Evaluation Question 7

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

There are many differences between our preliminary task and our final product. When making our preliminary task, we were very limited with regards to the time, location, actors and props we had. As we shot most of the task in an hour, we ended up with a very rushed result.

In our preliminary task, we had one severe mistake that we had to sort out, this was the phone call that Ellie done outside, the wind caused her voice to be a muffle and you couldn’t understand anything she said because of it. We had to reshoot this scene in a different location so that the wind was blocked off from the camera to make the result better.

When planning our film opening, we used several different things to allow us to know exactly what shots we needed to film and also to allow us to film them in the best way possible. We made:
-A storyboard 
-An animatic storyboard
-A picture storyboard
-A shotlist in the right order

This helped us to get all of the shots we needed without a worry of forgetting one. This meant that we could relax and focus on other things like props and locations as we knew what we was looking for and wanted to film. On the other hand, when  we was filming our Preliminary Task we didn’t do this which meant we had to think about a lot of different things so our end product was a lot worst.

When we edited our opening and whilst filming we didn't really stick to what we put on our storyboard as our idea changed, this meant that the storyboard was pretty much pointless to us which therefore meant that we had to think about several different things at once, which we wanted to avoid at the start. For our preliminary task though, we did stick to the storyboard but the detail was a lot worst which yet again meant that we had to think of stuff on the spot to get it right, therefore the storyboard ideas and in depth detail definitely could have been improved on.

From making the preliminary task to where we have come now our editing skills have improved majorly, we started on a small editing software and then went on to use one which was deemed as quite hard, this mean that our knowledge and editing skills were improved majorly through playing with the smaller software when editing our preliminary task. As we had limited credits in our preliminary task our knowledge on them wasn’t very strong when adding them into our opening, but once we started we got the hang of it, so this could have definitely been improved on when making the preliminary task so that it ensured us the knowledge that was needed.

When making our preliminary task, we recorded the sound and audio on the camera we was given, the picture also wasn’t great as the camera was quite old. The sound and quality made our preliminary task look very unprofessional so for our opening we knew we had to upgrade to something better. We used an iPhone 7+ which has a dual camera and 3 sound ports which meant that the overall quality was improved majorly, this meant that the opening looked a lot clearer and just looked more professional altogether.

Our overall final product was a lot better than our preliminary task, as you would expect. A comparison of the two would show how much we have improved as a group and the progress we made over such a small period of time. The preliminary task really helped to upgrade our basic knowledge and get us prepared for our opening that’s why I feel we were quite successful. I feel as if we have improved a lot since the preliminary task and we have learnt from our mistakes that we made in the preliminary task which helped us learn a lot quicker and more efficiently. 

Question 7 by olle gentry on Scribd

Evaluation Question 6

Question 6-

What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing the product?

Because we were making an extremely low budget film we didn't have anything fancy to film and use for our final project. Throughout our planning, filming and post production we used everyday equipment that we didn't have to buy especially for the film and we used equipment that we already had and didn't have to rent. the products we used were; 

• Iphone
• Imac
• editing softwares

This is a very short list compare to most film makers as we were only students we could get any extravagant equipment that was out of our range. There were many strengths to this meaning that we didn't have to spend any extra money, we didn't have to borrow anyone else equipment, we had all our equipment ready to go and we didn't have to wait for any camera or anything to be free to use them. This was defiantly one of the best perks meaning that we could get the whole filming process over and done with very easily. Another strength was filming using our iPhones, this was one of the easiest and quickest way to film as smart phones these days have the same camera quality as a normal camera and they also have been designed so well and they are so advanced it enabled us to be able to edit on our phones straight away if we needed to. However there were some weaknesses with our filming equipment and because we filmed all of our film on iPhone, it meant that the quality of the footage wasn't the best it could possibly be. By us using our phones it also meant that the camera angles and ‘shakiness’  where a problem. This is one of the things that has let down is that our film looks like it is a student film and not a high production budget film that has been produced by one of the big six. this is one of the only down sides to our final project. Another weakness is no having the knowledge or the equipment to make a perfect institutional logo. If we had the right equipment and knowledge then i think we could have created one of the most amazing institutional logos, but we didn't which meant that we weren't able to create one. 

