Finished!

After fixing up our sequence using the feedback from the test screen, we were due to test screen again but were forced back because of the many changes we needed in our editing. This left us to test screen after school at about 4pm. Since lunchtime there had been further changes to the sequence applied by Jack and Shaun - this being the main title being finished by Jack, and some further changes by Shaun who had replaced the 'help' shout with a horrifying scream of pain. This, somehow over the top, seemed to work really well because of its shocking nature. It was perfectly timed with the hand banging against the door glass and we though it would make people jump, which is the point of a horror film. Also we had responded to more feedback from Miss Blackborow, adding more titles for the duration of the sequence as otherwise our piece would not technically be a "title sequence". We filled this with random names and media-related roles.

We did not get to test screen until about 4.45 because of other test screens, so we showed fellow media students around the department the sequence and asked for more feedback. This was alot more successful because of the miraculous changes, but there were still one or two things to fix up! We were told to change one of the names of our extra titles as it was distracting from the scene. This name was 'Han Chan' who is actually a boy we know, but we saw how funny this name could be percieved as if we had made it up. We were also told to move around some of the titles away from the main subjects on the screen such as to the sides and the bottom corners. The only other thing we were left to think about was the volume of Matt's voice over the music on two very short occasions. Other than that the changes we had made were fine, and the shocking ending was successful in causing the students a fright!

We went away for 15 minutes and quickly applied these changes, lowering the volume of the music on two parts of the dialogue in order to hear Matt, moving the titles around to fit perfectly on the screen without being distracting and adding a new name to one of the titles - an ambiguous and boring name, Tom Matthews, instead of Han Chan. We checked the whole sequence with Miss Blackborow one last time, saved, rendered and we were done, concluding our editing time at approximately 17:05.

Now our sequence will be put on Youtube and DVD, whilst we must get on with our evaluations... but our days in the edit suite are officially over leaving us with nothing but a gloriously completed sequence, fond memories and a tint of finalitic sadness.

Test Screen Reaction

After test screening we recieved alot of critical feedback - the minor mistakes that we needed to fix in order for our sequence to run perfectly. There was some obvious hiccups with the sound on the big speakers such as background fuzz in some shots and not others, and Rob's voice still being too loud but Matt's being too tired. There were also a couple of dodgy cuts during the conversation to fix. People liked the beginning titles but were dissapointed by the main title at the end as they thought it was too small, did not stand out, was not distinctive from other films and was boring as it used the same font as the rest of the titles. The last thing people suggested was a lock sound on the door rather than the shout of 'help' as this could also anchor the meaning of locking the victims away and the hand appearing being of a trapped man. This obviously left us with some work to do...

We worked hard on the sound, getting the voices the same level throughout. We also had to play around with the music for it too rise and fall with the sequence. We were told about a technique to take off the camera fuzz by lowering the treble booster, so we applied this to every clip and we were amazed at how effective this was. It cleared up alot of mess and helped make the dialogue clearer. It was miraculous! We also fixed up the cuts in the conversation as we were told and played around with the main title. We were not happy with the effects used on the editing software so we consulted our media technition and he suggested a programme called After Effects. We played around with this as well as checking out some effects on the technition's Imac before deciding to edit the effect of each individual letter in RESERVATION on After Effect. Jack did this in a free period, adding a mysterious glow and thickness to the font, whilst making random letters fade up until it spelt the word, RESERVATION. We loved the spooky, mysterious feel it gave to add a chilling end to the piece, accompanied by the music going silent leaving a thrilling echo. Finally, we found a sound of a locking door and applied this to the scene where the door is closed. We kept the 'help!' in for further feedback, but overall we feel we are one step closer to completion.

Death of the Shoot

We have come to the conclusion not to shoot tonight, Tuesday the 6th January. It is our last chance to re-shoot in our basement location but once again we have experienced problems in communication with our actors, and one of them is unfortunately unavailable. However, since our decision last term to re-shoot on this date we have made some successful changes to our current sequence of footage and we believe this has come together nicely and would be fine for our final piece. We are beginning to sort out the problems with lighting and sound that we originally intended to change by re-shooting, so for this reason the failure to re-shoot tonight is not such a disaster.

