StoryBoard - Rough (Clare)

Medium Shot, Girl tied to a chair in a dark room.

Medium close-up of girls face, Character begins to wake up.

Close-up of mouth, Girl screams. Possibilty of a graphic match here.

Black screen with Title in red "Ellipsis"

Title sequence, runs over clips of forest.

Fades through black to girls bedroom, long shot of girls talking.

Eye-Line Match of phone screen, As Katie receives a message.

Long shot, Establishes environment- Girls leaving house. Being watched.

Developed remake of script - useable version.(Giorgina Parker and Emma Mitchell and Charlotte Moreland)

INT . A DARK ROOM - NIGHT

Mary - Alice Jones is alone in a room tied up to a chair and gagged at the mouth, covered in blood. She is unconscious at this point. Mary- Alice Jones regains consciousness.

MARY - ALICE JONES

(she screams loudly in fear.)

INT. MARY ALICE JONES' BEDROOM - AFTERNOON

Mary - Alice Jones and Kate Preston are currently in Mary - Alice Jones' bedroom. Mary - Alice Jones is packing things for the camp out as Kate Preston is currently having a conversation with her.

(Laughter from all characters)

KATE PRESTON

Mary - Alice, you can't say that?

MARY - ALICE JONES

(laughs.) Why not though, it’s going to happen eventually.

KATE PRESTON

(Nervous laughs.) Are you being serious?

MARY - ALICE JONES

Well we will have to see what happens tonight.

(Kate Preston recieves a text message.)

KATE PRESTON

You ready to go?

MARY - ALICE JONES

Sure, lets go.

(They both leave the room.)

EXT. STREET - AFTERNOON

A suspicious stranger is keeping an eye on Mary - Alice Jones and Kate Preston as they walk away from the house on their journey.

(Mary - Alice Jones and Kate Preston walk down the street together, talking between themselves.)

(Stranger keeps an eye on both Mary - Alice Jones and Kate Preston.)

(FADES INTO BLACK.)

Props By Clare Bannister

• For our 2 minute film opening we will need several different props:

For the first scene with Mary-Alice tied to a chair, we will need props that are iconic in Horror films and help to create a dark, scary environment. These could include:

• Candles
• Scrap paper
• Jars and bottles containing unidentifiable objects
• Weapons

These items would help to set the scene for our film. Candles would provide shadowed areas- giving the idea to the audience that something/someone could be hiding in them. The scrap paper, Jars and bottles would provide the feeling of abandonment- the idea that this place is not looked after or used regularly. Weapons, (e.g. knives) are part of the iconography of a horror film.


For the Second part of our opening, which is set in the college canteen, we will need props that are stereotypical for a college. However many of these will be already on set (Tables, chairs Vending Machines etc)

• Bags
• Chairs
• Food?

Again these would help provide the right setting for our film, they would help the audience identify where the scene is set.

There will be several props used by the characters in the scene, these will be:

• Mobile Phone
• Bag

By using these props it makes the scene seem more realistic- as the characters would be doing something natural. Also it will provide us with an opportunity to use an eye-line match.

Amateur Horror Films (Emma Mitchell)

Before analyzing a full horror film, I have researched Amateur Horror films, to see which type of effects work well, and which ones shouldn't be use. Furthermore, these Amateur films are created by the same age generation as ours, therefore the acting can be noted, and also new ideas can be distinguished. Although our film opening will be original, including many different shots and camera angles, we could use some of the chosen shots presented in the Amateur Films, and integrate them into our own piece.
This is an example of an Amateur Film trailer which involves the genre teen horror. This is quite a good example of a amateur horror, as it involves non-diegetic eerie music to add tension to the opening, and the voice over, in the deep, supernatural tone further suggests that it is a horror movie. Also, the trailers are appealing to the target audience, as they include various different transitions and effects. However, the acting is quite unrealistic, and it is clear from this, that is is an amateur horror film.

"Sweet Revenge" Student Horror Movie Trailer.

Two minute opening script (Draft)- (Charlotte Moreland and Giorgina Parker and Emma Mitchell)

INT . A DARK ROOM - NIGHT

Mary - Alice Jones is alone in a room tied up to a chair and gagged at the mouth, covered in blood. She is unconscious at this point. Mary- Alice Jones regains consciousness.

MARY - ALICE JONES

(she screams loudly in fear.)

EXT. AN ABANDONED FOREST - EVENING

Mary - Alice Jones, Kate Preston, Lucy Barnes, Samuel Smith, and Mark Cullon enter the woods carrying bags, and tents. The girls are walking ahead of the two boys.

