Final Evaluation: Marcus Pelham

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

My chosen 9 frames in 'Double or Nothing':

Top row [1,2,3] ect.

Before designing on our storyboard, we decided to research current thriller openings for inspiration in addition to identifying key conventions [to view this research click 

here and here].  This allowed us to use, develop and challenge these conventions in our own product. The above nine frames are taken from our final product as evidence of this. 

Parallel editing in The Dark Knight

EDITING:

One of the key conventions we used in our film is that of parallel editing: one of the examples in which we found this was The Dark Knight [see image to right]. This technique is used to connect several groups of people despite being in different settings. As our product also deals with a wide range of people in different settings, we use parallel editing between the detective character and various members of the cult. We purposely chose to do this in the opening to create that link between these two groups immediately, despite the characters identity's being hidden. This can be seen in frames 1,2 and 4.

Frames 6 and 9 also show a common convention used in thrillers - titling in the opening sequence. An example of this is Seven's opening sequence. Like Seven, we cut from our narrative to show the credits. Although not a definitive part of the narrative, we use it to separate groups of characters and signify to the audience that a change of setting has occurred. The titles are also layered upon a moving image, depicting a flame - this is important as the bonfire is a key setting in our narrative so by showing this in our opening, we are highlighting this setting to the viewer.

SOUND:

We discovered during our research that there were several methods of using sound in thrillers to create suspense. For example, in 44 Inch Chest, the soundtrack is contrapuntal [or contrasts the visual element of the piece], generating tension. A more orthodox method is to use a parallel soundtrack, like in Casino Royale, which creates suspense through the audience's expectation that that genre of soundtrack is connected with thrillers. 

Like in other thrillers, sound - or rather , the lack of it - plays an essential part in the establishment of tension in our product. Throughout the whole product, no dialogue is used - we chose to do this so the audience is forced to decipher character from visual aspects of the film [ie. costume]. However, a parallel soundtrack is used as a sound link to connect the various scenes together and show the audience that the events and characters depicted are linked.

CAMERAWORK:

During storyboarding our product, we decided we wanted to try some ambitious shots to help develop the narrative involved with our product. For example, frame 5 is shot from a very high angle, preventing the audience from seeing any facial expression from the detective. It also gives the impression that he is being watched, suggesting that he is doing something he wants to be a secret, building suspense.

Frame 1 also shows one of the shots we wanted to do - this extreme close-up is designed to cut off the detective's face, forcing the audience to focus on other aspects to understand his character. It also frustrates the audience who will want to see is face. In addition, Frame 8 is a block frame shot - ie. there is a graveyard in half the shot. This is important as it places those two characters in a sinister setting, establishing them as the antagonists.

Frame 3 is a steadi-cam medium shot - the camera follows the three characters as they walk through a train station exit. By following alongside the characters, the audience is forced to acknowledge the metal fence that obstructs a clear view to the facial expressions of the characters and places them in an urban setting, which, when combined with the rural graveyard, conveys that the antagonists are a range of people from a range of environments.

MISE EN SCENE:

Totem in Inception

A key aspect of mise en scene we noticed was an enigma [or a mysterious person or object]. This can be used to create character or help the narrative progress. For example, in Inception, the totem shown is used is an enigma that  symbolizes reality, a key theme in the film. Our enigma - a half mask - can be seen in frame 7 and is used as a symbol of the detective's hesitance to join the cult; half of him enjoys the cult's criminal activities whilst the other half believes it to be wrong.

Lighting is used in frame 4 - low-key lighting is used to cast the church in shadows, creating a sinister atmosphere for two of the antagonists to be placed in and emphasizes their role as characters. In frame 5, lighting is also used to highlight the moment the detective puts the mask on, a key moment of the narrative.

A variety of settings are depicted - we chose to use urban and rural environments to suggest that it is the cult, and not setting, that links the characters. It also disorientates the audience from the opening, creating intrigue and suspense.

Costume is used to develop character as that is one of the few ways the audience can decipher which character is which [due to the lack of dialogue] so we were careful to highlight recognizable items of clothing [ie. the detective's grey cardigan].

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

As a group, we realized it was important to represent our characters and their corresponding social groups in a clear and precise way that our target audience of young males and females would be familiar with and, as a result, be able to interpret quickly in the opening.

