Final Video

This is our final video 'The Secrets of Mr Myles'.

Looking back at your preliminary task (the continuity editing task), what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to full product?

Me and Mikalah filmed our preliminary at the start of the year, so we both had very little knowledge when it came to filming. Looking back at the preliminary task, I feel I have learnt a lot in terms of editing, camera and titles.

In my preliminary, I only used 1 editing technique which was straight cut. Although this editing technique was useful, I didn't have a range of different editing techniques which made the preliminary quite boring. In our film a few different editing techniques including straight cut and wipe.Whilst editing our film, I learnt how to add different editing techniques, where to appropriately place them and the importance of it. The pace of the scenes was more fluid than the prelimniary, which makes the opening more eaiser to watch.

In the preliminary task, we had to use the 180 degree rule and use shot reverse shot whilst 2 people was having a conversation. We did not use both of these techinques in our opening since their was no dialogue used. In our preliminary, we only used common shots such as close up and long shot. We also didn't use any camera movement, which could make the video boring.


In our opening, we used a range of several shots such as extreme close up and long shot; by using these different camera shots and movement, we learnt the importance of them and what effect it can have. We also used camera movement which made video more interesting than our preliminary.

In our preliminary task, we was required to include match on action. Also I understood what match on action was, I didn't understand the purpose or importance of it.





In our opening, we did not include match on action. Although we didn't include, we could of included it was our main character was walking out the gate, we could have vied in on her closing the door behind her. Depsite not adding this camera techinuq in, I now understand that this techique makes the audience focus on the action more, and what effect it can have on the audience.





During the process of making our media product, I have learnt about making titles, and how the font and colour of the titles can reflect the genre of the film. In the preliminary task, I didn't even include titles simply because I didn't know how to sincePremiere Pro was new to me at the start of this course.
I now undertand how to include titles; I also know how the credits within a film opening can have an effect on the audience.

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

The equipment we used was:

A camera: with this equipment, we learned to take different shots linking to the genre

Computer: we learned to operate different software’s such as Adobe Premiere Pro and Prezi.

The main equipment we used was a camera. Both of us has very little knowledge of taking media shots and angles, so this was very new to us. Through this piece of equipment, we learned to take different media shots and angles, the purpose of media shots/angles and the effect it can have. 

We didn't use  a tripod whilst filming because we didn't feel it was needed. 

When we took the shots, we went to ICT department so the footage could be accessed on the school. When we did this, we was ready to edit. 

During the editing process on making the opening credits to our film, we used ‘Adobe Premiere Pro CS4’. From using this software, I learnt how to crop footage, add different editing effects such as wipe and dissolve and add titles within the film.  The software was difficult to understand at first, but the more we used it, the more we understood how the software works. 







During this media course, we also learnt how to use Prezi, which is a software which allows you to create presentations in a slightly different way. We used Prezi to discuss the role of the BBFC and the purpose of them. From using Prezi, I have learnt how to create presentations using a range of pictures, save it and upload it to blogger.



The camera we used was mikalah's camera, which was Panasonic SDR-S70. We both had very little knowledge when it come to filming shot and camera movemet. From this piece of equipment, we learnt how to take severeal camera shots and movements.

How did you attract your target audience?

For our film opening, we used questionnaires, which we handed out to students between the ages of 16-18 to find our information about the audience we was targeting and what type of film they would be interested in.

From the information we collected, we then used the information to put into a pie chart and analyzed the data we collected. From the analysis of the data, we then based on decision.










We also created a Twitter page to attract our audience. Twitter is common for ages we are targeting, so we thought it was a good idea to use that particular social website to attract our audience. Through this social website, we could also keep audience informed about the film's updates.


To attract our audience, we also showed our video to 2 students and our media to receive feedback on how we could improve. The video was showed was our previous opening for our previous video. The feedback we received was the film opening didn’t particularly have a hook, which made it less interesting and due to that feedback, we decided to change the idea to the current one we have now.

