Q7. Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product?

When we were first given the task to produce the preliminary task we hadn't quite understood the brief as we were excited to go ahead and film anything we could and we hadn't thought or properly planned out how to produce it. Since then our knowledge has been broadened and when it cam to creating our film we made sure to take extra time on the planning phase. We feel that our general knowledge in terms of editing has improved extremely in terms of snipping and adding audio to clips. Our overall knowledge when using the Mac has improved as before very few people within our group knew how to use the programmes effectively and now we all know how it should be used. For example, putting white or black fade transitions and slowing down the clip so the picture is delayed. We have also adapted our analytic skills when it comes to media products as we can know pick up on the smallest of details. Finally, as we all got a chance to film using the camera we have all developed skills when working with camera angels and understanding the importance of mise-en scene. Overall, we have learnt many different things from the preliminary task, however, the most important is the effectiveness of close ups which we used several times when filming our opening sequence. The close up was used very often because it was crucial to show emotion through facial expressions as we did not have any dialect in our opening so the facial expression told the story.

Q6. What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?

• This was one of the most important tools i used throughout this whole project as it was used primarily to research before we actually went and filmed anything.

• We used Watsapp as a way to contact and communicate with different members of the group and also as a way to keep everyone up to date on their roles and confirm the days we would film and the days we should blog.

• We used imovie on the apple mac as a place to store all of our footage and edit it using different tools within the programme.

• Blogger was used as a place to document everything which happened throughout the duration of our project it worked very much like a field diary and we were able to blog as we go along as not to forget any idea of change to the film. It also worked as a reference which members of the team could refer back to if they were unsure of what their roles were and what props they would have to bring on what day depending on the schedule.

• We used YouTube for a couple things, firstly we used it to research movie trailer which are linked to our in some way for research. Secondly we used YouTube as an easy and quick way to post and blog our videos quickly as they are both connected.

• The combination of the camera and tripod were used to record our footage. We used the tripod to balance our camera and try to minimize the shakiness of the image in all of the right places.

• Several outdoor shots were taken on my phones and also most of the location shots. It was also used to communicate with the rest of the members and to make blog posts on the go.

• Finally, we used the apple mac. Using the apple mac was the best way to construct our project as it contained all of the tools to edit, store and produce the final product

A range of technology was used in order to produce our final product and this use of technology meant that the final product looked professional and clean cut.

Q5. How did you attract/address your audience?

Q4. Who would be the audience for your media product?

Because of the type of movie our film would be our target audience would be Males in their late teens, they would most likely get their clothes in Zara, TK Maxx and Next.

He would watch TV programmes such Eastenders, Top Gear, Britain’s Got talent and Misfits and Younger’s with actors that have a similar age to their self.

He would listen to wide range of music but mainly Pop, Rn B, Rock and Hip Hop

Their favorite food would probably be take-away e.g. Chinese and KFC.

He normally enjoys using his phone regularly and watching films at this age goes to the cinema quite often, but his taste in films has matured and....

With our knowledge on what male teenagers like and do, we created a set of basic questions and answers that summaries our target age group. From our research we feel that they would enjoy watching our media product because we have a mature story line with a lot of tension, also our actors are young and in a similar age group to our audience. By looking at the types of TV programmes they watch it was easy to decide what elements would appeal to them as it is a Thriller film and they enjoy watching action programmes and crime thrillers.

Q3. What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?

Q2. How does your media product represent particular social groups?

We chose to compare our protagonist Mohammed to the character of Shifty in Shifty as each character has decided to move away from their bad pasts. We also feel that both characters can succumb to peer pressure.Shifty and Mohammed are both influenced by something which makes them realise that they no longer want to live their lives the way they do. Mohammed represents youths and the struggle of being in gang culture and the difficulties of escaping it.

Q1. In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

Real Media Products

Our Media Product

1. (Title) Our title sequence is inspired by the title sequence in Narc. It starts with a blank screen and the credits appear and fade on the screen. In Narc they credits are slightly delayed which creates the feeling of importance as the audience and forced to focus on the screen. We used the same technique in our media product "Never Forget" as we though that the suspense of the names makes the first image that is shown more important.

2. (Location) This shot a torture scene in the game of GTA 5 shows a character being tortured in a dark, dingy basement.This shot allows the audience to see the person being interrogated looking vulnerable as the surroundings are quite claustrophobic. For our own media product we tried to incorporate the same claustrophobic feeling in our interrogation scene. We selected an area which had twisting spikes above and was fairly closed in with dirty brick walls.  

