Question 7 Looking Back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt

in the presentation from it to the full product?

• Since my preliminary, I have learnt a lot about working as part of team and communicating in a group

• A key skill in this area would be making group decisions. For example, during the planning of our thriller. We sat in a group and mind mapped everyone's ideas onto the page (A). With tutors advice we discussed which idea we liked the best and which one we believed could be the most thrilling. We all seemed to be fond of a character running in the woods and have their concentration and focus during their jog be abruptly and unexpectedly broken. Either by finding a dead body (unused footage) or being followed into the woods.

• Furthermore, one of my weaknesses within group activities is being too commanding and ignoring other members of the groups ideas in favour of my own. This was definitely something I frequently noticed during our preliminary task and something I became more reserved at during the final production. Frequently during the planning process, shoot and edit of Runaway I cast aside my own beliefs and thoughts to focus on the majority decision. This helped the efficiency of producing our final product as it reduced the amount of clashing ideas and barriers between our group.

Negotiating Skill in Team Work

(A)

Polishing Camera skills and using equipment• Using a camera (especially the Panasonic HDC-TD55, used to shoot our thriller) (B) is

something I have previous experience with outside of my media course. As a hobby during high school me and my friends made several short productions that involved camerawork, specifically with this model. This was the only experience of camerawork I had when producing our preliminary task so through the process of producing our final production I developed my confidence behind the camera as well as the sophistication and professionalism involved with working it and filming different shots.

• Another skill developed from the preliminary was the effective use of the Joby GorillaPod (C). This was a tripod made of flexible, interlocking sections that “allows for unlimited shaping and mounting in unusual locations and surfaces.” Using this well is a skill that took time to develop, i.e. angling it and attaching it to hard to reach places whilst maintaining an unobstructed image. The shots we achieved using this product can be seen at 0:25 (D), 0:26 (E) and 1:36 (F)

(B)(C)

(D) (E)

(F)

Using Generic Conventions - #1• One of the generic conventions developed from our preliminary is the use of

the tilt shot. In our preliminary we used this shot to show the distressed and panicked feeling of the character after realising he has left his pen and is late for an exam. This shot can be seen at 0:30 (G) and 0:57 (H). This skill was developed in our final production as we used a tilt (Dutch) angle in a much more subtly way. For example, at 1:34, we used a tilt angle to demonstrate how tentative and confused Billy is after the sudden and shocking knock at the door (I). This shot is similar to that in Bye-ro but, at 1:36 (J) we used a much more refined and unique tilt shot, achieved using the previously mentioned Joby Gorilla Pod. This shot achieved a similar effect but in a much more creative way having a greater impact on the viewers. An example of a sophisticated and technical development since the preliminary.

(G)

(H)

(I)

(J)

Using Generic Conventions - #2• Another generic convention developed since our preliminary is the

use of black and white (K). In our preliminary we used black and white to signify anger, frustration and confrontation between the two characters. This can be seen at 0:41 (L). On the other hand, in our final product we used black and white in a more proficient and effective way. We used black and white in our thriller all throughout to highlight the nightmare like visions Billy experiences. Using a colour alteration gives the impression that the sequences in the forest aren’t real whilst reinforcing the character of Holly as the antagonist as shots of her are black and white.

(K)

(L)

Using Generic Conventions - #3• In addition, one generic convention of thriller that we developed from our

preliminary is experiments with lighting. Reflecting on our preliminary, I noticed we made no effort to experiment with different types of lighting. During the shooting process of constructing our thriller, we ensured different types of lighting were used. For example, we ensured the shots of Billy in the kitchen bright, featuring bright colours on his t-shirt (M), in the room (N) and on the mug (O) for example. This was a strict contrast to shots of Holly preparing and grabbing the gun, reinforcing a sense of binary oppositions. We made sure the room we shot in was dimly lit, curtains closed and a few lamps before putting the actual clips into black and white (P). We also experimented with classic noir-thriller lighting, chiaroscuro lighting (Q), something we had no experience with before the research part of the course and certainty not before the preliminary.

