Undertaking researchBy Eugene

What is research?“The systematic investigation into and study

of materials in order to establish facts and reach new conclusions.” –www.oxforddictionaries.com

Research Methods: InterviewsAn interview is when someone (the interviewer) asks a person/group

of people (the interviewee(s) questions surrounding a topic. There are one-on-one interviews and group interviews.

Advantages:

Less expensive

Questions can be clarified if not understood by the interviewee(s)

Qualitative data can be more precise

Cons:

You cannot get quantitative data as effectively.

Professional interviewers must be paid.

The questions must be written carefully as to not create bias, e.g. “You don’t believe in God

do you?” As opposed to “Do you believe in God?”

The interviewer effect: Due to characteristics of the interviewer, the interviewee may actually

answer falsely.

Research Methods: Survey/Questionnaire A survey or questionnaire is a series of questions that are simply filled in by the

respondent. There are mostly closed (yes/no or tick this box) questions. The difference between a survey and questionnaire is that a questionnaire is only given to a sample of

people, whereas a survey is given to much larger groups of people.

ProsYou will get larger amounts of data

than interviews, which allows for more precise results.

Anomalies are easier to identify.

ConsThey may not be answered correctly.

If the respondent doesn’t understand the question, you can’t be there to

make sense of it.Surveys are very expensive.

If done by post, they may not necessarily be delivered, and thus not filled in.

Research Methods: FacebookSites like Facebook allow the user to look at loads of people’s opinions, however not everybody will present their opinion on a certain subject, maybe just because it’s not within their interest. Hashtags can be used to filter information, however people are

quite averse to using that system on Facebook, and prefer to use it on Twitter.

ProsGargantuan amounts of opinions.Massive range of opinions

ConsNot everybody will be interested in

the topic you present.Hashtags do filter information,

however people don’t like to use them on this site.

Research Methods: TwitterTwitter is the best social networking site that can be used to find people’s

opinions on a certain subject in real time. Hashtags (#) allow tweets to be filtered so that they revolve around that subject.

ProsGargantuan amounts of opinions.Massive range of opinionsCertain subjects are easy to find

ConsOpinions may not be in depth because

of 140 character limit.

Research Methods: YouTubeYouTube is a video hosting site where users can post videos on any

subject.

ConsInformation may be invalid due to lack

of knowledge on the creator’s part.

ProsLots of videos on any subject.Easy to find videos on certain

subjectComments allow people to refine

information on the video.

Research methods comparison: InternetAccuracy: There will be many definitions when it

comes to looking for information on the internet, and not all of it will be accurate.

Ease of use: It’s incredibly easy to just type into a search engine and find results.

Speed: Unless your internet is slow, finding results will be very quick.

Research methods comparison: BookAccuracy: Because it provides information on a certain

subject, the one answer is likely to be very accurate.Ease of use: Main parts of information will be easy to find

via the index and glossary, less significant pieces of information will need additional effort to find.

Speed: It’s not nearly as fast as the internet, but it can be of decent speed depending on the significance of the information; bigger issues can be easily found in the index, whereas smaller issues will be harder to find.

My profileEugeneMale16Cynical of modern day pop cultureDecent-vast knowledge of movies, interest in criticismGamer for many yearsNot fond of sportsAvid internet userWide range of music interests, but mainly electronicFan of comedy television, occasional drama

The Dark Knight viewership profileMale15-30Enjoys comic books, particularly BatmanThose who watched and enjoyed other Batman

filmsThose who are fond of superhero filmsMainstream audience

The Dark Knight is a superhero film based on the DC Comics superhero Batman. It was directed by Christopher Nolan and was released in 2008.

It’s budget was $185 million andIt made $158,411,483 on it’s opening weekend, and$1,004,558,444 in total box office sales.

The Dark Knight summary

Questionnaire

Questions Answers

How old are you? 0-12=0 12-16=7 16+=0

Which gender are you? Male=5 Female=2

Have you seen The Dark Knight?

Yes=5 No=2

Have you seen Batman Begins?

Yes=3 No=4

Do you read comic books?

Yes=0 No=7

Do you read Batman comic books?

Yes=0 No=7

Do you like superhero films?

Yes=3 No=4

Do you like superhero films to be dark or more light-hearted?

Darker=3 Light-hearted=4

Do you like action films? Yes=5 No=2

Poster analysis

The giant bat symbol in flames stands out amongst the rest of the poster. It instantly catches the reader’s eye. It is instantly recognizable to most people with a quite small knowledge of Batman.It also gives the impression that this may have good action alongside the story.

The dark greys on the poster give the impression that the movie may be darker and more mature than it’s predecessor, which will attract those that are annoyed by light-hearted superhero films like Iron Man.The brightness of the text amongst the blacks and greys draws the attention of the reader to the names of the talented actors who will work on this movie. The surnames were also put in bold to make people recognise their names easier. This will attract those who enjoy the previous work by these actors.

The title differs from the colour scheme of greys and blacks so it’s eye catching. It’s also a throwback to the first Batman comic book, which will please fans of the comic books.

This is a reference to the trailer. In that the Joker talks about living in a world without rules. It gives the impression that the Joker will have a massive effect on Gotham. This idea is also emphasized by the massive flaming Batman logo.

Teaser trailer analysishttp://www.imdb.com/rg/VIDEO_PLAY/LINK//video/screenplay/vi2475360537/

The idea that this is the follow up to the hugely successful Batman Begins is teased by showing a black Batman logo with beams of light shooting past to clarify the shape.

The joker card reveals that the Joker will be this film’s villain. This will be pleasing to long time fans of the Batman comics.

The logo begins to break apart which signifies that Gotham and Batman are in greater danger than ever before.

2nd trailer analysishttp://www.imdb.com/video/screenplay/vi324468761/

This lets viewers know that despite the focus on action that the trailer conveys, there will still be humour.This image works as fan-service and teases the origin of Two-Face.

This also teases the Batcycle, one of

Batman’s tools that he uses throughout

the comics.

This is the first shot in the trailer, which highlights the focus on action that the movie will have.

A massive explosion

decimates a building. This

indicates that the Joker will have a

massive effect on Gotham.

3rd trailer analysisWhen pulling out a joker card from his pocket, he says “Here’s my card.” which may mean that despite how archaic the character is, there may still be comedic elements to him. This could please fans of Jack Nicholson who had a more comedic performance as The Joker.Bruce Wayne holds his cowl in his lap with a forlorn expression on his face while wearing the Batman gear. This presents the possibility of Bruce Wayne facing the moral consequences of being Batman; what’s the point of fighting crime, when my efforts will cause more crime? He may be questioning the existence of Batman as a whole.

http://www.imdb.com/video/screenplay/vi2313552153/

Jim Gordon destroys the Bat Signal with an axe. This may foreshadow the people losing their hope in Batman, stating that the Joker may have actually rendered him ineffective.

Harvey Dent sits in a car with a gun in his left hand. His face seems to be

slightly charred, more towards the left side of his face. Despite being Gotham’s

“White Knight”, he holds a gun which goes against what he stands for and

could ruin his reputation. This teases the origin of the character of Two-Face.

The Joker is throwing Rachel Dawes out of a window. The smile on his face

indicates that he is very anarchic and doesn’t care about the lives of others.

3rd trailer analysis

A building is exploding and you can see “spital” on the front of the building, which means that this is a hospital. This indicates that the Joker will kill hundreds, and not have the slightest bit of remorse.

http://www.imdb.com/video/screenplay/vi2313552153/

Marketing campaign 1

The bottom half of the newspaper works as fan service for those who are familiar with the character of Harvey Dent/Two Face.

This half of the poster may lead the audience to think that the people of Gotham have lost their faith in Batman.

Marketing campaign 2Batman is well known amongst children, so it will increase their awareness of the movie. It’s ironic however, because despite this and the age rating, The Dark Knight is not a film for kids.

Marketing campaign 3

This is a picture of www.whysoserious.com, which is a website that sent fans on a scavenger hunt to unlock a teaser trailer and an image of the Joker. In October 2007, there was another scavenger hunt that instructed fans to find and take pictures of clues in cities in the United States. The site eventually sent users to…

Marketing campaign-Part 4www.rorysdeathkiss.com where fans were instructed to send pictures of themselves dressed as the Joker. Those who sent in pictures were sent a digital version of the fictional newspaper “The Gotham Times”, which led to other websites.

Critical reception“Based on 289 reviews collected by Rotten Tomatoes,

the film received a 94% approval rating from critics, with an average score of 8.5/10.”

The Spill Crew, a group of critics based in Austin, Texas, gave their highest aggregate of “Better Than Sex!”

Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times awarded the film 4 out of 4 stars, and described it as a “haunted film that leaps beyond its origins and becomes an engrossing tragedy.”

Interview questionsHow do you feel about the idea of the

government tracking your internet usage?How do you feel about the idea of the

government tracking your internet usage for national security reasons?

Do you think that Google Glass is a threat to your privacy?

Interview questionsDo you take care when posting pictures on

social media?What was your reaction to the phone hacking

scandal two years ago?

Privacy on the internetRecently, privacy on the internet has become something of a commodity in

places such as the US and the UK.

Edward Snowden, a former CIA and NSA employee had revealed information about the NSA’s national surveillance program, PRISM. This has caused widespread panic all over the internet, because nobody likes the idea of being constantly monitored by the government.

Plus, targeted advertising has made people question their privacy. This is done by storing cookies on your computer which track which sites you go to. This may be only for commercial purposes, but some don’t feel that’s it’s good that companies have this info on you.

DefinitionsQuantitative data: Data which is represented

numerically. It’s primarily used for mass amounts of data.

Qualitative data: Data that is an opinion, rather than an answer predetermined by whoever created the question.

Research: “The systematic investigation into and study of materials in order to establish facts and reach new conclusions.”

DefinitionsClosed questions: Questions that have single word answers or

results in the ticking of a box when it comes to surveys. Retrieves quantitative data easier.

Open questions: Questions that have answers based on opinion, instead of answers that are predetermined by the one who created the question. Retrieves qualitative data easier.

Focus group: “A small group of people whose opinions about something (such as a politician or a new product) are studied to learn the opinions that can be expected from a larger group.”

DefinitionsDemographics: "A method of categorising income

bracket/status, age, gender, race and location of their audience. Once they know this, they can shape their text to appeal to a group with known reading/viewing/listening habits."

Psychographics: "The study of personality, values, attitudes, interests and lifestyles.“

Audience Research: “Research into the make-up and habits of the audience of a particular television or radio programme or network monitored.“

BibliographyResearch definition: Oxford English Dictionary

website http://oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/research

Demographics definition: mediaknowall.com http://www.mediaknowall.com/gcse/keyconceptsgcse/keycon.php?pageID=audience

Psychographics definition: Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychographic

Class definition: mediaknowall.com http://www.mediaknowall.com/gcse/keyconceptsgcse/keycon.php?pageID=audience

BibliographyCategories definition: TheFreeDictionary by Farlex

http://www.thefreedictionary.com/categories Definition 1

Gender definition: TheFreeDictionary by Farlex http://www.thefreedictionary.com/gender Definition 2

Camera definition: TheFreeDictionary by Farlex http://www.thefreedictionary.com/camera Definition 1

Focus group definition: Merriam-Webster dictionary http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/focus+group

BibliographySound definition: TheFreeDictionary by Farlex

http://www.thefreedictionary.com/sound Definition 1aMise-en-scene definition: TheFreeDictionary by Farlex

http://www.thefreedictionary.com/mise+en+scene Definition 1a

The Dark Knight advertising campaign pictures: http://www.slideshare.net/lukeharris95/the-dark-knight-marketing-campaign-13506608

The Dark Knight Rotten Tomatoes score: Wikipediahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Dark_Knight_(film)#Reception

BibliographyRoger Ebert quote:

http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/the-dark-knight-2008

The Dark Knight 1st trailer screenshots http://www.imdb.com/video/screenplay/vi2475360537/

The Dark Knight 2nd trailer screenshots http://www.imdb.com/video/screenplay/vi324468761/

Self AssessmentWhen it came to research I felt that I had a lot of information on

different research methods, but not enough on the pros and cons of some.

I think that I did the deconstruction of The Dark Knight pretty well, and I am pretty proud of my deconstruction of the poster and trailers. However, I think that some of those slides were somewhat bland and was mainly text accept for when I was required to use pictures.

When it came to the documentary, I think that I had some good information on opinions of privacy on the internet, but hardly any when it came to actually filming a documentary.

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