Evaluation 7

This is a YouTube video of me answering the evaluation question 7: Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product?

Evaluation 6

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

In the production of our opening sequence I learnt many new skills that were essential for creating this product.  I used many pieces of hardware throughout such as the Canon 550D and the iMac which had software like Final Cut Pro and Adobe After Effects that we used for the editing process. As with some of these things I had little knowledge about them so was faced with some problems but overcame them in the end to get the best outcome of our film.

For the filming of our opening sequence we used a Canon 550D which was a camera I had never used before and a much more advanced camera then the camcorders and flip cams I had used previously. After much practice this piece of equipment became a lot easier to use where we could incorporate a variety of shots and good framing. During our preliminary task I learnt about specific rules such as the 180-degree rule and the rule of thirds, which we could incorporate into our production.

Final Cut Pro is a program, which I had used vaguely before so I knew the basic commands to edit footage on a simple level but then learnt about the software in much more depth in lesson and throughout the creation of our opening sequence. I learnt how to adapt the key-frames of footage, change sound levels, add transition effects and many other small touches in order to create a sleek, smooth running final version of our production.

Adobe After Effects was software I had never previously used before which is used to create refined motion graphics and cinematic visual effects. This program was used in our production to create the titles that come at the end of our opening sequence and also the names of the people who worked on it. As I new very little about this software, YouTube tutorials were needed to gain a more in-depth knowledge on it, I also had to ask friends who knew how to do particular things in order to proceed in various parts. 

The website Blogger.com was one which I had used before but found it hard to stay on track with it although during the production of our opening sequence it became a very helpful tool in saving pieces of coursework, research, videos etc. This was also helpful for people to view my work so I could get feedback from classmates and my teacher in order to improve my work.

There were some problems when using technology during the making of this production including, not having enough desktop space when first rendering the film on final cut so all the work had to be moved on to a hard-drive. Having three members in our group also meant we had to hand each over a lot of info and footage from computer to computer so we used a hard drive to swap video footage large files, email was used for more basic files.


In conclusion I have learnt that before this course my basic knowledge on media has expanded a whole lot and have learnt many new skills in order to create a well constructed opening sequence that was very high quality with the use of expensive equipment such as the Canon 550D and the iMac computers.

Evaluation 5

This is a YouTube video of our film with added annotations from beginning to end answering the evaluation question 5 "How did you attract/address your audience?"

Evaluation 4

Who would be the audience for your media product?

When creating our film we had to think about the target audience that we wish to reach. This meant we had to follow the rules and conventions when making our film that applied to the particular age group we were trying to target.  These are the types of people we looked at:

Target group 1:

This is Jimmy Hart; he has just turned 12 and lives in Enfield town. His favourite hobby is playing snooker and is highly encouraged to do so by his parents. He also enjoys doing some mundane children activities like watching cartoons and playing computer games. His peers often refer to him as ‘Jim’; he loves to hang out with them on the weekend and watch films at sleepovers. He likes to watch comedy, action thrillers and sci-fi films such as Harry Potter and Happy Gilmore. His favourite actors are also Will Smith and Jim Carey.
This is the main age group that we wish to target as we feel that young teenagers will enjoy our film the most and create the most revenue if it became popular because of the intense story line and intriguing characters which this audience will be more enticed to watch. 

Target group 2:

This is a group of friends aged around 16-18. They consider their selves to be quite normal but considered by others to be rebels. They all follow their own trends in fashion and aren’t so interested in education as they are more focused in doing their own activities. They like to do things like skating, going to concerts and visiting the cinema etc. They enjoy watching action, science fiction, films such as The Matrix and I am Legend or series' like Skins and Misfits.
This is the age group we initially thought would be best to target but we felt that it may be a little too risky as this group of viewers might want to see more censored action and explicit scenes which we would want to cut out to reach a wider audience and make the film a lot more popular.

Target Group 3:

This is Alison Wallace, age 37 and the mother of a 12-year-old son. She works as a teacher at a local primary school and so spends a lot of time with children. Apart from working and making her son do his homework she loves spending quality time with him, as she is a single parent. They like to do things such as visiting museums, galleries, cinemas and sports events etc. Her favourite film categories that she likes to watch are Sci-fi, Rom-Coms and thrillers.

This is the secondary audience that we are targeting as we thought the young teens that would be interested in seeing the film would have to go with their parents and so the film is therefore more mature and suitable for them. This was done in a deliberate attempt to raise production viewings as we wanted to exclude as little amount of people as possible from the target audience that we were trying to reach.

Evaluation 3

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

A production company is a company responsible for the development and physical production of new media, performing arts, film, radio or a television program. The company may also be directly responsible for the raising of funding for the production.

