Production Company Name and Logo

The name we decided upon for our production company is Valar Productions. This is in reference to the popular HBO TV show Game of Thrones, and its tagline 'Valar Morghulis'. We came to the conclusion that this would be a fitting name as in the universe of the show, 'Valar' has strong connections with death and our film opening, being that of a Sci-Fi/Thriller film features violence and death in a large way. We felt that this name would appeal to our target audience as when we interviewed them, we discovered that a number of teens who would be interested in our film opening also watch 'Game of Thrones', and so would appreciate the reference.

Our logo is relatively self-explanatory, depicting a film-reel morphing into a fire-breathing dragon. We felt that this would be appealing to our target audience as it is relevant to the fact that it is a film production company and also the dragon relates back to our title and to 'Game of Thrones' as dragons are featured in the show. Using a mythological creature similarly fits with the Sci-Fi genre as it is not uncommon to see gruesome and unnatural creatures in this type of film.

Prosthetics and Liquid Latex

A friend of our group has had experience with using Liquid Latex in the past so we have employed her to help us with makeup on the day of filming. We have chosen to use Liquid Latex as we have planned for detailed injury that can only be attained with prosthetics such as deep scratched and we will also use this latex to create the scales on the infected characters. This is a test of the latex that gave us an idea of how long the makeup takes to apply and what looks good on camera:

This injury was created using liquid latex, tissue, foundation, body paint, eyeshadow and fake blood.

Age Certification

An important part of the production of our film opening is decided which age certificate we are aiming to give it. We used the standards given by the BBFC (British Board of Film Certification) to determine what aspects of film fell into which age rating, which are as follows: U, PG, 12A, 12, 15, 18. We have decided that our film opening will have a 15 certification, as we have included some bloody violence and the overall feel of the film is unsettling and thrilling. The BBFC have strict restrictions on what type of content can be shown in each age rating, which must be obeyed in order for the film remain within their desired category. These are the conditions for a 15 rated film:

• Theme: No theme is prohibited, provided the treatment is appropriate to 15 year olds.

• Language: There may be frequent use of strong language; the strongest terms are only rarely acceptable. Continued aggressive use of strong language and sexual abuse is unacceptable.

• Nudity:  There are no constraints on nudity in a non-sexual or educational context.

• Sex: Sexual activity and nudity may be portrayed but without strong detail. The depiction of casual sex should be handled responsibly. There may be occasional strong verbal references to sexual behaviour.

• Violence: Violence may be strong but may not dwell on the infliction of pain, and of injuries. Scenes of sexual violence must be discreet and brief.

• Imitable techniques: Dangerous combat techniques such as ear claps, head-butts and blows to the neck are unlikely to be acceptable. There may be no emphasis of easily lethal weapons (in particular, knives).

• Horror: Sustained or detailed infliction of pain or injury is unacceptable.

• Drugs: Drug taking may be shown but clear instructive detail is unacceptable. The film as a whole must not promote or encourage drug use.

A 15 rating is suitable for our target audience of teenagers our age and above (16+), therefore a 15 rating means that there is some lenience for slightly younger members of the public to watch the film opening, but it would also be highly appropriate for older viewers, and so widening the audience and raising more awareness for the film.

We also took into consideration the age ratings of TV programmes and films that influenced our film opening such as Teen Wolf, The Walking Dead and Supernatural, all of which have a 15 rating.

Health and Safety

As part of the filming process it is necessary for us as a group to complete a risk assessment and create consent forms. The risk assessment is important as, especially with such a large cast, we will have to be very aware of any potential dangers to the actors and to ourselves.

All of the actors we will use in our film are under 18 years old, we need to have written consent in order to show footage with them in. As a result of this, we have created a consent form to be signed by all actors on the day.

Finalising Props and Makeup

For our film opening, we have planned for there to be very few props, only a baseball bat that the main character uses as a weapon, but our makeup plans are very ambitious. Over the past weeks, we have been gathering information from the likes of YouTube about how to create effective character makeup which will convey the supernatural, sci-fi feel we are hoping to create.

We were able to purchase three pairs of identical lizard-eye contact lenses; two of which will complete the look for the two infected attackers and the third for the final scene of the opening when the infected main character opens his eyes.

After multiple attempts, I was able to perfect a mixture for realistic fake blood which did not stain skin. This will enable us to create gruesome and believable wounds for all characters in the film opening, including the extras.

I first tested the blood on myself to make sure that it looked real, was washable and safe. We will use this blood mixture in our film to add to the injuries shown.

Makeup Trial 2

In order to have some idea as to how the scales and wounds would look on the infected characters, we first ran a makeup test using very basic makeup products and techniques. Here is our simple physicalisation of the makeup that will allow us to further develop and experiment with ideas and possibilities for our film opening: 

We are planning to purchase lizard-eye contact lenses, liquid latex and to make fake blood which will all come together to create believable and shocking makeup effects.

Links used as references for lizard-style makeup:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DNUekw1QBPM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Xb57bCDlYs

Make-up Trial 1

Emily ran a trial of the makeup that we plan to use for the extras and as a base for the 'infected' characters. These are the photos from her test-run:

Before application:

White face paint mixed with foundation applied:

A mixture of black eyeshadow and purple face paint around the eyes:

Black eyeshadow to highlight cheekbones:

We have also purchased lizard-style contact lenses for the attackers and the main character in the final shot. 

Make-up Plan

Here are the drawn plans for the make-up of our main characters:

              

                         Natural main character                  Infected main character

              

                         Infect female attacker                   Infected male attacker

The extras, playing the 'dead bodies' in the background will be made up with pale skin and bloody wounds on faces, arms, legs and chests. 

Completed Storyboard

Storyboard

Audience Expectations of Genre

We asked members of our target audience what kind of conventions and aspects of film they would expect to see in a Sci-Fi/Thriller movie. We then put the results into an organised mind-map:

Close analysis of the opening to The Walking Dead