This is the brief for your first full film sequence.

‘The opening sequence (approx 2-3 minutes) of a new horror movie.’

Your creative intentions should be clearly identified at the outset and your reflections throughout and once complete will be based on them. You must also reflect on your developing understanding of your production roles.

You must always keep a record of the production process and upload evidence of your work throughout (at least once a week) to your reflective journal

The creative intentions may be drawn from this list and you should identify 3-5. You may choose others or modify these as you wish.

• Create a sense of…mystery, suspense, horror, intrigue…around a given place.
• Introduce a monstrous character or presence.
• Introduce a…tense, frightened, oblivious… victim.
• Build the sequence to a shocking/scary crescendo.
• Use specific cinematography techniques from German Expressionist film making.
• Use montage editing to develop a sense of place and/or compress time.
• Use continuity editing to make sense of a characters (inter)actions.
• Design costume and props and dress the set to create a sense of….abandonment, corruption, decay, threat…

Your creative intentions may depend upon you production roles. You will be working in pairs and will be required to adopt at least one production role from each of the three main stages of production:

Pre-production (planning):

• Screenwriter &/or storyboard artist
• Production designer
• Producer (both)

Production (filming):

• Cinematographer.
• Director.
• Sound recording.
• Producer (both)

Post production (editing):

• Visual editing.
• Foley sound designer
• Sound editing
• Music composer
• Producer (both)

Task:

Define each of these role in terms of the tasks they will be required to undertake during that particular stage of production.

Update the definitions in your reflective journal under the main headings:

• Editor
• Director
• Cinematographer
• Sound Designer
• Screenwriter

Here is our brainstorm of the tasks each production role entails.

 Uses of a montage in film & TV

1. To create a sense of place and/or events without giving any narrative information away. This is often done in title sequences to capture the mood of the film without giving away spoilers.

Here is short film, which is an extended montage of a place.

• Yarchen Gar (2018) Filippo Chiesa

2. To compress time to show a rapid development of a character or event, which is important in the narrative development

Here are examples from the Rocky franchise:

Task

Create a montage which compresses time and communicates a sense of atmosphere. For example:

• The tedious lesson
• A frantic school day
• Writing an difficult essay
• Another long event (+1 hour) that can be filmed in school

The Rules

• The montage should last 30-40 seconds.
• It should contain at least 12 different (beautifully composed shots) some of which may be repeated in the edit.
• The montage should communicate a clear meaning (what’s going on) and clear atmosphere (tone or feel).
• There should be a clear sense of time passing and have a clear beginning and end, which fades out to black (to make it seem like more time has passed).

Creative Partnership

This week you are going to be working in pairs and will have specific roles in production and post production:

• Storyboard Artist
• Director
• Cinematographer
• Editor
• Sound Designer / Mixer

To complete this tasks effectively you’re going to have to think carefully about how the edit is going to look in the end and ensure that you film all the shots you need. This means planning your sequence. Do do this we are going to use a screenwriting tool called…

The Storyboard

Here is a storyboard template that is similar layout to the professional one above.

Here is a document which explains how to design a storyboard.

You storyboard should be scanned / photographed and uploaded to your Reflective Journal under the screenwriting section.

You should also reflect on it’s usefulness as a pre-production planning / visualisation tool.

Production & Responsibilities

You will be acting for another pair of students and so will spend one lesson acting and the other filming and directing.

When you are the cinematographer you should ensure that each shot is well composed. Also you should ensure the following:

• All shots are well lit
• All shots are in focus
• You get a variety of shot types.

If you are the director, you should be:

• Working with the cinematographer to block the scenes.
• Be clear with the emotion that you want you actors to be expressing.
• Make sure that you work through the storyboard efficiently and in time.
• Be an encouraging and positive presence on the shoot.

Post Production

If you are editor, you will be responsible for:

• Compiling the basic montage.
• Applying filters and transitions to the edit which contribute to the overall tone
• Coordinating with the sound designer to apply their sound to the sequence

If you are the sound designer you are responsible for:

• Completing a spotting session with the editor and making a list of sound effects that you want.
• Sourcing effects that adds meaning / impact to the scene
  • You should use this library of sound effects & music loops
  • You can also download effects from places like YouTube & FreeSound.org
• Inserting your sounds into the edit

Reflective Journal

• What have you learnt about filming and editing for montage
• What went well
• Even better if