Moodboards

Emily Carmichael's mood board:

For my moodboard I used a range of different images that I associate with the horror theme. I included pictures from the internet and also screen grabs from horror movies and trailers that I found horrifying. Pictures of ghosts and dark places are what people normally think of with the genre of horror, but I added images of abandoned places as well because they are quite chilling.

The images of the doll and the forest I used as they are something I will think about using in mine and Sofia's opening sequence.

Sofia Campbell's mood board:

These images are all examples of how i personally interpret fear. Emily and i created a moodboard of images including our initial ideas based around the theme of horror. I used screen grabs of different films and pictures to portray my ideas. After researching and creating this moodboard it has certified that Emily and i would like to create a horror film as there are a variety of different directions we could take our opening sequence.  The moodboard also includes settings we could incorporate in our opening sequence. This task helped me decide on initial ideas and furthered my knowledge on the range of genre's within horror. 

Opening Sequences

What is an opening sequence? 

The main functions of an opening sequence are the production company logo, credits and the title of the film. It also establishes the tone or genre of the film. However each opening sequence is unique and follows a different form to each other as shown in the following 5 sequences.


Manhattan

Emily Carmichael:
In the opening sequence of Manhattan there are no opening credits and the logo of the production company is not shown. The title of the film is shown in flashing lights down the side of one of the buildings in the shot. None of the main characters appear in this first scene but there is a voiceover narrative of what the main character's story is. The only way of telling what the genre of the film is is through the music being played or by the narrative of the character. The whole sequence is filmed in black and white, which makes it seems mysterious and also makes the film seem older than the time period it was made in; it allows the viewers to know this. The whole sequence is establishing where the film is set. By these standards it goes against most of the criteria of what an opening sequence is supposed to show according to the functions we established.

Here is a frame grab of where the title of the film is shown-

The Bourne Supremacy

Emily Carmichael:
In the opening sequence of The Bourne Supremacy the first things that are shown are the production company of the film and then the title of the film. There is a narrative being played over the first scene of the film and the words being said are echoed, which along with the blurred, shaky shots and quick jump cuts creates confusion for the viewers. This is effective because the viewer will want to continue watching the rest of the film after only seeing a few seconds. The main character is introduced with a close up of him waking up with a distressed look on his face which tells the audience he was dreaming about what the viewers had just seen.
This opening sequence doesn't use credits which would normally be shown, however it does establish the genre of the film which is action, and the location is displayed in the corner of the screen to show where that scene is set.

Here are frame grabs of the production company's logo and the title of the film-

Up

Sofia Campbell:
The opening sequence of Up tells the love story of the main character without using any dialogue. This  is effective because it causes the viewers to focus on the actions of the characters and the settings. This is important because the house that the characters are clearly so fond of and the painting of the mountain on the wall become an important part of the film throughout. Sound is a dominant part of this opening sequence as it sets the mood from the very beginning of the film. When the song changes from upbeat and cheery to sad it causes the viewers mood to change along with it.  Although the music stays similar through the first minute or so of the film, it becomes slower and duller after one of the characters dies.
Time is compressed in the opening sequence by showing the male's ties changing until the ties switch to a bow tie to show he has become elderly. The characters shoulders also hunch as he becomes older. The change of season is portrayed through the tree on the hill. When the couple are young it is spring and as they grow older the season changes to autumn.
By giving the viewers an insight into the characters life story it acts as a trailer informing the viewer what the rest of the film will be based on which is effective as it makes them want to keep watching.
No credits are shown at the beginning of the film which goes against the usual form of a film opening.

