Thursday, 13 December 2012

Influences from the Expendables


             We thought it would be good to try and make an Expendables-type film, using some of the camera work and shots they have used, which look effective and make for a good sequence. We are going to try and imitate the look shown in this poster for the Expendables.
                  This is the opening sequence from one of the films we are trying ot draw inspiration from, The Expendables, we want to use the same font for our title, and also we want to go for the same look as these guys have in the film. We want the mercenaries to look "badass" and to be people who the audience can easily side with, rather than them being ruthless killers.

Schedule of our thriller shooting day

9am – 5pm
Schedule.
9.00 – 9.30: Arrive at destination and set up cameras
9.30 – 10.00: Rehearsing the shoot with actors + Make – up.
10.00 – 11.00: All Close – ups, such as the mercenaries, weapons and car shots.
11.00 – 12.00: Tracking shot of Actors running & Car
12.00 – 1.00: Focusing on the car and shots inside
1.00 – 2.00: Wide shots + Long shots
2.00 – 3.00: Shooting shots.
3.00 – 4.30: Extra shots and takes.

influences from Saving Private Ryan

               
                while we were watching Saving Private Rayan we spotted the camera shot that they use which is hand held shot this has a big influence on us because  In our thriller we decided to use hand held shots where the mercenaries are running and prepare to attack Ted. we want to use this because it helps us to give the scense of realistic and tension.

Script for our thriller



Script
Our opening sequence doesn’t include a lot of talking, shouting, screaming or any sort of dialogue. The only aspect we want to focus on is delivering interesting and well shot shots. Breathing will be the closest to dialogue as possible, however the only dialogue we will include will be the sequence’s ending line of Yuri before he kills his victim showing that he is the main character within our sequence.

Shot lists for our thriller

From filming a preview of our thriller, our pilot, we can now see which shots work effectively and which wont, also we can clearly see which shots are going to be easier to film, and thus take less time on the day, and those which take longer.
 
Firstly, the tracking shots of the mercenaries running, could be one which we can either get right first time, or it could take a long time. We think that this could be the most effective shot and it would really add to the suspense and the tension of the sequence, showing these men running, about to attack Ted and James.
Secondly, the shots of the sniper, the close-up and medium shots, look good on our first previews, and will look even better we hope when we can get costumes, a gun, etc. all sorted, we do not think these shots will take too long, but they will hopefully look good.
The point-of-view shot from Ted looking up at Yuri from a low angle, looked especially effective when we filmed our first preview, it looked very good with sunlight, giving the effect of blurred vision, which we are going to try and re-create for our final shot.
We have filmed a shot which we are very happy about and looking forward to seeing how it will look with a real car. We are leaving the camera on the floor, and getting the car to drive as close to it as possible, this will hopefully create a sory of eerie feeling and tense moment, as tthe audience will know that the car is being followed alongside by these mercenaries, but Ted and James will not know, so this will emphasise that they are being followed.

initial casting




For the elitist group we wanted to use scary and obscure looking characters to indicate their profession and an audience could feel uncomfortable in their presence. Also, wanting them to meet the stereotype of a Russian killer/assassin. We also discussed that we wanted the characters to be physically imposing, as well as looking foreign, preferably Russian due to their advanced Military training in this country. You can't really tell due to the pictures we provided however, looking older than a characters actual age is very important. The characters we would like to include should obtain clear adult-like features such as rugged facial hair.
Using Ted Jackson we think is very import. For one, we would like to use his Range Rover as this is a very important prop within our sequence and he is the only one eligible to drive it. Another, is that he is older which shows a stereotype of age supposedly symbolising experience.

Close up shot of the mercenary's weapon

         In order to make the mercenaries look profeesional and dangerous, we came up with the idea that they should use machine guns instead of pistol because this will make them look professional as that they are prepared for their mission.