Concept (preliminary task 1)

 

Concept

Title:

Smile

(an action thriller about a serial killer)

The title of our film is 'smile' due to not only the literal use of this word in the dialogue of the scene but the irony that comes along with it. The title also directly links to the serial killer as his calling card (in criminology, a calling card is a particular object sometimes left behind by a criminal at a scene of a crime, often as a way of taunting police or claiming responsibility) is that of a smiley-face balloon. You will find the irony in the way 'smile' has connotations of happiness and joy yet we are using it in a completely contrasting way.

Target Audience:

16 years and older as the content may be too mature and scary for a younger audience (serial killer, the twist of turning something childish into something sinister).

Institutional/genre conventions to be included:

• symbolism/iconography: The yellow balloon is being used in a contrasting, ironic way to what it would usually be used in, it symbolises the discomfort the killer brings as he flips an innocent, childish object into his own 'toy' used for something much darker. The costumes of both characters will also be symbolic as the victim will be wearing white to show their purity and innocence whereas the killer will be wearing full black to show his inner darkness and how he's fully submerged in who he is.
• irony: Child-like concepts and objects are being used in a way that they were never intended for; for example the balloon and the dialogue of "smile". This irony will cause unease and discomfort among the audience.
• sound: Diegetic sounds will be heard in the beginning as the victim packs up his things which will make it seem like all is normal and nothing bad could happen. This will slowly change into a non-diegetic sound as intense music will begin to fade into the scene; this will give the audience a sense of discomfort as they begin to think 'what's going to happen next?'. The pace of the non-diegetic music will reach it's climax during the chase scene so that adrenaline can be felt among the audience.
• lighting: We plan to primarily use moonlight to give off an eerie mood and even more to the suspense and scariness of the scene.
• silhouette/shadow: This will occur at the beginning before the killer is revealed to the audience to make them aware and curious of what could be before they fully know. This adds to the suspension.
• narrative: The narrative of the scene itself will cause discomfort and unease as it's about murder. There are moods of suspense and unawareness which link to that thriller type genre. At some points we will film from the character's perspectives which will create fear within the audience as we can almost feel what the characters could be feeling. For example towards the end the camera is in the point of view of the victim as they look up to the killer; this automatically will create fear as the audience are in the same position as the victim.

Plot Synopsis:

The scene will begin with a medium close up shot of the victim packing up his belongings at an office as he finishes for a day at work. It's obvious that he will be the one closing up and there is no one else there as there will be no extras and there will be low level lighting. There will then be a diegetic sound as his phone will ding as he receives a text message. The audience will be able to read this through an over-the-shoulder text. The text will read "You're dead." Alarmed; the victim will look around frantically and begin packing up more chaotically to leave as soon possible. This will be shown through a mix of close up and mid shots. The silhouette of the killer will then be shown through a close up as we don't want too much revealed of the killer just yet. We will then have our match on action shot as the victim leaves the office through the door, the killer will then be revealed as the audience will experience seeing them in full attire the same time the victim does. This links to feeling the same feelings the character does. The chase scene will then begin which will contain a variety of close up and mid shots with a hand held camera and quick cuts. This adds to the chaos of the scene and the built up tension. Eventually the victim will be pinned down by the killer and the murder will take place. The audience will be left with a dead, bloody victim and an oddly terrifying balloon. This end scene will contain camera racking as we are slowly revealing different elements one by one.

technical considerations of how to balance the climax and resolution:

• Smooth shots preferably using the tripod when we want an eerie, quiet atmosphere in order to build suspension. The smooth shots will almost create comfort for the audience yet fear as they can sense something is about to happen.
• Hand held shaky shots during intense moments like the chase scene. This will increase the audience's adrenaline.

character's and names:

• Victim (jack): The name Jack resembles the very much basic character that he is. The victim doesn't add too much importance to the whole storyline of the film but is a great way to show more information in this opening scene. He shows the audience what the killer is actually capable of but also reveals to the audience how the killer can have some link to a smiley face. Although not important in the grand scheme of things he adds many layers to this first scene. He is a good, innocent person who just so happens to get caught up in the serial killer's evil agenda. He works a casual office job which we can see him packing up from at the beginning of the scene. His character represents light and innocence in this scene and shows the great depth of evilness the killer will endure as the movie has only just began and we have already witnessed a murder. This character is almost in a way like an accessory for the killer so that he can show off his abilities. Jack will be wearing light clothing to symbolise his purity, his face will be clearly seen and not in the shadows.

• Serial Killer (smiley-face killer): The name 'smiley-face killer' is the serial killer's notorious name in which everyone knows him for. He is a dark, evil character who has no remorse for his victim's and almost gets a 'high' out of killing. His murders are a game for him that likes playing with the police. This is why he always leave the balloon at the scene of the crime because he knows the police will know who it is but they will never find him. At this opening scene the killer is already well known by many so this is the reason for the victim to feel so frightened when he sees the text message. The opening scene, once again is a great way to inform the audience of who he may be as they won't know much. The killer will wear all black to represent his darkness that he has fully embraced. His first appearance is that of a silhouette which is actually symbolic of how he lingers in darkness. 

Practicalities of filming/content:

• Our idea is somewhat realistic as there have been and still are many serial killers. Many serial killers do leave calling cards for the police as they find it fun. Although some killers realistically have motives and our killer doesn't really seem to have a motive, this is still realistic as some people kill simply just because they want to and they don't have real emotion.
• A safety issue could occur as we are using a real knife but precautions will be taken so that no harm is caused; such as only using the knife when it's needed. There is only one scene which involves this knife and will not come close to any actors when being used. We will also make sure and brief the actor who is using the knife to do so responsibly.
• Filming at our school/church as its our first preliminary task. No permission is needed, we have already received the green light from our teacher and have to access to other parts of the building. We will mostly be filming outside anyways.
• We are filming on Thursday night beginning at 8:00 to get our few shots inside and by the time we film outside the sun would have set and there will be a darker atmosphere which we are going for. There will also be no people around at this time.
• The weather is meant to be fine with no rain. If it were to change we would film under our school block which still gives the same mood that we were going for as it's an empty carpark.
• We will be using a sony xd camera, memory card, tripod, fleccie, the lights, audio equipment (boom, boom pole, microphone, cables).