Using photos I had already taken I have made a slideshow showing the type of clothes my actors would be wearing, I then wanted to show two outfits that would be similar in style to what the actors would be wearing. I did this by making an account on www.polyvore.com which allowed me to look at styles and individual pieces of clothing to allow to branch together an outfit.
This is my table representing genre conventions. I have focused on analysing the trailer for the film Abandoned.
I have focused on writing about the mise en scene, characters, narrative and technical rules.
This is the first in a series of video diary's I have decided to make, I have decided to make video diaries so it allows the audience to connect with the characters. Even in the video diaries, Niamh doesn't reveal much about herself, just about how she feels. She doesn't know where she is, or who's computer she is using, which leaves an element of mystery. I have filmed TV static and recorded white noise to make it seem more mysterious.
This is the script that Niamh decided to use, it's quite illegible and all over the place, which represesnts how she feels.
I do not own this song, it belongs to its rightful owners. No copyright infringement intended
First Image
Full length photo of model walking up a hill. I have decided to use this image because it represents isolation and has a enigmatic feel to it. I have used auto levels, auto contrast, reduced the shadows, increased the midtone contrast and added a black, greeny yellow, and orange photo filter to give the photo a natural and enigmatic feel. I have increased the contrast to make it seem like she is walking into the light which relates to my theme of imagination and reality.
Second Image
Landscape image of model sitting down. I have used I have used auto levels, auto contrast, reduced the shadows, increased the midtone contrast and added a black, greeny yellow, and orange photo filter. I decided to use this image because it doesn't show the model's face which creates a mysterious feel. I have deliberately placed objects with a lot of colour in the photo to make it relate to my theme of depersonalization. A common symptom of depersonalization is viewing the world in high contrast.
Third Image
Portrait image of model standing on a log. I have used auto levels, auto contrast, reduced the shadows, increased the midtone contrast and added a black, greeny yellow, and orange photo filter to give the photo a natural and enigmatic feel. I have placed her on a log because it shows the importance of the character, and that she is the main focus of the image. Like the previous image you can't see the model's face which creates a mysterious tone.
Fourth image
Landscape image of model sitting on the grass. I have used auto levels, auto contrast, reduced the shadows, increased the midtone contrast and added a black, greeny yellow, and orange photo filter to give the photo a natural and enigmatic feel. In this photo I have allowed the audience to see her face. I asked her to make a confused face, which represents depersonalization.
Fifth image
Landscape image of model standing with an empty background. I have used auto levels, auto contrast, reduced the shadows, increased the midtone contrast and added a black, greeny yellow, and orange photo filter to give the photo a natural and enigmatic feel. I have made the model appear less focused in this image, as I wanted the background in the shot. I asked her to stand in an insecure position, to relate to depersonalization. The empty background also represents depersonalization.
Sixth image
Landscape image of model against a white background. Although this model isn't in my trailer, I like the way I have edited the image. I have used auto levels, auto contrast, reduced the shadows, increased the midtone contrast and added a black, greeny yellow, and orange photo filter to give the photo a natural and enigmatic feel. I have also added a layer, where i then used soft light and decreased the opacity, to then allow me to paint her hair a darker red.
Seventh image
Landscape image of model sitting on bed (photo taken through mirror). Again this model isn't in my trailer, but I like the way the photo is positioned and edited. It appears the model is having a really good time, or is feeling detached. I like the way I've taken the photo through a mirror, which makes it appear that it isn't real.
Eighth image
Portrait image of model against white background. Although this model isn't in my trailer, I like the way I have edited the image. I have used auto levels, auto contrast, reduced the shadows, increased the midtone contrast and added a black, greeny yellow, and orange photo filter to give the photo a natural and enigmatic feel. I have also added a layer, where i then used soft light and decreased the opacity, to then allow me to paint her hair a darker red.
Ninth image
Portrait black and white image of model. Although this model isn't in my trailer, I like how i have taken the photo. I thought this photo was relevant to my trailer because it's a close up shot which reveals a lot of emotion. I have also given her strong eye makeup which again relates to my film.
Tenth image
Landscape image of model against a wall. I have used auto levels, auto contrast, reduced the shadows, increased the midtone contrast and added a black, greeny yellow, and orange photo filter to give the photo a natural and enigmatic feel. I like this image because it has the potential to be a candiate for one of my film posters.
Eleventh image
Landscape image of girl sitting on a bed with a blue wig. I have used auto levels, auto contrast, reduced the shadows, increased the midtone contrast and added a black, greeny yellow, and orange photo filter to give the photo a natural and enigmatic feel. The use of the blue wig makes the image appear like it's not real, it feels almost like a dream state, which again relates to depersonalization.
