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into the woods by Amy Hall

Raven Calls Marketing

As part of planning for our thriller film we had to decide on a production name and we came up with 'JAB Productions', we thought this was clever and catchy as 'JAB' is made up of the first letters of each of our first names and the word 'jab' itself has connotations of pain and fear which fits well with the thriller genre. Here are a few of our production logo ideas:

We finally decided on the picture above; we thought that having the name inside of the syringe would create more of an effect and look professional as everything is together in one image rather than having the syringe next to the name.

As well as a production name and a logo, we had to think of how we could promote our film to get our names out there and how we could gain a large varied audience to watch our film and so we decided to make two posters to promote the film and the premiere date. Here are our finished products!

 

 

Audience theories

As part of our research we had to find out all about audience theories, audience expectations - plot elements, production values -  and audience consumption habits - how the audience will 'use' out film. When considering our film we will look at all audience theories but in particular the 'Blumler and Kats - Uses and Gratifications' theory as this theory states how people use media not only for entertainment purposes but also to find out about the world and learn new information. For example, in our film people will look to learn about psychological issues as well as getting a thrill from watching a new horror/thriller film. My group and I came together on this piece of research and we produced a summary of a few audience theories in the form of a poster on the website 'Canva'. See the finished product below!

 

 

Thriller video production tips

When considering the pre-production, production and post-production of our thriller film we will have to think of everything: everything that could go wrong, how to fix things, timings, etc. Below is a summary of everything we will need and how it will relate to the making of 'Raven Calls'.

Stages

- Pre-production (planning) - Longest stage.

- Production (the shoot) - Shortest stage.

- Post-production (editing and effects).
We are currently in the middle of pre-production and very close to the production stage, we are planning production to the best of our ability as this will mean less time will need to be spent in post production as we will know exactly what we want to achieve and there will be few mistakes to correct.

 

Tips/advice for filming

- Pay close attention to mise-en-scene.

- Plan ahead in terms of the weather.

- Maintain continuity.

- Keep storyboard and plan close at all times while filming.

- Make a shooting schedule.
At the minute we are planning our filming: when we will film, where we will film, etc. This will help all of the above to be close to perfect hopefully!

 

Good storyboards should give you:

- Settings.

- Shots and settings.

- What characters/actors will be needed in those settings.

- What props/costumes are needed in those settings.

- An idea of timings.

- You will also need to add when you are going to shoot each scene.

 Our storyboard is almost complete, we are just adding small details to make it as useful as possible whilst we are filming, expect to see pictures soon.
 

Location/setting

- Plan your time there to the hour - especially if it costs to get there or there will be big variations in lighting/environment.

- High streets should be fine: shopping centres need to get permission - be polite, explain the purpose and plan in advance for this.

- Take into account health and safety considerations!
We have decided to film in the woods close to our school as this area will create the mood and atmosphere that we desire for 'Raven Calls' to be as spooky as possible.

 

Equipment and props

- Make, buy, borrow.

- Make a list of what you need and tick it off as you acquire it.

- Be specific but not too ambitious.

- Book out what you need for the shoot - be reliable and reasonable.

 

Shooting

- Shoot for fewer longer periods rather than lots of small chunks.

- Shoot 5-10 minutes more footage than you need.

- If you're not sure if a scene is good enough, shoot it again.

- Don't delete footage - some may be useful.

- Do plenty of cutaways and use plenty of shots.

- Get footage off quickly and label it.

- Back up your footage.

- Film 5 seconds before 'Action' and 5 seconds after 'Cut'.

- Use tripods - handheld shots are difficult and can look sloppy.

- Practice tilting and panning with the tripods.

- Start the pan well before the shot so you get some clean movement and finish after.

- Film in as light a location as possible - easier to darken after.

- Try and stick to the 180 degree rule.

- Get close when shooting outdoors to make dialogue louder and clearer.
We are planning everything, in terms of filming, as detailed as we can to ensure we're not unsure of what to do when we're out there and we're not wasting the time we have the equipment for.

 

Shooting and post production

- Doesn't have to be 'shoot the film' then 'edit the film' if you're well organised - can be done in chunks.

- Don't view post-production as 'clearing up the mess' - think in advance about what effects, sounds or tilting you want and work out how to do them, this will also help with filming.

 

 

 

Day 1 filming

Legal documents

Just before we began filming, we had to complete various legal documents to ensure the health and safety of everyone involved in our film 'Raven Calls'. These documents included a risk assessment and shooting schedules; the risk assessment allowed us to think ahead of what could go wrong while out filming and what dangers we could encounter in the place where we're filming (we found that our outdoor location carried the most risk as weather and drowning were factors, these were not the most obvious risks when we were thinking about filming), this also included important information regarding details of the company and the distributor, and the shooting schedules made us plan the production of the film a lot more, we had to settle on a date and time to film in both locations that suited everyone involved, including Mr Knowles regarding his office, and we had to make sure no one else was filming in the same locations at the same time.

Below are our copies of the risk assessment and shooting schedules specifically for our film.

 

This covered only our outdoor location in the woods as this carried the most risk.
(In the team members section we have the names 'Jade Gregory' and 'Ellie Wallis' but this was changed last minute to 'Josh Attwell' and 'Sophie Turton').

Both shooting schedules include characters, costumes, equipment, etc but most importantly the basic shots to act as a foundation for the whole scene.

Storyboard

Jess Emmingham made this storyboard using the website 'Storyboard That', rather than drawing up our ideas, we decided to make it online to save time so we could make better use of our time and spend it on production and editing. Also, this method of storyboard making gives us much more detailed drawings that are easier to understand for when we're out filming and looking back for the evaluation of thriller.
 

Character profiles

For our research we had to plan what our characters would look like, act like and so on in detail. Our group made a character profile of each individual character and the actor who plays each character, this includes a subtle summary of 'Raven Calls' along with where we will film each one of the scenes. We made these character profiles using 'Canva', the finished product is below, enjoy!

Location shots