We decided on three actresses for our shoot, which we felt matched the required persona for our scene. We needed someone with a small frame, so they could fit inside the coffin with ease, we also wanted someone who had strong acting skills, each of our choices were proficient actresses. Our choices were (Listed in order of priority):
1. Grace Quigley
2.Hannah Nanton
3.Daisy Doige-Hill
We decided to chose Grace, as she could be made to look frail with a particular application of make up, we also felt that her training in Sylvia Young Theater School would be useful when she was required to perform more difficult actions.
While creating our media product, we discussed our target audience and who they might be, to help us formulate the look and persona of our thriller and hopefully generate some ideas which we could use.
We decided that due to the violent nature of our product our target audience could not be below 15 years old, while the fairly modern concept may dissuade a more mature audience of the ages 50 and above. Therefore we feel that perhaps our target audience would be between 16-19 year old males. The film would most likely be awarded a 15 certificate for the language and violent focus of the plot. We feel that the majority of our audience would be males and while some females may be interested in the film, we expect that many viewers would be males.
Our target audience would probably be interested in other media products similar to ours, which correspond with the horror or thriller genres. We expect them to have enjoyed films such as '127 Hours', 'The Descent', 'The Call' and 'The Lovely Bones'. While being interested in other thriller style media products, such as the video game 'Heavy Rain' and the TV Show 'Dexter'.
We would use the dark elements from products such as Heavy Rain, and draw inspiration from the claustrophobic elements of 127 Hours to draw the audience in, while relying on the intense plot to keep them watching.
We decided that we should use something besides the holes in the top of the coffin to light the dark space. However we felt that the protagonist finding a lighter or phone in her pocket would be too cliched. We researched different methods of light sources that we could use for our coffin, and eventually found some LED lights that were cheap and easy to use, and could also be discreetly placed in the coffin.
Also, we needed a timer, however when researching the timers were all too small and did not give off enough light, therefore we decided the if we used card and an IPhone, we could make it look as if it were a timer, instead of an IPhone.
Lionsgate has a history of producing independent and mini-major films, including darker, more sinister thriller films with elements of horror. Such as 'Crank', 'The Descent' and the 'SAW' films. I feel that Lionsgate would want to produce our film as our film would be an independent movie, that matched a similar type of genre as they have most commonly produced. Also, we feel that the budget of the film would be fairly reasonable and we would not be looking at an epic budget, but, for the amount of money that was spent on filming, the distribution would be fairly large, so the chance of a profit would be fairly high.
2. Similar Films to Yours?
Although Lionsgate have produced many films that match the similar thriller with horror elements that our film would fit in, films like '127 Hours' and 'The Descent' also posses the claustrophobic atmosphere that we wish our film to have. However, the film 'Buried' is very similar to ours, which could offer an opportunity to link the films, as the ending of the original film left space for an anticipated sequel.
3. How Would Your Film Fit Into the Ethos of the Company?
Lionsgate's occupation with 'The Hunger Games' would provide an appropriate place for our film in the ethos of the company. Being one of the most popular film series ever and one of the most anticipated films in the upcoming future, we would have to appreciate that we would be overshadowed by the big budget epic. However, once we had accepted that our film would not be as popular as other movies coming out in the future, we would be able to fit in the lower budget movies, which still uphold a high quality and entertainment value.
We would need to be strategic in the way we chose to advertise our product. We would not want to try and compete with other epic movies from other studios such as 'Warner Bros'. Instead, we would want to focus on the larger cinemas with more screens, to give us the opportunity to show on the later screenings, when most people would be watching movies. We would also need to advertise on the Lionsgate website, and maybe try to branch out to other websites, such as social networking websites, or other websites that would have an audience consisting mainly of young adults and teenagers.
5.Do They Specialize In Your Type of Film?
Lionsgate have made many thrillers with elements of horror mixed in, however, the reason I feel Lionsgate are more specialized in our type of movie are the array of claustrophobic thrillers, such as 'Buried' and 'The Descent'. By having this advantage of making similar films, Lionsgate would have had experience in distributing and producing that kind of film, with the best quality and most effective results due to the past experience.
