1. How does your product use or challenge conventions and how does it represent social groups or issues?
We used colour grading to change the the tone of the film. I felt that decreasing the temperature would create a cold, lonely and sad atmosphere and raise a sense of mystery for the audience. After researching online we found that supernatural horror films like “The Ring”, “A Nightmare on Elm street”, and “Saw” uses an unnaturally blue and dim lighting as well. Also, since we used different cameras to shoot different scenes the quality, saturation, and tone was different for each clip so we had to separate these adjustment layers and edit each clip individually in order for it to look even as a whole.
For Mise En Scene, while researching conventions of a supernatural thriller we found that horror films like insidious often use photographs to to reveal the ghost. For example In this shot from insidious we see an innocent kid wearing a white shirt, while the ghost is wearing black. The white shirt symbolises youth and innocence while the black symbolises danger and death. From this the audiences are able to identify who the protagonist is and who the antagonist is. However we wanted to leave this knowledge of who the antagonist and the protagonist was a mystery. Therefore we decided to let both characters wear white. This would help make it unclear for the audience and help build tension and create a mysterious atmosphere as audiences are unaware of which character to fear. We decided to use a photograph of the two characters as the first shot because it instantly sets a clear mood and theme that this is a film about friendship.
In class we learnt about the shape theory when analysing the opening of a Tv series called “Dexter”. We found that Sharp objects hold connotations of danger, violence, anger, harm, and pain. While circular shapes connotes an idea of friendship, trust, safety and happiness. For example, the denotation of this shot from dexter is that we see a mosquito feeding. However the connotation is that it gives the impression of someone slyly hurting others and killing them covertly. This could be seen as symbolising the fact that the main character is draining the life out of people. Therefore we decided to include the theory to the opening of the film. In our film we used sharp objects like a knife and a scissor to foreshadow danger and also to reveal the murder weapon. For example in our film there is a shot where we see a knife cutting a chicken. The connotation is that the knife is used to represent the main characters' violent manner while the chicken represents the friend that she harms and backstabs in the film. Also in the picture scene the murder weapon is revealed. We decided to use a scissor as a murder weapon because we thought that the character using scissors would make more sense because it is less dramatic compared to a knife and because of the fact that the character still goes to university, therefore she would easily have access to a scissor in her pencil case.
For sound, we did online research and analysed the film “Harry potter”. We decided to use Harry potter because it is a successful film that is able to build up tension using sound effects. We found that in one scene, whispering sound effects were used to build a tense and eerie atmosphere. This was the atmosphere we wanted to create for our target audience. So we decided to download whispering sound effects online and build it into the cinematic opening of our film. I felt that by adding it to the start of the film, we were able to instantly set a clear and creepy atmosphere and inform the audience that that our film is a horror thriller. We also decided to apply this to the photograph scene that displays the hatred the main character has for her friend. We did this because whispering in this scene symbolises the characters thoughts overlapping with each other. In addition, the fact that we are unable to make out what the whispering is about makes it even more scary. This is because it creates a sense of mystery as it builds a wall between the audience and the character causing the audiences to be frustrated as they are oblivious to the character’s thoughts.
For the main theme song we wanted something that would successfully create a sad and ironic mood. Therefore we did online research and found a beautiful composition called "Sad epic emotional music - farewell life". I thought that this piece would really suit our film because as soon as I heard it I felt really touched. The piece was both sad and ironic which was exactly the message that we wanted to communicate to the audience about the character's relationship in the film. Therefore after this we tried searching for Arn Andersson's contact information and received his permission to use his music as long as it is for nonprofit purposes. We decided to add the music along with the photograph scene above because we thought that the sad emotional music combined with a picture of the two friends would instantly reveal this sense of grief and reveal an unfortunate loss in love and friendship between the two characters in the photograph.
After doing online research we came across a thriller called “Scream” and found that scream uses tracking shots in the opening scene. The tracking shot was used here to create this idea that the main character was constantly being followed and so was never safe. The audience is placed in an ambiguous position of "voyeur" during this tracking shot at the beginning. Therefore we decided to apply this idea to the opening of our film. By doing this we were able to create the idea that someone was constantly following the main character at various places from behind. For example the narrow alleyway, the market and the bus scene. Tracking shots are also used in other thriller films likes Black Swan and Place among the Pines. Tracking shots are a good way of getting to know the main character as we see where the go. However there is a creepiness to tracking shots as it is almost like the character is being followed. Also the fact that we mostly see shots of the characters’ back symbolises this idea of how the main character always had her back facing her friend and therefore suggesting her carelessness and selfishness, which has caused her friend was able to easily able to backstab her.
To begin with, our Thriller fits into the sub-genre of Supernatural Thriller. After researching and analysing films like “The Evil Dead”, “Shutter Island” and “The babadook” we found that in conventional Thrillers the threat to the protagonist is a natural threat which is either another person or a natural disaster. Whereas in supernatural thrillers the treat is basically supernatural beings like spirits or ghosts. We found that in our film another sub genre that overlaps with our supernatural thriller sub genre is Psychological Thriller. This type of Thriller makes the protagonist and the audience unaware of whether the threat to them is a supernatural one or an internal one meaning that their minds are playing tricks on them. This ambiguity is exploited in our film to create tension. A series of enigmas are set up in our film, only to be solved at the end. Throughout our film opening questions like “Who is the main character?, What happened to her friend?, and whether her friend is a real ghost?” is raised by the audience. In the opening the antagonist ensnares the protagonist in an increasingly complex way, until the protagonist is in danger and is viewed as isolated and helpless. This idea is revealed to the audience in the last scene where her ghost friend appears from the reflection of the mirror. Our plan is to play around with conventions in Psychological Thrillers and make is so that the presence of her dead friend is all in her mind and that what the main character is seeing is due to the guilt of murdering her best friend.
