Creative Critical Response

 Here are my four Creative Critical Responses

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

How does your product engage with audiences and how would it be distributed as a real media text?

How did your production skills develop throughout this project?

 How did you integrate technologies – software, hardware and online – in this project?

Final Brief

Final Briefff!!!!!! We finally finished out film opening and here's the final result

Final brief

Samuel Ruiz 

Laila Harran

Santiago Acosta

Planning- Production companies

 Intro

 For our film we had to have productions companies that resembled those in real life. Throughout this class we did research on productions companies, and distribution companies. Some examples are Sony and Paramount as they are both big companies which we can take many good things from.

Production Companies 

SJ Productions

First we have SJ Productions which is the main production  company that produces our film. They are the big company that has contacts in Hollywood and co-producer of this film. They are responsible for financing the project, and having the main idea of what the film is going to look like. They have the say on when the movie comes out, and make the marketing for the movie.

Three Musketeers 

Secondly we have Three Musketeers which is the main distribution company that gets the fil or movie out in the world for the target audience to see. Three musketeers first does a wide theatrical release all around the world , emphasizing the box office. After this Three Musketeers sells the movie to streaming companies like Disney , and Peacock for the movie to stream and reach more people.

Black Web

Finally, we have Dark Web which is the secondary production company that specializes mainly on thrillers. They helped enhance the movie even more because they know more about the conventions of a thriller movies. They also give piece of mind on how the movie should be shot and how the end product is going to look like.

Overview

By having these companies it gives ground to the credibility of our film. It shows the effort everyone put in their roles so that the final product. Its a fun way of putting us more into the role of real the real film world. Out there without these companies movies would be very hard to watch or obtain, even getting a good product would be hard. This is because these companies hire the best of the best to ensure that us as the audience get the best product. So yeah these made up companies increase our credibility as film makers.

Production- Day 2 Filming Car scene

 Intro

After getting out of the library we got my car and started to fil the last scene which was the car scene where our main character totally looses control. We decided to use my car because is spacious , but still looks good in the inside. This scene consisted of our main character just getting into her car and start tweaking out because this figure will not leave her alone which ends up on her doing something bad.

Shooting

After Lilly storms out of the library she runs to her car because nothing feels safe 

Inside the car she is still feeling that uncertainty that something is lurking and following her. She starts breathing heavily and grabs a knife that she had ready since the vision started to appear.

For this scene we use a lot of static shots that just showed our main character not feeling well and a pan from Lilly to the back of the car where I'm sitting with the shadow figure disguise and and just in a close space with the main character driving her to an dangerous action.

Overview

This scene was a little easier to film because it was only our main character getting in the car and trying to calm down but at the end doing the opposite and doing something that she might regret. However this scene did have some challenges like getting some of the angles right so that no one else appeared in the side mirrors. Filming in tight spaces with limited space to move around and show what we wanted. It taught us how to use the space right to convey the message we wanted that scene to convey.

Production- Day 2 filming therapist scene

 Intro

After being done with day 1 of filming some time passed before we all had the time to go film the rest of out film. After like 2 weeks we were able to finally go to the library to shoot the therapist scene. This scene contained more dialogue between characters which meant that it would take up more time ; additionally, we were running on the library's time because they closed at 6 and we started filming around 5:20.

Shooting 

First shot of the library scene is a jump cut from our main character closing the door to the therapist closing his binder. 

After that it cuts to the therapist asking the main character about what she is seeing and going through. He does this a face of confusion and not understanding the main character , even though that's his job; he is clueless. The camera is just showing the almost empty binder which can say a lot about the therapist character.

Our main character is seen lost in her thoughts , trying to find an "answer" to her problem. However quickly she realizes that she's wasting her time with this therapist. The camera techniques here are just static shots from the side with the shot reverse shot editing technique between characters.

After that we use a two shot to show both characters talking from the side and starts showing the desperation between the two. The therapist not believing in Lilly and Lilly starting to get frustrated because the one person she is trusting is not understanding her.

Finally last one of the last shots is a POV shot of our main character getting up and storming off the session

Overview

This scene was a great experience to shoot because not only made me and Laila have to remember lines ,which all actor do. But it also shows how one character can add so much to the theme of the film. Because Dr. Fernandez is such a bad therapist, he drives Lilly insane and frustrates her due to her not finding answers to her problem. This interaction with the therapists ties to Lilly's action at the end of the film which is supposed to leave the audience in suspense.

