This is the storyboard for my 2 minute title sequence.
To make things easier to plan, the storyboard was split into two halves. The first part of the storyboard was focused from the beginning to the murder and the black screen with the name of the movie. The second part was from the policemen inspecting the body till a fade to black after one of the policemen is on the phone and says "There's been another murder".
The 5 boxes are numbered 1-5 going from the top to the bottom and will be explained as to what part of the title sequence is being talked about in it.
1. The first box talks about the first shot/s which are establishing shots of the scene.
2. This box talks about the Victim (Beth) walking through the forest.
3. This box talks about the final walking shot of the Victim.
4. This box talks about another establishing shot, and the introduction of the Killer and the Victim being knocked out.
5. This box talks about the Victim being tied up and then being stabbed by the Killer.
The 5 boxes are numbered 1-5 going from the top to the bottom and will be explained as to what part of the title sequence is being talked about in it.
1. The first box talks about A POV shot from the Victim (now dead) showing the two policemen having a conversation.
2. This box talks about SRS from both sides of the policemen continuing to talk.
3. This box talks about a shot showing the Victim's arm showing the two policemen at ground level.
4. This box talks about the policemen's conversation and their separation as they do different things. It also features a jump cut to a shot of the victims hand on the muddy ground.
5. This box talks about one of the Policemen (Brandon) walking away and calling his boss to report on the murder.
All of these fonts would be effective as they are clear and easy to read. They are all designed in a classic gothic style. They all fit with the story and the plot of the story as it has a big focus on classic literature. They are all also quite bold and eye catching which would help in making them memorable for the audience.
For my movie I would chose the Seagram TFB font as in my opinion it is the easiest to read whilst still being bold and eye catching.
For the filming of our film, we will film on Wednesday the 28th at period 3 and 4, from 10:50 to 12:20, and again on Friday the 30th, from 8:45-12:20.
The columns highlighted in red show the days that filming will take place.
This is a more detailed filming schedule, which as well as stating what days we are filming on, also show specific things, such as camera shots and what is being filmed in the scene, and items that we will we need on the day of filming, such as specific policemen costume and a tripod to aid with the filming.
The name of the film is going to be called Dante's Harpie.
The reason the film will have this name is because it's based on a watercolour by the English printmaker William Blake. This illustrates a passage from the inferno canticle( hymn, song, or psalms taken from biblical texts other than the psalms) Dante Alighieri's Divine comedy.
The painting features harpies on treetops. Harpies are mythological winged fat bellied death spirits who have features of female heads and breasts.
In context to the film, the murderer, who is already psychotic, read this text in his past. This mixed in with females giving him bad treatment lead these psychotic ideas to form and he starts to murder women to rid them from the world as he sees them as evil harpies and he tries 'to protect' himself from death that they bring.
The idea for the film shares some links to the 1995 psychological thriller Seven. One way is the killers shared motives. Seven's serial killer John Doe wants to rid the world of people who represent sin due to the reading of fictional texts which ideas are based on sin. Whilst in my movie the killer reads a specific text, which when mixed him with bad treatment from females, gives him the motivation to commit murder. Another link is the feature of the Divine comedy by Dante Alighieri. In Seven, it features when the detectives are researching the seven deadly sins in hope to find the killer. In my movie, one of the killers motivation stems from a passage in the first canticle, Inferno, where Dante and the Roman poet Virgil, travel through woods haunted by Harpies.
It will appeal to the audience as it has a historical background to it, and the title is not of common place so the audience will want to find out the meaning behind it.
Here is the synopsis of my film. I researched synopsis' on Imdb to see how they were written.
Dante's Harpie:
Two rookie detectives are pulled in to help on a case of the murder of a young woman. Upon investigation and receiving further information, they find that they and the whole department are on the hunt for a seemingly untraceable killer whose brutal and violent murders of young women shock the village and police force. The killers brutality and torturous methods are like nothing they or anyone else have ever seen before.
This is an effective synopsis as it tells the audience who the main protagonists are and also the degree of violence that the murderer unleashes yet also doesn't give away too much of the story.
For our vox pops, we interviewed 7 college students aged from 16-17. Not all participants answered the questions.
We undertook these vox pops to get an idea as to what our target audience would like to see in a horror film and what their favourite conventions of a horror movie are.
In the answers we got from participants, here is an outline of what they liked in a slasher film.
1. Would you prefer to see a 12A or an 18 Rated slasher film?
4 participants said 18 rated.
