In light of recent developments within our sequence, we came to the conclusion that we wanted one of our actresses to 'cough up' blood as she's brutally murdered by our hunters. This evokes a sense of naturalism that frightens audiences and follows conventions of a thriller / action genre. I decided to conduct independent research on how to make edible blood.
Firstly, I researched a recipe. I took a trip to the supermarket and purchased the following items; cornflour, red food colouring, chocolate syrup and golden syrup. I then went home having purchased the items & began making the concoction.
I then reviewed the items bought, to ensure that all ingredients were purchased to follow the recipe correctly. I began by pouring the correct measurement of golden syrup into the cup. I then poured two tablespoons of water into the cup, followed by two tablespoons of red food colouring. By this point, I could begin seeing the mixture come together to construct the illusion of blood / its consistency. I then poured one tablespoon of chocolate syrup into the mix, adding the dark / natural element of colour. I then finished by putting two tablespoons of cornflour into the cup. I began mixing thoroughly and the overall appearance looked distinctly realistic. I then did a taste test to ensure it was safe to consume & it was!
In conclusion, I enjoyed this process thoroughly and will ensure to resume this process on the shoot day to guarantee a degree of 'freshness' for our actresses.
I received emails in response to the hair / makeup guideline 'mood board'. The actresses have agreed to contributing in whatever way the can, we thank them sincerely for their offering.
At the beginning of the development process, our production group established the genre of our opening sequence. At first we felt horror was an appropriate genre referring to our sequence. However, upon reflection we discovered that our sequence correlates further toward a hybrid genre. We concluded that it contained themes adhering more to an action / thriller. Therefore, it became a hybrid genre.
We then chose four media products that best communicated specific themes of our opening sequence. I will compose extensive research into conventions of each film & their correlation to our sequence thoroughly. Here are the four media products we chose were:
- Carrie
- Ready or Not
- The Hunger Games
- The Purge: Election Year
- Squid Game
Carrie -
I will be analysing the 2013 remake of Carrie, directed by Kimberly Peirce and produced by 'Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures' and distributed by 'Sony Pictures Releasing'.
The concept / themes of Carrie equate to our sequence immensely. As the female protagonist Carrie is essentially hunted by her supposed 'piers' due to complications & major faults within modern-day society. Aspects of Carrie as a character, relate to our female protagonist similarly. When our female protagonist is hunted, she reaches her 'final straw' as they say. Carrie does similarly when she uses her telekinetic powers to essentially murder her fellow classmates. Components of the narrative of Carrie, correspond to our sequence. Such as Carrie's relationship with her mother, exuding themes of 'tough love'. As our female protagonist's relationship with her mother wasn't at all stable.
This video is behind the scenes footage captured onset during the production of Carrie. If you skip to 3:50 minutes in, you see Carrie covered in blood where the character finally snaps. Chloe Grace Moretz's portrayal of a 'mental breakdown' ultimately due to betrayal, is the exact same interpretation of our female protagonist we're trying to convey.
The setting / location within Carrie is not familiar to our sequence by any means, as the entirety of Carrie is filmed within the setting of a high school. Whereas, our sequence is filmed all within the woods. The costume within Carrie also has no correlation to our sequence, as within Carrie all characters are predominantly American middle-class high school students. Our female characters are wearing orange jumpsuits, and our male characters are wearing higher-class tweed, hunting attire. The lighting within Carrie is similar in some aspects, such as shots exhibited within nature such as the picture surrounding this text. The props within our sequence are minimal, we acquire rocks, fake rocks and a fake knife, including fake guns. Due to Carrie's supernatural ability, prop weapons weren't something necessary to display her abilities.
I noticed utilisation of similar camera techniques during the prom scene, where Carrie inevitably snaps. The constant use of hand-held to illustrate the chaotic nature of the scene, is something we'll attempt to implement.
Unfortunately, due to complications with COVID-19. I was unable to attend the first editing workshop. However, I noticed the short shot duration and it's affect on the audience. This would be something I would try to achieve within the editing process, to further enhance the scene's turbulent nature.
