Welcome to my Media Blog where I will plan and research for the brief I've decided to chose; A promotion package for a new film, consisting of a teaser trailer, together with a film magazine front cover and a poster featuring my film. I've decided to continue from my AS coursework and base my film trailer on the work I produced last year, thus situating the three tasks on my horror film, The Unnatural.
IMPORTANT: When Marking my blog - Scroll to the bottom of the blog to view the oldest post... and then work your way up!
The beggining of the blog starts with the lowest post i.e. Reflection on my AS Coursework!
Tuesday, 10 April 2012
Conclusion - A2 Media Coursework
Overall I’m extremely happy with the products I've created, which I feel was mainly down to the excessive research and planning I completed in the field of horror over the past 2 years (including AS), as I believe this helped distinguish the conventions that I could use, develop and challenge.
There were many strengths and also some weaknesses to my products which I have too noticed along with my audience, and therefore comprehended with; however I will always look to improve my ability and knowledge in a certain topic and I will therefore take these on board when producing similar tasks in the future.
There were many strengths and also some weaknesses to my products which I have too noticed along with my audience, and therefore comprehended with; however I will always look to improve my ability and knowledge in a certain topic and I will therefore take these on board when producing similar tasks in the future.
Evaluation Question 4
How do you use new media technologies in the construction and research, planning and evaluation?
Planning & Research
Internet – Blog:
At the beginning of the year, I and the rest of the class were asked to create a blog to hold all of our of our media coursework excluding the production part (planning and research, and evaluation). It proved to be an extremely effective way of showing creativeness in our work, as we could share information from other websites onto our blog and say how we have used this i.e. writing how we took inspiration from specific YouTube videos and images. We could also place our own documents in the blog including written work that has been scanned i.e. storyboards and flat plans. In addition to this, our teacher also had a blog website which was kept up to date with newsfeeds and deadline days, so that we could therefore time-manage ourselves appropriately.
Construction
Adobe Premier Pro CS5.5 – Teaser Trailer
The Adobe Premier Pro CS5.5 software helped me edit the shots I created for my teaser trailer. I used the system the previous year for my AS coursework, so it wasn’t too difficult to become accustomed with the software and its content. Because of this knowledge, I felt my video editing was extremely well done, as I had the capability to include numerous visual effects and audio effects to my trailer i.e. Solarise ins and outs, Colour Emboss, Exponential Fades and Constant Powers etc. I also included a number of sounds which I downloaded from www.freesound.org to use in my trailer i.e. slow booms, eerie sounds, screams etc, along with the main theme song, James Newton Howard’s ‘The Hand of Fate’. I did however have other difficulties, as the college only possessed Adobe CS4 (an older instalment) which meant I could only work on my teaser trailer from my laptop and not on the college computers.
Adobe Photoshop CS5 Extended – Movie Poster and Magazine Front Cover
For both my movie poster and magazine front cover, I used Adobe Photoshop CS5 Extended via a 30-day trial, as it included all of the essentials I needed to create my products. This included using the Magnetic Lasso Tool to cut and merge pictures for the split-screen effect I was looking to do, as well as using a variety of brushes that were made available to tidy up the images. In addition, I also utilized the brushes to create a cloud effect for my magazine front cover. The software also possessed many customary options which I used to change the colour and style of each layer by using layer effects i.e. having the focal image as luminosity and the title as linear light, and dropping inner and outer shadows to certain texts etc.
Equipment
Panasonic HD Camera
The camera I used helped in terms of the quality of the picture, as it was HD. It was also extremely easy to use, as it was touch-screen and allowed myself to replay footage to check if certain shots were done correctly.
Tripod
I used the tripod regularly throughout my filming, as well for the still shots for my magazine front cover and the movie poster. The height was adjustable, however there was some difficulties with this, as it did not reach high enough at times i.e. for over-the-shoulder shots.
