Coming Up With a Name for our Thriller - Changes

Before completing our filming, we had originally named our film ‘Nymphia’. We had named it this after the flower, and because the flower itself was originally going to be featured vastly in various shots throughout our opening. A picture of the flower was also going to be featured on the card that one character hands to another.

As time went on, the name didn’t seem to fit well and changes meant that it didn’t give us the same feeling it originally had. Firstly, the card that bares the word ‘Allegiance’ on it was changed, and no longer featured any picture of the nymphia flower on it. Secondly, our original filming location contained many of the flowers in the garden, and we planned to use them in the first shot of the hanging man, and have one in the pocket of the character in the suit. After having to change location, we no longer featured the flowers in any of our shots.

After filming had been completed, we realised that Nymphia as our title would not make much sense and would be lost on people. Because there would be no actual flowers present in the film, the title would seem rushed, and it no longer created the enigmas it had when we had first thought of it.

After much discussion, we came up with many other ideas for names. Some were complex, containing many intriguing words, and David and myself both thought would work well. Some were shorter and more to-the-point, which Brad and Tom preferred. In the end though, we decided to go down the simple route and simply title our film ‘Allegiance’. It made sense, since it is still a word that creates enigmas when heard, as it is not something that is said during everyday conversation. It also related to the film better, since the card used in our opening bares the same word. We are now happy with our title, and believe it will have an instant impact on people when they see or hear it.

- Taylor Gladwin