Ready or Not -
I will now be analysing the 2019 film 'Ready or Not', directed by Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett. Produced by 'Mythology Entertainment' and distributed by 'Fox Searchlight Pictures'.
The overall concept of this film equates to our opening sequence greatly. The female protagonist within this film, Grace has married into a higher-status family who essentially hunt her down due to religious purposes. This theme of aristocratic arrogance is portrayed substantially within our sequence as well as in Ready or Not. This sense of class divide is an instrumental piece of displaying juxtapositions within our sequence, as well as in Ready or Not. When in the early stages of development, when thinking of strong female protagonists 'Grace Le Domas' came to mind. She is everything that encompasses our female protagonist, her themes of intelligence is exhibited profoundly within our sequence to assemble that connection between the two.
This is a clip from the film, where Grace has been caught & is being offered a 'second chance' by a member of the dynasty family. If you skip to 50 seconds in, there's a quote from one of the hunters that states, 'It's true what they say, the rich really are different.' This quote truly embodies the narrative of our sequence. Our narrative includes our female protagonist, falling in love with a member of an upper-class, successful family that frowns upon her. Her boyfriend then decides to kill her, hunting her down until she fights back, subverting the stereotype and overthrowing masculinity's notion of dominance in a modern-day society. Furthermore, both narrative's are similar within all components.
The setting / location within Ready or Not are similar in certain aspects. Such as when Grace frantically sprints within the woods, the same concept our actresses will follow. The male costuming within Ready or Not is profoundly similar to our opening sequence, as the men in our sequence will be draped tweed / hunting attire with a rich essence that prevails their aristocracy. This is similar to the male characters within Ready or Not. However, the female costuming does not equate to our sequence, as we take an overtly modern approach.
The lighting within Ready or Not does not equate to our opening sequence's at all. The scenes that we're shooting are outdoors within the woods, however in broad daylight. Whereas Ready or Not's outdoor scenes take place within the darkness. However, in Ready or Not the props are very similar as they're all weaponry. The prop shotguns that the hunters chose to kill Grace with, are exactly the same as the props we're using.
There are some elements of camera techniques seen within Ready or Not, that we will try to replicate within our sequence. For example, whilst Grace is being chased hand-held is used similarly to Carrie. This illustrates the ongoing themes of chaos and corruption within the scenes, which we will attempt to successfully implement into our scenes. Editing techniques used in Ready or Not include short shot durations whilst Grace is being hunted, to convey her emotion & is representative of her ultimately having to 'think fast'.
The Hunger Games -
I will be analysing the 2012 film trilogy, directed by Gary Ross. Produced by 'Color Force' and distributed by 'Lionsgate'.
The entire concept / themes of this film associated with, hunting and brutality equate to our opening sequence substantially. Once again, during early stages of development when looking at inspiring female protagonists within film. 'Katniss Everdeen' was one of them. Her general stance as an iconic subversion of the female stereotype was inspiring to our production group. Furthermore, we based the central attributes of our female protagonist around this character. We drew from her independence, fearlessness & loyalty.
This clip above displays Everdeen's loyalty to her family, demonstrating themes of leadership that encapsulate the concept behind are narrative. Within our opening sequence, the female protagonist expresses her leadership and independence when grasping that she needs to 'fight back' to save her life. When in early stages of development, we researched into films that inspired our narrative and The Hunger Games was one of them. The film itself elaborates upon themes such as the breaking of trust / relationships, which our sequence establishes with it being the centre of our narrative. The concept following the full outline of our sequence, touches on how our female protagonist's trust was broken, hence why she was left in the woods to be hunted.
The location within The Hunger Games is profoundly similar to our opening sequence, as the entirety of the survival process is based within nature / the woods. The entire convention surrounding the subversion of female stereotypes within specific thriller films is followed by our production group here. The costume within The Hunger Games is quite minimalistic, whereas ours correlates more to themes of imprisonment / being captured. The overall natural lighting within the film equates nicely to our sequence's, as we will shoot within daylight similarly to The Hunger Games. The props are similar within elements of weaponry, however our sequence utilises guns, whereas The Hunger Games does not.
