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R&P = 15
Production = 30
Evaluation = 8

Total = 53 D

Targets:
Evaluation activity 6 - images of the different technologies used and more specific detail about how you used each to contribute to the making of your opening 2 minutes (eg you talk about 'effects' in premier elements - what effects? What did you use?)
Complete activities 2 and 5

Evaluation Activity 7

my preliminary task:




My final film:




In my preliminary task, the camera work was very basic, using basic shot types. A couple of the shots didn't match up how I wanted them to (such as the match on action shot of the character walking through the door). This did affect the continuity of the film, as it doesn't flow fluently. The camera was hand held and quite unsteady, lowering the quality. I only used basic editing on the preliminary task, which involved simply putting the shots together ro make one solid production. No effects were used on my preliminary task, so it was a little raw and not as polished as it could have been.

My final media production had steadier camera work, even though it was still hand - held. There was more continuity with it compared to my preliminary task. I also learned how to use premiere elements properly, so used more editing, and played around with some effects. in the final production, we put music in and polished it up.

Evaluation Activity 6

I have used Blogger for all my media work and the lead up to my film, including props, costumes, treatment; anything that was important was posted on here. This was how I kept up to date with coursework and the planning in my film. My Evaluation activities will also be on here. Blogger was the centre of my film information as it had everything I needed on it so that I could constantly look at what I had already done and what I still had to do.

I  uploaded my final video to my Youtube account. It took a few attempts as my YouTube account crashed twice. However, it eventually came out ok and was able to be accessed through Youtube. This meant that anyone can access it, making it easier to be marked. Uploading it to YouTube also means that when it comes to evaluating, I have the tools to add annotations etc. to my final production.

 

I used Adobe Premier Elements rather movie maker to produce my film so that I had the option of using effects. There was an option of many effects from fade to black transitions, to blurring effects. I ended up using only one effect which is barley noticable when wathing the final film. This effect blurred a character slightly, so they weren't so clear to the audience. I did this to create a mystery of who or what it is. I also use a fade to black transition between the institution opening and the first shot of my film.

There were a few shots that I cut down  to the right length, or picked out bits from it to put together into one shot.  I tried to cut out any bits that didn't go as I wanted them, but there was one shot of my main character smiling when she shouldn't have. I couldn't cut this shot out as it made the continuity drop, as it looked like there was something missing.I also picked out certain parts of the soundtrack, that I then cut out to have under certain scenes, such as the creepy spoken section in the middle.

I played around with some of the effects such as blurs and transitions, but found that a lot of them wouldn't work with the shots. I also didn't want to use effects or transitions just for the sake of using them, as they wouldn't be effective or improve the production.

I would say that Premier elements is an good system to use as it is really easy, however, it did crash a few times, and failed to save some changes, meaning I had to repeat various cuts, effects etc, making the process longer than it should have been.

I used the school's computer to do all of my media work; all the research, planning, film and evaluation were done at school. I transfered all the filming from the camera to the computer to edit the footage. I found the school computer easy to use and it had the right programs on it to be able to edit and cut footage and music. I decided to use the school computer as I had easier access to it on a daily basis

This is the camera I used for the filming and it had a clear video image. The camera being light was easy to handle and we found no faults with the camera when using it. The camera was a suitable size and could film every shot we needed including a wide shot. The editing process for the camera was slow because I had a lot of high definition footage.

 

Evaluation Activity 4

The target audience for my film is females aged 15 -25. The reason they'd like my film is that it is a spiritual film, and isn't all about blood and gore. It emphasises a more emotional side of a horror film which draws young females in as it tends to be mainly women that are emotionally expressive.
I Also chose the main character to be a 15 year old girl, as this fits in with the target audience, and means they can relate to her character more.

The age certificate I chose aill also hep to attract my target audience as my age rating is a 15, which is the youngest age of my target audience. Also, most 15 year olds live with their parents and so it is likely that whole families will come and enjoy this film.

 

This is Jasmine Bridger, an 18 year old who is studying A level media. She loves all horror films and goes to the cinema about once a month. because she is a media student, she is critical about what she watches, so is good at picking out both good and bad point to almost any film. Her favourite director is Steven Spielberg,and her favourite actor is Daniel Radcliffe. She recently went to see The Woman In Black at the cinema, which stars Daniel Radcliffe.
Jasmine enjoys pop music and her favourite TV programm is Ghost Whisperer, suggesting she is already into some spiritual things.

