Thiller Opening Sequence (Final Product)

Evaluation Question 7

Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learned in the progression from it to the product?

In the preliminary task that we were asked to produce was a few seconds long however, the opening sequence that we produced is a two minutes thriller opening sequence. In the progression from the preliminary task to the actual thriller opening sequence I learnt a lot in terms of use of camera angles and different types of shots that made it look more effective and realistic. I didn’t know much about the use of camera angles during the start when we produced our preliminary task which led to it not being to a great standard. It was because in the beginning I didn’t know much about the camera angles, editing and shooting which reflected on our work clearly.  During my progression from the preliminary task to the actual thriller opening I did a lot of research into the actual codes and conventions of a thriller which was vital for the thriller to look realistic.

For the shooting of the preliminary task we used an IPad and the quality of the camera of the IPad was not that great which didn’t make it look professional. However, learning from this we made sure that we used a professional HD camera which made the quality far better in comparison to what we got from the IPad. This was partly because of less knowledge about of the task that we were supposed to do as we didn’t know what was best for it. Also, I thought more about the mis-en-scenes, props and costumes which are essentials for a film in order to make it look more realistic and relatable for the audience to enjoy it. In our preliminary task we didn’t really focus on those things and looked at it in much more detail during our research of thriller openings. For example, we filmed our opening sequence in a more realistic location (a house) and our actors were wearing casual clothes according to the need of the shot. We avoided the mis-en-scene in all of our shots.

In progression from my preliminary task I learned that target audience plays a vital role for a movie to be successful as it should meet all the criteria of a thriller film. We didn’t have much time during the making of our preliminary task to do a questionnaire for our target audience, however doing a questionnaire for our opening sequence helped us gain some feedback from the target audience which then we were able to apply to our opening. We kept the interests of the target audience in mind throughout in order to meet all the wants and needs of the audience. Doing the preliminary task was very useful as it helped us develop our skills in terms of research on what is expected.

Throughout the process of developing my skills I also learned how to use IMovie. As for our preliminary task I used the editing app on the IPad which didn’t have many features which could be added to create an effect, however, this wasn’t the issue with our main task as now we learnt from the previous task and used a Mac to do our editing, which had a lot more features then what was there on the IPad. This allowed us to use many different features that weren’t available on the IPad. After the completion of our final product my skills strengthened and I think I am capable of editing to very high standards as now I can apply several different transitions and editing procedures such as using ‘match-cuts’, ‘fade out’ without any visual failures as well as using the ‘180 degree rule’ which at first I was struggling to understand.  We also felt comfortable trying different editing apps in order to make our piece look effective.

During our preliminary task there was an issue with time as we didn’t get much time to film our preliminary task which then as a result wasn’t to a great standard. Despite this task we decided that we will have deadlines set for our main piece in order to have enough time for each part including filming and editing. However, this was still sometimes a problem as my team wasn’t able to collaborate with each other and give enough time to work. This lead to us being lacking behind in terms of our deadlines but we didn’t let that become an issue and tried to finish all the other things like blogging in the meantime, which also made me learn the importance of time.

Overall, to sum up everything, throughout both productions I learned many skills from editing to camerawork and I believe I have developed all the skills to a high standard which also benefitted my work. However, I believe the thing that affected us most was the use of tripod which helped us to get still/controlled shots which focused on the actual piece. I think I improved thoroughly from the preliminary task to the main product in terms of all the media aspects.

 

Evaluation Question 6

What have you learned about technologies from the process of constructing this produc

t?

