Planning: Cinematography planning- Ms Begum

Cinematography is important in films because it is able to set the atmosphere and the mood among the audience, it is able to build suspense/ tension if used correctly within a thriller and more over without the cinematography the film would not have the same impact upon the audience or we won't be able to get an impact out of the film.

I believe that cinematography is important, especially in thriller films because it includes the camera shots, camera angles, camera movement and the lighting within a shot/ frame. Furthermore within our thriller we hope to create and build tension among the audience while setting an energetic atmosphere.

Instead of always use the terms when reviewing a film we are able to use the term 'cinematography' to group all of these aspects together, for example: 'The cinematography in that film was amazing.'

Some of the conventional uses of cinematography in thrillers are when the audience are shown a series of close- ups/ reaction shots in order to build a relationship between the characters and the audience for example, if we see a child crying within a close up shot then the audience will fill sympathy for that child. On the other hand if the audience saw a reaction of an antagonists face after he/ she has lost someone they care about, then we may have a reaction shot showing the fury/ the anger within their face. This will also build a relation with the audience as they may also feel anger or they could also feel sympathy Lastly if there is three people talking to eachother within a scene such as batman and the dark night then we may see the camera circling all characters talking; this is because they want the audience to look at the conversation from all angles while listening to what each of the three are saying and deciding wether they agree or disagree with what the character has said.

The cinematography I plan to use in my thriller consists of the following:

1. A close-up will be used in the corridor scene, this will show the facial expressions on each of the characters faces when they come face-to-face with the intruder in their home, we have chosen to use this because we see it as the best way to capture a characters facial expressions. This is conventional to the thriller genre simply because many thrillers like to show/ empathize a characters feelings/ expressions within a shot, scene/ frame.

3. We will use a Mid-shot when the father Frank looks outside the window to see the intruder standing outside looking at him. This will give the audience a feel of who and what the intruder is.

4. We may use the Zoom shots enabling the audience to see any cause of damage or trauma easily. For example in the corridor scene we will see the family from the intruders point of view and then the camera will zoom up to the family and turn around to show the intruder on the other side of the corridor.

5. We will use the point of view/ 1st person shot as this will also make the audience put themselves in that particular situation or imagine that happening to them e.g. the corridor scene when the intruder is looking at the family.

Conclusion:
due to me planning out the cinematography I am now able to identify what my thriller will hold instead of going back to my books and trying to select each aspect of the cinematography separately  The planning has made it easier for me and the rest of my group furthermore it has made me confident about the cinematography within my thriller and I understand now how it will be conventional within my thriller. Furthermore, planning the cinematography has helped me to look at the filming process more accurately and confidently, for example i now know when some of the camera angles/ shots will be used and where, this will in turn help my group to carry out the filming process without so much hassle.

Facial Body language (Mise-en-scene) Ms Heath

The objective of this lesson was to critically analyse body language and facial expressions.

Body language:
The body language of a character is the way a character is positioned in relation to their feelings, state of mind, actions or the way they present themselves.
The Body language of a character can tell the audience either what their thinking or about their personality. The way a character acts towards certain things should be very effective upon the audience and should be conventional to their film genre whereas in this case we are looking at thrillers.

Body language of an Antagonist:

• Confident
• Mysterious
• Superior
• dark
• How any props they hold may affect their strength/ confidence etc.

From the picture above and seeing Loki in this stance we are able to say that this character is confident and believes himself to be powerful, strong/ superior to his enemies. He is standing open as if any hit or attack won't affect him at all. He holds the staff as if it is his only protection and he is ready to use it to defend himself if he needs to. This character does not look physically strong however he does look mischievous which could mean he has a trick or two up his sleeve. His facial expressions tell me that he is definitely confident and somewhat intelligent his mouth is closed and his eyebrows are not raised which means he is either focused or annoyed at something or someone.

