coursework evaluation - Laura Moylan.

Foundation portfolio evaluation – Laura Moylan.

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

 

Before beginning our opening sequence, we researched the conventions of a thriller. We analysed ‘Psycho’, an opening thriller sequence by Alfred Hitchcock, to get an idea of old conventional thrillers as well as contemporary ones.

In Psycho, the victim is a blonde female killed violently by a male attacker. During my research I found that Alfred Hitchcock commonly uses blonde females as the victims in his thrillers as they portray innocence and vulnerability, allowing the audience to sympathise with them. Taking this idea on board, the victim in my opening sequence is a young blonde girl.  In doing this, I managed to develop an old thriller convention. Usually in a film, a victim of bullying normally appears in a certain way, for example the ‘geek’ in the school who stereotypically wears glasses and has no friends,  however in my product the bullied girl appears smartly dressed as would the average college student. She also appears to have friends. The fact that the female character is portrayed as weak is typical for a thriller, despite this, the characters are generally not the typical thriller characters, e.g. there is no obvious ‘slasher’ or serial killer. I decided that this would make it more like a contemporary thriller as opposed to the old, predictable characterisations that we would normally find. In my attempt to create a modern day opening thriller sequence, I did not make the genre obvious from the beginning of it. This is because I discovered in my research that it is more common for modern day thrillers to challenge forms of traditional conventions, Phone Booth in particular is a thriller that does not play to the conventions; it avoids darkness and shadow etc. The one way to link it to standard conventions is to say that you hear and see the story from the killer’s point of view, you are made to feel sorry for the male protagonist and that you are told a story with the use of flashback and quick passed editing. Otherwise the this film is unlike most thriller movies and avoids the main conventions and may even not be classed as a thriller, but psychological thriller as it plays with your mind rather than shows you like a conventional thriller. Some of these conventions are evident in my opening sequence through the focus on the mirror and the staircase however my film narrative is not seen from the killer’s point of view.

The conventions of the thriller genre are to do with sound and editing. E.g. quick cuts and camera angle changes or music that creates tension when appropriate. It can be to do with lighting, especially the use of shadow. Mirrors and stairs are also conventions of thriller movies. This is very much similar to my media product which could be given the subgenre of a psychological thriller as it does not state the obvious about what is going on (Does the victim commit suicide? Is the victim murdered?) The viewer is left with many unanswered questions. The narrative begins in a school where a teenage girl is being bullied, at this point of the sequence; one may assume that it is a drama instead of an eerie thriller. As the sequence continues and the victim arrives home, it becomes more obvious to the viewer that the girl is perhaps not alone. This is suggested through the use of the ghostly score and the close up camera shot of a shadow at the front door.  Also, we focus on a stair case where the victim frantically runs down to find a shocking message left on the mirror. I believe by making the stairs and mirror main props during the climax of the sequence, develop conventions of real thriller media products.

As I was mainly influenced by the media product ‘Phone Booth’ my media product does not meet traditional thriller conventions in many aspects. In terms of Mise en scene the setting is not dark and damp as one would expect, but mainly day light, representing a normal day in the life of a teenager.

 

2.    How does your media product represent particular social groups?

In my opening sequence, I decided that I would represent race equally. In London, it is commonly known that schools and colleges have a variety of students from different ethnic backgrounds. Therefore in the media product various races where included, particularly in the bullying scene which is a realistic portrayal of how certain individuals can be treated in institutions by their peers in this day and age. This suggests that the media product is set in London. This is also clear through the way the characters are dressed and their accents.

In the bullying scene, teenagers are represented as unkind, bullying a female peer. It is stereotypical for a girl to be represented as weak as and less emotionally strong than the male figure in today’s society. It is also stereotypical for youths to be catogorised as bullies/’thugs’. In my media product I included these stereotypes to represent young people as I believe it is relevant to my target audience, which would enable them to relate to the narrative. 

