Treatment

      Sarah is biking up a long driveway. The camera watches the wheels go past with a low angle shot. She reaches the end of the driveway and puts her bike down, resting it on its stand. The camera follows her over her shoulder to the door to a house. There is a shot of her hand knocking on the door. Molly's mother answers the door, and the camera avoids her face, shooting over her shoulder at Sarah's face. Mrs Samuels says "Sarah, we haven't seen you in a while. How are you?" She replies "I'm good thanks, Mrs Samuels. I was wondering.. Is Molly around?" The camera shoots over Sarah's shoulder and shows Mrs Samuels' face in shadow.
      Mrs Samuels says "it's not a good idea for you to see her at the moment. She's... got a lot of homework to do." The camera returns to filming from over Mrs Samuel's shoulder, before cutting to filming from outside the house, looking at Sarah's profile. Sarah says "Oh, okay... Well... Will you tell her I came 'round?" Mrs Samuels begins to close the door and says "Yes, I'll do that. Have a nice day." Sarah replies "You too..." in a manner that suggests she thinks the conversation is unfinished.
      She waves uncertainly and walks out of the door alcove. She begins to walk back down the driveway, but stops suddenly. A high angle shot sees her looking over her shoulder to see if Mrs Samuels is there, and then she walks quietly around the side of the house. The camera follows her through a rose bush covered path. She walks into the backgarden, that has a river down the front. An establishing shot from behind Sarah shows us the back of Molly's hooded figure sitting throwing sticks into the river. Sarah walks carefuly down to stand beside Molly. The camera films them sitting beside eachother.
     Sarah greets Molly. "Hey, Molly!" Molly doesn't even acknowledge that she is there. She sits looking forwards. She is wearing a hoodie jacket and dark sunglasses. Sarah says "You weren't at school yesterday." Molly replies in a monotonous voice "I was sick." The camera films Sarah from the front as she awkwardly sits down beside her. "Are you... feeling any better?" Sarah asks. "I'm fine," Molly replies. She still hasn't looked away from the river.
     Sarah attempts to put her arm around Molly and asks "How are things with your Dad?" Molly shoves her arm off angrily and says "He's not my Dad." Sarah looks away and throws a rock in the river. "I know, sorry... Does he... Does he still..." Molly turns and looks straight at Sarah. "Does he still what? Does he still beat me?" Sarah looks down at her feet. "Look." Molly takes her glasses off and reveals a black eye. The camera jumps from a close up of Molly to looking at the two of them straight on. Sarah's eyes are wide and shocked.
     "Molly, we have to tell someone," Sarah says in a concerned voice. "No." Molly puts her glasses back on and stares straight ahead of her again.
 "But Molly, they can-" Molly interupts her and says "Just leave." Sarah sounds hurt "What?" Molly says in a harsh voice "Go. Away." arah stands up slowly, and walks up the hill. The camera watches with Molly in the foreground, and Sarah blurred in the background. The focus shifts to Sarah, who looks back once, and then continues walking away.

Script

Sarah: Georgia Scott
Mrs Samuels: Alison Budge
Molly: Deanna Stoddart

Sarah is biking up a long driveway. The camera watches the wheels go past with a low angle shot. She reaches the end of the driveway and puts her bike down, resting it on its stand. The camera follows her over her shoulder to the door to a house. There is a shot of her hand knocking on the door. Molly's mother answers the door, and the camera avoids her face, shooting over her shoulder at Sarah's face.
Mrs Samuels: Sarah, we haven't seen you in a while. How are you?
Sarah: I'm good thanks, Mrs Samuels. I was wondering, is... Is Molly around?
The camera shoots over Sarah's shoulder and shows Mrs Samuels' face in shadow.
Mrs Samuels: It's not a good idea for you to see her at the moment. She's... got a lot of homework to do.
The camera returns to filming from over Mrs Samuel's shoulder, before cutting to filming from outside the house, looking at Sarah's profile.
Sarah: Oh, okay... Well... Will you tell her I came 'round?
Mrs Samuels: Yes, I'll do that. Have a nice day.
Sarah: You too...
Sarah waves uncertainly and walks out of the door alcove. She begins to walk back down the driveway, but stops when we hear the door closing. A high angle shot sees her looking over her shoulder to see if Mrs Samuels is there, and then she walks quietly around the side of the house. The camera follows her through a rose bush covered path. She walks into the backgarden, that has a river down the front. An establishing shot from behind Sarah shows us the back of Molly's hooded figure sitting throwing sticks into the river. Sarah walks carefuly down to stand beside Molly. The camera films them sitting beside eachother.
Sarah: Hey Molly!
Molly doesn't look at her, and stays silent.
Sarah: You weren't at school yesterday.
Molly: I was sick. She is deadpan and unenthusiastic. She stares straight ahead.
The camera films Sarah from the front as she awkwardly sits down beside her.
Sarah: Are you... feeling any better?
Molly: I'm fine.
Sarah puts her arm around Molly uncomfortably.
Sarah: How are things with your Dad? Molly shoves her arm off.
Molly: He's not my Dad.
Sarah: I know, sorry... Does he... Does he still...
Molly: Does he still what? Does he still beat me? She turns and looks straight at Sarah, who looks down at her feet.
Molly: Look. She takes her sunglasses off and reveals a black eye. The camera jums from a close up of Molly to looking at the two of them straight on. Sarah's eyes are wide and shocked.
Sarah: Molly, we have to tell someone.
Molly: No. She puts her glasses back on and stares straight ahead again.
Sarah: But Molly, they can-
Molly: Just leave.
Sarah: What?
Molly: Go. Away.
Sarah stands up slowly, and walks up the hill. The camera watches with Molly in the foreground, and Sarah blurred in the background. The focus shifts to Sarah, who looks back once, and then continues walking away.

