Media AS Coursework

Hannah Brown

Preliminary

For the preliminary task, we have been asked to create a short piece of film (lasting around 30seconds) to practice and demonstrate continuity editing. This is a mix of different things to make sure the piece of film flows together, looks realistic and in sync.

I will go through examples with a brief description and illustration of each:

Eye-line match

This is when a character looks at something off screen then the camera cuts to the object.

•

Shot-reverse-shot

This is a camera technique often used for conversation or reaction shots where one character is shown looking at another character (often off-screen), and then the other character is shown looking back at the first character.

Match-on-ActionThis connects two shots cut

together by having a character finish an action in the second shot begun in the first shot. For example, a character opens a door in the first shot and walks in the room in the second.

A shot that immediately follows another shot to explain the first of the two shots, eg. a shot of a man opening a door, with another shot of the man coming through the door from the other side of it.

Tuesday 25th Jan After completing our storyboards, today we began to

film the preliminary task. I was the cinematographer, Jen was in charge of mise en scene and Emma was the editor. We decided to film in the college lift which we later found out was a mistake. Due to the lack of space, mirrors in the lift and keep having to stop to let people in and out, it was very unsuccessful. It was difficult to fit two chairs in and have to keep moving about to film from different angles so couldn't even fit in a tripod which made the filming unsteady and poorer quality. Instead we filmed in the classroom as it was much more simple.

Storyboard

Thursday 27th

Today we began filming for the second time. For our next attempt, we decided to film a much simpler scenario when one person walked through a door, sat down on a chair opposite another character, exchanged a few lines of dialogue then walked of together. Jen and Jack were our actors. When I was filming I demonstrated different filming techniques including:

Panning

Close Up

Two Shot

Shot-reverse-shot

Tues 1st Feb

• Today we start editing our film together. Emma was in charge of this but me and Jen contributed our thoughts and opinions into what looked best. In the editing process, the unsuccessful clips were deleted, connected it all together so it flowed, shortened some of the clips that went on for too long and added the transitions- opening titles and a few credits at the beginning. We also found out by mistake how to put the titles in front of the film, this looked quite appealing so I shall use it for the main task.

Link to our preliminary task:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_jpMkDQ311Q

Main TaskThe titles and opening of a new fiction film, to last a

maximum of two minutes

Early Planning

Early PlanningThursday 10th was the first day we sat down to discuss our main task. We

considered the genre, location, cast, props and dialogue. We decided to do a mystery/thriller film. It is about a pregnant girl who has a secret and has left her boyfriend in fear. The boyfriend then tracks her down and confronts her. The audience is left wondering what he does to her and what the secret is.

For the cast we needed three young females and someone to play the man. Jen played Kim along with Emma and Georgia who played the two friends. Ben was the man.

Finally we wanted the script to be short as it wasn’t a very dramatic part of the clip. The dialogue was a conversation of Jen’s two friends talking about a guy, as this is what a lot of young girls talk about. One friend notices Kim is being quiet, she replies by touching her stomach (implying she is pregnant) and saying “I’ve just got something on my mind” It then cross cuts to the man getting up, showing there is a link between her baby and the man. The other friends mentions the father “aww has he not been in touch” and she immediately snaps telling her to “fuck off and leave it.” This shows to the audience it is a sensitive issue to the girl and she doesn’t like talking about the father.

Storyboard

Script

We decided the location would be a quiet area near college. It has a stream, trees and alleys and is quite secluded, therefore it looks ideal for a thriller film.

Location

Props• We decided to include some props. We chose to have a photo

of “Kim” to be shown at the beginning being held by Ben. We thought this would be effective as the audience can see there is a link between him and this girl and he is possibly trying to find her. For costumes Ben was going to wear a black hoody as it connotes evil and danger.

ResearchI will go through examples of how our group has conducted research throughout the project:• We looked at other opening of films such as Sean of the Dead, Don't Look Back and Kill Bill.

We wrote down notes on how the genre was shown, how characters were introduced, how the story was set up and how the audiences curiosity was provoked. To answer these we looked at things such as dialogue, editing techniques, text on screen, icons of genre, mise en scene, music etc. We adapted some of these in our film such as in “Kill Bill” you never see his face in the clip which is similar to our male character as you only see his outline to keep the readers hooked. We have also done something similar from “Don’t Look Back” with the crosscutting from the girl playing by the lake to the family talking in the house, we have used crosscutting between the man getting up in slow motion and Kim walking off to create tension by showing he is perusing her and the girl is in danger.

• Moving on, we looked at films with similar target audiences such as Skins. We noticed that they used a lot of taboo so we included a swear word also they wore hoodies which is why one of the characters is wearing one. Our characters is also wearing similar clothing to the cast of Skins such as cardigans and chunky jewellery.

