Eval question 1

Evaluation Question 1

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

IntroductionAs all thrillers have the majority of the same conventions, including suspense and a lot of tension. I found that my thriller sequence was fairly similar to a number of other media products through other elements. I found a film that had a similar storyline and a video game with a very similar protagonist and also a TV series with a similar character and similar story.

SaltThe first Media product that I am going to compare my thriller sequence to is Salt. Salt is a action thriller about a female protagonist Evelyn Salt, played by Angelina Jolie. It was directed by Phillip Noyce and released 23rd July 2010. Salts storyline is about a CIA agent (Evelyn Salt) who goes on the run after being accused of being a Russian spy. Salt was created by Columbia Pictures.

Tomb RaiderTomb raider is an action/adventure video game that was released in 2013, it was developed by Crystal Dynamics and it emphasises the reconstructed origins of the culturally influential lead character Lara Croft. It was released on the 5th March, for Play Station3 and X-Box.

Jessica JonesJessica Jones is a TV series created by Melissa Rosenberg for Netflix based on the Marvel Comics character Jessica Jones by Brian Michael Bendis and Michael Gaydos. It stars Krysten Ritter and Mike Colter. Jessica Jones was produced by Marvel Television. It was distributed by Netflix. It was first released on 20th November 2015.

What are genre conventions and why are they used?Genre conventions are elements, used to show the genre of the media product, they can be used in many different ways, for example through similar characters and quite often similar storylines. They are a good thing to use in a media product as it leaves the audience constantly guessing and trying to figure out the plot. They are used to create tension and suspense and to leave the audience guessing.

Conventions of a thrillerSuspenseExcitementPlot TwistsLow Key LightingQuick CutsShadowsMontage of shotsChanges in angle shots

Comparing Salt

StorylineSalts storyline is about a female undercover spy who is constantly being watched. She is a highly intelligent and a highly trained fighter. Evelyn Salt is working for the government and she is highly equipped as a spy. Salt is constantly on the run and being chased, however she must kill certain agents; as they killed her husband.Our storyline involves a female who is working for the government as a spy, she too like Evelyn is a trained fighter, with a high IQ. The film follows her journey and the fights she has to win and the people she must befriend in order to get what she wants.

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Character

Both our character and Evelyn Salt, are intensive highly trained fighters and wear heels and suits whilst doing it. They are both highly capable and independent woman, they have no problem fighting men. They prefer to work alone and will not stand for any nonsense. They are ruthless with their fighting and will do anything to get the information they need. As they are both undercover spies, they wear female suits, they still have very female features wear makeup, have nice hair. Their physique is also very feminine.

Action We created suspense in our thriller by having the audience know more than the female protagonist. We used a close up shot of the knife, this gave the audience the idea that the girl was about to be attacked with this knife by someone else, however; as the female protagonist has her back to the audience. This will add suspense, because the audience will be on the edge of their seats, watching the female have no idea what's coming towards her. Also, in this shot particularly, suspense is created by not being able to see the face of the killer/ male antagonist; this too will leave the audience with a lot of suspense are they arent aware of who this person is and this lack of knowledge creates tension.

Suspense is similarly created in Salt in this scene as Evelyn is hiding from the people trying to catch her. The audience can see more than she can, therefore they too like with our thriller will be sitting on the edge of their seats wanting Evelyn to move. She is unaware of what is chasing her. Looking at her, like with our character also, you dont think that she is able to compete with the government security, looking at her femininity, due to the stereotypes of very feminine woman being weak and incapable as well as being stupid, the audience dont think that Evelyn will stand a chance, however she soon prove them wrong.

Title FormatOur Sequence

Salt

In both my opening sequence and Salts, there is a black background and the titles come across the screen in white, this contrast of colours draws attentions to the information that is being displayed. Also we both decided to have no vivid images in the background in order to create suspense, as at any moment the visual scene will start. Like our sequence the opening starts and then the title come up in big writing, this is very similar to ours, the suspense captivated in the first short scene sets the audience up for the rest of the film.

Editing techniquesOur SequenceFor our editing techniques we used, a range of different elements, including using a lot of fast paced shots in order to make it more realistic and as we were amateurs at filming a fight scene, for our benefit we used faster pace in order for it to look better. We also used fast pace to confuse the audience as to who was winning the fight and this allowed both the characters look like they were struggling. SaltDuring Salt, as there arent really any fights scenes until towards the end, the pace of the film is fairly slow in general, although there is a lot of action, the actual film around the action, is fairly slow paced, this allows the audience to concentrate on the action in the center of the scene. In Salt, because it was Evelyn against the world, the pace needed to be slower in order for the audience to be able to keep up with what was going on.

Camera TechniquesMy ThrillerWhen filming our thriller, we used a lot of hand held shots, just like the camerawork in salt, this allowed us to draw in the attention of the audience by making them feel disorientated. In addition we used a low angle shot at the end, to make the woman look empowering and show the audience that she is in control. SaltDuring Salts fight scene between Evelyn and Vasily Orlov, the camera work is very similar to ours, the camera is handheld and therefore shaking slowly from side to side, this disorientates the audience making them feel as though they are at the scene, it also brings their focus in because they are trying to make themselves fully aware of whats happening. In this particular fight scene. The is a low angle shot used after Evelyn has killed Orlov to show that she is powerful and dominant.

Jessica Jones Title FontBoth title sequences are different but also have their similarities, for example the title of the film/TV series both come at the end of the sequence with a boom. This allows the audience to get the gist of what theyre about to watch and then they are taken away from it and reminded of what the film is called.

Tomb Raider - Character

Both of these Characters are extremely powerful, they completely challenge societies stereotypes of women. These woman have to fight against men in order to achieve what they want. They are independent characters and dont rely on anyone. Both these characters stance is very powerful and defensive. Their clothes are extremely different, for example, my character is made to look as though she would never be able to fight, however the Tomb Raider looks as though she is ready to fight.

Camera TechniquesComparing my thriller to Jessica Jones, the camera work is fairly similar in parts. During the beginning of our scene and the first scene of series 1 episode 1, the camera uses a range of different shots in order to make the scene look as realistic as possible. The scene begins following Jessica as she is being followed by someone else, this is very similar to our thriller, we both used similar medium long shots and close ups.