Evaluation Activity 7

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?

The opening to a thriller movie project has enabled me to gain a wider knowledge of how to structure a film using micro-elements such as mise-en-scene, sound, editing and cinematography, and given me a deeper understanding into the process of film making, including all stages of production consisting of pre-production, production and post-production.

Pre-production process is the process before filming; in which planning takes place. Through creating our final piece, I have learnt that this process is a longest and most important process in successfully making a film. Whilst carrying out the preliminary task, we only created a treatment, a storyboard and a script. However, when planning our final piece, we had to produce more pre-production material. This involves a wide range of time consuming processes such as creating a treatment, storyboard, script, shooting schedule, production schedule, etc. which are all essential for the production progress to prevent any problems.

The production process is the process of filming the project. This is where equipment such as the Flip camera and props are needed, and also the locations. I personally think that the shots used for our preliminary task were very basic and below our level. However, for our final product we managed to create a film which fully showed our skills in filming, by using shots we were capable of shooting, and then pushed this further into the use of more complicated shots.

The post-production process includes the editing process, which involves uploading the recording onto the Mac, and using editing software, such as iMovies HD. For our preliminary task, we didn’t do much editing as all we did is cut shots, and add a transition at the end. However, for our main piece, we used editing to cut shots as well as merge them, and add transitions and credits. We also added black and white effect, along with music, which is something we didn’t add to our prelim task.

 Overall, 3 main features were required to be implicated into the 30 second clip of the preliminary task: 180 degree rule, shot-reverse-shot and match on action. These expectation were fulfilled in our preliminary task, and were also used effectively in our final piece, we used all three techniques and branched off into more advanced ones. We applied them productively into the film without having to use dialogue to imply certain things to the viewer.

Evaluation Activity 6

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

Our group did not use much equipment whilst filming as other groups did. For example, we didn’t use a tripod or a monopod to film.

We decided to work with the flip cameras, as we felt more comfortable with it. The image below displays the flip camera, which we used to film the whole of our thriller:

We used the Apple Mac to edit parts of our films and to process uploads.

A program we used through the Apple Mac was iMovie, which allowed us to edit our film. We used this software to cut shots, add transitions, add a black and white effect for the first scene, add credits and also add music.

We downloaded music from www.freemusic.com, and added two tracks from this site into our film through iMovies.

We also created a youtube account for our group, and uploaded our film so we can create annotations explaining what the film was about, what we related it to, and how we thought music had an impact on the whole opening.

  

Evaluation Activity 5

How did you attract/address your audience?

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

Our group posted our film on youtube and added annotations in order to explain genre conventions, the use of music, techniques used to attract the audience, etc..

Evaluation Activity 4

Who would be your audience for your media product?

 This is Dipesh Tailor. He is 17 years old, turning 18 this month, and is from an Indian background. He is currently living in the urban area of Leicester, in the heart of England, and is of a comfortable member of the middle class background. He is currently in his second year of college, studying mechanics, which is a three-year course. As Dipesh is required to attend college only 2 days a week, he has a lot of free time on his hands. He mostly enjoys watching food channels, although his favourite TV program is eastenders, and daily strict routines to the gym. He is a big fan of movies, making the most of his local cinema, going every 2 weeks. The new releases he’s planning to watch are ‘Drive Angry’ and ‘Scream 4’. He often purchases clothes from shops such as Next, Topshop and River Island, and is a very competitive person, in terms of playing a game on ps3, or playing snooker with his peers. The genre of film he prefers is the thriller and horror genre. He is a big fan of old school rap, his favourite artist being 2pac; however, he does enjoy listening to a few songs from other genres too.

I strongly feel that Dipesh will watch our thriller as it he has a huge interest in thrillers, and loves watching movies overall. Also, he has a fondness of British films for its social realism; for example, ‘Dead Man’s Shoes’ is a thriller Dipesh enjoyed watching. As our film is also a revenge thriller and a British film, I feel that he will enjoy watching our thriller.

