Preproduction- script

SCENE 1:

INT.NIGHT.DRAMA STUDIO (ROOM).

(Funeral bell chime marks the beginning of the opening scene, in scene 1) The distressed weeping woman (Evelyn) is standing clutching a flower with both hands, looking down in dismay. The camera zooms slowly into the woman until there is a close up of her face and she looks up at the camera.

INT.NIGHT.DRAMA STUDIO.

(Funeral bell chime marks the beginning of the shot) High angle shot of flower being held by Evelyn, the hand is seen pulling a petal off of the flower.

INT.NIGHT.DRAMA STUDIO.

(Funeral bell chime marks the beginning of the shot)The petal is seen falling in slow motion till it lands on the ground.

                              CUT.

SCENE 2:

EXT.NIGHT.FOREST.

(Funeral bell chime marks the beginning of the shot), dragging across leaves and dirt can be heard and wind.) Lifeless pair of legs battered, bruised and cut are seen being dragged across the forest floor until they are out of shot.

                              CUT.

SCENE 3:

INT.NIGHT.STUDIO.

(Funeral bell chime marks the beginning of the shot), (Funeral bell chime marks the beginning of the shot) High angle shot of flower being held by Evelyn, the hand is seen pulling a petal off of the flower.

INT.NIGHT.DRAMA STUDIO.

(Funeral bell chime marks the beginning of the shot)The petal is seen falling in slow motion till it lands on the ground Into the growing pile of petals.

                              CUT.

SCENE 4:

EXT.NIGHT.FOREST.

(Funeral bell chime marks the beginning of the shot, wind can be heard as well as the metal hitting the ground),a figure from the waist down can be seen shovelling a shallow grave.

                              CUT.

SCENE 5: INT.NIGHT.STUDIO.

(Funeral bell chime marks the beginning of the shot), (Funeral bell chime marks the beginning of the shot) High angle shot of flower being held by Evelyn, the hand is seen pulling a petal off of the flower.

INT.NIGHT.DRAMA STUDIO./INT.DAY.ROOM.

(Funeral bell chime marks the beginning of the shot)The petal is seen falling in slow motion for a short while until it superimposes over a shot of Evelyn with her eyes closed and fades away as it falls onto the pile.

INT.DAY.ROOM.

(exaggerated breathing can be heard, heart beat can be heard and trailer theme music begins here when the eyes open) The tired woman Evelyn is seen opening her eyes in shock, and looks sided to side frantically.

INT.DAY.ROOM.

(Rattling chains can be heard, breathing and heart rate sound alongside the soundtrack to the trailer.) Evelyn’s hand is chained to the bed, her hand can be seen trying to struggle free of the chains.

                              CUT.

SCENE 6:

INT.DAY.DRAMA STUDIO.

(Breathing heavy can be heard, and soundtrack dims slightly.)

Evelyn is seen sat at a table, sat at the opposite end is a doctor. Evelyn confused asks

“Why am I here”

INT.DAY.DRAMA STUDIO.

(Soundtrack is still dim)

Close up of Polaroid photos of bruised victims can be seen on the table. Doctor in a serious tone states

 “these are you victims, your amnesia was brought on by the blow to the head in self-defence from one of your escaped victims.”

INT.DAY.DRAMA STUDIO.

(Soundtrack picks up, tears and chokes can be heard) Shot of a wound on the back of Evelyn’s head can be seen, Evelyn touches the wound in shock of the news she has just received.  

INT.DAY.DRAMA STUDIO.

(tears and breathing can be heard. Music dims as Evelyn speaks.)

Close up of Evelyn’s reaction, she looks tired and bedraggled.

Evelyn shocked whispers “NO”

CUT.

SCENE 7:

INT.DAY.ROOM.

(Soundtrack picks up again in this shot)

William Bates is seen drinking alcohol, with a cigarette smoking in an ashtray, on the table in the shot.

DOCTOR (VO):

“You’ll be released into the care of detective William bates, he’s assigned to care for you as well as monitor your every move.”

