Evaluation- Finished Film

This is our two minute psychological thriller. Through recapping on everything that we have learnt so far, we have been able to incorporate all of our knowledge into creating this introduction. Thank you for watching.

Evaluation- Elidona Preliminary Coursework

This is Elidona Niklekaj's preliminary coursework. We found it difficult to edit this preliminary because there is so many elements that have to be simular to make the scene work. However, after spending time on this preliminary we found it very possible, and overall we were very happy with the outcome.

Evaluation- Xhuliana Preliminary Coursework

This is Xhuliana Deda's preliminary coursework. Whilst making this preliminary work we enjoyed expperimenting with different shots and angles, that helped us to gain a lot more understanding and knowledge on the subject. We now feel more comfortable using these shots/ angles in our thriller opening.

Evaluation- Shannon's Preliminary Coursework

This is Shannon House's preliminary coursework. We used different shots and angles in this mini clip so that we could experiment with the different techniques we have been taught. This preliminary coursework helped us to understand different shots, which is going to be very helpful whilst making our two minute opening introduction.

Evaluation- Hannah's Preliminary Coursework

This is Hannah Philpott's preliminary coursework. To create this preliminary we used different shots such as medium shots and close ups. We also used different angles so that the girls could be viewed from a certian perspective. We are happy with the overal outcome.

Evaluation- Shannon House- Evaluation Writeup

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

Our media product challenges stereotypical conventions as during the creation of our two-minute psychological thriller, we ensured that we included an argument between the four girls. This is stereotypical for girls around our age, because other age/ social groups perceive us as having pointless arguments, which escalate into unnecessary measures. We developed this idea through making the situation escalate into Danika (Xhuliana) killing her friends out of revenge.  However, in our introduction we also challenged normal forms of stereotypical conventions. The usual perception of teenagers is that we all drink lots of alcohol and smoke. In order to come away from these views, we did not include any smoking or drinking in our introduction. By making three girls act calm and normal, without the typical viewpoints that are perceived of them, we conflicted against the conventions of real media productions. Furthermore, we continued to rebel against sexist viewpoints because normally men are suppose to hold a lot more potential power than women. However, in our thriller we had Danika (a girl) turn against her friends, meaning she held a significant amount of power. On the other hand, some may say that this does conform to stereotypical viewpoints because although Danika holds power, she is psychologically damaged; showing sexual objectification.

How does your media production represent particular social groups?

In our two minute psychological thriller the main social group that we targeted was teenage girls. However, we created different personalities and psychological welfares between the different characters. The three friends act casual, not dramatic and they wear normal clothing. During our planning process, we used bubbl.us to look further into the characteristics of each individual person.  We worked on what kind of clothing we would be wearing, in order to present ourselves as middle class citizens. We achieved this effect by really analyzing our clothing; make up, actions, expressions and individual appearances. The use of teenagers work very well in our group, as this gave all of us the opportunity to choose independent characteristics, whilst exploring character representations.

Through using teenagers (ourselves) this allowed us to connect to our target audience better because our viewers are aged around this age sector, and therefore our story is made more personal and individualized. By using teenage girls as our main topic, this also added to the suspense and tension of our two minute psychological thriller. By using teenagers, this created an overwhelming sense of vulnerability, as the young beings are a lot less able to protect themselves. Through creating a lack of protection, through the girl’s positions, this meant that the audiences were a lot more suspicious regarding the girls near futures.

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

In my opinion, I think the main media institution that would be interested in producing our product would be companies that promote thrillers. There are many different types of thriller and in our video we have analyzed in depth the psychological form of thriller. We think that companies would be interested in distributing our product, as it is more than likely to receive a large amount of prophet. Teenagers are becoming increasing interested in different forms of thrillers. As large groups of teens continuously pay for the thrill of horrors, media institutions receive massive sums of money, and this is their main goal.

