Equipment used

We have used a series of equipment to produce are opening sequence this includes:

Video Camera - Canon EOS 550D

Tripod 

Still Camera

After filming the opening sequence we used iMovie software to create a smooth opening and  to add music and other effects into the opening sequence. We have used the internet to research and help plan the opening sequence by analyzing existing films that fit are genre, box office figures, researching the types of productions, producing graphs to get results to identify are target audience and to research how titles are used in opening sequences that we then produced a document of our own ideas. 

We browsed through various CD's to find the appropriate music for our opening sequence. The tracks we chose were then edited into one and imported into iMovie to play over our filming. 

Lauren and Rebekah 

The title of our film

I have been thinking of a film title for a while and none seemed to fit the film.
a few ideas i had were "what lies below",  "the cellar" and a few others we finally decided as a group on the film title "NO RETURN" we feel it is an appropriate title as it signifies that once you enter the cellar there is no return.

NO RETURN

NO RETURN

NO RETURN

Lauren 

Fonts.

I have looked into different font that we could use in our opening sequence for the titles, i have found a few that i think are suitable;

AaBbCcDdEeFfGgHhIiJjKkLlMmNnOoPpQqRrSsTtUuVvWwXxYyZz

AaBbCcDdEeFfGgHhIiJjKkLlMmNnOoPpQqRrSsTtUuVvWwXxYyZz

AaBbCcDdEeFfGgHhIiJjKkLlMmNnOoPpQqRrSsTtUuVvWwXxYyZz

AaBbCcDdEeFfGgHhIiJjKkLlMmNnOoPpQqRrSsTtUuVvWwXxYyZz

AaBbCcDdEeFfGgHhIiJjKkLlMmNnOoPpQqRrSsTtUuVvWwXxYyZz

AaBbCcDdEeFfGgHhIiJjKkLlMmNnOoPpQqRrSsTtUuVvWwXxYyZz

AaBbCcDdEeFfGgHhIiJjKkLlMmNnOoPpQqRrSsTtUuVvWwXxYyZz

AaBbCcDdEeFfGgHhIiJjKkLlMmNnOoPpQqRrSsTtUuVvWwXxYyZz

AaBbCcDdEeFfGgHhIiJjKkLlMmNnOoPpQqRrSsTtUuVvWwXxYyZz

I think all these fonts have aspects of a thriller film as they all look either creepy or distorted in someway which links to out genre of a supernatural thriller. 

Rebekah.

Actors and Dialogue.

  We don't have many actors in out opening sequence as we are just introducing what has happened in the past so if we carried on making the film you would understand what was going on. The two main actors are Tony who is payed by David Noblett and Gemma who is played by Lauren Daly.

  In our opening sequence David and Lauren have a short amount of dialogue to speak. This is the script that we are going to use for our dialogue.

Tony: Hey, just going to explore and see if there is any wine or anything in the cellar

Lauren: OK, don't be too long.

  We are not using a lot of dialogue in our opening sequence as we are trying to create a creepy, mysterious atmosphere and we think using alot of dialogue will ruin the atmosphere.

Rebekah 

Storyboard and Animation for our opening sequence.

  We have created a storyboard to show the different shot that we need in our opening sequence and what order our opening sequence will run in.

I have took pictures of our storyboard.

  We then took photos of each clip and put them in to iMovie to make a short animation type film to see how long it takes and to see if we need to add more. 

  We have made each picture into a clip and cut they down to different timings so each clip is on long enough to see properly, but it is in the two minute time limit we have. We are going to change the order some of the titles are in as they seem to have got mixed up  throughout the storyboard.  We have mentioned the different types of shots we are going to use but i don't think we have made it clear enough. When Lauren and David talk we are going to use the 180-degree rule and match on match action, also throughout the sequence we are going to use close up and long distance shots to create a varied effect so they are all not the same. 

Rebekah and Lauren

Identifying Roles.

In the two minute film sequence we have identified roles for each group member during the production.

Staring- David Noblett and Lauren Daly

Produced By Rebekah Edmondson

Editor or Edited By -Lauren Daly

Story By- David Noblett

Director or Directed By - Rebekah Edmondson

Film title - NO RETURN

Lauren Daly 

Props, Location, Casting and Filming.

  The uses of props in a film creates a more realistic effect as these items would be there if the situation of the film ever happened.

For our opening sequence we need a varied amount of props including;

Suitcases

Clock

Television 

Fake Blood

Wardrobe

Camera.

  The Location we are filming our opening sequence in is a farm house in Billington. We are using this place because it is a large house with hardly any other houses surrounding it. The fact that is is large are situated were no other houses are creates a scary atmosphere which links in with out genre.

  In the house we will have more than one area were we will be casting the film. We will be using the outside of the house from a long distance, a close up of the house outside, The living room of the house and the cellar of the house. The main part will be filmed in the cellar as a cellar i know as a scary place.

