Storyboard:

Amy Reeve and Charlotte Bone

Burn book idea:

This picture is relevant to our burn book idea as it has the characteristics of a scrapbook and we liked how the person had stuck in bits and pieces like memories and photographs. We are hoping to include torn pictures and bits that belong to charlotte's character that her ex-boyfriend had given her, or even items that belonged to him whilst they were going out. We also thought that it would be a good idea to show charlotte  spraying his cologne onto one of the pages and breathing it in, to show that she still loves him and to also show her in a more sinister, psychopathic way.

Amy Reeve

The name of our Thriller

We have come to the conclusion that the title of our film will be "Liason". We liked how it was another word for a love affair. In Charlotte's characters eyes it is appropriate because she is still madly in love with her ex-boyfriend, his new relationship is just as much as an affair than it would have been if he was cheating on her whilst they were still together.

Amy Reeve and Charlotte Bone

Brainstorming

Charlotte and I sat down in this lesson to discuss important aspects of our Thriller. The things that we needed to include such as a title sequence, props, setting, costume, music, title of our film and inspiration from other iconic Thriller films, were still not set in stone. Charlotte and I have decided to focus on the aspects that we could make a firm decision about, rather than the things we were on such as, the music and the title sequence.
We have brainstormed some ideas for the title of our film and we came up with these options:
- Sordid Revenge
- Ill will
- Comeuppance
- Reprisal
- Retribution
- Animus
- Liaison
- Rendezvous
- Resent

I found that out of these options, I preferred; "Comeuppance" "Liaison" "Rendezvous" and "Retribution".
For the font style of our Title sequence, I found these ideas to put forward as a possibility.


This font is from the dafont website. It is called Mari & David and has the handwritten characteristics, such as the font in the opening titles of "Seven"

This font is also from the dafont website and also has the handwritten characteristics that coincide with those of the film "Seven". We would make sure that the font was white however as it would contrast well with the black background we are going to use in the opening title sequence.


Amy Reeve

Bone's costume

We have decided to dress my character in mainly black to connote the evil agenda that she has. Both female characters are going to wear make up and be presented as good looking girls, but total opposites of each other. My character will be portrayed as dark, mysterious and evil, whereas Amy's character will be shown as more naive, kind and innocent. My character holds a deep hatred for Amy's character, as she has taken the boy I love. She is unaware that her boyfriends psychopathic ex-girlfriend is planning something sinister.


Charlotte Bone

This weeks plans

Charlotte and I plan to publish our storyboard in the following days and also start filming this weekend. We have decided to film at Charlotte's house and the village surrounding it, because it fits in perfectly with our story line. We are hoping to film after school in the week and also use the weekends as a means to catch up on our coursework as well. We are going to establish a timetable, so we get into the routine of which days we should film and which days we should blog. We shall continue writing about what we plan to do and what we have accomplished over the Christmas Holidays and also when we begin filming this week.

Amy Reeve

Reeve's costume

Charlotte and I will be wearing costumes that relate to our character and their personality. The fact that I am rather innocent in the plot suggests that I should be wearing white. Seeing as I appear in the beginning of the film when I am going to bed and also when I wake up, means that I should be wearing some kind of nightwear, like pyjamas or a dressing gown.
I felt that this outfit was suitable as it was not too revealing and reflected my character's personality well.

I also thought that I could wear an oversized tee-shirt to bed, as if it were my boyfriends in order to make Charlottes character even more jealous of our relationship. The fact that Charlotte is heartbroken about her ex-boyfriend's new relationship means that every little thing that represents his new found love, is an added reason to why she wants revenge.

Amy Reeve

Lessons

This lesson Charlotte and I began to make a start on our storyboard. We found it difficult to suss out which camera angles we would use in each shot, however we decided to discuss what might look best and felt that we could always change our minds when it came down to filming. At first we were going to print out images, similar to the ones we would film, to stick on our storyboard, however we couldn't find images that related exactly to what we wanted for each shot, so we found that it would be best to draw them out ourselves. We also found it difficult to decide what each shot was going to look like, as we are constantly coming up with new ideas for filming. So, we drew out a simple plan of our ideas so far, with what camera shots we had decided on and then added colour to our storyboard. We decided to post any changes we might make when filming or we may draw up another storyboard when we are finished.

Amy Reeve

Ideas for our film

Amy and I have been dicussing basic ideas for our film. We both have similar ideas which we intend to merge together somehow to ensure that the finished film includes both our ideas. My idea is basically an evil female character plotting revenge on people and perhaps murdering them in a variety of ways. She could have hidden agendas as to why she wants the people dead, or maybe even just have mental problems and enjoy heartless killing. The female needs to have a certain strength that she portrays, showing that she's aware of what she's doing and that she knows how to handle the situation. Despite her dark thoughts, she needs to be attractive to achieve the role of Femme Fatale so that she can seduce and ensnare her lovers and lead them to their death. A typical role to fill which we could possibly include could perhaps be the Hitchcock blonde; a strong and intelligent yet innocent woman, who could potentially be placed in compromising positions. I think a more female centered film would provide an individual quality, as many films have a male lead and show the hegemonic men fighting and showing their strength. By using a Femme Fatale as the lead, we can show women's strength and power succeeding over men, proving that women are just as sly, provocative and intelligent. Setting our film in a rural atmosphere would benefit the mood, as it would provide an innocent charm and yet an eerie feel. Compare a busy city with a rural village in the dead of night; in the city there are many people around, whereas in a small village or town it's silent, you may hear the rustle of leaves which leads your mind to believe someone's there... there will be no streetlights to guide your way... you may see things out the corner of your eye and misinterpret them... you may get completely lost in an unfamiliar place. Because of these factors, I believe that setting the beginning of our film in a field at night time, or a forest would be beneficial and create the eerie atmosphere that we crave. Charlotte Bone

