Final Film Opening

This is my final piece for this project. We have made a lot of changes to the order of our clips to try make it look less of a trailer and more a film opening. I think that the story is more clear to the user and they can understand what is going on better. I have really enjoyed creating this piece and am happy with the result.

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

Comparing my preliminary task to my final product, it is clear that I have learnt and improved in the progression from one to the other. One thing that I have learnt in the progression is about framing and keeping a steady shot. In my preliminary task, we didn't use a tripod so some of the shots were quite shaky and unsteady. This makes it look unprofessional and quite rushed. For the filming of my final product, I used a tripod to keep my camera steady. This way, the shots looked much more professional and steady. Another advantage of using a tripod was that the shots were correctly framed where as in my preliminary task some shots were out of frame because of the unsteady filming. Using a tripod meant that we could get shots at a perfectly straight angle such as the long shot of Emily running and the dinner scene.

The preliminary task helped me learn about the different types of shots I could use and helped me to practice them as well and techniques like match on action shots and shot reverse shot. By practising them early on, this meant that when it came to filming my final product, I was confident that I could correctly frame and use a variety of shots as this is in my assessment objectives. I think that all or most of the shots used in my final product are correctly/well framed and used together it makes my final product more interesting that just using one or two types of shots.

I also feel that my editing skill has improved during the progression from preliminary task to final product. In my preliminary task, cuts were very simple and not as precise and maybe as thought out as in my final product. I certainly didn't use any of the other tools or more creative things such as filters or crops. My preliminary task was very basic in terms of editing, however we did add in an overlay which is where Becky and I started to experiment and discover what we could actually do using 'Final Cut Express'.

Finally, I think that I have shown progress by looking out for small details such as lighting, for example. In my preliminary task, there is a shot of Gemma where there is light behind her, causing her to appear very dark. In my final product, I made sure to be very careful to pay attention to small things like these as I think that they can ruin a film even if only slightly. I made sure that there was enough light in each shot of my final product to give the desired effect and made sure small things such as props were in place how I wanted each shot to look.

Overall, I think that there is a clear progression and improvement that can be seen when looking at my Preliminary task and my final product. I am very happy with the progress I have made and all the things that I have learnt throughout this project such as shots, framing and all the editing techniques on Final Cut Express.

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

Over the course of this project, I have learnt how to use different types of technologies to create my final outcome. Firstly, I made the most of my camera's video setting to record the whole of our film opening. I used a Canon 500d to record the clips as this was readily available to me and meant I didn't have to book the school camera which was limiting in terms of when I could use it as others wanted to use them too. this meant I could record when best suited for myself and Becky and also my actors as some of our times were very last minute planned. By using my camera, this also means we could shoot in 720p HD which meant that our film looks of a higher quality, however combined with editing and titles, Youtube can only show it as 420p which is still a very good quality.

The majority of what I have learnt about new technologies comes from working with the editing software 'Final Cut Express'. This was a much more professional and complex program that ones I have used before so it was as if learning from scratch. We firstly imported our clips into the program so that they were there and available to use in our project. We mainly used the V1 bar to put our clips in however some clips that we wanted to overlay we used them on the v2 bar and changed the opacity using the motion tab in the Viewer (square window on the left). I used the A1 and A2 bars for the same purpose except for with audio tracks that I used. By using the Viewer window, I was able to add filters and effects as I went a long and apply these to each individual clip. I used effects such a RGB balance to change the colour and Black and white filters. I also used the motion tab to change the opacity of a clip when doing an overlay or when fading a clip in and out, adding key frames.

When editing my video, I used various tools to help edit my film together to get a good finish with as little continuity error as possible. I used the Razor blade tool to cut clips to the right length and to cut out the parts I didn't need. This meant that I could cut down my footage to fit the time restriction and to cut parts together to show good continuity between clips. I used the snapping tool to make clips fit right after the other without gaps so that my film played continuously without blank parts in between clips and a seamless finish. Where clips looked slightly odd fitted next to each other, I added a transition effect. I stuck to used very simple and natural effect such as 'Cross Fade' which meant that these transitions didn't detract attention from the film itself yet meant that the clips flowed smoothly and looked good together. I used the pen too to mark points along both the audio and video clips where I wanted the video to fade in and fade out and where I wanted the audio track to do the same. To do this I marked a point at the beginning of the clip and the point where I wanted it to reach it's normal state and dragged the first clip down to the bottom so that it created a smooth fade. Similarly, I did this for the end however dragged the end point to make it fade out.

