I have chosen to use myself as one of, and the main character in my film opening for a few reasons. Firstly being for convenience. I had the choice to use some other classmates or peers from the year but it would have been difficult to plan when they free, and how long I would need them for. These variables would impact when I filmed and how long I could film for and would have made pre-production planning a little more difficult. Secondly, I personally find it easier, on a small scale production like this to act/play a part myself. I feel this way because I have generated the genre, the plot, the script, the shot list, the location of filming and above all, I know how I want my actors to act. Therefore, I do not have to do much positioning and directing to other actors as I know myself what I want it to look like at the end.There is of course the drawback, of my acting skills not being ‘as good as’ somebody else's, but weighing this up against the convenience and the planning, I believe I can effectively play the role required.

Why I believe my actors fit the role:

I have conducted some research into the common/’stereotypical’ horror/thriller actors. I found that many of these films use young, fairly ‘attractive’ males and females to play all the significant characters (the protagonist, the sex appeal etc) and by young I mean late teens/early adult. Seeing as I do not know many ‘early adults’ willing to act, I chose to use myself as the main character. Being a late teenager and believe that I look like a stereotypical actor that are used in horrors/thrillers I believe I fit the role as I have seen actors of my age in successful horror/thriller movies. I have then chosen to use my brother (Ross) as the ‘supporting main character’ (who actually goes on to be the main character if the plot where to be developed further). This is because, he is again a teenager, capable of playing a significant role and is comfortable in front of camera. In addition, he is also my brother so he is a more convenient option and can have a personal say in the way things are planned, filmed and even edited. I have said previously that maybe our acting isn't of that ‘actor quality’ but for a small scale production, and to have written the script for the required actors, I believe it is a good decision. Furthermore, many typical/iconic horrors/thrillers don't use ‘the best’/well known actors partly because, there isn’t a great deal of top quality ‘acting’ to be done and the focus on the film is to scare the audience, therefore my opening scene does not require ‘an actor’, more somebody that fits the part. As long as we can act in a convincingly suitable way that supports the plot and confides to the atmosphere created in the scene, it will be successful.