Final Project: Group Discussion Aftermath

    I went back through the blog postings of some of my groupmates and thought over the conversation that we had and noticed a few things. The first was that there some of the people within the group had elements that were designed to be symbolic. I thought the idea was really interesting but don't see how I could fit it into the current film that I'm planning out. I can't think of a place to put symbolism for other things, but I can find ways to reference a broader problem with crime. I'm not sure how I'd do it or if it's even needed but I think that it is a possibility. 

    Another thing I noticed was that everyone seems to have a designed color palette and they are thinking about doing things that they would look cool visually. For one project they were going for a shot in reverse to show how they're going to go back in time, and I suggested having the scene be much slower and close up so that it felt personal and unsettling. I'm going to take a production idea from Nicole and film a version of the film using my family as stand ins for the characters, just to I can figure out which angles and lighting will work best. That will happen after I finish the first storyboard. 

    I tend to deviate from storyboards and I think that it reduces the quality of the final product, so for this project I'm going to finalize my visual outlines before I shoot with real people and have the scene flow the way I want it to from there. 

Final Project: Group Discussion

    The group discussion was interesting. The first thing I noticed was that all of us were doing something along the lines of a thriller. There were various differences in this approach since some of us were taking an approach through the criminal world. Others were going along the lines of psychological thrillers. There were various ideas thrown out into the air, such as Jules mentioning the stages of grief. There were interesting things said, all of which were helpful to the project. Some people shared their insight into various parts of the project, and they provided good ideas for me to look into and test. One of the things that I thought was really cool was how one of them was using reverse shots to physically begin the story since the opening shows part of the aftermath of an event.

    Something that I proposed to the group was how I planned on using shadows and other ways of hinting at a threat without showing it directly. They said that it was a good idea, and suggested lighting schemes that would allow me to try and enhance the idea of an unseen threat. 

    There were a lot of good things being said, and going forward I think I have good support from these classmates. 

Final Project: A Surprising Gift

     I have started storyboarding, and my next few posts will outline everything that I've gone over and thought about, but I had a development that I deemed noteworthy enough to mention in this posting. Yesterday I visited my grandparents after school to check up on them, making sure to wear protective face coverings and stay away. My grandfather gave me a camera. It was an older device and one that was going to require a repair before use, but I did some research on the quality that the camera provides and think that it can potentially do better than my iPhone. 

    However, there is one thing that I need to look into. The camera has an issue where the memory cards not reading as placed into the device, which means that I need to look into how to fix it in order to truly test how the quality will compare but I'm excited to see how the camera could play into production. I have two tripods that would be ideal to mount it on for still shots(I can do this with my phone as well but it takes longer to set up). 

    I'm excited to see how this new camera will potentially change the production process, and I look forward to seeing how it will affect the filming, editing, and overall production of the video. 

Final Project: Sidetracked

    I know I said in the latest blog posting I would have the beginning of a storyboard. That didn't happen. I ended up spending most of my time searching through the youtube sound library for songs that I thought would try to match the tone that I was going for. I love this sound library and I've spent hours scrolling through copyright-free in the past, both on youtube and other third parties. 

    I also spoke to two of my friends who have experience in making music and asked them if they could create a track for the opening of this film. They agreed to give me full license and told me if they ended up making a piece that I could use it. 

    I plan on getting more work done in class tomorrow and trying to get together my thoughts because while listening to music I do this weird visual brainstorming for potential shot ideas. Typically it's random flashes depending on the type of music I'm listening too, but this time I tried to take notes on the focused shots the music led me down, which I think will help me when I storyboard.  

Final Project: Making People Care

     One thing I've realized about this method of opening is that nobody really cares about the character that or is hurt in the beginning. Crimes in movies are often impersonal and the person on screen is never given a chance to have a personality or any characteristics that will make the audience care about their safety. 

    I think I have two potential ways to solve this. The first is to have them oblivious to the conflict that is occurring around them. This helps build suspense so the audience becomes actively invested in what the character is doing, almost forcing them to care about the person's wellbeing because of their oblivious nature. This also has the potential to massively backfire and make the audience think that the victim is a complete idiot and that their death is something they deserve for their ignorance. 

    The second way I can solve this issue is more difficult, and storyboarding further will allow me to see how I want to incorporate it. This method is by developing something about the character that somewhat attaches the viewer to the character. Whether it be a reference to a family member or a mention of somewhere important they need to go(such as checking in on a sick grandma). Incidents such as these are small details that allow the audience to connect with the character that is on screen and it gives them a way to connect to the person onscreen, even if they are only present for the opening and die within the first few minutes of the film. 

    I'm thinking the second option is the better way to go since this option allows for a quick reference and doesn't make the character stupidly oblivious. I'm going to spend most of the next class storyboarding and the next blog post will probably talk about various things in regards to how I plan to maximize my time in the opening to allow for the most compact yet effective way to open this crime thriller.

Final Project: Where to Put the Credits

     I finally have an idea as to what to do for the credits of the film. Since I want to build suspense and get the credits out of the way as quickly as possible. I'm thinking of doing something with the opening scene, which begins to build suspense for what is to come. I'm thinking of doing something that does a slow camera move towards a front door of a house, where the victim of the murder for the opening scene will emerge in a moment. 

    This extended shot, combined with music and the handheld nature of the shot, increase intimacy and allows for me to place the credits and title of the film right in the opening shot, while also providing a  tense opening to establish the location the victim is going to leave. 

    I'm thinking of using one of a few fonts for the credits. I'm not quite sure whether to continue with the idea of doing a scary text or to use a more typical cop movie font. I'll probably decide which one I am using after I've started filming since I have time to decide how I want the credits to mesh with the overall aesthetic of the project. 

Final Project: Something I've Noticed/More Research

 I've watched a few crime movies and TV shows, and there's something I've noticed about the antagonists for the films. Since the entire story focuses on catching a specific criminal or group of criminals, which means their face and other identifying features aren't shown at all for a majority of the film, even if the subject is shown on screen in the shadows. It's something that really came to my attention after my rewatching of Se7en the other day and a few episodes of Criminal minds. This is something I want to accomplish during the opening scene. Establishing a threat that the characters on screen are unaware of, but one that the audience knows is about to strike.

    I can do this in a few key ways. The first is to add subtle hints to the conflict as mentioned in a previous posting, with a newspaper or broadcast hinting at the idea of a serial killer hunting in the area. I think I may use an effect similar to that in Jurrasic park, where the shadow of a velociraptor(in this case serial killer), has their shadow shown trailing the character, so the audience is made aware of an immediate threat that the character is unaware of. 

    I think if I use sound design and music to my advantage, I can convey the idea of a stalker or a threat without giving any details as to the identity of the killer, maintaining the unknown that allows the audience to enjoy the speculation of wondering who the killer is, which allows them to have a vested interest in finding the killer along with the main characters. 

    I'm not certain that the main character will even appear in the intro to the film, since I want the murder to play out before the case hits the detective's desk the following morning. As I storyboard I will see how much time I have and determine whether or not this addition to the sequence is beneficial to the scene.