New Casting

I was going over my cast, literally just two people, and I realized that although there is no dialogue, I have very little representation. The girl whom I chose to play the victim is blonde, much like every girl in the stereotypical horror realm. That is why I decided to change it to a Hispanic girl. This not only shows diversity but it is also something much more relatable to me and is easier to work with.

The task now is to find a new actress. I have many people in mind but am still debating if it is easier to just cast myself. Seeing that I am already behind schedule, trying to coordinate with a whole new person will only be a setback. Either way I will keep you guys updated!

Distribution

Hey guys! I have come up with my distribution method plan for the release of the film. Not only will it be released through YouTube, but it will also be shown in local film festivals.

YouTube
The film will be available to stream through YouTube, which provides free and easy access to the movie. The film will appear under the Watch Next section whenever viewers see things related to horror or independent movies or use key words as well.

Film Festivals
The film festivals will be a great way to expose the film towards an audience that is interested and open minded. This is a great way to compare films with others and gain connections that may facilitate the distribution process in the future.The film festivals best available in Florida are:
- Miami International Film Festival
- Florida Film Festival
- Orlando Film Festival
- Freak Show Horror Film Festival

Target Audience

As I was working on the project, I realized that I need to determine the target audience for this piece. For the horror genre both males and females watch at an even amount, 52% to 48%, so the age and gender is not specifically set in stone. However, the target audience is typically teenage to young adult males. This is because many horror films satisfy that sense of vengeance and violence.

For my opening there will be no violence depicted, so I intend for a larger base of females to enjoy it as well. I am not making this adhering to a specific group of people. On the contrary, I am keeping the conventions as basic as possible in order to appeal to a larger audience. The lack of dialogue will help in this because I won't have to create jargon that only a specific group uses and instead use the silence as a way to intrigue the audience.

Casting

I finally found my actors! I decided to use my dad as the stalker and my cousin as the victim. I was initially going to use two friends I had in mind, but the schedules rarely coincided and would have been too difficult to coordinate. The characteristics of the actors remain the same nevertheless. Since the antagonist’s face will not be shown it is uncertain to the audience how old he really is. I used that to my advantage to cast my dad, who is tall and with the right costume design can look younger. I was not looking for anything in specific regarding the physical appearance of the victim, so casting my cousin was the safest and easiest option. In addition I will not need to be worried about how good the acting is because there will be no dialogue and a large portion of the intro is close ups and extreme close ups.

Shooting Schedule

Hello everyone! As I move forward with my project I decided to make a shooting schedule to better organize myself in the weeks remaining. Since this is due in the beginning of April here is what I came up with:

03/09-03/12: prop/ set design

03/13: prop/ shooting

03/ 14:shooting

03/15: shooting

03/16-03/20: editing/ reflection

03/21: reshoots

03/22: reshoots

03/28: editing

03/29: editing


I have created this method of shooting on weekends for the month of March to prepare myself during the week, taking into consideration other schoolwork and availability of the actors. With this schedule, I will be able to finish a week early in case there are any issues or delays.

Creating the Title

Helloo! I just decided the title for my opening, I’m calling it Turn Around. I decided on this because I thought it captured the idea of a stalker and the irony of how turning around may have changed the fate of the protagonist.

Most movies include short phrases or adjectives to create the title of movies in order for them to be catchy and easy to remember. Some examples include Get Out, IT and The Conjuring. My title expresses the theme and lets viewers know it is a horror movie because it alludes to conflict. I thought of this idea when I was going over the last scene in my head, where the stalker looks through the window to see the girl walking by. If she had simply just looked she would have realized that someone was watching her and made her more cautious of her surroundings.

Group Meeting

Hey guys! I had my first group meeting in class earlier this week to get some feedback on my movie intro when I realized that I was not completely sure of the plot. My introduction seemed more like a scene that would occur later in the movie rather than the beginning. With that being said, I have come up with the final movie intro.

There will be no dialogue, just music playing with the credits along with the clips. The scene begins with short and close up shots. There will be a bulletin board with a girl’s face on it and many strings coming out of her picture that connect to different pieces of her life. All that is seen throughout the scene is the back of a man or his side, but never his face to keep his identity a mystery. This will go on throughout most of the scene up until the very end, where he looks at his watch and looks outside of his window to find that the girl he has been stalking is walking by. The scene ends with him walking out and turning the light off, which is where the title will later appear.

I think that the lack of dialogue will make the scene seem like a theme song of some sort that establishes the antagonist and alludes to conflict. My idea originally of a girl getting drugged at a bar was not one that I was passionate about and did not seem like a movie opening, especially because the change in scenery so frequently created the opposite effect. With this new idea, I can play with mise-en-scene and lighting to create an eerie feeling that will better reflect the horror genre.