The filming process- 

In my opinion i think that the filming process of making our film went very smoothly and worked out perfectly. I don't think we came across many complication when filming but most (if any) problems we faced would have been in post production. We came across some editing complication but nothing that we couldn't fix straight away or in a short amount of time. I think this was down to how we planned and how me proceeded to make our vision possible. This was one of the best things about our group is that we all worked together to make sure that out vision was replicated onto the screen. We didn't really get to use any type of equipment that would have enhanced our film and this was one of the weakness of our film, is that we didn't choose to shot the generic film that would have used all of these enhancing equipments. Unfortunately we didn’t need to use a piece of equipment for example a dolly for a tracking shot because our film was shot using technology that everyone uses for example the laptops and the phones. To edit our film we diced to use an advanced software like final cut pro. We did this as we believe that this would give us the perfect image and this would be the perfect type of software that would make our film a ‘film’. This was a very good choice to use final cut pro as this is one of the best most advanced softwares for film making and for us to use this, meant that we were having a shot at making the best product for ourselves. We considered using iMovie but we thought that we would have a shot at using final cut pro as this meant that there were better editing tools and this also meant that we had more of an option when editing because final cut is such a good editing software. There is nothing that we couldn't have done using final cut than we would have received using iMovie, we just felt that Final Cut Pro was more suited for us. By using Final Cut we have learnt lots of constructive things as we had never used Final Cut before so then enabled us to have a bit of a play around with it and it mean that we were able to learn as we went. We found editing with final cut for the low key lighting moments in the piece as this meant the we were able to edit the type of lighting, so that it gave us a softer and lower glow to the picture. This then helped us with the portrayal of mine-en-scene throughout the piece. 

As any new film maker would, we encountered problems and issues that net time we will know to avoid for example; the use of the equipment. Next time i think we would definitely have better camera gear to enable us to create a perfect picture for the audience to enjoy. However, factors stoped us from enabling us to do so this time. I feel next time we will know to film a lot more of a variety of shot in different locations, settings and characters. This was one of the only problems that we encountered as a group throughout the whole filming process, not that we didn't film enough scene it was just the variety that we were lacking this time. However, there were some things that we would also defiantly do again for example; using the editing software that we used this time around, Final Cut Pro. Final Cut Pro worked very well for us and the purpose that we needed it for. Final Cut was very good for all of the complex things that we needed to do for our final project and this was good a we found a software that could handle the complexity of what we needed to do and this was perfect. I think as a group we worked well as we all contributed a fair amount. This was a very big project and this meant hat there was lots and lots of worked to be done in such a small amount of time. This also meant that we had to double up work for example; editing and blogging at the same time. This helped as we would all have a go at doing lots of different things which helped us create a great piece of work and also helped with the experience and the gain in knowledge. I think as a group we worked well at documenting our progress and what stages of our filming making we had reached. Blogger really helped with this as it made it much easier for us to document our process and for us to document the successes and failures of our piece. Blogger made it really easy for us to just log on and type.  

  

We used a Mac Desktop Computer and we also used a MacBook Pro Laptop. This meant that we were able to use the best technology for the making of our final film. By using these technologies it meant that we had the best start and we were very lucky because these already had the editing software on them. Because we were using the best it meant that we had the best start. By using the Mac's it also meant that edition, uploading, downloading and transferring information was much easier. By having equipment like them enabled us to edit our final piece quickly and in the best way possible.  

Evaluation Question 4 and 5

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

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

The target audience for our film is 15-25 year old males and females. We chose to attract this audience as our film has the same aged characters in this, which the audience could relate to. Meaning they would be more absorbed throughout, further making the opening almost a critical success. Our film is rated a 15, as we researched onto the BBFC and found this was the best fit for the opening. This also links in with our target audience as this would be the youngest age therefore being suitable.

The audience for our film would likely fit in the uses and gratifications theory, meaning people actively seek out specific media to satisfy specific needs and will look for an enigma in the film. Therefore, we made sure that our opening wasn't giving away too much, but enough to understand and allow people to figure out.

