For my short film, I am taking some of the basic ideas from 'The Licked Hand' urban legend and transforming it into my own take on the story. My plot is below:
A student called Emma returns to her family home in Thamesmead from her first term at university, only to discover that her parents have gone to visit some friends and will be back the next evening. The student is cross with her parent's absence and she spends most of the evening sitting round the house, having nothing to cure her boredom, apart from spending time with the family dog. She is sitting in the kitchen where she is listening to the radio. While listening to the radio she hears the news that a man convicted of the murder of 5 students in 2007 and sentenced to life imprisonment has escaped from Belmarsh prison and it has been advised that all residents in Thamesmead (South London area) stay indoors for the next 48 hours while the police track down the convicted murderer. Emma hears the news and sees the intensity of the situation through twitter on her phone. Emma suffers from anxiety and this sends her into a severe state of worry, and as a result, hides herself in her bedroom, allowing the dog to stay under her bed. She forgets to lock the front door in her state of panic. Emma begins to drift off to sleep, but every now and then she is distracted by a noise coming from downstairs, a sound that makes her think someone is downstairs. She struggles to remember whether she locked the doors or not. She is terrified and she cannot bear to get out of bed, turn on the light and go downstairs to see what the noise is. She reassures herself that everything is okay by slipping her hand under the bed, where her hand is licked by what she thinks is the dog. Emma eventually falls asleep.
In the dead of night (2am), Emma awakes and she notices her door is slightly a jar. Light from downstairs floods through the gap and Emma gets up and cautiosly approaches the door, extremely slowly and with a terrible sense of dread. As she gets closer to the door, she calls for the dog, who to Emma's horror, comes in through the slightly opened door. Emma freezes and begins to sob, slowly moving back towards the bed where she sits with her legs dangling over the edge. The dog stares at her and begins to let out a quiet wimper, but Emma ignores this. The camera (which is side on to Emma) begins to pan downwards to her feet, where from under the bed, a pair of hands grab her legs and the screen goes to black, followed by a harrowing scream.
Just to be clear, the murderer is always under the bed, hiding from the police. However, the dog is also under the bed, but the dog is not licking her hand, as something is still licking her hand after the dog leaves the room, Emma does not know this. Scary stuff.
Monday 27 October 2014
Humans Can Lick Too
It was at one late night gathering round a friend's house when I first heard the story of 'The Licked Hand'. When I heard the name at first I was confused as to what it could possibly be about, was it some kind of joke? Far from it. When I heard this urban legend, I was left with a shiver running down my spine. The story is below:
"A young girl is home alone for the first time with only her dog for company. Listening to the radio, she hears of a serial killer on the loose, so she locks all the doors and windows and goes to bed, taking her dog to her room with her and letting it sleep under her bed. She wakes in the night and can hear a dripping sound coming from the bathroom. The dripping sound annoys her, and she actually finds it unsettling, for some reason. The bedside lamp won't work, and she is too scared to get out of bed to turn on the main light, and walk over to the bathroom. She hides under the covers but to reassure herself that the dog is still under the bed she puts her hand down and feels licking on her hand. She lies awake for some time listening to the dripping sound and periodically puts her hand down to where she can hear heavy breathing and each time feels gentle licks on her fingers. Eventually she falls asleep. The next morning when she wakes, she goes to the bathroom for a drink of water. On the shower wall, written in blood are the words "HUMANS CAN LICK TOO", and her slaughtered dog is hanging from the shower head, its blood, now thick and dark, still dripping into the bathtub."
"A young girl is home alone for the first time with only her dog for company. Listening to the radio, she hears of a serial killer on the loose, so she locks all the doors and windows and goes to bed, taking her dog to her room with her and letting it sleep under her bed. She wakes in the night and can hear a dripping sound coming from the bathroom. The dripping sound annoys her, and she actually finds it unsettling, for some reason. The bedside lamp won't work, and she is too scared to get out of bed to turn on the main light, and walk over to the bathroom. She hides under the covers but to reassure herself that the dog is still under the bed she puts her hand down and feels licking on her hand. She lies awake for some time listening to the dripping sound and periodically puts her hand down to where she can hear heavy breathing and each time feels gentle licks on her fingers. Eventually she falls asleep. The next morning when she wakes, she goes to the bathroom for a drink of water. On the shower wall, written in blood are the words "HUMANS CAN LICK TOO", and her slaughtered dog is hanging from the shower head, its blood, now thick and dark, still dripping into the bathtub."
