Planning: Character representation - Mrs. Quinlan

What is character representation? Why is it important?

Character representations are specific aspects and personality traits about people based on stereotypical views. Each character types obtain similar connotations and representations which allows the audience to categorise characters into specific stereotypical groups and react to each one differently. Protagonists, antagonists, and Damsel in distresses are a few of the conventional thriller movie characters. For example, damsel in distresses are expected to look a certain way, blonde, weak, wear a white dress to show innocence, and have some relationship to the protagonist. Character representation is best portrayed using mise en scene including costume, hair and make up. It is important as they help audience differentiate the characters. Without character representations, the audience wouldn't know what to feel towards each character and films would seem unorganised as audiences need to feel certain emotions towards different character's.

Character: Antagonist
We decided to make our character an antagonist as antagonists are crucial for thriller movies and are usually the main character with the protagonist. Also the acts the unknown character commits, including beheading models in magazines, connotes an evil vibe and the audience is immediately able to infer that the character is an antagonist, and has no good intentions within.

Name: Unknown
We chose to hide the identity of our antagonist as it creates more tension and confusion to the audience as they get more eager to find out who the character is. However, although it is an unknown character, we hinted personality traits of our character in our opening scene to help the audience connote that the character is abnormal and is clearly an antagonist/villain. Our character being a male is revealed towards the end of the opening scene although different aspects in the beginning of the opening production included connotations towards his gender to the audience.

character representation:
The character is a male as we wanted to follow common conventions for our characters to make a successful opening sequence. This is because male characters are stereotypically  perceived as more dominant characters which makes them seem more threatening, dangerous, and intimidating to audiences; especially female.

Age 30-35:
We decided a character over 30 would be more suitable for our narrative as older characters tend to be wiser and more experienced. This helps the audience assume the character is doing unnatural acts for a valid reason, and not only for the sake of it. Also people usually idealise and choose role models around the ages 30-35 because of their successful and contented life, however; observing the antagonist gives the audience an uneasy feeling as it is an unusual position for a grown man to be in.

Costume, hair and makeup:
The character will be wearing black tights with holes to fulfil his feminine side and appeal to people in a sexual manor, however, the holes also connote the characters gender due to his legs. Also the character finds putting the tights on difficult as they are not made for him and are almost misplaced,. This shows the audience his feelings as he also feels misplaced in his own body. On the other hand the character wears a yellow dress. This can help the audience interpret the character as harmless and with innocent connotations, which makes them feel pity for the character; however, reconsidering the brutal acts his capable of thinking makes the audience reconsider his position in the movie. Moreover, we intended to use red lipstick for the antagonist as red connotes passion and love, which is emotions the character wants to feel; anyhow, it also connotes death and blood which shows the acts the character is capable of .which is emotions the character wants to feel. The lipstick is to be put on messily to show his inexperience in make up and any feminine acts due to his gender and fear of explosion. The character will be wearing a mask to hide his identity and the makeup will be done on the mask.

Body language and facial expression:
The character will have a firm body structure and rough movements due to his masculinity. This will also show dominance and create threat throughout the opening to show the audience he is the antagonist. His facial expression wont be shown in the opening scene as he is an unknown character, however the neutral mask he wears signifies his neutral emotion and how remorseless he is in what he is doing. To continue, his soft movements while touching the manikins leg is different to when he is kicking the lipstick as he almost envies the manikins body and later on we see him pushing it over which again back up the hatred he has towards women as shown in the magazine covers.

Represented as:
He is represented as a psychotic and mentally disturbed victim of his own emotions. This becomes disturbing to the audience as they see him picking up women lingerie which makes them question how disturbed he really is, and makes them fear him a little more. Every aspect of his unnatural behaviour causes more and more fear for the audience.

Role within the narrative:
He is the main character within the narrative. His vile acts towards models will evoke hatred from the audience. However when he is putting on lipstick, the audience may see his child like actions and feel pity towards him as he didn't choose that life, but can choose his actions.

