Editing Action Plan

Below is three points we are going to do over the next week in order to improve our opening thriller sequence :

Create Soundtrack
Shorten certain clips
Add titles

Rough Cut Feedback

We showed our rough cut sequence to other groups in our class, we then gave them a piece of paper where they wrote positive points and areas for development within the opening sequence. The feedback we received is below.

Editing
Positive - Titles were very good and in effective places such as on the wall when the main character walks past, most of the groups liked our titles and thought they were in clever places
Development Areas - One piece of feedback from a group said that some of our shots where slightly too long and we could cut them down to make them shorter, quicker and more effective. Another group thought a possibility for a title would be in the cutlery draw when the main character opens it.

Camera work
Positive - Good shot angles, especially the one from in the fridge where the main character gets the bottle of wine out and two of the other groups said the variety of shots were good and worked especially well with what was happening in the clip. Good establishing shot of house and main character.
Development Areas - One group disagreed and said that we needed slightly more shot variety by using more close-ups.

Sound
Positive - Good diagetic sounds that worked effectively, but this may have been because there was no soundtrack at the current time.
Development Areas - One thing said that was our diagetic sound was out of time with the sequence, but we have discussed this as a group and the teacher and decided we would not try and fix this till after the rough cut as it could be too hard. Also we needed to add a soundtrack which we hadn't currently finished when we had to upload.

Mise en Scene
Positive - Groups said overall that we had a good choice of location thats adds a sense of tension to the thriller sequence.
Development Areas - No groups commented on this part of the feedback section so we believe, we had the right choice of mise en scene and it works effectively.

Narrative
Positive - Very good narrative with a clear sense of where the story would be going. The main character is a good actor and plays the part of her character extremely well, especially when watching the CD on the computer.
Development Areas - Maybe considering changing the name of 'Stalk' as they do not believe it works well with the film.

Cast list for "Stalk"

A OmniOutliner production presents
A Michael Rockwell film
Holly Ellis
Gary Barnes
Chad Waldman
Costume Design by Otto Waldman
Art Direction by Kathy Nelson
Production Design by John Seda
Casting by Billy Jr. Lazan
FIlm Editing by Franco Jackson
Cinematography by Clare Barden
Original Music by Lauren Folsey
Produced by Scott kern
Directed by Michael Rockwell
Main Title: "STALK"

Props & Costumes

For our opening sequence we will need to use some props and costumes, these will be:
Laptop - used to show the cd of the girl being followed by a unknown stalker
Kettle - this will be used at the beginning by the woman
Toaster - this will be used to put bread in at the beginning and then again once the woman has watched the cd, the toast will pop up and scare the woman.
Parcel - This will come through the door, containing the cd and a note.
Dressing Gown
Pyjamas
Suspicous Stalking clothes

Feedback

We showed our animatic to our class to find out different opinions about our thriller title sequence, and various ways that we can improve it. Firstly the soundtrack we used on our animatic was an initial idea, and the group said it was too cheerful and slightly romantic. However, we already had another soundtrack that we were intending to use for the final sequence. Our new soundtrack is quite fast paced, and it is quite laid back to suit our idea. Secondly we were also told to use an establishing long shot at the beginning, to show the audience more about the location of the sequence, this would also mean more different shot types. Thirdly, we were told about the importance of mise en scene and close up shots and the fact that an object e.g a kettle or toaster shows alot about a person, whether there old or young, male or female, rich or poor. For instance, if there is a brand new toaster, then this may show that the person could be fairly young, and that they also have a bit of money . Fourthly we were told that we should show the woman in the final clip when the man is watching her through her window. It was suggested that when the woman inserts the disc into the laptop the clips on the screen should show a variety of different shots from different public places this will add more suspense and more mystery around who the stalker is.

Animatic

The Final Idea

Character
- Girl aged around 17 to 21
- Pretty Girl
- Desirable looking girl
- Wearing a dressing gown (we do not see her get out of bed. Filming starts with the stereo)

Setting
- Normal urban setting. The girls Flat (Hotel Room to like like home, possibly)
- Kitchen, containing wine from night before, toaster. everything a kitchen should contain.
- Normal lounge setting. Radio easily accessable.
- Laptop on the desk, on stand by.