Hardware: we used a digital SLR camera to do our filming. The first day of our filming we had a bit of problem using a professional camera as none of us was fully aware of its functions and features. There were a variety of settings that could adjust the lighting and the clarity of the picture. It had to be set to auto in order for it to work with the lighting and suit the settings. When we started filming we weren’t aware of the tripod which we came to realise about later. The shots that we did without a tripod, holding the camera in hand were very wobbly and not clear. This wasn’t visible on the camera itself but when we watched it on computer we realised that it hadn’t come out that well. However, when we filmed with a tripod it made the videos more stable and helped us to get clearer shots. During this process, I learned the importance of a tripod and how it makes the shooting easy and handy. The camera we used had a much better quality of shots then when we used an IPad. The quality was not as clearer and it had no feature to fix the lighting of th shot. The IPad was the mini step towards the using a professional camera. During the process of filming i also learned how to use a tripod, as when we started our filming we were filming everything by holding the camera in our hands. However, after learning about the tripod we used it to film which helped us get more stable and clear shots as compared to the shots we had dont without using the tripod. I was succesfully able to use a tripod for our filming.

Previously, for our preliminary task I used IMovie for editing on the IPad which had very less features compared to the windows movie maker that we used for our final product. At first, we faced some problems with the editing as we didn’t know many features that were there to use. Many of the transitions in the movie maker looked faked when we used them on our product however, I realised that editing was very time consuming and had to be done with full concentration. Th vido overall was good but i think it would have worked better for us if we edited on the macs instead of movie maker as the features which are provided on macs are not there on movie maker. Also, IMovie has more transitions that can be put in between to make the video look more effective.

I used many different internet sites such as: blogger, Prezi, YouTube. I was familiar with YouTube but I had never uploaded videos on it which was a new experience for me but it was not as much challenging. Before this I had never used blogger before. It was a totally new website to me and it was at first hard to get on board with it because of the things that couldn’t happen on blogger. I had to write everything on word and then copy paste it. I had also never used prezi before which was a new experince for me. Prezi has its own way of making things look more efective and attractive. Its similar to what we do on powerpoint but the layout is what stands out. Overall, the sites and editors that i used taught a few new things and some of which helped me to gain more knowldge about its use.

Overall, I learnt a lot about technologies in the process of constructing our final product. It was challenging at first but I found a way around it. I gained a bit more knowledge on how to use IMovie on apple and how to add different features to it. In terms of blogger, I learnt how to create your own blog and publish things to it. Whenever, I use all these technologies next it would be a lot more easier and smoother than it was the first time. After using all thse products and website to make our media product as effective i came to learn that its not an easy task to make a film as it has many before and after processes that need to be kept in mind while thinking to start filming. The little aspects of technology can effect the media product emmensly.

Evaluation Question 4 and 5

Evaluation Question 3

 

Evaluation Question 2

Evaluation Question 2

How does your media product represent particular social groups?

In our thriller film the social groups that we focused on were gender, age, sex, and ethnicity. The main protagonist in our film is a female which is less often in films in general as females are presented as the weaker sex. They are damsel in distress who needs to be saved by a male character in a movie. Therefore, we experimented with gender roles by having a main female protagonist, who is a victim as well as her own saviour. She doesn’t need a male character to come save her day as she herself does the job and has power of her own role.

During my research I ascertained that mainstream media products like Donnie Darko and seven which are action-thrillers have a male dominant character. However, other films like the hunger games and the boy next door the main character is the female and they aren’t portrayed as weaklings. Similarly, for our thriller films we conform to the stereotype of thriller films. We wanted to go against the norms and create something that the audience wouldnt normally see in a thriller. We decided to use a female main character as i believe it will also help the female audience of our film to relate to it more. This challenges the idea of always seeing a male protagonist in the film. Women usuallty in films are shown as damsel in distress and are treated as sex obejects by men. They are always in the background being the lead man's love ineterest, there costumers are always revealing short dresses or bikini to make them look more appealing to the leading man.

The character in our piece is opposite of that is not in backgroud opposite a lead man. She is the lead herself however she still does conform to some extent because of her victimised state. Another main aspect of challenging social groups is that the main character Mary is Asian which is not what we usually expect to see in films. Asian people are usually presented as baddie's and they are in the background. They are always mocked and made fun of in films for example in the tv series The big bang theory the character of Raj is always made fun of, although he is one of the main characters he still joked with and bullied by his other mates. Even though the main character of our piece is an Asian she hasnt got the typical asian accent and subverts the stereotype as she was born and rasied in the UK which allows her to get the proper british accent and this applies to both of our main characters.

