Finished title sequence.

Evaluation (part 8) Looking back.

Overall, the successes of my preliminary task, was digital technology, as if we didn’t have final cut pro and photo shop the shots wouldn’t of looked as good as they did. I feel like the editing on the shots is the strongest part in our sequence though it is all reasonably good. I think without the editing on the shots the sequence would not have been as good, therefore this was the most successful area in my task. I think the least successful part of the task would be the planning as we changed the story a lot until we came up with a strong final idea for our sequence. Apart from this I think that the other areas were successful as after we sorted out the plots and storylines we were able to make a clear viewpoint on how we intended our sequence to look and were able to focus more on what we needed to do to achieve this. Overall the only area I think we slacked the most was planning but after jumping that hurdle we was able to make a really good title sequence and be happy with the end result thanks to the time and effort we all put in.

Evaluation (part 7) Technology.

During the pre-production we used the internet to start research into areas such as cast, directors and target audiences as we wanted to make sure they were right for our film. we looked around the internet and found the best place to look for cast and crew was IMDB, which is a site full of actors/actresses, directors and possible crew members. we also looked at suitable camera angles and decided the best shots were going to be close up and canted to show the killers character.

Throughout production we learnt about the cameras and what they were able to do and not. We had a lot of difficulty with the original as it didn’t let us achieve the shots we wanted to as it had auto-focus which was unnecessary for the footage we wanted to shoot, so throughout production we decided to change cameras, as the original camera just didn’t work as well as we needed it to, yet we did have some good footage from that one we changed to a better camera which allowed us to change focal points and help us deliver intended shots easier than before.   The original camera was a “Canon Powershot SX170 Compact Digital Camera”  the camera we changed to was a “Canon EOS 1100D 12MP DSLR.” Borrowed from school. 

During the post-production we used Final-Cut Pro on the iMac’s to help us view the footage and see which shots needed redoing, and cut the good footage to make it a suitable length for a title sequence. We also used an editing tool called ‘Bad TV’ on Final-Cut pro to help us achieve the scratchy effect we put on the footage.  We used the internet again to find a suitable font after this that would work with the eerie footage. We looked on DaFont.com and found some, and used Photoshop to write the credits and colour them so they could later be put onto our sequence.

The less successful area was the beginning of the production as the camera wasn’t doing what we needed it to do, and the batteries died very quickly meaning we didn’t view the footage properly until we uploaded it to the iMac’s. 

I have learnt a lot more about what Photoshop is able to do, how to use it and how I can change the way things look easily using it. Overall I have a better understanding on what technologies can help me with that what I would of before this task.

evaluation (part 6) How did you attract/address your target audience?

Our audience was 15-30 year old white males, I think we have reached that audience as it is we researched into which age range a thriller film would most appeal to and that was the age barrier which came up. We found that 15-30 year olds are the most sociable age group so that way many people would hear about our film as they would spread the word with social media, texting and genuine social activities. During planning our production we thought of the genre first and started to research more into what kind of people would consume our film; age range, class and gender. Also throughout the editing stage of the production we asked people of our age range their opinions on our sequence and they really liked it so I think that thriller is the best genre for the age range.

We had mostly positive feedback in response to our rough cut sequence which made us realise how well this would work after we fixed the things in which people thought there was room for improvement. For example, “some shots were too long” we went back and shortened them down so that the pace was faster and would have an easier sequence to watch. Some people said it reminded them of ‘Se7en’ and was “too much like se7en” which weren’t negative comments in my eyes as that was our inspiration. In the audience feedback the most positive feedback was on the fonts, the positive comments  helped us improve our sequence as it was from age range we was trying to appeal to, meaning that we knew exactly what we needed in our sequence.

The only thing that was the least successful was the shot lengths which we sorted out reasonably easily. Personally I don’t think that it could be improved as the shot lengths are perfect along with the fonts and music. Overall I think we attracted the target audience well and was very successful with our title sequence.

evaluation (part 5) representing particular social groups.

In our sequence, there are not many representations of social groups as it is showing only one person, a serial killer. Serial killers are genuinely going to be individual and independent so they do not get caught. I think this shows they are unsociable and do not belong in a social group. Killers tend to prey on certain groups of people, normally female groups; which could be split into many different social groups, for example;  as they are easier to restrain, and manage as they are weaker than and not as able as fully grown men to retaliate.  Films such as ‘The Yorkshire Ripper’ and ‘Silence of the Lambs’ are films that the killers’ main target is females.

Our film has no physical characters representing a social group but the props used indicate that there is some sort of social group involved apart from the killer. For example the earrings are dangly and very feminine, giving a stereotypical view on females. This is the only place in our sequence where I feel that social groups is really represented as killers don’t tend to interact with the outside world, whereas when the film actually started there would be a lot more.

Evaluation (part 4) In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

We looked into codes and conventions of the typical thriller and made sure that our title sequence had these throughout it to give the audience an understanding on what type of film they are about to view. Our film is about a mass murderer who plays mind games with the police trying to find him, by leaving little clues and subtle hints; the film is based around hunt for the killer. Our title sequence shows the killer reminiscing about his kills, and creating a foundation in which the film will fall around. Our title sequence has similarities to the film 'Se7en' as this was a key point of inspiration and was a big influence. 

We used many canted angles throughout the title sequence; this portrays madness and unease, within the sequence, and gives the audience a better understanding on the characters mental state. We introduced this character first as he is a key character to our film. By using various close ups, without showing his face,  we let his personality and surrounding give the audience an idea of who the character is as a person, and what type of things he is into, killing. The mise-en-scene within these shots gives the audience enough perception to become intrigued with the film and feel a sense of discomfort which will echo throughout the film. There wasn’t a selection of shots as we wanted to try and keep the killers identity hidden and long shots or tracking shots would of revealed too much of the killer where as we wanted to get detail instead. 

Our sequence gives an indication the specific genre we chose with the eerie music, and rustic editing, fast paced cutting and the mise-en-scene. Our film also has the conventions of a psychological thriller, which is; “two or more people preying on one another’s minds, deceptive mind games, trying to demolish each other’s mental state.” There is an indication that there is a horrific essence in the film, as there is dark lighting, which adds an edgy feel, and the props; such as knifes, and the nauseating drawings indicate danger and death. The fast paced editing helps create and maintain a sinister mood which is key for our film. Our title sequence is based in a shed so there was limited space to shoot which worked well because the tight and compressed space could also be a representation of the killers mind; trapped and dark.

Our sequence used a soundtrack which had an eerie base, which helped add an obscure feel when the edited shots were added. The scratchiness of the soundtrack worked well with the shots as they had a sketchy static-like movement to them which fitted well with the music.

For our typography we used a font which looked similar to handwriting as our credits this worked because if fitted in well with the roughness of the surrounding images and shots. We had to change them a few times as the colours wasn’t really working, in the end we used an off-white colour as it had the same kind of tones as the areas it was being placed onto so it wasn’t so harsh on the eyes as it blended enough but was still standing out. 

The codes and conventions are not challenged with our title sequence, meaning that the audience know exactly what type of film they are about to consume, and overall I think the title sequence was a success as it presented the ‘thriller’ genre well, with all four areas, mise-en-scene, sound, cinematography and editing.