• Furthermore we looked at how films used voiceovers of dialogue. For example there is a scene in Harry Potter where Harry is in a room and an argument he had with his headmaster plays on top. We copied this in “The Hidden Truth” where an argument between Kim and the man is playing in the background of the character sitting down looking at the photo in the dark room. It makes it dramatic and appeals to the audience as it is apparent the man is not over a relationship breakup and is possibly seeking revenge.

How I Contributed to the Production

Link to video:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AI_JMTeHe58

Camera Angles/ Techniques I used

Establishing ShotSets the scene and gives audience an idea where they are and what to expect from surroundings (alley could mean danger)

Shot-reverse-shotForm of continuity editing. Makes the conversation flow and in sync as well as allowing the audience to see characters reactions.

Close UpClose up of Kim rubbing stomach to signify she is pregnant.

Cross-cuttingIndicates there is a link between the girls baby and the mystery man.

Wobbly CamAdd realism as if the camera is what the man is seeing. Creates a sense of chaos and is tensional as the man is getting closer and closer.

Point of View ShotCreates tension because the audience knows the girl is being watched and is probably in danger

Extreme Close UpShows emotion in girls’ eyes and emphasises how young and vulnerable she looks.

Canted AngleWhen the man is following Kim, it is very dramatic so by changing the different angles and shot types quickly creates tension and unsettles the audience.

Skills in the use of Digital Technology or ICTSince doing my coursework I have developed my knowledge considerably of ICT

and digital technology:• Exploit technology through the use of voiceover and commentaries. I have

learnt how to record myself talking to the camera and how to upload it onto the computer. Also I know how to record my voice only and put it on my power point.

• How to make my power point more interesting and creative. I learnt how to add coloured backgrounds, put images behind text, change brightness/contrast of the images, change fonts, scan documents, create pie charts etc.

• As cinematographer, I had to ensure I had a good understanding of how the camera works. I learnt how to zoom, focus, pan, pause what angles was appropriate for what shot etc.

• I now have a basic knowledge of how iMovie works and how to edit my footage. I can now arrange clips to the right order, shorten and add audio/sound to them.

Risk Assessments

Evidence of Time ManagementI think our time management was organised and well thought out.

We planned out our days effectively- when we was going to research and how we was going to do it, discussion of plot/ location/ costumes/ cast, storyboarding, filming and how long it would roughly take us, when and how long would it take us to edit, what days we was going to add the finishing touches (voiceovers/ titles/ sound etc.) We also had to think about when we would make time to update our blogs/ power points for example when another group is on the computer. I think we could have done a bit better with our time management as we was rushed towards the end, hence why we haven’t included tensional music like we planned. I think we over ran because a lot of the time it took us a while to work the equipment and the camera ran out of battery meaning we had to go back and also our storyboards wasn’t as clear as they should have been so we kept having to edit and change things.

Analysis of Audiences Feedback

Receiving feedback from my peers is useful as I can see what about our film is good and what needs improvement.

We included a variety of questions collecting both quantitative and qualitative data.

Good Feedback we got about our Film

• 6/10 people thought it was either a horror or mystery genre which is true.

• The mode rating of how much people would like to watch the rest of the film was 7

• Most people thought it made sense• Our class thought we used good range of

shots and angles• “Realistic and well thought out”• “Wanted to know more”

What we need to Improve on

• Clearer plot- some said they was left confused and it only made sense to some extent

• Use a point of view shot• Continuity errors- Kim says “I’ve just got

something on my mind” several times• “Same shot twice at start”

Presenting Data

HorrorMysteryThrillerDramaCrime

What genre would you class our film?

SevenNineFour

Out of ten, how much would you like to watch the rest of our film? 

Five Six Seven Eight Nine Ten0

0.5

1

1.5

2

2.5

Rating out of 10

Qua

nity

How mysterious do you find our film?

Questionnaire1. How did you feel after watching the opening to our film?2. What genre would you class our film?3. Out of ten, how much would you like to watch the rest of our film? 4. Does the film/story make sense? 5. Do you think we have used a good variety of shot types, angles,

transitions?6. Have you noticed any continuity errors? If so what?7. On a scale of 1-10 how effective do you think our mise en scene is?

(lighting/ costume/ set)8. On a scale of 1-10 how mysterious do you find the opening of our film?9. What do you think our target audience is? 10.What do you associate our voice over with?11.Do you think there are any stereotypes represented? How?

Link to main task:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qO_oxNTg9Zo

EVALUATION

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

“The Hidden Truth” has used many forms and conventions of real media products. For example we used titles over the images instead of in a list at the beginning or end. We thought this looked more creative and interesting and is similar to existing films e.g. “Shrek” where there are different titles around the various objects in the swamp. We used shots of a flower, tree, leaves and the stream.