(M) (N)

(O)

(P)

(Q)

Refining Media Techniques• In the brief of our preliminary task it outlines the “three continuity principles to observe”

during this task. These are: 1) Match On action, 2) Shot-Reverse-Shot and 3) The 180 Degree rule. All these concepts were very new to us during the production of our preliminary task. Examples in our preliminary: Match on action: 1:12 (R), Shot-Reverse- Shot 1:31 – 1:40 (S) and The 180 degree rule, remaining unbroken during the confrontation from 1:23 - 1:49. (T)

• During the production of our final product we refined and developed these techniques to enhance the professionalism of our thriller. We used match-on-action a couple of times, but in a more subtle way to give the opening to thriller a smoother appeal. One example in Runaway is at 1:25 when the character of Holly raises the gun (U). We get a close up from the side of her with the gun at her waist and the it cuts to a mid shot of her pointing the gun at Billy. A similar shot can be seen at the end of the sequence when Holly shocks Billy at the door. Another example can be seen at the start, at 0:13 (V) where Billy reaches for the tap and it cuts to him at a different angle turning it on. The typical example of match on action, quite a clichéd one too, is a character turning the handle of a door or approaching one and then cutting to them walking through. This was the example we used in our preliminary but during the production of our thriller we wanted to branch out and use a more contemporary version of match on action so these example were used.

(R)

(S)

(T)

(U)

(V)

Refining media techniques - Continued• Shot-Reverse-Shot is another technique that got implemented in a more

sophisticated way during the opening to our thriller runaway. Shot-Reverse-Shot can be seen during the “face off” between our two characters in the woods. Similarly to match on action, we didn’t use this continuity principle in the typical way. In Bye-Ro we used a stereotypical shot reverse shot between two characters talking. In contrast to this, in runaway the shot reverse shot is between the two in the woods to Billy packing away cutlery (W). This reinforces opposition and difference between the characters. Billy is represented in the kitchen and Holly in the woods so by using shot-reverse- shot creates a sense of binary opposition. previously mentioned, this a subtle example of shot reverse shot and is used to create immense pace by cutting quickly and frequently between the forest and the kitchen.

(W)

Refining Media techniques - continued• The 180-degree rule ensure directors stay on one side of the action to prevent the viewers

getting confused. In Runaway, we made sure we didn’t break this rule for example, during the confrontation in the woods (X) and the majority of the shots for when Billy is in the kitchen (Y). As opposed to the preliminary, we didn’t implement this continuity principle just to ensure the brief of the task was meant but instead to make sure we included some stereotypical features into our thriller. The 180 degree rule wasn’t broken for the entirety of the sequence in the forest and for the most part of the shots in the kitchen. Having said this, there was one key shot that we had to exclude from the rule. This was the shot at 0:31 (Z) and 0:38 (AA), looking through the window at a mid shot of Billy washing up. The reason this shot was broken is because at any other angle, a) the cameras reflection could be seen in the window (continuity error) and b) angling the camera following the 180 degree rule would mean the sun shone directly into the lens creating a lens flare and reducing clarity and crispness of the shot. This is evidence of development from my preliminary task as problems had to be thoroughly thought through in order to be solved during the production as opposed to just getting on with the shoot due to time restraints and facing problems later (Bye-ro).

(X)

(Y)

(Z)

(AA)

Continuity• Continuity was something we didn’t take seriously enough during the production of our preliminary task.

