Evaluation Question 7

Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product?
Looking back at my preliminary task I learnt a lot when I was doing the preliminary task. The camera and the editing software I learnt how to use quite well in the preliminary task and made some mistakes then and made sure I knew what I did wrong and was able to not make those mistakes in the real product.
I learnt a variety of good points when I was doing my preliminary task but I also learnt what not to do when I was creating the film for the proper product. In many ways I was glad that we did the preliminary task as it was a chance to make the mistakes with the camera and editing then rather than making the mistakes in the real film. I also learnt how to use a camera and the editing software, Adobe Premiere Pro CS4 and I got some experience in using the programmes, camera and the computer when doing the preliminary task. I have progressed a lot with using the equipment and computers however I have taken a step back with the organisation of myself as I haven't been meeting all of the deadlines of the work.
I feel that the preliminary task prepared me very well for the real project and being able to use all of the equipment in the preliminary task was a good way for me to learn from my mistakes as I am a kinaesthetic learner. It prepared me for the best way that it could have done and I think it was a very good idea to do.

Evaluation Question 6

What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?
I have learnt a lot about the technologies when I was constructing the film. I have learnt about the positives of using the new technology but also the negatives with the technology.
The main pieces of technology that I used were; the Panasonic camera, the editing software (Adobe Premiere Pro CS4) and www.blogger.com.
When it came to using the camera I was particularly interested in learning about it as I hadn't used a proper camera like the one I used in the task before. I learnt the basics of using the technology, how to change the white balance, how to make sure the camera was safely secure on the tripod, how to replay the things I recorded, how to put the tape in the slot and take it out and more. These helped me a lot when I was constructing the film as when I was learning about all of the basics when using a camera I was picking up all of the important points I needed to use the camera successfully, safely and well to get my opening sequence up to a good standard.
The editing software was very interesting to learn about. This helped me quite a lot in constructing my opening sequence as it was easy to use and easy to get to grip with when using the software. At the start when my teacher was showing me how to use it and what to do when the video had been captured onto the software it became much clearer and easier to use it. I learnt how to get the clips out of the shootings that I wanted and then being able to edit them out of the clip into my proper opening sequence. The precision that was required of the editing took a while to get used to however I eventually got used to the style and how to get the clip as precise as I wanted it.
The computer I had a few problems with. The positives about the computer were that it was very quick and easy to use and it was easy to find the software. However there were negatives to using it as well. The first problem was that it wouldn't let me save my work sometimes but I got around the problem by sending the work home in an email which worked well. I also had the troubles of uploading my video onto www.blogger.com. For the original draft of the proper product it wouldn't let me upload the video however I sorted the problem out by asking another student who had the same problem and he helped me sort the problem out. I feel as though these technologies and the help I have received will help me a lot in later life with the problems but also the positives of the technology.

Evaluation Question 5

How did you attract/address your audience?
I attracted my audience in a variety of ways in the film. By using the knife this would attract the youths and other people as it is representing that type of people. The camera angles as well would also draw people in as some of the angles are not the typical angles you would see in a normal thriller type film. This would draw in more and more people as it isn't following the strict camera angles and by using different more elaborate camera angles this would make the film more interesting and more fun to work out what it is about.
For the audience being targeted at 18 to 25 year olds they are quite tuned in to the Internet, radio and TV adverts. What Shane Meadows does with his films are he puts the first 10 minutes of the films on his website so he can draw in more of the public to watch the film and gain a bigger profit out of the films he makes. This would be a good way for my film as putting a bit of the film onto a website and letting the viewers at home watch it and then want to know what happens at the end of the film.

Evaluation Question 4

Who would be the audience for your media product?
The usual audience for a thriller is quite wide ranged and from both genders. However for my thriller I feel a suitable audience would be for the 18 to 25 year old of both genders as the film is all about a stalker trying to catch someone throughout the film it appeals to both genders in different areas. As the film has a lot of twists and turns during the film I believe that this will be a film forthe more intellectual people but also for people who enjoy thriller films as it is a thriller but with more conventions.
This thriller film will entice both sets of genders as it is a good thriller for both sets as it has a lot of drama and excitement without targeting a specific gender. It targets the male audience in the way that it is a stalker trying to catch someone and there is more violence in the film. But then it also targets the female gender in the sex appeal as there are scenes in the film that have males without their tops on. This film targets both genders in a way that it can being the two genders together to watch a thriller movie with both genders liking the film.

