Preliminary Task 1 Treatment - Brandon & Katie

 Treatment for Wither 

 

Treatment for Wither 
 
 
Prepared by Katie Padfield and Brandon Van Niekerk 
 
Date: 28 Feb 2023 
 
It is Proposed that the film opening will be of 2 to 3 minutes duration, and we are filming at Riverhead Forest, https://goo.gl/maps/AUN6t43Kxc1r1FYn6 . This forest is familiar to our group and it has the intended mood and feel for our film. The trees are all around and it is normally very quiet and dark in the day.  
 
This film will include the following conventions of thriller films: low lighting, foreboding sounds/ scores, absence/very loud music. The score will give an uneasy effect on the watcher and create the tension that we are aiming for. The contrast with the lack of music and the very loud music can also add to this effect. 

 
The diegetic sound that will be present will have an eerie touch to it make it a bit more unsettling. 
We will also have a low angle, canted wide shot as last shot, with the antagonist walking out of frame towards the protagonist, creating a cliff-hanger.  
 
After watching the following thriller films, Bourne Identity, I have been influenced by the use of colour to create meaning as well as the use of music and diegetic sounds.  
 
Problems encountered: We might, at the time of writing this, not get all of our shots on the day we planned so we might have to extend the time we spend filming. 

 

Character Names and their motivations/representation in the film: 

Mark Jameson -  

Mark is the film's protagonist. He's an extremely innocent yet thrill seeking character, who is completely oblivious to what’s about to happen/take place.  

He is motivated to get some shots of the forest for his ‘film’; as he is a content creator. This motivation is replaced with the need to get to safety, the moment he starts being chased by Wither.  

Mark’s character is both relatable and worth cheering on for, when looking through the eyes of the audience. 

Wither - 

Wither is the film’s antagonist. He’s a dark, chilling and volatile character, who is responsible for the events that take place in the film. 

He has the motivation to hurt Mark, his true intentions during the opening scene are unknown. It’s very easy to tell that they’re not for good but more for evil. 

From the perspective of an audience, Wither is a hated character, seeing as he’s the antagonist of the film. Known for a past event that took place in ‘Riverhead Forrest’, where the film is set. 

 

Ideology:  

There are multiple worldviews and ideas that are conveyed through the film, including: 

• The idea that the world is a horrible place. 

• Not even the innocent are exempt from the bad things in life. 

• The good doesn’t always prevail.    

Camera shots, camera movement/lighting/angles: 

There are two different camera perspectives in the film, one of them being the camcorder (More of Mark’s perspective), and the other being shots of the forest surroundings. 

Through the camcorder there will be a lot of ‘amateur’ camera movement, in terms of steadiness.  

The surroundings shots will be clearer and more focused. 
 

Themes and motifs: 
The camcorder is a motif that is present throughout this film. It shows Marcus’ innocence and his outlook on life, how he has one perspective and that he is locked into this view on life.  
 
Narrative: 
The protagonist, Mark, set out to find this forest that has a history of supernatural disappearances. He is recording this for his online community to see as this is a well-known mystery. Marcus talks about all the lore and what has happened in the past, emphasising that no one has found the cause of it. He finds the place and/or cause of all the disappearances only to see why no one has lived to tell the tale. This is shown through a man dressed in all black, nicknamed the wither, that chases after and kills anyone that has any evidence of what happened.    

 

Mise en scene/ setting: 
This film is set in the woods with tall trees and earthy colours.  
The lighting is dark and natural with a blue hue. 
There will be a rope for the antagonist to use as a weapon. 
There is a camcorder that will be another perspective held by the protagonist. 
 

Symbolism: 
The rope symbolises the restriction and the hold that both his situation and life has on him. This is shown through the antagonist, Wither, as the vessel for life to judge and to condemn them. 
The use of black in the antagonist shows the deep desire for evil he has. This is also shown through the time of day, sunset, as a way to subtly tell the audience that there is the ‘setting’ of a life and letting evil take over. 

 
Sound and music:  
In the start of this film there will be a lot of diegetic sounds that are aimed to carry the audience until the score picks up at the climax of the scene. 

 
Mood and Tone: 

The film is based through a rather dark/suspenseful mood and tone. This idea contrasts with the shots of Mark happily talking to his ‘viewers’.   
 
Use of Credits and logos:  
The opening credits are intended to be “imbedded” into the scene, we aim to have them visible but still camouflaged.  
 
Editing:  
In the very beginning there will be layers of the credits that play, we will add a filter onto some of the shots to make it look like it was filmed on an old camcorder. There will also be after effects added, for example there will be a blue light filter that 1, lowers the light and 2, makes the scene look more mysterious. We will also add in synthetic artefacts to the film to make it look like the footage is corrupted.  

 
 
Summary: 
 

Beginning: 
The protagonist arrives at the forest in a car, looking for the cause of disappearances. 
He is recording a video blog for his audience to see.  
 
Conflict/Tension in the trailer: 
The protagonist finds the place that these disappearances happened. 
He finds the antagonist, wither, and has a fight with him, ultimately running away. 
 
Middle:  
The protagonist finds what he is looking for, and gets in a fight with the being that caused the disappearances. Starts to run away from him and drops the camera he is holding. 
 
End: 
The audience looks through the camera’s perspective and sees the antagonist, wither, walking menacingly out of frame. 
 
Further notes: 
The camera that falls on the ground will show the protagonist get up and run away after he fell, and then show that the antagonist is following him.