Title Sequence Timeline

Doing this task has helped me to understand the essentials that needed to be included in our opening scene, things such as titles need to be in the correct order. I have also learnt that music is incredibly important and must synchronize perfectly with what is happening on screen. Everything must be perfect in order to portray what we want to to the audience.

Film similar to mine - Bride of Chucky opening scene

The film Bride of Chucky presents many things that we want to incorporate in our opening, the first thing that we saw in the opening of Bride of Chucky is the use of a seemingly innocent object such as a doll and making it twisted and scary, We want to incorporate a similar technique into our scene to help us to create suspense from simple objects.
Another thing that we noticed and want to add to our opening is the use of low key lighting, this will help us to create the same dark, frightening and scary emotions that this Bride of Chucky film portrays, we want to make the setting in our opening a very important part of the scene that brings the creepy, mysterious atmosphere that will grab the attention of the audience.
The last thing that we wanted to add to our scene that took inspiration from this Bride of Chucky opening is to add music that fits with the scene, we wanted to make sure that both the music and atmosphere work perfectly together in order to create tension, it will also make the scene more realistic and more intriguing.

Final Idea

The Nursery-

At Sunny House Nursery, Mr Parkinson is the ONLY day care worker. To work with children, you must be a genuinely nice person. Right? But strange occurrences makes everyone wonder. What actually goes on behind the doors of Sunny House Nursery?

We decided to choose this idea because it offered many different opportunities that match the general themes that we wanted to convey collectively, we feel that we can really explore the psychologically twisted and controversial themes that this idea will present.

We did some research within our class to help us decide on our final idea; we received feedback from each of our four ideas and concluded on 'The Nursery' idea. Feedback we received on our main idea included things such as:

• The sub-genre was clear

• Horror Thriller was clear

• (Suggestion) Maybe we could use a flash forward effect

• They liked the idea of using children, a nursery and innocent objects while incorporating a disturbing twist

• The idea was rated 8 and 9 out of 10

The suggestion that "maybe we could use a flash forward" would help to create a sense of time passing, an eerie atmosphere and mystery, also the fact that the "sub-genre was very clear" as a Horror Thriller persuaded us to pick this idea because it would be easy to understand but makes the viewer think and question the relation between the title and genre.

We really liked the feedback of the "idea of using children, a nursery and innocent objects and bringing a scary twist to them", we wanted to emphasise this to make even simple objects seem eerie. Doing this would help us to break the barrier between the film and real life by instilling fear in objects that are usually seen as innocent.

Independent film distributors

Independent films are films that are created mostly outside of a major film studio system, they are usually shot with a minimum budget with money that is invested by the producers or outside backers. Advancements in technology, social media and business have contributed to the substantial growth of independent films in the past few years.

Independent film distribution in the UK is generally managed by distributors such as Metrodome, Vertigo and Momentum. Independent film developers release a wide variety of media such as short films or documentaries, they also represent their films at many Film Festivals before releasing it in theaters. This is different from the major film distributors such as 20th Century Fox.

“Metrodome is a London based company that owns, manages and distributes Film, TV and digital content, the company operates through two divisions Metrodome Distribution (features films and home entertainment in the UK) and Hollywood Classics.” Metrodome owns films such as Resistance and The Gatekeepers which have been critically acclaimed. The company distributes their content via an online store and cinema releases.

 

Vertigo is another independent film distributor that is also based in the UK, it was founded in 2002 and now has produced and distributed over 50 films altogether, notable films that have been associated with Vertigo are Streetdance 3D, The Sweeney and Bronson. Vertigo Films prides itself for bringing new and talented actors to the film industry such as Tom Hardy who is now a well-known actor and has even won a BAFTA Rising star award for his role in Inception.

Film Distribution - What is it?

Film distribution is the process in which a film is made accessible to the public, it takes many stages before a film is shown in theaters and then distributed through the internet, film services and DVD. Distribution is the most important part of a film and overall the films industry, it connects the film to the audience.

