Film-Studies Blogs

RISK FADE IN: EXT. OPEN SETTING. MID DAY A teenage boy THROWS a DICE up in the air (Slow Motion) SHOW EMPTY ENVIRONMENT AND MAIN PROTAGONIST BOY V.O. LAYERED DIALOGUE I roll a one I live, I roll a two I die. The dice decides everything. It’s all a game. I live by the dice. The boy is SITTING down on a long grassy patch. He ROLLS the dice in his HAND while LOOKING around the empty setting. EXT. CUT TO THE BOY LISTENING TO MUSIC THROUGH EARPHONES, WHILE A BUSY ROAD CAN BE SEEN IN THE DISTANCE. A CAR SPEEDS PAST, CAUSING THE BOY TO QUICKLY TURN HIS HEAD TO LOOK. BOY V.O. Three and below I follow, four and above I don’t. EXT.THE DICE LANDS ON A ONE AND THE BOY BEGINS TO MOVE AFTER THE CAR-FOLLOWING IT HOME. HE PEERS ROUND A HEDGE AND LOOKS IN EVERY WINDOW OF THE HOUSE TO SEE IF ANYONE IS THERE. ONCE THE DRIVER HAS DISAPPEARED, HE IS READY TO STEAL THE CAR. The boy shifts towards the CAR and crouches down by the SIDE of it near the ...

Circular shot of dice on the floor to display the key theme of the film. Boy looks at the dice in his hand and slowly rolls it around showing the numbers 1-6. Tilt shot down to boy-We see a car driving past in the distance. This distracts him and he quickly stands up ready to go after it. With a roll of the dice, this decides whether he should follow the car or not. Tracking/Stationary shots of the boy walking toward the driveway. Short clips front and behind to display movement. Panning shot of the car pulling into the driveway and parking. Extreme close up of the wheel as it comes to a steady stop. After the boy steals the car, include many extreme close ups and long shots displaying the environment.  Boy gets out the car and walks over a wooden bridge (Over Camera) Boy shows the dice away after receiving multiple numbers of bad luck. Smooth transition between the boy and a new character walking in from out of frame. Final ...

Evaluation During the planning stages of our short film, we considered the ideas of gambling and risk as we wanted to try and create a thriller. We came up with the idea of using a dice to decide a person’s life choices and how lucky they are depending on what number they roll. This was perfect as a starting point as it gave us a lot of options and paths to go down during the filming to truly showcase the events that could occur in someone’s life if this was a reality.  As we had created the basic plot and style of the project, we began to think about locations. We wanted to stay away from usual locations that both of us had used before as we needed to create something unique and original. Therefore, we stayed close to my house and filmed within fields, large open areas, and by the sides of roads in order to make the film flow with other scenes involving a car. This was due to the fact that we filmed many shots showing the main character stealing a car because of rolls on...