Preliminary task

EVALUATION

The filming process was a learning one. Since I had no experience before it was an exciting and steep learning curve. When I first set out to make the film I really had no idea what I was in for and since I am a practical person I decided the best way was to go out and try it. The result can clearly be seen.

The piece was a dark fantasy film from the outset, this meant it had to include elements of horror as well as action, however, due to the limited timescale I was working with, I knew it would be hard to implement as much of each as I would want. Due to this I knew I would have to play around with the horror and thriller conventions.

The first element was darkness. The near total darkness that exists throughout the piece was intended to give the classic fear of the unknown and unseen which is common in monster horror films. The choice to not show the monster and mearly signal it's presence through sound was made because of a lack of tech capable of constructing the creature I desired. However, considering that the piece is an opening I feel it works well to hint at what is to come without explicitly showing it.

The other element taken was the use of the female as the surviving character. This plays upon the lone female and the vulnerability, but turns it on it's head by having her as the final survivor.

Foreshadowing was another important element and it used several times, the first is the advice Serridan gives to Meredith -hinting at a purpose later- the second was through Kane's speech which speaks of an individual who experienced the same as them, the same as Meredith will communicate to the other character's later in the film (past where this piece ends). The choice to cut Kane's speech off was done for thematic effect to the audience knew there was something to be warned about but not what.

The intended audience is in the 14-21 range aiming at a middle. The film should be aiming for a 12 rating and to this end bad language and actual blood was kept to a minimum. This effected the choice to have the character's die off screen in order to minimise violence. In order to attract this kind of audience we have made a diverse male cast and put a helping of violence in to boot. For the women we have a well dressed female character .

  The piece helps represent social groups which were present in antiquity. By having a multicultural cast it stops the traditional Caucasian view of history and allows for a more diverse view of history. It also represents different cultures and genders. Eastern and traditionally western cultures are shown: The witch hunter and the eastern ninja. It also showcases a female dressed in lavish clothing befitting of her station, which shows that women in such times did indeed have authority and power which is counter to the 'romantic' view of history.

To market this film I would go straight to videogame sites. It's that kind of fantasy loving audience who would be most likely to consume this product. I would then go with billboard advertising using the darkness of the film in order to make billboards which contrast the environment and draw attention.

It is likely a small independent studio would have enough of a budget to make the film and it would cater well to the fact that, this being a niche film, it is unlikely to have a wide release. It would also add to the feeling of the film as people would be more likely to support it and not view it with prejudice because of who made it.

From the project I learnt a great deal about film making, from digital editing to camera work and cinematography. I learnt how to utilise various night settings on the camera as well as what was appropriate lighting wise for a given scene, though this took much time and effort. I also learned alot about continutity as i was forced to shoot across multiple nights. That was the most difficult part of the process.

  From the amount of filming I did I also learned that it is better to shoot more rather than less because there were several instances such as with the long speech where the dialogue did not match so i was force to intercut various takes while cutting away to filler footage i had shot earlier.

  I also learned how to use multiple editing suits because the project got me interested in the whole process. From this i also learned about the rhythm of cutting and piecing things together so they flowed. From this knowledge i went back to do re-shoots to allow me to better help the flow. All in all the test edit was probably the most useful thing I did, because of the complex nature of what i was trying to put together it allowed me to get a visualisation of what was going to happen on screen and adjust my plans accordingly.

  On the cinematography side i learned how to compose shots like they were pictures so that each frame stood as an image on it's own. In this way I do believe that filming is an art, though it has a set of rules which, while i had to stick to them which was constraining in some ways, it is useful as a language to utilise to provoke responses.

All in all it was an enjoyable project. However, the way in which I was required to make this piece, target an audience and make what they want, begs a question: Does this method produce the best results? The answer remains to be seen.

Test edit

The one shot and steady cam

For the final shot I want a single take where every character except one disappears off screen and predetermined intervals. Much like how longer takes increase the wow factor in fight scenes and increase the immersion in dialogue scenes, this single take should add to the WOW factor of; Where are they all disappearing too??

However, using a hand held camera would simply not do because of the amount of sway. To this end I intend to build a steady cam for the camera using this design: http://littlegreatideas.com/stabilizer/diy/.

After a few weeks of searching around it proved impossible to find threaded pipe in any plumbing stores so I was forced to go to the manufacturers. Still I met with no success until I visited my last option, and lo and behold they had some. The man was nice enough to give it me for free because of the small quantity I wanted.

Paper work

FILM

SHADOWS IN DARKNESS

Shadows in darkness will be the title for the film. It will be a dark fantasy thriller/ horror (leaning more to thriller).

Characters

The purpose of the characters in the introduction are to die, all save one who must survive to spread word of the danger. In order to add a sense of forboding to the opening and hinting at what is to come in the movie I will have one character recount their encounter with an individual who told him of the artefact they are searching for.

Two character's out in danger is too few so I will include two more in order to increase the plausibility of the film and make the evil seem all the more powerful because of the ease it deals with the group.

Character 1: Meredith

Meredith is a rich noble who fled from her home to seek treasure, ironic that it will be the search for treasure that leads her back to her home after the opening of the film. Her purpose is to survive and speak of the encounter.

Character 2: Furious Kane

Furious will play the part of the wandering mage who recounts the story he has heard of the artefact they are searching for.

Character 3: Serridan

Serridan's role is that of the master, he is meant to demonstrate how even a hardened adventurer can be dispensed with ease.

Serridan's role means he should be the most well equipped.

Character 4: Altar

Altar is simply there to bulk out the cast and die at an appropriate time.

Altar is a religious and pious man but dresses simply, uncaring of wealth.

Addendum

Character 5: Vir

Vir's purpose is to speed the character's onwards to their death so as not to make the opening linger.

Vir is a ninja warrior and is garbed in black for that purpose.

Mise en scene

The setting will be an outdoor camp, it will be set at night and the darkness will be used to intesify the claustrophobia. The only sources of light will be fires and torches which should cast a redish light, since this is associated with Hell and burning it should do well to enhance the atmosphere.

Sound

A heavy amount of non diagetic sound will be used in conjunction with smart camera work to create a sense of tension and pace within the piece.

Camera work

A steady cam will be used, as well as a tripod and handheld work for some monster scenes.

Plot

We will open with the adventurers being watched. We will have a speech at the camp before the party departs and moves to their death.

Piece outline

PITCH

A dark fantasy film where in a group of adventurers risk everything, in the pursuit of a legendary artefact.

Details

The opening of the piece should set the tone for a dark fantasy thriller with elements of horror. It should introduce the danger that the character's will face later in the movie. To do this another group of character's will be required, one who's purpose is to die to prove the danger. This group will be the focus of the opening.

The piece should include suspense and relief with a climax at the end, the climax will be the death of the character's.

Characters

One character should survive in order to inform the main group of character’s in the movie of what is to come. I intend to play around with the conventions of horror by having the female character survive.

Mise en scene

Darkness should be a key theme here, which means it makes sense to either shoot in doors or outside at night. In doors would add claustrophobia.

Addendum: Due to the fact that to shoot in doors I need a period esque building I will be modifying my idea to work out doors because of a lack of success in finding an appropriate building to work in. Because of the change I will use the darkness to create a sense of claustrophobia.