After all the shooting re-shooting, editing etc. here is the final version of our film. Sit back, grab some popcorn (but no rustling) and enjoy The Illusion of Existence...
Well I hope you enjoyed it! So thats it, our final film is done and published. If only that was all we had left to do, the work must continue!
Friday, 1 May 2015
Evaluation Question 4- How did you use media technologies in the construction, research & planning and evaluation stages?
Well here it is, the final evaluation question. So for this question you get a snazzy little Emaze to enjoy. Within it, you'll see all the software and hardware used throughout the 3 stages of this course. Please don't switch off, you've made it this far!
Right here you are, the EMAZING Emaze. I really should be a comedian eh?
Don't think there's much else to say really other than glad you made it this
far through the blog. Time to say goodbye *Blows nose*. Alright I'll quit
milking it!
Right here you are, the EMAZING Emaze. I really should be a comedian eh?
So that's all that I used
within the three stages. A lot of stuff eh? Who knew we were
internet contributors, you're reading my contributions right now and are
probably wishing I'd write something a little more interesting than this.
Well what more is there to say other than the fact throughout this course we
have been provided and able to use some fantastic hardware and software (no
sarcasm this time) to aid us with our final products and all the bits
inbetween.
Evaluation Question 3- What have you learned from your audience feedback?
Right then, so question 3 is all about what we've learnt from audience feedback over the course. We've been given a wide range of feedback from our individual pitches way back at the beginning of the course, right through to feedback on our film poster and reviews. The feedback has come in a variety of formats from surveys to videos.
What feedback have we had?
The first question I suppose we should start with is what feedback have we had exactly? There has been much feedback for different elements of the course and trust me, its all be useful in helping us to address our audience and portray our film in the way we wished it to be received. So here is a Padlet of our different feedback gained, taken a look:
So we've had a large amount of feedback, but what's the point of it all? Well, if you waited long enough I was just about to tell you.
Film Feedback:
I'm going to take you through the different feedback we had during our film making process going from the top from the individual pitches. This way you can understand why the feedback was important for the decision making and production of the final product.
Individual Film Pitch:
Right then, for the individual film pitch I did, feedback was given to me as well as grilling questions about the film (thanks for that guys). I pitched my idea as you will see in the video and then questions were asked at the end about elements people weren't sure of or that could be improved. Take a look at the video below:
Why was audience feedback important here?
The audience were very useful in giving me feedback on what they thought of my film. It enabled me to adapt the idea to aim at a wider ranged target audience rather than it being an extremely niche market. I know it wasn't to do with the actual film but the feedback here enabled me increase my confidence during pitches. I know it's hard to believe, but we all get nervous at some point and so by having an audience to pitch the idea to, it enabled me to gather feedback on the actual pitch delivery and ways to improve. So all in all this feedback enabled the idea I had started to be developed into a much larger and clearer picture to give it the chance of it being created.
Documentary Feedback
Now this wasn't mentioned in the padlet, however we did gain feedback from this. This was when we were working on the dslr cameras and the final cut software. This was our practise run with the hardware and software to get used to it all before creating our final film. So here is the feedback video we got after creating the documentary:
Why was audience feedback important here?
This feedback was given to me and the production team for the first time of working together. It enabled us to get feedback on elements of our filming that were good and which bits needed improving. It enabled us to understand how the cameras worked and which shots we had created worked and areas we needed to improve on for when we filmed our actual film. The editing was also commented on so this enabled us to gather feedback on what we did well in the software and which areas needed improving. This meant that we then had time to go back and have a practise before it came to editing our actual short film.
Film Pitch (Commissioners meeting):
So this was the feedback given from the scary commissioner about our film. This was where our film was either commissioned or sent back to the drawing board. As stated in the padlet, we pitched our film, asked a few questions (grilled) and then given feedback on areas they thought were good and where improvements they thought could be made in order to make the film almost perfecto! So here is the feedback we got:
Why was audience feedback important here?
This feedback was really important in the fact that we were given elements within our film that we hadn't thought of before and ways to develop ideas within the film to make it a stronger storyline. Ways in which we could attract a larger target audience range were also given as well as giving us praise on elements of the film that worked well with the audience choice we had at the time. A better ending was suggested to the film which took into consideration the audiences feelings as well as strengthening the storyline.
Rough Cut Feedback:
Well after this feedback, the next lot was about our rough cut. The audience were within our target audience range and so it enabled us to gather their feedback on how a film aimed at them could be tailored to suit them more. The feedback below as you will see was screencast so we didn't miss anything the audience said:
Why was audience feedback important here?
Well this feedback was rather important due to it giving us changes to make on our film to make it more suitable for our target audience as well as to make it technically accurate. The feedback given also gave us opinions and ideas of things that we never thought of and so we were given ideas that could drastically improve our film and its storyline. The audience, due to them being our target audience, were also giving us feedback that would affect our target audience age range and so improvements could be made to suit them instead of being a general film for anyone.
Surveys:
For the rough cut, surveys were also filled out to gather audience feedback on specific areas. The questions were asked and answered to gather specific details about the film and what their opinion was. The people asked were within our target audience range and so this was useful in tailoring the film and including conventions that they would typically enjoy. Here are the surveys:
Changes made to the film:
So with all the feedback given, we did follow most of the suggestions. The shots were a main issue that we needed to adjust as the audience were struggling to understand some of the storyline. Right then, in this video bellow these are some of the on screen changes made to our film. You'll see the before and after (like those rubbish makeover programs but these shots actually look better) of the on screen action of the rough cut and the final cut:
So we do pay attention to the feedback our audience gives us. By doing this we make our film more appealing to our target audience rather than doing it our own way and having two people turn up to the cinema to watch the film. By doing this we attract the audience so it just goes to show that our audience's opinion matters and impacts highly
Why was audience feedback important here?
The feedback for the poster enabled us to gather information on ways in which our poster needed to be improved drastically. So much that I decided to start from scratch and create a new poster. The comments lead to this decision as not many of the features within the poster were said to be good and so by taking on board the comments, I decided it was wise to create a new poster in the style the target audience desired. By doing this, I think it aimed more at the target audience rather than keeping it the same and making a few changes to suit us.
Survey:
To gather just some extra details about the poster and our target audiences opinions, I created a survey on survey monkey to gather extra details. This way I could ask specific questions to gather specific answers that would help the improvement stages. Here are the surveys answers collected:
Why was audience feedback important here?
What feedback have we had?
The first question I suppose we should start with is what feedback have we had exactly? There has been much feedback for different elements of the course and trust me, its all be useful in helping us to address our audience and portray our film in the way we wished it to be received. So here is a Padlet of our different feedback gained, taken a look:
So we've had a large amount of feedback, but what's the point of it all? Well, if you waited long enough I was just about to tell you.
Film Feedback:
I'm going to take you through the different feedback we had during our film making process going from the top from the individual pitches. This way you can understand why the feedback was important for the decision making and production of the final product.
Individual Film Pitch:
Right then, for the individual film pitch I did, feedback was given to me as well as grilling questions about the film (thanks for that guys). I pitched my idea as you will see in the video and then questions were asked at the end about elements people weren't sure of or that could be improved. Take a look at the video below:
Why was audience feedback important here?
The audience were very useful in giving me feedback on what they thought of my film. It enabled me to adapt the idea to aim at a wider ranged target audience rather than it being an extremely niche market. I know it wasn't to do with the actual film but the feedback here enabled me increase my confidence during pitches. I know it's hard to believe, but we all get nervous at some point and so by having an audience to pitch the idea to, it enabled me to gather feedback on the actual pitch delivery and ways to improve. So all in all this feedback enabled the idea I had started to be developed into a much larger and clearer picture to give it the chance of it being created.
