Poster and Review Survey

Poster and Review Survey 

I made a survey to hand to people that were attracted to the poster and review. The survey will allow me to make sure that the target audience is met before the final film is released. The survey will also help be verify previous research into films of this genre in terms of what makes their ancillary texts effective.

Storyboards

Idea / Treatment

Treatment 

We see a man (Patrick Maloney) waiting for his wife to get home. We hear a clock ticking, and then there is a sound bridge as we cut to the inside of the living room. There is a wide shot of the full living room where we see Patrick Maloney standing by the ironing board, ironing one of his wife's shirts. He hums to himself as he irons. There is a cut to black, and we hear the sound of vegetables being chopped which sound bridges into the scene. There is a close up of the clock- the ticking continues.

Suddenly, we hear the door open and shut abruptly. A woman (Mary Maloney) walks into the room, and Patrick rushes from the kitchen to take her coat from her. She is stiff at this point. A tracking shot follows Mary to her seat as Patrick walks out of the scene into the kitchen to get them each a drink. He asks her if she is tired from the other room. Mary answers dryly- "Exhausted"- as Patrick hands her her drink. Immediately, Mary downs her drink in one gulp and rises to get another, much to the surprise of her husband, who also jumps up. He tells her he'll get her another drink, but before he can take her glass she tells him to sit. Patrick slowly sits down, confused.

Mary leaves the room and we see a wide shot of Patrick sitting. Mary returns with her drink and sits opposite her husband, not looking at him. Patrick tells his wife that he is making lamb- her favourite dinner. When she doesn't answer him, he suggests making something else, or ordering in. Mary snaps at him, telling him to forget about the idea. In response, Patrick stands up. His wife tells him to sit as he asks her what's wrong.

Patrick sits down and we here Mary tell him she's been seeing someone else. Patrick zones out-depicted by the sound of tinnitus, and when he comes back he hears Mary shout 'And I fucking hate lamb!' Patrick, with a blank look on his face, says he'll make tea and returns to the kitchen.

Patrick sees a variety of potential murder weapons but eventually decides on the leg of lamb sitting on the sideboard. As Mary is putting her coat on, Patrick walks up behind her and hits her with the meat. She stumbles, and falls.

Cut to black for a few seconds, then we see Patrick walking towards his house with a bag of groceries. He returns home where he sets the bag down and phones the police.

The scene changes and we now see two detectives at Patrick's door. They have a short conversation about how oddly matched Patrick and Mary Maloney are as a couple. 

There is a cut to black in which we hear a knock at the door. There is a sound bridge into the scene where Patrick is opening the front door to the detectives, to whom he explains that his wife is dead. The detectives question him about his whereabouts.

Each detective theorises about how Mary died. While they discuss this, Patrick asks them to stay for dinner. At first, they are reluctant, but then Patrick explains that Mary would want them to eat. They agree to stay. 

We hear the detectives continue to discuss the situation as Patrick walks into the kitchen. Cut to Patrick who is in the kitchen preparing the food for the detectives. He brings them a plate stacked with lamb, potatoes and gravy each. They eat messily, still discussing the murder weapon. A tracking shot follows Patrick as he walks back to the kitchen. The film ends with a close up shot of Patrick, faintly smirking.

Shooting Scehdule

Shooting Schedule  ************* shotlist

Location Research

 Location Research

We intend for our short film to be filmed in a terrace house or cottage, a small house with little or no garden in a relatively rural area but not secluded. We imagine the interior to be cosy and with relatively small rooms.

We are most likely going to use a house belonging to one of the group members or one of our family members  due to the convenience of this, however we did discuss the idea of making use of services such as Airbnb. This however is difficult due to our limited financial resources. We will most likely film in one of the group members house, however it is vital that we can find a house that conveys the right idea, Mary and Patrick Maloney's house is seen to be a cosy, terrace house therefore we have to make sure the house we use matches this description.  

We looked at various possible locations to where we could begin filming. Both are shown below. The top image offers a scenic exterior which would feature well in the shots within our film. We found that the green land and brick walls give the aesthetic which we are aiming for in the film. The bottom image displays our second option. 

Location 1 

Location 2

I looked at the interior of location 1 to evaluate its use for the setting of our film. There is dark furniture situated at different locations throughout the room and the use of the theme of red in the sofas, seats and curtains could also convey undertones to help our film achieve its genre; by causing foreboding undertones with the use of the colour red.

Conventions to Integrate

Listed Conventions to Integrate 

After a bit of research into various codes and conventions of dark comedy, I have derived a list of effective methods that help build tension for the audience and exert the message that the film is creating.

-Low Lighting
-Quick Cuts
-Shadows 

-Tension via soundtrack (E.g Jaws)

-180 degree rule and variation of angles 

-Sound of breathing

-Heartbeat sound

-Effective emotion through acting.

-Tension built through lack of dialogue (Acting occurring on screen)

-Close ups, extreme close ups

-Sound effects (E.g Squeaky door) 

-Jump cuts, Quick pace flow of clips 

-Continuity editing 

-Composition of characters and effective costuming. 

