ENIGMA - AS Media production thriller opening by Aaron, Kyle and Kuziva

Filming schedule

Filming schedule

TIME	WHAT WE DID
9:30-10:45	Sorting out all the different props and costumes read for filming at 11
10:45-11:00	Getting to the location and start setting up camera  and tripod and the area of where we are going to film
11:00-12:30	Begin filming the starting scenes of which the detective appears at the location and slowly makes his way towards the murder scene.
12:30-01:15	Lunch Break
1:15-2:15	Begin to film again and finish all the scenes needed from that location, in which the detective gets to the murder location, looks around finds his partner dead.

 

Sound

Sound

For our sound we have figured out the different sound effects we are going to use throughout the opening sequence but we haven't quite decided on a soundtrack as of yet.

Firstly the scene starts of with a piece of dialogue between an unknown man and a detective, the first sound effect we are going to use is an old style telephone ringing and the phone being picked up and the dialogue will then start to roll, as the dialogue is rolling a quite quiet ticking sound will be placed underneath the speaking and this will then start to crescendo as the dialogue is coming to the end and will then stop when the file is slammed onto the table this then signifying the start of the soundtrack.

With the soundtrack we actually haven't got one yet but we have a small idea of what we want to use; something that crescendos as the sequence rolls to build tension and pace getting the audience gripped not only with what is happening in the sequence but the sound contributing to the atmosphere as well. Something that has a rhythm that is continuous but then has a strong beat in the background giving the whole soundtrack a hearty melody, also getting inspiration from Sherlock Holmes maybe try get a soundtrack that has some out of tune instruments to signify age and history to the hole piece complimenting the old style detective genre we strongly wanted to recreate.     

Risk Assessment

Hazard	Possible Risk	Prevention
Needles     (H)	The reason for the needles is because at the wellhead bridge there have been reports of drug abuse in this area.	To inspect the area for any evidence of drug abuse, if there is any evidence then we abort the plan of using the wellhead bridge.
Broken Glass   (H)	The reason for having this is because there have been reports of ASBO’s in this area which have resulted in people acting drunk in the area.	This will be prevented by the group thoroughly checking our filming area to make sure that there is no glass to harm us.
Slippery Surfaces (H)	Due to the age of railway bridge ,  the supports used are concrete and over time have been covered in moss creating a slippery surface.	To prevent falling over due to the slippery surfaces, we will make sure  that we wear appropriate footwear that  has a good grip. We will also make sure that we are aware of our surroundings, this will ensure that we don’t step on any slippery surfaces.
Fall off the Bridge (L)	The railway bridge we  are using is no longer being used, this means the railings aren’t as strong as they once were. This means they aren’t as  reliable .	This could be prevented by our group being wary of the surroundings and to make sure that when we are filming we are far away from the edge of the bridge.
Tripping over (H)	Due to the railway bridge being old there are bricks and rocks that fall off the bridge. This means the terrain is fairly rock and can be sharp .	To ensure we do not fall over and possibly cut ourselves or break something, we will  make sure we are careful about where we are filming, how we are filming and our general surroundings.
Loose Bricks/ Falling Debris (L)	Due to the railway  bridge being old , it means  there will be parts of the bridge  that will being to flake off because  of its age.  At times due to whether especially if  it’s windy, loose bricks  and debris will  fall  onto the group.	To prevent this from happening we will  make sure that we film at  places that  aren’t as  weak and fragile, to minimize the risk of loose bricks and falling debris. We can also minimize the risk of this happening if we don’t tamper with the bridge and make sure that we aren’t too forceful with bridge.