Evaluation Activity 3

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

A production company is a company which is responsible for the production of performing arts. The company is responsible for developing and physically producing performing arts, film, radio, or television programs. It also functions to raise funds for a particular production project by itself or through an intermediary. The production company may be small one, which works by producing and selling its products to various film studios, or it can be the studio itself. These companies gain profit from the sales of their products. In the contemporary society, the concept is of small production companies who sell their programs to big studios or channels and gain huge profits in return. Moreover, production companies which are involved in direct presentation of programs gain profits from the advertising revenue. The profits or losses of production companies depend on the quality of programs and their appreciation amongst viewers. If the product is appreciated by the viewers, it would generate profits; however, if the viewers are not satisfied by it, it would be a flop and consequently result to losses for the production company.

There are two different film production company forms in the contemporary society; independent films, and mainstream Hollywood blockbuster films. Hollywood blockbuster consists of mainstream characteristics such as big Hollywood budget or high profile actors, which independent films lack. Independent films, also known as ‘indie films’, such as DNA, have a distinct style compromising with deeply enticing narrative that is typically appealing to the minority. On the other hand, Hollywood productions are enjoyed by the masses, shown by their immense gross statistics at the box office.

Fox Searchlight was founded in 1994, is a film division of a Fox Filmed Entertainment along with Fox Studio 20^th Century fox.  Fox Searchlight specialize in independent British films, often having the genre of comedy drama and horror as we as non-English films.  Fox Searchlight are often involved in the production and distribution of films. As we are an independent production company, which Fox Searchlight specializes in and past films display this fact, such as 28 Days Later.

‘One month before the film was released in cinemas, various newspapers included a short panel comic book style promotion for the film, in which various scenes showed a chaotic London during those 27 days with people trying to escape the city en masse’- From wikipedia.

Our film can use the same method of promotion, as the budget for this film was £5 million, and the Gross revenue was of $82,719,885. This shows that our film could possibly be promoted in this way as we also have a relatively small budget. Our thriller opening strongly sticks to the conventions of a thriller genre.  I feel Fox searchlight will effectively distribute and promote our film as they have good experience and specialize in independent thrillers.

Microwave films would be a good institution to distribute our product as they have released small low budget films with great success. Films such as ‘mum and dad’, were released across DVD, digital media (download/on demand via Sky) or in cinema all at the same time. This allows more flexibility with money during the advertising process of the film. Although they are a fairly new company, I think that this company has proved beneficial to films such as ‘Mum and Dad’.

Warp Films is an independent film company launched in 2001, based in England, Sheffield. They work with upcoming/distinctive film-makers, particularly film-makers who are making a statement about Britain; for example Shane Meadows. The target audience is the British (national), which is also the case with our film, as it is based in Britain, and has a British feel to it. The company attracts people who like films that are cultural, showing social realism, which many films produced by Warp Films have. Examples include ‘Dead Man’s Shoes’, ‘This Is England’, and ‘Four Lions’. Our film is also based on social realism, which is why I think this company will be good for distributing and promoting it. As Warp Films is an independent company, they have more personal projects, with a smaller budget. Therefore, smaller audiences are needed to make a profit, or break-even. Our film is of a relatively small budget, which is another reason I believe this company will be successful in promoting our project.

Evaluation Activity 2

How does your media product represent particular social groups?

Suzan is suffering from the loss of her sister, who was unfortunately murdered thus overwhelming her to the point where she becomes psychologically unstable due to her traumatic experience. She is presented as a lonely character, as she doesn’t have the company of other, living on her own.

Both characters have similar roles within the film based on the fact that they both have been suffering from the loss of their sibling, and have the intention of finding the murderer, and taking on revenge. Both suffer similar experiences towards the end of the film as both these characters kill themselves.

