Thriler Film - Editing Process

After we finally finished our filming, we uploaded it to our set computer and started to edit.
We firstly cut out all the mis-haps during filming, and were left with 1 or 2 best versions of each shot. We decided which version to use throughout all of them, and started to peice it all together, getting it in the right order that we needed.
After we had done this, we started to add titles. We had wanted to make the titles come in as in someone was typing them, however we did no know how to do this without wasting valuble time. So instead, we sorted through the effects given, and chose to make it "curtain" in and out, similar to what we had in mind. The font was "Courier" and in bold, and the colour was white. This was because it looked like a typwriter, and the bold and white made it stand out more, making it easier to read on the film background. We used the same font for the end title "The Wrong Move" though it was bigger, centered, and didn't have any effects coming in or out. We edited in the gun shot to go when the title showed, as this meant the audience didn't see who got shot and who did the shooting.
At the time of editing and rendering, and uploading to youtube, we didn't know Jakob's candidate number, so we left it as "0000". It will be added in under the blog when we upload it.
When we had finally created the start title, end title, and the actors and production company title's (the production company was "JRC" standing for Jakob, Roxxy and Caroline) we decided to upload it to youtube.
However, we found the edited footage to be 3 minutes and 44 seconds, which was too long for our project. We went back to our computer after half term to shorten it down. This proved to be harder than it sounds. We cut out a whole shot of Jakob and Ben (Simon & Gang Leader) talking next to the house, as the next shot was pretty similar. We cut shots down to make them shorter, and sped up some slow ones, and finally got the footage down to 2minutes (and 5 seconds for the starter title). This actually made our film look better, and we all thought it was better than the longer one. This was because the shots were shorter and faster cut, making our film more fast paced, allowing the audience to be more drawn in to the action.
However, just before we got it down to 2mins 5secs, we had 1 second left to cut out, and the computer we were working on froze, and wouldn't let us edit any more. Luckily, the program we were using had auto save, and had saved about 10 minutes before, leaving us with only 9 seconds to still edit out, which was extremely good news to us.
After we had completely finished editing, we uploaded the new and improved version onto youtube, where we found the gunshot had not been included. However, aparently this doesn't matter as the examiners will receive our film on a disk, from the avi file we have saved onto the computer, which has the gunshot in it.

Thriller Film - Evaluation

In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?
The music we used was influenced mainly from two films; layer cake and Kidulthood, combining computer-electronic sounds and “hip hop” or “dub” music. The music was made by a student from City College on his computer at home with a strong bass beat and electronic overtones. The music gets faster toward the end, developing on itself using different types of music and creating dramatic tension. Comments were positive for the music, “Loved the music” and “music fits well”, however one “could have changed it a bit” and “gun shot not very realistic” showed we needed more variety, however it was hard to find good music and a good gun shot without copyright.Our editing was simple and fast paced, picking up audience interest and drawing them into the film. This feature is common in action-thrillers and other types of thriller as it pulls in the audience, and as they commented back “good editing” and “very good” showed we did a good job.We used some interesting camera techniques to create effect, like the shot (used twice) of the characters feet progressing up the stairs, inspired from Millers Crossing, which also uses the shot to create tension (as we hoped to in our film), however in the audience feedback, one audience member commented that the shot could have been steadier. We could use this in the future by developing a way to maneuver the camera up the stairs with a more steady hand. Another was a close up of Simon’s phone, showing the failed phone call. This type of shot is used in many films, to draw attention to the phone or conversation specifically. However, audience feedback made us aware to the lack of interesting variety of shot distances, as we were focusing on what was in the shot more than if it was mid, long or close.We filmed at night/sunset, so he film had a dark & mysterious mise-en-scene. An audience member commented on the dark “nice dark shots” showing we probably went the right way filming the plot at night. A typical thriller convention is that main action is shot at night, especially criminal actions like robbery and murder, as we had in our film, creating a more sinister feel to the film.A typical prop for a gangster/action/crime-thriller is a gun, used by “goodies” or “baddies”. We had 2 guns in our film, used by both the main male protagonists, and a gun exchange between teenagers, in an unprofessional manner, inspired by the unprofessional usage of weapons in Kidulthood, and Layer Cake. We also had our characters for a short while on tape, which is a typical gangster-thriller convention, and also a sign of a flawed hero or a bad figure. We used the smoking as a gangster theme mainly, but the flawed hero works as Simon isn’t really a criminal, but is obviously being influenced.We used quite a few other thriller conventions like the urban setting as we filmed in a busy street, and we used a lot of mystery and intrigue by not showing the house-owners real face giving him a hidden identity similar to that in Layer Cake as we never learn the male protagonist’s name. We also used stairs shortly, in our feet-close-up shot, although a typical set of thriller stairs are spiraling, we thought it added to the feeling of a chase and Simon getting caught. However one audience feedback said that the male protagonist wasn’t clear.We also use the typical shadows convention, some more prominent than others and mainly created by the house-owner, adding to his mystery. Our favorite shadow was the one when he walks up to his door and his silhouette is cut out on the side of the house. Shadows are a big thriller signifier and are used in many classic thriller films like china town and millers crossing for varied effects and connotations. We also use vanishing points in the shot outside before Simon enters the house, a simple thriller signifier used in films such as Layer Cake, to create effect. We think that this vanishing point suggested there was a hard escape for Simon & Co. if they thought about running, creating claustrophobia, which is also used towards the end of the film when Simon is trapped in the main bedroom about to face the house-owner, created by how the camera stays close to him, and his scruffy actions again suggest a flawed hero like in Vertigo, with fear of heights. The use of guns to make the main characters seem flawed, resulting to extreme violence for a simple crime, which is a popular characteristic in thriller films.
Audience feedback gave us a few comments varying from “Who were they? Why were they there? Got a bit confusing who was who.” To “lots of signifiers”, with suggestions for “more lighting effects”. This showed us we had the right idea planned, however we needed to display it better on screen, with better lighting.We didn’t really challenge thriller aspects of films, as we wanted to develop on the ideas from other films and other signifiers. This worked quite well we think as it made it easier to focus on simple thriller aspects of films.