As a production group, having concluded reviewing similar products we came to the mutual decision that The Hunger Games used similar camera techniques to what we aim to achieve. The utilisation of hand-held, which is something all these films have in common is excellent in evoking tension / chaos that enthrals audiences. The editing techniques of fast pace and short shot durations to embellish the turbulent nature of the scenes works nicely and is what we would attempt to replicate within our editing process.
The Purge: Election Year -
I will be analysing the classic 2016 The Purge: Election Year, directed by James DeMonaco. Produced by 'Blumhouse Productions' and 'Platinum Dunes'.
This film acquires similar themes that equate enormously to our opening sequence. Themes of violence and betrayal as a result of faults within societal constructs equate to our sequence, the idea of 'social constructs' vary as this film demonstrates the government ensuring society's composure collapses for their own benefit. Whereas our sequence showcases the juxtaposition within class divide & the devastation caused by the upper-class' independent decisions. The prospect of a strong female protagonist within this film is illustrated through the character 'Laney Rucker', her character demonstrates leadership skills / the ability to cope and adapt in a crisis. We wanted our female protagonist to convey similar attributes and follow the convention surrounded by the subversion of female stereotypes within the action / thriller genre.
This clip above displays two young woman shoplifting a store, Laney Rucker uses her dominance / status to persuade the shoplifters to give back what they initially stole. This concept of using status to get what you want, is a reoccurring message displayed throughout our sequence that embodies the narrative. Within our sequence, the two male aristocratic hunters use their status / upper-class privilege to murder young woman in the safety of their own 'estate'. This concept is echoed throughout our narrative, to ensure audiences understand / grasp the message of using your alleged authority to gain your un-required needs.
The location within The Purge: Election Year does not correlate to our sequence's in any way. This film follows many different stories from multiple characters / perspectives and due to the sheer budget of the film, it is able to demonstrate a variety of locations within one city. Whereas our sequence all takes place within the woods. The costuming within this film also does not equate to our sequence's, as we feature jumpsuits / upper-class hunting attire. This film's costuming is minimalistic but displays the nature of the characters. Displaying the 'nature of the characters' was something we were interested in showing, however we felt the idea of the hunters stripping their identify from them by dressing them in orange jumpsuits, made for a more impactful meaning. The lighting within this film shows a variety of light, from natural to artificial to nightlight. Whereas our sequence only displays natural light. The prop guns within this film however do correlate to our sequence, as the concept of dominating weaponry is displayed throughout.
The utilisation of hand-held and close-ups within this film help intensity emotion / elude to the chaos & destruction within the films overall concept. The fast pace 'ping pong' cuts / editing and the short shot durations help adhere to the genre of the film, whilst amplifying tension is something we will try and replicate within our opening sequence.
Squid Game -
I will be analysing the recently released series Squid Game, distributed in 2021 and directed by Hwang Dong-hyuk. Produced by 'Siren Pictures' and distributed by 'Netflix'.
The overall themes within this film equate to our sequence deeply, this concept of betrayal and corruption / violence is something our sequence also acquires. The prospect of the upper-class majority treating the lower-class minority as prey, making them a part of a game that essentially hunts & kills them is something echoed throughout our sequence. Overall, this film and our sequence has a lot in common in terms of themes. The character Kang Sae-byeok, is a symbol of strong female independence that we want to display within our sequence. Her character is another exemplary strong female protagonist who is prepared to fight to essentially save her life. Within early stages of development, she is another character we used as inspiration / a framework to base our female protagonist around. She demonstrates key attributes that we intend to portray within our character.
This clip above demonstrates the Squid Game players attempting their first of many games to win the ultimate prize, as an audience you discover that the game isn't as 'light-hearted' as initially assumed and the players react in terror as they try desperately to escape. The concept of the upper-class stripping the identity from the lower-class players and witnessing the fiasco play out is a central element of our narrative. Within our sequence, the upper-class aristocratic hunters use their essential 'dynasty' to take advantage of the lower-class females, who eventually decide to fight back. Overall, Squid Game and our sequence's narratives both display the class divide in a modern-day society well.