For example, throughout the task we didn’t write down or take a photograph of the characters costume to ensure that the same costume was brought by the actors each time we shot. Luckily we remembered and got it right. Furthermore, we had to shoot during lesson time and, naively didn’t take time out of our free time to go and shoot. During the progression from our preliminary task to our thriller, we learnt the importance of continuity. Being as thorough as possible prevented encountering any errors during the editing process. To ensure costume was the same, we briefed the actors on what rough clothes to wear and discussed what items of clothing/ props we collectively could use to ensure the characters remained as real as possible throughout. On the first day of shooting, we took photographs of our characters as reference points for future shoots (AB). What’s more, unlike the preliminary we chose which days to shoot and would only shoot if the weather was similar to how it had been before (sunny and partly cloudy). Before the first shoot in the kitchen, it had just been raining. For the shots looking through the window and shots from the window looking in, the window was littered with raindrops (AC). When we shot for a second time, we lightly sprayed the windows with a hose to achieve a similar effect and get the shots, taken on completely different days, to look as similar as possible. This is evidence of improvement since the preliminary as we clearly took continuity more seriously and learnt the importance of maintain similar aesthetics.

(AC)(AB)

Importance of Research.• Research into Thrillers was absolutely imperative for the successful production of

my thriller. Shortly following the completion of my preliminary, my first few case studies and investigations into thrillers, featured good ‘feature spotting’ and presentation but lacked depth of analysis that would benefit me during this process (AD). I developed these skills to add very detailed, in-depth analysis to my Case Studies. Instead of identifying and displaying convention of the genre in famous Thriller openings, I progressed to be able to explain why a director may have used this technique/ archetype and what effect this has on the audience (AE). This helped my during the production of my thriller because it meant I had knowledge about the use of techniques instead of just including them to get a higher mark. A great example of this would be the shot at 1:36 (AF) which has a great effect on the audience by confusing and perplexing the viewers. This was the rationale behind this unique shot, instead of just using as a convention of the genre.

(AD)

(AE)

(AF)

Importance of Research - Continued• Another reason research was vitally important during the process of constructing our final product was because it acted

as inspiration for our thriller. For example, one can see many similarities between features discussed in my case studies to those in my final edit. For example:

• Third ManWhat inspired us from the Third Man was the frequent use of tilt shots (AG). Examples of this in my thriller can be seen at 1: 34 (AH).• Once upon a time in AmericaThe opening to Once Upon a Time in America features creative uses of lighting. When Eve first arrives we see a great example of chiaroscuro lighting (AI). Her flat is rather dimly lit and when eve turns on the lamp, the room fills with ambient lighting revealing the full image to the audience (AJ). This inspired us to use the shot of Holly turning on her lamp and grabbing the gun at 0:40 (AK). Furthermore, Once Upon a Time in America also inspired the previously mentioned shot at 1:36 and a corpse POV shot of Holly dropping the coat over Billy that didn’t end up making the final cut but can be seen in many edit drafts• Kill Bill Vol. 1 : • The opening to Kill Bill 1 was a very enjoyable case study to do as it is a film I really enjoy. What we took from Kill Bill Vol.

1 was the use of Black and White (AL) to create a nightmare and flashback tone. This can be seen with all the shots in the woods, the black and white here makes these sequences seem more dream/ flashback like (AM).

(AG)

(AH)

(AI) (AJ)

(AK)

(AL)

(AM)

Importance of Research – Continued • Essex Boys:What we enjoyed about the opening to Essex Boys was the simplistic, sophisticated black and white titles (AN). These inspired our titles to be entirely black and white (AO), except the company logo of “Golden Triangle Productions”. Furthermore, the main character of Runaway, Billy (AP), was named after Billy Reynolds from Essex Boys. We enjoyed the innocent and naïve connotations of this name and thought it would be very suitable for our main character.

(AO)(AN)

(AP) Billy Reynolds from Essex Boys – Played by Charlie Creed-Miles

Importance of Research - Continued• During the brief and early stages of planning our production, we looked at

several examples of Thrillers from previous students. One that stuck out to our group specifically was “Out of the Woods” by Lauren Bryant (AQ). We liked the stillness and serenity achieved in the forest location and the camera shots. When the young boy finds a dead body in the woods, the tranquillity is shockingly broken which is a thrilling impact on the audience. This effect is similar to that in Heavenly Creatures and something we hope to have achieved in our final production. • Furthermore, the actor that played George (AR) was very similar to Louis

(who played Billy). They had unknowing and naïve connotations, adding to the unexpectedness and stun of finding the body, in our case the gun shot in the woods/ knock at the door.