How does your media product represent particular social groups?
All the characters in our film are male, most notably the main characters, both represented as “violent” gangsters, however one is represented as inexperienced and youthful, and the other more classy and older. The younger one acquires a low social class on screen, and seems quite poor; however the classy gangster has a higher social class and obviously richer, gaining power with his steady gun actions. The cast is represented as a mainly white-based gangster group, however Jitmal is mixed race, half Sri Lankan. Audience feedback showed one person asking “Why weren’t there any ladies?” proving the noticeable gender casting, and how it would appeal to different people.We don’t really have a representation of women as there are no women in our introduction, however we could be suggesting that women are usually represented as more innocent and don’t get involved with gang-crime, as we represent gang-crime as a man’s job.We represent men as criminals who like violence, and act about the law. Original thrillers represented men as rebellious figures, however nowadays we represent them as power hungry, and that the only way they can prove their power is by committing crime’s and making people fear them, like how Simon resorts to an armed robbery because of his friends.We don’t really represent a villain, hero or victim in our thriller as both characters seem to be in the wrong (resorting to gun’s), however we have tried to represent Simon as an innocent villain, blurring the lines of victim and villain as he’s young, however committing an extreme crime.We have sort of represented the modern world’s gangsters and other social groups as wrong do-er’s, as none of them seem to do anything morally right.In general, we represent gagster’s as being aggressive criminals (negatively), and we represent them as mainly men who are powerful but vulnerable and are subjected to influence of others.

What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?
The kind of media institution that would distribute out film would have probably distributed films alike. I researched Kidulthood, Adulthood and Layer Cake to find what company distributed the films. I found that Kidulthood and Adulthood were distributed by mainly thriller-producing films, and Layer Cake was distributed by an independent film distributor from America (and more mainstream)The most probable company would be Pathé Pictures (Adulthood’s distributor) because the other types of films it has distributed have been more main-stream and suitable for the type of thriller we have made. However Working Title is also a possibility for the distribution of our film, as although is produces main-stream films, they like to pick up and develop new talent (like ours), and they are a British film company, and our film is British. However its connection with Universal Studio’s makes it’s films more mainstream and less independent, however our thriller isn’t extremely independent or a risk to a company.None of the films I researched were eccentrically showed on TV, proving that a gangster-thriller like these are more likely to be released in the Cinema’s, on DVD and on Blu-Ray.All these researched films were shown in multiplex cinemas instead of art-house ones and our group agreed it was a more likely choice of cinema to show the film, because smaller ones (art-house) show more independent and classic films that aren’t so mainstream.

Who would be the audience for your media product?
We researched the films that inspired us and found the audience demographics that seemed to enjoy it.With all 3 films the most popular age group were the 18-29’s, closely followed by the under 18’s, however the movies had a mix in the gender preferation, as both gender’s seemed to enjoy the films pretty much equally (information acquired from imdb.com).We thought that the audience would mainly be under 29, and above 13 or 14, as they are the sort of age groups that enjoy watching action-thrillers about young adults (teens or early 20s). However, we thought that males would enjoy it more, and we targeted them more than girls by making all our characters male, though this will probably put some girls off, it didn’t seem to affect views on other male-leading films.Our target audience (working class, young adults and mainly male, and made up of mainly students as earlier questionnaires proved 75% of people who enjoyed gangster-thrillers were students) would probably watch TV drama’s like CSI or The Bill, as they have similar aspects, though they would probably usually be out with friends, and only watch the occasional gangster-thriller film.

