Reminiscence - Finished Version

Embedded underneath is the final version of our 2 minute film ready for submission as coursework.

The main differences between this and the second draft of our film are:

• An extended title sequence,with more varied shots and a climax that feels more natural.
• A shortened news scene.
• Addition of a non diagetic background track to the final scene.

Title Sequence Improvements

The title sequence became elongated in the final version due to the fact that viewers fealt the original sequence didn't provide enough information for them to understand what was going on. The secondary reason that we chose to extend this part of the opening was down to the fact that in the previous version the music didn't flow correctly towards the end and fealt like the jump of intensity was out of place.

By adding in several new shots and retiming some of the old ones we have been able to not only increase the amount of backstory our villain has but also managed to greater synchronize the on screen actions to the non diagetic musical score, with sudden crescendos rewarded with a sharp cut, or more subtle increases in intensity accompanied by softer fades.

Aside from retimings and new content, existing areas of the sequence were edited in other ways, the credits and calendar shots had to be revisited in order to tone down the amount of shaking these parts had, as in the previous version names and numbers became too difficult for the audience to read.

Shortened News Scene

The changes to the news scene were born out of necessity, extension of the title sequence meant that either or both of the news scene and final scene had to have shots trimmed or cut completely, even with the shot transitions in the final scene made smoother there was still about 6 seconds of footage that needed to be cut, and so segments of the news broadcast were cut, we tried to make the resulting broadcast look as seemless as possible and even without the cut elements the message is still conveyed well.

Final Scene Changes

When editing the final scene we knew that to improve it we would need to include some non diagetic background noise, if we did this we would add to the atmosphere of the shots and create tension within the audience. The two music clips used in this scene were both sourced from http://incompetech.com/m/c/royalty-free/ and serve to enhance the scene peaking at key points, the first clip used reaches a spike in volume just before Josh reveals he was only joking about being the killer.

As mentioned earlier when we revisited this scene we cleaned up the transitions getting rid of any unnecesary pauses to generate improved flow in the scene. We also noticed that in previous renditions of the scene we had not utilised the 180 degree rule and were able to rectify this mistake by horizontally flipping the shots of Josh on the phone.

Feedback

The feedback received from my friends family and peers upon publishing the opening to youtube and further linking it to my facebook profile was excellent. Many had seen the openings development from the raw footage to the final product, while others were just seeing it for the first time.

Comments from Facebook included:

AB "A Quality piece of work there young man! Very impressive!!"

JS   " That was quality Lew! The opening sequence is much better with the extra shots and less shaking, you get the Spolly seal of approval"

CR "This is awesome mate! loving the opening, very good editing and effects. Good work :)"

While a comment I received from a youtuber who'd followed the entire process said the following:

xxspollyxx "Quality mate, really well edited and the footage is superb! Especially like the new shots in the introduction with the DOLL"

Overall as the majority of feedback on these social mediums was received from members of the target audience I am happy that my film opening has achieved what it was supposed to of done to a high enough standard that the demographic I targeted would watch the feature length version.

Evaluation Activity 7 - What I have learnt since the preliminary task

Preliminary Task

When we shot and edited our Preliminary Task I was very fresh into the world of media terminology and production. The task itself introduced me to the basic skills and techniques needed to shoot an effective piece of media, these included the 180 degree rule, match on action and shot reverse shot.

Throughout the process of creating what would become my Preliminary Task I was able to implement the basic skills previously mentioned in order to create continuity. The shots used for the task were shot on a standard definition camera, while not the best available, the quality was sufficient for the size and content of the piece as the majority of the shots were brief and motionless which meant that the quality wasn't too badly compromised by the equipment used.

Match on action was utilised in the piece when David is approaching the door which he then proceeds to open and is again used when he walks through the door, this was used to create chronological continuity as well as adding an aspect of dynamism to the sequence.

Match on action being displayed in our Preliminary Task

We successfully used the shot reverse shot during the onscreen conversation between myself and David, by doing this we were able to introduce a Hollywood style of editing into our piece and make our transitions between shots smoother.

The 180 degree rule was used during the conversation between myself and David, it was important that we did this so as to not disorientate the audience viewing the piece.