3.(Camera work & Editing) This camera effects are almost identical in their impact on the audience. This shot is taken from Martin Scorsese's Gangs of New York when the character of Bill (the butcher) is introduced. The shot plays around with the expectations of the audience and has quiet a disturbing effect. We wanted to create the same disturbing effect for our protagonist's flashback so we recreated the shot to show the location where something horrific occurred.

4.(Costume and Props) The real media product "Good fellas" shows two the characters wearing suits. By wearing all black suits we thought that it would suit the conventions of typical gangsta films such as Goodfellas. Also as the colour black is associated with death and sorrow it is mainly associated with funerals. The suits make the characters look more menacing as stereo-typically some gangstas are known for wanting to look presentable and dressing in suits. Good fellas follows the convention of a classic gangsta film so we were inspire by that.

5.(Story & narrative) The narrative of an urban-thriller/gangsta film such as ours is the story of a character trying to forget and move away from their past. Although the real media product "The Butterfly Effect" does not contain the genre of a urban-gangsta film, it en captures the perfect thriller. It also tackles the same internal conflicts as our protagonist as they are both trying to forget their bad pasts but are failing to do so as the memory gives them recurring flashbacks.

6.(Introduction to characters) We also took the introduction of Narc main character to introduce our main character. The main character is the first person that is show to the audience which helps them identify who's story they are going to be following. A close up shot is used to show that the audience is trying to get into the main characters head. The shot tells the audience that something bad has happened. However, the other characters are introduced through flashbacks. The music used in the flashback is used again when the other characters enter the room to show a unsettling connection between the protagonist and the other characters.

7.(Title, Font, Style) The cracked font in the real media product "Narc" makes the audience feel uneasy and foreshadows that what they are about to watch will contain unsettling scene and make them feel uncomfortable. Like Narc we used the a similar font and colour scheme of white on black.The white font against the black screen also follows the convention of gangsta films.

8.(Special Effects) In the real media product "The Butterfly Effect" before the protagonist has a flashback all the colours are pulled into the center which makes the audience feel as though they they are being pulled into the story aswell. We would have loved to use the same effect, however, that option was not available for us as we did not have the software or the knowledge. Instead of that transition we used the white fade instead.

Final Opening Sequence

Here is the final product from all of the work we have done collectively over the past few months. Our film is called "Never Forget". The idea of the title came to me when we watched the whole film top to bottom and the name came like a flash of lightening. We also thought about "DON'T LOOK BACK" but it seemed a little boring. 

We used a combination of a handheld camera and a tripod in order to capture the footage. At times we held the camera without a tripod to obtain a shaky image so that the audience is confused and the image is distorted, like a reflection of the protagonists own internal conflicts.

Editing Opening sequence

 Flashbacks:

• Here we saturated the colour and made the shot look more dirty and grainy. The colour represents how the main character feels about these people as they are seen as dark and dangerous figure. Through this edit the viewer can see the inner workings of the characters mind.

• In this edit of the spikes hanging from the roof we completely played around with different colours to create this kind of vivid, dream-like image. This interesting mix of colours produced a great effect. We also slowed down the footage so the movement of the spikes would look more threatening and dangerous.

• In this clip we sped up the footage and exaggerated the dark colours so that the audience could see the connection between the other characters and the main protagonist.

Transitions

• Fade to black:

The first black transition shows that time has past. The final one stays on the screen for around five seconds in order to build up suspense and engrave the idea the what is about to appear it important as it is worth waiting for, this fade is used to introduce the title "Never Forget".

• White Fade:

The flashbacks are introduced with white fades. As the colours until the flashbacks are dull and grey the striking contrast of the bright white. The juxtaposition of the two tones sends a shock to the system as the white is too bright and almost blinding. This gives an insight to the audience that this blinding effect is how the protagonist continuously feels.

Audio for Film Opening

We detached the audio from the whole video as the outside factors of building work was very distracting. We took a long piece of audio off one of the clips and kept the sound continuously throughout the rest of the shots. The fact that the audience doesn't notice that this is being done allows the audience to be drawn into the film straight away. Although the audio was taken from previous clips we slowed the sound down the sound to extenuate an audio reflection of what is happening inside the main characters mind.

Screen Grabs of editing

We managed to partly edit the opening sequence. Firstly we put in order of how we want it to be trimmed. We actually saturated the colour in the flashback to show the difference and distortion between his past and present.

Keeping The Actor Happy

Its important when filming to have absolute continuity. An issue arose with our main actor Mohammed, as he wanted to get a haircut half way through filming. There would have been a continuity mishap had he have actually had the haircut as he had thick bushy hair at the beginning of filming. Keeping him content and happy was key so that he would continue being a part of our film. So, we simply bargained with him to postpone the haircut until we finished filming.

