Iluzio first draft - audience feedback

http://app.emaze.com/@AOTRLRLO/iluzio-audience-feedback

Past Student Evaluations

Evaluation 1 (Lvl 4) - https://prezi.com/uolomjd09nvc/untitled-prezi/#

This candidates first evaluation contains a lot of detail. He has divided the question into subheadings to clearly identify how it links to real media products. For example he has separate boxes for narrative, sound, editing, mise en scene, lighting etc. This is effective as you can clearly understand everything.

I also liked the video concept of their question 5. However some slides in this contained a lot of small text which was hard to read, and not enough time to read it. This could be improved by having a voice over summarizing each slide (which was done in question 6)

Question 6 was very effective. The voice over with appropriate screen shots and images made all the dialogue easy to take in and process. This is an effective presentation tool which I may also use for one of my evaluation questions.

Evaluation 2 (Lvl 2) - http://planeteclipse.blogspot.co.uk/search/label/Evaluation

The technology used in question 4 was voki. I liked this technique as it makes the answer a lot more interesting while still giving sufficient information. The only negative aspect of using this program is the limited characters you can use. This would make it difficult to use, but could be worked around if a different 'voki character' is used for different parts of the question.
This candidates question 2 used a creative program called Spicy Nodes. Each section of the question was separated and very detailed. However the layout of the program was very overlapped and sometimes confusing to read. This could of been prevented by changing the size of the embedded item, or screen grabbing and placing it as an image instead.
Overall I think the reason this candidate got a level 2 instead of 4 is due to the lack of detail and content that it contains. More images and attachments could of also been added to create visual links of the research to production process.

Evaluation 3 (Lvl3) http://www.sillykiwithrilleropening.blogspot.co.uk/search/label/Amy

Amy's question one was very detailed and used power point. She did this by clearly dividing each section of the question into different slides. They also did not contain too much text, so was easy to understand. She also used lots of transitions and bright colours to make it more fun and interesting. 
Amy also used a power point for question three, this question was also very detailed and informative. However she could of used a different technology type for this question to make the evaluation more interesting.
Question 4 only contained 3 small paragraphs, this could of included more detail to make it clear exactly who their target audience was and why.
Question 5 was very visually interesting. Glogster was used for this question which allowed pictures to be clearly inserted to allow us to see what is being spoken about. I will use this program for one of my evaluation questions as it allows you to convey detail while also still being fun and interesting.

9th December Filming Date

We have planned another filming date as one of our scenes we thought was filmed, but turned out to be deleted on the camera. This is just the friend scene where they are discussing Freddie's arrival/life. We will be filming after school at Amy's house again. We will also film our title sequence!

Title sequence plan

We are planning on filming someone either writing a diary or using a typewriter (if we can source one). We will be focusing on certain words such as 'imagine', 'death' and 'darkness'. This will foreshadow the rest of the film. We have taken inspiration from Se7en's opening sequence. This is because we think it creates mystery paired with the blurry effect which makes it seem imaginary.

We may also focus on the necklace which is in our opening. This is because it is a red herring within our opening and will therefore engage the audience as they wish to know the importance of it. 

Possible music

We have started to think about sound and which we will use in our thriller:

1) From this we like track 1 and 10, this is because they are both suspenseful and dramatic, but not tacky.

2) We like the heart beat sound as it creates tension for the audience. It also is common within thriller films and within past student work.

3) This creates suspense and may be effective before the shooting scene

Possible sound effects for Iluzio

From looking at thriller openings, past student work and my survey I have a rough idea of sound I may include within our opening.

For example Hearts beats proved to be very effective. This is because you can adjust the speed of the heart beat to suggest a different mood, e.g. tension, fear and drama. The audience (including myself) will begin to feel on edge when they hear it and will create an interesting dimension to the opening. The placement of it is key, it will be placed somewhere which is leading up to a significant moment, this was illustrate the proximity of an event to the audience.

