Planning: Props

Props are used throughout short films to attract the target audience. Because of this, the props that I decide to use will have to appeal to a teenage - adult consumer base. For example, within my short film I may need to use props that represent the most up to date technology as this is what appeals to a young audience. Firstly for my film, I will use:

1. DVD Set

This DVD set will be used within our film as a prop for the two boys to watch while they are enjoying each others company. As before the prank call actually happens, the two boys will be compromising with other things such as watching films before they get bored and start to prank call.

2. A Knife

The knife will be used within our film to add fear for the audience, because the stalker will be wielding a knife while approaching the boys in the home alone sleep over. The use of the knife will put a thought process in the audience to show that he is attempting to kill the two boys and this will add fear and suspense to the audience.

3. Home Phone

The home phone will be used without our film to signify that the two boys are reasonably young, as they don't have a mobile phone for them selves and therefore only know to use the home phone. As well as this, the idea of the home phone has a creepier view surrounding it then the mobile phone, therefore adding to the suspense of the audience.

4. Popcorn

The popcorn in our film will be used as an extra prop to be on the table when they are watching films. The idea of having popcorn will create a more realistic feel to the film and it doesn't feel too artificial, as this would create a less scary feel to the music, so therefore having this will hopefully create a more scary feel.

5. Screwdriver

The screwdriver in our film will be used as a prop in the film from the child to defend themselves against the stalker. This is the main prop which will cause the most effect as the young boy will use this to defend his friend from the grasp of the stalker.

6. Tool Box - Holding The Screwdriver

The tool box in our film will be used as a prop to hold the screwdriver that the boy grasps to defend his friend from the stalker. The tool box will add reality to the film as the boy would have to gather and choose which weapon he can use to temporarily injure the stalker to get away from the stalker.

7. Xbox One & Controller

The Xbox One will be used in our film as an extra prop for the two boys to play before they get bored enough to prank call, adding realism to the film therefore gaining the audience's attention more as they feel more intrigued and engaged in the film.

Planning: Casting

Casting The Characters:

Within the narrative that I have created, there will be three actor roles to fill. Both of these 
roles will need a male actor between the ages of 13-17, which is a good age to cast, as the students within our school year studying drama can portray this role well, being two teenage boys that are home alone and decide to prank call.  

As well as the two teenage boys, there needs to be a actor for the stalker, which can also be portrayed through the use of our drama students in school, showing their skills through the acting. Being a film of a horror/thriller genre, the actors that I choose will need to maintain a serious role. As well as this, I will also need to choose actors that are available when I need them to be as I will be working to a deadline and filming - an element that has risks of being pushed back due to many factors. A final specification that I decided for my two actors was that in order to appeal to 15+ audience - they will need to portray roles of teenage boys that show great fear, to portray that to the audience. This can be achieved through the use of, costume and props however it would be useful if their natural look fulfilled the same purpose.

Jack (17, Chenderit School Drama Student) - The Stalker

I chose Jack Addis, 17, to fulfil this role as the distinct feature of his beard connotes with the fact that he is rough and older, showing the audience that the stalker is older. Doing so, allows him to create a character that looks like they are an older male compared to the younger characters - which, in fact, appeals to the audience as it gives them suspense towards the character

As well as this, the actor is also an advantage to me because he has a lot of free time that I can spend filming him in short notice. Whilst the actor has done a lot of film work before, so allowing Jack to perform will provide a lot of experience within our film. In addition,Jack also has the confidence to allow me to use him to perform various scenes and shots in our film which is great in an actor.

Jimmy (17, Chenderit School Drama Student) - Danny

I chose Jimmy Upstone, 17, to fulfill this role as he is my fellow partner in creating this film, and as well as this he studies Drama and therefore carries the features your need to become an actor. He will fit the boy Danny well, as this requires a young outlook on the character (being 15-16) and therefore he fits well.

As well as this, the actor is also an advantage to me because he has a lot of free time that I can spend filming him in short notice. Whilst the actor has done a lot of film work before, will provide a lot of experience within our film. In addition,Jimmy also has the confidence to allow me to use him to perform various scenes and shots in our film which is great in an actor, as this is his film as well.

