Bourne Ultimatum ending

My work partner Kimberley Dunne and I both questioned the idea of showing the camera shot of the victim falling from the cliff to their death. I think it could swing both ways, either it would look really effective or on the other hand could look very fake like a doll dropping because the weights of the manikin won’t be realistic like the body’s weight. Kimberley and I both watched the borne ultimatum and a certain scene really inspired us. It is of the main character jumping of into a big river and a camera shot from underneath the water as the body hits the water. It looks as if the body is dead at first which is what we will want to show in our film. the body floated in the water slowly sinking. Our film would end with Vanessa pushing a person of the edge of the cliff. It would then end with a shot from under the water of the body landing into the sea. Then the screen will turn black. If we were to shoot this scene working in our school pool would be a more realistic approach. We would shine a light above the pool shining downwards which would highlight the body greatly. Kimberley and I have planned to do a tester shot of this idea in our school pool next week on Wednesday. We will be given a waterproof camera to do this in. it wont be of a great quality but we can granulate it once finished to give it a nice result. This will be the end of my film introduction.

Preliminary Task first draft

Yesterday I shot my preliminary task. I obeyed the 180 degree rule, included shot reverse shots and demonstrated match on action. The objective of this was to film a person opening a door, crossing a room and sitting down opposite another person, then they will exchange lines of dialogue. I decided to capture a sense of comedy into my preliminary task to liven the atmosphere from the contrast of a dull, plain room. I chose to dress my actresses in cat suits to create the overall look I was aiming for. I used iMovie Experimental to edit my camera shots to make my video flow continuously.

After analyzing my first draft, I decided it just wasn't interesting enough because of the lack of variety of camera shots. I decided to shoot again and add point of view shots, more shot reverse shots and continued to obey the 180 degree rule.

Music research continuing

I have been continuing my research into the music for my film introduction. I just wanted to let you hear a piece of music that unbelievably is meant to be scary and what could be expected of a horror movie with a young child in it. I really would not include anything this poor in my film introduction. It's far too weak for what I'm looking for. The sound of singing children is in my opinion clichéd and not scary at all.

In this next song I like certain parts of it but not others. I do quite like the beginning up to 0.25 and can imagine the subtitles appearing on and off the screen with flashes of disturbing images randomly appearing to shock the viewer. Part 1.19 until the end is also interesting. I can imagine that also at the end of my film, and then a sudden loud piercing sound and the screen turning black.

Clothing For My Film

This is a big question for both Kimberley and I. We need to decide whether we have Vanessa in the stereotypical ripped dirty clothes for a person living rough, or jeans and t-

shirt like a young child. I have thought about this very carefully and I want it to look natural. Vanessa will be living on Portelet Common which would be very muddy in the rainy season and so her clothes would get very dirty as a result. I think I will show Vanessa in clothes which don't look clean but I don't want the typical fake dirt look which we see in most contemporary homemade films. I don't want my film to look cheap and so will only put some dirt on the clothes, but only dirt which is from the area so as to look more authentic. My partner Kimberley and I haven't yet decided exactly where she will live, but a strong contender is the rock shack we found. She would possibly have some grass and soil stains on her clothes if she lived there because she would have to scramble over the grass and dirt. If we got Vanessa to live in the shrubbery she would be even filthier from the large soil areas she'd live in.

More Detail

What exactly would I like to show Vanessa wearing in my film introduction more specificly?

I had to think very thoroughly about this and trousers, t-shirt and a warm jumper is what I personally would think somebody would wear if they were living rough. The idea of Vanessa to wear rags has come into the equation but after serious thought, I just don't think that will look lifelike. As she is an 11 year old girl, jeans or trousers is the question I ask myself. I'm not sure I would like to have the murderer wearing jeans but perhaps trousers would look more interesting. Both my partner and I see Vanessa in white. I personally see her in that because white is the symbol of purity which is an obvious irony. I will therefore show her in a white shirt. Regarding a jumper, I am not sure yet. Perhaps a fleece of some sort which most young girls wear. I think a plain jumper may be also a good choice. I will discuss this with my partner.