We are now making decent progress with the footage we have. We have learnt many lessons about communication and actor problems along the way, some which could have been dealt with such as phone numbers, and some which could not have been dealt with such as illness and unattendance. Now, we are officially not shooting again for this project.

On-going Editing

We have pretty much finished our final sequence using the old footage, and may just need to fiddle around with sound and light levels for various clips during the dialogue. We may have to work on getting rid of crackle and background noise which is prodominant in clips that we have raised the volume on for Matt's dialogue. There does not seem to be too much more we can do with the lighting in the clips of Rob. At least by raising the brightness a little he is slightly more visible, matching with the other shots.. The last big thing we got done today was replace the feeble bang sound on the door in the 'bloody hand' clip with a more ferocious bang sound. We recorded this today in the English corridor by slamming the door shut. We slowed the clip down by 50% and put a reverb effect on it to make it low-pitched and long lasting as well as very loud. This gives the shocking effect that we wanted without taking the atmosphere away for an anti-climax after the sound and hand appears. This manouvre was very successful to give us a decent ending to the sequence along with the flickering title, 'Reservation'.

Kris

Re-Re-Shoot (problems and resolvements)

Once again illness managed to spoil the party today, with Matt our actor not turning up at school (probably due to illness - although he could have told us or at least turned his phone on!). As media students we are aware that by recruiting two actors outside of media who may not have the same commitment in the project as us that these problems may arise, as well as the possibility of illness and all other silly things.

We have resolved to give shooting a break until after christmas. We have organised so many and we are now very tired. The idea this week is to try and edit our old footage. We have already sequenced it together and there are a few editing techniques we think we could possibly use such as turning up the lighting or brightness on a few shots and blanking out a visible background studio light which ruins one particular shot. At the end of the day, if this fails or is not quite good enough for a final copy as it may be quite patchy, we are likely to hold ONE MORE SHOOT on Tuesday 6th January (first Tuesday back after christmas). Actors are confirmed for this date and hopefully everyone will have recovered from all colds by fattening themselves up over the festive season so they are nice and protected from these Arctic winds. By shooting on this date, we will be left with just 3 days to edit the sequence, but seeing as we have already placed a structure of how the sequence will run using the old footage, we already have done the titles, soundtrack and sounds and will only need to simply replace the footage and neaten it up. Some solid editing from Wednesday until Friday 9th January should see us through!

Let this be the last big problem pleeeease (I know we can't help illness).

Kris

Re-Shoot

Despite all 3 of us feeling rather ill, as well as our actors, we decided to go ahead with the shoot. The shoot went surpringly well and we were alot more efficient and productive than before, getting things done smoothly and quickly. We managed to get all our re-shots done and our actors were very cooperative despite being slightly under the weather. We narrowed down our shots into ones we needed and ones we didn't, helping with the productiveness of the shoot. We got the shots we needed done. Now we hav to incorporate parts of our new footage into the sequence we have made using the old footage, as certain parts need improving.

Kris

Problems with the re-shoot (resolved)

As well as Rob not able to make it on Tuesday, Matt unfortunately fell ill and was not present at school - big problem! We had a stand-in actor (Ben Tucker) for the killer and Kris (me) to play the victim, but we decided that the actors we had already were perfect and to change this would be mad. We were also happy with some of the shots involving these 2 actors from the previous shoot and had worked had to edit these together in sequence for the time-being. Therefore we were able to change the shoot night to Thursday night thanks to the fantastic cooperation and consideration of Miss Blackborow and the media department, as well as the caretakers. Rob Demont is a definate for Thursday night, as is Matt Doyle unless he is still ill-striken (fingers crossed he won't be). If this is the case we will have to work around this either by using stand in actor Ben Tucker who is still being notified about the case, to change the shoot date again, or simply shoot Matt's scenes during lunchtimes and free periods. This would obviously not be ideal due to the time taken clearing out space in the basement to shoot, so we are desperately hoping Matt will get better quickly!

Things we have learnt through this series of unfortunate events:

- Notify actors of ALL shoot dates including re-shoots so we know when they are definately free and can book these slots in advance.

- Communicate better with the media department about problems that arise by notifying them of any stresses upon a shoot so they can be resolved within plenty of time.

- Always make sure you have backup actors and backup shoot times.

- Look after your actors as best you can and do your best to keep them immune from all forms of disease!

