First Day of Production

Hello everyone. Today we will be discussing a general overview of the first day of production for our film opening, “DHOST.” My friend and I began by creating a draft in which we combined our initial clips to evaluate whether our ideas worked effectively. Below is an outline of what we practiced during the filming of the opening sequence. We will discuss more towards on if our introduction of the film opening will accomplish the setting and lighting of creating horror films. Here is our result on how the first day went: 

Setting and Location Result: 

The introduction scene was filmed near my cousin’s neighborhood, Towngate, where the film’s journey begins. The opening introduces the protagonist waiting for a ride home when his friend arrives and offers him a lift. As the car drives off, the camera pans to a sign we designed that reads “Welcome Dhost.” This scene gradually transitions from an ordinary conversation to an unsettling tone, with subtle clues such as the oddly placed sign at the community gate.  

We also filmed a practice version of the interaction between the protagonist and antagonist, focusing on how we plan to represent their dialogue and emotional tension in the final version.  We utilized a two shot angle as it shows the two character's interactive conversation. Throughout the filming process, we felt accomplished that the first two scenes successfully created the unsettling and dark atmosphere we wanted. I especially liked the idea of recording the film opening at night, as it enhanced the eerie mood of the scenes filmed inside the neighborhood and during the garage sequence.

We shot several scenes in the garage to ensure the setting clearly demonstrates mise-en-scène elements. The garage setting helped create an isolated and confined atmosphere, making the environment appear darker and narrower. We also incorporated the color red next to a box that had a sign labeled “Do Not Touch.” As the protagonist moves closer to the box, the camera focuses more intensely on it. We used an over-the-shoulder shot to guide the audience’s attention toward the box, emphasizing its importance and building suspense.

Throughout the filming process, my team and I felt accomplished in achieving our goal regarding the antagonist, who is portrayed as the “driver.” In the garage scene, he quickly fades out of view, which helped us practice how to represent the character arc of the antagonist. From our research, we learned that when a setting or location appears unsettling and isolated, it often suggests that danger or a threat may be present. In this case, we intentionally showed the antagonist less frequently in order to build suspense around his character arc and create a sense of mystery for the audience.

Garage Lighting Scenes: 

For now, this is what we have accomplished so far. We were not able to finish the last scenes, as it was getting late for us. For the most part, we were able to finish the first half to utilize this as a draft to assess our flaws and what scenes stood out the best.

Overall, everything indicated to smoothly, we were well prepared and on time with filming. We rarely had a hard time and are excited to practice more concepts throughout the film opening. 

But, I will be signing off and will conclude the rest of the scenes in our second day of the film production.