Showing posts with label Evaluation. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Evaluation. Show all posts
Monday, 31 January 2011
4)Who would be the audience for your media product? 5) How did you attract/address your audience?
4) Target audience
As you can see by the response and feedback from the interview, my target audience samples both took a preferred reading to the text. It may have challenged real media product conventions, but my target audience understood the text in the way I intended. When addressing my audience I used an informal address, communicating through images and symbols rather then direct speech.
(Click on bottom right link "View on Slideshare" to see writing in clearer detail)
5) Response and Interview
Response:
Interview:
As you can see by the response and feedback from the interview, my target audience samples both took a preferred reading to the text. It may have challenged real media product conventions, but my target audience understood the text in the way I intended. When addressing my audience I used an informal address, communicating through images and symbols rather then direct speech.
3) What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?
Distribution consists of delivery, advertising & marketing. In a market dominated by the major studios, film has become a medium in conflict between independent creativity & artistic approach, against profitable mainstream 'blockbuster' cinema.
Achieving public interest in independent film is increasingly difficult due to the structure of film distribution. Worth $60,000,000,000 annually, the 'majors' of;
etc., reap the rewards of their dominance spanning all aspects of film; production, distribution and exhibition. This is called being vertically integrated, and is the reason behind the major studios large margins, as they are able to both produce and distribute film - controlling then which are exhibited and through what distribution window the films are published. (be that DVD, Terrestrial or Satellite TV).
As a low-budget psychological horror, my title sequence would be better aimed at the independent market where less professional effects and lower production quality are accepted as an inevitable flaw. This would allow our target audience, that of mature adults, to experience our film from an independent cinema, hundreds of which exist across the UK such as the in Birmingham, in comparison to the Major's run studios across the states . However, distribution of my film could be aided by viral marketing, an advertising form that has become increasingly more popular even by mainstream cinema. Richard Gale uses his YouTube account, to advertise and popularise his short films. This is because YouTube is one of the most viewed website on the Internet and open to a large audience, giving a video a higher chance of success then through a smaller distribution window.
I think I could make use of YouTube here, releasing my film onto YouTube is not enough alone however. Correct tags and knowing more popular YouTube users for referencing us would create a greater chance of success, perhaps creating my own website simply teasing images would be a form advertising I could explore, as used before by 'Cloverfield'.
Made with a budget of only $320,000 however, and grossing $47,000,000, John Carpenter's 'Halloween' is a title that managed to establish itself as a dominant force in the industry down to Carpenters willingness to create an independent film, but use the majors' ability to successfully distribute it across the market resulting in great success for both parties. This is the path i would follow when distributing my film, because i feel distributors would be willing to increase the own credibility by releasing an independent film that challenges conventions of films they would usually release, particularly in my film's genre.
1) In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?
Detailed analysis of particular conventions -
From the start of our title sequence, we wanted to begin with an establishing shot of a location that would reflect the tone of our film. When researching location establishing shots in real media products, we began to 
search outside the boundaries of our genre, and found this in 'Manhattan'. The bill-board sets the jazz art - Deco mood of the film in it's title sequence, and we felt a similar sign researched on location in Worcester would create the same effect. Although, unlike 'Manhattan' our film is not titled 'Northwick', from the start of our sequence until five seconds in we feel we have used a common convention from a real media product successfully. In the first 30 seconds of our film we used a mix of long takes & slow fade In's to establish a dark ominous, scene setting piece of film. We realised this idea of editing from our research for our genre, when studying 'Psycho' by Alfred Hitchcock. (Below) Hitchcock uses a slow fade-in to reveal the first location of the film.
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We used this convention , common across the majority of real title sequences, as a means of editing to establish our location.
<----------> Cinematography is always key to producing a successful real media product that is camera - oriented. We realised this when creating 'Hurt', knowing that editing would not be enough to create a successful title sequence. We knew we wanted from the beginning a long take that would establish sound and film together. Inspired by the long take in the 'Fallout 3 Trailer' , we set about using a record player and a steady cam to try and ensure we used the same track back which was used so effectively throughout the entire trailer's sequence. Even though the trailer does not apply from our own category of genre, it remains a real media product that reminded us of traditional media conventions and the importance of well positioned shots.
Developing conventions :
Our use of sound uses common conventions of the psychological horror genre, then developing this to create something that allows us to differentiate our score from those of other real media products. For example, the first 30 seconds of 'Hurt' uses a raw, screeching synth
to disturb and unsettle the viewer. This is because when planning and researching earlier, we discovered many films of the genre, such as 'Seven' which share this convention of using sound to unsettle their audience, connoting danger from the 'get go'.
to disturb and unsettle the viewer. This is because when planning and researching earlier, we discovered many films of the genre, such as 'Seven' which share this convention of using sound to unsettle their audience, connoting danger from the 'get go'.