(Laughter from all characters)

KATE PRESTON

Mary - Alice, you can't say that?

MARY - ALICE JONES

(laughs.) Why not though, it’s going to happen eventually.

LUCY BARNES

(Nervous laughs.) Are you being serious?

MARY - ALICE JONES

Well we will have to see what happens tonight.

They stop having found a good place to camp. Mary - Alice Jones, Kate Preston, Lucy Barnes, Samuel Smith, Mark Cullon start to unpack there tents and look in their bags, Kate Preston is frantically looking in her bag.

KATE PRESTON

Hey guys, I can’t find my phone anywhere.

(Mark Cullon rings Kate Preston's phone...... there is no ring.)

(Sighs.) I’ll be back soon, I think I’ve left it in the car.

(leaves the group.)

INT. CAR - EVENING

An unidentified man picks up Kate Preston's phone up from the car seat as it rings. Unidentified man looks at the phone, and then places it back down on the car seat.

(Music commences)

Costume Design (Emma Mitchell)

Mise-en-scene is essential in order for a film to me made realistically; therefore I have researched into possible costume ideas which could be used in our film. Our film has a non linear narrative, as it uses flashbacks, therefore there should be a range of costumes for the different time period.

The beginning of the film features a girl character: Mary - Alice Jones, strapped to a chair in a dimly lit room. The costume in this scene should be a light/pastel coloured dress, or shorts and tea shirt to represent the season which they are in (summer, as they are going camping), and further more light colours such as white represents innocence and purity. Also, the costume would be less effective to the audience if it was dark coloured material, as it would not show as much on camera. A white fabric would easily show blood/dirt on the girl, and this is essential for suggesting she is being tortured. We could also put a faint glow effect on the girl if she is dressed in white to further symbolise that she is a stranger to the darkened atmosphere, as on her character profile she would never hurt anyone intentionally. The costumes I have designed are for the summer season, as this makes the storyline more believable if the characters are going camping. The theme is the 2000's, as kidnapping, and a child going missing is heard of, but does happen frequently, and therefore although it is unusual, this makes the film realistic, and is believable enough to develop a high tension in the opening of the film. Furthermore, this links in with our props list, as we are going to be using candles, to add emphasis on the eerie atmosphere.The costumes which I have designed should also reflect our chosen Genre - Teenage Horror, and therefore I brainstormed in detail before beginning the costume designs, and then evolved them into my final designs.



SKETCHES


Mary-Alice Jones

The protagonist, Mary-Alice Jones is dressed in a short cut, white/cream floral dress, with flared 3/4 arms. I have designed her to be wearing this dress as the colour represents purity and innocence, and furthermore shows her personality; loyal and intelligent.
Dressing her in a white dress also makes her appear more vulnerable in a horror film against the monster, and the material is able to be easily ruined to show her cuts and bruises, representing the torture which is commencing in the film. The high knee black socks represent the theme (2000's) and summertime, as with the white vintage pumps.
The costume designed is also convenient for acting in, as it is loose fitting, and easily accessible to buy.







Kate Preston

Kate Preston's character is dressed in a long, over the hips cotton cardigan with navy blue collar and matching buttons, to open. The sleeves again, are flares to represent the vintage theme, but are tie-dyed/patterned green/blue, to represent her outgoing, fun personality.
The high-waisted black shorts are able to represent the season - summertime, and the white tights and military boots symbolise that they are going camping, as she wears practical shoes.The costume designed is easily accessible to buy, and is also suitable for acting in, as it is comfortable, and wearable.












Lucy Barnes

Lucy Barnes is a quiet but intelligent character, however, she is also the main character (Mary Alice Jones's) best friend, therefore her costume should be slightly influenced by her best friends (as in reality.) As the costumes are designed for a camping trip, in the summer (as scripted) I have designed a pastel coloured purple long length shirt, and light blue denim mini. The shirt represents that she is a sensible character, and also she looks more vulnerable by wearing a sensible shirt (as usually the most sensible actors are the weakest). Furthermore, the pastel coloured shirt could symbolise her innocence in the film, as pastel colours are fairer than darker tones. The mini skirt with no tights symbolises however, than although she is a sensible character, she is also laid back, and it symbolises the summer theme. The pitman boots bring the theme back to the modern day, are suitable footwear for acting in, but also they relate to the camping in the script.The costume designed can easily be bought, and it comfortable to wear whilst shooting the film.