William bates opens the door abruptly and turns to Evelyn with a stern look on his face. William

“Get in the car”.

 Evelyn looks at William confused by his rude tone. William responds to this look sarcastically

“ladies first”

INT.DAY.ROOM.

(Soundtrack plays alongside video) William bates reads a newspaper, and looks up at Evelyn in annoyance.

William and Evelyn exchange tense looks in a face off.

William says viciously

“I don’t want to be here anymore than you want me to be here anymore than you want me to be here”

CUT.

SCENE 8:

INT.DAY.ROOM.

(Pick up in soundtrack.) Close up of Evelyn looking at herself in disgust in the mirror, a frightening figure appears in the mirror and startles Evelyn.

William (VO):

“your facade isn’t fooling anyone.” 

CUT.

SCENE 9:

EXT.NIGHT.FOREST.

(Soundtrack continues to play)

William (VO):

“Give it up”

Hand drops into shot, lifeless and bruised. Low angle close-up.

CUT.

SCENE 10:

INT.DAY.ROOM.

Medium close up of Evelyn clawing her spine in distress, she looks emaciated.

CUT.

SCENE 11:

EXT.NIGHT.FOREST.

Unknown figure is seen looking over lifeless person on the ground.

CUT.

SCENE 12:

(WIND AND RIVER CAN BE HEARD)

Evelyn is seen throwing pictures from her past into the river.

CUT.

SCENE 13:

(Footsteps can be heard)

Flashback of a shadow moving further into light.

SCENE 14:

INT.DAY.ROOM.

(soundtrack can be heard)

Smashed medication bottles line the floor. Pills scattered on floor. Close-up

(Banging on door can be heard.)

William is seen knocking on the door, frantically. Evelyn is seen lying on the floor unconscious and tired looking, makeup running and hair a mess. William then proceeds to pick Evelyn up. Evelyn wakes up and they share a look. They are then seen holding hands.

CUT.

SCENE 15:

(gunshot noise)

Blackness.

Cut.

SCENE 16:

(GASP AND WHIMPERING CAN BE HEARD)

Evelyn is slumped against william, the back of willaims head can be seenand evelyn is in shot over his shoulder.

CUT.

SCENE 18:

(SOUNDTRACK)

Shot of an angel.

CUT.

Shot of gargoyle.

CUT.

Shot of face emerging from shadows.

CUT.

Evelyn is seen with her hair blowing in the wind, with flames superimposed on top.

Preproduction- sequence analysis

Preproduction- Proposal

Brief:

The brief I have chosen is to create a promotion package for an upcoming film, this includes a movie trailer, and an advertising poster and a magazine cover to promote the film.

Synopsis:

Mirage: (set in 1958)

Evelyn wakes up with no memory, handcuffed to a bed in a psychiatric ward; she is informed she suffered amnesia after one of her victims, who escaped her clutches, acted in self-defence and struck her head to incapacitate her. Evelyn is released as she is deemed immune to imprisonment as she cannot be held responsible for crimes she cannot recall permitting, and is released into the care of detective William bates, a blunt cynical man hardened by the things he has seen after his years of being a detective and despised by his colleagues for his disregard for others feelings.  Haunted by flashbacks and the guilt of her crimes, Evelyn, plagued by her past, is convinced she could never do such a thing. She enlists the help of detective William Bates, assigned to care for her in the search for the truth and piece together reality from fiction. During this time, the detective, at first sceptical of her innocence, begins to fall for her and she becomes his ‘antidote’, his redeeming quality , and believes a woman as sweet natured and vulnerable as Evelyn could never be capable of such brutal acts of cruelty. But is Evelyn really as innocent and sweet natured as she seems? Or is there something dark hidden beneath her sweet, kind exterior? Something even Evelyn herself would have never expected. Or was she simply in the wrong place at the wrong time? The story takes an unexpected twist when the heroine, Evelyn, who is portrayed as innocent the whole time in fact, has a split personality, and it’s her alternate personality, ‘Ester’, who has a sadistic agenda committing these crimes. With Evelyn slowly fading away and Ester taking over, William struggles to find the woman he loves, and protect her from herself. In a desperate attempt to try and help Evelyn discover the woman she once was, William brings her to the graveyard of her first victim, and confronts Ester, demanding she sets Evelyn free. Ester refuses William’s plea, and promises her killing spree will continue “until the day I die.” William sees no other option but to end her psychotic rampage; once and for all. He shoots Ester, and Evelyn returns, if only for a moment. The pair bid farewell as Evelyn takes her last breathes and dies in William’s arms. This is the emotional pinnacle of the film as Williams one redeeming quality his love for Evelyn is lost, and he is left a broken man once more. 

