Duality Final

I have now finished the colour enhancements and the final pieces of editing for my thriller opening. Here is the completed version of my thriller opening Duality.

Colour Enhancements and Superimposition

Today I entered the final stage of editing with colour enhancements and adding the credits.

Colour Enhancements

Now that the sound has been laid onto the opening and is in time, it was time to start altering the colour on the opening for each different scene. In order to do this, I have used Final Cut Pro X, altering the colour levels, saturation and exposure on each individual scene. I feel that the colour tones support the mood of the scene and give the audience an indication of what may follow. For the opening scene, I have crushed the blacks on the exposure levels of the scene in order to make the rooms and the characters appear darker as well adding a slightly blue tone to the scene. I have done this to emphasise the cold, bitterness of the scene and give the audience an insight into the killer's personality. This is similar to Black Swan, which I analysed for my research and found that using low levels of light can give the audience an idea of a certain character's personality therefore I have decided to use a slight blue tone to make not only the scene look cold and dark, but the killer too. For the second scene however, I wanted the crime scene to appear warmer than the previous scene to let the audience know that the danger from the previous scene has passed even though it begins with a close up on the dead body. I have done this by not crushing the exposure of the scene too much and giving the scene a touch of red which carries connotations of heat and is therefore a sign of safety to the audience. However I have not just put a red tone above the scene as all the colours within the scene would have been too bright therefore I lowered the saturation levels on the scene to ensure that the audience understand that, even though this scene is safer, they are still based in a very dangerous location where this could change at any second. This is supported by my colour alterations the alleyway scene which are very similar to those in the opening scene. This has been used to suggest to the audience that the killer is going to strike again as soon as the parallel editing begins. The audience see a clear contrast between the safe and dangerous scenes in a movie, possibly into the minds of the killer and Hudson and how they see the world. This is an idea that could be used throughout the film to show a clear divide in the two characters.

Superimposition

For the opening credits of the thriller, I plan to use a similar to technique to Quentin Tarantino. I have noticed through watching a number of Tarantino's movies that he often includes many of the people who worked on the film at the very beginning, this may be due to ensuring that those who played a big role in creating the film get the recognition they deserve from those who enjoy the film. I plan to emulate his technique by having my opening credits after the title DUALITY is shown at the end through having a list of names of those who featured and worked on the opening scrolling up at they very end. The thriller will of course start with the name of my production company, Evil Twin Productions, and be followed by the names of those who wrote and directed the thriller opening including myself. The rest of the credits will feature after the end of the second with Tame being reintroduced for the title of the film, this then runs for around twenty seconds with the names of others featured in the production of the film as the song draws to a close. I have also arranged the superimpositions to fade out, similar to the killer's actions in both his scenes as he seems to just appear and slip away again without anyone else noticing that he was ever there. I have also used the Oh No font that I mentioned in a previous post.

Dubbing Sound

Seeing as the overall sound quality of the footage I have is poor, I have decided to overdub all the sound including sounds such as footsteps meaning I will have to create my own Foleys. I decided that it would be best to not record all of the Foleys first and then the dialogue, I felt it would be more effective to record in the order of the length each sound would last in the opening.

Location: Recording room in the music block.

Here is the order in which I recorded the sounds for the entire thriller opening:

1. Foley - Footsteps
2. Dialogue
3. Foley - Stabbing
4. Ambiance 
5. Pixies - Tame 
6. Foleys - Wallet drop, clothes rustling and stroking the knife

Equipment Used

1. Behringer B1
2. Shure SM57
3. Firefly 808
4. Logic software
5. Wooden board
6. Wallet
7. Watermelons 
8. Cabbage
9. Knives
10. Chairs
11. Coats
12. Chopping board
13. Wet cloth
14. Soundproofing boards 

Foleys

The job of a Foley artist is to enhance the sound of a scene and make the audience believe that everything in a scene, such as a floor made of plywood painted to resemble marble, is real. Foleys are very important to my thriller opening and I will be required to create Foley effects for all the footsteps of the scene, stabbing sounds, the wallet falling, stroking the knife and the sound of clothes rustling. The day started with my group and I experimenting between three different sounds for the footsteps, the options included just the floor in the recording room, a thin wooden board and a much thicker wooden board that I fortunately found on the way to school that very morning.







For the footsteps for the shots inside the hotel, I decided to use the thick wooden board which made the sound most similar to that of the real footsteps in the rough edit. This proved to be a very long task as it required perfect timing between the sound and the feet on screen hitting the floor. However when it came to the alleyway footsteps, I decided to use a chair to for the walk as it resembled the sound of walking on concrete and by this time, recording Foleys was becoming increasingly straightforward. Other Foley sound effects such as the stabbing sound required the stabbing of both watermelons and cabbages, these fruits and vegetables resembled the sounds of a knife entering a body as well as the knife being pulled back out of the victim. Acquiring the right sound for this was crucial as in the extreme close up of the blonde woman on the floor, she is stabbed again however I plan to only show this through her facial expressions and the sound of a knife stabbing a watermelon, a technique famously used by Alfred Hitchcock. Other techniques I used included wiping a knife in a wet cloth to get the sound of the killer wiping the knife clean, as well as rustling a coat for the the sound of the tramp getting to his feet in the second scene right before he is stabbed.

Dialogue

At an early stage, dialogue posed a problem as Adam Canning was not available to join us for his lines therefore I took over and portrayed his character's voice. Because of the recent changes to scene two, the scene now only shows Hudson saying the end of his final line 'it's my goddamn job to know' meaning that only that line had to be in time with what is being said by Hudson on screen. However, because the parallel editing now makes scene two longer, Jake and I had to try and draw out our lines for as long as possible to ensure that there is not a huge pause in the middle of Hudson's final lines of the scene.

Pixies - Tame

Although I am somewhat unfamiliar with Logic and the majority of the editing of Tame was completed by Dan, seeing as I overdubbed Hudson's voice, it would only seem suitable for me to add my voice at the end of my group's edit of Tame. The edited edition of the song to last the length of scene one is perfectly timed to the follow the scene with the music intensifying as the door is kicked down after a quiet start. After the first stab, the panting of both of the singers in the band begin and are supported by the sound of me heavily breathing over the top, to resemble the killer, this will continue as the music fades out and into the fade to black at the end of the scene to ensure that the audience are not let off the hook as soon as the scene ends.