I think that our psychological thriller would appeal to media institutions as it follows similar conventions of modern day horrors. This is a positive aspect of our film because media companies will be looking for thrillers that are up to date with modern technology and ideas. Our introduction contains a lot of tense scenes that we think would scare/ creep out our target audiences. Our product also rebels against some modern day conceptualities, which in order makes it a lot more individual from common thrillers. I think that teenagers become increasing annoyed with the perceptions held about them, regarding other age/ social groups. By conflicting against these common norms, teenagers can finally have a break from the viewpoints that are continuously placed upon them.

In order to distribute our movie to media institutions, we would firstly sell it to a few small companies to sample our production. By doing this we could review our final target audience, and see how effective it was in selling. We would take these small steps because if we were to firstly sell our product to a large range of higher media companies, this could lead to disaster. If the product was in effective then media constitution would lose a lot of prophet and therefore the process would crash and burn. To prevent this from happening, small steps are taken to ensure stability and back up protections.

Who would be the audience for you media product?

We found that through looking at our psychological thriller, and making analysis during the whole process, our media product is based around people between 15-25 years old. We choose this age range because when looking at different types of audiences, we found out that this age group is most common for watching thrillers. This is important because if we do not address the correct target audience, then it will be in effective; as other age ranges will be lest engaged and interested.

During our media progression, we analyses our target audience by asking a range of different question on numerous occasions. By following this procedure, we were able to get a greater insight into who our real target audiences were. We thought as a group that girls were more affected by our thriller, as during the audience feedback, girls seemed to be more greatly affected than boys. This is a positive aspect regarding the world of media, as companies would receive a greater value of money if the target audience was girls. The reason for this is because stereotypically, girls travel in groups when visiting the cinema to watch scary films, as they act as forms of protection for each other. Therefore media companies receive large prophets. However, our thriller does also apply to boys because some boys are affected emotionally the same as girls. By addressing both genders through our production, a maximum amount of money could be produced, through the process of advertising.

How did you attract/ address your audience?

During the editing process of our two minute psychological thriller, we had many chances to address our target audience to get updated feedback, on their viewpoints regarding our introduction. Our two main forms of this process was addressing our audience through survey monkey and also recording ourselves asking our target audiences numerous amounts of questions. By following this continuous process, we were able to look greatly into who our true target audiences were, and how we would be able to attract them towards our psychological thriller.

Before our film was fully created, we used forms of propaganda to advertise our thriller. We created a poster of the first victim Jane (me) covered in blood, dead. We done this because at first glance the image is very shocking, and therefore it attracts our audience from the beginning; before the film is even released. We chose to create this type of image because it creates a real sense of vulnerability regarding the victim, and many teenagers our age can relate to that feeling during their lifetimes. This also attracts the audience as similarities between two parties create a sense of understanding, and therefore current audiences can relate to the characters in the film.

In addition, we continued to entice our target audience by having re occurring problems occur between groups of friends. Teenagers are well known for having pathetic fights that can lead to an overdramatic consequence. We related to the audience in this sense because we created a little flashback fighting scene, which allows the audience to acknowledge that there is nothing supernatural about the actresses; they are merely teenage girls from a middle class background.

Finally, we addressed our audience through making our thriller follow the origin of a psychological thriller. We added different scenes to keep the audience engaged, whilst also experimenting with different lighting to add to the feeling of suspense. Through doing this, we ensured that the audience would continue to remain engaged during our thriller, and feel tense in the process. We are happy with the outcome that we managed to create, in order to connect to our audience; overly making the experience of thriller seems more personal.

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

Looking at different forms of technology has really helped me to view media from a different perspective. Before the process of construction, I did not really realize how much effort is actually taken to create just a few minutes of filming. Now when I watch clips, I tend to overly appreciate the amount of effort that must have been taken, just to produce a short piece. During this interesting journey, I have been made aware of many types of technology, which have really extended my capability and intellectual capacity.

The first technology that I learnt to use was the camera. Before media I had a certain aspect of knowledge of how to use a camera; however my own experience was limited. Through being able to record a psychological thriller, I was personally able to experiment with different shots and angles, whilst also learning how to work the buttons/ touch screens associated. Before media, I did not realize how many different shots were needed merely for a short clip, and therefore the use of the camera really helped me to explore this factor. There was a variety of different models we used to film, and as a result this deepened my understanding.    

