AS Level Media EvaluationBY RAHIM RAHAT

Question 1: In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

Costume The costume is not seen very often in thrillers as the

conventional costume for thrillers is a classic gangster suit that is associated with hitmen and other forms of antagonist. The costume we used is associated with horror films, vampire films or even superhero films e.g. Sabretooth from X-Men: Wolverine origins or the Blade Trilogy. This adds a vivid mystical appearance to our antagonist that challenges the straightforward convention of the typical thriller villain. This allows us to immediately create intrigue around the character as the costume suggests deeper meaning surrounding the character’s origin. The suit of the victim reinforces the conventional thriller image of an antagonist and connotes that there must be some form of friction within an organisation or the breaking of an alliance. This is very much in style of the 2015 gangster movie ‘Legends’ about the Kray twins. Some lower down gangsters were stabbing the other faction in the back and they were than disposed of. This is an implication that can be taken into account here. This is a very conventional idea of the thriller genre as it has also been used in Once Upon A Time In America as Noodles’ associates were treated as expendable lives. This connotation is challenged by a later shot of the body being the primary focus. This emphasises a greater importance of the character and therefore develops the plots further.

Location The use of the grassy area connotes abandonment and

isolation which is very conventional of the thriller genre as it locational archetype used in modern thriller TV shows such as The Bridge, True Detective and Shetland. All of the mentioned shows express the use of an isolated environment to undertake a murder. This is also a convention used in The Third Man as Harry Lime disappears in a sewer. This location is a far more urban interpretation of this convention. The use of an isolated location creates connotations of discretion and secrecy which is very much associated to criminal activities/factions. The contrasting location of a car park is far more urban and implies that crime is far more integrated within society i.e. a well known issue. This is also very well linked with real life cases of crime. For example, in Sydney, Australia on the 9th of April 2016 two men were gunned down. It is also very common knowledge that cars are often stolen inside car parks. We have integrated the two above cases into ideas that we believe works very effectively as it embodies the dangers of enclosed urban areas. This form of location is stereotypical of the thriller genre as it integrates modern criminality with an old school ominous stature and impact in terms of the devastating effect of that crime can on an organisation like it did with the Kray’s and various other criminal outlets.

Question 1: In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

Narrative The antagonist is very dominant throughout as his posture is

very prominently emphasised in the manner of a king or other important figures. This allows his presence in the other scenes to appear intimidating and threatening. The use of the stairs as the establishing shot creates connotations of being epic and grand. This shares a similar effect of films such as Die Hard which is an action film and very effectively creates an intense atmosphere. Having this association of films allows us to develop our characters within the short amount of time. It means that the narrative can be efficient and effectively plotted. The minimal focus on the original car driver creates an insignificance and innocence that is effective when he is attacked as it encourages the audience to have empathy towards. The confusion between the time of this attack and the dumping of the body later creates confusion and emphasises the enigma to be at the forefront of the piece. The long driving scenes allow previous encounters/events to be explored which thicken the plot and creates room for development. This also allows to discover another entity has been pulling a couple strings and therefore peaks the intrigue of the audience as they wish to uncover the enigma and the reason for the disposal of the man previously seen. The emphasis on the driving itself carries a weight on the character that can be seen as the antagonists importance or the burden that he has to carry. Either way, it causes him to appear experience and far more developed as a character would usually be in this circumstance.

Camerawork and Editing We used a lot of long shots and tilt shots to create/further

emphasise the enigmatic connotations expressed throughout the piece. The early close ups of the feet reinforce this. The high angle shots taken reinforce the importance of the antagonist and significance his presence carries. This allows his actions to gain a significant impact and will last and linger in the minds of the audience throughout an entire film, were one to be made that is. The low angle shots of the money scenes allows the younger character’s demise to appear understood as he is presented as weak and insignificant. The contrast of this compared to all of the other high angle shots of the other characters constructs connotations of a weak link and thus is eliminated. The use of the cross dissolve is very prominent as it compiled on top of each other which is very confusing as to why the driving is being emphasised so much. This once again reinforces and adds depth to the enigma. The norm within a thriller is to have quite sharp transitions that will create intensity and express the atmosphere that is common within an action. Our transitions are much softer and slower, allowing the product to appear vulnerable and weak. This reinforces the narrative and one of the characters situation. This implies that the character plays a greater part throughout a full film version of this.

Question 2: How does your media product represent particular social group?