Conclusion:
In conclusion I think we were able to potray our antagonist in an dangerous and disturbed way as we tried using all aspects of conventional thriller movie characters. I believe our character will be able to evoke fear to the audience with its portrayal of a mentally unstable character who is capable of causing harm with no remorse.

Planning: Pre-production paperwork - Miss Begum

What is Pre-production paperwork is it and why is it important 

Pre-production paperwork is legal documents and agreements that require to be completed and is legal evidence and permission in what we are producing, who the production includes, and where we are producing it. The paperwork include:

- Client release
-Location Release
-Location recce
-Production schedule
-Risk assessment

These forms are very important ethically, especially the risk assessment as it shows that any dangers that may occur can be covered by the team and avoided. Moreover without the paperwork you may have a high risk of getting into trouble especially when filming in public, which is why you can use the paperwork as evidence on what you are doing and prove  that you are not causing any harm or mischief. For the best result possible and the most efficient paper work, we decided to split the paperwork up between our group.



Client release form:

This paperwork was created to help us recruit an actor. This is a crucial piece of paperwork as it tells people interested in the offer what we expect of them and what they will need to do for us. It also tells them where the production will be posted and who will be able to see it. The paper work is simple to fill in after the terms and conditions have been read which makes it easier and more efficient for the target audience.







































Location recce:

This is a form to show the different locations you plan to use to inform authorities and people in charge why and how you plan to use the  location. It gives information on how to get the the specific location and and the issues that may occur while travelling which is adequate for the group and the actor in the performance.





Production Schedule:

This can be used as a timetable for the production team. It also highlights all the equipment needed for that day, and what time each person is expected. This can save time and help avoid hassle as a team figuring out what is needed and when its needed. As everyone in the group has to agree to the schedule there will be minimal amount of trouble figuring out when to film the production. 



Risk Assessment:
The risk assessment is essential piece of paper work needed before production as it highlights and clearly states the risks that may occur during the production period. As well as the cautions, it has information on how the team plan on overcoming the risks. This is useful for all the production team as it is evidence in showing that risks are thought over which means they are less likely to be faced.








Location Release:
This is a legal document that informs anyone in charge the locations you are planing on using. As well as it being a permission letter to use the location, it also informs authorities on how you plan on using the location and what dates and times you will be using it. Lastly it can be given as evidence to authorities if you are ever questioned on what you are doing in the certain location.




Advantages of creating Pre-production paperwork:

- Evidence for authorities
-Makes the production look professional
-Gives us legal security
- Experience on creating paperwork

Planning: Preliminary task - Miss Begum

The purpose of a preliminary task?

the purpose of the preliminary task is familiarise your self with the camera and film different shots confidently and efficiently. It also helps you gain insight into how to use the camera and helps you gain skills in editing. Moreover it helps identify group members individual strengths and weaknesses which helps us identify what jobs to give each group member to create the best opening scene with everyone set at what they are most skilful at. It is also useful as it helps group members improve team working skills and learn to work together.


Preliminary Task: 

Narrative/ Scenario:
 Bibi is peacefully doing her homework in Miss Begums class. She is politely interrupted by her friend Gulustan asking her where Miss Begum is. Bibi tells her Miss Begum is absent due to her illness and they get into a conversation about what Bibi is doing. When she tells Gulustan she is completing her homework, Gulustan is shocked as she has forgotten to do the homework so they decide to do it together. As they begin to do the Homework Gulustan realises how pretty Bibi's bracelet is and the scene ends


The group roles:
Gulustan- Director, Actor
Natalia- camera person
Bibi- Actor

As a director I was expected to direct the group into different parts of the scenes efficiently. I was in charge of the actor's body posture, position in the setting, and the narrative idea, with contributions from the group. I also directed Natalia in what cinematography technique to use in each part of the scene.

Natalia was expected to film steadily using cinematography techniques. This was the most important role in the group as she was doing the filming. She used different techniques including panning shot and zoom in.