Secondly my audience survey showed that classical music seemed to be very effective. This is because it can be varied vastly to create different moods. The string instruments can create a very discordant sound to make the audience feel uncomfortable and therefore create suspense. The music can also be fast paced or slow paced. Slow paced music will create tension as the audience will expect something to happen soon, this could be used when Freddie is walking to the friends house. However once Freddie arrives at the house the music could become fast paced to raise the audience pules and indicate that a climax of the opening is about to happen.

The gun shot within our opening will be sonically exaggerated. This will be to emphasise the importance of the gun shot, as it is a key role within our plot twist. It's loud volume could also surprise the audience, and therefore keep them interested. Finally gun shots are typical of thriller films and therefore it will it with the conventions of the genre.

We could also include modern chart music within our opening. This is because the target audience are large listeners to music and therefore they would recognise it and enjoy it. It would also keep them engaged as they will be able to identify with the characters and age.

Mise en Scene mood board

 This is a group of images which reflect aspects of our thriller. It contains mostly Enzo's appearance as she is a very complex character. It also describes how props will lead to the audience feeling certain ways.

Filming Plan for 27th November

Our plans have slightly changed within our thriller opening as we have realised that it included too much content which we may not be able to fit into the two minute time slot. Therefore we have Cut out the park scene, and instead Freddie goes straight from his room to see his friend where he ends up getting shot. I have produced a rough outline for our filming to night so we can efficiently get through filming and make sure it all runs smoothly.

SCENE ONE - BEDROOM:

1. OTS of Freddie talking

2. OTS of Enzo talking

3. SHOTS ALREADY FILMED OF ENZO PULLING OUT BOX

4. Close up of Freddie

5. OTS of Freddie talking

6. Mid shot of the two

7. *KNOCKING ON THE DOOR* close up of Freddie worried

8. Mid shot - Enzo is gone

9. POV of Freddie talking

SCENE TWO OF THE DAY - WALKING DOWN ROAD AND TOO THE DOOR:

1. Wide shot of Freddie walking down the road

2. Long shot of Freddie walking up to the door

3. Close up of the hand knocking on the door

4. Mid shot of friend opening the door

5. close up of corner of the gun

6. Mid shot of Freddie pulling out the gun

7. close up down barrel of gun

8. BLACK

9. Low angle / Long shot of Enzo walking away holding the gun

SCENE THREE OF THE DAY - LIVING ROOM UNTIL FREDDIE ARRIVES:

1. Mid shot of Friend one receiving a text from Freddie

2. Close up of the text

3. Mid shot of Friends talking

4. Mid shot of the friends turning to the door

Enzo and Freddie

I have done a character profile for Enzo and Freddie

Mood board of locations

Using http://glogster.com I created a mood board of our locations. These 3 locations are at my house, but we also have another at a park which i have not yet got a photo of.

Mood Board

This is my mode board foucsing on The look/costume, props and locations. We have used audience research to help figure out these important specific parts to our thriller opening "Iluzio". I have done this mood board to show the specific parts that are going to make this a thriller film and keep the key conventions in that a thriller has.

Group Roles

Amy: Friend 1, Props & Enzo's Make-up

Phoebe: Friend 2, Props & Enzo's Hair
Holly: Friend 3 & Costume for friend 1-3

Amelia: Enzo and her costume.

Tom (extra): Freddie, responsible for his own costume

We have assigned these roles as it was logical for each person. Firstly Amy' house is the location where we will film and therefore she is responsible for organising that, as well as providing the gun. She is also responsible for re-creating Enzo's makeup on each filming date as the products are at her house. Secondly Phoebe is responsible for recreating the look of the hair using different curlers, She will also provided the 'stolen items' for the box which plays a key role within the opening. Thirdly Holly chose which colour everyone will wear, to help portray their personalities. For example Friend one will wear black jeans and a white vest top, this is to convey that she is pure, good and the protagonist of the group. However the whole friendship group will wear black jeans to create a common factor and identify them as a group. Friend three will be in black, this was to portray that she was the antagonist of the friendship group. Friend two will wear mixture of black jeans and bright colours to show that she is neither good or bad and the centre of the friendship group. Enzo is responsible for her own costume as we all decided she should be in black. The leather jacket shows that she is reckless and mysterious. Finally our actor Freddie will wear a light grey hoodie with black jeans as a metaphor for his split personality.

