A2 media evaluation

Benish Hussain

A2 MEDIA EVALUATION

To begin with, I had to carry out various primary research tasks in order to achieve some understanding of the codes and conventions of short films. I watched a series of different short films and also researched narrative and genre. It was from this process that I was then able to make choices about how I would use and challenge the conventions in my own final product. This process of researching helped me as I gained vast knowledge of short films before beginning to produce my own.

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

The first convention which I feel I have met is that my narrative is articulated through the camera and mise en scene, rather than dialogue. This is a common technique used in many short films, for example ‘The Desk’. Furthermore, many short films I came across while researching had either no dialogue or very little dialogue. So my film follows this convention as my story is told predominantly through the camera and mise en scene.Continuing, I believe the fact that there is no dialogue in my film adds to the feel and mood of the narrative and creates more suspense, which is exactly what I want from my film. I felt that it is more suited to my horror/comedy genre if the relationship between the character and the audience is established through the camera, sound and mise en scene rather than a voiceover.

I looked at Todorov’s theory which suggests that most narratives start with a state of equilibrium which is then disrupted but goes back to normal at the end; this is usually true. However, I decided to challenge this convention of an equilibrium state. My short film does not go back to normal and there is no real resolution. I decided to leave my film on a cliff-hanger so I could leave the audience enthralled. Another way in which my short film challenges and develops forms and conventions of real media products is my idea of creating a sub genre film. What I tried to do is create a horror film yet with a comedic sub genre since I felt these two genres fitted well together. After researching the conventions of a horror/comedy sub genre film, I found out the following: fades are used at the end of the scenes, a variety of effects used, and the great use of close up shots.Furthermore, I met the convention of using close ups and mid shots. The use of this technique allows the audience to engage with the character and helps create an understanding of the protagonists personality. After the research I had done, I decided I would add a fade transition at the end of each scene as well as using a range of effects, for example: vignette, sci-fi and old world.

Close up shot

Mid shot

Ripple transition effect

In addition to this, another convention of short films which I met was the through the use of mise en scene. I tried to make the representations of the actors reflect that of the character they are playing. Even though I took props into consideration, I think I could have improved by also taking costumes into consideration.

I made the stalker wear a mask since it adds to the genre of horror as it look more scarier than just a normal face.

However, in this scene I could have made her push her scarf back so that it is not visible as I feel it ruins the ides of her being a a stalker.

Furthermore, I followed the convention of having a title sequence and the idea of having credits at the end. This is because these are very common conventions which are required to be in a short film. It is also useful for the audience so see the credits at the end.

I kept the house-style of the opening sequence and credit sequence the same as it looks more effective rather than having two different styles.

When researching other short films I realised it is a convention to use an establishing shot to open each scene. I therefore used establishing shots at the start of pretty much all my scenes as I feel this helps the audience get more familiar with the location and environment. This will make the audience feel more comfortable when watching my film.

I also used a tracking shot to follow the actor while she was walking. This was another convention I found; it follows the characters movement which is more effective than having just a shot from behind showing her walk on. The fact I have used a tracking shot will allow the audience to feel that they have not missed anything.

Another shot I used was a upwards tilt shot. This was a convention I picked up on and decided to follow it since it makes the film looks more effective as it shows the use of different camera shots. Also the audience won’t get bored of seeing the same shots over and over again.

Long shots were also a convention of short films so I decided to use them in my film as well. I used a long shot as not only does it look effective, but because it’s a long shots it also establishes the setting too.

I feel that the combination of my short film and ancillary tasks are very effective as they tend to cover a lot of codes and conventions of real media products. Moreover, all three of my productions have synergy which shows I have the ability to link the three pieces of work together. For example, if you saw my film poster you would be able to tell that it relates to my film. I have accomplished synergy by using the same house style throughout all three pieces (white/black/red), the consistency of these colours running through all three pieces shows a clear link between them.

How effective is the combination of your main product and ancillary tasks?

I followed the convention of a striking masthead to introduce the film.

I also followed the convention of including a positive review – this will show the audience that it will be worth watching.

I included a snappy tag line to captivate the audience so that they will want to watch the film. This was again another common convention I picked up on when researching other film posters.

I followed the convention of using a large central image in order to attract the audience.

I decided to feature the actors names on the poster as this was a convention used in many other film posters. I feel this would be effective because the audience could relate to them if they were well known actors,

I followed the convention of using a minor heading with the main heading below it.

One main convention I came across when researching existing review pages was the use of the three columns for the review. I followed this convention as it is one of the main conventions so I decided I did not want to subvert this.

I used a subheading to break down my text as it looked fairly squashed . However, the use of subheadings is also another convention I found in other review pages and I feel it is effective since it gives the reader an idea od what they will be about to read next.

A major convention I figured from other review pages is the idea of having a positive review quoted in bold. Along with this, another convention is quoting some text from the review itself. I think this is an effective convention as it will instantly catch the readers eye and draw them in.