Sound - Music in Film
Since the beginning of motion pictures, music has been an integral part of the cinematic experience. Before films with dialogue were introduced, music was the only way to express a characters thoughts and feelings. To this day, music has remained a key part of cinematic production, as it is vital in making the viewer feel certain emotions while watching a film. In this post, I'll be evaluating the importance of music in film.
The days of silent film:
During the days of silent film, dialog cards, the actor's face and the music score were the only ways of displaying the emotions of a character. Imagine watching a silent film now, and an important character is giving a dramatic and tense speech. Dramatic and tense music would be used to accompany the speech and ensure that the viewers are feeling the same as the characters in the film. In the modern day world of film making, music is still used in this way, even if you can hear the dialogue.
Music = drama:
A musical score in any genre of film can add a great level of drama to almost any scene. For example, in an action packed chase scene in a Bond film, fast-paced and edgy music will be playing to raise the level of drama that you can see on the screen. Another example would be in a horror movie, when a victim is being closed down by a supernatural being, when the victim is dazed and confused on their own. The music accompanying this scene will be tense and extremely eerie; it will build up in intensity until it cuts when it's as loud as possible, when the victim is attacked. One more example would be evident in a comedy film. When there is a funny scene, light-hearted, silly and comical music will be played over the top of the scene to add to the hilarity of the scene.
Mood setting:
Music is the perfect way to set the mood of a film right from the beginning. For example, when you are watching a horror movie, there will usually be an eerie establishing shot, at the beginning of the film, of an abandoned house, accompanied by chilling music, that leaves you in a tense manner. This will let the audience know that they are in for a scary viewing.
Time-travelling music:
Music is often used in film to establish a time and setting. For example, when the film is set in the heart of India during the 19th century, the music accompanying what you can see on the screen will be raga (Indian classical) music, with lots of traditional Indian stringed instruments such as the sitar and the sarod and some percussion in the form of the tabla. Another example would be evident in a film set in Vienna during the late 1700s. The music accompanying this would be a Mozart symphony. One more classic example would be when you are watching a war film, and there are helicopters filled with troops, heading to combat, while you can hear a timeless rock song in the background. The video clip below is a clip from Ridley Scott's 2001 film 'Black Hawk Down', a film about the events of a 1993 raid in Mogadishu (Somalia) by the U.S. military aimed at capturing faction leader Mohamed Farrah Aidid, a Somali military commander and faction leader. When you watch the clip, you can hear the timeless Jimi Hendrix track: 'Voodoo Child', a song which was heavily incorporated with the US military that went into the Vietnam War in 1962. Watch the clip below:
Speeding up the story:
The music montage is a popular way to condense a large amount of information into a short amount of time. The use of a pop song or score selection, accompanied by thematically related shots (the lead character is sad, people falling in love, hero in training) advances the story without spending the days, months, or years it would take in real life for the actual events to transpire.
Misleading music:
Musical misdirection is most often employed in, but not limited to, thriller and horror movies; usually to lull the viewer into a sense of complacency before a big scare. Here is an example: The heroine babysitter walks into the upstairs bedroom as calm music plays, only to discover a killer behind the door, immediately cued by pierced, shocking music. In an opposite example, the babysitter walks upstairs, with tense and scary music underneath the scene, expecting to find a killer, when it turns out only to be the house cat.
Overall, film would be nothing without music. Can you imagine a horror film without tense and dramatic music? Or could you picture a romantic comedy film without a soundtrack, full of feel good hits? Music is vital in setting the mood, getting the thoughts and feelings of characters across to the audience, and finally setting a time and setting in any film that you watch.