I have chosen to target young teens with a secondary audience of families. This allows us to broaden our market much more than if we were trying to appeal to only older teenagers in the region of 16-18. A 12a means that the film is appropriate to both adults and teenagers and just means that we have to sacrifice some explicit content but for the good of reaching a bigger audience. With a large audience we can expect to make a vast profit on our film that allows us to fix our budget on more expensive procedures such as special effects. With this synopsis our pitch is appropriate to pitch to large production companies such as Sony who work with big budget films and we can hope to create a film that can be renowned worldwide.

The initial soundtrack that we were going to use in our film was a rap song about society that had French vocals. This we thought might confuse a lot of our audience so to fix this problem we created another video with a non-vocal instrumental. We also thought that because of the large budget we were asking for this would help us to broaden our audience so we could get the maximum revenue. 

Evaluation 2

Evaluation question 2

View more PowerPoint from CharlesDaGoon

Evaluation 1

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

Through the creation of our production, we managed to develop and challenge the conventions of real media products which I will discuss in this question, demonstrating this with the use of screenshots as a form of comparison to other films.

As a group we looked at the film ‘The 6^th Day’ as we thought that the conventions in this film’s opening sequence were very similar to the ideas that we wished to portray in our own product and so therefore inspired us to create some of the  concepts that we had in our final production. DNA and the biology of the human body was a concept that all of us very much enjoyed as it linked to our film particularly because it is about clones.

From the screenshots you can see that a wave design was used to facilitate the symbolism of DNA which will show our audience that the 4 clones in the story are genetically linked together.

The film we researched ‘The 6^th day’ use a similar idea as they have DNA particles to symbolise the occurrence of cloning taking place. Particles were used in our own production also to further incorporate the idea of the genetics of the human body.

The titles in our final production also showed our development of real media product conventions as we looked at another film called ‘I-Robot’. This opening sequence had similar ideas to what we wanted to convey in terms of the scientific edge to the production as the titles were shown moving under water.

As we very much enjoyed this idea we thought that we should develop it to our own concept and have the titles shown over our film rather that cutting to a black screen.  This was very effective as it didn’t corrupt the flow of our opening sequence and just added another layer in drawing our audience’s attention.

We followed the conventions of sound in our final production although we had some problems finding a track to go alongside our dystopian drama genre as we found from our first class feedback some people didn’t understand the French song used in our film . This was due to having a French speaking member of our team who found a perfect song to fit with the theme, the song was about society and linked with our film as it showed how all four clones had such an impact on the society around them. We ended up using two different audios to counterpart our film which meant we could broaden our market to two different audiences, French and English.  The second song was a non-vocal sound track that was more upbeat and stayed constant throughout the film to help resemble the genetic bondage of our clones. The futuristic twist on the instrumental helps to convey the dystopian drama genre and that the clones are also different mentally and visually as they have been socialised differently.

Researching the film ‘S-Club 7: Seeing Double’, we found that their use of mise-en-scene to help portray the concept of clones was to use the traditional, generic idea of where people would think clones were manufactured. We decided to show this through mise-en-scene with different costumes worn by the same actor and various props to show how each clone has their own identity and distinguishes them from one another.

FINAL VERSION OF OPENING SEQUENCE (FRENCH)

FINAL VERSION OF OPENING SEQUENCE (ENGLISH)

TEAM TITLES

These are the titles that have the names of everyone in our group.

They were made by sandwiching the name of the production team in between 2 copies of the footage allowing the transition to take place when the clone starts walking. A linear wipe effect was then applied on top of the footage. To make the right transition key frames were added in time with the movement of the clones with each letter.

Capacity key frames were placed to allow the text to fade out once the clone had finished walking.

Location 4 (Church Street)

This was our final location where we filmed all of our clones at different points in the same area. We used the point of view of the clone with no identity, as he sees all 3 of his other clones at different points around the roundabout. We filmed at a roundabout to try and make the concept of our film more effective as all 4 clones were positioned at different points around it, this also meant that it was easier to organise our filming because we could station ourselves at a specific point and film around that position.

Location 3 (Drayton Park)

  

This was our third location for filming our opening sequence where we filmed the nerd clone. We used this location as the graffiti that surrounded the platform helped to contradict the personality of the character and show he is out of place in the society he lives in.

Location 2 (Stoke Newington)

 

This was or second location where we filmed the clone with no identity. We chose this location as it was the most rural/urban station we could find which was in our local area and it helped to reflect the background of this character.

Location 1 (Canonbury)

This was our first location where we filmed 2 out of our 4 clones. To film we had to ask for permission with a letter from our school. We used the popular clone and the moody clone in this setting but on different platforms to make it seem they were in a different place.