Extra Prop

We kept all of the same props as before but, we just simply added one more prop:

Mobile Phone

With the mobile phone our main character gets a message from Jovan that he wants to meet up with him to discuss something important. As Mohammed does not want to be around Jovan or David anymore, the phone is important as we are able to capture Mohammed's reaction to seeing a text from Jovan.

Music for Opening Sequence

• This sound bite of the door closing is extremely effective as it is the very first sound the audience hears. It is as if life is closing the door to the main characters future and it hammers to the audience that this is where the action took place. 

• During the first flashback sequence the Drone Dark Suspense 3 soundbite is used. This soundbite sounds strange and weird which suits the quick creepy flashbacks. 

• The school university soundbite is used to make Mohammed snap out of his flashback. It also confirms that they are in a school environment.

• Changing the soundbite to Drone Dark Suspense 1 when David and Jovan enter the lunch hall also adds to the mood as it raises the tension.

• The soundbite when there is a Birdseye view of Mohammed walking out of the school is Lobby Conversation. This is used to create the atmosphere of a school environment as it shows the commotion of school.

• The final soundbite is of police sirens as the opening title is shown. This creates the idea that criminal activity is about to take place throughout the movie and also that someone is on the run.

Why Flashbacks?

When the decision to slightly change our movie was made we didn't want to waste the previous footage we took earlier in the project. As a team we came up with the idea of incorporating the previous footage in our new project through flashbacks. We came to the conclusion that using flashbacks would allow us to use interesting editing tools on imac to saturate and play around with the colour to make the flashback more strange and vivid. Much like in the movie Limitless where colour is constantly messed with to show the contrast of when he is feeling high or low.

Change in cast

Since we changed the plot and the new story didn't need as much people as the original we reduced the cast.
the new cast is:

Mohammed
He is the main protagonist in the story. He is trying to get away from his difficult dangerous past which he continuously thinks about. Through flashback it shows his past lifestyle and what made him finally want to change and move away from his past. 
                                                                          

 David
An old acquaintance from Mohammed's past. David along with Jovan try to recruit Mohammed to join them in another dangerous job.

Jovan 
Another person from Mohammed's past. Set Deonisy on fire in front of Mohammed which leads Mohammed to turn away from gang life and crime. He doesn't want Mohammed to leave his old ways because he already knows too much.

Deonisy 
set on fire by Jovan for reasons unknown. Mohammed is shocked by the sight of watching him burn to death which leads him to turn away from David and Jovan.

Location

 

Interrogation scene; Outside of the school Gym

Pros

• Great location as it is tucked away from the rest of the school so we were able to take more risks compared to inside school
• Spikes makes the location look more threatening and suitable for the interrogation scene
• Caged up windows also creates a dangerous image which suits the genre

Cons

• Lighting issues as the natural lighting affects the quality of the image as the genre is very dark and the bright natural light contrast effects the genre
• It is impossible to actually have any speaking as the wind effects the quality of the audio to the point where it is hard to hear anything

Lunch Hall: scene after the flash back

Pros 

• Great environment to show the isolation of the main character as the room is completely empty. 
• No distractions if timed correctly as it is closed off to students when there are lessons

Cons

• Issues with sound as cooking staff are generally cooking at the back
• continuity issues if all the chairs are packed up when you want to film

New Script

Scene 1:
BLACK FRAME - WHITE TEXT (FADE IN)

• WCS MEDIA PRESENTS, AN AS MEDIA PRODUCTION & CAST (FADE IN)

Goes straight to Mohammed Looking out of the window (CU)

The audience see that he is looking at a specific place (POV)

(WHITE FADE) FLASHBACK (STRANGE MUSIC)

Spikes winding down in slow mo (CU)

Jovan holding Deonisy whilst David opens the gasoline bottle (HIGH ANGLE SHOT)

Either David or Jovan flicking at a flame with a disposable lighter (ECU)

Scene 2:

END OF FLASHBACK

Mohammed ends up in the lunch hall he is unaware how he got there (WS)

He gets a text from Jovan which says "whats up \Mo? we need to talk, where are you?"(CU)

(WHITE FADE) FLASHBACK

Mohammed + Jovan + David are in a line together. Camera spins 180 degrees and reverses-sped up (MS)

END OF FLASHBACK

Mohammed gets up to leave and hide. He does not reply to the text. The lunch hall is left empty (WS/ES)

Scene 3:

Jovan and David walk in to an empty lunch hall looking for Mohammed and find an empty hall (MS)