Body language of a Protagonist:

• Usually handsome
• Focused
• Sometimes confident
• Calm

From the picture above and seeing Thor in this stance we can automatically that this character is also fairly confident and focused on the task at hand. Due to this character standing openly the audience believe him to be strong and powerful however the vibe we get from a protagonists body language is very different to how we determine an antagonists mind state depending on their body language, for example we may say that this character is courageous and focused whereas the picture above it showing the antagonist, we may say that they are mischievous and evil. We can see that this character is physically strong which may enable us to have a better understanding of why he is confident. Furthermore his facial expressions tell us that this character is focused on the task at hand; this relates to my next sub-heading.

Facial Expressions:

The facial expressions of a character help to determine how the character is feeling in relation to their body language. The facial expressions are also used to create suspense or get to get the audience emotionally attached to the audience. Facial expressions can tell you a lot about the type of character they are including their cleanliness or mind state.

Looking at this reaction shot above we are able to see that this character is in shock due to something he has seen, this is easily identified due to his widened eyes and his open mouth which may represent someone gasping almost. Capturing this emotion from the characters face effects the audience as they may see this reaction and then become emotionally attached to the character by having the same sensations and feelings of shock.

Conclusion:

Learning about and analyzing a characters body language and facial expressions has helped me as I understand how the audience is affected by them and how they determine each characters role in the film from how they are portrayed through a characters body language. When creating my own thriller trailer I will now be able to determine how each character should express themselves through their body language in each scene and their facial expressions at each moment in the trailer. I understand that the body language of a character effects how the characters determine who the character is and what their role is in the film. This is why I have decided to spend time working on each characters body language making sure it is conventional to a thriller. When filming my trailer close up shots of characters facial expressions will be used so that my audience can easily interpret how that character may be feeling at that point in time. 

Research: What is a storyboard- Ms Begum

The objective of this lesson was to be able to demonstrate what a storyboard is and identify the key features of a storyboard.

A story board is a graphical representation of a narrative that has been created, within the storyboard it shows each movement of each character scene by scene. Storyboards may look like square boxes on a piece of paper but they are used by every film maker in order to make filming the actual film less stressful and it also means that the actors, directors, camera operators etc. know what to do and when to do it without having to stop and talk about how they will plan out the next scene.

Storyboards need to contain information about: cinematography, iconography, lighting, actors, sound, narrative, location, duration and the Number of shots. 
Including all of these in a storyboard will make producing the scene a lot easier as the producer and the director can work with and around the information they have on the storyboard. Storyboards also ensure that you don't forget any shots/ scenes by accident they make it easy to know where you need to edit the film e.g. fade to black, straight cut etc.

Stages of Story boarding a narrative:

1. Narrative
2. Script
3. Storyboard
4. Filming
5. Editing

Advantages of using a Storyboard

• It helps to make the task at hand clear and easy to understand 
• Enables you to produce a scene without having to waste time talking about what to do next.
• The crew is able to determine how the finished product should look as they can compare their work with the narrative
• Clear list of what micro-elements will be used for the scene
• They are money-saving and time saving

Disadvantages of using a Storyboard

• Although it is time saving when it comes to the filming it takes long to draw up the whole storyboard.
• When storyboard your head becomes clouded with imaginative ideas on how to improve your scenes further which leads to wasting more time starting over again and amending.
• It is easy to misplace a storyboard which means you may have to photocopy more or create a new one.

                                                       

This music video was laid out in a storyboard style. Many micro-elements were used within this music video these were: low key lighting, fast editing non-Diegetic sound and parallel sounds. These were all effective as the audience don't always feel that they are watching an animation, they feel connected to the video as the drawings are very human- like. Throughout the video we see many changes, the drawings go from hard-sketched to very lightly sketched and then into outlined drawings as if the characters within the video had a change of heart.

Conclusion

Being able to look at different storyboards and analyse the key features of one has helped to get a better understanding of how mine should look. Also it has helped me to see that there are disadvantages to using a storyboard however they save time when filming which means we will not have such a hard time getting to grips with the filming and position and the editing of each scene. My group has decided to use a storyboard as we feel it will be much easier to understand, also it will save money and time which we can definitely benefit off. 

