Film Evaluation

Game Over

For our film my group and I decided on creating a horror/thriller film, which we will call “Game
Over”. We picked this title for our film since the film is about three people getting kidnapped
and held captive in a dark room in which the captor forces them to fight to the death, the twist
is the captives wont physically hurt each other but instead play a video game and try to kill the
other captive’s character in the game, Little do they know the when their character gets hurt in
game they get hurt in real life as well and will die if their character in game also dies, This film
challenges the horror convention since video games don’t really fit in the horror genre,
however, the film will contain a lot of generic conventions of horror. The characters in the film
will consist of characters from different backgrounds where one is a businessman who seems
to be very successful with his life but lacks sympathy for other people who are in a lower
status than him, his lack of sympathy is seen in the first scene where he says that he does
not care about one of the character’s well-being and later finding out that the character he
fires committed suicide. On the other hand, the other character is a middle-class man who
shows a complete opposite of the first character since he shows how sympathetic he is and
how he shows how he has basic morals. The difference between the two characters will be
emphasized in the film by the way they react in certain instances.

The genre of Game Over is a horror-thriller, I have chosen this genre as I have been
interested in the genre especially on the subtle ways some horror films do that make the
audience feel scared without using any jump scares and loud instant sounds that causes the
audience to get startled. The genre has also made me interested in it as it allows a lot of
broad ideas to come in place since the genre does not require any realism since the film can
be about anything from a talking doll, to spiritual beings or extra terrestrial beings. As a horror
film my film uses a lot of generic conventions for horror such as close ups to create tension
during a scene and to emphasize the character’s expression. Low-key lighting is also used in
the film to show that the film is meant to have a serious tone rather than having a vibrant tone
when using high-key lighting. In the film we used props such as knives since it is conventional
to horror films as it implies that someone is, has been, or is going to be hurt. We also used
fake blood to show that someone may have been hurt and since blood is very conventional
for this genre.

Regarding narrative theories our film follows Todorov’s theory but has made some changes to
somewhat challenge that theory. The film does include an equilibrium where the main
character; Joe, is seen to be unharmed and minding his business as he walks through an
alley whilst talking to someone on the phone. The film then proceeds to disrupt this
equilibrium when a hooded figure kidnaps Joe and later puts him in a dark room where Joe
wakes up to find out that there are two other hostages that have been taken with him. The
characters try to repair the disruption by doing what the kidnapper has told them to do as it is
the only way for them to survive, however, rather than ending with a new equilibrium none of
the characters survive since the main character gets stuck in the room in the end despite
being the only one surviving in the end which challenges Todorov’s theory since his theory
suggests that a film should end up in a new equilibrium where everything is back to normal or
all problems have been fixed. Our film also follows the Propp character theory however, our
film adapts this by making one character hold more than one character type, An example of
this is the character of Joe where despite seeming like the villain for the way he acts in the
beginning of the film he can be argued to somewhat of a hero of the film since the film mainly
focuses on him, another example is Ryan; in the film Ryan is seen to be aggressive towards
the speaker/ kidnapper which implies that he is strongly against the speaker making him the
hero of the film, however some may argue that he is the helper of the hero since he helps Joe
in trying to resolve the state that they are in. The Villain of the film is the kidnapper since in
the film the kidnapper’s real motive is revealed to be mainly due to sadistic desires that make
the character seem psychotic which is usually a generic trait that a lot of villains have in a lot
of films.
In the film we used numerous aspects of Mise-En-Scene to fit the genre of horror-thriller. An
example of this is the fake knife that goes on the third body’s head to indicate that the third
body is dead since a knife was brutally stabbed through the head, This prop is arguably one
of the most generic prop for a thriller film since the prop tend to imply death, violence, or
threat depending on how the prop is used in context to the film. Another example of a prop
used are the plain blankets used to cover each of the tree bodies, the use of these props may
indicate that the bodies may be dead or has been harmed or violated since bodies covered
with a blank sheet of blanket tend to be corpses being covered which is fits this genre since it
allows the audience to think that the bodies were harmed which gives them a sense of threat.
Another aspect of Mise-En-Scene used in the film is the setting. In the beginning of the film
the main character is seen to be walking along an alley way which tends to draw a lot of
suspicious activity especially crime, an alleyway tend to imply that the area maybe dangerous
to be walking along alone, the empty room is also an example of a generic setting for thriller
films since the room isolates the character from the outside taking away their freedom which
makes them feel as of their life is being threatened, this idea is further supported by the low-
key lighting as it makes the whole situation for the characters worse as it not only makes the
characters feel isolated and trapped but it also makes them feel nervous whilst being inside
since the lack of light makes it hard for them to see the while room to ensure that the room is
safe to be in.