Editing Continued & Combining Scene's Two and Three

After discussing with some of the media experts within the media and music department at my school. I have decided to make some changes to improve my thriller opening. After watching my rough draft a number of times, I feel there is too much in the way of dialogue in the second scene which considerably slows down the pace. Now I understand that thrillers need to have calmer moments to emphasise the thrilling parts of the film to make the audience feel even more anxious as they anticipate the end of a calmer segment of a film, and know that something big is imminent. However I feel that the second scene slows down the pace too much as it is only two minutes long, I am safer condensing as many of the codes and conventions of the thriller genre into that time allowed such as quick cuts and extreme close ups. I have decided that an effective way to tackle this problem is to combine both scene's two and three. Before I had access to Final Cut Pro X to make these alterations to the opening, I drafted some storyboards of what I expect the combined scene to look like with my group. This made the editing process faster when combining the scenes as I already had a brief idea of what the scene will look like after the changes.

I have edited my opening so scene two still starts with close up tracking shot of the corpse, however I have used parallel editing by cutting in the killer's walk in scene three after this shot which will give the audience a hint that the detective is also the killer but may also make them feel uneasy and unsure on what is about to happen. This shot is now followed by the over shoulder from scene 2 rough edit in my previous two posts, leading into the dialogue two shot which cuts to the rest of scene three whilst the two detectives are talking about the murder from scene one. Luckily, the dialogue from scene two also applies to scene three as the killer stabs the tramp twice and steals nothing from him. This will make the audience feel increasingly uncomfortable and highlight how far behind the killer they are, setting up for the rest of the film which would revolve around Hudson trying to find this man.

There is also the small matter of superimpositions to consider. When using Final Cut Pro X, superimpositions are the last feature which can be added to a piece of film therefore this will be completed after sound and colour enhancements; however I feel that I have already found the perfect font for all of the credits. The font I have chosen is called 'Oh No' and strongly resembles the typographical choices made for the opening credits of Se7en as it mimics shaky handwriting, possibly that of the serial killer presented in both scene's one and two. The letters are also surrounded by drips, which could be seen as blood splattering around the opening credits, making the audience feel anxious before the opening has even started. I plan to have these fonts fading in and out of the screen, as if they are creeping up on the audience one by and one then disappearing again making the audience question what is around them.

Audience Response to Initial Editing

After I completed the initial editing for my thriller opening, I presented the opening to one of the media department teachers, who also comes under my target audience age range. This teacher has not previously helped me with my opening as he does not work with my class therefore this is his first response to the opening.

Entering the Editing Stage

Final Cut Pro X

Although I have started the editing of scene three as I have posted it before, I have today started work on scene's one and two which I have recently finished filming. As I have done with scene three, I have decided to use Final Cut Pro X as the editing software I am going to use. This was an easy decision after working with iMovie on both the enigma and 180 degree rule videos during the planning stage of creating my thriller opening. I feel that Final Cut Pro X gives me more of an opportunity to explore various things I can do with my footage whereas through working with iMovie I have found that the software has many limitations and the end product from this software often looks unprofessional and somewhat lazy. Final Cut Pro X also allows me to explore different transitions between the scenes and will offer various ways to include superimpositions compared to the very limited number of options provided on iMovie. Seeing as I have to overdub all the sound myself, Final Cut Pro X is the desired software out of the two as it allows me to go beyond basically laying on all the sound and opens up a new world of ways to mix the audio as well as improving the colour of my opening to make it resemble an actually thriller opening.

Starting to Edit

As I entered the editing stage, I decided to keep to the format of my final shot list and compile the best shots I have and start to work from there. I found that I had two or three good takes for each shot which was a huge benefit to me just in case anything was at fault with one of the shots, I had at least one back up take I could use. Unfortunately at the moment I am not aware of how to compile a split screen shot, which I desire to use when the killer is first introduced with one shot of his shoulders and one of his feet, however I plan to find out on the first week back when I show three media experts what I have so far to see where I can make some improvements. There are a number of shots I had to trim such as the door kick in scene one which now does not show the door swing open, the shot shows the kick and quickly cuts to the blonde woman's shocked face to ensure that none of the other side of the room was included in the shot as that is where I stored the classroom's furniture during filming. There are a number of shots I plan to trim even further such as the extreme close up of the woman screaming which at the moment I feel maybe a fraction too long if I plan to maintain a fast pace to the opening scene and keep the audience feel a level of discomfort with how fast all these events are transpiring.

Even though I have been told that the shot of the final stab in the opening scene is too shaky, I feel that this represents how unstable the killer is as the shot appears to be from his eyes as he stabs her one final time. Even though the opening so far is very different to what I had initially planned, I feel that through quicker and fewer cuts, I am able to present the same murder with a higher level of tension as the audience will constantly feel uneasy and as if they have been forced onto this fast roller coaster which ends in the deal of a supposedly innocent young woman. I have also included fade outs on the end of both scene one and scene two as well as maintaining the flash at the very beginning of scene two. The opening shot for the second scene follows closely up the corpse's body whereas before merely presented the body in a wide shot, the audience will now feel uneasy with how close they are to the corpse and how they are being forced to follow the camera up her body. I am also pleased with the low angle two shot I have of Hudson and Detective 1, this shot will make the audience feel they are witnessing the conversation from the perspective of the corpse and will indicate that both detectives have a high status before they even start talking. I feel that I may need  to cut the tracking shot of the body across the coffee table slightly as it lasts a very long time however the shot will give the audience obscure vision of what is going on therefore making them feel anxious. Scene three has had very few alterations from when you last saw the scene, only minor changes with the size of some cuts and is near enough ready to be overdubbed with sound and have colour enhancements added to it.

Here is a very rough version of the thriller opening so far, I recognise that it still contains all the original sound which will be overdubbed towards the end of the editing process, around the same time the opening will also have colouring enhancements.

Shooting Scene One and Two

Instead of re-scripting for the new shot list I have compiled I thought it would be more effective to create a storyboard for the opening scene to ensure that I have all the correct the shots required so I can quickly enter the editing stage of the project. However, because everyone now involved with scene two is familiar with the plot and there is no alterations in the dialogue, I saw no need to create a storyboard for this as I strongly believe the script will be enough to ensure I get the shots I desire.

