First draft of my trailer- work in progress

Diary update; Filming

I have now finished all of my  research and planning and therefore have put this into practice and started filming. This process has been a lot more difficult as i originally believed, i thought that i would simply go to the location on my shooting rational and follow the steps i had written and then move onto the next location. However it wasn't as easy as this, as some ideas in which i had planned to film, are not actually visually satisfying so therefore i had to make altercations. Another issue in which i faced was the fact that a lot of my filming was based around night time, however as i have not got professional lighting it was hard for me to do so whilst still maintaining the quality of the shots. Therefore i faced this by using a variety of different forms of light, for instance hand torches, lamp posts and car lighting, which actually were very effective.

Despite these obstacles i have faced, i am really happy with my filming so far. i feel as if i have managed to keep on schedule and film exactly when i had planned, this time keeping is really important as it will ensure that i meet all of my deadlines. I feel as if my story line is definitely coming together and the actress i have used is extremely helpful in creating a sense of realism. I have already started writing down editing techniques i wish to use on particular shots, this will become very useful when i get to the editing stage as ill already have an idea. I think the locations i have chosen suit my genre very well, although i have selected some new ones which i hadn't anticipated in order to set the scene. From the filming i have already done i have been able to pin point new ideas which i will film next time, i will keep you updated on my filming log. 

Whilst still using my script i have not entirely stuck to it, this is because everyday i think of new and more innovative ideas in which will be more suitable in my trailer than my original ideas. I have added new locations and deleted particular scenes which i think will take away from the tention  i want to build. Original i planned to show my protagonist originally as a victim and showing her in her everyday life in order to almost make the audience emphasis with her. However i have made an altercation to the plot and have decided to portray her as a blood thirsty psychopath, this is so she defies the usual stereotype of a female as being submissive and marginalized. I want her to look powerful and cold, therefore i will simply show her through an evil light instead and deprive the audience of knowledge as to how she has become like this in order to create suspense and make them want to watch the movie 

Key editing tools

These are a variety of audio effects which allowed me to manipulate the pitch and atmosphere of the different sounds which i incorporated in my trailer. I found these very useful as they allowed me to express my own vision on the original audio.

There were numerous transitions which i was able to include between clips, this enabled me to make clips flow better and also create tension. I think the more natural ones are better for my trailer as it makes it look more professional.

I used the blending tool to allow my audio clips to blend better, this is key in making your trailer flow and to try and eliminate any blatant change in sound, volume or pitch. 

I used these filter and effects in order to blend clips to create the illusions that they were filmed at night, in an eerie setting and also on the same day. These have really helped me create a chilling effect and by being able to manipulate their harshness it has really benefited my production.

I have used two title pages in my trailer, i originally planned to include them to tell the story, however i believed my clips were able to do so and i found it made my trailer look unprofessional. Although i have still used them to create suspense and to tell the audience when the film is being released.

 

I have been able to clip my audio files together so i can get a gathering effect, this has really helped me build up the sound, making it creepier and more efficient. I have trimmed the audio clips to make them coincide effectively

 

 The speed tools were extremely beneficial for my trailer, they enabled me to slow down clips to create suspense and emphasis and speed up clips to portray tension. I was able to manually manipulate the speed so i could make it exactly how i wanted to. This was definitely my favorite tool as it made me realise how the speed can really change the meaning of a clip. 

Day 5; Filming

Today i filmed a few shots which i intend to use a flash cuts, these shots were quite disturbing. I showed my protagonist washing her blood drenched hands in a scruffy looking sink through a closeup. This was very effective as it shows her covering her tracks but also hinting at her malicious behaviour. I also filmed her doing her lipstick, using the reflection from a knife as a mirror. Originally i planned to use a standard mirror, however i believe this was more visually pleasing as it really helps the audience see how psychotic and blood thirsty she really is. This idea was also reinforced by the closeups of i filmed of her kissing the knife, showing a lack of empathy in which is a characteristic of the criminally insane. I am really happy with these shots as they help reinforce the genre and make my trailer look a lot more creepy.

Day 4; Filming

Today i did a of filming as after creating my first draft i came to the conclusion that there were gaps which prevented my trailer from being as i envisioned it. I resolved this by filming for footage in which helped made the story line clearer whilst doing this i also experimented more a variety of camera angles to add diversity and make it have more professional outcome. Firstly I found some old film of my auntie as a little girl of whom has similar features to my protagonist. I did this as it can foreshadow her psychotic character now with the innocence she withhold when she was younger. This comparison is effective as it adds more depth and really allows my audience to connect with my trailer. I got this idea from a trailer i came across whilst i was searching for inspiration in which i could adapt and use in my own. 

 

 

I personally found this very hard hitting as it proposed questions as to what happened to the woman to make her characteristics change so much. I simply played the film on a television in a dark room, this is because it added a more sinister feeling and avoided any features in the room diverting any attention. I spent a considerable amount of time doing this as i wanted to shots to be relevant therefore i chose ones of her face closeup and playing like any 'normal' child would. From this i was given ideas in which i could help show connections with the little girl to make the link clearer.

