Olivia Desanges discusses how she has improved in filmmaking techniques through her preliminary project and opening sequence. She learned to better establish continuity, properly apply the 180 degree rule, and incorporate match-on-action and shot reverse shot techniques. For her opening sequence, she experimented with different shots, angles, lighting, editing, titles and props to add mystery and meaning and better develop the thriller genre. Overall, she feels she has gained a deeper understanding of how technical elements can impact tone and storytelling.

1. QUESTION 7
Olivia Desanges

2. WHAT IS CONTINUITY AND WHY IS IT
IMPORTANT?
 Continuity is the maintenance of continuous action
over time, and is important as it would then make
sense to the audience and with no continuity then
there would be confusion and make the film look
unprofessional

3. WHAT IS THE 180 DEGREE RULE?
 It is the guideline which regards the relationship
between the characters and the camera. It is an
'invisible line' which the camera does not cross

4. OUR PRELIM USING THE 180 DEGREE RULE
We filmed the character using a low angle shot and
then the camera remained on this side of the
line/character when the character is walking out. In
our opening sequence, again, we used the 180
degree rule with a different shot to make it more
unique and interesting

5. OUR OPENING SEQUENCE USING THE180
DEGREE RULE
 In these scenes, the camera does not cross 'the
invisible line', it stays on the left side of the
character for the shots
 The camera is on the left of the characters face,
and in the next shot, remains on this side of the line
- which is beneath/opposite the characters face and
hands

6. WHAT IS MATCH ON ACTION?
 This is where the editing cuts from one shot of a
character to another shot of the character which
then matches the first shot's action

7. HOW WE USED MATCH-ON-ACTION IN OUR
PRELIM
 We showed the character from behind walking
down the corridor and then cut from the character
opening the door to being inside the room and
filming the character walking into the room.
 This is quite a typical match on action scene, and
so I feel we progressed in our opening sequence

8. HOW WE USED MATCH ON ACTION IN OUR
OPENING SEQUENCE
 This shows the character walking down the stairs, and the next shot
of the character walking to the bottom of the stairs and stopping, but
the first shot being from the characters point of view and the next
shot, the camera being in front of the character
 This is different to our preliminary task, as we have shot the prelim
with long shots and medium long shot, whereas in out opening
sequence we used more angles and shot types, and I feel I improved
as this is a slightly different way of showing match on action

9. WHAT IS SHOT REVERSE SHOT?
 This is when one character is shown looking at one
character and then the other character is shown
looking back at the first character

10. SHOT REVERSE SHOT FROM OUR PRELIM
 In our prelim we showed shot reverse shot by
having a low angle shot of one of the characters
‘talking down’ at the other, and then the second
character and then back to the other character.
 Again, this is quite a simple/typical way of showing
shot reverse shot, and is a conversation so is
normal, whereas our opening sequence is able to
use shot reverse shot to create some meaning and
mystery.

11. SHOT REVERSE SHOT IN OUR OPENING
SEQUENCE
 Here, we used shot reverse shot in a photo shoot rather than a
conversation, which is again different to our preliminary task, and I
feel I improved in this area as it is not too typical - shot of a
character, then the photographer and then back to the first character
yet is seen in a different way
 Due to different things happening, such as the shot being a medium
long shot, then a medium shot of the photographer and then a big
close up of the characters face, it allows the shot reverse shot to add
to the mystery and psychology behind our film

12. HOW HAVE I DEVELOPED WITHIN
CINEMATOGRAPHY, SHOTS, ANGLES ETC
 I have developed as I now use certain shot types to show
empowerment over other characters - such as using the
camera from the bottom of the stairs angled up to show that
character having more power, and how she is the main
character
 I also feel I have developed as in our opening, I used a worms
eye view shot which I haven't used before, and I was able to
include the different shots and angles to show as much of the
location or props, such as when we put the camera in front of
the table and did a high angle shot to include all the props,
which had could all
 I feel that with our opening, I used different type of shots to be
able to create meaning and used them to show the mystery of
our film

13. IMAGES OF HOW I HAVE IMPROVED
Using a worms eye view to show a
different perspective of the object,
and also linking this to our titles –
so emphasising this
Using a high angle shot to show
the audience what else is in the
frame – the other props and it’s
looking down at the character so
cannot see what is being written
but then this creates mystery
Our low angle shot showed this
character being the dominant one,
yet in our opening sequence we used
the high and low angle shots and
worms eye shot to show props
creating meaning