Evaluation Question 3

What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?
In the media institution I believe that Optimum would distribute my media thriller. Optimum work in correlation with EM Media and a number of films I feel that are similar in some ways to mine. Also Optimum would have my thriller as the film is about someone being stalked by a protagonist and being bullied constantly by the protagonist. I also think my film should be a low budget film as it would be best made as realistic as it can be without using all of the newest/best quality technologies and most expensive equipment. This, without all of the special effects and hi-tech camera's, would make it as real as it can be and for very little cost. This is similar to the film that Shane Meadows made This Is England, as both films introduce the bullying of a smaller and younger character and then also violence is introduced in both films. Another similarity is that the darkness of some of the scenes in This Is England, particularly when they are all sat in a room, is similar to my film when the attacker is holding the knife above his head, it is relatively dark with only the sunlight of the blinds letting light through. Shane Meadows created This Is England with a very low budget and after seeing This Is England I thought the best way for my film to be was using a low budget with standardised camera's and settings.
Optimum would be a good media institution to choose as I feel as they are suitable as they are in close relations with EM Media but they also distribute films that have the same style, setting and genre as my thriller, This Is England for example.

The Thriller!

Evaluation - Question 2

How does your media product represent particular social groups?

I believe that my thriller would be more targeted towards the late teenagers or early 20 year old as the thriller sequence is targeted on a stalker/protagonist striking the victim and I feel that with the props and character styles that I used, it would target the younger generation of the 18 to 25 year old.

The character I picked for my thriller was my brother for the protagonist would be a good choice as he is a commanding figure. Also the costume that he wore would be essential to creating a good thriller opening sequence. He wore a black hooded jacket with black trousers and black shoes. This would put the emphasis on him being a stalker and acting like a gangster of the youths of this age in time. This would attract those gangster types of people as they would feel like it is a film that they would like as there is a character representing that social group. For this I needed to use the right costume for the character when he is stalking his prey and I believe I made the right choice in putting the character in all black clothing to represent the youths social group.

The knife would also target the youth audience and show the dangers of using a knife on someone who isn't expecting it and is very vulnerable to being attacked. The knife would represent the younger audience as most of the youths now carry knifes around with them for protection, but also because the protagonist is representing all who carry as knife with them and those who use the knife. This will be a negative representation as the second character who is lying in bed will fear for his life as he is about to be stabbed.

The reaction of the younger 18 to 25 year old social group would be a negative reaction as they would see how much damage a knife can do to someone and how it not only hurts the victim but also their friends and family. The representation of some of the younger generation carrying knifes around with them is negative in my thriller as the protagonist represents that social group and is a bad representation of the group.

Evaluation - Question 1

In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?
My thriller has got quite a few of the thriller conventions that it follows in the opening sequence. The conventions that I think my thriller follows are; it builds up tension throughout the film, there is a victim in the film, also there is a murder scene, a villain that overpowers a child is in my film and there is a scene with the villain gets into danger himself. These are essential fror a thriler as these make the thrillers' identity and make it different to any other genre of a film. I believe my thriller had most of the normal conventions towards a thriller however I think that my thriller doesn't have every convention towards a thriller type film. I stuck to the villain type convention and the way that the villain exploits a younger childs danger and vulnerability very closely as this is essential for a thriller type film.

Editing

For the editing I used the editing software Adobe Premiere Pro CS4. This is a good editing software site as it has all the necessities that are needed for editing a film like mine. The software was easy to use once I got to grip with the screens and being able to precicely cut out the bits I didn't want and then be able to make sure I got the exact piece of clip i wanted from the extract. Also being able to add other clips onto that editing software made it easier for me to edit my clip out and be able to make my final piece.

Risk Assessment

There are quite a few risks that needed to be assessed carefully on whether I should have used the props in my thriller opening sequence.

The first risk was the knife that I used for the character when he raises the knife above his head. This is a potential risk in case that he drops the knife or accidentally cuts himself or someone else whilst he is using the knife. I erased the majority of these risks by telling the character how to hold the knife properly when it is not being used. This reduced the risk that he wouldn't accidentally cut someone whilst not filming the project. When he was using the knife in the film there still was a risk but it was kept to a minimum as he used it properly and without creating more risks.

