2286

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

My film contains typical codes and convention. In a thriller film there are many close ups which tells the story of what’s going on. In my own film I tried to emulate this which I think gave the desired effect in the short two minute window. Another typical aspect of a thriller is the use of fast paced editing which as the editor I ensured to include this. Our primary role in this two minute opening sequence was to establish the roles within the film, to set a clear protagonist and antagonist line. There are no clear antagonists in the opening sequence but are multiple opposing characters towards our main character John. The cinematography of the films includes many close ups, which creates tension and suspense. Close ups of the Johns face and the briefcase he clutches creates a connection between the two. Enigmas are also a key feature for thriller films. In the beginning of my media product there is a voice over representing a phone call. The person speaking on the phone is not seen, as another scene is played at the same time referring to the relationship between them. A mysterious caller can be always used in thriller films. This style can be compared to the thriller film Phone Booth.

The title of the film plays a significant role in the opening sequence of the film. The font which I used was called impact font. The sound which accompanied the entrance of title was an explosion sound effect. This was effective as it created a sense of danger which fits within the codes and conventions of a thriller. The title of the film has its own frame and is not shared with anything else but a plain black background which stands out on the white title. This signals the importance of the title sequence which makes sure the audience does not miss out on the name. This is definitely supported by the explosion effect.

In the frame below with the hooded man represents costume. The hooded jumper which the character is wearing can be associated with crime which is playing to stereotype of a thug. This can be seen here in this picture. The reason why we chose the hooded jumper is because it might relate to our target audience which they can familiarize with. Teenagers like to wear hoodies
as it it is fashionable. But at the same time the older generation may associate someone wearing a hoody as some one up to no good. Hoodies have a double entendre to people.
This is the prop which was used in the opening sequence. The briefcase represents a sense of enigma which makes the audience think what’s inside. The reason why this prop was used as it was small and compact and easy for our character to hold and run with.

My location was an interior location which we used the Havering College Premises A Block. The reason why I choose to set it mainly in corridors is because I it would be more convenient for my character to hide in from his pursuers. Also it is not your typical location where something like this would take place. The look of the place is dull and not very exciting compared to what is going on which does not distract from the main action.The over half of the opening was filmed on a set of stairs leading up to the corridors.

In my production in visual terms there were no special effects. We didn’t think it was necessary for the opening sequence and the mood. Whereas for the audio special effects there were a number which included the dramatic heart beat and the bone crack when John jumps down the stairs. Also at the start of the title sequence with the explosion.

The characters in my media product are introduced in different ways. The first characters to be introduced in my opening sequence are two hired criminals who meet up for to find John. They do not take up the screen but share it with part of the title sequence. This builds up to how the main character John is introduced to the audience. The next frame is him crouching hiding from his pursuers. This frame tells the audience that he is under pressure and vulnerable which typical of a thriller. This frame here is John crawling away from danger.

In this frame you can see the protagonist John is running down the corridor away from danger. The frames tells you something fast paced is happening, which is what the opening sequence is about. Thus telling the audience that there is a lot in store and it's an exciting thriller. I feel I have conveyed all the successful codes and conventions of a thriller in the opening such as fast paced sequences.

How does your media product represent particular social groups?

Our protagonist can be compared to the character from the British crime film “1 day”. Similarities between the two characters are that they are constantly under attack and under pressure. In the picture above we see the character from “1 Day” Flash looking over his shoulder for any danger. On the right we have The Package character John doing the same thing. Their personalities are very similar as they do not give up so easily and are strong willed. Differences between the characters is that Flash embraces his criminal lifestyle, whereas John is trying to get out and away from that kind of life. Every character has at least one major flaw; John’s flaw would be taking too much on.

Explain the production Logo

Hayley: As our film is a thriller we thought it suitable to call it adrenaline pictures. Adrenaline is the rush that you get from excitement and fast paced sequences which is what our film is about.

Explain the title sequences and what names appear?

Thibaut: In our title sequence there is reference to Wesley Snipes which we purposley did as his films attract out target audience. In the opening sequnce we put my name as editor actor, names that also appeared was the camera operator and the director.

The idea of a distributor and who that might be and why?

Hayley: The distributor is responisble for the film recieving recognition and selling it to our traget audience. A production company which would distribute ours would be a british based company as it is a british film. This would be Revolver entertainment which did Kidulthood.

Where the money might have come from for a film such as this?

Thibaut: The funding may come from UK film council which funded films such as Adulthood & Kidulthood

What does a production company do?

Thibaut: A production company is responsible for developing and funding for thing such as films, TV programs, and even radio. Actors may create their own production companies for more creative control and more profit, example Tom Cruise owns his own which is called Cruise/Wagner productions.

Who would be the audience for your media product?

This is Frankie. He is 17 and lives in the east end of London. Frankie’s dress sense is typical of his age, a hooded top and a t-shirt. Hooded tops are featured in my opening sequence as they are worn by John's pursuers. The t-shirt is a popular brand Franklyn & Marshall which our audience considers as fashionable and like to wear.

