What targets will you set yourself for G324 next year?

There are many things that I wish I had done differently for this project but I am happy that I get the chance next year to add what I didn't do this year to next years project. One of the big things that I think I need to improve on next year is my organisation and my timing. I found that when it came round to actually filming my film, I did not leave myself enough time to get enough clips filmed and edited which resulted in my final film not being the best quality that it could be. And so the target that I set myself for next years project is to make sure I get my film filmed and edited from near the start and so I have time to go back and add or take out extra clips in order to get my film to a higher standard.

When filming my film, I ended up filming on a camera phone and so the quality of my final film was not the best that it could have been because the camera kept shaking in areas and due to the fact that I did not film enough clips, it resulted in my having to use the clips with the camera shaking. Also the sound in the film clips was not that great although when I had planned it, I was determined to ensure that the audience could hear each footsteps on the leaves without it sounding muffled. I then went out and brought myself a Nikon video camera even though it was after the deadline for my final film. Therefore, my target that I am setting myself for next year is to use the correct equipment for filming in order to get it at a better quality when it comes to the final product.

When making the opening two minutes for my film and watching it back, I realized that it did come across as more of a trailer rather than an opening of a film and so therefore next time I need to make sure I am reading the task over twice and so I am fully aware of what the task is asking me to do. However, this is also to do with the fact that I did not film enough clips and so I had to insert more production credits to make the opening of my film longer to meet the target length which is not something that I intended to do from the beginning.

Things that I would do differently next year when doing the next production is to just organised myself effectively and plan out my time efficiently and so I am not leaving everything to the last minute. By doing this, it will give me time to go through everything and ensure that it is all at the best standard that I can achieve but also go back and look at areas for improvement.

Specific Targets - 

Mise-en-scene - The target that I would set myself for next year on the setting is to try and use something that not many people would manage to do such as a hospital or a cemetery rather than a woods where most of the class had chosen. This is because it was something that was easy to do and is one of the main settings that are associated with the horror genre. 

Camera Composition -  My target for use of the Camera is to add a more varied amount of different camera shots and so there is more dimension and depth in the final product. By doing this, it will allow the audience to take the film more seriously and it will look more like a film.

Editing - The main target that I am setting myself for next year is to make sure that I have filmed enough clips whether they are good or bad and so I have enough clips to edit in and out of my film. By doing his, it will not matter if I do have too many clips as I could always have bloopers at the end but I would have enough clips to play around with and practice different editing techniques such at cutting from one clip to another to see which one would work best for my next task that I do.

Sound -  When doing the sound for my film next year, I need to give myself enough time to create my own soundtrack for the film as it was something that I had planned to do this year but unfortunately did not work out. By doing this, I could hopefully pick up a few marks but also, the whole of the production would be original and something that I had achieved individually.

How does your media product represent particular social groups?

The character, Francis Kranz, that played the character 'Marty' in the film 'Cabin in the woods' has a resemblance of Kieron in the sense that they both seem to be in the eye of getting caught by the enemy. The differences between the two characters is that Francis looks slightly older than what my targeted audience is, however, it fits into the age group of my film which is 15-26 years old. I have taken a shot from cabin in the woods looking all dirty and scared which is how the character in my film played by Kieron is going to be. I have chosen to do this because my inspiration of the film is cabin in the woods and this is how they are feeling and acting in the film.

Another reason why I chose to do Francis from cabin in the woods is that both Francis and Kieron both appear to be on their own when they are on the verge of being found by the enemy. The effect of this is that it create confusion for the audience as they wonder why they are the ones that are going to be cause. This would make the audience think about what they have done to be the ones getting to trouble or in this case, being caught and possibly being killed.

Looking at what the characters are wearing in both films, they are both wearing comfortable and relaxed clothes which suggest that neither of them expected anything to happen when they went out to the setting of the film. Kieron that is playing in my film is wearing a pair of jeans, casual trainers, a t-shirt and a jumper which is similar to what Francis is wearing in cabin in the woods as he is a wearing a jumper and a pair of jeans with casual trainers. The effect of this is that it shows how the two characters are just 'innocent' and have done nothing wrong which may go against the stereotypical teenage boy in the sense that they are supposed to be the dominant strong ones. However, in the sense that they have attracted something that has gone against them for no reason suggets that they are not playing to the stereotypical views that everyone may see them as.  

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

I started my film by going straight into the production credits which grabs the audiences attention from the very beginning. Many films start with the production credit and not go straight into the film because this build up what is going to happen throughout the film. This then allows the audience to engage with the film without feeling forced from the very beginning. This suggests that the audience are able to connect with the film at their own pace which allows them to enjoy the film more. The effect of making it back and white is that it creates more tension for the audience as it may give them an idea of what the genre of the film is such as it is black and white giving off a dark mood which suggests that it could fit into the horror genre from the start. 