GenderThe dominance of the male gender is very prominent. The entire cast is made up of males. It was originally supposed to have at least one female character but we couldn’t figure out how script her in to it. Either way, the implications of patriarchy is prevalent. Quite clearly, the men appear to have power and possess and alpha male complex. This is very stereotypical of the convention male character archetype. The dominant male characters appear to desire power to rule and dominate.

AgeThe young are very much marginalised and undervalued within the product. This truly reflects the reality of teens today as statistically there has been a rise in depression and anxiety among British youth. The dominance of the older characters reflect the cunning that the older generation possesses and their ability to manipulate and dominate youngsters. Criminal activities are what anyone turns to during hard times and this is reflected in the black and white scenes. The stature that someone holds over the youth is also reflected with the use of high angle shots and truly reinforces their power.

EthnicityThere are three white cast members in the piece. The one ethnic representative was me. This is microcosmic of society as the white British ethnic background are commonplace and the use of minority background to emphasise a lack of diversity in Britain. The attack on the minority character symbolises the struggle that most minorities face when trying make something of themselves and not being able to do so. The issues of racial prejudice and hate crime are explore with an attack that appears to be remorseless.

Question 3: What kind of media institution might distribute your media product? There are a few potential distributors that may exhibit my film. The first of which is Fox.

They broadcast TV shows such as Lucifer and Gotham. These shows are quite or have dark undertones that have elements of mystery. Gotham is based on the life of a young Bruce Wayne and focussed on then Detective James Gordon. This is very much in similitude to my film as the focus is on uncovering the enigma that is emphasised throughout. The Lucifer is dark and is an adaptation on the biblical story. This is similar to my product as it is very dark and has death linked in some way or another that is a focal point within every episode. This is a mentality that I want to express within my production.

Another potential distribution institution is NBC and Universal. NBC has produced shows such as Hannibal, based on the beginnings of Dr Hannibal Lecter. The show is brutally gruesome and graphic that is an approach that I wish to explore within my piece as it appeals to the thriller audience due to the slow suspense that builds throughout the film.

The last one is HBO (who is owned by Time Warner). They have produced the season 1 classic True Detective which is in essence the approach that I want to be taken towards my product. The mystery and intrigue created with perfect casting and perfect plotlines that truly encapsulate the thriller genre. This is the same effect that I wish to create with my piece and due to the similarities that our products share, it would make sense for the same institution to distribute them.

Who would be the audience for your media product?

Age: between late teens (18+) to around 35-ish. The film is very complex and may not peak the interest of the mainstream audience due to its complexity. However it isn’t arthouse enough to appeal to an elderly audience.

Gender: Predominantly male. The majority of the characters are male and will therefore appeal to a male audience.

Social Class: Middle-Class. It is still quite a specialist film, much in the style of The Third Man. Therefore, a middle-class audience will be intrigued by it as they have the education to understand it.

Ethnicity/ Nationality: (White) British. The characters and settings are all British and therefore may not have the same appeal abroad.

Question 4: Continued…

The Bridge

This is the obvious choice in terms of media interests of my audience as it is very similar in style to my film. What appears to be the body of a female Swedish politician is discovered in the middle of the Øresund Bridge, which connects Copenhagen with Malmö. The body, cut in half at the waist, has been placed precisely on the border between the countries, thus falling under the jurisdiction of both the Danish and Swedish police agencies. After further examination, what appears to be one body is two halves of two separate corpses, the lower half belonging to a Danish prostitute. Two detectives, Saga Norén, from Sweden, and Martin Rohde, from Denmark, lead the investigation to catch the murderer.

House of Cards

U.S. Rep. Francis Underwood of South Carolina starts out as a ruthless politician seeking revenge in this Netflix original production. Promised the post of Secretary of State in exchange for his support, his efforts help to ensure the election of Garrett Walker to the presidency. But Walker changes his mind before the inauguration, telling Underwood he's too valuable in Congress. Outwardly, Underwood accepts his marching orders, but secretly he and his wife, an environmental activist, make a pact to destroy Walker and his allies. Based on the U.K. miniseries of the same name, the U.S. version offers a look behind the scenes at the greed and corruption in American politics.  This is very reminiscent of a potential predicament that characters in my film are in. It is complex and appealing whilst also fitting my audience profile nearly perfectly.