Through research and planning, we found that our target audience liked the idea of tension and suspense, meaning we met these needs. For example, we decided to add many short slips of victims and the antagonist, leaving them thinking, grabbing their attention. Also, meeting the conventions of a thriller. Another film that is similar would be Ratter. This is a Netflix film, meaning it attracts a younger audience, both male and female, as Netflix is a popular company in the media now. We also attracted our audience through the use of social media, as we included a small clip of a video on Facebook, meaning our young audience can connect with this and then invites them to watch more.

We also attracted our audience through the use of character, as our cast in the opening are all teenage females and males. Due to our target audience being this age, it allows them to think they will relate to the story, and may feel that this is what they could come across. The use of character addresses our target audience as it is almost a replica of themselves, and shows them how this narrative can happen to anyone.

Evaluation Question 3

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

Our film would be distributed straight to cinemas as we would want to hit a bigger mass audience to earn back our high production budget. An example of a film that has been distributed in this way is Spectre, by Sony. They done this to over 2000 screens worldwide which allowed them to gain back the money they spent.

We want a big distribution company to distribute our film as they have more experience and more money to distribute it. This would mean that they could distribute it to more places and even internationally if the film is a success in Great Britain. This would mean that our profit would increase meaning we will have more money for anything else that we could produce in the future.

Our film would be sold predominantly through cinemas such as Odeon or Cineworld but will also be available at cinemas such as The Everyman which has a lot better screen quality and a whole better experience entirely. As The Everyman was quite a new concept when Spectre was released it would have been very successful when released here, and hopefully our film would have the same impact as most people still haven’t experienced this cinema.

We chose to distribute the film in this way for several reasons. Our main reason was to hit a wider audience and regain the money we put into it, but we also wanted the viewers to get a better experience whilst watching the film as they will get the by going to The Everyman for example.

Secondly, it will make the film available and easily accessible for our main target audience (young to middle age) because there is usually a cinema based in the town close to their homes.

Releasing our film this way would ensure us that we would get our money back as many people go and watch the film in the cinema and then later on buy it on DVD so we are in theory making a double profit which essential to us. We could also release a Blu-ray edition of the film to push our profit even further as this is the best quality to watch at home.

Evaluation Question 2

Question 2 - 

How does your media product represent particular social group?

Our film’s target audience are teenagers and young adults. We have decided to base our film at the younger generations because our film is about social media and technology. Younger people tend to use social media and technology a lot where as older more mature people stereotypically don't use it as much as the younger people. Our film represents mostly school students and younger people. We have decided to add the same amount of woman as the amount of girls. This is because our film represents all sexes and ages. This is because we wanted to aim our film at both boys and girls equally. We wanted to do this so we were able to be relatable for all teens and not just a certain sex. The majority of our cast were young adults/teenagers and only one of our cast was of an older/mature age and this was the hacker. We did this to represent more than just one set of people which were teenagers and we wanted to add a little more diversity in. You can also see for a couple of second that we used a teacher in the class room/cctv camera footage. This has also added to the diversity in age that we have included in our final film as we haven't just chosen to represent school children. Throughout our film we haven't really represented class as our films based on younger children and they don't really have jobs at this age. This was a really hard subject to try and convey through in a film that is based around younger people. However the representation of men is stereotypical i feel, as in our piece the hacker is a male. This is a very stereotypical representation of men through the use of media as they are represented as the ‘killer’ type person. The male is represented as the type of person to avoid and is very stereotypically shown as the person committing a crime or doing something that wouldn't be deem acceptable in society. Although along with this point, we have also broken stereotype as we have shown the main character to me a male which is stereotypically a woman. This has broken the stereotype as it is shown that the leading male is in a vulnerable and targeted position. This has broken the stereotype as it is usually shown that the woman are in these positions most of the time because they ‘can’t protect’ themselves. Where as the male character is shown in a vulnerable place and is shown in a light that makes it look like he can’t fend for himself.  