Integrating each of these concepts to our film should be an easy task as it naturally contains these attributes;

-Murder
-Enigma Codes

Prop Research

 Prop Research

A frozen Leg of lamb- This is the item used to commit the murder, which is the central aspect to the play, Patrick Maloney will later cook this leg of lamb and feed it to the detectives on the case of his wives murder in order to destroy the evidence. From the outset, we are thinking that a real leg of lamb is viable however, a replica will be created to avoid injury of any actors in the film.

An Analogue clock- During the opening few seconds of the film we intend to have a shot in which Patrick Maloney stares at the clock whilst waiting for his wife to return from work. It is important that this clock is visible as it is a focal point in the film. The clock should be analogue to allow the desired soundtrack to be achieved. A ticking noise is wanted to convey how time is running out.

Phone- A mobile or landline phone is a vital part to the film, this will be what Patrick Maloney uses to contact the detectives to report the death of his wife. The phone will be featured in a close up so it is viable that it is real and working. The phone may also be used by the detectives to take photos.

Crockery- This will be used in the kitchen to show Patrick Maloney preparing the dinner for the detectives, this is a essential prop as without kitchen and household items our location will not look believable. A cooker that exerts a beeping sound will also be needed due to the sound effect being featured in the film.

                                        

Police Tape- Police tape will be needed to recreate a realistic crime scene. It is a possible occurrence that close ups of the tape will occur. 

                                                        

Plates and Cutlery- A whiskey tumbler, plates and cutlery will be needed for arrival of mrs Maloney and for the eating of the dinner afterwards.

Handbook / Notebook- It may be more realistic and effective if the detectives hand notebooks to be taking down notes.

Costume Research

COSTUME RESEARCH ************

In this area of production, I will look at the various costume ideas that will be worn by our actors. As the film has been slightly modernise to be featured in the 2000's, costume will differ from that of the original short film. There will be 4 characters in total; 2 Detectives, Mr Maloney and Mrs Maloney.

Detectives: The detectives will be dressed in a very similar way and off a professional manner. A blazer will be featured along with a shirt, a tie and formal shoes and clothes. This is a typical clothing choice of a detective in modern day life.

Mr. Maloney: From research into various codes and conventions of other shorts of this genre, I found that it would be most effective if Patricks clothing was relaxed and informal. Slippers will be needed along with a scarf and a cardigan to portray him as innocent in the film.

Mrs. Maloney: It is important that Mrs Maloney is dressed appropriately and in a formal manner to contradict Patricks clothing choice. Dark colours such as black will be used in the blazer and skirt aspect of her costume. A blouse, tights and formal shoes will also be used to complete her profile.  

Actor Research

Actor Research

For our male protagonist - Patrick Maloney.We intend to use a local professional actor named,Terence Keely, who has starred in films such as Titanic, Blood and steel.We intend him to look extremely average and have nothing out of the ordinary about his  appearance. This is in order to effectively portray the shock that the viewer should experience when he kills Mary Maloney.

For our female protagonist/victim, Mary 

Maloney we intend to use an actress between the ages of 25-35 with previous acting experience, We intend for her to look very average and not have anything out of the ordinary about her appearance.

We will also require two adult males to play the detectives, similarly aged to the actors playing Mary and Patrick Maloney, ideally aged between 25-35. We would also prefer to get actors with previous experience as there is a significant amount of dialogue within our short film and if the actor had no previous experience I believe our short film would be reduced in the overall quality.  

Storyboards

STORYBOARDS 
Illustrated by: Caitlin McPoland

Inspiration for Short Film

Inspiration for the Short Film

Upon researching story lines and various structures to follow, i found a piece of short story named "Lamb to The Slaughter" by Roald Dahl. The storyline was based on a pregnant house wife murdering her husband with the mystery murder weapon (A leg of Lamb). A spark to cause the murder was the fact that the husband was having an affair for the previous few months, which angered the wife enough to cause her outrage. The short is based in one location of the family home and features 5 characters at most. The short is seen as a crime / drama which is what interested me most upon initial research. The story was written in the 80's, however, some aspects of the piece could be modernised to suit todays style of film. 

Upon further research of the film, i found "Tales of the Unexpected", which was a short also created in the 80's upon this story line. The film consisted of a cottage like setting with traditional decoration and costume of the time.

Even though the film appears outdated, the composition of camera angles along with the positioning of characters are effective in creating the ominous and mysterious atmosphere that Dahl and the film producer was trying to create. The thing that intrigued me to follow its structure was the various enigma codes that were used throughout. A challenge for us is to convey enigma codes effectively by the composition of the scene,camera angles and shots used in our clips. The film will be further assessed to allow us to pick up on minor details before planning of scripts and storyboards has commenced. 

Codes and Conventions

Satire / Dark Comedy Genre Research

Below I will research various other shot films that evolve around this genre and highlight the aspects of the film which I think made it successful. I will look at these films in terms of: Cinematography, Sound Design, Editing and Mise - En - Scene. 


