OCD

In our opening we have considered giving the villan OCD. His OCD would give an explanation for the obbsessive thoughts he has about a woman and his OCD could play a major part in the meis-en-scene of the opening. Before shooting we have decided to research OCD so that we can undersatnd the condition better, which will hopefully help us create a charcter who you would believe to have OCD more. The more convincing his OCD is the more impact it has on the film. The research has also given us ideas on how to arrange the scenes and it gives us a greater insight into the antagonists mind.

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD).

OCD is repetitive obsessions or compulsions, which cause anxiety.

Obsessions are thoughts and feelings which cause distreess. Examples of this include:

• Checking if doors are locked.
• Checking repeatedly weather appliances are switched on.
• Intrusive thoughts or images.
• Intense fear of making mistakes.
• Order and arrangement of objects.
• Repeating words and phrases.

Compulsion are compulsive behaviour which counter acts the anxiety which your obsessions cause. Examples of this include:

• Handwashing.
• Touching.
• Counting.
• Arranging objects.
• Doing things is a certain way all the time.
• Checking things are safe.
• Continuously making sure dangerous objects are put away i.e. kitchen knives.
• Hording objects.
• Asking others for reassurance.

OCD can cause people to feel stressed, anxious, guilty and even depressed. OCD is very time consuming and therefore takes you away from you away from a normal work and family life. OCD can out great emotional starin on your life.

The only way OCD sufferers can relieve themselves of anxiety is by carrying out their rituals. In most cases if people cannot carry out their rituals it just causes increased anxiety but in more extreme cases of OCD not being allowed to carry out their rituals can cause pyschotic episiodes.

The difference between someone with OCD and everyone else is that other people have the right and wrong way to do things, although they are open to changing their method, yet people with OCD are much more rigid in their methods of doing something. e.g. if a person with OCD loaded a dishwasher the 'wrong' way, an OCD suffer would have to reload the dishes in the 'right' way and wash them all over again, as they need things done in a certain way.

After all the research we have decided to use the different aspects that we have discovered to help build our OCD charcter and help build the mies-en-scene. In our opening we have paid perticular attention to the charcters obsessive thoughts, intrusive images (The stalker has a board full of pictures with the girl he loves). We have also focused on the fact he is obsessive with the idea he has a fear of making mistakes and rejection, which is the reason for him not asking the girl he has known for so long, out before this point. With the compulsions we have adopted the idea that the charcter has to check things a certain amount of time and the fact he has different images and belongings of the girl, shows he is a horder. We have taken inspiration from the film 'American Psycho' for this aspect of the film

By Chloe Barnham

The Preliminary task

Posted by Rahul, Chloe, Charlotte and Sadaq

After filming our preliminary task, we have learnt alot about the pre-production and production process. We now understand just how difficult it is to ensure continuity throughout filming, taking into account camera angles, camera shots and position, whilst also ensuring the characters, mise en scene and setting remain the same, with no errors, throughout the filming process. Every aspect of filming needs to be controlled in order to prevent disruption to the continuity.

We also learnt about the need for thorough planning. For this task, we completed a short storyboard and script, so as to make sure everyone knew exactly what needed to be done during the filming process, and that mistakes could be avoided. There was also limited time to film, and so reducing mistakes helped us work in a time-efficient manner.

Editing the film was also a new experience for us, and proved quite enjoyable as we experimented with different transitions, titles and other effects.

After completing the film, we have noted that there are areas in which we need to improve on before planning for our final film. In the future, we need to make sure that the mise-en-scene is planned in advance, and that any props we need are available to us. This should reduce the overall time taken to complete filming. Our new knowledge and experience using a camera, and finding the correct positioning in order to establsh continuity, should enable us to produce an effective, continuous film for our coursework.

Posted By Rahul Bissoonauth

Questionaire

What is your favourite thriller movie and what was it that you liked about it?
The most popular choice to emerge from these results was The Godfather. Many people seemed to like it as it crossed audiences, for example the romance aspect in the film made it more appealing to women. Another popular film to come out of the results was pulp fiction. This was a popular choice because it used humour, whilst still being a thriller and it was also a very unique plot that is so unlike other thrillers. Silence of the Lambs was also a popular choice, mainly because they found the main character so scary.

From 1-6 (1being the highest and 6 being the lowest) which thriller sub-genre do you prefer?
1. Psychological thriller
2. Thriller of acquired identity.
3. The thriller of murderous passion.
4. The political thriller.
5. Morale confrontation.
6. Innocent-on-the-run

Do you prefer the plot to keep to a liner or non-liner narrative?
Non-Liner: 18 Liner: 12

Do you think that the plot should mean the hero wins at the end of the film?
Yes- 28 No- 2

Do you think that the plot is more effective when set in an everyday location?
Yes- 17 No-13

What role do you think costume plays in a movie?
Very important -4
Important- 11
Unimportant - 9
Very unimportant-6

Do you think that props play an important role?
Yes-20 No- 10

Do you like twists in the story?
Yes-24 No- 6

Do you think sound effects add to the tension in a movie?
Yes-19 No-11

What actors do you associate with thrillers?
Al Picino
Antony Hopkins
Tom Cruise
Shia LaBouf

Posted by Chloe and Charlotte

Influences

The film that has inspired us the most in the making of our opening is 'Seven', starring Brad Pitt and Morgan Freeman. The main aspect that we have taken from the film is the idea of taking lots of different clips and then creating a montage of the clips. The film has also inspired us with the lighting, as the start of the film is very dark and the only colours are black, white and red. This has particular inspired us for the scenes showing the stalker gathering together there pictures of the person he is stalking.
Other influences included, 'Secret Window' as this film shows a writer tracking down a man who believes that a man has plagerised his work. This film is about some one aquring the identy of somebody else, which is exactly what we have chosen to do in our film. This film hyas made use think about how our story could develop, for example we think the film could go on to the antagonist being in the protagonists house.



Posted by Chloe