1888 Timeline

Our two minute film is set in 1888, so I thought I would explore what historical and social events happened in 1888 which has effected today's society. I thought that if I researched this time period it would give me a border outlook of 1888. Also, Jack the Ripper and his victims are mentioned in the timeline, which shows that it was a significant event in that time period and as it is a worldwide timeline the case was international. The timeline contains when the football league started, Brazil abolishes slavery and the first African-American nominated for US president.

January 1888:

Tuesday 03:
The 91 cm refracting telescope at Lick Observatory is used for the first time. It was the largest telescope in the world at the time.
Tuesday 24:
Jacob L. Wortman patents the typewriter ribbon.
Friday 27:
In Washington, DC the National Geographic Society is founded.

March 1888:

Friday 02:
The Convention of Constantinople is signed, guaranteeing free maritime passage through the Suez Canal during war and peace.
Sunday 11:
The Great Blizzard of '88 begins along the eastern seaboard of the United States, shutting down commerce and killing more than 400.
Thursday 22:
The Football League is formed.

April 1888:

Wednesday 11:
The Concertgebouw in Amsterdam is inaugurated.

May 1888:

Sunday 13:
With the passage of the Lei Áurea ("Golden Law"), Brazil abolishes slavery.

June 1888:

Sunday 03:
The poem "Casey at the Bat", by Ernest Lawrence Thayer, is published in the San Francisco Examiner.
Saturday 23:
Frederick Douglass is the first African-American nominated for US president.

August 1888:

Tuesday 21:
The first successful adding machine in the United States was patented by William Seward Burroughs.
Friday 31:
Mary Ann Nicholls is murdered. She is perhaps the first of Jack the Ripper's victims

September 1888:

Tuesday 04:
George Eastman registers the trademark Kodak, and receives a patent for his camera which uses roll film.
Thursday 06:
a feat since accomplished only by Tom Richardson (twice), J.T. Hearne, Wilfred Rhodes (twice) and Tich Freeman (six times).
Saturday 08:
In England the first six Football League matches ever are played.
Tuesday 11:
Death of the Argentine politician Domingo Sarmiento, after whom the Latin American Teacher's Day was chosen.
Sunday 30:
Jack the Ripper kills his third and fourth victims, Elizabeth Stride and Catherine Eddowes.

October 1888:

Tuesday 09:
The Washington Monument officially opens to the general public.
Wednesday 17:
Thomas Edison files a patent for the Optical Phonograph (the first movie).

November 1888:

Tuesday 06:
U.S. presidential election, 1888: Democrat incumbent Grover Cleveland wins the overall popular vote, but is voted out of office because he loses in the Electoral College to Republican challenger Benjamin Harrison.
Friday 09:
Jack the Ripper kills Mary Jane Kelly, his last known victim.

December 1888:

Saturday 08:
Bulgaria's National Assembly adopts an Act on establishing a higher school in Sofia.
Sunday 09:
Herman Hollerith installs his computing device at the United States War Department

Footsteps and the Knife

Even though we decided that we will have music in our two minute film, we did consider having other sounds. We have to also think about the fact that our music may overpower the other sounds, so we would have to think about where to place the alternative sounds and when to lower the music.
These are the sounds that I have been considering adding.:

Footsteps

In one shot of our opening we have a close up of Jack the Ripper's feet which shows that he is going to go after the victim. I have been thinking that we should develop the music, such as a piano could be playing in the opening which gives a feeling of the film being tranquil and that the victim feels safe. Then the noise of the footsteps will alert the audience to danger. If we do decide to use footsteps it will not have to be that loud in the beginning. However, the noise will have to continue as the victim is walking but the music will also be developing maybe in to violins. This will be a slight problem that we will have to think about.

Knife

We have a quick shot of the assault scene and Jack the Ripper picking up the knife, so the knife sound will not suit this particular part of the opening. However, the knife sound may suit the newspaper flashes and the quick flashes which implies the murder. However, I do not know how we could make a stabbing noise, if it would suit the story at that point of the story and if the music develops how the sound could overpower the music. As all of the anticipation is leading up to the murder in the opening if the sound will be effective or if the music is better for the opening.

The Murders

I have been researching the Jack the Ripper murders. I found alot of information on wikipedia about the murders itself. This is the information about the murders such as alot of women died around that era in Whitechapel but no one knows if they were all victims of Jack the Ripper, how they were murdered and their were two other murders around that period unrealted to Jack the Ripper which I did not know about. I also found that the Jack the Ripper victims are called 'Canonical Five'. What I find to interesting about this case is that no one knew who it was and how different murders are solved in that era in comparison to ours, because of the huge impact of technology and we have forensic science.

This is from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack_the_Ripper.

The above map shows the sites of the first seven Whitechapel murders Osborn Street (centre right), George Yard (centre left), Hanbury Street (top), Buck's Row (far right), Berner Street (bottom right), Mitre Square (bottom left), and Dorset Street (middle left).

Murders

The large number of horrific attacks against women in the East End during this era adds uncertainty to how many victims were killed by the same person. Eleven separate murders, stretching from 3 April 1888 to 13 February 1891, were included in a London Metropolitan Police Service investigation, and were known collectively in the police docket as the "Whitechapel murders". Opinions vary as to whether these murders should be linked to the same culprit or not, but five of the eleven Whitechapel murders, known as the "canonical five", are widely believed to be the work of the Ripper. Most experts point to deep throat slashes, abdominal and genital-area mutilation, removal of internal organs, and progressive facial mutilations as the distinctive features of Jack the Ripper's modus operandi.
The first two cases in the Whitechapel murders file, those of Emma Elizabeth Smith and Martha Tabram, are non-canonical. Smith was robbed and sexually assaulted on Osborn Street, Whitechapel, on 3 April 1888. A blunt object was inserted into her vagina, which ruptured her peritoneum. She developed peritonitis, and died the following day at London Hospital. She said that she had been attacked by two or three men, one of whom was a teenager. Though this attack was linked to the later murders by the press, it was almost certainly gang violence unrelated to the Ripper.
Tabram was killed on 7 August 1888. She had 39 stab wounds. The savagery of the murder, the lack of obvious motive, and the closeness of the location (George Yard, Whitechapel) and date to those of the later Ripper murders led police to link them.However, the attack differs from the canonical ones in that Tabram was stabbed rather than slashed at the throat and abdomen. Many experts today do not connect it with the later murders because of the difference in the wound pattern.