As an actor Bibi was asked to look as realistic as possible and write her own dialogue according to the narrative. I was also asked to write my own dialogue.

The editing role was taken upon the whole group as it's considered one of the hardest stages as none of the group members had edited before. We used many different editing techniques to show our broad understanding of different editing techniques.

What I found difficult with filming and how I overcame it:
I found the acting difficult as it was challenging to make it look realistic and off script. Also although the directing had some difficulties, as a group we decided it would be appropriate to keep me as the director as that was my strong link

As a group we found using the camera tough as we hadn't used one in detail before. One of the difficulties we over came was zooming in. The zoom in button was too delicate and moved fast so we learnt how to use it subtly so the zoom in is presented clearly.



What I found difficult with editing and how I overcame it:
Editing was one of the hardest processes as no one in the group had edited before. We found it challenging to decide which editing technique would be appropriate for which part of the scene. However, we overcame it by using different editing techniques to show our broad understanding of editing techniques and scene analysis with the scene.


What I have learned:
I have learnt that editing and cinematography techniques make the scene more interesting and without them the scenes tire the audiences eyes. Also we developed our preliminary task as a group which helped us improve our team working skills and showed members of the group, our strengths and weaknesses in the production making process.



Conclusion:



In conclusion the preliminary task has been very useful as it has given us skills in using a camera and editing. It will also help show the progress we've made with filming when our final product is finished. Finally it has helped us identify our production roles.

Planning: Storyboard - Miss Begum

What is a storyboard? And why is it important?

A Story board is a graphic representation of your idea/story and how you plan to present it to the audience in this case, What scene you've decided to make fist. It simply unfolds your idea and accompanied by a reasonable amount of description/explanation under the image, it gives the audience a clear image on what you plan to create. Story boards are extremely useful when creating a production as the whole idea and techniques have been planned out on the story board and the whole team are bound to have to same idea as they would all be following the story board. It also simplifies the decision on when to take each scene as the storyboard shows what scenes come first and is laid out in a chronological manor. It is the best way to share your vision with the group and bond ideas together.

Advantages of storyboards 

Advantages:

• Saves time in pre-planning, filming and editing
• Clear depiction of what you intend to do.
• Combines ideas 
• shows what techniques to use (i.e.Low key lighting)
• Can be used to organise which scene to film first
• Helps you in the editing process to pre-plan your narrative

Disadvantages:

• Not very detailed
• an be restrictive
•  It’s time consuming
•  Doesn’t always look good

It is clearly shown by the lists that there are more advantages than disadvantages.

This is the original storyboard we created using common conventions and influences from other thrillers.

Planning: Shot list - Miss Begum

What is a shot list and why is it important?

A shot list is a list of all cinematography techniques you intend to use during filming. This can be made using your story board or opening scene narration as they are both detailed enough to give directions on angles, sizes and editing techniques. This has helped us visualise the different cinematography we will be using in our production to create variety within our work.

advantages of shot lists

- Quick to create and fill in
- Easy to visulise the production
- Will help when filming
-Will help when editing





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Conclusion:

Overall creating a shot list has been highly beneficial for the group as it has given us direction on where and when to use each cinematography technique. We are able to refer back to it when filming and editing.

Planning: Mise en scene - Mrs. Quinlan

The intended Mise en Scene for our Thriller Opening.

Iconography:

