EVALUATION
1). In what ways does your media product use,
develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?
I think that our final media products uses forms of
conventions of real media products as we used our research and planning to
create the same atmosphere and genre themes as any other thriller film. One
example is the camera shots, we included shots like a close up to ensure that
you could see the characters face- which would therefore display the emotion
and reaction that the character may have, which would give the audience a clue
to what type of genre may be. This may be if the character was to looks frightened
of something we know that the film is going to be scary which then leads to the
idea of the genre being a thriller/horror. We also used a long shot to show of
the characters from the back- this implied that they were running away from
something and that there was something to fear.
Another
example in which we incorporated a typical thriller form was the music; we
chose to use a piece of music that sounded mysterious and scary. We did this as
we wanted to create a frightening atmosphere that best suited with the piece of
film, making the film a lot more realistic and scarier. This created a positive effect to the film as
it gives the audience a clear idea to what genre the film is based on and would
hopefully draw in a bigger audience.
Near the start of the sequence we show the title of
the film and use a thunder effect to shudder the film title- which instantly
creates a creepy atmosphere. We also chose to use simple white font and a black
background; we did this so we didn’t take too much attention away from the
background music and effect but we also thought that it created a much darker
atmosphere- therefore making the audience believe that something bad was going
to happen.
At the start
of the opening sequence we use a shot to show the characters lower legs and
feet, you can also easily identify that the characters are two girls and by the
clothing that they are wearing that they are younger- maybe in their teens.
This almost implies, along with the scary/mysterious music, that they are quite
stereotypically vulnerable and that something bad is going to happen to them.
In our original plan we wanted to film in the dark,
however after doing some filming we regretted that you couldn’t see the
characters as it was too dark and weren’t able to access the right equipment to
film the opening sequence in this poor condition. So we had to improvise and
find a new location where we could film in the day. After finding our new location
we filmed on a day when we had bad weather so the sky was dark but we still had
natural light, in able to see the characters when filming. This wasn’t as good
as it was to if it was pitch black in a graveyard however it was a good
alterative as we still had dim lighting and the new setting created a
frightening atmosphere.
So for the setting we filmed outside in a secure
and quiet area where there was a lot of tree area- practically a forest. In a
stereo typical thriller film you know that when someone is a forest they are
usually running away from something or somebody which makes you feel the
characters fear. We also wanted to be in a quiet area as we wanted the opening
sequence to be silent and didn’t want any unwanted noise to affect this. Being
filmed in a forest like area it makes the audience think that we are in the middle
of nowhere, which is never good. It gives the audience a chance to develop
ideas to what is going to happen to two vulnerable girls in the middle of
nowhere- all by themselves.
Finally after the suspense is heightened with the
mysterious opening title and sequence we know that something bad is going to
happen. We later reveal this in an over the shoulder shot when you see a tall
figure stood behind a character- oblivious. The audience were able to identify
that the new character is something evil and scary, maybe insinuating that the
characters should fear them. It may also show that the characters may be
related to this new character and isn’t just a random figure after them.
At the end of the sequence we show a close on the
two main characters screaming and in the background we play a chant ‘no more
secrets and lying, I know where you’re hiding’. This insinuates to the audience
that the figure chasing the characters knows them and may have a bad past with
them. Using the words ‘secrets’ and ‘lying’ we know that the characters are
hiding something and will be later revealed in the film. I believe that this
will make the audience want to carry on watching the film to discover the big
secret.
2). How does your media
product represent particular social groups?
In our thriller opening sequence it is 2 teenage
girls, by themselves in the middle of nowhere. We represent this type of social
group (teenage girls) to be quite vulnerable to be by themselves, outside of
the public. This also represents the female gender to be a lot less independent
and weaker than a male. By using camera shots, for example a close up, you are
able to see the fear in the characters face, this again shows that the female
stereotypically gets more scared than the male. We intentionally wanted to
represent our female characters to be stereotypically more vulnerable to males
and show that females are frightened easier. Our character that the two teenage
girls were scared of was typically a lot bigger and taller than the two teenage
girls; we did this so that the characters looked more threatening and held the dominant
position in this position. It is harder to identify their gender, because you don’t
see their face; however the character has long, curly hair and wears boots so I
think that this gives it away more that it is a female character.
3). What kind of media institution might
distribute your media product and why?