Publicity of Jack the Ripper Today

I am currently researching Jack the Ripper and I always knew that Jack the Ripper was a very famous case study, but I never expected the results that I got.
When I google search Jack the Ripper about 2,530,000 search pages came up, which included facts about Jack the Ripper, Jack the Ripper victims and the suspects of Jack the Ripper.
I also searched on http://www.play.com/ and there are multiple DVD's, games, books, costumes and books about Jack the Ripper. This is the link to the website http://www.play.com/Search.aspx?searchtype=allproducts&searchstring=jack+the+ripper&page=search&pa=search.
Now knowing how popular and mainstream the Jack the Ripper story is, it defiantly adds even more pressure to be true to the story. However, now knowing this I feel that we need to make it unique and different from other films about the story, even though we are not Hollywood directors I feel that we can make the story come to life and make it special. Maybe by adding the shot of the knife and it being red or use many flashes and quick shots.

The Day the Earth Stood Still

Last night I watched the movie The Day the Earth Stood Still I was dissapointed by the lack of a solid storyline in the film. I was drawn to the film due to the actors in the film like John Cleese who is one of my favourite actors and Keanu Reeves. I did not know that it was a re-make to a 1951 film, which I found very interesting. By knowing this I want to watch the original to compare both of the films to see if the special effects makes the re-make a better movie and difference in the story lines.
I decided to watch the film due to the actors who were appeared in it and I remembered the trailers for the film which made it look amazing with the special effects. However, I was left confused in some parts of the film due to they did not explain the story and I found that they kept reminding the audience of unnecessary stories for example, the young boy in the film father died and when they were suppose to be saving the world he went to the graveyard and tried to bring his father back to life. Even though it was emotional I thought it did not need to be bought up then.
There was not a variety of camera shots in the film but there were many mid shots to show that the one character is in focus, two shots as most of the conversations throughout the film are only two characters and wide shots which showed the background. I was disappointed in the lack of camera shots as I feel that different shots have different impacts, I think low angle shots could of been used to show 'the alien' power as he controls the future of the human species. In my opinion they should of included a variety of close up shots as when they mentioned a scientific chemical I did not know the importance of the chemical in the story as I did not pay attention to it.
In the beginning I thought that it was a sci-fi which it was but it soon developed in to a story of love, compassion and death, which I thought ruined the story as it lost focus on the earth ending the audience also focused on the development of the relationship towards the alien and lead women. I feel that they added the relationship to accommodate for peoples different favourite genres and to reach to a wider audience, even though it is understandable I think it would of made it a better movie if they did not include that aspect.
Even though the film is not suppose to be reality, it is suppose to make the audience think about the possibility's of the story happening. Which is why I did not understand why the leading women in the film ran through forests in torrential rain but her hair is still in a perfect pony tail, the clothes are dry and her make-up is still the same. This really annoyed me as it shows that the women in films are also made to seem beautiful, when the situation is opposite.
Watching this film I have became very interested in special effects even though it has nothing to do with my two minute film, I think its interesting to know if special effects make a film. This is a website about special effects which I found interesting.
----> http://entertainment.howstuffworks.com/question295.htm
I do recommend this film as it has good special effects and good actors but it is very confusing. This is the website which has people's reviews about the film, most of them are negitive but they are worth reading.
-->http://www.themovieblog.com/2008/12/the-day-the-earth-stood-still-review

Problems with the Editing

In our two minute film there is a close up of the murder weapon which is a knife which is suppose to be dripping blood. When we got the audience opinions on our film they thought that it was water on the knife dripping, which made them think that J the R was cleaning the weapon. In our storyboard we loved the idea of having a close up of the knife dripping the victims blood as it is implied horror and it shows the audience that the victim did die.
Whilst we were thinking of ways of showing that there is blood on the knife we thought of adjusting the colour scheme on that shot and turn it red. Although, we knew that it may not fit in with our opening due to the fact it is filmed in night mode, the colouring is black and white we thought it may have an impact on our film. However, maybe we could use the shot as our final shot but developing the colours for example, the shot of the knife being black and white but gradually progessing to blood red.
When we changed the colour adjustments to make the shot red it even turned the background red which we did not want as we only wanted the knife to have colour. We discussed our problem with the colour adjustments with another group and they suggested that we upload the older version to our Mac and then we can get the colouring on one object. Even though, it is a very long and difficult process.
We then thought of using a print screen and saving the shot as a picture so we then use iPhoto to change the colour adjustments. However, with the shot being a picture in a film it would make it lifeless as before we have slight movement which made it seem like beating. This is a video of the iPhoto colour adjustments which I found that could be useful if we do decided to use this option:

iPhoto '08 Colour Adjustments

When watching this video it gave me an idea that maybe iMovie an effects and adjust option inwhich we may be able to saturate the shot, we could try darkening the brightness and contrast to see if that will work. However, whilst watching this video it did not change one subject which did not help me significantly.

The next video is showing the iMovie '09 colour adjustments, this video helped me more than the video before, as we have the use of this programme and it shows alot of experimentation with the colouring such as, the saturday, brightness, contrast and exposure:

iMovie '09 Color Correction Tutorial

When watching this video I understood alot more about what we could achieve with the colouring. Even though, it did not say how I could change the colour of only one object, but watching this video has given me the idea of maybe filming the shot and have the knife against a black background, which will only change the colour of the object. Also, watching the video the tutorial man said that it was better to have the sound and the editing of the clips done first and then the colour adjustments which I think we should do.

