Preliminary Task

During the preliminary task we were give instructions as to what shots we had to do. We had to 're-create' a small film. We did this task so we knew how to use all the equipment we needed, including the camera and how to do the types of shots we wanted. This made our opening sequence better because we went in knowing how everything worked, and so we didn't need to waste time figuring it out.  

At the beginning, it was hard to film the types of shots we wanted because we weren't used to the camera, however, as time went on, we started figuring out how to use it easily and efficiently. When we had filmed all of the shots we had to, we moved on to editing. For this we used a programme called 'Final Cut Pro'. I was really glad that this task gave me the opportunity to figure out how to use 'Final Cut Pro' because it is a very complicated programme and I needed practice before we had to edit our opening sequence.

Even though we made a few errors in our task, and this meant it wasn't the best we could do, the main reason for doing the task was to practice using all the equipment. We had learned from this task and we knew we mustn't repeat them when it comes to filming and editing our opening sequence

The task was made up of 11 shots:

1. There is a long shot of someone walking down a corridor
2. Then there is a cut to a close up of a hand opening a door
3. Next is a cut to a medium long shot of them walking into a room
4. The next cut is very fast and it is a medium shot of another person sitting at a desk
5. The following cut is to a 2-shot and long shot of the two people in the room
6. There is then a cut to an over the shoulder shot of the person sitting at the desk and a medium close up shot of the person who entered the room and also dialogue: "Can I borrow a DVD?"
7. There is another cut and again, and over the shoulder shot is used but this time of the person who entered the room
8. It then cuts back to the first over the shoulder shot of the person at the desk
9. Another cut goes back to the second over the shoulder shot of the person who entered the room
10. Next there is a cut back to the original over the shoulder shot of the person at the desk
11. The last shot is a cut back to the second over the shoulder shot, it is then ended with a fade out to black. 

Film Classification Guidelines

The British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) is an independent, non-governmental, not-for-profit, co-regulatory body. They are funded through fees charged to those who submit films and video works for classification.

          

They classify:

• Films, trailers and advertisements on behalf of local authorities who license cinemas
• Video works under the Video Recordings Act 1984
• Video works which are distributed over the internet under a voluntary, self-regulatory service
• Commercial and internet content distributed via mobile networks under a voluntary, self-regulatory service

They follow extensive public consultation as well as other research, expert advice and their accumulated experience over many years. The Guidelines pay particular attention to changes in public taste, attitudes and concerns and changes in the law. They also take new evidence from research or expert sources into account. They are reviewed periodically and how they are applied is reviewed when necessary.


Guiding Principles are:

• To protect children and vulnerable adults from potentially harmful or otherwise unsuitable media content
• To empower consumers, particularly parents and those with responsibility for children, to make informed viewing decisions 

U-Rating

• U = Universal
• A U film should be suitable for audiences aged four years and over
• Discriminatory language or behaviour is unlikely to be acceptable unless clearly disapproved of
• References to illegal drugs or drug misuse must be infrequent and innocuous, or have a clear educational purpose or anti-drug message suitable for young children
•  Potentially dangerous or anti-social behaviour which young children may copy must be clearly disapproved of. No emphasis on realistic or easily accessible weapons
• Should have only infrequent use only of very mild bad language
• Should contain only occasional nudity, with no sexual context
• Should only have very mild sexual behaviour (e.g. kissing) and references to such behaviour
• Scary or potentially unsettling sequences should be mild, brief and unlikely to cause undue anxiety to young children. The outcome should be reassuring.
• Violence will generally be very mild. Mild violence may be acceptable if it is justified by context (for example, comedic, animated, wholly unrealistic).
• Eg Monsters University, Despicable Me 1 and 2, The Lion King, Toy Story, Monsters Inc, The BFG, Alice In Wonderland 

