Obstacle/Issues

When we were shooting, we had a few obstacles/issues. Our first issue is that we couldn't find any fake blood. This made the slashing scenes look wrong, but we are now looking into if we can edit in the blood to make the scenes look real.

The next obstacle we ran into was that mid-shoot our main phone died, so which meant we had to change phones, and therefore the quality and look might be a little different. We will see in the post if and how we can fix it.

Lastly, we were there until 6:45, and the park closed at 6, so that meant we had to rush to finish what we could and get out of the park. This means we might have to go back to reshoot some scenes or finish any unshot scenes 

Prop creation

 The prop that we had to create and put the most time into was our killer's mask. We went to Party City, bought a clear mask, and decided to paint it. We wanted our mask to have something to do with her motive, so we painted it with mascara running down to represent someone with a broken heart crying. We felt this was perfect and represented her perfectly.

We took inspiration from the movie The Strangers, and we felt that these masks were perfect for a horror slasher.

We wanted to make it our own, though that's why we added that little touch of the running mascara that I think we are very proud of.

Shooting Process

 Today we finally got to record. We got everyone together and went to Markham Park and found our spot. We decided to shoot out of order so that we could get everything done along the way and finish faster. We made sure to bring all of our props and costumes to represent each person's character.

we went around 5 so that the sun would be a little lower to create a grim mood. we spent around 2 hours shooting and got as much done but the park closed so we had to leave we will go back another day this week so we can finish shooting and make sure everything is perfect. We still have to shoot the school scenes as well making another day we need to schedule to finish. A problem we ran into is that we couldn't find any fake blood therefore we had to shoot the scenes of alex getting stabbed so you cant see the blood. We will try to see if we can edit it in post but we don't know yet if we can.

Storyboard

We have planned our story and created a storyboard to accompany it. We want our first minute to be a chase scene, while the second minute is a story and progression of the said story. We tried to incorporate multiple shots and camera techniques to add diversity and create a more interesting look. These are shown in our storyboard below

With this, we now have our exact plan down on paper so that we can record it efficiently. We are planning on recording on Saturday, so we have all week to edit, discuss our plans, and schedule any needed reshoots.

Character development

 Elaine

For our killer in the story, my partner chose to name her Elaine. She chose this name after going through some of her favorite horror films and wanting to name the character after another iconic character from the film 'The Love Witch'. The character from that movie is similar to this film because they are both man killers who, at first glance, seem completely normal. In our movie, Elaine is a normal high school girl who gets hungry for blood and goes on a frenzy over a boy who wronged her, while in The Love Witch, Elaine is an eccentric young widow who seduces men with her witchcraft but ends up killing them.

Elaine's character is meant to be misleading. She looks like the 'girl next door cheerleader type, but she is secretly on a hunt for vengence. My partner took a lot of her outfit and personal style inspiration from the original girl next door, Mary Jane Watson, from the Spider-Man films. This concept is similar to the Jennifer's Body movie in terms of a girl misleading the other characters in the movie, but instead, Elaine will be a lot more school-oriented. For example, she may be upset at the boy who wronged her because she feels cheated and almost like she wasted her time, and it just overwhelms her with anger causing her to hunt him down and kill him.

Props

Today my partner and I went to search for some props we felt would fit the intro's theme and, more specifically, the killer. The first thing we thought we needed was a mask for the killer to wear like any good killer has. We settled on a clear mask like the one shown below.

This gives us room to work with and personalize the mask. We have decided to paint the inside of the mask all white to hide the killer's face and paint red lips, rosy cheeks, and mascara running down the mask. This adds to her character because she is a crazy ex who was heartbroken and sought vengeance.

The next prop we found was her weapon. We decided to make her use the knife show in the movie The Love Witch. This is because our character has a heavy influence from Elaine in The Love Witch; therefore, it is a nod to the movie. Our killer's personality has a lot that resembles Elaine, so we thought it only fitting to give her the correct weapon.

We also went out to buy the costumes for each character, so we bought a Star Wars shirt for the nerd, a plain tee and hat for the "jock" and a nicer outfit for the "preppy" kid. For the most part, now we are almost all set to start filming next week and start the actual creation of our project.

Sound

For our sound, we plan on using a mix of foley and music to create the tone and environment for the scene. However, for the first couple of seconds, it will be primarily foley sounds. Since it takes place in the middle of the forest, we will create sounds replicating running through the woods, wind, and more to curate the perfect soundscape. After we create the world that they are living in, some background music may play as the scene intensifies. This first-minute scene will use both diegetic and non-diegetic sound with a few stings to add to the emotion in the scene.

These are some audios we have fallen on.

-Ominous Pursuit

This audio is royalty-free and is perfect for the chase scene with the quick pace it begins with and even the 80s synth in the background. I think that it not only fits into the theme of the movie but also establishes the setting, period, and story for the rest of the audience. I think this audio will probably be our best bet.

City of the disturbed

This audio I think we will be less likely to pick just because I think it's a little grungy for our scene and it also sounds a little bit more 90s. It also sounds a little more dystopian, almost like it would belong in something like The Walking Dead. But I like how calm it is, and I think it would definitely make the scene seem very unsettling for the audience if we were to include it.

For the chase scene, I don't think we will use non-diegetic sound just because we want it to be as quiet as possible for the more psychological part of the film. Almost like in a hospital, we want it to be uncomfortably quiet, so it seems almost sterile compared to the intense scene that was shown before. This will also enhance the silence even more.