Prop Creation

Prop creation is crucial for a film opening because it sets the tone, establishes the world, and introduces key aspects of the story or characters. The props used in the opening scene can quickly immerse the audience in the film's setting, whether it’s a historical period, futuristic environment, or a fantastical world. They help build the atmosphere, provide visual clues to the plot, and offer insight into character traits or the overall theme of the film. Well-crafted props not only support the narrative but also add authenticity, making the opening feel real and engaging to the audience from the very first moment.

Me and Adrianna came up with a list of props a bottle, phone, fake blood, makeup, flowers (given to her). We divided up the items and got them all prepared for when we start to shoot. it was important that we got objects that executed the tasks they needed to do like making a believable smash against the wall that was truly impactful and fake blood that genuinely looked real, and beautiful flowers that symbolized love and betrayal through the colors and the meanings of the flowers, we chose to use orange lilies as the center focus of the bouquet, as quoted within an article from a-z animals "lilies represent hope, new beginnings, vitality, wealth, and joy. On the other hand, though, orange lilies can also mean hatred and pride. They can also represent the end of a relationship" so we felt they were perfect for the job.
All of our props have been sourced to start our filming this week!

https://a-z-animals.com/blog/insulting-flowers-that-represent-hatred-and-dislike/

Location scouting

Today we are diving into the very important production job, Location scouting! Location scouting for a production is the process of finding real-world places to have the perfect backdrop for your scenes. The locations are described in the script and found during the pre-production stage to ensure the story is visually captured in a suitable environment.   

Adrianna and I discussed and took a day to find the best places to film, the first scene is set in a lounge, it follows our main characters, Ricky and Scarlett, arguing in the lounge after just enjoying hanging out together, the argument moves outside where Ricky aims a glass bottle at Scarlett and throws it but she ducks and it hits the wall, my house is going to be used to film this scene as it has the perfect set up with doors to the garden next to the sofa.

My house will also be used for the party scene where scarlet moves through the party searching for Rickyy, this is perfect because my house is set up as a courtyard so there is room to walk around and make the scene longer, this is to build up tension and the audience's emotional anxiety towards Ricky rising as you get closer to him.

For the flashbacks of their toxic relationship, there will be a scene of arguing in a car while they are driving, the car almost crashes because no one is paying attention to the road they are just screaming, and this will be filmed in Adrianna's car.  

We will go to Markham Park and film another flashback abuse scene, this is to emphasize the idea that they could be having a lovely day out, but it can turn violent and upsetting at any moment and any place. 

The last abusive flashback scene will be at the mall, to highlight their lack of care for ither people and that they are so wrapped up in their relationship that they don't even realize their fighting in public and have people staring at them 

The sweet loving flashback scenes are to show that there is love in their relationship which is why she originally dated him but that love has been tainted by toxicity violence and abuse, and even though they'd love each other it's no longer healthy it's supposed to be a heartbreaking contrast, one will be filmed at the beach and the other will be filmed in cold stone.  

check back here for updates with pics of the location!!

Audio

 Planning post focusing on audio 

Sounds create the moods of a production, evoking emotions that visuals alone cannot express. Audio is incredibly important in creating an atmosphere and world building, in addition to character development and building tension and surprise.

We want to utilize the power of audio to create an outstanding piece, for example in scene 1, the bottle scene, when they're arguing, the shouting will intensify and then the chaos it created will be completely be stripped by the loud smash of the glass when Ricky throws the bottle at scarlet. The only thing that we will hear is the breaking of the glass when it smashes into the wall, and in the moments after this when scarlet is touching her face and seeing blood on her hands, Ricky's voice will be muffled so we can barely hear him apologizing for everything to emphasize her distress. The song will cut through the muffled voices when the title appears across the screen. Me and Adrianna know that this will create a dynamic start to the piece that truly establishes the plot of the piece.

mise-en-scene II

Planning post focusing on mise-en-scene element (costume, set, props, lighting, etc.) 

Scene 2 is the party scene, it follows Scarlett entering the party and trying to find Ricky. The house has three areas; the pool area opens from the front door; the scene begins with her outside the front door. She is going to be wearing black, symbolizing how she is now more mentally aware than ever that their relationship is toxic. She is grieving the love lost. Ricky, who we will see nearing the end of the scene when he says hi to scarlet and welcomes her into the party, will wear white this contrast from his first scenes red outfit will symbolize how it is his time to play the perfect apologetic innocent boyfriend. (If only this was the type of boy that lasted because that was the boy she fell in love with.)

Scarlett begins outside the front door facing away from the camera, she walks through the door and the camera follows her, the camera cuts so we can now see her face navigating her way through the party and we can now see a scar on her face from when the bottle cut her face. The lighting is low in this scene and there's some colorful lights dotted around from the DJ booth, there are people talking in the background and there are a few who she waves at. She continues walking through another door, entering inside the house, and sees people sitting on the sofa ext, she walks out the back of the room, into the third area, into garden and looks around. the camera then captures her small shift from comfortable to anxious expression when she sees Ricky walking towards her. He is waving and she grabs her arm as a sign of distress but perfectly masks her anxiety with a forced smile. 

All of this will contribute to the perfect scene that we cant wait for you to watch!!

Mise-en-scene

 
Planning post focusing on mise-en-scene element (costume, set, props, lighting, etc.) 

Cambridge!! Hey there! Glad to be here and talking to you about the mise-en-scene in our production. We have outlined every scene, and we have begun to go into detail for each production aspect. To keep this post short and sweet, we are going to focus on the mise-en-scene of the opening scene of our project.

Scene 1 is called the bottle scene; it will depict the horrific displays of abuse Ricky inflicts upon scarlet to set the tone of their relationship. The scene will be set in "Ricky's" lounge, there's a sofa and a tv, there's food on the couch where they were just chilling before they started arguing, the movie is paused, there's a dog barking. Scarlett is wearing white (innocent) Ricky is wearing red (anger, violence). Scarlet runs into the garden when she senses things getting bad as things escalate during the argument, when she does this Ricky aims a glass bottle at her, she ducks, and it smashes into the wall. The lighting is really bright right up until the bottle smashes into the wall, signifying all the light, love and happiness, being stripped from the life she loves, because she does love him, she's just realizing that this isn't the life she should be living.

Adrianna and I created a props list, it consists of the glass bottle that Ricky throws at scarlet, fake blood for when the glass cuts her face after being smashed into the wall, a phone that she holds to protect her head when the bottle smashed, and the food wrappers and photo frame of their couples picture that explain they were having a fun time before and that they love each other.

Character Development

Planning post focusing on character development 

Character development withing movie openings is important because all the characters set the tone for the entire production and creates expectations for where the story may go. Because of this, developing the characters early is a very important factor for creating a movie production.

Adrianna and I understand the importance of character development and want to create strong characters from the very first second. Upon discussion, we agreed to make scarlet's character growth develop the audiences understanding of the toxic relationship she is in. We see her navigate through her situation and we understand that there is love as well as a strong and deep connection between the two, in addition to the miscommunication and violence that creeps into every loving moment they share, that makes it so hard for her to leave.

We want there to be an understanding that there is a reason she stays but she knows deep down that there is a real need to leave, and how she overcomes her feelings to put herself and her well-being first.

Our protagonist, Scarlett, will begin by wearing lighter colors like white to symbolize her innocence, but slowly her style will change, and she will begin to wear darker colors that emphasize her taking back control of her life and her increase of trust within herself. Her confidence will increase, her lighting and makeup will highlight this.

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