Ideas from Songs

When I was researching songs that our group could use as inspiration to our 1888 themed story, I came across modern songs which I feel will help us to create drama with music, music which will suit our storyline and music which will match the actions in the film such as the we have long shots of the victim walking and Jack the Ripper following her, so I think that it will be a good idea to have peaceful music like a piano and then as the anticipation is rising louder instruments such as a violin or a violin playing on a blunt chord.
Here are two music pieces which I really like and has given me ideas about our music.

Madonna- Frozen Instrumental

I really like the beginning of this piece as there seems to be several violins playing and the music is very peaceful but with the use of the Xylophone it still has a beat. As it is a modern song I had to think which piece could help our group, 0-0.52 seconds of this piece as I feel it will suit the walking scene and it gives the audience a feeling of the personality of the victim. For example, when she is walking she seems very peaceful and her mood expressed on her face suits this piece. However, there are drums used which we will not be able to use as drums used in this piece which is very modern.

Rob Dougan- Clubbed to Death

I love how dramatic 0-0.26 seconds of this song is has many violins and in the beginning the violins are quiet but gradually as the song develops so do the violins but then it goes quieter again. I feel the use of this effect on the audience will be useful as they know that the victim is going to die and I feel that it suits the storyline but we would have to stretch the music for longer for example, The victim coming out the house will be quiet violins, J the R following her and capturing her which will be the build up of the violins and then after the attack will be the violins dying down. Also, it seems like a heartbeat.

I love part 1.32-2.03 as the use of piano gives a tranquil and a fairy tail feeling as the notes are played altogether and then the violins are played which are firstly quiet and then they get louder. I love this piece and I want to try and learn aspects from it which we could possible use, like the use of the piano to give a calm feeling and then the violins could be used as J the R gets nearer but I do not know what we could use after that point.

Editing- Implied Assault

Whilst we were filming we decided to add an assault scene which consists of stabbing which is not graphic as it is a point of view shot from the knife slashing the throat, we also had a rape scene where Jack the Ripper put his hand up the victims dress as it was believed he also raped some of his victims and some abuse shots where Jack is slapping, strangling and he also trips over the victim so she falls on the floor. Whilst filming we thought that adding these shots will be good and useful as it will give our film drama and we had in mind that horror and thriller films always have gore and horror.

Se7en- Trailer

However, after watching Se7en we realised that you can make a good thriller movie which does have implied horror. Whilst we were editing we decided that we would not have the assault shots as we believe that the shots were too graphic, which would make the viewer feel uncomfortable and I think it will make the viewer dislike the film as well if in the opening their is a rape and assault scene it will seem that the film will only get more violent. Also, if we did include the assault scene I feel that we would not have stuck with our storyline which was J the R stalking a women and he then murders her which was going to be implied. Also, the rape scene contradicted our research as their has never been proof of Jack the Ripper raping his victims and we only focused on the murders which we are suppose to be re-create the story of J the R and making it come alive on screen.

However, even though we decided not to use the rape or assault scene and make it implied we have decided to add a shot where Jack the Ripper is on top of the Victim and he picks up his knife and it looks like he is cutting out her internal organs. Even though this is not implied we feel that it gets the audience sitting on the edge of their seat, with the fear and the vulnerability of the victim is radiating of the screen which makes it so effective. With the use of this shot if the audience imagine how the victim is murdered it is horrible and spine chilling.

The ending of the film shows a photograph of the 'next victim' I originally thought that it was a good ending as we could carry on the story. After researching other movies I am going to discuss with my group that instead of ending our film like that we should use our shot we filmed of the close up and point of view of J the R shot of the victim screaming as I feel that it will be a good ending and it will be memorable as the audience would not be able to forget about it. After the victim screaming we could use the opening title of the film like Scary Movie as in my opinion it would be a very dramatic ending.

Ideas for the Name of our Film

In our group we have been trying to think of names that suit our Jack the Ripper themed two minute film. We came up with many ideas such as The Silver Knife which Jack the Ripper was known for. However, I am not sure about this name as I do not think that the viewer will know it symbolises Jack the Ripper and in our film we have a shot of the knife and 'blood' dripping of it we edited that shot so it is red, so Silver Knife would not fit in to the opening. Also, we came up with 1988 which is the year that the murders took place, but with this title I do not think it is catchy and I feel that if we named our film after the year we would need to explore the year more in depth to show how crime scenes were handled and we would need to get the historical context to do the name justice.
I recently watched Scary Movie it is a comedy film which mocks horror films as I was watching it I was amazed by how brilliant the title shot was and as I showed my group they also liked it.

Scary Movie

The film title is shown on 4.22 - 4.28. I like how there is a low angle shot before the titles of the murderer which shows his power in this stituation and a high angle shot of the victim showing her vulnerability. I like how the slash of the knife fits in with the sound which is a knife slashing. I love the editing of the shot as the titles are immediantly after the slash and the jump cut. I also like how the colouring of the text changes such as the text is white, then the red border over the white text and then red text. Also, I think how atmospheric the titles are and they also seem 3D when the text blurs and goes closer to the screen.

I was wondering if we could try and explore how my group could make our own ideas. I was thinking of getting fabric and ripping it for the sound over the titles as we are thinking about naming our movie Ripped or The Ripper, so I feel the sound will fit in with the name. I was also thinking about using the slashing as our opening titles but how we have edited our film so far it will not fit in and our film is also implied.

I will be looking out for other films and how they edit their credits to gain border ideas and knowledge about titles.

Researching Music

With our two minute film being set in 1888 it is going to be hard to find music which we all agree that fits with the drama and the era of our story. I have researched modern songs and artists to try and have an idea to what I think we should try and re-create.
These are some of the songs that I have researched and elements of the songs that I like.

Chicane- Salt Water

The first 0-17 seconds of the song I really like the violins playing in the beginning and the women singing but she does not sing lyrics its just a like a beat. I really love the women singing as it seems really calm and tranquil. However, with the violins it has the dramatical effect. Even though, there are DJ drums in the beginning due to the fact it is a modern song. I would like to try and re-create the beginning on garage band but it will be challanging because of the women singing.