Planning: Production roles- Miss Heath

During the production of a film there are seven main production roles that are essential these roles consist of:

·   Camera operator- this is the person who films the scenes, this person works with the storyboard organizer and the film director in order to get the right shot angles and movement in order to get what they want out of the film they are creating in this case the camera shots they have will be related to the common camera shots in a thriller. 

·  Actors- are the people who try to create the characters that are desired within the film. They work with the director in order to get their positioning, movements and emotions correct enabling them to deliver the genre of a thriller to the audience. We have created 8 characters with 5 extras the characters we need to fill are an 8 year old boy; an 18 year old boy; a mum; a protagonist; someone to play the father however this person is only needed to take one picture in order for it to be placed on a wall. lastly we have 5 extras who walk past in a corridor while a scene is in place in order to create a better atmosphere.

·  Sound technician- this is the person that creates the sound of each scene. They work with the storyboard organizer to decide on what sounds to use. Also they make sure that the sound is effective to the audience and the thriller genre. I will be the sound editor as I have the best understanding of what sounds and music will fit each scene also i understand how i will use different sounds in order to make our thriller effective.

·  Editors- this person edits the scenes in order to increase the effect that it has upon the audience. They work with the camera operator, the sound technician and the director in order to get the correct scenes/ shots without confusing the audience. I am also the director due to me creating the narrative i understand it more than anyone so i will work wit the camera operator and the storyboard organizer in order to get our desired effect on the audience out of the trailer. However while doing this role our whole group will contribute towards editing our thriller so that it is not done in one persons image/ideal.

· Film director- the film director is in charge of everything to do with the film making, however they mainly control the actors. They control all elements of mise-en-scene. They work with the whole team ensuring that they are working in the producers aspirations. 

· Location manger- The location manager is the person that chooses the location of each scene. Their duty is to make sure the location is an effective place to film a thriller. They work with the film director to decide on what time of day and weather conditions to set the film in.

· Storyboard organizer- This is the person who creates the film on a storyboard in order to give all other crew members a rough idea on whats going to happen in each scene. In a storyboard it states the shot number, cinematography, soundtrack, actors involved, edit style, narrative, dialogue and duration of each scene. The more detailed the storyboard is; the less work there is to do on the day of the filming. Our storyboard organizer will be Yasmin, this is because she is the most artistic out of our group, she is able to create a storyboard in good quality and high detail, this in turn will mean that the filming of the actual film will un smoothly.

Roles within our group:

· The camera operator of our group will be Jemar; we chose him simply because he has the most steady hands and is able to listen to others in order to create an effective trailer to a thriller.

· The sound technician will be me as I have the best understanding of what sounds and music will fit each scene also i understand how i will use different sounds in order to make our thriller effective. However the rest of the group will also have a fair say on the sounds we will use.

· The Editor will also be me due to me creating the narrative i understand it more than anyone; However while doing this role our whole group will contribute towards editing our thriller so that it is not done in one persons image/ideal.

·The role of the director will be assigned to me only as I created the narrative i will fit this role the best as i know the effect i wanted our thriller to have on the audience, I will work with the whole team ensuring we are able to produce an effective thriller

· The location manager of our group will be Arif; This is because Arif loves to travel to new areas and places and he knows good sets where we could film certain scenes in order to create an effective thriller.

·The role of storyboard manager will be assigned to Yasmin;this is because she is the most artistic out of our group and she is able to create a storyboard in good quality and high detail. This in turn will mean that the filming of the actual film will un smoothly.

Conclusion:

Being able to plan who will take which production role has helped us to become more aware of the task at hand. By doing tis we have become more organized and settled, this means that we are not rushing to do things together and then confuse ourselves, assigning something to everyone means the groups are equal and everyone is able to play their desired part in the creation of this film. Also we have been able to identify each crew members weaknesses and strengths which will help us to create an effective and conventional thriller which will appeal to the audience.

