Editing Process #1

 

This is the first Scene which I am currently editing and for this one I plan to just do regular cuts for now nothing special except for when the scene ends we will add a black screen and add some text that say 5 hours before and it fades into the next scene.

But for this scene we are going to add in some cop siren sounds to make it more legit because we didnt have any playing in the background while filming so we have to add them in. We are going to see if we can edit the cop sirens in like the blue and red lights because in the first scene they were not there and in the next shot they were so i think it is important to have the same thing throughout the film because it ruins the reality of it and makes it look worse.

Behind The Scenes

This is the first scene and arguable one of the most important scenes where the Main Character Xander was sitting in a car panicking while police sirens can be heard and you can see the blue and red flashing lights from the cop car. For this scene one of our main issues was the part of how are we gonna get blue and red lights at first we thought we could use LED lights but it didn't look good then we though of editing in which we didn't know how to do so Ben my partner came up with the Idea to pull up the lights from a YouTube video on his phone and just put it from a good angle where the camera can capture it like its taking up the whole screen and it ended up working and coming out well so that was a good save he had there if not we would have been with no more ideas.

This was the second scene where he sent a text to his mom worrying about her and then receives a call from his mom but it was actually a person who had taken his parents. The only trouble we had with this one was thinking about how we were gonna show him texting his mom at first we wanted to do a over the shoulder but then we realized you couldn't really see the text messages from there so it didn't work, so then we thought a close up might work be it did not look good and then we thought why not show a mid-shot from in front of him showing him texting and adding the sound in and then we could just put the text up on the screen by editing it in which was a great solution for the problem we were able to come up with.

For the rest of the scene after those first 2 we flew by them already knowing what to do for them because they were not to complicated but then once we got to this scene we had a little bit of trouble just deciding what we were gonna actually put inside the mail box but since we didn't have one of those big yellow envelopes we just decided to use one that was actually already in his mail box conveniently. The last little issue we had was just what Xander the MC was going to do for after the caller ended the call on him. We didn't know what expression to show or how to show it so we just ended up deciding on a sad and lost look just looking down at the ground.

CCR Question #1 Research

This is the First CCR question - How does your product use or challenge conventions and how does it represent social groups or issues?

Use of Thriller Conventions

In my thriller film opening, I used common genre conventions to create suspense and tension. One major convention I used is starting with a dramatic moment before showing what caused it. The opening scene shows the main character in a car with looking paranoid with police sirens in the background. This immediately creates mystery and makes the audience ask questions. The film then cuts back in time to show how the situation began, which is typical in thriller films because it builds suspense through delayed information.

Another convention I used is a mysterious antagonist. The villain is only heard through a phone call, which makes him more unsettling. Not seeing the antagonist increases tension because the audience does not fully understand who he is. I also end the opening with a cliffhanger when the character checks the mailbox and looks shocked, but the audience does not see what is inside. This keeps the narrative unresolved, which is common in thrillers.

 
Challenging Thriller Conventions
Although I follow thriller conventions, I also challenge some expectations. The protagonist is not shown as a typical criminal or action hero. Instead, he is introduced as a normal teenager who is worried about his parents. This makes him more relatable. Even though he appears guilty in the first scene, the audience does not know exactly what he has done. This creates moral ambiguity and makes the story more psychological.

Representation of Issues
My film opening represents themes of consequences. The threat against the character’s parents shows how family relationships can be used to create emotional pressure. The police sirens suggest authority and how he may have done something bad showing that actions have serious consequences. Overall, the opening reflects common fears about safety and responsibility, while still fitting the thriller genre.

Group Meeting #2

Group members: this time i had Carolina, Andrea, Jp, Juan, and Mia all in my group.

This the second group meeting I have done and the first one went ok I didn't really get any actual information because I wasn't to advanced in my project but now this time around now that I have actually done a good amount I had stuff to talk about and the people in my group were able to give me actually good advice that I will actual try out.

Tips I Received: For my CCR i got a suggestion from one of my group members named Mia and it was that I should dress up as the Main character where I can answer the phone while doing my CCR and talk to the antagonist or the caller and he will be asking me question. I really thought this was a good idea because it links my CCR directly to one of the main parts about my film opening. Furthermore I also received an idea from another group member Carolina, where I could do my CCR at the same mail box where the last scene ended. It would start by me going to the mail box and grabbing the envelope that was in the mailbox scene with the instructions on what to do but instead it would just be the CCR questions in the envelope.

