CCR: Question #1: Research

Question #1: How does your product use or challenge conventions and how does it represent social groups or issues?

Generally speaking, I am nearly complete shooting my project known as Stay Inside and transition to editing. At this point I must begin my Creative Critical Reflection, or CCR, to add to my Cambridge portfolio. It is simply a matter of looking back to how I had thought about the entire affair, both in planning and final cut, and it has to be an actual, artistic response to four huge questions.The question I am discussing in this post is Question 1, how my movie creates and/or dismantles old notions and what it says about various groups or problems. In my notes, I remembered that I must discuss some thriller conventions, provide examples, and tell why I decided to flip some of them or retain them. 

I dug deep into the aspects of a thriller when I embarked on the research. The elements that present themselves in the predominance are a very serene and lonely environment, low-key lighting and the characters are completely defenseless or unaware of a threat that is simply waiting. In the Stay inside I did all of that by setting the entire situation in a small, empty house and only applying a long and wide shot to indicate that there is nothing to help Jay and Marcus out there. I also borrowed the films such as The Ring and The Others which are the traditional domestic intrusions. The stranger comes to the door when the guys are distracted so that is as close as the safe place gets broken. I retained that conventional aspect since it does indeed stand out and frightens the viewer on the first image. 

However, when I began to watch the characters I chose to do something different. The central individuals are on the go in most thrillers before the horror strikes. I turned Jay and Marcus into complete slackers. I got some of this vibe of Beavis and Butt-Head, Pizza boxes all over, candy on the coffee table and clutter in the living room. The entire idea was to depict them completely unplugged to reality in order to make the broadcast and the door knock even more shocking on them. Switching that stereotypical rule with the other provides the film with a sense of a dark comedy and a real tension. 

The other group of people in the movie is the youthful loitering populace. The children who are constantly neglected are Jay and Marcus whose physical looks suggest that they were identical to ordinary people but are actually living in different worlds. They are dressed in normal clothes this way Jay in grey and Marcus in black hoodie and blue jeans, so they are not distinguished in the group.That allows me to play the underdog effect. The audience applauds since they too are in a scenario that is very relatable, and they pull together how the noisy, distracted mentality of the present generation youth can actually be a threat. That is what I would like to discuss how you normally see it does not look.

Post Production: Editing: Part 2

I have already begun the editing process with Clipchamp and it proves to be a good platform in which I can arrange all the various shots which I recorded when doing the production. At the moment I pay much attention to the positive comments my classmates provided me with in the course of our group meeting, in particular to the issues of pacing and sound mixture. Bringing in of the exterior long shots and the breaking over the shoulder shots of us sitting on the couch was one of my initial duties. 

With the help of the Clipchamp timeline I am able to cut those clips to the millisecond so I could ensure that the transition between the spacious, empty landscape and the chaotic, disorderly interior becomes jarring and disjointed rather than merely a mere change of scenery. I am also watching the visual continuity, seeing that the dark blacks and neutral grays of the costumes are presented in such a way that it creates a moody, cinematic appearance on all angles. 

The most significant aspect of this Clipchamp session is the exploration of the audio layers that is where the actual thriller vibes manifest themselves. As Emanuel recommended, I am now wasting a lot of time trying the sound of the door rattling. As I do not want to create a sound on it that is loud and swollen, I layer it so that it begins as a faint barely audible click or scratch, gradually increasing into more aggressive rhythmic swack. This trick was supposed to help the audience experience the panic of the characters that were going to take place in real time. 

I am also working on the emergency broadcast audio, which I am adding filters to it to sound distorted, low-fi and eerie when it breaks through the silence of the living room. Although I simply have to sew in my production logo and adjust the visual effects a bit to be shown on a TV screen, the fact that the unrefined version of the sequence fits in the editing preview makes me believe that the project is finally starting to look like a professional, high-tension experience.

Post Production: Editing: Part 1

I am pleased to report that the major filming is over and Stay Inside is finished. A change in the physical space, where the disorderly living room is replaced with a digital workspace, a transition that is a major spatial inflection in the project development.Having spent a number of hours capturing tripod settings of the various exteriors and readjusting lighting to suit my monochrome outfit as well as those of my colleague who has been wearing contrasting clothes, I am glad that the raw footage is well captured and locked. 

