REFLECTIONS: Singing scene 11th March

A key scene in our production is the table-top sequence, where the Stalker is developing and arranging a series of pictures captured of Sarah. We knew that this scene had to be as sinister as possible, to heighten the sense of threat towards the end of the opening, fuelling intrigue and investment in the narrative. 

To do this, we included a short scene before the sequence, of Sarah (our protagonist) singing Hallelujah which had been recorded by the Stalker, hiding in the curtains. We used specific mise-en-scene, such as the microphone, to add to the sense of realism and authenticity, as well as developing our use of different camera angles to achieve diversity and keep audiences engaged.

To infer that it was the stalker recording Sarah, we purposely used a hand held shot, moving it around to create the idea it had been taken by someone who was trying not to be seen -moving in and out from behind the curtains. 

We had Jess record a voice memo of the song before hand, using sophisticated recording software, to increase the audio quality to create a more immersive experience. We then had to edit this over the top of the singing shots and then continue it as non-diegetic sound over the title sequence, using Final Cut Pro. This took time as patience, as we had to exactly line up the visual codes with the audio codes so they were synchronous - so that it was realistic. 

The scene begins with a close-up shot of the stalker's phone, as they press play on the video. A hard cut then leads to the same video, from the exact point the last shot ended - creating a clean transition. This makes it easy for the audience to differentiate between the stalkers footage and actual scene. It also makes the link between the following dark room table top sequence and the singing clear - as the stalker is playing Sarah's voice as they work. This exaggerates the extent of their toxic obsession.

Our chosen song, 'Hallelujah' we felt complimented the sinister atmosphere through its religious connotations of purity. We found that through these we could connote Sarah's vulnerability, as her beautiful singing is being taken advantage of and manipulated to satisfy the obsessive traits of the stalker. We hoped this would evoke feelings of sympathy towards her character, increasing audience engagement. The fact that we used the star talent of Jess singing also made our production as captivating as possible, increasing production values.  We thought the slow pace of the song matched the slow panning shot over the table top in the dark room, emphasising the Stalkers creepy precision and successfully built up to our final scene.

Reflecting on the scene as a whole, I am proud of what we achieved through our use of props, lighting, varying camera shots and angles, editing and star talent.