Action
- First shot is close up of radio, her hand cuts into the shot to turn radio on.
- Walks into the kitchen makes a class of water, flicks the kettle on.
- Puts toast in the toaster.
- Brown envelope drops through the door.
- Character slowly strides over (not alarmed, highly normal) " She has a glass of water in her hand maintaining her relaxed attitude.
- Opens the envelope, sees a CD and gets CD out of the envelope.
- Sits at the laptop and inserts CD. It plays automatically.
- Shot from behind her to create a persuasive feeling.
- Short clip of what she is watching. Maybe black & White.
- Cuts back to her face, frightened.
- Looks in the envelope for more, pulls out a note.
- Audience never see the note, however we do see her face/ reactions.
- Cuts to a long shot of someone (not seen) looking into her room from outside

The last shot will give a sense that this girl is stuck within her home. She cannot get away. Whatever she does, she is being watched.

What does the envelope contain?
- The parcel contains a CD & a note

Notes

- Music is coming from a stereo. Maybe Chris Moyles. Therefore creating a very normal atmosphere.

- Within the envelope, after watching the CD she looks inside to check there is nothing else. She discovers a note. The audience never see what is written on the note.

- Toast goes in the toaster, the she receives and watches the CD. She is then shook up. The toast pops up (the noise is hightend.. Shes really jumpy)
- One shot a long shot of her being watch from outside the building.. eg across the road.

CD Footage

- Long shot of her walking along a street, camera is watching as if a human eye was. Close ups of her face. Many different camera angles to blaintently suggest that she is being watched or pursued.

- The audience see a shot of the paper from below with her face looking at the paper.

- Cuts to her face looking fairly frightened. As if she knows exactly what is coming.

- Toast goes in the toaster, the she receives and watches the CD. She is then shook up. The toast pops up (the noise is hightend.. Shes really jumpy)

- One shot a long shot of her being watch from outside the building.. eg across the road.

Garage Band

For this proect instead of using a pre-made soundtrack, we have to create our own one using Garage Band. On here we can produce a soundtrack exactly how we want, with it being quiet in places and then loud in other action, which will create suspense and mystery in our opening sequence. On garage band there is a variety of different instruments we can use, and in some of the previous lessons memebers of our group have used Garage Band to see if they can find out sondtracks or instruments they have liked that could be used in our actual thriller proect soundtrack

Possible Titles

Here are some of the possible titles for our thriller proect:
Stalk
The Follower
Trapped
The Video

Setting

There are a few potential settings for our thriller project:
One setting is Travel-lodge in Cambridge, we could use a room here and pretend it is her flat. To use this we would have to ring up and get permission from the manager, and it could cost us. This was our original idea but we believe they make us pay for it for the night we would cost us around £100.
So another possible setting is one of the groups house and we could use this as the girls home, this would be better than the travel-lodge because it would not cost us either.

More Initial Ideas

One Idea is.
- Group of students (5 or 6) go on a camping break with their school.

- When they reach their location (some sort of a forest setting) they discover that they have to stay the night in this place due to a certain reason (not yet known)

- The students discover the remainders of an old camp site as well as a resonably clean video tape, they gather round to watch on their cam corder.

- it shows frantic scenes, not in detail... they continue to watch the tape and discover clips of them walking on their trip a few days before.

- silence.

Another Idea is.
- First part of the film shows
- A few close ups e.g. silhouettes, camp fire, in a tent. etc.
- While this is going on the opening credits could be coming in at the bottom
-

The first idea...

Our idea is based on a camping holiday with a group of students. It will be set in a wooded environment, fairly dark lighting. These elements along with others will help add to the thrillers atmosphere. It will include shots that switch between each other fast making it jumpy.

Analysis Students Work

The students work we analysed was called Derilium Tremens. We feel that the soundtrack used was not good because it did not fit in with the film. The main characters suit was too big which made it appear unprofessional. Also you could not tell what was going on with the opening apart from towards the end when you guess he has a body in the boot. However there are a few good camera angles used for example the shot of the character closing the boot. It gives the impression that someone is in the boot of the car.
The setting was ok but we feel that this particular film could be set anywhere, this location is not great and could be better.

Review of students work...

THE RECKONING


This is a great example of a thriller convention as there is a sense of mystery. The viewer never knows or understands clearly what is about to come/ happen and it is this that keeps the viewer wanting to watch more, keeping them on their seats. The group have targeted the thriller conventions well which cn be easily related to a thriller sequence due to the surprise, mystery and enjoyment.

The opening sequence is structured well, it sets the scene without revealing important information which creates mystery and introduces the characters well.

There is good use of mise-en-scene, this is shown where there characters all have costumes to suit their role. Also they have props, an example of this is where they have guns and a suit case. Also they have used a building to film in which is appropriate to this opening.

