Se7en Opening Analysis

Opening of Cabin in the Woods

Opening Of Psycho Analysis

FilmFour Productions...



FilmFour Logo



Film4 Productions is a British film production company owned by Channel 4. The company has been responsible for backing a large number of films made in the United Kingdom. The company's first production was 'Walter', directed by Stephen Frears, which was released in 1982.

Before 1998, the company was identified as Channel Four Films or FilmFour International. Later, the outfit was re-branded as FilmFour, to coincide with the launch of a new Digital Televsion channel of the same name. The company cut its budget and staff significantly in 2002, due to mounting losses, and was re-integrated into the drama department of Channel 4.

In 2004, Tessa Ross became head of both Film4 and Channel 4 drama. The name 'Film4 Productions' was introduced in 2006 to tie in with the relaunch of the FilmFour broadcast channel as Film4.

Film4's logo and theme:

Character Profile Of A Typical Viewer...

We felt that as a group are typical age range would stand towards 15-25 year olds, targeting those still in school or attending university. For my character profile i have picked a typical boy and a girl who i feel would be part of our target audience.

Name: Sarah
Age: 18
Occupation: Student
Area of Study: History, Philosophy and Ethics and English
Part Time Job: Yes

Feedback:

I liked the effects and the flashback coming after you'd built the scene up as it has quite a tense feel about it, yes I'd go and see it as it seems like there’s stuff to be explained and I'd want to know what happens and stuff so yes all in all, it is good and seems very realistic, it's not a far fetched story.

Name: Joe

Age: 17

Occupation: Student

Area of Study: Physic, Economics and English literature

Part Time Job: No

Feedback:

I really like that fact it went back in time, thought that was a really good idea, the way the man disappeared was really clever and effective, the way the guy got closer like a strobe light that was quality. Bad things I didn’t think the fonts/graphics were that great

but yes id love to see your movie.

Extra feedback:

I loved the pace of this trailor and the way it immediately drew me in! The sudden change in scenes built tension and I would definitely want to go and see this as I enjoy a suspenseful plot that keeps me on the edge of my seat!

Evaulation of Final Piece...

In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

In our media product we used the typical codes and conventions of horror and thrillers to create a basis for our piece. We continued the idea of dank lighting, themes of isolation and the typical young female victim into the construction; we felt that the basics would allow for an audience to relate to our piece also linking in the ideas of horror. We wanted to create a piece with as much realism as possible yet still remaining entertaining for an audience to watch, I felt that by keeping a realistic edge to the piece it would allow the audience to make more of a connection with not only the characters but also the plot line as well, allowing the themes of horror to leak into their usual day. We kept the filming style quite rustic with relations to films like ‘The Blair Witch Project’ and ‘Paranormal Activity’, I felt what made these films even more scary were their filming style, the fact that it wasn’t edited to the usual glossy film standard made it for me more realistic and believable.

the gritty light effect used within
our piece

screen shot from paranormal
activity - example of the use of dim lighting
 to give a realistic edge to the filming

          






For our villain i.e. ‘The Follower’ we liked the idea of keeping his identity hidden, again keeping with the conventions of horror, we dressed him in black with a hood that concealed his face. We took this idea from ‘Psycho’ created by Alfred Hitchcock, where the killers identity is not revealed to the end, I found the shadowed killer particularly threatening and we felt as a group we wanted to create the same effect. We felt that this gave the impression of mystery but also the fear of the unknown, using the audience’s minds as our most powerful tool, as their own imaginations found the worst possible outcome. 

hidden identity used within
psycho

hidden identity uses within our final
piece

We connected the Follower to the use of red lighting created by the street laps at both the train station and the wooded area; we felt that this would relate to the connotations of death, danger and evil highlighting the idea of horror. Amber’s fingernails were also painted red, as if to tie her into the plot as the next victim, even if she did not know it yet.

          However we did try as a group to set aside some of the typical Hollywood horror conventions and create more of an understated piece, to comply with the realism factor. There is no dialogue within our piece, I felt that this added mystery to the plot, I felt that it was unnecessary to involve over dramatised and excessive screaming. I wanted to avoid this as it is one thing in horror film that I dislike. For example with in the film scream ironic I know, even within the opening over dramatics and screaming begin in an over used way.

opening of the film scream.