Research: Censorship- Ms Begum

What is film censorship?
Film censorship is when a film is re-edited to either cut out or change scenes due to the content it shows as it may be considered harmful to the public. 
A film can either be banned from a country or asked to be to cut a few times so that the content is not too disturbing and the BBFC find it suitable for a certain age group.

Role of BBFC
Funded by the film industry, the BBFC is responsible for the national film classification of the united kingdom. Their job is to protect the public from any harmful and offensive content that could potentially harm any members of the public by stopping it from being released into the cinemas until changes are made to the film. e.g. specific scenes are cut etc. However For cinema releases, the BBFC have no legal power. This in turn means that films do not have to be submitted for classification simply because it is mainly the councils duty to decide which age group should be allowed to see a certain film. Most films apply the BBFC's certificates which make them legally-binding; this means that an agreement has been consciously made between the film creator and the BBFC and the council.

                                      

why films are censored?
Films get censored to keep the audience away from content that is seen as too disturbing or potentially harmful; In some cases films are sent back to the editing stage due to religious reasons or the representation of real life events e.g. a film that is identical to the story of Baby P etc.

Contents of a film that may get censored

• extreme Violence 

• Sex and Nudity

• Sexual Violence

• Religion

• Animal Cruelty

• Language

        
 

• Drug abuse

 

• Films that could harm/ disturb young audiences and influence people to commit violent acts. 

Difference between a film Banned and a film that is Cut

When a film is Banned it is removed from cinema viewing completely due to harmful or offensive content. This is done to protect the public from any harmful material that they may be exposed to while watching the film. Within a thriller it may be banned or cut due to it being seen as harmful or too disturbing for young audiences.

A example of a banned filmed is the Cannibal Holocaust which is an Italian horror film that is banned to this day in over 50 different countries due to the film's content being too disturbing.

When a film is sent to be Cut certain scenes within the film is then either edited or completely removed. This is done to make the film more appropriate for public viewing.

For example, the Exorcist which released in 1973 was sent to be cut or else it would be banned from cinema viewing.  Although changes were made to the film it was still banned in many different towns and countries across the world as the film was described as '' horrifyingly scary ''.
The Exorcist eventually passed the British Board Of Film Censorship (BBFC) and was given an age rating of 18 however, the film wasn't available in the UK until 1990 when it finally got the all clear pass from the BBFC.

Natural born killers:
Natural Born Killers was released in 1994.  The film was based on the lives of Charles Starkweather and Caril Fugate; two lovers who embarked on a vicious murder spree. The movie was banned completely in Ireland, and denied distribution in the USA. Oliver Stone (the director) later cut  four minutes of footage. This resulted in the MPAA (Motion Picture Association of America) allowing its distribution.
The film was blocked as it was extremely controversial as it glorifies acts of murder, with the notorious killers appearing on magazine covers and T-shirts in various scenes, almost like regular celebrities with fans. There are also some confirmed copycat murders. These killers also wore clothes similar to the character in the opening scene.

Forna Vs. Kermode debate:
In 1999 Channel 4 broadcasted a short season of programmes about censorship. During this season it showed two short programmes; one of them was about a case fighting for the use of censorship, and the other was against the use of censorship.
Fighting for was a journalist and broadcaster called Aminatta Forna and fighting against was a film critic and broadcaster: Mark Kermode.
Three arguments made by Forna for censorship were:

1. The public associate themselves with different characters and may be influenced to put themselves in that situation
2. Some films may start to break down the barriers us as humans put up, for example there may be a film about a woman being raped however the woman starts to enjoy even though before they watched the film the audience would think it wrong for her to do so.
3. The power of words and images featured in some films may affect the audience and have the potential to stir racial hatred etc.

Three arguments made by Kermode against censorship were:

1. Everyone has different reactions and interpretations on what they see in the film.
2. It is unfair that we are being told what we can and can't watch. As human beings we know what is right and what is wrong so it should be our choice whether to watch it or not.
3. The issue of responsibility; policing films is impossible, the films we watch should'nt be seen to be encouraging however they should be seen as showing the audience realistic situations e.g. rape/ murder etc.