Twelfth image
Landscape image of model in a park. I have used auto levels, auto contrast, reduced the shadows, increased the midtone contrast and added a black, greeny yellow, and orange photo filter to give the photo a natural and enigmatic feel. I like this image because it's quite detached from the focus of the character. It mainly focuses on the background rather than the character
Thirteenth image
Portrait image of model walking away from camera in park. I have used auto levels, auto contrast, reduced the shadows, increased the midtone contrast and added a black, greeny yellow, and orange photo filter to give the photo a natural and enigmatic feel. Again this image feels quite detached so it represents depersonalization quite well. The fashion also fits with the style of my film.
Fourteenth image
Similar to thirteenth image
Fifteenth image
Landscape image of model near a tree. I have used auto levels, auto contrast, reduced the shadows, increased the midtone contrast and added a black, greeny yellow, and orange photo filter to give the photo a natural and enigmatic feel. Again I haven't showed the model's face in the image to create a sense of mystery. The photo represents detachment which is an aspect of depersonalization.
Sixteenth image
(third image) Seventeenth image
Landscape image of model sitting by the Thames. I have used auto levels, auto contrast, reduced the shadows, increased the midtone contrast and added a black, greeny yellow, and orange photo filter to give the photo a natural and enigmatic feel. Model appears slightly detached and confused.
Eighteenth image
Landscape image of model lying in a bath. Although this model isn't appearing in my trailer, i like the use of background and editing. I have used auto levels, auto contrast, reduced the shadows, increased the midtone contrast and added a black, greeny yellow, and orange photo filter to give the photo a natural and enigmatic feel. I have emphasizes the use of the black filter to drain the colour from the image.
nineteenth image
(see poster analysis)
Twentieth image Portrait image of model sitting on a wall. Although this model isn't appearing in the trailer, I like the use of background and editing, and emotion in the model's face. The model appears quite detached, in a dream like state, which relates to depersonalization. The background is red bricks, which is quite complex which is the sort of background I would like to have in some of my shots.
Twenty First image
Portrait image of model sitting on a wall. Although this model isn't appearing in the trailer, I like the use of background and editing, and emotion in the model's face. The model appears quite detached, in a dream like state, which relates to depersonalization. The background is red bricks, which is quite complex which is the sort of background I would like to have in some of my shots. I also like the fashion of the model, this is the type of fashion I will be using in my trailer.
Twenty Second image
Portrait image of model sitting on a bus. I have used auto levels, auto contrast, reduced the shadows, increased the midtone contrast and added a black, greeny yellow, and orange photo filter to give the photo a natural and enigmatic feel. The model appears very detached form the world around her, as she sits at the back of a bus on her own.
Twenty third image
(similar to twentieth image) Twenty fourth image
(similar to twenty second image) Twenty fifth image
Portrait image of girl standing looking up at camera. I have used auto levels, auto contrast, reduced the shadows, increased the midtone contrast and added a black, greeny yellow, and orange photo filter to give the photo a natural and enigmatic feel. The model appears confused and angry, which are common feelings of depersonalization. The background is basically of nothing which represents emptiness again another symptom of depersonalization.
I had already looked into some film poster's of the same genre, and looking at the film poster for the signal, I realised that high levels of editing had been used to get across that it was a psychological thriller. I felt that the signal poster was extremely aesthetic which is what I wanted my poster to be like.
Once I had decided the name of my film, I began to research what exactly depersonalization is.
"Individuals who experience depersonalization feel divorced from their own personal physicality by sensing their body sensations, feelings, emotions and behaviors as not belonging to the same person or identity"
"Diagnostic criteria include persistent or recurrent experiences of feeling detached from one's mental processes or body."
"Common descriptions are: watching oneself from a distance; out-of-body experiences; a sense of just going through the motions; feeling as though one is in a dream or movie; not feeling in control of one's speech or physical movements; and feeling detached from one's own thoughts or emotions"
I thought these bits of information would work well as a brief, that I could stick to when designing my poster.
I then went out and took some photos of my main character Melissa. We went to a range of different locations around London on different days, in order to capture different weather patterns, different locations and it would give me more of a selection when choosing which photo to use for the poster.
One of my favourite locations was Pepper Street in East London. I especially like this area because it's near the River Thames, but in a quiet place, so taking photos didn't prove difficult. The area also has a beautiful backdrop of the high rise buildings and the London Docklands.
