Task 7 - Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to full product?

     It was really useful doing the preliminary task at the beginning because it was a small less complicated practise for the main task. The planning for the main task was a lot more indepth, for example the cast lists, the props and the set. The preliminary task was more of a spontaneous approach and we used anyone that was around for our cast and did it in the nearest room. We also stuck to a simple script which we couldn't alter whereas for the main task we were able to make the plot completely our own.

    I also feel like I have learnt a lot from the progression since doing the preliminary task. By having to do so much work into our main task, it became easier to know what to do and how to set out our thriller. In terms of camera angles and composition, it was really useful to have done the preliminary task and meant I had learnt from it. My knowledge of storyboarding and camera angles has also improved since then. As it was a thriller, we had to think more about shots which created suspense and atmosphere but at the same time being interesting compositions. In the preliminary task, we stuck to a storyboard with dialogue which meant it wasn't as interesting and was a lot more basic. I feel I have definitely progressed since then.

      I think my camerawork has definitely improved because before the preliminary task I was unsure of how to set up the camera and even how to make sure it was on properly. Now I think it is a lot easier having had the practise from it. In our preliminary task we were able to have a lot of practise from shots such as eyeline matches, close ups and keeping to the 180 degree rule. This was also evident in our thriller because of having had practise from it before. We included close ups in our thriller to create suspense and make it more real with the viewer seeing what the detective is doing. We also framed the shots well with eyeline matches for example, Holly looking over to Sam. I feel our skills have improved since the preliminary task in terms of these things.

      In terms of using sound, I feel my experience of using it has definitely improved. For our preliminary task, because it was so basic we didn't use any sound. This was also because our knowledge for using it and editing was not as good as it is now after doing our thriller. My use of using sound has definitely developed as we used all sorts of sound effects in our thriller. We used music to build suspense which shows my development, whereas for the preliminary we didn't use sound effects because it was more simple and I had less knowledge of how to use it.

       Using final cut and after effects was a whole new experience. Before when doing the preliminary task my knowledge was limited in final cut, but now after doing our thriller I feel more comfortable with the program. I am now more comfortable with how we edited our product in terms of using sound and even adding in the credits. This was all quite basic after practising it but had I gone straight into final cut after never using it for the preliminary task I think I may have struggled.

Task 6 - What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?

Task 5 : How did you attract/address your audience?

This slideshow is to discuss how I addressed the audience of my thriller.

thriller

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Task 4 : Who would be the audience for your media product?

Our film is aimed for young adults aged 15-24, however other people would as well be interested. Our film isn’t exactly aimed for the young generation as it wouldn’t interest them because it is a crime thriller. Our genre of film would normally interest an older audience anyway, because of the mild horror and storyline which the young wouldn’t necessarily understand. Not only this but they may get bored and not like it as our film contains drama, tension, mild horror and suspense. This would interest the older audiences a lot more as they would be able to relate to the drama and the tension wouldn’t frighten them as much.

With the audience we have aimed our film at, they would be able to go to watch it with friends as a pastime whereas older people may not find the time.

Out thriller isn’t gender specific as it would appeal to both however, men and boys may find the thriller and tension side more interesting but women and girls the drama. Our main character is also female, and this may attract a male audience as she would be sophisticated and nice to watch. The certificate of our film would be a 12A or 15 because of the mild horror and scenes younger audiences wouldn’t understand.

Task 3 - What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?

We would use a low budget so we could look at Fox Searchlight who distribute low budget films.
They may be interested in distributing our film as alot of their films are thriller/dramas for example the new 127 Hours. This is similar to ours in the way that both create a thriller atmosphere. 
Our film may fit in with the ethos of the institution as some of the films they have made are also fairly low budget, for example Juno which had a budget of $7,500,000. The director of Juno also hadn't done many big films so we would have a chance at making it work.

To make money out of our film they would have access to the other parts of Fox therefore being able to have access to more aspects of making money. They would release DVD sales as it would then make more money after the film is released at the cinema (bringing them in a profit anyway).

The don't specialise in a particular genre of film. I have researched the films they made and as well as doing a lot of dramas and children's films such as Fantastic Mr. Fox, the also do romantic films such as 500 Days of Summer. So they dont generally have a specific genre of film which is where ours would come in useful. They also don't target a particular audience. Their films are all quite different in the sense that some are big dramas , some are big romances and thrillers, but all these genres will appeal to different audiences. 

Task 2 : How does your product represent particular social groups?

My media product represents a particular group of people who are featured in a lot of thrillers nowadays. A lot of crime scene based thrillers have police detectives which look quite similar. Our thriller represents the same type of audience. For example, our male is quite laid back looking which is scene quite commonly in TV dramas and films. I feel he is represented in a positive way because he is casual but smart and has a jokey personality adding humour to the film. The picture below is an accurate representation of the type of police detective we were trying to portray. (taken from Sherlock on BBC)

Our female detective is quite representative of the typical woman police detective. A femme fatale who cares about looks and thinks she is the "bees knees". For example, this can be scene in detective programs such as CSI where we see women characters being portrayed as leading roles. The picture below shows the woman from CSI New York who is in a way similar to the type of character our female detective represents.
 
Our dead bodies in our media product are meant to be young lovers. They aren't really as big of a part and therefore can't be as represented as much as the main characters, but as they are teenagers it gives them a sense of vulnerability. A lot of the time in horrors or thrillers, the young girl will die first.

Task 1 - In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

My first screengrab is with the use of the Lionsgate production company. We used this because Lionsgate is such a well known company for the type of film we made.

  This screengrab to the left is used to show blood and death. This illustrates the original conventions of a Thriller which we have previously looked at.

This is similar to the above, as the prop of a gun shows another convention of a typical thriller.




This shows the setting of our thriller which is clear to be a run down building with papers on the floor. You can also see the dead bodies on the floor which illustrates our thriller.


 
This shows the dark lighting in our thriller and also the actress we used. It fits in with a convention of a thriller having a femme fatale character. 





 
We can see more props which fit in with our forensic crime typed thriller, such as the gloves and bag for evidence.

 This is our thriller name and therefore conforms to the thriller conventions because of being on a bold black background and with eery music.

Again, these are the dead bodies but in a more established shot and therefore easier to see them.

Main task props and costumes for our Thriller

For our thriller as it is a crime scene, we wanted to have generic crime scene props such as police tape. We needed a grimy set so we thought about using dirty dust mats and just making the set quite messy.

As our dead bodies would of been shot, we would also need fake blood to give a more realistic effect. The dead bodies would just be normal young adults, therefore their costumes would be average clothes such as jeans or a casual dress.

Our police investigators would wear costumes to match their characters. For example, the woman would wear sophisticated clothes like a suit or blazer to create her "femme fatale" sort of personality. The male would wear Jonathon Creek style clothes, which suggest he is laid back but still serious about his job.

We would also need a prop gun of some sort as this is how we suggest our bodies were killed. Another key prop for our thriller is the necklace which we will talk about in our dialogue.

In our set we will need  basic props which will be easy to find, e.g. tables, chairs and other similar objects.