Evaulation

Introduction

In this blog post I am going to answer the evaluation questions for my foundation production. This is a way of reflecting upon my progress and final product. 

 

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

I feel that my opening sequence develops three main conventions. These are female main character, issues of mental health and use of classical music. My opening sequence also challenges many other conventions. These are mental health, location, female power, editing styles and use of sound. 

The use of a female main character in a psychological thriller is not very common. I discovered in my focus group experiment audiences wanted a female main character. I felt that this was a convention that I could develop within my opening sequence. I started off by planning my video so that it only featured one character, a female. This would draw attention to the fact that there is a female main character. Next I shot the female doing a variety of "everyday tasks", such as hand washing and writing. This developed this convention as it made it seem normal for a female to be starring alone in an opening sequence. 

I developed the convention of mental health in my opening sequence by making my character seem vulnerable. She is alone in an old fashioned house (mise-en-scene tells the audience this), and appears to be struggling to cope with fear of her house being broken into. This fear is irrational to the audience, who would not spent large amounts of time checking locked doors. I enforced this idea by using a hip-hop montage style sequence, which is repetitive. The theme of mental health develops throughout my opening sequence, as in the final scene the woman sets fire to a picture of a man’s face. This leads the audience to belief that she is violent, which contrasts with the vulnerable character which had developed throughout the other scenes. 

The final developing convention in my opening sequence is the use of classical music in my psychological thriller. Normally, classical music has a light, happy and calm style to it. However the genre of classical music I chose has a feeling of impending "doom" to it. This develops as the music goes on. Starting out with bold and crisp sounds, which are normal for this genre. As the piece goes on and the audience begins to understand the plot, the music darkens. This is through the use of more low notes in an overlaying style. This develops the audience’s idea of classical music to accompany a thriller. 

My opening sequence challenges the use of mental health, the psychological aspect of my thriller. This is as mental health is often shown as a disorder to be scared of, as the suffering character is portrayed as a bad person or the villain. In the beginning of my video I challenged this idea, as I make the audience feel sorry for the women which is unusual for the genre. However in the last scene, the burning of a photograph of the man, I go back to using this typical convention by making the audience scared of the actions of the character.

Next my location challenges typical conventions. Normally, psychological thrillers are set in modern day houses or abandoned old settings. However, mine is a mix of the two. Although the setting is old, the tower, the furnishings are not rotten or uncared for. This is not typical of the genre. 

Female power is another convention that I break. As a general rule women are portrayed as less powerful than men, and men are often shown to be the ones harming women. However, in the last scene, the photograph burning shoot, it was the female character who sets fire to a picture of a male. This contrasts greatly with the typical convention. 

The editing styles that I use also contrast with each other. A typical convention of this genre would be to use long slow edits, with large amounts of tracking and panning. However my opening sequences use both fast and slow edits. An example of a fast edit in my opening sequence would be the anxiety scene of the lock checking. An example of a slow edit would be the hand washing sequence for representation of OCD. Coupling these together is unusual and therefore challenges conventions of the genre. Although I also conform to the convention but incorporating long edits as well. 

The use of sound in my opening sequence is different to any others that I have studied. Typically an opening sequence would either have no sound and backing track, sound and a backing track, or just a backing track. However I have challenged this by using a backing track and sound only to highlight the areas where mental health disorders are featured. I used the fact that this is uncommon to my advantage.

Question Two: "How does your media product represent particular social groups?"

My opening sequence represents 3 social groups. These social groups are the 40 - 50 year old age range, Mental health suffers and females.

I represent the age range 40-50 as my actor is in that age range. The audience knows this due to the way she looks, the activities she does and her costume. I feel that my opening sequences does not make any major statements about this social group, but does hint at a few things. The first of these is that the actor comes across as lonely. She is alone in an old house, which has enough beds for more than herself. Yet she is the only character that we see in the house. The second is that she is "living in the past" as the house is furnished in an old style. The audience could generalise these points to all people of that age range. The classical style of music is also linked to the age range of 40-50 so links in well with this social group.