Who would be the media audience for your product?

The age range for our film opening is 16-24 year olds. This age group usually watches show on E4, the reason why think Film4 would distribute our film.

The target audience for our film would be generally be quite young, between the ages of 16-24. The genre of our film opening is crime/thriller and because the thriller genre is quite popular within the age group, supported by the research we did earlier in the course. Our film would most likely appeal more the male gender rather than female as crime usually attracts the male genre more, which is also supported by the results of our questionnaire. Our film isn’t for a specific ‘group’ of people based on their ethnicity, sexuality, race or religion. From indentifying who our target audience is, if we had the finance, we could advertise on channels such as E4 since this channel is very common for our target audience. We could also advertise in cinema during blockbusters which advertise the same targte audience as us.

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

Our company logo is ‘Fast Forward Productions’. A production company is a company who creates the film. Some of the responsibilities  a production company does are: finding a director, actor, managing budgeting and managing scheduling

A distributor is an agency/company that send the film outside for the public to see. A distributor are responsible for the marketing of the film; they decide where they are going to advertise and some decide the release date of the film.  If we was going to distribute our film to the public, the programmes we would advertise on shows like ‘The Inbetweeners’ because that shows is very popular within the 16-24 ages group. It’s common for people within that age group to not watch TV in ‘real time’ anymore because they often too busy so we would advertise on catch up services as this could reach to our target audience more rather than real time advertising.

 

To make a film, the media institutions would need money in order to make the films such as ours. To receive that money, they may receive sponsors or investors which hopes to make a profits. Some media institutions may even fund raise for their film. If a film becomes very successful in the public after distributing, media institutions may receive more sponsors who may pay for more advertising which would cause the film to have more success. For example, The Inbetweeners Movie is a low budget film and only started adverting on channel 4. After the trailers was successful with the audience, they started to receives sponsors and they managed to advertise to even more channels like ITV which increased the film’s success.

The media intuitions which might distribute our film is Film 4.Film 4 is owned by Channel Television Operation and they have been responsible by supporting several films made in the UK. Film 4 has frequently created ‘them nights’ for their movies in terms of actors, genre, director or occasions (Christmas, Halloween, Valentine’s Day etc. Our movie fits into crime/thriller genre so this film may be shown on Film4 around Halloween time.

The reason for this specific media intuitions is that Channel 4 have their own channel called ‘E4’ which targets audiences between 16-24, the same age group as film. We think that this media intuition will be the perfect choice for our film because our film would be advertised on E4, meaning that our trailers and other advertisements are  reaching the intended audience. Some of the films that Film4 own or support include:

·         The Inbetweeners

·         The Lovely Bones

·         Attack The Block

·         Shaun Of The Dead

·         Seven Psychopaths

The content of film openings are the titles. The purpose of titles is to make the audience aware who is in the film, and who is responsible for the film they are about to see. The main titles which are usually shown in an opening include:

·         Director

·         Main Actors

·         Editor

·         Film Titles

·         Camera

·         Studios

The studio is usually first shown in the sequence to allow the audience to know who is responsible for the distribution of the film. The productions of the film  can be shown at the start or end of a film opening, although it is usually more common to be shown at the end of the credits. The main actors are usually shown first before all the camera and editing work; this gets the audiences attention and make the want to carry on watching if an actor they like is starring in the film. Camera is usually then shown followed by editing. The director is shown at the end of the screen to give the name a bigger impact, and it tells the audience who is responsible for the film they are about to see.

We have taken the order of titles into consideration for our film opening. The first credit we have used is the production company, which is then followed by the two actors in our film opening. The actors are then followed by camera work, which is followed by editing work. The second last titles in the main title of the film; which the background goes to black to put more focus on the title so the audience remembers it. The last credit we have in the director, again showing the audience who is responsible for the film they are about to see.

How does your media product present particular social groups?