This is Bekky Kirkup,an 18 year old currently working as a waitress.she also likes horrors, and Johnny Depp is her favourite actor. Her favourite director is Tim Burton for his often unusual films. Bekky is a film fanatic and so would want to watch the film as part of that, she used to be a media student, therefore she would lend a critical viewing approach. Her favourite genre of thriller, favourite director, and most recently viewed film at the cinema hints that she would enjoy a horror film.
Bekky likes alternative/rock music and ejoys watching Friends on TV.

Evalutaion Activity 3

<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/mGc3F9z0UXU" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Evaluation Activity 2

My character:Amber

 



character from Wrong Turn:

 

 

 





The similarities between my character and this character from Wrong Turn is that they are both female characters, which means that they both allow female audience members to relate to them.

However,they are used differently to attract different audiences. My film's target audience is young females aged 15-25, so my character is used in a way that attracts this particular audince. In contrast, Wrong Turn's target audience is mainly males, so the female character is used to attract a male dominated audience, but allow females to also relate to her.



A difference between my character and the character from Wrong Turn is the costumes. My character is wearing heavy clothing, such as the black hoodie and jacket, because the setting is a cold,snowy, winters day. In contrast, the other character is wearing a white vest top to match the setting of a hot,sunny summers day. 

Their roles differ too. My character is playing the part of a young girl visiting a relatives grave, and then getting spooked out by voices she's hearing. The character from Wrong Turn is facing being murdered by deformed, cannibalistic creatures, which is more serious than getting spooked.

Evaluation Activity 1

These are nine screengrabs of various shots in my opening 2 minutes.

The first screengrab is of the institution I chose to distribute my film. This is conventional of all film openings, as all films start with the production company(e.g. LionsGate, Twisted pictures, Universal etc.)

The second screengrab is a shot of the main character, and is how this character is introduced into the film. I chose to have her walk to a gravestone as this shows the setting, and that it is a horror film.

The third screengrab shows the genre through the use of location as it is a graveyard which suggests to the audience that danger could occur, which they expect in a horror.

the fourth, fifth and sixth screengrabs all show my character on her own, clearly representing that she's isolated and prone to danger. the fifth screengrab is a mid-shot of my character, highlighting that she is in a deserted graveyard.

the seventh screengrab is how my second character is introduced, made to look like she is following the main character. I chose to have a long-shot so the audience could only just see the character leaving them anticipating what they are about to do.
  
The eighth screengrab is a shot of the empty graveyard, where both characters have disappeared. This leaves the audience in suspense as they don't know where the characetrs have gone or what's happened, or might happen.

The ninth screengrab is the title I have chosen. EVP stands for Electronic Voice Phenomenon, which is basically voices of ghosts. I thought this was an appropriate title considering the genre of film and the ghostly speaking in the middle.

Final opening 2 Minutes

Casino Royale - Audience

How does Casino Royale appeal to it's target audience in The opening 2 minutes.

link to video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jJubOZLpp4A

Casino Royale appeals to it's target audience as it goes straight into a action scene, which is what the audience wants and enjoys. The use of violence and explosions make the film exciting to the typical James Bond fan, who enjoys the element of danger this imposes.

The use of violence and explosions is unlikely to appeal to elderly audiences and/or females and so the target audience is likely to be younger males.The characters are also both men, reflecting the male-dominant target audience. 

The opening is set in Madagascar and the use of a foreign country with a different ethnicity, religion etc. appeals to a Western audience, as does the use of a White hero and Black villain.
 
The fast music and fast-pace editing also portrays this danger element, and also the element of wonder as the audience doesn't yet know the outcome of this scene - does the villain get away or get caught?

Feedback

Research and Planning: Level 3 15/20
Proficient work on scripting and storyboarding
Time management is good
Proficient organisation of actors, locations, costumes and props
Proficient research into similar products and a potential target audience.
There is a good level of care in the presentation of research and planning

To progress to level 4, make sure you have explained how your research impacted your decisions (for example in your audience profile posts, explain how you intend to address the potential target audience in your opening 2 minutes). More audience profiling (like for 'White Noise') is needed.

Production: Level 2 34/60
There is a basic level of ability in the use of the following:
Using titles appropriately according to institutional conventions
Controlled use of camera, attention to framing, variety of shot types and attention to mise-en-scene
Using editing so that meaning is apparent to the viewer

And a proficient level of ability in using sound with images and editing appropriately for the task.

