Film Storyboard

This is the first draft of our film's storyboard. Rather than drawing the events of the film, we instead decided to use an online story-boarding software called 'Storyboard That'. This allowed for much more detailed and effective storyboard than sketches would have been capable of. It will also be beneficial to us as it will enable us to undergo cinematography more easily now that we have a more definite image of the film. The storyboard itself can be seen below. You can click on each section of the storyboard to enhance it.

Film Treatment

Film Name: Lily

 

Overview: The Film is about a teenage girl who receives psychic abilities after an accident, and the subsequent consequences of having these abilities.

 

Outline:  Main character (Lily) has been hospitalised after an accident. The accident has given her psychic abilities with which she can foresee the deaths of others via physical contact. In the first vision she foresees Dr Walker (the doctor that was treating her in hospital) succumb to a heart attack in his office. Lily then goes home accompanied by her boyfriend, Brett. The following day, Lily hears a radio report concerning the death of her doctor. This causes her to become hysterical, resulting in her second vision when Brett attempts to comfort her. In this vision she sees herself stabbing him to death. He convinces her that she is merely delusional, though she remains sceptical. The same evening, Brett finds Lily in the living room, still behaving strangely, and suggests that she seek help since it is beginning to affect their relationship. This angers Lily, causing her to storm into the kitchen with Brett in tail. She then attacks him with a knife in a sequence mirroring that of the vision. She snaps out of her trance and drops the knife before placing back in the holder and going to bed. The film ends with one final shot of the knife holder, the knife itself being absent.

Technical Information:  Length: 5 Minutes

                                            Certificate: 12A

Location:

• First Scenes– Hospital (Infirmary at Barnsley College)
• Second Scene – On a quiet street [Location not yet defined]
• All following scenes - At Lily and Brett's home (one of our homes)

Cast List:

• April Carr – Lily
• Michael Eastwood – Brett
• Ross Walker – Dr Walker

Synopsis: After receiving a severe knock on the head, 18 year old Lily Ashton is rushed to the emergency room, where she is in a coma for approximately a week. She wakes up to find that she has developed a psychic ability. Specifically, she can foresee the death of anyone she touches; all of which come true. However, when she touches her boyfriend Brett Fletcher, she sees a vision of herself murdering him and becomes determined to disprove it.

The film opens with Lily being rushed to the emergency room, although the scene is disorientated with flashing lights and blur. The screen fades to black and reopens with Lily waking up from her coma with Brett and a doctor at her bedside. Brett is happy to see that she is awake, while the doctor checks Lily temperature by placing his hand against her forehead. This triggers Lily’s first vision as she sees the doctor being knocked down by a car. She thinks nothing of it and Brett escorts her home. In the hospital corridor, Lily accidentally bumps into a rather nervous looking man, who she foresees dying of a heart attack.

At home the following morning she hears a news report on the radio saying that a man had had a heart attack while driving, and had hit a local doctor. Lily begins to panic and Brett attempts to calm her, touching her in the process. As a result, Lily foresees herself stabbing Brett. She explains that she has been having visions (though deliberately neglects to mention the vision she had of killing him).

Another week or so on and Lily has been becoming increasingly hysterical due to her visions, causing Brett to question the strength of their romantic relationship. He argues that she is no longer the person she was and suggests that she seek help. She is angered and grabs a knife from a knife-rack in the kitchen and attempts to attack him in a delusional state. Lily admits that she had seen herself kill Brett, and that there is no way to disprove the prophecy. Brett convinces her to put the knife back, and she does. He argues that all she needs to do is control herself, and the prophecy can never come true. Lily however remains sceptical.

The film ends with a short scene the same night consisting of a single shot. The shot reveals that the knife Lily had replaced is now gone. The screen then fades to black.

Use of Elliptical Editing

Below is the full length clip prior to editing.

 

Below is the same clip after elliptical editing has taken place.

 

 

 

Effective use of elliptical editing will be vital in our short film production to prevent its length becoming any greater than the ideal 5 minutes. In regards to the above clip, we managed to shorten the clip by 42 seconds (nearly 75% of the clip's total length) while still portraying the same events without any loss of continuity or meaning. We will need to duplicate this effect in our main production to achieve the optimum length.

Individual research: Title Sequences.

I used the site 'Art of the Title' to aid my individual research into title sequences. The site works as a database of title sequences. Using this site enabled me to choose a specific genre of film, psychological thriller, providing inspiration in regards to the creation of our own title sequence.

Se7en (Director David Fincher, 1995):

Se7en's title sequence features multiple grotesque images symbolising the films genre. The title sequence is discrete, a method used to set the tone of the film before it begins- a form of readying the audience. The title sequence was so dauntingly successful it inspired the creation of several other title sequences within the future, for example 'American Horror Story' is a televison show which features a montage of disturbing shots clearly inspired by Se7en's opening titles.

