HOW I USED CONVENTIONS IN MY

ADVANCED PORTFOLIO.Eve Kerrigan

Documentary…There is an endless list of conventions that we used in our documentary, here is a list of some of them…

• Typewriter effect to introduce the documentary.• Establishing shot, using flash – fade to white transitions to

show a sneak peak of the reconstruction.• Green screen created using the cutaway on iMovie to create

the studio for the presenters. • Sound effects – using iMovie and Garageband to create

dramatic sounds such as footsteps, heartbeats, car effects and the ending credits theme tune for ‘Coventry Crackdown’.

• High angle shots when the attacker is following the victim to show her vulnerability.

• Close up shots during interviews with witness so show emotion and seriousness of the case.

• CCTV effects to create realistic approach and evidence of the crime.

• Reconstruction – to follow conventions of other crime documentaries.

• Three professional presenters dressed smartly, filmed using mid shots to show professionalism and a non-biased approach.

• End credits- showing who featured in our documentary followed by our ‘JME Productions’ logo to show our institution.

Documentary iMovie and Photoshop conventions…

◦ Blur tool◦ Garageband◦ Pen tool◦ Transitions◦ Sound effects◦ Picture in picture◦ Greenscreen

Blur effect

Garageband

◦ We aimed to base our documentary on the existing BBC Crimewatch series. I feel that we did a good job of this in terms of the studio setting, the range of professional presenters, the realistic reconstruction and the interactive elements involving social media. Our storyline was similar to that of those that feature on Crimewatch however, differed in that it was a one off special. We did this to make it more of a documentary rather than a series and we also wanted to dramatise ours more to give it conventions of a reflexive documentary. To do this we included sound effects e.g. footsteps, a heart beat and a car noise alongside music at emotional scenes to create more of a dramatic effect. This is how our documentary differs, as other expository documentaries we researched did not include features such as this which is why we see ours as a hybrid.

Advert…◦ I aimed to use as many conventions of a typical

channel 4 advert that I had already researched to make my advert as professional and realistic as possible.

◦ I kept my colour scheme the same of black, white and red to keep it simplistic.

◦ I used one of my own images as the main focus of the advert. Highlighted with a red glow (using the brush tool on Adobe Photoshop) to coincide with the colour scheme and highlight the danger.

◦ I included little wording – only the name of the documentary and when it starts –as it makes it more catchy and effective.

◦ I included a rhetorical question at the top of my advert to draw viewers in and ask themselves that question.

◦ Finally I also included the logo of the institution to show what channel it is on as this is a popular icon that viewers would instantly recognise.

I used channel for inspiration as that was the institution I used to base my documentary on. For this reason I researched different adverts that channel 4 have created and tried to base my final product on one of theirs to make mine as professional as possible. Like this channel for advert I used one of my own images as the main focus of the advert. I included little wording – only the name of the documentary and when it is on – similar to this advert as it makes it more catchy and effective. Finally I also included the logo of the institution to show what channel it is on as this is a popular icon that viewers would instantly recognise.The differences between my advert and the channel 4 advert are that they have used text boxes to highlight their text. This is a common feature of a channel 4 documentary advert as I find out during my research. I chose not to use this feature as I wanted my advert to remain as simplistic as possible to make it completely effective and I felt that the text boxes cluttered my page slightly.

Double Page Spread…◦ I wanted my DPS to be more unique and coincide with my other pieces of

work. So, I kept the colour scheme the same – black and white with a hint of red – and used only white but a variety of different fonts. I kept it black and white so that it was similar to that of a newspaper however do not think it resembles the typical characteristics of one, which is what I set out to do.

◦ My headline is bold with the same font as my advert headline and the alliteration used is a typical feature of a newspaper headline.

◦ The main image is one I took of the victim in her most vulnerable position. This is the main feature of the DPS as it shows what it is about and why it is such a serious issue.

◦ I included a quote next to the image as this was on of the main things that the witness said during the interview and I felt it would draw readers in as it is emotive.

◦ In the bottom left hand corner I included information the readers can use to contact the team (linked to the documentary) with any information they may have. This too, is a common feature of a double page spread.

◦ My article is an interview as I wanted the audience to want to read it to find out more information about the attack and the story from the witness’ point of view. There is a short introductory paragraph to introduce the interview – again typical for a double page spread article.

◦ Finally, I included a small image of the witness to familiarise the readers with her and remind them of who she was in the documentary and I also included a page number as it is an important convention of a double page spread.

◦ I do not really feel that my documentary matches any newspaper double page spreads that I researched. This is because I wanted mine to be more unique and coincide with my other pieces of work. I kept the colour scheme the same – black and white with a hint of red – and used only white but a variety of different fonts. I kept it black and white so that it was similar to that of a newspaper however do not think it resembles the typical characteristics of one, which is what I set out to do. My headline is bold with the same font as my advert headline and the alliteration used is a typical feature of a newspaper headline. I included a quote next to the image as this was on of the main things that the witness said during the interview and I felt it would draw readers in as it is emotive. In the bottom left hand corner I included information the readers can use to contact the team (linked to the documentary) with any information they may have. This too, is a common feature of a double page spread. My article is an interview as I wanted the audience to want to read it to find out more information about the attack and the story from the witness’ point of view. There is a short introductory paragraph to introduce the interview – again typical for a double page spread article. Finally, I included a small image of the witness to familiarise the readers with her and remind them of who she was in the documentary and I also included a page number as it is an important convention of a double page spread.