Shot list

This is our shot list for the production task; complete with equipment, props, the setting and its completion.

The props and camera equipment required for our sequence is small in number, with only lily petals, stringboard (paper, blu-tac, photographs, string) and a mobile phone needed for props; and only a hand-held camera with a tripod required to film.

This shows that The Tale of Demise may be a low-budget production, but also one that can be easily refilmed by our group.

Bloopers/Outtakes

These are our "bloopers" or "outtakes" that show all the attempts at a perfect shot while filming. This highlights how many attempts it took to get the right shot for our final cut, and also how difficult it can be to remain composed during filming.

The Tale of Demise FINAL CUT

This is the final cut of our production task. It has a black and white filter for the flashback sequence, the sound has been adjusted and all text animations have been applied.

The Tale of Demise SECOND CUT

This is our second cut of The Tale of Demise. Note that this version has a few corrections in comparison to the first cut including refinement of the opening credits with added animations and correct spelling. There is also the addition of our film's title and the addition of a fade between text-on-screen shots.

Adding the opening credits

The second cut of our sequence saw the addition of the opening credits. This included the actor's names (our group member's names and friends who have helped us) and appeared on screen while the opening was still playing. This was done in a way that the text was not overly intrusive to the opening, but still allowed the footage to play.

The writing was also kept small and did not have any distracting effects applied to keep attention on the sequence itself. This was done as we saw this very often on larger Horror/Thriller productions within the mapping sequence research. I noticed that small text was utilized when the opening requires the full attention of the audience, like ours does.

Props within opening sequence

Our sequence only featured a small number of props as The Tale of Demise is a small production and a large number of props simply was not required. These props included:

-Lily petals to surround the bodies of the character Lilith in the dead bodies shot
-The construction of a stringboard with post-it notes, string and printed images
-One of the group member's mobile phones used for a brief cut to an unknown phone call
-Ketchup used for a fake blood effect
-Make-up for our characters to convincing appear dead in the respectable shot.

Storyboard: Main Task

This is our storyboard for the production task; complete with transitions, shot types and duration. Note that there are a couple of long takes for conversations and short takes for brief shots establishing setting.

Script

Script for dead bodies scene: Positioned EXT. Time of Day around early afternoon, approximately 12:30 - 1:00pm. Outdoor setting, the woods of Addington. 

(THANA, LILITH AND DETECTIVE BLAKE run through forest, the camera being held by THANA as they sprint)

THANA: Go, go, go!

DETECTIVE BLAKE: I'm going, I'm going!

THANA: This way!

(All characters eventually reach a dead end)

LILITH: (breathless) We can't go this way.

(All characters run in another direction. Sprinting continues for another five seconds)

THANA: If my mum can hear this, tell her I love her!

(fade to black, then high angle shot of three character's bodies, lifeless on the ground)

(camera picked up, diegetic, asynchronous scream from female)

(fades to film title, leading onto Detective Scene flashback)

Script for Detective scene: Positioned INT. Time of Day around mid afternoon, approximately 3:00pm. Indoor setting, makeshift detective office.

(DETECTIVE RAVEN walks through wooden door to enter the office, instantly acknowledges DETECTIVE BLAKE waiting for him)  

DETECTIVE RAVEN: Detective Raven.

DETECTIVE BLAKE: Detective Blake. 

(shake hands)

DETECTIVE RAVEN: So what do we have here?

Both detectives turn to string board of crime scene. 

DETECTIVE BLAKE: We have a body within the Byward area, and a possible murder weapon too.

DETECTIVE RAVEN: Any leads?

DETECTIVE BLAKE: None as of yet.

DETECTIVE RAVEN: Well, if you need anything, let me know. 

(DETECTIVE RAVEN hands over business card to DETECTIVE BLAKE, they shake hands, nod, and DETECTIVE RAVEN exits room)

(DETECTIVE BLAKE ambles around office and then his mobile phone rings. DETECTIVE BLAKE picks up mobile phone cautiously)

DETECTIVE BLAKE: (answering phone) Hello? Who's this?

(Fade to black)

Deciding on Film Title

Choosing the film title's animation and appearance onscreen was done in editing. The first animation shown in the video is the one we selected for the sequence. The reason being that the animation allowed the text to remain onscreen for a fraction longer than the other two, and this allows the title to have more presence without interupting the tension of the opening.

Idents and Production names

Choosing Intensity Films and Shadow Pictures as our production names represent our film's genre of both Thriller and Horror.
The Intensity ident relates to Thrillers as the genre is all about keeping the audience engaged through an 'intense' narrative.
As for the Shadow Pictures ident, it represents Horror as the name 'Shadow' connotes mystery, darkness and also fear when paired to the hooded skull image of intensity films.

Pencil Drawing of ident

Our two idents for Shadow Pictures and Intensity Films include a hooded skull and crossbones and silloette walking through a lit open door in a dark room.