  We will be filming out opening sequence one day next week, then we will be editing the film the next day and if we need more time we will plan to stay after college to do this.

Rebekah

Synopsis of film and sequence.

Synopsis of film.

  Once you stayed in this house you will never leave. Many people have a break away in this house but have never been seen since.

A couple goes to spend sometime together in an old farmhouse in the country, when their break a way goes horrible wrong. A supernatural force ruins this break and leaves many people distraught. A few weeks later a group of young adults decide to spend sometime in this house, as they need somewhere to party. When they get there, they realize that they aren’t alone and slowly discover what has been happening over the years.

Synopsis of opening sequence.

  Long shots of the farmhouse from a hill while credits are rolling.

The couple is walking up to house with luggage and a few more flashing pictures of the house.

Couple is in the house watching TV when the man decides to investigate curious sound from the cellar. All you hear is the woman sigh and a slight thud.

When the TV show ended the woman is curious and worried were her partner is and slowly walks up to the door to the cellar, as she walks down in to the cellar, she sees a pool of blood on the floor leading up to an old wardrobe and opens it to find her partner hanging with a slit throat and then turns round and there is a flash of some sort of creature, this is when the title of the film will appear.

Rebekah 

Preliminary Task Video.

   We were asked to make a preliminary video, filming a person walking into a room and having a short conversation with someone. We were asked to put specific techniques into our video such as match on action, shot/reverse shot and the 180-degree rule.

    In our video we used all the techniques we were asked to use, even though some of them could do with improvement. The technique i think we were the best at was the 180-degree rule as we kept behind the 180-degree line. The technique that we could do with improvement on shot/reverse shot as we were to close of one shot and then on the reverse shot we were too far away. Also, the editing in this task is not as smooth as we would like it to have been, we need to do some more practice of this technique.

  When we produce out final opening sequence we will use all these techniques once we have improved upon them. We will make sure the editing is smooth and continuous aswell.

Rebekah, Lauren and David.

The Use of Titles in an Opening Sequence.

In a typical opening sequence they usually start of with a sequence to set the scene or different images that open the film. While this scene is rolling they announce the main cast, e.g. main character(s) and the most important members of the production team. The most common opening crdits order is;

.Name of the Institution

.Name of the Production Company

.Producer(s) Name, eg(a film by...)

.Staring (principle actors/actresses)

.Film title

.Featuring (features actors/actresses)

.Casting or Casting By...

.Music or Music Composed By... 

.Production Design/Designer

As a variation some of the below may be noted:
-Set design

-Costumes or Costumes By...
-Sound Recording
-Visual Effect Director or Visual Effects By... 

.Editor or Edited By...

.Director of Photography

.Based of The Book/Play/Characters ...

.Story By...

.Writer(s) or Written By...

.Director or Directed By...
 This is the typical information at the beginning in the opening scene, not all these are shown but most of them are.
Most films stick to this similar oder but some films change this oder very slightly.
A good opening sequence that shows this is;

Rebekah

Questionnaire results

We handed out our Questionnaire to a random sample of 10 people, here are out results represented in pie charts.

There were more females that answered this questionnaire than males

     From this question we found out that the most popular age of people that answered the questionnaire was 17-20. This result will help us chose out target age range for our opening sequence.

    From this questionnaire we found out that the most popular sub-genres of a thriller are Psychological thriller and a Supernatural thriller.  This is a good result as we have an Initial Idea of basing our sequence of a supernatural thriller

From this result we found out that 7 out of the 10 people that answered the questionnaire go to the cinema.

     From this result we found out that most people who answered this questionnaire go to the cinema once a month. From out questionnaire nobody goes to the cinema once a week.

  From this result we found out most people enjoy a film more if they can relate to it. We can use this result to try and link our opening sequence to reality.

From this result we found out that 6 out of the 10 people that answered out questionnaire enjoy films you have to think about. Hopefully, in our opening sequence we will raise a few enigmas as thats what most people seem to enjoy.

   From this result we found out that 6 out of 10 people that answered out questionnaire enjoyed a film more is questions were answered at the end instead of throughout. This result will help us as we now know not to answer any of the enigmas we raise in our opening sequence.


  From this questionnaire we have found some useful information that will help when planning our opening sequence.


    The Target audience for our opening sequence is now going to be aimed a 15+ as we had a mixed result of age ranges,  we will also make our opening sequence suitable for both genders as we had a mixed result on that question to.

Rebekah and Lauren.

Questionnaire

This is our Questionnaire that we are going to hand out to a random sample of people. It is our aim to find out what target audience we should aim our film at and get an idea of the most popular sub-genre.