To improve, consider using a wider variety of shot types and the costume of the sinister character. There is also a moment when Amber looks directly into the camera.

sinister character - Pam

This is a picture of my mum who played the sinister entity in my film. I thought she would be good for the part as she does well at acting as realistically as she can, and I just thought she looked the part.

Script

I didn't write a full script for my film as there wasn't much talking in it. The only talking I had was a poem that my mum read out off camera, that was supposed to be a ghostly voice. The poem was written by my mum's boyfriend, who was also supposed to do a voice but it never happened. Below is the poem:

 

Be very careful where you tread
Don’t trample on the graves of dead
You can’t see us
But we see you

Eternally watching all that you do
Bring us flowers
Pay your respects
To rest in peace is all we expect
Dishonour our memory
Or disturb where we lay
You’ll live to regret it
‘Till your dying day.

Black Widow - soundtrack Research

Soundtrack research

I'm not exactly sure of what i'm looking for as my soundtrack, but i was thinking something along the lines of either subtle cello type sound or haunting synthesizers/piano/keyboards, again I don't want anything too in-your-face.



This is a track titled 'Black Widow', and came from a non-copyright music site (www.freeplaymusic.com). The reason I liked this piece is because it is quiet and subtle but still had a spooky quality to it. However, i'm not sure it will quite work as smoothly as something else for my own film.

Abandoned - Soundtrack Research

The track below is entitled 'Abandoned' and also came off of Freeplaymusic.com. The title appealed to me and  I find it quite a spooky track. I think it could work really work with my film as it is quiet but dark, and it just seems to have the right vibe to it.

Behind The Looking Glass - Soundtrack Research

This track is called 'Behind The Looking Glass' and is off freeplaymusic.com. This is again quite a subtle track and a real possiblity for my film.

Main Character - Amber

This is a picture of my sister, Amber, who played the main character in my film. I thought she would be good for the part of the girl, she has the innocent young girl type of appearance that I was looking for in my film. I also picked her as she is a good actor, who can act natural infront of a camera.



Conspiracy - Soundtrack Research

Dark Nightmare - Soundtrack Research

Demented Dreams - Soundtrack Research

Eerie Angel - Soundtrack Research

Final Sacrifice - Soundtrack Research

Haunted By Voices - Soundtrack Research

In Remembrance - Soundtrack Research

Legion - Soundtrack Research

Universe - Soundtrack Research

Animatic

This is my original animatic based around my original idea and location. When I was half way through the storyboard, I changed the location and therefore the film doesn't match the storyboard I have done.

I thought that I would start with a shot of the main character approaching the location, as this would set the scene for the audience. I also thought that zooming up on the cemetery gates, with the cemetery name carved into them would be a good effect, as the audience can put a name to the place.

In the following scene the camera zooms into a close up of a gravestone, and at that point you hear a ghostly male voice. The reason I chose to do this is because it links the voice to the gravestone, making it clear that it is something creepy and supernatural, rather than someone else in the cemetery.

The camera then pans around the cemetery, showing the audience that there is nothing there. This again enforces the thought of something paranormal going on.

I then chose to have a male voice saying one thing, while a female voice says something different. This gives the impression that there is more than one spirit focused on the main character. I used a male and female voice, rather than two male/female voices so that the audience can easily make a distinction between the two.

I decided to show some sort of phenomenon on camera, to keep the audience interested. It also give the audience an idea of what seems to be haunting the main character, and that it is something quite sinister that should probably be feared.

making our own soundtracks

Last week we had a lesson learning how to use Cubase to record our own music. We experimented with changing instruments and trying sound effects, such as gunshots and birds. I had fun messing around with the different instruments and found a few that I liked. There is a possibility of making my own soundtrack, although i may still use a non copyrighted one.

Change of location

Due to lack of time I have changed the location for my film from St. Peters church in Newdigate to Kensal Green Cemetery in West London. This is easier as we visit the cemetery every Saturday so don't have to go well out of our way. It is also a bigger cemetery that St Peters, and much older, with many spooky possible settings. However, kensal Green is a busier cemetery, but I'm hoping to go early to avoid many people who usually go in the afternoon.
                             

 

This is a picture of a small part of the cemetery, and from the graves you can tell how old it is. It makes for a very creepy setting.

This is the main pavement away from the chapel towards the back of the cemetery, and can be quite spooky when quiet.

 

 

 

 

This is an old catacomb to the north of the cemetery. Under the crumbling pavement is the catacomb where bodies are kept before burial or cremation. It is now overgrown and abandoned.

costumes - Ghost character

I have had to think very carefully about my actors costumes, as I have had several ideas and I need to pick the one best for the role and film.