(AQ)

http://laurenbryant.blogspot.co.uk/

(AR)

Importance of shooting the Cliff Hanger• The cliff hanger at the end of our product aims to leave the audience questioning many

things. Often in films, a question gets asked early on and over time, the answer is solved. Luther is a great example of a thriller that achieves this. At the start of many episodes, for example during Series 2, Episode 1. In the start of this episode, an enigma character in this case a masked killer (AS) (Cameron Pell - played by Lee Ingelby) kills a young women and the audience are left shocked, pondering: who the killer is? Why he’s killed her? Etc. A similar effect is achieved with the opening to Runaway, the audience don’t know who Holly is and why she’s targeting Billy in particular. Furthermore, the nightmare/ flashback sequences in the woods make the viewers question what is real and what isn’t. The way we created a cliff-hanger with a greater impact at the end of our opening was by using a loud sound bridge. After Holly is pointing the gun at the door, the screen suddenly goes black and a deafening gun shot is heard. This reinforces Holly as an enigma character as we never see her truly shoot Billy and darkness and mystery becomes strongly linked to this character. (AT)

(AS)

(AT)

Importance of the soundtrack• During the preliminary task, little thought went into the choice of soundtrack. It was

simply just a song that we liked and thought fit reasonably well. Furthermore, we quickly found some action genre music for the section where the character realises he has forgotten his pen. For the final production, much more work went into finding the right soundtrack to use. We went onto several free music sites, including the “free music archive” (AU) and “Bensound” (AV), and used search keywords such as “Thriller”, “tension”, “film orchestral music” to whittle down to soundtracks that may be appropriate. Examples of some we liked can be seen previously on my blog. The one we chose was Morbid Imagination by Kai Engel. We liked the ringing effect created that seemed to hurt your ears slightly. This was appropriate for our thriller as Billy has a ringing of the flashbacks and frequently appears distressed at a thought/ sound he cannot get out of his head. This is evidence of progression since the preliminary as thorough thought was put into the decision of soundtracks and music was picked not because we liked the song but because it was appropriate for the narrative of our production.

http://freemusicarchive.org/

(AU) (AV)

http://www.bensound.com/

Titles• Titles, similar to soundtracks, was something that we gave little thought to during

the construction of our preliminary. We used basic fonts that were set as defaults on the editing software we used (AW). Once again, the choice was purely based off whether we liked it or not and the aesthetic appeal. During the construction of our final product, the titles are great examples of how we have furthered our editing and production skills. On my blog there is a research post into fonts used for the credits in iconic thriller films (AX). One that stood out to us was those used in the 1995 film Se7en (AY). We thought the scruffy like font would be appropriate for our film and also the criminal connotations it had, looking similar to that off a criminal file. There are hundreds of websites online that provide thousands of free fonts to be downloaded. One we thought achieved a similar effect and appearance was “Carbon Type” found on Dafont.com (AZ)

(AW)

(AX)

(AY)

http://www.dafont.com/carbontype.fonthttp://www.dafont.com

(AZ)

Titles - Continued• Furthermore, during the credits of Bye-ro, it says: “Derbyshire

Productions” (BA). This was just a spontaneous idea based off the last name of one of our friends – once more showing very little thought and justification behind important decisions. In the opening to our thriller, the production company is “Golden Triangle Productions” (BB) which presents a “Black Valley” film (BC). The decision for it to be a “Black Valley” film was a rather difficult one. We definitely wanted to include an inter textual reference in the credits (to establish our production firmly in the genre) but also maintain a proficient and professional sounding company. Black Valley productions was inspired by the TV thriller produced by the BBC: Happy Valley. (BD)

(BA)

(BB)

(BC)

(BD)

