Hey, I hope you didn't miss me too much! Today we completed our storyboard, which was not too difficult to create being that our script contained the majority of the information we needed to format it. I've explained each scene at length below to ensure that everything has been clearly conveyed.
Scene 1:
In Scene 1, we will begin with an establishing wide shot that will capture the exterior of the subject's home. We intend for the atmosphere to be gloomy and depressing and for the lawn to have sickly-looking grass. Said dismal setting will be shown with the intent of establishing context within the first few seconds of the opening and allowing the audience to understand that the location in which the subject finds themselves in is not the best, as will be later indicated by other details, which I will highlight in later scenes. At this point in time, the name of our studio will be shown in the sky, directly above the roof of the subject's home, for two to three seconds (as will the rest of the titles in the opening) so that the audience has enough time to read it before we move on to the next scene. As I've said before in a previous blog, all of the text shown on-screen for the entirety of the opening will enter our scenes by flickering in and will exit said scenes by either flickering or fading out, be dark orange in color, and be written in the "Sometimes" font. Unlike what it says in our script, my groupmates and I decided that during the entire scene, eerie, non-diegetic music will begin to play which will serve to set the audience on edge even before the real "action" begins, as opposed to beginning in Scene 3. A cut will then be used to seamlessly transition to the next scene. This will take a total of four seconds.
Scene 2:
In Scene 2, the audience is greeted by a long, full-body shot that will show the subject as they enter the frame and walk over to take a seat at their dining table. This shot will allow us to ensure that the audience sees the clothes that our subject is wearing, namely a black short-sleeved t-shirt and open-toed sandals of the same color, and grey sweatpants, paired with long, white socks. This outfit was chosen specifically because it not only falls in line with the typical attire that a teenager might wear in the comfort of their home, but it also provides a direct contrast to the suspenseful tension we've already begun to create with the continuation of the creepy non-diegetic music, which will persist throughout the entirety of our opening, as well as the premise of the film that will be revealed as said opening progresses. All throughout the entirety of Scene 2, the diegetic sound of the television playing in the background is heard, which focuses on a news report detailing the scorching hot temperatures outside, quietening down as the two subjects, the main character and his mother speak in conversation, and cutting off at the end of the scene. The television is shown playing in the background; however, it will be blurred out to hint to the audience that we are obscuring information from them and that not everything is as it seems. During this shot, the name of our production company will be shown to the right of the subject once their entire body has entered the frame. Along with the presence of the title on-screen will also be a number of fruit cans scattered about, a nod to the fact the world in which our primary subject resides in is one nearly devoid of fresh food, as is further asserted in the next shot where a cut occurs to a medium close-up shot. Said shot will show the subject seated at the dining table working on their laptop which is placed to their left and focusing in on the items found on the table, which include an odd-looking, discolored apple on a plate found to the left of the subject, and a bowl of miscellaneous items which is seen to their right. The apple serves as another clue that something is not quite in the subject's current society, whilst the bowl upholds the same point, being that you would typically expect it to be filled with fresh fruits as opposed to knickknacks and junk. Regarding the framing of the shot, we decided to go with a medium close-up being that it would allow us to still incorporate and draw attention to the aforementioned props and because it would also give the audience the chance to take note of the subject's emotions, perhaps even empathize and relate to him as most people have been, are, or will be a teenager trying to navigate their emotions and life in an unforgiving world at one point or another.
Once the audience has had time to take all of the props, background audio, and general set in, the subject will pick up the apple from its plate and exclaim with disgust how repulsive it was. The subject would then pose his mother a question regarding where she obtained the apple from, to which he would receive no reply. What to do after he asked the question was something my groupmates and I mulled over for quite a while. If his mother was to answer the question, then we could provide more context to the situation the subject's family and the rest of the world were in. If she didn't answer the question, then we could this scene as a parallel to compare the subject's frustration with his mother's lack of response to the fear he experiences later on in the opening, when the only thing he wants is to hear his mother's voice and find some sort of familiarity and comfort in what he had assumed to be "home." We ultimately decided that in order to continue to follow the conventions of science fiction thrillers, it would be in our best interest to go with the latter option, as it would give us the opportunity to shroud some details in secrecy, as to pique our audience's interest, and lead our viewers along by forcing them to follow the trail of breadcrumbs we laid out for them, leaving them with just enough information to speculate as we create a cohesive plot and storyline. At this point in time, the subject would then throw out their apple, aiming into a nearby garbage can.