Make-up used for our Dead-bodies scene

As the person who we anticipated to help us with the make-up for our dead bodies scene was unavailable when we wanted to film, we decided to do the make-up ourselves instead. Sophie decided she would be the best and creating the look we wanted and all the products you see above were used, plus talcum powder.

Firstly, we mixed talcum powder and blue eye shadow into a tub, then using a lightly wet sponge, Freya applied the mix to our faces to work as the base as it gave us a deathlike pallor.

Secondly, to make the eyes look sunken, she used black eye shadow and put it on the eyelids as well as around it.

After deciding that the eye shadow on the eyes alone was not enough Freya then added it to the cheekbones, temple and nose as these are cartilage areas.

Story Proposal for Production Task

Narrative: Protagonist Detective Blake is investigating an eerie murder case in which the murderer in question tries to rattle the protagonist by stalking two other innocent females: Thana and Lilith. Knowing that Blake will come to their assistance due to his moral compass, the killer uses this to get to all three characters and the events following this eventually lead to their "demise" after a number of close calls throughout the film.

Theme: As people and actions from the pasts of Thana, Lilith and Blake begin to surface during the investigation and evasion of the killer, all three characters begin to learn how burying certain actions from the past can catch up. They also learn from their mistakes over time.

Format: 2 minute film opening in order to pick up on the theme and pace of the film.

Tone: The film is set around Addiscombe and Addington, mostly at daytime. The filming and directing style has similarities to The Blair Witch Project in that many shits and scenes look much like found-footage. There is a serious tone to the film and a moderate level of violence that suggests a life-threatening situation for the characters. It is also set within the current time and context.

Character: Detective Blake is a relatively calm character in high pressure situations due to his profession, but this new, horrifing experience pushes his abilities to the limit and shows signs of pressure and fear by the end of the film. He is also very secretive, with very few people truly knowing his character and life outside of work.

Thana: A strong, yet pessimistic character who sometimes struggles to see the positive in some scenarios. She is highly driven however and very intelligent which leads Thana to pick up information quickly. She is able to effectively use her skills to aid Blake's investigation.

Lilith: Shares a similar ability of picking up new information quickly and using it to her advantage during this stressful scenario, but she is much better at staying positive in negative positions. She also knows when she is out of her depth and isn't afraid to acknowledge her own strengths and weaknesses. Her innocent nature makes her the more targetted character by the unknown murderer however, and she suffers many injuries and close calls in the film as she lacks Blake's physical strength and has less encounters with the killer than Thana.

Example of a Story Proposal

This is an example of a story proposal for a Thriller/Horror film like ours. The story proposal has to include:

• The main point or moral of the story itself.
• Who the story will be portrayed and focused around.
• What the theme and atmosphere of the film will be. Humourous nightlife experiences? Fictional fairytale story? A violent, dramatic narrative?
• How the film will be rated (BBFC) and its duration. Might be worth including distribution in addition (wide run, saturation, online, traditional marketing, etc)
• What are the requirements of the actor’s character? What will they have to do to convincingly portray our narrator?

Premise: Never underestimate your potential enemies, all your actions have consequences.

Narrative: Michael Fedora, early 30s, currently unemployed with a previous career in organised crime. Escaped the clutches of his previous crime organisation after murdering his boss and living on his parents’ inheritance. He has now developed a pleasure and a talent for killing in different methods and the film is now focused on how Michael continues to wage war with his past criminal members and how he murders each member one by one with increasingly vicious methods. Works completely alone and is clearly unhinged throughout.

Theme: Michael Fedora’s psychotic behaviour means that while he is an expert at killing and he has the talent for covering his tracks during each murder, he does not consider every single angle such as police investigations, or the friends/family of his victims taking revenge which will eventually be his downfall.

Format: Full feature film, 1 hour 45 minutes, rated at 18 due to its violence and intensity. Trailer also created at two minutes with intended violence rather than full-feature gore so it can be viewed at many more placements (online, print adverts, etc).

Tone: The film is set in North London, within the very grimmest of settings to set a depressing, derelict scene for each murder (as if each victim has been `abandoned`). Criminal twist relates to films such as Run All Night and main protagonist relates to films such as American Psycho with a rather twisted manner and completely comfortable committing murders without hesitation. The film has a serious tone that will have the audience in shock with plot twists and extreme violence.

Character: An actor that can pull off the character of Michael Fedora with an unstable and unhinged mental state, show a clear pleasure for killing and someone who can maintain tension throughout the most important scenes such as murders or being questioned by police; or even gathering his thoughts and plans within his own household.   

Equipment used and why

Our media department was limited in terms of equipment choice, but in the end we decided to use a Canon HF Legria R606 along with an adjustable tripod with a spirit level. This combination allowed us to switch between hand-held shots with various movements, stationary shots with high and low angles, and even selfies if the need came about. The large selection of shots at our disposal is why we chose this equipment specifically.

