Research & Planning: Films Linked To Amnesia

Research & Planning: Improving The Film Idea

After getting some positive criticism on our film idea from our class, we decided that our film opening has too much going on for the opening scene. As a result, we decided to think through our idea and make it more simplistic. However, I think we should scrap this idea and choose a new one where we can build up the character in more depth so the story has a strong plot which can make our film opening more efficient and easier to understand. The idea that our group are currently thinking about is a film which is based on 'Amnesia'.

Research & Planning: Conventions Of A Thriller Film

A thriller is a genre that uses suspense and tension as it's main elements, creating enigma for the audience. The basic conventions of a thriller movie include:

• Low key lighting
• Quick cuts
• Shadows
• Tension music
• Changes in the angles shots
• Diegetic/ambient sounds
• Composition of characters 
• Discrete & isolated locations

Research & Planning: British Film Production Companies

I researched into some of the most well known British film production companies to get an idea of how their name and logo is presented at the beginning of a film opening. They are very basic and simple, but have an element of professionalism within them. They are easy to remember due to the simplistic format and design of the layout, for our film production name, i want to choose a term which is easy to remember and sounds very formal and British. The typeface used is very bold, standing out clearly to the audience.

Research & Planning: Film Opening Analysis: The Bourne Legacy

I decided to do some film opening research on movies which link to our idea and genre of thriller. This will help me and my group improve our general aspects that we are considering to include in our film opening e.g. the sound/ music in the background, certain shots which are used, how each scene is approached including the mise en scene. In particular, I chose to analyse the film opening to 'The Bourne Legacy' as it had a range of elements which tie in well with our idea and theme.

Title Sequence: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9PJgQrug7JA

The opening scene portrays the character deep under water in a still position. The deep blue colour connotes a negative tone to the scene and creates enigma as the audience is already confused by the composition of the shots. Following on, the character swims towards an object which is shown through a close up shot, signifying the importance to this item or object. However, it is not very clear and visible due to the colours enhanced in the scene which could create mystery and confusion to the audience. I like this idea where a deep colour under the water has been used to set the scene and mood for the film. Next, an establishing shot is used to show the surrounding area with additional text which is shown on the screen to state the location. The next shot is a close-up shot of the water which shows the character rising up from the water with the object in his hand. I think this links well with our film opening, where an object is used to create confusion and importance, it portrays a sense of power. As the character comes out of the water, a long shot is used showing him throwing it to the ground and leaving it there. Moreover, a close-up shot is used to show the characters facial expressions, displaying a confused emotion. From here, the camera zooms out at a fast pace, portraying the landscape/setting shot, followed by a black screen. The titles are then shown appearing as a scrabbles code form to the bold title stating "The Bourne Legacy." Throughout the scene, the music in the background creates a lot of suspense as it starts off very low in pitch and as the scene carries on, it builds up creating a higher dynamics, in particular when the camera is zooming out the diegetic music is at its climax creating tension and enigma.

Research & Planning: Test Shooting & Location Shots

Alleyway Location

On the weekend, as a group we visited the locations spots for our film opening so we could get a clearer insight towards the specific shots which we will consider using. Additionally, we used the iPad to start test shooting the scenes which we have to shoot for our film opening. I think it went really well as we now have a better idea of how we are going to shoot certain aspects e.g. the shots and also considering the mise en scene of each frame shown. We also took lighting into consideration as we needed it to be bright but also adding a hint of darkness as we wanted to add enigma to the scene. 

Bridge Location

The first photo shows the location of the alleyway scene, which is surrounded by colourful leaves which haves fallen to the ground, creating a good mise en scene; this location portrays the characters journey to the bridge. The second photo displays the bridge location, where the delivery scene will take place. We discussed having a range of shots that take place here as we wanted to use the location in various ways e.g. a close up on the bridge of the box and a long shot from a distance showing the character on the bridge.

Research & Planning: Film Synopsis

A character who is packing her suitcase, leaves her house discreetly to deliver a box to an unknown character at the bridge. The unknown character, also known as the 'collector' later comes to the bridge and collects the gift box. The character who is delivering the box is known as the 'deliverer'. 

Certain deliveries are made for a murder, on each delivery box, there is a code which is shown on the edge. This code unlocks a high tech database showing all of the victims who have been killed and the 10 remaining victims who need to be killed. These people are targeted to be killed because they are apart of a secret agent group organisation and know exclusive information. The deliverer (main character) had packed her suitcase because she was originally apart of this organisation, but turned against them as she was blackmailed by the murderers on a different agent organisation. Throughout the film, there is a team of murderers who will receive different deliveries which contain certain murder tools to kill the secret agents. The code on the box signifies each victims identity to be accessed through the database and shows who needs to be killed. The first delivery box contains a necklace which is a combination of deathly chemical poisons which will be used to kill a certain victim. By the end of the film, nine deliveries would have been made, however one delivery is left but the agents cant track this person down...

Research & Planning: General Ideas

I created this mind map, stating the basic ideas regarding our film idea. In the lesson, as a group we broke down each scene into a few sections to give us a brief overview of how many scenes there will be altogether. In addition, we estimated how long each cut will take to cover the 2 minutes required.

Research & Planning: Final Idea

Film opening notes

Throughout the process of thinking about various film opening ideas we covered a range of ideas, in the beginning we were complicating it too much which meant that it was near to impossible meeting the basic conventions of a film opening in general. On the other hand, in the end we came up with a unique and effective idea which conveyed elements of enigma which will entertain the audience, portraying the genre as a thriller. We wrote down all of our ideas expanding on each part briefly and further due will elaborate on each aspect e.g. the specific camera shots used in each scene.

Research & Planning: Initial Ideas

Today in class, as a group we contributed a range of individual ideas that we had and thought of what type of film we wanted to create and later elaborated and combined them. Our initial genres were either thriller or romance, further on after brainstorming our ideas, we decided to go ahead with the romance genre as the idea was stronger and more efficient. This isn't the final decision as we all agreed to think of ways to improve it as a group, so it's a solid idea for us to start working with. We also discussed briefly some of the essential parts of organising and building up the film opening e.g. the actors who will take part and locations which are interesting and not too basic. Additionally, we decided to keep the idea relatively simple but have various shots which create enigma for the audience.