Evaluation 7

Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product?

During the early stages of year 12 - I had no experience at all with general media. I had never edited any footage before and for my preliminary task it was the first time. During the planning stage for my preliminary created a story board: That is where I learnt how important and crucial planning all my ideas ahead really is. This was the stage where I first was introduced to the numerous different shots and how to use them. From this task I was able to again confidence with using the different types of shots and techniques used such as the 180 degree rule, match on action, shot/reverse shot, continuity and camera work to build tension, suspense and empathy. These particular shots turned out to be vital in creating my film. I discovered that the use of the different shots had an impact on what needed to be stressed. An example of this is using an extreme close up to show the characters inferiority and the sense of entrapment whereas using an extreme long shot can encapsulate someone’s feeling of alienation and loneliness.

I also learnt how to adjust the lighting of my footage as some scenes were poorly lit due to me not having the lighting equipment at that time. Therefore, I had to fix this because the scenes were consecutive and it wouldn't have looked good thus would impacting the continuity, I fixed this issue with the colour corrector tool on Final Cut.

 However, from looking back at my preliminary task I knew I needed to use the knowledge from working with the different techniques and implicate them into my thriller. Moreover, due to this being a proper film opening, I felt I had to make it look far more professional as in some of my preliminary tasks the footage was quite shaky and didn't flow particularly well. Therefore, to improve on this I had to research in depth how shots and techniques really help to impact the scene and how they needed to be edited, I learnt that this wasn't executed as well in my preliminary tasks.

For my opening thriller I created a shot list to remind myself which shot is which, as my preliminary taught me how much planning and structure is necessary in making a successful video.

  

In this task we were focussing on continuity, making our different shots flow after each other, smoothly. This is also known as invisible editing. We also tried "match on action" which is when you cut between two shots whilst trying to not let it look like time has passed as they must look like two consecutive shots. This is crucial to the editing process as this is what helps to keep the flow of a scene and this is why there are people in the media industry whose sole purpose is to check the continuity. This video shows the match on action for when the character goes through the door and when she goes up the stairs.

The preliminary task really helped to make me realise how crucial continuity is, when making a film, because a poor execution can damage the films credibility and lose the audience, as poor transitions can take the audience out of the story, thus failing to keep their attention. However, one of my preliminary tasks executed this well as the transitions were smooth and flowed well together. However, the use of a POV shot at the end was fairly shaky and from this I've massively improved and learnt from my mistake.

I learnt how to use 'over the shoulder' shots and tracking shots - On top of that I learnt that the sound track can really affect and change the view of the audience. The sound track built suspense and made the preliminary more tense than what it is without the sound track. I also learnt how to work with the camera and the tripod more, being able to keep the camera steady for a neat outcome. My thriller opening needed effective work and effort in the mise-en-scene as it needs to create a mood and scene so that the audience can relate and connect themselves with the movie more. Where as in my preliminary we did not think about what could have ruined and effected the genre. The lighting was more thought through in my final thriller opening as in the preliminary we used the original lighting with no editing included.

Above is the preliminary task I did prior to my thriller. I found this particular task quite useful in building my knowledge of what shots work best and understanding what makes a good film opening as we did our best to copy the original opening sequence. This task was by far the most beneficial preliminary task I've done due to it fitting the brief of an opening sequence which is what my thriller is as well, an opening to my film. Moreover, I found by partaking in this task I learnt so much about organisation; organising venues to shoot in and organising the actors. I also learnt about editing in a lot more depth as I now had to think about the sound track as well as the film, whereas, in previous tasks sound wasn't an issue. The editing process also helped me to develop my knowledge and confidence with the software Final Cut Express and all its tools.

Memento Opening scenes analysis

The beginning of the film opens with a high angle shot, looking down at a photograph of what appears to be a bloody crime scene of which a dead man is seen. The sound appears to be a violin which helps to exhibit the revulsion from that gruesome picture effectively, as it helps to create an eary and tense atmosphere.

Throughout this scene, the opening credits are displayed in the foreground with this same picture taking centre stage, this could suggest to the audience that this might be either a psychological thriller or a crime thriller as we're unaware of who's holding the picture and his connection with the deceased.



The next shot the audience see's is a reaction shot of the man who has been holding the picture this whole time. This shot shows him to be quite horrified and confused at what he has just seen suggesting that he isn't a police officer as they would be used to seeing images like this, thus suggesting he might have had a connection to the victim. This shot makes the audience sympathise with him as they can see that he looks truly confused by it, furthermore through the scar markings on his face the audience can infer that he too might have been in a accident or might have come close to getting killed himself as the marking looks fairly fresh, therefore it must have been recently.

The Usual Suspects- Opening scene analyis

The establishing shot is an extreme close up of a pack of matches been struck alight, this use of shot shows the importance of the matches and the fire. The fire already foreshadows danger this then makes the audience question what is about to happen. From this shot alone, I can tell that fire is going to be a crucial and vital element and stimulus in this opening scene as the matches are only jut being lit suggesting that the fire hasn't  happened yet but it's about to, very soon. This then helps to create suspense through the enigma of the situation.

In The Usual Suspects, Mise-en-scene is employed very effectively in terms of establishing characters motives and helping the audience understand  what's going on through the iconography. When the audience first sees Sgt Rubin’s office it is cluttered and messy, this then gives them an idea of his personality and a sense of what he's really like, disorganised, stressed.

The use of a long shot to help show the audience what is happening and the contents of the film, is pretty effective as it helps to enhance the film. During this opening sequence, the audience see all the elements in the office as more than simple props and set pieces, but elements that are key to understanding the story and realizing what really happened in the narrative. The director has cleverly chosen to use the mise-en-scene alone to tell the films story without relying on any dialogue from the characters, this deems to be really effective and powerful.

