Me and my partner Selena's storyboard consists of mutliple scenes, camera shots, editing, and angles. Our storyboard aims to produce an insight to our idea on our film opening. The main goal of our storyboard isn't to go straight off of it but build from it and develop it so it looks really like a full-fledged film opening that was professionally made to intimidate the audience. It was exciting writing this because me and my partner are slowly seeing our ideas come to life little by little. The project is very exciting and I can't wait to see the outcome of our profucing.
Our project idea consists of a woman by herself walking out of a trail from what seems to be a forest or mountain at nighttime. The woman receives countless message saying a mysterious thing is haunting people and murdering them because loss of service in the forest. The lady becomes disturbed and looks up to see a figure standing under a streetlamp. The figure is indistinguishable. It stands under the light menacingly. The lady is then startled by a park ranger informing her disturbingly that it's not safe to be alone in these areas all alone. The statement sends a shock to the woman, and the woman quickly turns back to see that the figure is now gone, and on top of that the park ranger is now gone. The eeriness and silence disturb the viewers and her.
Our major inspiration is found footage horrors although the opening won't be filmed in a found footage kind of setting or way. Typically found footage horrors will take place in rural areas and abandoned places. And what also contributes to this are short horror films that are amazing watches. Ballerina is one of these that we have taken inspiration from. Found footage tapes like REC and The Blair witch project (1999) are also huge inspirations. In the Blair witches film the viewers don't even get the satisfaction of really seeing the antagonist.
Active audience theory is the theory in which audiences don't passively view a film but try to interpret things happening. After much discussion with my partner Selena, we decided that active audience theory would be best to incorporate into our film opening project. We will incorporate this with our plot by introducing a mysterious figure making the audience question what it could be. The scene will consist of a silhouette of a figure in a streetlight, and the identity of the figure will not appear which will question the viewer and the actor in this case. The end of the scene will still consist of the figure being masked technically but it leaves the audience assuming what it could be throughout the whole film. As a result, the suspense is built straight from the beginning and continues throughout the whole movie and the eeriness of its presence. Questions that may surface while watching the scene are like, will it come closer? will it lunge at us? will it reveal itself? In the case of our film the viewers don't get the sweet treat of being able to know what supernatural entity the antagonist throughout the film is.
The reflection meeting with these numerous group members went really well. All of the members I was talking to ensured that my idea was a good idea and that I should stick with it. They gave me a couple ideas for lighting such as not using so much pitch-dark lighting, the film should include the faces of all the characters and at some moments I will be able to make a scene that will see the backs of the characters. My group mats recommended that the area I will possibly shoot in is a very good idea but if I have an opportunity to shoot at night me and my partner should take it.
In the group meeting I also felt I helped contribute a good amount to their ideas and sparked possible outcomes they can do. I assisted with certain shots, angles, credit sequence, and title sequence. I also appreciate them helping me try and spark an idea.
There were still some downsides to me and my partners ideas like time and filming time. Their feedback helped me realize that me and my partner have to plan this beforehand, so we know what days we and shoot and at what time. They helped with our planning process, and I also appreciate all of their feedback they gave me on our idea.
Me and my partner Selena have come up with numerous ideas to try and execute this opening. We have researched numerous openings ranging from the cannibal holocaust all the way until movies like the Ritual. We found the things we want to use, and we will now keep doing research further to establish our filming.
Me and my partner have decided we will most likely do our opening in a forest called Tree Tops. Tree tops have numerous locations where there are scary, spooky, and eerie areas that will create tension. The forest is silent and there are some buildings that appear to be abandoned that will greatly contribute to mis-en-scene and other aspects of the film opening. The Tree Tops park is very spacious and there are plenty of areas that we can film that can create a deserted feeling. It can create a sense of something not being right, unsettledness, and more.
Other aspects that we can incorporate are things like V/H/S filming. V/H/S can easily be incorporated into an area like this because the V/H/S recording method usually already creates a scary found footage tape. In most found footage V/H/S opening sequences it starts off intense and sets the tone and setting and that can be incorporated perfectly in the area we are trying to do this in. Movies like V/H/S and Rec establish this.
The Ritual is a horror that takes place in a forest, and a group of friends agree to go on a trip in northern Sweeden in a dark and deep forest. The group traverse throughout the forest and one by one each of them die and they are finding ritualistic things along the way and then they encounter a being who cannot leave the forest but while in the forest he is extremely strong. The movies credit sequence at the beginning of the movie includes the groups start of the trip in an open area and you can hear dialogue in the background. The credits are displayed at the edge of the screen after every shot, and it is utilized well because with the dialogue they develop setting and plot while the credits are being rolled.
This catches my eye because in my opening sequence of credits I can incorporate things like this to develop plot and setting whilst still enrolling the credits. It is smart because things like dialogue can help have the audience focused on what's going on but also seeing who produced and made the film and things of that resource. I intend to start my opening similar to this opening, like in the forest.