The second risk was the bag rolling down the stairs as this could have easily knocked the character off balance and he could have fell down the stairs and created a nasty accident. This risk was canceled out because the bag was emptied so it had nothing inside it so that if i did fall down far it wouldn't knock the character off balance as it would have been too light to affect his balance.

Another risk is the wire from the cable to the camera that I was using. This is a potential risk as someone walking by could have easily tripped over it and hurt them selves and damaged the camera or equipment. This risk was minimized as the wire was kept out of the way at all times so that nobody could trip over the cable.

Costume

I made the first character (the killer) dress up in all black clothing as this made that character seem more menacing and more likely to do something bad as that character is dressed up in all black. I chose the colour black as it makes the audience think that the character is a bad person because he is dressed up like a 'gangster'. This means that the person is more likely to be a bad person and do terrible as they look more gangster like and the black makes it feel more menacing.
The second character (the victim) is dressed in a white jacket which is the only bit of costume that we can see of the character. This is to show the vulnerability of the character wearing the white clothing as it makes them stand out more. This would make the character stand out as white is a bright colour and would attract a killer.

Props

There are a few props that I used during the making of the opening sequence. The first prop that I chose to use is the bed for the second character when he is lying in the bed. This is used as it is normal in a bedroom to have a bed and was the easiest place to have the second character for the opening sequence of my film. This is also a good way as it shows how the character is lying asleep in bed shows his vulnerability to being attacked by a killer.
The next prop I used was a knife for the killer to use when raising his arms up in order to stab someone who is asleep. The knife is used to make the opening sequence look realistic, but also to make the film seem menacing and tense because the camera cuts off just as the knife stops above the killers edge. This creates tension and suspense as the audience may not know what is going to happen in the film and be suspense because of it.
The next prop that I chose to use was the different coloured jackets for the different characters. This was to distinguish the first character from the second character. This is important to the audience as they need to know which character is which so they can get a good indication of who is the killer and who is the character under threat. I used a black jacket for the killer as the colour black indicates a menacing feel to the character. Whereas I used a white jacket for the character that is under threat as a white colour stands out and is a target for a killer. I used a younger person for this character as it shows how the younger people are targeted more and are more vulnerable than an adolescence or an older man.
The next prop that I used was the bag that the killer uses when he drags it down the stairs and through the front door. This bag is used as an effect to create the mystery of what the killer has done to the other character but also creates the suspense as to if he has done anything to the other character. The bag is the representation of something happened in that room however the audience don't know what.
The next prop I used was the bed duvet that was used to cover up half of the victim character. This was to show that the character was covered up because he was scared of what was going on around him in the scene. The duvet shows the audience that the character is scared and worrying about what is happening. This duvet was to represent the victim character in the way that he is very scared and helpless, stranded and is very vulnerable to be attacked.

Thriller Directors

Steven Spielberg:


Steven Spielberg was born on December the 18Th in the year 1946 and is an American film director, film writer and film producer in an illustrious career that has lasted for over 4 decades. He went to a school called the Hebrew school from 1953 to 1957. After moving to California however, he applied to go to the University Of California State school of Theatre, Film and Television but was unsuccessful after trying three times. Instead he went to Long Beach State in the 1960's. Then his career began in an unpaid environment as a intern and a guest of the editing department. As an intern and guest of Universal Studios, he created his first short film, which lasted 24 minutes and was called Amblin, which later on he took that name and used it as his production name, Amblin Entertainment.

The first long film that Spielberg directed was Malcolm Winkler, written by Claudia Salter, produced by John Orland and with Frank Price being the executive producer, however because of the casting difficulties the film was not made. Since then Spielberg has created many of great films such as Jurassic Park:The Lost World, which generated $618 million only second to James Cameron's Titanic. Another film he produced was Saving Private Ryan, which was another huge hit by Spielberg which was grossing at over $481 million and was the biggest film of the year at the North American box office, again only second worldwide to Michael Bay's Armageddon. He has won three academy awards and has been nominated for six academy awards for the category of Best Director and has won two out of those six. Also seven of his films he directed were up for the Best Picture Oscar. The achievement he got in 1987 was when he was awarded the Irving G. Thalberg memorial award for his work as a creative producer. He has won many more awards but these are the most outstanding of those that he has won.