PG- Rating

• PG= Parental Guidance
• For general viewing, but some scenes may be unsuitable for young children.
• It should not unsettle a child around eight or older. Unaccompanied children of any age may watch, but parents are advised to consider whether the content may upset younger, or more sensitive, children.
• Discriminatory language or behaviour is unlikely to be acceptable unless clearly disapproved of, or in an educational or historical context, or in a particularly dated work with no likely appeal to children. Discrimination by a character with whom children can readily identify is unlikely to be acceptable.
• References to illegal drugs or drug misuse must be innocuous or carry a suitable anti-drug message.  
• No detail of potentially dangerous behaviour which young children are likely to copy, if that behaviour is presented as safe or fun. No glamorisation of realistic or easily accessible weapons such as knives. No focus on anti-social behaviour which young children are likely to copy.
• Mild bad language only. Aggressive or very frequent use of mild bad language may result in a work being passed at a higher category.
• There may be nudity with no sexual content.
• Sexual activity may be implied, but should be discreet and infrequent. Mild sex references and innuendo only.
• Frightening sequences or situations where characters are in danger should not be prolonged or intense. However, this is more acceptable in fantasy settings.
• Violence will usually be mild. However there may be moderate violence, without detail, if justified by its content (for example, history, comedy or fantasy).  
• Eg Parent Trap, Home Alone, Hairspray, Leap Year, Ella Enchanted, Brave, Cars, Fantastic Mr. Fox

12A/12

• Films classified 12A and video works classified 12 contain material that is not generally suitable for children aged under 12.
• No one younger than 12 may see a 12A film in a cinema unless accompanied by an adult. Adults planning to take a child under 12  to view a 12A film should consider whether the film is suitable for that child.
• No one younger than 12 may rent or buy a 12 rated video work
• Discriminatory language or behaviour must not be endorsed by the work as a whole. Aggressive discriminatory language or behaviour is unlikely to be acceptable unless clearly condemned.
• Misuse of drugs must be infrequent and should not be glamorised or given instructional detail.
• No promotion of potentially dangerous behaviour which children are likely to copy. No glamorisation of realistic or easily accessible weapons such as knives. No endorsement of anti-social behaviour.
•  There may be moderate language. Strong language may be used, who is using the language, its frequency within the work as a whole and any special contextual justification.
• There may be nudity, but in a sexual context it must be brief and discreet.
• Sexual activity may be briefly and discreetly portrayed. Moderate sex references are permitted, but frequent crude references are unlikely to be acceptable.
• There may be moderate physical and psychological threat and horror sequences. Although some scenes may be disturbing, the overall tone should not be. Horror sequences should not be frequent or sustained.
• There may be moderate violence but it should not dwell on detail. There should be no emphasis on injuries or blood, but occasional gory moments may be permitted if justified by the context.
• Sexual violence may only be implied or briefly and discreetly indicated, and its depiction must be justified by context.
• Eg Meet the Parents, Angus, Thongs and Perfect Snogging, Remember Me, One Day, The Holiday, The Proposal, The Woman In Black, Just Go With It 

15

• No one younger than 15 may see a 15 film in a cinema.
•  No one younger than 15 may rent or buy a 15 rated video work.
• The work as a whole must not endorse discriminatory language or behaviour, although there may be racist,                                     homophobic or other discriminatory themes and language.
• Drug taking may be shown but the work as a whole must not promote or encourage drug misuse (for example, through instructional detail). The misuse of easily accessible and highly dangerous substances (for example, aerosols or solvents) is unlikely to be acceptable.
• Dangerous behaviour (for example, hanging, suicide and self-harming) should not dwell on detail which could be copied. Whether the depiction of easily accessible weapons is acceptable will depend on factors such as realism, context and setting.
• There may be strong language. Very strong language may be permitted, depending on the manner in which it is used, who is using the language, its frequency within the work as a whole and any special contextual justification.
• There are no constraints on nudity in a non-sexual or educational content. There may be nudity in a sexual content but usually without strong detail. 
• Sexual activity may be portrayed, but usually without strong detail. There may be strong verbal references to sexual behaviour, but the strongest references are unlikely to be acceptable unless justified by content. Works whose primary purpose is sexual arousal or simulation are unlikely to be acceptable.
• There may be strong threat and horror. A sustained focus on sadistic or sexual threat is unlikely to be acceptable. 
• Violence may be strong but should not dwell on the infliction of pain or injury. The strongest gory images are unlikely to be acceptable. Strong sadistic violence is also unlikely to be acceptable.
• There may be detailed verbal references to sexual violence but the depiction of sexual violence must be discreet and justified by context.
• Eg The Hangover 1, 2 and 3, Bridesmaids, The Bling Ring, We're The Millers, Keith Lemon The Film, Ted, Paranormal Activity