Today I came returned to school with the intentions of filming the whole of scene one and re-shooting parts of scene two like I did last week. Unfortunately, they were still doing work to the area where my set was based therefore I decided to shoot scene and the whole of scene two again in the learning support area. This change in location requires shooting the whole of scene two again as simply trying to make the room look exactly the same as the previous room I used would raise a number of continuity errors which would make the opening appear unprofessional and would suggest that I have not taken any care in the production of this thriller opening. As this is not the case, I would rather film the whole of scene two again as today both Adam Canning and Shornie Britton were on set anyway therefore I only had to make a few minor casting changes. The new location features two corridors which the killer will walk through, I predict that the split shot that I plan to use between the killer's feet and shoulders will only last until the first door, with the mid shot of the killer's shoulders being used up until the second door. To ensure that I do not encounter the same lighting problems on Hudson's face as I did before, today I used two lights on the two shot between Hudson and Detective 1 which I feel has made the important shot between the pair sufficiently light in an environment which is supposed to appear as dark and dangerous to the audience.

Casting Changes:

Detective 1 - Jake Kardasz

Detective 1 is now portrayed by Jake Kardasz. As Jake is a member of my group, I strongly believe he successfully represented the frustration of the police around Hudson through Detective 1 and even improvised on the script, allowing Hudson to push past him on his way out to show the aggressive side of the protagonist. The only difference in costume is Detective 1 will now be wearing a white shirt featuring blue stripes whereas before he was portrayed by Jack Stiff in a white shirt. Jake also already knew all of Detective 1's lines therefore I did not have to waste time allowing next actors to learn their lines and get into character.

Press - Daniel Comley and I

The press are now portrayed by Daniel Comley and I. Daniel has experience in acting and has performed in many plays such as Cats and Oliver Twist throughout his life. I feel this was a strong reason to promote Daniel from a role as an extra to a member of the press as he will have to use facial expressions in close up shots to show both his frustration and fear with Hudson as scene two draws to a close. I have also decided to myself as the other member of the press who asks the first question. I have done this because I wrote the script and feel that I could successfully deliver the press member's one line to Hudson to intensify his already hostile mood. After watching Joe Donadel and Ellen Titchmarsh's performances as the press members in scene two, I feel that they did not express their frustration with the detective, not to mention in the over shoulder shot from Ellen she kept moving back and forward making the shot uncomfortable and look somewhat unprofessional.

Seeing as the learning support room was much smaller than my previous PE room, I have decided to cut the two detective extras sitting at the back of the scene as I am only going to be using half of the small room to make the audience feel like they cannot escape the crime scene and a sense of claustrophobia. However I plan to keep the flash from the start of the original scene two which may suggest to the audience that there is another detective in the room as it will be used to mimic a camera flash.

Mise en Scene and Propositions

The mise en scene and propositions that I have used in the re-shoot of scene two and the shooting of scene one are mostly the same as they were in the original scene two. However there are a few minor changes. One change that I have been forced to make was the fact that there is no longer a television in the room as I was unable to retrieve the one I had used from the science block of the school I had used previously. The television has been replaced with a radio which now sits upon the table where the television sat in the original scene two. This is not a huge change as it is only a small part of the room and will make the hotel seem even grottier and cheap as it cannot even afford to place televisions in their rooms. I have also included a red rug on the floor of the room which will carry connotations of danger as well as sexuality, due to the colour red. This rug will also mask the fact that no theatrical blood was used today as even if I did use some, it would match the colour of the rugs.




A number of items from the original scene two are still being used such as the sofa, table, kettle and the clock. Unfortunately, I was unable to use both the typewriter and lava lamp which is disappointing because I can no longer use the typewriter as a postmodernist reference to thriller classics such as The Shining as I stated in my postmodernism post, however because I am no longer using any police extras there seemed no need for it anymore even if there was somewhere to place the proposition. I also had to find a way of masking the room's posters to make the room strike one as a hotel room, luckily the majority of this room's posters were not stapled on therefore they were simply taken down and those which did require disguising, I covered with a black cloth to resemble a dark wall. The room also featured two extra chairs, one of which held a red jacket which closely resembles Michael Jackson's jacket in the Thriller video, referencing more iconic 1980's popular culture, as well as the other chair using leopard print cloth resembling 1980's fashion.

The Days Shot List

Shot List for Scene One

1. Two split shot: mid shot from behind the killer following him through the two corridors and a close up of the killer's feet to the first door.
2. Close up of the woman looking frightened.
3. Mid shot of the killer reaching for the knife.
4. Close up of the killer stroking the knife.
5. Over shoulder shot from the killer of the woman getting up.
6. Mid shot of the killer pulling back the knife, camera panning into killer's back during throw, panning back to show woman stabbed, falling.
7. Extreme close up of the woman screaming.
8. High angle close up of the woman falling.
9. Close up of the killer's feet by body, then wipes the knife clean with red rug.
10. Extreme close up of the woman's last breath as she is stabbed again.

Shot List for Scene Two

1. Close up of the woman, tracking up her body as Hudson leans down, tracks up to Hudson's face looking at the corpse.
2. Over shoulder of Detective 1 walking into the scene as Hudson rises from the body.
3. Low angle, from the body, of the two detectives dialogue, dialogue ends with Hudson pushing past the other detective.
4. Tracking shot across the coffee table showing dead body with mugs and pots obscuring the audience's vision - to create ellipses.
5. Mid - close up shot of Hudson leaving the crime scene until doorway where he meets members of the press.
6. Over shoulder shot from Hudson of the dialogue between him and the press.
7. Close up shot of Hudson of the dialogue between him and the press.
8. Close up shot of Press Member 1 of the dialogue between him and Hudson.
9. Close up shot of Press Member 2 of the dialogue between him and Hudson as well as Hudson's attack of Press Member 2.

Overall I am very pleased with shots I have gathered from today's filming which will be the last day in the production stage as I feel I am now ready to focus all of my attention on the editing stage of the process which will be continued from what I already have of scene three in the next few days.