Production - Editing of the film

 Intro

As we finished first day of recording , we went home and Santi started the editing process. The editing was a piece of cake, it had a couple cuts with some shots being long. There was some inclusions of sound and color grading. One example is how some of the shots are a little too sweet and we made them more dark so that it fits in the theme.

Editing

First picture is the whole sequence together like piecing a puzzle together.

In the second picture you can see the addition of the heartbeat sound to the fridge scene 

 For the second part of the editing just putting together shots and just adding some sound effects when the shadow figure came on in screen similar to what was done for the first part. The lighting wasn't changed much because the library lighting. Outside it was sunset which I thought was perfect because usually sunset is a moment of peace where people just sit back and relax to watch the sun disappear into the horizon; however, obviously our main character was not going through a peaceful moment having another attack of paranoia. So at the end the editing was pretty light , just having a sudden cut to the title card before it showed our main character do anything with the knife she grabbed.

Here is our title card 

Overview

From the editing process we learn that it sometimes it can be easy and sometimes it can be challenging to get to the point of how we want our film to look like. Thankfully we didn't have that much editing to do because ethe lighting of the house was fine and we didn't have to color grade too much. It was good that this being our first film the editing was that hard , but for later projects a more challenging editing could be a greater experience to challenge ourself.

production- Props Day 1

 Intro

For the first day of filming we used some props that help us shape our film more to our imagination and how we want it to look. For the first day of filming we used a blanket form Laila's house, a ski mask for the shadow figure, the Fiji water bottle from the fridge , and my car for the final chasing car scene.

Heres a picture of  blanket

This blanket helped us feminize Santi's room more so that it fits to our character.

Here is a picture of the Fiji water bottle that the main characters has to grab when opening the fridge

Here we have pictures of my car that our main character drives away

This is an important prop because its the way through where our main character to change scenery , and introduce the next setting.

Props help us shape our film better and adapt to how we want it to look like. It adds mor

Production- Day 1 Part 3 Kitchen

 Intro

This part starts from our main character walking from the bathroom to the kitchen. Our main character opens the fridge and as soon as she closes it the shadow figure is there.

Shooting

We divide the opening of the fridge with a over the shoulder to kind of show that there was nothing there, and also showing what she is grabbing from the fridge.

And right after we switch to a side mid shot  of her getting the water and closing the fridge door, and unexpectedly finding something that scares her. We wanted the the fear to be felt through the screen so instead of cutting, its a long shot that pans and then starts tracking our main character out of the door.

And you can see how she gets scared and starts to run to the door.

After that we have a tracking shot of her sprinting to the door to go in her car. We split it in to two first when she runs out of the house, and then a low angle shot that focuses on her feet getting in the car and  the door closing which will help us with out transition to the next scene.

Overview

I believe that day 1 of filming was good and we learned a lot about how to get the angles and shots we want. As we progress on the filming and editing we ant our film to be cool and a good experience that can lead to future projects. We learned to get out of the way to get the angles right, and have the best outcome for our film. Additionally, the clash of ideas between the people on how to treat a scene is challenging because one person wants this and the other one wants something different; so you have to come to a compromise where both persons are satisfied on how the shot or scene looks.

Production- Day one Bathroom scene

 Intro

For the second part of our film we have our main character washing her face in the bathroom. We split this part into three, first part is shot from the side where she starts washing her face, then we go to another shot where the camera is mimicking a mirror where she finishes washing her face. The last part is back to the side angle with her drying her face , but in the back you can see the shadow figure inside the shower. 

Shooting

Here is the first part, with the side angle, this is us deciding where to put the camera.

We had a little trouble trying to get the camera in there, so Santi had to crouch while holding the camera.

Here is the second part where Laila is looking straight at the camera and it mimics a mirror.

The same struggle happens for this part because we didn't know how to hold the camera in the wall. So I had to hold it with two fingers; carefully pressing the volume button to start recording , but i had to be careful so that my fingers were not in the shot.

Here is  the last part where we go back to the same angle but the shadow figure is not inside the shower, but the main character doesn't notice.

Overview

Making this bathroom scene taught us that sometimes to get the angles you want you need to do more work. Also we split it in three shots because we wanted to create more suspense with the last shot being the one with the shadow figure in it. Also when you split a scene into more shots you can add more elements that can suddenly change the watchers emotions; one long take is harder for this to happen.

Production- Day one room shot

Intro 

Today was our first day of filming out opening, we went to Santi's house to get the house scene done. We first had to use his bed to film the shot of our main character waking up from a bad dream.

