update

One double lesson left and we still haven't finished filming! When Beth filmed her bit she used a knife in the scene but this meant the rest of the film didn't match up as the character didn't have a knife in any other scenes! So now i've got to re film 3 scenes tomorrow night and then use the last lesson on thursday to upload and edit the footage. Luckily our music is finished and I don't need to edit anything else-I hope!

uh oh

Well just before the easter holidays mrs bannon told us that our film didn't make any sense!!!! So (panicking) I decided we needed to film some extra bits to make the narrative clearer. So we took the camera for the holidays and each had to film one scene. Trouble with this was i had to some how get the camera to Beth over the holidays. Luckily she was in my village one day so i managed to meet up with her to give her the camera.
When we get back to school we only have two double lessons to upload new footage, edit new footage, tweak other scenes, finish off music and import it to where our movie is. Time is ticking away while i'm sat here not being able to do anything!! Let's hope we don't have another problem with the fire alarm!!!!!!!

Filming

Well we have now nearly finished filming. We have done the title sequence scenes, house scenes and river scenes, but we may need to add to the house and river scenes due to some continuity problems (the actress isn't wearing any shoes in the house scenes but is in the river scenes!!!) I thought that once we had filmed it would all fit together nicely but i'm not happy with the end result-it doesn't really seem like a thriller to me. I no it only needs to be the opening so it doesn't have to make sense, but I don't like our opening and I can't think how i can improve our idea- can anyone help?!?!

Audience research

For our audience research we decided to use questionnaires. We used about 50 people to answer the questions-some from school and some from outside school. This means we managed to get a range of answers from people who might know a lot about thrillers or who don't know anything at all. This is what our questionnaire looked like-

1.What is your favourite sub-genre of thriller? Tick one

Psychological Political Crime Horror

Action and Adventure Supernatural


2.What scares you the most? E.g. birds, the dark.


3.What would expect to see in a thriller? E.g. blonde woman, forests.


4.What setting do you think is most effective for a thriller?


5.Do you prefer to see straight cuts or fancy transitions (fades, dissolves)?


6.Would you a rather a thriller made you think or used clues?



7.Do you think voice overs explaining what is happening in the narrative are useful?

Yes No not sure

8.What sort of music would you use if you were making a thriller? Tick one

Strings Drums Harmonious Piano

9.Describe a character from a thriller you have seen, including their name if possible and why you like them or think they are effective in their role.

10.What is your favourite thriller and why?

From reading through the questionnaires we have found that psychological thrillers are the most popular. We think this could be because it means you have to think which is also what was highlighted as being preferred to using clues. From this we think that our thriller will be good as it is going to make the audience think about what has happened, who has been hurt and what is going to happen next.

Many said that the dark and being alone are things they are scared of, so again we have used these concepts in our opening.

Strings and piano music are the two main instruments that people thought were good for thriller films. So, we are using these in our score.

As for settings, the main places were forests, the city, somewhere dark and deserted, or places that seem normal eg. houses. So we have shots filmed inside a house and in a forest near a river. This way we can get the best of two settings to appeal to a wider range of people.

Posted by Beth and Stef

Blood

Here are a few blood recipes i found on http://www.exposure.co.uk/eejit/blood/blood.html
Lo-Cost Blood -
Add a few drops of red food colouring to the cheapest washing up liquid you can find. Add a drop of blue colouring or some coffee concentrate to create a more realistic colour. Produces a runny blood that has a slight tendency to foam. Great for those bucket of blood effects on the cheap. Washes off reasonably well but tastes foul if you accidently get it in your mouth.
Corn Syrup Blood -
This is the recipe that pretty much everyone uses, and there's a lot of variations so feel free to experiment.
16 oz. White corn syrup (Karo syrup - this is a US product, but adding golden syrup does the job just as well, alternatively just mix sugar and water and reduce on the stove until it becomes syrupy)
1 oz. red food coloring
1 oz. washing detergent
1 oz. water
Add a drop of blue food colouring to create a more realistic colour. Remove the washing up liquid if you want to make edible blood. Adding condensed milk makes it less transparent and more like real blood.
The blood is extremely sticky and can stain skin and clothes so makes sure its washed off quickly. Use a stain remover on clothes.