Production log

• 23rd October Filming date one: At Phoebes house also trialing make-up and costume for Enzo
• 23rd November Filming date two: Amy's house

Changes we have made

The first change we have made is to cut out the explosion scene and replace it with another scene of Freddie in his room. This is because we felt the explosion was irrelevant and our audience research proved that it was not needed. It may also not make sense to the audience as is it not a key thriller convention.

Unfortunately we have had to remove the male friend due to complications with filming. This part was very small and not necessary to our film and therefore it has not major affected our film.

We have also taken out the caseworker from the film as we felt it did not make sense within the context of the film, and it would be clearer if Freddie was talking to himself/Enzo.

We have also changed the first scene to a village and field as it would improve the continuity in comparison to where we film the house scene.

Prowess

This is our preliminary filming task. We had to include certain camera techniques and editing including action match, shot/ reverse shot, 180 degree rule and continuity editing. We also had to include four unusual props, these were the lion, dictionary, clock and halloween hook blade.

Audience research analysis

In total i had 23 people fill out my audience research survey. This is more specific then having only 10 people because it allows me to use a wide range of opinions. Also lets me see views from my target audience.

1) what is your age?

The most common age i found that answered my survey was the 16-24 band with 63.64%. This was very useful because this is my target audience which will help me produce what they want.This also helps because it means everything else on this questionnaire will have more the 60% of there opinion. However the second most popular band was 41-49 with 13.16%. Even-though this band is not my target audience its still useful to see opinions from people out of my target audience. 

2) What is your favourite thriller film?

Interesting in this question i had many of the same answers. Most of the thriller films said are the most recent ones that are come out or are the most popular and common thriller films that are said. I found that the Purge and Shutter island were said multiple times. These ones are both recent and common thriller's that are said when this question is asked. Therefore we have made sure to include aspects of these thrillers, as its what our target audience enjoy. I also found that they like confusing story lines as shutter island has a confusing story line and so does The purge therefore we have done this in our opening thriller film. However i did get Saw and inception included in this questionnaire which both are both shown to have mind games as the theme. By having this question it opened many different responses. 

3) What type of thriller do u prefer?

This question was very important because it was going to set the whole mood and setting for our thriller. Therefore i put down the 3 best types i found. Which showed that Psychological was the most popular with 45%. This is very relevant to our opening because its very complex. However Crime only got 13.64% but, in most of the thrillers i have watched and also the rest of the group we have witnessed crime therefore we are also using a gun as a prop to bring the crime element. Even-though action was the second most popular we have deceived to take on board the crime as its a key convention in most of the thrillers we have all seen.

4) Do you want to be left with a plot twist?

This was a very clear winner with a yes from nearly every person and with 90% saying this answer we can tell that a plot twist is very wanted and obvious reaching out to our target audience as it adds confusion and that element of this thriller is key for plot twists because its makes the audience think. Therefore our ending will be effective.

5) What settings do you find interesting in a thriller film? 

Everyday settings was they most popular answer with 52.63%, this is realistic setting as its more believable for the audience and its better then using abandoned places. Abandoned places are very much a horror setting then  everyday settings. Even-though it got 31% its not a easy location to find. Therefore we have gone with everyday settings and also this fits in with our story line, as Freddie is having a scene in his room. This will make the scenes flow better together, The forest seemed very unpopular so we have got rid of this location that we were going to use.

6) Which type of characters do you most like to see in thrillers?

Surprising the most popular answer fro the type of characters was a imaginary friend with 45%. Which is what we have based our film on. This shows that we have included many opinions to really make this apart of our audience. Then the send most popular was mysterious characters, which we have made one of our main characters Freddie to be.

7) What is the most important part to you that happens in a thriller?

This question had many variety of answers. However unexpected events was mentioned a few times which was the only one repeated. Therefore we have got quick surpass scene at the ending for the audience.

8) Do complex plots interest you? 