Frustrated they storm out

BLACK FADE

Scene 4:

Mohammed comes out of his hiding place and blends into the crowd of pupils as he leaves school he does not realize he is being followed by David and Jovan (BIRDSEYE VIEW)

BLACK FADE

POLICE SIRENS CAN BE HEARD GETTING LOUDER AND LOUDER - THE TITLE "RUN-AWAY" APPEARS AND FADES ALONG WITH THE MUSIC 

New Shot List

Scene 1:

1. close up shot of        (Mohammed looking out of the window)
2. High angle shot
3. Close up
4. over the shoulder shot
5. Jump close ups of outside of gym

Scene 2:

1. Close up    (Mohammed in deep thought about past)
2. Over the shoulder
3. wide/mid shot     (Mohammed coming out of thought and recollecting his surroundings)
4. Panning establishing shot of lunch hall 
5. Mid shot of Mohammed
6. Long shot    (Mohammed getting phone out of his pocket as he receives a text)
7. Close up of phone
8. Close up of Mohammed
9. Mid shot of Mohammed
10. close up of text on the phone
11. close up of his reaction to the text
12. close up rotated to a different angle of Mohammed's face
13. Close up of him twirling the phone on the table with his fingers
14. wide shot if Mohammed getting up to leave
15. Mid shot of Mohammed leaving
16. close up of Mohammed's hand pushing door open#
17. establishing shot of empty lunch hall
18. wide shot of door where Mohammed left

Scene 3:

1. mid two shot of Jovan and David in the lunch hall (David and Jovan enter the lunch hall seconds after Mohammed leaves)
2. close up shot of David looking around the room
3. Close up of Jovan looking around the lunch hall
4. close up of empty spot where Mohammed was sitting
5. Mid two shot of Jovan and David reaction to Mohammed not being in the hall

Scene 4:

1. Birdseye view of Mohammed leaving school and being followed David and Jovan

Example of Flashback movie

Example of Flashback movie

After conducting further research, I found a films which is based around the theme of wanting to get away from your past:

                The butterfly effect is about man called Evan who sufferes from severe black outs when he remembesr his horrific past. This links the our story as the protagonist has contless attacks of flashbacks which leaves him disorentated afterwards. the catchphrase of the butterfly effect "some people want to forget the past" perfectly suits our story at the protagonist wants nothing but to forget.

                                                                                                                                   - Gracia

New Film Inspiration

Our recent update in our film opening  has changed because we realised that our orginal idea was too long and complex, so we deciced to use Narc's opening and chracters as an inspiration for our film. Much like the chracters of Nick and Henry in Narc both Jovan and my character partake in unethcal ways of interegation. Although, the interegation scene only appears in the flashback it is still crucial to the storyline as it allows the audience to see the juxtaposition between the main characters present and past.

                

-David

Rewrite of script

After watching the first draft of our opening sequence we decided to slightly change the plot of our original story.The story we were originally trying to tell just required to much exposition.We realised during the editing that we had enough material to fashion a different narrative, where a story was being hinted at or suggested, rather obviously stated. We realised that we could edit the material together in a way that intrigued the audience and hooked them in without needing to give too much away.

Instead of the original theme of revenge we change the plot so that we have a main protagonist who has several recurring flashbacks of watching his friends set someone on fire. He wants to move away from this life as he feels guilty about things he has done in his past.

                                                                                          - Gracia

A rough edit of our 2 minute film opening

A rough edit of our 2 minute film opening

For the first draft of our 2 minute movie opening, I compiled all of the shots that we need, and edited them. I added some music to the nearly completed scenes. I also chose to include scenes we need to re-shoot so that we could see what it should look like according to this rough cut. I only imputed two edits - one was the zooming in on the characters, and the other was a pan and zoom effect.

Original shot list

From scene 3:

1st shot ( establishing shot showing location)
2nd shot ( guy being dragged on chair)
3rd shot (guy looking up)
 4th shot (Tilt up to brother)
5th shot (guy pulled up)
 6th shot (tape)
7th shot (dialogue brother)
8th shot (dialogue guy)
9th shot (chair pushed aside)
11th shot (gasoline side)
12th shot (gasoline front of guy)

Camera Lighting and editing notice- Film Opening

Camera Lighting and editing notice- Film Opening 


As a group, we first decided that the introduction scenes should be changed to a grey color scheme, as it tones down the intense background colors. This compliments the piece by giving it a grainy texture. The color scheme makes the film look more suited to the action/revenge genre. 

However we all agreed that it would look more vibrant and urban if we just slightly saturate the colour, rather than go completely black and white.