I have positioned Melissa so that she is standing on a bench facing out towards the river and buildings, with her arms raised in the air. I have placed her on a bench so that she seems taller, and is the main focus of the poster, I tried taking a picture of her standing in front of the bench, but she was too short, and didn't appear to be the main focus of the image. Melissa is wearing a leopard print vest, with white shorts, and suspender tights. I feel this meets my style of fashion for the film (grunge)
I have edited this image in a way that relates to depersonalization. People who suffer from Depersonalization, feel detached or feel like they're in a dream world. I have designed the poster to make it appear that this is a world that Melissa is in, her dream world a world she has designed her self. I have done this by using the paint brush tool and going over the outlines in the background of the image, I then moved on the painting the railings near her and the bench she is standing on.
I then decided to go over the outline of her body. I then thought, 'If this is her own world, her dream world, things aren't going to appear as normal. So then I used the clone stamp on the river, and went over where her skin was. This effect looks like she has drawn the image herself, but hasn't given herself skin, making it appear like she is detached from body.
After that, the image still appeared too normal, so I clicked the filter button in photoshop to see if I could make the image appear like a dream like state. I found the coloured pencil filter, which I felt worked really well.
I then did my usual routine of auto levels, auto contrast, decreasing the light shadows, increasing the midtone contrast, adding an orange, yellowy green, and black photo filter. I then played around with the levels and brightness to create the final image.
I feel that this location has worked perfectly as it appears that she has drawn the landscape herself.
To be left alone with one's mind. Is hardly thought as dangerous. Is it? What if you could see yourself perform everyday tasks as if you were behind a pane of glass? What if you began to doubt your existance, and thought nothing could hurt you because you didn't feel real?
What if there was someone out there just like you? Someone who could fit the pieces together?
Melissa has forgotten who she is. She's lost the ability to tell whats real and what's not. Everyday she asks herself whether any of this is real, or whether she's trapped in her own imagination.
She meets a girl, Niamh. Who appears to be just like her, if not completely the same. Can Niamh help Melissa to find herself, and escape from her own imagination?
I have also made a spider diagram to help me with ideas for the teaser
Wikipedia describes a Psychological thriller as a:
"Specific sub-genre of the wide-ranging thriller genre. However, this genre often incorporates elements from the mystery and drama genre in addition to the typical traits of the thriller genre. Also, occasionally this genre will border into the also wide-ranging horror genre."
Other definitions include:
Psychological
"Elements that are related to the mind or processes of the mind; they are mental rather than physical in nature. Sometimes the suspense comes from within one solitary character where characters must resolve conflicts with their own minds. Usually, this conflict is an effort to understand something that has happened to them. These conflicts are made more vivid with physical expressions of the conflict in the means of either physical manifestations, or physical torsions of the characters at play."
Thriller "Generally, thrillers focus on plot over character, and thus emphasize intense, physical action over the character's psyche. Psychological thrillers tend to reverse this formula to a certain degree, emphasizing the characters just as much, if not more so, than the plot."
Psychological Thriller Characters are no longer reliant on physical strength to overcome their brutish enemies (which is often the case in typical action-thrillers), but rather are reliant on their mental resources, whether it be by battling wits with a formidable opponent or by battling for equilibrium in the character's own mind. The suspense created by psychological thrillers often comes from two or more characters preying upon one another's minds, either by playing deceptive games with the other or by merely trying to demolish the other's mental state.
Literary devices and techniques Stream of consciousness "A literary technique which seeks to describe an individual's point of view by giving the written equivalent of the character's thought processes. In psychological thrillers, the narrative tries to manifest the character's psyche through word usage, descriptions, or visuals." First-person narrative "a literary technique in which the story is narrated by one or more of the characters, who explicitly refers to him or herself in the first person, that is, "I". This direct involvement that the characters have with the story in turn makes the reader more involved with the characters themselves, and thus able to understand the mechanics of the characters' minds. This technique is often paired with the concept of the unreliable narrator. " Back-story "the history behind the situation extant at the start of the main story. This deepens the psychological aspect of the story since the reader is able to more fully understand the character; more specifically, what the character's motivations are and how his past has shaped his current cognitive perceptions."
Themes Reality "The quality of being real. Characters often try to determine what is true and what is not within the narrative." Perception "A person's own interpretation of the world around him through his senses. Often characters misperceive the world around them, or their perceptions are altered by outside factors within the narrative (see Unreliable narrator). " Mind "The human consciousness; the location for personality, thought, reason, memory, intelligence and emotion. The mind is often used as a location for narrative conflict, where characters battle their own minds to reach a new level of understanding or perception. " Existence/Purpose "The object for which something exists; an aim or a goal humans strive towards to understand their reason for existence. Characters often try to discover what their purpose is in their lives and the narrative's conflict often is a way for the characters to discover this purpose. " Identity "The definition of one's self. Characters often are confused about or doubt who they are and try to discover their true identity. " Death "The cessation of life. Characters either fear or have a fascination with death."