Filming Problems and Editing

Scene Three Re-shoot

Today I completed all the final shooting of the third scene of my opening in the original location, Leonard Lane, Bristol. Similar to the last time I filmed in the city centre, I ensured that my actors arrived on time as I travelled with them and made sure they had brought the exact same costume. However the weather today was completely dry, completely different to the last day of shooting at Leonard Lane, but this should not be too noticeable as the majority of shots taken today were very close up on the characters.

Today's shots included:

1. A shot similar to the original wide shot but further up the lane.
2. A close up of the killer's feet walking past the tramp as he asks for change.
3. A close up of the tramp's face asking for change.
4. A close up of the killer opening his jacket to pull out a knife.
5. An extreme close up of the wallet dropping onto the floor.
6. Extreme close up of the tramp looking directly at the killer in fear.
7. Over shoulder shot of the killer stabbing the tramp.
8. A close up of the tramp's face whilst being stabbed.
9. A close up of the killer stabbing the tramp, focusing on the retractable knife.
10. Close up of the killer shaking the wallet to get rid of any dirt.
11. Mid shot to wide shot of the killer walking off.

Although this is a very extensive list of what I previously stated was a very small amount of shots, I feel it would be better to include as many close up shots as I can to cut into the third scene to maintain a fast pace to the murder and make the audience feel uncomfortably close to the murder, like they will be in the first scene. I feel that I have learnt a lot from my previous two days of shooting as the filming today was completed much quicker to what I think is a better standard. I also decided to include some establishing shots at the beginning of the scene, panning down from the buildings to the ground in the alleyway to show the audience that they have been taken to a very dangerous location, possibly with the killer from the opening scene before he is on screen. I also found a dead bird in the alleyway which is lead down, similar to the blonde girl after she is killed, therefore acting as an anaphoric reference to his victim in the opening scene, suggesting to the audience they may be about to witness another murder.

Here is a rough edit of the scene which still contains the sound from every individual shot. I plan to take out all the sound and dub the whole scene myself including the ambiance. I also plan to alter the colour levels on the scene to make it appear darker and the alleyway dingier and more dangerous.

Shooting Scene One and Shots to be Filmed Again

Shooting Scene One and Two

Unfortunately I did not manage to complete all of the filming for both scene one and two of Duality. The day started as expected, my group and I were all on time and had spent the hour before it was free preparing all of the propositions we had collected from both the school and home in the drama hall, ready to move into the room when it was vacant. However it took longer than expected to move all of the school furniture such as tables and chairs out of the room as it took around twenty five minutes to clear out. As soon as it was cleared I started to move in all the propositions into the room.

The class had been left in a state due to previous lessons in the room during the day therefore I also had to take time out of this process to clean the room's floor which could have posed as a safety risk to the actors. As I was doing this, my new actors for the press roles revised their lines until they felt comfortable with the position they were given. It also took a while masking all of the room's posters with pieces of art as many of which kept falling down however this was only a very minor issue. Looking through the shots of scene 2, I'm content with the majority of the shots however I feel that I should have gotten tighter in on the close ups of both the detectives talking. I feel one positive of today's shooting was the close up of Hudson getting infuriated by the reporters which clearly represents his anger and how he finds it somewhat comical that he is been mocked by the press for a job they cannot do themselves. The majority of the problems I encountered were minute and quickly resolvable such as struggling to keep the blinds down to make sure there was no sunlight entering the room, this was of course quickly resolved but, when combined with other problems, wasted around five to ten minutes of valuable filming time.

This picture shows my group and I in the process of clearing the room.

After shooting, I feel that the acoustics of the room were pretty poor therefore I will have to overdub the sound, including the dialogue, of the shot over myself with my actors to ensure that the dialogue is clearly and the ambience represents a busy crime scene to suggest to the audience that this is a high profile case before the two detectives have even been introduced. Despite the number of problems I encountered, I feel that I have overcame these quite well and, like scene three, will have to shoot some shots again but these will not take long and the room will have to be set up anyway in order to shoot the first scene therefore Adam will be available to record the shots that I need. I was also very impressed with the acting abilities of Jack Stiff who plays Detective 1 who talks to Hudson; beforehand I was a little concerned that he may not take the filming very seriously but his performance was the highlight of the whole scene as he clearly presented the frustration that the police force feel that Hudson has not yet solved the case, highlighting the pressure on the protagonist.

After doing some basic editing of the scene, it is clear that some changes are necessary, especially the sound which has been taken out of this clip, but there are a number of small errors which need to be addressed. One error which means we need to re-shoot is in the close up of Hudson talking to the press, you can see a poster saying 'London 2012' at the back, this is an error I should have noticed during the filming process however this shot would not take long to film again and would not necessarily require the two press members to return for the re-shooting. Overall I am pleased with the lighting of the scene but during the close up of Hudson talking to Detective 1, his face is quite dark therefore I also plan to re-film them two shots. Watching the silent clip, I am quite happy with how the room looks, especially in the pan across the room in the opening shot. I feel that the lighting and the mise en scene of the scene successfully represent this dark, dingy hotel room and I feel that I have masked the true purpose for the room well.

Here is the silent, very rough edit of scene two. It must be remembered that this is nowhere near completed and was recorded off of Final Cut Pro X with screen capture to make the file smaller in order to send to my media teacher, hence the icons which appear in the top right hand corner.

After I had completed filming all of the shots for the second scene, I managed to film the opening two shots for the first scene including the killer's walk through the corridor and kick of the door. The corridor scene took a while as I had to ensure that the killer's walk had to last around twenty one seconds, including time spent filming the wall for superimposition's, to ensure that he kicks the door exactly as the heavy chorus of Tame kicks in. 

I plan to complete the filming of scene one and the re-shoots of scene two in a fortnight's time on the final week of term as this will be the next time that all of the actors required for the shots I need will be available.  

In order to see what others felt could be improved in the re-shooting, I presented the rough edit of scene two to a number of people in my class to gather their thoughts and opinions.