Documentary Feedback
Now this wasn't mentioned in the padlet, however we did gain feedback from this. This was when we were working on the dslr cameras and the final cut software. This was our practise run with the hardware and software to get used to it all before creating our final film. So here is the feedback video we got after creating the documentary:
Why was audience feedback important here?
This feedback was given to me and the production team for the first time of working together. It enabled us to get feedback on elements of our filming that were good and which bits needed improving. It enabled us to understand how the cameras worked and which shots we had created worked and areas we needed to improve on for when we filmed our actual film. The editing was also commented on so this enabled us to gather feedback on what we did well in the software and which areas needed improving. This meant that we then had time to go back and have a practise before it came to editing our actual short film.
Film Pitch (Commissioners meeting):
So this was the feedback given from the scary commissioner about our film. This was where our film was either commissioned or sent back to the drawing board. As stated in the padlet, we pitched our film, asked a few questions (grilled) and then given feedback on areas they thought were good and where improvements they thought could be made in order to make the film almost perfecto! So here is the feedback we got:
Why was audience feedback important here?
This feedback was really important in the fact that we were given elements within our film that we hadn't thought of before and ways to develop ideas within the film to make it a stronger storyline. Ways in which we could attract a larger target audience range were also given as well as giving us praise on elements of the film that worked well with the audience choice we had at the time. A better ending was suggested to the film which took into consideration the audiences feelings as well as strengthening the storyline.
Rough Cut Feedback:
Well after this feedback, the next lot was about our rough cut. The audience were within our target audience range and so it enabled us to gather their feedback on how a film aimed at them could be tailored to suit them more. The feedback below as you will see was screencast so we didn't miss anything the audience said:
Why was audience feedback important here?
Well this feedback was rather important due to it giving us changes to make on our film to make it more suitable for our target audience as well as to make it technically accurate. The feedback given also gave us opinions and ideas of things that we never thought of and so we were given ideas that could drastically improve our film and its storyline. The audience, due to them being our target audience, were also giving us feedback that would affect our target audience age range and so improvements could be made to suit them instead of being a general film for anyone.
Surveys:
For the rough cut, surveys were also filled out to gather audience feedback on specific areas. The questions were asked and answered to gather specific details about the film and what their opinion was. The people asked were within our target audience range and so this was useful in tailoring the film and including conventions that they would typically enjoy. Here are the surveys:
Why was audience feedback important here?
Like the feedback from the film screencast, this was collected from members of our target audience which meant their opinion must be taken into consideration to enable the film to be aimed at them. We were able to ask specific question to gain specific feedback as well as the answers given in the survey supporting those said in the media student target audience.
So with all the feedback given, we did follow most of the suggestions. The shots were a main issue that we needed to adjust as the audience were struggling to understand some of the storyline. Right then, in this video bellow these are some of the on screen changes made to our film. You'll see the before and after (like those rubbish makeover programs but these shots actually look better) of the on screen action of the rough cut and the final cut:
So we do pay attention to the feedback our audience gives us. By doing this we make our film more appealing to our target audience rather than doing it our own way and having two people turn up to the cinema to watch the film. By doing this we attract the audience so it just goes to show that our audience's opinion matters and impacts highly
Film Poster First Draft Feedback:
We move on to the ancillary tasks now. The next lot of feedback given was for our film poster draft. This was where we showed an audience our film poster and asked them if they understood the concept of the poster as well as the features within it. So here is the video we got as a screencast to gather all the comments made by our audience:
Why was audience feedback important here?
The feedback for the poster enabled us to gather information on ways in which our poster needed to be improved drastically. So much that I decided to start from scratch and create a new poster. The comments lead to this decision as not many of the features within the poster were said to be good and so by taking on board the comments, I decided it was wise to create a new poster in the style the target audience desired. By doing this, I think it aimed more at the target audience rather than keeping it the same and making a few changes to suit us.
Survey:
To gather just some extra details about the poster and our target audiences opinions, I created a survey on survey monkey to gather extra details. This way I could ask specific questions to gather specific answers that would help the improvement stages. Here are the surveys answers collected:
So like it was mentioned above, this was important as it just ensured that the ideas and developments we collected from our target audience . This target audience weren't media related either and so we could get the opinion of those who would just watch it for fun rather than for deconstruction.
Changes made to the Poster:
So from the feedback given from the survey and the feedback video, the audience had a large impact on the way in which the final poster looked. We needed to attract our target audience and so by listening to their feedback the final poster served its full purpose rather than previous ideas in the first draft. So here are some of the changes made.
'The title is too fine to see from a distance'
The audience couldn't see the title as the text wasn't bold enough. So following this feedback, in the final version of the poster, the title font was adjusted as well as its colour to ensure that this was one of the main features in which the audience saw when looking at the poster.
Draft poster title. As you can see the title is white and unclear to read from a distance.
Final version of the poster title after the feedback given by the audience. The font colour and style is changed to suit the film as well as making it clearer for the audience to see.
'Change composition of characters, think carefully about their poses'
The images of the actors within the poster were said to look like they were stuck on the poster rather than being part of the poster. The audience picked up on this and said it looked rather amateur. part of this issue was the background as you couldn't blend the photos well on the purple background so it was changed to black. Also the characters personalities and feelings weren't portrayed well in the first version as the audience said they were a little confused as to what the characters were doing. Following this feedback the positioning of the characters was changed as well as the removal of the one character to keep a little bit of secrecy about the second male within the film.
The first draft with the 3 characters on the poster, the audience thought this looked like they had been stuck on rather than blending into the poster. The positioning of the characters was considered wrong too and so changes needed to be made to show the correct mise en scene of the characters before the audience have even seen the film.
This is the new poster with the two main characters looking in love however there is something wrong as the male isn't looking lovingly into her eyes giving the audience a hint there is something not right. This gives our target audience the idea of a couple which is what they suggested when asking us to consider changing the pose of the characters.
'Overlapping text. White on white not clear.'
So with the fade between the background of the image and the background of the credits, the white text blends into the white of the shirt Alex is wearing meaning the credits couldn't be read very well. So the audience picked up on this and felt it would be a better idea to move the credits down or even change the blend from the image to the credit block colour to black and white. So as you will see this impacted as we changed this to ensure that the text could be seen by the audience to give those who were part of the film credit for what they did.
This is the credit block and blend between the image and credit block colour. They don't blend well and look a bit carless as the audience felt as well as not being able to read some of the credited names.
Now the credit block has been moved as well as a change in colour of the credit text and the background to enable the image and the credit block colour to fade into each other. All of the text can now been seen ensuring the audience can see all people and companies credited for the film.
'Last names aren't clear.'
In the audience feedback we were told that the last names of the actors were t clear enough to read. Conventionally, a film poster emphasises the last name of the actor as this is what defines them as an individual. The audience couldn't really see this and so it doesn't enable them to see which actor it actually is within the film. Most of the time, the stars within the film are what attract the audience to come and see it so we thought we'd better change the names to make them clearer to see.
So in the first one image we see the first draft, the colours weren't clear for the audience to see and so from a distance you couldn't really read the name of the actress. However in the second image, the change of background and font colour enables the audience to see the actresses name clearly as white on a black background is bound to be seen.
