Evaluation Script
1.In what way does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?
The opening sequence of my film has a sequence of shots similar to the opening titles of the film Se7en when the character is creating an intricately detailed scrapbook, and so is conforming to the themes and styles of similar films. The conventional order of titles has also been used and I have conformed to the convention of having eerie music in a minor key over the entirety of the opening sequence. I have challenged the convention of the antagonist being male, but I have conformed to the convention of the main character being Caucasian. The gender of my antagonist challenges the convention within horror and thriller films that females are the archetypal victims, being attacked by a predatory male character. The colour of my titles could be argued to break conventions as it contains the two colours of red and white, rather than having one colour as in most films. The white and red colours of the titles connotes themes of innocence mixed with blood and danger, foreboding the tone and plot of the film, justifying my breaking of conventions.
2.How does your media product represent particular social groups?
The antagonist of the film represents the Caucasian ethnicity and young adults (aged in their late teens and early twenties). Very few social groups are represented in my film because of the small cast size required for the plot.
3.What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?
Film studios such as Universal might distribute my film as they are known to release films belonging to the thriller and horror genres, such as "Jaws (1975)", "Crimson Peak (2015)" and "Psycho (1960)". New Line Cinema Productions Inc. also might be a possibility for distributing my film as they distributed the film "Se7en (1995)", a psychological thriller which I have taken inspiration from in my film. New Line Cinema have also distributed successful horror films such as "A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)" which, like my film, centers around teenagers and the theme of morality. Overall, the film would be a relatively low budget venture, as very little special effects and CGI is needed to create the horror elements of my film. Often, low budget productions are the most effective in films belonging to the thriller/horror genres as it gives a more realistic feel to the film, thus heightening the effect on the audience. An excellent example of the effectiveness of a low budget horror film is "The Blair Witch Project (1999)" which had a budget of $60,000 and had a box office of $248.6 million. A small cast would be needed, which would further lower the production cost of my film.
4.Who would be the audience for your media product?
The target audience for my media product is predominantly teenagers and young adults as this age range are usually the most interested in the thriller and horror genres and are the most likely to interpret the preferred reading from such films. Although there is no target ethnicity, gender and social grade for my film, Caucasian females may be predominant in the audience as this is the ethnicity mainly portrayed in my media product. Similar films like "Se7en" and "A Nightmare on Elm Street," gained an "18" rating from the BBFC. After looking at the British Board of Film Classification's website, I think that my film would have a lower rating of "15", like "The Blair Witch Project" because my film is centered on the psychological, rather than the gory aspect of the horror genre. My film may even gain a "12a" rating, since some horror and thriller films do gain this rating "as long as horror sequences are not too frequent or sustained and the overall tone is not too disturbing".
5.How did you attract/address your audience?
I would attract the audience to my film through the narrative and the enigma presented that revolves around the antagonist shown in the opening sequence. The music used in the opening sequence might also attract my audience as it introduces the theme of religion, linked to the setting of a graveyard which is of great intrigue to most audiences of thriller/ horror films. I would also attract my audience through the use of online advertising, utilising the popularity of social media, as well as using traditional methods of advertising, such as posters on buses and in cinemas. According to Blumler and Katz's "uses and gratification theory," audiences watch certain media products to satisfy specific needs. Therefore, an audience would be attracted to my film to satisfy a need for adrenaline and to explore adolescent fears of a new independence and the subsequent struggles of power and safety within society.
6.What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?
When filming my media product, I used my own Sony Cyber-shot DSC-HX9V Digital Camera, which was more effective than learning how to use the Sony HD cameras provided for my use in a short amount of time. Because I used my own camera, I had very few technical issues with the footage and didn't lose any quality, meaning that I didn't have to spend too much extra time editing the footage. I learned quite a lot about how to use Adobe Premiere when editing my film. This includes how to trim video clips, add effects and transitions and how to add titles over the video footage. A problem I encountered when filming was a lack of light once the sun had set, resulting in footage that was slightly too dark to be easily seen. I managed to resolve this when editing by using the video effect "fast colour corrector". This allowed me to lighten the footage taken with poor lighting and also allowed me to give some clips a red tinge, adding to the eerie atmosphere in the opening sequence.
7.Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product?
From my preliminary task I have learnt that working as a group isn't always effective and made the decision to work alone when making my final product, as I found that the workload wasn't distributed fairly across the group when working on our preliminary task, which created problems when trying to meet deadlines. The preliminary task taught me the importance of continuity when filming, and enforced the importance of the 180 degree rule, although it wasn't needed for my film as there was no footage of dialogue in the opening sequence. I applied my knowledge of effectively using match on action sequences of shots for my major production.