Bourne Ultimatum Opening

The Bourne Ultimatum is the third and final in the sequence of the bourne films, it starts straight in with action, with ason Bournce holding a Russian Man hostage with a gun to him. Here they are talking about the russian asking Bourne not to kill him and Bourne says that he is not the person he is after. The setting of this opening is in a dark place and if you had not seen the previous one you would not no where it is set. But it is actually set in a medical area because Bourne is bleeding and needs to stop this. The opening soundtrack is very quiet at the beginning so you can hear the pair of people talking, it ends with Bourne leaving the screen. Then, when it comes into the title of 'Bourne Ultimatum' the soundtrack starts gradually getting louder. the title is central and small in all capitals, it is in silver with small shades of turquoise flicking over it. With Mise-en-Scene, Bourne is dressed in all black clothes where as the Russian man is dressed in his uniform and whereing a Russian hat. This is a short but effective opening sequence because it continues of from the previous film and kind of tells the viewer what is going to happen in this film.

Se7en Opening

Hills Have Eyes - 2006

As a group we are now going to analyse the thriller, Hills Have Eyes. The opening sequence starts with a piece of text saying about what has happened in this area with America and nuclear testing. then it goes onto the landscape with this thriller being set in New Mexico Desert, so this is a typical good thriller because it is st in unknown exotic landscape. Ot then goes down to a river and follows the river along until the camera gets to a group of scientists or someone catching a fish out of the river with a net. The camera then flicks to one of the scientists who are walking on their own, he is looking at the ground and a machine he has that is showing high reading. Here it has good camera shots from through the mask so we can only see the same as what this person can, and then suddenly a guy covered in blood comes in falling into the scientist. Then an axe goes straight through the scientist face and out through his mask. He falls to the floor and once again is another camera shot, with it looking like the camera is on the floor, showing the scientist and his machine. Then we go to another two scientists who are both killed off using the axe. Throughout this you only ever see an outline of the killer, you can tell it is a man but not his features, which make it suspicous for the viewer as they want to no the person doing the killing. Another scientist tries to escape up the cliff, the next shot is good because we see him get dragged back and killed but we do not know how or anything. The set of shots show someone who we never see, driving off in a truck dragging two bodies along with him behind. The next and final two minutes of the opening sequence goes back to old shots as if you were watching a television, it shows clips of planes and nuclear bombs and deformed people. Which is what the whole series of films are about sumed up in a small clip. In these clips there is text about the producers, directors, actors etc. The mise-en-scene is extremely good in this opening sequence because all the scientist are in exactly the same clothes and all we can tell about the killer is that he is dressed in black. The special effects used in this opening sequence will be alot of fake blood to make it feel like the person is actualky bleeding, especially when the scientist walks of on his own and thie guy covered in blood comes in. The soundtrack used at the beginning of the Hills Have Eyes opening is bold and loud creating lots of tense and suspicion with the scientists and the viewer wanting to know what they are doing, this is effective because it works well. Then we it goes back to the old clips, it has different mucis with every clip, the first one of the woman has happy music and they use sound effects when it swithces clips with a sort of zipping sound exactly as if they are stopping and changing it. We believe this is an exteremly good opening sequence and works effectively with what happens in the rest of the film. If you had not have seen the whole film then you would wonder what is happening with the hole flashback clips but once you have seen the first Hills Have Eyes you will no it is about the deformed people. Overall we liked the opening soundtrack as a group

Casino Royale

I think that this titles sequence is good because of the use of the siloettes throughout. I also liked the music and thought that it worked well with the titles.

Casino Royale's opening sequence showing James Bond in Prague in the Czech Republic. It shows Daniel Craig killing a man in his office because he was selling of the agencies secrets, in with this it has flashbacks of bond killing the man's agent in a toilet. He did not kill the man first time and bond picks up the gun and turns and shoots towards the screen, this is when it goes into the opening credits. The opening credits show producers, directors and characters names. With a background of cards and also the theme of cards this includes shooting hearts and other card symbols out of a gun. Also the theme of cards links in with the film and the title Casino Royale, as it is all leads up to a big poker game at the end of the film. Both men in the opening sequences are both dressed in suites, this potentially shows their wealth. the camera work is used well in the opening sequence when the older man enters the room, from the camera angles you cannot tell James Bond is waiting in the room, it takes a few seconds before the camera shows him.
The Soundtrack in Casino Royale is bold and good, it links in well with the action that is happening on the screen. Some of the sound effects used in this opening sequence are things such as gun shots, things smashing, all these sound effects are slightly exaggerated to enhance the action in the sequence. Some of the special effects used in the sequence include: A gun shot breaking a sink, the man being killed, breaking a mirror with a fist and also when another man is shot and he flies backwards off his chair.

Casino Royale

We think that this titles sequence is good because of the use of the siloettes throughout. I also liked the music and thought that it worked well with the titles.