The female character in our thriller film is portrayed in a positive light and not as the bad person. Similarly, the second character of Maya her friend is also portrayed as a friendly person. As our film features teenagers this might to some extent limit our target audience as the adults critics might argue that the content is not what an adult might prefer to see and it might be boring for them. Because the main characters our teenagers this allows us to attract teenagers above the age of 15. Our female character is similar to that of Mary Rose who represents power and control over her own character throughout the film.

Evaluation Question 1

Editting day 1-3

The day we started our editing it was hard to get a grip on the macs as the USB we had our clips on was not working on them. We decided to edit on the windows movie maker as it was easier to get hold on it. However, after creating our rough cut we realised that windows movie maker didnt have a good quality and there were few glitches which we were not able to take out on the movie maker.
We were successful in making our opening through windows movie maker but it didnt come out to be as good. I believe it would have been better if we did it on macs and i movies has many different features which would have made our piece look good.

Filming day 3

On this day we nearly finished everything, we tried to take as many different types of shots as possible so when we blend them in together it gives a more professional look. However, we had problems with some shots as it was hard to decide what type of shots we needed and wanted to add to create some more effect. We had problems with shooting Raima's bit where she had to do the dialogure delivery as she is not professional and it took time for her to come in form. Overall, on this day we nearly finished everything and it was done fluently. Obviously there were some problems but we tackled them and came out with good shots.

Filming day 2

As we planned in the beginning that we were going to film in one day all together, we did film on this weeks tuesday. We decided to do it at once as our thriller opening was just located at one place and there was not much change of location which made it very convenient for us to film. As we didnt have many locations to film our task was manageable however, out thriller opening is quite different as it uses just a house as its main location. So on this day of filming we faced a little bit of problem with the laptop and phones as in this scene the characters were supposed to talk on webcam so it took us a bit of a time to figure that out. As a result, we used one iphone and one laptop to shoot that scene. The timing and the time of the day was good for our filming as we wanted to film in a little dark to create and effect and tension about the settings. Overall, it all went quite well but i think we might have some bits which might need re-filming which we will get done somewhat this week to make sure we get it done before the deadline.

Filming Day 1 Review

We didnt start filming as we realised it is better to film in one day. As if we film on two different days at two different times the content will be a little different and there will be a difference after its put together. In order to avoid that we decided to film in one day so its easy for us to do all the shots and know where it needs to be how. We will have all our costumes and props and cast ready to do it on that day. Another reason we couldnt really start our filming was that we didnt have any kid who plays the role of the protagonists little sister. Hopefully, on that one day of our filming we will be fully ready with all the equipments and cast to film in order to avoid any in convenience.

Sound Research for thriller

For our psychological thriller we will need music which would create a sense of tension and allow the audience to relate to it. It should symbolize the suspense of who is actually behind all the chaos and causing problems in Mary's (protagonists) life. Mostly the music we will be using will be non-digetic which won't be heard by the characters but the audience. It will be playing in the background to create a mood amongst the audience of the setting and the storyline of the film. Some of the music which we might be using is below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AKO0ap3g5s0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pPGrsdrnsCo&list=PLUi56N9RcnjClLk61PArFB8M-uNyIcjk2&index=16
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vG2rPzkNGOY

We might also need some soft music when Mary puts her little sister to bed. As thats where the suspense will start to build because nobody was supposed to be home but it turns out the little sister was home all along. This will create tension and make the audience think about the plot and the anonymous texts that Mary recieves. Some of the music to link to that is below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pUZeSYsU0Uk
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dZWGH0ougJI

Focus Group Pitch

We decided to share our ideas to a group of 15 years old in order for them to understand what we are doing fr our film and to see what they wanted as they were our target audience.