Evaluation
Prezi
Despite using an internet blog to show my evaluation, I still included other sources which made it look more creative. One of these included the internet website http://prezi.com/ which allowed me to construct a presentation and apply specific effects to it i.e. adding images and zooms to give it a ‘professional’ look.
Facebook
I used Facebook to present my production work to others and gather audience feedback. This proved to be easy and useful, as I gathered feedback from the audience in their spare-time, so there was no pressure in terms of time constraints. This therefore allowed me to receive back qualitative data and personal opinions on my coursework.
Evaluation Question 3
What have you learned from your audience feedback?
Audience Feedback
To obtain audience feedback, I used the social-networking site ‘Facebook’, and started a group where my friends and other fellow students could review the production side of my coursework. This proved to be an extremely effective way of acquiring feedback, as this targeted an articulate teenage audience, which was one of my target audiences. As they could provide me feedback in their spare-time, there was no pressure in terms of time constraints; subsequently this allowed me to receive the necessary qualitative data and personal opinions on my coursework that I needed.
Teaser Trailer Audience Feedback Summary
Overall, I believe the audience seemed to enjoy my trailer. From the feedback I received, the main strengths came from the combination of the editing and the music/audio that altered the tempo of the trailer. Some also believed the theme of the symbols and captions were intriguing and added mystery. However, the main negative of the teaser trailer was that it revealed too much of the storyline, instead of leaving the viewer trying to unravel this for themselves, which in hindsight I agree with. However on the whole, I believe my audience found my teaser trailer very fascinating and enjoyable.
Teaser Trailer - Audience Feedback Teaser Trailer Close Up - Audience Feedback
Movie Poster Audience Feedback Summary
The main positive I received from my poster was that it ‘looked’ professional; with the effects I placed upon the image and the use of various fonts. The lighting of the picture also strengthened this point, as part of the audience noticed the darkness surrounding the image and how that fitted in with the horror genre. The impression of intrigue was highlighted again by the ‘feedback-group’, mainly because of the split-screen effect I used and the symbols that were embossed on the mirror. On a negative view the poster did seem to lack convention, as part of the audience pointed out that no actors or release dates were cited in the poster. Because of this, I feel I will learn, and detail more conventional information in any future projects that I may undertake.
Movie Poster - Audience Feedback Movie Poster Close Up - Audience Feedback
Magazine Front Cover Audience Feedback Summary
There were mixed reviews, but the majority of the audience seemed to point out specific weaknesses for my use of ‘Photoshop’, as they clearly identified that I had difficulties when trying to brush my images and merge them together. This is a significant deficiency, so I will therefore use the background of the image in future to overcome this drawback. On a positive note, the audience were complimentary of the additional information around the focal-image, and the usage of font and colours. Overall, I may have over-challenged myself and subsequently this resulted in the magazine-cover ‘looking’ not as professional as I had hoped. In future it maybe more prudent to plan and produce a front cover that was slightly more basic in its use of Photoshop and therefore simpler to produce.
Magazine Front Cover - Audience Feedback Magazine Front Cover Close Up - Audience Feedback
Magazine Front Cover - Audience Feedback Magazine Front Cover Close Up - Audience Feedback
Conclusion
On the whole, I felt the majority of the target audience really enjoyed the production side of my coursework, as the feedback possessed plenty of positives i.e. the audio and the pace of my trailer, the fonts and the lighting for my Poster and Magazine Front Cover etc. However, part of using Facebook was to gain personal opinions from the audience with no influence being pressurised to praise my work. Therefore I did receive constructive criticism which I have taken on board i.e. practise on improving the airbrushing of the focal image in my magazine front cover or being more conventional with my poster in terms of adding names of stars and release dates etc. In Summary, I have taken positives out of my audience feedback, as well as taken the criticisms on board for any other future tasks that associate to ones I’ve done.
Evaluation Question 2
How effective is the combination of your main product and ancillary tasks?