I think the second one seems the best, just got to buy the ingredients now!!!!

looking for MUSIC!!

Something without lyrics, bit rocky but also look into some classiacal stuff. But something fast paced to fit with the action scenes but then to contrast with the coloured water shots for some asymetery to add to confusion and distortion of thoughts.

Any ideas from people will be appreciated thanks!!!

Things to get..

We need to make up some fake blood to drip over the bridge, we will make quite a lot as it may go wrong!
food dye in the water bowl shots could be tricky to film right. Practice for this will begin straight away so we know the right consistancys and containers for the best shots.
A gun to be wrapped up in plastic bags should be ok to get
Stones to throw over the bridge will be in abundance around the forest!

Costumes are pretty uncomplicated for our characters, the boy will be wearing a hoody so that he can wear it up adding to the concealment that we want to convey. The girl will be wearing light or possibly white clothes to make the audience feel she could be innocent but really this will be a double bluff as she is the protaganists. We want her to be blonde for this reason to. To show off her blonde hair we want it to be worn down.

Locations, locations, locations

There's a bridge with a stream running underneath in Ixworth. It has a track running down to it then a small forest near so this would be good for our film, also it is easy to get to for both of us and the others we wish to employ for the filming! We are hoping for a windy day for filming which will make the trees move and some atmospheric sounds hopefully.

We will use the actresses house for the inside shots as it has quite an open plan living stlye so running around and looking through draws ect. will be easy to follow with the camera. We are considering the action shots in black and white and if we do this then we will fade down the lights to make some obscure shadowing and shapes. Shooting at dusk time will make good shapes around the bridge to hopefully and make it shadowy in the forest.

We have some other ideas in mind if these end up not working!

Plot Summery number 1!!!

This is the first draft of our plot summery, here it goes...

* see the boy standing on the bridge
*he then throws a stone into the stream
*a close up of the ripples created by the stone
*then see the girl in her house seaching manically for something but we don't know what
*the girl will then leave her house
*we will see the boy on the bridge over the girls shoulder
*a scuffle breaks out between the two
*blood is dripping over the edge of the bridge into the water

How does this look to people? It is just the action we will see, it doesn't really flow but this is almost what we want. The scenes will be broken up with the shots of the colour in water.

If you can understand it please comment and offer anything cheers!

Things i need to do- a sort of note to self!

Right i need to find something that will be good for fake blood, but at the same time won't stain stone or kill fish lol!
I also need a black toy hand gun so if any one has one can i borrow it please???
I need to buy some red food colouring for Beth's idea.
And last but not least i need to find a girl-preferably blonde and a boy to star in our wonderful film!!!!!

If anyone can help with these please leave me a comment or come and see me at school.
Cheers Stef xxx

My film idea

Ok so finally i've come up with an idea for our film. I've ran it by Beth and she seemed to like it (i hope) so here we go. sorry if i dont explain it very well!!

We start with an opening shot of the red food colouring in the water, possibly the same as in the film below, dark with a faint light on it. Then we cut away to a man/boy stood on the bridge over a river. We cant see his face as the camera will be behind him. He throws a stone in the river, we get a close up of the stone hitting the water. We then cut to another scene of a girl getting a gun out her bedroom draw. She holds the gun up looking at it lovingly. We then cut back to the food colouring shot. We then cut back to the man/boy on the bridge, the camera pans around behind him showing the trees moving in the wind-wind howls. We then cut back to girl who is leaving her house, then it fades (or something like that to show pass of time) to her walking up behind the man/boy (over shoulder shot) she goes to smack him round the head with the gun, but he blocks the hit and they start scrapping (quick snappy cuts to show fight and build suspense) then the gun goes off-scene goes black then cuts to a shot of blood dripping down the side of the bridge and a close up of the blood dripping into the water. So hopefully this will make the audience think...hang on, so who died then??? And wala we have a thriller opening all being well. Please leave me some comments on how I can adapt or improve this as it is only one of my first ideas. Thankyou for reading this goobledygoop!

I cant believe our idea has already been done!

