For a short task in lesson, a classmate and I worked together to produce a brief scene to test out implementing things we had learned from the lesson, such as the Bomb Theory: a method of creating suspense in a scene by showing the audience the impending danger and building anticipation.

In our practical session, I worked in a group with 3 of my classmates to film a short scene using a variety of different shot types and movements. We collaborated on an idea for what to film, and we each took the responsibility of filming 2 shots each and deciding what to do with them. I feel like this turned out well, but next time I should consider continuity more heavily to ensure that my shots line up in a way that makes sense.

In our practical session, two of my classmates and I worked together to recreate a few shots using the 180 Degree Rule and varying DoF.

• Piano music sets a somber scene along with the shots of the house. It seems simple and normal, a family moving into a new house, then shown Blumhouse logo, you know your being misled but you dont know how

• Joyous feeling family jumping into the pool and smiling, then the sudden switch to night time - Juxtaposition

• Sound effect like breathing

• Shots under the water from something elses pov

• Sound effect as she dives into darkness 

• Quiet as she calls out before a sudden sound effect as shes dragged underwater

• The bubbles across the screen from her movement creates a frantic feeling of desperation

• How much the audience knows - here, we know that shes alone in the pool but she doesnt

• Slow paced

• Positioning in frame, small and off center, vulnerable and not in control

Suspense - A state or feeling of excited or anxious uncertainty

Misery - What Have You Been Doing? Scene notes:

• Cuts back and forth between him and her approaching the door

• Close up on his face, you see the distress and desperation

• The fumbling with the hair pin shows stress and desperation, then we see a shot of her again and wonder if he will make it

• Shot of her footsteps, makes her feel more threatening

• Paralleled with him in the wheelchair, again it demonstrates the power dynamic 

• She drops the paper and has to stop to pick it up, this draws the scene out and leaves you waiting for what happens next 

• The audio stings build anxiety and fear

• The distant sound of the car coming closer then the shot of him crawling across the floor gives a sense of the danger

• The parallel of her going to unlock the door, then seeing him picking a lock, then back to her with a key - shes clearly in control and has more power, building the fear for him

• The dialogue, the way she talks is just eerie. It goes from being quite casual to very formal “you’re dripping with perspiration. You’re collar is very hectic. What have you been doing?” you feel like hes been caught ad gives a sense of dread

• Wide shot shows us theyre isolated

• The continuity system is a set of rules that help to keep a film looking consistent and appealing to the eye

• The 180 degree rule - this is when the cameras are kept on one side of a “line” that connects the two subjects of the scene so that different angled shots still fit together properly

• Cross-cutting can be used to show two things that are happening simultaneously but in different locations

• I’m interested in the POV shot, as well as cross-cutting together, as they could be used in an interesting way to show an approach of something. 

• I would like to try making use of cross-cutting as a way to implement a slow reveal and build anxiety in my work. I also want to use the 30 degree rule to keep my scene appealing visually and appearing natural. 

Link 2 Notes -  https://www.nfi.edu/types-of-film-shots/ 

• Dutch angle/tilted frame can be used to visually represent that something is off/wrong. Good for foreshadowing.

• An establishing shot is a long shot, usually at the start of a scene, and is used to show the viewer the setting and allow them to understand where the characters are.

• When the subject of a shot takes up the whole shot, from head to toe, its called a “full shot”.

• I feel like combining a zoom with dolly shot to make a dolly zoom would be effective for creating an intense feeling in a scene.

• I would like to try to incorporate a dutch angle shot into my work as I like the way it visualizes unease. 

Link 3 Notes -  https://photographylife.com/what-is-depth-of-field 

• The shorter the distance between the camera and the subject, the smaller the depth of field, and vice versa.

• Wide angle lenses have a deeper depth of field

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• Maybe having a shot with a shallow depth of field focused on a character, with another character approaching in the unsharp area of the shot. The blurred figure would cause unease and suspense.

What techniques used for suspense

• The long continued panning shot makes you anticipate something being revealed

• Slow zoom on something far away

• Sound effects crackling, disturbing 

• The sound of the girls fast paced footsteps as she walks out - the repetitive sound builds anxiety

• The camera tracks the girl as she walks away, shes being followed

• Long lingering shots 

• Seeing through the window - pov sot from the girl - puts you in the situation and makes you feel her growing fear at the approach

How did the characters actions contribute

• Girl is fidgeting, then looks out window and suddenly freezes. You begin to think about what shes seen

• Fidgeting starts again as it cuts back to her, shes feeling scared

• The teacher is talking, classmate looks at her and sees her reaction, but no one else sees anything wrong. Is the danger real?

