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.
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.
Locations and Costumes for Thriller Opening Sequence
We have decided to use the following locations and costumes;
Location 1 - secluded, shady alley way (at night) Costume 1 - hoody for main character Costume 2 - dark clothing & hat for mysterious character
We have also decided to use dark clothing for the shady character to emphasize the mysteriousness of the man. Along with the darkness of the filming, we feel that this will be effective. The hoody that the main character is wearing helps us relate to the time in which the sequence is shot.
Here is a shot list of the different shots used in our thriller opening sequence, 'Paranoia'.
1. Extreme Close-Up of eyes 2. Medium Shot of back of a man 3. Behind the shoulder shot 4. Low angle shot of man walking past 5. High angle shot of man walking past 6. Medium shot of man running 7. Medium shot of man running 8. Close-up of side of mans head 9. POV shot looking at shady character 10. Middle range shot of shady man and main character 11. Over the shoulder shot of the main character 12. Credits, including film title