Another social group featured is mental health sufferers or patients. As this is a psychological thriller, I decided to feature a range of mental health disorders. These were anxiety, depression, obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), addiction and aggression. As such a range of disorders were featured then the social group that could relate to the character is large. At the beginning of my opening sequence I portray the actress as a vulnerable and lonely person. It is clear to the viewers that the disorders greatly disrupt her life, for example the obsessive hand washing scene. This would endear sufferers to the audience, some many even relate to the issues that the actor issues. However, at the end of the video she sets fire to a photo of a man, this represents the social group of mental health sufferers as dangerous, aggressive and violent. This gives the audience conflicting thoughts about the social group as a whole.

The final social group in my opening sequence is females, as my actress is a female. I represent her as powerful, the burning photo scene, yet at the same time vulnerable. Female viewers of my video may be able to relate to this, and male views may be influenced by this representation. 

Question Three: "What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?

I think that Film4 would be the type of media institution that would distribute my media product (my opening sequence).

Film4 are a publicly owned film production company that is commercially funded. They are known for their experimental work, taking risks with unknown producers, creating distinctive films, and being experimental with their methods used. Launched in November 1982, they have developed a name in British film networks for taking on unexperienced producers, directors, actors and film makers. They fund most of these films through advertisements between viewings of their films.

I think that Film4 would be the kind of media institution to fund the creation of my media product as I am similar to the type of creators they look for. I am British, inexperienced and unheard of in the film industry. My opening sequence also features the edgy subject of mental health disorders. As Film4 tend to take risks when produce and often face "taboo" subjects. For example, "This is England" is a film by Film4 that include youth culture and racial discrimination. I think they would be interested in "Luttrell's Tower" as they have not produce a large amount of films for this age group. However, they did produce "A King's Speech" which is similar to my film. “A Kings Speech” faces the issue of speech impediment and is aimed a similar age group to my target audience.

Question Four: "Who would be the audience for your media product?"

I think the audience for my media product would be both male and female, of a middle class background and in the age bracket of about 40 - 60. 

I think that the age bracket would be age 40 - 60 as the audience needs to be mature enough to be able to understand the mental health aspect and the issues surrounding it. Some aspects may be disturbing to children under the age or 16, or in extreme cases 18. It has also been shown by Professor Wells (mentioned in an earlier blog post), that 55 - 80 year olds like the configuration of night and dark. I think that this links in with my video as in the end of it I filmed a night time using a torch to add an air of mystery. Based on Professor Wells’s research I managed to place my audiences’ age group. This age group also enjoys this genre more as it is not packed with gun fights and drama, but largely focuses of important issues (such as mental health) and the implications surrounding them. They find a mentally challenging plot more interesting than a simple one packed with gun fights etc.

I also think my audience would be of a middle class background as due to the complex psychological aspects of my opening sequence, it lends it's self to a more educated and intelligent audience. This is as not all would they fully understand the mental health conditions, but would enjoy the puzzles and problems offered. Middle class people generally have a better standard of education, so therefor would be better suited to my film.

The genre of my audience would be both male and female, however slightly more male dominated. I think this as research has shown that the genre is male dominated, but only just. Figures have shown that the males dominates 51% of psychological thriller viewers. Whereas females are 49% (discovered in an earlier blog post). The genre is thought to be slightly more male dominated due to the fast action of the plots, which is preferred by males. However, females also enjoy the genre as an increasing amount of romance and romantic twists are being brought into the genre. I feel that both genres would like mine some part would be fast action, for example the quick edits in the close up scenes lit by a torch, which would appeal to males. Yet as there is a female main character female viewers may enjoy this more, due to being able to relate to her.

  
Question Five: "How did you attract/address your audience?

I attracted and addressed my audience in a variety of ways. These ways were the plot, the enigmas featured in the opening sequence, and finally the age group targeted for my audience.

