A2 Media Evaluation

SAVANNAH COLCLOUGH

IN WHAT WAYS DOES YOUR MEDIA PRODUCT USE, DEVELOP

OR CHALLENGE FORMS AND CONVENTIONS OF REAL MEDIA

PRODUCTS?

Question 1

CONVENTIONS

My media product used the conventions of real media forms, for example following conventional features of a horror film. I believe that my film does this in terms of costume, effects and narrative. This is because I have chosen the genre of vampires. This particular genre is proving to be very popular at this time. This genre has particular features that defines it as this genre, for example violence, blood and vampires, these are shown in films and T.V series’. I have chosen this genre because I think that it enables me to be creative with how I represent these characters and this genre. I am also able to challenge myself with this because it’s a popular genre, it would be hard to produce something that would appeal to people as much as other products on the market.

Many of these conventional films and TV series’ chosen to portray vampire characters in a very similar way, I decided that I would follow this conventional feature as people would be able to easily recognise this and be able to understand the message that I would be putting forward. Most characters that are vampires are shown to be very mysterious characters. This is shown through the use of visual effects and make-up. They appear to be very pale and when there in ‘attack’ mode appear to have dark black shadows under there eyes and a mysterious stance. I have also decided to use Final Cut Express filters and effects to portray this message. I have used a coloured filter with ‘Earthquake’ overlaid. These particular filters have created the effect that they are unstable and want blood surging through them, due to the shaking and the red filter.

CONVENTIONS

Though I have followed the conventional forms of this character, I have also decided that I wanted to show my character as not wanting to be like this. I therefore felt that I should portray a character that was rebelling against what is right for there kind. I have therefore chosen to dress this character in normal clothing, you are able to see this on my ancillaries, the vampire girl is stood in a stance as though she is hiding, appearing to be a very mysterious character however dressed like a normal person.

DEVELOP

I feel that I have challenged the forms and conventions of real media products due to me wanting to portray the idea that the vampire girl wants to be normal, therefore blending in with humans and acting like one. I have shown this by putting her in unconventional clothing and also having a ‘normal’ appearance when she enters the school common room. I also feel that I have challenged the conventional vampire film as they appear to be very ‘Americanised’, I feel that they do this because there are very exaggerated versions of relationships and different occurrences. I felt that I wanted to move away from this and create something that is more British and real. I have done this by making something that is more realistic, I have used settings that are quite typical, no large fancy houses and exaggerated habitats, I have simply used a local woodland.

CHALLENGE

HOW EFFECTIVE IS THE COMBINATION OF YOUR MAIN

PRODUCT AND ANCILLARY TEXTS?

Question 2

EFFECTIVE?

By looking at the combination of my main product and my ancillary texts I am able to see that they are very effective as a whole. This is due to them coming together extremely well as an advertising package. This is a great effect upon the audience because they would be able to look at various different advertisements of my film in order for it to appeal to them. For example if someone was to buy the film magazine they would see the advertisements within this and know that they wanted to watch the film. They could then go on websites such as YouTube in order to find the film trailer to find out more what the film is about and if they wish to see it. They might also see a film poster that’s advertising the film, this would then make them want to go and find more information about the film. This would make the film successful because people will know by looking at these products exactly if they wish to watch it because it would appeal to them.

By looking at existing products I am able to see that my film package comes together as a package very well, this is due to being able to compare them to existing products on the market. For example by looking at the ‘Let Me In’ Package I am able to see that the effects that I have used are very similar. Such as the use of colour and effects.

EXISTING?

Here you can see that the use of colours in the two film posters are extremely similar. The use of red and black connote the idea that my film contains violence and horror. This is because by looking at the colour red you can see that it represents blood and horror. By using these colours then makes you think of these things, therefore enabling you to recognize the genre of the film.

COLOUR?

By looking at the use of images I am also able to see that there is a difference between these two, although the colours and representations may appear to be quite similar I feel that the two images used are very different. This is because they are different characters and are therefore represented in different ways. In the ‘Let me In’ poster you can see that the character is curled up and looks very vulnerable. In comparison to the image used in my poster, where she looks as though she is hiding. This shows that the two characters are in similar situations with different representations.