                                                                                                                                                                                          

This is a shot of an ancient exorcism photo that has a bible quote over the top of it. I have done this because i wanted to give the audience a hint about what the film could be based on without giving anything from the actual film away. This may be relevant in some films however, this is not done often. This may be because they do not want to mislead the audience into what type of film it is but i have used this technique to tease the audience but also give them an idea of what it is all about. The fact that i have kept the black and white effect of this picture almost confirms the type of film that it is but also carries out the mysterious but anonymous feel and emotion. 

The reason why I chose to put the characters on just a plain black background is so the target audiences attention is not drawn away from the main point which is the main characters names. The effect of this is that they can not be distracted and they are able to focus on this. The reason why i have put them both in the same shot is because they are both equally important in the film and so they are able to share the same quality of roles throughout the film. I have put the names separate although they are on the same shot because this makes it clear that the first character name is the main character which is why it it first and then the second character at the bottom of the shot.


This is just a close up of the main characters hand  when he is going under the tree branch. This is because it adds dimension and depth to the shot as it makes it more exciting for the audience to watch. The effect of this on the target audience is that it changes the angles and perspective of how the audience sees the same character in the same film. This type of shot is used often is most films, especially when they want to draw attention to a specific part or the film or to a certain character. I zoomed in and went closer towards the character because I wanted to get it as clear and sharp as possible.

I have taken a Shot of one of the characters running away on his own because it makes the film more mysterious for the audience to watch. This is because they would then be drawn into the film and would be intrigued to know who or what he is running away from. I added a special effect of it fading out and fading the next shot in to make it more interesting for the audience. By doing this it is going to want to make the audience want to carry on watching the film. This clip shows off the setting to the target audience because the camera is at a wide shot as it pans with the character to show where the film is set and what the surroundings are like. They are going to use this to compare the film to other films within the same genre as my film which is horror.


                                                                              This shot is a shot of the main character and the other character together in the same scene.We see the main character attacking the victim but i have ensured that we can not see the main characters face throughout this shot as I want to keep this a mystery for the target audience. This shot is showing off the setting of where my film is set. It creates a visual image for the audience and so they are left wondering what may happen throughout the film. The effect of this is that they are able to create a visual image for themselves and compare it to what really happens in the film. They could then use it to compare it to reality and their everyday lives. The costumes in the clip are used to suggests that no one was expecting anything to happen. This is because the male character is dressed in his everyday clothes as I wanted it to look as realistic as possible. We can see in this clip that the story is not clear to anyone as it has not given anything away about why she is attacking him. The effect of this is that the audience are going to want to carry on watching the film further to find out why she attacked him and what she is going to do next.

This clip is effective because it is telling the audience who directed the film and it suggests to the audience that just because the director has not got a role to play in the final film, they are still important in the whole making of the film to get a final product. This may give away the genre of the film as it is set on a dark background where there is nothing going on and so the audience may think that it is a horror film. The colour black sets the tone for dark and mysterious and so this may be something that they think about while they go on watching the film. 

The title of the film, 'Elvira', may give away the genre of the film as it means 'mistress of the dark'. I chose this title as it fits in with the whole horror idea which is something that I had wanted to do. However, I do not think this title necessarily fits in with my film in particular because the story of my film starts off in day light even though it means 'mistress of the dark'. This may confuse the audience however they may not know what the name if the film means and so this may confuse them with why it is called this. On the other hand, I wanted to chose something that no one has done and so it is unique and different.  The effect of this is that I am not taking a name from another film and so the audience can not compare it to other films with the same name.

I have chose to do the title in this font because it is clear for the audience to read but it still has the effect of a horror film. I chose to do the font in red writing which gives the impression that it is a horror film. Also the red writing stands out from the bold black background which catches the audiences eye and so they do not miss the title. This makes the red font appear brighter and so they audience may this that it resembles blood of some kind. They would then think that it is a horror film if it gives them the impression of blood because not many films like comedies or romance film include blood and so t=they would not think that it would fit into any of these genres. 

G321 Final Elvira with annotations about attracting the audience

Also, to attract/address the targeted audience, I used characters around the same age range as my audience. The effect of this is that it is going to help the audience to connect with the characters which suggests that they may understand how they would feel if it was all reality. This would attract the target audience because they would be able to connect and understand from the characters point of view about what is happening and why their reaction is why it is. The characters are dressed in familiar clothing which is what the target audience would recognize. The effect of this is that it makes it easier for the target audience to relate to them and may even be something that they would like to mirror in the future or their everyday lives. By doing this, it shows that they have connected to the characters and they are able to take something away from them that they either would not normally wear or do or something that they may say suggesting that they recognize what is going on around them in the film and in reality. 