Editing Problems and Solutions

When we edited and watched our film again we noticed that there was a pause in the beginning when the victim is at the front of the house. As the camera shot is wide shot the audience can not tell that the victim is replacing her corset and skirt to imply she has just come out of a 'clients' house as Jack the Rippers victims were prostitutes. We also used the shot of the fake blood on the knife but as the camera is in night mode it looks like it is water which is how the audience saw it. To resolve this issue we are going to change the colouring of the shot to red, however it will look out of place if the film is shot black, grey and white to suddenly have red. But this may add to the effect of a horror film and we may be able to apply out credits on the knife or I was thinking we could do a still shot of the knife and may be able to photoshop it so only the blood would be red instead of the shot. Whilst we were filming we shot the murder scene which implied rape but after editing Michaela and Emily decided it would be best if we stuck to our original plan and made it implied as the rape scene would make the audience uncomfortable. Even though we have still got a shot in the film were the victim is lying on the floor and it is a midshot showing her torso and it implies she being stapped and her internal organs ripped out from her. Even though this may not be implied I really like this shot as it shows how J the R killed his victims and the bulid up of the film is the death of the victim so it is showing the gruesome murder but it is still being left to the imagination.

Beginning of Editing

When we first started editing our video it was a very long and noisy process as the whole class started to edit at the same time. We all decided that we will take it in turns to edit as it was too difficult for all four of us to edit as we all had different ideas. We have decided to edit our film Thursday in our free period and after school. This is what we have done so far.

Re-Filming our Opening

As a group we decided to re-film our two minute movie all over again. We were all nervous about re-filming as we did not want to be dissapointed again but that made us determined to make sure we all work as a team and feel comfortable with the camera shots and to make sure we did stick to our storyboard.
We were all in high spirits and we all knew what camera shots we wanted to shoot first and we all made sure that the continuity was correct as in our last filming it was defiently something we could have improved on. When we last filmed it took us up to three hours due to the rain and the confusion we all had on what we wanted to include. However, when filming again even though it was still raining it only took us one hour and a half to get all the shots we wanted and we also included more takes and more camera angles. I am very pleased with the filming that we produced and the fact that we all worked more as a team this time.

The shots that I loved was the close up of Jack the Rippers hand coming over the victims face as I loved that the audience could tell the emotion of fear and confusion that appeared on the victims face but confidence, dark and twisted happiness that was shown on Jack the Rippers face. I like how this shot also links in to our research of the pictures and comic strips of Jack the Ripper and the anticipation has been rising for this moment where Jack the Ripper has caught his victim and it may make the audience tense and worried for the victim.
I loved our filming of the newspaper articles and the victims pictures in the conference room. I am very happy with these shots as the conference room was very dark and it had a board in there were we could pin up the pictures and articles. We tried many different camera shots and movements when filming this scene for example, we tried over the shoulder shot of J the R standing looking at the articles and victims, close ups of each victim as extra footage, tilt movement showing all of the newspapers and J the R circuling and crossing out the victims. However, we did have a few problems whilst filming these shots as the nightmode on the camera was too dark and it was not showing the articles probabley so instead we decided to use light from a phone but the light may turn off in the middle of a shot, so timing was a huge element in filming this shot. Also, we used fake blood for circuling and crossing out each victim which means we only had one chance to film each victim, but we did not pin the picture down probably so we fake blood got smudged but thanfully we were able to repair it.
I also really like the establishing shot as I feel it sets the story and the audience can see J the R hiding on the corner and the audience are able to see the costumes
Also, I really like when J the R and the victim are walking towards the camera and you can see the knife glint which was just by chance and it makes the audience notice the knife and sends a chill down your spine.
When we was filming the 'murder' scene we used a variety of camera angles such as high angle to make the victim seem vulnerable and powerless. We also shot the point of view of the knife which I personally thought was very creepy and scary.
Overall, I am very pleased with our re-filming and how well we worked as a time and all of our issues with filming before were solved as we used night mode.

Garage Band Video

Problems with our Film

When our group uploaded our film on to Imovie we were all disappointed with the outcome of the film due to many reasons but there also good shots such as the assault scene as there was a hand held shot which looked very effective and makes the audience tense. Our group was also very impressed with the acting as Michaela Carberry who played the victims and James Mansfield who played Jack the Ripper were very professional, took both their parts very seriously and got in to character.
Although we did have problems such as the lighting as the shots were all dark and you could hardly see the actors. The torches were not effective as there were still hardly any light and it looked really unrealistic as the street lamp light was high angle whilst the torches were low angle and they were both different light colours, brightness and they did not look effective. Whilst we re-shoot we will overcome this problem by using night mode on the camera which we were not aware of before, or we will point the camera on to the direction of the light.
Also, what we have learnt is that we all need to work as a team more as we left Emily to direct and we did not have any discussions about the camera shots, angles or how the shots looked as we rushed to get the finished product and we did not stick to our story board as well as should of therefore we did not have a variety of camera shots or angles to choice from. We also had a huge issue with the battery life on our cameras as we charged it the night before but the battery dies so quickly, to resolve these problems we will charge the night before and the morning of the day we are re-shooting.
Our group decided to re-shoot our two minute film as we felt that we were unprepared.
Next time we will talk about each shoot and see if we are all happy with it, we have all decided we will take turns to film and we will leave record on for a longer time and we will try different camera angles and shots to make there be a broader selection for editing and our two minute film. We also decided that if we had the same problems that we did with the first filming we will re-shoot for a third time but hopefully we will have good footage that we need. We will also be filming other scenes on different days encase we forget anything.

This is the re-shooting schedule:

Tuesday- Re-shooting:

5.00pm - 6.30pm: Filming in the Conference Room (Newspaper Scene)
6.50pm - 8.30pm: Filming Gentleman’s Road, Enfield Offices and Archway (Walking and Assault Scene)

Wednesday- Uploading and editing

Props for our Film

Props are also important as the point of a film is to make it seem real espiecally in a horror, and if no props were used the film it would not seem real and it would not attract the audience.

