Film Poster

Evaluation

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

The opening of my action adventure Is stereotypical because I have clearly identified who the protagonist of the film is. However I have also challenged forms by identifying a antagonist in the first couple minutes of the opening sequence. Whereas most action films start off in a mansion, secluded/ restricted area or  a secret location. I on the other hand have shot my opening sequence in an averaged sized house. I have done this so that my audience can relate to the settings more and would be use to this kind of environment.

I have used non digetic in my opening because I believe that the soundtrack chosen creates this sense of tension and an uneasy environment. The opening of my film contains lots of shots cuts and taken from different angles or directions. The reason I have done this type of editing is  to capture the characters reactions and certain apects which may be important further into the film. For example the character handing over the briefcase and the person holding the gold gun.

The costumes and props which I used in my opening sequence is dark clothing, A gun (gold), A briefcase and sunglasses. I used all these objects because they give conventions of an action film. Also the majority of props used in the opening sequence play a major part in the play and link into the plot. The use of sunglasses in the opening sequence shows that the character want to keep their identity secret, this again gives conventions of action because in most action films the protagonist and antagonist usually wear sunglasses.

Props Used in the opening

How does your media product represent particular social groups?

The groups represented in my media product is young adults, business men and gangsters. Business men are represented by one of the characters carrying a secured briefcase and all dressed in black. Gangsters are represented in my media product by one of the characters being in possession of a gun. Young adults/ Teenagers are represented in my media product because most of my characters are Young adults from ages 17-18.

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

The type of media institution which would distribute my media product is companies such as Eon Productions or Paramount. Both these industries are well known when it comes to action films for example (James Bond and Mission Impossible). So I feel these big names backing me would help increase revenue and sales. Also having these big names would increase the amount of people wanting to come see these films. These companies could also supply me with a large budget for advertisement. This also means my film would be shown at major cinema's.

Who would be the audience for your media product?

After Looking at Pearl and dean the main audience for film would be males from the age of 13 to 30. It would not be suitable for a younger audience because of the vast amount of violence it may contain, possible scenes of a sexual nature and abusive or offensive language. The film would be much preferred by males because of the violence and scenes of  combat. Films from the same genre like James Bond and Mission Impossibles have the same or similar guidelines this is why I based my intended on these films reviews.

Guidelines: (12A with Parental Guidance - 12A means that the BBFC have classified the film unsuitable for children under 12. However, they may still watch the film, as long as they are accompanied by someone over 18 at all times during the showing. Advice is given regarding the content of the film and the ADULT must decide if it is appropriate for the accompanying under 12.)

How did you attract/adress your audience?

The way in which I have attracted my audience is within the first few minutes of the opening sequence a dilemma unfolds. This will hold my audience interest because I have created this cliffhanger by a mysterious character holding a gun towards the protagonist of the film. In doing this my audience are left to their own imagination to decide what happens next. I have also kept a constant tempo throughout my film which will also keep the audience interested. The use of dramatic music creates this tension within the atmosphere keeping the audience at edge wondering what is going to happen next. Also having the change in camera angle and character will attract the audience because they will be constantly be gaining new information which will help to learn the plot of the film.

What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing the product?

While constructing my product I realize that it was hard trying to hold the camera steady during certain shots and that the tripod is not very mobile. Also the tripod was very flimsy so you had to be careful when characters were walking past or acting near the camera. Another Issue I faced was, while editing my film and downloading it onto final cut pro it continuously dropped frames throughout. Which means I had re log and capture certain parts numerous amounts of times. Also final cut pro is avery complex program and things were not easy to find.

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


Looking back I realize the preliminary task helped a lot when it came to using shots in the main task. For example using the shot/ reverse shot and match on action. Also the preliminary task was good practice and helped me to get use the handheld camera and the tripod. Also gave me chance to learn all the functions of the camera and how to operate it. Having to film and edit the preliminary task in a certain time period helped me to realize that you shouldn't leave it the filming and editing to the last minute because anything can go wrong during the process e.g. shots taken incorrectly or characters laughing or saying their lines wrong.

Main task Screenplay and Storyboard

    

The Contact

by

Kieran Simms 

Int. scene - description

While Agent fly relaxes in his hideaway. His contact appears, He climbs the stairs and (loudly)knocks. Agent fly emerges from his secret room and opens the door.

      Agent Fly

  Have you got the information.

      Contact X

Yes Agent I have the package, but why do you need it?

      Agent Fly

        Thats classified

      Contact X

 But Agent fly you cannot let this info fall into the wrong hands. It could possibly change the world as we know it.

     Agent Fly

What do you mean, change the world as we know it?


The contact leaves abruptly leaving agent fly confused and clueless. 


