Rationale
Through our analysis of the thriller convention we have learned that the main protagonist should be female. Having considered this we will choose Lilla since she meets the conventions as well as being the easiest choice for the production, saving us time. Not only that but since we want to produce a medical thriller we have chosen to use our school science labs because they not only allow us to create an illusion of a medical facility but also their close proximity means that shoots or re-shoots can be conducted easily. We have also chosen Carly to create the practical effects because she already has experience with practical effects.
Proposal
​
For this project we will be writing and producing an opening to a thriller film. The sub genre of thriller we chose was medical because it worked well with the limitations that we knew we would encounter.
​
The target audience for our thriller will mostly focus on teens or young adults aged 15 to 22 regardless of gender. Our opening will be 2 minuets long, however, this may be slightly longer or shorter when accounting for last minuit changes to the storyboard and or shot list.
​
In this opening there are two main actors and no supporting actors. We also will not be using any dialogue and will communicate meaning through ether written text or non-verbal communication. The story revolves around Lila being a doctor or scientist injecting Matty with a mysterious liquid that the audience then is lead to beleave to be a virus, having read it on a close up of a medical document.
​
We make heavy use of SFX make up because one of our group have a lot of experience and can create realistic practical effects. Regarding props, we have chosen props that convey an idea of a medical or scientific environment. These include things like beakers, conical flasks, hazard stickers and bunsan burners. We will also have Lila in a lab coat so the audience can both get a better idea of a scientific atmosphere as well as make it clear what her role is.
​
To conclude, we are using non verbal signifires in to create a compelling and interesting medical thriller aimed at a target audience aged 15 to 22.
Budget
The Budget plan helps us project roughly how much money it will cost and in turn the level of funding we will need in order to produce a film opening. I chose to place this first on the blog as before production or pre-production can begin it will need to be established how much it will cost in order to create it. The budget plan has helped us because it detailed how much a typical production would cost as well as how much ours would cost. This has given us a good idea of how much a production like this costs to make professionally.
Location Recce
The location reccie is important and helped us plan our filming locations as well as outlining exactly how some of the scenes would look and since we only had limited number of potential shooting locations then this was done before the storyboard was fully drawn in order to get a clearer understanding of what our film opening would look like. It also gives us an idea of the limitations we may face when filming.
Make up plan
The make up plan aids us in our planning because it outlines exactly what our limitations are and the kind of practical effects we could use in order to create realistic effects. This was created along side the equipment list, props list and risk assessment. The costume plan was also created to ensure that we always had the correct costume to that there were no changed in between filming days. This is important because without it there is a high chance we could mess up the costume between shoots without it.
Props lists
The props list aids us in our production because it outlines the props that are required and then available. The props list was created at the same time as equipment list and along side the contingency plan. This was because we decided the props we would need and weather or no they could cause any safety issues hat we needed to account for.
Equipment list
The equipment list is a comprehensive list of the equipment we will need in order to successfully film the scenes we need. the equipment list was created along side the props list and the contingency plan so we could outline weather or not there was any issues regarding safety.
Contingency plan
The contingency plan was created in order to outline any potential disruptions in regards to safety or the shooting schedule as well as what to do if these problems were to arise. It also serves as a plan that would keep us on track. Without the contingency plan we would be unprepared on what to do if any issues arises weather they be safety issues or issues with actors, props, equipment or planning.
Logo Development
The Logo development was created because we created our own production companies and we needed a logo to go along with it to make sure the production seemed more authentic. This was created along side the title plan because it it to be one of the first scenes shown so we need it to look good.
Title Plan
The title plan was created because we wanted to get a clear idea of how the titles would look once appearing in our opening. This is because it is a convention that titles appear in the openings of thriller films and we needed to see the quality of font we would be using. We created the title plan in order to make sure we picked the best font that went with out film opening.
Music sources
Sourcing the music was an important part of production. Sourcing the music helped us narrow down exactly what kind of ambient sound track we wanted and eventually the specific track we are using.
