CCR Questions

#1

Representation and conventions

Style: Out of touch CEO interview

How does ‘final file’ conform to typical horror conventions

Yeah, we get that one a lot…

When we were still in filming, we wanted to make sure we captured that typical horror vibe, you know, to make sure audiences felt comfortable and could immediately say, “wow, that is some horror right there.”

To do this, we knew we had to get the colour scheme bang on, transitioning from warm yellows, to unsettling reds. We also took advantage of a smoke machine, using smoke to further drive home that dark, alienating atmosphere that you see in the final opening.

We wanted our final product to have a vibe reminiscent of traditional cult classics, think scream, Night of the living dead and alien. Out of all the genres, it is vital for horror especially to be recognizable. We also conform to other troupes such as introducing the main threat of the movie through the experience of one of it’s victims, in this case, the protagonist of the opening, Leah Yule, this is a classic troupe which ensures that the stakes of the movie – the threat that the file poses – are made clear off the bat.

Of course, you can’t forget about the camera, we made emotions clear using strong close ups, and enhanced immersion using sound effects for otherwise menial things.
This puts the audience into Leahs shoes, having the potential to set them up for a real scare.

Since you watched the film I’m sure you remember this, but we also made use of unsettling droning noises as the missing people watch Leah, and as Leah sees herself and comes to a dreadful realisation, heartbeat sounds get louder, subconsciously triggering a natural reaction of stress. All of this to say, Final File ensures that it conforms to all of the most important beats of both classic and contemporary horror.

But, I think we both know that a movie is never going to get anywhere just mimicking the past.

How does final file deviate from genre conventions.

Oh don’t worry, we made sure to account for that.

Final file does something that almost every modern horror movie, neigh most modern movies in general are afraid to do.

Make the audience think.

Through the use of the insert shots of the Leahs lanyard, and especially the shots of the file itself, the audience is forced to pay attention, we also put the responsibility of making the connection between the photos on the file and the missing people showing up at the door on the audience, through this we deviate from typical conventions, as if the audience is paying attention,
the entire events of the opening are recontextualised

in a mysterious manner. Which leads on to the next thing we did, merged horror with mystery, many horror movies have some level of enigma, afterall fear of the unknown is the greatest of them all, but our movie capitalises on that, we want the audience to not just watch out of thrill – but to simaltaniously be engaged by the mystery of the file, which is Atypical for most horror media.

We do this through making Leahs fate ambiguous, as although it is implied that something happens to her, what it is, is not made clear, we also planted the seed that supernatural activity could be happening through the first missing person disappearing, leaving these opportunities open is one of the many things that makes final file different.

Of course, there are also the microelements, I mentioned earlier that final file features sound effects in a traditional way, however on a similar token it deviates from conventions, featuring no scary soundtrack like most horror media, which I think does enhance the immersion, leaving the only non diegetic sounds as the droning noises. Final file also deviates through costume design, as horror often features horrific disfigurement or monsters through makeup, final file keeps it relatively realistic, using people, wearing normal clothes such as hoodies and trackpants, this is intentionally jarring and slightly perplexing by design, raising questions such as “why do they look so normal”

Although final file does conform to conventions more than it deviates this is logicial, as horror is a very defined genre. It has just enough difference to make it feel unique and fresh which is exactly what we wanted

But is final file appropriate for my young impressionable child?
(But how does final file represent social groups and issues)

Here at peak productions we have a progressive – and inclusive – mindset.

Firstly, we utilised representation of women in positions of power, through our costume design we made Leah to look strong and intelligent, the leather jacket and

dress pants work for this goal, without compromising on the fact that she is a detective – which is made reasonably clear, especially with the lanyard – stating “senior detective” it is well known that many of the traditional horror films have dated and somewhat sexist portrayal of women, and by showing Leah as a strong and independent woman in the police force not even screaming during the climax, we think final file progresses the genre of horror, in a more, correct direction.

Auckland – where Peak productions is based is a very cosmopolitan city, and as such, we thought it would be appropriate to reflect the varied demographic through Asian representation, with both Leah the main actress and the second missing person being Asian. Aligning with the population of the area will allow final file to have enhanced domestic success, as local populations will be able to relate or identify with the characters at an ethnic level.

