- 1. My Evaluation By Ellice Macro
2. Introduction
- For my AS Media coursework I chose to make an opening sequence
to a film. We decided on the genre as being ahorror/thriller ,
after much debate.
- I worked in a group of three with Jessica Hill and Mark OBrien.
We all participated in the filming of the clip. I did the majority
of the editing, though we all contributed to how we would edit
it.
3. In what ways does your media product use, develop or
challenge forms of conventions of real media products?
- As we have chosen the horror genre for our film we decided it
was vital to use typical elements and conventions to portray this
genre instantly to our audience. We used black and white editing
and music which created suspense, both of which are expected in a
horror. Our setting is very typical of a teen horror movie. We also
decided to have a typical story line where teens camp in the woods
and killer comes along, with plenty of chase scenes. However, we
also thought it important to have a twist at the end of the clip
which raises many enigmas the killer is in fact the victims friend
why does he want to kill her? Etc. These enigmas make the audience
want to carry on watching. Our audience feedback supports this (
http://jessellicemark.blogspot.com/2009/05/audience-response.html
)
We also decided to reveal connotations of WHO the murderer is in
the opening sequence, which isnt always typical in a horror, so
this is a development of typical real media products. We did this
by zooming in on Mark and Jess at the end of the 3 Days Earlier
footage, which drew attention to the pairs relationship. This was
necessary footage so we could raise such enigmas to make the
audience carry on watching the film to reveal the answers, and I
think it worked well! 4. Does our film fulfil the requirements of
an opening sequence?
- Establishes time and place The opening sequence to our film
begins with a panning shot of the woodland which establishes the
setting of the film. It is turning dark and the sequence depicts
this with natural low key lighting. The fact that it is just
turning dark implies that Jess has been running away from
something/someone for days.
- Establishes conventions of genre to reassure the audience and
fulfils expectations in terms of media language Conventions of the
genre are quickly established by low key lighting and black and
white editing. This creates a solemn mood and the audience is
reassured that they are watching a horror! The opening shot is
quite typical of the horror genre and this is reiterated by Jess
bloodcurdling scream (diegetic) and non-diegetic sound.
5.
- Introduces main characters/protagonist The protagonist is
introduced within seconds, shortly followed by the villain, through
close ups and tracking shots the main characters are always in the
centre of the shot. In the 3 Days Earlier scenes the other
characters are introduced who will appear in the rest of the
film.
- Establishes an equilibrium to be disrupted The opening sequence
begins with disruption rather than an equilibrium. However, an
equilibrium is established 3 Days Earlier, where the group of
teenagers are happily walking through the woods together before one
of them turns on the rest in a mad killing frenzy.
- Enigmas created to keep audience watching Why is Jess running?
Who is she running from? Why has Mark turned on his friends? Have
they all been killed? Will Jess be murdered or will she
escape?
6. How does your film represent particular social groups?
- Our film consists of one particular social group modern day
teenagers, even the villain is one!
- It was quite simple in arranging the costumes for the
characters as we used our own clothes and concentrated on teen
fashion, so simple jeans/t-shirt combo would suffice. The villain,
Mark, has his hood up in the close ups which creates a natural fear
response as his eyes and face are in shadow this was obviously
important for his role. We could have done more with the costume
for typical conventions of a killer - leather gloves, mask, etc -
however this wouldnt be appropriate as the villain is a teenager on
a camping trip with hisfriendsand this costume was necessary for
the audience to understand the murderer IS Mark. The hooded figure
is a typical teen stereotype, and we are cohering to these
stereotypes by using the yob as violent and, ultimately a
murderer.
The 3 Days Earlier scenes sets a contrast with the previous fast
paced scenes. The group is filmed walking and talking and laughing,
as a group of teenagers would. Our film portrays both of the
stereotypes of teenagers the yob and the happy, carefree group of
friends. 7. What kind of media institution might distribute your
film and why?
- DNA Films would be likely to invest in our film as they invest
in British Independent films. They have also invested in other
horrors such as 28 Weeks Later.