2 participants said 12 rated.
Most participants would prefer an 18 rating because it would contain more blood and gore and violence.
2. What is key to a good slasher villain?
3 participants said the killers identity should be revealed later.
3 participants said the killer should be intimidating.
The Villain needs to be intimidating and psychotic and also has to be mysterious.
3. Is a good narrative key to a slasher film?
6 participants said yes.
1 participants said no.
A good narrative isn't key but is required to make the audience understand the film.
4. What do you dislike about slasher films?
4 participants disliked clichés of horror movies.
1 participant disliked a police presence
1 participant disliked the amount of violence in a horror movie
They dislike clichés, such as the blonde girl dying first, they want something different and new, one participant didn't like a slasher that was 'too' violent, so a control of the violence would be needed.
5. How do you expect a slasher film to start?
3 participants said there should be a death straight away.
1 participant said it should start in silence and build tension.
They expect a slasher film to start with tension and foreshadowing and a death.
6. What is your ideal slasher victim?
Each participant gave a different answer, which included, Girl, Nerd, Police Officer, Weakest member of the group and someone who can be seen strong but actually isn't.
An ideal victim would be someone who is morally weak or weak minded but they present themselves as strong, or someone in authoritative power, for example a police officer.
7. Do you think the murderer should wear a mask?
3 participants said yes.
3 participants said no.
This was evenly split, some thought no as the murderer should be confident and as the only witness to the crime he has killed is dead there is no need, however the others thought they should to conceal their identity and remained mysterious and hidden to the audience.
When filming our title sequence, we will take on board the ideas that the participants said and their ideas will influence the choices we make in the film. One example being what they don't like in horror movies, as we want our audience to like the content we've made, another being how it should start as we are filming the start of a movie, so their answers for how they expect it to start will help our decisions in what is featured.
For the 2 minute opening sequence, we will only require a wooded area as it is where the murder takes place and also where the policemen will investigate the murder.
When thinking of areas to film, one location that was most prominent was a wooded area by the College.
I took some pictures of the location to see what it looked like and to see what it'd look like on screen and to get a feel of the location.
The wooded area fits in with Slasher conventions as a typical setting of a Slasher film tends to be in the woods or a wooded area will be featured in the film
If the filming was for a full length film, the more locations would be included. For example Main characters house, place from killers past and general locations, for example a mental hospital or graveyard or school or abandoned house which are staple locations in a horror movie.
These are the actors and actresses that we have considered to play the roles in our film.
Policemen- Brandon Chan (Left) and Dan Grayer (Right)
For the role of the young detectives, we both fit the part as we are both young and look fresh/new on the job . For the character, Brandon had to remove an earring he has, as it didn't fit the look of a detective. As a character, Brandon is more authoritative over Dan as he is taller and also has more facial hair. The more masculine appearance gives a visual representation of authority among the two characters.
Murderer/Killer- Ben Leckey
For the role of the murderer, his facial features did not matter as his face would not be featured in shot. His height and masculine body frame was the main reason he was chosen as the killer as he would be more menacing and looks more powerful than the victim (Beth).
Witness- James Nolan
To fit the role of a witness, there is no specific look to be had. Plus as he is not featured in the film for that long and there is no close up on his face, what he looks like isn't a important a factor in choosing who to play the witness.
Victim- Beth Street
For the role of a victim, we chose Beth as she looks like a typical teenage girl, plus at college she studies drama and performing arts, which gives her more experience over others in acting. No extra make up had to be used, as the make up Beth was wearing suited the role of 'typical teenage girl'.
Costumes Killer- Overalls/Dark Clothing. So he looks dark and can't be seen to hide his identity(Camera will be shot so killers head is off camera. This fits in with Slasher genre conventions as his identity is a mystery. Detective- Smart clothing. So they look professional and also to emulate the look of a detective.
Victim- Casual clothing. So they look like an ordinary person. Goes against slasher conventions as the first victim is usually the dumb blonde/cheerleader character, and would be dressed as such, which is not being used in our film.
A knife will be needed as it is the weapon of choice used by the Killer/Villain, sticking with Slasher conventions.
Cameras will be needed for the policemen to take pictures of the crime scene.
Notepad and pen for the Secondary character/policeman to take notes from Main protagonist/Policeman.
A mask could be used, this would be to hide the Killers identity so he remains mysterious, sticking with Slasher conventions.
