2. IN WHAT WAYS DOES YOUR MEDIA PRODUCT USE, DEVELOP OR
CHALLENGE FORMS AND CONVENTIONS OF REAL MEDIA PRODUCTS?
MISE-EN-SCENE The props we used were very conventional in
psychological horror films. This mask for example, is very similar
to those worn in The Strangers (Bertino, 2008). Also, our choice of
weaponry consisted of the usual blunt metal objects making them
conventional. Our choice of location being an old abandoned caravan
was iconic of horror, as it displayed the same worn, overgrown
location found in many horrors. SOUND The backing track, When I
Paint My Masterpiece, is generally unconventional of horror in that
its cheerful and vibrant. We did this to contrast the horror and
gore of the sequence with a sense of cheerfulness to create irony.
The non-diegetic sound effects and drones we used were
conventional. For example the sharp screech heard in the flashbacks
offers a very unsettling, visceral feeling, similar to those found
in the American Horror Story opening. CAMERA ANGLE/MOVEMENT Many of
our shots were similar to those found in various other horror
films. A good example would be the tracking shot along the objects,
which adds to the old context and overall atmosphere, as well as
the canted angle shot of the cupboards which appears disjointed and
uncomfortable. The majority of our shots were straight forward with
film productions in general, including a variety of stills, low
angled and high angled shots and a POV. EDITING Our editing
consisted of varying transition frequencies that make it
conventional of horror. For example, at the beginning where there
lacks any true form of horror, the pace Is slow, and as the horror
is introduced the shot transitions become more frequent building up
tension and hysteria. The use of our shot reverse shot is also
vital in showing the reaction shot, as in every horror movie the
reaction shot provides a basis for the way in which the audience
follow the tone.
3. The way in which we presented our characters was
conventional of horror films. For example, Harry being portrayed as
a lost hitchhiker finding refuge in the caravan. This is iconic as
the victim is oblivious to the danger of his life. This is
comparable to Friday The 13th where a group of young adults camp in
a lake inhabited by a crazed killer, similar to Harry finding
refuge in the caravan, only to be murdered. The antagonist is also
presented in a conventional fashion, despite only possessing
minimal screen time. For example, when the antagonist appears in
various shots, for a small only a few seconds (the shots shown
below, where the antagonist swiftly walks past the translucent
window). All of these features mentioned previously, conform to
both conventional methods of horror film production as well as the
occasional aspect unique to our sequence such as the plot. The
effect of this is a professional sequence that possesses both
techniques used conventionally as well as personal aspects,
unmatchable in any other production. The way we established enigma
in the film sequence was primarily through the use of the
flashbacks revealing the events that took place in the caravan in
the previous years. We accomplished this with the use of post
production special effects, such as the sharp sound prompted at the
start of each flashback, individualizing them to the audience, as
well as the green filter we used. All of this as well as the fake
blood and tools we used contributed to setting the scene and the
mysterious atmosphere.
4. HOW DOES YOUR OPENING CONFORM OR CHALLENGE THE CONVENTIONS
OF PSYCHOLOGICAL HORROR? We chose psychological horror as a result
of its unique style, and often thought provoking plots that require
thought and understanding, such as the film mentioned before:
Se7en, which follows a series of murders linked with the 7 deadly
sins of Christianity. Other psychological horrors that follow this
method of representation for the antagonist is Scream (left image).
The victim is presented in a casual way, possessing nothing unique
about him. This could also be seen as a conventional representation
as it makes the character more relatable, and therefore an
emotional attachment can be made with the victim. The character of
the antagonist for example, is presented conventionally for
psychological horror. He is shown with an expressionless mask and
dark clothing. This appearance signifies mystery and makes it
challenging for the audience to relate to him, creating a sense of
distance.
5. EDITING The editing side of the film sequence is fairly
basic. The sequence possesses a consistent pattern throughout,
often to show the victim walking up to an object, then the
flashback, then the reaction shot of the victim. This style repeats
with every object the victim picks up in the caravan or the rooms
he walks into. This style of editing creates tension leading up to
the victims death. The sequences screenshots below is an example of
the pattern we followed. This combined with the increased number of
camera transactions increases tension at the various points of
horror throughout. This is also notable at times where there is no
horror on screen, where the shot transactions become less frequent.
