Rough Cut - Miss Georgiou

Audience feedback is important to production as it allows you to see how your target audience reacts to what you've made and if it's been as effective as you planned. Using feedback you can determine what went well and you can ask the audience for advice on what can be improved.  Without getting feedback before you release your film you may be surprised to find that the audience isn't reacting to the film as you planned and your film may end up subpar. Getting feedback before finishing production helps as the audience can advise you on how you can improve the film.

In order to get some audience feedback we posted a rough cut of our opening sequence onto YouTube. We then got as many people as possible to watch the clip and asked them to tell us what they thought in the comments section. This feedback will benefit us as it allows us to see how effective our opening sequence is and we can use the feedback to make small changes and improvements that suit or target audience.

The first feedback we received was about the soundtrack. We were told it hadn't been incorporated smoothly and that it didn't match what was occurring on screen. When watching our sequence back we noticed that there were times where the music stopped too quickly and other times where it started too loud. Based on the feedback we received we looked at this and realised that not having the soundtrack smoothly match the editing was jarring and would take the audience out of the scene. To rectify this me and Charlie worked on the sequence to make sure the music faded in and out smoother and that it was never too loud. We decided it worked much better if we made sure that the music fades out right before the next shot and also that it slowly increases in volume during the more tense scenes.

Another piece of constructive feedback we received is that our usage of shots and angles was basic and needed more variation. We made use of long shots and close-ups but realised that we hadn't used any shots more conventional to the thriller genre. To fix this we went back out and filmed some extra shots making use of canted angles to portray the antagonists unstable mental state. We also tried to get a high angle shot of the victim but it git dark quickly and when we watched it back we realised it wasn't as good as we had hoped so we left it out.

We also received feedback stating that in some shots the lighting was too dark so it was too hard to make out what was happening. We struggled during filming to get everything filmed while the lighting was sufficient so t rectify this problem we used Final Cut Pro to increase the brightness in some scenes and make sure that the lighting was consistent throughout the shots.

Some positive feedback we received was that even if it hadn't been incorporated well the actual music we had chosen suited our sequence and helped create tension. Another positive comment we got was about the credits that Jess had designed. We were told the style of the credits was well suited to our film and was very conventional to the genre as it was white text on a black background and it was styled to represent the dysfunctional nature of the antagonist. We also received positive feedback about how the start of the sequence was very conventional and did a good job of slowly building tension leading up to victim finally seeing the antagonist.

Production Roles - Miss Miller

All the people involved in the making of the film are assigned their own role. This is so everyone knows what they are responsible for so the production process goes smoothly. If roles were not assigned to everyone there would be confusion and specific jobs may not get done as no one was assigned to that job. Some roles are more important than others and are necessary for a film to be successful.

The main roles in film production are:

• Producers - In charge of the finance and managerial aspects of the film. Producers oversee the production process, make sure everything is on budget and are often in charge of choosing the crew members and some of the cast.
• Directors - The directors are in charge of making the film and work closely with the screenplay writers as well as the camera crew.
• Actors - The actors are the people who play the characters in the film. They learn the script written by the screenplay writer(s) and work together with the directors.
• Director of Photography - The DoP is in charge of all the cinematography elements and the shots used in the film. They work with the directors, camera crew and the lighting department.
• Camera Crew - The camera crew are in charge of operating the cameras and filming under the direction of the directors and the director of photography.
• Music Producers - The music producers are a part of the post production process as they are in charge of creating a suitable soundtrack for the film. 
• Screenplay Writer - The writers are in charge of writing the film script. They are mostly a part of the pre production process as the script is usually the first thing developed for a film and often scripts are already have first drafts before being shown to potential producers. Screenplay writers are also usually on set and work with the director who may suggest changes to the script during the production process.
• Mise-en-scene coordinators - they are in charge of all the props, lighting, hair & makeup and anything else that will be seen in the film.
• Editors - Editors work post production and are in charge of putting the film together using all the film footage. The editors are in charge of any special effects in the film as well the shot transitions.

Soon after we had planned the narrative we had a group discussion about who would be responsible for what. When we finished discussing we had assigned everyone to a specific role

