Preproduction: Location

From research to scriptwriting and funding, Josie and I are now moving into the preproduction phase! First, we are beginning this stage by talking about the film's location.

          For our film, the plan is to shoot in two locations: school campus and the woods. The locations are really going to impact the quality of the project and we wanted to use the setting of the film to explain parts of the story we would not have time to incorporate into the opening. The props of the school campus such as the lockers and the structure of the classroom buildings conveys the idea that our main character is a high school student. In contrast, filming a scene in the woods adds an eerie tone to the shot and plays homage to traditional horror settings (check the "Horror Tropes" post to learn more).

          We really liked the idea of shooting the most thrilling scene in the woods because it represents the feeling of isolation we want our audience to experience. Using the woods as a location for the movie also contrasted greatly from the first setting of the school campus, which can help us symbolize a change in the character’s actions and the time of day. Josie and I were planning on shooting around dusk for the woods scene, and dawn for the school ground shots.

          These two settings help Josie and I out a lot, since we don't have to create any backdrops or props to make the area look realistic because it already is! While this way of shooting is different than most major studio films that shoot in a studio, as independent filmmakers this gives my group a lot more freedom to try out different settings and test a variety of camera angles. We wanted our location to be easily accessible and to be a familiar place for everyone involved with the project. By doing so we hope to cut down on confusion during our shooting schedule and to shorten the amount of time spent on shooting itself.