This is a huge acquisition to my Cambridge portfolio, protecting the creative vision in my hard drive and allowing me to move out of the disorder of a live set to a discipline of post-production atmosphere. After going back to the empty living room, I am contented to see that all snack boxes, pizza boxes, and half-opened cups are all documented as desired. 

With the removal of the camera apparatus, now the editing stage, with which now the movie starts to take a structure of a complete story. My ultimate objective in this foundation phase of post- production is to organize the filming in a way that leaves the pacing natural and the development of tension natural. I have analyzed the extreme long shots of deserted landscape depicted and the different medium and over-the-shoulder shots of the characters and it is clearly observable that placing the quiet and empty exterior world and the ignorant and free slackers in opposition will raise a certain feeling of indecisiveness. 

    

It is one thing to film a scene in disjointed parts but it is a different thing to view those disjointed parts on a timeline and know how just a single cut can change the whole atmosphere. Now I am prepared to be involved with the technical side of it and see these raw files turn into a good thriller opening.

Production: Group Meeting #2

 We had an amazing group meeting with my classmates today to discuss our current project in Cambridge portfolios and demonstrate the digital work of each other. We have searched the blogs of Julia, Meliyah, Taryn, Ella, and Andres. It was a nice opportunity to look how our various genres, my house bound thriller, and the coming-of-age narrative by Emmanuel used mise-en-scene and camera effects to build a vibe of its own. 

I began by taking the team through my development of Stay Inside. I described this lax relationship I am establishing with Jay and Marcus and flaunted the Pandora Productions logo that I created on Canva. The group was fond of the visual storytelling of the logo, particularly the blue centre as it stands out of the dark blue black and grey of the box. My new filming difficulties, such as extreme long take to reveal the desolate surroundings of the house and POV to create immediate suspense when an unknown figure is in the process of creeping upon the front door, were shared with me as well. 

Then we resorted to the work of the rest of the group. Julia had a discussion about her thriller, The Last Call in which she uses isolation and phone calls that sound creepy to generate dread. That was followed by the project Dont Look Back by Meliyah, which is an urban thriller based on the need to move rather quickly and the sensation of not knowing how a person is following you through the city. Andres posted his crime thriller, which is special due to his daring use of red stains to indicate danger, and his blog displayed with bountiful technical composure with regard to the lighting stability. It was also a good surprise to find their on-the-run vitality compared to my characters, who are resting on a couch with spilled boxes of pizza and candy. 

The projects presented by both Taryn and Ella venture into the psychological realm. In her film The Guest, Taryn focuses on a social get-togethermevent going wrong when an unwelcome guest comes to the party whereas in her movie Mirror Image, Ella applies the symbol of reflections and doppelgängers to make the atmosphere of her film creepy and strange. We did have a fair share of time as well on the coming-of-age project of Emmanuel. In the case of a rejected kid who goes out at night, he elaborated on his scheme with his family. To express his desire to fade away into the darkness, he wears an entirely black costume to be the lead in an event that makes him a part of a crowd of friends who are not on his side. A fresh take on sneaking-out trope as a character development rather than simply horror, it was a cool look though.

Feedback that I received in the group was highly motivational and provided me with clear guidelines on the further actions. I was in everyone’s opinion nailing down the Beavis and Butt-head inspired slacker vibe.Julia claimed that it makes it seem much more intrusive comes the relatable, disheveled environment, and Ella personally loved the aspect in my logo of the blue glow implying threat, either in some supernatural or technological way. The team consensus was that the POV intruder shot was a solid decision as it provides a predatory frontland to the blameless domestic environment. 

But they also provided me with some good tips of the areas where I can refine my production. Andres advised me to be watchful of changes of lighting, and said that when I employed the lighting circle stick to imitate the TV, I need to make sure that the flicker would not appear too artificial against my black and gray costumes. Meliyah mentioned that my long takes are effective, but I can also include more shots of props, such as the open box of pizza or the remote, which keeps the viewers within the mess. Another useful suggestion that Emmanuel made to me, was the ending of my opening, to make the door rattling sound as subtle as possible, before it exploded, so that we could have more time to experience the panic increase.

