Evaluation Question 7 - Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product?

Since the preliminary task I have learnt many skills on how to improve on the key areas when it comes to creating an original opening to a film.

One of the areas that I have seen improvement in is my use of camera work when comparing my preliminary task to the final film opening. We used a range of different shots from medium shots to long shots. Throughout recording the footage for the preliminary I wasn't aware of how unstable the shots were, as seen throughout the task it is clear that the pan shots were unstable. This showed that I needed to be more careful when it came to using any shots that included moving the camera whether it be a pan, tracking and even static shot. This is reflected in my final product as at 1:22 the pan shot is shown to be much more stable and smooth and is effective in leaving what the antagonist is doing to the victim to the audience’s imagination. Another aspect I have improved on is making sure that the lighting doesn't directly affect how the shot turned out on camera. At 0:18 the following shot is shown to be affected by the light coming from the window as it removes a large amount of detail on the characters face which was not planned during preliminary, this was something that I had not considered about when it came to doing footage. This was reflected back on my final product as when we were filming the shots that are outside the sunlight made it feel too welcoming and didn’t fit the themes that I was planning for so I included a black tint and lowered the brightness to solve the problem of the sunlight, furthermore, I changed the colour palette to make it seem more cold than warm.

The editing in my final film opening has also improved massively throughout the course, I was using CS5 Premier Pro for editing my final product. Although I also used it for editing my preliminary the amount of features I knew about the software in general was limited to the basics such as cutting and moving shots around. A feature I learned to utilise during the year was effects that change the colouring of the shots to help set the tone and develop the desired themes for the opening. As seen in my preliminary task, it has some similar themes when compared to my final film opening, however, the use of changing colour really helped to show the tone and themes to the audience much more effectively. When editing the shots together my preliminary shows that I had some idea of how to make the look smooth but there were still a few shots that made it feel a bit jumpy in the preliminary, however, in my final product there were a few shots that still had this problem but I solved this by putting shots of other things happening in the opening to keep the opening feeling smooth editing wise. The match action shot that I included in my final product has improved since the preliminary as learning more about the editing software helped to make the shot look more smooth and fits the movement the characters with the changing of shot position and angle.

Another feature I learned was how to adjust the volume for shots and how to change volume for specific parts of the shot. For example, in my final edit wherever there was dialogue in the opening I adjusted the audio so that it could be heard over the music being played throughout. In my preliminary I left the sound in and this was an issue as the sound of classrooms could be heard in the background, ruining the feeling of the footage portraying the characters of being the only ones there, furthermore, I did not include the use of music in preliminary, this failed to help bring the desired effect when mixed with the background noise. This improved in my final edit as I have included background music and have adjusted diegetic noises to be audible but have changed it so that the non-diegetic sounds are much more prominent.

I was limited to having the setting of my preliminary being on school grounds due to time restrictions. Although, even if this did affect the mood I was planning to have overall, the costume worked quite well with the setting considering the two main characters were wearing smart attire and the recording location was school grounds. However, when it came to my final edit the amount of time we had available to complete the footage and edit helped me to create a much more in depth opening. 

Evaluation Question 6 - What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?

Evaluation Question 5 - How did you attract/address your audience

The target audience for my film was mainly aimed at mostly males of the ages of 15 - 34 year olds and I believe that our group successfully managed to create an opening that attracts my target audience. To decide how best to come up with what the target audience is and how to go about attracting them into watching the film it was important that an age rating was chosen before setting out to record the opening footage. From my research I had decided on a BBFC rating of 15, this would make sure that we were not too restricted in what we could include, however, we can't go overboard. Once decided it then allowed our group to go ahead and think about what we need to include to attract our audience.

When it came to mise-en-scene each main character that was included in the opening was made to attract a separate part of the target audience. Firstly, Alpha is seen to be wearing the same clothing as Delta, however, the main difference between them is the fact that Alpha is not wearing a tactical vest, this is used to show that even though Alpha is still cautious about the job he is considered more carefree and laid back about the situation as he doesn't wear a tactical vest and eventually removes his goggles and mask, making him easily identifiable by any possible survivors. This would mainly associate with teens as people around this age are known to be incredibly laidback and don't have much to worry about. Delta on the other hand is opposite, wearing a tactical vest is made to show that he is much more serious and focused on the situation when compared to Alpha. This is used to associate with older audiences that have finished their education and have jobs, this is because older audiences can associate with the sense of responsible much more easily than that of younger teenage audiences. When it comes to one the antagonists named 'The Butcher' this character although is mentally ill is shown to be wearing a suit, which represents that he likes stability even if in his own twisted way, this attracts an audience of any age as younger audiences will find him interesting as he likes to use knives compared to guns and would appeal to older audiences as he has his own stability among the men he leads in his organisation. When it comes to Geoff Moses, his character is directed towards film fans that enjoy an antagonist that has planned ahead and likes to toy with his prey. Also, Geoff Moses is shown to have no weapon of any kind which is used to show the audience that he feels in control of the situation and that everything is going according to his plan.

The sounds in the opening is mainly just a non-digetic background and a few pieces of dialogue here and there, but the background track I feel is what draws the audience's attention as the style of track used is a common convention in the thriller genre and I feel that people will be more willing to watch the film further if past experiences of films with that style of track are films that the person has enjoyed. Also, the track helps set a tone for the film that I believe will make the audience wish to watch on and learn about each character more as little to no back story is presented in the opening.