One of the main issues i had depicted with my footage so far is that i didn't believe my characters profile was constructed as much as i wanted it to be. Consequently my aim was to do this, i filmed my character standing on street corner  trying to get cars to stop with a gesture named 'thumbing' followed by her walking up to a car and leaning into it. I believe these shots helped the audience uncover her possession and view her as a predator. I filmed this through a variety of long shots and closeup shots in order to experiment and ensure that every little detail was included. These shots were also slightly different in the way i dressed my actress, prior to this shoot she was filmed wearing more typical hooker clothing, with short skirts and low cut tops however i dressed my actress in a scruffier outfit to show her lack of class. 

I then went to the woods which i had previously filmed in in order to reiterate links. I showed my protagonist walking away from a dead body which came out very chilling. I filmed her swinging on a rope swing, this was because in the film of my auntie, she is shown doing so, therefore i believe this will look extremely good as it will show strong links. I finally filmed extreme closeups and cut away shots of my protagonist in the woods, looking muddy and disgruntled to reinforce her psychopathic ways.

Thriller magazine inspiration

I have created a mood board of different thriller magazine posters, this has given me insight into what conventions they display. I am able to depict aspects which i think look good and will conciser using for my final piece  and others elements which i do not believe are beneficial. From these magazine covers  my initial though is that they are incredibly busy and incorporate lots of  detail both in the visuals and in the taglines. There are key themes which stand out to me from even just a glance, for example there is generally only one person in the frame, more likely to be a male, this is because they are stereotypically more butch and fearful. The color red is also incorporated into many of the posters, this is due to its negative connotations of fear, danger and blood, all of which are key elements of thriller films. Finally the typography is extremely exaggerated and powerful, this ads more emphasis and coincides with the intensity of the main images. I am going to pick the three that inspire me the most and analyse them in further detail in my next post. 

Day 3 filming

Today i went to derelict location, although i hadn't initially planned this for my trailer, i came to the conclusion that showing my protagonist simply shooting her victims, isn't very graphic. Therefore i decided to use a run down location in order to show her victims being brutally tortured, this will make my trailer appear more scary and therefore reinforce my genre. I used one male actor and with some helped used makeup to create the illusion that he has been beaten, this will show my audience the extend of my protagonists actions and consequently make her come across more terrifying. I filmed a variety of different shots, from numerous angles of the actor looking like hes suffering and also cut in shots of his scars and bruises. I also made sure i got some good footage of the location, this is to establish the setting and also create a more eerie atmosphere. My next step is to film more of my protagonist in order to build her character profile more, this is essential as the audience will be able to build an opinion of her whilst adding more meaning to the trailer. 

Format research; Film poster

This research has really helped me to develop more knowledge on the key codes and conventions of a thriller poster. Beforehand i knew what was typical of a poster in general, however i was unsure how one of this particular genre differed. The key thing that i picked up was that less is definitely more, it is important to create enigmas by not giving to much away. I have also acknowledged that when there is to much going on, concerning images and writing, that a sense of eeriness and suspense is withdraw. I am going to apply this knowledge to when i come to create my thriller poster, in order to create a chilling yet professional looking piece. This research has helped me come to a few important conclusions, i am only going to use my protagonist on my poster, this will ensure that she is the main focal point and that when my audience come to watch the film, there preconceptions can be challenged. I also want a sense of darkness to be amplified in my poster, this is because my trailer is orientated mainly around the night, therefore this will reflect that whilst also creating a fear factor. Finally i have decided to not over exaggerate my typography, as from my prior research i have depicted that this will take attention away from the image whilst making it look more ammeter. This research has been really beneficial for my process and has definitely helped me see thriller posters in a new and more advanced light. 

Day 2; filming

Today i filmed scenes in the woods and at a decrepit location. I faced some challenges in the woods, as because they are enclosed i have to film in the light in order to ensure my footage doesn't loose any detail. However i don't think it was as effective as it lost the quality of eeriness i hoped to achieve. Therefore i am going to edit the filming i do have to make it look darker and see if this is visually pleasing. Although if this does not give me the outcome i want, i will re film this section at a later time in the day. The woods were successful for filming body parts hiding beneath the leaves, they look really scary and definitely realistic. I also filmed wide shots of my protagonists walking towards and away form the camera with a gun in her hand this plants enigmas and reinforces the conventions of a thriller as weaponry is a common feature.  I also found a new location for a scene in my film, it is a run down old pub, i took some shots of the interior of the building which involved smashed glass and old furniture, i believe this will be useful in my filming as it follows conventions of a thriller of being isolated. I used a torch to shine on particular parts of the interior, this allowed more detail to be portrayed yet also creating the effect that someone is in there shining the torch. I think this scene creates quite a lot of suspense as it almost makes you think that somethings going to jump out of the darkness. My next step is to go back to this location with my actors and film my torture scenes.