Production: Company Logo

In my project with Cambridge portfolio, I needed to develop an identity of a company that was as enigmatic and risky as my movie. I selected Pandora Productions due to the concept of a box which cannot hold in the fact that it was an excellent fit in the thriller moods. My movie is similar to the myth where unopening a box unleashes something that you cannot retrieve like an unwanted threat breaking into your safe home. I also wanted a logo to alert the audience that something serious is about to occur or rather happen before the appearance of the first frame.

In order to make this idea a reality, I relied on Canva as the primary design tool. It allowed me to experiment with various digital aspects and professional layouts within a very short amount of time. I separated my process into five steps, which demonstrate the development of the logo. 

In the first picture, I began with a blank canvas, and searched the iconic base that would be solid and heavy. I needed a box that would appear to be holding something large hence the initial choice on the shape was the most critical aspect of the foundation. 

In the second photo, I started playing around with the icon with its proportions and positioning. The box had to seem to be landmarked and central in order to instantly draw an attention of the audience. 

The third picture is the layering that I applied in the image by adding secondary graphics to provide more detail to the box. With the combination of various shapes, I achieved a three-dimensional effect, which made the icon seem an individual piece of art as opposed to a stock image. 

The fourth picture identifies the period at which I used my color theory in the design. A mix of deep blacks and darks greys was used to correspond to the somber atmosphere of the clothing as well as the disheveled appearance of the living-room in the movie. The shades of black were used to frame the most significant part of the design. I placed a specific blue light in the middle of the box. That blue indicates the supernature and mystic atmosphere of the broadcast that rattles the night of Jay and Marcus. It serves as an accent, an eye-catcher as the center of the box where the evil or the unknown is concealed in.

Eventually, in the fifth picture, I sharpened the contrast between the dark outside and blue inside. This completed the appearance forming an identity of the brand reflecting the theme of my project. The fact that the middle of the black and grey box is lit blue implies that there is some action that is being done in the interior of the box and is about to be emitted. Such a professional logo contributes to the establishment of the feeling of power and prepares the audience to the psychological terror that ensues.

Production: Costume Design and Color Theory

In my stay inside Cambridge portfolio, I was able to apply costume design and color theory to communicate the emotions of my characters. The colors the characters use in a thriller may give the viewer the hints of whether they are conscious or defenseless, like some a hidden code. As Jay and Marcus are expected to be completely relaxed, I used the subdued, every day color palette.There are no scenes with bright color and make one think that nothing exciting as well as dangerous is occurring, so when the tone abruptly changes, it seems even stronger. 

Jay is clothed in all grey, and that is no coincidence. Grey normally translates to neutral and free of conflict in color theory. Clad in grey as he is, Jay is simply one of the shadows of the dim living room and the couch with its pleasant texture.This causes him to appear as though he wants to avoid being bothered and just have fun just as the relaxed actors that I strongly admired. It even contributes to making him appear weak and vulnerable to the extreme reality of the emergency broadcast and metal threats beyond.

 

Marcus has a blue pair of jeans and a black shirt on which the sets a classic and grounded appearance of his character. Black may refer to mystery, power, yet here in this house scene it is simply another casual color choice that partially offsets Jay who has a darker grey color. The frame has a blue tint of the jeans which is not distracting. Put together, these costumes create a believable image of two friends getting ready to spend a night having nothing, which is precisely the feeling of safety I want to feel when the tension begins to mount. 

The particular colors also allow me to experiment with lighting when I am producing the work. Since the garments are of neutral darkness, they reflect the TV sunshine and flickering lights without conducting much unnecessary reflection. This puts emphasis on their facial expressions and body language, and not on their outfits. The juxtaposition of these dull daily garb and the ice cold stark house environment is going to be one of the visual storylines as the movie heads to its climax.

Production: Preparation and Technique

The set preparation of Stay Inside had been based on the process of balancing between the realistic messiness and technical considerations of filming a set. I took much of my time to set up the pizza box, the empty cups, and the sweet candies in order to make the living room look like a real hangout place between Jay and Marcus. This was to ensure that the couch became the centre of world to the characters just like in the classic Beavis and Butt-head arrangement in which everything the characters require is right at their reach. Just looking at it, one thinks that it is a complete mess, yet all the pieces of trash and even the remote location were chosen on purpose to demonstrate how unprepared these men are to the imminent crisis. 