James Cameron:

He was born on the 16Th of August in 1954 and is a Canadian film director, editor, screenwriter, producer and inventor.He grew up in Chippewa, Ontario where he attended Stamford Collegiate in Niagara Falls. He studied physics and English at Fullerton College and California State University, Fullerton. However when he had the opportunities he always went to visit the film archive in the University of California State. His job before he entered the film industry was a truck driver, until he decided to give it up for the film industry. Him and 2 other friends decided to raise money in order to rent out the camera, lenses, film stocks and the studio. The first thing they did was dismantled the camera and spent the first half of the day figuring out how to use it.

He has created many films, two of which, titanic and avatar are the two highest grossing films of all time. He himself is also one of the highest grossing earner of all time earning $1.88billion in North America and then a further $5.7billion worldwide. He has contributed to many things in the technological side of things like the underwater filming. He has many blockbuster films that he has created over the years that he has been filming such as; Titanic, Avatar, Terminator 1 and 2, Spider man and many many more. He self taught his techniques and went through the rankings from being a miniature model maker, to special effects design and then to a director of films.

The Industry - Research

When it came to researching the 'Thriller Industry', I found out that the most reliable source of information was http://www.imdb.com/. I was able to find numerous facts and figures about the thriller industry on different websites, but I found out that this source was the most reliable.

When looking into the thriller industry, the first thing we should know is 'What is a Thriller?'. The most defined and accurate definition was; 'Thrillers 'are the type of films known to promote intense excitement, suspense, a high level of anticipation, ultra-heightened expectation, uncertainty, anxiety, and nerve-wracking tension'.

Thriller films has always been a popular and consistent genre within the film industry and the audience. The most popular thriller of all time is 'The Godfather' which is then followed by the 'Godfather Part II'. When these three films first launched in the cinemas they were extremely successful and also had a successful run in the box office tables. The box office figures for the following films are stated below:

The Godfather - $ 302,393

The Godfather Part II - $244, 000

There are more statistics on the box office figures on http://www.imdb.com/.

Overall the 'Thriller Industry' is growing and more film companies are producing thriller's which are being shown at the cinemas more frequently.

There are more thriller type films being produced now due to the new technology that the 21st century has to offer. There are many advantages to having the new technology to help with the filming but there are also disadvantages towards the new technology.

Here are some of the advantages of having new technology in films;

• The new technology gets the filming done quicker.
• Editing and cutting of scenes is a lot easier and quicker.
• Minimise mistakes in the film.
• Adding of sound and effects can be done easily.
• The camera's are smaller and can be carried or stored easier.

These are just 5 of the advantages towards the new technology being used in films. However there are some disadvantages to using the new technology, these are;

• The technology may be confusing and complicated so the producer may not be able to work it properly.
• If the technology gets broken it may take a while to fix.

These are just 2 of the disadvantages towards new technology being used in the films. All of these advantages and disadvantages creates a good balance of an argument for using the technology or not.

Thriller Conventions

These are the thriller conventions that I will need to portray in my thriller opening sequence. These are:

• A thriller needs to build up tension and suspense in the whole film.
• The lighting is usually dark and sinister.
• The music will be very moody to enhance the atmosphere/situation being portrayed.
• The settings and atmosphere will be in a dark, lonely place.
• There is usually a victim in the thriller, normally a child/woman.
• There is a villain, usually a man who overpowers the woman/child.
• There is normally a twist in the film.
• A crime is usually in the film. Murder.
• The victim is disempowered and caught in a web of intrigue.
• Extraordinary events happen.
• Themes of indentity.
• Themes of mirroring.
• Themes of voyeurism (e.g. Psycho)
• Title sequence often reflects on the character's state of mind.
• There is usually a scene where the villain is in danger.

Third lesson thriller

In the third lesson I wasn't in the lesson however I told sir that i wanted to work on my own for the thriller. The work that I had missed was to design and research what the thriller was going to be about and the location of the thriller. The lesson was to do all of the planning and research for the thriller but I caught up on the work over time doing a lot of it in my own time at home.

Second lesson thriller

In the second lesson in Miss Dughan's lesson we watched a thriller type film to get us to understand what a thriller is like and how to make the opening sequence to a thriller type film. This also helped me as I saw how the opening sequence was made to the film and how I can't give much away in the film but keep the viewers enticed into watching more of the film.