This style of editing conforms to psychological horror, as it
always refers back to the character and also works parallel in
creating tension through speed and on screen action. CAMERA WORK In
our sequence, we included a large variety of shots. For example,
canted angle shot, POV shot and pan and tracking shots. The
tracking shots were vital in setting the scene in just one shot,
revealing the setting in one camera motion. These shots followed
the same manor as seen in other psychologically based horror films.
It proved challenging to gather shots that set our sequence apart
from the majority of other horror films as they all follow the same
style of filming. Some of our shots were very professional despite
being improvised on the day of filming, such as the pull focus shot
and the track along the small objects. These shots were ideal for
integrating titles in with them. This shot on the right for
example, allows the audience to identify the significance of this
object.
6. HOW DOES YOUR MEDIA PRODUCT REPRESENT PARTICULAR SOCIAL
GROUPS? Our antagonist could be interpreted as being mentally ill
through his mannerisms and the fact hes killing and torturing for
no apparent reason. This could be reinforcing the dominant
stereotype of people with a disability being capable of displaying
the same amount of strength and power. However, this also could be
interpreted as the antagonist killing as a result of a mental
disability, so is therefore an example of binary opposition. The
fact that the antagonist in our sequence is male, reinforces the
residual stereotype of a man always being the inflictor of harm or
the murderer. This may be because men are seen as more powerful
figures physically. This is further emphasized through the fact we
see a male character hiking through the woods, which is also
dominant of the residual stereotype that men are generally more
capable of certain physical activities.
7. The characters that are shown in the sequence include Harry
(hiker) and myself (masked man). Harry was represented as a young
male, and little else is given away through what we filmed. The
antagonist is wearing a mask so again, little is given away in
regards to both characters social status, sexual orientation or
whether they possess any form of disability. However there are
aspects of the characters actions that point to certain
stereotypical characteristics. Our sequence is an all-male cast.
this therefore reinforces the residual stereotype of men being seen
as more powerful and intimidating than females. For example, the
body language of the antagonist is reminiscent of the antagonist
from The Strangers through the way he tilts his head as though
innocent and confused.
8. Our film may attract the attention of an independent
distributor, such as Vertigo Films. In the past Vertigo Films has
distributed films such as Monsters, which, similarly with our film
sequence, had an extremely low budget, but nevertheless proved
successful. Furthermore, likewise with our films production Vertigo
Films is based in the UK, which could potentially save cost in
transportation, which would prove vital for a film production
running on such a small budget. Furthermore, Vertigo Films in the
past, has distributed lower budget film productions in new
innovative ways, for example Street Dance 3D where they synergised
with the Britains Got Talent app in a successful attempt to appeal
to their key psychographic, in which a 30 second advertisement was
played to each viewer at a when the app was no. 1 on the app store.
This method appealed to a large scale concentrated audience.
Vertigo Films could adopt this method of distribution, as it is
effective yet the expense will be far lower, rather than an
advertising slot on a prime time television network, yet
potentially result in a similar or perhaps even greater outcome in
terms of the distributing the film to a large audience
successfully.
9. WOULD YOU CONSIDER YOUR WORK TO BE IN THE STYLE OF AN
INDEPENDENT FILM OR WOULD IT BE PRODUCED AS PART OF AN INDUSTRIAL
MODEL? Our production is more reflective of the independent style
of film making, as opposed to industrial. In comparison to other
independent films such as Monsters (Edwards, 2010), The Premonition
is similar in terms of production. Monsters was shot in a guerrilla
style of filming, where the scripts were mostly improvised and the
extras were just hired pedestrians on the street. Likewise with our
production, many of the shots included were conjured on the day of
filming. Independent films also tend to have much smaller budgets.