Beth had a great idea of using red food colouring in water for our opening shots, then just the other day I was on longroadmedia.com (which by the way is a good website guys!) and I was watching a film when suddenly....our idea came up. But I must admit it has helped me think of ways to do ours so we have defintely benefited from it. So here you are, take a look at how our film will hopefully turn out!

What is a thriller???

Thriller and suspense Films are types of films known to promote intense excitement, suspense, a high level of anticipation, ultra-heightened expectation, uncertainty, anxiety, and nerve-wracking tension. Thriller and suspense films are virtually synonymous and interchangeable categorizations, with similar characteristics and features.
If the genre is to be defined strictly, a genuine thriller is a film that rentlessly pursues a single-minded goal - to provide thrills and keep the audience cliff-hanging at the 'edge of their seats' as the plot builds towards a climax. The tension usually arises when the main character(s) is placed in a menacing situation or mystery, or an escape or dangerous mission from which escape seems impossible. Life itself is threatened, usually because the principal character is unsuspecting or unknowingly involved in a dangerous or potentially deadly situation. Plots of thrillers involve characters which come into conflict with each other or with outside forces - the menace is sometimes abstract or shadowy.
Thrillers are often hybrids - there are suspense-thrillers, action- or adventure- thrillers, sci-fi thrillers (such as Alien (1979)), crime-caper thrillers (such as The French Connection (1971)), western-thrillers (such as High Noon (1952)), film-noir thrillers (such as Double Indemnity (1944)), even romantic comedy-thrillers (such as Safety Last (1923)).
Characters in thrillers include convicts, criminals, stalkers, assassins, down-on-their-luck losers, innocent victims (often on the run), prison inmates, menaced women, characters with dark pasts, psychotic individuals, terrorists, cops and escaped cons, fugitives, private eyes, drifters, duplicitious individuals, people involved in twisted relationships, world-weary men and women, psycho-fiends, and more. The themes of thrillers frequently include terrorism, political conspiracy, pursuit, or romantic triangles leading to murder.
Sub-genres
The thriller genre can include the following sub-genres, which may include elements of other genres:
• Action thriller - In which the work often features a race against the clock, contains lots of violence, and an obvious antagonist. These films usually contain large amounts of guns, explosions, and large elaborate set pieces for the action to take place. These films often have elements of mystery films and crime films but these elements take a backseat to action. Notable examples are the James Bond films, The Transporter, and the Jason Bourne novels and films.
• Conspiracy thriller - In which the hero/heroine confronts a large, powerful group of enemies whose true extent only he/she recognizes. The Chancellor Manuscript and The Aquitane Progression by Robert Ludlum fall into this category, as do films such as Three Days of the Condor and JFK.
• Crime thriller - This particular genre is a hybrid type of both crime films and thrillers that offers a suspenseful account of a successful or failed crime or crimes. These films often focus on the criminal(s) rather than a policeman. Crime thrillers usually emphasize action over psychological aspects. Central topics of these films include murders, robberies, chases, shootouts, and double-crosses are central ingredients. Some examples include The Killing, Seven, Reservoir Dogs, Inside Man, and The Asphalt Jungle.
• Disaster thriller - In which the main conflict is due to some sort of natural or artificial disaster, such as floods, earthquakes, hurricanes, volcanoes, etc., or nuclear disasters as an artificial disaster. Examples include Stormy Weather by Carl Hiaasen, Tremor by Winston Graham, and the 1974 film Earthquake.
• Drama thriller - In which the story consists of the elements of a thriller and drama film. These films are usually slower paced and involves a great deal of character development along with plot twists. Examples include The Illusionistand The Prestige.
• Eco-thriller - In which the protagonist must avert or rectify an environmental or biological calamity - often in addition to dealing with the usual types of enemies or obstacles present in other thriller genres. This environmental component often forms a central message or theme of the story. Examples include Nicholas Evans's The Loop, C. George Muller's Echoes in the Blue, and Wilbur Smith's Elephant Song, all of which highlight real-life environmental issues.