The 180 degree rule and Shot Reverse Shot being
demonstrated in the Preliminary Task

What was highlighted during playback of the completed task was that during future filming sessions, more time would need to be allowed for both the shooting and planning phases. This is in order to avoid framing issues and choppiness in between shots, if this was done the final product would have been of a much higher quality overall.

Final Horror Film

Taking what I had learnt from the preliminary task, I then carried this knowledge forward into the planning, shooting and editing of the Horror Film. Having previously acquired the skills in the previous task I was able to hone them for the film and the final result was far more impressive because of this.

Plenty of time was given to the planning process this time as we created a solid script, character design and storyboards to work with. Having these on hand allowed the filming process to go smoothly, decreasing the time taken to procure the desired shots and increasing the quality of them at the same time.

We developed what we had used previously with the shot reverse shot in the preliminary task to this time implement it during a phone call between the primary protagonist and his best friend, by doing this we were able to keep the basic film technique in play, while at the same time enhancing it in a modern day situation. The shots were made to be close ups and extreme close ups as these were typical of the horror genre and served to enhance the feel of the shot reverse shot sequence.



The developed shot reverse shot and 180 degree rule
we used in our final film



The phone call and ensuing sequence in the living room utilised the 180 degree rule to effectively reduce the disorientation in the audience, creating a period of calmness after a deeply disorientating and hectic title sequence. We chose to do this as we wanted the audience to have a moment of relative inactivity to mull over what they had witnessed in the title sequence.

When using match on action in our film we experimented with various sections of footage and implemented it on two occasions, once in the title sequence where the killer is holding a birthday card ominously, before discarding the item aggressively, this was done to highlight the erratic nature of the killer while creating a sense of terror associated with the genre. The second instance occurs in the closing phases of the opening scene, wherein the young male approaches the window, this then cuts to a shot looking out of the window, this was done to keep the action moving and preventing stagnation in the sequence.




One of the examples in our films title sequence
that used match on action



Evaluation Activity 6 - What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?

Me using the MacBook to put the finishing touches
to our film.

During the process of constructing our short Film opening there were many new technologies we had to use and learn with.

The machine we used to edit our footage was an Apple MacBook, this was by first experience ever using a computer with a Apple operating system. It did take time to get used to at first but after a week or so of using it and getting to grips with the product I became confident enough to start doing some serious editing for our project.
The machine was fairly quick and capable for the tasks we asked of it and was a pleasure to work on.

The interface of the Final Cut Pro X
software on the MacBook

The editing software that our MacBook ran was a copy of Final Cut Pro X Version 10.0.2  this was very different to the editing program we had used at the start of the year, there were much more options to utilise when editing. Of course the learning curve on a higher end program is also higher and so it took awhile to get used to the new interface and advanced options this piece of software gave to me. An improved bank of transitions, video effects and text options make this an incredible piece of editing software, and nothing on it requires any major assistance, you just learn as you edit.

By taking this approach I was able to learn:

• how to edit the vocal pitch and frequency of sound clips
• stack and modify various transitions and effects on a single clip
• magnetically link my titles to the video clip when I wanted to move it along the time line.
• apply lighting effects and colour filters to our shots.
• add motion and tweening effects to static shots.
• edit various title effects and there features.
• add distortions to my shots
• link them together through use of professional looking transitions.
• Re time shots between 25% and 8X of normal speed

The Panasonic HDC-SD80, it's small size was useful
for manoeuvrability.

As we were editing on the MacBook we needed to use a camera capable of capturing footage in a HD format as this would allow us to produce the best results from the editing software.  This presented a technical challenge as all previous work had been produced on a Standard definition camera. The camera we had access to for this purpose was a Panasonic HDC-SD80 that was able to record video files in 1080i, this file format allowed us to keep a high level of detail in shots that used motion. A feature of the camera that we utilised was it's excellent ability to record good amounts of detail in low lighting conditions. This particular feature was used extensively in the title sequence.

Me with the tripod in it's most compact form.