Process of making Production company logo

The first step to trying to make a production company logo started with researching different famous company logos so I could get an idea of what I could do because I was a little lost. What I was noticing a lot was that a lot of them were basic and didn't have to be over the top even the most famous companies have simple designs, so I decided to do a basic text design simplistic but sleek and nice looking.

I decided to go with this font because it looked clean and professional to show it is a real production company and not just some letters that look cool, and I liked the way my company name (Paradox Productions) looked with the bigger text on the bottom and the smaller text on the top I feel give it a smoother look instead of just both the texts looking big and taking up a lot of space.

The I decided to add a little something to give it a more unique look because even though it looked good it could always look better so i was just scrolling through safari looking at other companies and then I thought of the idea to add a film strip I'm not sure why but it came to my head so I decided to find the best film strip and where I could put it and I landed on the one shown in the picture, it did take a while to find out where the strip went but I got it.

After all this I was finally done and this was my final Product.

script

Me and my partner (Benjamin) decided to make a full script because are last one was bad and was just a summary of the film opening so we decided to go back and make a good real script and here is what we came up with.

Scene 1: In the car

Sounds: Heavy Breathing, police sirens

Lighting: Normal nighttime lighting

    Shot 1: Establishing shot
    - Long shot of parked car
    - Car sits still with police siren sounds in the background

    Shot 2: Medium shot
    - Taken from passenger seat facing Xander (main character)
    - Looks around nervously (heavy breathing)
    - Shadows across his face

    Shot 3: Close up
    - Close up of his eyes. Police sirens reflect on his eyes
    - Eyes moving quickly, scanning surroundings

    Shot 4: Close up
    - Close up of his hands gripping the steering wheel
    - Hands shaking, sirens get louder

    Shot 5: Extreme close-up
    - Extreme close-up on the sweat dripping down his forehead
    - Extreme close up showing heavy breathing

    Shot 6: Hard cut to dark
    - All sound cuts out
    - Fades into next scene

Scene 2: In his bedroom (flashback)

    Shot 7: Establishing shot
    - Wide shot of bedroom
    - Xander sitting alone
    - Text on the screen that says "earlier that day"

    Shot 8: Medium shot
    - Xander looking at his phone constantly
    - Side angle

    Shot 9: Over the shoulder shot
    - Camera behind Xander showing phone screen
    - Text that says "Hey mom are you okay?"

    Shot 10: Close-up
    - Close-up of phone screen
    - Showing the message was sent

    Shot 11: Close-up of his face
    - Visibly nervous

Scene 3: Phone call

    Shot 12: Close-up
    - Phone lights up
    - Phone ringing. "Incoming call from Mom"

    Shot 13: Close-up
    - Xander answers the phone
    - He says: "Hello, Mom?"

    Shot 14: Medium close-up
    - Slightly pauses

    Caller:
        "If you ever want to see your parents again, listen closely."
    - Caller voice is calm and a little distorted

    Shot 15: Close-up
    - Close-up of Xander's face

    Xander:
        "Who is this?"

    Caller:
        "That doesn't matter right now."

    Shot 16: Close-up
    - Shows Xander's reaction

    Xander:
        "What are you talking about?
        Where's my mom??"

    Shot 17: Tight close-up

    Caller:
        "Your parents are safe... For now."

    Shot 18: Reaction shot

    Xander:
        "how do I know this isn't a joke?"

    Shot 19: Camera gets closer

    Caller:
        "Check under your front door mat...
        You keep a spare key there don't you?"


Scene 4: Front door

    Shot 20: Tracking shot
    - Xander rushes towards door

    Shot 21: Close-up
    - He lifts up doormat

    Shot 22: Insert shot
    - The key is not there

    Shot 23: Extreme close-up
    - Shows the shock spreading through Xander's face
    - Breathing really hard

Scene 5: Continued call scene

    Shot 24: Medium shot

    - Phone still in his ear

    Caller:
        "Now you see."

    Shot 25: Slow push-in

    Caller: 
        "Now, if you want to see them again, follow my instructions."

    Shot 26: Still shot

    Caller:
        "Check your mailbox.
        You'll find everything in there."


