Location Scouting - Bexleyheath Church

Location Scouting - Catholic Church in Bexleyheath

After a period of deliberation, we eventually decided on our final location being in a church in area close to our school: 

Pros of this location: 

• Supplies a vast amount of mise en scene to work with so we could gather the best shots 
• It is in an accessible location near to our school so we wouldn't have to travel far with the equipment
• Provides toilets meaning we could work for extended periods 
• No noises or disturbances during our filming hours so it is completed without interruptions
• Permission to use this church was easily granted
• In a safe location
• Has prominent stained glass windows which work perfectly to gain some effective shots 

Cons of this location:

• A lot of natural light which could vary throughout the day
• The church was only open for particular hours of the day meaning we may have to alter our school scheduled in order to go there
• Services and masses may effect the timings and availability of the church
• Lack of electricity to charge our equipment

It is evident that this location provides far more positive aspects rather than negative thus it is likely that we will use this for our final location to film in.

Mise en scene in the cellar

Mise en scene

When filming our opening seen we wanted a large amount of focus to be put on the mise en scene, especially the props and lighting as we belived this would be the most effecive way to portray the film genre as well as hinting at where the story of the film was going to lead. 

Props

We had previously done a significant amont of research into religous symbolism which benefited us during the process of choosing our props to include in our sequence as it provided us with an idea of what would work. We gathered bibles and many candles as they would portray a clear religious asthetic. 
Within the house of the artists, we discovered several items
which we belived would be perfect for our set and to help produce the eery atmosphere we were aiming to acheive. We found these old books, (shown in the picture beside), which were extremely tattered and had several symbols on them. We thougth they complemented our film genre suitably so we added them to our set. Beneath them is an old wooden box which we also found amongst the items in the house. We thought this also complemented the theme we were going for and I was please with this find.


We placed a candel next to the accumilation of books and the bible which, I belive, transformed the set into soemthing much more eerier and spookier to look at. The candle had a metal holder which had intricate detail surrounding the base giving it an ancient and more effective appearance. The candel also prodcued adequate lighting to light up the area and using this ensured that the lighing would stay consistent throughout. 




In addition, we also found this chair which was clearly rather old due to the several marks and scratches it had attained. However, this gave it a more mysterious and synister look which we belived would work well for our protagonist to sit on. The rope upon it was also added to increase the effect of the mise en scene as it all worked together to produce a rather feared and mysterious appearance.

 We felt it was relevent to include a cross during the opening scene since we were inspired by the large amount of religious symbolism in the film 'Stigmata'. In order to create this we found two planks of wood and created one longer piece and one shorter piece. We then tied them together using string to create the cross formation. After this, we added some fake blood at the ends of the horizontal piece and at the bottom on the vertical piece to replicate the areas that blood would have reached during Jesus' crucifixion.

Once the cross was positioned in place and amongst the candles, we thought that the tattered and broken look about it worked effectively and complemented the tattered style of the books and the old walls. Several, tealights were added around the room which not only produced light but also created a very mysterious and dismal atmosphere. 

The Filming Process

The filming process

The location we finally decided on was in an old cellar. This was currently being used as storage space and consisted of such materials and objects like paint pots and building materials which filled the area completely, however we saw potential within the asthetic of the old walls and the dark space to create an effective filming enviroment once the contents were cleared. Therefore, we took time out of our filming scedual to remove everything and carry it up to the landing untill we were satisfied with the location and when we felt it was suitable to film in and would produce the best picture possible. This is a time lapse i created to show evidence of the task:

This process was very strenuous and took some time however, fortunately, we had accounted for this time within our filming scedual and we were very pleased with the outcome of the location after the clearing procedure:
 

Location Scouting - The Cellar

Location Scouting

The Cellar

Fortunately, my next door neighbour offered to lend us their cellar for our project. Shown below are some photographs I took of it when I went to visit.

The Main Cellar Room

This location is perfect for our chosen genre - it is dark, eerie, and decrepit. It is a fairly small area, approximately 5x5m, however it is just large enough to fit us and our equipment. The only issue with this location is the contents of the cellar, however as a group we will be able to shift the pots to the ground floor while we film.