We found our test shoot useful in determining which ides could work and which ideas we should discard. As we were unable to film within a graveyard for obvious reasons, so we filmed on the football pitch on campus, recruiting various pupils to be involved as makeshift actors.
We wanted our actors to all act as if they were attending a funeral, while in the background, a hooded figure stood and texted the words 'You're next' to one of the crowd. Although we required preferably older actors, we could only use 16-17 year olds in home clothes, but the footage was useful in determining which shots worked and which didn't. For example, after watching the test footage, we decided that a close up of a phone, to show the text was not effective enough. So instead, I suggested we use an idea from the TV show 'Hollyoaks'. (INSERT PICTURE)
I thought that this idea could show the contents of the message, while still allowing the audience to see the reaction of the receiver. We found that we could use the space more effectively by panning across the entire crowd, showing their faces and reactions to the funeral. We thought that we could also have a gap between two characters in the crowd, where we could see the silhouetted figure in the background. We felt that this would add tension to our piece as the audience would be intrigued as to who the hooded figure is.
Overall, we found this process useful as it gave us significant footage for us to be able to determine which shots were effective, and which shots could be changed.
After pitching our idea to Matt, Luke and Paul, our feedback helped us to decide that we could create a more atmospheric experience for the audience if we set our idea in a coffin, as we would need less space, and could complete the filming within the studio.
Before researching our coffin we needed to appreciate the problem of shooting different camera angles in and around the box. After deliberating as to how we could solve this problem we decided that the easiest way to solve this problem would be to draw plans for a coffin of desired specifications and have each wall of the coffin on hinges, to enable diversity while filming the different angles.
After a few searches on the internet we found out that plywood would be the best, and cheapest material to use for a makeshift coffin, while hinges could be easily acquired from any DIY shop.
After finding these materials and adding up the cost to make a coffin we then debated which style we should have the coffin in. We firstly decided that as our murderer would not be operating from a high budget. Therefore we did not want the stereotypical ceremonial coffin, instead we wanted something that looked makeshift, something that could be made from home, as that is probably what the murderer would do, to eliminate the possibility of being traced.
This was the style of coffin we did not want, as we felt it was too complicated to make and also unrealistic for the scenario.
However, after researching, we found that this coffin looked makeshift due to the use of plywood, and while the shape looked good, we still felt that it was too refined. Eventually we decided that we could just make a box, instead of a classic coffin.
After deciding that a plywood box with hinges sides was the best idea for the coffin we asked the Media department how long it would take to make one, only to find that there had already been a group to require a coffin, so we looked at the pre-made one and decided that it's dimensions were perfect, as it allowed our protagonist to move around, while also looking makeshift and homemade enough to pass for an amateur construction
On Thursday the 20th of November, our group participated in filming a quick test shoot of our opening sequence. We quickly brought some chairs down to our filming spot, just outside the pavilion, and arranged for some extras to come and help us decide character positioning. We quickly filmed our opening sequence, using Claudia's phone, and looked through the footage to decide what we thought was a good idea, and what didn't look good on camera. Eventually we came to the conclusion that the people at the funeral might need to be split up, to make it clearer that there is a man in the background, because on the footage it was difficult to see whether he was in the scene of whether we had just cut to a different location entirely. After overcoming this, as well as a few other obstacles, mainly concerning the character positioning in certain shots, as well as the positioning of the coffin, we began to film our final piece of test footage.
Although we found that the footage looked correct, we didn't find the idea thrilling or compelling enough, and soon after we decided that we needed to change some vital elements of our piece. We found that the whole scene its self was too complicated for a two minute video, and after considering the time we would be given, realized that we would not be able to present our idea understandably in just two minutes. While I found this frustrating, I felt that the change was necessary as we did need to inject more thrilling elements into the sequence, and after talking to Mike about this, he explained we did not need a vastly complex opening scene, and that we could use a simple idea, like someone digging up a grave. We decided to alter the idea, but keep it set in a graveyard, as we felt it added a slightly frightening element to the sequence, and from this developed a new, and in my opinion, much better idea.
In conclusion, I found that the test shoot was very useful in helping us define what was wrong with our piece,after watching over our footage we were able to tell which ideas worked and which were not suitable for our sequence. And after realizing these mistakes, we were able to successfully create a better, more thrilling idea.