Preliminary Task

Amy Reeve

Inspiration-Films with a woodland setting

• Blair Witch 1
• Blair Witch 2
• The woods
• Last house on the left
• Eden lake
• Wrong turn
• Cabin fever

Most of these are Horror/Thriller films, however all of them include a wooded area at some point in the film. As Charlotte and I hoped to end our opening scene in the woods, we felt we should find some inspiration from other films. All seven of these, enabled Charlotte and I to discover what we would like to incorporate into our own two minute opening. We looked at the time of day which was the most effective for filming in a wooded area. As some were set in the day and others were set at night, we were able to see the contrast of emotions that were evoked at different periods of time. Eden Lake shows the woods both in the day and at night. We found that our scene in the woods would look more effective if we filmed it at dusk, as we could create a chilling atmosphere but also be able to obtain different effects with the help of the setting sun. We found that in the light of the day, the setting was far less effective as without violence; as seen in Eden Lake, we would be unable to create a truly Thriller inspired quality to our film. This was also the case if we were to set our film in the pitch black, as without the correct lighting and special effects, we wouldn't be able to create the type of atmosphere that we aim for.


Amy Reeve

Camera Angles

• A bird's eye angle is an angle that looks directly down upon a scene. This angle is often used as an establishing angle, along with an extreme long shot, to establish setting.
• A high angle  is a camera angle that looks down upon a subject. A character shot with a high angle will look vulnerable or small. These angles are often used to demonstrate to the audience a perspective of a particular character. 
• An eye-level angle puts the audience on an equal footing with the character. This is the most commonly used angle in most films as it allows the viewers to feel comfortable with the characters.
• A low angle is a camera angle that looks up at a character. This is the opposite of a high angle and makes a character look more powerful. This can make the audience feel vulnerable and small by looking up at the character. This can help the responder feel empathy if they are viewing the frame from another character's point of view.

Amy Reeve

Camera shots

• An extreme long shot  contains a large amount of landscape. It is often used at the beginning of a scene or a film to establish general location (setting). This is also known as an establishing shot.
• A long shot  contains landscape but gives the viewer a more specific idea of setting. A long shot may show the viewers the building where the action will take place.
• A full shot contains a complete view of the characters. From this shot, viewers can take in the costumes of characters and may also help to demonstrate the relationships between characters. 
• A mid shot contains the characters or a character from the waist up. From this shot, viewers can see the characters' faces more clearly as well as their interaction with other characters. This is also known as a social shot
• A close-up contains just one character's face. This enables viewers to understand the actor's emotions and also allows them to feel empathy for the character. This is also known as a personal shot.
• An extreme close-up contains one part of a character's face or other object. This technique is quite common in horror films and creates an intense mood.

Amy Reeve

Different varieties of thrillers

• Action or adventure thrillers (Pulp Fiction)
• Sci-Fi thrillers (District 9)
• Crime-caper thrillers (The French Connection 1971)
• Western Thrillers (High Noon)
• Film Noir (Double Indemnity)
• Romantic comedy thrillers (Safety Last)

Amy Reeve

Definition of the "thriller" genre

"There appears to be no narrow definition, however a thriller is characterized by the sudden rush of emotions, the excitement, sense of suspense, apprehension, and exhilaration that drive the narrative, sometimes subtly with peaks and lulls, sometimes at a constant, breakneck pace. Thriller is a genre of fiction in which tough, resourceful, but essentially ordinary heroes are pitted against villains determined to destroy them, their country, or the stability of the free world. Part of the allure of thrillers comes from not only what their stories are about, but also how they are told. High stakes, non-stop action, plot twists that both surprise and excite, settings that are both vibrant and exotic, and an intense pace that never lets up until the adrenalin packed climax."


Amy Reeve

Looking at "Seven"

We found that in the lesson we would continue to look at the opening of Thriller films. The film "Seven" was a huge inspiration in terms of the opening credits as Charlotte and I plan to include some sort of Burn book in our opening scene, which was influenced by the film "Mean Girls". The whole point of the burn book is to write down thoughts that wouldn't necessarily be said in real life, due to the repercussions of bullying and abuse. We planned to include this in our opening scene so that the audience would be able to look into the characters mind without anything actually having to be said. The film "Seven" included flicking through the pages of a book, which we plan to incorporate into our own opening scene. We also thought about using the scratchy writing and special effects that is shown in the first two minutes of "Seven", alongside the footage of our character scribbling in the "Burn book".

Amy Reeve

Looking at Children of Men

In this lesson, Charlotte and I discussed different aspects of the thriller genre in order to maintain a suitable plot for the opening of our media film. Firstly we accessed YouTube and watched the opening scene of an archetypal Thriller film; the first two minutes and twenty eight seconds of "Children of men" . The film enabled us to make a decision on the time period we were going to set our film in.
As Children of Men was set in the future we decided that we would find it difficult to create the atmosphere of a futuristic setting. We did however find the way the film contrasted with the stereotypical view of what the future could be like, i.e clean, technology orientated, far more advanced and machine operated, particularly interesting as at first it is not clear when and where the film is set as none of these aspects are included.
The television in the coffee shop, and also the motion picture advertisements out in the streets, allowed us to see the differences between our world now and the world that is portrayed in the film. Charlotte and I found that the atmosphere looked polluted and grey, giving the perfect setting for a thriller film.

Amy Reeve