AS Media Foundation Portfolio. Maddie, Helen and Gabriel.: March 2013

Maddie's Evaluation

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

In this shot, which uses a slow pan to reveal a young girl sitting in an empty room, many enigmas are set up to the audience. This is typical of the thriller genre, especially in the openings. The audience wonder who the girl is, and why she is in the empty room. At this point in the film, the narrative is restricted as the audience don't know what has happened previously. The sound used in this shot is slow, minor piano music which adds to the tense and pensive atmosphere of the film.

An example of a thriller opening which uses similar techniques to our is '44 Inch Chest', which uses a slow pan to reveal the main character lying in a trashed apartment- the use of this shot creates enigma and suspense, as the audience aren't shown straight away who the character is and are eager to discover their identity. The unusual setting in this opening also adds to the mystery, which is pieced together throughout the film.

This shot reveals the characters face for the first time, using a close up to emphasise to the audience how the character is feeling. Her facial expression matches the sad mood of the music; an example of parallel sound.

This high angle point of view shot has been used to show binary opposition in our opening. The kidnapper is contrasting to the girl (Hope) because of his dark clothing, and his evil compared to her happiness and innocence. This shows the binary oppostion of good vs. evil.

A similar shot is used in the thriller 'Law Abiding Citizen'. The evil character who has just entered the house and attacked the parents then approaches their daughter, and the use of lighting here is a contributing factor to show his evil contrasted with her vulnerability and innocence; the man is in silhouette against the light which shines on the little girl.

Lighting has also been used to create effect in our opening sequence, especially in the scene which is meant to connote Hope's mental state. She is sat in darkness, with only her face illuminated by bright artificial lighting. By using this lighting we wanted to connote that Hope was lonely, afraid and isolated from the world by being locked in the room. The audience also feel very voyeuristic in this sequence, as they are watching the girl when in the film, no one can see her. They can also hear her speaking on a voiceover, which gives them an insight into her thoughts, emotions and psychological state.

This shot is another example of how lighting and camera angle has been used to create effect. This still is taken from the flashback sequence, and the effect of silhouette has been created by using a low angle shot, with the subject swinging in front of a natural light source from the sun. This shot emphasises that the character may be in danger, as it is a strange angle, which therefore suggests unfamiliar circumstances for Hope. This shot also draws attention to the time of day; the audience sees that the sun is beginning to set and therefore, we connote that Hope will be in further danger as daylight reduces.

We have used editing in this shot to make it appear significant in the film; firstly, the speed has been slowed down. All the other shots in the flashback sequence are between 1 and 3 seconds long, the rapid pace having a confusing effect on the audience and heightening suspense, however this shot is noticeably the longest at over 5 seconds. This ensures that the audience notices the van in the background; a significant prop in our opening.

It is also noticeable that all of the shots in the flashback sequence are filmed from in front of or beside the subject, and this shows the equilibrium at the beginning of the flashback scene as Hope plays innocently on the swing. However, this shot is the first one from behind, which shocks the audience as the camera turns from objective to subjective, and they see from the point of view of the kidnapper for the first time. The kidnapper is the first character to be given point of view, which gives him a powerful status and make him appear more menacing. This shot also breaks the 180 degree rule which has up to this point been followed. This is purposeful, as it confuses the audience, and suggests that a new character, which will cause disruption in some way, has entered the narrative.

This extreme long shot from behind the subject is the first in a sequence of very quickly paced shots, as the kidnapper approaches Hope. Handheld camera is used in this shot, and the addition of camera shake makes the audiecne feel uneasy as they know the kidnapper is getting closer. The quick succession of the shots in this sequence show the scene reaching its climax and therefore suspense is quickly built, creating great entertainment for the Thriller audience who want to be shocked and surprised. Also, because of the pace, we are not given much time to think, connoting the way Hope is presented here; she is vulrable and helpless and would not be able to escape as the kidnap happens so suddenly

In some ways this shot concludes the very opening of the film, before the title appears. A slow fade up has been used, which shows that the section inside Hope's mind finishing and her real life starting. As well as the fade, a sound bridge of Hope's voice over saying 'Revenge', also connotes that the two situations are linked, and that Hope will still be in an unstable mental state which will affect her actions in the rest of the film. We connote from her voiceover that she will attempt to take revenge on her captor in the film, giving the audience some insight into what will happen next. The shot is 5 seconds long, and throughout it Hope stays still, her body language connoting that she is lonely, introverted and timid.