In order to create steady and professional looking shots we made use of this tripod to house the camera. This particular tripod was of great use to us as it had many adjustable features and points of articulation. These included adjustable base leg height, horizontal and vertical tilting on the camera housing, the ability to rotate the housing 360 degrees and shortening/lengthening the extension of the housing and the legs. Due to the amount of features we were able to use it took awhile at first to set up the correct angles and heights for particular shots, but it ended up giving us more options in shot selection.



The ESI Rekord M that we used for
our voiceover.

In order to record the voice over for our director's commentary we needed to use an audio recording device. The one we used was the ESI Rekord M, a handheld audio recorder. This was chosen as it was a lightweight, easily portable device, this meant we weren't confined to using it in a specific space. The two microphones present on the top of the device provided excellent recording quality with a clear distinction between high and low pitches and this was important in maintaining clarity in the voice over we wanted to record. The device was simple to use making our task easier to accomplish and less time consuming than it may otherwise of been. The device also had 4GB of internal storage meaning we could do as many takes as possible without worrying about storage space.

The main source of our information
came from searches on Google.

I used Google as the main source of performing research on the horror franchise and the elements that are used to make it up. The reason we used Google is because it is the most commonly used search engine and provides quick results from a wide range of web sources. This made our research quick and efficient, allowing more time to be spent on the production of our film.

We used Movie Maker as our main
compression tool.

Windows movie maker was used as a compression tool. We used this as the process is simple to initiate utilising a drag and drop interface of our completed movies. This was also chosen as the program for compression as it is a free program that comes installed on all Windows systems, making it easy to access. It was important for us to compress the file as this would make the time taken to upload the file to Youtube shorter with a slight reduction in quality but nothing too detrimental.

Our production company logo was produced using
 Adobe Photoshop

Adobe Photoshop was the program we used for image editing and image re-formatting. The program was used as it has a multitude of editing tools including colour effects, gradient tools, layer options, free rotation and resizing options as well as many others. It is also able to convert images into many different image formats allowing for greater control over the process. It's main use was in the creation of our production company logo, it was the best choice available to us as it gave us the most options to create our logo.

My youtube channel, hosting all the film versions
I have made.

Youtube allows me to host my film on the Internet for free. This is useful because it gives the film greater exposure to a wider audience across the globe, in particular the target audience (aged 16-28) as they are the most likely to members of the public to make use of the site. Another function I have been able to make use of on the site is the ability to add annotations to the film, this allows me to share my thoughts and incite of the film production as well as link drafts to later versions. Users are able to comment and leave feedback on the video giving me useful insight into areas that are good or need attending to. Youtubers are also able to like or dislike videos and this will give me a feel of the general response people have to the film.

The final film linked to my facebook profile giving it
increased exposure to the target audience.

I used Facebook as a tool to embed my Youtube video onto, by doing this I was able to make use of the hundreds of friends I had built up on my social network. By doing this I was able to elicit a more direct response from the target audience as the majority of my contacts on Facebook that would be able to view the film were in the age range of 15-20. Like with Youtube users were able to comment and like the film giving me more information about the films good qualities and sections which required improvement.




Blogger was the main site we used, it hosted everything
we produced during the project, from storyboards,
to film drafts, location photos and more.

Blogger was used as a tool to host my coursework on. It's simple, easy to use format made it a joy to work with and I was easily able to upload videos, images and music to enhance my blog posts. The blog is open to anyone and so can be viewed by anyone over the world. This accessibility gives my film more coverage as combined with Facebook and Youtube it now has three destinations that it can be viewed from increasing the chances of it being watched. I was also able to use this as a way to right detailed notes and coverage of my film's production from start to finish. With the ability for people to follow the blog those that do are notified whenever a new blog post is uploaded.

Evaluation Activity 5 - How I attracted and adressed my audience

The visual style of the company logo itself has the ability to influence target markets into the acts of purchasing and viewing films. Utilising this to my advantage the production company logo I used makes a statement to the target audience, telling them exactly what our films are about with it's edgy design and mixture of light and darkness, this appeals to the younger generation as it looks as though it is a high quality piece of work. We have managed to adress them by providing a mix of fresh and innovative content that both uses and challenges stereotypes about themselves. We also added a high magnitude sound that exuded menace to fuel the audiences expectations of the film.