My work partner Kimberley envisaged Vanessa wearing a white nightgown of some sort. I understand exactly why Kimberley envisages this. I’m still not sure though if that would look realistic, but the whole background story could be that she had run away in the middle of the night, in her nightgown. I think the shots would look really effective with Vanessa wearing a white nightgown because the white will stand out from the desolate dark gloomy tones of the common and because its so high, there is no doubt wind most of the time which will blow the gown around. Here is the girl from the ring. I feel I would want to show vanessa in a similar dress as this.

Researching Music

iMovie Experimental

With a video camera I filmed my work partner Kimberley walking down some stairs and up a road from many different angles. I then used iMovie Experimental for the first time and used it to blend and mix all of the different angles to make one smooth continuous piece. My camera work is far too disjointed at the moment but it will become much more steady with practise and the use of the tripod.  I will treat this as a learning curve. I will use a tripod for most of my camera shots in my movie introduction to give a professional finish. I enjoyed using iMovie Experimental and my piece above was of great help for my iMovie Experimental skills.

The Actress for my film Introduction

Today I took photographs of Vanessa, the actress we are going to include in our film. I wanted to recreate the photo of Mary Bell (a child killer) see below.

This is the photograph below I took of Vanessa which I edited on Photoshop. I think the photo that I took really captures her innocence whilst her eyes tell a different story - perhaps she is not as innocent as she looks. The slight smile represents the fact that she is perhaps proud of what she has done.


I wanted to show Vanessa in a desolate place. This field with long grass creates a sense of mystery. The long grass almost creates a barrier from the outside world psychologically.

Visit to Portelet Common

Kimberley Dunne, my work partner and I, visited Portelet Common to see if it would be the correct location for the introduction of our film. I took many photographs of the different aspects of the common to show my research in more than just text. Kimberley Dunne also recorded me and vice versa. Here are some of the photos.

Aerial view of the area beneath the common. I really love the contrast of everything in this photo . It will make my camera shots edgy.

An abandoned house (possible home for Vanessa)

Rock shack beneath cliff (possible home for Vanessa)

Cliff from which the victim would fall to their death

Shrubbery (the area is full of this which would make it ideal for Vanessa to hide)

This is the aerial shot I talk about in my video when I discuss Vanessa walking down the path and the camera shooting from this angle.

The long gravel paths leading up to the common (the paths along which the victim will unknowingly walk to their death)



On top of the common (I do not envisage much shooting taking place here)



Filmed by Kimberley Dunne, Edited By Poppy Larbalestier

In conclusion, Portelet Common will definitely be ideal for shooting the film introduction.

The Grudge

I watched the film "The Grudge" tonight.  It starts off with blood drops which I think really create an effective atmosphere. However, I'm not sure I would want to use something like that in my film as it could look predictable for the horror/thriller genre. I personally think this introduction after 0.50 is very predictable and I most definitely will not be doing anything like this in my video.

I can't find the right clips on YouTube at the moment but I saw a really good camera shot which if possible would be brilliant to use in my film introduction. It was basically a camera shot of the fall of a body off a balcony so you could see the distance decrease from the top of the fall to the ground very rapidly from the victim's perspective. In my film it would be a cliff that the person would fall from.

 

In this clip, in the shot 3.21 it shows a body falling from a balcony onto the ground below. This is the kind of shot I would like for when the victim lands onto the area beneath the cliff after being perhaps pushed off by Vanessa. I would have to somehow recreate the sound the body makes when it hits the ground as I think it should be really realistic.

Saw 4

I watched Saw 4 last night. This trailer has exactly what I have been looking for. At 0.21 - 0.25 the shots are short, shocking and almost jump out of the screen. It seems like a lot longer than 4 seconds, but to me that's the beauty of it. The screams and disturbing sounds make this 4 seconds even more intense. I will most definitely like to do this in my film, most likely at the end of the introduction so that it has a great impact. My aim is that the audience will want to watch the rest of the film. I want my audience to be really taken aback.