Original costume of the detective character

One of the main issues we faced was the representation of gender in our film; the protagonist is male and he holds the highest status in the film, suggesting a traditional representation of masculinity. Mise en scene was one of the key methods to enforce this representation: the colours that he wears are dark and solid, his hair is short and the make-up is naturalistic, suggesting he isn't focused on his appearance, a traditional male characteristic. His costume is also very professional and instantly places him in an occupational setting, an environment that traditional representation would expect to show a male character. In addition, throughout the piece, the detective has no dialogue. This creates mystery concerning his personality and forces the audience to use mise en scene to decipher details concerning his character. It also prevents the character from expressing his emotions through speech, another characteristic linked to masculinity. We chose to refer to this traditional stereotype to allow the audience to immediately recognize this character as the protagonist, who possesses the masculine characteristics that our target audience would expect to see. 



Costume used by cult characters

However, during the cult scene, both males and females are shown in the opening with equal importance. This is suggested through the use of the enigma of the masks which obstruct the audience's ability to decipher gender from the face. This removal of gender prevents the audience from relating the characters to any existing stereotypes. This prevents the audience from empathizing with these characters, which is vital to the storyline as they are antagonists. However, the members of the cult's costumes do suggest certain gender stereotypes - if we were to reconsider this piece, we may use cloaks or another piece of costume that is not gender-specific and create even more mystery surrounding the cult members and their personality.



Lighting for the two age groups

Age is also an area of representation that this film features: the detective is shown in a suit, a costume connected with a professional adult rather than a teenager, contrasting the costumes worn by the cultists which is casual, not professional. Binary opposition, a technique often used to highlight the characters an audience should and shouldn't empathize with, is also used through lighting. For example, the detective is originally shown in a well-lit setting and the cultists shown in low-key lighting, enforcing the detective as the protagonist and the cultists as the antagonists. By identifying the protagonist as an adult, adults becomes the group the audience sympathize with which contrasts the negative representation of teenagers, who are the antagonists.



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

Odeon cinema in Leicester Square, London

There are several methods of distribution that we could utilize to gain the maximum exposure of our product. These include cinema viewings, online video-sharing sites [ie. YouTube] and downloads, TV viewings, film festivals and DVD platform. Due to this spectrum of available platforms, I believe it would be an effective strategy to release our product using most, if not all, of these methods of distribution. However, each method we would choose to use would require careful planning and research.

For example, if we wanted to release our product in a cinema, we would have to choose between an independent or mainstream cinema. By choosing independent cinemas, we would be targeting a smaller audience but one that would focus more on the acclaim of the product than a mainstream chain. Mainstream theaters would offer more exposure and bring the film into the public's eye - however, this method of distribution would also include more competition, both in financial terms and reputation. In order to make the right decision, we would need to take into account the audience we wanted to attract to our product. Click here to see a list of mainstream cinema chains in Europe.

One potential method of distribution is through TV companies. There are two major sectors in this platform: free viewing [ie. BBC 1] and pay/subscription channels [ie. Sky Movies]. Choosing to distribute the film to a free viewing channel would expose our film to a much wider audience but, as they are not always predominantly film-orientated, the audience would not necessarily be people that would be prepared to spend money for ownership of our product [ie. DVD's]. In addition, these channels might not be prepared to buy the rights to the film if it is not particularly well known by a variety of demographics so might be hesitant towards our product. Exceptions to this might be channels like Film4 which host regular seasons dedicated to certain genres or directors, such as the current 'High Tension' season that is dedicated to showing thrillers - this would be an effective way of exposing our product to a variety of people as well as attracting attention from people who are interested in discovering new films in the thriller genre. Pay/subscription channels are tougher to attract new audiences as, unlike free viewing channels, it requires the customers to pay monthly or a one-off fee in order to view the product. In order for this to be successful, both the distributors and the channel itself would have to invest a substantial amount into advertising the film. However, this method can create revenue that free viewing channels do not offer. As film-makers, we would have to decide whether exposure or profit would take priority in the way we distribute the product.