Paddy Considine character from ‘Dead Man’s Shoes’ referred to as Richard suffers from a similar traumatic experience due to his brother, Anthony being abused, and who ended up committing suicide, which can also be seen as being murdered in a sense. We are made to think that Anthony is with Richard throughout the film, until the end, where it is revealed that Richard is only imagining Anthony being there with him, and to actual fact, in no part of the film is Anthony alive. This makes it seem that Richard is not alone throughout the film.

Evaluation Activity 1

Screenshot 1

This is an establishing shot, taken from outside the building, showing the victim and villain walking across the bridge within the same shot. We found this shot to be very effective as the clear contrast of black and white is shown; creating a sense of tension as someone is seen walking across the bridge in dark clothing. Also, the trees work well in terms of making the audience feel uneasy, due to the position and angle they're are in. Furthermore, the foggy windows on the bridge blur the lights that are on, regardless of it being a clear sunny day. This can produce an aura or atmosphere around the silhouette as their presence had to be lit by lightbulbs, which shows that the character is dark.

Screenshot 2

The hidden appearance of the villain is very common in most revenge thrillers; for example, in ‘Dead Man’s Shoes’, the anti-protagonist is shown, and then within a second, he is gone. Our group decided to use this element of surprise by having certain shots in which the villain is seen in the background, whilst the camera is focused of the victim.

Screenshot 3

This shot creates a CCTV effect, which can be quite frightening due to the fact that CCTV cameras are the viewer’s eyes, making them the witnesses. This can be seen in some psychological or supernatural thrillers such as ‘Paranormal Activity’. The intended effect of using this technique is to make the viewers feel that although they are witnessing the action, they cannot do anything about it. As a group, we decided to use this technique by keeping the camera on the door, having the victim pass through the door, and shortly seeing the appearance of the villain after her.

Screenshot 4

We agreed on this shot working well as the bright light at the end of the stairs, and the clothing of the character creates a sharp contrast between the two, showing good versus evil. Furthermore, the light at the end of the corridor is much similar to 'the light at the end of the tunnel' as some people would say when they are having a near-death experience. However in this case, the use of the bright light, or otherwise the metaphor for eternal rest, is where the victim travels to only to be killed by the shady villain. For this reason, the death scene is to be shot here since the scenery and the use of black and white works well to produce an edgy and dramatic ending.

Screenshot 5

This is a screenshot of the death scene in our thriller. In most thrillers, the action is usually seen from a third person perspective. However, we decided to challenge this value, and tried to create a more sympathetic view towards the victim as her death is viewed from the killer’s eyes. Also, the use of high-angled shots in most death scenes to portray the villain as weak and vulnerable is used within this shot to emphasize the dominance the villain has over the victim.

Screenshot 6

We used this point-of-view shot of the photo to establish a link between the two characters, creating a convention of symbolism. As well as symbolizing relationships, this shot also represents a link between the photo and the title.
Screenshot 7 

 

This shot is effective in displaying growing anger, and a path to evil, seen by the character approaching darkness at the lower floor. This shows that the protagonist is descending into darkness as she begins to take her journey to seek revenge.

Screenshot 8

This screenshot represents the main aspects of a revenge thriller as the knife portrays a threatening symbol, showing her form of killing, which creates a tense atmosphere for the viewers. The darkness covering the protagonist’s face presents the darker and evil side to her. The use of weapons puts the character in more power, portraying a higher sense of fear towards her.

Screenshot 9

The title is shown at the end, as an effect for the final blow. This is due to the appearance of the photo which occurs twice in the film, this builds up significance towards the object. Also, the audience is more likely to establish the plot, and why title has been chosen. Colours are important in conveying subconscious messages to the viewer; for example, the vibrant red contrasting with the black and white scenes of the film establishes the content

Editing

After filming, we uploaded our clips into iMovies, and used this software to cut shots, and also delete some extra shots. We added a black and white effect for the first scene to establish it being a flashback, in contrast to the second scene which is shown in colour. We downloaded music from www.freeplaymusic.com and added two soundtracks into our film. We also added the titles and transitions. We had a few difficulties with the software as it would not allow us to lower the music, and so it is difficult to hear the dialogue.

