Storyboard

This image shows the entire completed storyboard. We have split it into six separate images each with two scenes on to make each of them clearer and to make the text easier to read.

The opening begins with a close up of some bottles on a table in a nightclub with some diagetic music and the sound of voices in the background. This is to set the scene for the audience and give them an idea of what's going on We then cut to the second shot: with the music still playing and the sound of talking in the background, we see the two main characters (Isabella Park and John Tibble.) arguing. This helps to convey a feeling of tension and creates an enigma that makes the audience wonder what will happen next.

Isabella then walks away and we are then introduced to her friend, who she then talks to. We decided to use a shot-reverse-shot for the conversation so as to give the audience a real feeling of being 'in the conversation' with the characters.

In this shot, we will keep the camera still as Isabella walks away so as to show that she has no follower, then, we will swipe cut to the next scene in which we see John Tibble waiting for her.

We then see Isabella and John having a heated argument after John Tibble asks to walk her home and becomes angry after she says no. We then see Isabella walk away, focusing on Tibble looking angry and upset.

In the next scene, the camera remains still while we see Isabella turning a corner and walking until she becomes out of sight. We did this to give the idea that time had progressed and that Isabella had gone a great distance.(this helps to raise tension and suspicion) We also have the idea to maybe place the 'Twisted' logo on the wall. The next scene shows Isabella walking up to the edge of some woods and contemplating whether or not to go in. She decides against it. (we thought that it would be too stereotypical for her to be murdered in a dark forest).

Our film opening will end with these two shots. Isabella will carry on walking and perhaps go down a hill until she goes out of sight. Then the screen will go entirely black and we will see the 'Twisted' logo.

The ideas in this storyboard are just one idea that helps us to visualise what we want our final piece to look like. These ideas may change in the duration of the filming process.

'Twisted'-Synopsis

After attending a friend’s party, Isabella Park is murdered in the most brutal fashion. John Tibble, a man who had been harassing her throughout the party, is swiftly arrested by police and convicted for Isabella’s murder. However, whilst John is in prison, the murders keep occurring, each one more frequent and horrific than the last.

With the village ensued in chaos and with everybody under suspicion, the real murderer starts to make mistake after mistake, leaving behind murder weapons, fingerprints, bloodstains etc. behind at each murder scene, leading Detective Wright, who is in charge of investigating the murders, closer to the real killer, with suspicion and tension in Market Rasen continuing to rise, the real killer makes one last fatal mistake and is revealed to be Isabella’s mentally ill step-father, George Harvey, whose many delusions led him to believe that he and Isabella were in love, and in seeing Isabella talking to John Tibble at the party, thought that Isabella was betraying him and decided to kill Isabella, and in the process, frames John Tibble, as a means for revenge for him flirting with Isabella. He then started to commit more and more crimes as a means to channel his grief for Isabella. George Harvey is tried and convicted for multiple murders.

Meanwhile, John Tibble is freed from prison, and, realising that he would never be able to take his revenge on Harvey for framing him for Isabella’s murder, decides to take revenge on the innocent people of Market Rasen instead. He starts to commit murder after murder. However, unlike George Harvey, leaves no evidence behind that would connect him to the deaths.

This leaves the chance open for a sequel, by creating an enigma that makes the audience want to know what happens next.

Our Film Opening-'Twisted'-Blurb

When 16 year old Isabella Park (played by Sophie Herring) goes out to a late night party and is discovered dead the next day, the murderer is swiftly caught by police. However, the murders keep happening, each one more brutal than the last, and soon the quiet village of Market Rasen is in chaos. With everybody on edge, one thing is for sure….NOBODY IS ABOVE SUSPICION.

DID YOU KILL ISABELLA PARK?

‘Twisted’ Original Script

TW!STED

 

1. INT. HOUSE PARTY - NIGHT


 
Various shots of people in the house, and close ups of bottles laid on a table. Right of camera, boy trying to kiss girl (Isabella), girl (Isabella) repeatedly pushing him away. 

                                                                        CUT TO:

 

2. INT. ISABELLA AND FRIEND – NIGHT


 
Isabella walks away, bumps into her friend on the way out, and begins to talk and explain what has happened. Isabella looking quite stressed and the friend looking concerned, and sympathetic.