For these reasons we believe that even through just the opening of final file, we overcame the flawed base of classic horror, and represented both women and Asian minorities in a positive and inclusive manner.

It’s been a pleasure, but I’ll have to ask that we end this little interview.
after all.

I have work to do.

#3

How did my production skills develop throughout the project

Style: Reddit AMA
(Ask me anything)

#4

Usage of technology

Style: Evil monologue

How did ‘Final File’ implement technology (hardware, software and online) into the production process?

Well, Well, Well… look who we have here. It appears as though you may have STUMBLED into my Evil Lair.
It’s funny, really, you must be wondering how we managed to pull it off, well before your inevitable demise I suppose I could tell you…

Logistically, my henchman and I made sure to share information with each other and keep a steady line of communication using google drives and outlook for file sharing as well as discord to ensure we could get serious work done even outside of EVIL school hours, this did come with flaws however, as my evil henchman naturally had differing schedules to me, which lead to us often not hearing messages from each other for extended periods of time, slowing down progress notably – we could have avoided this be designating specific dates and times to conduct our evil operations. Yet this was vital for the completion of our operation, as our ASSOCIATION OF EVIL was able to respond to and provide feedback to each other. Of course, we also used Canva for visual brainstorms, allowing DEVILISHLY good looking brainstorms, moodboards and storyboards, that no henchman was excluded from. This generally the flow of our project ensuring that everything ran smoothly.

Feeling silly now, hero?

WELL THERE’S MORE. On the day of the shooting (lightning sound effect) we made excessive use of diabolically efficient hardware. We used not one but 2 self-stabilising cameras, this allowed us to get MULTIPLE angles on every single shot, which made the EDITING process easier later. Our plans were slightly foiled by camera clicks however, which could have been avoided by simply using tripods during scenes where the camera wasn’t moving, which would have made the editing process a complete breeze (of doom.) Using two cameras was still beneficial however, as it meant that the continuity between straight cuts remained unbroken – just like my WILL FOR EVIL. It also meant that for shots were it was practically difficult to have to cameras, we could use one for behind the scenes footage of our EVIL operation, which was all documented on my EVIL blog on an EVIL piece of software called WordPress (as well as all the other details of the production process, research and preliminary questions.) We also used a multicoloured lighting rig to enhance the evil ambience of the shots which we intended to hold an unsettling atmosphere with, generally improving the overall mise en scene of the operation. We did have some problems keeping a consistent colour portfolio however, as each time we unplugged our evil lights, they would reset colour, this could have been solved by remembering the exact RGB code of the lighting and plugging it into the software, which we would do if we tried again in the future. And finally, we used a SMOKE MACHINE (LIGHTNING SOUND EFFECT++)… pumping out the fog war it substantially improved the set design, in scenes where it was used heavily the smoke is visible, working to conceal LEAHS ASSAILANT in a most… supernatural manner, our group wanted this operation to remain enigmatic, so no trace of our evil operation could be tracked back to us.

But did you really think I was done?

Once we recorded our… crimes. We knew we had to do some, editing, as an editor might call it. After my GOONS shared the footage with me using the aforementioned google drive, I got to work. I made heavy use of the adobe suite, utilising mostly premiere pro to compile the footage into a sequence… of doom, with frankly EVIL effects on my dwindling computer RAM. Premiere pro was my favoured choice due to its large arsenal of tools to use, I made use of its keyframes, masking, sound manipulation and colour grading to ensure the final product came out PERFECTLY. But what is an opening without a title, and of course, CREDITS. I first used adobe illustrate to make a devious title while my minions designed a malicious production logo, once these… assets, were complete. I used adobe animate to create an engaging, well, animation to ensure the viewers remain… enthralled. Yet I did have some issues in constructing the FLOOD OF BLOOD ™ seen in the final title opening, as this was my… second time, ever using adobe animate, so I probably should have practiced more in advance, BUT ALAS time is not on our side.

See now hero – you never stood a chance. Me and my evil henchman are going make… a killing.

MWUAHAHAHHA – cough cough.