The location within Squid Game does not correlate to our opening sequence in any way. Due to Squid Game's immense budget of £3.5M, it could afford many intricate set designs that displayed a modern / futuristic setting. Whereas our opening sequence follows the journey of combat / chaos within the depths of the woods. The costuming within Squid Game equates profoundly to our opening sequence's. The players within the film are forced to wear coral jumpsuits, similarly to our sequence's orange jumpsuits. This idea of 'stripping identity' from the lower-class really makes that impactful statement of upper-class privilege seen within Squid Game and our opening sequence. The lighting within Squid Game is almost all artificial, therefore it does not correlate to our sequence's. The props within Squid Game is all very modern / robotic & futuristic. Whereas our sequence's displays an old-fashioned interpretation of weaponry.
The camera techniques are similar to all the other films previously mentioned. The utilisation of of a variety of shots (close-ups, mid-shots etc) & hand-held communicates the chaos and the sheer magnitude of the given circumstance. The editing techniques consisting of long shot durations to evoke substantial tension helps convey / follow conventions of a thriller. We will try and implicate the same shooting methodology, as we enjoy what Squid Game has done thoroughly.
CONCLUSION
These following films have many similarities, wether it be conventions, location, costuming / props. However, the one component of each film that stands amongst the others is they all acquire a 'strong female protagonist'. When deciphering films to analyse & research, we wanted films that acquired the concept of a loyal, independent, fearless female protagonist that had profound leadership skills.
These conventions surrounding a subversion of female stereotypes are seen within the thriller / action genre because unfortunately the concept will appeal more to men, who watch action as well as thrillers, ultimately appealing to Mulvey's male gaze theory. Men like the stereotypical 'badass' female within movies / TV, almost more than the 'damsel in distress' as it's enticing seeing a commanding / fearless woman to men. This convention impacts the films massively, as it attracts a wider array of audiences male and female. It adds an element of juxtaposition into the film, the contrast / subversion enthrals audiences rather than detours them. This convention appeals to our target audience as all audience's enjoy seeing a powerful woman onscreen, wether it's based off attraction or admiration. The conventions surrounding the class divide are also something prominent we noticed within the films of action / thriller. This juxtaposition of lower-class / upper-class creates a profound impact on audiences as they gain knowledge of taking advantage of less fortunate individuals, due to upper-class's unnecessary needs to feel validated financially. It adds an element of realism into the genre, creating controversy. This convention doesn't necessarily appeal to our target audience, but it raises a genuine concern to be discussed.
There are some elements of these films that are different to our sequence, such as many locations besides The Hunger Games are not similar to our sequence's in any way. The costuming in most films previously mentioned, also do not equate to our opening sequence's, as well as props.
The conventions from the other films inspire our production group to thrive with the conceptual message of class divides and the idea of a strong / empowering female protagonist within our sequence. We are thrilled to continue the development process until our shoot day begins!
I began to think about potential preparation for the shoot day & what I could do to contribute successfully using my own assets / interests. As I'm a photographer, I was thinking I could take still images of the actors in motion. This would help as we may have to create posters after the shooting process. The images in this blog are photographs I've taken, if I apply this methodology to our sequence there's a chance we could utilise some great imagery.
Me along with another member of our production group Bea, spoke to our 'main actress' elaborating on her character's backstory so that she could gage a personal understanding of her character from an actor's perspective. This will help elevate her performance, allowing us to capture a raw / authentic interpretation of the character onscreen. We have high hopes in our main actress, as she's renowned for her theatrical talent and a genuinely credible performer.
I composed a 'mood board' that entailed all details necessary for the actresses hair / makeup process on the day of shooting. This email was sent to both actresses, Meadow / Zaza. It elaborates upon what preparation they can do pre-production, to acquire the desired appearance for the shoot day. I sent an email with the attached mood board, explaining this further.