Then a    stranger appears from the bottom of the steps of agent fly hideout. He walks up the steps and knocks loudly. Agent fly then opens the door.

                   Stranger

(calmly)Im gonna need that package. (Points the gun towards Agent fly).

 

Panic Room and Se7(v)en Comparisons

In Seven close ups and extreme close ups are used to get an idea of what the character  is doing and what they may be about. However in Panic room no characters are identified and wide shots and high angles are used to get an idea of surroundings and background.

Both Seven and Panic Room use non-digectic sound in the opening sequence.  In Seven there are mechanical sounds in the background and Panic room an orchestra is playing the melody in the background. The sounds in Seven create this sense of danger and alertness whereas the sounds in Panic room create this sort of tension and high climate of fear.

The editing in Seven consists of many different shots cut quickly which represent disorientation and confusion. Similarly Panic room also consists of shots cut but they are not so quick and erratic.

The mise en scene in Seven is objects such as images of the dead, books, needles and newspapers. These things give off the idea of death and danger. However panic room mise en scene consists of buildings and cars which gives the idea of the city.

In Panic room there are no characters identified this may be done to keep the audience guessing about who the protagonist and antagoinst are in the film. Whereas in Seven a suggested antagonist is shown throughout the opening sequence.

The location of Seven appears to be in a secretive warehouse or an underground basement. However the location of Panic room appears to take place in a city, most likely New York City. However in the opening of Panic room the shots relocates to different parts of the city.

Panic Room and Seven’s narrative plots are not clearly identified from the opening sequence. But certain aspects in the opening sequence leads us to believe that the plot of Seven could possibly involve a murder case or serial killings. However Panic Room does not give any objects that would tell us the plot. However we know the location of the film is in the city and from the eerie music playing in background this could imply that some horror or thrilling accounts will take place throughout this film.

The themes of both film seem to be very similar from the opening sequence the main themes are probably going to be death, thriller, danger and suffering.

The visual style of Panic Room is very unique using eerie sounds and Putting the credits in a special bold font. Seven also uses a unique style using a distinct mechanical sounds and also uses a strange font.

The genre of Panic Room due to the eerie background music would appear to be horror/ thriller. Similarly the genre of Seven also appears to be thriller, horror and mystery I have come to this conclusion because of the objects identified for example images of the dead and razor blades.

Dark Knight Opening sequence

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0OYBEquZ_j0 (Dark knight opening sequence)

There are various camera shots used in the opening sequence, these are aerial shots, over the shoulder shot, mid shot and long shots. The director chose to do an aerial shot to capture more of the landscape and the surroundings below from a birds eye view. They used an over the shoulder shot to get in the characters point of view to see what the character sees. They used mid and long shot to get an overall impression of what the character is about and the use of a mid shot /long shot would allow the audience to make judgement if the character is an antagonist or the protagonist. A two shot is also used when the characters are sitting in the car having a conversation.

In the opening sequence there is both digetic and non- digetic sound. An example where non-digetic sound is used is when the character is about to the enter car music starts to play in the backgroud. The director may have done this so the music would set a certain mood or give a certain atmosphere. The music which is played in the background is quite up tempo, so it may give the idea that things are going to be done quite quickly. Digetic sound is used in the opening sequence when the car pulls up in front of the character you hear the car wheels screech and when another character shoots some sort of arrow gun out of the window you hear it fly out of the mechanism.

The editing which has been used in the opening sequence is shots have been cut and then switched to a new location. Or the shot is cut and then taken from a new angle or height. The director may have chosen to do this capture more of the surroundings and to capture characters from different angles.

In the opening scene there a lot of characters but none are identified because they are all wearing masks and no names are mentioned, but based on a first impression and how the characters are dressed and the way in which they are behaving, you get the feeling they could be the antagonists in the film. The director choosing to keep the characters identity secret could indicate that the characters are going to perform an illegal action like rob a bank or kidnap someone.

The location of the film seems to take place in a city this is because of the skyscrapers and large buildings which are shown during the opening sequence and when shots of the streets are taken it show a lot of cars driving about which indicates its quite a busy area.

From the opening sequence the plot of the play seems to be about a group of robbers or kidnappers who are going to steal something or kidnap someone, hence them all wearing masks. Further into the play a hero is probably identified and he or she has to find this group of bandits and take them down.

The themes which this film gives off from the opening sequence is  mystery, danger and action. This is because the characters faces are hidden in the opening sequence they also have these gadgets which an everyday person would not have access to. Which tells us these characters have access to a secret source or company.

The visual style in the opening sequence is quite a dark shadowy effect which shows the characters in a dark/evil light. In the first couple of seconds the director has made it seems  as if your are walking on air. The genre of this film seems to be thriller this is because all of the characters faces in the opening scene are hidden. The lightning in the majority of the scene is quite dark and dim. Also none of the characters seem to really interact with each other so its obvious that they are concentrating on the task at hand.  