• Producers - We were all responsible for the production of the film but Jess was our main producer. Jess was our main producer as it was her narrative we were using and we needed several female actors. Jess said she would be able to get some of her friends involved so she wasd responsible for casting and organising our filming scedule as it would be easier for her to find out when her friends were available. Jess did a good job as she picked suitable people to act in our film and we were able to get all the filming finished before the deadline whereas several other groups struggled as they were poorly organised.
• Director - We chose Charlie to be our our main director as he expressed an interest in the role and is currently doing Film Studies. He had a good understanding of our film as he drew our group narrative and we thought he would hardest in the role as he told us he is inspired by Stanley Kubrick. He did a good job and the shots we took were convential as well as interesting and do a good job of helping create an eerie atmoshphere.
• Actors - The main role in our sequence, the victim, was played by Jess' friend Molly. We chose her as she meets the conventions of a victim as she is a youg white female who looks innocent and is able to make the audience feel for her. She is also a drama student with acting experience so she was the most suitable out of Jess' friends. She did a good job and listened carefully to the instructions she was being given by Jess and Charlie.
• Director of Photgraphy / Cameraman - Me and Charlie were in charge of this. Charlie was the main director but I also knew what shots we needed to make the sequence convential so we worked together. We worked well together as Charlie knew the sequence and all the shots we would need and I was able to provide suggestions on how to make the shots more convential. Having two people doing was definetly benificial as we were able to come up with more and better ideas.
• Music Producers - I was put in charge of finding suitable music for our soundtrack. We decided I would be best for this role as I was inspired by thrillers such as Zodiac and Prisoners so I had a good idea of they type of music I was looking for. I also knew of some websites that provide royalty free music which is what we were told we had to use. I struggled at first as the amount of sources providing royalty free music was very limited so it was difficult to find something that matched the ideas I had in my head. I was successful in the end as I found website with a large enough collection for some to be suitable for our film. In the end Charlie helped with choosing the best option and we found some music that we liked. 
• Editors - Jess handled most of the editing work with help from Charlie. They had the job of editing the sequence as I was busy with the soundtrack and updating the group meetings table. They had to import all the clips into Final Cut Pro and then edit and sequence them together. Once I had found the music we would use for the soundtrack Charlie imported it into Final Cut and found the best way to incorporate the soundtrack into the sequence. After watching the first draft we realised that our sequence was rather boring and not as engaging as we thought it would be. The editing was basic as the transitions weren't varied (mostly jump cuts) and no effects were added to the frame. If we were more experienced with the program we would have been able to edit the sequence in a more interesting way.

To conclude, allocating different roles to everyone made the filming process smoother but we still had some issues. In hindsight we may have been better off having Jess acting as the victim as it was her narrative so she knew exactly how she should act and how it should look. Also, our sequence may have been better if me and Charlie did the editing as we are both more comfortable using Final Cut and could have used more advanced editing techniques.

Opening Scene Narration - Miss Miller

The scene begins with the first credit introducing the production company, CM Studios. Following this is the establishing shot which is of the entrance to the forest, we see a signpost next to a path leading into the forest. We will then show the next credit which is of the actors and actresses. The next frame is a long shot of the girls walking through the forest, laughing happily, it fades to black when we next see them they are further ahead, this is to show that they have been walking for a while. The next credit is shown which is names the main writer, Jess Day. Then there is a jump cut to when the girls are about to separate and we see the soon-to-be victim, Cathryn, follow a different path. The next credit shows who the film was directed by, me and Charlie Stewart. The credits are white text on a black background.

We then get an over-the-shoulder shot of Cathryn walking down the path texting on her phone. The phone is the iconography featured in this frame and is used to highlight how Cathryn would have been distracted from what was happening around her. The music starts to increase in volume here as this is when the audience first start to think that something is wrong. We then cut to a long shot of Cathryn walking down the path when she hears the sound of a twig snapping and jumps. We see her look around, confused and the music increases slightly in volume. There is then a jump cut to over-the-shoulder shot which shows the antagonist hiding in the bushes watching Cathryn. We see his back and and that he is surrounded by bushes which is why the victim hasn't seen him yet. The eerie music we added is loud here as this is when the audience first see the antagonist and infer that he has evil intentions. Cathryn doesn't see anything strange but we see from her facial expressions that she is still suspicious. She continues walking up the hill until she sees a strange figure at the top of the hill staring at her. There is a long shot of the antagonist standing atop the hill and we will use shallow focus to make him seem like a silhouette and more mysterious.

The antagonist is seen to have his hand in his pocket and we cut to a low angle shot  from behind him. The low angle shot makes him look big and threatening. He slowly removes his hand from his pocket and we see that he his holding a knife which is the main mise-en-scene element in our sequence. He twists the knife so that it shines the light which draws the audience's attention towards it. Cathryn freezes in shock, drops her phone, and then runs. The next shot uses panning as Cathryn runs off screen. The final shot shows Cathryn hiding behind a tree as the antagonist slowly approaches her. The screen then fades to black and the movie title appears.

Risk Assessment - Miss Georgiou

It is important to assess all the risks before filming as otherwise you may be unprepared deal with potential problems that may arise. If you don't asses the potential risks beforehand they may disrupt your filming and make it harder or impossible to get everything filmed. If you are able to manage all the potential risks it will be much easier to follow the film schedule.

If we assess the potential risks beforehand we will be able to figure out how we can stop them from happening or how to stop them being a problem. Now that we have assessed the potential risks we know what we need to do to ensure the filming process goes smoothly.

Group Storyboard - Miss Miller

The group storyboard shows our final plan for our film. We took ideas from all of our storyboards and used them to create one final storyboard that we would follow during filming. Under the drawing of each frame we described the micro elements and wrote a short description of the narrative.