Shooting Schedule (main)

Earlier we had produced the draft of our shooting schedule which gave us the idea of what key points are to be looked at. This is when, how and what we will be shooting was put together. Although, not all the days we were able to follow the schedule as some days we had problems with the timings and some members of our group not turning up.

Shooting Schedule Draft

Shot Log

Props and Costumes

MARY (Faiza Wasim)

Costume- As our thriller opening is based in a real life setting our characters will be dressed rather plainly. Mary is the protagonist in our film which is a powerful role she will be able to portray this through her costumes and the mis-en-scene such as her bedroom in which everything will be considered as a prop. She will be dressed in a basic everyday nightwear as the thriller is supposed to represent her mature yet powerful personality.

Props-

Mary will be wearing an everyday clothing which will suggest her plain self. She doesn't require any special props however she will just need a laptop to be able to communicate with her friend Mary through skype. The time of the day that we are shooting is evening as it is more effective and relevant to the context of our thriller opening. The decoration in Mary's bedroom will be the extra props that will add to the suspense and tension that the thriller piece will create.

Maya (Raima Uddin):

Costume- Mary is the other female protagonist in our piece who will also be dressed in a basic nightwear. We chose her to be wearing black to signify her everyday teenage. She is also a representation for teenage girls who face psychological threats in their everyday lives.

Props- Mary is just in the clip for a few seconds but her presence is significant to Mary who is the target in our thriller piece. She does not require any special props either except for an IPad or an IPhone that will help her to connect with her friend through skype. Both the characters represent everyday teenage life and the level of tensions they face in their real lives.

Character Profile

Characters

Female protagonist(victim)-Maryam(Mary Ayubi)

• Gender: Female. A female who is a typical mean girl through her consisting gossip and her girly fashion sense. She is seen to be someone who intimidates anyone in her way.
• Age: 17 years old- Mary should be around this age as her character and personality is conveyed more abruptly. Also, this age portrays vulnerability as this is conveyed in this character a lot in most aspects in the film.
• Personality: She is a pessimistic, big-headed girl, who likes to make decisions independently for her own self interest. She likes to think she has a big dominance in everyone's life and they all need her to survive and work sufficiently, which is important as she will get attacked on her superiority.
• Ethnic group: White- A typical victim in most thriller-horror movies are white as they are seen to be the most vulnerable.

Mary Ayubi is seen to be a female victim as well as a protagonist of the film and she gets attacked through constant mind games. We wanted her to look like Regina George because she shows that arrogance and big-headness that Maryam has to present.

Female antagonist- Adelina(Mary's sister)

• Age: 6 years old- Adelina should be around this age because this is the main age of innocence and vulnerability, which emphasises she wouldn't do much at such a young age but this sterotype is broken.
• Gender: Female- this gender shows more cuteness and innocence rather than the antagonist being female. An antagonist being a young female girl, as a group, makes us show that we are breaking the sterotype of having a usual old, black man as a Hollywood tradition.
• Personality: vile, sly character that gets what she wants by acting innocent and acting like a little baby, which makes everyone give her what she wants and adore her throughouly. She is a trouble-maker who is a cause of everyone's oppression and misery in life. But, of course, her personality is not shown at the start of the film but there are some aspects where the audience questions her actions.
• Ethnic group- White- This ethnic group is most dominant in typical Hollywood movies and her ethnic group shows more innocence, which makes the audience fall for her as she is so adoring.

Adelina is the main antagonist in the film but there are some other antagonists in the film that we don't know whether they are an antagonist or not. We wanted her to look like Maltida because she is mischievous and cute, which Adelina potrays but she is more mischevious than Maltida was.

Protagonist's friend(extra role)- Maya Mir

• Age: 16 years old - She is Mary's supposedly best friend but in reality, she is a follower of Mary and listens to whatever she says even if it's against her.
• Gender: Female- The hopeless, desperate identity is more presented in female than men so this will be presented more effectively.
• Personality: She is desperate to become popular and wants everyone's attention but everyone's attention is on Mary. She is a back-chatter who talks about everyone, which gives her superiority.
• Ethnic group- White- This character is conveyed more in this ethnic group than other ethnic groups and most hollywood movies present characters like this.