YouTube Logo

Another way to expose the product to more people for little or no expenditure is to make it viral. Ignite Social Media shows various examples of viral successes. A key example for our product would be 'The Blair Witch Project' which utilized the Internet to create hype for their low-budget film. We could utilize a similar technique to promote our film, uploading it to video-sharing sites like YouTube so that people could watch it for free. This would also enable audiences to share the film and their responses easily, through review sites [ie. http://www.bpdreview.com/] or social-networking sites like Facebook. This method of distribution is cheap, easy to establish and reduces the film-makers reliance on distributors as they can be maintained by the film-makers themselves.

Facebook Homepage

For all these reasons, I believe that the most effective way of promoting our product is through viral means - I think this will be effective as, due to the fact it is our first film, accumulating acclaim and reputation are vital and, as a result, exposure is key. However, it would be worth researching the costs and processes required to sell the rights to our film to an independent cinema or a channel like Film4.

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

In order to maximize the effect the way we distribute our product, we first had to identify our target audience. The method we chose to understand this information was to show a group of 20 individuals our opening and then ask them to rate the opening our of 5. The two main aspects we were interested in identifying were gender and age as these would have major repercussions concerning the way we attract our audience. Out of the 20 we asked, 10 were male and 10 were female; the 20 were also evenly divided into four age-groups: 12-15, 16-25, 26-40 and 40+. This was to ensure that all demographics that would affect our decision were represented fairly. The results were split into two groups; those that rated the film opening between 1 and 3 [lower category] and those that rated it 4 or 5 [higher category]. Below are the results, concerning gender and age:

GENDER:

Out of the 10 males, 8 rated the opening in the higher category and 2 in the lower category. This meant that, according to our survey, 80% of males would enjoy the film from the impression the opening offered. However, only 50% [or 5] of the females that watched the opening rated the film in the higher category, representing a decrease of interest from females. This would suggest that, although approx. 50% of females would be interested in our film and should thus not be disregarded, our predominant audience would be male.

AGE:

In each age group, 5 people were asked their opinion of the film. It is important to note that the 12-15 and 40+ groups consisted of 3 females and 2 males and the 16-25 and 26-40 groups were made up of 3 males and 2 females. The amount of each people who rated the film in the higher category for each group where as follows:

12-15: 3

16-25: 5

26-40: 3

40+: 2

These results show that the predominant age group to target are the 16-25's, with a 100% of those surveyed showing interest in the film. However, both the 12-15's and 26-40's demonstrated a 60% interest so should also be taken into account when promoting the film. The lowest amount of interest shown generated from the 40+ age group which would discourage us to include them in our target audience.

OTHER THRILLERS:

It is also important to identify other thrillers that our audience has found interesting. The way we decided to find this out is by researching polls on the most successful thrillers. The top five in this chart are: The Godfather (1972), Pulp Fiction (1994), Inception (2010), The Dark Knight (2008) and Fight Club (1999). As a result, we would analyse the techniques commonly used in these films and employ them in the continuation of our product.

CONCLUSION:

From the results of this survey, we can identify our prime audience as males in the 16-25 age group. This would affect the material we would show as we could release material that complied to a 15 rating, rather than a 12. However, our survey does demonstrate that, although not as prominent as our prime audience, other demographics would be interested; these include 50% of females, especially in the 16-25 and 26-40 groups, and older males in the 26-40 age group.

5 - How did you attract / address your audience?

One of the key aspects of what attracts an audience is storyline: whilst discussing ideas, common themes like gangs, kidnapping and murder were suggested. As a group, we thought it was important to find an unusual storyline for our film to sustain suspense and intrigue.This is when we decided to pursue the concept of the cult - none of us could think of a similar film so it allowed us to be creative.


We also tried to represent a range of characters through the settings we chose. All of the chosen settings are places our audience would recognize: graveyard, police station, railway setting and bonfire. This helps that audience to involve themselves in the movie.

6 - What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this 

product?

For the corresponding sound file, click HERE

Also contained is a written script of the recording:

"Over the course of this project, I have learnt new skills for new technologies that are related to film. These technologies included camera’s [and the necessary equipment to work them], image editing software and audio editing software.

