EVALUATION

FINAL EVALUATION OF MY FILM

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

My media product challenges the forms and conventions or a real media product in various ways. I wanted to make my product ‘film’ to be different to your everyday film and stick out to the audience from other films. There were a variety of different techniques that I used in which to do this. Most typical films these days are in colour because we now have the technology to film footage on a video camera in colour. I wanted to change my film to be in black and white to standout, also changing my film to black and white added to the strange, mysterious and puzzling plot.

It was a struggle to make my film standout a lot because the plot was nothing amazing but in some ways this was good because it brought the audience away from a typical film plot and made them concentrate more on what is happening with the character and what they could be feeling. In some ways I wanted my audience to watch the start of my film and be baffled and wonder what is going on, making my audience feel this way would make them want to carry on watching the film to find out what is actually happening.

When filming the footage I decided to stick to the forms and conventions of a film. I filmed my footage from various angles and levels, making various different clips to find which would be the best shot for each part in my film, the shots I used ranged from a close-up shot to a POV shot. I also made sure I did not break the 180-degree rule; I made sure I filmed everything from one side. I also included shot/reverse shot in my film for conversation, to make my film different I used shot/reverse shot even though there was only one character on screen but two people speaking, and switched to different shots for each time each person spoke.

The music in my film is like most other typical films with intro music over the credits/titles to make it more interesting. The music I used was played on a piano and was put over the credits at the start to open the film and then re-used at the end of the film after the girl hangs herself but the pitch of the piano/tune is a lot lower, this helps set the mood because it is a familiar tune to the audience because it was used at the start and having it in a lower pitch sets a more upsetting atmosphere, which goes with the hanging of the girl.

With the music/soundtrack in the film I wanted to make the audience sort of get a little bit freaked out by the girl crying at the start and the annoying metronome sound/beat in the background of the clips at the start. This also made my film different to most other films because it was trying to mess with the audience’s minds whilst still trying to make them watch on and be entertained.

My film used the forms and conventions of a real film with the credits having them at the beginning and the opening titles; this made the audience know who made and directed the film and who was going to be staring in it. It also stuck to the forms and conventions when having the title come in after around two minutes of footage, showing the audience the name of the film they are about to watch.

• How does your media product represent particular social groups?

My media product represents no particular social group in general but would most likely represent teenagers or is trying to at least leave teenagers with a message after watching the film. The film shows a sixteen-year-old girl who has OCD, she is shown as any other girl her age wearing the same sort of clothes and living the same sort of life but the only difference is her mental disorder of OCD obsessive-compulsive disorder.

I wanted people to feel sorry for the character and think about how life must be with a mental problem like hers. Through the film she looks and acts very similar to most teenagers and the only things she does differently is because of her disorder. I wanted her to represent an everyday teenager and the audience not to look properly into the disorder and just see her the same as everyone else. 

It does not represent either higher or lower class people in any way, it is just meant to be an average sixteen-year-old middle class girl. The film can really be for anyone to watch but is aimed more toward people sixteen or older, so someone like the character because they would hopefully be able to understand the hidden meanings of the film more than the younger generation and on top of that the person in the film relates to them in some ways because the people watching it are from the same age as her.

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

Most film institutions in the UK could distribute my media product or America or any English speaking places in the world. The film would not be distributed to places, which didn’t speak English because my film is in English and it doesn’t have subtitles. The film could when fully made be put in cinemas around the world and shown to people 16+ in age this would make people know of the film and it would spread by word about the film.

If the film is a hit at the cinemas it would be easier to sell the film to TV channels to be broadcasted on television. The channel’s it would most likely be shown on would be things like Discovery Channel and Sky Movies and BBC programmes. It would suit the Discovery Channel or any documentary channels because it is about a serious mental disorder, which affects many people. Other channels like BBC and Sky movies would show it because they know it was good in the cinemas and know they could get more people watching there channels is they show it because people most likely would like it and would make them money.

After showing it at the cinemas it could also be put onto DVD and sold in shops, it would be sold in most electronic shops like HMV and Virgin.

I think that any media institution which wants to educate and entertain there audience would want to distribute my media product because it is different to every other typical film. I also think that media institutions that like things that are different would buy and distribute my product. A media institution/film company, which would be interested in my product and might distribute it, could be Warner Bros Pictures or Universal Studios because they are big worldwide major media companies who would be able to distribute the film all over the world. It could even be distributed by smaller independent film companies like Village Roadshow Pictures which has be known to do more serious films like ‘Training Day’, which would suit my film because my film is on a serious topic.

• Who would be the audience for your media product?

My film rating will be 15 because of violence and disturbing images. It will be for both sexes and for people in any class, so you don’t have to be posh to watch. It would be for people who spoke or understand English, so would be distributed in the UK and in USA and others places which spoke an English type language. My film would have to be advertised on TV, on the Radio and in magazines like FHM or Heat or in newspapers like The Sun and other magazines and newspapers like it. I would get my distributor/ a major film company like Universal Studios to distribute and advertise my product to bring the audience in to coming to watch it.

• How did you attract/address your audience?

I attracted and addressed my audience using a range of different techniques. Firstly I brought the attention of my audience in with my opening credits and titles, I used a black and white colour flow effects on the words and I also used an interesting font because it looks good and made the audience want to watch the rest of the film because if the credits look good then the film will probably look good/ be good too.

The music at the start of the film was used because the film/credits/titles looked good but it just needed the music to make it sound good as well. The tune of the music was appealing; this also helped attract my audience. The music from the start is used again later in the film at the end this was recognised by the audience and it helped address them.

Throughout the film the plot has been done to make the audience wonder what is happening, up until the end nobody knows what is happening, so people want to keep watching because they are in question of what is happening and want to know. The end is were it really grabs the attention of the audience because up until the girl hanging herself nothing is happening, and when she does hang herself its so sudden and unpredictable.  

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

From the process of constructing my film I learnt various things to do with the technologies needed when making and editing a film. When filming I learnt how to use a video camera properly, getting everything right with focus and zoom etc so the footage I capture is prefect and easy to edit. I also learnt how to find the best shot and what looks good and what doesn’t, I made sure every shot looked prefect weather it be a long shot or a POV shot.

When editing the film I learnt that editing is a process of skilful selection and that I needed to make sure I chose the best looking shot/angle for each clip. On a Apple Mac I edited the footage I captured using the programme iMovie, I had to learn how to cut out un-needed parts of footage, add music, add transitions, add titles and credits and whilst doing this I had to make sure it looked good. I also learnt how to use the program GarageBand on the Apple Mac because I needed to find music I needed and record sounds and voice over I needed for the film too.           

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

From looking back at my preliminary task, I have realised I learnt a lot about the selection of camera shots and camera angles and how different shots and angles can bring a whole different perspective to the final film outcome. Each shot has to be prefect to get what you want out of your film. I have also learnt how to use both iMovie and GarageBand to its full with making and editing films and making and recording music. On the whole I have learnt how to make a film.

•What would you do if you did it again?

If I were to do my film again I would do everything the same except for I would try a totally different genre and make my film a lot more upbeat and fun. I would most likely do a comedy film; it would also be nice to try something new.