Media Evaluation

Media Evaluation

1.      In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

For our media product my group created a short film opening for a horror movie. Our film is based on a breaking news report about a series of killings in a local area. During the opening we wanted to try and include some of the common conventions usually found within the horror genre. After analysing our film I feel we have incorporated some clear conventions and aspects. We needed to include a range of conventions to attract fans of the genre, without these conventions fans would not be interested in watching, so we needed to make it similar to other successful horrors and mimic some of the key conventions they use to attract the audience.

Firstly the incidental soundtrack at the start of our opening (Final count – Freesound.org) includes loud repetitive drum beats, these drum beats grow in speed and volume as the opening progresses. We decided to use this type of music as it suited the overall mood and genre of the film, not only did it immediately inform the audience on what type of film it would be but it gave the opening a dark, dull and suspenseful atmosphere similar to that of other horrors. We created our opening soundtrack in the style of the opening for Candyman, after researching different horror film openings, Candy man’s repetitive, loud, instrumental soundtrack that is played over the first Ariel shot really inspired the style and sound of our opening. It truly reflected the type of soundtrack you would want to hear in a successful horror. I think our development and use of sound, specifically incidental music, throughout the film is the best convention, we have used 3 different soundtracks in different areas of the film that suited the scenes that it would be played over, for example the soundtrack that is played over the scene where the cameraman is running is very dramatic, instrumentally the piano describes the emotions surrounding the characters well and the tone and pace fits nicely with the amount of dialogue and action within the scene. It fits well because the speed at which he is talking and running matches the speed of the music, it complements the character and creates a fluent end product.

When looking at all the different styles, effects and aspects we could incorporate into our film we wanted to use all the typical conventions of horror and link each and every one together, we wanted to do this so we could build and create a good representative of the horror genre. Firstly we wanted to combine the music used in the opening with the style of credits, to do this we needed to create the credits in a recognisable horror style. When producing our titles and credits we needed to think about the colour scheme and font type and which suited our genre best. (See short clip 1) After looking at the possibilities we found out that there weren’t many styles that suited our opening. Even though there where fonts that depicted horror elements, I felt they were too excessive for our scene, our horror film isn’t about blood and gore; it is more psychological and has elements of thriller combined with horror. Therefore we went with a style of font that allowed us to fade the colour into the background; we felt this was suitable as it went well with our film title ‘The unknown’. It suited the film title because the gradient and fade option gave it a mysterious and shrouded appearance which resembles the type of character the killer is. Because our font type didn’t clearly portray a ‘typical gory horror film’ we wanted to make the font colour a typical horror style. We chose red because it resembles many areas of horror and in many ways links to the story line of our film.

The colour red depicts:

Blood- Our opening doesn’t show any blood, but does show a dead body which indicates there is likely to be blood later on in the film.

Danger- We included many elements of danger in our opening, significant amounts where the news reporter is chasing the source of the scream and at the end where the killer is coming towards him.

Death- In the middle of the film the reporter discovers a dead body.

Anger- Towards the end after they have discovered the body the reporter and cameraman are angry and shocked about what they have seen. Quote Reporter Character ‘‘I DON’T KNOW WHATS GOING ON!’’ we were inspired to use red as our primary credit colour because of the film se7en, the title for se7en shows sinister style writing and dark red colour, we wanted to incorporate similar styles for our film credits because it is effective at representing the horror genre.

Throughout the 3 minute clip we used quite a few different camera angles, the ones that stand out the most and clearly show conventions of horror films are: subject point of view and high angle. We used subject point of view when the cameraman was running to find the source of the scream during the middle part of the opening, I feel this is a successful and useful camera angle to use whilst filming a horror as it makes the audience feel like they are experiencing the characters emotions and feelings at that point, in this sense the cameraman character is scared and panicked, we can tell this by the quick and unsteady way he is holding the camera and the heavy, panicked panting in the background, by making the audience feel the same emotions as the character we hit our target as  horror movie producers to make our audience scared and unnerved. Towards the end of the film when the killer picks up the camera and is filming him-self coming towards the reporter we incorporated a high angle shot. When the audience have established that the killer is the one in possession of the camera, the high angle really portrays the killer’s power and dominance over the other characters, the way the camera is faced looking down at the reporter really express how helpless and vulnerable he is and the audience can clearly see who has the power between the two characters.

During the editing of our film we incorporated many different styles and techniques. One significant area of editing was the use of the green screen. We used the green screen whilst filming the news room scene; I like how the green screen has the ability to place any image or video behind characters. It was very useful whilst filming our news scene as we didn’t have access to a news room or time to create one ourselves; it gave our shot a very realistic outcome and overall made the scene more believable for our audience. Another aspect of editing was the inclusion of the white noise, like the green screen it made our film much more realistic and I feel the areas it was used where specific and relevant to the storyline. One particular part of the story where the white noise is used well was the end of the news reporter’s line where we hear the scream. Instead of cutting back to the studio, the few seconds of white noise told the audience straight away that something is wrong and also makes the audience start asking questions in their head. Why is the camera not working? Where did the scream come from? Etc. The white noise builds anticipation and suspense surrounding the viewers and overall gives the film a more realistic effect in line with the unknown aspect of the horror genre.