IMAGES?

By looking at my magazine cover you can see that it is similar to other magazine covers. You are able to see that the colour schemes that I have used are cannoning what the film is like, for example the genre and narrative. By using these colours I am able to show the audience what the film is like, they would then be able to reflect upon this and understand wither they would be interested in watching the film. I can see by comparing my product to an existing product that I have effectively used different advertising techniques. An example of this is the posters that are inside, this is a conventional feature of a magazine; in order for a magazine to sell well they put something in the magazine that will attract the audience, in my case the use of a posters.

MAGAZINE

By looking at this magazine cover I am able to compare it to mine. This is because they have a similar theme; horror. You can see on the magazine name that they have used an effect to show that there will be blood contained in the film. I have used this similar effect with brushes and the use of the colour red. The image used is also similar, this is because they have chosen to use the main character, in order to introduce them to the audience.

MAGAZINE

WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNED FROM YOUR AUDIENCE

FEEDBACK?

Question 3

HOW?

By reviewing my audience feedback I am able to see that it has helped me allot in the development of my final products. This is due to them telling my how I can improve my product. I then know exactly what people find effective, and what they don’t. I received my audience feedback by uploading an unfinished version of my video onto YouTube and Facebook in order to know what people think of my product. I then reviewed comments and reflected upon the criticism that they had to say.

Some of the comments that I received were that they really liked the video, they also commented about how effective they found it and also how they would go to watch it in the cinema. I only received one comment on how to improve my product which was to put together my audio better, this would improve the overall effectiveness of the product as it would appear more realistic. I also received feedback telling me to lengthen the amount of time that the text is on for, due to not being able to have enough time to read it. I then did this in order to make it so that the audience could fully understand the narative in order to make them then go and watch the film.

AUDIENCE FEEDBACK

I also had audience feedback stating that there were no males in the film. This is a factor that I hadn't noticed in my film, by now knowing this I have inserted a scene where when the vampire girl enters the common room she is looked at by a boy. This scene makes you think that something could then happen from this, however it doesn't’t interfere with the whole story. By doing this I now feel that this film would target males as well. If I had not been given this feedback then I wouldn't’t have known about the lack of male roles, therefore targeting not only females but now males as well.

AUDIENCE FEEDBACK

In order to get group feedback I decided to show my Health and Social care group my trailer and ancillaries. By doing this they gave me the feedback that I needed. They all said that they really liked the video however felt that there were small bits of audio that needed correcting and they also thought that some bits of audio was too quiet. These are parts where characters are talking, they felt that the music was too overpowering. In order to make sure that my film trailer is fully successful I have decided to make sure that I try to correct everything that my audience have said. Doing this I have corrected my audio as well as possible. I have also made audio that’s speech allot louder so that music and effects don’t drown it out. I feel that this has been very effective because now my film trailer is as effective and professional as possible.

AUDIENCE FEEDBACK

For the audience feedback on my ancillary tasks I have chosen to upload my images to Facebook and I have also created a questionnaire in order to get a greater verity of people. By doing this I know exactly what people find appealing about my poster and magazine cover, and what they don’t. By reviewing the audience feedback on Facebook I am able to see that people found these effective. This is because they have commented on my pictures saying which one they feel is the most appealing to them and also what isnt. They have also told me some improvements that I could make. For example someone commented that the date of the film stood out much more than the actual title of the film, I then improved this by putting a glow effect around the title of the film in order for it to stand out much more than the other things and I made the date of the film much smaller.

AUDIENCE FEEDBACK

By looking at the questionnaires that I have sent out I am able to see exactly what people like, and don’t like. I have found that most people find the 3rd, edited version of the film poster more appealing than any of the other posters. This is because I have made the title stand out more and also reviewed the results of my other questionnaire. I have reflected upon the comment that people have said that everything appears to be more at one side than the other. This is bad because all of the audiences attention would be pulled to one side and therefore taking attention away from what they should be looking at, which is the package as a whole. I have therefore moved some of the information around and made it more central. This is now much more appealing because your attention is used in all areas rather than just one.