Moreover, during the editing process I was able to explore the use of prelim for the first time. Before the creating of my thriller introduction, I had no experience in using editing software, and therefore I found the process very interesting and eye opening. I came to realize by the end of the editing stages that my improvement skills were actually pretty effective, and more importantly I really enjoyed the ongoing process. Prelim helped me to gain skills regarding improvements; such as cropping, adding music, taking sound away, adding captions, including fades and changing colour effects.

Finally, one of the most important technologies that I have been exposed to through taking this course is blogger. Blogger allowed me and my group to update work on a regular basis, in a neat and ordered format. Before taking media, I had never used blogger and through learning how to use the site, whilst also gaining a greater understanding of how to perform uploads; this has been extremely helpful. Without the use of blogger, I have no idea how I would have managed to keep my work so neat and tidy, without losing/ missing out crucial information.

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

Before the creation of our two minute psychological thriller, each member in our group had to carry out a preliminary task. The task was to walk from a corridor, into a classroom and then to sit down and have a conversation with one of our friends. The purpose of this task was to allow us to explore prelim and to also come to terms with the shots that were required in this example. We used full shots, medium/ medium close up  and close up shots.

Now that I look back on my preliminary task, which seems like such a long time ago, I think I have gained a lot of knowledge regarding filming and different techniques that can be used. If I was to re do my preliminary task I think there would be multiple things that I would do differently, in order to make it a better quality piece of work. There were a few problems with the lighting and the matching up of scenes, showing a lack of continuity. Through analyzing different pieces of coursework, it is becoming increasingly apparent to me that in some of the old pieces of work I have produced, there are continuity problems.

Another problem that I realized regarding my preliminary coursework was the positioning of the camera. In a few shots you can only really see one side of the girl’s faces, and therefore this takes emphasis away from the expressions that they are trying to convey. If I was to re do my preliminary coursework, I think I would spend more time trying to position the camera more accurately, so that the girl’s expressions could have been captured more accurately.

Overall, I think that my preliminary coursework was successful from the terms of a first time attempt. However, now that I have more experience in how to use the camera and knowing more about problems that can occur, this makes me very hypercritical and judgmental regarding my work. However, I do not think this is a bad thing as this analysis allows me to improve my current work and make it to the best of its capacity. I think that media is a real ongoing process, where what you learn over a certain amount of time, really allows you to form judgment regarding your own work and how you can make improvements. Media analysis has really allowed me to view clips from a whole new perspective, and therefore I am a lot more appreciative/judgmental of them.

Evaluation- Hannah Philpott Evaluation Writeup

In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge form and conventions of real media?
I feel that our opening scene doesn't really develop any of the conventions of real media but I do believe that it does challenge and use them. We have used the same camera angles and shots that real media would use. We used the point of view shot, which is a classic in horror films, to make the audience feel like they are involved with the film. The close ups and other shots we used are used in most of real media today. The music we used is classic for horror films as it builds up tension and makes the audience feel paranoid. The ways in which our film challenges real media is by the girls not being stereotyped. Usually in horror films the women are the once who get killed or if the woman is the killer she is sexually objectified and can only kill her victim by having sex with them. Our murderer doesn't kill men, she kills her best friends which is unusual for horror films.

How does your media product represent particular social groups?
We have aimed our thriller at teenagers so we decided to use a group of teenage girls. We haven't made it that stereotypical of a group of teenagers. The characters don't drink or take drugs but they are shown having an argument over some gossip that one of them has spread. The other way that the girls are stereotyped is when they are ganging up on Danika. They are having an intense argument over something small but its been turned into a big deal, like it usually is with teenagers, and its being dealt with in a violent confrontation. Danika is taking revenge on the other girls by killing them one by one and making the other girls suffer with the worry of where their friends are disappearing to. I feel that the revenge side of the killing is definitely stereotypical of teenage girls but the having a girl killer who is killing her best friends isn't as in most thriller films its a male who is the murderer or if it is a female killer then she is killing men and can only do that through sexual actions.