In light of recent development, our group assigned individual roles to each member of our production group. We concluded our director would be Bea Hemsley, our art director would be Daisy Katesmark, our camera operator would be Cole Flaherty & our editor would be Will Norstrand.
I then decided to conduct some independant research into camera operators from films / TV series that I enjoy the comprehensive themes & style of thoroughly. I looked at the TV series 'Euphoria'. The camera operating in Euphoria is supreme to its niche / authentic style that adds to the overall artistic ambience of the series.
The camera operator for Euphoria is cinematographer / writer Marcell Rev. He's worked with the production company 'HBO' owned by 'Warner Brothers'. He also works with popular director Sam Levinson, who directed Euphoria and 'Assassination Nation', another film that I enjoy.
Rev's style and approach to shooting will be what I try to replicate, to incorporate a niche and unique aspect to the sequence that further enthrals audiences.
After being given the role of camera operator, I knew I had particular responsibilities and began asking myself questions to answer regarding the shooting process. Therefore, I composed a list of questions to ensure knowledge of the position.
At the beginning of our development process, I was wildly enthusiastic by the prospect of costume. I've always loved analysing colour connotations / how the colours convey characteristics and traits. So I was excited to construct a colour palette.
I began by looking at our two female girls who are savagely murdered / hunted in the depths of the woods searching for an escape. I wanted to portray a niche, aesthetically pleasing colour palette that also communicated status / gender roles / characteristics. I looked at pastel / light pinks. As the colour pink connotes to femininity, mixed with white that connotes to innocence, when the two are blended they construct a deeper meaning.
I went away and devised a mood board for the costume I had in mind. It elaborates on colour / materials (fabrics). I endeavoured in an exploration of 1960's fashion, pearls and pink vintage couture dresses we're a statement for most women. The floral pattern also ensured a clear display of nature, referring to the location of the characters.
After further development and discussion with Luke, our costume concept altered completely. Our colour palette reverted to orange, as we established a more modern-day piece that communicated themes of imprisonment / capture.
We wanted a bold and striking colour, that implemented the desired themes of our sequence. We concluded both girls would be wearing orange jumpsuits, the benefits would be a sufficient deduction in price / easier to ruin in the woods. However, it made our group have to reconsider the atmosphere we were attempting to create.
I then devised another colour palette, that was less of a mood board. The vibrancy communicates the striking / bold concept of murder and hunting humans. The over-saturation communicates a 'thrilling' ambience, that conveys the subject matter and supports our sequence.
I then began looking at the hunters / their attire. From the beginning, our concept for male costuming never altered as we think it's perfect for the sequence. We wanted the hunters draped in tweed, wearing flat caps / wellington boots / khaki trousers. This stereotypical hunting attire, communicates the desired themes of status and class juxtaposed to the inexpensive orange, as it was renowned to be a cheap dye in 19th century.
I then devised another colour palette that conveyed themes of nature / status. It also enthused members of the group with inspiration and the correct knowledge of what to purchase.
I enjoyed the process of evaluating colours / their connotations throughout the development process and am excited the project is soon to commence. This is where we began asking questions, such as; how many do we need, how are we going to acquire them, back-up plans, costs (etc). Therefore, we began planning and ensuring we could acquire all correct costume.
We learnt that we needed two jumpsuits / two jackets, trousers, flat caps and wellington boots. I was in charge of ordering the jumpsuits, which I acquired on 'Amazon Prime'. We knew this would ensure a speedy deliver, affordable clothing and of a decent quality.
For our back-up idea, we decided to order a spare pair for both actresses incase of emergency or crucial damage (i.e. holes / noticeable tears for continuity purposes).
The overall cost came to £68, which we were surprised by. However, back-up clearly has a price.