AUDIENCE FEEDBACK

By letting people look at my magazine front cover I am able to know that they find this very effective. I have had feedback stating that its very appealing and the information that is used is just right. However I have also had feedback stating that they thought that there was too much information used within the page, and that it’s a little to crammed. I have then changed this and removed some text that is unnecessary. This now looks better because the attention of the audience is in all the right places, showing that they can look at it and find exactly what they need to know from it.

AUDIENCE FEEDBACK

HOW DID YOU USE NEW MEDIA TECHNOLOGIES IN THE

CONSTRUCTION, RESEARCH, PLANNING AND EVALUATION

STAGES?

Question 4

PLANNING

Within the planning stages of my product I have used various different technologies that were available to me. In my planning the main technology that I have used is Blogger. I have used this in order to be able to keep an interactive record of all of my work. I have this at hand wherever I am, this is due to it been accessible on the internet. By using blogger I have been able to add different forms of media to it. For example using there online video and image uploader. This makes my blog more interactive and allows me to upload work that I have don’t and others work which I am able to compare and use. I have also used ‘Prezi’ on my Blog. This has enabled me to create an interactive plan of my film, where you can read and understand my film plan in different stages.

I have also used different types of technology in order to be able to upload my planning work to my blog. I have done this by using a scanner to upload images of my storyboard and plans. I have also used YouTube in order to look at existing products in order to understand what my product should look like. I have also used PowerPoint in order to research different media theories linked with trailers. In order to then link these to my Blog I have used a website called ‘Slide share’ which allowed me to upload my PowerPoint, then link it onto my Blog. This was much better than using any other software such as simply typing up the research because I am now able to look over it in an interactive form, helping me to understan it much better than I would if it was just text.

MEDIA

I found that by using search engines such as google has helped me dramatically as I am easily able to find information that I need quickly and efficiantly. This has helped me allot more than using any other forms of research, for example books. This is a much quicker and easier process.

MEDIA

For the production process I have decided to make my product with Final Cut Express. I have chosen to use this because its industry standard software and it allows me to be very creative with what I produce, rather than other less developed software's. I have also chosen to use this because I have experience with the software due to using it in my AS coursework. In order to create my film trailer I have used different filters, effects and transitions that they provide in order for my product to look professional. I have chopped up and chosen the best bits of filming and put them in the right order to make it as effective as possible. I have also used Adobe Photoshop CS5 in order to create indents and different texts, I have used this because I believe it’s the best software I could use to get the best outcome, as as similarly I have experience using the software. I created these different bits of work using layers and different brushes. In order for the text that I have used to look effective I have chosen to put different effects on the text, I have also kept the same theme throughout the film in order to make it look professional.

TRAILER

In order for me to get the best footage and pictures as possible I have chosen to use the best technology I could have access to. For my filming I chose to use the Sony HD solid state camera. This allowed me to get much better quality and more reliable footage than I would using any other camera. In order to take the best images possible for my ancillaries I have decided to use the Nikon SLR, this is the best camera that I have access to and I believe that it has provided me with the best results possible.

TECHNOLOGY

In order to get the best soundtrack possible I decided to use the audio taken from the HD camera, this audio was the best quality that I could have got. In order to have access to different sound effects that I could use in order to create suspense I used the ‘Apple Loop’ sound effects that come uploaded on the iMacs. These sounds allowed me to get good quality sounds that would sound professional and effective. I also used a song for the end of my trailer in order to look even more professional and create suspense, this is because conventional film trailers have a song to them which creates the overall effect of the film due to genre. I have edited the soundtrack of my film using final cut where I was able to make certain bits louder, cut up audio and add transitions and filters to get the best possible outcome.

SOUNTRACK

In order for all of this to be possible I had access to the best apple iMac currently available. This allowed me access to all of the software that I have used and made all of this work possible. By using this specific iMac I had the best transfer speed possible and the best software that’s accessible to me.

IMAC