True Detective

Over a seventeen-year period, Louisiana State Police homicide detectives Rustin "Rust" Cohle and Martin "Marty" Hart must recount the investigation into the murder of prostitute Dora Lange and the histories of several other unsolved crimes, the perpetrator of which remains at large. During this time, Hart's personal problems threaten his marriage to Maggie, and Cohle struggles to cope with his troubled past. The season explores masculinity and religion, and the influences of horror and cosmic literature on the season's main narrative has been the subject of analysis. This is once again very reminiscent of a potential predicament. The opening of my thriller indicates flashbacks which could presents the idea that this is a very long term investigation.

Question 5: How did you attract/address your audience?

Our product uses very artistic transitions to appeal to an arthouse/specialist audience. This differentiates my product from others. This allows my product to stand out as an awards candidate and will thus attract a wider audience in a form of chain reaction. This appeal will appease our elderly audiences as they will enjoy our product far more than younger audiences. The black and white attracts old-fashioned film fanatics such as those for The Third Man which is a classic film noir. This may draw viewership from literary adaptation and acclaimed film critics. The use of a majority male cast will entice a male audience due to the relation they may experience to the alpha male, domination aspect of the characteristics expressed. Having a majority white, British cast will peak the intrigue of a British audience and there are several cultural signifiers that will clearly allure Brits to the product as they will enjoy looking over familiar landscapes with reminiscence and sentimentality. The cast is young with an exception to one. This has a potential to attract some youth as the experiences that the cast will go through emit similar emotions that are faced by modern youth. They will associate themselves with the characters and as such will be intrigued as to the interpretation of this issue and how it plays out.

Question 6: What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product? My researching ability has improved as I am far more concise as to what I want to know and the

cases I study that give a better understanding into the topic of interest. The particular spots/concepts that we explored such as the body-in-trunk and dumping-the-body-somewhere-discreet ideas I wanted to appear realistic. I researched the concept and found several media outlets producing films or TV shows such as Jackie Brown, Pulp Fiction and True Detective. I also found a real life example that was recently in the news; Tanveer Iqbal was killed by Zatoon Bibi and dumped into the trunk of her Renault Clio. This reinforces the authenticity of the body-in-trunk idea.

The shots I take (there aren’t many in the final product) are lot more dynamic and move a lot more. I prefer these to static shots as they emphasise and encapsulate action and make they scene more epic. The editing of my product was originally with quick cuts that are like that of an action film that adds intensity. Now I use soft transitions such as plenty of cross dissolves and dips to black. This builds a slow suspense and is far more creative which nowadays is not present within the thriller genre so I have to fill up this niche.

Communication through the use of Facebook allowed us to brainstorm ideas effortlessly and co-ordinate our shooting schedule. This meant that we could effectively ensure successful shooting and planning. This efficiency meant that within two weeks, we managed to take near 300 shots of a wide variety. This also meant that resources/responsibilities could easily be allocated and prepare the props and cast for the shoots without an issue.

Question 7: Looking back on your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the final product? I have learned to be a storyteller rather than an artist. What I mean by this is that I have learned to

focus on the plot and build around it in order to make the story being told very effective. The writing, scripting and plotting is the first step. In the preliminary task, I first plotted out the shots going to be used, get those shots perfect and hope they tell the story for me. This change in approach has allowed me to enhance my product a lot more as having a clear outline as to what the narrative is ensures that I can deliver the desired effect with my camera angles rather than a trial and error as to what shots work and what doesn’t.

I have learned to be prepared for any mishaps along the way. During the preliminary task, I was thorough with my takes, shooting the same shot 3-4 times over. This was the same approach I took to my thriller. However, I didn’t foresee that this task would be far more complex. The black and white shots were shot originally with red lighting. At the time I thought this was a good idea but I didn’t prepare myself for the chance it didn’t work. Thus the red lit shots were the only versions of the shot that I took. This ended up being very unclear and so we changed it to a black & white shot which is far more effective.

I have learned to be dedicated to the project that I am taking on. That I must be willing to sacrifice my time and put in the effort to make my work the best it can be. The black and white shots were originally supposed to be filled with dialogue. Due to a lack of acting skill, we had to forgo that plan and get rid of the dialogue. This meant, however, that we had to get a lot more footage. So we had to reshoot and take a lot of the focus off of the indoors scene and switch it to the driving. This ended up working out better as the lack of dialogue means that the product is far more enigmatic and thus is more effective.