An action-match-cut will then be used along with a point-of-view shot to capture the moment that the apple "hits" the camera, the force of the impact representing the pent up anger built up inside the angsty teen because of the changes he is experiencing internally and the unwelcoming nature of the world around him. Another clue that gives the audience more background information about the status quo of the world in which the subject resides is the blurred out, but, still readable, electrical bill seen in the trashcan before the apple reaches the camera, which will read that his family has reached their kilowatt limit and will contain an extremely high, unreasonable price that many today could never dream of affording, even someone with such a large house like our subject. This then serves as a clear indication of how difficult things are for him and his family despite their presumedly well-off status.
As soon as the camera cuts from that shot, a shot-reverse-shot with medium framing will be used to simulate the natural flow of conversation, which is not one-sided this time as his mother actually answers. Therefore, there is no need to focus solely on our subject and his reactions, so the camera can switch between showing the subject behind their laptop with medium close-up shot framing and the empty kitchen with an over-the-shoulder shot behind the subject pointing in the direction of his mother. The absence of his mother from the room and the audible distance heard in her voice is meant to signify the detachment the subject has from his mother, indicating that they may not have the best relationship, perhaps due to the lack of respect, he has as a growing teenager, as is illustrated during their conversation with his inconsiderate remarks, or maybe because she is under the strain of being tight on cash and struggling to pay the bills to support her son and husband (whose existence is revealed in a later scene), who also seems to be working to try to make enough money to keep his family together and afloat, to no avail it seems. This leaves the audience to wonder if the subject's mother and he will ever reconcile, and as will be seen throughout the progression of the opening, the subject will lose his attitude, becoming forlorn when his mother is no longer by his side. Now, as the camera switches back and forth between the two shots, the actors' names will be revealed depending on the direction the camera is facing and essentially who is talking. Once the conversation has ended, the camera will settle for a moment on a close-up medium shot facing the subject from behind their laptop. A cut will then be used to show a stationary over-the-shoulder shot in which the title of the film is shown on the subject's laptop screen as they shut it, grab it, leave the dining table area, and consequently, exit the frame. The entirety of Scene 2 will last for thirty seconds.
Scene 3:
In Scene 3, a cut will occur to transition to a stationary close-up shot (it being stationary to remain consistent with the previous shot and not thrust the audience directly into motion which may make the shots choppy, something we strongly wish to avoid) of the subject's feet as he walks up the stairs towards his room. Within this shot, the music creator's name will be shown on screen and slant diagonally to fit alongside the wall next to the stairs. Now, while the text will stand out due to its unique font and bold color choice, it won't be jarring due to placement out of the main focus of the shot. This shot is mainly used to give the audience an understanding of the layout of the subject's home and further establish the fact that the subject and his family are likely in the middle class, being that they own a two-story house. Since the shot quickly achieves its purposes, it will only take up three seconds of our total screentime.
Scene 4:
In Scene 4, the camera will cut once again, to a medium shot this time, and then show the subject from their back left side, keeping the audience from seeing their face, but still making them the central focus of the shot as they will stand out against the blurred background as they hold their laptop in their hand. In doing so, the viewer is tasked with making their own conclusions about the feelings of the subject based upon his tone, actions, speech, and overall disposition before he enters his room. There is, of course, a subtle hint to the fate of our subject in the comment he makes, which is "Man, it sucks living here(!)," being that it foreshadows that the subject will be transported to a place away from"here," getting his unspoken wish. With regards to my previous statement, the subject's attitude is clearly exemplified by the aggressive and angry manner in which he quickly opens and shuts his bedroom door behind himself, with the loud diegetic sound of his door slamming shut being heard to provide emphasis on this point. Once that has happened, the camera will track to the right and focus on the subject's name sign on their door. Now, since the door along with the rest of the background had been blurred when the subject was standing in front of it, this shot will reveal something that the audience has not seen before, the subject's name, which is clearly being shown, but whose purpose is still subtle enough that the viewers may initially believe that the shot was just being used for filler, or to allow the subject's feelings to be fully comprehended. However, they will soon come to find that the prop functions as a Chekhov's gun in the sense that it provides a seemingly minor detail that will later hold significance in the storyline, particularly when the name sign on the subject's door is revealed to be changed to another person's name later in the opening. This entire scene will take around five seconds to complete.
Scene 5:
In Scene 5, yet another cut will be used to place the audience directly in the subject's room, whereupon they will be shown a wide shot that shows them how it is in complete disarray, having the subject's clothes strewn about his room, with a few posters being up, a guitar leaning against his nightstand, and his bed being lined with satin grey sheets. The point of using this type of shot is to place careful attention to be placed on both the state of the room and the objects, or props, within it because, unbeknownst to the audience, after stepping into their closet, things are about to take an unexpected turn for this teenager (Sound familiar? I hope it does, that was our final pitch!), with everything being completely different when he comes back out. The name of our editor, whose job is essentially to clean up our film, will be shown in the upper, right-hand side of the screen at this time, which is a tad bit ironic since the room is such a mess. Following this, we cut to a high-angle, tracking shot, one of the first moving shots of our opening which is used to mark the beginning of a shift in the pacing of our film. The shot will show the subject as they leave their laptop on their bed and walk towards their closet, where they grab the door handle. All in all, this scene will total six seconds.