- A British Distributor would be best for our film, however I
think our film also has potential to be an Indiewood Film and have
crossover appeal. Artisan Entertainment distributed the Blair Witch
Project one and two, and so they would have also been suitable
distributors. At this time they were a privately held independent
American studio which would have been fine but since then they have
been purchased by Lionsgate in 2003, so it may not have the same
appeal.
8. Who would be the audience for your film?
- Our audience would be mainly teenagers/late teens 15 to 25, as
this is the age group our film represents and features. Theres no
specific ethnicity or nationality it appeals to, just a general
wide audience within the age-range. Although possibly appealing to
no socio-economic status in particular, I think itd primarily range
from C2 E, predominantly E as this is student based (target
audience).
- Our film may also appeal to an audience who have a particular
interest in British horror films or thrillers and who have spare
time to see the film at the cinema. Maybe a niche audience who
enjoy watching indie films as apposed to the high budget films
often shown in the cinemas.
CUTWOOD 9. How did you attract and address your audience?
- Unlike youd expect, our opening sequence begins with disruption
rather than an equilibrium. We decided to do this so the audience
is instantly engaged. The suspense music during the titles and the
panning shot of the spooky woods prepare the audience for horror
genre and enigmas are instantly created as we see Jess running
through the trees. Why is Jess running through the woods? Who or
what is she running from? In the next shot Jess is shown tripping
over a dead body on the floor, which raises more enigmas for the
audience who is on the floor? How have they died? Have they been
murdered?
- We have created a sense of time through the mise en scene. Jess
costume gives the audience an idea to how long she has been running
through the woods for she has a ripped shirt on and is covered in
mud and blood. We have used make up to make her look tired and her
eye makeup has run because she has been crying etc. We chose to
film just before it went dark so we had light but it also gave an
eerie atmosphere like youd expect in a horror. The fact it was just
before dark indicates how long Jess has been trying to escape for
(3 days). The narrative we used also creates a sense of time. We
used caption saying 3 Days Earlier, which tells the audience this
has been going on for some time and answers why Jess is in the
woods.
10.
- We have created binary opposition in our film to create
conflict and a contrast between the situations and even the
characters three days earlier and three days later. Firstly the
contrast in the script itself is evident Jess is running from Mark
the psycho killer, yet three days earlier they were best of friends
and this is clearly displayed in the scene. During the 3 Days
Earlier scenes Mark and Jess are shown happily wandering into the
woods with as a group of friends, yet we have just seen him walking
through the woods looking to murder Jess.The characters are all
joyful and content during the 3 Days Earlier scenes, however in the
previous scenes Jess is shown running terrified screaming and Mark
is carrying a heavy log to try and kill her!
- The lighting and time of day we filmed was essential. It is
this that shows the audience the contrast of the scenes and
situations immediately and makes the audience understand the twist
(that Mark was her friend) and raise the important enigmas.
We can see from the film stills that there is a massive contrast
between the before and after scenes. The black and white scenes are
dark, low key lighting whereas the 3 Days Earlier scenes have very
high key lighting. The music also created binary opposition, during
the black and white scenes the music is very fast paced and loud,
yet with the 3Days Earlier scenes there is just natural sound with
some added bird noises. This creates contrast in the mood and
atmosphere of the scenes also. 11. As I have discussed earlier, the
enigmas we raised were key in making the audience want to carry on
watching. Enigmas were instantly created when the sequence began
why is she in the woods?, who or what is she running from?, is that
person dead on the floor?, have they been murdered?, and so on. As
our opening sequence continues, we are introduced to Mark (the
killer). It is evident he is the murderer from the shots we took
and the editing (discuss later). There is a massive contrast
between the before and after scenes that helped raise the enigmas
and made the plot more obvious to the audience. It is made
apparent, during the 3 Days Earlier scenes, that Jess and Mark were
supposed to be friends. The audience should be loaded with
questions why is he trying to kill her?, what could have gone so
wrong in the three days?. From our audience feedback we can tell
that these enigmas were successfully created, and the audience
wanted to carry on watching the film to discover the answers. We
have built up tension and suspense mainly through the music. We
have used very fast paced music throughout the film which does
create tension, however was mainly used to create contrast within
the film. Some scenes we have slowed down (such as Mark) walking,
yet we have kept the fast paced music this was to try and show
Marks calm attitude as he leisurely walks along, with Jess frantic
state (the music). However, I dont think this worked as well as wed
hoped as one of the criticisms from our audience feedback was that
the music didnt fit with some of the shots,(seeaudience response
).We also tried to create suspense in the shot where Mark is stood
by a tree and Jess is unknowingly hid behind it. The shot then
abruptly stops and the 3 Days Earlier comes up. We thought the
audience would respond with has he killed her? etc.The audience is
left, theoretically, on a cliff hanger. 12.