The film is told through the perspective of the technology user. We have done this to connect with the audience that they are not all safe all of the time. This film is heavily based through the prospect that they will put them selves in this position and think about how they would deal with this if it were them dealing with it. We also did this to represent how vulnerable everyone is even in their own homes. The story is told through the eyes of a young student, along with our age certification of 15, the audience would be at the right age to resonate with the main character and the film is aimed at this age so they are able to connect with the film. The way the film is told, links to our audience through the use of the cast and the subject and theme of the film. We have made our film a thriller because this is a one of the most favoured genres which means that this would encourage a lot of people to watch our film including the younger generations. We have made our film about social media and technology. This is a big thing for younger people and teenagers. This means that these teenagers are going to be interested because the theme of this film is something that they are really interested in. We have aimed our film at this specific age range for this exact reason, because their generation is growing up around technology.   

These two characters have some things in common as they are both victims of hacking and they are both of a young age. As they are both young they are both very into technology and staying online. Most young people now days have start phones (Iphones), laptops, iPads, social media accounts like; Instagram, snapchat, Facebook ect. These characters are very similar and are portrayed in similar ways as they are shown in a naive light. These characters are both being watched and hacked without knowing that they are, which shows the risks of being online and having all of these smart product and being so attached to social media. These character are still both in school and are just at the stage of adolescence.

Evaluation Question 1

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

In our film opening, we incorporated a few different generic conventions of the thriller genre. For example, we decided to add an enigma immediately to grip the audience’s attention. This is shown in other thriller, such as Ratter, as it is a mystery to the audience, which is a convention. We also displayed the antagonist in our opening quite early on to allow the audience to think about the narrative. Another convention used was the use of music within the opening. The piece of non diegetic sound helps to specify the thriller genre as it builds the tension throughout the clips of victims. The music is quite fast paced which also is a convention of the thriller genre.

Also in our opening, we also made sure our titles were correct and suitable for the generic convention of a thriller. This is because we made sure they were plain and white, which is shown in films like Gone girl and Fast and Furious. Meaning we don’t draw any attention away from the opening and therefore the audience don’t miss anything, but their names are still credited. The titles are placed in the rule of thirds, meaning we didn’t place any in the centre third, apart from the main star in the film. This follows the conventions of the thriller genre.

Through cinematography, 2 of our victim clips were shown to be hand-held. We decided to use this method of filming, as it shows clearly the victims do not know they are being filmed. Which is also influenced by Ratter. The hand-held movement could also show the audience that they are not purposely filming themselves, and the angles also suggest this.

However, our film challenges conventions of thriller films as it shows there are many different characters and isn’t clear there is one main person featured. This isn’t normally the case as thriller film openings are normally focused on one or two protagonists and one antagonist, such as the film Split.

Our Final Film

Rough cut 3

Feedback from Mrs Willcox

Change some titles so they aren't the actors
Add in another shot of hacker
Shorten end video

Rough cut 2

Feedback from Mrs Willcox

• Need a second institutional logo at the beginning of the film
• Look at film title order and change it according to your research
• Need an ending for the opening
• Link mouse used to Mac computer screen so it looks realistic and links to why that clip is larger.
• Have stalker shown on full screen to highlight his importance and what he is doing

Feedback from Ellie Boyle

• Have an ending to the opening to make it look complete
• Make the beginning computer screen shorter as I loose focus
• The computer screen doesn't really make sense with the other clips

Rough cut 1

Feedback from our teacher:
We will need to add logos and titles to ensure our film looks professional and everyone gets credited who needs to be.
Enlarge the writing at the start to make it stand out more.
We will need to add more footage of protagonist, to highlight the antagonist stalker, this will make it more intense attracting the viewer right at the beginning to want to watch more.
Add more narrative of the stalkers side of the story, to create an atmosphere and feeling of what the stalker feels when getting information about the people.

Feedback from Frank Large:
Good idea.
Good storyline.
Need to finish it off as well as adjusting some of the editing.
Add more information about the hacker.

Final costumes

Costume-

For the victims, we have chosen to keep simple casual clothing. This is so it reflects the victims idea of not knowing they are being recorded, and just in their normal everyday clothes. However, some victims will be wearing grey or black, to show the idea of being shaded and dark. Shaded from the
 idea of being hacked.