We will be using a fake knife as that was the murder weapon Jack the Ripper used and to make the audience sit on the edge of there seat.

We may need to use the torch incase it gets too dark and there is not enough light.

We will be using newspaper articles, headlines and pictures which will be used in the Conference scene. We need to use the newspaper articles as it shows the time period by the year, the style of the newspaper, it shows who the murderer it aiming at next and it also represents that he is proud of all of the murders he has done and he is not ashamed.

Location of our Film

A set is very important as it creates the mood and atmosphere for a film.

In our opening of our two minute film a quarter of the film is filmed inside and three quarters of the film will be outside. We have many important locations especially as our film is suppose to be based in the 1880's so keeping that themed look is very significant in our film.

The Enfield Offices is going to be the establishing shot where the victim is going to walk out to give of the vibe she just finished her job as she is suppose to be a prostitute. We all agreed that this location will be a part of our two minute opening as it looks like large and seems very rich and it may have good lighting as there is a lamp by the offices. The only problem with this location is that where we would need to place the camera and tripod is a car park, so we must be careful and be sure that the cars are not in the frame.

This is the alley where we will be filming where all of the walking shots will be taken. We feel that this alley has an 1880's vibe. We feel that it will be effective as it seems claustrophobic and eerie when it will be dark. There are some problems with this alley as many people walk through the alley and in the background there are some cars and to resolve this issue we will need to film further back or point the camera at the angle.

We will be filming in Gentleman's Row. This is where many of our shots will be filmed, further down Gentleman's Row is where the alley and the archway is where the walking and abuse shots are. This only problem with filming in Gentleman's Row is that many people walk down there and there are some houses so we will have to be quiet and to be prepared of cutting shots as people may walk pass.

This a map of where we will be filming, this part of Enfield seems very old and Victorian. This location is very near our houses and our school so we could film immediately after school.

We will also be filming in the Conference Room in school, we will be shooting the newspaper article

scenes there, and this will help us filming in school as we can film during free periods or at lunch. The Conference Room is also very dark and the notice board is there where we will be pinning up the articles and it can represent isolation from the outside world and the darkness of the plot.

First Filming Friday 6th November 2009

Friday after school our group decided to meet at 6pm at school till 9.30pm. We filmed the majority of our film but there were many problems such as we did not anticipate the heavy rain the whole time we were on set.

As we arrived on to set we all knew it was heavily raining and it was really cold but we decided to film knowing the conditions but we thought it may add to the thriller/horror effect of the film. However, with the rain we found it really hard and uncomfortable as Michaela’s hair was already wavy but throughout the film it got straighter as it got wet and it may have not looked correct due to the transition and we did not film in order of our storyboard.

We decided to film shoot the main section of our film first where Jack the Ripper is following his victim as they are walking through the alley. The alley had many street lamps that we wanted to include but we all thought that the lighting was well lit on the actors throughout the scene but through the camera you could hardly see anything, luckily we bought torches with us but then there were two different types of light as one as white and very bright which was the torches and the street lamp was yellow and bright. Therefore, we decided to use both the street lamps and the torches purely hoping it would look okay when we upload the filming.

We then decided to film the assault scene, I was very happy how well the actors dealt with the assault scene as there is implied 'rape' and they kept very professional. There was more lighting in this location in comparison to the alley as there was a lamp in front and back behind the archway. The only problem with the assault shot was we had to stay very close to the opening of the archway as there was only a bit of shelter. With the assault scene there were a few injuries such as Michaela bruising her wrist and James the male lead actor cutting his finger as we had to use a knife as a main prop in a part of the shot.

I feel that we defiantly picked a hard night to film due to the rain and everyone felt uncomfortable and we was prepared but not as much as we should of been.

I feel that the shot did go well but were all really nervous when it comes to uploading our film as we were not sure how it turned out. With editing and the clip adjustments our clips may off been okay. If it was not we would have to film the whole shot again to make sure that the transitions is good.

Se7en

In Friday's lesson our class watched the 1995 film Se7en directed by is a 1995 David Fincher and written by Andrew Kevin Walker. The story follows a retiring detective Detective David Mills who was played by Morgan Freeman and his replacement Detective William Somerset who was played by Brad Pitt, jointly investigating a series of ritualistic murders inspired by the seven deadly sins.
I loved how dark and mysterious the fim was and how the viewer did not know what deadly sin was next, and how brutal the deaths were but the viewer understood how the murder matches the sin. I thought it was very clever how the director used different shots for example, the upcoming to the deaths the shots were quick but the scene was very long.
The camera shots used gave our group many ideas on what we think makes a good thriller/horror film, the camera shots and the techniques we may want to include. The speed of the cut aways was a camera technique my filming group has decided to do as it bulids up tension and the viewer finds themselves on the edge of their seat, the ending were Brad Pitt was deciding whether to kill Doe and there was a very bright shot of Somerset's wife Tracy but with a blink of the eye you can miss it but it adds mystery as the viewer wants to know what it was.
I really enjoyed this film, but I was disappointed with the ending but after thinking about it I cant see how they could of ended it another way. Watching Se7en has defiently been benefical as it has given our group many ideas of camera shots and techniques and how it make a brilliant Thriller film.

Ideas for Costumes

Costumes are very important whilst filming as the style of dress, accessories and hairstyle, represent the characteristic of a particular country, period, or people.

Jack the Rippers Costume

When I was researching Jack the Ripper all of the pictures of people interpretations and outfits of him all had top hats and black capes. Which is why our group has decided to incorporate them in to the costume. There are clothing items and objects from both pictures we will be using such as the top hats, the cape, black trouser, black shoes and gloves. We will be adding a black shirt instead of a white shirt as we want to black it clear he is the "villain" and to make the actor seem very mysterious. We will only have a knife as it is a prop we will be using. There will be no Cain or bag as we don't think we need them.