The plot attracts the audience due to the fact that it is unusual and "edgy". This means that I feature issues which people do not discuss normally or do not normally feature in cinema films. This is also known a "Taboo subject". These subjects, due to the lack of films about then, appear to draw in audiences. For example, "The Kings Speech" was released to 2,584 theatres (source: www.boxofficemojo.com) and tackled the issue of speech impediments. I feel that this could be part of the key to its success.

Another way in which I attracted my audience was in my opening sequence. I carefully planned my opening sequence to include a lot of enigmas. Enigmas are small pieces of a puzzle which are presented to the viewers in sort of them to try to solve the problem being tackled. This is as I feel that they attract in people would wish to solve the puzzle of them. For example, I showed exploring a scene with a torch, which might intrigue an audience to find out where, what and why. Films containing enigmas have often done every well in cinemas. For example, "Sherlock Holmes" was released to 3,626 theatres and made $524,028,679 profit (source: www.boxofficemojo.com). The film was full of enigmas for the audience to think about. Therefor I feel that enigmas are a successful way of addressing the audience.

Question Six: "What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?"

Due to the planning, editing and filming of my media product I have had to learn a lot about technology. Although, I already knew basic information due to my Media Studies GCSE course, I had to radically update my existing knowledge and gather more.

One technology that was completely new to me was blogger. Having no previous experience with this site meant that I had learn everything, from the basics of how to publish a post to additional details about embedding items. I learnt how to embed videos from YouTube, website links, and pictures from my computer. 

Another technology that I learnt more about was YouTube. I learnt that it could be used for more than just simple searching and up loading. I discovered that I could use it for evaluations of filming ideas that I tried. For example, I did some trail runs of editing ideas that I had. I uploaded them to YouTube and then recording my self-evaluation it, added it to the video and re uploaded. I also used YouTube for displaying my footage of my focus group. Videoing it was a better method of recording my findings compared to writing it down.

One technology that was completely new to me was filming on my Canon 60D. I had work out how to use manual focus while filming, through the method of trial and error. I also had to experiment a lot to film the photo burning scene, as it was difficult to capture it in focus.

In the editing process I had to radically update my knowledge and skills in using Serif MoviePlus X6. This included adding text which faded in in a create way, curving the text and adding special effects such as changing the levels of contrast. This was difficult due to the issue that my software was not as advanced as some of the ideas that I had. This meant that I had to find ways around it, for example multiple text boxes to curve text as there was no curving option that was suitable. 

Question Seven: "Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product?"

Here is a link to my preliminary task: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sBR8nORYvP4

Here is a link to my finished media product: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c3SDPGFJqws

I think that the main points that I gained from my preliminary task was that planning before filming is vital to success. I discovered that I work better alone than in a large group and that sound is vital for setting a scene. I also realized that fast edits make the video more interesting.

When creating my preliminary task with my group we simply decided on a very basic plot and set out to film. We did not plan any camera shots, casting, or a detailed idea of the story-line. This meant that we had to create ideas while filming, which made our preliminary task lack professionalism. For my finished media product (opening sequence), I planned my ideas well in advance of filming. In this area the preliminary task really helped me to have an idea on how to start out on my media product. 

For my preliminary task I worked in a group with the rest of my media class (Frankie, Vincent and Alex). Due to working in a large group we had a wide range of different ideas, and it was rather difficult to get everyone to agree on things. This led me to decide that to be able to produce a piece that I was perfectly happy with it would be better for me to work in a smaller group or alone. This meant that I would have a lot more control over situations and decisions. I decided to work alone, as I was planning to film while on holiday. 

While editing the preliminary task, I noticed that video camera picked up a very high quality of sound. This meant that tiny details could be picked up, which really help in setting a scene. In my opening sequence I used this knowledge for the door locking scene. As without the sound that part would not have had such an effect. 