The coordination of the shots which occur outside the house to create a feeling of isolation was one of the biggest challenges I had. I shot an extreme long shot of the scenery towards the entire house as an outsider to demonstrate the farthest aid could be. This was not easy since I needed to choose a place where I would capture the building in a position that reveals its vulnerability to nature. The tripod was necessary to make the frame stable and professional which assists in creating of that silent and spooky atmosphere before any activity proceeds inside the house. 

I also made an emphasis on POV shot when the person was an unknown walking towards the front door outside. It was a challenging method since I desire the action to be smooth but dangerous as the camera closes on the house. This is a standard thriller shot that leaves a frightening impact at first glance since the viewers look into the house as a potential invader.It compelled me to consider the speed with which I was walking, and how to position the entrance as the final destination of this enigmatic person and hold the camera stationary. 

When once within the house, an over the shoulder long shot was used to link the audience with Jay and Marcus on the couch. This angle not only allows us to see them in their relaxed positions but also leaves the rest of the disheveled room and the television visible. The tricky bit in this was to ensure that the lighting circle stick gave a sufficient radiance to resemble the television and at the same time, not overdo the scene too much. The effect of this shot is to emphasize their vulnerability since the audience can observe that there is a lot of space behind them and which seems to be even more threatening after you view the POV shot of someone literally going towards the house. 

One of the greatest sources that inspired this contrast between the exterior point of view and the interior safety lies in the movie The Strangers. That film assassinates it in displaying a house in the exterior via the eyes of the villains and thereafter cutting to the unsuspected group indoors. Attempts to create a similar effect of being observed constituted a significant part of my camera job in this session.Although I needed to do the POV walk a few times before I could master the movements, the extreme long shot with the over the shoulder view does go a great job in establishing the atmosphere of suspense I am trying to create with my Cambridge portfolio.

Production: Props and Equipment

In my Cambridge project portfolio,
Stay Inside, reaching the production phase translated into creation of our vision of lived-in thriller environment. Many of the job prerequisites included picking and positioning props to give the set the appearance of reality. The base of the set was intentionally created by making the room messy. It was not an accident that mess, it was a deliberate act in order to demonstrate the careless attitude between Jay and Marcus. The messiness of this assists in selling the fact that these two have been ignoring the world and are completely out of touch with it. 

We used food and chill props to feel that the lazy weekend life is justifiable. Our background was pre-prepared with open pizza boxes, actual pieces of pizza, and bags of chips, sweets, and half-full cups. These objects are important as they put the scene into reality and emphasize the complete helplessness of the characters. The audience misses noticing them being engulfed in junk food and having a TV remote in their hands as a gesture to signify that Jay and Marcus are very relaxed and Alabama are highly distracted. The excessive number of snacks also contributes to a comfortable image making the unexpected emergency broadcast look like a huge intruder to their cozy world. 

Our set was anchored to the couch and the TV. The couch is the last haven where most of the characters spend the first half of the opening sequence. It has them sitting and waiting once the threat sets in. They center their attention on the TV until it all goes wrong and turns into their source of terror. Marcus unintentionally draws external threat into their safe space by turning the device utilized to increase the volume of the distorted broadcast with his remote. This is the element of the thriller that makes it feel good with the contrast of these everyday objects and the increased tension. 

Behind the scenes, our production equipment was equally significant in bringing the correct mood. Our establishing shots of the living room were made as still as possible using a tripod. The fact that the camera was so steady initially is what makes the moments that come after so much more intense and creepy. We also took a lighting circle stick and had to adjust the shadows and highlights in the squat room. This assisted us in imitating the pale TV light on their features and the dark ambience they produced prior to the severe emergency lights assuming power. Each prop and equipment played a certain role in the creation of the suspense on film day.

Audio Planning

Audio Element

In my Cambridge portfolio project called Stay Inside, the most significant portion in my case would consist of the audio thing to create tension. What the audience hears in a thriller is usually much more fancied than what the audience sees simply because the viewers have to fill in the blanks with their imaginations. I will begin the movie with a blanket of simple sounds in everyday life so that you can feel the sluggishness of Jay and Marcus on the couch. Imagine subdued TVs, snack packs crunching and then they laugh carelessly. By making the soundscape sound perfectly normal, one can feel the abrupt silence or insanity beforehand that follows.