Kris

Lighting

I thought our lighting could be similar to in this picture of a basement setting. It is pretty much the same as what we were doing before with all the basement lights off and just the studio lights, but in the shoot we did not use this to best effect. In this picture there is a fairly strong studio light centered an a point of the room, and we could shine a studio light on the actor at a stronger intensity (with blue gel) in order to focus the attention on them and express their features and expressions more as well as sharpening their shadows. This I do not feel we did well enough in the first shoot as we tried to flicker the lights on and off but this only caused a blurred focus on the camera. We should always keep the intensity the same, and making it fairly high will be more effective within the pitch black darkness than the extreme dimness we tried last time. The lighting will still be low key but will simply be clearer and sharper such as in good films such as Saw.

Kris

For Shaun

Yeah thats fine, in this lesson we are just going to finalise a few things, i doubt there will be many changes to whats happening tomorrow apart from the fact I (Kris) have an ortho appointment tomorrow afternoon but will be back for about 4:15-ish (brace-less!!!). However, I will help set up during free period 6. Other than that the only issues are that Matt may or may not be able to act, so if he can't one of us 3 might have to... and we still need some sort of jacket or coat for the killer. Everything else is taken care of.

Kris & Jack

Group Meeting 3 - Notes

We decided our shoot times and dates as shown in the post named 'Shoot'. We also pinpointed the people we wanted to act for us as killer and victim, who we managed to chase up afterwards and ask. This was successful so we now have our actors and just need to finalise their parts with them and their responcibility in taking up the roles. We talked about the props we need to find ourselves and split up these between us to find over the weekend. Anything we do not have we will sort out on Monday the day before the shoot, but we are confident this will not be the case. We also talked about how we could manage time on the day of the shoot and realised we all have a free period 6 after lunch, in which we could grab one or two willing helpers and clear out the space as well as set up lights and camera (we would have to let the caretakers know what we were doing and not to move the setup - obviously saying we would clear up thoroughly afterwards that evening). This raised the issue of helpers and we discussed who out of our friends would help, so we now have a few names lined up (one who we have asked and is yet to confirm). All this left us to clear up was much of the paperwork for the shoot such as storyboard, shot logs, shot lists, shooting scripts, shooting schedule and actor scripts. We quickly agreed on what we would do in the double media lesson in the afternoon (friday) - mostly this paperwork and finalisation, which we successfully completed in a very productive lesson in our edit suite.

Kris

Shot List

Scene 1 - Victim waking up and struggling (try from different angles)
- ECU victims eyes
- BCU victims eyes and nose
- CU victims face
- MCU victims head and neck
- MCU victims head and neck (from behind)
- MS victim struggling
- MS HA victim struggling (behind over shoulder)
- MS LA victim struggling (behind over shoulder)
- MLS victim struggling
- LS LA 360 arc victim struggling
- LS 360 arc victim struggling
- LS HA 360 arc victim struggling
- LS victim struggling
- LS HA victim struggling
- LS LA victim struggling
- VLS crab victim struggling
- VLS crab victim struggling (from behind)
- CU victims left hand chained
- CU victims right hand chained
- CU victims waist chained (padlock)
- CU victims feet chained (metal tray)
- CU tilt or crane up from feet to shoulders and head
- Steady zoom out from CU face to LS victim struggling (could tilt to one side slowly)
- Crash zoom in from LS victim struggling to CU face

Scene 2 - Killers entrance
- POV handheld track of killer entering basement to victim
- Track following killer entering basement to victim (over shoulder)
- CU of killers feet walking down stairs
- CU of killers last step onto puddle
- CU of killers feet walking on level ground
- POV LS killer spying on victim through gap in shelves (not showing victims face)
- OTS LS killer spying on victim through gap in shelves (not showing victims face)
- LS killers shadow on wall (walks towards then turns right)
- MS killers shadow on wall (walks past)
- LA VLS killer walking past camera, looking around corner to victim (fully blacks out screen for split second)
- VLS killer walking past camera, looking around corner to victim (fully blacks out screen for split second)
- CU killers nose, mouth and neck as he zips up his jacket or zips down his jacket slightly
- CU killers fingers tapping against sides
- CU killer stretching out hand or cracking knuckles