The days of silent film:
During the days of silent film, dialog cards, the actor's face and the music score were the only ways of displaying the emotions of a character. Imagine watching a silent film now, and an important character is giving a dramatic and tense speech. Dramatic and tense music would be used to accompany the speech and ensure that the viewers are feeling the same as the characters in the film. In the modern day world of film making, music is still used in this way, even if you can hear the dialogue.
Music = drama:
A musical score in any genre of film can add a great level of drama to almost any scene. For example, in an action packed chase scene in a Bond film, fast-paced and edgy music will be playing to raise the level of drama that you can see on the screen. Another example would be in a horror movie, when a victim is being closed down by a supernatural being, when the victim is dazed and confused on their own. The music accompanying this scene will be tense and extremely eerie; it will build up in intensity until it cuts when it's as loud as possible, when the victim is attacked. One more example would be evident in a comedy film. When there is a funny scene, light-hearted, silly and comical music will be played over the top of the scene to add to the hilarity of the scene.
Mood setting:
Music is the perfect way to set the mood of a film right from the beginning. For example, when you are watching a horror movie, there will usually be an eerie establishing shot, at the beginning of the film, of an abandoned house, accompanied by chilling music, that leaves you in a tense manner. This will let the audience know that they are in for a scary viewing.
Time-travelling music:
Music is often used in film to establish a time and setting. For example, when the film is set in the heart of India during the 19th century, the music accompanying what you can see on the screen will be raga (Indian classical) music, with lots of traditional Indian stringed instruments such as the sitar and the sarod and some percussion in the form of the tabla. Another example would be evident in a film set in Vienna during the late 1700s. The music accompanying this would be a Mozart symphony. One more classic example would be when you are watching a war film, and there are helicopters filled with troops, heading to combat, while you can hear a timeless rock song in the background. The video clip below is a clip from Ridley Scott's 2001 film 'Black Hawk Down', a film about the events of a 1993 raid in Mogadishu (Somalia) by the U.S. military aimed at capturing faction leader Mohamed Farrah Aidid, a Somali military commander and faction leader. When you watch the clip, you can hear the timeless Jimi Hendrix track: 'Voodoo Child', a song which was heavily incorporated with the US military that went into the Vietnam War in 1962. Watch the clip below:
Speeding up the story:
The music montage is a popular way to condense a large amount of information into a short amount of time. The use of a pop song or score selection, accompanied by thematically related shots (the lead character is sad, people falling in love, hero in training) advances the story without spending the days, months, or years it would take in real life for the actual events to transpire.
Misleading music:
Musical misdirection is most often employed in, but not limited to, thriller and horror movies; usually to lull the viewer into a sense of complacency before a big scare. Here is an example: The heroine babysitter walks into the upstairs bedroom as calm music plays, only to discover a killer behind the door, immediately cued by pierced, shocking music. In an opposite example, the babysitter walks upstairs, with tense and scary music underneath the scene, expecting to find a killer, when it turns out only to be the house cat.
Overall, film would be nothing without music. Can you imagine a horror film without tense and dramatic music? Or could you picture a romantic comedy film without a soundtrack, full of feel good hits? Music is vital in setting the mood, getting the thoughts and feelings of characters across to the audience, and finally setting a time and setting in any film that you watch.
Short Film Recreation
We were given the task of recreating Martin Scorsese's 1968 classic short film 'The Big Shave'. In the space of three weeks we had to find an actor to play the role of the shaving man, find a suitable location, shoot some footage exact to the original and finally edit the footage we captured into the final short film, as close to the original as possible. Overall it would prove to be quite a challenge although it was a good test of our media skills. In this blog post I will go over the different aspects of the recreation of this short film: the casting, location research, plot synopsis, storyboard, filming and editing.
Beginning with casting, we were left with a bit of a problem straight from the off as within our group, we didn't know any 30-40 year old men who would take their shirt off and pour fake blood over themselves in front of a camera. In the end we chose someone from our own group to fill the role in question. This actor would be Joe; he was the oldest looking out of the group and he was more than happy to play the role of the shaving man. We knew that this would make the film slightly less like the original, but as you can see below, Joe suited the role just as well as any older character would have.