2. How does your media product represent particular social groups?

The main social groups that have been represented in our product are White British young females, teenaged females and middle aged males.
Firstly, the young female in our film was Hope aged five- at the time of the kidnap. The representation of young Hope is quite stereotypical, as she is seen playing in a park, and non diegetic sound of a young girls laughter has been used, connoting the innocent and carefree nature which is typical of 5 year old children. Her costume also portrays this, as she wears a pink coat and wellington boots; a colour which is typically feminine and therefore suggests she is the 'damsel in distress' character. However, we portrayed Hope stereotypeically in order to show her vulnerability, and make her kidnap even more upsetting to the audience because of her cute and loveable character.

This image shows the examples of how Hope was portrayed in a stereotypical way.

Secondly, Hope aged 16- in the present day- is not a very stereotypical representation. She doesn't wear colourful or fashionable clothes like most teenage girls, and she doesn't behave in the way they do e.g. socialising, wearing make up, shopping. However, the reason Hope is portrayed so differently is because of the life she has had shut in the room. The unconventional representation of a female teenager suggests to the audience that her mental state will not be the same, and that this will lead her to act differently in the future. However, in terms of character types, Hope appears to be the 'damsel in distress', which is fitting of her age and gender. However, the audience soon discover that she is not a weak or passive character; when on the voice over she says, 'Revenge', the audience connotes that her true character is much more determined and ruthless than it first appears.
The third character in the film is a white British middle aged male- the Kidnapper. The Kidnapper is represented stereotypically, as he appears to be the character with the most power in the film, which is typical of the Thriller genre where antagonists are more commonly male. Also, he is a stereotypical villain, which is portrayed through the camerawork which keeps his face hidden througout most of the film. This makes him seem more menacing as his identity is a secret, therefore he appears difficult to identify and catch. As a result of his character, he is not a true representation of a majority of middle aged men, however, his position of power in the film reflects the common idea that men are the more dominant gender.

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

4. Who would be the audience for your media product?

Due to the age of our main character, Hope Hardy, our film would most likely appeal to an audience of teenagers and young adults, aged 15-20. The film would appeal to both males and females, because the Thriller genre is popular with men because many of them enjoy of its exciting, action packed content. Many women also enjoy this, but will also be interested because the main character is a strong, uinconventional female protagonist. I think this audience would be most interested because there are not many Thriller films which have a teenager as the main protagonist, and this unconventional character would be an exciting change to the Thriller genre. This audience would also be interested to see how their age group has been represented in a film, and whether or not the character has been represented as a stereotypical teenager. For example, they would be curious to discover whether the main character, Hope, has been represented as a stereotypically weak, passive or feminine teenage girl. Due to this, more females than males may watch the film. They may have this view because often in Thriller films, young females are presented as the victim, and not very commonly the protagonist. Although there are some examples of Teenage protagonists in Thrillers, there are few which include a teenage, female lead character. This 'gap in the market' could be a reason why this audience will be interested in our film.

Audience Feedback: I asked a fellow student, Gabi (aged 17) what she thought of the film and she said:

'It was very effective, I would be willing to go and see the whole film in the cinema. It looked like it could be a real film, as it was quite proffessional. I especially liked the flashback scene, I thought the different effects added looked really effective. I also like the section with the voiceover, that worked well and it was really emotive; it made you understand her character more'

Other films which may interest our target audience could be:

Nancy Drew: An example of a female teenage protagonist.

Elfie Hopkins - A darker thriller featuring a teenage female protagonist.