Filming

Today we filmed our second scene which took place at my house. This ran smoothly as there were no interferences and we were all pleased with our shots.

Filming

Today was our second day of filming. We completed the first scene which was filmed in our school. The filming took longer than we had expected as we had a lot of interferences due to students and teachers walking past whilst we were shooting, and also teachers having discussions in the middle of our shooting area. However, after all this hassle, we managed to complete our filming within two days. We were happy our shots, and did not have to replicate the scene.

Pre-Production Recee Form

First Scene
Location: Winchmore School

Date:

Time:

What we will film here: The death scene. Villain stalking the victim, eventually killing her.

What we looked at: The location we used is suitable for my group as in is in our own school. Therefore, we have good access to the corridors. We planned to shoot during our free lessons, not at a busy period, such as at break, lunch or between lessons when the corridors are crowded with students making their way around the school

Second Scene

Location: My house

Date:

Time:

What we will film here: The second scene in which the first aspect of revenge is scene. I am shown waking up and feeling emotional after looking at a photo of myself and Reha (victim shown in previous scene). I then express anger, and make my way down to the kitchen, to the knife rack, where I pick up a knife hinting to the audience that I’m planning revenge.

What we looked at: This location is at my own house, and therefore it is a very suitable location. I can film whenever I can, as I don’t have to worry about when the location will be available to me.

Group Meeting

We have now finished all our pre-production notes, and all that is left to do if the filming and the editing.

Shooting Schedule

Production Schedule

In order to prepare our group for the film, we had created a production schedule which allowed us to organize our time and decide what we could film on the remaining days between school hours and the Easter holidays.

Date	Time	Cast	Plot	Producer etc…	Equipment	Editing
Tuesday 15th February	09:45-10:30	Mary(victim) Jane(villain)	Victim walks through corridors while being unaware of the stalker behind her.	Reha  (producer) Varsha (camerawoman)	Flip camera	Spend day editing the clips and trimming. Black and white. Add action music.
Friday 18th February	13:50-14:45	Mary (victim) Jane(villain)	Victim travels throughout school to get to her destination. The witness starts to get suspicious.	Tansu (producer) Varsha (camerawoman)	Flip camera	Putting and trimming clips together. Add pumping beat. Black and white
Tuesday 8th March	09:50-11:25	Mary (victim) Jane(villain)	The victim’s path is blocked by a locked door, while the stalker begins to approach the victim from behind.	Varsha Varsha (camerawoman)	Flip camera	Sort out clips and out-takes. Add heartbeat SFX.
Friday 11th march	13:50-14:40	Mary (victim) Jane(Villain)	Victim’s death scene.	Reha (producer)	Flip camera	Edit clips and add a shaky effect to the death scene.

These are the first four days of filming where the first scene, as a flashback, is scheduled to be recorded by camera. The scenes are set out part by part to take small steps towards producing tension for the final scene of the first setting. The second setting, which was to take place in Varsha house, was the scene where the protagonist is introduced and the motives are revealed.

Date	Time	Cast	Plot	Producer etc…	Equipment	Editing
Monday 16th March	12:05-14:00	Susan (Hero)	The protagonist wakes up from the flashback and reaches for the photo of her and her sister.	Varsha (producer) Reha (camerawomen)	Flip camera Photo	Decide which scenes were useable. Scenes are in colour.
Thursday 19th March	15:00-17:15	Susan (Hero)	The protagonist stares at the photo then stares blankly into space. The first dialogue is spoken. The hero walks downstairs into kitchen.	Reha(producer) Tansu (camerawomen)	Flip camera	Organizing scenes and editing the first couple of scenes. Trim scenes.
Sunday 23rd March	11:20-13:00	Reha (victim) Tansu (villain)	The hero reaches for the knife on the knife rack and adds more dialogue to emphasize her goal.	Varsha (producer) Reha (camerawomen)	Flip camera Knife	Edit clips together and add transition effects. Added with the other scenes.