Mise en scene

On this course we are doing an opening sequence to horror movie in a group of 4, we have split up the tasks so that each of us doing different jobs. My job is to do the mise en scene which is choosing the characters and setting up the scene and directing.
The opening sequence is a 2 to3 minutes extract of the actual horror movie, it has to have the codes and conventions of horror movie as well as titles suitably done and we get marked according to variety of shot usage and choosing right props and location.

MISE-EN-SCENE

Mise-en-scene is a french word for "putting into the scene", which is used by the filmmaker to give the audience facts about the characters, the genre of the film, the location and the time. 


Mise-en-scene includes the following terms:

Settings, Give us informations about the time and place in which the story is taking place. 
Our sequence is going to be shot on location, at night time. The location is in the fourth floor flat in a six story apartment. The narrative is taking place inside the flat, and the lift in the same building.
It is going to be shot at night time to makes the sequence sinister and more scary, and also harder to seek help and easier for the killer to hide himself and trap the victims. 

Canary Wharf, London

The house we used in our opening

The corridors to the lift

Decor of the space in which the actors and props are put together to create the scene where the story is happening. Decors informs the viewers of the characters' personalities and lifestyle.

The picture of Vida and Ella in desktop picture of the laptop, shows the relationship between the characters and their role in the film.






The living room table is decorated with some bottles of alcoholic drinks and LED lights as well as the characters picture in the desktop display of the laptop, which can be seen throughout the opening. The picture suggests the characters' relations and connections to each other. Two young female friends, organising a house party on a halloween night. 

The extract features an stereotypical representation of young females being weak, vulnerable and also sexualised to attract the aimed male audience.








Props are the objects used in films, that defines the genre or the historical period. One of the ways in which to tell the genre of the films such as "The scream" is by seeing the Ghost-face using knife for killing his victims, which defines the sub genre as being slasher.




In our slasher opening, the props we will be using is a knife, which replaces the girl's brush in one quick shot. Shows the films is of a slasher sub-genre.

A cigarette and the lighter, connotes danger. Similar to the opening sequence to "The Dark" in which the main female character Adele lights a cigarette that connotes her being anxious and in danger. 

Red lipstick, that our first character puts on, connotes blood, danger and sexuality.

Halloween mask:
We have used this scary Halloween mask as a red herrings which might suggest the upcoming murder.


That is what mostly used by directors in horror films: first Vida is trying to make a joke to scare Ella of a previous stalker by appearing in front of the video entry with the mask on, but in fact she is the first victim!? What normally happens in slasher films. 








We also used fake gel blood in the scene where Vida is stabbed in the lift. To do this effect, we first had to put a thick layer of foundation cream over her chin and her neck, and then make a cut-shape scratch through the cream using a dull knife, We then dropped the blood gel slowly onto the scratch. 

Colour, Colour adds meaning and creates the atmosphere in the shot. For instance we have used red which connotes blood and danger. 


For the lift shots I have changed the colour to dark brown-red. 

There are two main colours and lighting effects used in the sequence, one is the natural and normal colour which might have been changed for some special connotations, and the other colour is what the night shot mode has created, which is THE KILLER'S POINT OF VIEW.

when ever there is a night shot in the film, that is the killer's point of view. 

Like in the below still of the girl getting changed in her room, we first see her from back in normal colour and lighting but then the camera moves to the front to show the location and view of the killer. 

However this does not mean that the killer is present in the room watching her, but it implies her being watched by someone who is imagining her change her clothes as she gets home!

Sound, suspense and anxious  music that creates distress and tension, I have used two different sound tracks in the sequence, one from Wes Craven The Scream movie and the other from Sound beats youtube channel.


The buzzer sound which has been deliberately volumed up to make the viewer startle and create an expectation of a disaster, is another sound bridge in the opening.

Lighting is important and carries out the message of the mood and atmosphere of the scene. Semi dark lift, which shadows of dark red which leads into the dark corridor
The flat is more bright with fewer red colors above lighting. 
The balcony is quite dark to show the time and the setting and also to imply danger and fear of darkness. It also suggests something evil is about to happen and it comes from outside the apartment, followed by an establishing shot of the apartment from the street.

Characters
There are only two female characters in the opening:


Ella, is the central character, and
Vida, is the first victim who gets killed in the lift.

Costumes
The Halloween witch's costume is what Ella is wearing while getting ready for the party and waiting the guests to come. 


A black big witchy hat with a short black dress as you can see in the pictures. 


Vida is wearing red trousers connotes her murder with a black top.

We also used a Halloween mask appearing in the video entry phone as Vida is trying to scare her friend when she is back from shopping, this is rehearing.  

Here we see the character's picture together as the background of the laptop, which shows their relationship together and their involvement in the narrative. 

Special FX 

includes:

Blood script of 'Happy Halloween' on the lift's mirror

Film scratch effect for the knife on hair shot and the Halloween script at the end of the film

For this shots I used Cutaway Fade editing tool in imovie, with Manual setting of 2:00 and 51% Opacity.     

Title Works 

Titles and credits come at the beginning of the film and give informations about the characters, production company, Director and other film crews.

I used 'Full Focus' Titles on imovie for the character's name and production's company at the start of the opening sequence.

The count down of the lift keys in between street shots of the tall buildings in Canary Wharf is to show the connection between inside and outside of the buildings. It Creates tension and represents unsafe residential apartments. 

'Zoom' effect for the film title:

And 'Soft Edge' for the Director's name: 

Our distribution company is the 'Revolver Entertainment'. Their logo comes at the beginning of the film, I slightly changed the colour effect of the logo to suit out Horror opening credits.