This opening section of film is relentless in it's pacing, various camera angles and filters are used to disorientate and excite the audience with the promise of an interesting and packed film. The shot pictured to the left incorporates  a heavy red filter as this darkens the shot and is a colour synonymous with the genre as it is a sign of danger. It also rotates quickly while zooming in during a flash, this creates a dynamic visual that adresses the needs of the younger target audience, giving them the excitement they crave. The font is also done in a weird style so as to associate with the genre.

This shot introduces more elements of the horror genre as a much darker filter was used to restrict the view of the audience and the footage is distorted to create unsettlement in the target audience as these are staples of the genre they enjoy. Through this we make the act of writing a card a very menacing prospect, even more so as it is a task everyone of the audience can relate to.

This shot places focus on the light within the darkness as the three candles in the background are made to stand out as the shots become progressively darker, the audience in this way begins to wonder just how much is gonna happen in the near future of the film, as they do this we have been able to sucessfully create an initial hook for the target audience.

Just as an overwhelming sense of darkness is created, it is then taken away as the shot lightens significantly, by doing this we create mass disorientation as the audience is given little time to get familiar with the onscreen environment, further building the intrigue in them. The addition of the puzzled effect leads the audience to themselves feel puzzled as they try to find meaning in it, leading them deeper into the film. 

As the camera zooms in the shot also becomes less steady lending it the appearance of being footage taken directly by an onscreen character, something that has been popular in films like "The Blair Witch Project", this similarity lends the film to be firmly stapled in the horror category by the audience and will create positive association in the mind of them with the highly successful film.

The following shot uses a particulary violent image to gain the attention of the target audience, as statistics show the majority of this market enjoy films with violence in them as this excites them, this is mainly why action and horror/thriller films are widely loved by this part of the public.
By returning the audience to another dark environment we manage to further disorientate and fuel they're interest in the film.

The following shot uses a symbolic style of violence that is inspired by a similar shot used in "Seven" wherein the supposed killer blacks out the faces of a pair of people on their wedding, suggesting their deaths. This heightens expectations of the audience as they have already seen alot of backstory in the opening scene, suggesting to them that the main part of the film will involve what they like most, action and violence.

When the killer is revealed it is only a small portion of him, his face in particular, this is done to show his similarity with other popular horror villains, meeting the target audiences requirements for a character in the genre. This is done through the white bandages he wears which, when combined with the fire he blows out, suggests facial burns and disfigurement. When combined with his sporadic actions the audience will be curious to learn more, about him, and what he plans to do.



 



As the target audience is young but mainly male, an attractive female was cast as the reporter to meet the demands of the audience.

Similarly, for the smaller percentage of females in the target group, an attractive male was cast to play the leading role, and we adressed the males by

making him stereotypical in terms of behaviour

and fashion so as to be someone they could relate to. 





Evaluation Activity 4 - Constructing Audience

When producing our horror piece we needed to present the public with our intial ideas to gauge the level of interest in different demographics, this was done in order to see if our intitial projections of the populations interest in relation to their income type were accurate. We did this by sending out a questionnaire to a random sample of the populace. The questionnaire was as follows and relied on a yes/no structure apart from the final two questions which were structured as open questions as opposed to the first six which were closed.

1. Does the film represent the genre well?  
2. Have we used a variety of camerawork?
3. Does the music suit the genre?
4. Is there a variety of characters used?
5. Does the title sequence give you enough information?
6. Have we edited the footage well?
7. What could we improve?
8. What have we done well?

A common way of grouping audiences together is by organising them in order of income:

A:   Top management, bankers, lawyers, doctors and other highly salaried professionals.

B:   Middle management, teachers, many 'creatives' eg graphic designers etc.

C1: Office supervisors, junior managers, nurses, specialist clerical staff etc

C2: Skilled workers, tradepersons (white collar)

D:   Semi-skilled and unskilled manual workers (blue collar)

E:    Unemployed, students, pensioners, casual workers.

The results that I will base my response from will largely emanate from the focus group of the type E demographic, this group consisted of 10 individuals aged 15-21 with a 6/4 split in favour of males. The group is based in Cambridgeshire and are of mainly caucasian race.

Question 1 - Does the film represent the genre well?