How did you attract/address your audience?
As I’ve already stated, we were aiming for working class or students, who were young adults and mostly male.I think that the fact that the main characters were young adults, and all male, would attract many people to the film, as they could relate to them or find it amusing to see what other people like them would get up to. We also attracted the audience with the urban mise-en-scene, with a busy street, places that the viewers could relate to as it’s a real place (not fictional), or admire.Our narrative can also attract the audience with the loyalty from the close-knit gang, as the members wait and phone him to help. The audience could sympathize with them or relate to them if they have such a group of friends, and maybe make them think about what they would do. However our audience feedback was confusing with “clear but confusing”, “very clear” and “wasn’t always clear”, showing that some audience members had trouble following the plot (probably because of Jakob playing 2 roles), where others understood. Also we let the audience identify with Simon as we follow him through the story from the gun exchange to the shoot off in the house, as every shot relates to him.We also thought attracting our audience came from a good hook, which proves successful with audience feedback saying we had a “good hook”, mainly because of the mystery and intrigue of the house-owner (faceless) and the quick paced editing which draws the audience to the action, and the mystery of the gun shot at the end and the questions it would raise.

What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?
We learnt a lot throughout the production of the thriller, regarding different aspects of technology including camera work and editing.We developed shooting knowledge, and how to capture certain shots due to the lighting we were given, and learnt that filming once wasn’t good enough if we wanted the best shots, and a full battery was essential. Audience feedback showed us that the majority of our shots were steady and well shot, and the average mark out of 10 was 8.3.We tried to explore different uses of the camera, with some interesting angles and shots used, however we mainly stuck to normal straight on ones. We learnt how to best capture high angle shots and long shots, and how to maneuver the camera up the stairs whilst filming. We had difficulties with some shots, and realized wheels or a skateboard would make things much easier, though we didn’t have access to these so compromised with hand held filming or following the movement with a twist of the camera stand.We developed understanding of creating certain thriller signifiers, like claustrophobia can be created with close ups to make it a busy mise-en-scene and create a trapped feelings.Editing became quite simple after we got the hand of the program, however we had to learn certain effects on the program such as quicken shots, cut shots down, separate sound and video, adding effective titles & transitions (to make it more interesting and effective), and alternating between captured material to create a flowing story with a readable narrative. Although we thought we did quite a good job of fast-paced editing providing how many times we had to cut it down, re film and re capture our material.We also had to learn to edit the music to fit in with the shots, to fit the right bits of music in the right places, so it ended smoothly with a crescendo of sound at the end, which also helped us deal with our problems with speech and silencing parts of he clips, and make other bits louder.

Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product?
We feel we have developed on many aspects of our group and learnt more along the way.During our thriller planning we already experienced most of the main points needed; story boards and scripts. However we learnt we needed extra information for filming to go smoothly, like camera angles, shot types and cast movements, planned on separate papers with room diagram’s (in note format for meetings) and dialogue.The filming process was again, different with extra aspects we needed to pay attention to, but we got used to changing camera angles and standing in bushes, and developed understanding of the camera from what we had during the preliminary, with the 180 rule, shot reverse shot and match on action (some used in both, some only in preliminary).The editing process was easier the second time, as we were already mildly familiar with the software and how to edit/rearrange our footage. However we had to learn how to sequence shots more efficiently, as that wasn’t needed in our preliminary. We also had to learn how to use titles on the film foreground, and the effects in and out, as we hadn’t used that before, as with the quickening up shots, rendering and exporting to windows media for YouTube, where we had an advantage of me already having an YT account.We also learnt to share out tasks, as there were many more than from preliminary. Jakob did more of the practical things like acting and editing and ideas, as he’s imaginative and practical. I filmed mainly and edited because Jakob and Caroline thought I had a steady hand, and Caroline planned and edited with me, and helped set up the mise-en-scene before we filmed to make sure it included the appropriate things, as she is organized and prompt.In conclusion, we learnt a lot during the production, especially that we needed to plan further ahead to meet deadlines, and organize/communicate throughout the group to get the best results.

Thriller Sub-Genre's

Thriller, as a genre, has sub-genre's such as action or horror. The sub-genre determines what type of thriller it is, as there is a wide range of thriller's available.

