This is how my planning and process should go if everything goes according to plan which it will.

Week 1

-Research

-Think of ideas

Week 2
-More research

Week 3
-Production
-Create story board

Week 4
-Research about lighting
-Research on audio
-Start filming

Week 5
-Editing
-Make a company logo

Week 6

-Have most of the editing done

Week 7
-Final touches on editing make sure it came out good

Week 8

-If not done we finish this week
-All of it should be done so we can relax the last week

Key Camera Shots and Angles

These are some of the techniques i studies and research on so i could get a good understanding on which shots will be important to have for each type of scene, shots makes the biggest difference and its important to know how to use them properly so my film opening can be the best i can make it.

Low-Angle Shot

The camera is positioned below the subject and looks upward. This makes characters—especially antagonists—appear larger, more powerful, and intimidating.

High-Angle Shot

The camera is placed above the subject and looks downward. This makes characters seem smaller, vulnerable, or powerless, often used to emphasize danger or isolation.

Dutch Angle (Tilted Angle)

The camera is deliberately tilted to one side, creating a slanted horizon line. This technique conveys disorientation, psychological instability, or that something is seriously wrong.

Close-Up Shot

The camera frames a character’s face or a small detail very tightly. Close-ups reveal subtle emotions such as fear, realization, or shock, heightening personal tension and intimacy.

Point-of-View (POV) Shot

The camera shows exactly what a character is seeing. This places the audience directly in the character’s perspective, increasing immersion—especially during pursuit scenes or moments of discovery.

Over-the-Shoulder Shot

The camera looks past a character’s shoulder toward what they are observing. This framing builds suspense by partially hiding potential threats (such as a figure in the background or a reflection in a mirror) until the right moment.

Three credit sequences from Thriller

 Se7en (1995)

The credit sequence in Se7en is really creepy and memorable. It shows close-up shots of someone cutting pictures, writing in notebooks, and doing strange things. The screen is dark and the editing is messy, which makes it uncomfortable to watch.

This works because it already makes the audience feel uneasy before the movie even begins. You don’t know who the killer is yet, but the credits show how dark and serious the movie is going to be. It pulls you into the thriller atmosphere right away.

Jaws (1975)

The opening credits of Jaws are simple but very effective. The camera moves underwater while the famous music slowly plays. Nothing scary actually happens during the credits, but the music alone makes you feel tense.

This credit sequence works because it builds suspense without showing the danger. The underwater shots make it feel like something dangerous is hiding nearby. It prepares the audience for the fear that comes later in the movie.

Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery (2022)

The credit sequence in Glass Onion is more stylish and mysterious. It uses creative visuals, symbols, and upbeat but dramatic music. The credits feel playful but also confusing, which matches the mystery of the story.

This works because it hints that the movie will be about puzzles, secrets, and twists. Even though it’s not super scary, the credits still make the audience curious and ready to figure things out. It sets up the mystery-thriller vibe really well.

Three film openings from Thriller

Se7en (1995)

The opening of Se7en is really creepy and kind of uncomfortable to watch. Instead of starting with the main characters talking, it shows close-up shots of someone writing in notebooks, cutting things, and doing strange stuff. The music is scary and the editing is messy, which makes it feel unsettling.

This opening works because it makes the audience feel like something bad is coming, but you don’t know exactly what. It puts you inside the mind of the killer without actually showing who they are. That mystery is what makes it a good thriller opening.                      

Jaws (1975)

Jaws starts off on a beach at night with people having fun. A girl goes swimming in the ocean, and everything seems calm at first. Then suddenly she gets attacked by something under the water, even though you never actually see the shark.

This scene is scary because you don’t know what’s attacking her. The camera goes underwater, which makes it feel like you are the shark watching her. This opening shows one of the main ideas of thrillers—fear of the unknown.

The Dark Knight (2008)

The opening scene of The Dark Knight is a bank robbery, and it’s intense right from the start. The robbers keep talking about a boss they’ve never met, and one by one they end up betraying each other. At the end, it’s revealed that the Joker was behind everything.

This opening is exciting and tense because you never know what’s going to happen next. It also shows how dangerous and smart the villain is, which makes the audience interested in seeing what he’ll do later in the movie.