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

When focusing on the technology ready to create my film, I really did not know much about what was the best format to create my film on such as movie maker or adobe elements. Because of this, I was unsure of what how I was going to get to the stage that I needed to which was to get a final film submitted. However, through the guidance of my teachers and understanding what the different software did, it was clear to me that I was going to achieve more using Adobe Premiere Elements 10 as I could add effects and transitions to my work to better it and achieve a higher standard of work.

I realized that before I could start piecing any clips of my film together I would need to familiarize myself with what I could and could not do on the software which unfortunately I had to do myself throughout the year, however this would benefit me in the future if I do intend on staying on to do media next year.

What I did and what could be improved:

Editing clips - When looking at the tools to edit clips it all looked very confusing at first but I did a quick random clip which I learnt to cut clips shorter and cut bits and piece of it out. I found this useful to know as I was sure that this would be very important when it came to making the final film. Also by editing the different clips in order for them to all fit together is that it helps the audience to view it more a s a film and not so much as a slideshow. To help me with this, I found that the tools that I needed to edit my film were all placed clearly along the top of the software and so it allowed me to easily access it whether I was familiar with it or not. However, when making another production in the future, I am going to make sure that I understand how to use the correct tools for each step that I am doing in editing and so I am not wasting time trying to figure out each little part. 

Using transitions - When wanting to add transitions, I only had to click on 'edit' and then 'transitions' which made it clear for me to understand what i was able to add into my film to make it better but also what I needed to take out to get it to a higher standard. When clicking on 'transitions', I found that it gave me a range of different transitions such as fade in and out, slide and dissolve etc. By having this as a guide, I was able to click on them and test them out before I placed it into my film and so I would know what it would look like and if it did not work then I would find something else to replace it. The effect of adding transitions to my work, it allowed it fade in and out of shots making it more dramatic for the targeted audience. The audience are then able to feel like they are watching a film as they are going to try and compare it to other films in the same genre as my film and see if it is something that they would see in a professionally made film. However, when putting my film together, I found that I just used anything that I thought may work before thinking it through as I was un-organised and left myself little time to edit. This was mainly down to the fact that I left the filming too late and so therefore next time I and going to ensure that I am using my time wisely and giving myself plenty of time to go over my film and edit it in grate detail. 

Filming - When filming my film, I had used an Samsung S4 mini as this was the only filming device that I had at the time of filming my film. The downside to this is that the quality of the filming was
not as good as it could be and so therefore I did not get the outcome that I wanted. Also, when it came to uploading the film onto the computer to start editing it, the quality of the sound was muffled which resulted in mt having to put an instrumental soundtrack over the top of the opening of the film. The effect of this is that the audience were not able to hear exactly what was going on in the film, however, this may have built up tension for that audience. The effect of using a phone to record my film is that the camera was all jerky and so it did not come out as clear as it would have if I had used a professional camera. The effect of this on the final film is that no matter how much I rendered the film, It did not come out clear and professional looking. To overcome this in the future I went out and brought a Nikon Coolpix L830 16MP Bridge Camera and so in my future productions, I will have a much clearer view and things resulting in it looking much more professional looking for the audience to watch. The music that I used was not my own recorded music because I was too un-organised and left it all too late. This did not give me enough time to go out and create a piece of music that I could insert into my film which is what I initially wanted to do. 

looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to full product?

Looking back at my preliminary task, I have learnt about production credits and how to edit shots to fade in and out of each clip. In my preliminary task, I just used the basic shots such as shot-reverse-shot, match on action,close up shot and over the shoulder shot. The camera stayed all on one level and so it did not show any depth of the meaning behind the clip. The effect of this is that the audience may not understand parts of the clip and why it has been done.
In my film I have included more of a variety of shots such as high angle shots, low angle shots and panning shots as well as the ones used in my preliminary task. By doing the preliminary task before my final film, it allowed me to have a chance to play around with the different shots and experiment with what I think would work well in my film and what does not fit in with the other shots. The effect of this is that it is going to help me to achieve my film to the best ability that I can by using particularly successful shots.