 Moreover we had a constant presence of danger throughout the film, rather than creating a false sense of security for the audience and then startling them in the way that most horror films do. Most of the sound within our film was diegetic, using the harsh screams of the train to create a sense of discomfort with the audience. Again this defers from the typical blockbuster as they use music within the film to dictate the kind of emotion they are wishing the audience to feel. We wanted the audience to make there own opinions and draw there fear from the situation of the character and the familiarity of the scene.

How does your media product represent particular social groups?

In our piece I feel we represent the youth of today, as we portray an older

Teenager of about 17 years of age in a situation that could happen to someone travelling on their own, making them incredibly vulnerable where they know it or not. We were trying to show quite a typical female so that the audience could feel at ease with that character and would also be able to relate to her. Also the use of the Iphone within the film relates to our key age range, as so often these days rather then planning ahead and letting people know our plans in person, we rely on modern technology like texting to inform others instead.
 She is representing the working to middle class as she is using public transport and as she is able to afford a train ticket being confident enough to travel around by herself. We wanted to portray that everyone is a potential target and is vulnerable, as so many teenage are travelling by themselves in this day and age especially university students. We wanted to make a point that even in your own area there are risks, as these days teenagers seem to have the feeling that they are all invincible.

What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?

I feel that our piece would be an art house film, as we do not really conform to the regular Hollywood conventions; also it is quiet a small scale production set in Britain, which may not appeal to a widespread market.As we did not seek to comply with the usual over dramatised horror, keeping are sudden starling moments to a minimum. As it is a British film I feel that a good distribution company for our film would be ‘FilmFour Productions’ as they specialise with home grown British talent but also create a big enough name for themselves to back films like ‘127 hours’ and ‘Slumdog Millionaire’, which would create a pull for the audience to come see our production. They have also created other horror/ thriller films including ‘The Lovely Bones’, ‘Dead Man’s Shoes’, comedy horror ‘Shaun of the Dead’ and ‘Kill List’. Therefore I think they would be the perfect company to produce and distribute our short film, as they celebrate British film making and tend to create film that are a bit more off beat.

Who would be the audience for your media product?

I feel that our target audience range would be young adult from 15 – 25, as I feel this film would be awarded certificate 15 yet still appeal to those who attend the cinema as a social outing. I feel our film could reach both males and females as an audience target as the plot line is not gender based. We chose to target this age range as they are most like to have more free time than adults who work full time, allowing us to hit home on students who not only get discounted rates at the cinema but also go as a social outing. 
Plus we would be able to count on free advertising from this generation through social networking sites such as ‘facebook’ and ‘twitter’, which would increase sales as they would be posting about a particular cinema outing or the film itself therefore placing the idea into someone else’s head.

How did you attract/address your audience?

To attract our audience we started our film amongst the action, the film opens with Amber running through the woods, which straight away get the audience to ask those fundamental questions why and how? This also makes them want to continue with the story to find how Amber got herself into this position. 
We also used a young cast to hit home with our target audience of 15 – 25 year old, also incorporating in familiar settings like the train station in the second part of our film. The action moves quite quickly throughout our film which keeps the audience engaged and guessing. We made Amber’s character easy to feel empathy for, by dressing her in light clothing suggesting her innocence and also to highlight her vulnerability, this would attract the viewer by creating a bond between the character and the audience, as her blight becomes theirs.

What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?

From this task I have learnt to appreciate the complexity of the film making process even at a basic level. The editing software ‘Final Cut’ was a new feat for me, and a challenge to understand it. I have also learnt that filming is not as easy as it looks, and long hours filming only turns into a few moments on screen. Many shots had to be retaken to create the perfect look that we all envisioned for the end product. For example the scenes in which Amber is within mid run add to be retaken at least three times, as factor kept on changing, either it was too dark or Amber's breathing couldn't be heard on film.

          I found that the background noise within the shots were a particular problem for our group, as we wanted to include some of the diegetic noises we filmed but they were covered with a dull fuzz, for example the train doors closing and Amber’s heavy breathing. To eliminate this problem I went through a lengthy process to cut out every bit of unwanted sound, leaving only the necessary diegetic sounds. Final Cut was a complete luxury to have; therefore I took the time to understand it which I found very worth while and in the end rewarding as I am very please with our group’s final result.

Looking back at your preliminary task what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product?