For example, an action thriller can have certain features such as a race against time, violence, fighting and an obvious antagonist. The film would most probably include things such as guns, explosions, car races and other related things. E.g: The Bourne Identity/Supremacy/Ultimatum.
Another example: The Crime thriller sub-genre is a fusion of both crime films and thriller films, and it offers a suspenseful or mysterious account of a crime - successful or failed. This type of thriller usually focus on the criminal-characters, rather than the law enforcers. Crime thrillers are most likely to emphasize the action taking place over the emotional or psychological thoughts/aspects. E.g: The 51st State.
In a Drama thriller, the film would normally consist of "drama" aspects mixed with the thriller aspects. The film is usually more slow paced, and involves the characters developing emotionally, psychologically and sometimes physically. This usually coincides with the plot, and with its twists and turns. E.g: The Interpreter.
Psychological thriller, a normal conflict between main characters leading to an often violent resolution, is another sub-genre. The conflict between the characters is usually mental and emotional, rather than physical. The conflict could even be something that in real life, wouldn't be scientifically possible. This can include movies to the likes of and including "The Ring".
A sub genre of both thriller and spy fiction, is Spy Thriller. This usually involves a hero, who has some relationship with the government or is a government agent. The hero is needed to take violent action against a rival government or terrorists, though the latter is more of a recent making. E.g: Bourne Trilogy and Mission: Impossible.
Supernatural thriller, another sub genre, includes conflicts between some main characters. Usually one, both or all of them has super-powers, and may be considered a SuperHero or a Villain. E.g: Unbreakable.
A Medical thriller is a thriller with the hero/heroine as a doctor or a medical personnel. They work to solve a problem, the majority of which medical, or are sparked by a medical problem. Films such as "Awake" can be an example of a medical thriller, and "Diagnosis Murder" is an example of a TV medical thriller. Nonfiction medical thrillers can also be a subcategory, comprising things like "The Hot Zone".
The Legal thriller is a sub genre film type, in which the hero/heroine is a legal figure, like a lawyer. They usually have to deal with and confront enemies outside, as well as inside, the courtroom, and are in danger of losing the cases or what they are fighting for, or even their lives. E.g: The Innocent Man.

Method 7.B - Working Title Films

Film Title: Atonement
Director: Joe Wright
Genre: Drama, Mystery, Romance, War.
Release Date: 7th September 2007 (UK)
Location/s:
Aldwych Underground Station, Aldwych, Holborn, London, England, UK
(interiors)
Black Park, Iver Heath, Buckinghamshire, England, UK
Bloomsbury, London, England, UK
Coates, Cambridgeshire, England, UK
Dover, Kent, England, UK
Grimsby Docks, Grimsby, Lincolnshire, England, UK
(Dunkirk - street scenes)
Grimsby, Lincolnshire, England, UK
London, England, UK
Nene Washes Nature Reserve, Peterborough, Cambridgeshire, England, UK
(for late 1930s rural France)
Northumberland, England, UK
Ouse Washes Nature Reserve, Cambridgeshire, England, UK
(for late 1930s rural France)
Redcar, Redcar and Cleveland, England, UK
(invasion of Dunkirk)
Seven Sisters, East Sussex, England, UK
Shepperton Studios, Shepperton, Surrey, England, UK
(studio)
St. John's, Smith Square, Westminster, London, England, UK
(Lola's wedding)
Stokesay Court, Onibury, Shropshire, England, UK
(Tallis home)
University College London, Bloomsbury, London, England, UK
(exteriors)
Westminster, London, England, UK
Gold Points:
???
Awards: Oscar (2008), 2 BAFTA Film Award's (2008), 3 Empire Award's (2008), Evening Standard British Film Award (2008), 2 Golden Globe's (2008), Golden Trailer (2008), 2 IFTA Award's (2008), Sierra Award (2007), 2 ALFS Award's (2008), 3 PFCS Award's (2007), Rembrandt Award (2008), SDFCS Award (2007), Satellite Award (2007), Teen Choice Award (2008), Prize of the Forum for Cinema and Literature (2007), World Soundtrack Award (2008).
Nominated 6 Oscar's and 60 other awards.
Funding:
The film is a Working Title production for Universal Pictures.
Audience demographic who found film most appealing: Females Under 18, and IMDB staff.
User ratings:
Males - 38,766 votes - 7.8/10 average
Females - 16,170 votes - 8.3/10 average
Aged under 18 - 2,189 votes - 8.4/10 average
Males under 18 - 970 votes - 8.3/10 average
Females under 18 - 1,215 votes - 8.6/10 average
Aged 18-29 - 37,423 votes - 8.0/10 average
Males Aged 18-29 - 25,950 votes - 7.9/10 average
Females Aged 18-29 - 11,363 votes - 8.4/10 average
Aged 30-44 - 10,906 votes - 7.5/10 average
Males Aged 30-44 - 8,471 votes - 7.5/10 average
Females Aged 30-44 - 2,346 votes - 7.7/10 average
Aged 45+ - 4,331 votes - 7.9/10 average
Males Aged 45+ - 3,163 votes - 7.8/10 average
Females Aged 45+ - 1,128 votes - 8.3/10 average
IMDb staff - 14 votes - 8.6/10 average
Top 1000 voters - 435 votes - 7.1/10 average
US users - 18,082 votes - 7.9/10 average
Non-US users - 36,823 votes - 7.9/10 average
IMDb users - 59,395 votes - 7.9/10 average
Target Audience: British "young adults"