This closed question  was used to determine the response the film received from a typical horror fan, if it was a generally positive response the film would be cleared to go ahead as it has achieved it's primary objective in associating itself to it's main target audience. From our results we saw that 60% of members in the income bracket E thought the film did display the genre well, and being a low budget production this demographic grouping would be the ideal audience to target the film to, because of this we fealt the ideas we had portrayed in the first draft were solid and typical of the genre albeit with room for improvement in order to catch the remaining 40% of the target market in the completed version.

Question 2 - Have we used a variety of camerawork?

By securing  a definitive response to this question we would be able to establish the level of technical prowess we have demonstrated in the pre production section of our piece, as this will utlimately be a contributing factor to the watchability of our film, with a wide variety of camera shots connoting easier viewing and higher interest levels in the audience. Having identified the ideal target audience as bracket E we continued to focus on the results trend this group produced in particular, with 60% agreeing that we had indeed utilized a variety of shots in our production. Perhaps if given more time we would of been able to refilm some scenes to utilize more shot types and satisfy the remaining 40% who voted negatively on this particular apsect of our film.

Question 3 - Does the music suit the genre? 

At the time of viewing our first draft the piece was vacant of a musical score for the title sequence which considerably lessened the impact the scene was able to achieve, as music is as important if not more so than other elements of a film, memorable film scores include "Jaws" and "The Lord of The Rings", and so at the first time of asking only the news report had any music attached and because of this only 20% of the target audience fealt that the music suited the genre. It was at this point that we then presented the following music to the audience that would be intended for the title sequence.

After sampling the track the response drastically changed, with 100% of the focus group agreeing that the music was typical of the genre creating a haunting and creepy atmosphere, there was still a slight concern over the jingle that introduces the news report, however this was a minor issue and was agreed that it did not subtract from the experience and created an unusual contrast. I am confident therefore that the finished version of our film will be enjoyable and technically successful in it's deployment of music.

Question 4 - Is there a variety of characters used?

When creating the concept for the film it was important that we managed to accurately portray a wide range of characters that fit certain social stereotypes while at the same time making them feel believable and relatable to the audience. The characters present in our intial 2 minutes of footage were: The psychologically troubled killer, Strict mother, Rebellious child, Worried friend and Inconsiderate Teenager. The characters selected for use in the opening were not only of varying temperaments but also of a wide age range, while doing this we also managed to establish a cast of characters that while dynamic and varied did lean towards the younger age groups and thus placed itself better in terms of relatability to the target audience. Seeing this the target group responded with an 80% return in favour of a wide range of characters being used.

Question 5 - Does the Title sequence give you enough information?

When creating our title sequence we knew we wanted to provide our audience with tiny clues as to the nature of our production and the killer's incentive's and some of his backstory, while at the same time we also wanted to conceal many elements for later revelations as is typical of the psychological thriller. The feedback we received showed that 40% of the target market responded negatively to the amount of information present in the first draft of the production. This shows that we have sucessfully accomplished half of our target by allowing it to be mysterious however in order to open it up to the wider viewing audience we will need to include a few more subtle clues in the revised opening, this will be achieved by taking out or shortening some of the less important shots and inserting some of the edgier shots that were initially left out as they were deemed to be too revealing.

Question 6 - Have we edited the footage well?

Although only in the early stages of post-production it was important that we received an unbiased view on the editing techniques we had begun to employ on our raw footage at this stage, so as to rectify any errors or parts not in keeping with the theme we wished to incorporate. The response was largely positive with 3 out of 5 agreeing with the editing approach that had been taken, in particular the way the card writing and balloon shots had been edited. Constructive criticism was also received with some saying a few of the shots could be shortened.

Question 7 - What could we improve?

This open question provided the means for the target group to voice any issues with the opening that the previous 6 questions did not cover, by doing this we were able to gather more specific areas for improvement, be it a camera shot, piece of editing, or sound clip etcetera. Among the criticisms were the feeling that the final scene with the hand should be removed, the title animation needed to be shortened and the scene with the mother and child should be cut or removed completely as they fealt these particular elements only caused congestion in the viewing experience while adding very little to the plot.

Question 8 - What have we done well?