Film distribution starts when the film is completed and sent to the studio, here the studio makes a licensing agreement with a distribution company, the distribution company determines how many prints of the film is made, it also shows the movie to possible buyers that present each theater company such as Vue cinemas.

From here the buyers and Distribution Company negotiate on terms such as how long they wish to lease a film print. The film print is sent to the Theater a few days before the film’s release date, the theater shows the film for the length (number of weeks) that they have agreed with in their engagement. At the end of the engagement the film print is sent back to the distribution company and the lease is paid for.

The role of a Distributor is to represent the film around the world, they handle the theatrical release as well as the circulation of the film for home viewing (DVD, TV, Video-on-Demand etc.). Some of the most famous and biggest film distributors are Warner Bros, Walt Disney pictures, Sony pictures, Paramount Pictures and 20th Century Fox, these are the top 5 highest grossing film distributors from 1995 to 2012. The highest grossing film distributor is Warner Bros who have a market share of roughly 15.25%.

Who watches Thrillers?

Who watches thrillers? from MichaelLam1997

Own Ideas (Mind Map)

I have thought of some ideas for our thriller based opening scene, one idea is to focus on a simple object or sound such as a dripping noise that can be heard constantly throughout the scene, the dripping could be echoed and gets gradually louder as the character desperately tries to search for the sound in the house. The dripping is eventually found to be from a tap, as the person turns the tap off he gets attacked from behind by a masked man. This idea relies on creating fear from a sound that can be heard commonly in real life, long takes can be used to create suspense as the audience is anticipating what happens next, no establishing shots will be used to make it seem like the person is trapped inside their own home.

Another idea is to create a black and white scene of a crime or death that is shot in a reverse sequence, the killers face should not be revealed and he should be confident and steady, this generates a sense of mystery that can intrigue the viewer. The scene will be slow paced, with long takes and can be in slow motion, these techniques allow the audience to explore each and every shot. Also by reversing the scene it can be more interesting as the scene acts like an enticing puzzle that the viewer must piece together. 

The Dark Knight Rises opening analysis

The Dark Knight Rises is an action thriller by director Christopher Nolan, the films protagonist Batman is threatened by a stronger more powerful antagonist Bane who terrorizes Batman’s mental and physical state by attacking the things most precious to the Protagonist.

Conventions of the thriller genre are complied with in this opening scene. The first 35 seconds used a variety of shots such as an establishing shot at the beginning of the scene that sets the theme of isolation, the audience knows that if something is to happen no one is around to help. This shows the danger of the situation and so builds suspense keeping the viewer interested. Different angles are also used that results in different effects, for example at 2:01 and 3:40 the camera angle is low and pointing up at Bane, this gives him a more predominant and powerful role especially as the camera shakes at 3:40 this makes it seem like Bane is in complete control overpowering everyone, by doing this the audience become more fascinated by his character because he was initially portrayed as weak when hidden underneath the bag. These shots give a lasting impression of Bane that foreshadows his power over the weak that is portrayed later on in the film.

The music used is non-diagetic and synchronous to the scene, the music makes use of orchestral instruments with a pounding drumbeat that creates a dark sounding theme, it also gives off a military feel that shows the conflict that is predominate in the film. The suspense is created from the pounding drumbeat that coincides with the intense action happening on scene, the audience is left to anticipate the next shot.

The editing used is fast paced to correspond to the music used, Nolan uses invisible editing to keep the flow of the scene, invisible editing is when the action on the scene is more predominant and draws away attention from the editing, and this helps to keep the audience engaged to the scene. Fast cuts are used to help keep the tempo of the scene, it also gives the audience a wider view of the action that is taking place, by doing this the audience is given a deeper understanding of the situation that is shown in the scene, therefore interest is triggered.