• Erotic thriller - In which it consists of erotica and thriller. It has become popular since the 1980s and the rise of VCR market penetration. The genre includes such films as Basic Instinct, Fatal Attraction, Looking for Mr. Goodbar, and In the Cut.
• Horror thriller - In which conflict between the main characters are mental, emotional, and physical. Two recent examples of this include the Saw series of films and the Danny Boyle's 28 Days Later. What sets the horror thriller apart is the main element of fear throughout the story. The main character(s) is not only up against a superior force, but they are or will soon become the victims themselves and directly feel the fear that comes by attracting the monster's attention. Other well-known examples are Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho and Thomas Harris's The Silence of the Lambs.
• Legal thriller - In which the lawyer-heroes/heroines confront enemies outside, as well as inside, the courtroom and are in danger of losing not only their cases but their lives. The Pelican Brief by John Grisham is a well known example of the type.
• Medical thriller - In which the hero/heroine are doctors or medical personnels working to solve an expanding medical problem. Robin Cook, Tess Gerritsen, Michael Crichton, and Gary Braver are well-known authors of this subgenre. Nonfiction medical thrillers are also a subcategory, comprising works like The Hot Zone by Richard Preston. Films such as Awake are other examples of medical thrillers.
• Political thriller - In which the hero/heroine must ensure the stability of the government that employs him. The success of Seven Days in May (1962) by Fletcher Knebel, The Day of the Jackal (1971) by Frederick Forsyth, and The Manchurian Candidate (1959) by Richard Condon established this subgenre.
• Psychological thriller - In which (until the often violent resolution) the conflict between the main characters is mental and emotional, rather than physical. The Alfred Hitchcock films Suspicion, Shadow of a Doubt, and Strangers on a Train and David Lynch's bizarre and influential Blue Velvet are notable examples of the type, as is The Sixth Sense by M. Night Shyamalan and The Talented Mr. Ripley by Patricia Highsmith (who also wrote Strangers).
• Spy thriller (also a subgenre of spy fiction) - In which the hero is generally a government agent who must take violent action against agents of a rival government or (in recent years) terrorists. Examples include From Russia with Love by Ian Fleming, The Bourne Identity by Robert Ludlum, and television series such as Mission: Impossible and 24 (the latter demonstrating a break from the norm by Robert Ludlum, as it is as much a psychological thriller as a spy thriller.)
• Supernatural thriller - In which the conflict is between main characters, usually one of which has supernatural powers. Carrie by Stephen King and Unbreakable by M. Night Shyamalan are notable examples of this genre. This type of thriller combines tension of the regular thriller with such basic horror oriented ingredients as ghosts, the occult, and psychic phenomenon; the supernatural thriller combines these with a frightening but often restrained film. They also generally eschew the more graphic elements of the horror film in favor of sustaining a mood of menace and unpredictability; supernatural thrillers often find the protagonists either battling a malevolent paranormal force or trapped in a situation seemingly influenced or controlled by an other-worldly entity beyond their comprehension.
• Techno-thriller - A work that usually focuses upon military action, in which technology (usually military technology) is described in detail and made essential to the reader's/viewer's understanding of the plot. Tom Clancy defined and popularized the genre with his The Hunt for Red October, and is considered to be the "Father of the Technothriller."
Most thrillers are formed in some combination of the above, with horror, conspiracy, and psychological tricks used most commonly to heighten tension. Combinations are highly diverse, including:
• Science Fiction/Techno/Horror thrillers: Jurassic Park, Aliens vs. Predator
• Techno/Political/Conspiracy/Military/Horror Thriller: Predator, Robocop, S.M. Stirling's Draka novels
• Legal/Forensic/Psychological/Horror thriller: Thomas Harris' The Silence of the Lambs, novel, Seven (film).

