CCR

Mortem Porcos (death to pigs) - Film Opening

Its finally here!!! I worked so hard on this project im so happy to see it done and complete. Enjoy!

Editing

    Editing is always my favorite part, it's so much fun. I remembered all the shots I loved the most and it took me about 4 days to fully edit and complete the project. Editing itself wasn't that challenging it took time but I enjoyed it. I realized I was going to need music so at school I asked my wonderful AICE Media teacher Mrs. Marchetti for the website known as Killer tracks so I can browse a whole bunch of copyright free music. I was searching for like a creepy piano type vibe but what I found was a good pick because it does bring out the feel of the film opening. Ultimately, I believe I probably could have found a better song but i'm not complaining because the one I chose I do like it's just not perfect. In the opening credits I give credit to the creators of the song I chose.     
    After my editing process which consisted of me sitting in class editing until my computer died and editing at home, it was time to save and export. This was the most frustrating part. For some reason everytime I would export my opening the editing program would crash right before it finished. It took me about two hours to figure out that I just needed to change the format I was exporting it in, but that definetely stressed me out and got me very frustrated. Also, the part I talked about earlier in previous posts about how I messed up filming Juan in the corner and then jumps to in front of the bed, didn't come out so bad. It took me a while to get it to look as good as I can but it came out not too bad. But, in the end I think my film opening came out wonderful and is one of my best projects I've done, and hopefully all my next projects just get better and better.

Finishing Filming

    After the bathroom scene we only had a couple more shots to shoot. At this point it's already getting darker out so we know we could do those scenes next. But, the first scene we filmed next was a shot back in the beginning which is Juan first entering the house and seeing the bedroom door open. For this scene I Googled something again, this time I looked up what policemen usually say when entering a home. We did this because I love the feeling of realism in horror. The best horror is when it relates to life because the scariest things is what's around us not what we imagine. Especially with this concept being a break-in and that could happen to anyone. So, Juan came into the house saying "This is Broward Police Department if you're in the house make yourself known." That came out great, we then filmed him walking around and I used again: medium shots and over the shoulder shots.
    After that scene, it was finally dark out so we filmed what is the closing shot of the opening: Matthew leaving. I knew exactly what I wanted for this shot and used a long shot for this one because it makes the scene feel more creepy. Just watching the murderer calmly and slowly walking away from a crime scene where he had just killed two people, it's a real and scary shot. Matthew was very cooperative and knew exactly what I was asking for so this shot came out great. We then finished the night off filming Juan first approaching the door to the apartment which is ajar. For this I used over the shoulder and relied on the rule of thirds so I had space in the shot for credits as for this is a film opening. I used the rule of thirds throughout the beginning scenes for that very reason, also because it looks great. After that Matthew left because he had finished his part and Juan only needed the last shot which was him in the car and walking away from the cop car. We used Matthews car for when Juan was in it and then when he left I cut it and we went to the cop car that usually sits outside of my building and filmed in front of it. This scene we filmed relatively quick because the cop car was sketching us out. After that Juan left and I had finished filming! It really was a fun experience and I loved making this opening.

The Bathroom scene

    The bathroom scene is definitely my favorite scene in the film. This is the scene where Juan sees an arm hanging out the tub, approaches it, and then is shockingly revealed that it is a bloody mess and he's in the middle of a disgusting crime scene. So, to create the image of a crime scene we took the fake blood spray and sprayed it all around. I wanted it to looking like he got slashed and dashed so we had spray on the walls as if it was getting all over the place. We made it more bloody in the corner of the tub because that would be where his body had been laying. Another thing we did was take off my shower curtain and replace it with just the clear plastic part of the curtain which I think adds more to the fear because it seems more real, like you're there. So we sprayed the curtain and it started dripping down which created such a cool shot! Then Matthew came up with the great idea of turning the tub on and filling it with water just a little bit and then mixing the fake blood with the water to make it more realistic in the fact that there would be blood pouring out of him if he'd been just dead laying there. The shot I could already tell was going to look so cool, I was so excited to get Matthew in the tub and start filming.
    So we continued from the last scene and I used mostly medium shots and over the shoulder shots. I used these because I want the audience to feel as if they are in the house with Juan and they are approaching the body slowly and suspensefully as he does. We took our time with this scene and I shot it multiple different times from different spots getting different reveals each time. While filming I knew exactly which shot I wanted to be the one. It wasn't even supposed to happen how it did and came out wonderful. So, I was filming the scene normally and everything was going great, I really liked it so far. Then as Juan got closer the light escaped the camera and unfocused. At first I was annoyed and almost cut the shot but Juan kept going. As he approached the body it focused and created a beautiful reveal shot that I don't know how I would have done otherwise. I really loved this scene and it came out great.
   Once I knew we got that beautiful shot and had plenty to look back on. We needed Matthew again but this time he's the killer. We had him be both because I didn't have another person and no one sees his face as the killer anyways. So, we gave Matthew time to shower and get the blood off and we cleaned up the tub. I gave Matthew my Groot mask from Guardians of the Galaxy and he wore a hoodie to cover everything else. Ultimately, you can't see the mask in the film but I had him wear it just in case. For this scene I googled what the police codes were for a murder and it turned out in California they call it a "section 187" so in the film I had Juan say "We got a 187 here, i'm gonna need backup." and then slowly Matthew appears behind him. We also had Matthew wearing gloves because a killer doesn't want his prints to get everywhere.

