Thursday, 19 February 2015
Evaluation Introduction
The brief we were given entailed creating a two minute opening sequence to a thriller film using knowledge of micro elements and codes and ceonventions that we had researched and planned. Our aim was to make our sequence as conventional to the thriller genre as possible by creating shock, suspense and surprise in the audience and also encouraging them to build relationships with our characters.
My group consists of myself, Kerry Boyne and Jessica McCullagh. Each group member had a specific production role to help make dividing the work between us easiest as well as making sure we each had an aspect of our media product that we were speciifically responsible for so we could focus on it in more detail. This allowed us to make sure all aspects of the production was carried out to the best of our ability. Jessica was the sound producer and therefore she researched and downloaded sounds we could use in our media product. Kerry appeared as an actress in our opening sequence and I was given the role of costume design. This meant I planned and decided what the characters in our sequence should wear in order to make our product more effective. My production role taught me that the appearance and representation of a character is very important in a thriller sequence as it helps the audience to build a relationship with those characters and therefore relate to the narrative more.
As a group we shared the remaining roles between us such as filming and editing as no one in particular carried out these jobs by themselves because we all wanted to use and interpret our individual ideas into our final media product. My group worked well as a team as we were all commited to our seperate roles as we were determined to produce a thriller that was as successful as we could make it. I think our thriller is successful because it has several generic codes and conventions of the thriller genre such as a dominant antagonist and vulnerable victim, hidden identity of the killer, obsession of the antagonist and an isolated location. This means the sequence would work well in the industry alongside other successful thrillers.
Wednesday, 4 February 2015
Final Thriller
West Hatch High School - Centre Number: 19807
Meghan Stone - Candidate Number: 9373
I worked alongside Jessica McCullagh (9353) and Kerry Boyne (9311) to complete my coursework.
Monday, 5 January 2015
Thriller Rough Cut - Miss Georgiou
The rough cut was then uploaded to YouTube and made public so any one could watch it including those from our target audience. The viewers of our video could like, dislike or comment on the video to let us know what they thought of it. This gave us constructive feedback which will help us to improve our final sequence. This feedback will benefit my production because my group now understands what aspects of our sequence works well and what we will keep and what aspects are unsuccessful and should be changed or deleted. Other opinions are successful in providing feedback because it allows us to see what others, who have not created and already watched our production, think of it because to my group everything could appear similar as we have already watched it several times.
This benefits the film industry because it means we are producing the best possible version of our product. Using several different methods of feedback means we are able to adjust and correct our production several times and consider as many aspects that need improving as possible. This makes the final product as effective as possible for the film industry to promote and sell. Positive feedback my group received including that the lighting we used worked well. We filmed in the late afternoon and used dark filters to create the effect of low-key lighting in our sequence. When applying filters we also adjusted the opacity of the shots and made sure that they were all even so the production was consistent. The low-key lighting is conventional to a thriller genre because it creates deep dark shadows, showing the vulnerability of the victim and connoting enigma. The darkness also represents the hidden identity of the antagonist and this creates suspense. The change of lighting from the house to the forest highlights the change of mood and increase in intensity as it becomes more dark, highlighting that the victim is becoming more scared.
Our feedback also told us that we had an interesting narrative.It was complex enough to create enigma and make the audience want to keep watching yet clear and simple enough for them to follow and understand. The audience also stated that the ending was successful as it was left open with questions to be answered, they do not know what happened next and therefore want to keep watching to find out. Because of this I think our narrative is successful because we planned to create enigma and suspense and that is what our target audience believed we created. We wanted our narrative to be more creative and have a complex story line so we filmed in several different locations and thought about costumes and iconography and how we could use them to suggest ideas about the story to the audience.
Another common piece of positive feedback we received was that our transitions between shots worked well. We placed effects in-between the shots to link them to each other.This made sure that the shots did not just jump from one to the other and that it flowed smoothly making the narrative easier to follow. The positive comments we received suggested the transitions we used help the audience follow the story line and kept them engaged.
The target audience also provided us with constructive feedback in order to help us understand what we need to improve. One common constructive comment we received stated that the ending of our sequence was unclear. Although the audience stated that the ending was effective in terms of building suspense and enigma, they also believed that it was confusing because the effects we used lead them to believe the sequence had ended before it did.
Based on the feedback we received for our rough cut we will make some changes to our final thriller sequence. We will make the font of the credits smaller so it does not cover too much of the footage. This will focus the audiences attention solely on the narrative. We will also re-film the ending of our sequence so it is recorded on a camera rather than a camera phone so the last few shots are widescreen and therefore fit in better with the rest of the sequences of the shot. Another thing we will change when re-filming the ending is to make sure the antagonists head is not showing if the are not wearing a mask.