The main character in our opening is Aimee. She is dressed in jeans, a t shirt and a jacket which shows she is going out. The only thing she is carrying is her bag.
The main character is kidnapped by our second character.





We have compared the main character to the character in 'Saw'.

The character is Saw is kidnapped by another character called 'Jigsaw'. The character is dressed in a jeans and a white t shirt, similar to our character but his clothes looks very scuffed  unlike our character which the clothes isn't torn or dirty. The differences within these character is that they are a different gender.



Our second character is the attacker. This character is dressed in a dressed in dark clothing and they have their jacket hood up to keep their face hidden from the other character.




The attacker is compared to the character in 'Taken'

The character is taken is also wearing a black jacket. Unlike the second character in our opening, this character doesn't keep their face hidden, which could mean they want their victim to know who they are. These two character have similar actions as they both take their victim with their hand; they don't use any weapons.

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

I have picked 9 frames to show how our media product used, develop and challenge forms and conventions of real media. 

Frame 1

The shot we used  was a close up on the characters feet. The close up of the characters feet continues until the 3^rd shot, where the audience can see her full body, and the 5^th shot where they can see her face fully. The purpose of this was to keep the main characters identity hidden for a while to create suspense, which links to the genre The lightening of this frame is dark although it’s high key. The first scene is set in the girls bedroom to show that she’s the main character. We chose to use productions as our first credit as we found this was common for a lot of films. 

Frame 2

The second frame shows the production company; the font colour used was red to indicate the genre. The lightning is high key and the character’s identity is still remained unknown, which would create suspense. 

Frame 3

The next frame is still set in the characters house, just in a different room. This shot is the first time the audience can view the main character properly.  The character is dressed a t shirt to show they are a normal person yet the t shirt is dark so it doesn't contrast to the genre where characters are usually dressed in dark colours. The credit in this title shows the person who is playing this character. We have detected a continuity error with this area as the outside window is dark, yet the rest of our opening in light and we didn't have enough time to re film this part.

Frame 4

 The next frame shows the main character brushing her teeth, showing that she’s ready to go out soon. The shot used in a close up of the sink and toothbrush to show that she’s in the bathroom. The credit shows another name, which shows there is another character in this sequence which hasn't been shown. . The shot used is a straight cut, just to keep the scene realistic and it seemed most appropriate. This frame contains high key lighting, to keep the idea of the scene being realistic.

Frame 5

This frame shows the main character walking downstairs whilst grabbing her coat and bag, showing that she is leaving the house. The character is still in the house, but just a different room. The lighting is still high key, yet is lightening is very dark which links to the genre.The credits shown in this frame are 'edited by'.

Frame 6
 

The next frame introduces to a different character and a different setting. The new character is shown to be outside. The second character is holding document, whilst wearing black gloves. The reason we used this clothing was to show the audience that the second character is a criminal. The second character identity is not revealed, which is done to create suspense and question of who this second character is.  The shot used is a close up on the documents. 

 

Frame 7

The next frame shows the second character walking round the car, trying not to be spotted. The lightening is very bright, which contrasts to our genre since the lightening is usually dark. Due to changing our idea a few times, we found it difficult to film when it was more darker. The second character is wearing a black jacket with their hood up. The dark clothing of the second character suggests the opening is a thriller/crime since it’s very common within the genre.

Frame 8
 

This frames shows the title of the film. The colour on the font at the start was white, which quickly flashed to red, which suggests the opening is a thriller/crime since the colour is associated with blood, alert and danger. The font is 'chiller' which gives it a slightly edgy effects. The reason we chose this font is that it was similar to other thriller/crime films. 

Frame 9

The last frame shows the directors. We placed this credit at the end since it's commonly used, possible because it gives the credit a more powerful effect. The credit is placed slight off centre or 'rule of thirds' just so the screen didn't look uninteresting. 