One of the differences that i found when looking at my preliminary task and my final film is that the locations of the film were very different. This is because when doing the preliminary task, we did not have much time to think of something exciting and different as we had to piece together something quick that could the be worked with and so therefore we chose to do it  set in our school library. However, as we had a lot more time to do our final film, we chose to go and explore different settings for the suitable genre of our film that we wanted to do which gave me the outcome of the woods. The effect of this is that we had something different and unique as it was not something that everyone would instantly think of. The effect of this on the audience is because we had such a different setting to our preliminary task, we were able to use a range of other shots such as high angle shots which i could not use in my preliminary task. Another difference between the two tasks is that the preliminary task did not need to have a strong plot as it was more focused on the cameras work and it needed to include the line 'what are you doing here?'into the work then it was fine whereas for my final film we had to have a strong plot and also work hard on the camera work and editingof the film. However, there were similarities within the two tasks as we still had to think of a plot for both tasks and had to film and edit them to create a final piece. 

Overall I found that the preliminary task useful because it gave me the chance to practice the different types of shots but also it gave me a chance to experiment with what angle the camera was going to be in my film and also I felt more comfortable working with the camera. The effect of this is that I was able to experiment with different effects and decide whether it would make my film look effective or over-complicated but not as good as it could be. I did use some of the same shots in my final film that i used in my preliminary task but used more skill in the editing to make it look more effective for the target audience. To do this I used different editing techniques such as on my iPhone and on the computer to see which one had the best outcome and which one could be adapted better in creating my film. 

Who would be the audience for your media product

This is a mood board to show what type of audience I am aiming my film at and it shows their interests and hobbies. This is effective because I am able to show a link between my target audience and the characters that I have used in my film which shows what my target audience would be doing =at a certain point in their life. This shows a link to the characters in my film because they are able to connect with the film and the characters personally. 

What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?

The production company that is going to distribute my film is going to be Kestrel Films. This is because it is going to be based in Britain and so it is not going to over run other film companies but it is going to be able to be spread to people worldwide. The role of a production company is to handle the funding, the advertising and the screening of the film. They normally have a contract with entertainment company, film studio or a Motion Picture Company, however, production companies can work independently and so they are not in partnership with anyone.

Particular roles of a production company:
- It usually comes in to work when the screen play has been written.
- They manage: funding, actor casting, they hire the actors to play the roles and other things within those roles.
- The cast members are then hand picked by the producer and so by this point, the production is very rarely cancelled.
- They are in charge of security of the filming process, having to decide appropriate filming locations, so audiences do not gather and cause problems. They need to ensure the members that are involved are trustworthy and they use code names when deciding the location to shoot the film.
- They are in control of the editing, sound, special effects and putting everything together into a proper film.
Once the final overall film has been made it is then sent of to the distributers, however, production companies can be in charge of their own advertising.

The distributor of my film is going to be Lionsgate because they are based in America and so therefore it gives me an opportunity for my film to be global. This will allow my film to make a huge profit and it will be open to a wider target audience.

Role of a film distributor:
- They are responsible for marketing of the film
- They may set the release date of the film and the method of how it will be viewed by the audience - for example - Theatrically or home viewing (DVD, television programs etc)
- They may only deal with particular products such as only the DVD's.

Directors Commentary to Elvira

Film Feedback

Film Presentation

G321 Final - Opening to Elvira

Changes in my film

My film has changed since I had it all planned out due to many reasons. I had to change the characters, props and costumes to make it fit into the situation that I have. When it came to filming our film everything did not go to plan as I did not have enough people to play the characters that I needed for my original film and so therefore I have to adapt the film to fit the people that I did have. In my updated film, there were only three people in my group and so we had two of them playing the characters and I was filming the clips ready for them to be edited.

I chose to keep the setting of my film the same as I thought it was the best place that I could attend to make a horror film. Therefore, the film eventually was filmed in the woods where it was surrounded by trees. The effect of this is that it shows the audience how I managed to adjust my film to keep it as close to my original idea as I could.

I kept the idea of the bruises on the possessed girl as I thought it was a good idea as it suited what was going to happen in the rest of the film and the rest of the film fitted around this character.

Official Title for My Film

To create this title I used adobe premier elements 10 and so I was able to change up the font and style to make it look more horror realistic. By using adobe, I was able to access certain things that I would not have been able to on Microsoft word.

I have chosen to do this as my title because it represents a horror film in the way that I wanted it to. The word 'Elvira' means the mistress of the dark and so I thought that it would fit perfectly into what type of film it is. The font of the title suggests to the audience that it is a horror film before they even start watching it because the edges of the text look clean and sharp which may suggest that danger is coming. I have made the title in a bold text because I think that it helps it to stand out more against the background of the film title and the opening of the film. The font is all in black with the letters in a white outline because it is dark and mysterious which suits the title of the name. By doing this, it ties everything involved in the film to come together as one.