The Cellar

The Stairway

The stairway is again eerie and dark, however it quite a confined space. It would be good for an establishing shot to let the audience know that the room is underground.

The stairway

Although it is difficult to make out, the image below shows the descending staircase into the basement. As you can see, the ceiling descends too meaning that we will have to be careful carrying tall camera equipment.

The descending stairs 

Pros of Using the Cellar as a Location

• No natural light - the changing outdoor light will not affect us, so we can easily keep our lighting consistent 
• Dark and dingy - conforms to horror genre
• No noises or disturbances - our video will not be interrupted
• Toilet facilities on the ground floor
• Next door to my house - we can take breaks filming and can travel easily to the location
• The location is safe to visit

Cons of Using the Cellar as a Location

• It may get cramped with all four members of our team present
• It may be difficult to illuminate 
• Unloading and reloading the cellar will be time consuming

Overall, it is likely that we will use this as our location as we are all happy with its aesthetic, and are confident that we could get some really effective shots from it.

Location Scouting - Art Studio

Location Scouting

The Art Studio

A family friend of mine happens to be an artist and kindly offered to lend us their art studio to film our project. Before we finalise our idea, I decided to visit the studio and take a number of photographs showcasing the decor of the studio.

The Entrance

The studio is situated in a Victorian edifice, so the walls are tarnished and the ceiling plasterwork is ornate and decorative. This gives an eerie feel to the building, and if used with a low key lighting set up could be very effective. However, one issue with this area of the building is the blue doorframe - these perhaps ruin the antique aesthetic to the hall. It may be better to use a quick shot of the dilapidated walls rather than a lengthy scene in the hallway.

A shot of the building's entrance from the staircase

A high-expoure shot from the front doorway

The Studio

The studio is cluttered and busy - however there are a number of interesting props we could use. The aesthetic of the studio could be effective in a more arty piece, however for our genre of choice it would probably not be particularly effective.

The mantlepiece

The Studio

The parts of interest I picked out included:

• The victorian mantlepiece - this could be cleared and used
• The rustic mirror leaning against the wall on the mantlepiece
• The antique painting hanging on the wall above the mantlepiece

Hallway #2

The second hallway has an interesting wooden mirror with ivy on it - this could potentially be used to film a shot from the reflection of the mirror. The style of the mirror and paintings emphasises the rustic aesthetic that typically is associated with the horror genre.

Hallway #2

 The Mural

Although the mural is an interesting aspect of the art studio, its lively aesthetic is unlikely to do us any favours in terms of filming a horror opening.

The Spare Bedroom

The spare bedroom features a large mirror, which again could be used for an interestingly angled shot. I also am keen on the lampshade, which is very rustic. With a low key lighting set up, I think that the furniture in this room could really have an eerie feel to it, as the paintings on the walls and the ubiquitous patina have a very captivating aesthetic. This style of decor is commonly associated with the horror genre, so fits well with the codes and conventions of horror.

Overall, I think we could definitely take some interesting shots from this building, however it is unlikely we will use it as our main focal location. We could also borrow some of the interesting props and transport them to an alternative location.

Location Scouting - Christ Church, Erith

Location Scouting 

Christ Church, Erith

As part of our location scouting, we visited a small community church in our local borough. Shown in the video below are a collection of photographs we took to document some interesting aspects of mise-en-scene we could use within our film opening.

Some general research on the building let us to note that is a listed building due its traditional style and decorations. An old Church rather than a newly built one would be much more effective to film, due to its character and charm.

Pros of this location:

• stained glass window could make a very effective shot
• the Church is an old building (grade II listed)
• the interior of the Church has a variety of religious artworks
• the building is situation close to home, so filming on several days wouldn't be an issue
• there is an outside space to film the exterior of the building
• the building has bathroom facilities which would be helpful for a long filming day

Cons of this location:

• getting permission for entry to the building with cameras may be a significant issue
• the Church may not allow us to film shots of the exterior of the building

Overall, we decided that it would be unlikely we could gain permission to enter the building to film (however we will politely ask anyway). However, a few montage shots of the exterior of the building could be extremely powerful within our opening, for example shots of the stained glass windows or the wooden doors opening or closing. The general architectural structure of the Church could also feature within our opening, for example a short shot of the spire or brickwork.