Victims Costume

This is a typical 1800's women outfit. This consists of a corset and a long skirt, we have decided that our actress Michaela who will be playing the victim will wear a corset top, long skirt, a shawl and shoes as we want to show her wealth as well, as our victim is not rich she is a poor prostitute. The left picture is a the missing poster of Mary Jane Kelly, Jack the Rippers victim and her death was the most gruesome. I thought this picture was interesting as it shows what she looked like and her social class.

Filming Schdele

Over the half term my group were not able to film prior previous engagements. So we have decided this week will be the week we will film. This is our schdele to filming.

Thursday: Re-check and finish storyboard after school.
Friday: After school we will film. May have to be cut short due to bad weather as I checked on BBC Weather and it is predicted that during the night it will rain.
Saturday: No Filming due to Fireworks Night and we do not want the noise or lights in our film

State of Play Opening

I am currently watching State of Play and I have just seen the opening which I find to be brilliant. You are opening with a pan follow of a young man running across a street therefore being hit by cars then in to a restaurant braking plates, hitting people and falling over. The man seems to be in panic and scarred which makes the audience think why is he running? and what danger is he in?.
Then the man is hiding and he suddenly gets shot and the viewer sees the murderer and then an innocent civilian goes by and then the man shots him. I find the opening really depressing but action packed and keeps the audience on the edge of their seat which makes a good thriller film. The extreme close up of the young man who was shot then the effects and lighting changes so its red which represents blood and the lighting is very bright. The titles are then on the low right hand corner.
Judging on the opening the film looks really good. Now I am going to get back to the movie.

Jack the Ripper Pictures

I have researched Jack the Ripper photos on http://www.google.co.uk/. I was very interested in to peoples own interpretations of how they think Jack the Ripper would look like and ideas and theories about him.

This picture is an adaptation of Batman as Jack the Ripper in the comic Gotham by Gaslight.

This is a comic strip of what happened in the comic. I love this storyboard as it has given my group a lot of ideas.

This is a link of the information and pictures of the five victims: http://www.casebook.org/victims/

I love this picture and I would love to try and include this shot in to our two minute film:

I like the smoke in the background of this picture as it makes it seem frightening and atmospheric:

This is a letter from Jack the Ripper. I found this photo interesting and ironic as he uses red to represent the blood:

Preliminary Excerise Analysis and Audience Review

When my groups preliminary exercise was viewed in our Media lesson the general thought was that it was good but there could be improvements such as, when Emily walks in the shot is a pan shot follow and the camera was not high enough so it cut of apart of her head, this is what we really needed to focus on because it was our only take we had to have it, so we can improve try to film a lot more angles and more takes for our two minute film.
Also, we need to improve on keeping the actors positions when we shoot different shots. When we filmed Michaela's close up her head is resting on her hand with her knuckle inward, but when go to the two shot her head is resting on the palm of her hand. I have defiantly learnt that we need to keep the movement and positions continuous throughout each shot.
In an anchor shot we have of Michaela a bit of her head was cut off so we should of had the camera a bit higher.
Finally, the background audio is buzzing to resolve this problem for our two minute film we will need external microphones.
Our group main concern is making sure when we are filming we are not cutting off peoples heads and to film more takes, angles and more material so we could experiment with shots and we could use different takes. In our two minute film we will all be directing.

The Art of A Title Sequence

This website is very useful in our Media Studies lessons as it shows what an opening should be like encapturing, giving a taster of a film but not giving away too much.
What I find the most interesting is that they said that darker material gets a lot more attention. Also, they have given a number of films to look at and directors research aswell.

This is the link to the interview: http://www.school-video-news.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=453:the-art-of-the-title-sequence&catid=44:edit-post-production&Itemid=111

This is the link to the Art of a Title Sequence: http://www.artofthetitle.com/

Depth of Analysis

When I do analysis in Media studies I am to have to refer to this presentation which tells me what to include and gives me advise.

Jaws Shot By Shot - Part 1

View more documents from The Cottesloe School.

Media terms and definitions

I will need to learn the terms and definitions for my Media exam.

Introducing AS Media

View more documents from The Cottesloe School.

The Final of our Preliminary Excerise

This is our final preliminary exercise. I am very happy with the editing as we were the first group to edit ours and as we only done one take each shot we found it easier to but them together.
Our storyboard has changed as we felt some shots fitted better with other for example, a close up then a over a shoulder. Editing was difficult as you have to be precise when you cut or add another shot. Also, the IMovie did not leave a mark where we wanted the shot to cut so we had to memorise were it stopped.
This is our preliminary task:

Jack the Ripper Ideas

Our group has decided to base our two minute film on Jack the Ripper. All of our group has decided it will be interesting to film as it is a true story, based in London and we can see it being a good thriller film. Michaela has even researched our group into going on the Jack the Ripper walk to get an idea of the set and background information of it. Here is a website of the walk http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/historic_figures/ripper_jack_the.shtml. This is some of the research information and the websites:

Jack the Ripper is a pseudonym given to an unidentified serial killer[1] active in the largely impoverished Whitechapel area and adjacent districts of London in late 1888. The name originated in a letter sent to the London Central News Agency by someone claiming to be the murderer.
The victims were women earning income as prostitutes. Most victims' throats were slit, after which the bodies were mutilated. The removal of internal organs from three of the victims led some officials at the time of the murders to propose that the killer possessed anatomical or surgical knowledge.
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack_the_Ripper

Jack the Ripper was an alias for a killer who preyed on prostitutes.
The nature of the murders included throat slitting and abdominal mutilation. Surgeons who examined the bodies saw evidence of a degree of anatomical knowledge on the killer’s part, which included clean cuts and exact excision.
The “Jack the Ripper” handle was derived from a mysterious letter that was sent to Central News Agency, and then forwarded on to the Metropolitan Police. The letter related that the author was “down on whores” and that he wouldn’t cease “ripping them.”
- http://purpleslinky.com/trivia/history/jack-the-ripper-15-facts-about-a-notorious-killer-and-events-that-followed/