What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?
At first I believe Blue Sky Productions will give our film, Danika, to small media institutions to see what feelings they have about the film. Once they have watched it, gave us feedback and hopefully told us that the target audience would be highly interested in our film then we will send it off to bigger companies. We would make a trailer and get it shown in the cinema when a 15-certificate film or a horror film is being shown so that its target audience that sees the trailer and not just people who are not interested in thrillers. The film will then get shown in cinema's. If it is successful in the U.K then we will pitch it to international companies. This will bring in more profit for the company and will make the film highly popular. Once the film is finished in the cinema if T.V. companies are interested, "Sky Movies", and movie sites like "Love Film" and "Netflix" then it will go to them and eventually will go onto DVD.

Who would be the audience for your media product?
As a group we have decided to have a target audience of 15 and above. We did target audience research to see who watched the most thriller films. We looked at age range and gender to decide this. The research told us that more women watch thriller films than men and that 15-25 year olds watch them the most. Looking at these statistics we decided, as a group, to aim the film at young women, as this will bring in more profit for us. The characters are easy to relate to as every woman has the age of the characters, 16-17, and they have all had problems with their friends. We feel that the subject they fight over is one that every woman can relate to either on Danika's side or on Jane, Mia and Lily's side. The music we have chosen gives the film the thriller feeling t
hat our target audience loves. We used the snowy setting to create pathetic fallacy, where the weather represents the feelings of the character. We wanted our target audience to feel the coldness of their friendship and see how Danika felt inside.

How did you attract/address your audiences?
To attract our audience we use a variety of techniques to attract our audience to our film. One of the ways was making a poster. This poster was made to let people know what the name of the flm is, what the genre of the film and a basic plot to the film. The name of the film is printed across the top so it is clear to people what the film is called. You can tell the genre by the darkness of the poster and the dead girl on it. This clearly shows that the film is a horror. We felt that using the dead girl to advertise the film will make the target audience interested in what happened to her. The plot is basically printed on the poster by showing that one of the characters gets murdered. Again this will interest the audience in what happens to the girl and what else happens during the film. The other way we addressed our audience was through the social networking site Facebook. We posted a link to our opening scene onto facebook so people can view it. From here they can share it to all of their friends and so on. This will make our film popular by word of mouth because most people in the world have a Facebook account and most people have internet at anytime on their mobiles and computers so they can view it on YouTube and show their friends.

What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?
As a group we used a lot of different technology to create our film. Firstly we learnt how to use a camera and tripod. The camera was easy to use but it was hard to get the right shots and angles to create the right effect. We had to retake shots again and again to try out what different shots we could have and what was the most effective. The tripod was simple to use. We were able to get the right height and able to keep the camera steady whilst filming. When using Adobe Premiere we got confused at first but once we knew how to use all the tools and add effects, music and transitions, we were able to edit our film quickly and effectively. To film our podcasts we used the Photobooth that is only availble on Apple devices. Photobooth was easy to use but we kept making mistakes and laughing so it took longer than we thought it would. To share our work we used a number of sites such as Blogger, Prezi and Youtube. Blogger and Prezi were completely new sites to our group but as a group we were able to work out how to use them. For me personally, YouTube was easy to use as I have uploaded video's to YouTube before. We used a programme called Celtx to write our script, master catalogue and creat our storyboard. We were able to do this quickly and create good pieces of work.

Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product?
Personally I have learnt a lot. I have learnt how to create different views of peoples characters with a camera by just changing the angle of it. I used software that I have never used before making this opening scene for example, Adobe Premiere. Before making the opening scene I had never heard of this programme but through using it I have now learnt how to cut footage, add it together to make it flow, add transitions such as fade to white and fade to black, add music, add effects such as black and white and add credits and title scenes. I have also learnt how the audience view certain characters and why they view them in that way. I found this side of the research really interesting as I got to learn about the psychology of media. Other information I learnt was about the different horror genres. I never knew there were different types of horror films before we started the research but now I can tell the difference between each of the types. Over all of this though I have learnt that working in a team is harder than I thought it would be. There were arguments over who was doing what work, when we were filming and when we were staying behind to do work. We overcame the problems quickly as we are such good friends and we got all the work done in the end.