Music In My Film Opening

 Music will play an enormous role in my film opening. I genuinely believe that the music brought into my film will be the backbone of the horror genre I am trying to display in this project. I plan on using 1950’s like jazz music that plays at a very low level throughout the opening as the victim goes throughout the house. The music represents that the potential “victim” is distracted doing their tasks. So distracted in fact, that he/she will forget to do simple things such as locking doors. These mistakes are what will open the gates for Scrow to reach his victims. I will also use more distorted and out of tone songs/noises during the climax of the scene to spark a sense of fear in the audience. 

There is actually a science behind using distorted/high pitch audios. The music not only sparks anxiety and frantic like feelings, but much more than just that.“The music in horror movies reminds us subconsciously of primordial times,” says Rowan Hooper, managing editor of New Scientist. “Non-linear sounds like Psycho's violin 'stingers' mimic the sound of animals in distress; they trigger our fear of being chased by dangerous predators.” 

You can watch the iconic scene from Alfred Hitchcock's masterpiece “Psycho” (1960) here:

Psycho (1960) - 'The Bathroom', 'The Murder' (Shower scene) [1080]

Lighting Ideas

The right lighting for my film opening or any film opening in general is an extremely important factor. The right lighting can be the difference maker and can truly set the vibe and tone in a specific piece. Because my film opening is structured off the elements of horror, my lighting and shots have to correlate with horror as well. I plan on using lots of semi-lit lighting while inside the house. As for any other shots; such as it being outside, I plan on using dark lighting to give a truly eerie and scary vibe. I want to use the darkness as a message to the viewer. When they see a dark area through a window or an extremely dark hallway, I want their minds to wonder what's inside. Given the genre is horror, the audience is most likely going to expect something frightening. So when they see a dark abyss-like area, the only thing that could possibly be there in their minds is Scrow or something else that is truly frightening. 

Dark lighting is used in many films such as the one below. This film is called “Lights out” (2016). In this shot, you can see that the entity in front is extremely mysterious. The lighting gives off the frame of the entity but nothing more. This is done to add mystery and confusion to the audience. It forces the audience to imagine what devilish looking entity can fill the frame of the shadow displayed.

Low-Lighting in the film "Lights Out" (2016)

Film Opening Ideas/Suspense

 One of the key aspects to my film opening will be the usage of suspense. It is important that I implement this technique to create a feeling of paranoia and anxiety in the audience. I actually plan on barely showing Scrow throughout the film opening. Instead, I will only show him in the climax of the scene and when things truly get intense. I want to use other things like a close up of a door not being locked, or the clueless persona of the victim to give the audience an idea of what's about to happen. 

A good example of a film that has minimal shots of the actual killer in their opening scene is “Scream” (1996) where instead of showing the actual killer, things like dark lights, phone calls, exposed turns throughout the house, and more are used to build suspense and fear. Infact, the build up can sometimes be even scarier than the actual kill/attack scene! In the scene, the director constantly cuts back to a shot of popcorn being made with no supervision because the potential victim is distracted by the mysterious presence of the killer. This shot of the popcorn is used to build more suspense in the scene. It represents that the victim's time is slowly dissipating as you only have so much time until the popcorn goes bad; or in this case until the killer gets to the victim. 

You can watch the film opening yourself through this link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G3lSvJ5RXKA 

“Rising Popcorn” and “Victim/Killer” in Scream (1996)

I plan on trying to implement some of these techniques into my film opening as it adds more to the ticking time bomb of suspense.  

Creating Scrows "Look"

For my film, I aim for Scrow to be a menacing killer that has a mask representing a scarecrow. The mask in which I intend on making myself is going to display my ideas into the film in a truly horrific manner. The idea of Scrow as a character actually has many inspirations from other classic serial killer films  such as "Scream" and "Halloween" as seen here: 

“Scream”

  

“Halloween”

As you can see, the masks worn by these notorious characters have very little to no emotion at all. Although they have a lack of emotion, they successfully give off a truly terrifying and eerie vibe to them. It is clear that this is done by the absence of eyes. You cannot see any sort of fear, happiness, or emotion in the mask. Instead, you are forced to stare into the dark abyss which replaces the eyes of these two characters. It was said that the reason Michale Myers’s (second picture) mask is so scary is because instead of it showing emotion, it is empty and only shows the “embodiment of evil” stated by Tommy Lee Wallace who was the creator of Myers’s look in the original film. He also said that “Wearing a mask takes away his identity which makes him more menacing. He doesn't take any pleasure in it, he just does it with zero care.” *Referring to the character of Michale Myers.* This is exactly what I am trying to accomplish when making the look for Scrow. 