Here is the original character below:
Moving onward, I will now look at the location research. We had to find a pristine white bathroom, and this turned out to be quite difficult. Everyone in our group had bathrooms that were either covered in their parent's shambolic attempt at being creative with multi-coloured tiles, or they were painted in colours that you wouldn't expect to see in a bathroom such as dark green and black. In the end we decided to use a pink bathroom, as it was the only bathroom we could find with a bright solid colour. Although the bathroom was pink, it didn't distract people when we showed them our short film recreation as they were certainly more focused on the man who was severely bleeding. Overall, apart from the colour, the bathroom we used was suitable as if was roughly the same size as the original bathroom used and it also had all the fittings that featured in the original bathroom, such as the stainless steel taps and the mirror. Below is an image of the original bathroom versus our recreation bathroom.
Now I will look at the plot synopsis. First of all, for all of you who don't know what a plot synopsis is, it's a brief summary of a novel, motion picture or play. In The Big Shave, a man walks into the bathroom, removes his shirt and begins shaving as normal, however, he begins to shave for a prolonged amount of time and in doing so, his face begins to bleed to the point where it is dripping all over the clean white bathroom. Why does the character do this? Many film critics have interpreted the young man's process of self-mutilation as a metaphor for the self-destructive involvement of the United States in the Vietnam War.
In terms of filming we faced a few challenges. First of all, it was very hard to get everyone together on the same day to film, but we eventually found a day that we could meet up and get the job done. Secondly, when we were filming, there was little room for manoeuvre around the bathroom and we always kept on knocking into the bathrooms various fixtures and fittings, however, we avoided this at times by having a minimal amount of people in the bathroom when filming was taking place. Thirdly, we noticed that there was a lot of natural light flooding into the bathroom we were using. This was a problem as we noticed in the original short film, there was hardly any natural light flooding into the bathroom. The avoid this overflow of natural light, we made sure we filmed when it was slightly dark and we ensured during editing that the picture was not too bright. The fourth and final difficulty we faced was that we had to make sure we got every single camera angle and shot in our recreation, that was in the original. We were obviously expecting this, but it was a tedious task, sitting down and watching the film multiple times (it's an excellent short film though) and taking note of every individual shot. Overall, the filming was good fun, apart from cleaning up all of that fake blood at the end of the shoot!
Editing wise, everything ran quite smoothly. We chose to edit our short film recreation using iMovie 11, cheap yet reliable software that we ran on an iMac. The editing process took a while, but it was worth the time and effort in the end, as it paid off with our uncanny recreation. While editing, we had to add the all important accompanying music. In the original short film, the music was the 1937 hit: 'I Can't Get Started' by Bunny Berigan. When we added the music to our recreation, it made our film just like the original.
To conclude, recreating Scorsese's classic short film was great fun, but it was also a great test of our filming and editing skills. Below is a link to our short film recreation. Enjoy and don't forget to drop us a like!
Wednesday 1 October 2014
Short Film Task
In our media lesson we drew a small folded up piece of paper from a hat and the following happened: We had to create a two minute short film using the scene described to us on the piece of paper. On the piece of paper we were told to create a short film using a the simple scene of someone putting some takeaway rubbish in the bin. We were given 7 days to create this film and so we got going straightaway. In the end, my group and I decided on the film idea about the rise and fall of the 'Humanimals', half human, half animal monsters created by the mad scientist, Professor Dingaling in the 1960's. We presented this idea to the class and as soon as we received positive feedback, we started making the film. We filmed this short in Norwich and it features Harrison Calaby as a chicken, George Huggins as a horse, Hannah Myhill as the KFC employee and myself as the KFC consumer (this was a good role) and the duck at the train station. Footage was filmed by Joseph Nowell, Harrison Calaby and myself. The film was finally edited by Harrison Calaby.
The short film 'Humanimals' is below, enjoy! Don't forget to like the video on youtube.
The short film 'Humanimals' is below, enjoy! Don't forget to like the video on youtube.
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