The climax of the entire introductory part falls at the point where we move the warmness of the night in atmosphere to the frigidity of the emergency broadcast. I will add a kind of high-profile and disorganized crackling noise to tell about the problem with the television signal breaking. Such sound must be crisp enough to startle the viewers, akin to literally jumping scare, a break of the silence. The voice used in the broadcasting will be monotonous calm straight up, something creepy in contrast to the desperate commands to remain indoors. This sound effect is used to deprive the characters of the feeling of security and replace it with the increasing feeling of dread. 

One of the biggest sources of inspiration behind the usage of these sounds is the movie The Purge where it employs the smooth way the siren inspiration adds a chilly sound to announce the beginning of the event.

Purge Announcement Scene

The sound is iconic as it immediately turns the rules of the world inverted and informs you that now danger has been given permission to enter the building. I am applying the same in my project by means of the distorted TV broadcast that demonstrates that the domestic safe zone is violated. The other good example is the film Signs where the characters can hear scuttling and rattles on the roof and the doors. Those noises hang around without explanation over long periods of time, and the audience, along with the characters, can only pay attention to every single metallic click or heavy bang.

In the process of ascending towards the climax of the movie, I would be interested in the juxtaposition between complete silence and violent heavy noises. The deadbolt must be heavy and finalized with a knocking sound that provides one with a short moment of what is safely perceived to be a safe moment before the handle begins turning. I do not want the audience to miss the slow, deliberate movement of the metal handle and creating an impression that whatever is outside is tolerant and patient. With the background music thrown out and these spot-on sound effects bringing me nearer to the final seconds of the opening, I can make it claustrophobic and intimate.

Mise-en-Scene: Part 2

Mise-en-Scene: Costume Design

In my project in Cambridge portfolio, Stay Inside, costume design occupies a significant portion of the entire scene and represents the vulnerability of Jay and Marcus. Being a thriller, which begins absolutely comfortably, the clothes must demonstrate that they are not prepared. I do not also wish to have the viewers showing them without the readiness to fight or fly. The visual message that I want to deliver by wearing them soft and loose clothes is that they have dropped their guard altogether. This is the reason why the abrupt shift to danger is so shocking as their appearance is completely incongruous with the danger at the door. 

I decided on a rather specific way of how Beavis and Butt-Head should be dressed to contribute to the Beavis and Butt-Head inspired slacker image. Jay will be wearing a faded, oversized, slightly oversized hoodie whereas Marcus will be wearing plain track pants and socks that do not match.Such a stare informs the audience that these two are stuck to the couch hours and hours and are not going anywhere soon. This is to give them the appearance they seem like regular teens caught in whimsical idleness. Their dresses are not merely clothes, but an indicator of an absolute state of chill with no suspicion whatever. 

Scream (1996) represents a movie illustration of this manner.

The characters in the said film are usually wearing casual and easygoing clothes seen in the 90s, oversized sweaters and plain jeans, making the horror seem more real that it is being portrayed by people that you may actually meet in the streets, rather than by movie actors in costumes. Their vulnerability to the killer, their nakedness to the cold, cold threat of the murderer is brought out as their clothes are commonplace and soft when the murderer strikes them. I would apply a similar approach to ensure that Jay and Marcus are relatable and convenient targets to whatever is out there waiting. 

The choice of colors I have used in the costumes is not random. I would keep the colors to a dull heather grey and navy blue palette to have the characters blend with the low-key lighting of the living room. This balance of visuality will be destroyed as the ugliness of flickering lights of the TV come to play. I would also desire the feel of materials to appear soft and touchable in close up shots and in contrast with the harsh metallic noises of a rattling doorknob. I recognize this opposition of the humanness to the mechanical menace as something that is repeated throughout my project.

Mise-en-Scene: Part 1

Mise-en-Scene: Setting

The house setting is most significant in the scene of my project in Cambridge portfolio named Stay Inside. The atmosphere of the place in a thriller must be the kind of a chilly hangout that transforms gradually into an evil trap. I would like the living room to be designed in the manner of a place incorporated by two friends hanging out on a Saturday. Therefore I am getting down to little things such as messy furniture, half-filled soda cans and muted lights creating a warm and friendly impression at the beginning. Making the house look shaggy and recognizable, I am giving the viewer a chance to relax before the emergency news station switches the switch. 