In this YouTube video it starts off with 2 men. One has his mouth sewn up and the other his eyes. What makes the scene so dramatic is the fact they are unable to communicate which is what they would need to do to have a chance of surviving. But instead it's a fight to live. It's definitely a powerful scene which puts the audience on edge.

The next part is a lady with her hair tied in a trap. I really like the effect at 3.32 which is a flash right across the screen. It's simple but really effective and clearly shows what the Saw producer wants to create intensity. This is exactly what I want to create so I will be using this technique in my film.

Age Certificate BBCF

Language

There may be frequent use of strong language (eg 'fu**'). But the strongest terms (eg 'cu**') will be acceptable only where justified by the context. Continued aggressive use of the strongest language is unlikely to be acceptable.

Violence

Violence may be strong but may not dwell on the infliction of pain or injury. Scenes of sexual violence must be discreet and brief.

Imitable techniques

Dangerous techniques (eg combat, hanging, suicide and self-harming) should not dwell on imitable detail. Easily accessible weapons should not be glamorised.

Horror

Strong threat and menace are permitted. The strongest gory images are unlikely to be acceptable.

I got this information from

I would like to make my film for people aged 15 and over. I feel persons of age would find it far too disturbing and perhaps not understand the killer's mental state of mind. On the other hand, I think if the film was for persons aged  and over, it would not fulfil the criteria of the amount of explicit detail that I would like to use in a 15. I do not want it to be to explicit but I will comply with the age certificate boundaries “Dangerous techniques (eg combat, hanging, suicide and self-harming) should not dwell on imitable detail”.

Initial ideas

I want my film to be set in a desolate place. As I live in Jersey it has many cliff tops and gorse lands which would create brilliant film settings because there are big wide open areas as well as tight contained spaces.

Ideas for location

- Portelet Common

- Beauport cliff top

Actor

Kimberley and I are looking for a young girl who looks innocent. We have an actress in mind named Vanessa. She is an 11 year old girl with Philippino roots who has a simple innocence to her. She also has a very versatile look which is necessary as the girl in the film will need to be quite mentally unstable but still maintain a sane state, to fool others around her into thinking she is just another 11 year old child. We think she could be perfect for our murderer. I am going to take some profile photographs of her like the photograph of Mary Bell and see if she will be right for the part.

Camera shots

I want this movie beginning to be quick, striking, unnerving and perhaps shocking. I think the end of the film introduction could even be the most important part the film beginning. I had an idea of the murder happening at the end, perhaps of a body being thrown or pushed off a cliff, and all you will hear is the deafening thud of the body hitting the floor and the whole screen would turn pitch black - this would be the end of the film introduction. My intention is to leave the viewer shocked.

- Camera shots of the girl looking through the gorse at dog walkers or passers by searching for her next person to kill. All you would see is her hand pulling back the gorse to have a good look at the people walking past. The camera would be positioned as if it was the eyes of the girl (inspiration from Saw).

- A camera shot of the dead person’s body being dragged along the ground - the young girl would clearly struggle to pull the body of dead adult along - it would be a slow, uneven process, but the only thing showing would be the hair dragging and picking up mud and dirt which would reflect the girl's attitude that the person she killed means nothing to her, as if they are merely rubbish.

- Quick short flashes onto the screen of newspaper cuttings such as "CLIFF FALL MYSTERY CONTINUES"

- A camera shot of just the girl's face - she would look at the camera blankly without any emotion. This symbolizes that she doesn't have any feeling for her victims whilst killing.

- Shots that focus on something then turn blurry then focus again.

- Flashing camera shots

- Distortion on the camera

- Flashbacks to the murder

- Perhaps monochrome for the whole of the movie introduction to give mystery to the audience.