I also learnt through the preliminary task that although long edits are brilliant at setting a scene and conveying a story-line, shorter edits are much more interesting to viewers. In my preliminary task we used a variety. But while editing it became apparent that some of our footage was simply too long and drawn out. This lead me to investigate the idea of hip hop montage, which was another video filmed with Frankie, Alex and Vincent, (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GZLzxOg1-gw). Here I discovered that our thoughts about fast editing making the plot more exciting were correct. I used this knowledge in my opening sequence in the scene where I use the torch to show flashes of coffee cups and various other items. 

Opening Sequence

The Finished Video

Here are links to my finished opening sequence "Luttrell's Tower":

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c3SDPGFJqws

I also created a narrated version to help viewers spot the different mental health disorders featured in my opening sequence:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ANmFrej5o0

Editting

 Introduction

In this entry I am going to explain how I edited my footage and created effects. I will also provide screen prints and details on how I created different elements of the opening sequence. 


Editing Software

To edit my footage I used Serif MoviePlus x6 to edit my footage. I found this relatively simple as I have used it many times before. However, the software is lacking it some areas so I did have to find ways of getting around this. A example of this is how I created my text, how I got around this issues is explained later in this blog post.


Opening scene

For my opening scene credits it used the filming option of my web cam to gather the footage. This allows me to record what I on my laptop screen. 

I got the footage from a youtube videos of the opening sequence of "To Kill A Mockingbird". I choose this one as I liked the old fashioned feel that it has too it and I also feel that the slow movement coupled with the black and white effect works very well together. Here is the link to the video that I used: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wwf96OEaYBg

When I added this to my opening sequence I cropped it to the correct size, increased the contrast and made it play faster. I increased the contrast as the footage had a slightly grey background, but I wanted it to become more of pure black colour. 


Soundtrack

For the music track on my opening sequence I used a copyright free music site. These sites allow people to download and preview the track. I got my music from one of those sites. It is free to download the music and save it onto my laptop. The next step was to import it into MoviePlus and add it to my opening sequence. 


How I made the text

Making my text started off as quite a simple process. To beginning making the text, you simply click the "add text box" button, then input the wording. Next it got a lot more complicated. I began to experiment with the use of in and out effects. 

For the title that I added in the first shoots of the stairs, I expected that there would be a way of curving the text to make it bend around the banister. However, I discovered that this was not the case. To work around this problem I had to create a separate text box for each letter, and then position it in the correct place and overlap them. This took a large amount of time, but I feel that the end effect was worth it. 

How I made the night terror scene

To make my "night terror" then I had to create a complicated method as my software did not allow this to be automatically created. 

To start with I attempted to add and size the extra footage as overlays over the main image. However, I discover two problems with this method. The first was that only one video overlay could be added. The second was that was resizing the overlay, this changed the size for the entire video. Which resulted in my text and other overlays being changed. Luckily I noticed this problem quite quickly!

The method that I developed to get around this problem is as follows:
1. Create a new editing file.
2. Create two separate videos with overlays.
3. Size them to each half of the screen.
4. Position the two separate videos and overlays on opposite sides.
5. Export the video.
6. Import the video into another new editing file.
7. Create two copies of the video.
8. Crop to remove the black space.
9. Add one as an overlay over the other.
10. Export the footage.
11. Import to the editing file containing all my other editing footage.
12. Edit into the correct place, and done!

Screen prints of this method are shown below:

One issue with this method is that all the exporting and import reduced the quality of the footage. However, this would not be an issue if I had footage which could simply complete the effect. I feel that the achieved effect was worth all of the time and effort that it took.


How I created the hand washing scene

Creating the overlayed hand washing scene was very simple after creating the night terror scene! This was quite simply overlaying two bits of footage, using the overlay footage bar. To allow bottom bits of text to be seen at once I reduced the opacity of the overlay to about 40-50%. This allowed the detail of both bits of footage to be seen at the same time.