His hobbies would be spending time with friends and playing sports. The films which he enjoys watching are films such as 1 Day, City of Gods, Kidulthood and The Godfather. Television programmes that he would watch would be skins, shameless and The Sopranos.

The music that he listens to would is urban such as Hip & Hop and R&B; he is open minded to other music genres such as some indie. My film would definitely appeal to someone like him as he is a stereotypical teenage boy who likes similar hobbies and interests to the main character John. Frankie enjoyed watching the film 1 day in the cinema which is closely related own my own film, thus he there is a good chance he would want to see The Package.

What have you learned about technologies from the process of constructing this product?
In creating our film we have learned many things about technology and how to use it. As a whole we are not use to using Apple Mac computers as we are familiar to using the Windows operating software with PCs. Using these computers was necessary as the progammes it offered was much suited to carry out the process of our film, example Final Cut Pro.

This is me during an editing session using the Mac computers. Here I am finishing off editing the film and adding effects such as video transitions and titles. There is still many things to learn about the programme. Final Cut Pro has many short cuts that will help make the editing process faster. Through out the process I have learnt a few which for future projects would definitely come in useful.
This here is a screen shot of Final Cut Pro, tasks I was doing was adding score music, title sequences, video transitions, video filters, importing raw footage and many more. Here is some technology which I used:

Sound Cloud
I used Sound Cloud to upload the score music on the group blog. This allowed a player to be embedded on the blog page and be played.

Scribd
Scribd was a website which allowed files to be uploaded, basically a file hosting site. You can upload Microsoft Word documents and share it. Once uploaded it is available to be embedded on the blog page. I used Scribd many times to upload my work. It was helpful as it took up less space as a post on the blog.

Adobe Photoshop
I used Adobe Photoshop to edit my images and transform some photos in to pencil art for my story board

Blogger
Blogger is the site that work is posted on.

Final Cut Pro
The programme used to edit the raw footage

Youtube
Youtube was used to upload the video on the internet. It allowed sharing so we could embed the Youtube video player on the blog page.

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

Looking back from the preliminary task I have learned a great deal. The preliminary task was a preparation exercise which was designed so that when we carry out the actual project, there would be minimal faults. The camera work and editing is more advanced in the final product with more angles such as high and low. it is good to have a range of shots and angles as it makes the sequence more exciting rather than having one static shot the whole way through. Here are some examples:


This angle here is an low angle and a point of view shot of John looking up at the hooded figure chasing him.







This frame on the left is an high angle shot of John running down the stairs, it was a good angle as to tell the audience the scale of what is going on. It also puts the audience in the scene.





From my preliminary task to the final product I conveyed rules such as the 180 degree not breaking it once in the final. I also used match on action when John looks at the "out of order" sign on the lift.



The Overall success of my film I would say is a definite success. The overall planning and research we did in the build up was helpful as it allowed us to look at other successful thrillers and apply what they did to our own. In future the things that I would do different is to keep to personal deadlines.

NARRATIVE

In this morality thriller we come across the character Stu Shepard. It is just a normal day for him, mistreating every one he comes across and making them feel in-superior compared to himself. It is a normal for him as he walking down the street jabbering away on his phone which his expensive suit. He comes across a ringing telephone booth and reluctantly picks up. on the other side is mysterious man. The thriller begins as soon as he picks up the phone. The concept of a phone and mystery caller is similar to my opening sequence.

CHARACTERS

There are only two clear main characters in this thriller, the protagonist Stu and the Unknown Protagonist.
The main character Stu Shepard is an arrogant self centered person who regularly rudely dismisses people around him. In this thriller he is forced to rethink how he treats people. The way Stu is dressed tells the audience that he has a high profile job. He wearing an expensive suit and at the same time speaking on his mobile loudly. This tells the audience that he has a flamboyant.

The caller's identity is a mystery through out the film as he never reveals or do we found out who he is. The only time that we catch a glimpse of him is at the end where the screen but the screen is blurred. An enormous amount of enigma is surrounded around this character. He may not physically exist in the film but the presence of his voice is enough. The tone of his voice through out is a calm as he always seems under control, except at one point when he panics when he is about to blow his cover.

ENIGMA

Enigma meaning mystery is created when Stu picks up the phone to the mystery caller. Then caller starts talking but dismissive Stu Shepard hangs up the phone. The mystery caller doesn't give up as he call again this time threatening that he'll shoot him next time he hangs up again. We do not see the mystery caller, the camera never cuts to him as it's always on Stu as if your in the caller's position watching him. The audience assume that the caller is dispatched of by the police at the end and everything is solved as their recover the body. But the twist at the end tells us that he is not dead as he approaches an unconscious
Stu. We still do not fully see his appearance as we are looking through the point of view of Stu. As Stu is under the influence of morphine in the ambulance he has blurred vision and is about to pass out. That's when the mystery antagonist shows himself we do not get a good look at him. The is not a close ending as it causes overall mystery of who he is.

LOCATION

The location of the film was set in the city of New York and is set in real time meaning the time span which the film takes place is as long as it takes to watch it. The film was actually shot in Los Angles on the other side of the country.