In terms of gender the female is portrayed as the weaker sex, my opening sequence represents the male as more threatening. Although the viewer is not made aware that the killer is male, it can be suggested through the manly like figure that shadows the front door.  The bullies are also dominantly male all apart from one, who does not give verbal abuse. This could suggest that this female character thrives upon the male’s power and that perhaps she does not want to take part in the bullying but feels as though she belongs to a group in doing so. This represents many young people who feel as though they have to conform in order to belong to a group and feel a sense of acceptance.

The students in the college could be portrayed as working class citizens as they are aggressive and use improper English, which is again a stereotype used to represent the working class. The female victim and her male friend, appear middle class as they are smartly attired. When the main character arrives home it soon clear to the audience that she feels uneasy, she is nervous, afraid. From this we can suggest that the location she lives in is perhaps unsafe. The viewer is lead to believe that the girl is being followed/watched; this builds tension and fear amongst the audience, just as how the girl would have been feeling at the time. I believe that this is a good representation of the location that the girl lives in (London). In the city of London, the crime rate is particularly high therefore I represented the area as dangerous. Again, this is a realistic representation in which the target audience could relate to as young adults as they are likely to feel threatened when alone at home alone in London.

 

 

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

 

My media product is suitable for independent cinema; it is unsuitable for mainstream as it is a low budget production. Independent cinema tends to be low budget with a predictable storyline. In my media product, I have used a rather typical narrative for a psychological thriller. Mainstream movies are filmed on celluloid and expensive equipment is used to give the film the supernatural/ video game effect. This makes the movies a lot more enjoyable, and therefore popular. Usually the main Hollywood stars are used for characters. This makes this type of film well known therefore suitable for mainstream cinema listings. Examples of mainstream thriller movies would be things such as, ‘Final Destination’ and ‘Scream’. These types of films will be released in cinemas worldwide and then commercialised through merchandise such as DVD’s, soundtracks etc.

In comparison, independent cinema is a lot less popular. Time and money is not sacrificed to these films as it is to mainstream cinema. Independent films tend to have unknown characters, the storyline will be much simpler and therefore less interesting. The films will be popular among small audiences (the films target audience) and will not be commercialised or popular worldwide.

I believe that my media product would be suitable for internet websites such as ‘You Tube’ as this is used mainly by the target audience of my media product (15+). Therefore it is likely to be entertaining and well received if viewed from internet video sharing sites as opposed to TV or cinema.

The product is also unsuited for terrestrial TV or cable as again, it was made on a very small budget. However the narrative could be suitable for small, community based cable channels.

 

4. Who would be the audience for your media product?

 

My target audience for my media product is teenagers of approximately 15 and up as it is set in a college and therefore the characters are all teenage students. The events that take place in the film, such as bullying are relevant to the lives of young people today as this is a regular occurrence in schools/colleges in today’s society, as well as abuse through text message, which happens to the female victim in the sequence.  This is another relevance to today’s society as there is increasing rates in cyber bullying.

In my opinion I successfully created a suitable product for my chosen target audience. To begin with I had doubts about the last scene, as there are pills and alcohol included which could be disturbing or a bad influence on young adults. However I came to the conclusion that this is a big part of the lives of youths in the contemporary UK and therefore it was a good way of raising awareness of the dangers of these substances.

The BBFC certificate for the sequence is 15. I feel the narrative would be unsuitable for a child of a younger age as it contains aggressive behavior and is of a thrilling nature.

 

5.    How did you attract/address your audience?

 

The product could suggest the daily life of a teenager as a result this would attract this age group as an audience to the production. In the media product there are situations being dealt with by the characters which make the clip interesting and attracting for a young audience. The main character deals with interaction with her friend and other peers, through this interaction, young adults can relate to the situation and the different emotions that the characters may be feeling. For example, teenage girls would feel sorry for the female victim as they, stereotypically, are more emotionally weak and therefore will sympathise with her.