For the antagonist, he will be shown to be wearing a black hoodie, and black jeans. To present his sinister dark personality, as he is the hacker. Also the fact they are wearing a hoodie, hides his identity from the audience, giving an eerie atmosphere.

Photographic Storyboard

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

This is the order in which we was thinking to choose our opening in, the numbers illustrate the order we would want to choose, but in the real thing it would obviously be shown in more depth.

1. Shows the hackers codes and the way in which he would access peoples personal information and get through to their cameras to stalk them.

2.This picture shows the camera from the computer in which the hacker would watch and stalk people to find out stuff about them that he could use to capture them.

3. This would be a shot of the hackers hands, this would build up tension within the audience as its the first part of the hacker they have seen.

4. This shows the hacker getting into the CCTV and hacking into a whole class room, this shows that the hacker can access everything.

5.  A close up on the hacker, this yet again builds tension as they have seen part of the hackers face, this represents the weird way in which he looks and acts.

6. An over the shoulder shot of the hacker as he closes the computer screen and walks away, leaves the opening on a cliff hanger and makes people want to watch more.

Final Sound Decisions

We chose our music, created by Purple Planet called Electro Zombies as we felt it worked very well and created tension throughout our opening. The music slowly gained tension making it a lot more dramatic for the audience at the end. We also chose a different part of music to put at the end as well which made the tension in the opening even more dramatic. The two combinations of music were put together by us and were hard to match but we done it eventually so they merged together smoothly to make our opening seem professional. Throughout our opening we also used noises to make some things seem better and sound more clearer, for example the sound at the beginning with the hacking codes coming up. This made it look a lot better and more realistic, giving the audience a better experience.

Our cast

Our cast consists of many different people as our film is based upon many different peoples lives. We have casted;

Ashely Bagley - Main Character
- We made this decision because we thought that he it the character and the stereotypical student. We though this would look nice with the films continuity because it looks natural and not put on. We also thought he was good for the film as he was a good age for the main character. 

Lizzie Hester - Main Character
- We made the decision to cast Lizzie for one of the other parts of the main characters was because she was the right age as the other two min characters as they were all of the right ages and looked school age.
Olle Gentry - Main Character
- We cast Olle Gentry because he was the correct age for the piece and he was
Millie Tinsley - Supporting Cast
- We thought Millie would be a good supporting actor as she is the right age for the film and the character we were casting for.  

Martin James - Main Character
- We made this decision because he was the perfect age for the character we were casting for and had the right look for what we thought would fit that character perfectly. 

Ellie Taylor - Supporting Cast
- Ellie was the perfect age and look as if she was a student so she fit the character perfectly and it didn't look completely fake. 

We made the decision to make this the final cast as they all fitted the description of the characters we were casting for.  

Final mise decisions

Costume-

For the victims, we have chosen to keep simple casual clothing. This is so it reflects the victims idea of not knowing they are being recorded, and just in their normal everyday clothes. However, some victims will be wearing grey or black, to show the idea of being shaded and dark. Shaded from the
 idea of being hacked.


For the antagonist, he will be shown to be wearing a black hoodie, and black jeans. To present his sinister dark personality, as he is the hacker. Also the fact they are wearing a hoodie, hides his identity from the audience, giving an eerie atmosphere.














Props-

The props we are using in our opening, are all to do with ways of communicating, due to the idea that the antagonist has hacked into these cameras.

One of the main props we are using is a MacBook, as the antagonists main source of hacking. This is shown throughout, to make sure it is highlighted and clear to the audience that this is to do with the hacker. Another prop used is an IPhone, also being a way the antagonist hacks into peoples cameras. This is highlighted by an extreme close up.

