Introduction

 The Movie Intro

Enjoy!

https://youtu.be/oxqDv7j5MoQ

CCR

 My creative critical reflection!

https://youtu.be/rZhfM2_wc9c

Ending

 The End

Well this is the end of my journey and I can’t wait for you guys to see the project! I’m very proud of what we were able to make even with all the difficulties that happened throughout the production and filming stage of our film. As you know, we are filming during a global pandemic and both of us were affected with the virus during filming. This brought obstacles towards the end as we did not know whether or not we were going to be able to film. But we did it! Because it was only us two now and we could not get anyone to help us during filming due to the difficulties we had at hand, my partner and I had to change certain plot ideas and camera shots at night. We weren’t able to do the shot where the victim was in the pool and the camera goes up and shows the bloody knife and mask as we needed three people. We also could not do the shot where we have cop lights right at the end as we needed another person for that. We went around the bush and figured out another way.  During filming, I added the ideas of the lamp post and the shot in the car where Otis puts on the mask. After shooting and going into the editing process, I was very excited. Editing took a lot of work and determination. There were very little details that took lots and lots of work. For example, the copyright free music that I utilized took much work to find on the internet. It also took lots of work to be able to match it with the shots on screen. Overall this project really helped me develop shot selection, editing skill and developing directing skills. Thank you so much for this journey and can’t wait for you guys to see the outcome on the next blogs!

Problems During Shooting

 Some Difficulties While Filming

   During filming we ran into a couple of difficulties.

The first difficulty being that while filming at Walgreens, we had to wait for many people to leave as they were in our way of the shots. This made the process longer and unfortunately it was very sunny which made the process even more tedious. 

Another problem we ran into was not showing Otis face during the shots at Walgreens. We stated before we won’t include his face in order to create mystery and add suspense but it was very difficult during filming and it took many retakes.

Changes

 Changes on certain details 

Since we started filming, we have made a couple of changes. 

The location of where we started filming is the first thing we changed. At first, we wanted to film at 7/11, but we decided to change the filming location to Walgreens. The reason we made this change is that there would be much more space for filming and there would be less interruptions during the shots. 

My partner and I also made a couple of changes when it dealt with the shot selections in the storyboard. For example, we implemented tracking shots and over the shoulder shots into our film introduction. The storyboard did not have these specific shots.

Film Process

 Filming has begun!

My partner and I have begun filming our introduction. The introduction consists of three parts: Otis seeing himself in the newspaper, goes home and finds his mask, and the killing scene.

We have filmed the first two parts as we want to take our time with the major scene at the end which will roll into what the entire movie is about. The last part is going to be filmed during the night, which will give us trouble with lighting and many retakes. 

The first part of the introduction took longer than we expected as it is filmed at a public space. My partner was a little nervous to begin filming as there are many people walking in and out of the store.

Fake Blood!

 Creating One of Our Props

One of our most important props that will be used towards the end of the introduction will have to be handmade. The prop is Fake Blood!

The ingredients are:

• 3/4 cup corn syrup

• 1/4 cup water

• 1/2 teaspoon red food coloring

• 5 drops blue food coloring

• 2 drops green food coloring

• 1 tablespoon cornstarch

The Preparation:

In a small bowl, whisk together the corn syrup and water. Add the red, blue, and green food colorings and whisk until well combined. Whisk in the cornstarch and let the liquid sit for 10 minutes to thicken.

Purchasing Props

                            First Purchase of Prop

We have purchased our first prop of the production that we will need. This prop is essential to the title and plot of the entire movie. We were stuck in between two masks: the pig mask or the bunny mask.

We went ahead and bought this one:Our next step was to buy the killer's weapon. We went and bought a fake knife that is used as a weapon. When both of these items arrive soon, it’ll put us one step closer to begin filming!

Team Meetings

 Group Meeting

   Today I had my first group discussion. There was one earlier, but I was not able to make it to class. In the group meeting I had to present my idea to some of my classmates. When I told them the plot, they really enjoyed it and thought it was unique. More specifically, they enjoyed the fact that my partner and I are creating a film in the perspective of the killer. They provided me with some ideas of what I can implement in the introduction.