For example, A Field In England (Wheatley, 2013) was shot entirely
on a 300,000 budget, making it miniscule compared to an industrial
production, for example, Prometheus (Scott, 2012) which shot on a
budget of $140 million. Our film production was shot on a minute
budget, so an independent distribution company is far more likely
to show interest in it rather than an industrial conglomerate.
10. Q4/Q5. Who would be the audience for your media product?
How did you attract/address your audience? Throughout the process,
we tested our concept on our audience. This featured our initial
research in which we tested our audience using a questionnaire
which featured a series of closed and open questions. From this
initial research, we discovered that an abandoned location would be
very effective, as the majority of our audience stated that it
would be the most conventional of horror. We also used a 1-10 scale
styled question, in which the audience circle the number they feel
most appropriate. For example: This particular question was very
useful as it gave us an idea as to the most conventional stock
character for our clip. From this question, we discovered that the
character would definitely have to be young and vulnerable, though
the sex was a less important matter. Therefore, we came up with
Darren, a young, vulnerable male, conventional of horror. We also
tested possible names in a fixed question format. Initial Audience
Questionnaire Initial Audience Questionnaire II
11. Our core audience is the 15-24 demographic, this is because
the horror genre is intrinsically aimed at a younger audience as
this age group enjoy the gore and scares which are evident
throughout. The characters appeal to this target audience as Darren
fits in with the age demographic due to being a young male around
the age of 16/17. This creates verisimilitude for the audience as
they feel that this could happen to them which creates an enigma
and a social currency. Despite this, after choosing hysteria, we
thought that the name the premonition was much more suited to our
piece. This is because the word premonition means to see something
before your eyes. Below you can see the question we originally
asked, however, nearer the time, we realized hysteria didnt really
fit with our piece, and premonition is far more suitable. Target
Audience Initial Audience Questionnaire III
12. Additionally, people thought our location was perfect,
saying the caravans dingy, dull and abandoned look created a more
visceral experience for most people and believed that its small,
confined space actually contributed to build enigma. A few people
thought the continuity of our sequence could be improved, saying
that providing more shots with movement of our protagonist should
be added to make our sequence just that little bit better. Another
strength included the high quality resolution of the picture and
audiences believed that this made the sequence seem like an actual
film. Also, some of our audience stated that they were unsure as to
whether Darren should been killed or whether we should have left it
as a mystery to build up a further suspense.
13. From our audience testing many people liked the use of our
soundtrack, saying it fits well with the visuals and the high
pitched, discordant sounds of the flashbacks were very effective in
creating a sinister, scary feeling about the piece which shocked
audiences (this was the effect we wanted to create). Some people
thought that a couple of the shots looked a little bit shaky, which
did not fit as well with the piece as it should. As soon as we
received this feedback, we tried very hard to alter the graininess
of the image and change the colour to create a contrasting look to
the normal shots. Audiences also thought our camera work was
excellent, especially the frequent short and long tracking shots
which revealed various props as well as our protagonist in the
sequence. They also liked the use of pull focus shots and canted
angle shots, saying it made the piece more professional and more
fitting to our thriller/horror genre. One person thought that the
edited effects and composition of the flashbacks did not look very
effective, that our group should improve the look of these
flashbacks to make it more clear and sinister.
14. Q4/Q5. Audience Final Cut Questionnaire Results 1. Did you
understand what was going on in the opening? In terms of our
results for this first question, we are very happy. I say this
because out of our 10 respondents, 6 said they understood the plot
completely and 4 said they understood the plot mostly. This shows
that our plot is very coherent. 2. What genre would you class this
film as? Again, we are very pleased with these results. This is
because 70% of our respondents thought that it was clearly a horror
genre, which shows that on the whole we have succeeded creating a
horror opening.
15. 4. Do you think that in the opening the protagonist
shouldve died? 6. On a scale of 1-10 how tense did you find the
opening? (1- being not tense 10- being very tense) This chart shows
that the majority of our respondents thought that the protagonist
shouldve been killed, this is good for us as we were unsure whether
to not kill the protagonist and leave a cliff-hanger. We are
pleased with the results from this question as 60% felt that our
clip was an 8+ out of 10 in terms of tension which shows that our
clip was effective in terms of building up suspense.
