First attempt at editing/filming as a group

This is my group and I first attempt at filming and editing. we are clearly inexperienced which we can tell by not rotating the camera to avoid the black boarders. We also have really horrible jump cuts which stop the flow of the film and overall create an armature impression. We can improve on these errors by rotating the camera, practicing and fully finish editing. At this stage we can transform a mediocre attempt at a film into a smooth and enjoyable media text. My group and I have over complicated the task and because of this our film does not look like a film but more of an armatures work. For future filming tasks we need to make it a priority to not over complicate our film as it does not get us extra marks and only ruins our work.


We used a range of shots e.g. a medium shot introducing the main character, establishing shot to show the background, over the shoulder shot and shallow focus. These should come together to make a smooth film, however our film needs much more practice.

Types of Lighting techniques

Lighting:

There are three main features of lighting:
Quality
This lighting refers to the relative intensity of the illumination. Hard lighting creates clearly defined shadows, crisp textures and sharp edges where as soft lighting creates a diffused illumination, e.g.the sun creates hard light but an overcast.

Direction
this refers to the path of light from its source or source to the object lit. We can distinguish between frontal lighting, side lighting, back lighting, under lighting and top lighting.

Source
Directors manipulating the lighting of the scene typically decide on two primary sources- key light and fill light. The key light is the primary source, providing the brightest illumination and casting the strongest shadow. The key light is the most directional light and it usually suggests by a light source in the setting. A fill light is a less intense illumination the fills in and softens or it eliminates shadows cast by the key light.

Genre research

Examples of horror/psychological thrillers films:
The Cabin in the woods
Scream
Se7en
Silence of the Lambs
Texas Chainsaw Massacre
Halloween
Hostel
Nightmare on Elm St
The Shinning
Wolf Creek
Shutter Island
Donnie Darko
American Psycho
Saw
The Conjuring
The Omen
Woman in Black
The Exorcist



My group and I will study successful horror films as we hope to achieve the same, an example of this would be the Silence of the Lambs. This film is not particularly gory but it is exceptional in the way it creates tension. I hope to capture the same in my horror film as it will enhance the viewing experience for the audience. I also hope too create an enigma surrounding my antagonist which will intrigue the viewers into watching my film. Each member will review a film in how it  creates the enigma we will take notes which we will include in our film.

Shot types

Shot types:

Aerial shots- often used to establish a location.
Arc shot- when the subject  is circled by the camera.
Bridging shot- a shot that denotes a shift in time or place.
Close up- with only one face in the frame.
Medium shot- shows the waist up.
Long shot- a shit that shows the character from head to to toe.
Deep focus- a shot that has the foreground, middle ground and background in focus.
Dolly zoom- a shot that has the camera move towards a subject but also zooms out.
Establishing shot- a shot that shows the locaton.
Handheld- a shot where the camera is being held for a realistic look.
Low angel shot- a shot looking up at the character.
High angel shot- a shot looking down at the subject.
Locked down shot- the camera does not move but the action leaves the scene.
Matte shot- incorporates foreground action with the background.
Money shot- the most expensive scene.
Over the shoulder- when the camera is behind someone.



In our course work we shall use a range of these shot types to effectively create a horror opening sequence. For example, an establishing shot will present the setting to the audience as well as an

extreme close up to show the emotion of a character.

Genre research

Setting: 

The setting is usually placed in an abandoned forest, dark street, small down - anywhere that is isolated. these locations are typically used as they are perfect to house a killer. a small town can often be the best location has it is unexpected to have a flaw in a perfect town. However, there is plenty of space to hide house to conceal a killer. Horror films are typically set in unfamiliar locations in which the audience cannot relate too.

Sounds:
Dietetic sound- this is the sound we assume the characters will hear in the film e.g. screaming/explosions/weather/nature. Although explosions may be edited into later on in the film, we assume the character would have heard it.
Non-Dietetic sound- this is added into the film in the editing stage e.g. music

Soundtrack- the recorded element of the film- this would be the dramatic music in the background
emphasising what is happening on screen.
Pleonastic sound- exaggerated sound- this would be the sound of cutting bone.
Contrapuntal- sounds do not match what is happening on screen- having upbeat music in the background during a murder.
Silence- nothing can be heard- this will be used to create tension
Monologue- when a single person is talking- this can be used to further the development of a character.
Dialogue- two people having a conversation- this can be used to slowly leak information to the audience to keep them intrigued.
Multilogue- multiple people speaking- this can be used to further the plot.
Ambient sound- background noise- this will be used to create a sense of realism.
Empathetic sound- sound that reflects the scene- intense music could be played during a murder.

Other Sounds:
Voice over- the voice of a character that is not shown.
Sound bridge- when the music carries on to the next scene to make a smooth transition.~
Synchronous- sound that matches movements in the scene.
Asynchronous sound- sound that matches the action in the film but is not synchronised

The combination of all this will create an effective and successful horror opening sequence as it will include the necessary aspects for our coursework to make our film believable to our target audience.

My group and chosen genre

The group I will be working with is Matt Lloyd, Ewan Griffiths and Scott Milner. As a group we  unanimously decided to create a horror opening sequence for our coursework. To this my group and I needed to review other films, I looked at Se7en, Matt watched Nightmare on elm street, Ewan watched Halloween and Scott watched Saw. We all took screenshots of each film to use in order to create a successful opening sequence.