Filming

We set out at 9 am to begin shooting our film opening. We began by sorting out the lighting so that it was a single drop light coming from the ceiling and rearranged the furniture in the garage to make it look more abandoned and old especially as some of the equipment kept there was brightly coloured which would not be a good representation of the ambiance we were trying to create. We then set up the props that we wanted to use e.g. a single table and a tray with hospital instruments on.
Before we got the camera rolling we did a brief run through with the actors so that it was all fresh in their minds and so they knew what they were doing.
To make it easier for the actors to work out their positions in each shot and where they had to move to we stuck masking tape numbers onto the floor as prompt when needed. This worked well as it meant that we didn't need to stop the camera when they forgot. We also masking tape the position that the camera was going to be during each shot so that we didn't miss any shots out.
We continued filming all day until about 4 o'clock when we had finished. Due to our previous preparation we were able to shoot in such a short time frame whereas without this prep it may have taken a lot longer.

Collecting recce shots

As part of our pre-production stage we chose to collect some recce shots so that we had a rough idea of which shots we wanted to capture when it came to collecting the actual footage needed.

 

This is a picture of our chosen location. By collecting these recce shots we were also able to work out what needed to be moved out of shot and how we would position the objects that we wanted to keep  in shot. This is part of framing and composition- which is vital in order to create the perfect shots to fit our narrative and chosen genre. An example of this was the way that we needed to cover up the Citroën signs not only due to them being modern and bright but also to avoid copyright issues.

 



 

We also used some pens to represent the medical instruments that we would use when filming. This allowed us to practice focusing and the smooth movement of the camera as it tracks the instrument (pen) being lifted up. This process was extremely helpful as it helped us to work out the shots we needed and to work out what we wanted in shot and what needed to be taken out.

Risk Assessment

A risk assessment is a systematic process of evaluating the potential risks that may be involved in a projected activity or undertaking. Therefore we had to complete this thoroughly to prevent injury. We decided to evaluate the potential risks at the chosen location (garage) so that we wouldn't miss anything out. We risk assessed everything from weak equipment which could hit somebody or collapse to open mains circuits which, if come in contact with water, could lead to sparking and result in a fire.

 

By addressing all potential problems, we were able to ensure that nothing would go wrong or create a problem. We then noted down the risk possibility through high, medium and low scores. 

Logistics

Logistics is sorting out and bringing together all the practical parts of the production. By this I mean; costumes, location, props, make up, equipment and anything else that may be needed. In our logistics sheet we also included the name of the person who was responsible for each section.

 

We managed to stick to the responsibilities and everybody prevailed, which enabled us to move on with the processes.

 

When sorting out the different sections we had to ensure that we stuck to the conventions of our genre as this was the way that we wanted to construct the horror genre.

 

Costumes:

We decided that the doctor should be wearing proper hospital clothing to make the opening have some social realism, which would allow the audience to connect with it more. This increases the scariness of the film, giving us the desired result.

 

For the victim (the girl) we decided to put her in a tight black dress. This breaks conventions of typical horror movies as it represent the girl as being daring, wild- rather than the stereotypical innocent, weak teen which is usually portrayed. We did this to put an edge on the film so that we didn't follow the strict rules.

 

Actors:

When it came to casting we decided to follow the stereotypical roles portrayed in Hollywood horror films. We did his mainly for the doctor but also in some ways for the victim.

 

Doctor- we wanted the actor who played the doctor to be an older, more matured man as we thought that this would make him look creepier, especially as the victim was to be a young girl. the actor we chose to use was middle aged with not much hair. He was tall which would make the character more intimidating and represent the power between the two protagonists.

 

Victim- we chose the victim to be a girl as they are stereotypically weaker and more vulnerable then boys. This follows the conventions of horror films. She was also slim which is also a common occurrence in other films that we had researched. However we chose an actress with dark hair to play the victim as we thought that this would also put a spin on the traditional ways, seeing as usually the victim is blonde as this would represent their innocence.

 

These were two of the main points that we had to consider in the logistics stage as this is what the audiences would be able to see and so our decisions would affect the impact that it had on them.



Casting

Casting was relatively easy to complete though we had to make sure that the actors we chose to cast fitted the criteria we had made up. We wanted them to be stereotypical for the parts.

Doctor:

• Stereotypical
• Matured
• Male
• Scary looking
• Psychotic
• Tall
• Relatively slim

Victim:

• A girl
• Teenage
• Innocent
• Young
• Slim
• Short dress
• Black dress
• Medium height

We chose to use people that we knew so that we could rely on them, and get hold of them when they were needed. The doctor we used was a family friend of Laurens and the victim was one of my friends. Both of them were willing to be included in the film, and were not awful at acting!

Shotlist

We formed the shotlist from the storyboard to assist us when it came to filming. It would do this as we would have listed all the shots that we wanted to capture, and we would just have to set each one up.

 

This is the shotlist that we created. Lauren was in charge of this. We had to decided which shots to use to create the correct mood and genre for the film opening, otherwise it wouldn't look effective. There were 9 different shot that we wanted to shoot. They were an extreme close up, a tracking shot, 2 POV's, an over the shoulder shot from doctor, an over the shoulder shot from victim. a tracking shot, a close up and a master shot. With this range of shots we would have enough footage to use in editing.