Evaluation - Question 7

 Looking back at your preliminary task (The continuity edit) what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product?

Looking back at my first task (continuity) I can see a lot of small mistakes as tricks such as match on action and the 360 degree rule were not as of yet mastered. There was also a lack in vary of angles whilst using the camera for the first time and some shaky shots such as when the actor was walking down the stairs. With all of this put together it shows an amature understanding of continuity throughout the filming industry.

Comparing this to my film opening sequence you can immediately tell that there is a lot more time, care and precision during the filming and editing of this piece with greater understanding of the film industry to support it. A more varied use of camera angles were used to show a vast understanding of the different techniques used by the professionals. You can also see a greater knowledge in the editing skills used in my film opening sequence as more visual effects and sound effects have been used in a more professional manor compared to my original continuity edit as before it looked unprofessional and the shots did not link properly.

As well as sound effects that were added during the editing stage of my film opening sequence we also used a track that we made up ourselves to suit the genre of our film and a voice over rather than just using made up sounds put together from the editing software that we used. By using our own sounds this gave our over all film opening sequence a higher quality finish which looked a lot more professional compared to my first attempt of filming an editing.

Evaluation - Question 6

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

Technologies mind map

Evaluation - Question 5

How did you attract/address your audience?

Evaluation - Question 4

Who would be the audience for my media product?

Evaluation - Question 3

What kind of media institution may distribute our media product and why?

Evaluation - Question 2

How does your media product represent particular social groups?

The protagonist in our film opening sequence can be compared to the gangster like character from the matrix. We have used the typical stereotypes of this social group through props and costume such as the black sunglasses and dark clothing as you can see above.

The antagonist in our film opening sequence can be compared to many strong woman combat type characters. We have used the typical teenage girl stereotypes whilst she in under cover to connect with our target audience and when she is in her 'spy' persona we have used combat style props and costume to show the genre of our film

Evaluation - Question 1

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

The title of the film-

At the beginning of every film the production company is shown. This is normally from part of the big six as they own 90% of the worlds media. The showing of their ident is a conventional feature of a film opening as it is mandatory to all film openings. This makes my film opening successful as mine also has a ident from a production company which is a key feature for the opening sequence. 

Setting/location-

Here the location of my film is shown. It is in a typical place for a film of its genre as we can see it compared to the lara croft film which has been shot in a similar place. The location of a film is usually shown at the beginning of an opening sequence which helps the audience gain perspective.

Costumes and props-

The props used help us to identify our character and what type of person they are. Our character is seen as being prepared with her rucksack and sporty with her running outfit. This may suggest the genre of the movie as being an action film. Costume and props have also been used in the Lara Croft film to represent the character as being strong with the use of weapons.

Camerawork and editing-

The range of camera angles that were used in our film opening shows a range of skills as some of them were used to represent characters as being tough. Camera angles are used in opening sequences to show location, characters and establish the story line. This is a success in our opening sequence. The editing that took place in our opening sequence was especially effective where the flashbacks take place as there is an obvious difference in time due to the colour alterations.

Title font and style-

The style of typography that was used in our opening sequence represents the genre as it looks smart but yet not too formal. The black and white colours used connotes the split personalities of the main character with her 'normal teenager' act and her 'secret agent' lifestyle. Another piece of typography which conveys the strength of a woman character is from Lara Croft Tomb Raider. The font used is quite similar to our one as it again doesn't look to formal but it is still acceptable for the teenage target audience.

Setting up the story and establishing genre-

In our opening sequence the genre has been established using the conventional chase scene. Not only this but the props also show that this is an action film that has a 'secret agent' character because of the gadgets that she carries with her. This is similar to the Lara Croft character as the genre of the film is also shown through the use of props here.

Introducing characters-

Feedback

One of the most frequent pieces of feedback I received was that the tension was well introduced. This was done through the use of low camera angles that make the antagonist look more menacing and the music building up the overall atmosphere of the situation.Another comment I got was that it looks like a professional film opening this is because of the use of the titles that appeared at the appropriate times as they would in a real film opening.Target audience was commented on saying that it was well established from the beginning and people liked how the target audience could relate to the main character as they are of the same age. As well as this the genre was also thought to be well established from the beginning as the subtle hints of costume and props and the use of different camera angles enabled people to identify the genre quickly. As to the sound it was thought to be of a high quality and standard as sometimes voice overs can sound crackly. The continuous voice overs that are played throughout the opening sequence were seen to match the action on screen when the short flashbacks are played making the sound asyncronous to the action. The diagetic noises were also commented on saying that the sound of the foot steps were well matched up as that can be an extremely difficult sound to recreate and match up on screen.