Filming

Introduction

In this blog post I am going to discuss how I filmed, where I filmed and the issues that I had to overcome during the process of filming. 


Location

The location that I used to film was tower which my family rented as a holiday home for a few days. This tower featured an amazing spiral staircase (shown in a image below) which I felt was a must to be featured in my filming! The property was named "Luttrell's Tower" - which I used for the name of my film.



















The photographs above were taken by me.



Filming

To film my opening sequence I use my Canon 60D on video camera mode, on mostly manual focus. As a photography A level study I am used to using this camera, however this was one of the first times I had used it on video camera mode. 

As I was using my mother, Belinda, as the only character featured time planning was not an issue. I also used my own tripod to film on. One difficult that I faced so that as the location was a very old house the floor was very uneven and the corridors where every tight. This made it difficult to level the tripod. As shown in the pictures below, my setup for filming the locking door scenes. 

Setup for filming the mirror shot:

Setup for filming the writing scenes:

Lighting

I chose a overcast day to get a light condition to film in without the issue of blowout areas. I used most natural lighting, a part from in the final scene. For the final scene I experimented with a few different torches because deciding on that one. 

Mise-En-Scene

Luckily, for my mise-en-scene, I did not have to change a lot of things for the scenes with my character in. This is an the house we filmed in was furnished in a simple, old fashioned style. I simply removed a few electronic products to give it a more plain style. 

For the scene filmed with a torch I set up an entire scene. This included items liking to mental health disorders and addictions. 

Costume

I dressed my actor in plain style clothing, of a dark colour. Black jeans with a long sleeved dark blue cotton top. 

Social Problem Films

Introduction

In this entry I am planning on discuss the style of film of social problems, this fit in nicely with my chosen genre of psycolgyical thriller, as mental health is a social problem.


What are Social Problem Films?

Social problem films are films that feature social problems as a Key theme of the storyline. Social problems are things that effect the people of a community.
For example:

• Crime
• Discrimination (race, gay, disability, etc.)
• Prejudice
• Housing
• War
• Alcoholism

This differ from country, region and area of a community. The gold age of this style is considered to be postwar, between 1947 - 1951. These issues are topical and often new worthy.


Why produce a Social Problem Film?

Social problem films can be met very well with audiences due to the fact that the audiences have the ability to relate to the issues tackled. Due to the often controversial nature of these films, they can cause a large impact. This impact can sometimes be native for the film company, such as is there is a mass boycotting of the film and fights from the office of censorship to ban the films. But sometimes it can be positive, causing more people to go and watch the film, which would therefor increase box office figures.


Who produces Social Problem films?

This style of film has been growing in popularity over the current years. Proof of this in on the block buster website. They have a section solely for this style, as shown in the image below.

A few social problem films are Home of the Brave and The Snake Pit.

How will Social Problems be displayed in my opening sequence?

My open will be feacturing the social problem of mental health. This is a social problem as it greatly effects the lives of people, and also there is a prejudice surround this type of film. I will need to make sure that I do not discriminate. I am planning on making the issues of mental health shown through special effects, etc.


Conclusion

I feel that the issues of mental health could effect the impact of my film in a positive way, as there will be no discrimination in the film. People may find my film interesting due to the relatible nature of mental health issues.

Cycles of Genres

Introduction

In this blog post, I am going to research into the idea that certain genres go in and out of fashion.

Cycles of Genres

Making sure that the genre of film I am going to release with be met well by the audiences, means making sure it is currently on trend. Hollywood is known for capitalising on trends and cycles within the film industry. This is due to is short term production plans with allow it to move fast. They also use the method of timed releases, to suit not all the current trends, but the seasons too. Hollywood also has the power to do large amounts of research to make sure they are aware of all the current trends.

An examples of this is hugely successful 1945 film "Lost Weekend". This was quickly followed by "Smash Up: The Story of a Woman", in 1946. It was thought that this was released to attempt to grab hold of the audience that had enjoyed Lost Weekend. The similarity's included alcholism being a key theme and the main character being female. How ever Smash Up was not as successful, proving that this method does not always work out.

