Report draft

ADAM PICTON AS FILM REPORT: HIDDEN IN PLAIN SIGHT IS A TEEN THRILLER SET IN MODERN DAY LONDON, CROYDON (2017). IT IS ABOUT A TEENAGE GIRL NAMED ANGELA WHO FINDS HERSELF BEING STALKED BY A MYSTERIOUS, WHITE-MASKED FIGURE WHO SHE CAN’T SEEM TO SHAKE. SHE GOES TO HER FRIEND, EZEKIEL, FOR ADVICE AND HE CONTINUOUSLY DISCOURAGES HER ATTEMPTS TO GO TO THE AUTHORITIES. AS SHE GETS CLOSER AND CLOSER TO HIM, SHE’S UNKNOWINGLY GETTING CLOSER TO THE STALKER AS EZEKIEL IS THE STALKER. THERE WILL NOT BE MANY SCENES IN THIS SHORT FILM THAT RUNS A TOTAL OF NEARLY 4 MINUTES. THERE WILL BE A TOTAL OF 8 SCENES CONSISTING OF SHOTS OF CONTRASTING COLOURS AND LIGHTINGS AS THIS FITS THE EVERLASTING THEME OF LIGHT AND DARK WITH EZEKIEL’S TWO SIDES. AS MOST OF THE FILM’S MOOD IS CENTERED AROUND BEING CREEPY AND MYSTERIOUS, THERE WILL BE QUITE A LOT OF BLACK OUTS AND FADED TRANSITIONS. DURING THE PRODUCTION OF HIDDEN IN PLAIN SIGHT, I WILL CONSIDER MANY COMMON THEMES USED IN THE HORROR/THRILLER GENRES TO RESONATE WITH AN ALREADY EXISTING AUDIENCE AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE. TO DO THIS, I EMPLOYED TWO TEEN ACTORS TO TRY AND ESTABLISH A PERSONAL CONNECTION TO THE MAINLY TEENAGE TARGET AUDIENCE OF 12-20 YEAR OLDS. THIS WILL CREATE A SENSE OF REALISM TO TRY AND ENGAGE THE AUDIENCE EVEN FURTHER. THIS WILL MAKE THE FILM MUCH SCARIER TO THE AUDIENCE IF IT SEEMS MORE REAL BECAUSE IT WILL MAKE THE AUDIENCE FEEL AS THEY ARE THE ONE’S IN THE CREEPY SITUATION. I ALSO MENTIONED THE CONTINOUS EFFECT OF CONTRASTING COLOURS. THIS WILL CONNOTE THE TWO SIDES TO EZEKIEL, THE SIDE THAT ANGELA SEE’S, HER TRUSTWORTHY, BEST FRIEND, AND THE SIDE THAT ONLY WE CAN SEE, THE DARK, HIDDEN SIDE. TO HINT AT THIS, I PLAN TO STRATEGICALLY PLACE MANY DIFFERENT SHOTS THAT CONNOTE ANGELA’S INNOCENT AND IGNORANT BELIEF IN HER FRIEND AND EZEKIEL’S TWISTED TRUE SELF. THIS IS VERY IN LINE WITH BARTHES’ THEORY AND STRAUSS’ THEORY WHERE BINARY OPPOSITIONS ARE ALWAYS PRESENT IN A FILM AND THAT ENIGMA CODES ARE CREATED AND RESOLVED BY ACTION CODES. THE MOST COMMON OF WHICH IS THE OPPOSITION OF LIGHT AND DARK, GOOD AND EVIL, WHICH WILL BE PRESENT IN MY FILM. I WILL ALSO GIVE THE ACTOR’S SPECIFIC INSTRUCTIONS ON THEIR COSTUMES TO HAVE ANGELA PORTRAYED IN VERY BRIGHT COLOURS AND HAVE EZEKIEL PORTRAYED IN DARK ATTIRE TO REPRESENT HIS OTHER PERSONALITY FINALLY BEGINNING TO SURFACE AND CAUSE THIS DISEQUILIBRIUM, FOLLOWING TODOROV’S ORIGINAL THEORY. FOR RESEARCH, I HAVE CONSTRUCTED MANY DIFFERENT ESSAYS DISCUSSING THEMES THAT ARE OFTEN PRESENT IN HORROR’S SUCH AS THIS FILM. FOR EXAMPLE, I HAVE DONE EXTENSIVE RESEARCH ON WHAT THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN HORROR AND THRILLER IS TO MAKE SURE I KNOW HOW TO EXPERTLY INTERTWINE THE GENRE’S WITHOUT DISREGARDING ONE OR THE OTHER. I HAVE ALSO RESEARCHED THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN CREEPY AND SCARY TO DETERMINE WHAT MOOD I’D PREFER TO SET WITHIN THE AUDIENCE. FINALLY, I HAVE ANALYSED MANY DIFFERENT HORROR AND THRILLER MOVIES AND TRAILERS. FOR EXAMPLE ONE SUCH FILM IS ‘GET OUT’ WHICH IS A HORROR FILM THAT HAS RECENTLY RECEIVED MUCH PRAISE FOR IT’S TRAILER AND SO I THOUGHT IT’D BE PERFECT. HOWEVER THE MAIN DIFFERENCE BETWEEN GET OUT AND MY FILM IS THAT GET OUT HAS MANY SUPERNATURAL THEMES, WHILE MY FILM’S ANTAGONIST IS STRICTLY REALISTIC. THE TRAILER STARTED OUT QUITE HAPPY AND CALM BUT SUDDENLY SET THE PACE WITH A QUICK SCARE AND FROM THEN ON, CARRIED A CREEPY AURA THROUGHOUT, BECOMING INCREASINGLY EVENTFUL AS TIME WENT ON. I DISCOVERED THIS OCCURS WITHIN MANY HORROR TRAILERS AND IS ALSO JUST AS PRESENT IN THE FULL FILMS. ANOTHER EXAMPLE OF THIS IS CARRIE, BOTH THE ORIGINAL AND THE REMAKE. THIS STORY STARTS OFF QUITE NORMAL WITH AN UNPOPULAR TEENAGE GIRL. HOWEVER ONCE SHE’S PRANKED, SHE STARTS RELENTLESSLY KILLING HER PEERS WITH SUPERNATURAL ABILITIES. THIS WILL HELP MY FILM IMMENSELY AS I CAN USE THESE THEMES TO CREATE A TONE OF CALM, CREATING A FALSE SENSE OF SECURITY IN THE AUDIENCE, MAKING THE SUDDEN SCARE MUCH MORE EFFECTIVE. A COMMON REOCCURING TECHNIQUE USED IN THRILLER’S IS THE USE OF VIOLENT PROPS AND EFFECTS. THING SUCH AS EXPLOSIONS, GUNS AND BOMBS ALL CONNOTE DANGER AND RAISE THE STAKES BY A LOT. HOWEVER THIS SLIGHTLY BLURS THE LINE BETWEEN WHAT IS THRILLER AND WHAT IS ACTION SO TO MAKE MYSELF COMPLETELY CLEAR, I DID EXTENSIVE RESEARCH ON THRILLER FILMS AS WELL.