This surrounding must demonstrate the idle atmosphere of Jay and Marcus, which I imagined as a Beavis and Butt-head fugue. The couch is literally the throne and the stack of snack bags and video game controllers is the testimony that they are residing in their own indolent world. And that is what makes the emergency broadcast so out of place when it intrudes into their utopia of chilling. The strongest tension of the scene is the contrast between their easy postures on a comfy sofa and the severe and chilly world of a threat of a possible danger. 

The main reason to utilize such a home environment was the movie The Strangers. 

In the same flick, the regular house becomes a frightening prison. Similar to my project, it tries to create fear with household items. A plain passage or a front door can become an instant hideout of some sort just at the end of it. I would like to get back to the experience when all those dark spots in the corner make you believe that it is a danger and transform the room where you see your sleep spot into the room of watching. 

The house setting plays a significant role in creating the atmosphere of suspense because the characters are walking outside of the comfort of the couch to the front door. I will take the physical distance to make the audience to be feeling vulnerable. At the moment when Marcus runs towards a hallway, the picture behind him must appear open and vacant. Through these details of the setting, I can make an otherwise simple living room a place of severe psychological fear without necessarily having a huge budget or even elaborate special effects.

Character Development

In my portfolio project with Cambridge, I am executing a two minute thriller introduction called Stay Inside. I primarily aim to change the atmosphere towards comfortable routine to an one-step-up-two-steps-ahead paranoia with the help of only two minutes. Sound design, lighting, and the outside threat are the largest tensions but the audience requires something real, something that is of their substance. That is difficult when you have to create characters quickly, without slowing down the action, with extensive wordplay. My character development must be instant, visual, and reactive in the first place. I am not narrating lengthy back stories, I am merely proffering familiar archetypes and demonstrating how easy they are to destroy. 

I envisioned Jay and Marcus as those of Beavis and Butt-Head.

They are the two archetypal friends hanging on a couch, laughing about everything, and showing no concern about the world. By bending over this slacker archetype I am able to generate a feeling of safety and some humor in the beginning. Their conversation of remaining at home the whole day is straightforward and purposeless, such as that of prototypical characters. That establishes a certain level of comfort and safety which I intend to break. I must create their connections and personalities swiftly through what we see and the surrounding, rather than the lengthy discussions to make their future eventual fear real. 

Before even the emergency broadcasts are lost the audience must have recognition of who these guys are merely by the way they are dressed and what is around them. The living room must be homely and uninhabited, wrappers of snacks and warm low-lamp lighting, indifferent and easy sitting on the couch reveal that they are completely safe. They are also frail since they are so easygoing. They should be dressed in comfortable clothes, torn hoodies, track pants and sweat socks, etc. That image delicacy will contrast with the severe metal sounds and big thuds that will follow subsequently. 

The character development really occurs as soon as the broadcast is initiated. On the ground that you are in a thriller, your actions in a stressing situation reveal who you are. In my script, I have made Jay and Marcus react a little differently to the threat at the beginning, so that there is a slight dynamic. Marcus plays the pragmatist. He brushes off the noise initially though when it comes to the point where the matter at hand has gone serious, he becomes the first to go to the hallway sound and make attempts to justify the absurd. Jay acts more on intuition. He feels fear earlier and realizes that the broadcast had not sounded right. His ultimate act in the climax is not to investigate this but to ensure their safety- he pulls the deadbolt lock. These minor things in the last thirty seconds make them what they are, one wants to know what the threat is, the other what to put over it. Both fail as the handle turns. 

Through the choice of costumes, which underline vulnerability and the development of different physical responses to the sound effects, I aim to establish the immediate rapport between the audience and my characters. The audience will feel the dread of the rattling doorknob in case a viewer perceives him or herself in those comfortable clothes.

Script Idea

My Cambridge portfolio project is a two-minute movie intro that I am assembling in the form of a thriller.The primary objective is to create the level of tension within the background environment and gradually make people feel uncomfortable and insecure. The plot revolves around two friends as they listen to music at home when an emergency broadcast comes in and throws a spanner in their usual night out.