And finally the last set of feedback we gathered during this course was the feedback for our magazine review first draft. This feedback was minus the actual review text as unless you are fluent in loreum ipson, you wouldn't have a clue what it said! So this is the screen cast we got for our review:
Why was audience feedback important here?
The feedback like the film poster was important as it enabled us to develop and adjust areas of the review that were weak and could be improvement upon with different approaches. Different ideas were suggested that we hadn't thought of and so we could build upon the layout we currently had. It also enabled us to see what was good and what went down well with our target audience that made the review appealing to them.
Survey:
To support the ideas suggested above, I also created a survey for a different group of people (still within the target audience range though!). This then enabled me to see if what the first set of people said was accurate and agreed upon with the second set of people. So here are the survey responses we received:
Why was audience feedback important here?
These responses were important as they ensured that what the previous set of target audience members had said was accurate and what they really wanted. It just ensured us that what was said was what they would want from all ages within the target audience. Another reason why this feedback was so important was that it enabled us to see what the opinion was of people who weren't media related and would just be passive viewers rather than media critics.
Changes made to the Review:
Like the poster and the film itself, we gathered feedback from the audience on their thoughts of the review. The positives and suggested changes were taken onboard and had a major impact on the final product and the way that it looked. Without the feedback we wouldn't have been able to know what our audience wanted as well as knowing the positives and negatives of the first draft. So here are some of the changes made due to audience feedback.
'IN CINEMA too close to the bleed. won't be seen in the magazine.'
One of the first things the audience commented on was the IN CINEMA feature at the top of the review page. It was said that it was too close to the edge of the page and so would bleed over and not be seen when the magazine was put together. This would have ruined the conventional layout of empire and so was an important feature that the audience noticed was slightly misplaced. Due tot his the in cinema sign was adjusted to ensure that it wouldn't bleed over. There wasn't anything for the sign to block when we shuffled it over slightly and so this wasn't an issue to change.
So in the left hand image, this is the feature before the feedback. It was so close to the bleed it would only say N CINEMA which would have been pretty confusing to the audience. So with their feedback the final outcome in the right hand image shows this feature has been moved over to ensure that all of the sign can be seen when put together in a magazine (Empire).
'Need to space the pull quote over 3 columns rather than being in the gutter of the magazine'
The run around on the pull quote was one of the main issues the audience had. It was discovered that because the quote was finishing in the text gutter, it made the run around look larger than it actually was making the spacing look rather uneven and a little messy. So after the comments made, the run around and positioning of the poll quote was changed to ensure that an even run around could be seen. The quote was also changed as another issue they had was that the quote didn't actually make sense so was a good idea to change it!
Before the changes were made.
After the changes to the positioning of the quote and run around size.
'Justification issues, non matching lines.'
The next thing that the audience spotted was the line justification. They were all different sizes. I know it's nit picky but this will be noticed by the magazine and the audience. So with this in mind we doubled up on the lines and ensured that they were the exact same size, to the nearest pixel!
The image on the left is the before shot with the dodgy line sizes which isn't the standard of ornament a magazine review from Empire would have. So in the right hand image, these were the changes made after the audience feedback.
'Alignment issues.'
So this comment was just basically that the star ratings at the bottom of the page were out of line. They weren't on a specific side and had been randomly placed (the audience felt). The stars distance from the top line and the bottom of the page was different making it again look uneven and messy. So with this feedback taken onboard, changes were made to the positioning of the stars within the review to move them more central as well as ensuring there is an equal distance between the text above and the border bellow the star rating.
After the changes with even spacing
Evaluation:
So that was a hell of a lot of feedback received and all with different purposes. However there is one thing they all have in common; they have all enabled us to improve upon our products to ensure they are aimed at the target audience we chose for our film and the elements they would enjoy and dislike. By including both media students and passive viewers, we have been able to gather variety of evaluations which enable us to make decisions from two different perspective , the entertainment side of the products and the technical side.
Changes made to the Poster:
So from the feedback given from the survey and the feedback video, the audience had a large impact on the way in which the final poster looked. We needed to attract our target audience and so by listening to their feedback the final poster served its full purpose rather than previous ideas in the first draft. So here are some of the changes made.
'The title is too fine to see from a distance'
The audience couldn't see the title as the text wasn't bold enough. So following this feedback, in the final version of the poster, the title font was adjusted as well as its colour to ensure that this was one of the main features in which the audience saw when looking at the poster.
Final version of the poster title after the feedback given by the audience. The font colour and style is changed to suit the film as well as making it clearer for the audience to see.'Change composition of characters, think carefully about their poses'
The images of the actors within the poster were said to look like they were stuck on the poster rather than being part of the poster. The audience picked up on this and said it looked rather amateur. part of this issue was the background as you couldn't blend the photos well on the purple background so it was changed to black. Also the characters personalities and feelings weren't portrayed well in the first version as the audience said they were a little confused as to what the characters were doing. Following this feedback the positioning of the characters was changed as well as the removal of the one character to keep a little bit of secrecy about the second male within the film.
The first draft with the 3 characters on the poster, the audience thought this looked like they had been stuck on rather than blending into the poster. The positioning of the characters was considered wrong too and so changes needed to be made to show the correct mise en scene of the characters before the audience have even seen the film.
This is the new poster with the two main characters looking in love however there is something wrong as the male isn't looking lovingly into her eyes giving the audience a hint there is something not right. This gives our target audience the idea of a couple which is what they suggested when asking us to consider changing the pose of the characters.
'Overlapping text. White on white not clear.'
So with the fade between the background of the image and the background of the credits, the white text blends into the white of the shirt Alex is wearing meaning the credits couldn't be read very well. So the audience picked up on this and felt it would be a better idea to move the credits down or even change the blend from the image to the credit block colour to black and white. So as you will see this impacted as we changed this to ensure that the text could be seen by the audience to give those who were part of the film credit for what they did.
'Last names aren't clear.'
In the audience feedback we were told that the last names of the actors were t clear enough to read. Conventionally, a film poster emphasises the last name of the actor as this is what defines them as an individual. The audience couldn't really see this and so it doesn't enable them to see which actor it actually is within the film. Most of the time, the stars within the film are what attract the audience to come and see it so we thought we'd better change the names to make them clearer to see.
So in the first one image we see the first draft, the colours weren't clear for the audience to see and so from a distance you couldn't really read the name of the actress. However in the second image, the change of background and font colour enables the audience to see the actresses name clearly as white on a black background is bound to be seen.
Magazine Review First Draft Feedback:
And finally the last set of feedback we gathered during this course was the feedback for our magazine review first draft. This feedback was minus the actual review text as unless you are fluent in loreum ipson, you wouldn't have a clue what it said! So this is the screen cast we got for our review:
Why was audience feedback important here?
The feedback like the film poster was important as it enabled us to develop and adjust areas of the review that were weak and could be improvement upon with different approaches. Different ideas were suggested that we hadn't thought of and so we could build upon the layout we currently had. It also enabled us to see what was good and what went down well with our target audience that made the review appealing to them.
Survey:
To support the ideas suggested above, I also created a survey for a different group of people (still within the target audience range though!). This then enabled me to see if what the first set of people said was accurate and agreed upon with the second set of people. So here are the survey responses we received:
Why was audience feedback important here?
These responses were important as they ensured that what the previous set of target audience members had said was accurate and what they really wanted. It just ensured us that what was said was what they would want from all ages within the target audience. Another reason why this feedback was so important was that it enabled us to see what the opinion was of people who weren't media related and would just be passive viewers rather than media critics.