Scene 3 - Killer/Victim conversation
- POV LS light flash with nothing in room ahead (from victims POV)
- POV LS light flash revealing killer (from victims POV)
- POV MLS light flash revealing killer (from victims POV)
- POV MS light flash revealing killer (from victims POV)
- POV MCU light flash revealing killer (from victims POV)
- HA OTS LS killer walking towards victim
- LA LS killer walking towards victim (from bottom left)
- LS mastershot of conversation (side on)
- MS OTS victims whole conversation (over killers left shoulder)
- MS OTS killers whole conversation (over victims right shoulder)
- CU killer chosing weapon and picking it up
- Quick pan down from victims face to weapons
- Handheld shot following killers weapon towards victims gag
- MLS Crab behind victim as killer speaks
- MLS OTS HA killer speaking (so weapons can be seen behind on ground)
- MS killer putting victim to sleep (side on)
- CU victims face falling to sleep
- ECU victism eyes falling to sleep
- POV room going blurry (from victims POV & going out of focus)
- LS of victim asleep and killer walking away

Scene 4 - Killers exit
- POV handheld track of killer exiting basement
- Track following killer exiting basement (over shoulder)
- MLS other victim chained to wall
- MCU other victim moaning
- CU bloody hand on door pane as lights go out

Cutaway Shots
- CU drainpipe dripping water onto puddle
- CU pipes near ceiling
- CU lights flickering
- MS blurry lights shimmering (out of focus)
- CU saw swinging from side to side hung up on peg
- CU sinister object on shelf
- CU scattered paper
- CU weapons lined up on ground

Kris

Script Final (edited)

Killer enters the corner of the room, walks towards the victim in the chair, takes his weapon of choice and uses it to ungag him instead of kill him, to the surprise of the audience. The victim gives a confused moan.

Killer (calmly and reassuringly): Theres no need to be frightened, we're gonna take good care of you.

Victim (bewildered): What? No, please -

Killer: I said theres no need to be frightened... we try to accomodate all our new guests as best we can.

Victim: But -

Killer: Trust me.

The killer begins to feel inside his coat pockets.

Victim (in confusion): Who are you? What am i doing here?

The Killer takes a sympathetic look at the victim.

Killer: Hmm you look a little dizzy... would you like a drink?

Victim (more anger): Who are you?!

Pause.

Killer (with more charm): It would be aweful of me not to offer you a drink. I'll bring you down some water on my next visit.

Victim (in desperation): Your NEXT visit? Wha - Whats going on? What am i doing here?!

Killer (with sudden frightening anger, quickly desceninding into calm): PLEASE - be quiet. If you wouldn't mind. We've been recieving alot of complaints recently...

Victim: What? Where am I?! Who the hell are -

Killer (suddenly): I SAID BE QUIET.

The killer grabs the victim by the jaw. The victim moans in pain and desperation. The killer thinks to himself and regathers his calm state of mind.

You seem terribly confused. I recommend you catch some sleep now.

The killer ignores the desperate moans and plees of the victim and forces him to sleep with a drug. The victims eyes roll and eventually he slumps into his chair asleep.

Killer: Better, thanks. Its greatly appreciated.

The killer smiles to himself and begins to walk out the room quietly humming to himself the tune of the lullaby 'go to sleep'. As he walks down an aisle between some shelves the sounds of other men screaming becomes more evident. Another victim chained to a wall starts to moan out to the killer as he walks past.

Killer: Now, now Mike. You take good care now.

The killerwalks towards a door where there is the sound of someone moving. The killer opens the door and walks through it.

Killer: And you Jack. Good night.

The killer shuts the door forcefully. A blood stained hand can be seen making an attempt to grab the handle but simply thumpingon the door palm first before smearing helplessly down the glass. The killer stops in his tracks and faces the door with a look of inconvenience on his face.

Killer: Ah, another job for the cleaner.

The killer laughs subtly in a sinister way before murmering something to himself.

Killer (almost secretively): She'll be dead pleased...

The killer laughs again to himself and leaves the basement to the sound of his footsteps and his "oblivious" humming.


Kris

Script Draft

Killer enters the corner of the room, walks towards the victim in the chair, takes his weapon of choice and uses it to ungag him instead of kill him, to the surprise of the audience. The victim gives a confused moan.