The first murder, of Mary Ann Nicholls, took place on 31 August. Annie Chapman was killed on 8 September. Elizabeth Stride and Catherine Eddoweson were murdered 30 September and Mary Jane Kelly on 9 November. Violence to prostitutes was not uncommon and there were many instances of women being brutalised but the nature of these murders does seem to suggest a link between the perpetrators. Jack the Ripper was never caught and he is not thought to have killed again after November 1888.
- http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/historic_figures/ripper_jack_the.shtml

Our Preliminary Exercise

On Wednesday 7th October our group finished our two minute preliminary exercise. I was very happy with how successful our preliminary filming was as I did have a few concerns such as if the audience would be quiet enough and if i could work the camera probabley. However, I think our group suprised our selfs by how well we worked together as we filmed all our shots in one take and how well we all were in our different sections, Michaela and Emily acting and me and Jessica directing. I feel very proud of our group as we were very prepared in all cases such as the script, individual roles and angle shots.
I learnt alot from this task such as you can film different shots not according to the storyboard and how important editing is in filming as you can make all of the shots go in chronological order and how much I like directing.
This is our script and our first storyboard:

Script:
Plot- Argument between two friends. Cause for the argument being late
Actors- Michaela and Emily
Directors- Jessica and Dominique
Emily- (walking through the door)
Emily- (sits down)
Michaela- Where have you been Em? I've been waiting for half an hour.
Emily- I'm really sorry. I thought we were meeting at half one.
Michaela- You do this all the time. Next time I'll tell you to come an hour early.
Emily- God! I said I'm sorry
Michaela- Whatever!
(End of scene)

Storyboard:

Preliminary Excerise Observation

In Friday's lessons we watched Group 1 preliminary exercise. After observing their work I found out that the camra needs to film for an extra amount of time to make sure that the filming is enough and that we have not left any vital shots out. I also learnt that the camra picks up every noise so the audience have to be quiet for the scene or it has to be redone. There was also technical difficulties with another group which shows that we should not rely on phones or ipods as it may not go to plan or have it on a set time. After observing other groups we will not change our storyboard as the shots suit the plot which is an argument.

Preliminary Excerise Prep

In the lesson we learnt about the 180 degree rule which we will be filming for our preliminary exercise. In our group we were discussing ideas for the plot in our exercise which will involve the different camera shots.
We also watched last years preliminary exercise and we thought about errors that acquired such as song lyrics you may end singing along to it and we end the shot sitting down and we want to make it seem real as next years year 12 media class will be watching it so it cannot be embarrassing.
We finally came up with an idea of an argument between two friends as we wanted to involve some acting as we have two drama students which we thought will be nice to have them act as they have experience.
Also, we have created a script and a story board of what will happen and the different camera shots.
Fingers crossed it will work out correctly!.

Mise-En-Scene

In lesson we have learnt about mise-en-scene which is translated as 'Everything in the scene'.
Mise-en-scene literally means everything put in the scene or film to be filmed.
Analysing a mise-en-scene we need to comment on numerous amounts such as Characters as they are very important in a film, as characters and actors make the film seem like reality and to grab the audience attention.
Props are also important as the point of a film is to make it seem real from a horror to a comedy, and if no props were used the film it would not attract the audience as the audience are going to be watching the film for an hour and a half, it needs to keep them engaged, as the directors also need to think about the critics as many people judge there opinions on reviews from friends or newspapers before they see it.
Costumes also need to be commented on as costumes make the characters. A person dressed all in black can stereotypically be a villain and the audience need to judgements to make their predictions later on in the film. Costumes are also needed to set the time period for the film.
A set is very important as it creates the mood and atmosphere for a film. If the set was a small, dark room with pictures or notes everywhere it could represent isolation from the outside world. A set can also be symbolic as it could represent the character as well. Set is also needed to show the time period.
The location is very significant as you need to know where the film is set to try and get in the mind set of the location. It may also be significant as it shows the time period and the stereotypes or social class of the people for example, if a family lived in a palace they would be seen as rich.
Make-up is also needed as it makes up the reality of the film, it may also represent the character such as a women with red lipstick may be seen as promiscuous, sexual and dominate.
Body Movements are significant as it can create tension or a relationship such as if two people had an argument they be opposite each other and in each others faces to represent a barrier that cannot be crossed.
Extras are also needed to make the film seem real as you cannot have only the main character in a film as there are people and it will seem unrealistic.
The use of colour which can be symbolic for a personality or the emotions of a character such as light blue may represented sadness. Also, pathetic fallacy could be mentioned.
The use of lighting is very significant when analysing as it can create a mood and it can represent a genre for example, low key lighting is often used in mysteries and thrillers.

Thriller Research- Ideas

My group have been researching the thriller genre. I have become very intrigued in to the idea of basing the two minute film around a real experience.
There are many interesting stories that we could research more in to. However, many will be too hard to do, as we may not have sufficient resources and it will hard to try and get other people to act in the film as they may not be reliable or they may not be able to film.
I personally thought Jack the Ripper may be interesting as he is very historic and we could use or make interesting props, play on the idea of a villain and to keep him mysterious throughout the film and to create suspense and intense moments and we could also use Low Key lighting.
I really like using this idea but it seems more like a horror genre rather than a thriller.
I am going to research more real life experiences to try and to see if it is possible to have a Thriller film based on a historic experience.

