Post on 16-Jul-2015
Film Pitch
BY CHARLIE AND TAYLOR
SummaryA teacher investigates a ghost that can only be seen on video
footage .
. The film is a Mystery Thriller with horror elements about a
superstitious teacher at a school where some students have
recently gone missing.
. The protagonist sets up a camera and discovers a strange
creature in the school.
. The protagonist then tries to get to the bottom of the
disappearances and discover how to stop the creature.
. No one believes him especially his wife and when he tries to
prove it the footage is destroyed. His wife leaves him after she is
convinced he’s gone crazy.
. He becomes obsessed with the ghost. He can’t stop himself thinking about it and his wife leaving him so he kills himself.
Paranormal Activity
We were inspired by Paranormal Activity in the sense that the characters use a camera for footage. The film had a small budget of $15 000 which is very small, and made a gross of $107, 917, 283. The filmmakers made "The Marked Ones" with that audience in mind, casting mostly Latino actors and bringing some of the usually claustrophobic action out into the city streets. We decided not to chose the producer Oren Peli as he has only produced three films in his career and felt this wasn't strong enough for our film.
The Purge
The Purge uses surveillance footage
for its title sequence which creates a
suburban feel - a convention of
Thriller film genre. We feel this
approach is suitable in our title
sequence - to involve footage from a
camera in a suburban area (school)
using post production editing in final
cut pro if we are unable to get a
camera used for surveying. The title
sequence only includes an eerie
soundtrack in the same way we
would like to only use distorted music.
'The Purge' title sequence
designer
Aaron Becker is a designer and director of title sequences, as well as founder of Filmograph (previously known as Becker Design.)
He has a BFA in Visual Communication from Washington University in St. Louis. After working at Prologue Films in Los Angeles and Digital Kitchen in Chicago, Aaron founded Becker Design in 2010, which evolved into Filmograph in 2012. He has designed and directed main title sequences for films such as Insidious, Deception, The Purge, and The Conjuring, as well as television titles including Bad Robot’s Alcatraz and HBO’s Clear History. His main-on-end title sequence for the film Sinister received Title Design Finalist recognition at the 2013 SXSW Film Festival.
The Purge: Title Sequence
Insidious: Title Sequence
Title Sequence
The main character walks into an empty class
room to collect his camera. (first person)
He plugs it into his computer and plays the files.
The videos are recordings of the ghost lurking
around classrooms and corridors. Static effects
and camera angles keeps the monster from
being in full view.
At the end of the sequence the video gets more
distorted and then the title appears.
Title Sequence: Visuals
Distorted effects can be used to hide parts of the shot or to put
focus on certain areas we want viewers to look. The static can
also represent unease and the villain being unpredictable.
Title Sequence: Visuals
The transition effects will emphasise that this is footage recorded
by the character. It will make it seem more realistic and therefore
more threatening.
Title Sequence: Sound
The music for the title sequence will be the
instrumental version of Death Grips – Guillotine.
The sound is distorted and abrasive just like the video footage.
Eerie electronic rumbles build up tension.
Production
Produced by Blumhouse Productions.
. Founded by Jason Blum
. Blumhouse are best known for their Horror
and thriller films.
. For example: The ‘Paranormal Activity’
Franchise, ‘Insidious’, ‘The Purge’ and it’s
sequel ‘The Purge: Anarchy’
. Jason Blum has been nominated for an
academy award for producing ‘Whiplash’
. Budgets for their horror / thriller films
usually range from $15,000 to $9 million
which is low budget for US productions.
Director – James Wan
The film will be directed by
James Wan.
James Wan is an Australian
director that has directed films
such as the ‘Saw’ franchise,
‘Insidious’ and ‘The Conjuring’
He works a lot with DNA films to produce his movies.
Cast – Leigh Whannel
Leigh Whannell will be the main
protagonist in this film.
He is well known for being the co-
creator of ‘Saw’ (along with James
Wan) as well as playing the protagonist in ‘Saw’.
He also appears in Saw 2, 3 and 3D
and Insidious 1,2 and 3.
Most of the films he has been in have
been produced by Blumhouse
and/or directed by James Wan.
Cast – Shawnee Smith
Shawnee Smith will play the wife of the
protagonist
She is well known for appearing as a
main character in all of the Saw films
and regular cast member in the sitcoms ‘Becker’ and ‘Anger Management’.
She has also played smaller roles in films
like ‘The Shining’ and ‘The Grudge 3’
Timing
Aside from Halloween and late summer, the
beginning of January has proved in recent years to
be a prime season for horror films. "Texas Chainsaw 3D" opened with $22 million, while, "The Devil Inside"
(which, unlike "The Marked Ones" and "Chainsaw
3D," didn't belong to a well-known franchise),
opened at $33 million.
In conclusion we intend to release our film in January
to have a hopeful come back from our budget.
Age
What makes our film rated 15:
. Strong violence
. Frequent strong Language
. Substance abuse
The American equivalent to this rating would be R
Budget
$5 million budget
~$90 million gross
We think the film will be successful because the
director is well known for successful horror films.
The film isn’t part of an existing franchise so wouldn’t
make as much money as some other films, for
example Insidious had a $1.5 million and made $97
million but the sequel made $161.9 million from a $5
million budget.