Scene 6:
In Scene 6, an action match-cut is used to transport both the subject and the audience into the closet, where the subject will be shown using a low angle as he walks in and attempts to flick on the light switch. This unfortunately does not work out well in favor of the subject as they are left to search for their jacket in the dark. At the same time, the name of our film's producer will be shown above the subject's head. As I stated earlier, our opening does employ the use of Chekhov's gun and this scene is no exception. When it comes to the non-functional closet light, the subject will simply conclude that its uselessness lies in the fact that it is broken, as is revealed through the dialogue and the comment he makes about his father's delay in its repair, and, as I said, he will be left to search in the darkness. At this time, since the audience was shown the family's electrical bill and the fact that their limit on electricity had been reached, the viewers will instead assume that the light being "broken" is due to the inability of his parents to pay the hefty bill. Therefore, when the lights flicker outside of the closet, they will believe it is for the same reason and be in for a shock (pun absolutely intended) when they come that there is something else going on entirely. On a more analytical level, this will symbolize how society today chooses to keep the younger generations ignorant about what is happening around them, as is seen with the chaotic world that our subject resides in, and his being completely oblivious to his parents' struggle as is indicated by the electrical bill having been thrown out, in an attempt to keep the subject from potentially catching a glimpse of it, and of course, that fact that he was literally "in the dark" the closet. This leaves the audience to ponder the following questions: "If we keep our children of today in the dark, what does that mean for our future(?)" and "Is ignorance really bliss(?)". Going back to the more literal context of the opening, the subject will then call out to his mother and ask where his jacket is, to which she will reply that it all the way in the back. This will prompt the subject to walk deeper into his closet, and walk over the camera to do so, as a low-angle shot is still being used, creating a smooth transition to a cut that will place the audience outside of the subject's slightly ajar closet door with a medium long-shot that shows as the lights flicker five times (a number that will be important to remember as it will decrease the next time the subject enters the closet) and the subject is distanced from his world, as was the camera from the subject. Once this scene concludes, a total of fifteen seconds will have gone by.
Scene 7:
In Scene 7, the same medium-long shot will be used to show the subject as they emerge from their closet holding the very same red jacket that they went in search of. At this point in time, the name of the person who devised the premise of our film will be shown in the upper, right-hand area of the screen. The camera will then cut to a point-of-view shot as the subject walks towards the center of their room and stops quite abruptly, almost as if he had been taken aback by what he had seen. Once the camera is positioned in the center of the room, it will begin to pan and tilt around the room using the same point-of-view shot, so that the audience themselves can begin to look around and attempt to determine what it is that shocked the subject so much that they felt the need to stop in their bedroom, a room that they couldn't have cared about it, given its originally messy state and how quickly they had navigated through it to reach their closet. The camera will not pan or tilt too quickly, giving enough time for the viewers to take in their surroundings and notice that the subject's rooms is now clean and organized, their laptop and guitar are missing, they now have white bedsheets, and have a different poster up in their room. The camera will then cut a medium-long shot in which he will per outside of his bedroom door and yell out to his mother, likely hoping to receive an explanation when she replies. This never happens, of course, as when "his mother" does respond, she calls him by an entirely different name, something that surprises both the audience and the subject as they both begin to wonder what's happening. To confirm his suspicions that things aren't as they seem, the subject then leans out of their door and finds that the name on their door has also changed to the very same one that had been called out moments ago. The subject non-verbally expresses his confusion, mouthing, "What is going on(?)," (a change from what we originally had in our script to save time).
The camera then cuts back to the subject inside of their room, adopting a medium shot framing this time, as he attempts to consider a possible explanation for his situation and ends up reasoning that heading back into their closet is their best bet. At that point, a tracking shot is used, which illustrates the connection between the audience and the subject, with the viewers simply being the spectators who follow along, trailing behind him and catching on to things once he already has, being either out of step, in front of, or completely behind the subject in their awareness of certain things at times. The tracking shot will stop right outside of the closet door, which the subject will shut as he walks all the way to the back. The name of the film's writer will appear on-screen in front of the closet door. Now, the closed closet door and the obscurity of the subject inside of the closet the last time it was shown (due to its interior being dark), despite it being slightly ajar, leaves the viewers wondering if there may be something that the subject does unintentionally within the closet that caused whatever is going on to happen, or if it all has to do with the number of times the lights flicker, which is three times in this case. As the lights flicker, the non-diegetic music (which has been playing in the background the entire opening and will continue to do so) will quicken. The same shot will be used as the subject exits his closet, still holding onto his red jacket to capture the uncertainty on his face.