Final Location

We added different places to our opening to make it seem more real. The top image shows the living room and sofa that Lizzie was sitting on when the hacker sees her through the TV hack, this portrays an innocent image to the audience as everyone would feel as if they should have privacy when watching television in their own home. The second picture shows the stairs in which Ashley run done whilst holding his laptop, this represents an unknown image of a vulnerable person as he is acting naturally. The third image shows the desk in which the hacker was sitting on as it is dark and mysterious, this would show how he is hidden and doesn't want to be seen. Lastly, the fourth image shows the kitchen in which Millie and Ashley watched videos, this shows that the hacker can access their computer/files anywhere they go which would seem quite
uncomfortable for the audience. We chose all of these locations as the audience would be able to relate to the scenario as they would all feel as if they would want privacy in these areas of their life, which would put them on edge.

Draft Script

Throughout the film it is there is going to less speech than a conventional film as this is a film about people getting hack through their social media and their smart phones. Throughout our piece we don't have much dialogue because this is only the film opening and we didn't feel as if we needed dialogue to covey our films meaning and themes. We wanted to create a small amount of dialogue to enforce our story line but we didn't want to add to much otherwise it would be a risk that we would try and fit to much into a small 2 minuet window. We want to add the small amount of dialogue into the start of the film opening so the audience are able to understand our storyline straight away.
We wanted to make a small script and this is what we came up with;
Script (Laura Johnson)-

"So I met this boy on the internet and he's really hot. Then he gave me his number and I well think he could be the one"

Filming diary

We had planned and decided that w3e were going to shot different people and different locations on different days.
On the first day we decided to shoot in the kitchen that we decided was perfect for our film.












We did this because the person that we were shooting with lived here and for us to shot where they lived was perfect. Although we filmed here first we decided to put this shot later on in the film because we though it fit better later on. Along with this kitchen we shot some pieces on the stairs as well which was also in the same house because we though the shape and the area was perfect for what we needed it for. We decided to shoot on the stairs because this looked most natural and this is what we were looking to portray throughout our piece. We also wanted to shoot here because it added a sense of continuity to the piece.

For the next location we also used two places because they were also perfect for what we needed them for and they were also both in the same place which also made it convenient for us and to also make our shooting time shorter. We also id this because we found the perfect place to shoot the hacker on his computer stalking his victims. We found this location appealing because it was dark, the light was low key and mysterious. We thought this was the best location to shoot the stalker in because it would make the audience question who this character was and the significance of this character to the storyline. For the second location in the same house we decided to shoot in the living room because this was, again, one of the most natural places to shoot in.

Casting the film opening

Times                            Name                            Character

12:00pm                   James Wake                      Ashley Ransom (main victim)
12:15pm                   Ashley Bagley                  Ashley Ransom
12:30pm                  Alex Savvides                   Ashley Ransom

1:00pm                     Ellie Martin                       Laura Johnson (vlogger victim)
1:15pm                     Ellie Taylor                       Laura Johnson
1:30pm                     Amber Smith                    Laura Johnson

2:00pm                     Martin James                    Freddy Jones (hacker)
2:15pm                     Ian Payne                         Freddy Jones
2:30pm                     Tom Read                         Freddy Jones


Script (Ashley Ransom)-

As we don't have a planned script or any dialogue for this character in the opening, we decided to have a conversation with one of us to get the idea of their confidence and personality.

Script (Laura Johnson)-

"So I met this boy on the internet and he's really hot. Then he gave me his number and I well think he could be the one"

With this script we didn't give them a specific tone of voice to use, allowing them to be natural and interpret what they thought felt right.
Which we then have decided Ellie Taylor would play this part.











Freddy Jones part-

We decided as a group to ask everyone to improvise doing something as if they were a hacker or stalker. We asked them to be acting watching a person on a laptop, to see how they would react and interpret their view of a hacker. This would then allow us to see different types of hackers and how an audience would either want to view them, or use stereotypical behaviour.

This was then successful, as we had 3 different styles to choose from, and the actor that we preferred was Martin James.

Sound ideas

We made the decision to go on to a website and find some music because this way we would be able to find suitable music very quickly and easily. We scanned through many different music websites and royalty free music websites to find the perfect one.
We found the following websites to help use find the perfect track to fit the content and the themes that we were trying to depict to our audience;
www.bensound.com
www.purple-planet.com 
www.incompetech.com 

We have found some very good tracks that go perfectly with our genre and our film opening on the website www.purple-planet.com .