Status has been shown through the characters wealth as their the ones with the power, wealth is made clear by the gold watches and gold lighter.

During one of the final scenes where Kujan realises who Verbal really was, everything is put into utter silence with just a classical, ominous tone building in the background and a combined set of phrases that Verbal had mentioned throughout his story mixed together with the on screen equivalents of where this information was derived from is a really powerful scene in the narrative. The absence of sound is used when the cup shatters with only the background instrumental reaching its peak and the name being repeated over and over again by Verbal’s monologue, this was really effective as it really helped to draw in the audience as they had to rely on the visuals rather than the dialogue and sound.

Sound is crucial in the revelation of the characters status, this is shown through the change of sound after a character is mentioned. For example, every time Keyser Soze's name is mentioned, there is always a buildup of background noise, and music, which is then followed by a very brief silence which gives the character to react. This is seen in the first hospital scene when one of the characters first hears someone say Keyser's name. This engages the audience by keeping them interested in the mystery, as it adds intrigue to Keyser's character as the want to know what he's done.

The use of diegetic sounds like the water running and the fire help to set the scene as it makes the place seem even more gritty, dark and dangerous like a hidden basement. This then suggests to the audience that whatever happens down there is not going to be above board or completely, if at all, legal, thus making them even more intrigued to know what's going to happen.

The opening scene, is renown for its use of revelation shots, this is made clear through the editing and the camerawork as the audience are constantly following the action e.g. when one of the characters light up the fire the audience then follows the trail in to it goes to a halt and we get a revelation shot of one of the heroes of the movie as he is seen to be putting out the fire with his urine, however his face still isn't revealed, this creates a sense of mystery and ambiguity as the hero usually always wants to be seen saving the day but this "hero" does it secretly to begin with.
However, from this mans position and his actions (urinating from the balcony) suggest he is the villain, this is then heightened though the fact that he has been silhouetted and we cannot make out any of his features, thus making the audience assume he is the villain until we realise that his actions were helping to put out the fire and not cause a nuisance.

 









We are introduced to a character with a mid-shot on a burning ship with several dead men around. Immediately, the contrast between the extreme close up and mid-shot disrupts the narrative flow, making it deliberately uncomfortable for the audience. 





The director and editor creates an enigma through the various different cuts- long shots and extreme long shots of the boat and what surrounds it. Furthermore, even though  we don't see the murder of the dead man, the audience are able to assume and have their own idea and perception of what happened. This then gives the audience a sense of involvement, in the movie, this is used in many thriller films. The sound is an essential feature that contributes to the ever increasing sense of tension. Through the music's increase in pitch the audience are made to feel a sense of anxiety and fear as they are metaphorically dangling at a top of a cliff wanting to find out what happens, which is created by the sense of expectation as they are constantly made to feel like something bad or heroic is about to happen. Throughout the sequence the music emphasises the tense, dramatic atmosphere illustrated in this sequence.

 This shot of the explosion is intriguing as it makes the audience question whether or not people got out or not, who was affected and where this took place?

The Silence of the Lambs Opening analysis

How does the opening engage/create interest for the audience?

The opening of this movie starts of with a long shot to confirms the setting  of a deserted  misty and perhaps frosty woods with the trees taking main focus suggesting that it is set during the early morning and something has either happened or is about to happen; as the woods in thrillers are usually associated with the fear of the unknown as you don't know what could be lurking around. The opening engages the audience as it shows a woman running suggesting she's the victim; this is depicted through the use of tracking shots from behind her, which makes the audience think she's running fro someone, thus creating a sense of sympathy for her. This is because in most thriller the female is usually portrayed as the victim as she is the "damsel in distress" so the audience automatically assume she's in danger.

Furthermore, the camera angle is a high angle shot slowly coming down show a women running and trying to climb a rope. This use of shot gives the impression that someone is watching her and it illustrates her isolation, thus creating suspense and interest for the audience as they want to know who she is and why she's running. However it is only after she climbs the rope when we realise that she isn't running due to fear but she's doing an assault course as when she gets to the top she stops and takes a look around and shows no sign of distress. The first shot of the female character helps to establish her as an enigma through the juxtaposition of the tense spooky mood created by the mise-en-scene and her running through the woods.

      Through the character running, the audience can infer that she might be the main character as she's the first character we're introduced to. As the character gets closer you see that she is struggling to pull herself up using a rope which suggests that she's running away from someone or something and that she is weak. This idea of her being frightened is heightened by the diegetic sounds of her heavily breathing from running.

 Even though, her heavy breathing shows her to be tired and out of breath, this opening scene depicts her to be quite masculine as she doesn't appear to be struggling or moaning which female characters are usually stereotyped to do. Thus suggesting that she's a tough cookie, so to speak and that she's not to be messed with. Just by her tackling the assault course with ease, we already get a sense of her character.

      Within the opening scenes the audience can see the location of the woods, this helps to identify that this is a crime thriller as it is documenting the location; furthermore by doing this it takes away the enigma of the setting.  

          

      From the titles the audience can infer that this movies main character is female as it is a woman's name that is shown first in the titles. This isn't a usual occurrence as it most thriller are usually headed a by main male character being the antagonist or protagonist. 

    




The enigma is established through the miss-en-scene and how each character is introduced to the audience as the female character for example is supposed to be an officer this is illustrated through her interaction with another officer however, her costume doesn't illustrate this in anyway.

      The opening titles are displayed in a large black and white font in the centre of the screen, this also identifies that this is a crime thriller, as the font is big and bold and serious.