One of the shots used is the low angle medium shot for the character Geoff Moses, this shot highlights that the even though the character hasn't spoken yet the audience can assume that he is quite powerful as the view the audience get is him towering over the audience to show that he is more dominant, this attracts the audience as the film gives them the sense of mystery that is expected out of the thriller genre, making them want to watch on.

Another shot that is used is an over the shoulder shot with the protagonists, the fact that the shot is close up to the character is to make the audience feel as though they are a part of the protagonists team and would create a feeling of suspense as the audience is unable to see around the corner, when people do appear around the corner and Alpha starts the fight between the guards the purpose is to make the audience in a way tense up as a fight has now begun and they are unaware if it was part of their plan or not. The next following shots of them fighting the guards is to show the trust that they have for each other as they both have faith in the others abilities to take their respective men out, this would make the audience curious as to how they became so close and trust each other with their very lives, making the audience want to see how they develop throughout  the film, the back story for each and if they can remain trustworthy to each other as the film progresses.

Evaluation Question 4 - Who would be the audience for your media product?

The audience for my film would be between the ages of 15 – 34 and dominantly more towards the male gender rather than females. The reason my film would appeal to this target audience is due to the violent nature of the film being a main theme of the film. My opening builds up the film with a sense of mystery as it makes people curious who the man walking into the garage is and gives of a tense atmosphere. I believe that thriller films that are based around a dark atmosphere require having a dull colouring and dim lighting that give off a realistic feeling to the film. I want my film to be based off realistic themes; however, I have made the situation I created in the opening unrealistic in a sense as a way of adding some excitement to the film to draw in an audience. My film would include an average amount of violence as I would be including some action scenes, although, when it comes to developing the story it would mainly be in separate scenes and would allow people who would prefer the story to action as a way for them to enjoy the film.

Social Grades

When it comes to the social grades in my film I believe that my audience would be similar to that of the film Se7en. This is mainly due to the film being similar in its themes and how it executes those through their characters, mainly the protagonists and antagonist. I feel that my film will have a similar male to female ratio as the film is more directed towards what a male audience enjoy out of a film, furthermore the fact that there is no leading female protagonist would mean that a female audience would not feel as connected as the males would to the protagonists. Using The National Readership Survey the majority of people who would watch my film would be in the C1 and some in the C2 class. The people who enjoy a film based around the themes of violence, crime and betrayal will most likely find this film enjoyable. However, this may not be the only types of people that would enjoy watching this film, although it mainly interests them there might be other people that would find something to enjoy about the film as it includes a complex plot along with the mix of action and suspense meaning that even some people from the A and B class may also enjoy the film for the reason that my film introduces itself along with a complex plot that they may find interesting.

The 4Cs

Based off of the 4Cs my audience will people explorers. I feel that explorers would consider watching my film as it is not a part of a brand and would thus make them more likely to watch their film as they are the ones most that would considering trying something new. These type of people enjoy new brands that offer new sensations, difference is what they seek I believe that due to my film being in the main perspective of the mercenaries(criminals) I feel that my film will give them that something new that they seek. Furthermore, I feel that the film will give them the sense of difference and adventure that they aspire for, this also fits into my target audience as explorers are younger demographics that still attend school or have just completed their education.

VALS

Based on the Values Attitude and Lifestyle framework my audience I had decided in my research that the type of people that would watch my film would be experiencers, this hasn't changed as my film will allow them to experience a film that follows most conventions for a thriller/crime film, however, they could experience something different in my film compared to other similar films as the audience will be aligning their feelings with the protagonists which in my films case are criminals. Furthermore they follow the idea of my target audience being  mainly youthful people as it would include many action sequences, these types of people spend heavily on things like food, clothing and other products and services and one of the of those services would be going to the cinema as a large amount of young adults go the cinema frequently with friends.

Evaluation Question 3 - What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?

Evaluation Question 2 - How does your media product represent particular social groups?

Within my film I have represented a number social groups.

The broadest one there is the representation of lifestyle in my two main protagonists. These characters are not following the conventional idea that a person's upbringing will affect whether or they have a respectable job or end up earning money by committing crimes; there are impressions given at the start to the audience that the two mercenaries have some experience with weapons and following rules of engagement. It is later shown to the audience that the mercenaries both came from a profession that is considered heroic, with one being an ex-SAS soldier and the other a member of a bomb disposal squad. A person would stereotypically assume they are committing crimes because their upbringing and lifestyle must have been a tough one. I set up this convention by giving the mercenaries black and dark clothing to give the audience the impression that they are considered cold and heartless. I intentionally hide these details from the audience to allow them to follow the stereotype until later on in the film. This would be so that when the back story is revealed to the audience it will shock them and make them consider that perhaps these two do have a human right to feel emotion and a moral compass. Trying to contrast this social group is important to the story as it would allow a reinforced alignment with the characters.

Another social group I have represented in some form is gender. I have followed along with conventions that a criminal is dominantly a male rather than a female, this is shown by the fact that no majors roles in my film are taken by a female. This is following the stereotype that males are considered more aggressive and hostile, whereas females are considered more innocent in comparison to that of a male.

Evaluation Question 1 - In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

I made a video that is similar to a interview with the director that would be included in a blue-ray release of a film.

Final Edit