Smile
Smile is a horror film taken place in New Jersey and there is a lady who gets a curse put upon her because she watched a girl kill herself while smiling. The lady must escape multiple instances with an entity that haunts her but at the same time tries to kill her. The lady subsequently escapes all confrontation besides the last one in which she dies and passes it on to a friend. The entity aims to target the weak points of the lady so she can give in to her mind quicker, and the entity can take over her body and pass on the curse to someone else. The credit sequence includes a lady killing herself with the main character witnessing the lady give into her own mind. The curse ends up getting passed on and the main character is in the corner, afraid and crying and the credits begin to play while panning all over the room in red font color. Once again, the credits are played throughout a serious event in the movie and develop big time plot because now, we know what the curse is and who our main character will be for the movie.
This credit sequence does separate itself from others because it occurs right after a main event in the plot occurs. It doesn't occur at the beginning but at the end of the opening scene. It utilizes panning throughout the entire credit sequence moving all around the room and outside the room which in conclusion establishes setting. I aim to use things like the panning but also doing the credit sequence perhaps at the end of the opening scene.
Midsommar
Midsommar is an amazing movie that is very disturbing. The movie includes a lady who goes through a horrible tragedy when her parents and sister die in a scary suicide carbon monoxide incident. The lady who experiences this tragedy decides to join their friends on an adventure to an unknown Swedish village in an unknown area to meet a friend's culture and family. Slowly the rituals and scary occurrences show themselves and the people slowly realize that they shouldn't be there and need to escape immediately. The lady sadly grows into the culture and now is trapped in something dark. The credit sequences subsequently are played at the end of the opening scene after the incident of the family dying is shown. The credits are displayed in a very sinister way with the credits being rolled with a very disturbing soundtrack being played with the lady's screams in the back.
This credit scene is amazing because it immediately gives you chills and the scene is played in a snowy environment where you can barely see them but still visible. The disturbing screams paired with the uncanny music makes the credit sequence in this movie so scary and just gives chills. I would love to utilize the synchronous aspect of soundtrack and non-diegetic screams from the lady that can provide that gut wrenching feeling.
So far, this project has already been a ride because I've had to explore all options possible for this film opening. I feel it's already been a journey trying to find the right genre and idea to create and adapt into this film opening. After hours of research, me and my partner Selena have decided to do the horror genre because we believe we have the resources to provide a well put together horror film opening. A horror film we would typically make would be something disturbing with disturbing settings such as a forest or maybe dark areas.
Hereditary
The opening for Hereditary starts off with a shot of a treehouse with an eerie soundtrack playing in the background. The shot then zooms out into a pan of a figure set of a house in which a figure of a kid is sleeping and it zooms into the set, and the set suddenly but smoothly turns into real time. This film opening opens up to be because it really sets the tone and setting of the movie and it provides that eerie feeling to the viewers straight from the start and it foreshadows later events in the movie which is impressive but do able. I wish to not adapt but use techniques and ideas that are similar to of this opening and it will provide that unsettling feeling to the viewers.
What appeals to me the most is that Hereditary begins with a treehouse and eerie music so that undeniable feeling of something not being right is already present once the movie is started. When you watch the beginning, it already leaves you questioning why they started with the treehouse as the opening shot. If that can be exerted within the first 30 seconds to minute of my film opening it will be a recipe of success. The shots and techniques will most likely be hard to execute but if me and my partner Selena can get an idea of similar shots and techniques to utilize it will come out somewhat similar which is what we are trying to aim for. The exact opening sequence as Hereditary doesn't and shouldn't be the same as what ours will display but we can try to incorporate it into ours.
This exact video is around 4 minutes long, but the analysis is around the first 2 minutes
Friday the 13th
Friday the 13th opens up by setting the scene for where the campers are at, where you later learn further in the opening. The long shot of the cabin then turns into a back shot long shot of multiple campers. After the switch it turns into a POV shot of a man walking in on multiple campers sleeping but based on the noise the character is making, we can assume this is the antagonist. The POV shot provided lasts for most of the opening shot but based on what he's doing to the campers (inspecting them) we can assume he is towering over them because the height he is looking at over these campers sleeping is scarily gigantic. After the POV shot the ending of the opening shot is of the campers singing together around a fireplace. Throughout the entire opening scene, non-diegetic audio is utilized which creates a sense of realism.
What I like most about this opening is the non-diegetic audio which gives me personally an unsettling feeling. Also, the fact that the antagonist, Jason Vorhees, is towering over the rest of the campers is very intimidating and it leaves you questioning if this person that were seeing the POV from is even human due to the enormous size of him. Although that is the case, I most likely intent to use a supernatural being in my opening.
This exact video is around 6 minutes long, but the analysis is around the first 2 minutes
Annihilation
The opening sequence for Annihilation consists of multiple close ups, and medium shots with background characters. It includes dialogue describing occurrences that must have happened in the past which insinuates that we are in the present. The dialogue also includes an eerie soundtrack playing softly in the background. The end of the opening sequence includes a shot of a meteor hitting a lighthouse which we don't know anything about yet but if you watch the movie, you learn what happened. With watching the movie, it technically goes more into the past then when she was talking about.
I greatly appreciate the techniques and dialogue used in this opening because it establishes a main point and tone. Based on dialogue you can infer that the lady has lost her memory, but what she can remember is very important to the crew. I would love to utilize dialogue that can establish a plot that can be developed. Although this movie is a thriller/horror, the openings sequence makes it seem more intimidating what there is to come further if you watch the movie. I would also love to use the mis-en-scene they used because the hazmat suits and contamination chamber they are in automatically makes the lady seem like a threat and makes it intimidate.