 

ISABELLA

Ooh, sorry, I'm off now anyway, he's doing my head in

 

FRIEND – BUTTS IN

Don't go, your mum's not coming for ages yet

 

ISABELLA

I have work in the morning any way, don't want a hangover for my lovely boss, I'll ring you tomorrow when my shift's finished

 

FRIEND

OK, make sure you do

 

ISABELLA

Will do, don't worry your little head

 

Isabella then walks away past the camera, out of view, camera still stays in the party briefly then swipe cuts to next scene.


 

CUT TO:

 

3. EXT. OUTSIDE THE PARTY – NIGHT


 
Long shot, camera outside, looking towards forwards to the front door. Boy that was inside the party is leant against the wall next to the door, looking like he's waiting for someone. Isabella then comes out of the door, boy then grabs her arm and tries to talk to her.


 

ISABELLA

Argh, what do you want now

 

BOY – DRUNK

Please, let me walk you home, nothing else

 

ISABELLA

I'm fine ok, just leave me alone

 

Close up of the boy, eyes seem very drowsy, looks very upset, then turns to looking mad, and then turns to stare at Isabella.


                                                                      CUT TO:

 

4. EXT. LONG SHOT OF ISABELLA WALKING DOWN THE HILL – NIGHT


 
Isabella walks past camera. The camera stays in Isabella as she walks away down the hill. After she has got a around 30-40 yards away, she takes a casual glance behind her, nothing blatantly obvious. Just to raise a bit of suspicion.


                                                                         CUT TO:

 

5. EXT – ISABELLA STOPS OPPOSITE THE WOODS - NIGHT


 
Camera is behind Isabella at a mid shot. She takes a small moment to contemplate whether she should choose to go through the woods. After around 3 seconds she moves on her way.


 
The whole screen then goes black and the title fades from the darkness getting brighter, with a high pitch sound effect.


 
                                     http://www.lovefilm.com/search/results/?query=twisted

The BBFC

The BBFC (British Board of Film Classification) is an independent, DVD and film regulatory company that classifies every film and DVD released in the UK. Its aim is to protect watchers and parents away from films that may contain inappropriate content.

When analysing films and DVD’s there are certain things that they look for and give films ratings accordingly. These include:

·         Horror

·         Violence

·         Offensive Language

·         Sex/Nudity

·         Drugs

·         Discrimination

·         Behaviour which could be imitated by young children.

·         Parts of the film which could cause adverse reactions such as a seizure.

The BBFC consists of a number of staff that adhere to these guidelines. They watch each film in pairs so that both can agree on an appropriate decision. If neither classifier can agree on a decision, the final classification is left to a director.

CLASSIFYING 'TWISTED'

Our film is a horror/murder film and as such we had to think very carefully about how we classify it. To do
this, we followed the guidelines followed by film classifiers at the BBFC. Our film does contain some material which may scare children or that they may try to imitate. Also, since this is a horror/murder film, it will contain a certain level of violence (although we do not want this to be too graphical) and perhaps some mild sexual references. After  carefully considering the BBFC guidelines, we decided on a classification of 15 for our film, and as such, this film should only be viewed by those aged 15 and up.

What is an Enigma?

An enigma is a term used in media to refer to a film opening that raises a question about how the story/character will develop. For example:

• What happens next?
• How will he/she deal with this?
• Why did this happen?

Etc.

Opening Analysis- 'Pitch Black'

The first three minutes of ‘Pitch Black’ contains many conventions of the sci-fi/horror style film.  These include the fact that the opening is set on a spaceship.  Also it involves very low key lighting.  This lighting is in the colour red which typically denotes danger or fear, especially in this type of film.  It also contains many themes that we would associate with the sci-fi/horror genre, such as the opinion that we are not alone in the universe and that we all have a primitive side of our minds.  These themes are backed by the films’ sound, which in the opening three minutes is very tense and eerie, even at the very start.  This use of sound is coupled with the use of loud sirens and flashes of light interrupting the music.

The non-diagetic narrative of the opening three minutes given by the main character (played by Vin Diesel) is said in a very slow exhausted tone – as though he has given up all hope . (The narrative is non diagetic because all of the characters in the scene are shown to be sleeping) These are enforced by the fact that the main character is blindfolded and in a pair of handcuffs, which shows that he is trapped in a claustrophobic environment, a trait common within horror films. This creates not only more anxiety in the audience and also creates an enigma, making the audience intrigued and wanting to know what has happened to put the character in this situation, and what will happen next – thus making them want to carry on and watch the rest of the film.