It is inspired by The Purge, particularly the emergency announcements and the entire mood of being inside and safe, although the danger somehow invades. I liked the way ordinary homes turn into haunted grounds and how suspense can creep across by using sound and no sound in addition to the expectation rather than big action shots. I felt like I wanted to create my own original plan without imitating any plot.

I want to make this opening as a hook to get the audience hooked as I want to begin with something that is slow and comes into a suspense. The presence of sound effects, lighting changes, and minimal dialogue contribute to the creation of tension and leaves people without opened questions. The following is the dialogue of my two-minute opening film that executes these ideas and techniques.


Title: Stay Inside:
INT. LIVING ROOM – EVENING: The room’s dim but cozy. In the background, the television is humming. JAY and MARCUS are on the couch eating snacks relaxed and making jokes.


JAY: (laughing) We’ve been inside all day.


MARCUS:That is what a good weekend is all about.


The television switches to a dead air.


SFX: Loud crackling noise.


Both look up.


TV BROADCAST (V.O.)This is a way of emergency broadcasting. Every person is encouraged to stay within their houses. Close all the doors and windows.


The room is remarkably less noisy.


JAY: What was that?


MARCUS: Probably just a test.


The television show gets re-aired, but in a more distorted way.


TV BROADCAST (V.O.) Do not leave your home. Stay inside.


Marcus turns the volume up.


JAY: That didn’t sound normal.


They exchange uneasy looks.


INT. HALLWAY – CONTINUOUS: Marcus wanders towards the front door slowly.


SFX: There is a low metallic sound of something going on outside.


He stops.


MARCUS: Did you hear that?


There is another sound, the rattling of a doorknob.


INT. LIVING ROOM / FRONT DOOR : Jay stands up.


JAY: Someone’s out there.


The rattling grows louder.


SFX: There is an abrupt THUD on the door.


Both step back.


MARCUS: None of them are supposed to be out.


Silence.


Then-


BANG.


The lights flicker.


Jay locks the deadbolt.


CLICK.


EXTREME CLOSE‑UP – DOOR HANDLE


The handle rotates gradually on the outside.


INT. LIVING ROOM: There is a faint repetition of the emergency broadcast over the TV.


TV BROADCAST (V.O.) Remain inside. This is for your safety.


There is a last, bang on the door.


Jay and Marcus stare, frozen.


CUT TO BLACK.


All in all, this script indicates my intention to achieve the suspense by the use of the atmosphere, rather than action. The fact that I leave the opening at the cliffhanger is an attempt to make the audience anxious and eager to know what is going to happen next.This idea will allow me to explore sound design, camera shots and pacing, which are also important in my Cambridge portfolio project.

Project Idea and Inspiration Summary

In my Cambridge portfolio project, therefore, I am doing this two minutes thriller film opening, it is all about tension, suspense, and the spooky feeling of being stuck somewhere where we are not safe. I am envisioning two friends who are relaxing at home, as on any normal day, and all is so much serene and common-place. Then a booming voice comes on saying everybody to remain inside their houses. This is the moment of the mood change and the viewers begin to think that something is wrong. 

When a broadcast is on, it becomes normal then scary when somebody begins attempting to force his way into the house. I intend to develop the suspense gradually, not by great action shots. It will be concerning employing silence, sound effects and pacing to make everybody feel disturbed. We are not demonstrating a great deal of violence we are merely alluding to the threat so that people can fantasize about it and get spooked. 

The Purge is the major inspiration. The fact that the movie employs emergency alerts, rules, and confinement to build tension and fear appealed to me. I like the way in which it renders the average home unsafe and transforms a familiar environment into something frightening. I am stealing the mood and the thought that danger may strike anytime and being inside is not necessarily a sure thing to be safe.

Another aspect I liked about The Purge is that the suspense was created by showing things not at once. I would like to do it in my very beginning by making the information scarce and leaving the audience to guess what is happening by means of sound, visual effects, and the way the characters respond to them.

   
On the whole, my concept is guided by the storylines and conflict of The Purge and became my personal original idea. With suspense, isolation and fear within a limited duration of time, I would like to come up with a killer thriller opening that would hook the viewers as they would                                                                               not be able to resist wondering what would happen in the                                                                               next part.