The cycle in which certain genres go in and out of fashion is complex as it relies of many factors. For Examples:

• Policital Situation
• Current Events
• Current trends
• Economic Situation

Sometimes it is impossible to put a reason on why a certain genres is out of trend. For example, in 1980 there were no western films for a long period of time. However, this gap was replaced with large amounts of science fiction films being produced.


Conclusion

My conclusion for this post is that, I might need to research into how style of films are currently popular in order to make sure that my film is met well by audiences.

The Hollwood Genre System

Introduction

In this blog post I am going to explore the Hollywood genre system and how I can use these ideas to help me with my opening sequence.


The Hollywood Genre System

The Hollywood genre system was developed by Robert C. Allen and Douglas Gomery. They stated that the classical Hollywood style is vital to representing character, setting, ect, to the audience. They feel that these ideals created what a film is supposed to look and feel like. They felt that each genres ideals varied but were still necessary to create a regulated variety in a cinema.

One of these is the narrative system, that has been adopted as it's aesthetic and ideological. It sticks to not only the general parameters of the Hollywood style, but also to the norms of the social system. This helps make any story more believable and relatable for an audience. This generic storyline also has a strong selling point, which means it is a hit with audiences. Certain phrases are used to describe the different types of this narrative system, such as "Thriller" or "Romantic Comedy". This phrases can be used to quickly grab viewers attention such as on the covers of magazines.


Source

"In a Lonely Street" - By Frank Krutnik


Conclusion

The Hollywood genre system has made me realize that I should have "Psychological Thriller" somewhere within my opening sequence, to grab viewers attention.

The Rule of Thirds

Introduction

Over the course of this blog post I am going to use online sources to learn more about "the rule of thirds". I will then prove that I know how to apply this knowledge to my own camera skills.


What is the Rule of Thirds?

The rule of thirds is a concept in filming production and photography, which is very commonly used. The idea is that the shot is divided into nine sqaure sections, the subjects into the image are then positioned to fit with in some of the sections, or one of the sections. This creates a nice balanced to the subject, which othersie could not be achieved. The subject either takes up 1/3 of the image or 2/3. However, the rule can be flexible to which parts of the image includes. E.g. I could be the top, bootom, right or left parts.

My Footage

I filmed on a Canon 60D, and edited on Serif Movieplus

Camera Angles

Introduction

Over the course of this post I will learn more about different camera angles, and how examples that I have learnt how to use this knowledge.


Study of camera angles

Camera angles can be used to create different emotions in the viewer, or to make then view the characters differently. For example shooting from a low angle, aiming upwards creates an imposing figure which fills the frame well. This gives the audience the sense that the character is more powerful than the viewer, and this intimidates them. 

Another style is to use close ups, either to capture the victims fear, or the attackers anger. Close ups are most commonly used on the characters face, as face facial are the most effective way of expressing emotions to the viewer. Or less commonly, the close up could be of another part of the body. Perhaps the monsters fist clenching into a ball or the victim's obviously shaking while preforming a task. These are both effect ways of displaying emotions through the use of camera angles. 

Another camera angle style is where the audience gets to experience the events through the eyes of the attacker.  This is known as a point of view shoot. In this style, the audience gets to the fully experience of how the victim reacts to the attack. 


Camera Angles Video

I created this video to demonstrate my knowledge of camera angles.

I filmed this footage on a Canon 60D and edited it using Serif MoviePlus. 

Silhoute Idea

Introduction

In this entry I am going to investigate the concept of including silhouettes in my opening sequence. I will research into other films which have included this concept, and methods of creating it. I will also do a test run of my ideas. 


What is a silhouette?