Killer (calmly and reassuringly): Theres no need to be frightened, we're gonna take good care of you.

Victim (bewildered): What? No, please -

Killer: I said theres no need to be frightened... we try to accomodate all our new guests as best we can.

Victim: But -

Killer: Trust me.

The killer begins to feel inside his coat pockets.

Victim (in confusion): Who are you? What am i doing here?

The killer kneels down with a torch, ignoring the question.

Killer: I'm just going to check your eyes, you might be feeling a little dazed.

The killer forces the torch towards the victims eyes and checks his pupils.

Victim (with more anger): Get off me!

Killer: Hmm you look a little dizzy... would you like a drink?

Victim: Who are you?

Pause.

Killer (with more charm): It would be aweful of me not to offer you a drink. I'll bring you down some water on my next visit.

Victim (in desperation): Your NEXT visit? Wha - Whats going on? What am i doing here?!

Killer (with sudden frightening anger, quickly desceninding into calm): PLEASE - be quiet. If you wouldn't mind. We've been recieving alot of complaints recently...

Victim: What? Where am I?! Who the hell are -

Killer (suddenly): I SAID BE QUIET.

The killer grabs the victim by the jaw. The victim moans in pain and desperation. The killer thinks to himself and regathers his calm state of mind.

You seem terribly confused. I recommend you catch some sleep now.

The killer ignores the desperate moans and plees of the victim and forces him to sleep with a drug. The victims eyes roll and eventually he slumps into his chair asleep.

Killer: Better, thanks. Its greatly appreciated.

The killer smiles to himself and begins to walk out the room quietly humming to himself the tune of the lullaby 'go to sleep'. As he walks down an aisle between some shelves the sounds of other men screaming becomes more evident. Another victim chained to a wall starts to moan out to the killer as he walks past.

Killer: Now, now Mike. You take good care now.

The killerwalks towards a door where there is the sound of someone moving. The killer opens the door and walks through it.

Killer: And you Jack. Good night.

The killer shuts the door forcefully. A blood stained hand can be seen making an attempt to grab the handle but simply thumpingon the door palm first before smearing helplessly down the glass. The killer stops in his tracks and faces the door with a look of inconvenience on his face.

Killer: Ah, another job for the cleaner.

The killer laughs subtly in a sinister way before murmering something to himself.

Killer (almost secretively): She'll be dead pleased...

The killer laughs again to himself and leaves the basement to the sound of his footsteps and his "oblivious" humming.


Kris

Final Idea (after test shooting)

Title: ?

Slogan: ?

Location: Latymer school basmement

Actors: Kris, Shaun

People on set (need helpers): Kris, Shaun, Jack, Barney?

Characters (need names): 1 - victim who wakes up chained in chair gagged up, moans and tries to free himself, is sent to sleep, 2 - killer who spies on victim, then sends him to sleep before walking out of the basement, 3 - one or two more victims, one covered in blood who grabs for the door before the killer walks out, one maybe banging a spade or trying to escape in some way

Equipment we have: camera, tripod, headphones, 3 lights, blue filter gel for each, white sheet

Props we have: weapons, chair, chains, rope, padlock, metal tray, any sinister objects in basement, pipes, electric lights, shelves etc

Props we need: fake blood, black tape

Other things we need: water source, something to clean up fake blood

Storyline: victim wakes up in chair, killer spies on him before walking in, killer looks like he will kill him with a weapon but instead rips off his gag, he talks to the victim reassuringly before forcing him to sleep with a drug, killer then walks out of the basement to desperate plees for freedom from other victims, he slams the door as a victim tries to escape - their hand imprinting on the door in blood

Techniques to use: starts with CU's of victim waking up, flash cutaways using motivated cuts to show he is chained up, then long shots and cutaways shots establishing where he is, POV shot showing killer spying on him, parallel editing between victim and killers footsteps as he enters, match on action as he enters, shot/reverse shot for conversation, POV tracking shot for killers exit, fade to black at end revealing title of film, cutaway shots of dripping pipes/flickering lights/random objects throughout sequence with titles/credits appearing alongside

Sounds to be added after: unsettling sounds such as banging/rustling/echoing etc, buzzing lights, dripping water, faint male screams and moans, maybe some unnerving music?

Shaun

Test Shoot - Monday 24th November

Here are some photos I took to show what we did on our test shoot.