18

• No one younger than 18 may see an 18 film in a cinema. No one younger than 18 may rent or buy an 18 rated video work.
• Could show very strong violence. May be dwelling on the infliction of pain or injury, or scenes of strong sadistic or sexual violence. May contain very strong horror, gore or sustained threat.
• Drug taking may be shown but the work as a whole must not promote or encourage drug misuse. 
• Has frequent use of strong language and/ or very strong language (no limit on the number of uses).
• It may show strong portrayals of sexual activity including nudity.
• It could contain scenes of sexual violence,strong horror and blood and gore.
• Could show real sex (in some circumstances) as long as it is not a sex work.
• May have discriminatory language and behaviour (may be racist, homophobic or other discriminatory language).
• Work could explore themes relating to discrimination.
• Eg My Best Friend's Girl, Bad Boys, Kill Bill, L.A. Confidential, The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, Sin City, Hangmen, Scary Movie

R18

• The R18 category is a special and legally-restricted classification primarily for explicit works of consenting sex or strong fetish material involving adults. Films may only be shown to adults in specially licensed cinemas, and video works may be supplied to adults only in licensed sex shops. R18 videos may not be supplied by mail order

http://www.bbfc.co.uk/sites/default/files/attachments/BBFC%20Classification%20Guidelines%202014_2.pdf

http://www.bbfc.co.uk/what-classification

Music Videos That Inspired Us- 'Mirrors' by Natalia Kills

This music video uses mirrors and reflections to create the effect of someone  being watched . The most inspiring bit shows the artist, Natalia, looking into a mirror and seeing abnormal things within it and around her. 

We really liked the idea of the 'bad' girl in our film being in black as this represents evil. We also really liked the fact that Natalia was looking in the mirror while the shadowed figure went past because it questions whether the figure is real or not.

She has seen the shadowed figure in the mirror and turns around to see if there is something behind her or not. We like the fact that it isn't there as this would make our main character question herself so we are going to use this in our film. 

 We also really liked the fact that Natalia is looking to the side and her reflection is looking straight on as it makes us think that something bad is going to happen and puts us on the edge of our seats, which is exactly what a thriller should do. However we can't do this due to lack of technology and experience so we decided to try and do something similar, which was the main character going into the toilet and then showing a shot of her like she is looking in the mirror, but in the dark and her face is lit so it looks sinister.

Music Videos That Inspired Us- 'Perfect' by P!nk

Many of the ideas that we came up with for our opening sequence have come from music videos. We have taken small clips of music videos that we liked and have used them in our sequence.

This video is about a teenager who is incredibly insecure. The video centres on the theme of how society depicts perfection. The girl feels that she is the completely the opposite. It is about how she struggles in life and how she copes with it and resolves it. The pictures below are from the uncensored version of this video so you cannot see it in the video attached.

In this shot, blood is filling the bath and going down the sink. I really like this idea because it shows how serious what she is doing is. The fact that there is so much blood shows that it is dangerous as she is loosing a lot of blood.

This shows the blade that she used to cut herself with. We thought about what weapon we were going to use in our opening sequence and decided on a big knife. This shot inspired us to show the weapon as it makes our story seem more real.

We liked the way that the blood-covered blade is dropped onto the floor, surrounded by drops of blood but as we were using a knife this was too dangerous. 

Finally, we really liked the idea of our main character cutting a word because it expresses how she feels. We decided on using the word help as she wants to get out of the situation she is in and she can't do it alone.

A Scene from a film that influenced our opening sequence- Psycho

We were inspired a lot by this film. Phoenix office worker Marion Crane is fed up with the way life has treated her. She has to meet her lover Sam in lunch breaks and they cannot get married because Sam has to give most of his money away in alimony. One Friday Marion is trusted to bank $40,000 by her employer. Seeing the opportunity to take the money and start a new life, Marion leaves town and heads towards Sam's California store. Tired after the long drive and caught in a storm, she gets off the main highway and pulls into The Bates Motel. The motel is managed by a quiet young man called Norman who seems to be dominated by his mother

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0054215/plotsummary

We really liked the way that the film was in black and white because it is very effective. Also, the bit with the blood going down the plug with the water still running was really inspiring for us because it is so simple and yet so effective. It gives the impression that the evidence of the crime or bad action is being removed  so that it does not exist by going down the plug hole. We really wanted to use this in our opening sequence so we came up with the idea of washing the blood down the sink after the girl has cut herself. We will also do this shot in black and white.