Shooting

For our first part we used Santi's bed and we have our main character suddenly waking up from a nightmare.

Since the shot was recorded from an high angle , Santi had to stand on the bed while Laila laid there practicing how she was going to wake up. At first we didn't know what angle we wanted to use, so that Laila felt good and liked the final shot. We filmed it in .5 so that you could see more on the screen.

Here is our final take for this first part of the film , the editing should be easy we are just going to put a piano sound as soon as she wakes up.

Overview

Having this scene helps us understand that sometimes to get a shot you have to go out of your way to picture exactly what you have in mind. We wanted to the aerial shot because it was a great way to showcase our main character waking up from a bad dream. Not only gives ground to the rest of the film , but also start strong already showing signs of what our main character suffers from. It taught us that a film can start in many ways and what the audience first sees is what they are going to feel all throughout the film.

Planning - Final plan

 Intro 

As we planned more we started our script and final plan for our movie; from now on we are going to start. production. However todays blog is going to talk about the final script and plan; in class me and Santi started doing the final script for our film. This script includes a "storyboard" , but we don't have images to show what we have planned.

Planning

Script

Here's the first page of our script, which explains the shot , dialogue if any and what is happening in the scene. Its a good way to have one story straight and not go off adding and taking stuff away which later on can affect the congruency of the film.

Having this script really helps us create a more complete visualization of what we want to do. Per example we want to play a heartbeat sound every time that the shadowy figure is very close to our main character. What this does is that it builds suspense , because every time that the audience hears the heartbeat they are going to start worrying about when and how it is going to appear in screen.

Overview

Working on this script wasn't easy because in the group we had clash of ideas , so making a decision on what the film says and what technical elements we use was challenging due to me wanting something , and Santi wanting other things. However this was solved easily by compromising on the middle and it need with both of us satisfied with the final product.

Planning - Story board Draft

 Intro 

As another day of planning was provided for us we started our storyboard to visually show a plan of what we have in mind. In the story board we include scenes with respective camera shots , techniques, and sound. But because we didn't have that much time in class ,and one of our group member wasn't in class we weren't able to finish the story board.

Planning

Here's what we have for our story board, and even though is not a lot we already have an idea of what we are going to do for our film what techniques where are going to use.

Overview

Having a story board for our event can helps us get more and better ideas , because original ideas can be improved for a better product. When we were doing this storyboard we were all pitching in with ideas of how we can carry out our film and how we are going to tell a story with visuals and sounds.

Planning- settings

 Intro

For the film we are planning to have a few settings that each In filmmaking, a setting is far more than just a background. It acts as an unseen character that actively shapes the story, the audience's emotions, and the characters' decisions. Filmmakers use different settings to solve technical problems, build atmosphere, and guide the narrative.

Planning

We are planning on three settings Lilly's house , the library and the car.

For  the first setting we are going to be in Lilly's house in the morning as soon as she wakes up, and as she navigates her house she is hunted by the shadowy figure. For the meaning of this setting I want it to mean that even though she is in her house, which can signify safety, she is still being chased by her illness meaning that it never stops.

For the second setting we have the bathroom which is where our main character is washing her face to get the day started. She is relaxed after a mediocre night a sleep , she puts water on her face to get herself up. She doesn't realize that something started lurking.

For the third setting we have the library where she meets with her therapist because the attacks are being more often. She talks to him in the library where it can seem peaceful and a place where people relax and study. However she is still getting tormented by this figure.

For the last setting we have the car where Lilly finally meets with her best friend to talk about the past few hours. She is going about it when she starts hearing something familiar and in her car while she is with her friend Lilly experience the big plot twist that changes everything. We chose the car because its a close space where people are close to each other, meaning that the problem is closer that Lilly thinks.

Overview
By already having settings we can already start telling a little more about the story of our film. It can be seen as just the back that doesn't matter, but for me it has more meaning than just that and that's what I want to convey in our film. I learned that setting have way more meaning when it comes to helping deliver the message. For us the message is that when u have a mental disease, your problem never stops even in your private time with yourself.

Planning- Characters of film

 INTRO

As we plan more of our film , we came to a conclusion of having 3 main characters for our film. 

Planning

First , we have our main character Lilly who is played by Laila; she is our backbone on the film because without her we don't have a clear plot. Lilly is the person that suffers from the mental illnesses that drive her crazy , ending with a big plot twist at the end.

