Films such as ‘See no Evil’ ‘Along Came A Spider’ and ‘Disturbia’ influenced the ideas for our sequence as well as the synopsis, it also demonstrated our use of conventions throughout our film. For example; the use of mirrors, angles, pace of shots and music/sounds. Our film (Justified Revenge) is a psychological/crime thriller that uses many conventions which support those of a typical thriller. Certain shots such as extreme close ups are used to illustrate this, showing reactions and body language helps the viewer aware of every detail as if they were there in this fictional world. The sound is deliberately slow paced which builds up to a fast paced beat to create a sense of enigma and in general more impact when the victim is found in the murderers boot of his car.
Originally, the lighting was not intended to be in the day, however we found that it added to the misinterpreted identity the main character carries with him throughout the film. It is initially used to 'fool' viewers into believing that the main character is a normal person in touch with everyday life; this in turn will help the viewers understand how the rest of the characters in the film are so easily unaware of the killers double life by the facade he manages to keeps up.
The use of conventions was vital in this production as it gave the sequence more body, by emphasising the impact of facial expressions and body language to make it more realistic to the audience.
A number of mistakes were made throughout the production, for instance, contiguity was broken on a number of occasions, which led to a second filming. The sound was at times too loud or too quiet, or their were a lot of interferences from people passing by or driving past.
Although there were many mistakes made, our group improved from these; especially after filming the preliminary task. our group was able to get an idea of the types of shots we wanted, and how we could get them by readjusting the tripod and camera.
Question 2 – How does your media product represent particular social groups?
In the film the main character is stereotyped as being a religious man of value, with a friendly, charismatic personality; which is what the audience would expect. The male plays a dominant superior role which is shown in everyday life, as men are perceived as being the strong, aggressive type. In contrast, the female who plays the victim is represented as passive, timid and vulnerable, which the audience are more likely to agree with as it fits the typical stereotypes of men and women.
Both the characters are from the middle class as they are both dressed well. The murderer wears a suit which demonstrates this as well as pointing out that he has a certain amount of pride as he makes himself more presentable in the car by looking into the mirror of the car; this would challenge the stereotype of a religious man, as we would assume as the audience that a religious man would not be this concerned about his appearance.
The victim is dressed in young clothes, she also has a young face suggesting she is a teenager. The sequence shows her tied up in bin liner with her mouth tied up, as she is completely defenseless, this supports the stereotype of women being the 'damsel in distress'.
The audience would be able to relate to his as the victims are all teenagers, therefore this similarity is more likely to have an impact on the viewer.
Other thrillers show these stereotypes such as, 'Disturbia' which ties in very closely with the whole idea of the main character being a male is misinterpreted by his neigh-bours, as he also has a double life and fools everyone. 'See No Evil' has an opening, that shows religious symbols everywhere in a house where victims are tortured, this suggests that the murderer is a fundamentalist who kills only because he thinks it is the righteous thing to do. In 'Along Came a Spider' the victim is a girl who is kidnapped.
Question 3 – What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?
'Justified Revenge' has a good story line as it reflects similar aspects from other films such as 'Along Came a Spider' where the detective plays a major role in the film. Likewise our film has an detective who is yet to be introduced. These similar aspects means that the idea is not original therefore this media product is unlikely to be produced in a hollywood studio, but more likely to be an art house production, which means that the film will be produced independently however these films are more likely to be aimed at a niche audience rather then a mass audience. Therefore, it may be more suitable for the film to be internet released which is aimed to a wider audience.
Question 4 – What would be the audience for your media product?
The film is aimed to an audience who is 15+, for that reason, it includes specific footage and a story line that the age group can relate to, making it more interesting to the target audience.
Franchising this media product would include advertising the film to franchisers so they can franchise the film with modifications; if this was the case, 'Justified Revenge' may possibly be a better film if it was produced professionally.
The target audience is of 15 - 45 years old. In order to maintain a meaning that would appeal to the audience whilst filming and editing, certain pre-production plans had to be made, a results of this meant contiguity was crucial.
Question 5 – How did you attract/address your audience?
During the rehearsal, we decided to take a number of pictures to get a rough idea of what type of shots we wanted for our story board. This helped a great deal as we were able to get creative with different types of shots of different angles from 400 pictures. By using these pictures it was easier for us to convey the meaning of our film through effective shots.
When the film was shown to a number of people, their response was what we wanted it to be, as they did not expect an girl to be tied up in the killers boot. The mise-en-scene of the characters was accurate; the acting of the characters gave the production a realistic feel and the lighting was used effectively to accompany the acting.
Different interpretations can be made of the opening sequence that can depend on the cultural situation of the viewer, as different cultures can convey meanings differently, however, certain body language can convey similar meanings.
Initially my first response to the brief in regards to the audience was to shock them with the discovery of a young girl being kidnapped by the least suspicious character. The build up had to be precise as it may not have had the impact on the audience we wanted. The sound made a major impact on the audience as the banging of the girl in the boot, made some people jump as they didn't expect it.
Question 6 – What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing the product?
Being the editor of the production, meant I was faced with many issues. As well as learning how to use 'Final Cut Pro'. I was able to participate in the camera work and directing.
At first final cut pro was difficult to get use to as I hadn't used it before. I was fortunate to take part in majority of the production as it allowed me to get most of the shots I wanted.
The digital technology enabled me to develop creativity as it allowed me to collate a variety of shots with the help of the pictures previously taken. In terms of directing, I found it is vital to pre-plan as it helps when editing later on, to create the desired atmosphere in the sequence. Using the camera for particular shots was interesting as I was able to get particular shots that I felt would be good to use in the opening. Fortunately I had access to all the necessary equipment, so there was no obstruction of creative flow.
Question 7 – Looking back to your preliminary task, what do you feel that you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product?
Whilst editing a number of issues were raised, on a number of occasions contiguity was broken, a results of this was re-filming for a second time to make the shots fit together, however the contiguity still occurred, in order to resolves these problems I used a variety of establishing shots and text screens to cut up the shots and make the opening sequence flow smoothly. I was able to choose from a wide selection of music to fit with the thriller. I went through a number of backing tracks to get to the right one, similarly I tried a number of impact beats to get the right ones that would fit. All together the editing of sound, and shots composed together managed to create enigma all the way through the two minutes.
In contrast with the film, as a group we have come quite far from the preliminary task. If I could change anything about the production it would be the amount of time we spent on filming, with more time it would have been possible to get some more accurate shots that would have made it easier than re-editing the shots to maintain continuity.
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