Organisation: Casting

As I stated in a  previous blog posts, my friend Luke is going to be my main protagonist as he is reliable and I know as he studies media too so he knows how important it is to get a good film trailer. Also due to his tall heights, he will be seen as quite intimidating as all the other people in my film trailer are smaller than him.

Luke Reeves is the main protagonist

In my film trailer, I am going to show the close relationship between the protagonist male character and his little sister through a flashback and then I will have the protagonist find his younger sister dead on the floor. He then creates a plan to avenge her death as he goes after all the gang members that killed his sister. The next main character who is going to be Luke's little sister is my friend Claire. She may be seen as quite innocent and vulnerable as she is small and so is going to have the right look about her too be the victim of a gang killing. I am going to have her dressed really girly which seems to go against the norm of a horror film as her character is sweet and not the typical horror film character so this is why she will be a perfect victim.

Claire is going to be the protagonists little sister

 The film trailer will also include a gang which consists of four people on screen and more but they aren't important for the trailer. The four people will be Caitlyn and Charlie who both get chased into the woods. Charlie is the one who gets killed. The other characters are played by Ben and Chelsie.

Organisation: Props

Props are key elements to the mise-en-scene of the film trailer which can contribute to the success of the trailer as it can emphasis the genre of the trailer and can add to the narrative.

This prop is going to be used several times in different scenes. The first scene it will be involved in is one of the flashbacks where Luke and his younger sister are together. Sister  jokingly gives Luke a present off a clock and says to him that "I got you this because your always late." The clock is going to be wrapped up. The clock is £6.00 from Wilkinsons. Another scene that this clock will be in is in the room where Luke is pinning up the profiles of his sisters killers around the clock. 

This prop is going to be used in the ending clip when the alarm clock rings at 10pm which signals a death has taken place and a hand slams on top of the clock. This clock is also £6.00 from Wilkinsons.

The main character Luke will make profiles on each gang member which he puts around the clock that his sister gave him. This will be free and easy to make.

This will firstly be the weapon choice for the gang members that kill Claire but this wont be in the film trailer but this is what Luke uses to stab Charlie but all we as an audience see will be the knife being lifted into the air and then the screen goes black

Research into target audience: Film titles (social media questionnaire)

I sent an image of a spider diagram of six film titles that I could possibly use for my film trailer. I gave them a quick overview of the plot and gave the genre of the film trailer.

 

From my research, I have decided to call my film

Midnight Tolls

Drafting and Planning; Film Titles

Now that I have looked into specific details of my film (including a horror/thriller genre and potential certification of a 15 and a basic plot to my film trailer), I am beginning to consider a large range of film titles (As stated down below). I have tried to incorporate films titles that have something to do with the time I am setting the film around which is Halloween a it is quite dark and spooky and with clocks as a main motif. Here is a brainstorm of some potential film titles.

• Midnight Tolls - The noun 'Tolls' emphasises the clock as they are an important motif throughout the film trailer
• Halloweens Retribution - The film Trailer is set on Halloween to add a more creepy and mysterious tone to it and it is a revenge plot line
• October 31st: Time to die - The film trailer is set on Halloween (October 31st) and due to it being a revenge plot line where the characters do die
• Halloween Vengeance - The film trailer is set on Halloween and is a revenge plot line
• Midnight Tales - This gives mystery to it and midnight could be the time the killer strikes
• Clockface - Clocks play a massive part in the trailer

Drafting and Planning: Plot ideas

Through my pitch feedback I have decided that I have over complicated my plot line very much so I am going to step back and re-evaluate my plot by changing some plot details so I can film it. Some of my peers questioned how I am going to film a clock shop and to be honest, I hadn't thought of that, so I have decided that I am going to change these details.