Also I made sure when filming I followed conventions such as the 180°C rule which enables the audience to visually connect with unseen movement happening around and behind the immediate subject. I used a tripod too so the footage was steady.

Every film has a production company and we chose the name “Waterstream Productions” as the name flows and it looks good against the image of the stream. However, we didn’t include a logo as we thought the text looked good alone against the water.

Finally we adapted different effects used in other films. This includes a voice over at the beginning when we see a shadow and there are voices of an argument he has previously had with the main character. This has been done to keep the audiences attention and to create tension as the audience knows he’s trying to find someone. Many films have used this such as in “Lord of the Rings” where there is the voice over of an old women talking about the ring whilst the audience watches all the fighting and battles commencing. Furthermore, we have used crosscutting between the character talking with her friends and the mystery man getting up in slow motion. This has been done to show that the man is about to go somewhere and the girl is in danger. Our choice of crosscutting has been influenced by the clip we saw of “Don’t Look Back” where it cuts between the girl playing and the family talking at home.

How does your media product represent particular social groups?

Our footage was aiming to represent young girls as the social group. I think we have achieved this in a number of ways. For example the main character Kim is pregnant. This is a common issue for a lot of young girls in the UK therefore a lot of the audience can relate to it. Also, the clothing represents social groups as the man is wearing a hoody which usually means the person is up to no good, want to be hidden and can be dangerous, like our character. I think the big representation is that teenage girls are vulnerable and are not fully aware of the danger that is out there. This is portrayed as Kim is walking alone and an unknown man is following her.

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

I think a small independent British institution such as Warp films or Optimum Realising might distribute my product. This is because it has a small budget, British accent and settings, specific target audience- teenagers and contains a lot of social realism. Also Optimum Releasing has consistently supported emerging filmmaking talent such as Alejandro Gonzalez. Warp films have produced films such as “This is England ‘86” which is low budget as there are no special effects and it’s moderately easy to film and produce- like my video clip. Our audiences are also similar.

Who would be the audience for your media product and how did you attract/address your audience?

The audience for our media product would be teenagers of both genders. We’ve attracted/addressed them in several ways. The girls start talking about the opposite sex “I can’t believe you got with that guy” which is what teenagers talk about a lot. There is a lot taboo included with the word “f**k.” The audience would probably be British as the accents are British and so is the settings. As well as this the characters are wearing a lot of teenage fashion such as hoodies, boots, scarf's, cardigans etc. There is also real life situations such as teenage pregnancy and the man not being able to get over a breakup- both has probably affected the majority of the audience at some point.

Typical Audience Viewer

Films:

• Romantic comedies

• Action

• Crime

• Gangster

Likes:

• Shopping (girl)

• Money

• Games Console men)

• Make up (girl)

• Fashion• Socializing• Opposite

sex• Cars

(men)

• Music, films, computer

Both Genders

Dislikes

• School/ college/ work

• Don’t get along that well with parents

Music:

• Hip-hop

• RnB

• Pop

• Reggae• Danceh

all• Grime• Bashme

nt

Teenager/ young adult

(15-30year olds)

• Adventure• Comedies• Thrillers/

horror• Mystery

Personality:

• Sociable

• Loud

• Stressed

• Miserable at timesBritish

Not particularly high class

• Healthy eating

• Getting up early

• Being told what to do

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

• I have learnt how to use the camera and tripod. I learnt how to adjust the tripod so it was the right height and angle. I also learnt how to zoom with the camera and how to focus (it is better to go back and zoom in than put the camera really close to the subject.) I also practised a smooth pan as my first ones were quite jolty.

• I have become aware of how to use iMovie a little. I know how to arrange and cut clips and how to put just audio over footage.

• I have also learnt where to get copyright free audio from and how to add it the my filming.

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

I have learnt quite a few important things from filming my preliminary. I learnt:• Use a tripod- a lot of the shots such as the close up of Jen opening the door was only

around a second long. I thought I could get away with simply holding the camera however once it’s been uploaded to the computer I learnt that I must use the tripod for the majority of shots as it was never completely steady.

• Not to film in busy areas- when doing the preliminary, there was people walking about and making noise which was disruptive to our filming. Because of this we decided to pick a secluded area.

• How to do titles- by accident we found out how to put the titles in front of the image in our preliminary. We thought this looked interesting and appealing so decided to replicate this in our main task.

• What angles are suitable for what type of shot. For example a mid shot looked good for exchanging dialogue and a pan is good when a character is walking.

• Make sure nothing should be in shot- our preliminary captured some of the students bags and people walking a long the corridors that weren’t suppose to be in it. So when filming our main task I checked there weren’t any bags or other belongings in the shots.