Changes made to the Review:
Like the poster and the film itself, we gathered feedback from the audience on their thoughts of the review. The positives and suggested changes were taken onboard and had a major impact on the final product and the way that it looked. Without the feedback we wouldn't have been able to know what our audience wanted as well as knowing the positives and negatives of the first draft. So here are some of the changes made due to audience feedback.
'IN CINEMA too close to the bleed. won't be seen in the magazine.'
One of the first things the audience commented on was the IN CINEMA feature at the top of the review page. It was said that it was too close to the edge of the page and so would bleed over and not be seen when the magazine was put together. This would have ruined the conventional layout of empire and so was an important feature that the audience noticed was slightly misplaced. Due tot his the in cinema sign was adjusted to ensure that it wouldn't bleed over. There wasn't anything for the sign to block when we shuffled it over slightly and so this wasn't an issue to change.
So in the left hand image, this is the feature before the feedback. It was so close to the bleed it would only say N CINEMA which would have been pretty confusing to the audience. So with their feedback the final outcome in the right hand image shows this feature has been moved over to ensure that all of the sign can be seen when put together in a magazine (Empire).
'Need to space the pull quote over 3 columns rather than being in the gutter of the magazine'
The run around on the pull quote was one of the main issues the audience had. It was discovered that because the quote was finishing in the text gutter, it made the run around look larger than it actually was making the spacing look rather uneven and a little messy. So after the comments made, the run around and positioning of the poll quote was changed to ensure that an even run around could be seen. The quote was also changed as another issue they had was that the quote didn't actually make sense so was a good idea to change it!
'Justification issues, non matching lines.'
The next thing that the audience spotted was the line justification. They were all different sizes. I know it's nit picky but this will be noticed by the magazine and the audience. So with this in mind we doubled up on the lines and ensured that they were the exact same size, to the nearest pixel!
The image on the left is the before shot with the dodgy line sizes which isn't the standard of ornament a magazine review from Empire would have. So in the right hand image, these were the changes made after the audience feedback.
'Alignment issues.'
So this comment was just basically that the star ratings at the bottom of the page were out of line. They weren't on a specific side and had been randomly placed (the audience felt). The stars distance from the top line and the bottom of the page was different making it again look uneven and messy. So with this feedback taken onboard, changes were made to the positioning of the stars within the review to move them more central as well as ensuring there is an equal distance between the text above and the border bellow the star rating.
Before the changes. Uneven spacing and alignment.
After the changes with even spacing
Evaluation:
So that was a hell of a lot of feedback received and all with different purposes. However there is one thing they all have in common; they have all enabled us to improve upon our products to ensure they are aimed at the target audience we chose for our film and the elements they would enjoy and dislike. By including both media students and passive viewers, we have been able to gather variety of evaluations which enable us to make decisions from two different perspective , the entertainment side of the products and the technical side.
Monday, 27 April 2015
Evaluation Question 2- How effective is the combination of your main product and ancillary texts?
Right so the next question is about the three products we have created within this course. So this will be our magazine, film poster and the actual film.
So to start with we thought it would be a good idea to introduce ourselves, the production team officially rather than just ugly stills of us! Instead you're going to have ugly moving versions of us...just kidding! Right then, so this is an evaluation of the effectiveness of our short film. Basically does it work and how. Here we go:
I know, yes, we're a bunch of nutters but if you look past this, there are so many elements within the film that have been chosen through research and planning as well as experimental but most of the time it was researched and found within existing films. This video basically shows the laments within our film that have been effective and how.
So we've got the opinion on how the three products work together, but how do the ancillary products work by themselves to promote the film. Lets start with the poster. Lets break down the poster into sections to see how effective it really is.
What's the purpose of the poster?
The purpose of the poster is to advertise the film to the audience and grab their attention before they have even seen the film. The poster needs to have a lasting impact but at the same time it can't give too much away about the film. There is no point in having a film if you're just going to give it all away in the poster...
Who is its intended audience?
From this film poster, our audience is romance fans. This will be predominantly females however there will be a wider age range due to the storyline being understandable to a large audience group. People who are into supernatural films will also be interest in this due to the hints at an unnatural storyline through the title choice and the subtle tagline underneath it. However, by the poster the main audience will be romance lovers due to the positioning of the two characters (affectionate stance) and the tagline mentioning love.
Is the film poster effective?
The Poster contains features that are considered conventional to a main poster. This poster needed to give the audience an idea of what the film poster was about as well as hiding elements of the film so that the audience aren't give too much information. Then it would just be pointless the audience going and seeing the film really wouldn't it? So there are different elements within this poster that make this film poster effective especially when compared to the film itself. So I'm going to take you through some of the features within the poster, and how effective it is in achieving its purpose of being a main film poster for our short film.
So some of the main features within the poster that made it effective include the images, the tagline and a few more things I'm going to mention now. Right then first up is the main image within the poster.
This image represents the characters within the film. We have Mallory; a fragile girl who needs protecting from the world holding onto Peter who seems to be looking away from her. He isn't holding onto her as if he can't be trusted and isn't really in love with her as we find out in the film. the image shows there is romance but doesn't tell the audience the true identity of Peter.
Magazine Review:
Now we move onto the magazine review. We're going to do the same as we did with the poster with the review to see just how effective it is.
What is the purpose of the review?
The purpose of our film review is to give another opinion upon the film. In some ways it does promote the film however, due to the magazine review being produced by a different company (a magazine reviewer), the film review really has the purpose of giving a professional critical opinion on the film and what it's like.
Who is it's intended audience?
So for the review, the intended audience is rather wide. It will obviously be for review lovers.This will be people who are obsessed with empire magazine because this is where the review has been designed for. Due to this, it won't just be our target audience that read the review, it will be general film nerds.. I mean lovers, who read this magazine every month. This film will have a specific audience who will want to read it in some aspects and that will mainly be females as romance films aren't really big burly men's kind of films!
Is the magazine review effective?
So to start with we thought it would be a good idea to introduce ourselves, the production team officially rather than just ugly stills of us! Instead you're going to have ugly moving versions of us...just kidding! Right then, so this is an evaluation of the effectiveness of our short film. Basically does it work and how. Here we go:
I know, yes, we're a bunch of nutters but if you look past this, there are so many elements within the film that have been chosen through research and planning as well as experimental but most of the time it was researched and found within existing films. This video basically shows the laments within our film that have been effective and how.
Film Poster:
So we've got the opinion on how the three products work together, but how do the ancillary products work by themselves to promote the film. Lets start with the poster. Lets break down the poster into sections to see how effective it really is.
What's the purpose of the poster?
The purpose of the poster is to advertise the film to the audience and grab their attention before they have even seen the film. The poster needs to have a lasting impact but at the same time it can't give too much away about the film. There is no point in having a film if you're just going to give it all away in the poster...
Who is its intended audience?
From this film poster, our audience is romance fans. This will be predominantly females however there will be a wider age range due to the storyline being understandable to a large audience group. People who are into supernatural films will also be interest in this due to the hints at an unnatural storyline through the title choice and the subtle tagline underneath it. However, by the poster the main audience will be romance lovers due to the positioning of the two characters (affectionate stance) and the tagline mentioning love.
Is the film poster effective?
The Poster contains features that are considered conventional to a main poster. This poster needed to give the audience an idea of what the film poster was about as well as hiding elements of the film so that the audience aren't give too much information. Then it would just be pointless the audience going and seeing the film really wouldn't it? So there are different elements within this poster that make this film poster effective especially when compared to the film itself. So I'm going to take you through some of the features within the poster, and how effective it is in achieving its purpose of being a main film poster for our short film.