Location Scouting photos

We chose this specific location for many different reasons, the first reason is that it is very accessible for all of the group to get to as we all live quite near so it is planned tot he point that we can easily get quite a lot of the production filmed. But the main reason we chose this area/location is that it is very fitting for our genre; it's in a very secluded area yet also quite urban as it is an abandoned railway bridge, the secluded side adds mystery and curiosity as the detective walks through and over fields to get there so the audience from the beginning are guessing where he is going and what he is going to find when he eventually gets there. The urban side of the bridge gives a gritty and on the edge atmosphere to the genre as an abandoned location has the element of suprize that anything could happen and it also adds tension as the location has potential hazards not only in the narrative but to us the production team ourselves. The overall location just compliments the whole film noir/detective genre perfectly, lots of nooks and crannies and small areas perfect for good camera angles and shots to produce a good looking range of shots helping to add to the tension and mystery to the whole moviescape. Also the location has many places the main scenes where the dead detective can be placed as its a quite large area, plent of room to put props adding even more to the feel of the detective genre.

Shot list of our final production

Shot number	Shot type	Reasoning
1	N/A	For the first three shots there will be no shots at all as the screen will be black and only audio will be playing, we have done it like this to add tension and mystery straight from the start of the opening sequence, the audio is between the detective and an unknown man in which the unknown man tells the detective that they have new information on a case 3 years ago in which his old partner died, this automatically gives the audience some of the narrative and immediately creates mystery as it gets the audiences mind running straight off the bat. (For more info on this scene look at the story boards where it is explained fully)
2
3
4	Jump cut from black to an Ariel shot	Straight after the black shots and the audio is finished there is a sudden jump cut to an Ariel shot in which the main prop file is slammed onto the table and then opened up. The use of the jump cut and the file being slammed onto the table has been used to add action into the scene to compliment the mystery, keeping the audience more on the edge of their seats.
5	Ariel shot/pan to close up	After the folder is opened the Ariel shot pans across the pages to show what looks like old case notes giving the prop a sense of authenticity and realism to the scene as it actually looks like an old detective case file. After panning across the pages the camera will then zoom in for a close shot of the first title of director, once stayed on the title for a little while it will then zoom back out to the original Ariel shot.
6	Ariel shot to close up and then pans to more close ups	Once the pages have turned a little more it will come to a double spread in which the camera will then zoom in for a close up for the second title, after this it will pan down to the third title, a pan diagonally upwards will go to the fourth title and then pan down to the fifth title. And back out to the Ariel shot.
7	Exactly the same as shot 6	And again exactly the same for shot 6 but for the sixth, seventh, eighth and ninth titles.
8	Ariel shot	After zooming out from the ninth titles and again more pages have been turned it will then come to the main double spread of the detective and the victim, this shot more prominent than the others to emphasise them being the main characters.
9	Zoom to close shot	After the Ariel shot of the main titles of the characters it will zoom to a close up of the picture of the detective and his titles what will be the graphic match to a flashback of the investigation 3 years ago.
10	Medium shot	After the graphic match to go into the flashback has occurred it will then be a medium shot of the detective at the scene of the investigation in which he will be walking towards the murder scene.
11	Long shot	As the detective walks towards the murder scene the shot will turn into a long shot.
12	Zoom out to Ariel shot and then close up of victim title and picture	After zooming out of the moving scene to the Ariel shot of the folder, after this the camera will then zoom to a close up of the victims title and a picture of him and again this will be used as a graphic match to the next flashback of the victim
13	High angle medium shot to long shot	After the graphic match, there will be a high angle medium shot of the victim (dead detective partner) laying on the ground or sitting against the wall or something like that what will then zoom out or cut to a long shot of the detective walking to the victim, crouching and inspecting the body with a small notebook and may cover the body with his coat.
14	Zoom out to Ariel shot	After the flashback has finished it will again zoom out of the flashback and again back to the Ariel shot of the double page spread of the main titles.
15	Again another repeat of shot sequence 6	Again another repeat of shot sequence 6
16	Ariel shot of ident	After the final set of titles are shown the file is then picked up and slammed onto the table again but this time the other way round what will then show our ident of ‘INQUISITIVE PRODUCTIONS’ presents..... And then a transition will roll into the main title of the film to be revealed.
17	Jump cut to black screen	A black screen will then suddenly appear and the main title of our film ‘ENIGMA’ will then be shown but in a more effective way , the tile will be spelled out letter by letter in a typewriter font and as each letter appears the sound of the typewriter keys will be heard.