Mark Cullon


The character Mark Cullon is a very outgoing character, who enjoys socialising with his friends and having fun, although he can be selfish and sometimes only thinks about his own safety-rather than other peoples. When designing this costume I found it quite difficult to think of an idea which would be both symbolic to the character but is realistic to the viewers. Therefore I designed a simple casual look for men, but with more edge to represent his attitude. The red of the top symbolises his lack of respect for friends, as later in the film he comes to regret this, when he is in danger. Furthermore, the red could represent his fiery personality, and as most people in the script I have designed them to be wearing pastel colours, to symbolise innocence, the colour red on this character makes him stand out as an individual. The black three quarters link in with the summer season, and the red vintage pumps link in with the theme, but also with the symbolism of the colour red. As it is set for the modern day period, but has the theme of vintage which makes the film more eerie, this costume links in well, and is easily accessible to buy, and comfortable to wear for acting in.


Samue

l Smith

The character Samuel Smith is an intelligent character who is loyal to his friends and family. He is also Mary-Alice’s boyfriend in the film, which makes him also seem like a main character. Once she goes missing in the film, the audience will immediately know that the character Sam will do all he can in order to save her.Therefore I have designed a white long sleeved top for him to wear (white linking to Mary-Alice’s costume), as this represent purity and innocence on his behalf. The black buttons on the shirt however, could perhaps connote danger, and a hidden side to the character.As the season which it is being filmed in is summer, and the characters aregoing camping, I further designed him to wear light denim jeans, as they are comfortable and suitable to wear, and also the black and white shoes (linking back to the symbolism of colour).This costume is easily affordable, and is further suitable to be worn whilst filing in the woods.










PHOTOGRAPHS OF COSTUMES ON ACTORS.

Mary-Alice Jones


Although the costume which I designed was a cream/white 3/4 length dress, this appeared too white on the camera, and also the design looked unrealistic. Therefore by placing a navy blue braced dress onto of the white shirt, and white leggings, this was able to add more colour, and vibrancy to the character, but also portrays the summer theme. The chosen dress, which I have decided to portray styles blue braces, which both connotes the summer theme, but furthermore also looks like she is going camping, which is presented in the script. Although the costume had to be changed slightly, the white still has symbolism of innocence and purity, but without the costume being totally white, and unrealistic.






Kate Preston


The costume which I designed for this character worked perfectly, as the actor was able to access the outfit easily, and also act easily in it.
Extra accessories were added during filming - the orange flower clip, to make the character seem more outgoing, and bubbly, as featured in the character profile. Although the cardigan differs from the one in which I designed, the overall effect reflects the one which I designed.
The denim blue shorts, and grey tights and pitman shoes, are able to connote the summertime feel, and are also suitable for filming outside in
camping conditions.
I am pleased with the effect of the costume upon the actor, as I believe she looks realistic, it reflects the characters personality, and it is suitable for filming in.

Similar Films (Clare)

Wrong Turn

Wrong turn is a film based around a group of 5 friends who are traveling out to the woods for a camping trip, and also on a man who is traveling to a job interview. They meet when the man, Chris, crashes into the friends jeep which is stranded in the road.

As the 6 people realise that they won't be able to find help, they are all kidnapped one by one, by a group of inbred, cannibilistic mountain men. Towards the end of the film only chris and one of the girls from the group, Jessie, are still alive. They fight with the mountain men and end up blowing up their abandoned cabin. Jessie and Chris escape back through the forest, believing that the 3 mountain men are dead. However as police inspect the burnt down cabin, one of the mountain men kills them. The screen goes black and the mountain mens laughter is heard- suggesting that they survived.

A group of 3 college students travel to Burkitsville, Maryland in order to research the legend of the "Blair Witch". They interview several locals who tell them about ritual killings and warn them that the woods are haunted.

The students proceed to hike into the the woods and camp there for several days, looking for evidence of the blair witch. Things start to go terribly wrong after they disturb a Cairn in a graveyard. The group are haunted through out the night by cracking noises, children's laughter and other unidentifiable noises. One of the boys goes missing and his screams can be heard from the woods- but he cannot be found. The other 2 members search for him in vain and discover an abandoned cabin- after some sort of struggle the camera is dropped and both of their screams can be heard- before stopping abruptly.

Film Title (Clare)

We chose the title "Ellipsis" because we felt that it related to our film plot. An "Ellipsis" usually indicates that something is missing, but it can also show a pause in speech, an unfinished thought or more importantly a trailing of into silence. We felt that this was a reasonable name for our film because it gives them impression that something is missing form the story line and also at the end of the film it trails off into silence when Mary-Alice stops screaming.