Maya is an extra character, who is part of the reason why the protagonist is all alone with her problems as her friend fails to help her with her misery. We wanted Maya to look like Aubrey because they both are desperate characters but in a different aspect as Maya is desperate to have everyone to remember her name

Cast list

Cast #1
Character: Mariam (Mary) Ayub
Name: Faiza Wasim
Age: 16
Nationality: Asian-Brown
Skin Colour: Brown
Faiza had been selected to the role of the main protagonist Mary. In terms of role suitability she matches the role because she is the same age as the character. She doesn’t reinforce the stereotype though as she is Asian brown and the character is White-American. This is because we couldn’t find someone who was white and American and we also thought it would be a good idea to subvert the stetreotype as these days we hardly see any brown characters playing the role. In order for us to get Faiza in to character she will put some light make up on and will be dressed in a casual yet girly night wear.

Cast #2

Character: Maya Mir
Name: Raima Uddin
Nationality: Asian
Skin colour: Brown

Raima had been selected to play the role of the second main character Maya. In terms of role suitability, she doesn’t really fit the role of the character but we are going to make her look like it with the help of some make up and clothing. She is not the perfect match but she is the same age as the character which makes it easier for her to get in to the character and make it appealing to the audience. We couldn’t find a Filipino brown girl and however as Raima wears a hijab it makes her totally subvert the stereotype of most of the thriller films as we never see a hijabi girl as the main protagonist.

 

Location

 We experimented with different lightings in order to test which one is the most suitable in order to use in the scene.

Location 1: The bedroom

This is an image of the bedroom with the lights turned off however only one small lamp turned on. Out of all of the images, I personally like this the best and will cooperate this lighting into our film. Although taking this picture during the day, due to the dark colour of the curtains the room appears to be dark which makes it look as if it is night. This is beneficial for our group as when we shoot our film the lighting in the room will not be too dark so that the audience can't see what's going on, instead the mixture of dark and the small amount of light coming in from the window,allows perfect lighting in order for the image to come out clear. For our scene we need low lighting as that is one of the conventions which you see in a thriller movie, however with the lights completely off the room appears too dark which makes it hard for the audience to see the image. The small amount of lighting from the lamp and window, allows the room to look clear and mysterious.

This is an image of the room with no lights present expect for the natural light from the window. For our scene we would like to set it in a dark room, this is as darkness connotes with danger and mystery. The use of darkness can foreshadow the upcoming danger that will take place later on in the scene. The darkness of the image makes it look mysterious and unsafe which we are aiming for however I believe that the room seems too dark. This can cause problems as when we are shooting it will be difficult for the camera to clearly capture the video as it will be too dark.

As the lights are switched off and only natural light from the window is present, it makes it obvious that the picture was taken during the day. This is also a problem as the scene is supposed to be set during the night however if we turn the lights completely off it will be evident to the audience that it is not.





Panarama of room

This is an image of the bedroom with the lights turned on. Personally, I don't believe that the lighting is right for the scene. This is as traditionally in a thriller movie the director uses low lighting. This is so the audience are left in mystery as they are not able to fully see what is going, which builds up tension. However with the lights on, too much detail of the room is shown which makes the room appear safe and secure therefore I would not chose this particular lighting for the scene.

In the bedroom scene, at one point Maya points out to Mary that she saw someone walking behind her. However a silhouette will be difficult to create with the lights switched on as the audience will be see the actor clearly which will make it look ametur rather than scary therefore a we need to have a lower lighting in order to create this.

The famous myth of ' Bloody Mary' says that if you repeat Bloody Mary three times in the bathroom mirror with the lights off, when the lights switch back on she will be standing behind you in the mirror. Bathrooms are iconic in thriller and horror movies in order to create suspense and build up tension. In iconic thriller movies, the young, innocent girl goes to the dark bathroom alone, looks into the mirror and opens the cupboard to get something out, the audience warn her not to as they automatically realise that once she closes the cupboard, a killer, a ghost or a monster will be standing behind her starring back at her in the reflection of the mirror.