• Theres no chasing or running, just a slow approach

Moment that stood out as particularly suspenseful

• The woman walking towards the girl in the hallway. Regular horror conventions leave you expecting an attack of some sort, despite nothing happening

Id like to try using POV shots to put the viewer into the scene. I also enjoy the idea of subverting expectations with horror conventions to build more suspense.

The scene opens up with an establishing shot of the building, which reveals the isolated location. We see Freddie Lounds, the subject of the scene walk into frame, paired with an off putting pattern of drum hits. This immediately creates a sense of unease in the audience, subtly informing them that something is wrong. The camera tracks Freddie from behind or the side as she approaches the building in multiple shots. The use of handheld in these shots is subtle, but leads the audience to feel like they’re seeing a POV shot, that the character we’re seeing is being watched and followed, which builds tension and suspense as the audience begins to think of what could be coming next. On the close up shot of her face, we see that Freddie’s expression holds tension and unease already, showing that she is anticipating something. Allowing the audience to focus on this aspect of the scene tells them that there is something they need to be anticipating, but what? 

We see a medium long shot from behind of Freddie entering the building, stepping into complete darkness. By not showing the inside of the building at this point, the anticipation is still being drawn out. Freddie is walking into possible danger completely blind. The camera follows behind her as she begins a slow ascent up the stairs, dragging it out and keeping up the feeling of her being followed, keeping the audience on edge. From a high angle close up, we get another look at her uneasy expression, paired with the sound of her heavy breathing as she begins to fumble to get the gun from her bag. The high angle shot shows her vulnerability, and showing her shakily retrieving the gun shows her nerves and her awareness of possible danger. As she moves into the next room, we’re given a pan/tilt shot, revealing the large empty space. It has an industrial feeling, the machinery in the room dwarfing Freddie as she enters, again pushing the feeling of vulnerability and threat. The machinery being covered with tarps also produces a sense of unknown about the space. Despite it being relatively empty and open, things are obstructed from view, creating places for possible threats. 

I really enjoy the next shot, where we get a slow reveal as the camera pulls focus across the corners of glass panes into Freddie’s face. We know that she is looking at whatever is out of shot in the glass, and from her expression tells us that it’s nothing good, yet we still don’t know. The audience’s anticipation begins to move from waiting for impending danger to seeing the reveal of the horror that has already played out. The sound effect of the beats lines up with the pulling of the focus, which creates an almost sinking or falling feeling. We see a close up shot of a small puddle, with water and faint blood dripping into it. The bottom corner of the glass pane is just slightly visible, enough for the audience to see that the blood is coming from there, but not enough to reveal what the cause of the blood is. As Freddie looks at the thing in the glass, the audience still doesn't see it but instead they get a close up of Freddie’s expression growing more shocked and horrified as she puts the gun away. This is confirmation to the audience that there is no danger, but the question is, is that really any better? The audience doesn’t get to see what Freddie is seeing at all in this scene, as theres a sudden transition using the flash of her camera into the next scene, making the audience wait.

Bullet Points:

• Establishing shot shows that its an isolated location

• The greenish colour of the shot creates an eerie feeling

• Drum hits in an off putting way, immediately creating a feeling of unease

• The camera tracks Freddie as she approaches the building, creating a feeling like shes being watched or followed - misleading 

• Close up of Freddie as she looks up at the building. Her expression shows fear and unease already. Shes anticipating something, so the audience begins anticipating something

• As she walks into the building, the entrance is in darkness - shes walking in blind into possible danger

• She begins walking up stairs, a slow ascent - this draws it out and keeps the audience on edge.

• She looks around and behind her, looking stressed. The camera is at a high angle, showing her as she gets out a gun and the sound of her heavy breathing can be heard. Shes ready to defend herself, danger is near. The high angle shot symbolises her vulnerability here

• Again, the camera follows behind her as she continues up the stairs. The camera is now a low angle from behind her, she feels more confident now with a weapon, but it still gives the feeling that shes being followed

• A pan/tilt showing the empty space. The machinery in the room dwarf her as she enters. Things are covered with tarp, creating a sense of mystery and unknown

• Slow reveal, pulling focus across the corners of the glass panes to Freddie’s face, which is showing a fearful expression. We know that whatever she is seeing is going to be bad, despite it still being off screen. The beat sound effects also line up with the focus moving onto each glass pane which creates a cool effect (not really sure how to describe it but its like a sinking sort of feeling)

• Shot of dripping water mixed with blood at the bottom of the glass panes. The source of the dripping sound that has been audible since Freddie entered the room is now revealed, but the origin is still hidden

• Her expression grows more shocked and she puts away the gun in favour of a camera. Theres no immediate danger, but whatever shes seeing is horrific.

• Camera flash transitions into the next shot is cool