So some of the main features within the poster that made it effective include the images, the tagline and a few more things I'm going to mention now. Right then first up is the main image within the poster.
This image represents the characters within the film. We have Mallory; a fragile girl who needs protecting from the world holding onto Peter who seems to be looking away from her. He isn't holding onto her as if he can't be trusted and isn't really in love with her as we find out in the film. the image shows there is romance but doesn't tell the audience the true identity of Peter.
The tagline is a subtle hint at a plot twist within the storyline. The audience can only fully understand the tagline if they watch the film. By having this tagline the audience know its a romance film so we've attracted our audience with a typical romantic comment. By having a subtle hint at the storyline, the audience are made to watch the film before they can understand what the tagline is referring to.
Now we move onto the magazine review. We're going to do the same as we did with the poster with the review to see just how effective it is.
The purpose of our film review is to give another opinion upon the film. In some ways it does promote the film however, due to the magazine review being produced by a different company (a magazine reviewer), the film review really has the purpose of giving a professional critical opinion on the film and what it's like.
Who is it's intended audience?
So for the review, the intended audience is rather wide. It will obviously be for review lovers.This will be people who are obsessed with empire magazine because this is where the review has been designed for. Due to this, it won't just be our target audience that read the review, it will be general film nerds.. I mean lovers, who read this magazine every month. This film will have a specific audience who will want to read it in some aspects and that will mainly be females as romance films aren't really big burly men's kind of films!
Is the magazine review effective?
Overall I think the film review is effective. It does the job of giving a professional opinion on the film as well as giving the audience an idea of the film plot and the behind the scenes work that went into the film making. It also enables us to grab the attention of a wider audience due to it being put in a larger franchise magazine such as empire. Film lovers will read anything and everything that is within those magazines and so it enables us to attract a larger audience to take an interest in our film. The poster is opinionated yet positive which give the audience a positive impression upon the film, making them want to watch the film for themselves.
The elements within the film review when put together create the components of a conventional film review. For example the furniture within our review such as the red lines were a typical convention within the Empire magazine we had taken a look at. We effectively followed the furnituring within the Empire magazine so when the audience took a look at it, they could see by the colours and the elements within it, that it was designed to go in empires magazine.
Another element of the review that makes it effective is the choice of image. The image introduces the main character to the audience as well as giving the audience a glimpse at a potential character in the background but not actually knowing whether he plays an important role within the film. By having an image such as this taking up most of the page the audience have been grabbed by the image rather than the text underneath which shows the magazine being effective. The audience are attracted to the image rather than the text as we found out in the feedback sessions we had so this serves its purpose of showing the audiences elements within the film without giving much away about it.
The pull quote enables the audience to see elements of the text before they actually think of reading the main body of the text. It follows the typical conventions within the empire magazine to draw the reader in with the more juicy comments and quotes within the review.
Film and Ancillary Tasks Combination:
Well I think this was a success! Our target audience clearly understood the film even before we had published the actual film to them. They understood the genre of the film through the design of the poster which then became clearer when they watched the film after. The film in relation to the poster then enabled the audience members to go back and understand things such as the tagline and the relationship between the two characters on the actual poster.
The title for the audience as you will have heard was a big discovery for them. The title didn't give much away about the film but once they had watched it, it all made sense that it was about the male within the poster not actually existing. This for us is a positive as it provides the audience with a sense of mystery but when they see the film they come out going 'ooooo so thats what the title means'. Its the idea that they have a eureka moment the moment they finish watching the film. The main point is the elements of the film that are hidden from the audience in the poster.
The idea that the 2nd male isn't included in the poster meant that when the audience watched the film, they were given a surprise when they find out that Mallory could not be heartbroken any longer. This boosts the audiences feelings (Todorov theory) in that they know that she has ended in a happier position than she began due to the meeting of this male. This then leaves the audience feeling much better knowing Mallory has found the one....we think!
As for the review, although it would not be published by the same company, it complements the film well. The image doesn't give too much away about the film so that if someone hasn't seen it before they read the review, it doesn't tell them much at a quick glance, the actual text was complementary to the fim and did the actual production of the film justice. It picked out different features of the film within the review and made a critical evaluation as well as emphasis on the different roles within the production team. Within the film, you obviously don't see the crew (unless the do a whoopsy and end up reflecting in a mirror!) so with the film review, it complements the crew and shows the elements and flare they added to the final produce. The review is rather positive which again is a positive to show that professional critics also think it is worth watching or was worth the watch. Often people watch films based on reviews and so with this positive review, I think it does the film justice in attracting larger audiences to see the film.
The elements within the film review when put together create the components of a conventional film review. For example the furniture within our review such as the red lines were a typical convention within the Empire magazine we had taken a look at. We effectively followed the furnituring within the Empire magazine so when the audience took a look at it, they could see by the colours and the elements within it, that it was designed to go in empires magazine.
Another element of the review that makes it effective is the choice of image. The image introduces the main character to the audience as well as giving the audience a glimpse at a potential character in the background but not actually knowing whether he plays an important role within the film. By having an image such as this taking up most of the page the audience have been grabbed by the image rather than the text underneath which shows the magazine being effective. The audience are attracted to the image rather than the text as we found out in the feedback sessions we had so this serves its purpose of showing the audiences elements within the film without giving much away about it.
The pull quote enables the audience to see elements of the text before they actually think of reading the main body of the text. It follows the typical conventions within the empire magazine to draw the reader in with the more juicy comments and quotes within the review.
Film and Ancillary Tasks Combination:
Next up, we decided to gather some feedback from members of our target audience. We showed them the three texts in the order the media industry releases them (Film poster, Film, Review) to see if each product did justice to one another before seeing other elements of the film stages.
At each stage this enabled us to get an idea if the audience actually understood what they understand about the film and the ancillary texts in relation to each other as well as being on their own.
So here is our interview with people within our target audience reviewing all three media products we created:
Well I think this was a success! Our target audience clearly understood the film even before we had published the actual film to them. They understood the genre of the film through the design of the poster which then became clearer when they watched the film after. The film in relation to the poster then enabled the audience members to go back and understand things such as the tagline and the relationship between the two characters on the actual poster.
The title for the audience as you will have heard was a big discovery for them. The title didn't give much away about the film but once they had watched it, it all made sense that it was about the male within the poster not actually existing. This for us is a positive as it provides the audience with a sense of mystery but when they see the film they come out going 'ooooo so thats what the title means'. Its the idea that they have a eureka moment the moment they finish watching the film. The main point is the elements of the film that are hidden from the audience in the poster.
The idea that the 2nd male isn't included in the poster meant that when the audience watched the film, they were given a surprise when they find out that Mallory could not be heartbroken any longer. This boosts the audiences feelings (Todorov theory) in that they know that she has ended in a happier position than she began due to the meeting of this male. This then leaves the audience feeling much better knowing Mallory has found the one....we think!
As for the review, although it would not be published by the same company, it complements the film well. The image doesn't give too much away about the film so that if someone hasn't seen it before they read the review, it doesn't tell them much at a quick glance, the actual text was complementary to the fim and did the actual production of the film justice. It picked out different features of the film within the review and made a critical evaluation as well as emphasis on the different roles within the production team. Within the film, you obviously don't see the crew (unless the do a whoopsy and end up reflecting in a mirror!) so with the film review, it complements the crew and shows the elements and flare they added to the final produce. The review is rather positive which again is a positive to show that professional critics also think it is worth watching or was worth the watch. Often people watch films based on reviews and so with this positive review, I think it does the film justice in attracting larger audiences to see the film.