• News Paper cut outs- these will play as typography to our opening credits and will be used throughout. We decided on this less typical typography because it will make the viewer intrigued and much more engaged into the viewing as they are encountered with something less familiar. Additionally, often newspaper cut outs are associated with threat and blackmail because these help to hide the antagonist hand writing and keep them anonymous which can create a sense of unsettlement for the spectator who will feel uneasy about using such secretive way to present the opening credits as nothing obvious is revealed.
• Magazines- another inevitable iconography used will be the fashion magazines which will be constantly referred to and shown throughout the opening, forming almost a montage of images. We decided to use magazines because it will fit nicely with the idea of newspaper typography as well as these fashion magazines will almost give an insight of the characters life and interest which can be interesting for the audience to see. Simultaneously, these can be a false clue for the audience who will instantly connote fashion with the female gender, however as an element of surprise we decided that this deception will impact the audience more when they start to release that this is in fact a male character. Additionally, these magazines will have beheaded models on, which yet again will help to give an insight of this character likings as well as show that this is an antagonist of the narrative and someone we should loathe.
• Red Lipstick- another iconography that will be reinforced throughout the opening is the red lipstick that will be used to write in the title of the film. We wanted to use a lipstick to reinforce the female nature and yet again false clue our audience which will help to build to the climax and element of surprise. At the same time red is a strong color with connotations of evil, which will show that this is an antagonist, as well as blood, which will symbolize that the character has brutal intention, but also passion, showing that this is someone with an obscure obsession and crazy passion towards his interest.
• Red Bra and Underwear- this discographies will be briefly accompanied by one of the cast names. We decided that the character will quickly grab these props, as if rushing to do something or being ashamed, which will intrigue the viewer who is unaware of what is happening. We decided on a red bra and underwear because bras are a part of female attire which will alert the viewer who will think that this is in fact a female character. We want it to be red as, similarly to the red lipstick, this colour has strong connotations and will also imply sexual desire or romantic passion which will seem obscene when we realize that this is a man, surprising the audience.
• Mannequin- this will be displayed at the middle of our sequence and a zoom in will be used to introduce this and show its significance. We decided on a mannequin because it will show that this character has a passion, nearly an obsession, for female fashion and females overall. This will make the viewer feel uncomfortable, knowing that this person if out of control with his longings which is typical of an antagonist as often they have a fixation on one thing that they keep hold on to throughout the film.
• Mirror- lastly, we intend on using a mirror which will display the title written on with a lipstick. We want to use this iconography because it will be a metaphor for reflection of his past as well as real him. It will also help to reinforce the idea of female gender because stereo-typically they tend to spend a lot of their time trying to improve their image and looks which shows that this character wants a change in his life, making the audience reflect on themselves.

Lighting & Colours:

Lighting - The lighting we intend to use is low key with top lighting throughout the scene. This is because we wants to create a cunning and evil atmosphere and make the audience have a fearful response. Moreover we will use the top lighting to focus on the objects such as the magazines and the writing in the mirrors. The under lighting will be used when the main character is portrayed in the camera and begin to wear tights and a dress. This is because we want to show the character's silhouette and make the viewers feel uncomfortable as the character's identity is unknown. Lastly, we think that these key lighting are conventional to the thriller genre which will give the right response from the spectators which are threat and mysteriousness.  

Colours - The colours that we intend to use during the editing is a yellow filter to convey the feeling of mysteriousness. Also the dress will be red to connotes the feminine ways of woman and the passions that this character has for woman. Furthermore even the pen that the character will use to cross the models in the magazine, will be red to connote danger and misery. The tights will be black because is conventional and credible. Whereas, the lipstick will be dark red to connote blood and revenge and makes the audience feel curious and want to see more. Overall, we think that these colours will suit our thriller opening and makes the audience have the proper feeling and emotions.

Setting & Location:

Setting:  The first part of our opening scene will be set in a drama room because of its lack of lighting and wide spacing. The opening credits will be made up o magazine cut outs and placed chronologically on the floor in the drama room, We also chose the drama room due to the scratches and marks on the black floor which creates an distorting effect to the audience as it gets them thinking what caused all the scratches.

The rest of the opening scene will be set in 'Moda Istanbul Boutique.' We decided this location would be suitable for our opening scene because the criteria matches our story board as our unknown character is obsessed with women clothing and fashion, however hates women, and a boutique is a perfect place that attracts women and fashion addicts. Moreover the boutique contains a large mirror hat is crucial for our production.

Location: The drama room is located in our school (Oasis Academy Hadley). This is useful as it easy to access at any time available. The boutique is also located on Enfield Lock high road which is also easy to access by bus travel and train travel.