The word "Ellipsis" also sounds quite scary and spooky with the emphasis on the letter "S".

Suggested Elements (Emma Mitchell)

As our film is a horror film, lasting only 2 minutes, and must represent the genre horror, we need to build up a reasonably tense atmosphere and we could do this by using many different aspects of media. Iconography is essential in suggesting the type of genre a film is, in order to ensure the audience know our film genre is horror, we could do the following;

• We could use dark lighting/dark filter to suggest an ominous atmosphere, and also to make the film more eerie.


• Music is an essential element of horror films, as it adds tone and depth to the film, and therefore we should include non-diagetic sound in the film, to ensure tension is in the film.


• The audience must immediately be drawn into the film, and therefore we could use a character with blood on them, to represent what is to later happen in the film. (Do this by using flashback)


• We could have the diagetic sound of the same character screaming at the beginning, suggesting she is in pain, or scared. As our film is a horror movie, we would film the character screaming at the camera, in mid long shot, to show her facial expressions and the little of the background, adding a mystery eliment to the 2 minutes.


• Preferably, the character should be a girl because in most horror films, the last person standing against the monster of the film is usually a girl, as woman are less likely to succeed and live, and also they tend to scream, adding a more unnerving tone.
  

EXAMPLE

MISE-EN-SCENE
This is an image which I found on the internet which shows how our set design included in the first scene should be visualised.
The main character should be sat in a dimly lit room (dark filter), with a mid-long shot of her,
and her surroundings, with a defeated look upon her face.
Make up includes dark eyes to suggest the girl is distressed, and also to represent her deprivation
of sleep, and freedom. Her skin should be covered in dirt, scratches, bruises, cuts, blood etc,
to symbolise she has been/is being tortured. The costume should be a light/pastel coloured to symbolise her innocence and purity in the film, it also makes her look less inferior, rather than if she was to be wearing black. A lightly coloured costume would also make her stand out from the darkly lit room, representing that she should not be there.
The background should not be revealed just yet, as this then adds an element of mystery for the audience, and furthermore the shot then look claustrophobic to the audience, adding tension to the film. Predominately, the background should be a desolate area; a room, a wood etc, so the character looks alone and vulnerable, furthermore it should be based around the materials wood/stone/dirt as these surfaces look cold for the character to be sat upon, and this further adds an eerie tone.

Film Questionnaire (Clare Emma Giorgina)

Film Questionnaire

1.Gender: Male Female

2.Age: 15-20 21-25 26-30 31+

3.What genre of horror film do you prefer?

Zombie Monster (Frankenstein etc) Gothic Slasher

Survival Supernatural Vampire Other

Other please state_

___________________________________________________________________

4.Out of the following horror films which have you seen?

Scream 1-3 Saw 1-6 Texas Chainsaw Massacre

Blair Witch Paranormal Activity Last House on the Left

Wrong Turn The Strangers The Grudge

The Ring One Missed Call The Unborn

If none please state other: _______________________________________________

5. Why do you enjoy horror films?

Characters Monsters Suspense/Being Scared

Storyline Special Effects/ CGI Blood & Gore

6.On a scale of 1-10 (1 being none and 10 being a lot) how much violence/gore do you like in a horror film?

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

7. Do you prefer modern horror films (2000+) or old-fashioned horror films (before 2000)?

Modern (E.g. Saw, Paranormal Activity, 28 days later)

Old Fashioned (E.g. Dracula, Frankenstein, Exorcist)

8. Would you like to watch our film?

“When a group of friends holiday goes terribly wrong –and Kate goes missing in the woods, Can they find her? Save her? And Survive?”

Yes No

If not why?____________________________________________

9.Our full film would last around 90 minutes, do you feel that it would be:

Too Long Long-Enough Too short

Thank-You for filling in our Questionnaire

Main Cast (Clare)

Mary-Alice Jones: Played By Emma Mitchell

Mary-Alice is 17 years old, has medium length brown hair and brown eyes, she is about 5"8and is dating Sam Smith. She is a regular, quiet student who is very intelligent. She is very loyal to her friends and family, and would never intentionally hurt someone.

Kate Preston: Played By Charlotte Moreland

Kate Preston is also 17 years old, she has short red hair and blue eyes, she is about 5"5 and is single. She is a very loud outgoing girl who likes to have fun and party. She too is very loyal to her friends and family, but doesn't show it as much as Mary-Alice. Kate can sometimes be very selfish and reckless.