Image featured displaying a deceased male- murdered.

As shown above 'Se7en' features a series of outlandish images each centred and focused on through still shallow depth of field shots. Once combined these images portray a story to the audience, conveying the context of the film. Each image features iconography of blood conveying a theme of death. Props are used within the sequence: files, pens and paper, these items are linked unchronologically representing the creation of a file or case used to track victims down.

Shot of unknown male investigating.

 The shots are often combined through a fade edit, this represents the literal linking of information within the sequence. This therefore symbolises the building of the investigation. The continued fade to black also increases the dark tone of the film and eerie atmosphere as black connotes death and fear.

Extreme close-up.

Each shot is close up involving shallow depth of field isolating the view. This was done intentionally to avoid revealing the setting causing a sense of mystery and tension as the sadistic plotter could be anywhere. The use of close up also allows the identity of the plotter to remain anonymous furthering the tension.

Prop/Costume list:

Costume list:

Lily: 

• 1st scene: Hospital robe establishes setting, dark shadows under eyes to represent tiredness.
• 2nd scene: Casual clothing, jeans and a loose jumper causing 'Lily' to appear vulnerable.
• 3rd scene: Pyjamas representing the time of day.
• 4th scene: Return to casual clothing, jeans and loose jumper.

Brett:

• Various shirts with jeans throughout.

Doctor:

• A 'doctor' costume eg. white coat.
• Also includes the prop of clipboard

Prop list:

• Doctor props: clipboard, pen, paper, computer, files.
• Overnight bag.
• Kitchen props: kettle, mugs etc.
• Radio.
• Wine bottle (empty).
• Knife with holder.

Research Into Potential Audience

It is not uncommon for psychological thrillers to contain disturbing and violent elements. As a result, they often hold a certificate of 15 or 18 and are most often viewed by a more adult audience that can appreciate such themes. It is also a trait for psychological thrillers to be intellectually demanding or intentionally confusing. This is indeed the case for Memento (2000), in which a man creates a strange system to help him remember things so he can hunt for the murderer of his wife without his short-term memory loss being an obstacle. The presence of mental strain or disturbing content is often not marketable for younger audiences, and thus the genre is more popular within older age groups.

The above pie chart displays the distribution of age groups that view psychological thriller films. The most occupied segments of the chart appear to be the ages of 26-40 (at 35%) and 19-25 (at 24%). It seems likely that most of the data of the 26-40 age bracket will be skewed more towards 26. There is also a reasonable number of viewers in the 13-18 range (17%). In light of this information, it would be sensible to target our film at audiences approximately between the ages of 18 and 35. By calculation from information in the chart, the average age of psychological thriller audiences is around 27 years old. However, given that our film features two teenagers as the main characters, it seems likely that the audience of our film would be slightly younger than this; perhaps more towards their early 20s. This would therefore be the approximate age of our target audience.

When considering our ideal target audience, we must also take into account the gender of the viewer. Within this genre, the proportion of gender will vary from film to film. Nonetheless, there does appear to be an overall trend (seen below).

The psychological thriller genre appears to be popular with males and females; although 14% more popular with males. Given the nature of the overall thriller genre, it seems likely that viewers are seeking some kind of excitement; a trait that is more common amongst the male population. Hence, the distribution is slightly male dominated. While a skew in the data is clearly present, it is unlikely to have any significant effect on the nature of our target audience. Furthermore, our film contains aspects appealing to both genders (e.g. - a female protagonist, adrenaline inducing scenes). Thus, it seems unnecessary to adapt our film in any way based on the gender of the viewer; it can be equally targeted at both simultaneously.



Individual Analysis of a Title Sequence - The Shining

A film that possesses numerous similarities to ours is 'The Shining' (1980), in that they are both psychological thrillers that involve a young psychic who can foresee death and danger, as well as sporting a deluded killer. Hence, I decided to analyse the title sequence of this film as a source of ideas for our own project

As is often the case with Stanley Kubrick's work, the film is full of clever yet subtle imagery. For example, the film opens with an extreme long shot of a small island situated in the middle of a lake. This immediately sets the tone for the rest of the film; the tone being isolation. I suspect that the lone island is intended not only to represent the remoteness of the area, but also to represent the not yet seen Outlook Hotel where a majority of the film takes place; in that it is almost completely isolated from anywhere else of significance. Throughout the title sequence, some eerie, ominous music can be heard in order to create and uneasy atmosphere.

This shot then dissolves to an aerial shot of a car as it travels alone along a winding road. The car is very framed very wide and loosely; it only appears as a small spec in this shot. Kubrick has deliberately attempted to draw attention to the vastness of the surrounding area and how insignificant and isolated the small car is. This, again, contributed to the film's key theme of isolation.