In terms of cinematography Close-up shots were used multiple times in the film to create
tension between the characters and their environment which helps highlight what they are
feeling at the moment, the close up shots also allows the audience to experience the tension
and identify what the characters are feeling, Other shots include a POV shot such as the one
in the beginning of the film, the shot was used to show what the character is looking at; in this
case it the was the point of view of the hooded man and since the camera was approaching
one of the other characters in a fast pace this allows the audience to assume that the hooded
man ran towards one of the characters from
behind and attacked him since the screen cut
to black as the camera closed on the main
character. A POV shot is sometimes used in
many horror films which makes this a generic
convention as it provides tension in the shot
depending on how the shot is used. Another
shot used is a low angle shot in the far end
part of the film where the character Ryan is
on top of Joe when Ryan was pummelling
Joe, although this shot is not as generic for
the genre it was used to show a sense of
dominance over a character in this case Ryan is the dominant one in the shot.

In the film the sound used was generic for the genre as it mostly consisted on subtle ambient
horror noises and sometimes intense violin noises during scenes that are meant to be intense
e.g. when Joe picks up the blanket to reveal Ryan’s face. The music allowed the film to keep
its intense atmosphere since it was constantly played in the background. Other sound effects
such as the voice recording was edited to have a deeper pitch, I decided to make the pitch of
the voice deeper since it gives the voice an intimidating presence whilst not being able to see
who is speaking, the mystery behind who the speaker is crucial element in the film as it
makes the audience question what the speaker looks like and at the same time intimidated by
the way the voice sounds. Other sound effects used are intense build up which is seen in the
scene where Ryan slowly approaches Joe’s corpse while still being covered with a blanket,
the build-up of the intense music allows the audience to experience what Ryan is feeling at
that moment since he is doubtful about checking who is under the sheet.

The editing of the film has helped in the success of the product as it supported the film in
meeting the conventions of a horror film, Editing elements that meet the conventions are seen
in scenes such as the scene where Ryan get pulled back out of frame as he gets kidnapped,
as the hooded man grabs Ryan the screen quickly cuts to a Black screen, this is done to
show how quick the scene was and a way to show a jump cut/ transition of time since the
next shot involved Ryan lying on a bed with blood on his head, this shot contained a fade in-
fade out effect this editing technique was used to make the shot look disoriented as it
constantly fades from a black screen to Ryan, this also allows the audience to know what
Ryan’s current situation is as in the scene Ryan is seen to be disoriented and the effect
allows the audience experience the disorientation. Another editing technique I used was quick
cuts during the scene where the two characters start mashing all buttons as fast as they can,
the scene involved a gameplay video of the game where their characters hit each other. After
every hit the shot cuts to a shot of the characters flinching back, These quick cuts make the
scene look intense and fast as the two start fighting which is very generic in many fighting
scenes in different movies.
During the pre-production we created a short storyboard which involved rough sketches of
what some shots of the film would look like, we did this to give us a better understanding on
what shots we should use in certain scenes to encode a meaning to allow the audience to get
a better idea on what the director is trying to encode. The storyboard is also used to make
sure that we are able to decide and finalise what shots are used in particular scenes during
the filming process to avoid any interference and doubts about certain camera angles being
used in a scene.

We also created a location recce to plan and decide where we

were going to film and if that
location meets the criteria of the scene, for example one of the
scenes had to be shot in a tight alley next to a road to show that
the location is shot in a busy area since cars are constantly driving
by the alley. We were able to find a tight alley near school that is
next to a road that meets our criteria. Using a location recce was
important as it allowed me us to properly planned our location
before filming which helps avoid any complications about where
the scene should be set which also helps in terms of time
management.
We also used a Risk assessment to ensure the safety of our crewmembers by identifying
potential risks when filming and finding the best possible way to avoid these risks and proper
medical procedure when these risks happen such as a crewmember tripping over a wire, to
avoid this event we had to make sure that all wires were stored in a safe area and if there are
any potential wires in the filming zone we had to make sure it is taped to the ground, another
example of a risk is a prop breaking e.g. the fake knife, fortunately the location of our film is
next to the DT department where they had the right equipment to fix the props such as
solvent cement. Ensuring the safety of our crewmembers is very important since if a
crewmember get injured it may lead to a delay in the filming process which is crucial since the
film has an agreed deadline.

The equipment list is used as a way to prepare for filming since

we have to ensure that all props/equipment are present during
the filming process, this is done to avoid any unnecessary
delays that will interfere the filming process. The list also acts
as a shopping list since some equipment had to be purchased
by us such as the fake knife prop and the plain blanket sheets.
Props such as the fake knife will be used in the film as a way
to show that elements of murder/ violence will be present in the
film since the film is a horror and violence is a key major
convention of a horror. The equipment list also tells us how
much the film will cots to make which we can use to potentially
find a different equipment if ever an equipment is too
expensive for us

The Production schedule was crucial in the success of our

film since some of our crewmembers have lessons in periods
where some had free lessons, the schedule helped a lot
since it allowed us to find a perfect tie period where everyone
in our crew was free for filming. This allowed us to have a
smoother filming process since we were able to find times
where we had the freedom to film and avoid any interference
n terms of lessons/ schoolwork.

