Evaluation Question 7

Looking back at you preliminary task, what do you think you have you learnt in the proggression of it to the full product?

After filming our preliminary, we learnt how much planning is required for filming, and how much time is wasted when we plan the shots on set rather than preparing before hand. After our preliminary we decided to make sure that every aspect of our final production was planned thoroughly. This would ensure that we did not waste the time that we had with the hire camera, as we only had 2 days. We also learnt about the importance of lighting, and how it can add to the effect of different shots, and also the distractions it can cause. We found especially with the long shot in our preliminary, that the lighting distracted the viewer from the shot of the main character, so we did our best to choose camera angles which helped target this issue. We we also quite lucky as the weather was cloudy which didn't cause many problems with natural lighting and colouring.

Also, we made sure that we deleted the bad takes before uploading clips from the camera to the computer as after uploading files for the preliminary exercise, we found that it took a long time and the process was very slow as we had so many different takes that were useless to us.

We found after watching our preliminary and hearing feedback from the class that the lighting was too similar throughout the video which made viewers lose some interest. In our final introduction we ensured that we chose scenes that had a wide range of lighting, from high key lighting to low key lighting, daylight to night sky. We also tried to change scenery as much as possible in our final piece to keep the viewer engaged. The theme and story of the video allowed us to do this while the film maintained its flow and didn't seem erratic.

After watching our preliminary exercise back, we have learnt how essential it is to have good continuity throughout, and how distracting errors can be to the viewer. They also play a part in preventing the viewer from becoming absorbed in the film and characters and feel like they are a part of the scene, and in our film it is imperative that the viewer is connected and absorbed in the character.

Evaluation Question 6

What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?





We decided to hire out a camera (Sony PD170) for our production for improved quality. As we took turns filming scenes, we all learnt many features of the camera, and introduced them to our film. We taught each other how to use different features and gave each other advice to improve the clips. Features we learnt to use include various lenses (including wide-angle) , camera lighting and manual focussing, which is featured several times in our intro. As I was editor in the group, I also got to further my understanding of the editing software, Sony Vegas, and Adobe Aftereffects, I already had experience using Sony Vegas before however Adobe Aftereffects was new to me. I used Sony Vegas to edit the majority of the film and then Adobe Aftereffects was used to enhance the film and fix errors that were made during filming. I learnt how to transfer media quickly between the camera and computer, and found problems which I overcame along the way, I have discovered many restraints and also many opportunities that various technologies can provide me with.

As a group, we also spent time blogging our progress throughout this year and during filming, I personally am now comfortable with the features and I now know more about online blogging facilities than I did before. I have personalised my blog with a custom banner and customised my own colour scheme.

Evaluation Question 5

How did you attract and address your audience?


We have attracted several audiences by following common conventions of thriller films and also dramas in our piece. We tried to create enigma for audiences of thriller films in our opening through the last clip of our film introduction, featuring the female character who is believed to be gone - confirming to the audience that she is infact still alive, however she is in serious danger. Our film also appeals to fans of dramas, as there is a strong focus in our film of the emotional distress that the main character is going through, we have tried our best to induce sympathy so that the audience can relate to the character as much as possible. The plot of the film does not progress very quickly and most screen time is spent developing the personality and emotions of the main character, we feel we can do this as the audience we intend the film to be watched by are patient and take interest in the emotional side of the story - not just the action.

We tried to keep both audiences interested through a cliff hanger - intended to create enigma keeping the thriller audience hooked, and we tried to keep the drama fans interested through encouraging an attachment to the character.

Scene appealing to thriller audiences:
(creating enigma)

Scene appealing to drama audiences:
(creating emotional attachment and sympathy)

Evaluation Question 4

Who would be the audience for your media product?


Our target audience is quite a mature group that would appreciate the emotional development and depth, rather than the more traditional blockbuster thrillers which are more action packed. The characters featured in our film are around the age of 17-18, so this will be likely attract an audience roughly around the same age as they can relate to the characters, however as the film focuses on mature emotional themes, it would also be likely to attract older audiences who would be interested in the emotional asepect of the film as they are naturally more mature and would also be more patient for the story to progress.

We decided to make our film a certificate 15 film as it would allow us to include scenes that we would otherwise not be able to if the film had a lower age certificate. We do not feel that our film would financially benefit from being a lower age certificate as the extra age range we would gain would most likely not appreciate the themes and emotional focus of our introduction and would not watch the film at the cinema.

Evaluation Question 3

What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?


We think our film would be best suited for a small independant film company because of the subject matter and the style in which the film is shot and edited. We also made this decision because the film is more emotionally focused rather than aiming for pure action entertainment. It is designed to provoke the viewers thoughts and feelings and make them connect with the character and the film - not everyone is interested in this type of film, therefore we do not feel a large company would be willing to take our film on.

A mainstream comparison to our film would be the film Taken, starring Liam Neeson , however this film is more focused on action and 'the chase', rather than the emotional trauma that the character in our film is suffering. A film like Taken would have a wider audience than our film and would therefore be expected to take more profit. A company like Warner Bros. would be ideal for Taken - as they can afford to invest alot of money into these films, allowing the film to have a larger budget and therefore theoretically take a larger profit. We would hope that our film would gain publicity through great reviews and awards rather than invest millions into marketing the product.