There are several of these aerial shots throughout the sequence, each one drawing little attention to the car and rather the sheer size of the surrounding area. However, it is noticeable that despite the car's lack of attention in the shot as a whole, it seems that almost every shot is a tracking shot of the car; which creates the impression of a 'bird of prey', that the car's occupants are being perused by someone or something. This works hand-in-hand with the eerie music to create a very unsettling and ominous atmosphere that very much sets the scene for much of the rest of the film.

Oddly, the appearance of the film's title is rather downplayed; it brushes vertically across the shot and immediately exits. Its font and colouring are also rather basic too. Kubrick may have does this intentionally so that the title does not draw attention away from the scenery. This way, the latter's vastness and remoteness are further clarified.

Strangely, the individual shots do not transition between each other with a smooth dissolve, but rather with an abrupt cut. This may have been done to create an effect similar to that of the jump cut, in that it creates a rather unsettling and panicky tone. This effect is used as a transition into another shot where it appears that snow is beginning to form on the mountains and across the road. This creates the impression that the road is not only isolated, but also treacherous, and would be easily rendered impassable in the event of a snowstorm.

The final shot of the title sequence reveals the film's main setting: The Outlook Hotel. It seems to be rather lively, judging by the high presence of cars in its car park. This acts as a direct antithesis to the feelings of isolation the viewer was presented with previously. Nonetheless, the framing of the shot remains loose and wide, revealing that there are no presence of other forms of civilisation around the hotel, showing that in fact the hotel itself is isolated from the rest of the world, which certainly comes into play later in the film. The sequence most likely attempts to establish the loneliness and remoteness of the setting which, coupled with the eerie non-diegetic music, creates a rather unsettling and ominous foreshadowing of events to come; juxtaposed with the beauty and serenity of the setting. It shows that even a setting as majestic and beautiful as this can become an isolated hell under the right circumstances.

Title Sequence Research

A Title Sequence is often found at the start of a film or television show, and allows the production company to present the key production, title and cast members to their audience while simultaneously building the atmosphere of the film to follow. This usually involves conceptual imagery and sound relating to the plot and film genre, which can in turn be used to get across certain messages and information to the audience that introduce them to the storyline.

Audiences often expect a number of things when viewing a title sequence. These include:

The Title Sequence of Psycho (1960).

• The film title.
• The main mise-en-scene theme in order to set up the atmosphere.
• Appropriate music or sound.
• The names of (some) of the companies involved in the film's production.
• Conceptual cinematography.
• The names of the main cast and crew.
• The main character(s) to be introduced.

Generally, there are 4 main types of title sequences that are used in films. These include:

• A narrative title sequence follows a micro story line or series of connected events relevant to the rest of the film in order to draw the audience in. The Shining (1980) is a good example of a narrative film opening (seen right). This particular sequence establishes the setting via numerous extreme long shots of a car from a helicopter. Framing is very wide and loose, creating a sense of isolation (which is effective given the context of the film). These shots also create the impression of a bird of prey, i.e. the occupants of the car are in danger and are being pursued.

• A discrete title sequence is intended to look as though it is a prelim of the film, giving out very little information but presenting several 'discrete' clues that allow the audience to decipher out what is to come for themselves. An example of this type of title sequence is Se7en (1995) (seen right). This title sequence is composed of a montage of some rather eerie shots; creating some disturbing connotations. It helps the viewer to delve into the atmosphere of the film and is prepared for what is to come.

• Sometimes, a title sequence of a film may simply be credits over the screen. This could be over certain shots, or over a black screen. An example of this is the title sequence of Donnie Darko (2001) (seen right). In this type of title sequence, films make use of sound and font (rather than visuals) to establish the mood of the film. The sounds heard in the Donnie Darko title sequence are effective in creating a rather suspenseful atmosphere.

• A title sequence may make use of heavily stylised editing.  This means that it involves frequent use of visual effects in order to immediately capture the audiences attention. An example of this in practice is the title sequence of Mesrine: Killer Instinct (2008) (seen right). The split screen effect presents the same scene from a variety different angles. This creates the impression that the character is being observed from numerous locations, which helps to create suspense when coupled together with the music.

Shot List

View our shot list

Individual Analysis of a Poster - Se7en

Above is the poster for "Se7en" (1995), which similarly to our film, is a psychological thriller. Hence, it seemed like a sensible idea to analyse such a poster in order to gather a clearer understanding of what is likely to be seen in a poster for this genre. Thus, I will be able to incorporate these ideas when designing a poster of my own.