Everything Sparks Ideas!

 I am currently on a trip to Disney and I actually found ideas for my movie here! I was walking around the one of the parks when I noticed certain decor. I was in more of a rustic/mechanic themed area and noticed certain tools laying on a table (prop tools). As we all know, every serial killer in the movies has their own weapon. On the desk was a hook looking tool. I thought that "Scrows" weapon in the film could be some sort of hook/scythe tool. This would keep uniqueness to the character while also stick to the "farm/scarecrow" vibe that "Scrow" will give off in the film. I am not 100 percent sure if this will be my final idea but it is for sure a step ahead in the development of "Scrow".

The Thoughts Are Flowing!

Today, I purchased a composition notebook in which I will write down ANY ideas that come up for the film. I have already began to sketch the design of "Scrow's" mask in the book. I tend to forget ideas that randomly pop up in my head. Now that I write down every idea I have, I will never forget them! I have even began to think of certain cuts for my opening scene and how I will display the name "Scrow" on screen. I am in the car right now on a long road trip, and I have been writing and drawing for a good hour now. If there is a sign, object, car, or anything that we drive by that sparks and idea; I draw/write it down in my composition book. Once I have a good amount of ideas written down, I plan on connecting them all together which will ultimately help me with the creation of my cuts and overall idea for my film opening.

Brainstorming Continued/Idea Coming Together!

For me, brainstorming is something that is always happening. While driving to my SAT tutor yesterday, I was driving next to a farm/field looking area. This sparked the immediate thought of a scarecrow. I thought of my portfolio project and immediately connected a scarecrow to the idea of my project. This is where the my film opening idea was born. Im thinking of a horror/thriller about a serial killer who goes my the menacing name of "Scrow". "Scrow" will wear a mask that is similar to a scarecrows face. It will most likely look extremely jagged and will be made out of farm materials like burlap cloth, hay, etc. It will have a patches look to give "Scrow" more of a jagged look. I am still brainstorming, and hope to have more additions to the idea by the end of the week.

Genre Idea and Brainstorming!

  After contemplating between a couple genre ideas, I think I want to stick with the beloved Horror/Thriller genre. Horror/Thriller has always been my favorite genre (especially in my teenage years) and I think It will be the most logical when it comes to the execution process. I began to start brainstorming ideas for my film opening. At first, I felt very gravitated towards the paranormal route but realized that would be extremely difficult to execute. Usually, paranormal films involve lots of CGI and that is simply a field in which I have no experience with. An example would be a movie like "The Ring" (2002), in which the film relies heavily on CGI effects to truly strike fear in the hearts of their audience.

Usage of CGI of in “The Ring” (2002)

Portfolio Project Week One

 Its time! After a long first semester of the 2021-22 school year, we are finally entering the second semester with the highly anticipated "Portfolio Project". This will be the most challenging, yet most exciting project of them all. Over the next eight weeks, I plan to put hard dedication into my craft as I need my creativity to take over. I plan on making an organized schedule for when I should get each piece of the project done and then get to the actual ideas. I am still thinking of what my final film introduction piece is going to be. That being said, I have many ideas flowing through my head and I am trying to figure out which one will work the best for me and will be the most logical moving forward. I plan on figuring it out soon and hope to give more information in my next blog post. Take care! 

Music Marketing Blog Post #2

 As I finished my Music Marketing Project, I came to this page to reflect on my experiance and share it with you guys. I want to start by thanking my amazing group. Every single one of them put in hard work and dedication to make sure this project got done in an amazing way. I learned that the methods of marketing in the music industry can be as important than the actual song! You can have a subpar song, but if you distribute and push you're image to the max using the right methods and recorces; you will most likely see success. I will use the knowledge I obtained from this project in the editing field to work on my portfolio project.