The Ward 9 Titles

9 Titles

Trailer 

The font is all in capitals  and in the colour white which gives a 'ghostly' effect, linking with the genre. The font tends to fade in and out, which adds to the 'ghost' element.

The title at the beginning flicker very lights shades of blue at the sound of lightning, which is where the background music starts. This gives the opening sequence an edge and creates suspense for the audience.



Research in titles

The film titles are very important as they need to blend with the genre and the theme. The images above are films, which are a thriller crime genre.  They all use black backgrounds to keep the film mysterious and they all have very little colour. We have tried to make out film opening title like the images above.            

Our film title:

Analysis on questionnaire

This is the questionnaire that we created and sent out towards other students between the ages of 16-18.
The results show that out of the 17 answers we had, 12 of the responses was from females; we may need to send this questionnaire to some more people who are male to receive  more accurate data.

  From the results that we receive  the 5 most common genre out age group likes to watch is: Comedy, Action, Thriller, Adventure and Horror, which Comedy being our top result.
Based on the results we received, we decided to do Thriller genre, which is very popular for our age group but add an element of 'Crime' to make the film opening different to other films which targets the same audience.

Research into film openings

The film opening i'm analyzing is 'Red Lights'. The video is not  inserting for an unknown reason so I have left link below:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SFkDfbkOwyo

The hook within this sequence is the male character, which is the only character shown. He’s is only shown for a few seconds and he is surrounded by some technology which makes the audience curious of who he is and what he is doing. The last few seconds show that it’s set in a city, and the constant images of the lights suggest that the film is constantly moving around different parts of the city.

The images of pictures and the ‘black and white’ setting suggest that it’s in past tense. The images of the skulls and hands suggest that the film is thriller. The only colour which is shown is through the lights, which suggests death and blood, also linking to thriller genre. The font of this opening sequence is white, which are in capitals, which doesn’t give too much away to the audience. The only colour which is shown is red, which suggests blood and killing, also linking to a thriller/crime genre.

The sequence has a lot of straight cuts, which increases the pace and suggest that a lot is going to happen. The camera is shaky, which also suggests the genre of the film. The music is very earry, which builds tension and encourages the audience to keep watching. 

The reason I used this specific film is that the genre it similar to our film opening. This film opening, in comparison to our, are similar as one of the main character is only shown for a few seconds and is hidden, which is the same for Red Lights.  

Progress

We have finished film our video but we may need to re film some part as we have spotted a continuity error. We still need to do more on editing as we have to re arrange some of our titles and cut some of our current footage. We hope to achieve this by the next week

Settings

The setting our our film idea has two different settings:

- inside the female character house when she is preparing to leave the house
- outside of the female characters house where the mysterious hides from the female character, the last scene ends with this setting

The first second is located in Mikalah's house and the second setting is located outside her house.

Costume Design

The costume design our character in our last idea is still the same as we have used some of the footage we have for that previous idea. For out new idea, we have added a second character and their costume if black trousers, a black hoodie and some black shoes. They have a prop with them which is some files about the other character which contains her personal information.

Music Choice

We have decided to go back to old song choice which is a cover of 'Paramore - Decode' as we think this fits into the genre of out film opening.

Editing and Camera Research

Editing Research

'Se7en' editing is very good; a majority of the editing is straight cuts. There are very short durations between the straight cuts, to build tension for the audience. The editing tends to the fade and flicker between different scene, but quickly which also build tension.










Camera Work

A majority of the camera in 'Se7en' is extreme closes up, showing that the director wants the audience to focus on documents and what the unknown character is doing. This builds tension for the audience, linking to the genre.

Soundtrack Research

Soundtrack for the opening of the film is essential as it reflects the genre of the film and sets a certain atmosphere.

The Dark Knight Rises



In 'The Dark Knight Rises', there is a lot of tension created through the soundtrack. The soundtrack does not contain any lyrics, which makes the audience focus more on the whats being shown yet it still creates an atmosphere. A majority of the pace is face, but there are some elements where the pace has been shown which creates tension.