Genre and how my film conforms to this genre:

The genre of the film is film noir; it is associated with an understated black and white aesthetic style influenced by the 1910-1920 German expressionism movement that conveys a dark and dramatic mood through dynamic shadows and lighting. The films are often set in the 1940’s 1950 and early 1960 period. The genre is normally a Hollywood crime drama. This genre of film normally involves a femme fatale, a femme fatale is a mysterious seductive character, who often lures men into some form of trap or dangerous situation either intentionally or accidently. My film fits the conventions of a film noir because it is a crime drama where a woman and the detective search for the truth. It also fits the convention with the use of a femme fatale; in this case Evelyn unintentionally lures the detective into a deadly situation. It also fits in with the dramatic lighting as I plan to set the film in 1958 incorporating the black and white filming technique, and making the colours in the scene contrast more dramatic through use of contrast between light and dark.  And using dramatic lighting.  Also film noir’s classically have themes of doom, evil, guilt which are themes that transgress into my film, doom: Doomed love, evil: ester and her murderous personality, Guilt: Evelyn’s guilt for her crimes. The characters are also very in keeping with  film noir as my research shows that leading males in film noir , particularly if they are a re detective are dark brooding men with a flaw or imperfection, like my male lead “William bates”; Evelyn classic femme fatale luring William into danger, research shows that femme fatale’s can either intentionally lead men into danger or accidentally.  Although Alfred hitch cock is not a film noir director, I want to bring the psychological tension that he was so famed for too my film.

Existing /similar films:

 Directors such as Fritz Lang, Robert Siodmak, and Michael Curtiz used a dramatically shadowed lighting style and a psychologically expressive approach to visual composition, or mise-en-scène, they would make some of the most famous of classic noirs. I want my film to in keep with the film noir genre but be In a Alfred Hitchcock style, using the psychological tension and dramatic lighting he used.

-          Psycho- Alfred Hitchcock

-          Hotel noir

-          The artist

-          The stranger 1946

Aim of the project:

The aim is to create a convincing film noir trailer and accompanying poster and magazine cover to advertise it. These should incorporate the dramatically shadowed style of film noir directors such as fritz Lang and use the psychological tone of Alfred Hitchcock.

How well does your product fit into the market:

I feel that with the releases and recent success of films such as “The artist” (2011)( a black and white silent film) and hotel noir (2012)  that there has become a gap in the market and opened a door for old fashioned cinematography, as it’s an interesting change from modern Hollywood flicks, although it is not film noir I believe it has opened a gap for old fashioned cinematography such as film noir. And I think that modern day movie goers will enjoy an increase in the diversity of styles available to watch and enjoy. Therefore my film fits quite nicely into the market, because after “The artist’s” success, more people will want to see my film because they feel old fashioned cinematography has proved it can still be effective. 

Who is your audience?

People who enjoy crime dramas, and appreciate different and new filming techniques and styles. From the ages of 18-40, more mature sophisticated audience.

What obstacles and risks will your project undertake?