Bathrooms are mainly used as they are cold and small. The lack of space in a bathroom gives a sense of no escape for the victim, as if they are trapped.





Location 2: The bathroom



This is an image of the bathroom with the lights turned off. I had taken this
picture during early hours in the morning at around 6:00am. Personally, I believe that this image has an element of mystery and gives the audience a disturbing vibe. As the lights are switched off, there is lack of lighting and detail in the picture makes it difficult for the audience to fully see what is taking place, therefore they are always left in mystery and suspense. However, the lack of lighting could also cause problems as it will be hard to shoot the characters clearly as it will be too dark for the camera to pick it up however, we can solve this problem by shooting at 6:30am instead of 6.00am. This is as the bathroom will not be so dark that the characters cannot be seen, however not too light that the audience can tell that it was shot during the day. Instead, there will be enough light to see the characters and the details of the bathroom clearly, however still having the mysterious vibe to it. Shooting at 6:30am also gives us an advantage as if needed we can shoot early in the morning rather than late at night. This is as it makes it easier for our group to meet up and shoot.




In this image I was testing if the silhouette in the mirror is obvious to the audience. The sihouette of the man is ensential to the plot of our film as that is the main aspect of the film that create tension and mystery. In our film, Mary washes her hands however as she looks up she sees a silhouette of a man behind her. In order to create the silhouette, we need to have the right lighting. This is as if there is too much light the audience will see the actor which will not make it a silhouette however if it is too dark as it is in the image, the audience will not be able to clearly see the silhouette. In order to fix this we should shoot at 6:30am as the lighting will be just right.

Why I chose these locations:

The famous myth of ' Bloody Mary' says that if you repeat Bloody Mary three times in the bathroom mirror with the lights off, when the lights switch back on she will be standing behind you in the mirror. Bathrooms are iconic in thriller and horror movies in order to create suspense and build up tension. The location of the bathroom is not only set in thriller movies however are also used in

famous horror myths and legends. In iconic thriller movies, the young, innocent girl goes to the dark bathroom alone, looks into the mirror and opens the cupboard to get something out, the audience warn her not to as they automatically realise that once she closes the cupboard, a killer, a ghost or a monster will be standing behind her starring back at her in the reflection of the mirror.

Bathrooms are mainly used in thriller films as they are cold and small. The lack of space in a bathroom gives a sense of no escape for the victim, as if they are trapped. Bathroom scenes are very common in thriller and horror genre films; instead of a place for privacy, in the thriller aspect it is seen as a place of mystery and horror. As soon as the victim goes into the bathroom, either to take a shower, a bath or the clean up, the audience automatically expect something bad to take place such as a murder or a death. This is as the location foreshadows upcoming danger to the victim.

Bedrooms on the other hand unlike bathrooms are linked to privicy and saftey. The bedroom has a colour scheme which uses, uses bright, traditionally girly colours such as pink and purple which give the audience a false impression that all is well so far.

We used the location of the bedroom in order to almost trick the audience. By purpose, we chose a girly, "happy" looking bedroom rather room full of dark colours which gave a depressing vibe. This is as will make more of an impact on the audience when we subvert the stereotypical view of a bedroom or house and turn it into a place which is not safe.

Script

Script:

INT. MARY’S HOUSE – BEDROOM – EVENING

Mary is in her bedroom talking to her friend, Maya, via webcam gossiping about the day’s events.

MAYA:

“Did you hear about what happened in Maths today?”

MARY:

(Confused)

“No…what happened?

MAYA:

(Overjoyed. Exaggerated hand flap. Talking really fast without a stop for breath)

Oh my god! So basically Daniella found out that Monica’s been trying it with Max telling him to break up with Jess( gasps for breath) so she can have him all to herself so Jess confronts Monica all like (imitating Daniella in a silly voice)” Shut up and stay away from my boyfriend.”