This benefits the film industry because it means we are producing the best possible version of our product. Using several different methods of feedback means we are able to adjust and correct our production several times and consider as many aspects that need improving as possible. This makes the final product as effective as possible for the film industry to promote and sell. Positive feedback my group received including that the lighting we used worked well. We filmed in the late afternoon and used dark filters to create the effect of low-key lighting in our sequence. When applying filters we also adjusted the opacity of the shots and made sure that they were all even so the production was consistent. The low-key lighting is conventional to a thriller genre because it creates deep dark shadows, showing the vulnerability of the victim and connoting enigma. The darkness also represents the hidden identity of the antagonist and this creates suspense. The change of lighting from the house to the forest highlights the change of mood and increase in intensity as it becomes more dark, highlighting that the victim is becoming more scared.
Our feedback also told us that we had an interesting narrative.It was complex enough to create enigma and make the audience want to keep watching yet clear and simple enough for them to follow and understand. The audience also stated that the ending was successful as it was left open with questions to be answered, they do not know what happened next and therefore want to keep watching to find out. Because of this I think our narrative is successful because we planned to create enigma and suspense and that is what our target audience believed we created. We wanted our narrative to be more creative and have a complex story line so we filmed in several different locations and thought about costumes and iconography and how we could use them to suggest ideas about the story to the audience.
Another common piece of positive feedback we received was that our transitions between shots worked well. We placed effects in-between the shots to link them to each other.This made sure that the shots did not just jump from one to the other and that it flowed smoothly making the narrative easier to follow. The positive comments we received suggested the transitions we used help the audience follow the story line and kept them engaged.
The target audience also provided us with constructive feedback in order to help us understand what we need to improve. One common constructive comment we received stated that the ending of our sequence was unclear. Although the audience stated that the ending was effective in terms of building suspense and enigma, they also believed that it was confusing because the effects we used lead them to believe the sequence had ended before it did.
Based on the feedback we received for our rough cut we will make some changes to our final thriller sequence. We will make the font of the credits smaller so it does not cover too much of the footage. This will focus the audiences attention solely on the narrative. We will also re-film the ending of our sequence so it is recorded on a camera rather than a camera phone so the last few shots are widescreen and therefore fit in better with the rest of the sequences of the shot. Another thing we will change when re-filming the ending is to make sure the antagonists head is not showing if the are not wearing a mask.
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Monday, 15 December 2014
Production Roles - Miss Miller
When working in a group, people need to be allocated specific roles because it means each area of production is given equal focus and the attention it needs to be successful. This therefore helps the final production be successful altogether.
jobs shared -not too much to focus on
jobs shared -not too much to focus on
Thursday, 4 December 2014
Opening Scene Narration - Miss Miller
Our sequence begins with a establishing long shot of an abandoned house so it is introduced as the home of the antagonist. The house we are going to film is located beside a forest in Buckhurst Hill. In the long shot we will zoom out from the house and pan across to show the forest. The second shot shows the entrance to an abandoned house, also in Buckhurst hill. We filmed a small gate and the trees just outside the house before creating a point of view shot as I walked through the entrance holding the camera. These two shots have natural low-key lighting so the sequence appears dramatic and eerie yet does not look too unnatural or artificial. A straight cut will link these two frames together subtly so it looks as though the two shots are both a part of the same house. Sound will be simple during these shots as it is at the start of the sequence and therefore building up to any dramatic events that will later occur. There will be an eerie whistling sound like the wind featured in both shots as well as possibly using quiet music that slowly builds up.
After that there are several panning shots of the interior of the house, showing the setting and several iconography items. Such as old photographs from the antagonist's childhood and broken items. These frames will be filmed in another house that belongs to our friend because they have wallpaper that has an eerie effect and we believed it would work well in our sequence. The lighting will be low-key again as these shots will be slightly more dramatic and harsh lighting will emphasize and focus on the iconography. When the childhood photographs are shown, we plan to edit in non-diegetic sounds of a child shouting for his mother and maybe chilling childlike music. The sequence will suddenly focus on certain iconography so jump cuts will be used over these frames.
A long shot inside the house then shows the back of the antagonist as he is looking at pictures on the wall. There are five polaroid photographs on the wall, each of a different victim of the killers.The camera will zoom in and focus on the images. All except one image will be crossed out in red marker and the antagonist will circle it. The four that are crossed out in red marker represent those he has already killed while the last image is of our sequences victim and she has not yet been killed by the antagonist which is why she is not crossed out. Throughout these frames, mumbles and cries of female voices will be played on loop to represent the antagonists previous victims and how killing them has affected him, making him more mentally unstable. When the antagonist circles the one image that is not crossed out this is where we will edit in the on-screen sound of a screech or scratch of the pen similar to hearing nails on a chalkboard. The lighting will be dark and low-key as the theme of these frames are very mysterious.
Further zooming in will focus on the circled image. It will be played to a non-diegetic sound like a 'whoosh' to highlight the movement and focus on the girl in the photograph. Using a jump cut, the shot of the polaroid will switch to a shot of the actual girl as she lays unconscious in another room of the house with masking tape over her mouth and around her wrists. She will move around and struggle until she is free from the tape. We will edit in the non-diegetic sound of creaking floorboards as the victim walks slowly through the house. She will escape and the slamming of a door will alert the antagonist. After this we will film both the victim and killer running though the forest in a chase scene. The lighting will be dark and low-key and several sound effects will be used. We will use sound tracks and sound effects such as footsteps and heartbeats.
