Our project was the opening sequence to a British serial killer film that we named ‘camerashy.’ I worked on it with Hannah Tabor and Robyn Taylor. I helped come up with the original idea and name for the film, with most of the inspiration coming from the opening sequence of the film seven as we liked the way it flicked across the information it was trying to convey quickly in a disjointed, almost fuzzy way, creating lots of enigmas which is what we want as it entices people to watch the film. I also created the original storyboards which we mostly stuck too, although as you can see certain parts where taken out, such as the scene with the teenagers laughing in town as we decided it wasn’t necessary as we already had enough footage to fill the criteria for the opening sequence (that it was over 2 minutes long), as well as creating a list dictating to us where the scenes should be shot, which angles we needed to include, where these angles would best fit into the film, how many of the same shot we where going to need etc. I also contributed to the filming (some of which we ended up cutting or changing), the editing and also put posts on the blog relating to the names we where thinking of for our project, our original ideas (shown on the storyboard I wrote up), costumes that would fit in with the image we where trying to demonstrate, a risk assessment for the filming that we where going to do in college, why good acting is important when trying to produce a good film, and representation.
Our opening sequence is a British serial killer film. It fulfils the requirements of an opening sequence as it creates lots of enigmas and leaves lots of mystery by making us question who the serial killer is, why they’re chasing this particular person, what their motives for killing are etc. When I asked people what they thought they’d find or usually found in the openings to serial killer films, I was met with similar responses such as; “eerie” or “frightening” music, glimpses of a weapon or some sort of sharp object, and someone usually running away from someone else in deserted surroundings. I think our sequence met all of this typical criteria, which is good as it makes the genre instantly recognisable to the audience and will be familiar to them, making them feel more comfortable and therefore more likely to continue watching. But the scene also mimics things a typical serial killer would do, such as cutting up newspaper clippings of their victims, as well as providing the audience with something a little bit different with its use of fast-paced editing which makes the scene look quite disjointed and jumpy. I also think that this use of something different would entice the audience to keep watching as, although audiences tend to like watching something that they’ve seen before and are familiar with, they also like something new and exciting therefore our opening sequence is the perfect mix.
Our opening sequence represents the social group of criminal and victim. The representation of the character that is a victim is achieved through the actor’s actions, such as running away and looking scared. The victim’s costume/appearance is young and casual which should immediately appeal to our target audience of teenagers or young adults, whilst also giving the audience a glimpse of what is to come later on in the film by displaying the main character (the serial killer) main goal (to kill people in this age bracket.) The dominant representation of the criminal is created through the use of, props, the setting, and actions, as the woods scene is filmed to create the impression that the killer is watching their victim, and the scene in the house is filmed using low-key lighting with newspapers and a scalpel as props to show the serial killer cutting up articles about their victims. The way the serial killer is filmed (which is just body parts such as a hand here and there) also adds to this representation, as it is quite a stereotypical way of showing a killer in this type of film.
Although I think either males or females could watch this sequence, it would probably be more likely to attract a male audience. I also think that the main audience for this product would be in the 16-25 age bracket and of British ethnicity. This is a good target audience to have, as the people within this group are probably the ones most likely to frequent the cinema and watch films at home, therefore it is right for the product financially as it is likely to bring in more money, and when we got feedback from a selection of our target audience over 80% of them said that they would go and see the film so it looks like the sequence has managed to attract a lot of the people we wanted it too.I think although our entire sequence is filled with uncertainty an equilibrium is set up in the opening clip as the audience is given quite a quiet scene (although there is heavy breathing and footstep sounds there is no dialogue or music) and the scene is set due too extreme long shots and lots of clips in the woods. We are also introduced to one of the main characters in this scene as she is running through the woods. The loud music, which was described in our feedback as “eerie,” and more fast-paced, jumpy editing when the newspaper-cutting clip kicks in then disrupts this. I think the inclusion of enigmas in this scene is one of the main things that will attract people from our target audience to watch this clip and to want to keep watching the rest of the film. There are lots of unanswered questions, some of which I mentioned earlier, but even simple things like what the serial killer looks like will entice the audience to keep watching to get there answer. The alternative representation created in this sequence is that the main character (from the footage where given) looks like a young woman, but is, in stark contrast, also a serial killer, which is unexpected. The tension and suspension in this clip has been built up through a variety of media language; mainly the diegetic sounds (the music, heavy breathing and footsteps), but also the low-key lighting when it comes to the newspaper clipping scene, the fast-paced editing and shots which flick about, leaving the audience with an uneasy and uncertain feeling, and the close-up shots on certain body parts and props etc.