Technical and conceptual knowledge • Before the edit of my preliminary task, I had no previous knowledge of the editing software Adobe

Premiere Pro (BE). Like I mentioned previously I was more than familiar with working and utilising a camera than editing on an advanced software such as this. Since the edit, I have grown much more confident with the software and can easily use techniques and skills that I previously struggled with. In the final edit of Bye-ro, I used only one video transition, which was a “cross dissolve”, seen at 0:56 (BF) and the rest of the cuts were just regular default cuts. With Runaway, I used dip to white and black many times and can know use them easily and effectively. For example at 0:26, 0:40 and 0:53

• Furthermore, there are several techniques on premiere pro, previously completely unknown to me that I have learnt to utilise to increase the efficiency of the editing process. These include the use of the “unlink” setting, the “snap” setting on the timeline and the razor tool. Using the unlink option separates the video of a shot from the audio, meaning they become independent entities (BG). This helped us create a sound bridge for example at (0:16) so we could have the audio of a clip without the footage. This is also useful when there is a wild sound over a clip that can be removed leaving just the video. An example of when this was used is when Billy turns on the tap at 0:14. The taps in the kitchen we filmed in often make peculiar sounds (due to the old plumbing) when turning on so using the unlink tool allowed us to get rid of this unwanted noise.

(BF)(BE)

Technical and conceptual knowledge continued• The snap setting allowed clips on the timeline to snap to each other (BH). This was extremely valuable

during the editing process as we didn’t need to worry about video/ audio clips overlapping as the snap tool would cleanly join them together. An example of when this was useful is when we would take a clip out towards the start of the sequence, then we could drag and select every other clip and easily join up the gap left by the deleted clip without having to worry about shots overlapping each other. Definitely a skill that we developed since our preliminary task.

• The razor tool allowed us to separate, cut, a clip and split it into two files (BI). During the edit of our thriller we used this when experimenting with shots of Billy running in the woods. Originally, Billy would run into shot, it would cut to a close up of his watch, then returned to the original shot to see him run out of frame (BJ). Due to the 2 minute time limit, this shot had to be cut out but as this process wasn’t as rushed as the preliminary task, we had the opportunity to discover new editing techniques and tools, such as this one. We used the razor tool at 1:31 to pause the soundtrack as the diegetic knocking comes in for it to return where it left off at (1:33). Another example of utilising the razor tool effectively is during the shot at 0:31 (BK). This shot was rather long so it gave us an opportunity to use the razor tool, split the clip in two and input a some clips including a flashback in the woods in-between (BL), before cutting back to the original shot a 0:38 (BM).

(BH) (BI)

Same clip, split using the razor tool

(BJ)

(BK)

(BL)

(BM)

Importance of Planning• What I distinctively noticed lacked during the production of our preliminary task, was the lackadaisical

planning. Shooting was rushed and often shots were decided on the spot, there and then. Since the preliminary we learnt how important planning is to ensure efficiency and quality of the shoot. For the preliminary, we only used storyboards (BN). For the thriller production we had much more storyboards, on top of costumes, soundtracks, locations and shot lists (BO). Having this much detail when it came to the shoot meant we could get it done quicker and as our primary shooting location was 40 minutes drive away, saved time and money. The importance of proper and detailed planning is a crucial skill we have learnt since the preliminary task.

• During the brainstorming process of planning , we frequently debated the complexity of an idea. We are limited to a camera and a tripod as we didn't have access to industrial and high end equipment to create industry standard work. We needed to stick to simple ideas so we decided to shoot a sequence of a boy running in the woods and a femme fatale confronting him. A simple idea done well can often be the most effective, especially regarding the time scale we had.

• This meticulous planning ensured we had a strong narrative structure, constructed through the varied camera shots. During the preliminary task we had an idea of the plot but each camera shot wasn’t planned with much detail and care so the variety and quality of the shots was significantly reduced.

(BN)

(BO) – Just some examples, more can be seen on my blog