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

Sophia Cucciniello

Hardware

• IMac:We used an apple iMac as it was an advanced computer technology that enabled us to edit our film opening with the correct tools in which we required. After, and also whilst working with the iMac, I developed confidence and found that the hardware was beneficial and easy to use as it had better tools to edit with that an ordinary computer. The iMac contains software's such as safari which enabled me to further my knowledge and understanding of the different technologies involved in an apple iMac system. Creating and editing our film opening on this hardware was fun and easy to use/understand.

• USB cable:We used the USB cable to transfer pictures and videos from the video camera to the iMac. By doing this, we found that it was an easier method than sending data to ourselves via email as it was less time consuming and extremely straight forward. Using a USB cable helped us a lot for the duration of our project making as it was an effective way of transferring data from one system to another.

• Tripod:We used the tripod whilst filming our film opening. The main function of the tripod was to allow us to produce steady shots that did not involve shaky camera movements. Whilst using the camera, I learnt that it was essential in supporting and maintaining the weight of the camera- which contributed to the steadiness. Using the tripod helped our project as the three legged frame provided assistance in prohibiting lateral forces. We also found that by using a tripod it was much steadier than using your hands.

• Video Camera:The video camera was used a substantial amount during the process of our project. For example we used it for our preliminary task, filming our opening and taking a picture which was developed into a photograph to use in our opening. I found using a video camera much better than using my phone to film because it produced better quality footage and enabled me to have a longer amount of footage that I could then narrow down whilst editing. From being fairly inexperienced with using video cameras (as I usually use my phone/ipod) I have developed more confidence with this technology and also more knowledgeable of the different functions within the video camera that are not available on my phone/ipod.

• SD Card:We used an SD card to keep all of our filming data in one place, so that it would be less likely to lose any footage and have to re-film. I have

learnt how to back up any of the data which we used to ensure even more safety of the footage. Using an SD card was useful as it was easy to use and having a large memory meant that I was able to get as much footage as I needed without having to worry if I run out of memory.

Software

• iMovieThe whole editing procedure of our film opening was done on iMovie. We used this software because it was the best and most advanced one

available to us. Using iMovie educated me immensely as I learnt lots of new things about how to edit and add effects onto my film. Not only was it easy to use, but the wide range of different tools to edit with allowed us to create a much better film than we would have on any other movie editing program. For example, we used the ‘fading in’ transition between scenes and also detached audio from certain sections that we then replaced with music. We were also able to choose from a wide rage of fonts to make our titles fit in with the thriller genre.

• MicrosoftFor the duration of this project, I used lots of Microsoft software such as Word and PowerPoint because there were lots of written tasks that

I thought would be best presented on these documents. Whilst using the Microsoft programs I felt like it was a lot easier than writing up the tasks by hand, taking a picture and uploading them to my blog. I was also able to use spell check to ensure that I didn’t make any silly mistakes in my spelling and make my work look more presentable.

• MoviemakerAlthough I did the actual film opening using iMovie, I completed some of the tasks, such as the editing of the preliminary task, on movie

maker. The reason for this was because I had to work from home and did not have access to iMovie. I found that using Movie Maker was both easy to use and worked effectively. I learnt the simple procedures such as how to cut selections of scenes quickly and without difficulty. Movie Maker is a very straight forward software which I found useful whilst doing my preliminary task.

• PhotoshopWe used Photoshop to create our ‘Silver Shadow Productions’ production company logo. This was the fist time I have ever used Photoshop so

the whole process was new to me. I did however, find it fairly straight forward to use and was able to create the logo with no troubles. I found that Photoshop was more effective than using any other software to create this logo as we were able to use specific tools such as the ‘slice tool’ to change the size, shape and layout of the logo.

Online Tools

• MindmeisterI used Mindmeister to create a mind map showing some of the features that will show in my film opening. These features involved the

costumes, mise en scene, the locations, props, characters and more. The reason I used Mindmeister to portray this date was because it was the best method that would show so much information in a nice layout. I also wanted to try using a different tool to present my work instead of just the obvious Microsoft. I learnt that the presentation of Mindmeister was eye-catching and neat. It was fairly easy to use and was an effective way of presenting data. I learnt how to include images alongside the text in Mindmeister.

• YoutubeI created a Youtube account so that I could upload all of my videos such as my actual film opening, the preliminary task, certificate ratings

etc.. I did this so that they would all be in one place and then also would be easier to upload onto my blog. I have never had a YouTube account before so learnt how to upload a video and how to add annotations and other features. I did not use YouTube just for my own videos, I also used it to view other things that helped me understand my film genre. For example I watched lots of thriller film openings that helped me understand what I should include in my own film opening. Using YouTube was very helpful and allowed me to get a clearer understanding of the type of diegesis, costumes, mise en scene and locations to use in my own film opening.

• Blogger:I used blogger to keep the contents of my entire project. This means that anyone can go onto Google and onto my blogger to see the

different tasks I have completed, including my final film, for this project. I feel like Blogger has been the most useful online tool that we used because it was a way to keep my tasks in a systematic order with good presentation. I learnt lots of things about blogger, such as how to personalise my own blog, how to tag and label my tasks and also how to add widgets onto my blog.

• Freesound:Freesound was the website which I got most of my music/sound from for my film opening. I found this website incredibly helpful as I was

able to find all of the different types of non diegetic and diegetic sounds that I needed, such as the sound of a lighter lighting and the door closing. Without these sounds in my opening it would have been unrealistic and bland. I learnt how easy it was to locate different music types by cliking on the genre you wanted and typing in key words of what you are trying to find. I also learnt how to download the musi that I liked and wanted to include in my opening. This website was also beneficial because we were not allowed to use copy-right music and so finding such a good website, with a variety of different tracks to use, was extremely helpful.

• Google:Google was an extremely helpful online tool that we used continuously throughout this project. Whenever I had difficulties with any of the

different software's or hardwires or online tools I was able to Google these issues and locate information which helped me to solve these problems. This allowed me to learn new things about the programs I had difficulties with and widened my knowledge on them. I also used Google maps in one of my tasks, to show where the locations for my film will be.

• Art Of The Title:I used the Art of the Title website to view different film openings that had the same thriller genre I made my film opening. I did this to help

me get an insight of the types of things to include in my own film. This gave me a better understanding of the types of loations, characters, mise en scene, lighting and diegesis that I needed to portray in my own opening. I also used Art Of The Title so that I could complete my nine frame analysis question which I needed to get screen shots for. Using this website was very helpful as it was a sort of guide as to what I should aim to achieve.

• Slideshare:After completing a powerpoint on Microsoft, I sometimes decided to upload them onto Slideshare because ei felt like it looked more

engaging and was more interactive than a normal slideshow from PowerPoint. By using Slideshare I learn how to upload my PowerPoint onto the website which were then easy to upload onto my blog. It was beneficial because, instead of creating a film with the PowerPoint which would be at a certain speed, using Slideshare you can view the slides at your own pace.