Location Research

Our first filming location. 

When considering a location, we wanted somewhere that was easily accessible a later time in the day. This is because we wanted to film the few initial shots of the film at nighttime to be symbolic of the dark characteristics of Chris Mark 2. Also, the dark time of day would symbolise the despair that the protagonist feels. As well as this, we also thought the nighttime setting would symbolise the darkness and lack of light that may people that have mental illnesses experience. 

When researching a place closeby to us, Sidmouth seafront proved to be easily accessible at nighttime, as well as having a mix between high key and low key lighting on lampposts. This meant we had a variety of lighting already available to us at the location and enough lighting for us to not have to film in the dark. The lighting also allowed us to have our film gain a sinister look, which is what we desired. 

Sidmouth Sea Front at night. 

Furthermore we wanted somewhere that we knew many people wouldn't be around during this time of year and this time of day as to reduce the risk of filming interruption. To check this, I looked on the digital Sidmouth Seafront Webcam at the time we wanted to film before choosing the location to see if it would fit our requirement for a not overly crowded area. Luckily, it did. 

Sidmouth is a small seaside town in Devon and is extremely well known for its scenic Jurassic Coastline and aesthetically pleasing seafront hotels. It is known for being a fairly wealthy town. This meant that it was perfect for our filming location as we wanted to show how mental illness sufferers are not just limited to living in deprived areas, as it often depicted in Gritty Realism films, and are just as prone to those that live in these areas and cities. But, we also wanted to keep the location conventional of the genre. Evidence of the film being conventional is in the Gritty Realism film 'Submarine' which location is also a seaside town, thus making our choice for location conventional of the genre. 

A still from the Gritty Realism film 'Submarine', showing the characters near the sea/on the beach. 

We also thought that sea would symbolise the loneliness of Chris, our protagonist. The vastness of the sea would directly compare to the Chris as a single person and thus emphasize and produce a atmosphere of isolation. The slight diegetic sound of the sea would further put emphasis on this. 

Our second filming location.

After we had decided on the first location we had to think about our second location. We wanted to film the rest of the scene at a house to add a sense of normalness and verisimilitude to the scene. It would also be a stark contrast from the seafront at night time. The dark seafront would introduce us to the feelings of despair in Chris/the manipulative behaviour of Chris Mark 2 and the house would show how those dark feelings would continue and wouldn't subdue even in places most frequently associated with happiness and love. We believed this would accurately show the depth of Chris' mental illness. 

The house is located in the hamlet of Wiggaton, which is around a 20 minute drive from Sidmouth. Although it is a secluded area and difficult to reach this fortunately meant that there would be little chance of unwanted diegetic sound, such as cars, being picked up by the camera and thus not disrupting our filming. This would also help emphasise the feelings of isolation from society that our protagonist feels and how he distances himself from others. 

The bedroom we decided to film in had no dramatic decoration or furniture which meant it was perfect for not only representing the character but also in creating high levels of verisimilitude for the audience as it looked very 'standard'. It also meant we didn't have to alter the room in anyway, apart from adding cigarette packets and ash trays in various areas in order to add character to the room as well as fit the conventions of the genre. 

Throughout the rest of the house there were certain items and decorations that could be classified as family objects and childlike playthings. We decided to keep these on set as we believed they would signify the childish aspect of the main character, as he is still looked after by his mother and lives at home with her.

This is a photo of the bedroom used as the setting of 'Chris'' bedroom. The sheets were different and plainer at the time of recording.