Research & Planning: Distribution Company Logos

After discussing ideas with Abbie, I came up with a few of my own ideas for Distribution company logos:

Research & Planning: Costume and Props List - Film Poster

Costumes:
Ripped / Worn out day to day clothes
Cuts / Bruises

Another idea I had was to use the main four characters before they were attacked to give it a more mysterious feel.

Props:
Hatchet / Hammer
Light source
Table covered in tools
Chairs

Research & Planning: Costume and Props List for Magazine Cover

Costume:
Ripped, dirty clothes
Bruises / Cuts
Dirt
Oil Stains

Props:
Chair / Stool
Hatchet
Light Source

What I need:
Fake Blood

Research & Planning: Music Ideas

Contrapuntal Music

The Last house on the Left - Sweet Child O' Mine, Taken By TreesInsidious - Tip Toe Through The Tulips, Tiny Tim

Synchronous Music

Trailers such as Psycho and The Exorcist have distinctive stings that re synchronous with the genre.

  
Themes and Stings

Disturbia - Drum kit in the background along with various themes and stings

Songs

Marilyn Manson - Sweet Dreams (Are Made Of These)

Research & Planning: Script

Trailer Script

(Light, non-diegetic music in the background)

Character 1: (Holding Camera) Heeeey, smile for the camera.
Character 2: (Hands Over Face) Stop it, get that out my face!
Character 3: Stop being such a tool.
Character 1: Come on, don't be boring.
Character 4: (Waves to the camera)

Mostly improvisation with characters because we want it to come across as a natural atmosphere

We will collect a lot of footage of the teenagers at the beginning and we will cut it down in the editing process.

Character 3: (Collapses on floor)
Character 1: (Close up camera shot of Character 3)
(All Characters Laugh)
Character 1: He's such a lightweight!
Character 2: I don't feel very well
Character 1: (Begins to collapse along with the camera) Oh shhh-

Cuts to black

(Music reaches its peak and plays over faster editing)

Characters 1,2,3 & 4: various screams 

(Heart beat sounds on the last part)

Female character: Crying

Research & Planning: Masthead Font Ideas

Market Deco

Turnpike

Crystal Deco

Couture

Telegrafico

Research & Planning: Shot List

HH = Handheld camera

HD = HD camera

Research & Planning: Audition Posters

Here is our audition poster that we created in order to find characters that will feature in our film trailer.  We made sure to add the appropriate information as well as using some typical conventions of a thriller poster.

Here is our poster situated in the main hall in college.  We picked this spot as it is a space which many students will pass as well as it being on eye level.

Research & Planning: Risk Assessments

Research & Planning: Location Recce

Research & Planning: Publication Plan

Research & Planning: Magazine Cover Analysis

This cover uses a variety of codes and conventions to project the genre of psychological thriller.
     A main focus for this particular cover is the use of colour.  Fluorescent greens and pinks add a psychotic feel, adding to the  yet the cover still sticks to a three colour scheme of red, black and white for the main aspects of the cover (such as the mast head and articles at the bottom of the page).  This projects the brand "Empire" and allows the audience to recognise the magazine as these aspects feature in almost every issue.
     Another factor to consider is the Joker character featured as the main focus of the cover. Notice how he fits in with the pink and green colour scheme of the titles and headings yet is positioned between the masthead and the titles in the foreground.  This ties the page together and adds a feeling of depth to the cover.  The use of a long-shot puts the audience in the image, adding to the depth and creating a three dimensional effect.
     The typefaces shape and colour both match the character and the genre of the film featured.  This links the entire page together adding depth to the cover and creating a visually appealing image that will attract an audience.
     You can tell that this is a magazine front cover because:

• It has a masthead
• It contains articles 
• It has sluglines
• It has a main focus (The Joker)
• It has a barcode 

Sight and Sound Magazine has a slightly different approach to film.  The colour scheme is black, orange and white/grey and, when combined with the typefaces, gives the magazine a much more "art-house" look.  This gives the impression that this magazine appeals to people who are knowledgeable of film and see it more as an art form. 
    The mid-shot of Ewan McGregor out of costume shows how this is a much more personal "about the actor" - like article, rather than just his characters.
     The simplicity of the cover adds to the feel of a personalised magazine that links you directly to the actor him/herself.  Once again adding to the feel of a much more educated magazine, appealing to a much more specific fan base.
     You can tell that this is a magazine front cover because:

• It has a masthead
• It has a positioning statement
• It contains articles
• It has sluglines
• It has a main focus (Ewan McGregor)
• It has a barcode.

Research & Planning: Sinister

Over the weekend I went to see the new horror / thriller "Sinister".  I found it a useful resource for my trailer as its combination of graphic content and stalker induced tension created a good atmosphere that was similar to the one I wanted to create in our trailer.
     However, I wouldn't contain as much blood and gore in my work as I want to stick to the psychological side of thrillers.  I would, however, include the technique in which the camera filmed whilst a torch was shone allowing the audience to see a circle on screen that is surrounded by darkness, allowing us to easily build up tension.

Research & Planning: Animatic storyboard

Research & Planning: Film Poster Analysis's

A long shot shows the main focus of the film which is established due to the way it dominates the entire image.  The brown / golden tinge gives both a natural and a sinister feel which is emphasised with the faded background that's slightly out of focus.  This adds a supernatural feel to the cabin when combined with the irregular shape and position of it.  By the way the cabin is used, we can establish that this is the main threat, or maybe whatever is inside? The use of this mise-en-scene shows that this film would appeal to people aged 15-24 as it is has a modern look to it and it's also a 15 age rating.  This is a typical audience for this genre as well as the mise-en-scene of the woods and the fonts used give an earthy, yet violent feel.  You can tell it's a film poster due to the use of the film name, tagline, release date and production company names in Steel Tongs font.

 A close up of the woman's face on the left hand side shows us that she is the protagonist.  This is shown through the way she is positioned in the foreground, dominating most of the image.  There is a high level of contrast cast over the entire image,  giving the entire poster a darker feel that adds to the genre of thriller.  The use of the house in the background implies the threat that the woman has to face throughout the film.  The use of mise-en-scene shows that this film would appeal to people aged 15-24 as it looks modern and features young characters that appeal to younger generations.

Research & Planning: Film Name Ideas - Solvr

Film Name Ideas

http://www.a.freshbrain.com/solvr/d/33z4lkzms0

Here is a Solvr I did on some film names I liked the sound of.  However, I discovered that two of my ideas have been used previously in other films which means I can use one of the others or come up with some new ones.

Research & Planning: Plan for the Week

This week I plan to:

• Create a Solvr for film name ideas
• Create two film magazine analysis's
• Add a meeting post
• Add film poster drafts
• Create some extra research posts

Research & Planning: My Production Company Logo Ideas

Blackout Productions

Red Raven Productions

Hollow Mind Productions

Research & Planning: Production Company Logos

Here are a few production company logos that suit our genre of Psychological Thriller:

Red Letter Studios

I particularly like this image as it projects its theme well along with creating a visual highlight of the "RED" by matching it to the blood red cross logo.  The use of blood red might work well in my logo to help give it a more threatening vibe.

Wood Shed Studios

I like the way the logo is made up of the initials of the company as well as the fact that it is in the shape of a shed, making it even more relatable to that particular company.  I should consider this when designing my own logo as well as my colour choices.