Recces

On our first recce, we travelled to the agreed-upon location of Canary Wharf DLR station in order to do some preliminary filming on the DLR. However, as we stepped onto the train and began to unpack our tripod and camera, a TFL official stopped us and informed us that, without a permit, we were not allowed to do any filming. We switched train and stayed on a little while longer going for an empty carriage in which to get some filming done but it just got busier and busier, despite being in the afternoon of a Sunday.

Back in the classroom, we decided we would go out again the next week, and recce the still urban but hopefully more deserted route of London Bridge to Lewisham. However, this turned out to be as busy as the DLR, so we decided we had to change location completely. We decided that we would film somewhere in the city but not on public transport. After much deliberation we decided upon London Bridge and did a recce there which was fairly successful and seemed to be a good location which we could transfer our script to. Here is a video of the recce we took, showing how we transposed some of the shots from the train to fit the now street-based location. We have done a voiceover over the top, noting what we need to improve when we film it:

Graphics Research - Font

I am researching different fonts that we could use for our graphics. Here are my three favourites:

This font is called Telegrafico and I feel that it would be a good font to use for our titles as it is bold and not flippant, however there is still a modern edge to it which, coupled with its slight reticence, adds an air of mystery.















This font is called Seedy Motel and I believe it would be a good font to use as it because it is quite a gritty-looking font with its fading brickwork style. It fits in well with our genre of gritty, urban thriller.

Storyboard

DLR Reccy 1

Having taken the DLR route (through Canary Wharf) which is where we intend to film our sequence, I now have a better idea of what to expect. The DLR itself was not monumentally busy, meaning it should be easy enough to film on board the train. However, we may not be able to achieve our desired effect of having the train empty unless we go later at night, when the line is presumably emptier than it was in the afternoon, as there will be no difference in the light (now that the nights are earlier). The stations themselves are also not particularly busy, and there are some particularly cinematic locations surrounding the DLR such as Canary Wharf, which I have taken a few shots of with my camera to gain an understanding of what filming will be like.

Film Plot Overview

Our film follows the story of Frank, a young assassin who operates on the streets of south London. In the opening scene, he is shown working in his normal fashion: he receives the time and place from anonymous contacts, and makes his appearance before meeting another contact instructing him on who to target. However, due to the nature of this particular task - he is told only to target someone with a 'red hat' - and the fact that he had come unprepared, due to a tight schedule, for a busy platform due to a football game, he executes the wrong target. After the finger of blame is pointed to him by his employer, and the police begin to target him for murder, Frank takes to the streets in an attempt to avoid confronting those who are after him. However, staying in a run-down one bedroom apartment in Lewisham with blood on his hands, Frank must also confront his inner demons. While his life is spiralling out of control and he is slowly losing his grip on life, he comes across, by chance, Vincent, a friend from his past. Like Frank, Vincent is highly vulnerable: he produces heroin for a brutal drug dealer. The two attempt to reform themselves and make an honest living - Frank working in a car garage, and Vincent in a local primary school. However, Vincent's past comes back to him and his violent boss leaves him hospitalised after attempting to have him shot to death in the street for abandoning his business. Seeking vengeance, Frank confronts and brutally murders Vincent's boss and henchmen. However, those who had contracted Frank in the film's opening, and subsequently the police, find him out. Before the police arrive, the anonymous man who Frank had met on the DLR in the opening of the film finds him by the Thames Barrier. Frank is shot from behind, though is still able to confront and shoot his anonymous employer to death. The police arrive at the scene and a wounded Frank jumps into the river to avoid detection as the film ends, his fate being left ambiguous.

Deptford Bridge + DLR Photos

These pictures were taken of the cityscapes surrounding the DLR. It is easy to see how they would look impressively cinematic in our film, especially at night time when we would be able to capture the lighting and reflection of the buildings.

These are all pictures of the DLR station. It seems to have a good view over the streets in Deptford, which we may be able to use to add impressive aesthetics to our film.

Though the stairs of the station will not take up much of the film, these pictures demonstrate how it is an impressive, cinematic location and could make the film more visually thrilling, especially when it is darker and there are artificial lights.