After doing some research on the BBFC (British Board of Film Classification) website about age ratings for films of my horror, I think that the rating of the film would be a 18.
It would qualify as a 18 for the strong violence and the frequent strong language, and more tailored to the horror genre, there will be strong threat and horror in the film. As it takes elements of the slasher genre, it's going to be quite violent so there would be a lot of blood and gore in the story.
There is little to no sexual activities or references to sexual activity, or drug taking or references to drugs, as there is no focus on them in the plot of the movie, but the reasons stated above is enough for it to be rated a 18.
Most horror films have a certificate of 15 or 18 due to the nature of the film, to scare people, therefore they wouldn't be suitable or tailored to young children. The high amounts of violence, blood, harmful or threatening images, sex or sex scenes and sometimes gore make the horror films high rated.
Slasher films are usually 15 or 18 as they contain lots of graphic violence and usually sex scenes as they usually involve young teenagers. Examples of these are Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Friday the 13th, You're Next, My Bloody Valentine, Scream and Psycho.
Psychological films are also around 15 or 18 rated as they manipulate the audiences mind and rely on primal fears to scare the audience, which could be anything, so the film can include anything they want as it's purpose is to scare the audience.
Our target audience is around the 15-25 age range, more specifically college students or university aged students. The age rating is made available for most of the age range, and will draw people in to see, it would also garner attention from people beneath the age rating, as their friends would be in the age range older than 18 seeing the film, to give it attention and feedback to their younger friends.
An audience is key for a films success and tailoring your film to a specific audience will therefore attract the majority of that target audience, as well as people who are outside of the target audience as Films are open and available for all types of people.
Specifically, in the horror genre, the usual age and target audience that the film would try and appeal to is between 18 and 25. As they are in the developing stages of their lives, they'll try and get a thrill out of life at any opportunity without being guided to it, horror movies can give the younger audience a thrill and will excite them more than an older audience. Males are more likely to like the horror genre, this is due to the stereotypical thrill seeker which is portrayed by a male. Horror films also tend to contain a lot of violence, which is also more appealing to a male as its associated with violence and being tough, which appeals to the more primitive side of a male.
Another reason it appeals to the age range 18 to 25 is that they'll tend to bring their mates along and want to have a good time, therefore more tickets will be sold if they're in a big group, meaning the film will make more box office money.
However, different films will appeal to different audiences. As well as drawing in people to make money on their film, the purpose is also to scare people, as it the primary objective of a horror film, so different films will draw in certain types of people to get the maximum scare factor about their film, which will mean the film will get a lot of buzz and hype, meaning more people will want to see it.
For example, the film the blair with project would appeal to a younger audience as they're more open to the legend of the witch where as a older audience would not buy the story as much as the younger audience, also with the characters being the same age and acting how any teenager/young adult would act, it would appeal to a younger audience more.
Rosemary's baby would scare people in a couple or people with children more as it talks about a unborn baby being the spawn of the devil, which would definitely frighten this group of people, Insidious also does this as the boy is in a coma whilst being possessed by a demon and the the parents struggle to bring him back to the real world.
Cabin fever would scare people who think about going on cabin holidays or who have been on cabin holidays, as the people come into contact with a flesh eating virus and throughout the film they see the effects of it and all eventually die. The real theme of a virus adds to the scare factor as the threat/danger is an established thing that exists and the audience would know about before watching the film.
So the main motives for the movie is to draw as many people in as well as scare them. With regards to my film, I would appeal to the same age range as the usual target age stated above, and would try and apply a real life situation to the story as to unease any viewer and make them scared anytime they hear something related to the film, therefore achieving the maximum scare factor possible.
The title sequence opens with a piano and a ticking machine, the distribution company is shown along with the producer of the film. The music then builds up with brass and 3 chords played on synth, it then shows the lead male role and the name of the film. The chord pattern on the synth changes and then shows another producer and the lead female role and a female actress. The Piano tune changes and violins are now heard, various actors and actresses are shown. The music then changed to what was heard at the start and it follows the pattern again, showing the main people involved in the making of the film. As the credits are rolling, the pumpkin head moves forward until the fade to black at the end, when the film starts playing.
This is the title sequence of the film The shining.