- I edited our film by cutting and piecing together different
shots, adding sound, editing diegetic and non-diegetic sound,
making it black and white, changing the speed of some shots and
more. (See blog postMore Editing )
We chose to make the film black and white. Firstly to convey
that it is in the past; we were inspired after evaluating James
Bond Casino Royale where the beginning opening sequence is in black
and white as its in the past. Secondly, because it is a horror and
we wanted the audience to see conventions of the genre as soon as
the film began. We were mainly inspired by The Blair Witch Project,
and our film has a similar feel. The black and white creates a good
effect on the woodland as it looks eerie and haunting and makes the
audience feel on edge. When the title comes up you can see the
black and white trees moving and this looks quite effective along
with the suspense sound added, shortly followed by the diegetic
sound of Jess screaming (which we increased the volume of). The
non-diegetic sound we have added is quite fast paced, often more so
than the images which is a downfall (seeaudience feedback ).
However, we did want the music to be fast paced as it is a chase
scene after all and I think I does create elements of suspense,
especially when some of the shots are particularly slow. The
Editing 13.
- The fast tense music enhances the contrast between the
beginning scenes and the 3 Days Earlier scenes, as the music
instantly stops when the title comes up and the film continues with
just natural sound and some added birds singing. This represents
the peace and happiness before the murders, as I have previously
discussed.
- Lighting was very important to create the right atmosphere and
mood throughout the film. We filmed at different times through the
day, on different days to achieve the right light. The majority of
the sequence was shot just before dark on a dull day, this created
a haunting dull light which was perfect in the woods when we put it
in black and white. We also shot on sunny days for the 3 Days
Earlier parts, which created an entirely different mood, which made
good contrast between the two.
- We tried to do as much continuity editing as possible to make
the sequence flow and make sense. However for the chase scenes, we
were able to put random shots in here and there which portrayed the
chaos in Jess mind.
14.
- We decided to slow some of the shots down for effect. We did
this with the shots of Mark in particular. As it created a contrast
with Jess frantic running and the fast music, it makes Mark seem
more psycho as he is so calm despite killing a close friend.
The final shot worked particularly well when we slowed it down.
The final shot shows Mark holding a heavy stick which hed clearly
used to kill his friends with. We decided to slow this right down
and this created a strange eerie effect. In the background there
was a helicopter, as the scene is slowed down the noise from the
helicopter is warped which makes it sound strange. The noise of the
helicopter gives connotations that the police are after him and
there is a murderer about! Also the fact he still has the stick in
his hand raises more enigmas making the audience want to carry on
watching was he not successful in killing her? 15. What have you
learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this
product?
- Without technology this project would obviously not be
possible. But other than the video and editing software technology,
we have been able to use technology to research similar products.
We have been able to browsewww.youtube.comto research other
horrors/thrillers. We evaluated trailers and opening sequences from
the similar genres we were doing such as Blair Witch Project, The
Others,Casino Royale , etc to inspire us in creating our own horror
film. We were able to then embed video clips onto our Blog and
write up an evaluation so that we could share ideas with the group
and discuss what is important in an opening sequence.
- The blog has been very useful. We have been able to record our
planning, add videos, post our final piece, audience feedback, film
stills etc. And we were all able to access this whenever!
- My evaluation itself is done on PowerPoint, which I think makes
it more interesting. I am able to add pictures and links to our
blog and other sites. Technology has enabled me to post this on my
blog as a PowerPoint usingwww.slideshare.net .
16.
- We made our class watch our opening sequence and then asked
them questions about it. This was good for our evaluations as our
class consists of the target audience for our film and who wed
expect to watch it if it was to be created.
