Influences

Bourne Supremacy-opening sequence

This is a snap from the opening sequence of Bourne Supremacy. It is a close up shot showing a character waking up from a sequence of flashbacks in a dream. It relays information about the characters emotions to the viewer, and is used to evoke a sense of fear. We were influenced by this idea because in our own opening sequence we would like to show flash backs of fearful past memories. 

We used this image in our mood board to show the genre we will be using, we have decided to include a character in our opening sequence similar to this, in relation to the mise-en-scene, the costume and make up. The character will be quite young, and  will appear in the clip due to guilty conscience of the man/woman having the flash backs. The girl will have no emotion, just like these images, and will appear with dramatic fast cuts. 

Here is another image of the type of character we would like to include in our opening sequence. This wide shot suggests emotional change in the charachter. It also generates a sense of the size and magnitude of the location, making her seem vunerable, therefore creating a sense of fear for the audience. The costume used in this scene is simple yet effective in the evocation of the characters state of mind.

Here are some posters from horror films that will influence our own. The posters produced from both 'Insidious' and 'Orphan' present closeups of the young characters faces. In our main story line we are also using a young girl as one of the main characters, therefore  studying these similar films will influence our opening sequence. 

Sound
We conducted research into the type of sounds we will be using in our opening sequence. We listened to various opening sound tracks of horror movies, which will influence the sounds we include in our own. The opening theme song of the film 'Insidious' inspired us due to the use of creepy strings and echoing ambient sounds. the gradual build up of sounds  create a sense a tension and fear for the audience, due to the anticipation of what will happen next. 

We also looked into various lullabies as we feel this would help to create a sense of vulnerability for the younger character Kayleigh in our opening sequence. We found that creepy lullabies are often used in horror sound tracks, particularly when a young child is involved as a main role in the film. 

Inspired by the opening sequence of The Bourne supremacy, we have decided to include a narrator over the top of the subtle creepy music. The narrator will be the main character Jason, portraying his thoughts. He sounds depressed and fearful, this gives the audience an insight into what the film will be about. 

Mood Board

The images we used to create this mood board help to show that the genre we are focusing on is horror. We used photoshop in order to create this mood board, to do this we imported appropriate images and presented them on a canvas. We then edited some images e.g. changed the opacity and included text that relates to the genre, we also added filters to some. Black white and red are the main colours in this mood board, to emphasis a scary feel and create a sense of fear. 

What is an opening sequence

What is an 'opening sequence'?

An opening sequence is a method that film producers use to present their title, key production and cast members.

Se7en 
The film Seven uses its opening sequence to give the audience an idea of what the film will be about. The flashing and distorted images, makes the audience want to watch on, the constant use of fast cuts creates edge and ties in with the genre of the film. Focus pulls are used on the text in this sequence, this has a confusing and mysterious effect on the audience   which again relates to the type of film. It has a scary feel, due to creepy sound effects and dark visuals. The use of Chiaroscuro lighting creates a sense of suspision and fear for the veiwer. the text is used to present the cast, actors and producers: 

The Bourne Supremacy

The film Bourne Supremacy is produced by universal studios, which is the first thing shown to the audience during the opening sequence, the title of the film is then presented. At the beginning various fast cuts are used to show the audience photographs, this is used to entice the audience and create a sense of concern. The use of handheld camera gives the audience a sense of the characters emotions in the flashback, it suggests instability. The use of loud echoing voices are introduced over the ambient sounds building suspense until the sound of the gunshot which wakes up the man and shocks the audience. Here is an example of a flashing image during the flashback:

Up

The film up is introduced with the love story of a 'Carl and Ellie'. It shows them first getting married and in 4 minutes it shows their life together and ends with the women passing away. dialogue is not used in this sequence, however the use of classical sound motif shoes the highs and lows of their lives, due to the change in tempo and pitch. here, the opening sequence is used to introduce 2 main characters, and show the audience their past experiences. No text is used in this clip, however still manages to detail the lives of these two characters. 

Manhattan
This opening sequence is shot only in black and white, although the film was produced in 1979. This represents the stereotypical image of New York. There are a range of shots used in this clip to create a feel for New York city, including establishing shot and aerial shot. The old fashioned sound used throughout this sequence make the audience connect with the time that the film is set. We also hear a narrator throughout, telling a story about a man who is passionate about New York city. The voice is a typical Manhattan accent which also gives the audience a feel as to what the films about. 

AS MEDIA PRELIMINARY TASK

100 word review

Lottie:

I am pleased with the 13 second clip me and liana made for our preliminary task as we used an action match, shot reverse shot and we followed the 180 degree rule successfully. However there are a number of things we could of done to improve the clip. For example the camera angle was crooked when we filmed our two shot, this was partly because we had a broken camera which had to be plugged in at all times to work. Whilst  doing the shot reverse shot the lighting was different  due to the natural sunlight. The most successful part of this clip i feel was the action match of me walking into the room, i think it was well edited and looks smooth. 

Liana: 

for our preliminary task, we were asked to produce and edit a short film which included match on action, shot reverse shot, and the 180 degree rule. We followed these guidelines successfully- the action match worked really well and appeared very smooth. However there are some faults in our clip. E.g, the lighting when filming the shot reverse shot, and the camera angle was slightly wonky when filming a two shot. We found our task difficult as we had to use a broken camera, that needed to be plugged in therefore we couldn't quite place the camera where needed.