These images show the example of time compression within the opening sequence of the film. (from wearing a tie when he's young to wearing a bow tie when he is older)-

The Dark Knight

Sofia Campbell:
The film opens by showing the company logo along with other production company logo's which follows the normal set up of an opening sequence. However the title of the film is not included at the beginning which is unusual for a film. To add to the dark colours and slow introduction of the logos, the audience hear a build up of slow pace music adding a certain fear factor to what will come next-
the ambient sound adds tension right away. This is effective as it keeps the viewers on edge ensuring they will continue watching. From the start the genre is made clear to the audience due to the music and  the grey colours. An opening sequence usually establishes the theme of the film which is what happens in The Dark Knight. The first shot of the film is an establishing shot that begins to zoom in to show the location of the first scene.

These images show the production company logo's-

Se7en

Sofia and Emily:
The opening sequence for se7en uses credits and the production company name but unlike most films the logo is not shown. The genre of the film is clear from the start due to the choice of background music and dark lighting and images. Immediately there is an element of mystery within the first few minutes of the film as the audience are only shown the hands of a character and the horrific drawings, however the face of the character is not revealed leaving the audience curious.
All of the the sound in the opening sequence is non diegetic, the sound contains a heart beat, screeching and unpleasant music that gets faster and gains more tension throughout. The sounds used are associated with the thriller genre and therefore gives the audience an insight into what the film is about and what it may contain.
The editing within this opening sequence is fast paced and uses strobe lighting; this is effective as it disorientates the viewer. Additionally jump cuts are used to show the audience quick glimpses of what the character is doing and to scare them.

These screen grabs show examples of production company name, credits and the characters hands-

Preliminary Task

We filmed our preliminary video with Niamh and Emily from another group in our class.

Emily Carmichael

While we were filming our preliminary task there were some aspects which we noticed went well and some that didn't. The purpose of doing the task was to get used to using the cameras and tripods we used for the filming and also to learn how to use the editing software we would be using in our film opening.
Some things that went well in the video I think was in the editing of the footage. In the last few seconds of the video, the transition of the camera at different angles runs smoothly from behind to being in front and has good continuity - match on action.
Also when filming we filmed the same part more than once so that when it came down to editing we could use the best clip.
Another thing we managed to use quite well was the example of shot reverse shot when the two characters where conversing and the camera moved from one to the other when they spoke.
Some things that didn't go as well in the video were down to how it was filmed. When the camera is facing the two characters in the same shot, the table is tilted at an angle. This is something we can look at more carefully when we film the opening sequence.
Also at the beginning when the character walks through the door her hand is in a different position on the door when she opens the door and then when she walks through it. This is another thing we can work on and look at in more detail.
The lighting in our clip was effected by the lack of windows around the area we were filming in. This caused dark shadows to appear.
Also at the end of the clip there is laughter that can be heard which we didn't plan on using, but because we were not careful enough when choosing a location to film in, this noise is present.

Sofia Campbell

Our task was to create a preliminary sequence. To carry this out we chose 2 characters and devised a plot. Overall the filming process went well and our group didn't struggle to use the required equipment, however throughout the task we used a two shot of the 2 characters to show tension. During this shot we noticed after filming that the table wasn't in line with the angle of the other tables. This shows lazy mise-en-scene and when filming our opening sequence Emily and i will know to be thorough in checking the background props.
Another issue that came up when filming our task was that we found it difficult to find a setting within the school that was silent. Although it can be effective to have ambient sound in the background to make the clip more realistic, our scene wasn't based in a busy setting therefore the laughter that can be heard near the end of the clip does not fit the theme. However this will not be an issue when filming our opening sequence as we will be able to go off site in order to film.
For our group i feel the editing aspect of the task went very well. We were able to create smooth transactions between each shot, showing good continuity. For example when the character leaves the room at the end we used a match on action to show her leaving from the back and then switching to show her leaving from the front. I also feel we followed the 180 degree rule well and kept each character in the same positions. Also we were asked to include a shot reverse shot which our group carried out well and used the shots effectively to build up tension. Finally the lighting for the scene wasn't ideal as there were dark shadows which then contrasted with the bright lighting at the end of the scene. 

This picture shows the tilted table- Emily and Sofia

These images show how the characters hand position changes

on the door- Emily and Sofia