Secondly, we have me as the therapist ( Mr. Fernandez) which is Lilly's therapist that is been trying to figure out what she suffers from, but gives terrible advice as if he's trying to not help Lilly fight her paranoia. Additionally, I play the shadowy figure that chases Lilly all through out the film.

Finally, we have Santi as Alejo which is Lilly's best friend and serves as the normal person that is there for Lilly to bring us ( the audience ) back to reality , but its part of the big plot twist at the end that reveals that he is the shadowy figure that has been chasing Lilly.

Overview

We are not trying to use that many main characters. Just the necessary to make up a story of a crazy woman that go through episodes of seeing paranormal figures that haunt her. Only the main character Lilly and the therapist that adds so much to the story. Not having that many characters allow us for each character to have more meaning and not having to worry for more elements; meaning is easier.

Research: Distribution companies

 Intro

One key element that is necessary for all film that come out are a way to be put out there and get distribute for people to see. A way films do this is by using distribution companies like Paramount, to get films delivered to theaters or streaming platforms all around the world.

Research

For today I'm going to be using the Paramount example to demonstrate how distribution companies work.

Paramount Pictures is one of the oldest film companies to exist, paramount is filled with successful movies and a lot of fame. It started with Adolph Zukor who founded the Famous Players Film Company in 1912; however, at this time Zukor was only using Paramount Pictures (start-up company) to distribute his films. In 1916, Zukor’s Famous Players merged with The Jesse L. Lasky Company, which was producing films in Hollywood, both creating Famous Players-Lasky Corporation which was soon recognized because of distribution. After a while all three companies became what you now known as Paramount Pictures. 

This is a brief story of how Paramount Pictures was created and developed into the oldest and most successful production and distribution practices. 

Paramount uses multi-channel distribution to achieve a greater reach; they use both in-house and third-party partnerships to distribute their films. For in house distribution Paramount uses platforms like Paramount and CBS to display films for people that want to stay home and be comfortable. For third party distribution Paramount had made partnerships that allows them to handle marketing, on example of a partnership is Legendary Entertainment, Paramount now handles the marketing and worldwide distribution (excluding China) for Legendary’s major titles.   

Overview

After learning how distribution works in the film world, I understand that is not just about filming and let everything else work out by itself ; it has an extensive process that includes marketing and distribution practices. I get an idea of how we can distribute future projects that I or my partners would like to get out there.

Planning: Behind the Scene

 Intro 

From all the research we have done, we know that technical work acts as an invisible engine of a movie. While the actors and the script provide the soul, the technical craft (lighting, sound, editing, ) provides the sensory reality that makes an audience believe in the story.

Planning 

Since we are making a psychological thriller we have been shouting out and writing down components that we want our film to have in. Some examples are what camera movements we want , what type of shots, the sound , every thing that will help us achieve our goal with the movie. 

One example of a camera movement we already have planned is using the shaky camera effect, this is going to happen when Lilly (our main character) is running out of the house because she got scared by the shadowy figure. What we have planned is that the camera man is going to be holding the camera and track Lilly out of the house, but making the camera shaky so that all the panic can be captured and transmitted to the audience.

Transitioning to the sound of the film , we want to have  realistic sound effects having them be hyper realistic for adding that tension to the film. Some example of sounds that we want in our film are quiet moments , fade in heart beat , running and everything that makes the audience feel like they are there with Lilly while she goes through hell in her mind. So for one scene we have planned that when Lilly is running out of the house a fade in of a heart beat starts to be louder signifying how she is scared.

Finally, a little of what we have planned for lighting is obviously low-key lighting that will allow us to control the emotion of a scene , and it can help us with the plot by hiding the shadowy figure better. Another type of lighting that we have planned to use is clinical lighting to convey some type of discomfort to when it comes to Lilly being with the therapist or alone in a place.

Overview

As we discuss more about where and when to record scenes and how we are going to edit some scenes , we will be twitching around our liking and what we believe is the best for our film and the overall message of it. Having a previous idea of what we are doing really help us not waste time on not knowing what to do on the day of filming. The purpose of this is to be ready to get to the setting and just shoot and film.
 

Planning: Project Proposal

 Intro

Hello my name is Samuel Ruiz and I am working with Laila Harran and Santiago Acosta for our final chosen brief.

Planning

For our project we chose to do the 2-minute film opening instead of the magazine because we believe that its a fun experience. For our genre and sub-genre we all agreed that we are going to be filming a psychological thriller.