A window in the basement we could use as a spy hole.

Where the victim will be sitting in the basement (once removing all the clutter).

Close up of the chair.

Testing out lights at low intensity.

At high intensity.

Filming some initial test shots.

Using the blue filter gel on the lights for cold metallic effect.

Using the orange filter gel on the lights to create a dangerous effect, in contrast to the blue.

Filming from the victims point of view.

Using the chain and padlock as props.

Close up of the chain and padlock.

Close up of a hand chained up.

Using the metal tray to chain the victims feet to.

The chair fully set up with chains, rope and metal tray (just missing the victim).

The weapon line up.

Close up of where the victims feet will be.

Low intensity lighting with blue filter gel (our final lighting setup).

Stairway for killers entrance.

A possible close up of the killers feet on stairway.

Point of view shot of killer walking into basement.

Killer looking through door where blue light shines through.

Our favourite shot of a victims hand on the door.

A hole in the door glass which could be exploited for shock.

What the killer sees as he enters.

The killers shadow as he walks.

Pitch black in hallway between the two light setups, disorientating the audience before the killer reaches the victim in the chair.

A gap in the shelves which the killer can look through and spy on the victim.

What the killer will see (with victim sitting in chair).

Kris

Influences

Saw 1 - Opening Sequence


Saw 2 - Opening Sequence


We thought our opening sequence could share alot of similar features to the openings of 'Saw 1' and 'Saw 2', obviously taking into account our budget.

The aspects of 'Saw 1' we thought we could use were the location type, the sounds/atmosphere and certain shots. The location is in a bathroom rather than a basement, but holds the same kind of disused and dirty feel as our location. We particularly liked the watery effect shown in the bath scene, and the fuzzy electric effect shown by shots of the lights when they flicker on. These are boosted by eery sounds of dripping water and electricity generators, a background fuzz we feel we could emulate fairly easily with fans or the light sounds themselves, and using water from a bucket to drip on the pipes. The overall sound is fairly silent with sudden drum sounds matching random flash shots to scare you. We could record drum sounds and use the same kind of shots to help build tension and keep the audience on guard for action. That leaves the very faint high pitched violin twing that occasionally rises and falls as tension runs its course. I don't know how we could emulate this, possibly making our own violin sound on the computer as a kind of audio track. A shot I really liked from the 'Saw 1' opening was the point of view shot from the character as the lights turn on, as this is blurry as if he is in a dazed and blinded state. We could use this for our character as he wakes up, altering the focus on the camera at this point for blurred effect. Also, I feel we can reverse the effect of darkness to light shown in this scene, by the lights flickering and going out at the end of our sequence. This would be effective in mystery, suspence and the meaning of loss of hope, while leaving a black slide to put the title of the film without having to use a cheesy fade to black effect.

We felt the camera movements and lighting in the 'Saw 2' clip were extremely effective, and we could use a similar kind of style. The lighting was fairly bright, with the combination of grey/green slimey walls and yellow/white lights giving the whole clip a neon green/yellow kind of bright tint to contrast the shadows and darkness. The lights in our location are very similar, whilst the walls (mainly concrete and brickwork) are more dusty yellow. The overall effect could be a slight neon yellow tint to create bright contrast to the shadows, especially if we shoot at low key lighting with lights only focused on the character and the rest relying on the room lights as they flicker. The shadows created will give a great opputunity to mask the killer and add mystery to his identity, as well as possibly shocking the audience when he arrives. The camera movements in the 'Saw 2' clip are almost an array of different angles of the victim in the chair pieced together in a lightning quick montage. Here this is so fast as to depict the idea of racing against time, but we could use such quick camera movements as flash cutaways to clues of the victims whereabouts, fast-forwarded pans, arcs and tilts of the victim at different angles, and cuts of his face at different distances quickly pieced together to zoom in on him in a mechanical style. This would create the effect of panic, confusion and disorientation as well as giving the film a modern rejuvinated and alternative effect. The sequence could be fast and pacy at some points, but we will also slow it right down at points to build up tension and introduce the characters, setting and situation, as well as creating space for continuity techniques over montage. The camera movements for 'Saw 2' will only be used at certain points in our sequence and not for the whole duration, as this would not work for our project, and we have to take into account that we are shooting an ameteur film with average equipment.