Conclusion:
Overall I think that the three products work well and effectively together but also on their own to give an all round good impression of the film. Each of the three products bring something different to the table which when put together ensures all aspects of a film are covered to increase the number of people who wish to come and see the film and widen the target audience.
Evaluation Question 1- In what way does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media texts?
Well now starts the evaluation questions. Alright don't get too excited!
Right the first question is all about or film and the conventions or challenges we have included within it. Throughout our film we have made use of many conventions that we have discovered through our research and planning of short films as well as the genre of our film. For one reason or another these have purposefully been selected to play a role within our film that will have an impact on our audience. We have also made the choice to challenge conventions within the film for one reason or another. In many films some conventions are challenged to add maybe a twist to the film or just to be creative.
Short Films
Before we go on to talk about the different blockbuster films and the character conventions that we have either followed or converted, it would be a good idea to mention the biggest genre of all that we used for our films. The conventions within a short film! The short film genre is the main genre of our film.
Before actually creating our film we researched the film genre to find out what would be contained within a typically film short. We watched a variety of shorts from different sub genres however they were all involved in the shorts category. This way we could collate the findings together to find common conventions within all the shorts. Some of the conventions included:
1. So in image 1 this is the Ident for the film company that produced the film. This specific ident is taken from a short film called 'One man's loss' and is the ident for the company that actually made their short film. By having the ident at the beginning, the production company are advertising their company as well as it being a typical convention on most films that are published.
2. The second image shows the title of the film. As you can see this again is taken from the film named One Man's loss. Like most of the short films we research, this short film has the titles running over the top of the on screen action. It is placed over a scenic background where nothing is really going on, so in a way it fills in the gap and break between the characters conversing on screen. This title is also placed at the beginning of the film. In some example we have seen them at the end of the film, however in most of the short films reviewed, like this one, the title is near the beginning.
3. This image is taken from a popular short called The Black Hole. This image shows the twist within the film. In the research it was discovered that a twist within the storyline was a convention that was really a necessity for our short film. The event occurs such as in this, the male is photocopying when he discovers this black hole enables him to access places he couldn't before such as a food machine.
4. Image 4 shows the typical innocent protagonist. This convention was contained within many of the short films whereby we follow an even or routine involved within one persons life. In this case it was a homeless man whose life was switched around for the better by fate. Fate is also a common theme within many of the short films we watched, especially this one.
5. This shows a negative ending to the short film. In The Barberless Barber, the male protagonist goes through all the trouble to try and get a job but when he gets back, the job has been filled and so it was a waste of his time. This is a negative ending to the film which leaves the audience feeling sorry for the male who has just spent money on a new barnet only to find out that some other man has nicked his job! How dare he! This is a challenge to hegemonic ideas within the short film genre.
6. The final image show the credits of the people who starred and produced the film. This includes people such as the actors right to the editors and productors. These in all the films are at the end of the film as it is a natural way to end by giving recognition to those within the film. So basically the credits are like every film on the planet! Well I assume every film anyway...
Our Short Film
Now with the conventions in mind that were for the existing short films, here are some of the conventions from our film that we either followed, developed or subverted for one reason or another. Each image is explained below on what and why we used these features:
1. In the first image you can see this is the ident for our production team. Like in the short films researched, it is the first thing the audience see when watching our short film. We decided to follow convention for this as this is the typical place an ident is placed to enable the audience to see who has produced this film. Some audiences decide on what films to watch by who has created the film so this could also be seen as attracting the audiences. The ident is the logo for the production team so you wouldn't really want it at the end of the film would you?
2. The second image is the title. It is similar to that of the titles seen within the existing media as seen above. However, we decided to have it so that it was in the corner of the screen but still visible to the audience. We didn't want the title to be slap bang in the middle of the on screen action otherwise it would cover up Mallory as she is walking away. This title is however following the convention within a short film as the title is near the beginning of the film to state to the audience what the name of the film is really. You want the audience to see the title before they continue watching the film so we decided to place it quite close to the beginning as a nice introduction to the film (even though the title doesn't make sense to them just yet).
3. Here we see another convention being followed, the twist. In the film Mallory meets a nice male antagonist who is friendly but at the same time quite odd. We go through all the meetings between them thinking everything is fine. Later on in the film, we discover that the male isn't actually real and is in fact dead. This is the twist which is a typical convention to a short film. We followed this convention to enable the audience to have sudden changes in emotions. They build up thinking this is going to be a lovely relationship and then are let down by the sudden unexpected twist.
4. Now in this image we see the innocent protagonist. Like in One Man's Loss, Mallory is this innocent character who doesn't have much luck and, as far as we can tell, has no friends. By following the convention of an innocent lead, the audience gain feelings for this character and almost start living their life as if they were really them. Each emotion Mallory goes through the audience feels due to the ease of gathering sympathy towards the character.
5. Now in image 5 this is a subversion of many short films. The short films we viewed ended in a negative way for some of the characters. However, we decided to subvert this and follow a theory known as Todorov's Theory. This entails the character having highs and lows however, we end up leaving the character in a better place than they began. So in this case, Mallory ends up meeting another male who seems to be perfect for her and so they end, gazing into each others eyes and all the other soppy stuff! By doing this, the audience leave the film, knowing that the character is in a better place than they began; they aren't lonely anymore, well that's what the ending suggests.
6. Finally the credits were placed at the end of the film as all typical credits are. This follows convention and was done to give credit to those who starred or took part in the making of the film. We did decide to build upon the credits at the end. Rather than having the credits running on a black background, we decided to place the credits over the top of the on screen action. As Mallory and Alex walk away, we decided to have the credits over the top, as if they are walking being Mallory and Alex.
Genre Conventions
So our film follow many conventions within the shorts genre. There are other genres in which our film fits into that have conventions to be followed challenged or developed.
Our film comes under The Romance category as well as having the sub-genre of supernatural. The romance comes from the growing love between Mallory and Peter and then later on Mallory and Alex (she does get around...). The reason it has the sub genre of supernatural is due to the fact that Peter isn't real. It isn't normal for someone who doesn't exist and has died to come back and make conversation is it really? When looking at this genre within existing media products we found that some of the conventions included:
So the first film we took a look at was the famous supernatural romance sequel, Twilight and then later on I will explain about other films that are similar to our film but more on that later. We looked specifically at the conventions within the first film. This film uses many of the conventions above but is it similar to ours our did we decided to challenge convention, not just to be different, but because it was a prefered storyline or element.
Here is the key frame document for the twilight clips that relate to our film with a commentary on each frame and how it relates to our film. These are all conventions followed within our film as you will see:
Other films Within our Film Genre:
So other than Twilight, there were other films that we found and watched to give us inspiration for the elements within our film. P.S. I love you was one of them. This comes under the category of Supernatural Romance with the death of her husband. However she is always seeing him and pretending he is there, almost as if he is ghost form. The romance within this film is a little more intense compared to that of ours with them actually being a couple unlike Mallory and Peter.
Another convention used within this film is the voice over. We decided not to use this within our film as we wanted the audience to hear it from a third person's point of view rather than have everything told to them through the protagonist. We felt this could have been a little too simplistic and given aways the storyline of Mallory's reaction when she finds out Peter isn't real.