Lucy Barnes: Played By Giorgina Parker

Lucy Barnes is 17 years old, she has long brown hair and blue eyes, she is about 5"10 and is single. Lucy is best friends with Mary-Alice and has been since they were 5. Lucy is very quiet and also intelligent.

Samuel Smith: Played By Oliver Dyson

Samuel is 17, he has short brown hair and blue eyes, he is 5"11 and is dating Mary-Alice. Sam is a very loving and devoted boyfriend. He would do anything for Mary-Alice. Sam is fairly intelligent and very loyal to friends and family.

Mark Cullon : Played By Matthew Holdroyd

Marl is 18 years old and is single, he has short blonde hair and blue eyes. He is 6"1 and fairly intelligent. He is the more out going boy, who like Kate likes to party, however he is closer to Lucy. Mark acts before he thinks and ends up in a lot of trouble.

Film Certification (Clare)

Our film is going to be certificate 15. This is because:

• Certificate 15 films have the largest audience
• Our film does not involve or promote the use of drugs
• Our film does contain any footage of dangerous behaviour (E.g Suicide, Self Harming)
• Our Film does contain moderate amounts of horror- but it is not sadistic or sexualised
• Our film contains only mild swear words
• Our film contains no scenes of extreme nudity
• Our film does not involve any sexual scenes containing strong detail- they will only be mild and extremely brief
• There are strong images of pain and violence in our film- however they do not focus on the infliction of pain and it is not sadistic or sexualised

http://http://www.bbfc.co.uk/downloads/pub/Guidelines/BBFC%20Classification%20Guidelines%202009.pdf

Location ideas for filming our opening;

Here are a list of ideas of locations that could be used to film our opening at;

- A local forest/woods at a later night time.

- Barnsley College.

- Train Station

- A path leading to forest/woods.

We are likely to be only using most of these locations throughout the whole film, but only a couple for the first 2 minutes.

Research - Distributors (Giorgina)

Some of the Distributors of Films that are similar to ours:



Artisan Entertainment - Blair Witch Project
Artisan, unlike most movie studios, had its roots in the home video industry.




20th Century Fox - Wrong Turn
Motion picture company




Pathe - Wrong Turn
Film equipment and production company.




Fox starlight Pictures - The Hills have eyes
It specialises in indie and British films, alongside dramedy and horror as well as non-English language films, and is variously involved with the production and/or distribution of these films.




Rouge Pictures - The last house on the left
Rogue Pictures is a division of Relativity Media.



Warner Brothers. - Texas Chainsaw Massacre

Warner Brothers is an American producer of film and television entertainment.

Researching Genre (Emma Mitchell)

Our genre of film is horror, as it aims to inflict fear and terror to viewers from many mise-en-scene elements, such as music, special effects and trailers. Horror movies have changed through out the years, as the range of technology used has increased, enabling the film industry to use more special effects and sound quality to heighten the viewers fear. However, these are also greatly needed within the film industry, as the amount of terror in reality has also increased, therefore the audiences are less likely to be scared by watching a simple film.

Here we have a range of horror films throughout the years which include different techniques to scare the viewer.

PARANORMAL ACTIVITY - 2009


This film uses supernatural to scare the audience, and to add realism to the film it includes
hand held camera to represent "found footage". This film was very successful, within the
horror genre. This could be used in our 2 minute opening to suggest an unidentified character,
which would add a cliffhanger for our film.

THE STRANGERS - 2009


This is an American horror film with elements of a slasher film. This film also was very successful, as
the film was marketed as being inspired by a true story. This could link to our film, as we are using a
the form of kidnapping, therefore we are able to relate our storyline with the one featured in this film.
THE EXORCIST - 1973


This is also an American horror film but this is adapted from the novel of the same name
"The Exorcist". The genre Horror has many sub-genres and therefore the ways in which they
become successful in the industry differ. However, this particular horror film has remained one of the
scariest of all time, and still remains one of the most famous horror films in history. Although we
are not aiming to produce a horror film aiming at the genre supernatural , this is a film in which
there is a high level of acting, therefore we should aim to make our acting as real as featured in "The Exorcist".

FRANKENSTEIN - 1931


This is also an American horror film which is based on the novel of the same name. Perhaps one
of the most recognizable named films in history, this film (although in modern times the filming
seems poor) was very successful and scared audiences around the world and it is thought to be
one of history's horror classics. Although our film will not feature any of the suggested elements
which are portrayed in this particular film, many of today's horror films are influenced by
"Frankenstein", as it is one of the first horror movies ever made, therefore it is important to
research both today's horror films, but the history of horror films, for wider knowledge of what the
genre consists of.