MY NEW PLOT LINE:


The film will start with a flash back of the main antagonists childhood. It seems like he is a fairly normal boy who is very close to his younger sister and she is his world. But all that changed one night. Their parents were away on business and he was running late home on a Tuesday night as it was Halloween. When he arrived home, it was getting late and as he went to open the front door with his key, he noticed it was open already. He entered the flat to find everything was smashed and then he noticed some blood. And lying motionless on the floor, he saw his little sister with a knife sticking out from his chest.The police finished their inquiries and couldn't charge anyone because there was no evidence. The police suspected it was a robbery gone wrong. The only thing the police had was the eye witness that said a gang of girls and boys had been up to mischief for the last few weeks in the local area. The main character knew it was those group of teens. He wanted to get revenge and make them pay. He finds the group of teens. There's about 5 of them. He photographs them and turns them into a profile on each of them. He goes after them one by one, stalking each of them and kills them leaving a clock next to each dead body. He takes a missing poster for each victim and uses them as a trophy in his room and puts them a round his clock. Once he has killed them all and avenges his sister's death, he knows the police are closing in on him so he kills himself at his sister's grave. He leaves a note saying "Time Ran Out For Them". 

This is going to be so much easier to film as I will not have to find a clock shop as a location and I can find a girl to be the little sister of the main character.

TRAILER:

Flashbacks of the main characters childhood with younger sister
Sister is found dead
Main character finds out who it was who killed her
Makes profiles on each character and puts them on his wall
Goes after, stalks and kills a couple of them. 
One of the dead bodies will be seen but you will see one of the gang members being chased but wont see the murder instead a clock will be shown and it will go off signalling a murder has taken place

Research into target audience: Age Classification

In a previous blog post, I did lots of research into different age ratings from 12 to 18. I didn't research PG or U age ratings because I knew the film I wanted to as it is a revenge plot It would not be suitable for children. The actual age rating that I decided to use for my film trailer was 15. This is because I want to include some violence as it is a revenge film where my main character is trying to avenge his grandfathers death, mild language and a knife may be used as a prop for my serial killer. Giving myself an age rating of 15, I allow a free reign of how creative I can be.

This is from my pitch idea of reasons why I chose a 15 age rating

This is what the BBFC website said about a 15 age rating and this is what I used as reference when deciding what classification I would like my film to be. This classification allowed me to have a good creative range as I can use strong language, bits of violence etc.

Drafting and Planning: Songs

In a previous blog post, I looked at one version of this song "Ready or Not" by the fugees but doing some more research I found this remixed version of this song that is for the mission impossible film. This would fit more with my film trailer as it sounds like clocks in the background which is featured quite heavily as a main motif in my film trailer. I prefer this version of the song to one I looked at in a previous post as it seems to have more relevance to my plot.

Research into target audience: Pitch Feedback

In a previous post I uploaded my pitch idea for my film trailer. This pitch was shown in front of my peers and I was given feedback to them. My peers also asked me questions as feedback so I am going to be answering those questions in this blog post. First of all, just from my pitch, everyone got that my film genre is horror/thriller and the plot is a revenge plot.

Media Pitch from ChloeKiely2

Feedback

• "The idea of the grandfather working in a clock shop seems complicated, where is the location?" =  This is quite a valid point, there is no where I could potentially use as a clock shop location so I am thinking that I might not use this as a part of the plot line. However I do want clocks to be an important prop so I can use the clocking noise as a build up in the background. 
• "Does the boy go after all the killers?" = Yes, my main character is going to go after all the killers throughout the whole film but there is only going to be a couple in the film trailer that actually g
• "Is there any music/sound?" = Yes. There is going to be some narrative of the characters and throughout the whole clip in the background I am going to use a ticking clock that gets louder and louder until the last clip where the alarm clock goes off signalling a murder 
• "How does he know who killed his grandfather?" = Basically the main character knows a group of teenagers who have been causing trouble lately and the murder is a robbery gone wrong. The group try to hide the evidence that it was them but dont do it very well.
• "Show a bit more of who the villians are and why they killed the grandfather?" = I might use flashbacks to show the killers.
• "I like the setting but where else is it set?" = The castle at the lickey hills would be a good place to set one of the murders 
• "Missing some context at the start" = at the start of my trailer I might do a flashback or something to show how much the main character cared for his grandfather and something about the murder so the audience have some ideas about what the film trailer is about and hwy he is trying to get revenge
• "How will the murders be shown and will there be blood" = I havent decided yet how we are going to execute the murders but the dead bodies will be seen and there may be a small amount of fake blood used I think

Organisation: Casting

In my film trailer, I will have a main character who to some might be seen as the antagonist as he goes on a revenge rampage killing people but in the trailer, we see that he is doing it to avenge the death and we see his humanity. My main character is going to be the serial killer that is wanting revenge for his grandfathers death so sets about to get this by murdering all his grandfathers killers as his grandfather was his sole guardian after his parents were killed in a car crash at a young age.