Out of these arguments I find Forna the most persuasive simply because when we go to watch a film we don't always know what to expect simply because trailers do not want to give away to much information, however we are able to read the story line on the IMDB website which will enable us to judge if we want to watch a certain film or not. Furthermore I see Kermode's debate as legitimate however insufficent in key knowledge, this is beause he is relating his arguments to his own beliefs and ideologies, he has not looked at how all different people in the public may react towards a certain film whereas Forna has.
Conclusion:
Conclusively learning about censorship has helped me to understand and acknowledge what is suitable and what isn't suitable as i am more aware of what can cause a film to be banned or sent to be cut. Furthermore looking at the Forna and Kermode debate has allowed me to think about the publics opinion on my thriller on a whole. This means that I have understood what not to put into my thriller and what to show in my trailer in order to make it effective without showing too much of the main storyline.

Research: Narrative Theory- Ms hawkins

Narrative Theory

Narrative is spoken or written, it is made up of different thought events that link together to form a story. Narratives help us to make sense of the film/trailer or scene as a film without a plot would mislead the audience as the film won't be able to carry a mood or have a wanted effect on the audience.
Narrative theory is also a type of thinking that aims to explain narrative structures and their relationships with different genre-related factors.

Characters and there different functions

The Hero - In some cases called the antagonist, this character is usually the main character and is there to protect something or someone.
The Villain - In some cases called the protagonist, this character is another main character however they are usually there to destroy or mess up something instead of protecting anything.
The Donor - The donor is "the helper" their role is to help the hero in some way for example Captain America is given a costume and a shield etc.
The Dispatcher - The dispatcher can be a helper or can even be the villain for example in the film "Shrek" the hero is sent on a quest by the villain
False Hero - The false hero is also a thief or a greedy character as they destroy the heroes chance of success by taking credit for something the hero has done. 
The Helper - The helper is the character that aids the hero in his or her time of distress 
The Reward - The reward is what the hero may receive for his or her efforts,this is where the false hero gets his chance to ruin things.

My version of Actions that are functions of a narrative.
- A hero is made out to be a villain due to a false hero (villain)
- Hero is chased and hunted down
- officials send out warrants for his arrest and many people start searching for the hero
- The hero is trapped inside a town
- Mystery helper appears and allows the hero to stay inside their house, also offers advice
- Hero is sent out to clear his name by the dispatcher

Complication
- Villain has taken over the country
- people start to revolt and see who the real villain is
- A dispatcher sends an apprentice hero to search for the hero in order to get their help
- Hero decides to act in order to stop the villain

Transference
- The Hero leaves the country for special training
- The Hero is given a special object in order to defeat the villain
- The Hero arrives back into a deprived country

Struggle
- Hero and Villain finally meet
- Hero and villain must fight
- The power of good over powers the evil
Return
- hero then returns home
- welcomed by town people
Recognition
-  Hero gains recognition for what he has done
- False hero/ villain is punished
- Hero obtains reward 

Conclusion:
By being able to look at different narratives and create an example of my own has made me understand the different character roles within a narrative. Also I now know the roles o my characters in my thriller for example we will have a hero, villain and a helper within our thriller.

Research: Film opening credits/ typography- Ms Heath and Miss Gibbins

Opening Credits?
Opening credits are shown at the beginning of a film. They show the most important members of the production for example the major actors and crew members

Purpose of film credits

• Advertising
• Giving credit to those who took part
• Outlines major actors/ crew members

What information do opening credits provide?
The opening credits tell the audience who the major actors/ crew members are for example the soundtrack creator, director or producer(s) involved in making the film. Furthermore opening credits may be their to honor people that may have died during the production of the film.

How do they make the audience feel?
Opening credits are effective in films as they are usually followed by a soundtrack which automatically helps to build up tension among the audience. Images are often used in opening credits to make the audience ask questions about their relevance.

What do you expect to see in the opening credits?

In the opening credits the audience expect to see the names of the important major actors within the film/ crew members who played a major role.
This is done as it influences the audience to watch the film, e.g. the female sex may be attracted to a film starring Daniel Craig etc. 