We had all created our own individual storyboards but as we only needed one final design we took the best ideas from each storyboard. Charlie's storyboard was the most detailed so we based it on his version. An example of a shot we took from Charlie's storyboard is the over the shoulder shot which shows the antagonist hiding behind bushes and we see the victim move past. This was a good shot as it shows how the antagonist is hidden as well as his view of the victim and the audience infer that he has evil intentions. This makes the audience scared for the girl and they are on edge wondering what will happen next. This is conventional as thrillers often make the audience worry about an innocent female character before they inevitably get killed.

The sequence begins with an establishing shot of the entrance to the forest. This was from my storyboard and I included it due to what I learnt about establishing shots in my cinematography research and how they set the scene and inform the audience of where the scene is taking place. It ensures the audience aren't distracted as they wonder where the scene is taking place and they can just focus on the film. Another idea we added is a handheld shot of Cathryn walking through the forest on her phone. This was from Jess' storyboard and we decided to include it as it increases realism and shows the audience that Cathryn started off happy and oblivious and only started to panic later on in the scene when we see the antagonist hiding. A shot we all featured in our individual storyboards is a mid shot of the antagonist hiding in the bushes with a knife in his hand. We all decided it was good to add this as it shows the audience that the antagonist intends to cause harm and as they know Cathryn won't be able to defend herself they feel sympathise and are scared for her as she is presented as innocent so the audience want her to live. Shots like this are conventional to thriller films as they are good way to create a sudden sense of panic.

While planning the storyboard we took a lot of inspiration from the Scream films. The series is famous for it's use of female victims and antagonists with hidden identities. This inspiration is evident in out storyboard when we have the low angle shot of the antagonist where his face is hidden and he slowly reveals a knife.

I think our group storyboard is successful as we managed to get the best ideas from the three individual plans without any issues. Even though our individual plans were decent there was room for improvement and by working together we ended up with a much better plan that is even more conventional to the thriller genre.

Film Schedule

It is important to have a filming schedule as it makes the filming process much more efficient. It does this as it minimises confusion after each shot as the director will know what to shoot and when. Without one it would probably take longer to get between each shot as the film crew would have to work out what they need to film whereas with a filming schedule there is a structured plan to follow.

We followed some of the schedule but ran in to quite a few problems. We followed the order of the shots but we weren't able to get them all done on the days listed as we had lighting issues when it got too dark for us to continue filming. We had to go back twice to get all the filming finished.

Group Planning

In my group are Jessica Day and Charlie Stewart and we all have to have regular group meetings and updates. This is very good for our group as it allows us to share our ideas about the opening sequence and other tasks. We can discuss together the best way sot make out film conventional to the thriller genre. We also have group discussions whenever someone wants to change something and we decide whether or not it's a good idea. We talk about the best way we can incorporate these ideas into our film and how we can explore different micro elements we can incorporate into our film. 

In our first meeting we discussed the narrative. We had all created our own individual narrative ideas and the we discussed which one we should base our film on. We decided that Charlie's would be too difficult to film and that mine was overly complex and too much to fit into an opening sequence. We then came to the conclusion that if we made some changes to Jess' idea it would be the most conventional as well as being the easiest to film as it was all set in one location. We decided to get rid of the "game" aspect and just make it so the antagonist targeted one victim. We didn't discuss inspirations much in our first meeting but me and Charlie agreed that our favourite thriller was Se7en and we liked the way the antagonist was presented. We also realised that after we changed Jess' narrative it had several similarities with the Scream film series.

We were given several A3 sheets of paper and given the task of planning out each part of our sequence and what techniques we will use. We separated each sheet into four sections and in each section we focused on a different part of our sequence. On the first section we planned mise-en-scene and what mise-en-scene elements we would feature in our film. We decided that for iconography our antagonist would be armed with a knife which is a conventional murder weapon in thriller films. We also decided to use low key lighting and have the victims wearing light clothes and the antagonist wearing black, representing good vs evil. We decided to set out film in a forest as it is a dark, eerie and isolated location which makes the on-screen characters and the audience all feel uneasy.

In the next meeting we discussed cinematography. We looked at what shots and angles we could use and how we could use them to improve the look and feel of our sequence. We all instantly agreed that we should feature shaky handheld camera movements to portray to the audience the fear and panic the victim is feeling. We also decided that we should have a high angle shot of the victim walking alone through the forest to highlight how isolated and vulnerable she is. We decided that when the antagonist is in the frame we should use low angle shots to make him appear more threatening and powerful.

The next meeting was all about the soundtrack. I came up with the idea of having off screen sound of crunching leaves and branches being broken to suggest to the victim and to the audience that the victim may be being followed. We all decided that this was a good idea as it increases tension and creates panic. We will use parallel sound of the victims heavy breathing which shows the audience that she is as scared as they would expect her to be and sympathize.