The Shawshank Redemption Camera Shots

The first shot is a high angle wide shot in a Court house. A man is in the centre who I believe to be the prosecutor, this shows that he is very significant throughout the film and it draws the audience right into the centre of the action. The camera is very high and steady which makes me believe that a crane could of been used, there is no establishing shot which I find interesting as it just goes into the story.
The camera shot then changes to a medium close up of the opposition holding a gun, the dialogue also is very dramatic. The use of medium close up brings the audience into the story and draws the audience closer into whats happening. In this shot I love how dramatic it is from the dialogue, props and the camera shot and it makes the scene intense and makes the audience asking questions, what has the prosecuted done? and why has he done it?.
The shot then changes to a mid shot which keeps zooming in and the camera is very steady which makes me believe that it is on a tripod. With the use of dialogue the shot seems like a flashback of a couple kissing, the shot then changes to a close up over shoulder shot of the couple but only the woman face is shown. I love this scene as before the shot it was very intense ' I summit this was not a crime of hot blooded passion ' shows more of an insight to the story, and draws the audience in because they have seen the victim who they believe has been murdered.
The camera shot then changes back to the opposition mid shot, which could represent the present date.
A cut in close up has then been added to show bullets being put in the gun, this scene is very intense as we know apart of the story already that a gun was used and I also like how it seems like a flashback.
The camera shot then changes to a mid, wide shot of the prosecutor in the centre showing he is the person who the dialogue which is in view of the opposition is aimed at. The camera slowly zooms into the prosecutor face as he is told the verdict. The use of a close up is to observe his reaction to the verdict which is shock and fear. I love the use of close up as you can see his reactions and after he closes his eyes, which could represent vulnerability, fear or regret.
The shot then follows through where the prosecutor closed his eyes to a black shot this could represent two possibilities if it was a dream or a flashback which I find very interesting.
A high angle camera establishing shot is used as it shows the prison and the equipment used for the high angle may of been a dolly shot as the camera is very smooth and steady or a plane as it is very high and goes around the prison. The use of a high angle shot represents how powerless the prisoners are and the vulnerability the prosecutor is going to feel.
A cut away side mid shot is used of Morgan Freeman the narrator and the dialogue then changes to him narrating and it also could represent he is a significant character.

Thriller Research- The Godfather

I have researched the genre Thriller and I found a worldwide poll in which the public chose the best and worst of thriller films. I then chose to look at the opening of the top best thriller film to see what what makes a good thriller opening. The Godfather reached number one with 365,190 votes.
The opening is intreging as the screen is blacked out, then the dialogue starts with 'I believe in America' which is intense as it makes the audience want to know the impact of what he just said and it sounds like he is defending himself.
The camera shot is a close up of a man talking about his daughter and as he talking the camera is in reverse zoom, which is a simple technique but effective in making the opening tense and already the audience are sitting on the edge of there seat.
I love how the opening is so dramatic and it adds tension to the atmosphere especially the dialogue as it talks about how his daughter was assaulted by her boyfriend and his friend, the audience gets a clear image that the man is the father and you get a sense of love he loves his daughter and the hatred he has for these men who attacked his daughter, this is easily told by the emotions in his face and his voice which has sunk the audience in to the film.
As the speech reaches to the most emotional part 'she was a beautiful girl (long pause) now she will never be beautiful again' and the father begins to cry and that line and acting is so dramatic and the audience gets emotional as well, and the camera begins to zoom out and the audience can see a shadowed head resting on a hand in the left hand corner, this makes the film more dramatic as the audience wonder who the man is and why is the father telling him this and it also gives a sense of the father seeing a councillor as the men are sitting opposite from each other.
As the camera is zooming out and the man figure is becoming clearer, then the other men immediately starts with 'Why didn't you come to me first' this gets the audience really wondering who the man is and how much power does he have to be saying that he is better than the law system.
In the opening my favourite part is when the second man asks what the other man wants done and the father whispers in his ear even though the camera is in extreme zoom between the two men the main focus is the mouth to ear, they are both blacked out which adds tension, mystery and a interest in the conversation between the two men.
As the father walks away the camera is medium zoom on the second man, he looks like he is thinking but his expression is blank which makes it seem he has heard worse things.
The opening is so dramatic and I think that's what makes a brilliant thriller opening.

Genres

In class we was discussing what genre we are interested in for our two minute film we will be creating.
The genres were thriller, romantic comedy, comedy, chick flick, horror and action all of the genres are different and have different aspects to the story lines and filming for example in a horror the camera may be shaky and zoomed into peoples faces to add tension and fear but in a comedy the camera is usually not zoomed in as many things may be going on in the background and to add a focus to the characters but also to become aware of the set.
I am very interested in thriller as i have been watching many thriller films and there are so camera shots and story lines you can add to create more drama and tension.
However, I am also interested in comedy films as not many people film them but I think it will be hard to try to be funny that it will end up being cheesy and idiotic.

The Shawshank Redemption

I have chosen The Shawshank Redemption as it is a brilliant film.
Already in the beginning it sets the characters to the film as the main character is the narrator and everything is told from his point of view which I find so interesting as you already feel like you know the character.
As the narrator introduces himself and the story in the opening 'Their must be a con like me in every prison in America I'm the guy who can get it for you, so when Andy Defrane came to me in 1949 and asked me to smuggle him to Hayven in to the prison there I told him no problem' shows he is judgemental and Andy is significant throughout the film and like the famous phrase 'Never judge a book by its cover'.
I also like the camera shots as it goes around the prison with dramatic music which shows the setting and it can represent the genre crime and drama. I find interesting how the camera focuses on to the two main characters Ray the narrator and Andy the person who Ray was talking about, and what I found most interesting is that the narrator tells Andy's story as to why he is in prison 'killed his wife and others' the quotation shows that he seems really violent but then the narrator says 'he was Vice President of a large cooperate bank' shows that he was successful but then the contrast between him being a murder and the vulnerability in Andy's face as all of the prisoners are cheerful and banging the fence like a parade.
It makes the audience wonder what will happen in the story as Andy luxuriates will be taken away and he seems like a lamb being fed to lions as he looks petrified, he seems like a child as he looks up to the prison building and its so tall and it makes the prison seem like a metaphor as it is intimidating and patronising, which could represent him going in to prison and his journey which is shown through his facial emotions.
What I love the most about the opening is how it is narrated as it seems like the narrator is remembering it 'I never thought a lot about him the first time I saw him' I think this gives more heart to the film and it also shows that Andy's journey is significant throughout the film, and the narrator and then the character talks and there is no pause between the swap.
I would recommend The Shawshank Redemption as it will have you sitting on the edge of your seat as there are themes of revenge, murder, prison and friendship and it is a brilliant and memorable film as well as the lines 'Fear can hold you prisoner. Hope can set you free'.