----------


Film Title: Pride & Prejudice
Director: Joe Wright
Genre: (Period) Drama, Romance.
Release Date: 16th September 2005 (UK)
Location/s:
Basildon Park, Lower Basildon, Berkshire, England, UK
(Netherfield)
Burghley House, Stamford, Lincolnshire, England, UK
(Rosings Park)
Chatsworth House, Edensor, Derbyshire, England, UK
(Pemberley exteriors/Pemberley's grand staircase/Pemberley's sculpture gallery)
Groombridge Place, Groombridge, Kent, England, UK
(Longbourn)
Haddon Hall, Bakewell, Derbyshire, England, UK
(Elizabeth's bedroom/the inn at Lambton)
North Lees Hall, Hathersage, Derbyshire, England, UK
Rutland, England, UK
St George's Square, Stamford, Lincolnshire, England, UK
(Meryton village scenes)
Stamford, Lincolnshire, England, UK
(Meryton village/Milliner's shop)
Stanage Edge, Hathersage Moor, Hathersage, Derbyshire, England, UK
(Elizabeth standing on precipice)
Stourhead Garden, Warminster, Wiltshire, England, UK
(Darcy's first proposal - at the Temple of Apollo)
Weekley, Northamptonshire, England, UK
(Mr Collins vicarage)
Wilton House, Wilton, Salisbury, Wiltshire, England, UK
(Pemberley's drawing room)
Wiltshire, England, UK
Gold Points:
???
Awards:
Won Carl Foreman Award for the Most Promising Newcomer (2006), BSFC Award (2005), 2 Empire Award's (2006), Peter Sellers Award for Comedy (2006), Golden Trailer (2006), 2 ALFS Award's (2006), Satellite Award (2005).
Nominated for 4 Oscars, and 35 other nominations.
Any other funding (other than WT):
???
Audience demographic who found film most appealing: Female's under 18.
User ratings:
Males - 18,326 votes - 7.7/10 average
Females - 18,846 votes - 8.3/10 average
Aged under 18 - 1,591 votes - 8.5/10 average
Males under 18 - 304votes - 7.8/10 average
Females under 18 - 1,284 votes - 8.9/10 average
Aged 18-29 - 24,374 votes - 8.0/10 average
Males Aged 18-29 - 11,252 votes 7.8/10 average
Females Aged 18-29 - 13,031 votes 8.4/10 average
Aged 30-44 - 7,667 votes 7.5/10 average
Males Aged 30-44 - 4,586 votes - 7.4/10 average
Females Aged 30-44 - 3,023 votes - 7.8/10 average
Aged 45+ - 3,442
7.8/10 average
Males Aged 45+ - 2,054 votes - 7.8/10 average
Females Aged 45+ - 1,354 votes - 7.7/10 average
IMDb staff - 7 votes - 7.9/10 average
Top 1000 voters - 408 votes - 7.2/10 average
US users - 13,929 votes 8.1/10 average
Non-US users - 23,222 votes - 7.7/10 average
IMDb users - 41,656 votes - 7.8/10 average
Target Audience:
???

Thriller Poster - Millers Crossing

This first picture is a front cover for the DVD of Millers crossing:

The picture below is a long shot, and shows a wide mise-en-scene with simplistic features of a tall wood and gravel road. The long shot includes the height of the trees but only a small stretch of the road, and it disallows us to see who they are or what is exactly happening. This creates mystery and tension, making someone want to buy and watch the film.



