Lead Actor

Danny Elstub acted in our opening sequence. He plays a mysterious solitary character, it is never revealed why he is living where he is or who is running away from at the end.

Props and lead actor

Our film opening features no dialogue and only one character. This worked well for us because it but out any complications of making sure the sound was recorded properly and allowed me and my partner to direct simultaneously behind the camera rather than one of us being in the scene having to act. the new location also allowed to use props that were already there such as rubbish and debris.

Props included:
Clothing
Skateboard
Sleeping Bag
General debris (found of location)

Filming completed

Me and my partner filmed everything we planned to film on our storyboard at the chosen location. Unfortunately the footage was of a very poor quality due to lighting and sound issues. However, we filmed the entire two or three scenes again and we are both now in a position where we feel very confident with the final result. We changed the location but kept to the initial storyboard as best as was possible. 

Change in location

due to poor lighting and sound, we decided to change the location of our filming for the first time. After filming everything that we planned to, we mutually agreed that we could do better and opted to shoot during the day rather than dusk as intended.

The new location is in a warehouse rather than on a rooftop, the main character is seen sleeping on an old sofa rather than in a tent

New location for filming:

Storyboarding - pages 1&2

First page of storyboarding



Second page of storyboarding

                

Plot summery of entire film

The film opens with a figure sprinting down a dark, cold street. The camera is unsteady and the figure is unclear, the face of the person is never revealed. The man continues to run away from the viewer and drops a bracelet on the floor. The audience is now introduced to a man waking up in a small green tent. He then exits the tent and it is revealed that the man is living on a an abandoned roof. The man then walks down the same road shown in the opening shot, finding the mystery bracelet. He pockets the object and continues walking.Cars are parked along the road and the man walks slowly towards a car at the far end of the road. A shot reveals that the man is shocked by what he sees in the car and the introduction of the film ends here. The rest of the film is based around the man coping with his isolation in a town that was full of people. Various events happen to him, as he comes across unusual and surreal scenes throughout the city. It is never made obvious or clear why the man cannot go near the forest at the edge of the town and the film ends when the man finally enters the forest.  

Location for opening scene

Shooting location for opening scene

I feel that Donnie Darko is a great example of an independant science fiction film, with obvious elements of mystery and the surreal.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ou6JNQwPWE0&feature=related