The distributing company, Warner brothers, is seen at the start of the title sequence for 10 seconds, from 00:10 to 01:19, we have 4 different cuts of scenery from an aerial shot following a car on the road set to minimal music, with brass being the main instrument heard, this is to show how isolated and alone the people in the car are. At 01:19, the first credit is shown, ascending from the bottom of the screen to the top, this is the name of the director, Stanley Kubrick. Then the main male and female characters are shown followed by the name of the film, the camera is still showing the same images but the music has changed to a higher pitched synth, this could be to create an eerie atmosphere and to foreshadow the strange happenings that happen in the film, as is common in a psychological film. Name of supporting actors follow up the screen, then the people involved in the making of the film. The music alternating from the slow brass, to the high pitched wailings of the synth, this could be to imply not all is right as it is showing normal scenery but playing eerie music over the top of it.
For our main task, my group did some research into title sequences to see what they include and what they are like.
For our example, we decided to look at the title sequence for the 2009 zombie comedy movie, Zombieland.
The whole point of a title sequence is so that films and television programmes can present their titles, key productions and cast members, or all of them, utilizing conceptual visuals and sound. It usually follows but should not be confused with the opening credits, which are generally nothing more than a series of superimposed text.
Analyzing the title sequence in detail taught me that title sequences are quick and eye catching and have to include many things such as actors and actresses, the title of the movie and the production companies. It would also include the director, editor, producer and could include other roles such as production designer, casting director, the director of photography and the writer. In the Zombieland title sequence, the song 'for whom the bell tolls' by the Thrash Metal band Metallica plays throughout. Every single cut is fade into the next shot, and every title on screen breaks away as the person on screen runs through or past it and breaks through it. And the whole title sequence is slowed down from the normal pace. The end of the song is a bell sound, and it matches the action as the zombie flies through the car window and smashes it, these two actions are in unison. The title of the movie is the biggest in size, whereas the names of the people involved in the making of the film, the actors and production companies are all the same size.
As with researching title sequences, we were also given the task to make a title sequence of our own. This is the title sequence made by Brandon and Ben.
My favourite type of title sequence is The Shining's title sequence, as it is's great in building tension and atmosphere, it is also effective at introducing the setting of the film. When doing our own title sequence, we will try to achieve a title sequence most like The Shining which combines the narrative and the titles. This is because we want the audience to be engaged in what's going on on the screen as well as watching the titles.
In this clip from the film The Shining, we see Jack Nicholson's character, Jack Torrance, fully consumed by cabin fever and is on a violent rampage around a hotel. He has cornered his wife in the bathroom, he breaks in with an axe in an attempt to kill her. The setting is in a hotel room and bathroom. This lends itself to the psychological genre as it is in a familiar place.
The first 30 seconds of the clip are dominated by strings playing a repeated, high pitched tune. This is to heighten the tension in the clip and make the audience on edge. It also cuts between shots of Wendy Torrance, Jacks wife, trying to escape through the bathroom window and Jack walking up to the bathroom. The music is then stripped back to one bass tune, this is so we can here Jack try to open the door which is locked. This is to foreshadow that he is going to have to break the door down to get to his wife in the bathroom.
The next 30 seconds features music which is now more brassed based. A wide shot is used to show the distance between Wendy and their son Danny as she is trying to escape from the Bathroom. Jack Nicholson's performance is enhanced through the medium shot of him by the door, this shows his crooked posture and also his facial expressions. The dialogue he uses is from the nursery rhyme, the 3 little pigs. This use of the nursery rhyme contrasts with his serial killer persona, making the use of the rhyme more sinister as it is usually used for children.
The next 30 seconds feature Jack breaking into the bathroom with an axe. He finishes the nursery rhyme, with the verse 'I'll huff and I'll puff and I'll blow your house in' paraphrasing the rhyme, and using the words to show what he's going to do, by breaking down the door with the axe, the use of the nursery rhyme adds to the sinister ambience the scene has. Wendy Torrance's performance is effective in conveying terror as she is helpless to escape from the bathroom, so all she can do is clench a knife and wait in the corner for Jack to break in.
The next 40 seconds feature a medium shot inside the bathroom of Jack breaking in, paired with a medium shot outside the bathroom of Jack breaking in. After he finally breaks enough of the door, he peaks his head in and says 'Here's Johnny' a catchphrase from the popular television show, the tonight show used by the host Ed McMahon to introduce comedian Johnny Carson. This catchphrase was common at the time as the show was on at the time of the films release. The use of this phrase shows his lunacy as he again uses it out of context of his actions as it's for a more sinister purpose.