   Firstly, they said to not do too much in the introduction as it can overwhelm the audience. They told me to add a parallel shot where we see our main character plotting or planning for his next victim while something else is going on. They also said to make it very hard for the audience to put it together that the main character is in fact the killer. Do it in a way that it is in front of the audience but not telling them “So this is our killer!” My classmates also told me to incorporate an obsession that is driving the killer or let the viewers know the way that he is.

Shots and Angles

 Selection of Shots and Angles

   In this blog, we want to discuss the main shots and angles that the introduction will consist of. 

  The first two shots that we mainly are focusing on at the moment is close ups and the rack focus technique. In the introduction, there will be many different close ups, For example, close ups of the newspaper, the killer's mask, and the blood all over the killer and his knife. The other shot we want to use is the rack focus. The rack focus technique is described as changing the focus of the lens during a continuous shot. When a shot “racks,” it moves the focal plane from one object in the frame to another. We want to implement this technique while the main character is looking at the newspaper article back at home and his mask is in the background out of focus but still visible at the same time. This will be letting the viewers know he is the killer without someone saying it out loud. We know this may be difficult to do without higher quality technology, but I still feel that it is possible to do; however we anticipate the difficulty that the shot technique will present.

StoryBoard

 

StoryBoard

Our introduction will have little to no dialogue between the characters so we decided to do a storyboard instead of a script. Down below is the storyboard!

Changing Details

 Change of Plans

   My partner and I decided to change our plans for the beginning of our intro. The plan was for our main character (Otis) to walk into a 7/11 gas station and grab his favorite snack he always gets after school. When he was grabbing the snacks, there would be a background TV that would be reporting the local news. A reporter would be mentioning The Bunnied Killer and his attacks on the town. 

   We figured that doing this would be very difficult to pull off. Getting a reporter to read our lines would be very difficult and something that could take more time than what we have. Me and my partner asked reporters that have social media platforms to see if they would be open to reading specific lines and then integrate it in the scene. However, all of the reporters we messaged ultimately said no. 

   Instead, we thought of an alternative for this scene. We will be removing the background TV reporter and incorporating something else. We will have Otis be on the 7/11 and while he is selecting his favorite snack, he will grab the local newspaper. The newspaper will read that there is a killer with a picture from a security camera. This newspaper could be done handmade and the result will be as effective as the TV news reporter.

Movie Title

 Movie Name

When coming up with a name it can be extremely difficult. It can be very hard as you may have many ideas but don’t know if it’s the right one. Movie names can be very cheesy and can result in the viewers not being interested in watching it in the first place. The title is crucial as it can attract the viewer instantly by having a title that creates curiosity.

Our title let’s the viewers know what type of horror the movie will be. It will not have paranormal activities or characters, but it will deal with a murderer that utilizes masks. The name of the movie will be “Masked Slaughter.”

Murderer Name!

 Main Character Murderer Name

Otis, our main character, is the old teen responsible for our current murders in Charleston Woods. The people of the town do not know who the man is, so they decide to give him a name that the people of the town will start addressing him as.

We decided that we had to pick a name that relates to something that he has or does. In many movies or real life cases, journalists or the people make a connection with how the murderers kill their victims to their name they create. Otis will be using a mask that has a face of a bunny with blood smeared over the mouth. The name we decided on was “The Bunnied Killer.”

The name perfectly correlates with the mask that Otis will be wearing throughout his murders in the movie.

Props Selection

 Props

When filming any type of content whether it's a skit, a movie, or a commercial they all need props. Props are so important in this type of field. Props are what make the content that is being filmed come into reality. If the director wants to film a scene that portrays the 90’s, the props that the actors are going to use is what is going to make that sense of realism and allow the film to be perceived as if it was shot during the 90’s

For our film introduction, props will be key to bring in that horror factor of the film. We will need masks for our main character as he uses it when he murders his victims. Other items that we will need while filming could be: fake blood, plastic knife, jumpsuit, lighting devices for night filming. These items will be crucial when we begin the process of shooting.