Christian Hunt (17. Chenderit School Media Student) - Thomas

I chose Christian Hunt, 17, to fulfill this role as he studied theater studies in Year 11 and achieved an A grade, therefore carries the features your need to become an actor. He will fit the boy Danny well, as this requires a mischievous and daring character which I think Christian holds well as a persona on his acting.

As well as this, Christian is also an advantage to me because he has a lot of free time that I can spend filming him in short notice. In addition, Christian also has the confidence to allow me to use him to perform various scenes and shots in our film which is great in an actor, as this is his film as well.

Planning: Location 2

Location 2: Location Of Where Stalker Runs After The Two Boys

- The small lake that we are filming around.

This is the location in which we will be filming. The small lake/pond will be the location to be filming our second sequences of shots, as this will provide a creepy eerie location, as well as giving areas to be filmed because its easily accessible and also no permission is needed because there is no ownership on the land we are being filmed on.

This is where the boys would run too as the stalker tries to track them down. However, the problem here is lighting, we will film this part in the early evening as there is still possible light and also lighting available to film with will be available. These are also test shots to see what the quality is like in darkness and as shown it isn't very professional. Therefore the choice of time and day will be early evening so there is still light, however there is still a hint of darkness.

This is where the boys who are escaping from the stalker would run down. This can be done through either medium shot or a POV shot. We have taken some shots of the area in the light as well as this is so we can get the best of both worlds in deciding which one looks best and provides the most fear in the light provided. As you can see, despite it being 4:30pm as we took the photos of the location, it still looks dark and mysterious through the tree cover, and this is something we can take advantage on through our test shots we will take.

This is where the boys then run through to get to the lake where their Grandparents live near. They were told to go there if they had any problems as it was near. But they have to go through the woods to get there, which seems to then be a bad plan...

This is where the boys run round to get to their Grandparents house. They will have to venture around this lake to get to the house, however despite their struggle, the stalker catches up with them, causing them to be forced to hide.

Planning: Location 1 - House of Sleep Over

Location 1: House Of Sleep Over/Stalker Entry:

- The area in which will be filmed for our first shots of our scene.

This is the location of where the first shots of the short film will be set and filmed. As we are inside for most of these shots, we will be okay with the weather. However, when filming the shot of the stalker approaching the house and at the house at in the evening, it mustn't be completely pitch black as that would be hard to film, so it must be early evening as it will make the shot ultimately better and easier to watch the film. These shots may take between 3-4 days, as we want to get the perfect shots out of this, and this is possible as we have access to the house easily as I currently live here, so we can access this house to film whenever we want. 

- Sleep over location (living room)

For our idea, we have decided that the sleep over would be in two locations. However our main decision would be that it to be filmed here in the living room, as two of the boys can be watching movie and sleeping on the sofas. However, despite this picture, we will be filming the scenes of the sleep over in the evening, with the use of the living room lights and some filming lights as well. This will be shown in test shots that we will film in the future. However, this is the main location of where the boys in the film will be based for the first bit.
                                                                           

 - Shot of where the boy sees the stalker (door step)

This is a shot from the scene where the boy looks out to see who is at the door while just being asleep. This is the key jump scare in the film and is the main twist in the story where they both realise they are in trouble. Just like the first picture, this will be also filmed at night. However, despite there bing no obvious light outside, we will use the front light above the door, this will give an eerie look to the character provide some lighting. If it is still hard to see the character, we will then be using artificial light through the use of film lights. We can then later on decide what is needed through when we test shot and decide whats best for the character.

- where the stalker will walk round the side of the house (side door)

This shot will be another POV shot of where the boy sees the stalker entering the house from the side door. At this point the boy will wake up his friend to ask if he locked the side door. As the storyline gets worse for the two boys quickly, they forget to lock the side door after both entering it coming back from the day. From when the stalker enters the side door, this is where the boys realised they've made a mistake from prank calling to not locking the side door, to later realising not to lock the back door...

- where the stalker tries to break into the back door (back patio)

This is where the stalker comes round to back to enter the back door.