Female Representation
So it might be wise to mention the representation of females and compare it to existing films within the genre of our short film. This can range from the choice of outfit to the style of hair or personality. So here is the mise en scene just within Mallory's looks:
Through the power of mise en scene and research of existing films, we've successfully represented our characters through their outfits as well as in some ways tricking the audience into thinking characters are someone they really aren't. Thats the beauty of the media world! We can control your minds mwahahaha!
Now as you can hear from the music, majority of the piece contains only one instrument, a piano. This delicate and quite high pitched piece of non diegetic music represent the delicate and fragile personality of the protagonist female.The soft music represents a hegemonic female personality as well as their physical state. Within the moments when this music is played, the audience instantly feel that Bella, the protagonist, is elegant and delicate, almost like a flower (soppy, I know). The filmmakers didn't want her to be seen as frumpy and loud. It clearly represents her character well as we see on screen in the mise en scene.
Another piece of music that was used to gather conventions and ideas for our film was from the film Time Traveler's Wife about a man who just disappears and travels forwards and backwards in time but his wife suffers for his issue as well as their relationship. When the male disappears each time, soft music is played along side the action on screen to build up the sadness and emotions the female is going through due to the constant disappearance of her husband. This piece below was the main soundtrack we listened to from this film.
Our Music
So within our film we have a variety of piece of music to represent the different emotions within the film. Mallory's music for when she wakes up is rather delicate which represents either the slow and steady waking up of her in the morning or, reflects her personality in that she is a rather elegant, quiet person. We never hear her say anything within the first how many seconds of the clip so the music just emphasises the unsociable elements of her personality. It is similar to that of Bella's Lullaby as you will have heard earlier from twilight with the delicate music that is played when she appears, almost like a recurring motif. Take a listen:
The romantic genre comes through clearly when the female and the male keep bumping into each other. When we first meet the male the music is rather romantic but not too obvious that they are going to fall in love, get married and live happily ever after. It is subtle which is what we found within the music above from existing media. The music throughout the meetings right through to the last meeting becomes more and more romantic with majestic instruments such as glockenspiels but still keeping with the piano. By doing this it builds the audience up to think they are going to fall in love but are let down later on when the female find out the male is dead. This follows the conventions of romance films as whenever you see a couple that you think are going to fall in love, you know by the style of music. The elegant instruments such as violins and pianos shows the delicate relationship blooming, like a rose (oh no....I'm getting soppier by the minute!).
Like in the Time Traveler's Wife music, when something happens within the relationship, the music becomes sadder and more emotive through change in key from major to minor (putting my music knowledge into practise). So when Mallory discovers Peter isn't real, the music becomes minor and represents the disappointment as well as shock within Mallory's head about the loss of what could have been romance. Also another conventional music choice is when Mallory begins her morning again next day after finding out Peter doesn't exist. The music is deep and emotive, showing how much Peter meant to her. This follows the conventions of Romantic films, like in Time Traveler's Wife, as the music represents how meaningful the relationship was when it is torn apart.
Challenge and Developing:
As well as the conventions that we followed within our film's genres, we also challenged and developed a few ideas to give our film a spin on the hegemonic ideas. Not all films follow all conventions of its genre and so we decided to change it up a bit and add our own spin on our film but we still had to ensure our audience were attracted to the film. So in a way it was a bit of a risk take to change some of the conventions of our film's genre but thankfully it worked with the subtle details and changes made. Why not take a look at the prezi below to find out more:
So as you can see, there are a variety of different convention from the genres within our film that have been followed or in some cases subverted. The films mentioned have had a huge impact on the decisions that we made when creating our film. As I have said, the media industry has a way of manipulating its audiences minds once they know exactly what they want through research and careful planning.
Right the first question is all about or film and the conventions or challenges we have included within it. Throughout our film we have made use of many conventions that we have discovered through our research and planning of short films as well as the genre of our film. For one reason or another these have purposefully been selected to play a role within our film that will have an impact on our audience. We have also made the choice to challenge conventions within the film for one reason or another. In many films some conventions are challenged to add maybe a twist to the film or just to be creative.
Short Films
Before we go on to talk about the different blockbuster films and the character conventions that we have either followed or converted, it would be a good idea to mention the biggest genre of all that we used for our films. The conventions within a short film! The short film genre is the main genre of our film.
Before actually creating our film we researched the film genre to find out what would be contained within a typically film short. We watched a variety of shorts from different sub genres however they were all involved in the shorts category. This way we could collate the findings together to find common conventions within all the shorts. Some of the conventions included:
- Plot Twists
- Only being 40 minutes or less
- Can have a message within (moral)
- Can contain something unusual such as an object or person
Existing Short Film:
After we had searched far and wide for shorts (didn't have to search that long as there are hundreds of them) we found specific elements that were similar in many of the films. Also we took elements and thought of how we could make it our own and subvert the features to suit our style. So here are some images taken from existing short films and an explanation of each feature underneath:
1. So in image 1 this is the Ident for the film company that produced the film. This specific ident is taken from a short film called 'One man's loss' and is the ident for the company that actually made their short film. By having the ident at the beginning, the production company are advertising their company as well as it being a typical convention on most films that are published.
2. The second image shows the title of the film. As you can see this again is taken from the film named One Man's loss. Like most of the short films we research, this short film has the titles running over the top of the on screen action. It is placed over a scenic background where nothing is really going on, so in a way it fills in the gap and break between the characters conversing on screen. This title is also placed at the beginning of the film. In some example we have seen them at the end of the film, however in most of the short films reviewed, like this one, the title is near the beginning.
3. This image is taken from a popular short called The Black Hole. This image shows the twist within the film. In the research it was discovered that a twist within the storyline was a convention that was really a necessity for our short film. The event occurs such as in this, the male is photocopying when he discovers this black hole enables him to access places he couldn't before such as a food machine.
4. Image 4 shows the typical innocent protagonist. This convention was contained within many of the short films whereby we follow an even or routine involved within one persons life. In this case it was a homeless man whose life was switched around for the better by fate. Fate is also a common theme within many of the short films we watched, especially this one.
5. This shows a negative ending to the short film. In The Barberless Barber, the male protagonist goes through all the trouble to try and get a job but when he gets back, the job has been filled and so it was a waste of his time. This is a negative ending to the film which leaves the audience feeling sorry for the male who has just spent money on a new barnet only to find out that some other man has nicked his job! How dare he! This is a challenge to hegemonic ideas within the short film genre.
6. The final image show the credits of the people who starred and produced the film. This includes people such as the actors right to the editors and productors. These in all the films are at the end of the film as it is a natural way to end by giving recognition to those within the film. So basically the credits are like every film on the planet! Well I assume every film anyway...
Our Short Film
Now with the conventions in mind that were for the existing short films, here are some of the conventions from our film that we either followed, developed or subverted for one reason or another. Each image is explained below on what and why we used these features:
1. In the first image you can see this is the ident for our production team. Like in the short films researched, it is the first thing the audience see when watching our short film. We decided to follow convention for this as this is the typical place an ident is placed to enable the audience to see who has produced this film. Some audiences decide on what films to watch by who has created the film so this could also be seen as attracting the audiences. The ident is the logo for the production team so you wouldn't really want it at the end of the film would you?
2. The second image is the title. It is similar to that of the titles seen within the existing media as seen above. However, we decided to have it so that it was in the corner of the screen but still visible to the audience. We didn't want the title to be slap bang in the middle of the on screen action otherwise it would cover up Mallory as she is walking away. This title is however following the convention within a short film as the title is near the beginning of the film to state to the audience what the name of the film is really. You want the audience to see the title before they continue watching the film so we decided to place it quite close to the beginning as a nice introduction to the film (even though the title doesn't make sense to them just yet).