Final Planning for Scene One and Two

The Use of Music in Film

Music is a crucial element to film since its birth, in the days of silent film, music has played an intricate part in representing the mood of a scene as well as the mood of the character's. Many thriller openings which I have analysed when researching the codes and conventions of the thriller genre use tense orchestral music such as Se7en and Black Swan. Music in thrillers often indicate to the audience that something terrible is going to happen to the protagonist and can also represent the end of a tense moment, showing the start to a lighter part of a film. However because of the limited amount of time I have for the project and the lack of resources to do this, I feel I would be better using an existing song to add to the tense atmosphere of my thriller opening. Through using an existing song, I also have the opportunity to show the audience that the film is set in the 1980's. At first I thought it might be a good idea to use an iconic song from the eighties by artists such as Michael Jackson or Prince. I soon realised that this is also an opportunity to the dark personality of the antagonist and still make the audience feel uncomfortable without using orchestral music. This lead to me finally choosing Tame by Pixies, which was released towards the end of the 1980's in 1989.

I plan for the audience to initially hear the intro of the song through the headphones of the killer as he walks through the corridor. As he reaches the door and kicks it down, the music will then intensify and become diegetic as the song goes into the heavy chorus. The fierce chorus will highlight the brutality of the whole scene and make the audience feel like they are in the killer's position as it will be supported by a shot from the killer's eyes of his victim. Using a rock song carries many sinister connotations and makes the audience see the killer as his evil person who thinks he is a rock star. I thought of this after reading about the 1980's serial killer Richard Ramirez who used to listen to ACDC's 'Highway to Hell' in his car before taking another victim, that part of the book stood out to me as it showed that Ramirez thought what he was doing made him a rock star, as if he were unbeatable.

The quiet opening of the song will create a level of suspense as the audience wonder where the killer is going and why the music is so quiet. Tame includes elements of aggression which will support the brutality of the murder of this innocent blonde woman who appears to have done nothing wrong. Even lyrics within the song such as 'hips like Cinderella' and 'talkin' sweet about nothing' may be seen as a link to the appearance of the blonde victim as she will be presented as quite ditsy as she fails to deal with the dangerous situation. As the song draws to a close, there is the sound of the singer panting, this may be seen as a break for the audience after the distressing murder they have just witnessed; it may also be seen as the killer's creep breathing and a sign of sexual desires being fulfilled, supported by the stroking of the knife in a previous shot.

Scenes One and Two Extensive Planning

I have decided to film the first two scenes of my thriller opening in a classroom in the PE area of my school. This area is often unused as the classrooms are only used when teachers are not in therefore we will be undisturbed during shooting, I have also decided to use it on a Wednesday in the afternoon, when sixth form have PE therefore the room will be completely free. However there are drawbacks to using a classroom as I will have to take out all of the tables and cover up posters which surround the room to disguise the fact that it is a classroom.

The classroom itself was chosen after reccying the whole school. It is essential for the classroom to have a corridor outside which has predominantly bare walls to make the corridor appear to belong to a dull, dingy hotel. It was also necessary to have the ability to control the lighting in the room, this made the PE class a perfect choice as the blinds drowned out all of the room's light allowing me to use lights to find the right lighting for the scene and set the thriller opening in the dead of night. The classroom I have chosen also has plenty of room outside to store the equipment which belongs in the room such as tables and chairs. The only drawback of the PE class is the size of the room which is quite large, however I believe that through closely following both the protagonist and antagonist I can make the room appear smaller to the audience than it actually is.

There is another room in the school which meets the same requirements as the PE room however has two corridors which would be needed for the length of the walk at the very beginning of the opening. This classroom is based in learning resources on the other side of the school and may act as a backup location just in case anything unexpected occurs and I am no longer able to use the room in PE.

An issue with using the PE classroom is unmovable objects such as projectors and whiteboards which would clearly indicate to the audience that this is in fact a classroom and look very unprofessional. Again, similar to the issue with the size of the room, I will have to use tight, close shots of characters to ensure that I mask the fact that it is a classroom and make it appear to be a hotel room. It would be easier to film in an actual hotel room however this would include transport difficulties for both actors and props as I would still have to dress the room with typical 1980's props.

Transforming the room 

Before shooting even begins I will have to completely transform the room from this PE classroom, covered in sport posters into this dark, dingy hotel room which looks perfect for a murder scene. The first thing I will have to do is clear all the school equipment into a rarely used classroom opposite. The posters on the other hand cannot come down as they are stapled into the wall therefore I plan to cover these with pieces of art from the art department which I feel resemble typical cheap motel art.

List of items needed to disguise the room as a hotel and where I will acquire them:

• Television - School - Science block
• Fake cigarettes - Myself
• Mugs - School - Sixth form
• Pillows and blankets - Daniel Comley
• Coffee table - School - Sixth form
• Artwork - School - Art block
• Sofa - School - Drama hall
• Lava lamp - School - Drama hall
• Typewriter - School - Drama hall
• Cabinet - School - Drama hall
• Pot - School - Drama hall
• Radio - School - Drama hall
• Clock - School - Drama hall
• Rug - School - Drama hall
• Kettle - School - Drama hall
• Chair - School - PE classroom

The classroom is free from 1:40 until 4:00 therefore I do not wish to spend any more than twenty minutes clearing and decorating the room to ensure that I can film both scenes one and two within the two hours I have available. After 2:40 the school will be considerably quieter as many of the students will have left meaning there will be very little in the way of disturbances.

Actors required for scene one (final):

Adam Canning - Serial Killer

Costume: The same killer outfit from the filming of scene three only this time with big, typical 1980's headphones.

Props: Fake knife

Shornie Britton - Blonde Woman

Costume: Blue top, skinny jeans, leg warmers, converse

Actors required for scene two (final):

Adam Canning - Hudson

Costume: Open white shirt, trench coat, smart trousers and black shoes

Props - Fake cigarette

Jack Stiff - Detective 1

Costume: Open white shirt, braces, smart trousers and black shoes

Props: Fake cigarette, lighter

Shornie Britton - Blonde Girl

Costume: Same as in previous scene

Zoran Micic and Daniel Comley - Detective Extras

Costume: White shirts, black trousers and smart shoes

Harry Denley, Samuel Godwin and Aaron Gough - Press Reporters

Costume: White shirts, black trousers

Props: Notepads and pens

Scene Three Shooting - 13/02/13

Today I completed the shooting of the third and final scene of my thriller opening 'Duality'. The majority of things went to plan as I had hoped however I did encounter a number of minor problems. One problem that I encountered was the stabbing shot towards the end of the scene. In this shot, I had planned to show the killer stab the tramp from a wide shot, as I could not take a real knife on to set for both safety and legal reasons, I realised that I would have to make the audience believe that this tramp has been stabbed without showing an actual knife. I feel I have dealt with this problem after a number of takes as I attempted to show the killer stabbing the tramp without a knife being visible. I feel that I have done this well and shows I have overcame problems I had not expected as the first couple of takes of this shot clearly presented the killer without a knife.