While the shots themselves were not of the highest quality, the portablity and versatility of this camera was very good

Canon HF Legria R606

Tripod used in the sequence

Shooting the film opening (2 out of 2)

On the 28th of February, my group filmed the dead bodies' scene for our film opening. We met up early around 11am to 12am midday so that the lighting would be adequate and so that we would have plenty of time to setup our shots.

We began with a shot of the main three characters (myself, Sophie, Freya: i.e Blake, Lilith, Thana) running through the woods to suggest they are running from something. During this scene, it would be a 1st person, handheld shot that looks blurry and intense on-camera; a perfect way to start a Thriller with action and enigmas.

We then moved on to the dead bodies scene which would follow the running scene. A fade would be the preferred transition between these shots. We used ketchup for a fake blood effect on our T-shirts, and used lilies spread around our bodies for a sign or suggestion of innocence.  

Dead Bodies Scene (Josh's Blog) from thetaleofdemise

Initial ideas for editing

At this point in time, both scenes have now been shot and it is time to consider what kind of things will need to be done during editing.

Initially, we should consider creating/adding an animation for our production names (perhaps through the creation of a GIF on Serif) and then moving on to cuts, transitions and making the sequence as fluent as possible.

This could be done by cutting parts of the footage that does not add anything to the overall effect or story, and then making sure the footage cut does not make an abrupt gap in the middle of a scene. Then, its a case of selecting and adding transitions. This will involve going over the footage with Sophie and Freya, then deciding whether we should use a cut, fade, dissolve etc and then applying it to necessary parts within the film.

After this, we can move on to filters, exposure compensation, and ensuring that the footage we have is perfectly watchable for an audience. This should be a relatively simple process that will involve choosing an appropriate filter for our film and adding effects to our sequence that look "right".

Now, we should have a smooth, well lit film with only relevant content on screen and an animation for our opening.  The only thing left in terms of editing is the sound. Everything the audience sees should be fluent and watchable.

Shooting the film opening (1 out of 2)

On the 16th of February, my group filmed one of two of the shots required for our two minute film opening. The shot included meeting up at a friend's house and setting up a makeshift stringboard for a scene that would hopefully create a convincing detective scene. Myself and another friend featured within the (approximately) 45 second shot with the other two in the group handling the camera shots, going over the scene's continuity/consistency and going over the props in view.

As well as the stringboard, we also took a number of images that included a specialized prop and details such as a character's name coming up on a phone call on the detective's mobile for an enigma code.

 





Detective scene from thetaleofdemise

Costume Considerations

Costume Considerations

For our first scene showing my character, Sophie's, and Freya's lying dead/still on the floor, we are initially considering wearing white T-shirts for an enhanced effect if/when we choose to use fake blood for the shot. Besides this, the outfits will be casual and not too far off what we would usually wear to give the impression that the death was unexpected and perhaps even unplanned.

For the second shot, which shows a flashback of two weeks ago before the character's deaths, my character will wear a button-up shirt accented with either a leather jacket or a three-quarter length jacket to give the impression of a stereotypical police detective: an image created by other films and TV shows. My counterpart will also wear something similar as I am supposed to be talking to another detective.

UPDATE 16th Feb: As aforementioned, a long jacket was used for the flashback scene (for both featured characters) to give a more convincing impression of both detectives. The T-shirts have also been purchased for the second shot that should be filmed by the 28th of Feburary (5th of March at the very latest).

Outfits for detective scene

Black long jacket for Gray; character name Detective Raven. Chosen as it is stereotypical for detectives

Navy blue long jacket for my character; Detective Blake. Very similar to Gray's but accented by casual jeans suggesting a familiar surrounding or a wish to be comfortable for his next course of action. 

The outfits for the dead bodies' scene

Detective Blake's costume for this scene; black t-shirt for a hint at dark past, and/or a play on words with `Blake` containing connotations to `Black`. 

Lilith and Thana's character costume. White T-shirt for hint at innocence in character. 

Location planning

Byward Avenue bird's sanctuary
1 Sundridge Road

The plan for our shooting locations include using the woods around Byward avenue to film a shot in which three characters lie dead for an enigma based opening; followed by using a friend's room to film a shot of two detectives discussing a case that links to the murders we see in the first shot.

UPDATE: The detective scene has been shot on the 16th of February at 1 Sundridge Road (friend's house) with a plan to film the second scene on the 28th of February.

These locations were chosen because having a friend's house to set up the stringboard and camera equipment was convenient for the group and it was an appropriate setting/background for the detective scene when the props were set up.

The woods were chosen for the second shot as it is a stereotypical place to find
a dead body and a good place to set up a character(s') death.

Google Maps images of our woods shooting location