Film Preparation - Gothika, The Shining and Jennifer's Body

Throughout my journey there have been many things that have been able to inspire me to create my masterpiece. In this case, I had an excuse to continuously watch films, and analyse what made them a success - of which I would imitate.

One of these films was Jennifer's Body, what inspired me from the film was where her friend, Needy, is placed in a mental institution. Seen in the video below at 0.27 seconds to 0.32 seconds. I thought that the cold and emptiness of the room was effective to show how alone she is and how bad her mental state is. Something that my team and I wanted to come across in our opening. Hopefully making the intended audience feel sorry for Ralivia and aware of her capabilities.

What influenced the interview for our opening scene was the interview Halle Berry had for her own 'mental illness' in Gothika (2003). Watch the clip below from 1 minute 30 seconds, from the beginning the close-ups on the character's faces and dimmed lighting making the atmosphere very tense, where the audience expects a big climax (or revelation) to end the interview. We wanted our opening to have the same affect on our audience, through making them feel anticipation rise therefore they would continue to watch the opening until the end.

I personally liked the use of lighting and camera work in general, not due to the effect of it but the diversity. Pierre Charpentier was the dolly grip in the film, and his 360 track behind both the characters in the shot. I thought that this was an interesting and bizarre method of showing the characters liaising. Especially so due to a fence being seen in the foreground, which disorientated my view on the shot during that time. If that was the desired effect it meant that it definitely achieved making the audience question the subject of their interview. Also, the lighting was very drowning and daunting. It hid the characters even more, making me feel as though the woman being interviewed held something sinister. As the only pure light (white light) that was seen was transmitted through the window it created a spotlight effect on the woman being interviewed. If I were to analyse it, it showed innocence and a hand to be laid out - which can foreshadow the remainder of the film (it being on her).

Gothika was also able to inspire me when I needed to write our screenplay. The hall scene - where Ralivia is escorted to her room - the distance of the walkway, the minimal lighting and the infinite amount of rooms for the patients made the mental institution seem like an inescapable and controlling environment. This is the exact feeling and look that my team-mates and I wanted to seek for.

Below is a photo from the Gothika clip that inspired our initial idea for the hallway. There is also a trailer for the videogame Asylum which fully shows 'the look' we were after.

Gothika: The Hallway

Asylum (Kickstarter Videogame)

The lighting, long distanced hallways and sinister tone to The Shining was able to influence me when it came to Paramnesia. The use of bright lighting with under shots of the protagonist - Johnny - was able encode to the audience that there is something hidden about the character. Where the audience would be able to decode Johnny as an evil character to be wary of. This is the effect that we wanted for our opening sequence, for our target audience to suspect that there's something wrong with the Doctor. Alike The Shinning, this was done by the use of lighting and close-ups, on the characters and various objects; such as the ring and clipboard.