- Technology enabled us to video record ouraudiences responseto
the film and then post it on the blog which has helped us in our
evaluations and seeing if we achieved what we wished to. We are
also able to keep referring back to this.
- Technology has also enabled us to create graphs which show how
successful our film was based on the audience feedback
Did the music fit with the images on screen? Was it clear what
was happening in the sequence? No. of people No. of people What
genre was our opening sequence? No. of people It seems we were
quite successful, people understood what genre it was and what was
happening in the sequence! 17.
- Through doing this project I have learnt how to edit video by
using the Mac computers. At first I found the editing difficult to
grasp, but I soon got the hang of it and was impressed by their
potential. They allow you to edit sound, cut clips, split clips,
add sounds/music, add effects, add captions, edit the speed of
clips and sounds, and I have done all this to our film!
- The Macs did not limit our product at all really. However, it
would have been good if we could edit colour/contrast/saturation
like you can in a still picture. The only limitations imposed on
our ambitions was the budget - 0, and also the fact it was
difficult to find music which we wanted that fit with our film,
especially with no copyright laws. We were filming outside which
meant we could only rely on natural lighting but overall this wasnt
a problem as it gave the film a sense of realism.
- By using the Macs we have been able to tell the story through
the editing and mise en scene without using any dialogue. Weve been
able to reassure the audience of the genre instantly by using
sound/music and effects such as black and white.
18.
- We had to re-take a lot of our shots as some were too shaky
especially when using hand held camera with no tripod. Some of the
shots you couldnt hear the sounds it was essential the audience
could hear Jess screaming loud and clear, and also the final shot
we wanted to get the helicopter noise in the background.
- It took us a few shots to get a successful establishing panning
shot of the surrounding trees as the camera was difficult to move
without jolting, but we got there in the end. One of our other
successful shots is the one where Jess is running towards the
camera, this took a few takes as well.
- We played around a lot with editing the effects. We tried
adding cloud/mist to make it more spooky at the beginning however
this looked silly with a panning shot but it was worth trying. We
tried lots of different fonts for the opening Title CUTWOOD but
decided on this one as it has the trees moving in the background
which tells the audience the setting before the film even
begins.
- We kept altering the order of the shots and repeatedly split
clips here and there to try and make it flow. We decided the
editing didnt need to be very smooth as at this point it is quite
chaotic in the film as Jess is trying to escape from Mark and the
editing represents this.
19. Preliminary Task Vs Final Product Looking back at
yourpreliminary task , what do you think you have learnt in the
progression from it to yourfinal product ? Our preliminary task was
VERY basic, we didnt really cut any shots just added sepia effect
to make it look like an old western. We used basic camera angles on
a tripod and the whole thing was taken in about three shots. We
used dialogue to tell the story, however with our final product
there is no dialogue whatsoever the story is told through the media
language and I think this is a lot more powerful and effective and
the audience has to read between the lines to understand what is
going on. The characters and story line is obviously a lot deeper
than a stolen magical horse and we took it much more seriously. Our
final product explores wider issues within society lack of respect
for others, lack of respect for life.I have learnt to edit the
shots precisely using keyboard editing, which has definitely
increased the professionalism of our film. The lighting is much
better in our final film, we have experimented with natural
lighting to create atmosphere on screen and the sound is much
clearer. We added a variety of non-diegetic sounds to make the film
more authentic and believable as a media product. 20.
Conclusion
- We spent a lot of time researching, filming and editing and
overall I think our product is quite good. We thought hard about a
story line and how to give it an interesting twist at the end
rather than being your typical murderer in the woods horror, and
then contemplated on how to indicate this twist to the audience,
which was done well. Another key strength of our film is it being
in black and white and also colour as it gives a sense of time and
mood, which tells the story too. We have included some good camera
shots in there too, my favourite being where Jess is filmed running
away being chased by a handheld camera as it gives the illusion she
is running from someone or something which is effective.
After receiving our audience feedback, I feel that we should
change some of the music so it fits better with the images on
screen. Also perhaps improve on the continuity editing and make the
sequence flow better. However, I think the product has the
potential to be made into a real film, so expect it soon at a
cinema near you!