Overall these processes prepared me and my crew to film

out project as it allowed us to finalize and planned how the production should go, The
preparations allowed us to have a smooth and efficient production with little unnecessary
interference that caused some delay in our production an example of a challenge we
encountered was one of the props breaking which we had to fix by going to the DT
department and fix the product by using solvent cement which caused the production time
since we were only able to film during break, lunch and free lessons.
Despite being prepared we did encounter a number of challenges such as one of the props
breaking and one of our cast members not being able to film since he had a lesson when the
others had a free, however, overall the production went well since we were able to finish
filming on time and had enough time to edit our film. During the filming process we were able
to shoot multiple shot sin one day which was unexpected since we had very little time in that
day, however, since everything was planned properly e.g. the camera shots, script, etc. we
were able to be time efficient during the filming stage and was able to shoot a lot shots in a
short period of time.

Throughout the production I was able to gain new skills that I didn’t expect to learn, an
example of this is being able to film whilst not having some sort of tripod/gimble since other
students had to use them despite having completed their film and due to the school only
having 2-3 gimbles our group had no choice but to film by hand. Although it was challenging, I
managed to film smooth shots with no sorts of shaking and applied it to our film. Another skill
I learned is being able to improvise on setting the lighting in the empty room. Since our group
was filming in a dark room, we had to make sure that the audience were still able to see what
was happening in the dark room in which the lighting had a crucial effect on. During the
production I was able to make use of the windows and the natural light outside the room to
allow some sort of lighting to enter the room which allows the camera to capture clear figures
of the characters and everything in the room whilst still having the room look very dark.

The most challenging part of our film was filming without a gimble or any sort of stabilising
equipment for a camera, this was hard since some shots include quick panning which I found
very difficult to achieve since we had to film by hand which led us to film the same shot
multiple times until we were able to get the shot that we thought was perfect for the scene.
This problem was also made more difficult since our cast sometimes had errors when reading
their lines during times when I thought I was able to make the perfect shot.

The film consistently demonstrates conventions of horror since throughout the whole film
intense scary music was played in the background until the end of the film the music made
every scene intense whilst keeping its subtlety since the music can be unnoticeable in some
shots. The movie was able to keep its consistency since most of the scenes in the film were
shot in the dark which is another generic element of a horror film. Lowkey lighting is a
technique used in many horror films to encode a message to the audience that the film is
meant to be taken seriously since the film’s colours are not as saturated. The film also kept its
consistency by the character’s reaction and expression throughout the film, In the film the
characters never laugh or create any type of humour as it will not fit in the genre of horror, the
characters are seen to always be serious, worried and stressed out throughout the entire film
even in the beginning when one of the characters is arguing with someone on the phone.

Overall the only element I would change in our film is the lighting as it faintly changes to
darker lighting or brighter lighting in some shots of the film. I would change this by using a
proper light source such as the flash on an iPhone or if possible a proper light stand.

After our filming phase we had to pick all the shots that we needed and export it to allow us to
edit it, this took some time since we had to decide whether or not to keep some shots or to
delete them and we had to find the right shot across all other shots that were meant to be
bloopers. We used the software Adobe Premier Pro since it provided the best service for
editing a film and had features that allowed us to improve our film whether it be about the
lighting, sound, or framing. While filming I used numerous effects to create meaning in our
film such as a fade in fade out effect in the scene where the main character is laying on a
bed, I also added a heartbeat sound effect to increase the tension of the shot and allow the
audience to also feel intense throughout the scene.

During the production phase we encountered numerous challenges; most of which are
external such as almost missing the deadline of the film and having to cancel our filming due
to some members not being present either due to being ill or being in lesson in which they are
not able to leave. Due to this challenge we had to extend out filming schedule and had to stay
behind after school to film so shots that we weren’t able to film.
There were a number of processes in our film that was successful such as the editing phase
where I was able to add effects into our film to create meaning in a certain scene. An example
of this is the scene where the main character is laying on a bed with blood on his head, I used
a fade in fade out effect to show that the main character is disoriented since he was just
attacked by the hooded man. A heartbeat sound effect is also added in the scene to imply
that the character is hyperventilating or is unconscious or deafened by the attack that he is
able to hear his own heartbeat. The editing phase also was very successful since it took me
two days to edit and render the film, this was good as it allowed me to have enough time for
improvements and changes after showing the film to my group.

If I were to film the short film again, I would change one element in both pre-production and
the production phase. For the pre-production I would change the way we planned the
production schedule since we didn’t take into account any extra lessons our group may have,
this has to change as it will ensure that we are able to film properly with no one absent due to
an extra lesson. We would do this by double checking our timetable to make sure that we
have no extra lessons during our free lessons in a particular day. This will allow the
production to go smoothly with no interference which will lead to us finishing our filming phase
sooner which allows us to have time to edit the film and apply any improvements into the film.
In the production area I would change the way I filmed the scenes, rather than filming by
hand, I would use a gimble or some sort of stabilising equipment to allow the shots in my film
to have smoother movements to improve the quality of our film. I would accomplish this by
reserving one of the gimbles in school as early as possible before other the other groups.