A Scene from a film that influenced our opening sequence- The Black Swan

A lot of our inspiration came from this film. The plot line  is about Nina, a ballerina in a New York City ballet company whose life, like all those in her profession, is completely consumed with dance. She lives with her obsessive former ballerina mother Erica who exerts a suffocating control over her. When artistic director Thomas Leroy decides to replace prima ballerina Beth MacIntyre for the opening production of their new season, Swan Lake, Nina is his first choice. But Nina has competition: a new dancer, Lily, who impresses Leroy as well. Swan Lake requires a dancer who can play both the White Swan with innocence and grace, and the Black Swan, who represents guile and sensuality. Nina fits the White Swan role perfectly but Lily is the personification of the Black Swan. As the two young dancers expand their rivalry into a twisted friendship, Nina begins to get more in touch with her dark side - a recklessness that threatens to destroy her.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0947798/plotsummary

We really liked the way that Nina was looking into the mirror and her reflection 'doubled' into almost good and evil as the evil one in the mirror scratched her back. We really wanted to incorporate this into our filming so we came up with the idea of having the main character in the mirror, while the 'evil' girl was also there in the background. She will then look around and then the girl will be gone. However, we tried to do this and we couldn't get it to work and look professional. Therefore, we came up with the idea of the main character going into the toilet and then showing a shot of her like she is looking in the mirror, but in the dark and her face is lit so it looks sinister.

Opening Sequences that influenced our planning- Skyfall

Lots of different films have influenced our planning in making the opening sequence to our film. One of these films is Skyfall. 


Skyfall opening sequence:

This is the opening title scene to the film 'Skyfall'. This title sequence is typical of a bond film. We really liked the fact that it was 'dreamlike' as it has Bond falling into a river, sinking. We thought that this would fit in really well with our concept of going back in time, through the main characters memories. This therefore influenced our planning as we wanted our opening sequence to have this quality. Another thing that we liked about this opening sequence was the fact that at one point, the camera goes right though Bond's eye. We really liked this and thought that it would be really good if we could go through the main characters eye and back into her memories. However, we again didn't have the equipment or experience to do this and so we zoomed right into her eye instead. This worked just as well and had the same effect we were looking for.

Films that influenced our planning- Mirrors (2008)

While we were researching our thriller storyline, we looked at many different sub-genres and decided that we wanted our film to fall into the horror-thriller subgenre. We looked at many different thriller films and we tried to decide what factor they had to make us like them and want to take inspiration from them. 

A lot of our inspiration came from the film Mirrors (2008). It is set in New York, where Ben Carson, played by Kiefer Sutherland, is hired to work as night watch man of the remains of the Mayflower Department Store that was partially destroyed by fire many years previously. Ben sees the employment as a chance to rebuild his life. When he goes to the rounds in his first night, he finds that the mirrors are impeccably clean and his colleague explains that the former night watch was obsessed by the mirrors. After a couple of nights, Ben sees weird images in the mirrors, but due to his history of alcoholism, his ex-wife Amy believes he is having hallucinations as a side effect of his medication. When his sister Angie is found brutally murdered in her bathtub, Ben discovers that there is an evil force in the mirror that is chasing him and jeopardising his family.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0790686/plotsummary

This film plot line links in with our theme of good and evil. The idea is to have a female lead who plays the role of an innocent girl. she will be very vulnerable, as most girls this age are, to peer pressure and is influenced to do bad things, like cutting herself by an 'evil' girl who is stalking her. We really liked the idea of her looking into the mirror while her reflection looked back. The reflection then does something sinister and different to what the person looking into the mirror does so you know that something bad is going on. We wanted to incorporate something similar but we were not able to use the same person to be on both sides as we didn't have the experience or technology required to perform this shot. Therefore, we decided that we would get the the main character to go into the toilet and then show a shot of her like she is looking in the mirror, but in the dark and her face is lit so it looks sinister.

  

Best Thriller Films of All Time- The Silence of the Lambs

The Silence of the Lambs is a 1991 American thriller film that blends elements of the crime and horror genres. Directed by Jonathan Demme and starring Jodie Foster, Anthony Hopkins, and Scott Glenn, the film is based on Thomas Harris' 1988 novel of the same name, his second to feature Hannibal Lecter, a brilliant psychiatrist and cannibalistic serial killer.

In the film, Clarice Starling, a young U.S. FBI trainee, seeks the advice of the imprisoned Dr. Lecter to apprehend another serial killer, known only as "Buffalo Bill".