1. Long Distance Information: https://www.shortoftheweek.com/2016/12/28/long-distance-information/

The film met the desired genre very well. It was successful in giving "Dark Comedy" as a genre and used various codes seen in other films of this genre. The comedic side of the film was that the son was on the phone to the "Wrong Dad" after a lengthy phone call on Christmas day. The story line was perfect and ended in a ominous cliff hanger - a trait seen in many other dark comedic films.

I enjoyed the use of closeups throughout the film. The camera shots displayed enigma codes of anger and frustration while reverting back to normality shortly after. The framing was perfect and only displayed what was essential for the scene.

In the scene shown above, the camera is still while there is a full scale argument going on in the background. The dialogue is muffled and conveys a sense of unbeknown to the audience. The scene was made effective by the character not reacting to the aggressiveness of the argument.







The use of smoking as a prop added to the sense of rebellion by the father character. The mise - en - scene attribute contributes to the story line well.








2. Cherokee: https://www.shortoftheweek.com/2017/01/18/cherokee/ 

Cherokee was a film about a single mother who cannot pay rent to the frail old stubborn man who owns the land. The women has a small child aged 9 who injures a housebreaker that entered the woman's home. The woman falsely accused the landlord of being in the house and while she is speaking to  him, the child fins the housebreaker in her room.
The dark comedy title was achieved through the dialogue in which the 9 year old girl speaks. She often uses swear words and aggressive language while remaining calm and collected. Aggressive dialogue / swearing is an aspect which I think would be successful in production. 

The long two shot in the film helped to derive a tense atmosphere in this short. The shot displayed one character waiting silently and still while the other character walked on screen. I liked the shot as it established both of the main characters in one frame as well as setting the scene for the short film. 

3. We ate the children last: https://www.shortoftheweek.com/2015/05/14/ate-children-last/

The first thing I noticed about this film was the use of mentally derived characters. The role of this character played well in causing a disequilibrium in the film and ensuring that the plot is unpredictable. (An aspect that works well with satire film). The actor plays it well by long stares and emotionless composure. The use of characters in this state juxtaposed with the orchestral and melodic soundtrack creates a sense of mystery to the film also. It helps build suspense for the audience and leaves viewers on the edge of their seat.

A funny factor is brought to life in this film through the use of a comedic screenplay. The main character eats a bunch of flowers which is clearly out of the ordinary and the fact that the other doctor takes them off him provokes child like attributes to the character.

The title sequence of the film is intriguing and relevant to the them of the Dark comedy genre. The light coloured text placed on the dark background emits danger and doom. The texture of the text is tattered and further reiterates a sense of battle and danger: 2 attributes displayed in the film. 

Genre Research

Genre
"Genre is a repetition with an underlying pattern of repetition"

Within this area of research, I am going to look into the area of film that would be most viable for myself to recreate. I will look at the various codes and conventions in which i like about the films and explore the concepts that define a piece of media to their genre. Media can usually be placed to genre from initial viewing of the screen by the various actions and series of events. Most are self explanatory, however, some can be a merge between 2 or more. 

Film genres can be synonymous with different actors, producers and distributors in the industry. Genre is usually conveyed through both the action on screen as well as the various film techniques such as editing or miss en scene. A definition of the 5 main, most popular film genres that I enjoy are shown below;

1) DRAMA:
Drama Films are serious presentations or stories with settings or life situations that portray realistic characters in conflict with either themselves, others, or forces of nature. A dramatic film shows us human beings at their best, their worst, and everything in-between. 

2) CRIME: 
Crime fiction is the genre of fiction that deals with crimes, their detection, criminals, and their motives. Crime is usually distinguished from mainstream fiction and other genres such as science fiction or historical fiction, but boundaries can be, and indeed are, blurred.

3) COMEDY: 
Comedy is a genre of film in which the main emphasis is on humour. These films are designed to make the audience laugh through amusement and most often work by exaggerating characteristics for humorous effect. Films in this style traditionally have a happy ending (black comedy being an exception). 

4) THRILLER: 
Thriller is a broad genre of literature, film and television, having numerous subgenres. Thrillers are characterized and defined by the moods they elicit, giving viewers heightened feelings of suspense, excitement, surprise, anticipation and anxiety. 

5) HORROR: 
Horror is a film genre seeking to elicit a negative emotional reaction from viewers by playing on the audience's primal fears. Inspired by literature from authors like Edgar Allan Poe, Bram Stoker, and Mary Shelley, horror films have existed for more than a century. 


Deeper aspects of the features on screen such as title sequences and props can further amend the film to a genre. The soundtrack usually corresponds to the actions of the characters on screen and usually sets the pace of film for the audience. 


From research and looking at various films according to their genre, I have decided that a Drama / Crime / Thriller hybrid which evokes a satire peice would be most viable to produce and would be perfect for expression of my thoughts into a piece of media. I will look at my favourite short films from the two and analyse what stands out and that makes the films suspense, intriguing and overall entertaining.