Coursework Idea Four

Fourth Developed Coursework Idea
Looking at my mindmap, I opted to select three of my favourite ideas and expand on them. Out of these four (including my idea developed from a picture), I intend to select the best one with the most potential to use as my idea for my final coursework. Click here to read my second developed coursework idea and click here to read my third developed coursework idea.

My Idea So Far 
This idea focuses mainly on cinematography and editing techniques, as it's fairly slow until the end. It creates mystery, however, I wanted to make it slow and quite beautiful to erase any tension as this will be an interesting effect. The genre this idea will likely be in will be mystery/psychological thriller. I would use a non-linear narrative to reveal things to the audience at different points to maintain mystery and create shock.

Basic Plot Idea

An image I collected to help create a mood for the sequence
The city will ideally be more busy, as I don't want it to come
across scary and create insecurity in the audience. 

A man is seen stumbling through a busy city at night; he's clutching his stomach and is blatantly fatally wounded. He's stumbling past cars and people, getting blood everywhere. He keeps looking behind himself as if he's being followed - this is reinforced when a point-of-view shot is used watching the man stumble about. The man falls dramatically and looks as though he's about to lose consciousness when the speed suddenly slows to slow-motion and a narrator begins talking about what it feels like being about to die. The footage then suddenly starts reversing and he gets back up and walks backwards. It suddenly cuts to a close-up/mid shot of a woman smiling and the footage will look quite romantic. The narrator utters 'It all began with her' or something similar.

Setting 

City of Norwich at night - a potential filming location

The primary setting will be based on the busy streets of a city; it won't be overly crowded otherwise it will be hard to film in and it will be hard for the audience to focus on the main character due to the crowds getting in the way. The reason I would like it to be quite bustling is because I don't want to create a sense of isolation, helplessness or insecurity because the streets are empty - especially when the man is wounded. This is because I don't want to create tension but rather create a beautiful moment as the man is seemingly close to death. I would like it to be set a nighttime with plenty of artificial light. This will appear nice on camera as the out of focus lights will create a bokeh effect which pleases the eye. Furthermore, night time suits the adult nature as the man is fatally wounded.

The secondary setting will be based somewhere casual or romantic eg. a coffee shop. The setting won't be a very prominent feature as the face of the woman will be the main focus, however, it is clear that in the background it is natural light and that it is quite sunny, as this has very romantic connotations. This casual look will contrast well with the existential themes of death in the previous scene.

Characters

A photo I found to depict the intimate, casual
and romantic mood of the secondary scene.

• Character A - the Wounded Man: This is the first character introduced and is the protagonist and narrator of the story. Not much is learnt about him other than the situation he is in and a potential relationship with character B. He will be an adult male. He isn't shown to be panicking about his situation but addresses it quite calmly and with dignity, talking about the beauty of the situation. This shows his philosophical view on matters, 

• Character B - The Smiling Woman - This woman reflects happiness and purity. The innocence of her smile and the natural appeal of her and the footage creates this happy and carefree moment - contrasting the dark scenes from before. Nothing is really learnt about her except a hint to her role in the narrative. 

Sound
The sound is a particularly important element in this sequence as it will help create a mood. Firstly, the most prominent sound is the narrator - this will be used to create security with the audience and also help iterate the character's thoughts, allowing the audience to interpret the scene exactly how I want it to be interpreted. The narration will be quite monotonous, however, as lack of emotion in his voice shows an emptiness which may suggest something about the character. Diegetic noises will be distorted, for example, car horns, people talking, footsteps. This disconnects the audience from the scene and also allows them to understand how the character may be feeling as the distorted voices simulate the feeling of slowly becoming unconscious. Ominous music may be playing to create a sense of fate.

What Camera Shots and Angles Would You Use?
For the first scene, I would use long shots to show the man and the way he drags his body to establish that he is wounded. I would use a mid shot to show his dazed expression, however, I would prefer shots with more space in the frame to capture the out-of-focus lights and chaos of the city.
For the second scene, I would use a close up to create a sense of intimacy, suggesting the relationship between the characters without actually showing them together in one frame. I would use an eye-level angle so the audience doesn't interpret anything about the character's nature except the natural aspect.

What are the Pros and Cons of This Coursework Idea?

Pros:

• The setting allows for aesthetically pleasing shots which overall improves the quality of the work

• It's mysterious and therefore engaging

• The unique editing (eg. slow-motion and reverse) will make it original

• The narration engages the audience and helps them understand the situation a bit more than using just footage

Cons 

• Using narration may be risky as it could be overdone etc. 

• It might be quite hard to understand

• It requires filming at two different times and two different locations which would require organising multiple scheduled filming days

• It requires filming at night which is risky for multiple reasons. Firstly, the actors may not be willing/available to film at night and secondly, the low light environment may make the footage noisy or hard to distinguish

• Involving two actors requires relying on additional people's schedule

• Filming in busy streets may be hard to coordinate my actors. Furthermore, different people will appear in the background of different shots which creates inconsistency. 

I like this idea however it seems quite problematic due to the many issues that may arise.