When thinking of films everyone always remembers the main character as it is the central focal point of the movie and the majority of the narrative revolves around the main character - be that an antagonist or protagonist. For my film, the main character will seem like an antagonist as he is going around killing people but in the trailer, we see an innocence of him as all he wants to do is care and look after his grandfather. The main character needs to be able to engage and relate to the audience and seem to fit the genre and narrative.

This is why I have come to the decision that I want my main character to be played by Luke Reeves as he fits the target audience as he young at the age of 17 so he can relate to the audience. Also by choosing my friend Luke I know he is going to be reliable and is going to act in the best way possible as he knows what to expect as he is an A -Level media student too.

Research into similar products: taglines

Most films have a tagline underneath the main title which is used to represent the genre and market the movie. The idea behind the concept of a tagline is to create a memorable and dramatic phrase which sums up the tone of the film as a whole product. The tagline is also use to promote the movie and be used for social media marketing. Taglines give an insight into the movie and the plot of the film. It also very important to create a tagline that fits the trailer and making sure that it isn't to cheesy but it also fits within our film. Taglines could also be a common phrase used in the film (ie: The film IT).

The tagline used in the film Possession is "Fear The Demon That Doesn't Fear God" is used to highlight to the audience that there is a religious aspect to the film and adds a sense of mystery for the film as it leaves the audience wanting to know what the demon is and what it does.

The tagline used in the film Mama is "A Mothers Love Is Forever" is used to highlight that there is something to do with a mother figure as this adds a sense of mystery for the audience and this gives an insight into the film plot

The tagline used in the film Sinister is "Once you see him, nothing can save you" is used to highlight that the genre of the film is horror and the tagline adds a sense of mystery as you don't know who "him" is 

The tagline used in the film IT is "You'll float too" and is a common phrase used within the film and this adds a sense of mystery for the audience

Drafting and Planning: Songs

For a film trailer, the brief allows us around about 15 seconds - 20 seconds of real song to go over the top of the trailer. The non diabetic is used quite often in most of film trailers. I have decided to have a good look at several songs. The first song I am looking at is called 'Ready or Not' by the Fugees.


By listening to the whole song I have decided that the chorus sounds quite good and would go with the narrative of my film plot.

Chorus:
Ready or not, here I come, you can't hide
Gonna find you and take it slowly
Ready or not, here I come, you can't hide
Gonna find you and make you want me

This links to my plot as the main protagonist is running away and trying to hide from the antagonist as he is trying to hunt and kill her. 

Organisation: Location

My film trailer has 4 scenes. The first and the last scene interlink and are set in the same location.

First Scene:

The girl is running through the woods. She is looking behind her and stumbling over trees. She is crying hysterically and falls over a tree stump. She sees the killer approaching. She begins to whimper. This will be set in the Lickey Hills as it is quite close to my house so I will easily be able to get up there and film. Also my actors don't live too far away. It is a dark wood and would be ideal for a serial killer to chase the victim as there is loads of odd placed trees trunks everywhere.

Second Scene:

 There is a Tv appeal asking for any information about the whereabouts of the girl. There is a police officer with the parents. The parents are holding the missing person poster. For this scene I have decided to use my own house as obviously I have access 24 hours to my house and it is just an average sized house and is quite normal. The roads aren't that busy around my house so it won't cause that much noise pollution during filming.

Third Scene

The camera zooms out from previous scene and the missing person poster is in a dark room with lots of other different missing people posters surrounded by a clock. The killer is stood looking at the wall. The dark room that will represent the killers room will hopefully be a classroom in school as it would be easy to get my actors to get to as they go sixth form with me. I could have the lights off, the dark of the winter sky as it is getting darker earlier and candles could be lit to give it a more eerie feel to it.

Fourth Scene:

  The camera cuts back to the first scene with the girl on the floor. This will be set in the same location as the first scene as it will be one continuous shot of the first and last scene but split in two. In the part of the scene where the hand slams on top of a clock and goes to a black screen in can be set in any room.