When carrying out my research I found out that review pages can either be on a single page or a double page spread. I decided to do a double page spread.

A common convention for double page reviews was that the main image was spread along both pages. I therefore followed this convention and decided to spread my main image across both pages. Besides this, I inserted two slightly smaller images as it was a convention in other review pages.

What have you learned from your audience feedback?

I valued the importance of audience feedback right from the start. After my initial planning and research before my final treatment, I knew who my target group would be. I therefore kept my target audience in mind whilst in the process of creating my productions. After completing my productions I gave out a questionnaire from which I received some positive feedback that I am very pleased with (see blog ‘questionnaire results’). For example, people said that creating a horror film mixed with comedy was a good idea since the genre is reflected in the film very well. They also liked how the colour theme stays the same throughout.

From my audience feedback, I have learnt that I have managed to engage and advertise my film quite well as most of the feedback received was positive.

I am pleased with the feedback as it helps me acknowledge what could have been done better in order to improve my short film. It also helps make me realise how the film would be if it had turned out any different to what I produced.

In order to achieve some audience feedback, I uploaded my short film on to YouTube. I received positive feedback from fellow students and I particularly agreed with ‘Zzed Ox’ constructive criticism, since I believe an improvement I could make in the future is to indeed make sure the actors are dressed to resemble their character.

Apart from this, many people liked the fact the narrative is told through the sound, camera, mise en scene and editing. Many people especially liked the sound effects since they resemble the comedy genre.

How did you use new media technologies in the construction and research, planning and evaluation stages?I used many new media technologies all throughout the production of my short film and ancillary tasks. The first stage was researching for my media product; I created a blog in order to keep a record of all my research work as well as my progress and development. Overtime, I became better at using blogger effectively since I learnt how to upload images and documents. This is something I did not know how to do at AS.The majority of my research took place through YouTube. I researched, watched and analysed other existing short films from YouTube in order to give myself an idea of how a short film should look like. I also used search engine, Google, to research the codes and conventions of short films, review pages and film posters. This was very beneficial as I was then able to make the decision as to whether I would follow these conventions or whether I would challenge them.

In terms of publishing my research, I created a blog on blogger.com where all my findings were displayed. My blog consisted of not only written research but also pictures and slideshows making my blog more interesting and easier on the eye. The use of blogger was very efficient since I could easily update it as I has easy access to a computer.

I used various different new media technologies to manage and construct my final product and ancillary tasks. I used a digital flipcam to record my film and take pictures of the locations. The camera featured a LCD screen which allowed instant playback so I was directly able to delete any clips containing bloopers. I also used a tripod when recording in order to achieve stable shots avoiding any unnecessary movement. I used iMovie to edit the footage I had captured and to create the film. I also downloaded sound effects and used soundtracks from iMovie itself to feature in my film. Using this software I was able to add special effects such as slow motion and the romance effect which made my scenes look more effective. iMovie also allowed me to successfully merge all my clips together using various cuts and transitions, e.g. fade, swipe, dissolve etc. In order to select the actors to take part in my film, I held auditions which I advertised on the social networking site Facebook. I created an event and listed the time and place, many people then turned up for the auditions.

Selection of transitions to choose from.

Project after being edited and sound being put in place.This is the timeline which was used to organise my audio footage.

I also used Adobe Photoshop to produce my film poster and review page. This again meant I could use a variety of effects. For example, I used the crop tool to adjust the images to size I needed them. Because I was using Adobe Photoshop, it meant that I could take any image and manipulate it to how I wanted it to look. However, one problem I encountered with this software was the lack of spell checker, particularly when I was typing up the my magazine review. I had to be extra cautious when spelling; it meant I had to manually check over my work to check for any errors which was a slight inconvenience.

I used the contrast effect to change the visual appearance of this image. I decided to do this since I felt the image looked more mysterious which fits the horror genre.

My skills of using Adobe Photoshop have increased overtime. At AS I was only able to edit an image basically, however now I am able to manipulate an image to its full extent by adding several effects to make it look more effective.

For my evaluation I used Microsoft PowerPoint which allowed me to combine images into my work, again leading to better viewing and helping me to get my point across more effectively.

My skills have certainly developed during the making of my of media products including my ancillary tasks as in AS I had never worked on iMovie and I had no real knowledge of how to use it. However, after researching and watching a few tutorials on YouTube I soon learnt how to edit, add effects and manipulate sound using iMovie. The only limitation of using iMovie is that you require a Mac to use it and for me personally it was quite hard to get hold of a Mac.

Overall, I think the use of digital technology and the internet was extremely useful because without the convergence we have today, I don’t think my film would have turned out as good. By getting more familiar with all the types of convergence and digital technology, my skills have improved vastly from AS to A2 and I have been able to successfully create my own media products.