Screen casting (How did you use technologies in the construction and research, planning and evaluation stages?)

Screen casting (What have you learned from audience feedback?)

Screen casting (How effective is the combination of your main product and ancillary texts?)

Screen casting (in what ways does your media product use develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?)

How did you use technologies in the construction and research, planning and evaluation stages?

When researching I used a relatively small amount of technological programs in order to develop my research. I used Prezi which is an online program where you can develop a PowerPoint to a whole new level. For instance you can imbed You Tube videos having moving images, add sound effectives etc. Through this program my research becomes more media proactive. I also used Microsoft office packages to enhance my research as I was able to develop pie charts on Edexcel and create a questionnaire on word. Also a program called grabber which is seen on the mac allowed me to grab images to upload to my blog so I could show the audience what I was trying to describe.

In terms of constructing my media project I had to use a wide range of technologies in order to increase the potential of my movie trailer. I used a HD Sony camera to film my video. However this was LO-FI technology, not close to the High-Tec cameras used within the film industry. This did cause many problems. As the quality was poor, focus could not occur and the sound was low quality. Although I did meet these problems I tried my best to use it to my advantage. Once all the filming was completed I was furthermore able to edit the video on the program I-movie. I used this a great deal as through this I was able to shorten sections of my recordings, and chose the best footage I had filmed. Also I could include my non-diegetic sound over my video, first half being dingy music and the second half being a country and western song. I could edit the way the music was portrayed for instance when to start and finish playing. Besides this I could also lower the non-diegetic sound so there would be a heavier emphasis on the diegetic sound i.e. the character talking. I was to a certain degree limited with this program when it came to editing the music so I then uploaded the song to garage band, where I could further develop it to match my video.

I-movie also allowed me to edit my work in more depth. As my first major scene consisted of what the experiment was about. I was able to detach the audio of the teacher speaking then this would overlap to a slow motion shot of the audience. This leads me to my next point I-movie allowed me to put certain sections of my media trailer in slow-motion to add emphasis, my best example was when I was running down the street. The voice overs were also edited on I-movie as I made them louder than the non-diegetic sound, which would then stop once the voice over was completed. Through the program I could also include titles and transitions to give a stronger feel to what a real movie trailer is all about.

When trying to do my title sequence for the main heading (a life’s experiment) so I therefore used the program Flash. Which is a multimedia and software platform used for authoring of vector graphics, animation, games. On this I was able to make each letter appear one by one, which was not possible on I-movie. But as I wanted a sort-of type writer effect, I had to use flash to do this.

I started to use the program fireworks to produce my poster and magazine front cover however I found great difficulty in using the program, so I opted to use Photoshop instead. I fist used Photoshop to develop my production credits at the end of my movie trailer. I then created my movie poster. First I had a photo shoot with the camera Nikon D300 which was very good quality, and gave the best results as a photo.  Once I had my photo I uploaded them to Photoshop where the editing could begin.  Photoshop was a great tool in helping me achieve the best quality, in terms of realism. I understand that movie companies would use much more highly technilogical programs, but this still gave me great results. As real posters/magazine front covers are built up in stages i.e. the background, main image, font etc. This program allowed me to do this with ease, encountering no problems. The program also provided tools, for instance the magic wand; which allowed me to delete the background completely then place the image on a different background. I was also able to use the fonts provided to create my production credits for my poster and also the end of my movie trailer, this proved very effective.

In terms of my evaluation I used a small amount of technologies to complete the task. I used the Prezi to enhance the presentation, and word to complete the document. What I did use however was screen casting which is where I was able to film what is being shown on the screen, and my voice over. I did this to give the impression of a director’s commentary. This will be seen next going into a greater depth and presenting images highlighting the information I have provided.

What have you learned from audience feedback?

Audience feedback played a huge role in how my media product turned out. I personally feel my video would never have achieved its full potential if not for feedback. From the start feedback informed change in the genre of my media trailer. As at the start of my project to understand where to continue ahead, I used a questionnaire. The reason I chose this method was I was able to collect a lot of information from a broad range of people. The questionnaire allowed me to finalise my decision on the genre of what my trailer would be. I also gained the realisation of target audience trends, enabling me to understand what is needed to be put in my trailer for it to be a good one. Furthermore with the broad range of people I received answers from I was able to cross reference questions for example, from my research I could see that women would be much more drawn to thrillers than action movies (only based on my research).

