to Mrs Tweedy. Close ups are also shown of Mrs Tweedy's face. This portrays the evil and malice on her face as she prepares to choose which chicken will meet their end (getting their head chopped off) There are also close ups of the chickens faces to portray their fear of her, as they see her as a tall and frightening. After Edwina has been killed, there are several close ups of Gingers (the main character) face. The close ups of her face portray her sadness and teary eyes as she has lost her friend.

In Wallace and Gromit, there is close ups on Gromits face in the scene where they brainwash the rabbits. There is a mixture of emotions like fear and disbelief. Also, the camera is still whilst focusing of Gromit who is a calm and sensible character and when the camera focuses on Wallace who is in the midst of the action, the camera is slight shaky and at different angles to represent chaos. Framed shots are used in Wallace and Gromit. These shots are used when Wallace and Gromit surround the cage containing Hutch (the rabbit that has been brainwashed). Wallace is half inside the cage with hutch and Gromit if on the outside of the cage looking sceptical. Once Wallace and Gromit leave , hutch shakes. This creates tension for the audience as to what is going to happen next.

In my own Horror Film opening I will use a range of close up shots of the protagonist characters to portray fear and a range of emotions in their faces. I will also use close up shots of the antagonists face to portray their evil and malice on their faces. I will also use low angle shots of the antagonist to represent how scary and tall they are compared to the protagonists. Lastly, I will also use framed shots in my Film Opening to give a feel of isolation to the protagonists of the Film Opening.

 

The Key conventions of a Horror film

• Horror films are usually set in scary, dark and haunted places. These places could range from haunted houses, to streets, to gardens and dark and damp alleyways.
• Key themes of horror films are the good versus the evil, nightmares, beyond death, suicide, murder, ghosts and mainly the supernatural.
• In every horror film special effects are used to make the film more terrifying and to induce jump scares to frighten the audience and to keep their attention and interest throughout the film.
• Horror films are designed to scare and unsettle the audience.
• Other settings are usually in isolated places to make the character feel cut off from civilisation. This makes the character feel trapped and isolated in a haunted and ghostly place. This creates more tension for both the character sand the audience.
• They can be sometimes set in a place that has a dark past. For example an abandoned house or mental asylum.
• Sometimes in horror films children will play the more sinister role.
• Props like knives and chainsaws can be used to create more fear.
• Costumes are used to create more fear in the antagonists. 
• In my own film opening I will use some of these key conventions to create more fear and tension and to make my film opening more scary. Also, using the key conventions will make my Film Opening more interesting and I could use the key conventions to make the audience more unsettle and frightened.