Writing my CCR

  I've run into a slight roadblock with my CCR. I know what questions to answer, and generally how to phrase them, but I'm finding it difficult to put my exact thoughts to paper. Which is very frustrating, because I'm so close to being done. I think what I have to do is take a step back, and try to reanalyze my finished products. Ask myself why I made each decision, and make sure that my actual reasoning is sound. Because, after all, if I can't convince myself, how am I supposed to convince the grader?
  Currently, I am about 1/3 of the way through my CCR script, but I think I can most likely power through and get it done this weekend, hopefully. I also need to get started on the essay portion of the project, which truthfully, I haven't even looked at yet. Ah well.

Filming Time

So, as on schedule, I finally filmed today. So grateful to have that out of the way. And not only out of the way, but quality as well. Well, as quality as my idea will allow. Granted, it looks like someone's phone recording them from the back camera. That's because it is. But this falls in line with the genre that I had already chosen, and the storyline I went with. So I'm overall happy with the way the footage turned out. Luckily for me, there will be minimal editing involved asides from putting the credits over the footage. This is because it is meant to look like a home video, all in one long shot, so there's overall little for me to put together. So, I'm going to start soon on my CCR, and for that, I've decided to do a podcast, and I will record that once the script is written. Until next time, y'all.

Peer Review 2: The Quickening

So, we had another peer review session a few days ago during 4th period. Mrs. Marchetti took us to the Wave (bougie media center) for a frankly nice change of scenery. We all grouped up, but I made sure to get with a completely different group of people, hoping to glean some exciting insights from fresh new minds. Didn't happen. Frankly, it was sort of a wash. We went around the table, talking about our progress, our ideas, what was working and what wasn't while giving helpful, constructive criticism. Until it got to me. My group members are really nice people, and I'm sure they didn't mean it, but when I presented my idea, everyone just kinda nodded their heads, said it "sounded good", and then moved on. Which I guess I could interpret to mean that it is functionally perfect. And any world where an idea of mine is functionally perfect is one in which I want to live. Sadly though, we don't live in that world, and I know my idea isn't perfect, but I didn't receive many helpful hints anyway. Ah well, guess I have to just keep on trucking.

Delays

So, I've encountered a slight issue. I won't be able to film this weekend as planned. That's because I'm going on a cruise for spring break, which nobody told me about but everyone assumed I knew about. So ah well. No use crying over spilled milk. But that does mean that I need to find a new time for filming. Luckily for me, this is spring break, so I have a wealth of open time slots available. I want the filming to happen sometime at night because, in cheap movies, day-for-night always looks laughable and extremely out of place. Based on my schedule of homework and other obligations, I've decided that the best time to film is Wednesday night. This gives me enough time to edit the film for the rest of the break and also doesn't conflict with anyone else's schedule. So, I'll pick up again then, and really get started on my masterpiece. Which I still need to name.

Finding A Leading Lady, and Creepy Guy Too

Okay, so this is actually the easy part. Casting for this is simply a piece of cake. First of all, I'm the killer. So there's that. Simply put, I chose myself because I trust myself. I know how I want to move, how I want to stand, how I want to look. So it only makes the most sense. I'm able to be both director and actor because of how I've set up my idea. The entire opening takes place from the perspective of a phone camera propped up on the desk. That means that I don't have to be the cameraman, or focus on how the shots are coming out at the moment. As for the college girl, the role will be played by my girlfriend Murphy. I have very good reasons for this too. She's a girl in college, and she also has access to a dorm room with no roommates. So that means we won't be interrupted, and we'll have a lot more space to film in, and we definitely won't have to deal with getting any permits to film. So, sorry Timothy Olyphant, but you'll have to audition for my next movie. All the roles in this one are taken.

Film School

It is time to start filming. Y'know, film. The entire thing this class has pretty much been based around? Yeah, that thing. And it's time to start filming because I finally have an idea for my movie. It's no longer a vague amalgamation of ideas and genres. It is an honest to God idea. I know, I'm in as much shock as you are. So, drum roll please, here's my big idea. So, what I'm going to do is have the film appear to start as a found footage Paranormal Activity kind of movie. The kind where the husband puts up a baby camera and finds some spooky stuff going on? In this one, a college student is complaining of unexplained noises in her hall at night. So, fancying herself a bit of a ghost hunter, she sets up her phone to record her while she sleeps, and catch any ghosties that might be lurking. Then, she goes to bed, and when the lights are all off, a dark figure crawls out from under her bed, scary but obviously an actual person. The movement I'm envisioning is almost bug-like, or like a crab crawling out of the sand. The figure stands over her and grabs a pillow to smother her with. Once he's done and her body is limp, he walks over to the phone on her desk and gets very close before turning it off. I like this idea for several reasons. It's a spin on the classic slasher format, and I like how the 'main' character thinks she's living in a different kind of horror movie, only to get a rude awakening. Or, I suppose, never waking up again.