We then decided to
develop our use of Title sequences' soundtrack by editing a trademark free version of Tschakovsky's 'Swan Lake' and using it for the latter 2/3's of the film. (Download Number 6. http://freeplaymusicclassic.com/search/keyword_search.php)
When researching fonts for titles in other films of our genre, we came across flamboyant styles of text most frequently, such as the font found in 'The Others (Right).
We felt to differentiate our film from others in the Psychological Horror category, we had to use a font that would subvert the usual common font. So no extravagant font was used, merely a simple, capital lettered font underlined with the title of the film. (Left)
Challenging conventions :
Common throughout the majority of title sequences, is the use of many titles - establishing directors, producers, actors etc. However, we felt if we refused to do this, and simplify a title sequence by showing only the film title, thus reducing it to it's simplest form. It would be unique against a genre (and industry) that uses titles to such an extent that the audience's attention levels would decline. In my research I found only one other film to keep informative titles hidden, as to remain focus on the film not the titles - this being Capello's 'Apocalypse Now'.
Mise-En-Scene was a convention of film that we immediately wished to challenge. Rather then use literal, cold instruments seen in Seven, we aimed to challenge the use of objects on stage by permissing Mannequins, Masks, Suits and Roses inside our unique filming location. (Below) We used such items to allow the audience to interpret meaning from our title sequence, not just a summary idea of the purpose of our title sequence, but the meaning behind each shot, each item. For example ,the rose falling with a slow motion effect positioned on the clip could connote romance dying, falling - the possibilities with interpretive objects truly are limitless.
When researching fonts for titles in other films of our genre, we came across flamboyant styles of text most frequently, such as the font found in 'The Others (Right).
Challenging conventions :
Common throughout the majority of title sequences, is the use of many titles - establishing directors, producers, actors etc. However, we felt if we
Mise-En-Scene was a convention of film that we immediately wished to challenge. Rather then use literal, cold instruments seen in Seven, we aimed to challenge the use of objects on stage by permissing Mannequins, Masks, Suits and
Monday, 11 October 2010
Evaluation of sequence 1
When filming sequence 1 we came across a number of issues which, for some reason or another, we were not able to resolve at the time. Reflecting on these problems, post - production, it is easy to understand where these issues stemmed from, and how to prevent them from occurring again.
One of these issues was the placement of the camera. Throughout the film, there are a wide range of different camera shots, ranging from over the shoulder shots, to low shots. However, as our method of filming was to film each cut individually (in chronological order) whenever we needed to take a shot again from a position used earlier in the film, we couldn't quite get the camera where it was before. To resolve this issue, next time we will work out all the different camera angles needed throughout the film, and then take all the cuts from a single position, one after another. This should make sure the camera stays in the same position for a set amount of cuts, making the film look more professional and tidy.
Another issue was that of limb direction. For one cut, when I was sitting down and talking to the other character, my hands were down by my side, in the next cut my hands instantly moved to being on my lap. This creates an unprofessional impression of the film, and causes the audience to lose confidence in any credibility of the action on screen. To prevent this from occurring again, we shall keep the actors' body positions in the same stance when a shot ends, and not move instantly afterwards. This means we can then record the next shot afterwards whilst maintaining a similar body position for the next cut.
Overall i believe that whilst we had issues that cropped up during the making of the film, which stemmed mainly from poor pre – planning, we had many good features which created a credible short film. Our ability to do continuity editing was highlighted by the fact that the movement of the actor walking through the door is exactly similar between the low shot in the corridor and the over the shoulder shot in the classroom. Our line of interaction, using the 180 degree rule, maintained the credibility of the conversation. Yet, improvements for better planning pre-production, can and will be made for next time.
One of these issues was the placement of the camera. Throughout the film, there are a wide range of different camera shots, ranging from over the shoulder shots, to low shots. However, as our method of filming was to film each cut individually (in chronological order) whenever we needed to take a shot again from a position used earlier in the film, we couldn't quite get the camera where it was before. To resolve this issue, next time we will work out all the different camera angles needed throughout the film, and then take all the cuts from a single position, one after another. This should make sure the camera stays in the same position for a set amount of cuts, making the film look more professional and tidy.
Another issue was that of limb direction. For one cut, when I was sitting down and talking to the other character, my hands were down by my side, in the next cut my hands instantly moved to being on my lap. This creates an unprofessional impression of the film, and causes the audience to lose confidence in any credibility of the action on screen. To prevent this from occurring again, we shall keep the actors' body positions in the same stance when a shot ends, and not move instantly afterwards. This means we can then record the next shot afterwards whilst maintaining a similar body position for the next cut.
Overall i believe that whilst we had issues that cropped up during the making of the film, which stemmed mainly from poor pre – planning, we had many good features which created a credible short film. Our ability to do continuity editing was highlighted by the fact that the movement of the actor walking through the door is exactly similar between the low shot in the corridor and the over the shoulder shot in the classroom. Our line of interaction, using the 180 degree rule, maintained the credibility of the conversation. Yet, improvements for better planning pre-production, can and will be made for next time.
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