Scene 6: Mailbox scene

    Shot 27: Wide shot

    - Xander walks to his mailbox, alone

    Shot 28: Tracking shot
    - Camera follows as he approaches the mailbox

    Shot 29: Insert shot
    -Hand opening mailbox

    Shot 30: Mid shot
    - From behind the mailbox
    - Shows Xander's reaction (shocked)


Final scene: Threat

    Shot 31: Close up
    - Of Xander's face

    Caller:
        "You have 5 hours.
        Don't waste a second."

    Shot 32: Fade to black
    - The caller starts a timer and you can hear it ticking


    Shot 33: Title screen
    - Title is shown on the black screen, with clock still ticking in the background

Filming locations

The fist scene will begin in the car with the main character Xavier breathing frantically and looking like he is panicking with blood on his hands and shirt with a knife next to him covered in blood. This first opening scene will be the most important scene to building the opening starting by leaving the audience with so many questions and entice them to keep on watching to find out what happened.

The second scene will start in this bedroom with daylight and it will be decorated with sports poster like soccer players and balls where the boy will just sit there and then the plot will start to reveal itself. This bedroom will play a big roll in showing how a teenager usually lives giving the audience an idea that he is just any normal average teenager who likes sports.

The doormat scene is where we will start to bring back the suspense further by the antagonist saying how the key under the doormat is now gone and the Main character will start to freakout. This scene will be especially important to show how the antagonist is real and he is serous with what he says.

The last and final scene to close out the movie opening will be here so this location is very important to build that last final suspense and keep the audience questioning. Because of this we will end it off with Xavier being left shocked by an envelope and then cut to a black screen with a clock ticking to show he has little time and he has to do something.

Audio

Audio will play a huge role in creating tension in my thriller opening.

In the first scene, heavy breathing will be heard clearly to show panic. Police sirens will be in the background, but not too loud. This suggests danger and consequence for what he did. The sound of his shaky and heavy breathing can make the moment feel more intense.

When the film cuts back to earlier, the sound will become quieter. There may be simple background sounds like silence, a clock ticking, or ligh
t room noise. This contrast makes the opening more dramatic.

During the phone call, the caller’s voice will be calm and controlled, which makes it more disturbing. The audio of the call may sound slightly distorted to make it unsettling. When the caller mentions the spare key, the sound could slightly lower in the background to focus on the dialogue.

In the final mailbox scene, there will be very little sound to non to build the tension, maybe just wind. When he looks inside and reacts, the screen will cut to black and a clock ticking sound will play to end the film. This will leave the audience in suspense and make them want to keep watching wondering what happened.

#2 Mise-en-scene element

In my opening, mise-en-scene will also be used to make psychological tension. The way things are placed in the frame will help show how the character is feeling.

In the car scene, close-up shots of his bloody hands on the steering wheel will show guilt and panic. The rearview mirror will be used to reflect his eyes showing him looking at himself with a face of shock, making him look like he has done something terrible. The flashing lights outside the car will add to the dramatic atmosphere giving hints to what he did and adding more questions.

In his bedroom, the room will be quiet and still. The phone lighting up will stand out and become the focus of the frame. This shows how the phone call interrupts normal life.

When he checks the mailbox, the area will feel empty and silent. The camera can slowly move closer as he opens it. His shocked facial expression will be the final image, but we will not show what is inside the folder. This use of mise-en-scene builds suspense because the audience does not get all the answers.

Overall, the visual elements will help show emotion and tension without needing too much explanation.

#1 Mise-en-scene element

Mise-en-scene is very important for an intro especially when you need to build a tension focused film.

For costume, the main character will wear normal casual clothes, like a hoodie and jeans, to make him look like an ordinary teenager. In the opening scene, his clothes will be stained with blood. This creates shock and immediately tells the audience something big just happened without telling them what it is.

For the set where we are gonna film everything there are two main locations, the car and his room. The car scene will feel enclosed and claustrophobic to reflect his panic. His bedroom will look a little messy with sports and gaming stuff to represent the average teenage boy. The mailbox scene will be outside, during the day.

Props are very important. The phone is gonna be the most important prop because it connects him to the antagonist/bad guy. The missing spare key under the doormat is another important detail because it shows the caller is telling the truth. The mailbox is also gonna be a key prop because it creates mystery when we pull out an a folder or envelope and we don’t show what is inside.