a) This man seems to have high authority in the picture as he is suited and is not getting beaten up. However it seems as if he has a lesser status than the other suited man, as he is more like a chauffeur, closing the car door and tucking in his jacket. He seems disinterested in what the other man is doing, and holds himself in a buisness-like manner. He doesn't seem to acknowledge how they've taken a man into the woods, and this shows how the situation is not meant to be publicised, as they've driven far out and there are only the 2 of them dealing with the man in a buisness-like way. The hats they are wearing suggest authority and also hides their facial features.
b) The bottom of the picture is darkened until black, creating the effect that the image is an old one, that has been worn away, like the title. It also gives shadow and mystery because of the added darkness it brings to the image. It slowly and slightly gets lighter toward the figures, giving them more attention and focus in the frame of the mise-en-scene.
c) The majority of the picture is taken up by the tall thin tree's in the background, showing that the picture is set in the woods. The trees hold thriller signifiers, like how the light shines through some of the trunks, however most of the light is blocked out and creating shadows amongst them. This could create a sense of danger, and how they're out of the city life, in the middle of the wood. Because there are obviously a lot of tree's surrounding them, letting not much light in, this could create claustrophobia, as they're hidden away from the outside life.
d) The same writing as the title, showing who directed and wrote the film, at the bottom and out of the way in the mise-en-scene, but made kind of prominent because of the light writing on the darkened background.
e) The man at the edge of the picture seems to be kneeled over in pain which by the look of the middle man's posture, seems to be inflicted by the latter's shoving. This shows that the 2 suited men are powerful and are inflicting pain onto this third man. The 2 suited men are dressed rather like policemen, with the hats and the long coats, portraying the corrupt force or an immoral way of using the power they are given, to sort out crimes, and earn respect.
f) We can see that the road seems to stretch round into the distance, using vanishing points, which is a thriller signifier. The road also seems to curve round, creating a long and non-ending feeling to the road, as if they are really far out, and far away from any help that could be longed and called for from the un-suited man.
g) The title of the film, "Millers Crossing" is written on a sort of slant, higher on the side of the picture that the men are on, emphasising their presence slightly. It's a light brown/cream colour, like a faded letter of coffee stain. The letters are faded around the edges and in the middle, as if they had been bashed or ripped. This creates a feeling of dancer, and the sense that the place isn't safe. The actors names are above, written in the same style of writing but smaller, with the last names capitalized, bringing more attention to the famous surnames, but not drawing attention away from the main title and the scene below it.





And this second one is an advertisement poster, that could have possibly been on a billboard or bus stop, etc:



This poster is also taken at a long-shot, with the tall tree's dominating the upper half of the picture, some in the background, and some in the foreground. The distance shows us alot of leafy ground and the forest looks misty and sort of eer-y. The picture is taken from a camera that seems to be quite low to the ground, as if another person was crouched where the camera is, watching the scene infront of them unfold.

a) The "From the Creators of" title shows the audience another Thriller by the same people who wrote and directed the film. The writing is lightly coloured against a dark-ish background, against the top of the tree's, which seem thicker toward the top of the picture, because of the amount of tree's. It is clearly daylight behind, however the tree's block out most of the natural light, making it dimmer.
b) The title "Miller's Crossing" is in a plain font, that looks quite old. The line through the middle of the words suggests hidden secrets because of how its splitting the title in two. It is against the top of the tree’s, which are letting odd bits of light flow through them, showing that its daytime and light.
c) The figure in the black, with the tall black hat seems to be standing very upright, making himself taller to the man kneeling in front of him. He looks as though he knows what he’s doing, and he’s in charge. In his right hand he seems to be holding what looks like a gun, giving him a sense of power and maybe even danger in this photo. The clothes he is wearing makes him look quite mysterious, as they’re just a plain colour black, not giving anything about his identity away, though suggesting he is a figure of authority.
d) The scene that the two figures are in looks like a forest, with tall tree’s and leaved grounds. They are standing/kneeling in a clearing in the forest, between two tall trees with a backdrop of a thick forest behind them. The lighting seems natural and filled with shadows on the ground, as the tree’s are blocking out most of the sky light.
e) The bottom of the poster holds information about the film. The actors names and the companies that have funded it and produced it. One obvious company involved is Fox, as it has 2 adverts in the bottom corners of the picture.
f) The other man in the picture, who is kneeling at the feet of the black dressed man, seems to be pleading with his hands and voice to the other man. He obviously has a lesser status than the other man, as he is on his knees in a begging position. His clothes seem to be smart, giving him a sense of wealth maybe, however they aren’t tucked in or looking as smart as they probably usually would. This gives the viewer the impression that he is not in control of the situation, and that he is in a bad position.
g) The certificate is 18, in its usual red circle, upper right corner of the poster. This could attract the suitable audience that the film would want, as over 18's would relate to the symbol straight away, and think that the film might be suitable for them, as if it was a 15 there is a chance it might be too "teen-age boy" for them. It could connote that the film is a serious thriller, an "adult film".

Influences For Our Thriller Film

During our year we have looked closely at our thriller introductions, and the plans we made. We concentrated for a time on the themes of our thriller. Some of which were going to be obvious:

Corruption: as the young boy, Simon, will be robbing a house, and given a gun, which is not that he is used to.
Moral Ambiguity: who is right and who is wrong, is Simon to blame for the stealing, or the gang leader? is the man's reaction to Simon being in his house the right way to act?
Mystery: as we're not sure why they picked that house, who the man is (as we never see his face) and what is going to happen.