 Additionally I asked what they feel makes a good thriller; I chose to ask this as I decided my genre would become and psychological thriller, so through this question I was able to know what people are looking for. Many of the answers were "mystery", "Tension building", "hooking", "good use of music", "suspense", "twists" and "makes you think". Through these I then had the capability to understand the basic needs within my Thriller, and also it helped me to decide what I should place within my own trailer.  I also asked “Please state what you feel makes a good movie trailer?” through this I was able to understand what I should include in my movie trailer, to make it of better quality. The main answer I received were “makes me want to watch the movie", as this is the main aim of a trailer I will attempt to do this. Other answers I received was, "tension building", "hooking", "show the best parts of the movie, so it will advertise the film on a higher scale" and "good use of music". Through these answers I picked out the most relevant and useful examples and decided to use them within my trailer. For example I tried to highlight parts which were really interesting to watch like the cutting of the tongue. Besides this I also used it to help me change the editorial process by including dark dingy music at the start of my movie trailer.

 I also had different versions of feedback, for instance I got my two tutors to have an in depth study of both my trailer and also my two ancillary tasks. Through this I was able to get constructive criticisms, through this some of my filming I chose to not include. Also on my ancillary tasks I chose to change the font, and size in order to give a more realistic view, as if it was a real magazine/poster. Once I had completed my first cut I uploaded it upon my blog and then got three of my peers to watch the video , and give me their viewpoint. I filmed them doing this so this I on my blog labelled feedback. During this video my peers spoke about what they liked but also that they felt the story was not clear enough. From this feedback I had the understanding what to do next; I chose to add voice overs, in order to explain the story deeper. The once I completed this version I uploaded it to the social network Facebook, where all my friends viewed the video. I got great feedback and many people enjoyed my video. Once I had seen the good feedback I was able to finalize the project to my blog. The actors within my video and family members also gave their view on the overall project and everyone was extremely happy with the way it turned out. Overall audience feedback made the development of my work both easier and increased the standard of my video.

How effective is the combination of your main product and ancillary texts?

I think both of my ancillary texts have an extremely effective combination to my main product, as both complement each other. For example the poster and the trailer are both used for advertisement purposes in the movie industry, i.e. trying to sell the movie. The poster clearly shows very little, as the trailer does. Both consist of highlighting the chief protagonists within the movie; the violence is emphasized through the blood on the character just like in the trailer. The tag line highlights the confusion between who is the real villain; the scientific sum strait down the middle furthermore emphasizes the experiment. Also the title sequence at the end of my trailer shows the word ‘Life’s’ in red to put emphasis on the violence I also chose to do the same in the poster and magazine. All the details surrounding the movie, i.e. production credits, website, release date, all match completely. Also with the trailer being red band, I felt the age rating would be 18; I displayed this on my poster also. I also attempted to shows the characters personality through just the picture, the teacher all smart and posh, emotionless and the main character with the creepy twisted look. With this combined with my movie trailer then the audience continue to question who is in the right? So it is shown as my main product and my poster draw on the same images, then they are effective combination to my main product.

I continued this when creating me magazine front cover, where I wanted to advertise the movie, by talking about behind the scenes. For instance I chose to include an interview with the director of the product. Giving the audience an insight to the movie in a deeper depth, which would help sell the magazine. Furthermore within the real industry the magazine would include other features such as celebrity interviews, reviews, etc. this is what I included in order to sell the movie. I furthermore included the main character as the front cover and made the font of the title the main focus to advertise the movie. As with both other products the word ‘Life’s’ is placed in red so I stayed with this theme. I also made the background dark representing the theme within the movie and also with the background being black, the character has a stronger emphasis, I also followed these rules by having a dark and misty background.  Furthermore the main character has a blood-spattered face to also show the violence within the movie. Also as I am the central focus of my media video I made myself the central focus of both ancillary tasks. Overall the main theme which I tried to flow through all my tasks was violence and I think I did this very well, with my color scheme, pictures used, font, and the words used within the title sequences.     

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

In order to develop my response to this question I will have to delve into all areas consisting of what actually occurs within the real media industry. In this case I shall talk about film, meaning I will have to include discussions over Genre, industry, distribution and production. All of these occur when creating a product similar to mine. I will furthermore discuss how mine challenges these forms and conventions. 