I feel there as been a big difference between our first task and our final piece, I have learnt that planning and timing are key, also to check each time if the battery is fully charged on your camera. Also in our fist task we simply filmed it were it was convenient, rather than thinking about the setting and what that particular place could mean to the audience. We didn't think about the smaller details, which in our final piece we took care over thinking about the key details that could represent something within our film.
 However in our fist task we took the time to test out different types of shots thus adding to our research in which to put in our final piece, we learnt what worked well and what didn’t. For example we found that a slow pan was very hard to keep smooth as it was difficult to keep the motion of the camera once on the tri-pod, shown in the first establishing shot within our preliminary task. Therefore we made sure than slow movements used with the camera were avoided for our final piece. 
Also we had our first taste at editing and inserting sound which none of us had done before, we did use less complicated software however. I feel that as a group we took a step up for our final piece, we thought about different camera angles to use, to portray a certain characteristic or emotion, we thought about what sound would build tension and suspense and we also looked at costume in fuller detail. We also thought more together as a group, making our decisions together, to create a well rounded final product. I felt that we took our mistakes we made from the fist take and tried to eliminate them for our final production, we became more determined and eager to create something on a semi-professional level, which in all I think we did.

Mise-en-Scene, Editing, Camera Angles and Sound...

MISE-EN-SCENE

• opening shot of full moon set the tone for the piece - moon relates to mythical creatures of the night 'werewolf', connecting to the very really monster of the night within the piece
• faceless girl runs past the camera, dressed in white - connotating innocence/ victim - also gives of the impression of isolation she is the only light in the darkness, almost as though the night has engulfed her
• red lamp in the background - symbolises danger and evil
• windy - natural forces are against her - her is messy, shows her disorientation and lack of control
• villain is in black - connotating evil - hooded face - adds to mystery and the fear of the unknown- gives the impression he is more dangerous - red glow covers him - he is the danger
•   when on the platform you can see her nails are painted red - hinting at danger
• as the train leaves the ghostly gray scale reflection can be scene in the poster next to the girl - highlighting how her only escape is leaving her
• yeloow caution sign in the  background - another warning that she is in danger
• isolated by the walls on either side of her - she is trapped within the shot and within the situation she is in

EDITING

• sharp cuts between scene creates a sense of disorientation for the audience - leaving them confused
• camera movements are shaky when following the girl mid run - put the audience as the villain, placing them in an uncomfortable position and builds the tension
• very short frame when the villain is first shown - keeping the identity hidden, keeping the audience guessing
• shot dissolves into the POV shot of the phone - ties the action together - making it clear to the audience that we are still on the side of the girl
• quick cut back to her reaction - highlighting that something is wrong, the audience has noticed it but the character has not
• when the villain comes nearer and near to the girl the cuts become very quick - adding to the danger - giving the impression that he is unnaturally fast 

CAMERA ANGLES

• the camera pans from left to right against the direction of the running girl - this gives the impression of speed and that she is running away from something
• the camera is kept at eye level within the close up of the girls frightened/ exhausted face - almost as if to give the audience an insight - they are on the same level as her - whatever she is fearing they should fear too
• high angle used after she has fallen/ tripped over - almost as if the camera is preying on her
• almost a worms eye view is used when showing the mid shot of the villain - the audience now becomes the victim
• again a high angle is used on the close up of the girls reaction after the mysterious man has disappeared - portraying her character as the prey

SOUND

• Minor tones of the non-diegetic music set an eerie tone to the piece - start away placing the thought into the views mind that something is not quiet right
• Diegetic quick paced foot step can be heard heading towards the camera - giving the impression that something is coming for the audience
• Diegetic crack of the twig - suggesting that someone is watching/ following her
• the music (non-diegetic) does not build with the action when the girl is in mid run - this creates an unsettling distance from the production adding a sense of realism 
• non-diegectic music changes to a more dramatic tone when the villain is in shot - highlighting that he is a man to be feared
• when the text 'one hour earlier..' is show the diegetic music of a train voice over can be heard - this takes the audiences minds straightaway to the platform edge
•  the eerie music that begun at the beginning start to repeat its self when the POV of the phone is shown - linking that something is not right
• Diegetic sound of the train is harsh and loud - almost like a re-awakening for the audience
• the non-diegetic music builds with the quick pace of the moving villain - building the tension for the audience