In conclusion, here's why we decided on male / female costumes. We decided on the jumpsuits, as the poignant vibrancy and oversaturated colours exaggerate the sense of women overpowering men. As the hunters colour palette maintains neutral and murky. The women aren't wearing a stereotypically female colour, to show their subversion to the stereotype within the sequence. The whole concept communicates power struggles in modern-day society / gender roles and stereotypes that need to be overcome. The cheapness of the colour orange / the material of the costume helps convey class and status to the audience & juxtaposes the hunters costume entirely to create a further impactful sequence. We decided on the hunting attire for the men, as it communicates this sense of power and expense. The colour is muted and muddy, to connote to their overall attitude as human-beings. We also wanted a colour that would completely juxtapose / contrast with khaki, hence why we chose orange.
As a group, we devised a shot list. Ultimately this will help establish our full opening scene & enables an effortless flow when comes to shooting. It also ensures the entire group understands the opening sequence better.
As a group, we constructed a shooting schedule to ensure timings were establishing within our shooting process. We're hoping this will consolidate an established flow during shooting & will eradicate worries / concerns.
Fortunately enough for us, as the entirety of our sequence is shot within the woods. We don't have to construct anything regarding 'set design'. Therefore, this blog will mostly focus on the location, plans & possible problems.
When we began the development process, we all agreed the sequence would be set within the woods, and since then the concept hasn't changed. In light of recent development, we've had two options. Either Daisy (a member of our production group's) personal property that has a wooded area. Or, Peaslake woods.
Daisy went away and took pictures of her wooded area for us, in which is exhibited in the images here. We all agreed that we felt her wooded area would be excellent to shoot in, however, for transportation purposes we decided that it wouldn't work.
Furthermore, we decided on the Peaslake woods. As it is closer to school, which allows us for more time shooting as transportation won't take as long. This was a huge benefit for us.
Possible problems we can foresee, would most certainly be weather conditions. Since we're nearing towards Spring, we don't think that the weather will be particularly bad. However, in light of Storm Eunice, we've learnt the weather in unpredictable the hard way. Therefore, we're preparing ourselves for the worst case scenario.
From the beginning of the development process, we had established props very early on. Recently, I constructed a list of all the items necessary to complete the sequence.
In conclusion, we need to purchase two props. However, rocks can be collected from home by Day House students and bought into school.
Then, it came to purchasing the items. We decided on 'Amazon Prime' as they're a reliable source that ensures speedy delivery / sustainable products.
We need these props as they're imperative to our narrative / storyline and are the only way our plot could be conveyed successfully with the audience's full understanding.
This is an image of the stones outside my house, that can easily substitute for rocks in the context of narrative within our sequence.
I have devised a call sheet, necessary for the shooting process in case cast / crew is needed urgently on set. This ensures we have all crucial information for any given circumstance & allows for security and stability on set.
Here is the cast / crew information, the email and telephone numbers have been redacted to ensure personal information is disclosed for purposes of the blog.
In filmmaking, Foley is the reproduction of everyday sound effects that are added into films. Individuals pre-record sound effects and during the editing process overlay the pre-recorded sound effects over the main film.
Foley sound is made by foley artists who perform everyday sounds for movies and television shows. Foley artists create these sounds in a recording studio during post-production, in synchrony with the picture, to enhance the quality of the audio.
After the emails were sent, we started gaining replies fast. Mostly positive & recieved no rejections. We thanked the cast immensely for their participation in the project, and we are looking forward to the shooting process with their collaboration.
Here is an example of an email we received, from a member of our cast, Meadow.
Today, we've bought up the prospect of casting potential actors. We had a discussion as a group, as which actors we felt were appropriate / who could convey the desired emotions required to fulfil this role.
I devised a template to assign each actor a potential role. I constructed a key to decipher which roles were for who. This helped us further develop our casting process & gave us a rough idea of what our opening sequence might look like. We also privately spoke to lead roles in person, to gage a sense of how they felt in portraying the role onscreen.
We then decided it was time to email potential roles with the opportunity to star in our film. However, they are mostly helping us, so we ensured to include a polite and appreciative tone as we genuinely are.
Here is the email I have sent one of our primary actors. We felt she acquired the necessary acting skills to portray this role successfully and we are confident in her success.