3. Here we see another convention being followed, the twist. In the film Mallory meets a nice male antagonist who is friendly but at the same time quite odd. We go through all the meetings between them thinking everything is fine. Later on in the film, we discover that the male isn't actually real and is in fact dead. This is the twist which is a typical convention to a short film. We followed this convention to enable the audience to have sudden changes in emotions. They build up thinking this is going to be a lovely relationship and then are let down by the sudden unexpected twist.
4. Now in this image we see the innocent protagonist. Like in One Man's Loss, Mallory is this innocent character who doesn't have much luck and, as far as we can tell, has no friends. By following the convention of an innocent lead, the audience gain feelings for this character and almost start living their life as if they were really them. Each emotion Mallory goes through the audience feels due to the ease of gathering sympathy towards the character.
5. Now in image 5 this is a subversion of many short films. The short films we viewed ended in a negative way for some of the characters. However, we decided to subvert this and follow a theory known as Todorov's Theory. This entails the character having highs and lows however, we end up leaving the character in a better place than they began. So in this case, Mallory ends up meeting another male who seems to be perfect for her and so they end, gazing into each others eyes and all the other soppy stuff! By doing this, the audience leave the film, knowing that the character is in a better place than they began; they aren't lonely anymore, well that's what the ending suggests.
6. Finally the credits were placed at the end of the film as all typical credits are. This follows convention and was done to give credit to those who starred or took part in the making of the film. We did decide to build upon the credits at the end. Rather than having the credits running on a black background, we decided to place the credits over the top of the on screen action. As Mallory and Alex walk away, we decided to have the credits over the top, as if they are walking being Mallory and Alex.
Genre Conventions
So our film follow many conventions within the shorts genre. There are other genres in which our film fits into that have conventions to be followed challenged or developed.
Our film comes under The Romance category as well as having the sub-genre of supernatural. The romance comes from the growing love between Mallory and Peter and then later on Mallory and Alex (she does get around...). The reason it has the sub genre of supernatural is due to the fact that Peter isn't real. It isn't normal for someone who doesn't exist and has died to come back and make conversation is it really? When looking at this genre within existing media products we found that some of the conventions included:
- Onscreen Romance/ relationships between characters
- Contains ghosts, goddesses and/or miracle
- Day to day life (Romance side of it is anyway!)
- Main Characters are introduced straight away
- Characters go their separate ways for one reason or another
- Often a voice over of the protagonist
So the first film we took a look at was the famous supernatural romance sequel, Twilight and then later on I will explain about other films that are similar to our film but more on that later. We looked specifically at the conventions within the first film. This film uses many of the conventions above but is it similar to ours our did we decided to challenge convention, not just to be different, but because it was a prefered storyline or element.
Here is the key frame document for the twilight clips that relate to our film with a commentary on each frame and how it relates to our film. These are all conventions followed within our film as you will see:
So our film contains many conventions of twilight, just not the part where the male lead is all sparkly because thats just stupid! As you can see the conventions within the existing sequel are prominent within our short film genre. Due to the target audience for this film being female of a younger age, we thought it would be a good idea to use conventions within the film to gain interest from this audience range too. See we don't just put things in our films for the sake of it. A thinking process is made you know!
So other than Twilight, there were other films that we found and watched to give us inspiration for the elements within our film. P.S. I love you was one of them. This comes under the category of Supernatural Romance with the death of her husband. However she is always seeing him and pretending he is there, almost as if he is ghost form. The romance within this film is a little more intense compared to that of ours with them actually being a couple unlike Mallory and Peter.
Female Representation
So it might be wise to mention the representation of females and compare it to existing films within the genre of our short film. This can range from the choice of outfit to the style of hair or personality. So here is the mise en scene just within Mallory's looks:
Through the power of mise en scene and research of existing films, we've successfully represented our characters through their outfits as well as in some ways tricking the audience into thinking characters are someone they really aren't. Thats the beauty of the media world! We can control your minds mwahahaha!
Music Conventions:
When doing the research for our genre of film, we research and listened to the soundtracks that were used within the films to see if this was the style we were aiming for. Within many of the films we watched, the music was soft and light to represent the personality of the person. For example, the music below is taken from twilight and is Bella's Lullaby. Why not take a listen:
Now as you can hear from the music, majority of the piece contains only one instrument, a piano. This delicate and quite high pitched piece of non diegetic music represent the delicate and fragile personality of the protagonist female.The soft music represents a hegemonic female personality as well as their physical state. Within the moments when this music is played, the audience instantly feel that Bella, the protagonist, is elegant and delicate, almost like a flower (soppy, I know). The filmmakers didn't want her to be seen as frumpy and loud. It clearly represents her character well as we see on screen in the mise en scene.
Another piece of music that was used to gather conventions and ideas for our film was from the film Time Traveler's Wife about a man who just disappears and travels forwards and backwards in time but his wife suffers for his issue as well as their relationship. When the male disappears each time, soft music is played along side the action on screen to build up the sadness and emotions the female is going through due to the constant disappearance of her husband. This piece below was the main soundtrack we listened to from this film.
Our Music
So within our film we have a variety of piece of music to represent the different emotions within the film. Mallory's music for when she wakes up is rather delicate which represents either the slow and steady waking up of her in the morning or, reflects her personality in that she is a rather elegant, quiet person. We never hear her say anything within the first how many seconds of the clip so the music just emphasises the unsociable elements of her personality. It is similar to that of Bella's Lullaby as you will have heard earlier from twilight with the delicate music that is played when she appears, almost like a recurring motif. Take a listen:
The romantic genre comes through clearly when the female and the male keep bumping into each other. When we first meet the male the music is rather romantic but not too obvious that they are going to fall in love, get married and live happily ever after. It is subtle which is what we found within the music above from existing media. The music throughout the meetings right through to the last meeting becomes more and more romantic with majestic instruments such as glockenspiels but still keeping with the piano. By doing this it builds the audience up to think they are going to fall in love but are let down later on when the female find out the male is dead. This follows the conventions of romance films as whenever you see a couple that you think are going to fall in love, you know by the style of music. The elegant instruments such as violins and pianos shows the delicate relationship blooming, like a rose (oh no....I'm getting soppier by the minute!).
Like in the Time Traveler's Wife music, when something happens within the relationship, the music becomes sadder and more emotive through change in key from major to minor (putting my music knowledge into practise). So when Mallory discovers Peter isn't real, the music becomes minor and represents the disappointment as well as shock within Mallory's head about the loss of what could have been romance. Also another conventional music choice is when Mallory begins her morning again next day after finding out Peter doesn't exist. The music is deep and emotive, showing how much Peter meant to her. This follows the conventions of Romantic films, like in Time Traveler's Wife, as the music represents how meaningful the relationship was when it is torn apart.
Challenge and Developing:
As well as the conventions that we followed within our film's genres, we also challenged and developed a few ideas to give our film a spin on the hegemonic ideas. Not all films follow all conventions of its genre and so we decided to change it up a bit and add our own spin on our film but we still had to ensure our audience were attracted to the film. So in a way it was a bit of a risk take to change some of the conventions of our film's genre but thankfully it worked with the subtle details and changes made. Why not take a look at the prezi below to find out more:
So as you can see, there are a variety of different convention from the genres within our film that have been followed or in some cases subverted. The films mentioned have had a huge impact on the decisions that we made when creating our film. As I have said, the media industry has a way of manipulating its audiences minds once they know exactly what they want through research and careful planning.
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