One thing I specially learnt was to create a split screen effect where two clips played simultaneously side by side. I learnt how to do this by watching a tutorial on Youtube. I was surprised to find out how quite simple it was to create however think it looks very effective when used in out film. I applied what I learnt from the tutorial to my film and am very happy with the result, however I think it could be improved by cropping the clip to add borders as I think this would look more effective when fading out as the central overlap doesn't fade out with the rest of the clips as fast as there are two layers.

Blogging has also helped me throughout this project. It has helped me to put and and portray my research and planning and ideas that I have come up with in this project. It has allowed me to present my work neatly and clearly so that others can view and see the progression clearly. By blogging, this can help audience feedback as it allows anyone to view and leave a comment. This means I can get a wider range of people giving me feedback rather than just feedback from friends which can sometimes be biased. 

5: How did you attract your audience?

I tried to attract my target audience in several ways. One of them was to use characters in my story that were of a similar age. I also chose to have one male and one female so that both genders could relate. By having them at a similar age to the viewers, this means that they can relate to problems the character may be going through throughout the story. This gives a much more personal feel to the film for the audience which can draw some people in and make it more enjoyable and or interesting to watch for them. To try an attract a slightly older audience, the characters are shown to be on a dinner date which is quite sophisticated for their age which can appeal to older audiences as this is something they are likely to do when dating.

I also attracted my audience through my genre. I wanted to address both the male and female audience, especially and specifically those who like horror films. I used props that are associated with horrors. The end scene of my film opening shows Jay about to stab Emily. This knife is a typical prop of horror films which relates it back to the genre and the theme of violence/murder/death, attracting the audience. Emily wears a dark red dress which has connotations of blood. This attracts the audience as it gives them the idea of horror and gore later on in the film which is what they party come and expect to see in a horror film.

I attracted the audience by using fast cuts and pace to make the film seem exciting and worth watching. I used jump cuts and various scenes of Emily running edited together to create a fast paced introduction to the film which would draw the audience in right from the beginning. However to keep a slight feel of softness and romance a few of these clips have a smooth transition whilst other have fast jump cuts to keep to the jumpy, horror genre.

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

I think that the main audience for my media product would be teenagers and young adults aged around 15-25. This is because, as a horror, it may contain scenes which could possibly make it a certificate 15 which many horrors and film of a similar genre are, especially as my film would contain murder and violence which may not be suitable for younger viewers. Obviously, this would only apply if I were to continue and shoot the whole of the film not just the opening two minutes. I would like to think that my film would appeal to both males and females as I have used a male and a female character of a similar age to what I would think my main audience would be. Also, the romantic parts of the film would typically appeal more to the female viewers whilst the horror and violence would typically draw in more of a male audience. This fits in with my initial target audience that I first wanted to address my film opening to.

 

By looking at other existing yet similar media products, I have looked at the certificate and target audience to get a more accurate idea of what my target audience would be. I have looked at psychological horrors because this would relate to my main character having visions, such as in Black Swan, where the main character Nina has hallucinations. I have also looked at slightly romantic horrors such as Let The Right One In where the young boy falls in love with the girl who is a vampire. Both films are certificate 15.

I was very surprised to see these statistics about audience for the film Black Swan, from IMDb. I was to surprised to see that far more males watched the film in comparison to females as it is a film very much based on ballet which is more stereotypically a females interest. The main audience for this film came from under 18's however it has been popular with all ages, gradually decreasing as the viewer got older. This means that my film may be able to appeal to a much wider audience than I originally thought and may appeal to and audience slightly older than 25 years old. I still think that under 25's will be the main audience for my film. I also still think my film will appeal to both male and females more equally than Black Swan as it has both male and female characters that could appeal to both genders, where as Black Swan's characters are mainly females which do attract a more male audience.