Filming the first scenes

    So, from the last blog post you know that we started filming the indoor scenes first before the outdoor ones because it wasn't dark yet. The first scene we filmed was Juan the cop entering my bedroom and discovering the body in the bathroom. My goal for this scene was to create suspense and a dark tone to hopefully make the audience feel the anxiety and tension of the scene. Juan was very cooperative and had some great ideas that we could incorporate into this scene, so it wasn't hard at all working with him. I filmed him entering the room from about four different shots and angles. I used close-ups, medium shots, over the shoulder shots, and a simple pan shot of him walking. I chose these shots and angles because they were the easiest shots to capture the action in the little light we had. I actually had another flashlight on besides the one Juan was using in the film to get better lighting. I didn't point the light directly at Juan because it would take away from the suspense of the scene and make it seem more fake than it was. So I had the light on but I pointed it down at and angle so we got some light on Juan but not too much to make it look phony, I actually think it came out quite naturally in this scene.
    Although this was not a perfect shoot and we did mess up a couple times. There actually is a notice able mess up in the film that I will try to cover up with editing. But, I noticed it while filming the first scene but once we got into the second I completely forgot about it due to how much fun we were having setting it up. The mess up for some won't seem like a big deal but for me it's just a little frustrating in editing. So, in the first scene I have him walk towards the chair while clearing the bedroom and the next shot would be him going to the bed and checking under it. Well we filmed him clearing the room but I forgot to film him moving away from that corner so I know in the middle of that scene there will be a jump cut from him in the corner to now next to the bed looking under it. Hopefully my editing skills come in handy and I can clean up that scene. Now that we finished the first scene; here comes the fun part. Getting Matthew bloodied up and in the bathtub.

Beginning to Film

    Today is the day! We’re going to film this project and then tomorrow I shall begin the editing process. We’re starting the day and Matthews house because we all stayed there the night before, at about 12:00 a.m. we made our way to my house. Before getting to my house we made a couple stops: first we went to the Dollar Tree to pick up a cheap and realistic toy gun that we can give to Juan for his police officer costume. The gun was a simple black gun and had an orange tip on the front to indicate that it in fact is, a toy (although I did take the tip off when we were filming).  Then, we went up to Party City and bought a bottle of fake blood spray, which is just a bottle of fake blood in a spray bottle so when we spray it it looks more realistic and spread apart.
    We wanted to start filming even though it was still light out because we wanted to start and get it over with so when it gets dark we'd only have a couple shots to shoot: Juan approaching the apartment, Matthew leaving the apartment, and the beginning scenes of Juan in the cop car. But, in order to film inside we needed to get rid of all the natural light coming in from the windows. So, for about thirty minutes to an hour Matthew, Juan and I were struggling to tape a bed sheet to the window to block the light. We tried taping my comforter but that was too heavy and kept falling down so we moved to a lighter alternative and used a bed sheet, which, didn't work either. Matthew then came up with the idea of going outside and taping the sheet from there. After about ten more minutes we realized this wouldn't work; but, my mom then came out and told us the great idea of just using a stapler. It was amazing how that idea had just slipped our minds. So, we went inside stapled the sheet and covered the window. In the film if you look closely you can see the sheet in my room blocking the light from the window.