A major risk will be making the trailer so it is distinctively film noir and not looking like a black and white film, this can be achieved by ensuring the conventions of a film noir is clear throughout the trailer, as my research has concluded film noir is often described as a mood as opposed to a genre so It makes it difficult to portray, but I feel my film had all of the dark themes and moods that film noirs are based upon.  Also it will require a lot of dramatic lighting, so will require a lot of filming in the drama studio with available Lighting facilities and at night, filming at night could be a risk because it could be difficult for the camera to pick up what is happening in the scene , so some form of lighting may be required. Also in order for the film to be effective it must be filmed in black and white in order to adjust the colours accordingly i.e. If blood is needed using red would show up light on the video , but if black or dark brown is used it will appear darker making it look more dramatic.  Another obstacle would be making sure the film is accurate to the time period, making sure there are no modern cars or technology in the shot, or modern clothes.

How long will the project take schedule?

Pre-production and production will last up until November 9th 2012. After this period post production will begin and the trailer, magazine cover and movie poster will be constructed. These should all be completed by March 27^th 2013.  

Unique selling point and tagline :

·         Will be “directed by Thomas coulderc” and “starring “said actors.

What resources will be required by this project?

·         Facilities- I will be using the drama studio, because of the lighting equipment, can create the dramatic film noir effect with the dynamic shadows.

·         Equipment- camera tripod, editing software.

·         Costume, 1950’s style clothing. Detective in long coat, trilby hat, moustache, waistcoat blazer, classic look.  Woman in floral dresses , conservatively dressed, ester vixen classic femme fatale attire more revealing attire silk beads well done hair red, lipstick , eyeliner.

·         Locations- Drama studio, street light nightime, wollanton hall, forest, river/lake, grave yard, hospital corridor?

Research-Audience

  Audience research: Movie title:
 I asked 12 peers aged 16-18 years which title they feel fits my film idea best and is the most appealing to them. And which title would make them want to see the film the most. 

• Mania - recieved 2 votes
• Insanitarium- recieved 3 votes
• Mirage- recieved 6 votes.
• Division- 2 votes. 

Mirage recieved the highest amount of votes, It recieved half the votes from my peers. This means that this would be the most fitting title for my film and the most appealing.

Research- movie trailers

                            “Woman in the window”-1944

                          

            

· Male narrator, describing story.

· More of a synopsis of a story like story telling unlike modern trailers that tease audiences by only letting them though a bit about the story. Gives away more of the story than modern trailer where footage is left to interpret by an audience.

· Shots are more continuous and long lasting, does not jump and cut as quickly as modern movie trailers do.

· Text overlay present throughout the trailer to advertise the film.

· Over dramatized trailer music a lot of organ instruments are used to create a sinister sound.

· Little dialogue. 

                                       “The lost weekend”

   

              

· Again text overlay is present throughout the trailer advertising the film.

· Male narrator, dramatic exaggerated words used to describe.

· Organ music, to create sense of fear, or danger.

· Shadows and lighting is highly contrasted, femme fatale and scandal themes run throughout the trailer indicating is a film noir.

· Logos and affiliated company’s at the end of the trailer.

· Little dialogue.

                                                  The killing-1956

                                  

              

· High contrast lighting and shadows, informs audience it is a film noir.

· Mise en scene such as cigarettes, ties, blazers, braces, guns, femme fatale and trilby’s indicate time zone and also of the genre of the film.

· Drum beat used in trailer opposed to traditional organ music.

· Little dialogue. 

                                            I wake up screaming-1941:

      ·         High contrast light and shadows.

·         Little dialogue.

·         Text over lay.

·         Femme fatale.

·         Violin and organ music. 

      From studying these Film noir trailers I can conclude that charecteristics of an orginal film noir film trailer would be: 

 

·         Gives away more of the story than modern trailer where footage is left to interpret by an audience.

·         Male narrator, describing story.

·         Shots are more continuous and long lasting, does not jump and cut as quickly as modern movie trailers do.

·         Mise en scene such as cigarettes, ties, blazers, braces, guns, femme fatale and trilby’s indicate time zone and also of the genre of the film.

·         Little dialogue.

·         Text overlay present throughout the trailer to advertise the film, and dramatize it. 

Research- movie posters