We incorporated many areas of mise-en-scene when producing the film, and tried to portray typical horror conventions. One aspect of mise-en-scene was the location/setting of the field news report. The area we filmed in was only part of the school field. We filmed near two ditches that resembled marsh land; it was very over grown and grassy. Even though we filmed so close to the school, the way in which we filmed only the fields and ditch. The setting conveys the horror genre by giving the film a secluded atmosphere, behind the character it looks very isolated, and there is no clear sight of areas with high population or residents. This puts across to the audience how alone and vulnerable the victims and the news reporter are. Also a few glimpses of fencing show that the area could be inaccessible to the public and acts as a barrier, creating the idea that there is no way to get in or out, so the killers victims are even more vulnerable. All of this creates an even more secluded and scary atmosphere surrounding the setting and the report, making the audience feel scared for the characters well-being and possibly waiting in suspense for another attack? Se7en as well as influencing our style of credits also inspired our choice of setting, in se7en the scene were the killer is shot is filmed in an isolated, secluded field similar to ours, we took inspiration from this scene because of how unnerving, derelict and remote this type of location is, it expresses typical conventions and characteristics of horror by surrounding the characters with a sense of fright and isolation which in turn is felt within the audience.  I challenged the conventions of horror by incorporating another genre into the opening; during the end of the film we tried to incorporate comedy aspects, we were inspired to include this sub-genre after watching the opening to comedy-horror ‘Shaun of the dead’. We included this towards the end where the news reporters are sitting in the studio bored and the male character starts acting childish and immature, this small aspect of comedy challenges typical horror films as we are not only incorporating the common conventions but also adding in new ways and ideas to produce our film and sell it to the audience.

2.         How does your media product represent particular social groups?

In our movie opening we have represented different social groups. If I look at gender for example in our film we are quite even with the amount of power given to men and women the only scene where men maybe seen more powerful than women is towards the end of the film. Towards the end of the film the news reporter comes across a dead body found in the ditch. The body is of a young woman, this could show women as being the weaker sex or they are unable to fend or fight for themselves. This depicts women as being vulnerable and helpless, no man is seen dead and in the news story at the start the victims are not gender specified. Towards the end of the film where the two news readers are sitting unaware and bored in the new room, the male reporter is seen throwing paper into a bin and messing around with his spinning chair. This could portray men as being childish. Whereas the woman leaves during his antics showing she and women are sophisticated and more mature.  Other than these scenes gender and the dominance surrounding it is evenly spread throughout the film. We have no other clear areas of social class in our film other than occupation. The only occupation that is seen throughout the clip is news broadcaster, reporter. The costume of the news reporters is smart dress, the men in suit and tie and the woman in dress and blazer. This could interpret this occupation as being smart and well-kept it could also signify that they are well paid and like to look after themselves and make sure they look presentable. Also the fact they are news reporters creates the idea of them being well spoken and confident in front of people, this depicts the reporters as being literate and fluent with speech.

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

When researching possible film companies that could distribute our product I found out that a large scale company such as Warner Brothers would not be appropriate or fit my type of film. Even though they are successful I feel our opening doesn't reflect or mimic the work of other films they have created, the technical advancements and equipment used in Warner Brothers etc. films are far better than the way our film is produced. I think our film would fit nicely into a smaller film company, preferably from Britain such as film 4, as our film is not only a British horror but would suit and link with the type of films they produce and screen. Like the films they produce our film was made with low budget equipment with simple editing and camera techniques, but still able to reflect common conventions within the horror genre. Another British film company that could distribute my film is Hammer film productions, they not only produce my type of quality film but also specialise in creating horror and thriller films such as sequels to Frankenstein, the mummy and Dracula, this would be a better more useful company as they have history, reputation and experience within the horror genre and would know how to distribute my type of film well and successfully.

4.      Who would be the audience for your media product?

Judging on the genre of film and scenes incorporated into our opening I feel our target audience would be a 15. I have made this decision purely because of the dead body pictured towards the end of the film. Although no blood is pictured, the inclusion of a dead body in the opening highly indicates the possibility of blood further into the film. Also the depiction of murder and violence and death would be inappropriate for anyone under our chosen age boundary.