Mise en scene is used in various ways throughout the opening title, costume can be used to portray different emotions or meanings and attracts the audience’s attention. An example is the Government agent who is seen wearing the color blue, this can represent the agent as a weaker and more vulnerable character. However, Bane wears a black attire with his signature mask, black can represent evil or darkness and the fact that Bane wears black shows that he is the embodiment of evil. The most important prop in these scenes is Bane’s mask, the mask makes Bane who he is it strikes fear within other characters and even the audience due to the secret of the mask that is not revealed, he is often referred to as the “masked man”, this creates a sense of mystery surrounding Bane and interests the audience to watch on and find out just what makes this masked man so dangerous. Movement on the scene shown by Bane is rapid and steady with confidence, this conflicts with the agent’s movement, this is shown particularly at 1:48 when the government agent slowly crouches and removes the bag over the man’s head revealing Bane, the fact that the agent slowly crouches shows the gravity of the situation and shows the fear that the agent is feeling. This movement creates tension as the audience is eagerly anticipating what will happen next.

Shutter Island opening credits analysis

Shutter Island is a psychological thriller film where the protagonist portrayed by Leonardo DiCaprio is tasked with investigating the disappearance of a murderess who has escaped from a psychiatric hospital located on an island.

There are many conventions of a thriller that is included in the opening title sequence of the film. The opening begins with a non-diegetic eerie theme tune that is a synchronous sound, it goes along with the dark and creepy shots that are shown helping to immerse the audience instantly, and it also creates a sense of mystery that entices the viewer. Suspense is created by the constantly rising then decreasing volume generating a sense of impending doom that can make the viewer feel frightened, the music is emphasised towards the end at 0:48 by the increased volume.

The shots used in the opening sequences are mostly establishing shots with a few close ups, the use of establishing shots gives the audience a sense of context, because the shots consist of a shady place that looks like a prison it also makes the viewer question the reason for the shots shown keeping them interested in the film, I think that the last establishing shot at 0:51 also creates a sense of no escape. Close up are used on certain areas, in particular at 0:13. Here a hand is shown lifting a tile off the floor. The audience is given a detailed close up of the hand but it raises questions such as “who is this person?” and “Why are they lifting the tile?” it makes the audience think as to why they are only getting close ups and not the full picture, provoking their curiosity.

The editing used in the opening credits is paced slowly, I think this is done to allow the audience time to analyse shots that makes them think keeping interest high. Each shot changes using a dissolve transition to black, I think that this represents a sense of darkness to the overall film as black is often portrayed as an evil colour, the dissolve transitions create a fluid motion through each shot that makes the sequence feel continuous, this helps to engross the viewer by making them anticipate the next shot.

Mise en scene is used rather effectively in the opening credits, the colour and lighting is mostly black and white with hints of red shown by the text at the start of the opening (From 0:00 to 0:13), the contrast of the black and white is used to represent a battle between a lawful force and an evil one. The red text may be used to signify blood and can foreshadow murder, a recurring theme in thrillers, by foreshadowing potential death, the audience is kept interested to find out what happens next. Not many props are used in the opening scene but the most noticeable are the gun under the shoe at 0:31 and the lighting of the match at 0:48, I think that the gun may signify that this film is not a physical battle but a mental one, this can be more intriguing to certain audience members as it is a battle of wits that makes the viewer think more often and even question the viewers on morals on decisions made throughout the film. The lighting of the match may be used to again show the battle between the light and darkness that could be a significant theme throughout the film, the lighting of the match may also puzzle the audience and encourages them to watch on to find out any further significance of the match. There is little body language shown in this scene, the most notable is a close up shot of a tile being lifted up by a hand at 0:13, here the hand movement is steady to show that the character knows what they are doing and has a clear goal, this makes the viewer want to find out what their motive is.

What is a Thriller?

What is a thriller from MichaelLam1997

Prelim Evaluation

Prelim evaluation from MichaelLam1997