Overall, I think that the opening to ‘Pitch Black’ is a very well thought out film opening as it not only creates an enigma making the audience want to watch the rest of the film, but also creates a number of other emotions common in this genre, such as fear, anxiety and foreboding.    

Conventions of the Horror/Thriller Genre

There are many conventions that a person watching a horror or a thriller film would expect to find that are indicative of this genre. These include

·         FEAR

·         ANXIETY

·         DANGER

·         ADRENALINE

·         ACTION

·         MONSTERS

·         THE UNKNOWN

·         THE UNEXPECTED

·         SUPERNATURAL

·         DREAD

·         THE UNBELIEVABLE

·         TENSE SOUNDS

·         DIM/DARK LIGHTING

                                    

         

Who's Involved?

When creating my two minute film opening, I will work in a group of three that consists of Tom Carlton, Stacey King and of course, myself, Robert Wetherall

Opening Analysis- 'The King's Speech'

The opening 3 minutes of ‘The King’s Speech’ is crucial in both setting the backdrop for the rest of the film and introducing us to the characters involved. Mainly the Duke of York (later King George VI).  It also sets up an enigma as to ‘how will he deal with this?’ and ‘what’s going to happen?’ This enigma is helped by close ups which show the nervous expressions on the characters’ faces.

The opening three minutes centres around the duke at Wembley Stadium London preparing for an address to the British public on behalf of his father, King George V, at the closing of the Empire Exhibition in 1925.  To reflect the time period, the characters’ clothing is olden style, with the men in suits and top hats etc.  This smart style of dress also reflects their social status. There are not many props used in the scene apart from a radio microphone on a table in a BBC studio and a piece of paper in the Duke’s hands. The film makers use generally slow cuts, which help to introduce the audience to the locations involved.

Overall, I think the opening to ‘The King’s Speech’ introduces the audience to the film and the characters and locations involved very well and creates an enigma that gives the audience a desire to watch the rest of the film to discover what becomes of the characters. To set the scene, the film makers do not use any music so as to focus the attentions of the audience on the visuals, a fact which I think really increases the impact the opening 3 minutes has on the audience.

Opening Analysis- 'Hot Shots!'

The opening 3 minutes of the comedy spoof ‘Hot Shots!’ is designed to make the audience wonder ‘what on earth is going on’ as a variety of mediums are used to introduce them to the film and what it is aiming to convey to the audience  it’s take on the film ‘Top Gun’. These mediums include the use of props such as ‘nuclear bombs’(which crash into each other and yet do not explode) and a suitcase rack to purely increase the audiences’ laughter and enjoyment and to set them up for the rest of the film.

The lighting in the opening 3 minutes is all natural as most of it takes place on board an aircraft carrier.  The editing used is fast to show the stress on board the carrier as an operation is about to begin. This fact is also highlighted by the non diagetic music ‘Danger Zone’ which is played for all of the scenes onboard the carrier and by the fast tracking shot as a fighter plane blasts off the runway.

In my opinion the opening three minutes of ‘Hot Shots!’ is a fantastic opening because it, in effect throws all conventions out of the window and really does create an enigma of  ‘what’s going on’ and as such implores the audience to continue watching the film through to the very end.  

Conventions of a Film Opening

When doing our research for our own film openings, we watched a couple of existing films such as ‘Goodfellas’ and ‘Alien’ to analyse the conventions of a film opening which we could use when creating our own two minute film openings.

The opening of ‘Alien’ began by introducing us to the time, date and location. It also then used gave us a ‘tour’ of a spaceship while using a variety of tense music to create an enigma of ‘what’s around this corner?’ and ‘what happens next?’

The opening of ‘Goodfellas’ introduces us to the main character through him talking about his life and how he ended up being a gangster. This is also backed by various shots of him looking down from an upstairs window as if to be looking down on the community.

To summarise, the conventions of a film opening include:

• Title of film
• Credits (who’s involved in the making of the film)
• Music associated with the theme of the film
• Introduction to characters
• Location, date, time period

Among many others

Brief

Our brief for the project is to to produce the titles and opening of a new fiction film, to last a maximum of two minutes.