A cut will then transition the audience to another point-of-view shot that will show the room in its original state, with the subject's laptop also lying on their bed. After what's just happened, it is unsurprising that both the audience and the subject will be cautious of accepting this as their true reality, but that non-diegetic music will soften in an attempt to convince the audience that everything is fine and there is nothing to worry about. However, since the subject can't hear the music (it is non-diegetic after all), he must resort to his own methods of quelling his fears and worries. The camera cuts to a medium shot of the subject still in their bedroom as they call out to their mother and receive no response. At first, the viewers may come to believe that the mother is simply choosing not the answer the same way she had earlier, so while there is no immediate cause for alarm, both the subject and the audience may still feel a bit perturbed, which is the exact feeling that we're going for. The aforementioned medium shot becomes paired with a tracking shot that films the subject from the front as he walks towards his bedroom door. This scene will unfold over the course of forty-one seconds.
Scene 8:
In Scene 8, the camera will cut to a hallway in the subject's home where the same tracking shot will still be used for continuity purposes as the subject walks towards their living room. Now, although the stairs aren't shown the audience should already be under the impression that the subject is on the first floor being that this scene will feed into the subject arriving into his living room, which is typically found on the first floor of one's home. As the subject reaches the end of the hallway, he will call out for his mother once more as the camera zooms in to adopt a medium-close-up shot of the subject. He will once again receive no reply. It is likely that both the audience and the subject will begin attempting to rationalize possible reasons behind why his mother didn't respond, like that she might've stepped outside to wait for him there, or that she may have chosen to leave without the subject since he had been taking so long, or even that she had gone in search of him in another part of the house after she herself had received no reply from him when he had disappeared from within his closet, which, despite each situation's inherent probability, cannot eliminate the nagging possibility that this may once again not be the subject's real home, which does nothing but increase the overall suspense. All of this happens in about six seconds.
Scene 9:
In Scene 9, it should come as no surprise that the subject is shown quickly speeding into his living room, using the same tracking shot and medium-close-up framing, where he stops suddenly and seems to notice something horrifying behind the camera, calling out for his mother in a panic one last time, the non-diegetic music having quickened, of course, before the shot quickly fades to black, with the director's name being shown on the screen during the last two seconds of the opening, and a different, more suspenseful non-diegetic sound beginning to play, leaving the audience to soak in everything they have seen and form conjectures of their own that could possibly serve to explain what they'd just seen unfold in front of their very eyes, and wish that they could see more and have their thirst quenched. This scene will take ten seconds.
Film Opening:
In total, we estimate that our film opening will be about 120 seconds long, meaning that it will meet the criteria of being within the two-minute threshold.
Storyboard:
In order for you to see the manner in which we planned each scene out, I've attached an image of our storyboard below:
Clarifications:
- We have had yet to come to an official conclusion regarding the manner in which our titles will be exiting the screen once they've appeared and been shown for around two to three seconds; however, I do believe that that is a decision we will make once we reached the editing phase of our project.
- As I'm sure you've gathered, cuts were our primary transition of choice because we felt as though they prevented the suspense and build-up of tension from being released too early on, although I do believe that our use of sound will serve to support that particular facet.
- Within our storyboard, there are different colored arrows, pink and blue, as well as green rectangles. The pink arrows will represent the movement of the subject within the frame, whilst the blue arrows will indicate the camera movement. The green rectangles are placeholders for our titles. The yellow lines and x with a number, either five or three, are meant to represent the flickering of lights and the number of times that they occur.
- In Scene 7, parts 5 and 7, pink question marks are used to put on emphasis on the confusion that the subject is experiencing, whilst also allowing them to contrast with the black and white background.
- Our storyboard does not have as much color as might've been expecting, given that this time we have a significantly larger amount of panels that we needed to complete. Therefore, as you'll see above, aside from the symbols, which I've already defined, the only things with color are those there are important to the storyline of our opening, including the discolored apple, the subject's name sign, the subject's red jacket, and the actual title of the film.
- When it comes to the lighting in our film, the majority of it will be artificial with the exception of the establishing shot, for which we'd like to utilize natural, overcast lighting.
- Jewelry and make-up will be kept to a minimum or not used at all being that they are not a major focus of our film and would only distract our audience from our central storyline.
Closing Remarks:
After so much planning, all I want to say is "Let's go," no I won't "make no excuses now" because "I'm talking here and now" (Calvin Harris 2012).