We will try to combine similar aspects, and will go as far as we can to emulate some of the techniques shown in the clips on a low budget. We felt both clips had an interesting style, especially in the titles, with 'Saw 1' showing a slow and gloomy effect with cold, blue and rippling watery titles, and 'Saw 2' showing an inconsistent and unpredictable effect with neon yellow/green flickering electric titles. We could use either of these styles in our titles and credits appearing alongside such features as dripping water and flickering lights, to either create a solumn or threatening atmosphere. Both are rather chilling and signify danger clearly. We hope to amplify both with effective titles between clips that use many of the techniques shown in the early scenes of the 'Saw' movies.

Kris

Characters

Victim 1
Possible Names: Mike, Pete, Jack, Matt, Tim, Tom.
Role: Victim, tied up in chair, struggles, uncertain conclusion.
Appearance: Bruised, battered, fake cuts, black eye, messy hair, sweating, tears?
Clothes: Suit or shirt/tie, ragged trousers or smart trousers, shoes or trainers.
Needed Acting Traits: male, fairly well built, can act really scared/confused/dazed, can produce fake tears.

Victim 2
Possible Names: Mark, Mike, Dan, Pete, Joe, Jack, Nick, Matt, Tim, Tom, Chris.
Role: Friend of victim 1, has been lead to victims location, find location to find noone there, is killed by killer.
Appearance: Bruised and battered, sweating, fake cuts, ripped clothes, out of breath.
Clothes: Plain white t splattered in blood, jeans (ripped), trainers.
Needed Acting Traits: Male, athletic, can act scared/confused/angry.

Killer
Possible Names: Unnamed or has a nickname to do with the title.
Role: Walks about victim 1 possibly assembling torture tools, follows victim 2 into basement, kills victim 2. Very childish, he never grew up. So murder ways are very strange and have child-like signifiers.
Appearance: Ambiguous, tall, in the shadows, masked or face shadowed, threatening/menacing.
Clothes: Black boots, black hoodie/jacket/cloak, black fingerless gloves, mask?
Needed Acting Traits: Can look powerful/menacing, tall, physical, well-built, can speek in deep/threatening voice.

Kris

Final Idea

The sequence will be set in a basement-like room. It will open with shots of a victim in a suit, beaten up, bruised, gagged and tied up to a chair. He will struggle and look terrified, moaning out of desperation. Shots will be cut up by cutaway shots establishing features of the room such as a puddle with dripping water, a broken pipe, a flickering light and a brick wall with the mans shadow. Credits will appear alongside these objects. The sequence will begin alternating between 2 scenes using parallel editing - one of the victim as a figure appears and begins assembling some torture weapons and one of a mystery person running. We will see features of this person without seeing their face and will see them run down some stairs into a dark cellar (the basement). The audience believe the 2 scenes are happening at the same time, with the person running towards the victim. As the person enters into the cellar, we will cut away to a third scene following slower more sinister footsteps down the stairway. As the person moves around the corner towards where the victim should be, a dark shape moves across the screen quickly. The tension will build up towards this climax as we follow the person around the corner to find an empty chair and words along the lines of 'too late' scrawled across the wall in blood (or red paint). This will confuse the audience who expect to find the victim in the chair. At this point the camera faces the person who we see full on for the first time, as he begins shouting for what appears to be his friend (the audience finds this out now). As he moves towards a dark corner, a figure appears from out the darkness and grabs the persons neck from behind at knife point. There is some kind of brief significant conversation between the 2 before the killer slashes the persons throat. We do not see the point of penetration but just a quick action assuming the murder happens as we cut to a shot of the empty chair with flickering lights. The lights go out and the film title appears. The rest of the film will trace back what happened before the victim was caught, establishing the characters, and will then follow what happened and why. It will contain aspects of murder, suspence and gore, focusing on a modern combination of horror and thriller.

Kris

Title Ideas

The Follower

The Followed

Hunted

Trick of the Mind

The Time Trick

Twisted Irony

The Timekeeper

Too Late

Saving Seconds

Death Count

The Counting Game

Count to 3

Overdue

A Lesson in Punctuality

The Trail

The Race

Traceless

Clueless

Tracing Time

Wasting Time

The Appointment

Follow Me

Kris