2. Main Protagonist: ‘Tom’
The main character featured in our opening sequence is a 17 year old
Caucasian boy, with short dirty blonde hair and of an average build. We chose
this profile to allow the target audience to relate, as we found the demographic
most likely to watch a Disaster Thriller like ours to be in their late teens to mid
twenties, and a male protagonist is a common convention. The character of
‘Tom’ will be played by Thomas McGrath, a member of our group. We chose
him not only because of the convenience, but because he fits the image of an
average late teenage boy.
Costume
We envisioned ‘Tom’ to be dressed in scruffy clothes
and a hoodie to give him a grimy urban feel and reflect
the time period in which the film is set. The actor will
be bring his own clothes from home: a pair of scruffy
jeans, plain black pull-over hoodie, and rough looking
working boots. The lack of colour in his outfit will
ensure that all attention is on his actions and
expressions, and the hoodie over his head will
preserve his identity until his first close up shot,
keeping the audience questioning.
3. Main Antagonist: Doctor Argon
‘Doctor Argon’ is the inventor of the drug that causes the initial disaster and spurs the
story line, in the potential film after the title sequence the audience will meet him again as
a flesh eating drug addict and recognise him from the opening sequence, clarifying his
character. By doing this we will be creating a complex character with a back story as to
why he is the way he is, a common convention of Thriller antagonists. He is from an
educated background and his demise into evil and insanity adds a certain dark
philosophical twist to the film, showing that there is the potential for such in
everybody, and this adds depth to the film. The character of ‘Doctor Argon’ is in his 30’s
and of a tall build, initially intended to have short brown hair. However, we found that
under our circumstances we could not find a 30 year old actor with brown hair, and so
used a fellow college student who suited our alternative vision. Played by Daniel
Caswell, he is tall with neat dark blonde hair and a cleanly shaved recognizable face. The
actor is 17, but with the costume he can pass for late 20’s to early 30’s, and so we feel
confident with the character of ‘Doctor Argon’.
Costume
‘Doctor Argon’ will be wearing the actors own
glasses to portray him as a stereotypical
professor, along with a lab coat provided by the
science department. His bottom half will not be
in shot so it does not need to be taken into
consideration.
4. News Reporter/Interviewer 1
During the opening sequence we will show a series of news reports
and one interview with Doctor Argon, using two reporters. The first
reporter will be played by myself, as I could fit the image of a news
reporter. I am of average height with blonde hair and a fringe, and a
thin frame.
Costume
I will have my hair tied up and be
wearing my own glasses, to present
me as educated. I will be wearing a
smart satin top of my own to abide by
the expected appearance of a news
reporter, and show that the drama has
not yet taken place.
5. News Reporter 2
The second news reporter will be played by Kenny Musa, the third
member of our group, both for convenience and for her acting skills.
She is tall with black and red hair tied back in a neat pony tail.
Costume
The actress will be neat and well presented, wearing a black top and a
blazer of her own to portray the character of a news reporter. She
intends to wear minimal make-up and dress plainly so as to not
distract the audience from the dialogue.
6. Minor Protagonist: Paul
‘Paul’ is a tall, strongly built male in his early twenties, and serves as an
almost ‘side-kick’ character to ‘Tom’. They do not meet in the title
sequence, instead showing brief clips of each of them separately with the
main focus on ‘Tom’, so that later on in the potential film when they finally do
meet the audience have already been introduced to him. The character of
‘Paul’ will be played by Kevin Darkwah, the final member of our group. This is
because he possesses the characteristics we envisioned ‘Paul’ to have, and
we know he will take the role seriously.
Costume
‘Paul’ will be dressed in similar, scruffy monotone clothes like ‘Tom’, and so the
actor will be wearing his own plain jeans and a black hooded parka to preserve
his identity as mysterious until when relevant.
7. Extra Antagonists: The Cannibals
‘The Cannibals’ are the general antagonists of the film:
addicts to ‘Doctor Argon’s’ drug and savage flesh
eaters, they drive many of the conflict scenes in the
potential film. During our title sequence, several shots of
‘The Cannibals’ will be shown to give the audience a
sense of what the film will be about and create the action
filled tense atmosphere Thrillers normally possess.
Collectively we will only need five actors, played by
personal friends Niamh O’Mahoney, Daniel
Caswell, Daniel Mackay, Callum Canes and Ryan Benson.
We chose these actors as they are diverse in appearance
and height, making them suitable ‘extras’.
Costume
The characters of ‘The Cannibals’ will be wearing scruffy clothes provided by themselves.
Niamh will be wearing plain jeans and a white t-shirt with blood stains on it, Ryan baggy jeans
with a grey hoodie, Callum a navy hoodie and beige chinos, Daniel Mackay a grey blood
stained hoodie and scruffy chinos, and Daniel Caswell black jeans and a navy and white
hoodie. The neutral colours create a lonely, uncomfortable atmosphere surrounding them,
whilst the jeans and hoodies show them as intimidating and scruffy (appropriate for the
ravaged disaster struck setting), at the same time as reminding the audience that the film is set
in the present with an urban twist. We chose not to dress them too raggedly to clarify that they
are not ‘zombies’, but in fact live cannibalistic people, with no special make-up. We will
however, put fake blood on their faces around their mouths to illustrate that they are cannibals.
8. Props
• Needles: We have included several shots of needles in our opening sequence to
illustrate the drug use that drives the storyline, and so they are important props. My
Mother is a nurse, and so we were able to acquire two syringes with detachable
needles and safety caps. We intend to remove the needle from the syringe to film a
shot of ‘Tom’ injecting himself in a realistic manner with no damage to personal
safety, in order to shock and gain the audiences attention. We will construct a risk
assessment before filming to ensure that they pose no danger.
• Fake Guns: We plan on including fake guns in our opening sequence to add a
sinister twist and a ‘survival’ atmosphere, moreover they are a common conventional
prop in Thriller films. I own one red BB gun and one plastic shot gun, and we shall
use these in filming before editing the footage to appear more realistic.
• Fake Blood: Fake blood will be spilt on the ground for certain shots, used to fill the
needles, splatter clothing and be applied on ‘The Cannibals’ for effect. I plan on
making some home made blood from syrup, food colouring and chocolate sauce, but
as a back up Kevin will be bringing a bottle of tomato ketchup from home.
• Bandages: Bandages will be used for a close up shot of a ‘Cannibal’s’ arm, to
illustrate their drug use to the audience, and there will also be a shot of some
bandages left on the floor coated in blood. We will only need one roll of bandages,
which will be supplied by my Mother.