Se7en Opening sequence analysis

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9S32RP5SnEM (Opening sequence of Se7en)

Through out the opening sequence the director uses close ups and extreme close ups. One reason the director would have chosen to use these shots is to keep the character in the opening sequences identity a secret, and by only focusing on the characters hands the audience are automatically drawn in and will want find out who this mysterious character is. The type of camera movement used in the opening sequence is a pan movement to the right displaying a various amount of books.














The sounds and noises heard in the opening scene are noises which you would associate with Machinery in a factory or a warehouse.  The director would have chosen to do use theses sounds because it gives the idea that this character could be planning to do something dangerous or is committing crimes. The sounds in the opening sequence are an example of non-digetic sounds. The sounds in the opening sequence are also quite screechy and eerie create the sense of someone suffering.

In the opening sequence there are the editing is different shots cut and then put together this could represent how the characters feeling and how they have no control with what's going on. Also this may have done this to keep the audience guessing about who the character is or who they are. Also the credits are displayed in a disorientated text to give the impression that things are unorganized.

The director uses a fade effect which gives a more mysterious feeling/ atmosphere, this makes the audience feel as if this suggested antagonist is hiding from someone or doesn't want to be found. There is also a yellow glow which gives a more spooky effect and gives off this vibe of danger and fear. Also during the opening sequence there is a time where the camera appears to show double, this type of editing could have bee used to represent that the antagonist is not in there right mind and may be under the influence of drugs.

In the opening sequence objects such as Needles, newspaper cut outs, blood, images of  the dead, razors and books are identified. All these objects are what you would normally associate with a serial killer or someone crazy. This would indicate that this man or woman is the antagonist in the film. It would also suggest that this antagonist is used to or has become accustomed to committing crimes.

In the opening scene it gives the idea that there is only one character in the film and it shows him cutting the skin of his fingertips. In doing this it shows that he wants to remain anonymous and doesn't want to be tracked. He also associates himself with things to do with death which shows he could be planning a murder or has already committed one. This also shows how the character in this scene is likely to be the antagonist/ villain in the film.

The location of the opening scene seems to be in either a basement or warehouse this is obvious because there seems to be no source of natural light. This gives the impression that the antagonist does not want to be found or discovered.  This may be down to him performing illegal actions or is in hiding from someone.

The opening sequence of the film seems to give the idea of a thriller due to the objects in the scene and the behavior of the character which seems to be mysterious and dastardly. By the director deciding not to show the characters face, It gives the audience the impression that this film will consist of a mystery and that our hero will probably try to find out who the mysterious antagonist is.

From the opening sequence the themes of the film seem to be Death and Murder you get this idea because of the use of blood, razors and images of the dead.

The visual style of the opening sequence is dark, gloomy and a slight glow in the background. Also the titles are displayed in a unique way.

In the opening sequence the genre of this film indicates it is thriller or a horror film. This again is because the character and the location in the opening scene has been kept a secret. This kind of secrecy and dark practice are usually seen in genres such as thriller and horror.

 

The Open Window (Storyboard and screenplay)

Initial scene description

A young man called Frampton approaches the house along the dusty path. He looks at the house and the surroundings, he feels nervous and scared he has never been here before. He knocks at the door and a young girl comes and greets him.

NIECE

(joking manner) My aunt will be down presently, Mr. Nuttel in the meantime you will have to put up with me.


she leads Frampton upstairs and into a room. 


Do you know many of the people around here? 


FRAMPTON


(distinct regeret) Hardly a soul.

NIECE


(cunningly) Then you know practically nothing about my aunt.


She points towards the windows and starts to tell a story.


Her great tragedy happened three years ago. You may wonder why we keep that window open on an october afternoon.


(points to the large window)


Out through that window, three years ago today, her husband and two young brothers went off shooting. They never came back. In the crossing to the moor they were all engulfed by a bog. Poor aunt thinks they will come back one day and the brown spaniel with them and walk through the window as they used to that is why its kept open.


(The aunt then enters the room and Frampton sighs with relief)


MRS. SAPPLETON


I hope you dont mind the window open Im expecting my husband and two brothers back shortly.


(Frampton looked at the niece in horrified face, shaking and looking frightened.


Here they are at last, just in time for tea.


(Frampton looked out the window and saw the three figures he then grabbed wildly at his stick and hat and took off out of the house. The men then entered the house as Frampton dashed past.)


MRS. SAPPLETON


(Puzzled and confused) A most extraordinary man, a Mr.nuttel just dashed off without a word of goodbye.

NIECE


(calmly) I expect is was the spaniel, he said he  had the horror of dogs.