16. They both felt that our flashbacks were extremely effective
yet felt that we may have done more with the sound in terms of a
sound mix to build tension and create a sense of eeriness which is
typical of horror films. Overall, we were pleased with this
response, though, as a group we were pleased with the soundtrack we
used. This is because we deliberately used the soundtrack to pose a
contrast to the general mood of the clip. In this short video,
features two people inside our age demographic (15-24) whom are
commenting on the strengths and weaknesses of our clip after seeing
our final cut at the advanced screening. Vox-pop clip Summary of
Clip
17. 9. How many flashbacks were there? This question was more
to see if our audience were paying attention. As there were indeed
5 flashbacks, it shows that on the most-part, our audience were
paying attention meaning the other answers will be valid. 11. Do
you think our use of font was suitable? This another encouraging
result. I say this because 80% of our respondents felt that our
font was suitable. Considering we changed our font rather close to
the deadline, it was very pleasing to see this.
18. 3. Which part of the opening couldve been improved? For
this question, we had a varied response. Some stated that the sound
couldve been improved in terms of a sound mix and others stated
that the build-up of tension couldve been enhanced. In our own
opinion, we thought the soundtrack was very effective as it created
a contrast to the general mood of the clip. 5. Was the opening
generally entertaining? If so, why? Again, for this question, there
were a wide array of answers, some stated the soundtrack made it
entertaining, some said it was so because of the diegetic sound. On
the whole, the most popular answer for this question was the
flashbacks.
19. 7. Would you recommend the film to others? For this
question, we was looking for a fixed answer of yes or no.
Encouragingly, 100% of our respondents stated that they would
recommend the film. 8. Did you understand the use of flashbacks?
This was also a very promising result, 90% of our respondents
understood the use of flashbacks in our clip, which was to
evidently show the caravan to have a past in terms of murder and
torture, therefore this was a very heartening result for us.
20. WHAT MIGHT BE THEIR STRATEGY IN CONNECTING YOUR FILM TO AN
AUDIENCE? Vertigo Films could replicate the same methods of
distribution used for Street Dance 3D with our film opening. This
could be done through social media or through mobile applications,
allowing us to direct advertising at our key demographic. For
example, through various applications that follow the same theme of
horror as our production, appealing to the audience most likely to
be interested in our film. Vertigo Films could also utilise a multi
platform release. This technique was used by Film4 Productions for
A Field in England (Wheatley, 2013). Film4 Productions launched a
first ever platform release of A Field in England in 2013,
simultaneously on DVD, Blu-ray and in cinemas as well as available
to stream on the channel 4 website. This blanket release created
mass publicity for a low budget film. An extremely successful
distribution technique used was by 20th Century Fox for Prometheus
(Scott, 2012). This utilised Web 2.0 in the form of social media
and web pages to raise publicity for Prometheus. Another aspect of
Web 2.0 was the TED Talk featuring Peter Weyland, giving subtle
context to the film. Another potential method could be through
synergistic promotional activity.
21. WHAT WE HAVE YOU LEARNT ABOUT TECHNOLOGIES FROM THE PROCESS
OF CONSTRUCTING OUR PRODUCT Through constructing our film sequence,
we had to make use of both software and hardware alike, as well as
technical equipment used to actually film our sequence and upload
it. This included the following: We used a group members DSLR
Cannon EOS 600D camera, which offered excellent resolution and easy
controllable zoom. It also proved easy to review footage and mount.
We used a track and dolly on 2 shots. It required assembly on
sight, and stabilizing to make sure the camera dolly rolled
smoothly over the track. The tripod rests on the dolly. This is the
tripod used to stabilize and produce still shots. The legs are
adjustable, and the mount has 360 degree rotation so we could
create smooth panning shots. This is an SD card reader which is
vital for uploading footage onto the computer for editing. This was
simple to use, and connected directly to the editing computer via
USB port.
