EVALUATION

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Credits

• I researched into a number of similar existing products to see what credits are typical to a thriller film and how they have been integrated into the opening sequence of films.
• Generally, the credits appear over the action, often using the transitions fade in and out. Therefore, we edited our credits over suitable parts of shots. We also decided to use the transitions fade in and out, which gives a smooth effect.
• Font also had to be carefully considered, and we looked at a number of other real products such as "Flightplan", "When A Stranger Calls", "Vertigo" and "Se7en" for inspiration. We decided on something which looks professional which we used throughout, to ensure continuity.
• We were unsure as to how to integrate the title of our film into the action, therefore found looking at other similar films very useful.

Eventually we decided to integrate our film title "Untraceable" into
the final shot during the zoom into the darkness outside. It appears
like a ghost in the darkness outside of the door and slowly fades away as the camera zooms in before eventually fading to black.

Shot list

We developed a shot list prior to shooting our opening sequence, which helped when we came to filming shots as we knew exactly what to do. We did however find the storyboard more usual, as it gives a more visual representation, which helped when it came to staging the shots.

Target Audience

We have rated our film a 15 due to the bad language, violence and psychological turmoil involved. The storyline could also be distressing for younger viewers.

• The target audience for our film is young adults, probably between the ages of about 15 and 25.
• Typically, it is males who enjoy thriller films the most, with "men's film" tending to focus more on action, sex (rather than romance) and competition. Whereas, "women's films"often tell a story form the woman’s point of view or are centered around women and women’s issues, often involving romance.
• Our film is a combination between these two conventions, making it appeal to both genders. There is action throughout, particularly in the kidnap scene near the beginning and the hunt for the gang towards then end. There is also a sense of competition between Mark and the ex-business partner, with his life being made hell due to his bad financial situation. Things have been bitter between the two since their shared failed business venture, however this rivalry reaches new heights when it is his wife's life on the line.
• The film does however have an underlying romance, with Mark being prepared to do everything possible to get his wife back and protect their family, proving the strength of the love between them. At the end, the family is re-united and everyone likes a happy ending.
• In our opening scene, the majority of teenagers will be able to relate to the situation of being home alone at night, knowing how it can be quite scary at times, hearing strange noises with your mind playing tricks on you. The prospect of receiving a strange phone call in this situation would be quite unnerving for most people, therefore the audience will be apprehensive of the events to follow.
• The thought of a loved one being taken and being convinced you're going crazy would be a distressing one for anyone, therefore they can relate to how helpless and worried the husband is feeling at the disappearance of his wife in the film.
  

Commentary On Planning/Filming Process

• During the planning process, we adapted and completely changed our ideas numerous times. Even on the day of filming, we had to adapt certain parts of our final storyboard, due to them not working when actually put into practice.
• We ended up having to re-film all of our footage, as our first attempt of filming the original story board gave bad quality results, which we were not satisfied with. This was down to our original instincts being we needed to make it dark to create tension. However, this is not in fact true, as the majority of films I later analysed were not dark and instead attempted to demonstrate a relatable real life situation, with the tension instead being created by the soundtrack and some kind of enigma. Making the inside of the house dark, with little lighting, resulted in grainy footage with the action barely visible.
• Originally, our opening involved an MSN conversation on the computer, which we experienced complications with during filming, encountering a number of technical difficulties. In order to execute the MSN conversation, 2 computers were required. However, on the laptop we were using as 1 of these, the Internet connection was not working properly therefore we could not sign into MSN. To overcome this problem, we had to use one of our groups blackberry, which could access MSN, but this meant the responses were less rapid. Filming this conversation proved very difficult and although we manged to do it in the end, it did not have the effect we first hoped once uploaded and edited on the Mac, with it looking amateur and unnecessary, so we decided to scrap the idea.
• During filming, we blocked out all outside light and used little lighting, as we thought this was the best way to create a sinister atmosphere typical for that of a thriller. However, we now realise that this was not in fact the best approach. Not only did it lead to almost not visible footage, it was very grainy too. We also realised when watching it back it did not seem like a realistic situation at all, as it is very unlikely a babysitter would be sitting in pitch black. We therefore agreed that in our next attempt of filming we would make much more use of lighting to ensure clearer and more realistic results.
• After our first attempt at filming, we were more familiar with the equipment and realised what worked and what did not. We then generated a whole new storyboard which I believe to be much more effective.
• Our second attempt of filming with our new and improved storyboard went much more smoothly and ensured much more effective and quality results. We did encounter a few issues on the day of filming, however nothing we could not overcome.
• At the time of filming our actress was running late and due to already being behind schedule, as well as working to a limited time frame, we decided to use another member of the group to star in the film instead, which worked just as well.
• We experienced problems due to a faulty camera, which was not able to hold its charge, meaning it had to be constantly plugged in. This was fine for the majority of the filming, due to their always being a power source close by, however proved more difficult when filming the establishing shot of the house outside. To solve this problem we had to plug the camera into a long extension lead from the garage. Due to us not being on a Hollywood film set, we had the expected interruptions such as cars driving past, car alarms going off and doors slamming. We were able to eliminate the background sound using IMovie, however had to do more takes of the shots interrupted by events such as passing cars.
• The remainder of the filming went pretty smoothly, with only the expected situations of the camera being knocked or the actress laughing, however occurrences like this even happen to the best of actresses and could quite easily be eliminated during the editing process.
• Overall, I am very happy at how our final footage turned out and believe we have some good quality shots, which if edited together effectively could create a very successful result.

Planning of Soundtrack/Sound

• We have decided to use a soundtrack throughout our opening scene to emphasise the moments of suspense and to create a sinister atmosphere. This soundtrack must be copyright free, otherwise we could be accused of copyright and must also be appropriate for a thriller film.
• We found it quite difficult to find downloadable music online which was copyright free, however eventually we discovered a site with a number of possible soundtracks. We narrowed these down to 3, which we downloaded and transferred onto the Mac. We then tested these behind our film on IMovie to see which would be most effective.
• We agreed on a piece of music named Spider Eyes by Kevin Macleod. We selected it because it set the eerie atmosphere we were aiming for and the moments of tension in the track fitted almost perfectly to that of our filming.

Planning of Location

• The location of a film plays a crucial role in setting a tense atmosphere and establishing the situation. Due to our opening sequence being of a babysitting scenario, we needed to film it in a house. This needs to be both suitable for our shots and preferably local, to enable easy access to all group members. We decided on using my house for our film location, due to its layout complementing our storyboard and being fairly central between us.
• We have decided to film in the evening when it would be dark outside, to create a more sinister atmosphere in our establishing shot. The spacious area outside of the house means we will be able to get an effective shot with a long zoom into the house. The darkness outside will also make the light in the downstairs window look more harsh. This lighting in the window represents someone is home and the zoom into it suggests they are being watched.
• The quiet location with a lack of noise and people will create tension, due to when the inevitable happens and something goes wrong there is noone about to help.
• The open plan layout of the downstairs should allow sufficient space for the set up of our tripod and the short distance between the living room and kitchen will allow us to get a smooth pan shot from one to the other.