First lesson Thriller

For the first lesson of our thriller we all sat down as a class with Mr Mitchell and learnt what a thriller was all about. We watched a few clips of an opening sequence of a film to give us some ideas of what to do but also to know how to do the clip we are going to make. This helped me a lot as it told me a lot more than I knew about thrillers and with Mr Mitchell's help I now know a lot more about thrillers and what I can do in the opening sequence for my project.

Fifth lesson Pre-liminary task

In our fifth lesson we had re-filmed all of the sequences and we came to transferring the sequence onto the computer so we could use Adobe Premier Pro CS4 to edit our final piece. We came to this and again we had problems transferring the piece to the computer. It was the same problem, however Miss Dughan helped us out and eventually we got it onto the computer so we could finally edit it. We went through our clips and then finally chose our best shots and then came up with this final piece. Overall I think that if we had not had all of the problems that we had to overcome due to the technology problems we would have finished the piece sooner. I think that we completed the task well and we sorted out the problems as best as we could. It was hard at first to sort the problems out but when we figured them out we got around them with realative ease in the end. We all did as much work as eachother all of us had some sort of input into the task and we all did what we needed to do. This was a good task as it showed me what problems that could occur during the real task and this will help me learn from my mistakes during the task.
This is our final video.

Fourth lesson pre-liminary task

In Mr Mitchell's lesson we came into the lesson and we attempted to put the video onto the computer so our group could edit our final task. However when we put the tape in the machine to get the video onto the computer so we could start editing the video,we experienced a problem that set us back 40 minutes. The video wouldn't transfer to the computer and when it came up onto the computer the video wouldn't play it would just be a black screen and showing the occasional clip but not what we had recorded. This therefore put us back 40 minutes and we couldn't find a solution to the problem so we had to go and re film the whole task. We used a different tape to the one that we used before. We refilmed the task and we did it within our 2 hour lesson but still at the end didn't have enough time to edit our task and put it on the computer so we could edit.

Third lesson pre-liminary task

In the third lesson with Miss Dughan me and my group got to the filming stage of the pre-liminary task. We found a room that we thought was suitable for our task and then sorted out the equipment we were going to use. Sony camera, tri-pod, table, a tape and 2 chairs. We needed to set up the white balance of the camera for every room we went in that we were going to record and shoot the video in. We filmed the video in 16:9 widescreen.
The shooting of the film was to be done by me, and the acting done by Tom and Alex. We started off by getting Alex to burst through a door with the camera starting on 1 side of the door then switching to the other side so we got a view from each side. Then I filmed Alex walking towards Tom who is sat down. Then I filmed Alex and Tom exchange words with a few different angled shots... The shots we used were, long shot, mid shot and an over the shoulder shot. We had a few problems with the tri-pod as the top of the tri-pod had snapped off but then we went to Miss dughan and got another tri-pod that did work. We used these to good effect when shooting the video. We had just finished shooting by the time the lesson had ended so we didn't have time to get the film onto the computer.
I shot all of the shootings twice or more so that we could pick and choose the best ones that we felt would fit for the editing stage of the preliminary task.

Second lesson Pre-liminary task

In the second lesson at the start Mr Mitchell showed us a short clip that explained the rules and how to shoot a shot/reverse shot and also the 180 degree rule. We took notes whilst the clip was being played and then shared the notes with the class.
After this our group got back together and decided on how we were going to use the shots in our clip. We made a storyboard stating the shot types, pictures on what was happening in the shot, sound and editing.
Then we began to test out the first few shots on Tom's phone just as a test to see if it looked ok and to see if there was anything wrong with our initial idea. The scene was that Alex was to walk to the door, partially open it then Tom would stop recording from outside in the corridor. Then from inside the room Tom recorded again whilst Alex from the same position outside the door walked through the door and into the room. These were both shot as a long shot.

First lesson Preliminary task!

In the first lesson we were all introduced to the subject and the pre-liminary task as a class and given detailed instructions on what to do.
We had to film a person walking through a door, sitting down with another character and exchanging dialogue between the two characters. With a shot/reverse shot, and the 180 degree rule.
My group of me, Alex and Tom then sat down to discuss ways in which we were going to set about trying to figure out a way to make the short clip interesting and we all contributed on a storyboard a variety of camera shots, location of the cilp, and ways in which to do the clip.