One costume idea for my ghost character (my mum) was a victorian looking outfit, to reflect a different time period. This is common in films as ghosts are often thought of being mainly from victorian times and past eras. The trouble with this idea is actually getting a costume in the first place, and getting one that fits an adult.
                
  This would be the kind of dress I would like my actor wearing, as it is a traditional victorian dress that the audiece will immediatly recognise as a different era.   


The second idea I liked less but it was more likely to be used as we already had the items. I was going to have the actor wearing all black, a black hoodie or hodded jacket and have a scarf over her face. I would then put a blurring effect to distort the image. 

     

Costumes - main character

My main character is going to be wearing casual clothing, such as jeans and a rock-band hoodie(probably Disturbed). The reason I have chosen this is because in the film she has gone to visit someone's grave, which is something where casual clothing is realistic. Also, due to unfortunate circumstances I have fallen behind schedule and no don't have the time to find other clothing, so casuals is the easiest option.

Diary : 15/01/2013

Tuesday 15th January 2013

Today I created and uploaded 6 practice titles for my film, including my final decision. I need to finish my storyboard and make it into an animatic, as I am planning to film this weekend and begin editing next week. I still need to complete my soundtrack research, or make my own soundtrack, and upload my actors photos. I have now completed the costume research for my ghost character, and have nearly finished the costume research for my main character.

My Chosen Title

The film title I have decided on is EVP, because it is short and stands out, as well as being suitable for my story. I have decided to use the colour red for the title to stand out more.

practice Title 6: Gateways

The title 'Gateways' came from a book on Paranormal Phenomenon that i'm currently reading. The term refers to the possibility that there a spiritual gateways or doors between the world of the living and the land of the dead. Again, I thought this appropriate for my film as the cemetery is acting as this gateway in my opening two minutes.

Practice Title 5: Ghost Walking

The title 'Ghost Walking' was something I came up with one lunchtime and stuck in my head. I like it as it isn't an obvious title but i'm not sure it fits right with my film. I used the font 'Invite Engraved SF'.

Practice title 4: Haunted

This title originally came from a song title, but I thought it would be appropraite for my film where the character is literally going to be haunted. however, I didn't think it was a very creative title and it didn't appeal to me as some of the other's did. For this reason I probably won't use it. It was created with the font 'Engravers MT'.

Practice title 3: EVP

EVP is an abbreviation for Electronic Voice Phenomenon, which is when we pick up speech from the dead (spirits) with machines. I liked this title as it is appropriate for my story and is short to catch people's attention. This title was created with a font called 'Copperplate Gothic Bold' and is the title I will most probably use.

Practice Title 2: Sinister Spirits

This is the second title I came up with. I Played around with it a little more, even changing the spelling of the word 'Sinister' to 'Synister' for a different effect. Again I have done both in black and red.
Below is the title with the altered spelling:

Practice Title 1: Spiritually Sour

 

The title Spiritually Sour came to me during a Sociology lesson. I liked it because it's not too over-the-top scary but still has that spooky vibe to it. I have designed it in black and red, using the font 'Charlemagne Std'. Below is the red version of the title:

 

Diary - 08/01/2013

Tuesday 8th January 2013.

It is the second day back at school after the christmas holidays. I had originally planned to film over the first week of christmas (excluding christmas day and boxing day) but both my mum and sister came down with Norovirus. I then diecided to move it to the 2nd week, over my birthday and the weekend over my grandparents, who live nearer to the location. Unfortunately my mum came back down with something and spent most of the week in bed, meaning I had to play carer. Because of this I am having to film at weekends starting from 12th and 13th. As well as filming I am working on my storyboard/animatic, scripts and shot lists and uploading my already created practice titles.

Opening Title analysis

Below are the opening credits of House Of 1000 Corpses, a low budget horror movie directed by shock rocker Rob Zombie.

 The order of the credits is:

• film title
• actors names
• casted by...
• music by...
• costume design by...
• make up effects
• producers
• directors

 



The font Zombie has used for the credits is bold and draws your attention to them. He has used the colour red, as it is noticable and is connected with danger, suitable for a horror film. He has used quite a large font size, so that you immediately notice them.

In my own film I probably wont include all of these credits, just the main ones like main actors, directors and film Titles. Obviously I will also have production companies (Lionsgate & Twisted pictures). Also, I wont have all of my credits rolling over the background film. My Production logos will be on their own, as will the directors name, but the characters will probably appear as the films playing.