A silhouette is the image of a person or object, shown in the form of a solid shape. It is commonly black. The edges of the shapes outline make up the subjects form. The interior of the subjects have no detailing (or a extremely small amount).  The background is usually a lighter color as this compliments the dark colors nicely.


Examples of use in other films

Silhouettes are commonly used in films during dramatic moments. This is as the lack of detail can be used to create an enigma which teases the audience. This idea is used in Disney's "Fantasia" and "Big Combo", as shown in the images below. In both of these the outlines of the human figure has be used to great effect. The outlines are really used to increase the dramatic effect of a meeting in both of these images.

My favorite use of silhouettes in films is "A Silhouette Story". This is a beautifully produced short film focuses entirely on silhouettes, leaving all the detail to the background. Sounds are also keep to a minimal to keep the silhouettes really the main focus. Here is the video:

What really interested me about this silhouette film is how the whole thing was created on a very low budget, as I discovered while watching the making of video. 
As seen below:

I am going to use this ideas to effect in my own opening sequence. 

Representation

Introduction

In this blog post I am going to study representation in thrillers.  I would like to find out more about how stereotypes are commonly represented, and how I can challenge these stereotypes.


Representation

Representation is one of the key concepts in film and media studies. This is because audiences are always being presented to them selves. This causes ten to actively construct ideas and belief about certain groups of people.

The way in which a social group is represented within a media text, in this case an opening sequence, can really change the way in which the audience enjoys it. For example, if racism or sexism is portrayed an audience member could become offended, especially if a joke is made about it. This could cause them to boycott the TV channel, film, or producer.


Richard Dyer's key questions about representation:

While studying the representation of any media text is it important to consider:

"   1. What sense of the world is this film making?

2. What does it claim is typical of the world and what deviant?

3. Who is really speaking? From Whom?

4. What does it represent to us, and why?   "

Representation of Mental Health 

In psychological thrillers mental health is a large focus. This is so the psychological aspects lends its self to not only including average minds, but minds with serious problems. This is as people with issues are often considered more interesting by the audience. 

However, how mental health is portrayed in films could strongly effect it presents in society. If mental health is also show as a weakness and a problem that needs assistance  then could this trigger more helpful attention for mental health charities and fundraising? If mental health is also shown as something funny, to make a joke out of, this is likely to effect how audiences think of mental health patients. For this reason, producers must be carefull on how they represent in films. 

Target Audience

Introduction

In this post I am going to research into my target audience in depth. I will refer to the research that I did about audience studies earlier in my blog.


Age

Putting an age on the audience for a psychological thriller is difficult, this is as depending of the strength of the frighting aspects greatly changes the target audience. Some of these aspects may be disturbing to children under the age or 16, or in extreme cases 18. I think that an older age group enjoys this genre more as it is not packed with gun fights and drama, but largely focuses of important issues (mental health) and the implications surrounding them. 

This is shown in the table below:

The viewing audience increased at 18 - 24, but then rapidly decreases. From then on it increased until reaching its maximum of 26%. 

How ever this goes against my earlier study of Professor Paul Well's Research. His research states that 40 - 55 year old's enjoy strong use of blood and special effects. It also states that being shocked and frighted, more than a mentally challenging plot.


Gender

The genre is slightly male dominated, due to the fast action of plots. How ever there is an increasing amount of psychological thrillers featuring romantic twists, e.g. "He loves me... He loves me not". Recently figures show that the male view audience dominates 51%, where as females are 49%. Although this seems only a difference, when put into perspective (the entire film watching population) it is a noticeable difference. 


Education

Due to the complex psychological aspects of this genre, it lends it's self to a more educated and intelligent audience. This is as not all would they fully understand the mental health conditions, but would enjoy the puzzles and problems offered. 


Conclusion

What I have gained from this study, is a still clearer idea of my target audience. I think that they are man and female (but more male), middle class (due to higher standard of education) and in the age bracket of about 40 - 60. 

Mood Board

Introduction

In this blog post, I am going to create a mood board to set the tone for my blog. I will source the pictures from my mood board from google images. 


