Planning Mise-en-scene - Miss Georgiou

Planning Mise-en-scene

We analysed our group narrative and decided what elements of Mise-en-scene we were going to use in our opening sequence. Mise-en-scene is the arrangement of everything that appears in the frame of a scene. This includes the actors, props and lighting. There are five different elements that make up Mise-en-scene, these are setting and iconography (props), costume, hair and makeup, facial expressions and body language, lighting and colour, and positioning of characters and props that can be scene within the frame.


Setting
Overall, there will be three different locations for the setting of our group opening sequence. For the suicide scene at the very beginning of the sequence, we have decided to use a small, dark room for the setting, preferably a cellar. This will hopefully make the audience aware that the sequence is the beginning of a thriller film, and that the rest of the film will be just as dark and depressing. We want the audience to be aware of what they are going to watch and prepared for any shocking or possibly scary scenes that will follow. This is conventional to a thriller film as it will help to build tension and create an enigma; the audience will be wondering why this character killed himself. We want this enigma to entice the audience and to keep them wanting to watch more of the film. The suicide scene will be followed by a flashback that will take the audience to an old, remote house. This is the setting for the murder of the antagonists mother. The house will be used to suggest the idea of family and closeness, which we hope will cause the audience to feel shocked when the antagonist kills his mother. However the isolation of the house can be used to show that the mother character is vulnerable in comparison to the antagonist. The audience will be introduced to his dark and violent side, which will contrast to his behaviour and innocence at the beginning of the sequence.

Iconography
We decided that the antagonist will use a Knife to kill his mother in the dinner scene. The knife is one of the most typical murder weapons that is used in the thriller genre due to it's brutality and it's connotation of death which are conventional to the thriller genre. It will also give the audience  time to prepare themselves for what is going to happen.

The antagonist will use a Rope in the suicide scene to hang himself with as we believe that this way the audience will be able to identify what the character is going to do before he does it. They will not yet know the depth of his character and so they will sympathise with him and wonder why he has killed himself. This is conventional to a thriller film as the audience will be surprised that there is an enigma at the very beginning of the sequence and will need to watch on further in order to find out his story behind the suicide.

Lighting and Colour
During the suicide scene, our group has decided to use Low Key Lighting to show the audience that the scene is dark, and to represent and foreshadow the idea of death. Low Key Lighting is conventional to the thriller genre as it is used to connote the idea of enigma and suspense, and it can create tension as the audience are unaware of what is going on behind the characters.

For the dinner scene between the antagonist and his mother we will use natural lighting and colours to make the scene feel more homely and genuine. This will relax the audience and make them feel more comfortable with what they are watching. By using natural lighting my group will be able to increase the shock factor of the death of the antagonists mother which happens during this scene. This is conventional to the thriller genre as the audience will not expect such a natural scene to turn into a brutal murder scene. It will help us to keep the audience hooked and on the edge of their seats as they know now that not everything is as they expect it to be.

Costume, Hair and Make-Up

Costumes can be used to highlight the differences between each of the characters. As well as this, we plan on using the costume to show the audience the different sides that each of the characters have, especially the antagonist. For example, he will wear white during the suicide scene to represent his innocence and guilt, and then black to contrast this in the dinner scene to show the audience his darker side. In the scene where Cameron kills his mother, he will be wearing dark clothing whereas she will be wearing white. This is so the audience will be able to identify whether the character is the antagonist or the victim. The mother will be wearing older looking clothes, with tired make-up to show her weariness and old age. We want the audience to be able to easily identify who the character is and what their age is by the way they are dressed. This is conventional to the thriller genre as it will help to build tension due to the audience knowing how the characters are likely to act based upon what they are wearing.

Facial Expression and Body Language

Our group will use the facial expressions and body language of the characters in order to give the audience a better understanding of how they are feeling. In our opening sequence, facial expression are most important during the phone call scene between the antagonist and his girlfriend. For example, she will show fearful and shocked expression after the antagonist reveals that he was the one who killed his own mother. This is due to the fact that they are on the phone and therefore the audience will not know what he is saying to her, this creates tension, anticipation and an enigma as the audience are left in the dark. The only way that they will be able to find out more is if they continue watching the film. The use of facial expressions and body language to create tension and enigma is conventional to the thriller genre as it will hook the audience into watching more of the film and will make them feel uncertain about what they are watching.

 

Positioning of Characters

We have chosen to use the positioning of the characters to show the audience the relationship between each of the characters. For example, the closeness of the characters that are seen in the frame will represent the antagonists innocent side. During the scene with the antagonist and his girlfriend the two characters will be seen closer together than what the antagonist and his mother were. This will suggest to the audience that he is not going to kill her, therefore they will be surprised when he does. This is conventional to the thriller genre as it will increase their anticipation of what is going to happen next. On the other hand, for the scenes where the antagonist is portraying his dark side to the audience, there will be an awkward distance between him and the other characters in the frame. For example, during the dinner scene the mother and antagonist will be at the opposite ends on the table, which we hope will show the audience that although they are family, they are not close. This is conventional to the thriller genre as his capability to kill his own mother in such a violent way will shock the audience.