If more information is needed there is more details on how the shots and the mise-en-scene fit the genre and the meaning we want to create this info will be found on the analysed storyboards seen earlier on my blog in the planning section.

Job Roles

Created with Padlet

Final Production Analysed Story Boards

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Inquisitive Productions- Enigma Pitch

Script for our final production

Script

 

 

With our final production there is only a small dialougue that sets up the scene and immediatly adds tension, suspence and mystery into the opening scene. This we got inspired by the start of sherlock Holmes and how very little dialougue was used at the start but is extremly effective at creating tension and suspense.

 

 

 

(Black screen) *phone starts to ring*

 

Aaron(The detective): "Hello?"

 

Kyle: "Is this DI Bailey?"

 

Aaron: "yes, yes it is how can i help you?"

 

Kyle: "I'm calling in regards of a case 3 years ago in which your partner sadly died, we have recieved some new information and we feel its best to have you on the case"

 

 

*stopwatch clicking starts with a long puase from the detective*

 

 

Aaron: "Of course."

 

*stopwatch sound cresendos untill case files and folders are slamed onto the table*

Our Thriller pitch

Thriller Pitch

Preliminary Task Evaluation

Preliminary Task Evaluation

For our preliminary task we had to film a short sequence of shots that has a narrative and contained these things: 

• A character opening a door
• A character crossing a room
• A character sitting down opposite another character and having a brief dialogue ( or some sort of communication/interaction between the characters.
• Match on match action
• A shot reverse shot 
• Keeping to the 180 degree rule

  With our preliminary task we created a western style narrative where it went from one character to another getting ready for a big Mexican standoff between them all. I feel that the narrative we created with our storyboards went well with the bits of camerawork/events we had to include (the ones above). When completing these events we used varying camera shots to show that we can use a whole range of shots that compliment the events perfectly. With the character opening the door we used mid shots to show the character walking towards/across the room to the door and a close up on his hand on the handle when opening the door, showing the event clearly, also the shots where steady due to the use of a tripod. The interaction between the characters i feel went quite well shot wise by using a long shot to show all 3 of our bodies and all of us in frame in powerful stances showing our authority in the standoff clearly and creating a good narrative and steady shots. The continuity between shots were almost perfect especially the use of a graphic match between scenes of the door being forcefully pushed open from one character to another. All of the characters separately come together flawlessly complimenting the continuity. Also we kept tightly to keeping with the 180 degree rule and we believe we did.

During the filming of the task the one thing we found the hardest was keeping all of the shots steady, as in one of the shots Kyle and Aaron were walking and the camera had to follow them and to do this we had to hold the camera by hand and not by tripod, this resulting in the shots being a little jerky and not that steady deducing from the narrative and skill. To stop this from happening in the future we will practice more on using the camera more steadily and using a tripod more efficiently. Also although there was interaction between characters we feel that maybe it was too little and that we should use more in our final production and finally we used very little different transitions which we feel could have been more differentiated to give it a better feel. 

From doing this preliminary task we have learnt what makes a good opening scene and what we maybe should include in our final production and what rules we should follow such as keeping to the 180 degree rule. As well as this we have gained knowledge and skills of using tripods and actually using the camera itself properly to get the right shots themselves. Furthermore we have also gained knowledge of how to use I movie and how to edit our clips to make a good opening scene and narrative what will be greatly used in the editing of our final production, this knowledge making it easier to use when it comes to editing as we have already had a hands on experience on the software before.