We also looked at styles of our thrillers, and in our group we decided on gangster, and modern. We wanted a modern style to the clothing, speech and setting. We debated having the film in black and white, however due to the modernised style and the gangster theme, we decided against it.
The sub-genre is gangster, as the gang has a gangster-appearance and are dressed and act in that of a modern teenage gangster.
We also discussed what films would have influenced our thriller, in the terms of styles and how it is shot. We chose the following:

- Kidulthood & Adulthood: These two films are sequel to one another, and are a great influence as the main cast of the film are young corrupt teenagers, in adolescence. The characters act as if the world is a gangster life, but we find out that not all of these hard nut gangsters live in the same environment. This makes it relevant to Simon's life, as he was an innocent teenager gone corrupt, choosing a different lifestyle, but still living in his old one.
- Football Factory: This film is a slight influence as to the story line, as a character is caught inside anothers house.
- Layer Cake: This is a good influence for our shot types that we planned, and the location we decided to use is like that of "XXXX"'s house, urban and on a busy-ish road.
- Millers Crossing: This film also has the themes of deceit and loyalty.
- Sin City: The final influence is this, as the sounds and setting are urban, and we will have similar sound affects. Another thing is the number of phone calls in the shots, and how you can hear the voice from the other line, which we are hoping to achieve.

Method 7 - Working Title Films

Working Title Films is a British film production company. It is based in London, and was founded by Tim Bevan and Sarah Radclyffe in 1984. In 1992 Bevan went looking for a corporate backer. Polygram was the one, and then Fellner came on board, Radclyffe having left.
Working Title Films produces feature films and sometimes television productions. Eric Fellner and Bevan are presently the co-owners. Working Title gained mainstream traction after the aparently unexpected flobal box-office success of Four Weddings and a Funeral, starring Hugh Grant. This film made the term British Blockbuster seem less of an oxymoron.
Among the company's many successful films are Ricard Curtis-scripted romantic comedies (usually starring Grant) and Coen Brothers' films. However, recently the company has moved into many other types of films, such as United 93.
In 2004 Working Title made a profit of £17.8 million, and as of 2007 all its films were being distrubuted by Universal Studios (which owns 67% stakein the company), and many of Working Title's recent films are co-productions with StudioCanal. The remaining shares are owned by the company's founders, BBC Films, and some private investors.
In 1991 Working Title was involved in a bid for the London Weekend ITV licence. Mentorn, Palace, Polygram and Working Title wanted to take over from London Weekend Television and broadcast to London under the name London Independent Broadcasting. In the event LWT retained its licence and London Independent Broadcasting's proposals were deemed to fail the quality threshold by the Independent Television Commission, who were overseeing the big process.
Working Title Films has always wanted to make films for an audience – films to play in a multiplex. They believe in this because they “know” it’s the only hope of sustaining the UK film industry. (Lucy Guard & Natasha Wharton)

Despite the famous name, Working Title has a pretty lean structure. There are only 42 full time staff, which are split between the main Working Title production arm, and the low-budget WT2 (run by Natasha Wharton, existed since 1999).
The company’s smaller, low-budget film brand, Working Title 2 (WT2) has produced films such as Billy Elliot (2000) and Shaun of the Dead (2004) and Ali G In Da House. Recently the company produced Burn After Reading, a comedy starring Brad Pitt and George Clooney.
WT2 was founded when they set up a New Writers Scheme to develop new talent, for which they relaxed and open the doors to unsolicited material (scripts that aren’t from an agent or producer).
The major problem with Working Title, was that smaller films would get less attention than bigger budget projects, so they decided to set up WT2 to give proper attention to those smaller films. Quite a few of the writers from the New Writers Scheme now work with WT2, while others have set up their projects with other companies.


Films they have produced...

That i have seen:
Burn After Reading (2008) ... Production Company
Wild Child (2008) ... Production Company
Atonement (2007) ... Production Company
Hot Fuzz (2007) ... Production Company
Nanny McPhee (2005) ... Production Company
Pride & Prejudice (2005) ... Production Company (as Working Title)
The Interpreter (2005) ... Production Company
Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason (2004) ... Production Company
Wimbledon (2004) ... Production Company
The Calcium Kid (2004) ... Production Company (presents)
Shaun of the Dead (2004) ... Production Company
Love Actually (2003) ... Production Company (producer) (as Working Title)
Johnny English (2003) ... Production Company
The Guru (2002) ... Production Company
About a Boy (2002) ... Production Company
Bridget Jones's Diary (2001) ... Production Company
Billy Elliot (2000) ... Production Company (presents)
Notting Hill (1999) ... Production Company
The Borrowers (1997) ... Production Company
Dead Man Walking (1995) ... Production Company
Four Weddings and a Funeral (1994) ... Production Company