This is our permission sheet we got signed from school, so that we would be allowed to film on the platform. This was needed as it is a public place and we didn't want to breach any Transport for London(TFL) rules by not asking them. We only needed this when filming at Canonbury as it was a busy station but we took it to the other stations as-well, just in case.

Reshooting Scene

Whilst editing the film we found that the framing of one of the shots wasn’t perfect as the top of my head was cut out, this meant that we had to re-film this shot and edit the new clip into the our video.

Changes made after feedback

After the feedback we received from third parties, we have had to make some changes since the first viewing. This will be the final finished version of our video that we can submit as our coursework. Additional titles were added of the participants that were involved in the making of this film including me, Josh and Fanette. The "Sony titles" shot which we used in the first viewing was changed into the official cinematic titles which Sony use for the films that they fund, showing that Sony agreed to fund our film as we had pitched to them our ideas. There were also flashes that occurred in between two frames, which was a minor issue, but easy to repair by adding a cleaner cut away so that it looked less jumpy and more professional. Lastly we created two final versions of the film, as one of the major criticisms was the choice of soundtrack. The initial song did work well but we could understand the point they were making so we used an alternate track so we could potentially gain a more varied audience.

Focus Group Feedback

As a whole class we went round the room to give constructive criticism about their 2 minute sequence which should help them to higher their grade. All the films were at a high standard and it was quite hard to give critical feedback because as a class we knew everyones creative boundaries. When everyone was analyzing our first edit everything was in good order except for a few things which would be quiet easy to fix, the first thing was to move some clips down as you couldn't see the top of my head in the film, this came to be a minor issue and could be fixed very quickly. The second problem was to finish off our titles with the names of people who were involved in making the film "josh, charlie, fanette" so that visually it gives the audience more to look at and it gives our group some recognition. Lastly we found that there was some flashes between clips so we need to edit those out by doing some straight cuts so the film looks a little sleeker. 

Screenshot of bins

This is a screenshot of the files in final cut pro 

Re-scripting of character

After filming 3 out of 4 clones for our film we had a team meeting and discussed that our initial idea for the last clone was too similar to the clones 2 and 3. To fix this we agreed on the idea that this last clone should have no identity, as it will tie in with our story line much better than before, this will be shown through the use of mise-en-scene. The new clone will have no identity because it means he would be seen as an 'outcast', rather than being stereotyped into a specific class.

Video Conversion

Our footage had to be converted from Quicktime to Apple Prores 422 by MPEG streamclip so that they could be manipulated in Final Cut Pro

1. Chose the videos you want

2. Wait for clips to ready

 

3. Select the format

 

4. Wait for the encoding

Numbered Shot List

Scene 1:

1.Long shot, low-angle shot of Clone 1 who walks into the station.

2.Long shot, high-angle shot of Clone 2 who walks into the station

3. Long shot of Clone 3 who walks into the station.

4. Long shot and a track shot of Clone 4 walking into the station

5. Cut-in into a low-angle shot of Clone 1 who taps in his Oyster.

6. Cut-in into a high-angle shot of Clone 2 tapping his Oyster.

7. Cut-in of Clone 3 tapping his Oyster.

8 Cut-in of Clone 4 tapping his Oyster.

(The first opening shots we will see each clone tapping in his oyster)

9. Long shot at a low-angle looking at Clone 1 who waits on the platform (Listening to music, and texting)

10. Cut-in, into a close-up of Clone 1’s phone

11. Mid shot at a low-angle shot of Clone 1 smiling and laughing after receiving his text.

(Cuts to Clone 2)

12. Long shot at a high-angle walking out of a lift/walking down stairs

13. Cut-in of Clone 2’s shoes walking out the lift/stairs.

14. Extreme close-up at a high-angle shot of Clone 2’s face.

(Cuts to Clone 3)

15. Long shot of Clone 3 walking down stairs on to the train platform.

16. Cut-in of Clone 3 which zooms into his hands where we will be holding books.

17. Mid shot of Clone 3 showing his appearance

18. Long shot of Clone 3 who waits for the train to arrive.

19. Whilst he waits for the train we will Cut-in of Clone ‘s book.

20. Mid shot of Clone 3 reading.

(All Clones will cut it in-between each other showing us them getting on a train)

21. Long shot at a low-angle shot showing Clone 1 getting on the train.

22. Long shot at a high-angle shot of Clone 2 who gets on the train.

23. Mid shot of Clone 3 who gets on the train.

24. Long shot of Clone 4 who gets on the train.

Scene 2:

25. Long shot at a low-angle shot of Clone 1 who gets off the train.

26. Long shot at a high-angle shot of Angry who gets off the train.

27. Long shot of Clone 3 who gets off the train.

28. Long shot of Clone 4 who gets off the train.

29. Cut-in in low-angle shot of Clone 1 tapping out his oyster.

30. Cut-in in high-angle shot of Clone 2 tapping in his oyster.

31. Cut-in of Clone 3 tapping in his oyster.

32. Cut-in of Clone 4 tapping his oyster.

33. Long shot at a low-angle of Clone 1 walking out the station.

34. Long shot at a high-angle of Clone 2 who walks out the station.

35. Long shot of Clone 3 who walks out the station.

36. Long shot of Clone 2 who walks out the station.

Scene 3:

(Clone 4 arrives at a roundabout and at every direction he turns his head he see’s someone who looks identical to him.)