Props, Costume, Make-up and Lighting

Props, costume, make up and lighting

Props:

In our thriller opening there are a few different props but the main prop (or more like a series of props) that we are going to be using is a massive file/folder containing case notes and images made to look like an old detective case file and notes. The file will be worn and slightly burnt in places giving it a sense of age and a gritty detective feel to it. This is an extremely important prop as it gives inklings about the narrative and its where the titles for the characters and the production companies and editors and so on will be situated; The titles will roll after a detective is called by one of his colleagues and is told that the murder of his old partner 3 years ago has new information and the case is being re-opened and he is the detective on the case again once the call stops the old case file (the prop containing evidence and documents from the investigation 3 years ago) will be slammed onto the table with force yet enthusiasm, then the detective will start looking through the case and as the pages turn on each new page there will be a title for the editor of whoever is in the titles etc, the title will be surrounded by writing to simulate case notes (also the addition of finger prints and foot prints etc and that kind of stuff. Also it will be used to link the present scene to the old crime scene by using photos as a gateway for flashbacks to where the main detective was investigating 3 years ago , for example when the title for the actor playing the main detective comes up there will be a picture of him at the scene the camera will zoom in on it and a flash back will play , after that it will zoom out of the picture back to the present and the detective will continue to go through the file and the titles. This prop we decided to use really compliments the detective/film noir genre of thriller as that would be what you normally see in old time detective films used to store important documents that will help towards a case, the fact the file will be worn and a bit gritty and the detective still has it shows a strong connection between him and the victim (his old partner) this creating passion and the eagerness to help and use this mysterious “new information” to help find who killed his old partner. The whole use of the phone call and the trawling through the old case file creates tension and suspense straight from the start grabbing the audience’s attention to carry on watching seeing what unraveled 3 years ago and it being used as a segway to the investigation what is going to start again after the titles have finished. Other than the case file etc smaller props such as evidence markers will be used in the flash backs giving the whole investigation feel, shoes to make foot prints in the mud with and maybe a murder weapon all giving off the gritty detective genre perfectly creating mystery and suspense.

 

Costume:

The detective:

In flashbacks:

With the main detective the kind of costume that he will have will be quite smart yet has a little gritty look and sometimes maybe a little messy to give the detective a persona that gives of smart and intelligible yet now afraid to be all gritty and get hands on. The costume he will wear is a white shirt with a black tie, black trousers and shoes all under a longish black overcoat/jacket. This simulating the typical detective attire of smart yet gritty and hand on. Also a black trilby hat will be used to really emphasise the film noir genre as that is a generic convention of a film noir/detective period film.

In the present time:

As time has passed since the actual first investigation we wanted to show a slight change in costume to show that maybe since then the detective may have degraded a little, this will be shown with his costume being less formal but also still keeping it a little smart, the costume will be a white shirt maybe with stripes and a waistcoat with trousers and shoes but no tie and his sleeves rolled up , showing the slight untidiness and less formal showing a slight change in persona due to the events happening.

The victim/old partner

The sort of costume the victim will be wearing will be almost exactly the same as the main detective during the flashback, smart clothing but this time worn in a messy way to emphasize the fact he has been attacked on the job, some clothes may be slightly ripped and maybe a bit muddy. This all coming together to give the audience the idea that the victim may have had a struggle and was quite overwhelmed by whoever decided to kill him. This giving the victim  slight personality; the smart clothes giving him intelligence but the fact they are untidy and messed up showing he was lacking in physical strength, this giving the audience a feel for the character that has been killed.

Make-up:

In our thriller opening very little if any make-up will be used, we want to add more to our characters by giving them a powerful authoritative feel and we believe this will be achieved better if no make-up was used but if the actors themselves didn't shave giving them a edgy gritty feel as they look quite smart yet too rushed off their feet with the terrible fact a partner has been killed so haven’t been able to have time to shave. If any make-up is used small use of fake blood may be used to help give the victim a sense of deceased.

Lighting:

When filming outside at the murder scene the lighting we will be using is the natural lighting, so that none of the shots outside at the scene look too artificial with added light, also to give the opening titles a bigger sense of a detective aged thriller we will be using a lower saturation filter to give it a slight film noir style and create a mysterious atmosphere. When at the present time we will use a desk light to emphasis the case file and the detective going through it, this also will a filter giving it a slight black and white feel adding even more to the suspenseful and mysterious atmosphere.