5. How did you attract/address your audience?

We aimed to attract our target audience in a variety of ways in our final film. For example, the main character was aged 16, which would appeal to the target audience of people around this age, as they would be more able to relate to and understand a character of the same age group. We hoped our audience would be able to empathise with her, and as is shown from the audience feedback, this was achieved in the voiceover scene. I think this is because of the informal register Hope speaks with, which would be similar to the way our audience would speak with their friends; this allowed them to feel close to Hope and feel sympathy for her and her situation.

The props we used in the film also helped to attract the audience, as we used a modern vehicle and laptop which teenagers are very familiar with. This helped to make the film seem more up-to-date, believable, and therefore more engaging to the audience.

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

During the process of filming and editing our thriller opening, I have learnt about how to use and get the best out of a variety of different technologies. For example, when filming the opening, we began by using a Sony Handycam HDR-XR550 camera. Although I have used a similar camera before- in GCSE Media and in previous AS assignments- I learnt a lot about how to properly use a video camera like this one, as it was a more advanced model than I have had experience with previously.

At one point in our film we wanted to create a focus pull. However, after experimenting with the focus features on this camera, we soon found out that we couldn't achieve this technique effectively when using this type of camera; we needed something more advanced.

So then, after asking the advice of our media technicians, we filmed the rest of the opening on a Sony HDV Camera. Although we didn't manage to achieve the focus pull, changing cameras to suit our needs was a way of teaching us that the only way to attempt the filming you need is to experiment with a range of technolgies.

As well as cameras, this project required me to use software which I had barely used before such as Final Cut Pro. Having used different software to edit at GCSE, I had little experience with this programme, however with some guidance I found it was quite simple and was an effective way of achieving a film that looked proffessional. After referring back to the Flashback research we carried out at the beginning of the project, Final Cut enabled us to manipulate the colour and speed of footage to achieve the effect we desired for the flashback. This also allowed us to add fades and titling.

We also used Garage Band to add sound to our film. I have used Garage Band before, in GCSE music and on previous AS assignments, however this was the longest and most complex project I have done yet, and this programme made it easier to add sound effects, music and voiceover to our film.

Another technology we used on this project was a H2 Zoom Recorder. We previously used this recorder to capture foleys for our Sound Task, however on our Thriller film I used it to record Hope's Voiceover, which I thought was a very successful and effective element to the film.

7. Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learned in the progression from it to the full product?

During the progression from the Preliminary task to the final product, I feel I learned a lot about how to create a successful film, using different techniques and technologies. These frames show compare and contrast to show how my work has progressed.

This example shows a Match on Action that featured in our preliminary task. As we were required to include this method in our film, we worked hard to make the matches look seamless, and I think we succeeded in doing so.

In our final film, we also used Match on Action, but I feel this example of the method shows how my skills have progressed; for example, we use more than one match in a sequence to show more than one action being carried out (here the character looks into the keyhole, then returns to standing, all in one sequence). We also used varying shot angles and distances during the match on action- mid shot, high angle, extreme close up) to make them more interesting for the viewer.

We also experiented with new features which didn't appear in the preliminary task, such as the Graphic Match which can be seen here. By using this method, we could link two locations together (Hope in the room and the kidnapper at the table) which helps the viewer to understand what is happening in the scene. By incorporating new techniques such as this, I feel I have demonstrated a deeper understanding of the editing we have studied.

The way lighting has been used has also progressed since the preliminary task. In both films we used artificial lighting, but to different effect. Firstly, in the preliminary task we used a redhead light to create the shadow of the vampire on the wall; we got inspiration for this from the old vampire film 'Nosferatu', and we were very pleased with the result. However, after learning more about the effects of lighting, in 'Losing Hope Hardy' we used lighting not only to illuminate but to convey the mood of our character. By using the bright white LED light, we achieved a chilling atmosphere which connoted Hope's sadness and isolation. I feel our deepened knowledge of lighting greatly helped us to achieve this effect, which allowed the audience to empathise with the character; an important element of our film.