Script Gang

  It has come time to write, perhaps, the most important part of any production: the script. So, just like any struggling artist, I am currently holed up in my local Starbucks, my laptop in front of me, and full fat, whipped cream, caramel macchiato in my hand. And so far... I have nothing.
  Actually, weirdly enough, this is working out. Because I don't actually need a script script. Words, dialogue, it's all superfluous, not necessary if I really want to get some screams. That's because, in a horror movie, and definitely in a horror movie opening, no one needs to say anything at all. In fact, this becomes the perfect place to show off my soundtrack, my visual style, and most importantly to the slasher genre, murder. Because watching a slasher flick with no body count is like having a low-fat caramel macchiato. It's there, but its missing the oomph that makes it oh so good.

Planning

It is now time to get to the nitty-gritty of this project. The actual film I'm making. I have decided on a few important things. First, I want my film to begin in a college dorm room. I feel like this location is one that can definitely be milked for spookiness, and I have access to one, so that helps. Additionally, I want it to be an ode to the horror movies of the past. Nothing should be revealed yet, not the killer,  not the main character, the opening of a horror movie is always someone getting killed in what turns out to be the killers signature style, and my 'main character'  die, without so much as an explanation as to why. This is all pretty standard stuff, but I want to inject this with my own brand of humor, perhaps with an unusually genre savvy killer or first kill. Or smaller touches, like sarcastic satire, relating to some message that I manage to squeeze in there.

Color Me Surprised

 One thing that I need to figure out is how my film is going to look. Color is one of the most important aspects of any film's general "feeling", but this is often underrated in horror. When you ask a layman (in this case, my Dad), horror color schemes consist of "dark".  However, there is a lot that is under the surface. Granted, it's still probably dark. But in my research, I've come across many interesting ways to use color more effectively. Rather than use the usual complementary colors, like the blue and orange that adorned a truly sickening amount of thrillers in the 2000s, I want to go for something a bit more...contrast-y. And I'll do that, primarily, through contrast. Fascinating, I know. 

  Contrast does something weird to our brains. Generally, "Hey! Those things don't match!". And our brains, like my mother when I would dress myself as a child, hate it when things don't match. Therefore, this contrast generally makes an audience feel unease. Something that I definitely wanna exploit as I make my horror movie. The use of color can be especially powerful, and almost none are more evocative than red. The color of blood, lust, and saffron sets our psyche alight, and communicates the immediacy and urgency of the danger my really stupid characters are in. Thus, I would use stark contrast in, and emphasize the use of red to get the tone of the mise en scene right.

Peer Review Hours

 So, today, we were told to get into groups of around five people, and made to bounce ideas off of each other. Which made me realize how unformed my own ideas were. Other people are out here with whole concepts for movies, and all I know is "slasher movie with cool music". Therefore, in an attempt to talk my way out of embarrassment, I quickly came up with an idea. Which I actually kinda like. Thanks, Brain! Basically, I have envisioned something in the same vein as Scream, a subversive, irreverent take on the slasher genre. This would allow me to not adhere to the genre characteristics that I find so blase (ha) while letting me tap into the humor I originally wanted to explore. Generally, I'd like to avoid the fate of the terrible Scary Movie series, and movies like it, with hackneyed and gross out humor replacing any actual forethought or planning or hint of originality. Actually, knowing me, it's probably gonna end up that way. But, here's hoping. 

Subgenre

Honestly, I'm quite conflicted. There are a lot of decisions that I need to make, and soon. I need a fully developed, well researched, and professional film opening in less than 6 weeks. I can barely decide what I want for lunch (when the cafeteria has literally two choices), much less the big picture of a project I need to send all the way to England. ENGLAND! Do you know how far that is? Granted, probably much closer for you, Cambridge Grader, but nevertheless, it is more than a little nerve-wracking for me. Because, even though I've settled on horror, that doesn't help me much. Because horror is such a ridiculously wide genre that it's nearly impossible to choose. Going down a very shortened list, we have:
-Action Horror
-Body Horror
-Comedy Horror
-Holiday Horror
-Horror Adventure
-Horror Drama
-Low-Budget Horror
-Psychological Horror
-Slasher Film
-Splatter Film
-Supernatural Horror
-Horror Thriller
and, just so, so many more. So how am I supposed to narrow this down? Well, there are certain factors I need to take into account. First, how much can I, as a high school student with chronically low funds, do. That eliminates some of the genres, such as those that would require more extensive special effects, sets, and technology. Further, I need to find a genre in which I can easily portray most of the genre characteristics in the scant two minutes I have. Additionally, it needs to be something I really enjoy. At this point, I'm a senior. I'm not going to spend time on something I have no interest in, just to get a grade. Therefore, for me, the most obvious answer I see is a slasher film, due to the relatively low budget, the abundance of tropes to choose from, and the fact that it is one of my favorite subgenres of horror.

Breaking Trends and Taking Names

 Generally, horror movies are very trope-y. Very very trope-y. According to Merriam Webster, a trope is, "a common or overused theme or device". And boy, do horror movies relish in them. From the jump scare that is a staple of the genre, shown in films such as IT (2017), Alien (1979), and The Conjuring 2 (2016), to the final girl trope in films like Scream (1996) and Halloween (1979), it is definitely not a genre defined by its originality. Because of this, it is imperative, more than in other genres, that I lean into the genre characteristics more. That includes putting in some very cliche things, such as the a dark and spooky setting, or musical cues that get louder and louder before cutting out. Obviously, I won't have much time to develop other tropes, like "Sex Means Death", or the "Killer in the Basement", but some more easily created ones might be easier to pull off.