The above pieces of text are both situated in the centre of the poster, as well as being white (meaning that they directly juxtapose with their eerie black background). This would imply that this (aside from the title) is what the poster's designers wanted to draw attention to in particular. Moreover, most people would immediately identify the above words as being the 7 deadly sins. If not, then the poster uses the sentence below to act as anchorage in order to clarify their significance to the viewer. In addition, it would appear that each of the sins has been crossed through with a red mark; reminiscent of that of a checklist. This, coupled with the aforementioned anchorage, would immediately connote to the viewer that some kind of 7-deadly-sins-themed serial killer is on the loose (as is the case in the film). It is also interesting that the strikes through the words are written in red; the colour that is often used as an index to signify danger or violence (as would be the case with a serial killer). It may also signify that the strikes were written in blood, which would further augment the unsettling nature of the poster.

When observing the film's title, we see another appearance of the index of red to signify danger and to connote the colour of blood. However, what is particularly interesting about this title is that if the viewer observes it closely, it appears that the first 'e' is written slightly differently that the second, rather than in a consistent font-like fashion. This creates the impression that the title was written by hand (and in blood). Not only this, but a tally of 7 can be seen slightly below the title, which marks the number's fourth appearance in the poster. This, and the fact that the title seems handwritten, forms a syntagm that implies the text we see in the poster is in fact written by the killer, and that it gives insight into their obsessive and violent tendencies.

As is often the case with film posters, the poster utilises star-power to attract a larger audience. Brad Pitt and Morgan Freeman play the film's two protagonists, and (being A-list celebrities) will therefore attract those who are fans of their previous work. Similarly to the white text, they are brightly coloured in order to juxtapose with the dark background. Their golden colour may have been specifically used to signify the two actors' statuses as glamorous actors, and again, to attract an audience familiar with their work.

As is often seen in films, a lighting effect seen here is that the faces of Pitt and Freeman are mostly only illuminated one side of their faces, creating an almost schizophrenic impression. It would also seem that they are the only parts of the entire poster that is illuminated, while the rest is obscured by darkness. This could be an index to reflect their role as the protagonists, as they are attempting to bring a notorious serial killer to justice, thus bringing hope into a dark world.

Almost all film posters will incorporate some kind of quotation from a reviewer. The reasons for this are fairly obvious: to compel the viewer to see the film. I suspect that this quotation was chosen in particular, in that it incorporates most of what an audience would expect from a psychological thriller; thus attracting fans of said genre.

Individual research into similar films:

Psychological thriller is a thriller story which emphasizes the psychology of its characters and their unstable emotional states.

Similar films to our synopsis include 'The Machinist' ( Director Brad Anderson, 2004) which focuses on the insane experiences of lead protagonist Trevor Reznik portrayed by Christian Bale. Bale performs as an industrial worker who has failed to sleep for over a year causing him to question his own sanity.
The films genre is classified equivalent to our own, also recognised as a Psychological thriller. A second similarity between 'The Machinist' and 'Lily' is that both lead characters experience trauma which impacts their mental state. Both characters are also classified as outsiders as they are misunderstood by others. In addition to these similarity factors both themes include dark themes and death finalising their likeness.

'The Machinist' received excellent reviews placing second on IMDb's top 100 psychological thrillers including fan praise toward's Bale due to his determination within weight loss for the role.'The Machinist's success was also celebrated through the nomination of 10 awards as well as 10 wins.

After consideration I decided to research into similar short films considering the project we will be producing is a short film also. This will allow me to discover comparisons between story line, context, themes and cinematography on a smaller more comparable scale.

 
'ABE' (Director Rob McLellan 2013) is a 2013 short film, it is a tense psychological thriller following the story of a misunderstood robot searching to find love in all the wrong places. The antagonist 'Abe' has previously experienced rejection and since has vowed to test women he falls in love with and kill them if the love is unrequited. Whilst analysing the short film I realised many more genre conventions are used in contrast to a feature length film. This is because short films have a limited running time to convey their genre and themes to the audience juxtaposed to feature length films. For example 'The Machinist' featured 101 minutes of running time whereas 'ABE' only had 8 minutes.
Iconography within the short film includes knives and blood, the setting also fits psychological thriller stereotypes as it is in a dark abandened area. This iconography symbolises the theme of the short as well as creating obvious context which is easily translated by the audience, the robot wants revenge for being unloved.

        

'ABE' replicated the success of 'The Machinist' despite the short time scale. The film remained precise and clear throughout with an easy to follow story line. These aspects awarded the film with number 48 on IMDb's Most Popular Thriller Short Films. Following the internet's appreciation of 'ABE', receiving 60,000 views on Youtube, the short is now being created as a feature length film by MGM.

Through researching similar films I am now aware that through producing a short film well using genre conventions the context and themes of our short film will be clear to the audience despite a limited running time. I am now aware that the success of a film is dependant on how it is made not how long and in depth the story line is although uniqueness of a storyline does contribute to success.