Transitioning into the Portfolio Project

Hello, my name is Sebastian and starting this week I will be beginning one of the biggest project or actually the biggest project I have ever done through my high school years even though i am just a sophomore, I am certain that this will be one of my most challenging and fun projects i will do for many years to come. Although this is a very big and complex task, and is a little intimidating because of the amount of creativity and not knowing if what your doing is good I believe out of every project which i usually half ass or don't put my all into, this will be the one i truly put my all into the filming and the work, just everything because for once this is a project i will like to see completed and come out good so once I finish I know I will have something I can be proud of doing and know all the work i put into it was not just simply for a grade but for myself seeing what i can accomplish.

From now on i will be posting 3 to 4 blogs every week giving updates to my project while also doing further research to become as knowledgeable as possible for my project so I can make sure it come out good and doesn't end up all being for nothing. At this moment me and my partner named Benjamin have decided on the thriller genre because we both like genres with suspense and think it would be very fun to work with, we might change our genre we will know for sure by next week and it should be stated in my blog but i am very confident we will probably stick with thriller.

Portfolio Project Genre #2

 For one of my other top choices its comedy because its nice to get a nice laugh in sometimes and not have a so serious movie it just depends on what mood im in but comedy is a genre i will always be willing to watch.

Target audience: 

Is very wide for comedy but it also depends on what type of comedy it is, because there is comedy for kids, teens, and adults that are all very different from one another so really comedy could work for any age group just depending on the comedy type. The people consuming the content often people just looking for a good laugh and something fun to watch when they have time.

Genre conventions with context: 

Often are funny\weird situations or misunderstandings with the characters often being very exaggerated followed by jokes or reactions. It often has a joyful and good ending contributing to the mood, yo will barely or never see a comedy movie with a sad ending that's not funny or anything.

Genre conventions with techniques: 

Sometimes has upbeat music, they use close ups to reinforce the reaction given by the character, sound effects are also used to add laughter or other things to exaggerate what happened, and different types of comedy like physical actions, verbal or visual.

Institutional conventions: 

The poster's and trailer's often try to highlight the funny parts and jokes, usually has famous actors or well known comedians like (Kevin Heart, Adam Sandler, Jim Carrey, Dave Chappelle, etc), and often promoted with very colorful posters or advertisements, and often promoted as family friendly.

Film Production #1

"The Hang Over" made in 2009,is one of the most popular comedy movies out of every single one of them representing the genre very well, 

Film Production #2:

"The Mask" which is one of my favorite movies that i really enjoyed.

Portfolio Project Genre #1

Mystery is gerne that I personally love watching and hooks me in so this is one of my top choices for what I'm gonna use.

The typical target audience:

Could be anywhere from teens like 15 or 16 to adults around 50 or older that like a plot twist or like solving the puzzle.

Conventions with content:

Often include things like crimes or unnatural events paired with a detective or a regular person sometimes, and often has a twist or a final reveal showing the audience what was really happening the whole time.

Conventions with techniques: 

Are usually center around a dark lowkey lighting with background music that helps creates suspense and often has flash backs and voice overs.

Institutional Conventions: 

The trailers or posters often try to leave you with a question wondering what happened or how will this end creating mystery, they make sure to highlight the suspense and a twist when marketing

Film Production #1:

One movie that represents this I actually watched not to long ago and I really liked it, its a movie called "Glass Onion a knives out mystery" released in 2022, and i think this is a perfect representation because suspense keeps growing and the movie keeps leaving you with questions as you progress it keeps uncovering what is truly going on, in the beginning it just stared straight into the climax you could say an it gave no context to why anything had happened leaving you wondering.

Film Production #2:

And another movie called "Now you see me: Now you don't" made in 2025, is another great movie to represent mystery because the whole movie centers on deception and secrets. The film is about a group of the best magicians who use there talent for crime and do unimaginable things that leave you wondering how its possible they did that, while clues are also left throughout the movie and plot twist changing everything the audience believed to be true.

https://www.tvinsider.com/show/glass-onion-a-knives-out-mystery/

https://cinemascholars.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/s-l1600.webp