MARY:

(Gasps, slightly giggling)

NO WAY, SHUT U… 

Accidently throwing the cup of coffee in her hand resulting it to spill on the floor

(Eyes closed. Mumbles under her breath)

Shi…

MAYA:

Oi, what happened?

MARY:

Mary squints her eyes in annoyance.

(Speaking slowly through her teeth)

“The stupid coffee spilt everywhere.

As she attempts to wipe the coffee off her of top, Mary’s phone buzzes, she receives a text message.

MAYA:

Oh, but anyway then Je…

(Maya’s voice fades into the background, music gets louder)

MARY:

(Looks at the phone confused. Frowning, whispers to herself)

“Unknown?”

Mary positions herself right on the bed. Unlocks her phone and reads the text message which reads “Aren’t you going to clean that up?” Eyes open wide, frowns, slowly turns her head around, scanning the room

MAYA:

…Don’t you think?

MARY:

(Speaking quickly, still frowning)

Erm—yeah…

MAYA:

(Giving a disapproving look)

Were you even listening to anything I said?

MARY:

(Marry speaks slowly and nods her head)

Yes.

(Looks down, frowning)

Maya’s phone buzzes again, closing her eyes she slowly picks up her phone, she receives another message from the unknown number which reads “I’m not there, look harder”

(Drops her phone onto the bed, frowning harder, exhales loudly through nose)

MAYA:

You’re not even listening to me innit? (Looks up at Mary, curiously) are you okay…?

MARY:

(Speaking quickly, shrugging shoulders)

“Uh—yeah—I’m fin…

(Stops talking, looks at Maya curiously)

Maya squints, face closer to the screen

MARY:

(Squints her eyes, speaks slowly in annoyance)

Maya, what are you doing.
MAYA:

(Smirking, raising right eyebrow)

Swear you’re home alone? You got a boy over innit?

MARY:

(Tilts head to the side, speaking slowly, looks confused)

I am…

MAYA:

Oh, I could have sworn I saw someone walk behind you… (Puts hand on head, thinks hard) but don’t worry I’m probably just seeing things (slightly laughing, shrugs, shakes her head) Anyway what was I saying again?

Mary turns her head really fast. Turns back to the face screen.

(Mary leans in closer to the screen, getting off the bed) “Hold that thought whilst I wash my hands”

(Mary slowly walks half way out of the room)

Maya: (Shouting) Ugh fine then (rolls her eyes) but hurry up, (voice starts to fade) I need to get off in a bit…

INT. MARY’S HOUE – BATHROOM – EVENING

The bathroom is dark and cold,the only visible light which can be seen is the dim light coming from the landing. Walking slowly into the empty bathroom, Mary turns to the sink in order to wash her hands. Mary stands in front of the mirror, looking at the reflection of herself in front of her for a few seconds.

 

MARY:

 

(Humming tunefully under her breath, turning on the tap and starts to wash hands with head hung low)

Mary, finished washing her hands, looks up into the mirror when she sees a silhouette of a man behind her.

(Mary eyes and mouth are wide open. She frowns, placing her hand over her mouth. Mary turns around frantically, leaning her body onto the sink)

 

ELLA:

 

(Standing in silence, holding doll in right hand, starring directly at Mary)

 

MARY:

 

(Gasps. Almost shouting) How--wha--I thought I saw-- (takes a deep breath. Bends down on one knee, still shaking) Ella? What are you doing here?

 

ELLA:

 

(Remains standing in silence, holding doll in right hand, starring directly at Mary)

 

MARY:

 

Ella... (shrugs shoulders. Slowly closes eyes and exhales deeply)

Ah, don’t worry, come on let’s get you to bed.

(picks Ella up aggressively, dropping doll onto the bathroom tiles. Starts to walk out of the bathroom, on the way to the bedroom.

Voice starts to fade and music starts to get louder)

do mum and dad know you’re…

The Doll is left on the bathroom tiles, starring deeply into midair.