Se7en Analysis.

Lighting

Low key lighting

Flashing lights

Protagonist Colors (such as red)

Montage

Information Presented

Actors

Victims picture(s)

Organised crime

Successful (can tell by all the victims presented)

Changes from Extreme to less extreme (Needle through finger- needle through paper)

Generic Conventions

Soundtrack

Close up

Montage

sound effects

In the opening credits of 'Se7en' the names of famous actors are shown in the opening credits. This helps the audience to know who the famous actors are in the film as well as become familiar with the mood of the film due to the actors that are in it, for example Daniel Craig is known to be filmed in action films etc. The keywords such as 'rape', 'transexual' and 'God' seen in the opening credits are there to confuse the audience. In some cases it is also there to relate to the narrative of the film. 

The constant use of close ups throughout the opening credits allows the audience to see the keywords alike before as well as seeing the horrific/ disturbing images. For example the audience see dirty fingernails and splatters of blood using these in the opening scene makes the audience feel slightly disturbed over these images. A pair of tweezers and a needle are used to get the audience to ask questions such as: are they weapons? or are they used for evidence? etc.  This is conventional to a thriller film because the audience expect to see this

Low-key lighting and dark colors are used throughout the opening credits. The low key lighting makes the opening appear mysterious and disturbing when it is mixed with the dark colors and images shown throughout the credits. The color red is used frequently throughout the credits which may represent danger, anger or death. These elements within the credits are conventional to a thriller film because a sense of suspense and tension is created throughout the audience.

Finally the slow disturbing soundtrack added to the opening credits creates suspense among the audience and makes them feel disturbed when they hear metal scratching together or the tuning of a radio. This is conventional to a thriller genre as it gives the audience an insight on the mood of the rest of the film.

The opening credits confuse the audience by catching their attention and then making them ask questions about what they are seeing on screen and how does it relate to the film. This opening credit scene has helped my group come up with a conventional and effective narrative as we now have ideas on what elements to use in order to build tension/ suspense and also confuse the audience.

Typography:

Typography is the term used to describe the font that is used, the font size and it's color.

                                                                                 

This is a picture of the typography from the opening of the film 'Scream'. Firstly in the opening of scream the writing is white and simple until it starts flicking red and finally turns red. This relates to Tzvetan Todorov's theory of equilibrium and disequilibrium's, this is because the writing was white plain and simple at first until there was a disturbance and it turned red. The color red relates to danger, blood and anger. This in turn sets the mood of the film- the atmosphere will be fine and calming until there is a disturbance which makes it completely change.

For the film 'Fight club' the title of the film is shown in white with a glow effect; This makes it stand out against the dark images around it The plain bold font allows the audience to read the title clearly. The white used for the title has the color connotation of 'purity' however it could have been used purposely to confuse the audience and change their expectations of the film so that they can be shocked/ surprised when watching the actual film.

When editing our thriller film my group has decided to use on screen opening credits which means the audience can watch the film while seeing the opening credits; the font color will represent purity so it will be white, we chose this so we can confuse the audience when they start watching our thriller which will be conventional to the thriller genre. Our font will be similar to Fight clubs however we will not have the same glow effect on ours. 

The font shown above called 'Papyrus' may be used in the opening credits; this is because it creates a mysterious effect and may confuse the audience due to them questioning why we chose the font, this in turn will create suspense among the audience.

Overall the exploration of different opening credits and typography has helped with the creation of my own thriller film. I have been able to identify what typography is and how it is conventional to the thriller genre. Furthermore I now know how the opening credits can affect the audience.

In My Thriller:

In my thriller I will include different montages of flashing scenes/ images and medium sized text. I will use different lighting effects such as low-key lighting and different camera angles such as close ups in order to present the images to the audience. My aim is to make the audience question their expectations of a thriller film which in turn will create suspense among the audience and cause them to feel disturbed. Lastly using opening credits will set the mood and the atmosphere of the rest of the film so I must make them effective and conventional to the thriller genre.