Final Prelim

Prelim - Editing 2

Prelim - Editing 2

In this lesson we just made sure that the footage wasn't flawed and that the transitions between scenes were effective. I feel that our prelim task could have been done to a higher standard as some of the shots are very basic and do not look professional and that is something I will improve on when creating my thriller opening. 

For the rest of the lesson, I watched a few examples of AS thriller openings from previous years and I researched some thrillers online. Researching thriller opening sequences shows that a lot of them have very similar features such as low key lighting, tense music and quick cuts. I will be sure to try and include these features in my thriller opening sequence.

 

Prelim - Editing

Prelim- Editing

To begin with, we filtered through our raw footage and deleted any shots that were blurry, shaky or not focused on the right object. When we were happy with the remaining shots, we began editing them on Adobe Premier Pro. Each person in the group took their turn editing the shots and finding and adding sound effects that they thought were needed. The editing included cutting down shots to remove unnecessary bits of footage and adding sound effect such as a gun shot. The editing also included adding a title sequence to the end of the scene.

 

Prelim- Filming

Prelim - Filming

When filming our preliminary task, myself and Joe were the actors within the film and Emily was behind the camera filming. However, me and Joe took turns filming separate scenes that we were not in. This included using shots such as a POV shot. Also, we all had to make sure that the tripod was set up correctly for each shot and that the camera was focused on the main feature of the scene. We set up proper lighting and made sure that the scene was dark enough to build suspense and tension. 

The filming of our scene went well and the dialogue was very fitting for the genre we were aiming for. 

Prelim

Prelim Task - Planning

In this lesson we began planning our preliminary task. The task was to create a short scene that included different shots such as; over the shoulder shot; POV shot; shot reverse shot etc. The scene also needed to include 4 lines of dialogue. As this lesson was just for planning, we created a storyboard so that we knew what shots to use for each part of the scene. We also decided on the props we would use, such as a fake gun and a computer. 

 

Se7en

Se7en

Director: David Fincher

Writer: Andrew Kevin Walker

Starring: Brad Pitt, Morgan Freeman, Gwyneth Paltrow,

Kevin Spacey.

Run Time: 127 Minutes

Plotline

An experienced detective and a rookie take on the case of a serial killer who uses one of the seven deadly sins for each of his murder victims.

Storyline

A film about two homicide detectives' desperate hunt for a serial killer who justifies his crimes as absolution for the world's ignorance of the Seven Deadly Sins. The movie takes us from the tortured remains of one victim to the next as the sociopathic "John Doe" sermonizes to Detectives Sommerset and Mills -- one sin at a time. The sin of Gluttony comes first and the murderer's terrible capacity is graphically demonstrated in the dark and subdued tones characteristic of film noir. The seasoned and cultured but jaded Sommerset researches the Seven Deadly Sins in an effort to understand the killer's modus operandi while the bright but green and impulsive Detective Mills scoffs at his efforts to get inside the mind of a killer.

Conventions of a Thriller

• Low key lighting
• Quick cuts
• Shadows
• Tension music 
• Changes in the angle of shots
• Diegetic sound of breathing
• Black and white shots
• Montage of shots
• Protagonist is in the mercy of the antagonist 

Se7en is a thriller because it uses low key lighting to add suspense and mystery to the film. It also uses other conventions of thrillers such as tense music and quick cuts, these features are used to make the audience think about what is happening.