Panic Room



In 'Panic Room', the soundtrack is parallel; pace is slow through the opening sequence which creates this ongoing suspense for the audience. 

Film Title

We have gone back to our first title 'The Secrets of Mr Myles'

Moodboard

Title Sequence

The Ward Title Sequence 

This image shows the title sequence of The Ward. This shows the times the film has used to view the credits, and when they added the soundtrack.










Our Title Sequence

Storyboard

Thriller Sub Genres

Sub genre is taking a genre and placing it into a more specific category. Sub genres all have the same 'theme', but have different elements. Examples of sub genres include: conspiracy, crime, political, psychological and techno.

Conspiracy Thriller: This is when the hero/heroine investigates and confronts a large organisation or government. Examples of conspiracy thrillers include: In the Line of Fire, Awake and The Da Vinci Code.

Crime Thriller: This is when a series of failed of success crime events. Crime thrillers usually focus on the criminals and their activities rather the policeman/ police force. Examples of crime thrillers include: Se7en, Inside Man and Collateral.

Political Thriller: When the hero/heroine ensures the stability of the government that employs them to prevent serious situations from happening. Examples of political thrillers include: The Interpreter, State of Play and Proof of Life. 

Psychological Thriller: When the main character is conflicts a situation that effects them mentally and emotionally rather than physically. The suspense from psychological thrillers usually come form 2 or more characters. Examples include: Panic Room, Cape Fear and Psycho.

Supernatural Thriller: When the main characters is involved in 'another world element'; something that is not normal happens to the main characters. Sometimes the protagonist have a psychic ability or superpower. Examples of supernatural thrillers include: What Lies Beneath, The Others and Fallen. 

Techno Thriller:  Where the manipulation of technological resources play an important part in the film. This sub genre usually follows a science fiction trend.Examples of techno thrillers include: Hackers, The Net and The Thirteenth Floor. 

New Film Idea

Our previous video did not have a 'hook' or a story so we have decided to change our film idea which can fit into some of the footage we already have.
Our idea is about a man, who intends of kidnapping his victim because she cheated on him with his best friend.
The stalker is looking through her window from a far distance; he carries some files with him, containing a picture of the girl and the reason for the kidnapping.
When she walks out her door, she walks down the street and turns back a few times but couldn't see anyone there.
The film sequence ends with the stalkers rushing towards her from behind and putting his hand over her mouth to prevent screaming.

Film Production Logo

This is our film production logo.

Progress

Our rough cut is this friday, we have filmed the section where the main character is on twitter and when she leaves the house to walk to school
We still need to film the last section in the common room and then edit the camera work to mee tthe deadline for the rough cut on friday.

Settings/Locations

Our film opeing has 3 different settings/locations.
Our first setting/location is when the main character is in her bedroom and she's on her laptop, on twitter, checking out the profile.
When she leaves the house, the setting/location then changes to the street when walks to school and passes the main gates.
The third setting/location is in the common room, where she has the arguement and the credits end.

Costume

The characters that are shown in the film opening is the main characters, Amy, and 2 other students.
The 2 other students are wearing normla, casual clothes which would usually be worn at sixth form.
Amy is wearing a t shirt, with The Wanted logo, jeggings, boots and a jacket.

Film Title

The film title of our film is 'Those 5 Boys'. The reason for this title is that is fits into the storyline of our film opening.

Music Choice

The choice we have chosen for our opening film is a cover of 'For The First Time'. The reason for this song choice is that it's fit into the idea. and shows the audinece who the girl is actually stalking. We sent an email, asking permission to use this song and have not recieved an email back, so we assume it's okay to use.

Props

We only have 1 significant prop in our opening which our the files which the attacker is holding. The importance of it is that it shows the attacker knows the main character well, and it's her that person

specifically wants.