22. Through the process of completing our film sequence, we
were required to make use of a variety of software. For example,
Blogger. We learned how to create a blog in a group effectively
through Blogger, where most of our research into aspects of the
media, and analysis of film sequences can be found. This proved
extremely useful for our final opening sequence. Another online
tool we used was YouTube. YouTube enabled us to upload videos and
then transfer them to our blog. This was also useful for receiving
feedback on all of our filming tasks that were carried out. For
this we used the Google account previously used for our blog,
where, from Adobe Premiere, we could upload films onto YouTube.
Adobe Premiere Elements was used for the editing of all our videos,
and perhaps required the most amount of skill and thought to do so.
Every single video required editing, and this included image
filters that can be seen on each of the flashbacks in the final
piece, cropping clips, typography and non-diegetic sound effects,
to name a few. All these elements can be controlled as well.
23. Sound The main steps to installing our sounds is first of
all downloading the sound. Then saving it to the Data Disk,
clicking Get Media in premiere and inserting the sound that had
been previously downloaded and saved into our files from
Freesound.org. Once this has been imported, you can drag the sound
into the timeline in the soundtrack section. Here are a few of the
sounds we liked: Lighting Limitations We had very few problems in
terms of lighting restrictions. This is because in our shoots, we
were very lucky that the weather was no different to the shoots
before. Also, inside the caravan, it is very dim anyway and
therefore, lighting was not a difficulty. The bigger problem was
the size of the caravan as it tiny and therefore it was a test to
move the camera around effectively.
24. Filming process Our film process began with the camera,
owned by a group member- Tom. We used a Canon DSLR camera. This
camera was more advanced than the standard Panasonic HDC 10
distributed to students by the school. As a result, our footage
looked much better than the other cameras available to us. Also, we
could apply the pull- focus to increase the quality of our shots,
this is evident in the shot where the focus is on the nail and then
switches focus to Darren as he walks closer. This was made easier
through the easily adjustable lense that we attached to the camera;
a feature not available to us on the Panasonic HDC 10 Challenges In
previous shoots, we had trouble with the track and dolly in terms
of the stability of the shot. This time around, it was a superior
challenge as for multiple camera shots, the track was located on
uneven grass. Therefore, prior to taking the shots, we removed
anything that would cause a jolt in the shot and managed to shoot
successfully. We overcame this issue through stabilising the shot
in post- production using Adobe Elements Premiere. Also, the pull
focus previously mentioned proved challenging to do while at the
same time keeping the camera steady as to not ruin the effect of
the shot.
25. Typography At first, we used a font named Cold Night For
Alligators. However, we felt that this particular font was more
conventional of a slasher horror film as opposed to a psychological
horror film. As a result, we then decided against this font, and
used a more ordinary yet effective font which is associated more
with a psychological horror genre. The comparison also proved to
satisfy our audience, through our research. Filming/Shots As a
group we are very pleased with the footage we captured on the Canon
DSLR camera, our clip features an array of tracking shots, POV
shots and high/low angle shots. The POV shots are conventional of
horror as the audience view the action through the eyes of the
protagonist. In terms of our titles, we took positioning into
consideration as it is vital to have the titles at the forefront of
the frame. Evidence of effective positioning is evident in the
tracking shot alongside the caravan. COLD NIGHT FOR ALLIGATORS NEW
STANDARDISED FONT THIS FONT ALSO MATCHED FONTS USED FOR THE
CAST
26. LOOKING BACK AT YOUR PRELIMINARY TASK, WHAT DO YOU FEEL YOU
HAVE LEARNT IN THE PREOGRESSION FROM IT TO THE FULL PRODUCT?
27. PLOT Our plot is both unique in many aspects, and in others
very conventional. For example, the general idea is that a lost
hiker, Darren, stumbles across an abandoned caravan to take refuge
and ends up being killed by a crazed, lurking killer. This is very
conventional of horror, for example Friday the 13th where the teens
camp at a lake inhabited by a Jason who later kills every single
person. Despite this, the way in which we delivered the plot was
unique and unseen before in any major film sequence. This was
achieved through concentrating primarily on the objects around the
caravan and how each one possesses a past linked with brutal
murders. This immediately sets the scene for Darren's future, of
imminent death.