Target Audience
What gender are you?
Male
Female
How old are you?
12-16
17-20
21+
What is your favorite Sub-genre of the thriller?
Crime
Medical
Physiological
Mystery
Supernatural
Do you go the cinema?
Yes
No
How often do you go the cinema?
Once a week
Once a fortnight
Once a month
Once a year
Does a film appeal to you more if you can relate to it?
Yes
No
Not sure
Do you enjoy films you have to think about?
Yes
No
Not sure
Do you enjoy films that have questions that are answered at the end or throughout the film?
Yes
No Not Sure Rebekah and Lauren

Clip Analysis

In nightmare on elm street it starts with showing the making of the gloves he uses to kill people in there nightmare, but with out showing his face creating mystery the music used in very sharp tones that create suspense as the audience gets the feel of the film. the part were the woman is running through the factory it create tension as it is dark and dingy.



 David

Clip Analysis

The use of camera effects and long and shot makes the film look eery and attracts the audience to want to watch the film. the way they have used the fog to make a mysterious atmosphere help to establish that it is a supernatural thriller film as it is one of the conventions used. From this trailer you can see the use of the todrov theory as at the beginning they were going on a trip, mother and daughter but on the way unusual things started to happen and they got stranded and her disappeared, this is the distribution. They is one main character throughout this film which is the women and mission is to find her daughter and find out whats happening. The place were is it set is an old abandoned village as you see news-posts about what happened briefly. This setting creates a scary atmosphere and makes you think about what goes on.



Rebekah

Clip Analysis

This clip is of a supernatural thriller about a mobile phone, and when they listen to the missed call its of them dying. the setting of this film is around a small town and has a few main characters: the victim of the phone call, the person who tries to stop it and then the person who does the phone call. One missed call has a typical Todrov theory because the equilibrium starts with friends all meeting up then a disruption happens when a there phone has a missed call, after they answer the missed call they learn how there going to die.



Lauren

Box Office figures for the Thriller Genre.

I have research into the Top 20 thriller films in the box office and these are the results i have found.

Rank	Rating	Title	Votes
1.	9.2	The Godfather (1972)	418,836
2.	9.0	The Godfather: Part II (1974)	250,905
3.	9.0	Elite Squad 2 (2010)	1,337
4.	9.0	Inception (2010)	222,498
5.	8.9	Pulp Fiction (1994)	426,260
6.	8.8	The Dark Knight (2008)	475,445
7.	8.8	Goodfellas (1990)	234,278
8.	8.7	Fight Club (1999)	391,199
9.	8.7	Rear Window (1954)	121,007
10.	8.7	Black Swan (2010)	1,026
11.	8.7	Psycho (1960)	146,722
12.	8.7	The Usual Suspects (1995)	271,857
13.	8.7	The Silence of the Lambs (1991)	250,899
14.	8.6	Se7en (1995)	285,940
15.	8.6	Memento (2000)	280,651
16.	8.6	North by Northwest (1959)	94,950
17.	8.6	Leon (1994)	204,606
18.	8.6	Double Indemnity (1944)	37,855
19.	8.6	M (1931)	40,796
20.	8.6	Taxi Driver (1976)	159,278

In this table there are a range of sub-genres thrillers, the top film is a crime,drama thriller. There are a few films that have the sub-genre of our initial idea of a psychological thriller such as Psycho(1960) and Se7en(1995).

Rebekah and Lauren

Clip Analysis

This clip uses many of the conventions associated with thriller films. It creates suspense, tension and excitement. The beginning of this clip used creepy sounding music to create tension for the start of the film, this is so the audience attention will be attracted. The start of the actual picture film raised many enigmas and he was scurrying around and it raised questions of what he was doing? The equilibrium and the disruption was set up as at there was a man who had children but he didn't know where the were once he found them they were looking at something, even though in the clip you never found out what it was you can tell this is going to be the disruption.



Rebekah.

The film is set in a house with only two main characters that use a camcorder to record things that happen because they believe there is a supernatural force doing things to them in the house. the genre of the film is a supernatural horror. this film is different to typical horrors because there the one's who are filming it.

Lauren

research for our film

we have been looking on youtube at opening sequences and we have got an idea of how to use close ups and dramatic lighting in our film to create tension like in this film that 2 use a cellar but different from our film

by David

Initial Ideas.

  We are making a two minute opening sequence to a thriller film. A good opening sequence should set up expectations and introduce any themes and main characters for the audience and give brief summary of what this film is about. It should raise enigmas to keep the audiences attention. It should establish the location by filming shots and using narrative devices.  From the opening sequence, you should be able to pick out the equilibrium which later will follow by a disruption.

  Our first idea is an couple who are renting an old farm house for an holiday.  One of them goes to the cellar tho collect a bottle of wine after a while the husband realizes that his wife has not returned from the cellar and goes down to see if she is OK. He then discovers a trial of blood leading to an old wardrobe, just as he is about to open the wardrobe, a flash of something comes towards him.

  We have been influenced by different type of supernatural thrillers such as The Haunting, The Final Destination, Paranormal Activity, What Lies Beneath, The Others, White Noise and The Unborn.

Rebekah, Lauren and David.