- I want a shot of the fall of the body from the body's perspective. Obviously the perfect way to do this would be to attach the camera to a rope and flinging it off the cliff but this is undoubtedly irresponsible. A safer approach would be to use a ladder at the bottom of the cliff and just shoot the last couple of seconds before the body hits the floor.

How is she going to kill?

This is a difficult one because the audience won't be expecting an 11 year old girl to use an axe or anything with great physical violence. Not because it's impossible but realistically a young girl would not necessarily have the strength to swing an axe enough to kill someone for example. Some more realistic ideas would be the following.

- Strangulation (like Mary Bell)

- Pushing off the cliff (the most likely method for my film)

- Knocked out by a rock then killed somehow (unpredictable)

Saw 3

I would like to use a similar effect at 2.09 in my film. It's striking and shocking. I think this whole scene would be too gory for the scene I want to set in my film beginning. But the whole idea of quick flashes is something I definitely want to incorporate. It's an effect which always seems to grasp my attention in the films I have watched. 

Mary Bell Child Murderer

After searching on the Internet for young murderers, this true story of a 10 year old girl who murdered two boys caught my attention.  It has really grasped my imagination and I want to use a similar background for the child in my film. The monochrome photograph below of Mary Bell looks really edgy. I will want to take a photo of the actor in the same way - I have in mind a girl called Vanessa. I will want shots of Vanessa's face in the same pose facing the camera in my film to try to really make the viewer feel eerie and unnerved.

MARY BELL

Bell's mother Betty was a prostitute who was often absent from the family home. Independent accounts from family members suggest strongly that Betty had attempted to kill Mary and make her death look accidental more than once. Mary herself says her mother forced her to engage in sex acts with men from the age of five.

Mary Bell was convicted of strangling toddler Martin Brown on May 25, 1968, when she was 10 years old.

On July 31, 1968, she took part in the death, again by strangulation, of three-year-old Brian Howe. Police reports concluded that Mary Bell had gone back after killing him to carve an "M" in his stomach with a razor, as well as use scissors to cut off bits of his hair and scrape part of his genitals.

Mary Bell was convicted of manslaughter on December 17th, 1968. She was found guilty not of murder, but of "manslaughter due to diminished responsibility," the jury taking their lead from her diagnosis by court-appointed psychiatrists who described her as displaying "classic symptoms of psychopathology".

What to do?

Kimberly Dunne and I are going to produce a horror/thriller beginning to a film. Our initial idea is to tell the story of an 11 year old child who kills as a result of past abuse. I have used the Internet to research stories of young children who have murdered other people in the past. I came across this quote written by Mike Rustigan on the site http://www.karisable.com/crserial.htm

"With all of them, their motives tend to be total, deep and personal. They feel no guilt, no remorse and have an attitude of total disdain towards their victims."

The great sense that they feel no guilt is what I want to capture in the 11 year old child. The great remorse of something that happened when they were a younger child is what I want the viewer to understand. Overall the reason the child in the film murders is something very personal and deep that is related to their own upbringing.

Initial research

For the first week of Media Studies we have been researching, looking at and commenting on the horror/thriller film genre. As we will be making our own introduction to a horror/thriller film I have been watching films in that genre and introductions to films produced by JCG students from previous years.

On the first day of Media I was searching for film introducions on YouTube and this particular introduction to a film made by a previous as student at AS level caught my attention:




The subtitles, which look as if they float onto and off the screen really give me an eerie feeling, almost make me feel unnerved. It feel it looks really professional.


Over the weekend I watched Saw 1. This is the introduction to the film. The camera view which is meant to be the man’s sight turning blurry and unfocused at 2.22 looks really effective because you can see what he is seeing through his own eyes:

Another film introduction by a JCG student in the past has such impressive effects that I would consider using them in my own film introduction. The effects I like are the flashes of disturbing images with the background sound of a television as if somebody keeps changing channel. This is a strong contrast to the gentle singing of a choir in the background.  It is the quick flashes of these images which I found really shocking.