By having 77% people say this its influenced our film as we are having a complex plot to get the audience to think and also we feel that complex plots show the key conventions of thrillers. Therefore this will engage out audience more with this element.

9) Do you prefer low key lighting throughout?

54% said no to this question. However 45.45% said yes. Therefore we have deceived to show both of these lightings and have got day included and night included to create a contrast for our audience. However we have seen that thrillers have dark lighting therefore we want dark lighting to show that it is a thriller and to add suspense to the audience. 

Enzo Trial

During the Half Term we met up and had another longer trail to try and improve out makeup. We didnt only just do makeup, we also wanted to do Enzo's hair trail. Which we curled to make it look messy so it would look like Bellatrix Lestrange from Harry Potter.

 

Enzo's thrid trial

This is our third trail for the make up, that one of our characters will be wearing. Enzo is the character that will be wearing it. We still want to improve in areas.

Story Board

1. Our first scene consists of Freddie and Enzo discussing the stolen items that are in the room. The caseworker enters and is confused who Freddie is talking to - this is the first indication that Freddie is imaginary. Freddie will be wearing a mixture of black and white to show his contrast in personality and to make it unclear whether he is good or bad. Enzo will be in all black with freaky make-up and messy hair to imply her insanity and how she is an imagination.
2. He then goes to meet his friends and there is a clear divide within the group. Friend 1 and two (wearing pink and white to show their innocence) are supportive, where as friend 3 and 4 (in black) don't like Freddie very much.
3. The scene featuring the explosion will clearly show how much of a bad influence Enzo is on Freddie, and also her insanity.
4. We have used a phone as a prop as it relates to our target audience and is an item everyone will be familiar with.
5. The scene in friend 1's house is demonstrating how they want to help him (friend one and two)
6. The last night scene is when Freddie finally reaches his breaking point
7. The plot twist at the end will confuse the audience (as thrillers do) and lead to them thinking that Enzo was real all along as she has the gun.

Mise en scene

Mise en Scene.

 

Mise-en-Scene is a French word that means 'to put in the scene'. Everything that the audience can see on the screen is a part of Mise en scene.

Mise en scene plays  massive role in film because it has so many branches. These branches contain; costume, location, setting, scenery, props, lighting, actors, framing. These are all very important in films because it helps the audience understand and see what kind of atmosphere it is.

 

Costume: What a character wears is very important. It has a massive influence on how the audience will interpret the character. For example, someone wearing dark clothing would be seen as a bad character as darkness and  black are associated with evil whereas a character wearing bright or white would be seen as good because white is associated with innocence. For our movie we have decided to put all our bad characters in dark colours and all our good characters in bright colours for this very reason.

 

Bad

 

Good

 

 

Location: The location is the place in which the action takes place. It can be anywhere around the world. It can either be in a natural environment or in a studio. Natural environments are better because it gives it more of a real feel however, studios can be better because the director can have everything how he/she wants. We have decided to film ours in natural environments so it is easier to relate to.

 

 

Settings and scenery: The setting is very important. It helps the audience identify the genre and atmosphere. Scenery is also important because set dressing can make a scene look a particular way. We have set ours mostly in a forest which is very stereotypically freaky and uneasy.

 

Props: Props are vey useful in films because it adds a certain look to a character depending on what the prop is. For example someone holding a teddy is going to look much more innocent than someone holding a knife. We have a scene where out antagonist has a gun. This obviously shows them as bad.

 

Lighting: lighting is key in films - especially in thrillers. The lighting on a scene can manipulate the whole thing into looking something different. We are going to film in slight dark and then we are going to edit it all to be darker. This will give a mysterious effect.

 

 

Actors: casting the right actor for their part is crucial, not just for their acting ability, but also for the 'look' they bring to the character. I have the darkest hair and the least innocent looking face in the group so we decided it would be best if I was the antagonist.

 

Framing: The positioning of actors and props within the setting is important so that the camera picks up exactly what is needed to get meaning across to the audience. We have decided that in most of the shots the antagonists will b trailing behind being sneaky.