37. Mid shot of Clone 4 who looks confused after seeing Clone 3 first.

38. Cuts back into the face of Clone 4 who then see’s Clone 1

39. Close-up of Clone 4 who looks confused.

40. The last shot will see Clone four seeing the final clone, Clone 3.

Storyboard

Screen Play

Clone 1- Happy and Popular
Clone 2- Angry and Moody
Clone 3- Clever and quiet
Clone 4- No identity

Scene 1- Clone 1 will walk smugly down the stairs at Canonbury Station, with his headphones pumping full blast and a little grin on his face. Once he walks down the stairs Clone 1 will lean up against the tube shelter where he reads a text message he then laughs and smiles at the same time. (:e train will finally arrive where Clone 1 will allow all pedestrians leeway before he gets on himself.

(As this is happening the shots will cut between the 3 other clones)

We will then see the shot cut towards the next clone. Clone 2 acting angry and moody, this can be represented by his use of mise en scene as he has his hood up while also covering his face with a scarf. Clone 2 will walk out of a lift and will find somewhere isolated and quiet to sit down away from everyone else on the platform. Once the train arrives Clone 2 will barge everyone in his path to try and get onto the train first.

(In contrast the Clone 3 is in synchronised with Clones 1 and 2)

We see Clone 3 walking down a flight of stairs with his round glasses on and his button shirt up to his neck, he is also holding books in his hands which helps to convey his intellectual side.Clone 3 is then waiting for the train to come, as he tries to get on the train a pedestrian will knock all his items out his hand by accident and for this to happen he will miss his train. This will show the audience that he is a calamitous character and surrounded by contrasting society shown by the graffiti on the platform.

(The last clone will be cut between Clones 1, 2 and 3)

Lastly we will see Clone 4, Clone 4 will have no identity. As he walks down the stairs on to the platform he will look around looking quiet puzzled, constantly looking up at the train times because he has no idea where his heading. As he walks on to the platform and decides to sit down he is looking quiet lost and confused within himself.

(The last scene will see all four clones come together for the first time, but only one clone will realise this event)

The last scene will consist of all four clones together at one place, which will only be witnessed by one clone. The clone will come out from of a location which views a busy roundabout and at every point he looks he will see someone who looks identical to him, which will be clones 1, 2 and 3.

Title Sequence Analysis

Opening Sequence Analysis

View more presentations from CharlesDaGoon.

After watching the two title sequences, I-Robot and The 6th Day, we had to look at how the titles in the opening sequences were formatted.  Once we watched both of these films we could begin to structure our own titles, shown in the PowerPoint above.

Planning Titles

Titles are essential for the opening sequence of a film so they need to be created for our production also.
I think that a great way to incorporate titles in our film is to embed them into the scene to make it look like they are supposed to be there. Here are a few examples from another as media opening sequence I looked at that we could base our titles on:

Filming Re-Scheduled

Our group had originally planned to film on Sunday the 6th of February but because of recent weather conditions this would ruin the continuity of the film. Filming has been postponed untill the snow has melted.

Animatic

These are the initial thoughts on how we thought our opening sequence should look, a voiceover and background images are used to explain this.

The feedback we received for our animatic is found here, on team-mate Joshua Douglas' blog.

Past student example

I have looked at an opening sequence of a student from last year and for research purposes have analysed the mise en scene, editing, camera shots, titles and sound. I also looked at their concepts to see if they could be adapted to our own production.

The titles have font which is representative to their concept as the rugged edges of the letters help to convey the uncanny feel of the story and show that being “wheelchair bound” isn’t perfect.

The mise en scene here sees a match on action shot of someone in a wheelchair looking through a window at a happy couple walking along the street. The window seen in this shot helps to represent the barrier this character has with society as he is in a wheelchair. The high angle of the shot also helps to represent the despair the persona is feeling.

The framing in this medium two shot is done very well as the two characters are on the same level and the painting in the background helps to frame the shot brilliantly.

           

This shot is fast-forwarded in order to create a further sense of horror and helps to create the fear that the character is feeling as he washes the blood of his hands.