Below are the 6 main ancillary tasks I used to make my project a robust and an effective production:
- Equipment: I used an HD Camcorder that allowed me to film and take screenshots during various times of the day. Subsequently the quality was not impaired due to light restrictions for afternoon filming.
- Location: All filming took place in one location and this ensured that my movie trailer had a ‘flow’ and a connection with the audience, as I used a residential property in the suburbs.
- Costumes: I used dark colours for the antagonist and neutral for the main character. Once again linking this to the make-up of the horror-genre of ‘costume’.
- Music: I carefully selected the music to ensure that it would provoke a reaction from the audience of impending anxiety. The ‘loud’ sounds where cleverly choreographed to particular film-scenes that would make the audience ‘jump’; whilst the sounds of the violins would resonate imminent danger/horror.
- Editing: I applied the split-screen techniques for both my Magazine Front Cover and my Movie Poster. This was to create a connection between both the antagonist and the main character (good and evil), to show a visual ‘possession’ of an entity in a human-body.
- Planning: I aimed to keep a main theme which ‘flowed’ within each of my three products. This was primarily to create an overall impression of professionalism and a marketing strategy to connect with audience, albeit if they viewed the trailer, the poster or read the front cover of the magazine.
Evaluation Question 1
In what ways does your product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?
Below is a link to Prezi.com in where I completed my evaluation to question 1. Click on the link below to view it:
http://prezi.com/wyyf6xtsrs8k/present/?auth_key=7lcwotq&follow=rvufkqys_pe3
Letter - Music Copyright
For my trailer, I am using James Newton Howard's song 'The Hand of Fate', owned by hollywood. The letter below was sent to gain permission to use the song in my A2 Media Coursework teaser trailer 'The Unnatural'.
Evidence of time management
I created a ‘timetable’ to ensure that ‘Filming’ was completed ‘on-time’ whilst taking into account the time of day for ‘outside-shooting’
I had to consider my other commitments such as Football Training 5-days a week; ‘two’ ‘Matchdays’ Saturday & Sunday.
I also had to ensure that my other coursework A-level P.E. and I.T. was not compromised whilst undertaking this project.
Evidence of organisation of actors, locations, costumes and props
Actors
· No auditions: Main Character ‘played’ by myself
· Demon: ‘Played’ by Relative
· Dead Body: ‘Played’ by Relative
Location
· Only one Location: ‘My House’
Costume
· Mask (purchased last Halloween from local supermarket)
· All other costumes: ‘Own Clothes’
Props
· Newtons Cradle
· Body Paint
· Plain Wallpaper
· Water Based Paint
· Torch
Predicted Target Audience
As part of my AS media coursework last year, I conducted a questionnaire in four local cinemas to seek the answer of the connection between the type of audience and the type of horror film they will be fascinated in. From the answers I received, I noticed that horrors were mainly concerned with teenagers and working-class adults, so I therefore set this as my general target audience.
A more in-depth look into the responses I received concludes that my film will be more suited to the working class males, couples and articulate teenage groups, as the fascination of a complex storyline combined with vague character personalities seems to be what the audience are currently searching for in a horror movie, as it leaves room for twist/turns and character development.
Script writing - The Unnatural
The Unnatural Script – Teaser Trailer
Storyline – A psychiatrist becomes an important witness to the mysterious suicide of one of his close patients who is believed to be suffering from the sleeping disorder Parasomnia Causes: abnormal and unnatural movements, behaviours’, emotions, perceptions, and dreams that occur while falling asleep). In the psychiatric sessions between the two, the patient claimed to experience supernatural events, he argued that he was visited by a possessive spirit that communicated to him immoral events in his past life and predictions of his death in the near future, however he could not find the meaning to all of the riddles. After his death, the psychiatrist begins to realise that the extraordinary experiences encountered by the patient could actually be factual, as he also encountered what is seen to be the exact same ‘happenings’ to that of his dead patient. His way of thinking is now split between what is reality and what is an illusion and he must therefore try to somehow interpret the true meaning of the paranormal events before he and others suffer the same fate that fell the deceased patient.