Construction - Final Cut

 

Filming update

We've had to make slight changes to some of our filming as one of the actors who was supposed to be playing an antagonist has had to drop out at last minute. To over come this we've decided to use one antagonist instead of two. Although this change seems drastic it hasn't changed much to the overall opening sequence. With our one remaining antagonist we've decided to make the character seem more threatening now that there is only one. We are also going to add special effects to the opening during the edit which will make it darker therefore making the character look more threatening. As well as this we are going to add sound effects which will increase the suspense created between the antagonist and Brooke Parker.

Costume and Props

Brooke Parker -
This character is going to be wearing running gear as she is supposed to look like a normal girl who has gone out for a run to begin with. The types of shots used to frame this character will emphasise her protagonist status.


The two henchmen-
They will both be in dark clothes that are not the same to show that they are not a part of any official group of people.
They will be wearing black to be easily identifiable as the antagonist.

The Civilians -
They will be wearing plain clothes and wellies to show that they are just normal people who have been walking through the woos and that they are no real danger to anyone.

Shot List

LONG SHOT (Hand held camera) - Brooke Parker jogging in the woods
Cut
MEDIUM SHOT (Hand held camera) - Brooke Parker slowing down coming to a clearing
Cut
MEDIUM SHOT (Hand held camera) - Brooke Parker stops and bends down
Cut
CLOSE-UP - Brooke Parker tying shoe lace
Cut
MEDIUM SHOT - Brooke Parker standing up
Cut
CLOSE UP -  Brooke Parker taking water bottle out of bag
Cut
MEDIUM SHOT - Brooke Parker drinking
Cut
CLOSE UP - Brooke Parker puts water bottle back in bag
Cut
LONG SHOT - Brooke Parker & Henchmen, Brooke Parker turns to look at Henchmen
Cut
OVER THE SHOULDER - Brooke Parker & Henchmen, looking at eachother
Pan
OVER THE SHOULDER - Henchmen & Brooke Parker, looking at each other
Cut
MEDIUM SHOT - Brooke Parker begins to smerk
Cut
OVER THE SHOULDER - Henchmen & Brooke Parker, Brooke Parker begins to run away
Cut
MEDIUM SHOT - Henchment, look at each other and chase after Brooke Parker
Cut
LOW ANGLE CLOSE UP - Brooke Parker and Henchmen, drops bag on floor
Cut
~Part 2~
LONG SHOT - Brooke Parker & Henchmen, running through woods
Cut
HIGH ANGLE LONG SHOT - Brooke Parker & Henchmen, running
Cut
LOW ANGLE SHOT - Brooke Parker, jumping over a log
Freeze frame title
LONG SHOT - Brooke Parker and Henchmen, running off screen

Shooting Schedule

11.00am:
All meet at the base and make sure that everything is ready
11.30am:
Be in the woods and have all the cameras and equipment set up.
12.15pm:
Shoot the first scene of Brooke Parker jogging through the woods. These are the scenes where we will have the titles running through.
12.20pm:
Have a lunch break
1.00pm:
Be back at the woods to shoot the scene where we first see the two men.
1.20pm:
We will then film the chase scene between Brooke parker ad the two men
2.00pm:
Next we will film the scene where Brooke and the two men bump into the civilians in the woods.
2.20pm:
We will carry on filming the chase scene between.
3.00pm:
And finally we will film Brooke jumping, which will be our end scene as we will use this as a background for the title.
3.30pm:
Finished!

Animatic

Location scout

Looking at local areas to film our production in, three places in particular stood out to fit our criteria. The red flag indicates our base, where we are all going to meet before. The locations that we have found are within a 10 minute walking distance of our base. The three locations are;

The first location is Ashcome park; this location is the least likely of the three as it is often very crowded due to the large park area which is closely situated next to the tree area which we would be filming in. To avoid this noise disturbance we will be filming elsewhere.

The second and third locations are closely linked together over a vast amount of area. They can be very secluded with only a few dog walkers passing so this is the ideal location to film our opening sequence. There are also opportunities for more unusual camera angles from trees etc.

Research to planning

The initial research is important whilst making a film or film opening sequence as it allows us to look at other films of similar genres and identity the main features. It also shows us the conventional features that should be included. Firstly I researched the functions of a film opening sequence, I found that establishing the genre is important as this needs to be made clear to the audience. Genre is established using the features of mise-en-scene. I then looked into the timeline of an opening sequence of other films. This helped me to identify the timings and features that will be needed in our opening sequence. After this research I made a post about our initial ideas for our film opening sequence. We came up with three small ideas then picked one and elaborated on it. We discovered that creative camera angles were a key feature to a successful film opening sequence as they can also be used to show the genre of the film.