Planning: Final idea - Mrs. Quinlan

introduction:  what is a final idea and why is it important?

A final idea is an idea we've finalised as a group to match the conventional thriller expectations.The final idea is important as it strengthens each of our initial plans and structures how were going to set and structure out our opening scene. This is useful for our group as it gives clear information on what we need to do first and directs us through the process of creating an efficient thriller opening sequence. It is important for our group to understand the narrative clearly to interpret it in a thrilling way and if necessary to add simple ideas to create a distorting atmosphere for the audience. 

Title: Who is that Woman?

Sub-Genre:  Psychological thriller

Narrative/ Plot:  

The opening begins with pieces of paper ripped on the floor. Once in a while these will create the typography for the opening credits. The eerie music will accompany extreme close ups of beheaded women in newspapers which has been cut out or scribbled on which will help to introduce the mood as well as the theme of hatred. Moreover there will be short and quick cross cuts to someone putting on a hand bag, lipstick and tights as well as other clothes. Simultaneously the camera will dispose a mystery character putting on clothing on a mannequin; as if trying to put up a new outfit together. This will be accompanied by cross cuts of fashion newspapers of famous and expensive magazines such as Glamour or Elle with models. The anonymous character starts to take the outfit from the mannequin and puts it on themselves. The final shot will reveal the male who wears this costume and walks out the room. (Fade to black)

Narrative Structure:       

• Todorov: Equilibrium- the beginning and when there are just bits of paper on the floor.         Disequilibrium- when we see the beheaded models and cross cuts of putting on handbag and lipstick. New Equilibrium- when the character is revealed and walks out.
• Aristotle: the different themes should evoke meaning and response from the audience, whether emotional or physical. For example the theme of mystery will intrigue the audience who will be curious to know who the mysterious character is. 
• Barthes: the idea of cultural references will be explored by the idea of a male putting on females clothing and being interested in becoming the other sex. Also the theory of semiology will be explored by the use of denotations such as magazines or lipstick and their different connotations.

Characters:

• Unknown character: the main character is the antagonist however his identity is only revealed at the end. The way that the shots will be framed and the contribution of lighting and cinematography will show that this character is evil.

Mise En Scene:

Costume, Hair and Make-Up:

• Antagonist: male antagonist in female clothing such as tights and blouses or dresses. This will subvert the conventional image on an antagonist but will be interesting to explore and develop in order to create an effect on the viewer. The Make-up should be heavy so it will be easy smudged in order to reinforce the idea of evil nature.

Lighting and Colour:

• Throughout, lighting will be mostly low key with highlights of top lighting and under lighting. The low key will allow the audience to feel the thrilling atmosphere. The top light will allow to highlight the important iconography or typography which is relevant to the narrative. Moreover the under lighting will help to create the chilling atmosphere as well as create a representation of the antagonist and reinforce his evil intensions.

Setting:

• The unknown setting will help to make the audience feel insecure because they are completely vulnerable and exposed to their surroundings as everything is hidden and mysterious. Because of the use of lighting it will look like they are surrounded by darkness.

Iconography:

• The newspaper cut outs which will also play as typography
• The Mannequin
• The magazine pages
• Lipstick which will be used to write the title of the film

Facial Expression and Body Language:

• The antagonist will have an aggravated facial expression to show his anger and frustration towards the magazine models. In addition he will also feel hatred towards these covers. His body language should look feminine in order to suggest that he is imitating the female models, however because this doesn’t work he becomes stiff and has rigid movements.

Film Influences:

• Seven- this is because there are many cut outs and highlighting just like the character from the Seven opening did. Also we plan to use lighting in a similar way to the opening of Seven where there were many lightbulb flashes and yellow highlights to create fear amongst the audience.
  
  

Advantages of the Idea:

• Its original
• Influenced by a classical thriller
• It is chaotic and will make the audience question the material
• Doesn’t give away too much of a narrative which is what an opening should do

Possible Problems and how to overcome them:

• The possible issue that will occur is to find a dark enough location that will allow the lighting to work effectively. This could be tackled if we film during an evening or night.

Why is it a Conventional Opening?

This idea is conventional to the thriller opening because it evokes the right audience responses. These include fear from the anonymous as well as obsessed antagonist. Moreover the use of themes such as mystery, obsession and hatred are often explored in thrillers which will also cause the audience to feel tense as well as enhance the narrative. Lastly this opening doesn’t give a lot of information about the film but has just enough to intrigue the viewer and continue to watch.

Possible Themes:

• Mystery
• Morality
• Obsession
• Hatred
• Revenge

Audience Response:

• At the beginning the audience is likely to feel confused as they are kept in tension because of the lack of knowledge about characters and narrative.
• During the cross cuts of beheaded models in newspapers the audience will feel disgust and fear as well as curiosity because they are unsure of what is going on.
• As the Audience are exposed to the shots of putting on lipstick, tights and hand bag they can become more relaxed as if thinking that this is all a mistake and someone is just getting ready to go on a night out.
• When the audience are finally introduced to the antagonist they are probably shocked to see that it is a male and will feel uneasy. They can also feel confused and question what is he up to and why does he feel so strongly about these models and fashion. 
• At the end they will find themselves terrified and insecure because the sequence leaves them with no answers to their questions.

Conclusion:

The final idea is one of the most useful resources we could use to make our opening scene as it clearly directs us on the narrative, the genre behind it, sound that will sound adequate and accompany our  thriller opening perfectly. Our final idea is all of our ideas combined which makes it easier to work with as each of us know how to potray each bit of the idea presentabl