In this clip from the film Sinister, Ethan Hawke's character turn off a film projector which was playing by itself. He then inspects his laptop, grabs a picture of his garden and places it in front of the window. When he removes the picture from the front of the window, Bughuul ( Movie's Villain ) is standing in the bush. The setting is in Ethan Hawke's study room. This lends itself to the psychological horror genre as the audience are in the familiar place of a house and the fear is driven from a spirit/demon character who manipulates the fear in the protagonists mind.
From 00:00-00:20- The first 10 seconds is dominated by the sound of the projector running, the low light level is to keep the attention on the projector as it was running on it's own. The music is replaced with a soundtrack that has a static effect on it for the next 10 seconds. In this time frame, Ethan turns off the projector and zooms in on an image on his computer.
From 00:20-00:40- The first cut is made, to show a wall of newspaper articles and pictures. As he walks to the window, the camera zooms in to show more of his face. The music stays the same throughout.
00:40-01:00- The first 10 seconds features cuts between the outside bush area which the picture shows and Ethan Hawke's Character. In the next 10 seconds features the jump scare where he removes the picture from the view of the camera, for it to be mirrored in real life as 'Bughuul' is standing in the bushes. As he is shocked by the sight he rubs his eyes in disbelief and 'Bughuul' has disappeared. The sting is a piano chord which echoes until the end of the clip.
The clip features only diagetic sound except for the non diagetic static soundtrack that's very quiet and the sting to accent the jump scare of the Villains appearance. This is so the audience are on edge as they don't know what to expect, but they also are anticipating a jump scare of some sorts. The clip also has minimal editing, which makes the tracking of Ethan as he goes around the study more flowing and smooth so the audience doesn't lose focus of what's happening on screen.
In this clip from the film, Friday the 13th, It shows Jason's Mother, Mrs Voorhees talking mainly to herself, with Alice in the room, about a boy who drowned in the lake nearby, the boy being Mrs Voorhees' son. The setting is in a cabin in the middle of the woods. This clip lends itself to the slasher genre as the setting is in a very typical setting of the genre and it shows the reason behind the killers motives to murder (the flashback) and we see the killer (Mrs Voorhees) use a knife to attack Alice
From 00:00-00:30- Mrs Voorhees talking to Alice about how she feels about the park opening and she also gives a back story to events that happened that led to the parks closure. The music is mainly a string piece, with short samples which sound fragmented and random, to add to the the tension in the scene.
From 00:30-01:00- The first 5 seconds contains a mini sting of a horn as Mrs Voorhees grabs Alice. She reserves herself in her explanation and becomes more relaxed, the music features strings at low pitch and volume. Alice speaks for the first time, saying about waiting for Mr Christy, unaware that Mrs Voorhees has killed him, so Mrs Voorhees laughs this off and says that's not necessary.
01:00-01:30- The first 15 seconds contain flashback of Jason's drowning and Mrs Voorhees talks to 'him' saying she's going to get him. The next 15 seconds feature strings playing, and this creates an uneasy atmosphere between the two people. Mrs Voorhees ignores her questions with more back story to events that happened involving her son.
01:30-02:00- The first 15 seconds, we can see Mrs Voorhees sanity slowly slipping away as she is talking to herself and is also replaying her son's demise in her head. The next 15 seconds, features a low string part introduced to the soundtrack as Mrs Voorhees becomes more threatening. She flips a table and pulls out a knife continually threatening Alice.
02:00-02:12- At 02:00 minutes it has features the jump scare as the camera is on Alice getting something to defend herself, the camera quickly pans over to Mrs Voorhees and is paired with high pitched string stings, which pays homage to psycho, as she lunges at her. Alice quickly disarms her and hits her on the back, this ends the strings, which is replaced with a low, held note on strings, with horn part repeating a melody as she turns and runs out of the cabin.
The clip contains a flashback of the drowning which is very common in slasher films as it shows the incentive of why the murderer wants to kill. A medium shot of Mrs Voorhees getting out a knife from a holster, this is also common in a slasher film as the films iconography is usually based around the murder weapon, where the signature 'slash' comes from. The non diagetic music is orchestral and is used to build tension in the scene, which finally crescendo's as Mrs Voorhees goes to attack Alice with a Bowie knife.
When filming my main task, I would consider the forest/woods setting(Friday the 13th), the stringed music to create tension (The Shining) the use of a sting to scare the viewer/audience (Sinister) and a physical weapon used to kill the victim (Friday the 13th).
