Tuesday, 22 March 2016

Task 10: Foundation Portfolio Evaluation

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

We decided to create a Thriller, as we thought that it would appeal to more people our age. Thinking about the key convention of a Thriller, we included the use of shadows on black and white shots, with music that creates tension. There's changes in the angle of the camera shots that give the viewers different perspectives of both characters. We challenged the conventions by having a homosexual male antagonist, however his identity was known in the opening sequence, which follows the conventions of a thriller, as it shows the connection between both the antagonist and the protagonist - who is a stereotypical white male american. The Threshold video effect to not fully reveal the identity of the characters, to add mystery to the plot.

How does your media product represent particular social groups? 
Our opening sequence represents particular social groups in the style of Regional identity and Sexuality. The protagonist is American which is noticeable by his accent, whereas the antagonist who follows the name 'Malcolm', is british. This kind of mixes the stereotypical conventions of a thriller, because they are normally either completely American, or British, not a mixture of them both. The social class of both of the Antagonist, and Protagonist is unknown to the viewer as we haven't really made it clear as to what class they are, however looking at the mis-en-scene within the opening scene, it could be suggesting that both characters are middle class from the clothing that they wear.

What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?
In the UK, thrillers could be distributed by companies such as Metrodome which uses the microwave scheme, which gives small british films a chance to be produced with a budget of one hundred thousand pounds, however the producers only have a maximum of eighteen days for production. This would be ideal for our thriller as it is made within the UK with low funds. This would also be good advertisement as the company is known so it would help to get ghe word out about our media product.

Who would be the audience for your media product?
Our media production appeals to teenagers and young adults of all genders. We think it would appeal to the younger generation because they seek adrenaline through things like movies and TV pro gramme's. Thrillers are normally viewed by teenagers as its almost like a sense of 'rebellion'. The mystery in Thrillers drives younger audiences to pursue answers, only to answer later in the film. The opening sequence doesn't explicitly contain scenes or foul language, or scenes, so it wouldn't be an 18. It would have an age rating, however it wouldn't be a U, because it could be seen as too graphic for younger children, with the idea of gun shots, the minimum it would be classified as is PG, maybe a 12.

How did you attract/address your audience?
To attract our target audience, teenagers and young adults, we had to produce a opening sequence which would keep the target audience engaged. As we are teenagers as well, we know first hand what teenagers like in a thriller film, everyone enjoys different features, so we know we have to incorporate the stereotypical conventions of a thriller to keep them hooked. By changing the conventions, and having a homosexual male antagonist, this could appeal to more people as it shows variety in the opening sequence to extend our target audience. In terms of marketing, the best option would be to advertise the film on social media as it is widely used by teenagers and younger adults meaning the film would be shared globally. Another idea would be to advertise on TV and on billboards or ask local radio stations to vary the audience, as some adults could be interested.

What have you learned about technologies from the process of constructing this product?
Whilst filming our opening sequence we further understood how variety in camera angles within shots made a big difference in quality to the final product. We used SONY HD cameras to film our work. We also edited the opening sequence on Adobe Premiere CS5 which allowed us to experiment with different editing tools to improve our outcome. By having the freedom to edit, we decided to use the Threshold filter, which transformed our film into a black and white sequence, which now has the characteristics of a film noir. Previously we were aware of the Adobe Premiere functions, but we can now use it more confidently. In some of the shots that we took, we did break some of the camera rules, like the 180 degree rule, which we had to cut, so in future media products, we have learnt that we need to watch what we are doing more.

Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product?
when looking back at our preliminary task, we feel like we have became more confident in Adobe Premiere CS5, and using the Sony HD Camera's. We've also became more aware of the rules when it comes to recording a sequence. We have also took the acting sides, more serious. After completing the preliminary task, we also realized that we thought to much into the storylines, and the simpler story lines seemed to work out better.

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