Research behind the storyline-adding realism to the plot.

To create a realistic plot for our trailer our group began researching into a areas where we may gain a premise too work from and a cultural link. The key concept we were interested in- being related to the idea of "survival of the fittest" a story-line commonly exploited by very 'macho' films depicting the strength of men, for example gladiator or Arena.  I began researching into increasing trends in violence that seem to occur during times of financial crisis and difficulty, as the topic is more relevant to current issues within society and therefore appeals to a wider target audience. 

Looking for stories in the news;

I found that looking at news pages was helpful for finding stories relevant to the plot, and so i started browsing news. A particular article I found highlight’s the extent of violent acts taking place recently; Mexican crook: Gangsters arrange fights to death for entertainment. In Mexico a lack of economic growth over a number of years has resulted in a ‘gang’ culture growing ever popular as people turn to criminality as a source of income. This style of violence is reminiscent to that of the early Russian mafia.

(In the picture to the right)

Here is a picture I have found of a real drug cartel, (again based in Mexico) which have been committing similar acts of brutality:

Mise en scene: All the men bare gang tattoo's to represent the group they belong too. The use of weapons- in this long shot shows men openly bearing arms, creating an impression of power and danger. Our group is considering the use of fire arms, and if so could possibly recreate a similar low angle medium shot, as the low angle is incredibly effective when used alongside levels (bare chested gang members below, armed police). For other props to use in the film trailer, we have thought about using offer weapons such as those described in the article "machetes" and "hammers" - conventional weapons found in most horror movies (see deconstruction of SAW TRAILER).

Taking inspiration from these true events, led to us coming up with the concept of Akeldama; which currently centres around a group of adults, who are forced into viciously fighting one another.

In  another article found on NY daily news, daycare workers were accused of forcing children in their care too fight one another . "Three employees of a Delaware daycare were arrested Monday after police say a ‘disturbing’ cell phone video allegedly captured two toddlers participating in an organised fistfight." 

A picture taken from the article:

(picture of the daycare worker)

• The extreme close up shot, shows a un-conventional villain.
• Taking the shot at eye-level angle- creates a sense of personal connection between the audience and the image, a technique we are considering using in the opening of the trailer to introduce one or more of our main protagonists.
• The girls eyes have a look of innocence, and are youthful- juxtaposing the normal conventions of a violent protagonist (if we are looking to make a more realistic film trailer we could use this image as source for inspiration, as is done in many films based "on true events".

The events the article describes, until researching into the topic I wouldn't have believed in incidents like this happening, yet the fact that it can occur in places as un- assuming as a nursery, gives our plot plausibility. The events from these articles are useful to help us, with story boarding and script writing.