For the target audience, we want to direct it to young adults that  enjoy watching mentally challenging movies that have a deep message that leaves the audience shocked and thoughtful. So per example in our film we are planning to bring attention to mental illnesses like paranoia and schizophrenia which are silent killers that many people suffer from but don't really know how to fight it. So we want to impact society with the best message we can under 2 minutes.

Now moving on into the technical elements that we are planning to use for this film are Premiere Pro for editing every shot and every scene so that every feels more well put together with elements like sound , lighting and color grading. We want to use premiere pro because we had a little bit of practice with it in class and I believe it can take out movie to the next level. I would like to learn more about how the editing of a scene can help with the message of the representation that an author wants to give in certain scenes.

Overview

Our basic plan is to try to get all the footage done in one day so that we can have a lot of time to edit because usually that is what takes the most when creating any kind of video or film. Additional practices that we might do are trying different types of styles of film to not just have one type to make it more fun.

With this little introduction I can visualize better how this film is going to turn out as and i expect a decent film for everyone to enjoy.

Planning: Rough Daft of the Plot

 Intro

On this week we started planning what we are going to work on for our chosen brief, we already have the genre and sub-genre checked and some of the main plot done. For our film we want to create a message that can get through the mind of young people bringing out awareness about mental illnesses that go underground on a daily basis.

Planning

For the film we chose the title of PARANOIA which  is an intense, irrational, and persistent distrust or suspicion that others are trying to harm, deceive, or persecute you, often without evidence.

Our plot starts with our main character Lilly which is secretly mentally ill and sees shadowy figures that scare her and drive her to madness. The first shot we are taking is of Lilly on her bed waking up , but she is in a sleep paralysis for a few seconds that is enough to get her in a worried mood and be paranoid. After that we have a sequence where Lilly  is getting ready to leave her house , however she keeps seeing this shadowy figure all around her house, and it gets to the point where she cant take it and runs out the house to her car to hurry up to her appointment with her therapist.

While at the therapist Lilly keeps seeing  the shadowy figure which means that even though she seems in a a safe place with a professional she still gets haunted by an entity that she cant control. After being with the therapist for a while Lilly goes and hangout with his best friend Alejo to try to calm herself down , but as she spend more time with him she starts to hear the sound queue of the shadowy figure and her paranoia is at its peak making her do something against  her own will. 

Overview

This is the rough draft of our plot this means that we can edit whatever we want as we go through to make it to the 2 minute mark. By now we already have an initial form of how out film is going to be looking like and what we will be trying to convey and get a message through. We believe that we can make this a good film and reach our goals.

Research: Character types in thrillers

INTRO 

In movies, character types are very important due to the mental map that the audience will guide themselves. Without them, a plot is just a series of random events, having the problem of the movie not having a central message and disconnected scenes. They are important because they provide structure, emotional resonance, and clarity for the audience. 

 

Research

In thriller movies, especially psychological thrillers, characters are not usually heroes in the traditional sense. Instead, they are defined by their secrets, their traumas, and their proximity to danger. 

 

Some characters that are usually used in psychological thrillers include an unreliable narrator, innocent bystander, and the puppet master. All of these are character types that could be used for other genres of movies but are best in psychological thrillers.  

 

Unreliable narrator 

The role of this character is to tell us the point of view of the story; however, we cannot trust everything that the narrator tells us. The narrator might be telling us the wrong story on purpose or not; they might be lying or can have memory loss. On example of movie that does this is  Knives out Wake up dead man which starts with fathers Jud narration which can be misleading to the final plot twist, which at the end makes the audience that everything they have watched is false and just a mirror of what is really happening. 

 

The puppet master  

Unlike other genres where a typical villain uses a gun, the thriller antagonist uses manipulation to have other characters waste time and even controlling them to bring chaos. They are often highly intelligent, calm, and stay behind the scenes for most of the movie. They know the protagonist’s weaknesses and exploit them. A clear example is Saw X movie in which the character is a puppet; however, he controls his victims with psychological weapons like putting friends or family in danger. He makes them play dangerous games where they can die this being the whole plot of the movie, making them see the villain without him being in any action but in the shadows. 

Overview

Each genre has their valuable set of character types, in psychological thrillers character types serve as a psychological mirror, shifting the focus from physical conflict to the fragility of the human mind. I like knowing this because it would help my film by letting me know what type of character we want to use and how each character is going to contribute to building the guide for our film. 

https://www.arcstudiopro.com/blog/the-7-main-character-roles-in-film-ultimate-guide-to-archetypes

https://screenrant.com/the-killer-narration-explained/