If a media institution were to distribute our film I
would say it would be a film distribution company like Momentum pictures. I
think this as it is an independent British film company and they release films
purely for the growth and not for major income, unlike companies like 20
century fox and Paramount pictures. If we were to distribute the film it would
be of low budget as we have filmed in local locations, used little props and
have used all school equipment for our filming and editing. I believe that
Momentum Pictures is a very successful film distributor as it has distributed popular
films like; Sinister, the Woman in Black, Safe Haven, P.S. I love you, The
Kings Speech, Amelie, Just Friends, The illusionist etc. Some of these films
have won Momentum Pictures BAFTA’S and Oscars, which shows that they are successful.
To advertise our film we would directly rely on the media, first putting it on
websites like IMDB and rotten tomatoes and then social networking like Facebook,
twitter, you tube etc. This way the film is shared around so more and more
people can view the film and give honest opinions about it.
4). Who would be the audience for your media
product?
As our film is a thriller- horror genre we did
research on similar films like insidious and sinister. They were both rated age
15 by the BBFC as both films contained strong horror, language and violence
which we wanted to include in our film. We wanted to make our film scary,
violent and horrifying; however we did not want the rating to go anything above
a 15 as our main target audience is teenagers (15+). We also wanted both males
and females to enjoy our film and will show violence and however we will not
show explicit contents that would cause us to break the rules and conventions
of the film rating 15. Thrillers are very popular as it is said to bring the
audience:
- · A high level of anticipation
- · Ultra-heightened expectation
- · Uncertainty
- · Anxiety
- · Suspense
- · Excitement
- · Tension
- · Terror
5). How did you
attract/address your audience?
This
is Tara Haythornthwaite (left) and Ashley Russell (right) and they both fit our target audience as
they are teenage girls as they are both 17 years old. They both attend sixth
form and they both enjoy watching television.
Tara’s favourite films include Scream,
Sinister, The house at the end of the street and Friday the 13th.
She really likes horror | thrillers as she likes the tension being built up and
feeling the excitement after something important has been revealed in the film that
she may be watching.
After viewing our film opening she said:
“I really like the film opening, it straight way
built up a strong tension and felt the fear of the girl running from the
chaser, it was great!”.
Ashley’s favourite films
include the women in black, fright night, insidious, cabin in the woods and Texas
chainsaw massacre. She also likes to watch horror | thriller weekly as she
likes the high level of anticipation that the films have and believes that the
suspense makes the film much more interesting to watch.
After reviewing our
opening sequence she said:
“I loved it! At the
start it gave you that stereo typical creepy music and then the suspense
gradually got higher and higher. I would definitely watch the film if it were
to be produced”.
6). What have you learnt about technologies from the
process of constructing this product?
When first
joining the Media class we had never used any of the media equipment that we
were first introduced to. However we soon got the jist of things after filming
out prelimary task, we got to know the camera recorder a lot better and were able
to use it in different settings (like zooming in and out). When filming our
thriller we used little equipment as we only needed simple technology. The two
pieces of equipment we used was the camera recorder and tripod for some of the shots.
The camera recorder gave us a very clear picture and we were able to adjust the
zoom in and zoom out button very easily without blurring the shot. The tripod
was useful as it gave us a steady shot preventing it from being wobbly if hand
held. After filming the opening sequence we were able to use an Apple Mac to
edit our shots and join them together. We also learnt how to cut some shots
short, add sound effects and add effects like fading in, words enlarging etc.
Once doing this the first time it was really easy to used and ended up being helpful
for our opening sequence.
Overall this technology has helped us build up a
lot more knowledge on how to use the different equipment. Although at times the
filming could be difficult, when choosing the right background/setting, we were
able to fix this by using the Apple Mac to edit in effects and a sound track.
7). Looking back at your preliminary
task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the
full product?
It is evident after comparing our Preliminary task and
Thriller opening sequence that we have learnt a lot and gained a big amount of
knowledge. We have been able to develop our ideas by using a range of shots and
different equipment. In the Preliminary task we chose not to use the tripod,
however after using it in our Thriller opening sequence you can tell the
difference between the shots and see that the Thriller shots are much more high
quality and steady. Also in our Preliminary task we chose to speak in it but in
our Thriller we decided it was best not to. We believe that the silence in the
Thriller is a lot more effective and gives it that greater suspense and
creepiness compared to if we were talking. The only two part of the thriller where
you hear the two girls is when they are screaming near the end but that’s just to
show their emotions, not to interact with each other and at the end you hear
the scary voices saying ‘no more secrets and lying, I know where your hiding’
which signifies what the film is about. Finally the editing is a lot more
effective as we learnt how to add sound effects and different transitions of
shots.
CONCLUSION
Overall I can say I personally have learnt a great deal of
knowledge of media work and technology since starting AS level Media Studies
and have highly enjoyed filming both our Preliminary task and Thriller opening
sequence.