Various types of technology contributed to our finished media product. Before we even began filming we did lots of research through the internet (on youtube etc) and by watching DVD’s based on topics similar to ours so that we could make the best and most genuine looking product possible. We also relied on the internet to create and add posts to our blog (using blogger.com), and had to learn how to use the camcorder lent to us to make our film as well as learning the best angles to shoot from with it etc. Finally, to create our end product we had to learn how to edit our film, cutting out parts of the footage and moving the clips around to make it the best sequence it could possibly be. We also had to learn how to speed up/slow down the different scenes, and how to add our titles etc.
After looking back at our preliminary task I definitely believe that every aspect of our sequence is a lot better. The composition of the entire sequence, storyline, editing and transitions from scene to scene have vastly improved, we have actually used different lighting, different music and different sound effects whereas in the original task it was all filmed with the same lighting, and no music or sound effects were included other than the dialogue between the characters, and we have also included a much greater variety of shots and shot the scenes with the rule of thirds, as well as experimenting with fonts and being more creative in the way we represent and develop characters (not just using dialogue for example.)
Overall I think our opening sequence meets all the right criteria it needed too and that it has done its main job, which was to attract a lot of our target audience. Although we probably should have spent more time making it realistic and perhaps more mysterious and tense, we did the best we could with a limited amount of time, limited skills, and limited access to the things needed to make a really good film (or opening sequence.)
However, in order to keep the viewer interested our project had to have some unique elements within it, so we added a twist. It is based on a serial killer; however it is not like your ordinary thriller where it turns out to be a male with a mental problem. Instead it is a female journalist. She has lived her whole life being surrounded by news, everything she has every heard has been bad news. The most recent stories are about teenagers. This is when her hatred begins. She believes that she has to rid the world of these “humans” and create a new generation… a perfect generation. Only 70% of the people we asked thought that the serial killer was a female.
Our project emphasises the gap that exists between adults and teenagers in modern day society. This is shown within the first few seconds of the sequence when the young female is being chased through the park. The way in which we made it clear what age range she was we made sure that the costumes were present day clothes worn by teenagers. Also, the sequence contradicts the usual image of teenagers in modern day life as our character is vulnerable and scared of the fate that is in store for her. We represented them in this way as it gives you a hint of the type of victims. Within the clip there is also the “serial killer”. To give a hint that this was not your ordinary killer we ensured that the actress was wearing everyday clothes instead of the usual “scruffy” type used in the majority of thriller films.
During the past decade the amount of horror movies produce has risen from 16 films in 1998 to 44 in 2008. The demand for horror movie has risen and as a result more companies would be more obliged to invest in our product. The British film council (the company behind 28 days later) might distribute our film as it is based and produced within the United Kingdom. However, ghost house pictures might be interested in our product as it would boost their annual income as they are a fairly new institute.
The genre of our film is ‘thriller’. We chose this unanimously because in the film industry, they make 161.5 million dollars on each film; therefore it is a rather demanding type of film. We had to make sure that the viewers would understand the genre, so we had to have certain conventions: Such as props and lighting. We had a scalpel in the newspaper sequence, and low key lighting which hints that film is going to be a little scary! The audience knew what kind of film we were trying to portray, as the questionnaires come back with the right answers: Horror, or thriller.Unlike most typical horror films, with a male psycho killer, we had something new lined up. Our killer is a female, who is surrounded by news everyday. The latest news is about how teenagers are becoming more and more trouble, and how they are taunting people. Her hatred builds up to a point where she wants to get rid of them. So she feels it’s her job to do away with the whole generation, and make a perfect one.
We emphasise the age gap between adults and teenagers in today’s society by the action that they do, and by the pace of the action. For example, in the first few seconds of the film, there is a girl running wearing modern ‘teenager’ clothes. This shows the youth, because she is scared and also because it’s what they wear. Whereas the “killer” is all slow paced. Like when she’s cutting out newspaper headings, or gluing things into the book, she does it to perfection. And she’s more or less in the same position all the way through. This shows that she isn’t as active as she once where as a child.
In 2008 the demands for horror films have gone up, almost three times as much, since 1998. Going from 16 a year, to an outstanding 44!! As a result of this, plenty of major companies would be more than happy to invest in our film, such as “The British Film Council”, or “Ghost House”.