One problem which I had anticipated early on but could not control was the weather. The day of shooting had started cloudy but the ground was completely dry for some of the early shots. However the weather rapidly changed and both rain and snow fell making the alleyway progressively damper throughout the course of the day. I fear that this will raise continuity issues when it comes to the editing stage of the process however many of the later shots do not show much of the ground as they focus on the murder of the tramp, only the wide shot of the murder and the killer picking up the wallet will clearly show the wet pavement. Another problem that I encountered was the use of theatrical blood as I was unable to use any of Tordar's clothes, however through using a tracking shot of his leg with the theatrical blood dribbling down the side of the alleyway underneath, the audience will have a clear understanding that he has been murdered and will be supported by diegetic sounds of both the stabbing and the tramp's pain after he's been struck.


After looking back through today's shots, I feel that the audience will feel too distant from the scene and everything that is going on. This is due to the use of wide shots and I do not believe I have used enough close up shots of the scene to make the audience feel uncomfortable close to the murder. This is an issue that can only be resolved through re-filming certain shots in the scene. There are some shots that I plan to keep from today's filming such as original wide shot of the killer entering the scene and the pan up of the killer's legs from the perspective of the tramp. However I will post an extensive shot list featuring the shots which I intended to re-shoot to ensure that my third and final scene follows the typical codes and conventions of the technical structure of the thriller genre.

Organisation for Shooting Scene Three 11/02/13

Scene Three Shooting Plan

Location: Leonard Lane, Bristol

Date: 13th February 2013

Time: 09:00


Actor: Adam Canning

Costume: Black suit, blue tie, sunglasses, black shoes and slicked back hair

Propositions: Brown leather wallet


Actor: Tordar Tommervik

Costume: Chelsea boots, black jeans, parka, beanie and fingerless gloves

Propositions: None


Propositions for scene: Theatrical blood

Equipment needed for scene: Nikon Coolpix L120, tripod, sound recorder, digital camera, tape

Costume and props provided by:

• Nikon Coolpix L120 and tripod - Zoran Micic
• Sound recorder - Daniel Comley
• Digital camera, fingerless gloves and theatrical blood- Myself
• Tape, wallet and sunglasses - Jake Kardasz

List of takes:

1. A wide shot showing the whole alleyway which the killer walks into from the right side of the frame. This wide shot will cover the entire scene.
2. Followed by a mid shot from the tramps eye line of the killer walking past panning with him. Tramp says 'change?'.
3. Then a mid shot of the killer stopping, the wallet falling to the floor and the killer looking down at it.
4. An over shoulder shot from the tramp reaching for the wallet with killer's foot stamping down on it.
5. Close up of the tramp's face showing that he is afraid and aware of what will follow.
6. A wide shot of the killer stabbing the tramp multiple times, picking up the wallet and kicking the tramp.
7. Close up shot of the dead tramp, tracking down his body showing blood.

Creating theatrical blood:

As I stated in my post on propositions, I think the use of theatrical blood will be beneficial in my thriller opening as it will emphasise the horrors that killer has caused, showing him as a bigger threat to my protagonist Hudson. Although this is a very minor prop and may not be one that can be used with the issue of actors providing their own costumes, I think if it can be used it will be very effective in giving my thriller opening a more realistic feel. This special effect has been used in a number of iconic thrillers such as Psycho in 1960 as Alfred Hitchcock used chocolate syrup for blood, as the consistency was more important than the colour. There are a number of reasons theatrical blood is used in film such as ethical concerns and the actors wellbeing rather than using real blood which would raise these issues which would only delay production.
My recipe:

Fake blood has a very simple recipe consisting of:

• Three tablespoons of water
• Three table spoons of honey
• Red, blue and green food colouring
• Flour

Here are some shots of both the production of theatrical blood, in the first two photographs, and it being used on set in the two below which have been added on the 13th of February.

Casting

Although through watching a number of AS thriller openings which have been uploaded onto YouTube, I came to the conclusion that using myself and others in my group may look very unprofessional; I understand that it would be difficult to use adults such as teachers because I would have to work around their schedule to ensure I can finish the production process of the opening. Therefore I have decided to use sixth form students, a number of which I have previously worked with in music videos for media diploma so I know they possess some acting ability. Using students means I have to ensure that I do not plan any filming for any time they will be busy with other commitments such as schoolwork and jobs.

I have decided to film the third and final scene of Duality first in the February half term. Using the February half term ensures that none of the actors required for that scene have to be in school for lessons meaning they should all be free to film.

Here is a breakdown of all the characters and who they will be portrayed by:

Hudson and Serial Killer - Adam Canning

Through using Adam, the killer will appear more menacing and treacherous through his height however will also appear a bold figure when playing Hudson. Through using Adam I can also make him look older and as if he has been physically worn down by the case. Through making him look older, once again supported by his height, I will be able to ensure my target audience can relate to him as they will believe he is of a similar age to them. I have spoken to Adam who has stated that he can supply his own costume for shooting as he already owns the clothes required for the scenes apart from a trench coat which will be supplied by myself. Adam will wear a black suit and glasses similar to those worn by John Lennon in scene one and three, this will show the audience how he sees himself as a bit of a rock star.

Detective 1 - Jack Stiff

Jack also offers the height advantages of Adam and will also appear to be older than he actually is through both his appearance and voice. As Jack is taller than Adam, in the second scene he will appear to have the higher status of the two until their dialogue begins and Hudson becomes hostile showing the detective as weaker than Hudson despite the physical advantage he has. This will show Hudson as fearless and willing to take on anyone, perhaps because of how he has been broken by this murder case. Also similar to Adam, Jack is supplying his own costume.

Blonde Woman - Shornie Britton

Through working with Shornie on previous media projects, I am aware of her acting ability which is greater than any other girl in my sixth form making her a favoured choice. Her hair colour and appearance also fit with what I desire the blonde victim to look like meaning I do not have to provide a wig for the scene to work how I want it to. There is not much acting required for this role however she will need to scream once and present good facial expressions for when she is stabbed which I am confident she will be able to complete to a very high standard.

