Our Final Cut for 'Paranoia' is a vast improvement on the rough cut. After viewing the rough cut, we decided that there needed to be many changes. We wanted to add music, credits and change the shots around.
Firstly we wanted to add music. In the rough cut we had no audio, so we decide to add in Jon's Garage Band music, to emphasize the effect that the thriller has on the audience. The boom at the end of the music allows the smash up against the wall to be more dramatic.
Secondly we wanted to add in Credits. If we were to add credits it would make the final cut more professional, and it would inform the viewers of who was involved in the making. Also the final black out and fade in of 'Paranoia' adds emphasis of the smash up against the wall of the two characters.
Finally we wanted to change the shot lengths and the shot order. In the rough cut the shots were not in the perfect order so for the Final cut we edited the shot order to allow better continuity and better effect, i believe it is done well.
Here is our final cut for the opening sequence for the film that we entitled 'Paranoia'.
It is a vast improvement on the rough cut, as it has music, and its edited better. There are also credits among the shots, we decided amongst ourselves who would get what role.
During the editing process we came upon many problems and glitches that we overcame in order to make our opening sequence better. These glitches are thus;
1. Shot Length= Some of our shots were to quick for the general theme of the genre, they needed to be longer, slower, slicker. This was easily fixed during our stint with final cut. We simply extended the length of the shortest clips and cut short the clips that were too long. However, we deliberately varied the lengths of each shot to make it more interesting for the viewer.
2. Shot Cuts= Many of our shots, naturally, were not cut the way we'd like them so in Final Cut we were able to fade in and out the shots that we wanted. Also most of the shots were not in the order that we liked so we cut them in the way we wanted using final cut.
3. Credits= We were not able to film credits, one because they'd look unprofessional and two because we didn't have the time. So in Final Cut we were able to do so. This made our opening sequence longer and more professional. We looked at other thriller opening sequences from crime dramas as influences, as we wanted to achieve the same feel. One thing we noticed is that many have simple, very legible white fonts against a black background. We used this throughout the credits and titles to try and achieve the same feel. Another advantage of this is that it is very clear and assures that the viewer can understand at all times. This was very easy to make and insert into our clip, and in our opinion gives, overall, a much more professional look.
Overall we are very happy with the editing process as it did not take that long, and made our opening sequence much better as a whole.
We took the opportunity to film a rough cut of 'Paranoia', to see what we could improve on, to test out the location etc. The rough cut seems very short and dosen't have much impact, but when it comes around to the final cut, and credits and music are put in, the sequence will have alot more impact, especially at the end of the sequence when 'Paranoia' explodes onto the screen. Here is the rough cut which has been edited slightly to maintain continuity, and an evaluation of how we thought it went.
Location
King's St, Cambridge. We thought the location was suitable as it was a dark, dingy area and fit conventions of the thriller genre. A dark alley way is a typical location for a thriller, however we did not feel that it was over-used. When seen it automatically suggests to the viewer that is belongs to a dark genre, and this in itself is effective. Also, the ground was damp, keeping the dark feel.
Shots/ Camerawork
We are happy with most of the shots. To show imagination we used a range of shots; low angle shots, medium shots, high angle shots, long shots, etc, yet maintaining continuity. We feel that the hand held camera makes it seem more realistic, and also lets us empathize with the victim as he appears vulnerable. If the shots were held steady it would not have had the same effect as it would have looked too polished and finalized, so we are happy with the choice of using hand held shots.
Acting
One thing we concentrated on when filming was not allowing the actor(s) to look at the camera, as the cameraman was supposed to seem like a 'fly on the wall'. It also seems more professional if the actor does not look down the camera. The actor, Jon, appears to be in character and does not get distracted.
What We Could Improve On...
We are happy with this as it is only a rough cut and we think that we gave included appropriate conventions of the thriller genre, and kept continuity throughout. However, watching the rough cut we realise that we could improve on some things;
-> keep continuity whenever we can, by showing action from different angles ->use a range of shots and make sure they are effective - not just using up time -> possibly a change of soundtrack - towards the end more of an 'impact' is needed, as the action becomes more intense -> we realised that the actor, Jon, looked at the camera a few times. Even with editing we could not exclude this from the rough cut without sacrificing continuity. We will keep an eye on this in the future.
There weren't many influences for our opening sequence, because we tried to stay original. We tried to emulate some of the conventions found in the ITV program 'Wire in The Blood' .Here is a clip from the show;
I started to develop some initial ideas for the music that I would use to soundtrack the opening sequence. As our opening sequence is a more pyscholically based than gorgy i felt that the soundtrack should have a more mysterious feel. I felt that I would make something that sounded like the link below.
As the thriller starts slowly and then builds in pace with the characther attempting to escape from the protaganist. The music begins with a slow melodic sound, then percussion comes in and builds the pace. The drums then briefly fade to provide contrast before percussion and bass enter as the sequence builds to the climax.
You may notice that the credits at the end of the clip read 'The Alley Hunter'. Since filming and editing the rough cut, we have changed the name to 'Paranoia'.
We will shoot the opening scenes for our thriller at the following location;
King St, Cambridge (alley way between pub and other residence)
We thought that this location was perfect for our opening sequence as it is a secluded area and at night it will fit in well with our initial plans. It also fits typical genre conventions, in that dark alley ways are recognized for anti-social behaviour.