The Silence of the Lambs was released on February 14, 1991, and grossed $272.7 million worldwide against its $19 million budget. It was only the third film, to win Academy Awards in all the top five categories: Best Picture, Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Director, and Best Writing (Adapted Screenplay). It is also the first Best Picture winner widely considered to be a horror film, and only the second such film to be nominated in the category. The film is considered "culturally, historically or aesthetically" significant by the U.S. Library of Congress and was selected to be preserved in the National Film Registry in 2011.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Silence_of_the_Lambs_(film)

Best Thriller Films of All Time- Seven

Seven is a 1995 American psychological thriller film written by Andrew Kevin Walker and directed by David Fincher. The film stars Brad Pitt and Morgan Freeman, with Gwyneth Paltrow, R. Lee Ermey, John C. McGinley, and Kevin Spacey in supporting roles.

The newly transferred David Mills (Pitt) and the soon-to-retire William Somerset (Freeman) are homicide detectives who become deeply involved in the case of a sadistic serial killer whose meticulously planned murders correspond to the seven deadly sins: gluttony, greed, sloth, wrath, pride, lust, and envy.

The film was released in the United States on September 22, 1995. Grossing $327 million at the box office internationally,Seven was a commercial success, and received positive reviews.

Gluttony:                     

Greed:

                           

Sloth:

        

Wrath:

Pride:

The recreation of Lust:

The recreation of Envy:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seven_(film)

Best Thriller Films of All Time- Psycho

Psycho is a 1960 American psychological thriller film directed by Alfred Hitchcock starring Anthony Perkins, Vera Miles, John Gavin, and Janet Leigh. The screenplay is by Joseph Stefano, based on the 1959 novel by Robert Bloch based on the crimes of Wisconsin murderer and grave robber Ed Gein.

The film is about a secretary, Marion Crane (Leigh), who ends up at a secluded motel after stealing money from her employer and the motel's disturbed owner-manager, Norman Bates (Perkins), and what happens as a result. The film was very different to Hitchcock's previous film North by Northwest, having been filmed on a low budget, with a television crew and in black and white. Psycho initially received mixed reviews, but did exceptionally well at the box office  and this made the critics reconsider which led to overwhelming critical acclaim and four Academy Award nominations, including Best Supporting Actress for Leigh and Best Director for Hitchcock.

It is now considered one of Hitchcock's best films and praised as a work of cinematic art by international film critics and film scholars. Ranked among the greatest films of all time, it set a new level of acceptability for violence, deviant behaviour and sexuality in American films. It is particularly recognised for being filmed in black and white and also in the way the music is used to heighten the tension and exaggerate the terror particularly in the renown shower scene

In 1992, the US Library of Congress deemed the film "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant" and selected it for preservation in the National Film Registry.

When people think of thriller movies, this is most likely the first film that will pop into their minds. It is also one of the best thriller film of all time

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psycho_(1960_film)

Psycho analysed opening^

Opening Sequence to Mission Impossible

00:06- The film production company

00:09- Another film production company 

00:19- The name of the director
00:29- The name of the actor who plays the main character
00:41- The film title
00:53- Actors name
00:57- Actors name
01:02- Actors name
01:06- Actors name
01:11- Actors name
01:14- Actresses name
01:19- Actresses name
01:24- Casting by
01:28- Music by
01:33- Costume designer
01:38- Visual effects supervisor
01:44- Special make-up effects
02:02- Edited by
02:22- Production designer
02:27- Director of photography
02:33- Executive producer
02:56- Based on the television series created by...
03:01- Story by...
03:05- Screenplay by...
03:10- Produced by...
03:16- Directed by...

http://www.artofthetitle.com/title/mission-impossible/

Opening Sequence to Taxi Driver (1976)

This shows the film corporation that made the film 

This shows the name of the actor who plays the main character

We then see a cloud of smoke

As the smoke clears we see a yellow taxi driving towards the camera.

We then see the title of the film as the taxi drives away.

The production companies name is displayed.

The names of the actors are displayed. They go from left to right and overlap each other as the next actor appears.

Before the name of the person who arranged the score appears, we see an extreme close up of a mans face. The colour of the photo changes from red, which connotes danger, to a natural colour.

As the supervising film editor and the film editors names are displayed, we can see outside the taxi where it is pouring with rain. There is lots of bright lights which lead us to believe that this film is set in a big city. 

The person who is in charge of makeup's name is displayed. We now see outside clearly and see lots of bright neon lights 

The visual and creative consultant name's are displayed

The director of photographies' name is displayed

The name of the person who wrote the film is displayed

The name's of the producers are displayed

The name of the director is displayed

We then see the face of the man we saw before again and the movie begins.

http://www.artofthetitle.com/title/taxi-driver/