That i haven't seen:
Bran Mak Morn (2010) ... Production Company
Paul (2010) ... Production Company
The World's End (2010) ... Production Company
Green Zone (2009) ... Production Company
A Serious Man (2009) ... Production Company
The Soloist (2009) ... Production Company
State of Play (2009) ... Production Company
The Boat That Rocked (2009) ... Production Company
Birdsong (2009) ... Production Company
The Dangerous Husband (2009) ... Production Company
Hippie Hippie Shake (2009) ... Production Company
Lost for Words (2009) ... Production Company
The Troubleshooter (2009) ... Production Company
Frost/Nixon (2008) ... Production Company
Definitely, Maybe (2008) ... Production Company
Elizabeth: The Golden Age (2007) ... Production Company
Mr. Bean's Holiday (2007) ... Production Company
Gone (2007/III) ... Production Company
Smokin' Aces (2006) ... Production Company (producer)
Sixty Six (2006) ... Production Company
Catch a Fire (2006) ... Production Company
United 93: The Families and the Film (2006) (V) ... Production Company
United 93 (2006) ... Production Company
The Answer (2004) ... Production Company
Inside I'm Dancing (2004) ... Production Company
Mickybo and Me (2004) ... Production Company
Thunderbirds (2004) ... Production Company (presents)
Double Bill (2003) (TV) ... Production Company
Ned Kelly (2003) ... Production Company
The Shape of Things (2003) ... Production Company
Thirteen (2003) ... Production Company
My Little Eye (2002) ... Production Company
Ali G Indahouse (2002) ... Production Company
40 Days and 40 Nights (2002) ... Production Company
Long Time Dead (2002) ... Production Company
The Man Who Wasn't There (2001) ... Production Company
Captain Corelli's Mandolin (2001) ... Production Company
The Man Who Cried (2000) ... Production Company
O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000) ... Production Company (as Working Title)
High Fidelity (2000) ... Production Company
Plunkett & Macleane (1999) ... Production Company
The Hi-Lo Country (1998) ... Production Company
Elizabeth (1998) ... Production Company
What Rats Won't Do (1998) ... Production Company
"More Tales of the City" (1998) ... Production Company
The Big Lebowski (1998) ... Production Company
Eight (1998) ... Production Company
The MatchMaker (1997) ... Production Company
Bean (1997) ... Production Company
Huitième jour, Le (1996) ... Production Company
"Zig and Zag's Dirty Deeds" (1996) ... Production Company
Fargo (1996) ... Production Company (in association with)
Loch Ness (1996) ... Production Company
Moonlight and Valentino (1995) ... Production Company
French Kiss (1995) ... Production Company
Panther (1995) ... Production Company
Land and Freedom (1995) ... Production Company (developed with the support of) (as Working Title)
That Eye, the Sky (1994) ... Production Company
The Hudsucker Proxy (1994) ... Production Company
"The Return of the Borrowers" (1993) ... Production Company
The Young Americans (1993) ... Production Company
Romeo Is Bleeding (1993) ... Production Company
Posse (1993) ... Production Company
"Tales of the City" (1993) ... Production Company
Map of the Human Heart (1993) ... Production Company
Bob Roberts (1992) ... Production Company
Dakota Road (1992) ... Production Company
"The Comic Strip Presents...: Red Nose of Courage (#6.1)" (1992) ... Production Company
London Kills Me (1991) ... Production Company
Edward II (1991) ... Production Company
Barton Fink (1991) ... Production Company
Smack and Thistle (1991) (TV) ... Production Company
Robin Hood (1991/I) (TV) ... Production Company (as A Working Title Production)
Drop Dead Fred (1991) ... Production Company
Rubin and Ed (1991) ... Production Company
Chicago Joe and the Showgirl (1990) ... Production Company
Fools of Fortune (1990) ... Production Company
Arcadia (1990) ... Production Company
Diamond Skulls (1989) ... Production Company
The Tall Guy (1989) ... Production Company
Paperhouse (1988) ... Production Company
A World Apart (1988) ... Production Company
Echoes (1988) (TV) ... Production Company
For Queen & Country (1988) ... Production Company
Sammy and Rosie Get Laid (1987) ... Production Company
Wish You Were Here (1987) ... Production Company
My Beautiful Laundrette (1985) ... Production Company
The Man Who Shot Christmas (1984) ... Production Company (as Big Science Ltd.)