Shot list
The shot list has been completed in so that when filming we know exactly what the shot needs to contain. We can then use things like the location recce to start seeing how the shots could be completed. It also means we can see how the props and costume will look regardless.
Storyboard
The storyboard is one of the most important aspect of the planning process. It was important in our planning because it outlined how our finished product would look. It also outlined potential props we would need in order to create the scenes depicted above. We created the storyboard before most other areas of planning because it outlined how our product would locations, however this was influenced by the location recci, it would outline the props we would need, the makeup and practical effects we would need as well as the types of shots and scenes we would be taking.
Pitches
Filming and editing schedule
The filming and editing schedule has been created to make sure that we stay on schedule and finish when we need too. Since our location is dependent on pre-booked days we ,must finish filming by the end of those days. This was created after many other areas because everything else needs to be prepared before we can film.
Filming and evidence of filming
Filming day 1: Our first day of filming did not go as planned but we were still able to film two scenes. Our original plan was to apply the make up in order to shoot the higher maintenance scenes fist. As such he make up was brought in and the makeup artiest prepared to apply the effects to the actor. However, we did not account on the actor not being here. As a result we were not able to shoot the scenes we wanted and we were forced to compromise and shoot low maintenance scenes. I took on the role of director and was responsible for making sure we could still film as well as how the scenes should be filmed. We should have had a section in our contingency plan that detailed what to do if we were unable to shoot the desired scenes.
Filming day 1 evidence
Filming day 2: Our seconds day of filming was similar to the first in terms of the shots that we filmed. Having looked over the footage from the previous day of filming we decided to shoot most of the shots again from different angles or with different lighting. We did not have many obstetrical that prevented us from filming our desired scenes however, for some of the low angle shots the tripod could not be lowered predictably enough to get the desired angle and some had to be filmed free hand. This meant that some shots had minor amount of shaking in. Additionally both cameras we used had low battery. However, this was a user error and we will be checking each peace of equipment in the future to make sure it works properly and all recording equipment is charged.
Evidence of shooting day 2
Evidence of SFX make up
The application of the make up went smoothly and did not cause any problems. The application of the makeup took 30 minuets and we were able to create a realistic look prier to filming. We also organised it well because we applied the make up less than an hour before filming started so none of the make up had a chance to smudge or become damaged.
Filming day 3: Shooting day three was our most predictive shooting session to date. We were able to shoot many high maintenance scenes through the application SFX makeup that was done prier to shooting. However, there were still unforeseen problems that we didnt account for. The most obvious of these issues was the fact that we were unable to control the lighting in our shoot locations. We also did not think about how the tables and the floor look similar and the audience may be confused and unable to tell the difference.
Evidence of shoot 3
Filming day 4: Shooting day for was one of the most difficult days in terms of prop management. We were unable to get a syringe like we wanted and instead were forced to insert a sewing needle into a makeup syringe . We were able to use wax from the make up scenes to fix the needle in place. However, since we needed to fill the needle with a liquid it caused the was to loosen and the needle to move.
Evidence of filming day 4:
Filming day 5: Filming day five was less planned than some others and we were forced to improvise a little. This was because some members of the teem did not attend the shoot leaving us short on hands. As a result we were still able to film the scenes but it took us longer than we intended. We filmed scenes related to close ups and extreme close ups like shots of the characters forehead and shots that inform the audience of the location like the words science lab.
Filming day 5 evidence
Filming day 6: Filming day six was the most efficient day of filming we had done that far. Even though much of the teem did not attend we were still able to film a lot of nessecary scenes as well as film new ones in case we found that footage to be better. Because we were able to film so many scenes in the same time costumes, lighting and props are all consistent throughout.
Evidence of filming day 6
Filming day 7: Filming day seven was used as an opportunity to re film any remaining scenes that were still not consistent or did not look as intended. We also used it to film scenes we had not filmed yet. We re filmed close ups as well as a scene we had not filmed previously but one that we needed.
Evidence of filming day 7