production of scrap version

Yesterday as a group we produced the scrap version of my section of film following my shot script. Whilst taking the shots we realised that it requires more shots of the clown so discussed the issue and came to a decision of having a few shots of the clown appearing at the road side as the man drove past. We then carried out this shot to see if it was plausible and when we played the shots back believe that they will fit well into this section of film and aid the sense of the clown stalking. The production of this scrap version also opened our eyes to the fact that we need to be careful to make sure that the clown and man can be seen clearly in the shots through the car windows. Over the course of this week we have produced scrap versions of all of our sections so that we will be better prepared for filming the real footage during the half term holiday, as we can decide on appropriate amendments that are required to increase the quality of our short film.    

Representation within our short film

Within our short film we decided on having a central male character which is threatened and comes into conflict with the clown to go against the usual female victim that appears in a number if horror films. We will also be making use of female muggers as typically the cinema makes use of male actors, she will appear to say a biblical speech contradicting that muggers are usually uneducated and middle class. We however have yet to decide if she shall speak eloquently or in slang so are going to film it both ways and decide at a later date which suits the rest of the footage.

Target audience of our short film

In order to decide on the actors appearing in and the narrative within our short film we were aware of the target audience theoretically being older teenagers and young adults so we included a young tall ,male to be our main character and have chosen the setting of an arcade to mimic what a teenager would like to see. The inclusion of a homicidal clown and a mugging scene also targets the expectations and likes of teenagers within the film industry. Beyond the examiner we our aware that our short film is a showcase so that we shall include a number of camera shots, editing styles and mise en scene to show our collective and individual talents.

my shot script

This week we have been all working on the shot scripts for the section of film that we each have taken responsibility of. Mine begins with a long shot  through a car windscreen showing the man inside his panic is then shown through a series of close ups of his frantic movements putting on his seat belt and starting the car. A mid shot then shows him raising his head to look at the mirror and reaction shots shows him turning around and the clown standing at the back of the car. Then he is shown to drive away quickly with a long shot moving towards an extreme long shot. The man than appears in mid shots of several angles walking towards and through his house until he reaches the kitchen sink were an over the shoulder shot reveals his actions of having a drink and his reaction of fright to the clown laugh. A series of close ups of locking doors and windows leads to movement upstairs shown in a long shot and a point of view shot. More mid shots shows the locking of the bathroom window the man splashing his face and his reaction to the clown appearing in the mirror shown by a close up. The man leaves the bathroom in a mid shot and a pan until he reaches his bedroom where he is seen in a long shot to slam and stand up against the door in a panicked state. An ellipse occurs to show that time has passed and mid shots of the man rolling in bed finishes with a mid shot of the clown standing in the doorway.

idea for my section of the film

I have been given responsibility over the final chase sequence of our short film and have made use of the narrative structure we decided on to produce an idea. My section begins as Adele’s comes to an end and with the final fate ticket being the most threatening and reading beware the clown involves the clown escaping the box and following the main character. At first we will see the man panicking inside his car rushing to get away as the clown appears behind the car. I decided to make use of a car as it can be seen as a means of escape but also entrapment. The man then enters his home and is seen to rush around locking all doors and windows this behaviour is a typical convention of horror cinema giving the sense that he is not locking the clown out but is entrapping himself with the clown who is already inside. The final part of the film sees the man climb into bed which is a symbol of sanctum. This idea for my section of film has been planned to aid the other four sections in hopefully producing a short film that scares and entertains the viewer.

idea of narrative structure

As part of a group we have come to a final decision on the narrative structure that our short film should hold. We will be making use of the normal sense of a story consisting of chronological events. However the short film will possess an internal cyclic nature with the same events of receiving a fate ticket and it coming true occurring each day over the course of a four day period. Progression will also play a part in the structure where each day the fate tickets will read a progressively more threatening text until the climax is reached with the realisation of the fate box not being plugged in and a stalking sequence.