I decided that the title of the media product, ‘Mind Over Matter’ would make it appealing to the audience as it ties in well with the fact that the product is a psychological thriller and therefore plays with your mind. This adds excitement to the sequence as it leaves the audience thinking. I aimed for the product to leave the audience with questions unanswered, which I believe I successfully achieved. Being that I, myself am a seventeen year old student I am aware of the social situations for teenagers today. I was able to use this knowledge to attempt to make, what I believed would be an intriguing narrative for this age group. As the characters of the product are also my age, it immediately appeals to my target audience, as they would be interested in viewing it to see how other people of a similar age to them would go about creating a thriller sequence.

After receiving feedback from my classmates, I felt as though I had achieved the type of response that I was looking for. I was happy that they enjoyed my sequence and that they were willing to offer constructive criticism. Acting upon this criticism, I edited certain parts of the sequence in order to make it flow. For example, I was advised to cut out a clip as members of the class believed it looked planned, as a result making the sequence unrealistic. I appreciated my classmates help and I beleive it improved my opening sequence.

The audience also helped me to make a decision about an appropriate age certificate by pointing out certain parts of he clip as unacceptable to people below the age of 15.

 

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

During this process I have learnt a lot about the different equipment and software that I used. I was able to adapt easily to the editing soft ware that I had not used before such as I movie. Throughout my research for the product I developed my skills of surfing the Internet and using information that I find in order to help me create new ideas. For example, I was able to use ‘YouTube’ as a research tool for the thriller genre where I watched video clips and opening sequences to gain ideas to put into my narrative, this was a help to me as I gained some of my ideas from the ‘Phone Booth’ clip. I also learnt how to upload videos onto video sharing sites such as ‘You Tube’, which helped me to post work onto my blog and edit it when necessary.

When finding music for my product, I was restricted to copy right free sound tracks, the idea of not being able to use the music of my choice made me feel as though I was limited. Searching for the appropriate sound effects was a time consuming process, it was hard to find the appropriate music and on numerous occasions I downloaded tracks or sound effects which did not suit the action onscreen and therefore needed to be changed. However this helped me to learn how to put different sound together using the internet in order to create the perfect score for tension building.

Using I-movie had many benefits as it allowed me to import sounds of my choice and then delete them if required. Learning how to use the software did not take long and helped me to structure my product. The fact that I-movie has non linear editing meant that I could erase, cut and paste etc clips where I felt appropriate. This made the project a lot easier and really helped me and my group in making the product flow. If the software had been linear, I’m sure I would have experienced many more problems as I would have been restricted to the original storyboard, which I in fact changed completely in my final product. Now I know that in order to produce a media product such as this, I need to use non linear editing as it is almost impossible to stick to an original storyline as during filming, mistakes will be made, therefore need to be changed/ edited etc.

The camera that I used produced a digital video film which I have learned is a lot different to the celluloid style of film commonly used in American films. Digital Video is grittier than celluloid and ads realism to the product, whereas celluloid is much brighter and artificial; it makes the film seem more unrealistic. This style of filming, however suited the product I was producing as it is a representation of real life. I did not want my sequence to appear artificial, as I believe it is a realistic everyday storyline.

 

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

During my preliminary task, I did not stick to the 180 degree rule, this made me very aware in my final media product  to avoid this. Also, background noise and lighting are very important. In doing my preliminary task I learnt that background noise cannot be edited unless a score is being used therefore filming should be done in a quiet place in order not to effect the ambient

sound.

Throughout the task, I thought that it was compulsory to film in the order that you wish for the final product. However after filming the preliminary task, I came to using i-movie to edit it, which is how I became familiar with the non linear editing process. Playing around with the short clip and cutting bits of it helped develop my editing skils which came into good use for the production of my opening thriller sequence, as during filming I was aware of how i-movie could be used and therefore did not restrict myself to the original storyboard or filming in order.

The finished preliniary task did not flow as well as it could have and at certain points it was obvious that characters actions were planned as they were aware of the camera and the fact that when the film was rolling, they had to be in role. This was obvious to the viewer as there was a pause before the character began to act, as if he/she had been signaled to do so. In future, I can avoid making the same mistake by reshooting the same sees so that I have more material to edit. In doing this, I can make the final product flow much more and make the scene seem more realistic.