For lighting, the opening car scene will use low lighting with red and blue police lights flashing across his face. This creates a dramatic thriller mood.

The earlier bedroom scene will have softer and a daylight type of lighting to show that it is just a regular day with nothing out of the ordinary happening. The same will be done fo
r the rest of the scenes including the mailbox and the checking of the key under the doormat, with them being filmed during daylight hours.

Character development

For my thriller film opening, the main character is a teenage boy named Xander who becomes guilty of something serious. At the start of the opening, we see him covered in blood in his car while police sirens are in the background. This instantly shows that he is involved in something dangerous and possibly illegal. The goal is for the audience to question whether he is a bad person or if he made a mistake under pressure.

When the film cuts back to earlier in the day, we see him in his room worried because he hasn’t seen his parents. This helps show a different side of him. He isn’t introduced as evil but as a worried kid who cares about his parents. This makes him seem like any normal nice kid.

The phone call from the unknown man is important for his development because it forces him into a stressful situation. He doesn’t believe it at first, which makes it more believable and realistic. But when the caller proves it is real by mentioning the spare key under the doormat that is gone, the character becomes more panicked. His development in the opening moves from normal teenager - worried son - trapped and pressured - guilty and overwhelmed. This progression helps build the tension and makes the audience want to understand how he ended up covered in blood in the first scene.

One Media Theory

Todorov's Narrative Theory explains how a lot of film use a clear story structure. The story usually starts normally nothing happen, then something bad happens to disrupt it, and later the problem gets solved. This theory works really good in thriller films because thrillers focus on building tension and problems that you have to resolve within a set time.

In my film opening Todorov’s theory is gonna be used by starting after the big thing has already happened. The opening scene shows the main character sitting in his car covered in blood with police sirens in the background. This shows that something has gone wrong and makes the audience want to know what happened. The film then cuts back to earlier, when things seemed more normal.

The phone call from the unknown man is the main disruption in the story. This moment changes the main character’s situation and forces him to follow instructions to save his parents. The opening does not show how the problem is solved, which keeps the audience interested and builds suspense.

Using Todorov’s Narrative Theory helps my film opening feel organised while still creating mystery, which is important in the thriller genre.

Movie opening script

We haven't fully gotten all the details like exactly what there are gonna say but we mostly have everything and know what we are going to film and say for the most part.

Script:

Opening scene:
We show him in his car looking around frantically, breathing hard, and there’s cop sirens in the background.

Caller scene:
Then cut back in time he is in his room sitting down and he’s worried because he hasn’t seen his parents all day. He texts his mom “Hi mom, are you okay?” Then, he gets a call from his mom. He answers it and there’s a strange guy on the phone that says, “If you ever want to see your parents again, listen to my instructions.” The kid doesn’t believe it’s real, obviously, so he says, “how do I know this is real?” Then, the guy says, “you know that spare key you keep under the door mat?”. The kid checks and it’s not there. Then the guy says “Listen closely, if you ever want to see your parents again, follow my instructions. Check your mailbox, you will find the details there.”

Final scene:
For the last scene, we will do that the kid checks the mailbox and he looks shocked, but we don’t reveal what is inside.

Project idea

Our idea is that it starts with a teenage boy relaxing at home by himself wondering where his parents are then all of a sudden he gets a call from a random guy saying he has his parents and if he ever wants to see them again he has to do whatever the guy tells and him and from there the kid is just shocked and in disbelief.

For our inspiration we didn't really have much we were at first thinking stalker but didn't wanna do a stalker one so we found something similar and we landed on this idea that we came up with and we had got some inspiration and tips from our teacher helping guide us and we took her suggestions and modified them to how we wanted it, but she was the biggest other than her we didn't get much inspiration from many people or anything from online.

Group meeting #1 Reflection

Today I had a group meeting where we were in groups of 7 to 8 with people from our class and we got in a circle and talked about our project ideas and what we have so far. In my group I had Brianna, Brennen, Amilia, Abriel, Jade, and Sofia, the going around hearing what everyone was doing helped me get a better idea of what I wanted to do and at the time I wasn't to sure about my ideas and they were able to give me some good suggestions that I will actually use like how I should use a scary sound that build suspense like the sound from the jaws movie and gave me some ideas for some shots saying on how this bloody scene I'm gonna do I should get a close up of the person's hand and their reaction to further affirm how the person is feeling in that moment.