Concept for film opening.

I am planning on making an issue based film opening on domestic violence. I want to make the opening shocking. I will either have happy music at the beginning contrasted with the serious content later on, or no music with exaggerated sound effects (loud footsteps and opening doors etc).
Plot:
A girl goes to her friend's house. When she knocks on the door it is partially opened by her friend's mother. (She keeps the chain on the door.) The camera angles will be carefuly selected so that we can't ever see the mother's face. The mother tells the girl that her friend can't see her because she's got too much homework to do.
The girl decides that she will sneak around the back of the house to see her friend anyway, and finds her sitting in the garden with a hood over her head and glasses covering her eyes. They have a forced conversation for a while until the girl asks about her stepfather.
Her friend takes her sunglasses off and reveals a black eye.

Analyse.

The Cabinet of Doctor Caligari used shadows in a very different way to the ways movies do today. Because the quality of the film was so low, they needed to emphasise light and dark more than was possible. They painted the shadows on the floor and walls to achieve this. As well as making it easier for viewers to see what was happening, it added to the unsettling feeling the film was trying to achieve.
Now that film quality has improves dramatically, natural shadows are much easier to use. Censorship isn't as necessary now that we have separate ratings for each type of film and a less sensitive audience. In more modern films shadows are used purely for dramatic effect, and not as often.

A brilliant example of dramatic shadow use is the scene in Nosferatu where the shadow of the vampire's hand is seen on the female lead's chest, implying that he is clutching at her heart.



In keeping with the Nosferatu theme, the scene where the vampire is making his way up the stairs is incredibly effective in creating an ominous atmosphere through the use of shadow.

Explain.

In both Psycho and Cat People the directors have used shadows to maintain the mystery behind the killer, because the audience is not supposed to know who (or in the case of Cat People what) they are. Particularly in the pool scene where Alice is swimming and Irina approaches here, the shadows are use create an unsettling atmosphere. The light reflected from the water makes moving patterns all over the walls, leading Alice and the audience to feel as though Irina could be anywhere.

Similarly, in Psycho the shadows are used to ensure the audience is not entirely sure who killed Marion. We're not even sure whether it is a man or woman, because of the clearly masculine build and yet effeminate wig. This is achieved through having Norman silhouetted against the shower curtain in the shower scene. Shadow is often used in this way in other movies.

The idea that the unknown is much more terrifying than the known is often explored in horror movies. Shadows are a good way of achieving this by showing the general outline of a threat, rather than everything in great detail. This is done in The Tingler when the creature walks across the projection table in the movie theatre, and the audience sees its shape on the screen.

Censorship has also been an issue in earlier horror films, because the less modern audience was much more easily offended/ disturbed than the one today. In Frankenstein, for example even the line "I now know what it's like to be god!" had to be cut in the first version because it was considered too blasphemous. Shadows have been used to monitor the level of violence so that the film is suitable for the current audience. Most of the scenes that could have been very brutal in Cat People were censored through the use of shadow. The scene where Irina, in the form of a panther attacks her therapist where they could have shown a very gory battle they choose instead to show her shadow pouncing against the wall.

Convention: Shadows. Describe :)

Use of shadows is very effective in a horror films. It can create an element of mystery, allowing the director to tell what is happening without actually showing it in great detail. The famous shower scene in psycho, for instance tells us that the victim is being killed but doesn't show us who. This means that the movie can progress without the outcome being too obvious.

Particularly in black and white films, shadows are used to create a sense of foreboding and uneasiness. This ties in to my previous point that it means a lot of the time we can't see the killer, and the unknown is usually scarier than the known. It's easier as an audience to deal with a psychotic murderer when we know who they are, because then we can sit back and yell at the screen not to trust them.

The scene in "Cat People" where Irina chases Alice into the pool house is terrifying because neither Alice, the token defenseless woman of the audience can see where Irina is.

The moving shadows on the walls can easily be mistaken for someone or something creeping around in the darkness. The water creates constantly moving light patterns on the walls.

Category three revisited: Dialogue (or lack thereof)

Sweeney Todd is a silent and introverted man. Throughout this movie he speaks very little, which works well when he is partnered with Mrs Lovitt, who is a chatterbox. Mr Todd is tortured, and has just been released from prison, where he was for a very long time, sent there for a crime he didn't commit. He is used to being alone, and doesn't have the desire to hold conversation like the average human does.

All of these characteristics are well represented in the opening sequence of Sweeney Todd, because there is no dialogue. The opening sequence shows where Mr Todd lives, and tracks a stream of blood through his house. This is an attempt to introduce his character without hearing him speak.

This style of opening sequence is very similar to Tim Burton's other movies. Edward Scissorhands has no dialogue, and Edward too speaks very little. Both characters being portrayed by Johnny Depp makes it difficult to not draw parallels. The opening sequence to Coraline shows a miniature doll version of Coraline being made, and again no dialogue.

Many other movies rely on dialogue in the opening sequence to explain something important. A title sequence can be used in the same way Shakespeare used a prologue-- to catch the audience up with what is happening. This is not necessary in Sweeney Todd, because of the song that follows. In this song Mr Todd and Anthony sing about where Mr Todd has been.

Later on Mrs Lovitt sings the story of Sweeney Todd, allowing the audience to know more about Mr Todd. In a musical, dialogue in an opening sequence is quite unneeded, because there is much more room for explaining events through the use of song.