5.      How did you attract/address your audience

Throughout our film we have incorporated many typical horror conventions that we knew would attract and address the audience. We attracted our audience by firstly incorporating horror style music to the opening over the credits, the low, slow, deep beats of the drum are repetitive and surround the audience with suspense and anticipation. The style of music straight away addresses the audience that the film is going to be a horror. We also listened to the track and cleverly figured out where to place the credits and at which part of the track they should show up, for example we placed the film title ‘The Unknown’ over the part of the track where the beat suddenly increases in volume, I did this so it attracted my audience to that point and made them aware of my film title and which were the most important credits during the opening. One big part of the opening that I feel really attracts our audience is the inclusion of white noise. The white noise comes after the camera shuts off, one particular scene where it works well is after the reporter in the field character says ‘’may strike again’’ the cut off of the camera and the sudden appearance of the white noise gives the film a realistic edge, it makes the audience jump and start asking questions and thinking up scenarios in their head such as why has the camera cut off? Who screamed? Was it the killer? Including the white noise throughout the film I feel was a good idea, we included it in the right places and did not overuse it or drag it out, the time in which we included white noise changed in every section, we felt some areas needed less and some needed more and we used the appropriate amount depending on what was happening in the scene. The continuous use of white noise attracts the audience because it makes them want to keep watching, it builds anticipation and we are essentially drip feeding them the information. This is what we as horror movie producers want to achieve within the audience, a sense of suspense and unknowing of what is going to happen. Another aspect of our film that would attract our target audience is the age of the cast, casting young adults would bring in larger quantities of my target audience and would fit in nicely with my film as it is rated 15, my target audience which is teenagers I found out from my questionnaire enjoy horror films and like to be scared, as I have based our film around my questionnaire, it should if I have used the conventions correctly attract a lot of people who fall into my age category.  We addressed our audience into knowing that our film was a horror right from the start, firstly our specific use of font colour helps address the audience. We used the colour red as it is a typical and common feature for titles and credits in most horrors, it depicts blood, death, anger and danger all emotions and feelings that are seen in the genre. Using the colour red was useful for our credits because they are at the start of the film and quickly address the audience that the film will be a horror so there are no surprises, misunderstanding or confusion about the genre further into the feature. The font colour of the credits is also backed up by a dark black background and the deep drum beat music which I mentioned earlier. All of these aspects combined create a very stereotypical horror opening and tell the audience what type of film they are about to watch.

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

During the production of our film we came across many technologies that were new to me us and some that we had used before. One big piece of technology that really helped the quality of our film was the green screen. (See short clip 2) The green screen allowed us to include any image we wanted into the background of our shot when we edited later on. This was extremely useful when filming our news room scene, because we couldn’t film in a proper news room or have the time to create our own the green screen came in and helped us improve our scene and create a more realistic and quality outcome. The only real limitation of the green screen was the fact it had to stretch out correctly, no folds or creases could be in the fabric or else it would show up in the edit and distort my image. I came across this problem when we first shot our scene and had to go and re-film a few days later. I feel this is only a small limitation as it can be helped and put correctly by the film producers. When we edited we needed to use the Apple Mac and Adobe Premiere, the Mac’s and this software was completely new to me, I had only use them briefly when creating my preliminary task and was unsure about of the capability they held, after guidance from my peers and teacher I quickly understood each different area of the software and learnt the basics about creating a good quality edit. I learnt how to add effects cut clips and include titles all things I was unsure of before. When editing I did find one limitation with the macs that I couldn’t help. I was trying to include the opening news title jingle by downloading a clip from You Tube; it wouldn’t allow downloading from YouTube directly to the mac so I had to improvise and use my memory stick to transfer the content from my teacher’s laptop onto the mac, we were able to complete this download because of a program called keepvid, keepvid allowed us to download the content from the source and then save into a file in my teachers computer, in the end it worked out fine and now I know not to try and download again straight onto the mac. Another piece of technology that is very common in this technological era but new to me was the blog. Using blogger as our chosen blog site was useful because it allowed me to post all of my work onto my blog and get quick and useful feedback from my tutors. It also kept my work safe and in one place which is always an uncertainty when completing writing work. Blogger overall was incredibly useful during the researching and producing of my film, it had no real disadvantages, I found it quite difficult to work at the start and I was unsure of were to find different things such as editing or writing a post. As soon as I started using it more often I easily picked up the basics.

7.      Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product?

After looking back, analyzing and reviewing my preliminary task I found out that as a media film producer I have drastically improved my knowledge and skill in each area of production. At the start of the year we learnt about the 180 degree rule, where the actors have to stay one side of the camera to not confuse the audience about positioning of characters. We not only included this in our preliminary task but also took our knowledge into the film opening and obeyed the 180 degree rule throughout. Overall my knowledge about each area of media production has improved since the start of the year. One specific area that I have improved on is the editing. At the start I was unaware of the many buttons on the macs and what they did; now I feel much more confident with my edits and their fluency. For example one scene in my preliminary task that I felt was poor was the scene where I am walking up the stairs, you can clearly see where I stop and look at that camera in one shot and continue in the next, this poor editing was not seen in my new film and the sharpness and fluency in the opening scene I felt was quite professional. One part of the film where I merged two shots together is when the cameraman is running into the ditch, during this scene there are two separate shots, I feel the shakiness and style of the camera included with the terrain I was filming helped make the edit look better but my increased knowledge of editing whilst producing this scene helped the end product have that sharper, better quality edge. Another area I have improved in is my use and knowledge of camera angles (See short clip 3), in the preliminary task I only used 2 or 3 different angles however in my film opening I included a range of different angles that I hadn’t previously known to help produce a good quality film. I included angles such as forward tracking; horizontal tracking and high angles, the range of different angles made it more interesting and also help express conventions of horrors within my film.