After that there are several panning shots of the interior of the house, showing the setting and several iconography items. Such as old photographs from the antagonist's childhood and broken items. These frames will be filmed in another house that belongs to our friend because they have wallpaper that has an eerie effect and we believed it would work well in our sequence. The lighting will be low-key again as these shots will be slightly more dramatic and harsh lighting will emphasize and focus on the iconography. When the childhood photographs are shown, we plan to edit in non-diegetic sounds of a child shouting for his mother and maybe chilling childlike music. The sequence will suddenly focus on certain iconography so jump cuts will be used over these frames.
A long shot inside the house then shows the back of the antagonist as he is looking at pictures on the wall. There are five polaroid photographs on the wall, each of a different victim of the killers.The camera will zoom in and focus on the images. All except one image will be crossed out in red marker and the antagonist will circle it. The four that are crossed out in red marker represent those he has already killed while the last image is of our sequences victim and she has not yet been killed by the antagonist which is why she is not crossed out. Throughout these frames, mumbles and cries of female voices will be played on loop to represent the antagonists previous victims and how killing them has affected him, making him more mentally unstable. When the antagonist circles the one image that is not crossed out this is where we will edit in the on-screen sound of a screech or scratch of the pen similar to hearing nails on a chalkboard. The lighting will be dark and low-key as the theme of these frames are very mysterious.
Further zooming in will focus on the circled image. It will be played to a non-diegetic sound like a 'whoosh' to highlight the movement and focus on the girl in the photograph. Using a jump cut, the shot of the polaroid will switch to a shot of the actual girl as she lays unconscious in another room of the house with masking tape over her mouth and around her wrists. She will move around and struggle until she is free from the tape. We will edit in the non-diegetic sound of creaking floorboards as the victim walks slowly through the house. She will escape and the slamming of a door will alert the antagonist. After this we will film both the victim and killer running though the forest in a chase scene. The lighting will be dark and low-key and several sound effects will be used. We will use sound tracks and sound effects such as footsteps and heartbeats.
Monday, 1 December 2014
Risk Assessment - Miss Georgiou
It is important to consider the risks and hazards you may come across when filming a sequence because if you are faced with one on the day, you will know how to deal with it so it does not disrupt your filming. For example if it begins to rain on the day and we had not thought about it the camera would have got wet and stopped us from filming. Because we have thought about this potential hazard, we have decided to bring an umbrella with us to hold above the camera if it does begin to rain. Considering the risks and hazards will also allow us to prevent several hazards from occurring in the first place such as the possibility of tripping over the camera leads. By thinking about this and how we could prevent it we have decided to brink so masking tape when filming and stick the wires down to secure them and make it less likely for someone to trip over them.
Risk assessments will assist my group when filming because it makes each group member aware of what may go wrong or interrupt our filming. It will help us to take responsibility for anything that does go wrong and let us know what we can do to prevent this happening. To prevent hazards we have thought about, my group is going to bring an umbrella to hold above the camera in case in rains because that would damage the camera. We will also bring extra torches, be cautious of our surroundings and check the path before filming so that our actors do not hurt themselves by tripping or treading on something etc, in the chase scene, especially as our victim will not be wearing shoes. In case our actors, particularly our victim, gets cold or wet when filming the scenes we will bring coats to put on in-between filming. There is also the possiblity that members of the public could be in the background of our camera shots. To prevent this happening we will make any passers-by aware that we are filming.
Risk assessments will assist my group when filming because it makes each group member aware of what may go wrong or interrupt our filming. It will help us to take responsibility for anything that does go wrong and let us know what we can do to prevent this happening. To prevent hazards we have thought about, my group is going to bring an umbrella to hold above the camera in case in rains because that would damage the camera. We will also bring extra torches, be cautious of our surroundings and check the path before filming so that our actors do not hurt themselves by tripping or treading on something etc, in the chase scene, especially as our victim will not be wearing shoes. In case our actors, particularly our victim, gets cold or wet when filming the scenes we will bring coats to put on in-between filming. There is also the possiblity that members of the public could be in the background of our camera shots. To prevent this happening we will make any passers-by aware that we are filming.
Friday, 28 November 2014
Filming Schedule - Miss Georgiou
A filming schedule allows the group to plan and discuss when various parts of a sequence should be filmed. This is helpful because it means that the group are organised in understanding when and where they will be filming, making sure there is a set time for each part of the sequence to be created. So when my group arrives at the location we wish to film at, we will know exactly what content we will be aiming to create that day. A filming schedule is also helpful in that it reminds you of the iconography and costumes you need to bring etc.
This filming schedule helped my group to plan my sequence because it helped us to order the shots in our sequence into different sections. We grouped together the forest scene shots and the shots inside the abandoned house and decided to film them on two separate days and then at the end film what is left to film or re-film or another day. This means that the lighting and weather should be similar in the scenes that are in the same place. It also makes filming easier for us because we do no thane to go back and forth from locations and can get all of the filming in the forest scene done in one day and all of the abandoned house scene footage filmed in another.
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