Mood-boards

 Character Mood Boards

Sheriff Wright Moodboard:

Otis Moodboard: 

Names

 Developing Character Names

   Surprisingly, this process did not take very long. We wanted to come up with two names for our first main characters that will have the largest impact on our movie. 

   We first wanted to come up with a name for our main character. The name has to reflect his personality. Someone that is very quiet and could have lots of hidden things going on in his life but they are not shown as he hides his feelings. That's the type of person our character is, very quiet and mysterious. When we looked up names that could represent these types of qualities we immediately found what we were looking for. The name Otis is what represents those specific qualities. There aren't many Otis around the world as it represents a very unique name.

   Next we wanted to come up with a name for our sheriff or policemen. We believed this could be easy as we were looking for a generic name that represents a good and family man that cares about protecting his family and his town. We found names like Sheriff Jack or Sheriff Bart and these names weren’t what we were looking for. Until, we found the name Sheriff Wright. His first name will be Robert, but throughout the movie the viewers are mostly going to hear Sheriff Wright.

Movie Plot

 Plot of the movie after the Intro

   Creating the plot for the intro is essential, but coming up with the entire plot is very important. As our main character hears the sirens is about to take his mask off and get in the car, the cop manages to get a glimpse of our main character's side profile. The main character manages to get away but he knows that the cop has seen what he looks like and knows that the cop will be able to put the pieces together. 

   The policeman has been there in that small town for over twenty years. Towards the beginning of his career there was a killer in the town that he was never able to catch. He killed his victims very specifically and always at night. The cop once saw his face and never forgot it since as it still haunts him to this day. The name of this killer was the Charleston Wood Killer. 

   The policeman realized that after seeing the current killer, which is our main character, he looks very similar to the one from 20 years ago. Both of their masks are very unique and similar at the same time. He realizes that there has to be some connection between the two and it gives him hope that he can catch both killers. The conflict is that now that he saw our current killer, he will be chasing after the cop and his family.

Intro Plot

 Intro Plot

   After we selected horror and decided that we were going to shoot it from the killers point of view, many ideas were thrown around. We decided to stick with what we thought was best. For our two minute intro we plan to shoot what is listed below.

   The main character of the film is a high schooler that is on his way home from school and stops into a pharmaceutical or grocery store.As we follow him, his face is never shown and only his body and feet. By doing this it keeps the audience on edge and wanting to see what he looks like. When he enters the store, he sees that the news is on. The audience would only see our main character's body while listening to the news reporter talking about the deadly killings in their local town. The killing is very specific as he breaks into houses and kills the entire family. In the next scene, the main character gets back to his house, and the television is on. The television talks about the same killer that is at large. In this scene we will see the characters mask on the side or somewhere where the viewers can see that alludes to the person we’re following is the killer. The next scene transitions into nighttime, where our main character (still no face reveal ) grabs his mask and leaves his house. He then drives and comes to a stop at a house where he commits another murder of an entire family. The viewers will be able to see a silhouette of the main character stabbing a woman and seeing blood. As the main character/killer leaves the crime scene going back to his car while covered in blood, he hears police sirens in the distance, and right before he takes off his mask, the introduction is over. The main character's face is not revealed because it adds to the horror and creepiness of the character.

Movie Example

 

Psycho

Psycho by Alfred Hitchcock surprised viewers at the theatre. Opening with the scandalous scene of Marion Crane with her lover Sam Loomis during a mid-lunch attempt, she then steals a large amount of cash from her boss and chooses to move to California. On the way, she ends up at the Bates Motel, where one of the most famous film scenes takes place: Crane is murdered in the shower by the mother of Norman Bates, the plucky hotel owner. Psycho was also among the first to make its killer empathetic, unprecedented for its portrayals of violence and sexuality. In the shaping genre, the killer's knife, the first-person viewpoint, and the unnerving manner in which viewers sympathize with Norman Bates all played a significant role, and its DNA is all over eventual slasher classics such as Halloween and Scream. Psycho utilized never before seen shots that changed shots technique forever. They also utilized a record breaking amount of cuts. Both of these techniques can improve our film drastically in many ways.