What is a mood board?

A mood board is type of poster style design. It is commonly made up of photographs, text and other samples of ideas. It is used to help display and design concepts. In this case, a mood board is used to set the tone for my opening sequence and display a few shoots from other opening sequence which have inspired my own. 


My Mood Board

Hip Hop Montage

Introduction

In this blog post I am going to investigate the filming style of Hip Hop Montage and attempt to create my own in the styles and techniques I have learnt about.


What is Hip Hop Montage?

A hip hop montage is a series a fast cutting which is used to portray complicated action in a rapid style. I other includes simple actions being preformed at a high speed. Sounds effects are often and large part of hip hop montages. This technique was created by the hip hop culture of the 1990's and the jump cuts featured in it first started during the french new wave, in 1950 - 60. Hip hop montage also features fast cutting. Fast cutting is several consecutive shots, which normally last about 3 seconds or less. This style can be used to convey information very quickly or show fast action and drama.

This style first appeared in the films "Requiem for a Dream" and "Pi", which are both by Darren Aronofsky. I was him that also named this style. In both of these films it was used to portray drug use, due its fast action and chaotic nature. Here is an example of its use in Requiem for a Dream:

I will use this idea to create my own hip hop montage.

Planning my Hip Hop Montage

For my Hip Hop Montage, I am going to create a video of making a cup of tea. It will be filmed and edited during media lessons, using the school camera. This video will be film in a group with the other media AS level students - Frank, Vincent and Alex. We will split the filming and editing evenly. We will edit using the apple mac imovie software.


Finished Hip Hop Montage

Here is our finished short film:

Starring - Frank
Filmed - Frank, Vincent, Alex and Me.
Edited - Frank, Vincent, Alex and Me.

Casting My Main Character

Introduction

In this blog post, I am going to explore the possibilities that I have for the main character. I aim to come to a reasonable conclusion. I will make my decision by comparing the strengths and weaknesses of using each person.


Possibilities

I have a few options for who I could use for my opening sequence main character. These options are, presented in the form of table:

Decision making

I have decided that I shall use a female character, this is as I believe females are able to:

• Experiment with make up and costume more.
• Portray more emotion
• Silhouettes with appear better

This means that I now only have 3 choice left, these are Frank, Louise and Belinda.

Belinda 

As Belinda does not have long hair, this could mean that when I complete my silhouette idea, I would not be able to hair the to effect. However, she has long nails, which could look good in the close ups of writing, etc.  

Frank

As Frank has long hair this would suit my silhouette idea perfectly,  her hair is also straight so it could work very well. As she goes to my school, this could be convenient for using the school's studio lighting. The studio lighting would be ideal to create my silhouette idea.  

Louise 

Louise also has long hair, again perfect for the silhouette idea. She has a past in acting, so would be used to being filmed.   

Final Decision

I have reached the decision that I while use both Belinda and Louise in my opening sequence. This is as I need someone with long hair for one scene - this is which Louise would be more suited too. Whereas, other scenes I feel that Belinda would be more suited for.

Preliminary Task

Preliminary Task Planning

For our we are planning on working in a group of four (Frankie, Alex, Vincent and Me), and hopefully finding some more student's who are willing to take part. We should each have a part in the story line, yet not be in every shoot, so that everyone gets a chance to film and act. I would like us to experiment with different camera angles and use of sound to create a convincing story line. We will use the media departments Apple Mac to edit the footage.

The story line of our task if going to be 2 school girls (Frank and I) discussing a local celebrity (Christy) during class. The teacher (Vincent) will interrupt them and tell them to stop chatting. Soon after, there will be a knock on the door, and a school Secretary (Alex) will enter showing a prospective parent (the fore-mentioned celebrity) around the school. The young school girls are excited to see him. One of the girls will then tell the celebrity that she is "His biggest fan", and then she will turn into a fan.   


The Finished Preliminary Task