Our film narrative centres upon murder and presents extraordinary events in ordinary situations and settings.Therefore, the use of the micro-elements are very important in creating and building up tension in the film. This build up of tension can be seen in the opening from the use of the glitching effect. We decided to apply this effect after agreeing that some shots were too simple and therefore we were afraid that we would lose our target audience's attention. So we came up with the solution of editing a glitch effect to improve each shot and make it appear more interesting. The glitch effect suits our film because the "glitch" creates a broken and out of place mood and atmosphere. Which is used to represent an error In the relationship between the two main characters.
We used colour grading to change the the tone of the film. I felt that decreasing the temperature would create a cold, lonely and sad atmosphere and raise a sense of mystery for the audience. After researching online we found that supernatural horror films like “The Ring”, “A Nightmare on Elm street”, and “Saw” uses an unnaturally blue and dim lighting as well. Also, since we used different cameras to shoot different scenes the quality, saturation, and tone was different for each clip so we had to separate these adjustment layers and edit each clip individually in order for it to look even as a whole. For Mise En Scene, while researching conventions of a supernatural thriller we found that horror films like insidious often use photographs to to reveal the ghost. For example In this shot from insidious we see an innocent kid wearing a white shirt, while the ghost is wearing black. The white shirt symbolises youth and innocence while the black symbolises danger and death. From this the audiences are able to identify who the protagonist is and who the antagonist is. However we wanted to leave this knowledge of who the antagonist and the protagonist was a mystery. Therefore we decided to let both characters wear white. This would help make it unclear for the audience and help build tension and create a mysterious atmosphere as audiences are unaware of which character to fear. We decided to use a photograph of the two characters as the first shot because it instantly sets a clear mood and theme that this is a film about friendship.
In class we learnt about the shape theory when analysing the opening of a Tv series called “Dexter”. We found that Sharp objects hold connotations of danger, violence, anger, harm, and pain. While circular shapes connotes an idea of friendship, trust, safety and happiness. For example, the denotation of this shot from dexter is that we see a mosquito feeding. However the connotation is that it gives the impression of someone slyly hurting others and killing them covertly. This could be seen as symbolising the fact that the main character is draining the life out of people. Therefore we decided to include the theory to the opening of the film. In our film we used sharp objects like a knife and a scissor to foreshadow danger and also to reveal the murder weapon. For example in our film there is a shot where we see a knife cutting a chicken. The connotation is that the knife is used to represent the main characters' violent manner while the chicken represents the friend that she harms and backstabs in the film. Also in the picture scene the murder weapon is revealed. We decided to use a scissor as a murder weapon because we thought that the character using scissors would make more sense because it is less dramatic compared to a knife and because of the fact that the character still goes to university, therefore she would easily have access to a scissor in her pencil case. For sound, we did online research and analysed the film “Harry potter”. We decided to use Harry potter because it is a successful film that is able to build up tension using sound effects. We found that in one scene, whispering sound effects were used to build a tense and eerie atmosphere. This was the atmosphere we wanted to create for our target audience. So we decided to download whispering sound effects online and build it into the cinematic opening of our film. I felt that by adding it to the start of the film, we were able to instantly set a clear and creepy atmosphere and inform the audience that that our film is a horror thriller. We also decided to apply this to the photograph scene that displays the hatred the main character has for her friend. We did this because whispering in this scene symbolises the characters thoughts overlapping with each other. In addition, the fact that we are unable to make out what the whispering is about makes it even more scary. This is because it creates a sense of mystery as it builds a wall between the audience and the character causing the audiences to be frustrated as they are oblivious to the character’s thoughts.
For the main theme song we wanted something that would successfully create a sad and ironic mood. Therefore we did online research and found a beautiful composition called "Sad epic emotional music - farewell life". I thought that this piece would really suit our film because as soon as I heard it I felt really touched. The piece was both sad and ironic which was exactly the message that we wanted to communicate to the audience about the character's relationship in the film. Therefore after this we tried searching for Arn Andersson's contact information and received his permission to use his music as long as it is for nonprofit purposes. We decided to add the music along with the photograph scene above because we thought that the sad emotional music combined with a picture of the two friends would instantly reveal this sense of grief and reveal an unfortunate loss in love and friendship between the two characters in the photograph.
Also, to display the characters’ messed up relationship further we decided to create a montage of different sound effects like crying, laughing, humming, and screaming. By doing we reveal the journey that the characters both face. For example the crying effect is used to symbolise the betrayal the main character felt from her friend. While the screaming sound effect is used to foreshadow the moment the character gets murdered. By creating a montage and overlapping sound effects we are able to create confusion and frustration for the audience as they there is a dramatic contrast between laughing and crying sound effects. Therefore the audience are oblivious of what to feel for the two characters.
After doing online research we came across a thriller called “Scream” and found that scream uses tracking shots in the opening scene. The tracking shot was used here to create this idea that the main character was constantly being followed and so was never safe. The audience is placed in an ambiguous position of "voyeur" during this tracking shot at the beginning. Therefore we decided to apply this idea to the opening of our film. By doing this we were able to create the idea that someone was constantly following the main character at various places from behind. For example the narrow alleyway, the market and the bus scene. Tracking shots are also used in other thriller films likes Black Swan and Place among the Pines. Tracking shots are a good way of getting to know the main character as we see where the go. However there is a creepiness to tracking shots as it is almost like the character is being followed. Also the fact that we mostly see shots of the characters’ back symbolises this idea of how the main character always had her back facing her friend and therefore suggesting her carelessness and selfishness, which has caused her friend was able to easily able to backstab her.
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