You tube finds!!

I found this on You tube. I think it's quite good! i really like the sound bridge- voice moves in car to in bedroom. Also the sparse trees and rough setting add another sense of being apart from everything else. Voyerism is shown by us looking in on the bedroom, we are not meant to be there. I like this theme in a thriller as it makes the feeling of watching it more intense as you feel you shouldn't!
It is a bit sexual for a 15 certificate and not sure our actors would be too happy about that! The black and white is much better than colour would look because of the nature of the film.

I'd like to use things like the sound bridge and feeling of isolation as that can make the audience 'edgy' already. We found from our questionaires that being alone and the dark are things people are scared of so this would be a good idea to push through

www.youtube.com/v/kK0z63Vr-Xs&rel=1

How are the children?

When a stranger calls, Simon West 2006

It has to be one of the most clichéd narratives: teenage girl misses party as she has to babysit, the place she has to go to is an out in the sticks far from anything rather grand house- these always have great hiding places don’t they? A stranger is calling the house; he is silent until in one call “have you checked the children?” She gets worried and calls the police. They trace the call to inside the house…OH MY GOD!!!
It sounds so so bad but, is actually really good and full of tension and suspense. It makes you jump and question all you see in many ways. Also clichéd is the use of concealment and silence surrounding the ‘stranger’. We never see him. Nor do we actually see the kids she is looking after until we see the attacker, this makes you question the motives of the parents she has been employed by (are they truthful? Is it them doing this to her?) The use of silence is interspersed with use of loud crashes and screams, and the very effective use of upping the volume of water both in the aviary and in the maid’s bathroom. These distort other sounds that we hear and for some reason water always make me wary of what’s coming!

Why would you stay there?! You run away!

www.youtube.com/v/xksrUeuvako&rel=1 This isn't the very start of the film, it's the first scene when she is on her own in the house. This is when the phone calls start too!!

The man is behind her in the watery aviary, she has just managed to trap him in there for a bit but still you know he will get out and find her

The Butterfly Effect

The film 'The Butterfly Effect' 2004, is by far my favourite psychological thriller. The reason I love it so much is down to the fact you have to think alot in the process of watching it. I like the use of voiceovers for the main characters voice when either writing in his journal or reading it back to himself. I also like the title card at the beginning giving a fact about butterflies. This is somthing I would like to use in our film, but a title card about what has already happened to give the audience some background history. This film is very similar to 'Memento' due to having to watch further to find out what happened previously. But it is different in the way that this is done by flashbacks. The first scene of the film is actually the last scene but then it starts from the beginning going in chronological order with flashbacks. The first scene might have been put there to bring up enigmas in the audience-why is he hiding? etc.

First ideas

I really like the idea of having a large bowl of water and putting a few drops of red food colouring in it then getting close shots of how the colour is dispersing through the water. We would then take a long shot of this but cut it into short, possibly just second long frames, which would be put between each different shot of narritive. Doing this can create mystery within the audience as they would not know what this is- blood, ink, dye?

How are 'Hitchcockian' themes, motifs and devices used in 'Psycho' (1960)?

Hitchcock uses blonde's in his films and also in this particular film 'Psycho'. This is because they seem more innocent than brunettes do and they stand out more in black and white films. He also uses 'the mother' in his films and in this film. The mother of Norman is seen as overprotecting, and quite strange person. You never get to see her face throughout the film which is another device - principle of concealment. This adds more mystery and creates enigmas for the audience. The mother is also used at the beginning of the film when we see Marianne and Sam's affair. Sam talks about turning mother's picture over so they can do 'stuff' but Marianne Crane shames her boyfriend as it is disrespectful to her mother. Hitchcock also uses voyeurism, once where Norman spies on Marianne in her room through a hole, and again at the start of the film where the camera goes through the window so the audience are seen as voyeurs intruding on someones private life. Long silences are used in 'Psycho' to create suspense and suspicion, for example when the detective is walking up the stairs there is a long silence until the mother comes out to stab him. It is like a way of telling the audience something bad is going to happen. The use of birds is prominent in 'Psycho', there are the stuffed birds in Normans parlour, the comment from Norman to Marianne saying "you eat like a bird" and Marianne's last name being of a bird 'Crane'. He also uses a device he created himself, a mcguffin. This device keeps the story moving along but in reality is irrelevant to the meaning of the story. In this case it is the $40,000.
In our film I would like to use voyeurism, as it gets the audience hooked being able to see things you shouldn't be able to. I also like this device because it is quite common in thrillers and it lets the audience know things that other people in the film don't neccesarily know.