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

As my media product is a two minute opening to a film, one media institution that may distribute my film would be a film company. They would be involved in the creation, production and/or distribution of my film which can include paying, filming and editing of the film as well as marketing. As my film is mainly based in the Horror genre, a production company focusing on producing horror films may work with my film. An example of a famous Horror production company would be Twisted Pictures who produced the Saw films, so this is a possible production company that may distribute my media product. We know which production company is used as they usually have their own title shown t the beginning of the film. This is the title for Twisted Pictures:

Another type of media institution that could distribute my media product would be online video sharing websites such as Vimeo and Youtube. These allow the public to freely watch video clips online and share their own with the rest of the sites users. In association to my media product, they could be used in advertising the film across to a wider audience. My film opening or a trailer could be uploaded onto one of these site to promote the rest of the film and give a sneak preview of what it to come, especially as it ends on a cliffhanger it could persuade viewers to go watch the whole thing. Also this means that it can be send around the internet around the world through viral advertising meaning the audience it could possibly receive would be extremely large and varied.

Another possible media institution would be a television broadcaster if my film were to be shown on TV. This allows people to watch my film in the comfort of their own home  It could be shown on public service broadcast stations such as the BBC as they must show programmes to the public's taste which includes showing films every so often. It could also be shown on premium subscriber channels such as Sky Movies where viewers pay to get these extra channels made available to them. As these channels have a specific Sky Horror channel, it would be most suited to be played on that channel as it fit in with the genre the channel specifies in. This means that people interested in or that have a preference for Horror films can watch it.

My film could also be distributed via download on programmes such as iTunes. This would allow the user to buy or rent the film in the comfort of their own home at any time or place they want as this is available 24/7 and have it saved onto their computer which offers an alternative platform to view on rather than a dvd. This also saved space as the film is stored in the computers memory rather than a physical object. This is a very easy and fast method which is becoming more and more popular as computer technology is developing and appeals to a lot of people, especially those that do not have the time to go out and buy a dvd or people who don't live near a shop selling it.

Finally, my film could be distributed by selling it on dvd's. These dvd's would be sold in film shops or big supermarkets who stock various dvd's etc. This gives the user a hard, physical copy of the film which has been the favoured option for many years. This means the user can watch the film in the comfort of their own home whenever they like rather than going to watch it in a cinema. However this is limited to people who have dvd players in their homes however this is a majority and many computers/laptops are able to play dvd's these days which adds another platform option to the users choice.

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

My media product gives representations of particular social groups though the storyline, narrative and the actors I have used.

My film opening gives a representation that females are quite weak and defenceless as my female character appears to be the victim; the killer is about to stab her at the end without her being aware. This is quite stereotypical as women are seen to be weaker than men making them typically inferior. My film opening shows the female to be very vulnerable and naive. This is a typical representation of women in the Horror genre and in most genres. There is an ideology that women are weaker than men and therefore tend to be the victim more frequently in films, as they are thought of to be easier to attack and kill.

However, the female character in my film opening is the protagonist. I have shown this by having a lot of focus on her and she gets more screen time than Jay, the male character. This suggests that women are more important than men in this film which is not the stereotype set in society. It is unusual for a women to be the main character in films and Horrors in particular which means that my film opening represents women as a higher status and of more importance than men in society. It also contradicts the idea of women being weak as it gives her power and authority. Many films, in particular Horrors, have not had female protagonists until recently. And example of this would be the film Wolf Creek, 2005. Usually, in horrors, the main characters manages to survive until the end of the film. By having a female as the main character it hows them as being able to survive the horror and dangers in the film which suggests women as strong and as survivors.

The male character in my film is shown to be quite mysterious as we do not suspect he is the bad guy until quite late in to my film opening. Even then, we only get slight hints, a close up on his eyes before her vision, until the ending of my film opening where we discover him to be the antagonist for definite. As the killer, this portrays the male as being very violent and evil. This agrees with codes and conventions of the horror genre as the majority of horror films use males to play these roles. Also there is the ideology that females are too weak and innocent to play the role of a killer as they are not as powerful or evil as a man can be. My film represents the male as being dominant, as he is attacking the female character. However he is also represented as mysterious and quite sneaky as his role in the film is unexpected from the first part of the opening the viewer sees.

The shot of the two characters at the dinner table enjoying a meal presents them as being of middle class. The shot shows a very tidy, modern and simplistic home which looks very middle class. The candles and neatness of the shot show that effort has been put into the presentation for the date. The characters are shown to be drinking wine which suggests that they can afford alcohol rather than something non alcoholic, which would be at a lower price, with their meal and suggests them as being middle class. The shot suggests that there has been no expense spared and that the characters can afford to cook a meal rather than buy it readily made which also suggests the characters as middle class.