2. Location
We decided to use a lift as our main
location because we felt it fitted well with
the thriller genre as well as tying in well
with the storyline we have decided to use
and the action involved. We also thought
that it would add to the tension of our story
and create a realistic feel to our opening
sequence and make the audience actually
believe in what they are watching. Because
lifts are rarely used in this genre, it will give
the opening sequence a slight twist as the
audience won’t expect to see not only a lift
but that being the only location used
creating a uneasy atmosphere and forcing
them to think about what is happening as
the sequence progresses.
3. Costume- Character 1
The first character seen in the
sequence is a businessman so the
outfit we have chosen are grey
trousers, brown shoes and a
briefcase. Because the camera will
only show the bottom half of the
character, the top half of the outfit
won’t be seen. We decided to have
a businessman as it gives the lift a
reason to be there, in this case, the
lift is in an office, shown by the fact
a person in business ware is going
into it. We have also included the
briefcase to signify the suspicion of
the character and to make the
audience wonder were he is going/
what he is going to do.
4. Costume- Character 2
The second character will also be working in
is also a businesswoman. We chose the black
heels as they are the stereotypically feminine
shoes that women typically wear in the office
scene. The phone will be used to show that
she is successful and in a high position within
her work, it will also have loads of messages
on the home screen to show her popularity
and how in demand she is throughout the
day. We decided to put her in a red skirt to
connotate the danger she is about to put
herself in, without her knowledge, however, it
will be clear to the audience that something
bad is going to happen to her.
5. Costume- Character 3
The third character will have a clear
difference regarding who they are compared
to the first 2 characters. This character is an
average person who has no clear reason to
be in the office. Because of this, we have
decided to have them dressed in everyday
jeans with casual trainers and a newspaper.
The reason we have decided to use this type
of clothing to to set a obvious difference
between this character and the two business
people, essentially making the audience
question why he is there and what he is
doing, as he looks out of place in the
location. This will make him look suspicious
and somewhat dangerous, giving the
audience the idea that he is going to be
responsible to anything bad that may
happen.
6. Costume- Character 4
The fourth character in the sequence is a
security guard. We chose all black clothing
and a torch to show this occupation and
give the audience a sense of safety,
however, making them aware that
something is happening as he is there for a
reason. The boots will be a major part of
the character, as it gives him a sense of
power, making him seem like the
protagonist of the sequence. The torch will
also give him the felling of being the
authority figure who is capable of
preventing anything bad from happening,
putting the audience at a possible false
sense of security and potentially making
them think that nothing bad will happen.
7. Costume-mysterious stranger
The last character to be shown in the sequence
will be a mysterious stranger. The character being
all dressed will evoke a sense of mystery to the
audience, this will show the audience that this
character is shady immediately making them
suspicious of him. The character will be dressed
smartly showing their status to the audience of
being well-off. The character will have a coat on
above al their other clothes, giving the audience
the sense their hiding something. The character
will also not be holding any item like the other
characters further telling the audience there is
something off about this person making the scene
more tense.
8. Hair and make up.
Only the lady in the red dress will have subtle make up on, as business women are often forced to wear some form
of make up, as a way society has conditioned them. She will only have subtle make up such as lip stick and maybe
minimalistic eye shadow.
The majority of the characters will have smart and formal hair to better reflect their back grounds, the Business
man will have smart hair due to his job and position requirements that he fits a certain look.
The security guard will have slightly smart hair style due to his occupation however the scene is set in the late day
so his hair will be a bit messy due to the stress of the job and him running his hands through it.
The business lady will also fall into the same criteria as the business man as they likely share a similar position in
their occupation so her hair will have to look presentable.
The character in the more casual clothes will have a more casual and less formal haircut to better represent his life
style and position in the social class, which reflects his power in the scene and makes them stand out to the
audience.
The mysterious stranger will have more formal hair that makes him appear smart and official to the audience which
represents his class and social stature.
9. Actors
Character 1- Martin- Aaron
Character 2- Debra- Nicole
Character 3- Samson- Josh
Character 4- Alex- Ella
Character 5- Mystery person- Harry
10. Martin- Aaron
We chose Aaron to play the part of the businessman as
he can present himself in a manner that would be
suitable for the character’s occupation and social
standing.
We did not choose Josh to play the part because he can
not present himself in as serious enough manner that
this character requires
11. Samson- Josh
We chose Josh to play this part because we felt
that he would suit the image of the security
guard as he is not as serious but can still give off
a sense of authority when needed, fitting well
with the role he is playing.
12. Debra-Nicole
We chose Nicole to play the role of Debra as ,like Aaron, she
can give off as serious and commanding tone to some while
being gentle and kind to others. The way she presents
herself also reflect this.
13. Alex- Ella
Ella will be playing the role of Alex as she fits
the image of what we had envision for them as
she can present herself in a casual manner
while also appearing slightly suspicious to the
audience.
14. Mystery Person- Harry
We decided to have Harry playing this role as we felt he
fitted well with the profile that we imagined the
character having. We also thought that he would
portray this character well as he is tall and can give off a
untrustworthy and ominous atmosphere to the opening
sequence.
15. Lighting
As we are using a lift, lighting will be fairly
bright and contrasted by the natural light
coming in through the skylights nearby this
will a mix of both light and dark. While low
key lighting would have created a spooky
atmosphere, this would have made it clear
to the audience that something was wrong
as low key lighting is a typical convention of
thriller when something bad is about to
happen. By having the lighting fairly bright
on the characters, this will create a false
sense of security for the audience as they
may not expect something bad to happen as
it is not given away by the use of lighting.