Higher quality camera we used to film

One of the first things we learnt was how to operate the camera, although we did have prior experience from our preliminary that we could use. However, as we were using a different brand of camera, we had to become familiar with it’s set-up as well as ensuring we used the same camera continually as differences in quality would affect out product. This can be shown in our original locker room scene shots in which two different brands of cameras are used – for this reason, we had to re-shoot the whole scene which cost us time.

In addition to the camera itself, we realised it was important to set it up on a tripod whilst filming our graveyard scene: in the opening shot of that scene, the camera pans, following two shadowed figures. We wanted the audience to be able to decipher certain details of the characters so they could link them to the bonfire scene so we needed the shot to be steady, something that a tripod would ensure.

Lighting is another aspect of technology that we have had to become familiar with. There were two main types of lighting available to us: portable and spotlights. Because most of our footage was filmed in rural areas, we decided to use the portable as they are easier to travel with. In several of our shots, we had to create naturalistic lighting, despite it being dark, so we had to learn how to change between certain settings in order to create the correct lighting. This type of detail can be seen in the shot in which the detective looks at the camera with the mask on, a shot that was important in establishing the narrative.

Screenshot from Sony Vegas Pro

Another area of film that I have developed my knowledge of is editing. This can be split into three types: titling, sound and visual. For the titling, we used Sony Vegas. We chose this because it offered better titling sequences than iMovie and one of the members of our 

group was more comfortable with this software and so could help us use it. For sound, we used Logic Pro. This was chosen over Garageband as it took advantage of the skills I have in that software and also allowed us to be more specific over our sound, which plays a key part in our product. Finally, for visual, we used Final Cut Pro. We all used this at one point and all had varying degrees of skill with it – however, once we had learnt the basics [ie. How to split video footage and arrange it for match on action], we all felt comfortable enough to pursue editing.

Overall, I believe that I have used the technology effectively and, when problems have arisen, attempted to overcome them by relying on other members of my team."

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



My chosen 9 shots from our preliminary:

Top row [1,2,3] ect.

EDITING:

One of the weaknesses in our preliminary task was continuity editing; for example, the link between frame 1 and 2 was considered 'jumpy' and distracted the audience from the narrative, something we were keen to avoid in our final piece.  However, the link between 6 and 7 is done smoothly and demonstrated that we were able to create a good quality match on action sequence. As a result, we spent great time on the match on action shots, like the stationary extreme close up on the foot in the railway scene.

We also found that our preliminary shot lengths were too long [see frame 4] . This prevented us from building tension, a key aspect of audience reaction for thrillers. In this instance, we could have filmed the spy approaching the elevator from the perspective of several of the doorways in the corridor shown. This would have helped create suspense. After identifying this, we ensured that we would abstain from shots that lasted for more than four seconds in our final product unless they added to the narrative.

One positive aspect of our editing in our preliminary was the effect in frame 3. By adding in this CCTV effect, the audience can grasp the storyline easily and it helps sustain audience interest as it sticks out from the rest of the film.

SOUND:

Unlike our final product, our preliminary does include dialogue. This is because it seemed unnatural for a piece of film to lack speech. We found in our research however, that it can be highly effective, like in The Disappearance of Alice Creed. We believed that it wasn't necessary for our final product to have dialogue but that, by restricting the amount of speech an audience hears, it actually increases suspense.

CAMERAWORK:

We struggled with camerawork in our preliminary piece in several areas. Firstly, as can be seen in frames 5 and 9, the framing of our shots was unfocused so allowed an audience to be distracted. In our final piece, the framing has improved significantly, as can be seen in frame 6 of our final piece '9 frame' montage, focusing the audience's attention to the details we wish to emphasize [ie. the mask]

We also had a major problem in frame 2 - in the reflection behind the spy, the camera can be seen. After noticing this, we ensured it did not occur in our final piece as it interferes with continuity editing.

MISE EN SCENE:

Whilst filming our preliminary, we didn't utilize any lighting at all. This led to some shots looking de-saturated and dark. As a result, we used lighting during every scene in our final piece, to help balance out the shots. This is important in film as, if lighting is unbalanced, it distracts the audience from the shot itself. We also used lighting to establish character roles in our final piece.

Our preliminary is limited to a single setting, which we felt left the narrative too predictable. In order to counter that, we decided to use a range of settings in our final piece. This disorientates the audience and represents a variety of people.