Mise-en-scène elements pt.2

 Hi everyone!! the blog we have been waiting for, even me, prop design and costuming!! I think this is one of the coolest parts of the process, being able to bring my project to life. 

Designing the Magazine Cover-

To make Joseph’s death feel as real as possible, I needed a convincing magazine cover, one that looked came straight from a grocery store checkout line. In order to do that I started researching well known magazine publishers, such as Time, New York Magazine, People and so on. I specifically focused on covers featuring celebrity deaths. (I'm not going to lie this was very creepy) After getting a feel for the dramatic headlines and layouts, I hopped on Canva and started designing. I played around with fonts, colors, and images until I had something that looked very similar to my inspiration pictures. This prop is the biggest part of the opening where Joseph confirms something is terribly wrong.

Here is my final product, I am very proud of how it looks, the man in the cover is my uncle who decided to help me play out the role of Joseph so shoutout to him!

The Mirror Scene: A Final Twist-

Originally, the film ended with Joseph backing away from the magazine in shock, but I wanted something stronger. So, I added a mirror. After grabbing the magazine, Joseph starts trembling, with all the thoughts running through his head. But when he looks up at a nearby mirror his reflection is gone. Just an empty space where he should be. I'm already looking into editing softwares I can use to achieve this. This moment confirms Joseph is not here anymore, no matter how real everything feels to him. I'm planning to incorporate this mirror by using one already in the coffee shop.

Costume Design: Dressing Joseph Like a Star

To make Joseph feel like a believable 35-40 year old actor, I needed to dress him like one. I researched famous actors in that age range: Ryan Gosling, Jake Gyllenhaal, Henry Cavill, and Oscar Isaac, to see how they dressed in everyday life. I analyzed paparazzi photos, red carpet looks, and casual streetwear styles to get a sense of how a celebrity really dresses when they’re not on camera. From there, I built Joseph’s wardrobe. His day to day looks are put together but effortless, think neutral tones, well-fitted jackets, casual button-ups, and nice pair of sneakers. The idea was to make him look just famous enough to be believable as a Hollywood star, but not so flashy that it felt unrealistic.