Concept Preliminary Task 2

 Film Title:

At Bay

We decided on this title because it was less generic than other options like 'Kidnapped' or 'Abducted'. At Bay means 'cornered' or 'captured'  which better suits Lily's predicament. It is not shown on screen but she is cornered by the Kidnapper and has to face him. Having a less typical title sets the film a bit apart.

Target Audience:

16 and over. This is because of the dark, adult themes associated with women, particularly young girls being kidnapped.

Conventions:

Symbolism/Iconography: The setting of the home contrasts the crime that is about to be committed as a home is supposed to be a place of peace and happiness, not violence and crime. The clothing of the characters is also symbolic. The casual clothing of Lily shows her vulnerability, the kidnapper's dark clothes symbolise the darkness of his deeds and Ryle's business-like outfit shows his somewhat normal life that he now is losing because of Lily's disappearance.

Sound: Diegetic sound will be at play in this film, most importantly in the phone call scenes (of which there are two). Dialogue and sound of what is being done in the action is what will comprise this. Non-diegetic sound (music) will play a bit less of a role than what it did in Preliminary Task 1. The build in tension will be done with more use of silence as Ryle enters the house.

Lighting: The time is at night so inside the house while Lily is making the tea she will have the kitchen lights on. The light of the moon and street lighting will be used for the outdoor shots. Low-lighting will be used for when Lily turns off the lights to go to bed. This will have the eerie effect we are aiming for.

Shadows: This we will use for a dark, mysterious effect when the kidnapper is stalking Lily from outside. His face will still remain hidden.

Time: The film opening is set at night which instantly parallels dark deeds. It is a common fact that more crime happens at night than during the day because they can remain more concealed.

Editing: The effect we want to get from the editing is suspense created from a drawn out, relatively quiet period where Ryle realises what has just happened.

Plot Synopsis:

The scene opens with an establishing of the house from the outside at night time. The scene will then show Lily beginning to make tea for herself as Ryle is coming home late from work. She calls him to see how far he is from being home. There will be some shots of the Kidnapper as he stalks her from outside. Lily then decides to go to bed after the call and there will be low-lighting of her in the bedroom. There will be a shot of the moon to show the time that is passing until the next part of the sequence. Ryle then pulls into the driveway in his car; it is later at night now. He first notices something is wrong when he does not need to put the key in the door. It is already open. He enters the house apprehensively and sees the tea smashed and messed up. He calls out Lily’s name and makes his way to the bedroom where the window is open with the curtains billowing in the wind. The silence is broken with the diegetic sound of the phone ringing. On the other end of the line there is heavy breathing and the screen cuts to black after Lily screams.

Technical decisions to balance climax and resolution:

• We will use tracking shots for the characters as they walk through the house; handheld as moving the tripod is not feasible in this scenario. 
• Have extreme close-ups of Ryle's face as he realises what has happened to Lily.

Characters and Names:

Lily (Wife): The name Lily, in reference to the flower, represents purity and innocence and it is these facets of her personality that make her position as a vulnerable victim stronger. She effectively becomes a damsel in distress of sorts. Her meek ignorance to the fact that someone who do such a horrible thing solidifies this fact. Her clothing (casual/sweatpants etc.) highlights this meekness.

Ryle (Husband): Ryle's name is more uncommon but it means 'courageous' and 'valiant'. This is a nod to the man he must become to get Lily back. He is not weak and taking the person he loves away from him is not going to make him back down. It is implied that he will go after Lily and try to save her because it is who he is, and he loves her for who she is.

Kidnapper: The kidnapper has no name in this film opening. This was to create a sense of detachment between him and the couple. To remove him from the couple's humanity as it were. His dark clothes and his tendency to keep to the shadows matches his intentions, and eventually his deeds.

Practicalities of filming/content

How realistic is the idea? - Kidnappings are a somewhat realistic occurrence, not so much in New Zealand but in some parts of the world they can be very common. Thrillers mostly are not realistic but this one will be to an extent. 

Health and safety issues? - There will be knives around in the kitchen that we will have to be responsible around as well as the car that we will be using for Ryle arriving.

Location/necessary permission? - We will be filming at Niav's house and we have permission for that.

Timing? - We will either be filming in the evening after school on the 12th April or in the evening of the 19th April in the holidays. The date in the holidays is for the scenario where we cannot film on the 12th.

Weather and back-up options: The weather for the 12th does say periods of rain but most of the shots are indoors and there is covering outside as well. The forecast is also forecast to change. The 19th does not have a forecast yet.

Equipment? - We will be using a Sony xd camera as well as a boom pole with a boom mic. We will also have a tripod for the camera and also lighting equipment.