Tramp - Tordar Tommervik

Tordar's role simply requires him to ask Adam for change in the third and final scene. His role is very similar to Shornie's as he will be required to express pain through his facial expressions when he is stabbed. The only concern I have for Tordar's scene is ensuring he falls in similar positions after he dies to ensure there are no continuity errors. A positive for casting Tordar is that he already owns a costume suitable for the role of the tramp already stated in the script apart from the fingerless gloves which I will supply for the day of shooting.

Press Members - Aaron Gough, Samuel Godwin and Harry Denley

This is a very minor role in the thriller opening and Aaron and Samuel will be given one line each to ask Adam at the end of the second scene. They have agreed to supply their own costume as well as propositions such as pens and notepads.

Police Detectives - Daniel Comley and Zoran Micic

These roles are essentially extras to make the case appear to be a larger operation and highlight the importance of finding this killer to the audience. The role requires no dialogue whatsoever, only simply doing work silently as the back of the scene.

Final Propositions

Propositions are key to every film as they are classed as any article on scene except for costume and scenery and often used to define the possessor of the prop and gives the audience an idea of what that character is like, for example carrying a gun connotes a sense of danger surrounding the character. As I am creating a psychological crime thriller based around a serial killer and his helpless victims, propositions play a massive role in the narrative of the opening.

Weapons are key to establishing whether the character is the antagonist or protagonist of the story. In scene one of my opening, up until the point where the killer's knife is presented in a close up, the audience will be unsure on why this man has burst into this defenceless woman's room. By simply showing a close up of a knife, I have clearly told the audience that this man has the intention to kill the woman in cold blood without any clear reasoning other than a lust for blood. However other situations, this would depend on other elements of the film such as the narrative. An example of this would be a man aiming a gun at someone else, other elements of the film for example the costume would indicate the intentions of the character and the reasoning behind what they are doing. If this man were a police officer, the audience would assume they are trying to lay down the law and stop a dangerous situation whereas if it were a regular citizen, the audience would instantly assume that they are going to break the law in some way.

However weapons are not the only prop I plan to use in my thriller opening. I believe that theatrical blood will important in adding an element of realism to the murder scenes. Although there are ways to present murder without showing blood through the use of diegetic sound, I believe that the use of blood will make the audience feel uncomfortable about the two murder scenes and will give them more of an insight into the killer's life. This is typical of thrillers of a similar sub-genre to mine such as Se7en which rely on showing the sick nature of the killer who they cannot catch. Another proposition which I plan to use are cigarettes for the scene with the police detectives, cigarettes connote that an individual is suffering from a high level of stress which has led to them using this maladaptive behaviour to deal with the situation therefore the use of cigarettes will show the audience that these detectives have been looking for the killer for a while and are struggling to control the case. However cigarettes also carry connotations of relaxation therefore showing that these detectives are seasoned in dealing with corpses and killers, this may also act as a hint to the audience that the detective is the killer due to how comfortable around the body he is.

Propositions will also be used by minor characters such as the members of the press such as notepads and pens. These items do not serve a huge purpose to the story line but indicate their profession to the audience without having to blindly state that they are reporters. The small propositions work alongside the costume and dialogue to add to the audience's understanding that they are press reporters inquiring into why it is taking the police so long to catch the killer.

Use of Postmodernist Techniques

A postmodernist film attempts to subvert the common codes and conventions of cinema including narrative structure and characterisation to alter the audience's suspension of belief. Within the film industry, postmodernism plays a huge role in western culture in countries such as the US where postmodernist films often make reference back to classic films from earlier parts of film history. I feel that I am emulating this technique through my use of propositions. I have decided to place an old typewriter which I found in school in the back of the second scene where an extra detective will be typing, this will be a reference to the classic
1980 thriller The Shining, I feel that I am using a number of elements from The Shining apart from the typewriter as the killer in my opening was heavily influenced by the acting of Jack Nicholson as Jack Torrance. Another film which I feel has influenced the writing stage and certainly the killer of my opening is American Psycho, I plan to show my killer's passion for murder through his movements during the opening scene and how he picks himself up so calmly after killing another human being, following in the footsteps of the twisted Patrick Bateman of both the film and the novel. Postmodernism can be seen in a number of ways including the alteration of the protagonist's mind. I plan for the protagonist to also be played by the antagonist showing a clear alteration in the mind of Hudson as his murderous side seems to just switch on and off which him even being aware that he is killing these people.

However the use of postmodernism in films such as Pulp Fiction often indicates to the audience not to take the film too seriously and point out to the audience that it is just a film. I do not intend for this to be the case for my opening as I still want to keep the audience on the edge of their seats as they witness this mad, well dressed killer slaughter innocent people for no apparent reason and a troubled police detective struggle to catch him although they look strangely alike. I feel that through only using the postmodernist effects of referencing to other films and showing an alteration in the protagonists mind set, I am not taking anything away from the codes and conventions of the thriller genre I am using to make the audience feel uneasy as they are only being used to present how gruesome and cold blooded the antagonist of the opening is.

The Use of Swearing in Film

In order to engage with my target audience and make the thriller opening appear more adult and not suitable for children, I have decided to include a small amount of swearing in the dialogue. In the 1960s swearing would be rarely found in film, seeing as the first swearword on British television caused national uproar in the 1960s. However I plan to show a distressed detective who is in the middle of a case which he cannot solve and he knows that every day that the case goes on, someone else is likely to die. I have decided to use dialogue in my opening to express the protagonists negative views on the situation and how angry he is about how other people doubt he's worthy of this case. Swearing also adds to the development of the character as the use of bad language connotes a low threshold for handling difficult circumstances and makes it seem like Hudson could just snap at any second. Due to the connotations that swearing carries, this is another subtle hint to the audience that the detective and the killer are in fact the same character. Although Hudson is the protagonist of the opening, his bad language and quick temper suggests he also has a dark side to him and can turn on a hostile mood like a light switch, perhaps how he would also turn on a killing mentality.