Media Theory Integration

For my Cambridge portfolio project, to ensure my two-minute film opening looks sophisticated and well done, I would like to bring in some elements of media theory to result in the success of my mission as such:

The Semantic Code is somehow the ultimate means of creating a climate of fear without uttering a single word in the context of media theory. It superimposes objects and places that contain some kind of hidden meanings that point towards the fact that there is a danger lurking behind the scene. There is nothing in a thriller that is neutral, the half-eaten lunch on a table or a door that is just slightly open indicates that the life of a person was disrupted or that a safe place is violated. Lighting is even, dark shadows and high-contrast low-key lighting reveals the unknown or the darker aspect of people. By placing in the shot items which are vulnerable such as a broken mirror, a discarded phone, or a toy belonging to a child in an adult environment you are telling the audience that the world of the film is unstable, even before the storyline has begun.

The Action Code, also known as the Proairetic Code, is the literary pulse that leaves the spectators on the edge of their seats. Since it is all based on the reasoning of action and the resultant inevitable action, it leaves a trail of breadcrumbs that one cannot help but follow. One of the tropes in thrillers is a character performing a banal activity only to realize that it became strange such as turning a key on a lock only to discover that it is already open. Such a move triggers a response and the viewer immediately begins to ponder the result. It is all about the what comes next feeling, when you initiate a series of actions which are interrupted or are life and death, you put the viewers mind on the screen, anticipating the eventual payoff or collision.

The combination of these two theories allows you to create a cool thriller by the opening despite the fact that the plot itself is still blurred. One can work on little tension piles using action codes and work on adding semantic clues to saturate the scene with a mood. An example is when a character is searching something in a dark room the tension is the search, but the objects that the person bumps into such as a sharp kitchen knife, a pile of heavy keys, or a digital clock with a dial slowly drifting indicate a semantic narrative of a sense of urgency and potential violence. The two-layered treatment is what makes the opening clingy and classic, thus the audience gets the feels of the thriller off the vibe and the energy even before they get the entire plot.

Such codes also aid in offsetting a short, two minutes opening. Semantic codes provide you with density, the dumping of a ton of information in a single shot, whereas Proairetic Codes provide you with momentum, the propelling of the viewer into the next shot. Thrillers are important to have that mixture as it allows the opening not to look like a motionless scary image. Instead, it becomes an active series in which each object spooks of death and each action foreshadows the results. Being able to master these codes results in the ability to elicit a sharp reaction in the audience so that they feel the tension in their gut rather than merely seeing it on the screen.

Group Meeting Reflection #1

The group meeting of my Cambridge portfolio project in class today was where we were expected to create a two-minute film opening. The teammates that I had were Kai, Sofia, Nicole, Macie, Gaby, and Eva. The entire time was spent discussing our ideas, listening to one another, and offering constructive criticism to each another to enable us all to improve our projects before we would actually shoot. The majority of us chose drama or thriller, so it was not that difficult to talk because all the vibes and themes were similar.   

My concept is a thriller involving two friends who are relaxing in their home when an emergency broadcast comes up and informs everybody to remain inside. It becomes mad tense as soon as a person starts breaking into the house, and the tension continues to creep up until the characters realize that they are not safe anymore. When I pitched it, the crew presented me with excellent suggestions on how to enhance the tension by adding more sound, timing, and camera shots in order to make the audience feel the character of the danger increasing.   

All my group members had their ideas of film opening, and it was interesting to see the way each of them approached drama or thriller in a different way. Others of us were emotional and some about suspense and mystery. Since we all belonged to somewhat the same genres, drama or thrillers, we could exchange tips on lighting, music, and the introduction of characters to find out what works best.   

One of them informed me that I should mix and match what I like in various films of drama or thrillers. They did not want me to copy any one particular movie but instead encouraged me to steal parts of a few movies in order to create a new one. That struck me that I can blend various storytelling vibes, camera shots and pacing fragments to create my opening to shine.   

On the whole, the meeting was highly productive since we were all supportive and provided actual and helpful feedback. Discussing thoughts with Kai, Sofia, Nicole, Macie, Gaby, and Eva allowed me to refine my plan of a thriller and to consider more the tension development in the first two minutes. I am much more confident in my ability to make my film opening and use the advice that the team gave me in order to raise the final project.