My own media product fell under the category of psychological thriller. In terms of genre my media product uses existing conventions throughout the whole clip. For example, the use of the constant questioning of what is occurring to the chief protagonist. It gives the audience a sense of unknown, which can be the main aim of a psychological thriller, a great example of a real media product which follows these conventions would be the trailer ’Shutter Island’ which was very influential to me when I was completing my media trailer. As I was able to obtain ideas, in order to follow the norms and values used within the film industry. I kept to the traditional use of Camera angles for example close-ups, pan, mid shot and long shot throughout the whole of my clip and used it to my advantage. For example my scene of violence which arises near the conclusion of my trailer, used angles to both emphasise the violence but also reveal very little. As I used a Close-up shot of the characters forehead attempting to use the scissors to cut of his own tongue and as the camera moves it reveals his hand and the scissors closing, simple but effective. I also for the beginning part of my trailer used sound to add effect, as I used a non-diegetic soundtrack to increase the tension within the audience. Furthermore to add effect I also used diegetic sound to give a mixed effect.  Transitions played a lead role in my completed media product, as movie trailers use transitions to their advantage, because the trailer is not there to reveal the whole movie just an insight, and the transitions allow the directors to highlight a change in time or even story. From this fact I decided to continue with the forms and conventions.  Additionally I conformed through what occurs at the start and end of my trailer, i.e. title sequence, production credits, production logos, release date etc. For instance I reveal the production company’s title sequence, as the trailer starts and I conclude with a title sequence, production credits and release date, with a simplistic font, and style. These can be seen in all trailers, regardless of genre which shows a clear adaption to real media products.

However there were many sections where I attempted to challenge the norms and convention of usual movie trailers. As I am aware a movie trailer is produced once a movie is completed, in order to advertise the film. Mine was a reversed process as I created a trailer first from what essentially was a ‘fake’ movie. My movie trailer as a whole challenged many conventions. For example the non-diegetic sound I used in the second part of my movie trailer was a country and western song, unlike the tension building composition at the start. This song contrasted both the violent behaviour which was occurring in the trailer and the genre I was portraying. The lighting was completely controversial to what is usual produced within that genre of a media video. A great example of this is through the use of my low angle shot of the chief protagonist attacking an unseen character. As the lighting is very bright, with the sky in the background, it gives of God like imagery. More so he is presented in white, representing purity, here a clear contrast is highlighted between lighting and imagery to what the character is preforming. I chose to do this so the audience will become confused as there is no apparent conclusion to who is in the correct situation the teacher or the main character, resulting in the audience watching the movie in order to find out. I also challenged conventions through the conclusion of my media video, as usually a trailer consists of small sections of a movie revealing very little, however I concluded with a long scene of violence, argument to this may be that it gives too much away within the trailer. On the contrary I feel it does the complete opposite, I feel it gives an insight into what the movie is about and also a questioning within the audience member, to why is he doing this? Subsequently leading a potential audience member in to watching the movie out of curiosity.

 In terms of principal photography I attempted to keep to the norms used in the media industry, for example  having a planned schedule so all my actors would have knowledge of different roles, times, location etc. I additionally used a friend to be my acting cinematographer. I also produced a script for the movie trailer. However I was unable to fill all roles, as I am aware if this was to occur in the media industry producers would be present to get money but as this was low budget, they were not needed. I do however felt I got an understanding and was able to fill certain positions. Besides the fact the movie was low budget it was hard for me to achieve angles, for example in the real industry tracks may be used of which the camera would be mounted, making movement extremely easy. So in order to achieve me chasing the car I mounted the camera in the back of a car and started chasing. Furthermore the cameras used were lo-fi technology meaning the trailer was not up to the usual highly technological standards. As production companies would be able to use CGI programs, where as I was limited in the editing process, to programs such as I-movie and garage band, meaning room to edit became tight. The actors used by myself were also non-professional, compared to the real industry which would use paid actors, min were friends and family having an effect on my end project in terms of realism.

In terms of my two ancillary tasks I also chose to conform to the conventions used in real media products. Looking at my movie poster, I completely conformed to what occurs within the real movie industry. The reason being is a poster’s key aim is to advertise the movie. So I showed the main protagonists within the movie, highlighted the science through the sums, emphasised the lettering and tag line, presented the production credits with logos, age restriction. Furthermore to match this modern society I placed a QR code at the bottom of my poster which when scanned would lead to my media A2 blog. Additionally this was equivalent when completing my magazine front cover, as again I showed the chief protagonist, bold title (which I chose based upon the hybrid camera used in avatar, highlight modern society), Sub-titles In order to help retail the magazine, also what else may be included within the magazine i.e., models, celebrities, reviews, all the typical conventions of a real media product. The only differentiation would be the business side of what to do next. For example once a magazine/poster is completed, they would be advertised at shops, cinemas, on the internet etc. But due to this being small budget and not a ‘real’ movie, I could not get a feel for this side of the industry.