14. HOW I IMPROVED WITHIN EDITING
 Within the editing, in our prelim, no editing was used
other than cutting between speech, however no colour
editing or other transitions or music was used. So I feel I
improved by using certain editing techniques and which
helped towards creating mystery and tension. We
changed the colouring of certain frames and the way
one frame led to another, such as the end frame
finishing with a flash to lead on to the titles, so with the
colours we chose, it meant suspense and mystery
created – adding to our sub genre of our opening.
 Also, in our prelim, where we were cutting from one
frame to another, it was very jumpy and was not a clean
transaction between scenes – in a few, some start and
ends of sentences were cut off due to editing a clip too
short

15. IMAGES ON HOW I HAVE IMPROVED
I have improved by making the scene black and white which allowed
more meaning to be created, whereas in our prelim it was very simple
with not much editing on at all. I have also improved with the black and
white titles being similar to the black and white colouring we used for the
one scene.

16. HOW HAVE I IMPROVED WITHIN THE MISE-EN-
SCENE
 I feel I have improved by making sure that the lighting we used, and
the props all have something to do with our film – in our prelim, we
were located in the textiles classroom with the textiles machinery and
boards, which wasn’t as apparent to our actual film, whereas the
other locations we used for our film, and what the locations included
were apparent. For example, we used a basement which had
Christmas decorations in the corner which showed the audience how
the room wasn’t used much etc. There were more props in our film
such as what is used for developing photos, which were important for
creating the character and showing the audience who that character
is.
 Also, lighting was effective as we made the scenes darker, more
black and white than normal in our film to portray the mystery of our
thriller, whereas in our prelim we didn’t change the lighting, we kept it
the same, so we didn’t think too much about the mise-en-scene, yet
in our film we thought much more about it.

17. IMAGES ON HOW I IMPROVED
So the lighting was important to make it more dreary and more mysterious
for our film, whereas all lighting in the prelim is the same – the props and
location in our opening show more thought, and the location had props
which were important for the character’s role.

18. HOW HAVE I DEVELOPED WITH TITLES
 In the titles I have been able to use different fonts and size to create
a meaning – such as using the typewriter to make it slightly slower
and more dramatic.
 I have used colours as well to portray certain feelings – such as
using white lettering on a black background which makes it seem like
more of a darker thriller, more mysterious etc.
 The transitions into the title I have also developed on too – we used
a flash from the photographers camera to go into the titles so it links
well, is meaningful and fits the theme well
 Our titling linked well with some of the scenes which were black and
white and which were darker. So I feel I developed by linking the
titles well with other parts of the film, and to the film as a whole, such
as when we filmed the character cutting up the negative photos.

19. IMAGES ON HOW I IMPROVED
I developed, as similar to the film SE7EN, it is white writing on dark,
and black scenes and it links well to the film – SE7EN links to the
seven sins the character uses to kill people, and negatives links to the
photographer, and the scene where we filmed the negative cuttings.
So, I developed by thinking more about what the film title represents
and what the look and colouring of the title represents.

20. CONCLUSION
 I feel I have improved over the process as I have thought much more
carefully on what makes a thriller a thriller, and how this adds to our
own chosen sun-genre – how do we make our thriller a mystery
thriller. I have thought and compared our film to real films and
thought about what we don’t have that real films do – for example,
music – there are normally times of silence in real opening films to
add to tension and create that suspense right from the start; there’s
normally little if no dialogue and more shot types to emphasise the
thriller genre. For example, in Se7en, there were a range of shot
types used to show everything going on, however no dialogue was
involved, only music which created emotion. So I feel I have
improved by using features of real film in our film to fulfil the genre.
 I have also learnt about the different features of film and how they
have a huge impact on the film itself. The emotion created by sound,
the ways the colouring and titles portray a certain type of genre, how
jump-cuts can also create a certain type of emotion, and how shot
types and different angles show a character in a certain type of way –
dominant, a victim, powerful, the main character etc.

21. CONCLUSION
 I have also learnt how facial features help portray
certain characteristics of, such as our character
keeping a straight face to show little emotion and
not knowing about what’s going to happen etc, so
by thinking in detail about the small things it allows
the build up of character and it adds to the film
fitting the genre well, and I have learnt about this in
detail over the process.