Beginning (Cross-cuts) Fade ins & outs
Black Screen – Psychiatrist “Are you ready”
Shot 1: (Medium-Shot) - Patient eyes closed sitting on a chair - Patient “Yeh”
Shot 2: (Tripod - Medium-close up) – The psychiatrist working Newton’s Cradle – Patient “Okay, Let’s Begin”
Shot 3: (Bird’s eye view, zoom in) – Taken in the night (outside), slow zoom in on the Patient staying still - Patient “You won’t believe me, but in my dream... I am visited by a demonic sprit”
Shot 4: (Over the shoulder & Medium-Close Up) – Taken in the night, the Patient is positioned on the left of the camera shot, looking at the house - Patient “It shadows my every step”
Shot 5: (Over the shoulder & Close-up) – The Patient preparing to open the door - Patient “Surrounding my every thought and each breath with darkness”...
Shot 6: (Match on Action) – The Patient hand pulling down the handle
Shot 7: (Match on action, High Angle & Tilt down) – The Patient walks through the door (slightly on the left of the centre), the camera tilts down to see the apparition who is covered in blood and on the right of the screen (half of the mask is shown) - Patient “And It’s no illusion, hell has come to life”
Series of Shots 8: (Black and white look) – 3 quick shots of the previous dead patient laying dead on the floor, with strange markings on his visible skin, the middle shot with the patient wearing the mask.
Pre Title Shot 9: Colour drain on the eyes of the apparition’s mask
Title 1: ‘Your Fear will betray the mind into Hallucinating’
Scene 2
Shot 10: (First Person) Patient walking down a hallway
Shot 11: (Medium shot) – Patient walking down a hallway - Patient “I’m beginning to see it more clearly now”
Shot 12: (Medium shot) – Patient seeing the TV turned on
Shot 13: (Close-up) – Patient turning the TV off and seeing a shadow in the TV’s reflection - Patient “It’s here”
Shot 14: (Reflection, over the shoulder, zoom-in) – The Patient is staring at an in-print of a set of unusual symbols in the window... as the Patient gets closer the apparition unexpectedly appears for a short second
Title 2: ‘Hallucinations will generate your sinister sense of deception ’
Scene 3
Series of Shots 15: (High angle, zoom out) – Patient holding his position as he shines a light (flashlight) down a thin hallway and seeing black footprints not from this world coming towards him mixed with deliberate shots of the apparition - Patient “Understanding every vision”
Shot 16: (Slow motion, bird’s eye view) – Portraits of symbols on a table – Patient “decoding each message”
Shot 17: (Medium-long shot, high angle) – The apparition is abruptly seen watching over the Patient while he sleeps
Shot 18: (Close up) – A figure being shown in a fuzzy TV
Pre Title Shot 19: (Medium Close-up) – Patient drawing the symbols on the table “has become an obsession”
Title 3: Deception will extract you from reality and force you to confront the apparition - Patient “
Scene 4
Black Screen – The Unnatural title appears slowly (Each letter at a time)
Shot 20: (Medium Shot) Return to shot 7, the Patient walks towards the apparition – Patient “Each vision would stay concealed”
Shot 21: (Over the shoulder reverse, tilt shot, zoom out) The Patient reaches out to the apparition - Patient “until the apparition led me back into isolation
Shot 22: (Medium Shot) Return to shot 20, the apparition unexpectedly grabs the patient’s wrist – Patient “where I would uncover what happened next”
Black Screen – Film Title (The Unnatural) with added text effects
Black Screen – Title (Coming This Winter) with added text effects
Soundtracks
James Newton Howard – The Hand of Fate (Label – Hollywood)
Props
Newton’s Cradle
Fake blood
Clear wallpaper or carpet
Black paint
White paint
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