This final question was designed with the emphasis to help myself and Kelly in the second phase of editing by allowing the focus group to single out elements of the piece they particularly liked that shouldn't be removed in further editing. The responses generally praised the execution of the card writing shot, the lighting effect used on the balloon/calendar shot, and the creepy atmosphere created by our title sequence. As a result of this the previously mentioned shots will remain largely untouched in the next phase of editing.

Demographic

With the largely positive response we got from the demographic type E we have established that this particular group of individuals will become our core audience as they're reaction to the material was very promising. Bearing this in mind, the film will now focus it's efforts into incorporating as many elements that this particular demographic associate positively to in the horror genre, in order to enhance the reception the film will have with this group. This will include use of classic horror conventions/rules and enable the audiences expectations to ultimately be fulfilled or shattered by the piece.

Psychographic

In order to further promote interest in the film we would have to make use of elements of everyday life that best synergise with the chosen demographical target.The full length feauture would therefore utilise product placements, popular culture and stereotypical music archetypes to better synchronize it's ideas to the target audience. Another way to enhance the connection the film makes with it's audience is by making the events in the film seem realistic and believeable therefore augmenting the terror caused by said events.

Evaluation Activity 3 - What Kind Of Media Institution Might Distribute Your Media Product And Why?

Embedded is the voiceover we produced explaining who we think would be interested in distributing our film, how they would do this, what budget would be given and what time of the year it would be distributed.

Evaluation Activity 2 - Representing Social Groups

The killer in our film is stereotypical of many villains in the slasher sub genre of film, the entirety of his face save for the upper left portion is covered in bandages, hiding a hideous disfigurement from a fire he started to murder his parents in revenge for the neglect they showed to his sister.

Motives

The killers motives center on revenge for his sister and eventually other children, this is similar to the revenge Jason from the "Friday the 13th" franchise takes upon all the campers in Crystal Lake, as it was campers that caused the death of his mother. The killers motives are also similar to Freddy Kruegers original motives for killing, the rape of his mother by mentally ill patients at a hospital.

The unamed killer shares similar motives and concealed appearance to Jason, avenging a family member. In Jason's case his mother, in our killers case his sister. The killer conceals his identity just like Jason does, this is done to create more mystique about the character and questions begin to arise ( particularly in the case of Jason ) about the humanity of the character  especially when considering the abnormal pain threshold both have.

Our killers motives for murder hinge on similar ones to the iconic Jason from the
'Friday The 13th' Films.

Psyche

The level of mental damage our villain clearly is harbouring is an homage to insane 'Seven' killer "John Doe", who used his brutal murders to force society into acknowledging the religious values many had cast aside. The difference comes though that John was an introverted individual intent on releasing his message to the masses.  As a direct contrast our killer in reality leads a normal, unsuspecting life in the mould of an extroverted personality, but in secret plots to teach a select few each year the value of being a parent.

John Doe, the memorable killer from 'Seven', he targeted those who had sinned,
however he offered them a false hope to escape their gruesome fates, he also does
not conceal his identity with a mask or any other facial protection
 further distancing himself from our killer.

Method

It can also be said that our villain shares certain traits with "Jigsaw John" from the Saw series, in that he tests his victims giving them a chance for them (in our case there child) a chance to live. In the Saw films John is the mastermind behind all of the misery and suffering caused in the seven Saw films, manipulating others to his own means. Our killer differs from this however in that all the work done to ensure his plans are sucessful is performed by himself. However the similarity arises in that John attempts to make his victims value there own life more while our killer attempts to make the victims appreciate there child more.

A concealed appearance, punishing those who have sinned, but giving them a
chance for redemption, Jigsaw most epitomises the values and methods our killer
stands for.

By giving our killer a feasible motivation, and specific targets, we distance our villain from the stereotypical slasher villains like: "Ghostface" and "Michael Myers" who kill anyone they can without a chance of redemption for their sins (if they had any).

Appearance

The fact the killer conceals his true identity through bandages allow's him to adopt the Horror cliche of being "masked", the idea of masked villains is used throughout horror and creates fear and panic, through the unknown

From Left to Right: Ghostface (Scream)
 Leatherface (Texas Chainsaw Massacre)
Michael Myers (Halloween)