                                                                                                              -David

Theme and Genre- Film opening

Theme and Genre- Film opening 

After my group planned out how we will pan out our film opening (2 minutes), we had to consider the themes that would relate to it. This is due to the fact that themes are vital aspects of films, because a good film must be able to show what type of theme it consists of so that the the piece will have a genre which can be clearly obvious to the audience.

E.G. Thriller helps to stimulate the audience mood (high level of anticipation)/Comedy helps to amuse the audience and create a sense of fulfillment

After having group discussions in our free time and our media lessons, my group decided that the best theme we should use is the thriller one, as it it suits the film introduction that we plan on doing for our media project. Much like the film four brothers.

-David

Casting Ideas - Film Opening

Reason for Cast

After coming up with the script for our film introduction, we chose 5 actors and these are the following people as our cast.

Brother (Jovan) - The reason for casting Jovan as one of the brothers is simply because his time table fits well with our filming schedule. He is also a part of our media group making it easier for us to use him in our film introduction. Jovan also has some experience from acting previously.

Brother (David) - I volunteered to be one of the brothers as the free periods on my timetable coincides with our schedule. I also felt that I have an urban look and appeal, because of my physical features, so my appearance best suits the role as one of the brothers.

Brother (Mohammed) - The reason for choosing Mohammed to cast as one of the brothers is because when my group wants to film, he is free, so it’s really convenient for the time management my group has. Additionally, he has shown that he can act well within his role.

Suspect- (Deonisy) - Deonisy is a part of our media group and was willing to allow water to be spilled on him for one of the scenes. He has the experience to play this particular role because he has acted before in previous workshops.

Killer/Friend- (Kauser) - We chose to use Kauser to play the killer/friend because he has an unsuspecting face and his timetable is similar to ours and he is reliable.

Camera Crew (Gracia & anyone not being filmed)

-David

Scene Script - Original

Scenes (camera shots)

Each scene will be filmed in a specific way. Below is a plan of each scene, the order and what camera shots/angles will be used .

Scene 1

The characters (brothers) are walking in the playground. This is followed by after the beginning credits. (camera on tripod).

Scene 2



Relationship between characters, the bonding scene. Raising Arozona type focus scene (camera facing table).

  

Scene

This is the interrogation scene. The camera will start from behind the characters and smoothly rise to reveal all the the characters in the shot. It will then swtich to the view behind the character who is being interrogated, with the tape being pulled off his mouth. After the conversation occurs, when the characters refuses to cooperate the camera switches to one side of the scene and gasoline is poured onto him. the killer enters and after conversation occurs, he takes the lighter. Camera pans away.



Scene 4

Corridor chase scene/killer being chase. Fish eye lens/dutch angle used to display tension. (camera on fig rig).

-Deonisy

Props - Film opening (2 minute)

Props

These are the following props we decided to use, below is an outline of the props and who is responsible for bringing them.

Gasoline container (Milk bottle) - Deonisy
Red Tie - Tinashe
6 form suits - Everyone
Tape - Jovan
Disposable plastic Lighter - Deonisy

Optional : Fake blood - Deonisy

Props: Choice Of Lighters

When choosing between the lighters we had a total of three options:

 Zipolighter
This would have been the best option as it is typically linked to several american gangsta movies which is similar to the film we are trying to create. However, a practical implication is that it runs out of gas very quickly so it wastes a lot of time. Another issue is that we are trying to create a more urban image so they cannot have luxury lighters.

Matches
Working within a school environment did have some drawbacks and it definitely affected the type of lighter we used. Using a match was just too risky as the risk of dropping it and setting something alight was an issue that we could get over.





Disposable Lighter
This was the most practical of choices as it was the safest to use within school. It also had several creative uses in adapting our story. The fact that the genre is very urban the use of a disposable lighter to set someone on fire is the easiest and cheapest way to do it. Also it suggests the lack of care as no effort was made to make the victims death luxurious.

time management

TIMES

The following time plan below, shows the available times for all the people participating and when they are available to film.

cast for filming(Outline)

CAST FOR FILMING (Outline)

Before filming our 2 minute film introduction, our group sat down to plan out the project so we made sure we knew what we were doing and when everyone was available for filming.

CAST

Altogether there are 4 people being filmed, and there is one person behind the camera

 Interrogate - Deonisy

Brother- David

Brother - Jovan

Brother - Mohammed


















Killer - Tinashe.











Gracia will be working behind the camera to film the scenes, and if any other people are not being filmed, they will also coordinate filming apart from Tinashe.

-Deonisy