We do not feel that our film requires a lot of funding and we would much prefer for a company who is more interested in the art of film making rather than the business of film making to take us under their wing. A company like Film4 who provided funding for successful films such as Slumdog Millionaire would be our preferred choice. Also, a benefit of having a company such as Film4 distributing our film would be that although they are fairly small compared to Warner Bros. & Universal etc. they possess numerous formats that would be available for us to market our product in the form of two television channels and an online video streaming service.

Evaluation Question 2

How does your media product represent particular social groups?


Our film focuses around a teenage boy and teenage girl. The two characters are related, however we have left the relationship between them upto the audiences imagination to create enigma. The film highlights the commitments between families, and the strong bonds that join them together. It also highlights the vulnerability of teenage girls and the predatory sexual desires of older men. It also shows that youths have positive qualities, and it doesn't focus on one negative stereotype of young people which is conventionally used in films - instead proving how strong, determined and loving some young people are today, and reflecting them in a good-light.

Middle aged men are represented quite negatively in the film as the main villain is approximately 40 years old, and acts like any other middle aged man. (with the exception of his evil, sadistic acts).

Evaluation Question 1

In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products? (i.e. of film openings)

Dark Clothing

The main actor in the opening sequence is wearing black this fits in well with general conventions of a film to help the audience understand the genre of the film as a horror almost instantaneously. The dull colours also represent the actor’s mood and how the film is going to pan out.

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Poster

The initial poster in the opening scene shows instantly to the viewer what the character in the shot is doing. The missing poster immediately represents the content of the first chapter of the film and should create a level of enigma for the audience. This develops the conventions of an opening sequence as films generally try to let the audience know what the film is about however not as blunt as this.

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Opening scene

Our opening scene challenges conventional thriller openings which traditionally start with an extreme long shot (establishing shot). We have intentionally decided to use a medium close up of our main character placing a poster up on a lamppost, this is because we have thought about the full story of our movie and this scene ties in with the final reunion at the end of the movie. 

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Establishing shot

Unlike many other films, we have included an establishing shot but this comes after the initial scene. We have used simple techniques such as match on action to sustain the continuity of the film in order not to create confusion for our audience.  

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Extreme close up of eyes

The eyes are the gateway to emotions so we have exploited this by included an extreme close up of our main character. This portrays to the audience that the character is deeply distraught and in thought which is then reinforced by the succeeding flashbacks. The flashbacks tie in with the extreme close up as after the flashback is finished match on action is then also used and our main characters eyes look downwards which shows negative emotions. 
 

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Black and white

We have used the traditional technique of portraying flash backs to the past by making them black and white, this should instantly make the audience realise that the shot is in the past. This fits with the conventions of not only an opening sequence but mainly the conventions of any film as it is common practice to have 'the past' represented by the black and white colour scheme.

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Flashbacks

To convey to the audience the relationship between the main character and the missing girl in both scenes (flashback and modern day) we have used different emotions. In modern day scenes which are shown by natural high key lighting, the main character is continuously looking sad and miserable; this contrasts with the portrayed emotions in the flashbacks which consists of mainly smiles and laughter. This ties in with all flashback conventions when looking back on happy times as flashbacks are normally used to recall positive past memories. The flashbacks follow a black and white colour scheme which is often used to represent the past in films.

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Fire scene

The fire scene fits in with many main conventions in film as it shows the main character losing all hope creating a weak enigma for the audience. The main character is holding a picture of the lost girl while staring longingly into the fire. As he throws the picture in the fire and watches it crinkle up, this coincides with his mindset and he is literally giving up hope and watching her slip away.   

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Streetside

Emotions such as frustration are the main forefront of this scene as he releases all frustration and anger which is shown by the smashing of the bottle. A wide range of emotions are shown in our opening piece which conforms to all opening sequences to maintain the audiences suspension of disbelief.  

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End Scene

The ending scene before the titles shows the young girl cowering in the corner of a room with the anonomous villian standing over her. This scene doesn't challenge the conventions of thrillers as it creates a large amount of enigma for the audience and a chilling cliff hanger. A scene such as this is often found in thriller films.

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Final Edit

After a public screening and several reviews, we made changes to our introduction. We are pleased with the final version, and if we ever have the time we would love to finish it. Here is the final version:

Pictures from filming

Here are several pictures we took during filming:


This is Luke filming a shot at the lake - we decided not to use this scene in the film.



On our way to one of the scenes, we found a trolley that had been left upside down in a bush, so we decided to use it as a way of transporting our camera and equipment. We then returned the trolley to its rightful owners (tesco) at the end of filming!


In order to make a fire, we had to collect together some fire wood. We used some wood that had recently been chopped down in Lukes garden and his mum offered to drop it off to our location.


Here is a picture of the fire we made on Luke's grandad's allotment in Crowland. We were fairly happy with the result.

Second Draft Review

Here is the second draft of our intro. Changes were made based on our own opinion, our class mates opinions and the questionnaires.

After analysing the results from the first set of questionnaires, we made changes to our intro and then decided to give out an additional 5 questionnaires to the previous reviewers and an additional 1 to a new viewer. Here are the 6 questionnaires we received: