Evaluation Activity 4

Are target audience for our media product will be mainly aimed at a more middle age group between 18-40 years of age.

                                                                                       This age group seem to acknowledge things with a more focused understanding. Mature audiences are more likely to shop in stores, such as water stones, WH Smiths and HMV which will be a suitable market to attract this particular age group to buy films of our selected genre.  Classical music will be more appropriate for the 20-40 age group.


Tv programmes that will attract an audience of this age group will be soap/dramas, crime investigation such as CSI, murder she wrote etc. 

 

We chose this age group as an audience for our film because there is a strong sinister feel , which is present throughout the course of our opening sequence, Since our opening sequence is  a psychological thriller, it appears to be far too sophisticated for teen age group , which therefore is why we chose this age group as our target audience.

By Jamie Hutton 

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Yharnna Joseph -Evaluation 2

Evaluation Activity 2

For our groups opening sequence , we chose the film scream for our Stimuli , Since we believed that both plots shared vast similarities . However for our characrter similarities task , I have decided to study Sidney who is acted by Neve Campbell and compare her to the main character in our opening sequence , Mrs Edwards who is acted by Marie Branning.
The main reason for choosing Sidney as a comparison to our main character; Suzann Edwards , is that throughout the course of both sequels they are both presented as the victims , in which the Villain is after. Both characters are trapped within a familiar yet enclosed environment where there is also an intruder .
The screen grab to the left displays the two characters , at different times throughout the sequel. However what instantly comes to light is the alarmed expression that they both share on their face, this expression suggests to the audience that a frightful event is soon to occur , which creates anxiety and suspense amongst the audience. Both images are captured , whilst both charcters are in mid-action , which suggests that they may be moving eratic due to fear .

An additional prop which becomes extremely effective in building up suspense , is a telephone.
As the audience are oblivious as to what is being said on the phone.In this screen shot we are able to see another simularity within the two characters in terms of expressions , as they both share a rather dazed expression on their face , whilst taking the phone call , almost as if they're confused as to what is about to happen.
They also both look startled.

 In terms of Appearence the two characters do not share much simularities , Although they are both victimised females, they're garmets contrast immensely .
Sideney's appearence appears more casual and relaxed suited for her college lifestyle, whereas Suzanne's clothing looks more formal , which correlates well with the idea of her being at work , writing up a statement, In addition to this Suzanne's formal garmets cause her to look older than Sidney.  An addiotional simularity is the dark hair colour which is of a short length .

Evaluation Activity 1- Screen shots from the opening sequence

Setting-the setting for our film was in our school, we used a teachers office to show that the main character was a teacher/ someone of importance. also we wanted it to be set at night and we filmed during the day so we had to black out the windows with black sugar paper and turn the lights off in the corridor to get the effect that it was night time

Costumes-The main character "Mrs Edwards" was dressed in a plain black skirt and a white shirt to show that she had been at work all day and that she is an authoritative figure we also gave her glasses to make her look intelligent.

Props- To create a busy school environment we covered the desk in papers and books and cups to make it look like "Mrs Edwards" had been working hard at her desk we also put a lamp on the side to help create the effect it was late at night and give it an eerie feel

Camera work/editing- we used a variety of shots while filming such as long shots of the teacher at her desk, close ups of her writing, low angles of her looking at the clock to show her authority etc. during the editing we didn't really use to many effects because we wanted to focus more on the content of the film and the music rather than the editing so we only put a few effects on the images. for the transitions we only used cuts to keep to the rules of continuity editing

Special effects- we didnt use any special effects when doing to opening sequence to our film as we didnt want it to look to false or over the top and we tried to keep it realistic as possible 

Title font and style- we chose a school script so it would relate to the school setting. We also tried to keep the spooky feel by getting by just putting it on a black background with white writing so it would stand out but be simple at the same time so it didn't look to over the top



Story and how the opening sets it up- the opening starts with a panning shot to the left to introduce the setting. it also introduces the character as she is sitting at the desk working hard. The cluttering on the desk shows that the teacher is hardworking and the dark lighting shows a late time of day, 



Genre and how the opening suggests it - As it is dark lighting this helps to create a negative atmosphere signifying that it is a horror. Also we can see in the opening that the teacher is alone, an isolated setting helps to see that she could be in danger and that no one can be there to back her up if she is in trouble. 



How characters are introduced - The victim in our sequence is the first character introduced, the victim is portrayed as isolated and fragile, however also stressed at the amount of work they have to do. However, the villian is shown in the last shot of our sequence, they are portrayed as someone with hidden identity as they are dressed all in black, they also seem psycho as they are just staring at the victim which we then realise that he has been following her. 



Shot 10 - medium close up from a high angle to show her vulnerability of the teacher peering round the door frame to see who is there 



Shot 11 - medium close up of the teacher slowly walking down the corridor to explore where the bang came from



Shot 12 - medium close up from a low angle to show that she still has some authority. The lights have just been switched off and the teacher turns around to see who has done it



Shot 13 - a long shot of the villian at the end of the corridor outside the teacher office all dressed in black to show he is not a nice character and the the darkness to hide his identity

By Louise Jarvis and Evie Mullahy

Evaluation part 2

one of the characters I am go going to compare is the victim who is the teacher with the innocent character in scream.


similarities;
The first similarity is that they are both woman, which can be seen as a weaker character within some film genres.


They both are being stalked/followed by a male killer 
Both victims seem very stressed and in dis pear 


Differences;
The differences is that they both are surrounded by a different setting which can tell us a lot about the character as our victim is in a office late at night shows a busy individual, where as in scream the victim is baby sitting in a house. 


Both have different reasons why they have a villain after them, in our sequence the teacher is writing a report to a murder she witnessed, as in scream the victim is killed for no reason. 

By Jamie Hutton

War of the Worlds

War of the Worlds is a 2005 American science fiction, directed by Steven Spielberg.

The editing used within war of the worlds creates the appearance of the aliens as they emerge out of nowhere. The use of sound helps build the tension of that something’s going to happen as the non digetic music used is very alarming and fast pace.  The dialogue screaming from the people show the fear. The cinematography is used very well as a low angle is used from the peoples view looking at this monster, alien arousing from the ground to show its authority and power of how much trepidation it creates. High angles are used to show how vulnerable and innocent the people are.

No sound is used for a short while to nerve the tension of what is going to happen. As the monster starts attacking editing is brought in again as laser beams from the creature assail the scared group of people surrounded in the setting. A prop used within the sequence is a camera what is dropped and recording this footage, which may symbolise importance. a very serious piece, which had to combine necessary frightening atmosphere with propulsively rhythmic drive for the action scenes.

A tracking shot is used as it follows the main character (Tom Cruise) running from this attack. Close ups of people being erased is shown to show the horrid effects and that this creature is seen as the danger within the film. As our character comes into hiding a close up of his face is shown to identify the shock through his facial expressions.

The lighting is very dimmed maybe to hint that it is very serious. The body gesture of the character shows his fear as his trying to get away from this attack from aliens. His clothing shows us that he is a strong minded character with the use of dark colours.

The performances of the main character was played very well as the use of dialogue, body language was set right for the action of this character, mostly for the enemy character annotations, editing was used various occasions by Steven Spielberg. 

By Jamie Hutton

Home Alone

Home Alone is a 1990 American comedy family film directed by Chris Columbus . An eight-year-old boy, who is mistakenly left behind when his family flies to Paris for their Christmas holiday.

Home alone has a typical narrative structure that could be followed my Todrovs theory. The equilibrium which is something that classifies as a typical narrative structure situation. Disequilibrium is something that changes the set of circumstances and the last stage is the resolution altered the recognisable genre which in this case is a family/comedy.

The first scene of the family film begins with an establishing shot to recognise the setting  of the family home. This shot captures what season it is as well as their is snow outside and the use of props lighting that decorates the house to show its Christmas which is seen as a family holiday break, ironic to the genre of the film. The characters within the house are all busy and kids and parents again to show the family genre and the equilibrium as it relates to a typical family home lifestyle. The crowded house of the family represent its busy as a person dressed as a police officer is not succeeding in getting their attention as they completely ignore him which brings out the humour. We are introduced to the main character within the sequel as he firstly has the main speech in the scene which is focused on more with a close up shot of him. He is seen as a typical young boy as he the dialogue used; diegetic shows that he wants to do something that is not suitable for him and interrupting his mother whilst she’s on the phone. A high angle looking down at Kevin captures the innocence of the child as he is only young and very venerable. As a innocent character he looks to his older siblings to help him pack a suit case as it’s his first time, this all revolves around Todrvos narrative theory as it is a typical equilibrium to a start of a family comedy genre, showing a typical family.

The disequilibrium occurs in the next scene as the power cuts off over night, which turns off the alarm clock set to wake up the next morning for their trip to France for Christmas.  Fast cross cutting is used to show the family in a rush to get to the airport. Again which symbolises a typical family action as they are running through the airport. The use of non-deigetic music is used as its fast pace and related to the family season Christmas. (run run Rudolph). The use of cross cutting is used again as the family seem relived they all made it except a medium shot captures the young innocent boy Kevin at home just waking up, which relates to the genre as humorous. A voice over is used as Kevin sits and thinks about what his family said bout him which he didn’t like , a close up identifies an opposite reaction of what a young boy would have if he was left at home as he seems very excited. The use of props, effects and lighting establish Kevin doing things at home that he was not allowed within the first scene. He gets scared after watching a film and screams for “MOM!!!”   , captures that he is only a child then related back to his mother as she feels as though she has forgotten her something; someone then realises her son and acts in a very thus rated way as any other mum would. This relates to Todrovs theory as this is where the problem begins. The two burglars are scene within the disequilibrium which makes the problem harder to fix.

The resolution takes place towards the end, as the main character Kevin the young child stops the burglars from breaking in to his house and is seen as a hero, whilst his mother and family are making their journey back to come home to him on Christmas day, again links with the genre family holiday.

The main characters relationship, Kevin with his family is which causes the disequilibrium as he argues with them.  His character seems very lively and seen as a typical child as he wants to be older than what he is and do things which he may not be suitable for yet. As the main character he plays an effect on the narrative, as he acts against the equilibrium causing the start of the disequilibrium, which id followed on by the resolution in the end finishing with a happy scene. In conclusion Todrovs theory can be used to explain the three stages of the family/comedy film Home alone as it relates to the genre itself.

by Jamie Hutton

Evaluation Part 2

How does your media product represent particular social groups?

In our opening sequence we wanted to make it clear what part each of the characters played so that the audience will immediately know what genre we have chosen for out open sequence. We based our idea of the villian on the villan of Scream. We based it on there as the opening sequences are similar, for example they both get in contact with the victim first by phone. Due to our knowledge in media films, we have watched alot of horror films so we can gain an overall stereotypical view of a villian. The main conventions we have found of a villian is that they wear dark clothes, and could have a mask so this gives them a hidden identity. Also, they usually have a weapon ready to show their dangerous and again reinforce that they are a villian. 


We compared the similarities and differences between our 'Over Time' villian and the 'Scream' villian. The similarities between these two characters, is that they both have a hidden identity this is so that they create a negative affect on the atmosphere and that they wont be easily seen, both the characters are wearing black. Another similarity is that they both target a vulnerable woman, this is maybe because they may feel like they have authority over the woman. Our third similarity is that they both spy on the character beforehand, in our opening sequence we do not see that our character is spying however we are given an indication that they are as the phone call beforehand reveals that the villian was ringing her and then hanging up making sure she was alone, in Scream we can see that the villian spies on his victim beforehand as he also rings her and talks to her and then also we can tell by the use of over the shoulder and point of view shots he has of the young victim. Our last similarity between these two villians is that they both target in an isolated setting, this is very stereotypical as no villian would target there victim in a crowded area unless they wanted to get caught! Our villian captures the victim in an empty eerie school where she is working overtime, and in Scream the villian targets their victim while she is alone in her house watching a film. 


However, there are also some key differences between these villians, for example our villian does not wear a mask, we chose for the villian not to wear a mask as we didn't want the character to come across too stereotypical, we just wanted to keep it realistic with just a little bit of hidden identity to create a sense of mystery, however, in Scream their villian is wearing a mask, this may relate to their genre more as the genre of Scream is a horror, whereas we wanted to have our genre as a psychological thriller. Another difference between these two villians is that in our opening sequence our villian is shown to have no weapons, we decided against this for the same reason as before with the masks as we wanted to keep a sense of mystery with the villian character and keep the audience guessing with what could happen to the victim after the opening sequence and how the villian tries to attempt to create danger for our victim, however within Scream they use a weapon which helps us follow the narrative as we also know what is going to happen and the villians intentions. Our last difference is that in our sequence our villian doesn't talk, we wanted to keep our opening sequence mysterious but with a sense of vulnerability, we wanted to have the non diegetic music playing as if you have a lot of talking then it could take away from the sense of fear, as the audience will find out too much. However, in Scream, we hear the villian talking to the victim on the phone, this gives us an idea that even though we havent seen the villian that someone is watching the victim, however it also starts to scare the victim even though nothing has happened yet so it feels her with vulnerability and dread. 

Second evaluation task -Homestudy

Evaluation activity two-

How does our Media product represent particular social Groups ?

Pick a key character of our opening , take a screen grab of a reasonable size image of them ... think of 1 or more characters from other films, and the simularities and differences that they share.

Find an image on the web , of that or those characters from the web , put them in photoshop together  as a split screen.

Export the split screen image as a jpeg, and drop onto our blog, where we then have to write about the simularities and differences in terms of characters , appearence ,costume , role in the film ect.

By Evie Mullahy & Louise Jarvis

Evaluation of Editing

First session: (Old sequence) For our first session, we all split up to do the editing, Jamie Hutton was in charge of sound. Yharnna Joseph was in charge of font, and Evie Mullahy and Louise Jarvis was in charge of editing the clips. For Evie Mullahy and Louise Jarvis, we found the editing worked alright, we first placed all the clips together, and for the flashbacks we made it clear that they were a flashback by changing the colour of the clips to sepia, the only problem we had with editing was that we wanted to have a 'flash' of light, and that was extremely hard to find as we had to try and create it. Our inspiration came from the opening sequence of Seven when the flashes of still images appear on screen. However, it was impossible to create the effect on iMovie HD. 


Second Session: (New sequence) Evie Mullahy and Louise Jarvis were editing the new clips and Jamie Hutton was doing sound, however we found it extremely different as some of our extremely good shots were not long enough, so we found that we had to re-film some of the shots. However, we put all the shots in order for the sequence to make sense. However, there was not much we could do as alot of the shots were too shot to be used. Jamie Hutton was creating the diegetic and non-diegetic sound for our new opening sequence we created. the use of garage band was useful as it helped to put different sounds together. some of the diegetic sound had to be edited out which i  erased as it made it sound un professional, overall the sound is excellent.


Third Session: (New sequence) Evie Mullahy and Louise Jarvis, after we have finished re-filming the new clips, we have come in to put the clips on to the computer, however the camera has not been working properly, as it is taking along time to import. So we are presently waiting for the camera to get working, so we can start putting the new clips in to the sequence and in to order and we can start doing the transitions.


Fourth session: (New sequence) Louise and Evie completed the sound for the film and moved on to creating titles for our opening sequence. As the film is psychological thriller we had to look for disturbing writing which will identify the genre of the film, we found many different ones to choose from after choosing them we chose a front called 'all over again' however we decided to put the titles at the end of the sequence and one where the first character is shown. We had some difficulty with this as the font would load but we over came this problem and the title sequence worded well with the film creating a spooky but clever effect. For our last bit of editing we had to incorporate a production company logo at the start of our opening film for it to seem professional. We done this by getting a clip off of youtube and cutting and editing it in to our clip. This became a problem however, as we didn't do this when we uploaded it before to youtube, so we had to upload the clip with the production logo in and then upload it to our blog. 


(We all changed roles in the end and Evie Mullahy and Louise Jarvis were in charge of cutting the continuity editing, inputting the sound in to our sequence and the titles, Yharnna found the sound, and Yharnna and Jamie also carried on with the evaluation tasks on the blog)


By Evie Mullahy,Louise Jarvis

Evaluation of Filming

First session: (Old sequence) For our first session of filming, Evie Mullahy and Louise Jarvis went to Physicals gym to film the self video of Louise (the victim) walking out of the gym, and the villian following where she went, this worked well and we done two shots of this so we can choose the best one, however our first shot we saw we left the umbrella on the floor, so we chose to use the second shot. For the next part of the sequence we wanted to get a shot of Louise walking in to an alley way so this would create an isolated setting which fits the conventions of a thriller. We tried this shot several times from different angles, and we had some complications for example there was people coming through the alleyway at one particular time. However, the weather was good for our genre as it was raining which showed a negative setting. We then thought that we recorded over the first lot of footage coming out of the gym so we had to go back and re film that, however, the lighting was correct, luckily we realised that we didn't film over it. 


Second Session: (Old sequence) For our second session, Evie Mullahy and Louise Jarvis, filmed the part of the film where the villian is looking in the mirror and getting ready to capture the girl and also when he has captured the girl, and he is in the shed and toturing her. We filmed this at Evies house, Phil was our villian and we prepared by doing all the makeup for both of the characters. We found it hard to film as we had no tripod, as we used a different camera which wouldn't fit on to the tripod. Overall, the session worked quite well, and we were very pleased with all parts of mise-en-scene and the footage that we collected. 


Third Session: (Old sequence) For our third session, we all worked together here, and our objective was to show that the villian had been stalking the victim for some time, we printed out about 30 pictures of Louise who was the victim and cut them out, drew on them and stuck them to a piece of wood in Evies shed. This footage was very time consuming as it took a long time to gather all of the pictures, however when we eventually filmed it, we felt it looked really effective and we achieved our objective.


Fourth Session: (New sequence) As previously explained in another post in the blog, we felt that we should re film our sequence and change the story line as there was not enough content. So for 2 hours, Evie Mullahy, Louise Jarvis and Jamie Hutton, re filmed a different sequence. Our villian was Marie Browning, it took half an hour for us to eventually start filming as we had to create the correct lighting, so we stuck black sandpaper on the walls so that we could create a midnight effect, we also had to organise the office, we made it look like the teacher was very messy and also in a very stressful position by putting papers everywhere on the desk. This filming session was pinochle as we needed to complete all filming by the end. We felt we worked really well as a group and all contributed to all decisions that we made and made sure everyone was happy so that we didn't make the same mistake again. 


Fifth Session: (New sequence) This session of filming was not planned, as we thought we captured all footage, however, when we put it on to the computers to start editing we found that the shots were all just a little bit too short, so we had to re-film bits. Evie Mullahy and Louise Jarvis were the ones filming this session, and we filmed a total of 8 shots. This was hard to do as we had to make sure that every aspect of mise-en-scene was correct from when we previously filmed. However with the lighting this time it was much more beneficial as it was dark outfit which is what we wanted to achieve. It took about half an hour to film the final few scenes, and we were extremely pleased that we re-filmed again. 


By Evie Mullahy and Louise Jarvis