I have used swearing in my script to highlight the detective's frustration at those around him as well as with the other detective to show how other people are starting to doubt him. The use of swearing will also support the actions of the detective as he goes to attack a reporter at the end of the second scene who asks him if he 'knows people are dying'; this sends the detective over the age as knocks the reporters notepad out of his hand and shouts at him. By using swearing, I am showing how the detective is on the edge, swearing in film is no longer a taboo subject and is a common feature in films with a rating of 15 upwards. I have also used profanities in the script to offend the people around him who are only trying to do their own jobs, by using foul language I am degrading the characters around him, showing that the detective has a higher status than all of them as he gets away with swearing at them without any consequences.

Final Script - Duality

I have compiled a final script for my thriller opening 'Duality'. The script consists of five pages covering three separate scenes.

Scene One:

Scene 1 will start with the camera focusing on a brick wall where the credits including director, writer and actors will be superimposed. The scene will be set in a dark, dingy corridor which appears to be inside a cheap hotel with very low lighting. The antagonist of the opening will be dressed in a black suit, sunglasses, smart shoes with slicked back hair. The audience will not initially see him as a dangerous character as he is formally dressed suggesting he may be a target for theft. This idea will be supported by the large headphones he will be wearing which not only support the 1980's setting of the thriller opening, but also make the character appear susceptible to any dangers which may confront him as he will not hear them. The camera will follow the antagonist from behind through a mid shot, this suggests that he is being followed by someone and is unaware and could be attacked at any second.  However this view of the antagonist soon changes as he goes to knock at a door, steps back, and kicks through the door. The camera will quickly follow the killer into the room with a shaky, handheld shot remaining behind the killer. 

A blonde female character will then be introduced who will jump up from where she was sat. The room will also have very low lighting, in order to make the audience feel closed in and claustrophobic therefore they cannot escape, and the woman will be dressed in typical 1980's clothing which has not yet been decided upon. An extreme close up of the woman's face will indicate that she is frightened by this unknown character's presence, this is fully established through another extreme close up of the antagonist stroking a knife in a slow, sexual manner. This is followed by a wide shot from the killer's perspective, panning across the room checking for potential exits when the woman races into the shot. This then reverts back to the original mid shot from behind the killer in which he draws back the knife behind his head ready to launch in the direction of the helpless woman. The camera then ducks away into the killers back to obscure the audience's vision to make them confused about the whole situation and unsure on whether the girl has been murdered or just injured after the diegetic sound of the knife entering her body. However the character's death is confirmed to the audience as the camera draws back up to the woman falling to the floor. The camera then quickly switches from behind the killer into the victim's eyes as she watches the killer's feet walk closer and closer to her dying body, blacking out momentarily to create ellipses. The killer's headphones are then dropped right in front of the victim, the camera tilts up as the killer bends down, cutting just before his face is shown to ensure this killer remains anonymous. The killer then pulls the knife from his victim from a mid shot behind him and proceeds to slash her throat, splattering fake blood onto the wall behind her. At this point the camera will swiftly pan to the wall and present blood dripping down before showing the killer leave the room from an obscure shot by a puddle of the victim's blood on the floor.

Scene 2:

Scene 2 of Duality will start with the aftermath of the murder which the audience have just witnessed. Obviously because of the detectives working on the crime scene the room will feature more lighting and will include three detectives, two of which will be examining the dead body and one will be writing up a report on the typewriter at the back of the shot. A television in the room will have been left on and there will be three reporters outside waiting for the entrance of another police detective. I plan to start the scene with the flash of a detective's camera as he examines the female fatality, this will be quickly followed by a close up of the corpse, leading to a pan to the entrance of the room. A detective with dark hair, a shirt and a trench coat will enter the room and the camera will follow him from behind with a similar mid shot used in the opening scene, suggesting to the audience that this might be the same person returning to the scene of the crime. The detective walks up to a fellow detective, dressed in an open shirt with rolled up sleeves and no tie, who is already looking at the body. This will be followed by a two shot of the two detectives, quickly cutting to a close up the protagonist lighting a cigarette, reverting back to the two shot as he takes a drag.

This is where the first dialogue of the opening is introduced as the other detective asks the protagonist whether he believes it was 'him'. This line also tells the audience the name of the main character, Hudson, allowing them to form a closer relationship with him over the course of the scene. However Hudson's reaction to the question is hostile and includes profanities to assert dominance over his colleague and show that he is stressed about the case. This is then followed by a statement of doubt by the other detective which leads Hudson to walk off in disgust over being doubted by his fellow officers. As Hudson leaves the room, a wide shot from the door frame will show him walking. Diegetic sound of reporters calling his name will cause the detective to bury his head in his hands in frustration before he confronts three members of the press. The press also declare their doubt over his abilities to handle the case leading to the audience momentarily sympathising with the protagonist until he attacks one of the reporters who ask him if 'he knows people are dying'. This moment of anger will act as another suggestion to the audience that Hudson is also the killer as both have shown violent tendencies. The scene will fade out after Hudson has slammed the door on the reporters after the minor attack. 

Scene 3:

Scene 3 will start in a foul, filthy alleyway at around dawn. As I plan to film this scene first, I have looked ahead at the weather forecast which suggests the weather will mainly consist of rain over the coming weeks which may create some continuity problems when it comes to filming, however I have decided to include the weather in the script as it may be something I have to deal with on the day. the scene will start with a wide shot of the alleyway, similar to the opening scene the killer will walk through wearing the exact same clothes except this time without the headphones. A tramp will also be sat in the corner of the shot. The camera will then cut to a mid shot from the perspective of the tramp which will pan up the legs of the killer, again similar to scene 1. He will ask the killer for change as he walks past. I plan for the tramp to be dressed in an old army-like parka, black jeans, Chelsea boots and black fingerless gloves. The camera will then cut back to the original wide shot in which the killer will stop and drop his wallet as he reaches for his jacket pocket. A high, canted angle will be used to show the tramp as weak as he reaches for the killer's wallet but is unsuccessful as the killer stamps down on it. A close up of the tramp will present his fear to the audience as he, as well as the audience by now, have anticipated that the tramp is now in serious danger. The original wide shot will show the killer stab the tramp and lower him to the floor before kicking his to ensure that he has reached his demise. The killer picks up his wallet and calmly exits the scene as is nothing had happened. A close up of the tramp will present a pool of blood before the shot cuts to black where 'DUALITY' will finally be superimposed.