Evaluation 3: What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?

If my film were to be distributed, it would be distributed by "Warp films". The reason behind this, is due to them being a small UK film institution. Furthermore, my film would not be able to be distributed by large companies such as "Summit Entertainment" simply because it will be a unknown production company who produced the film and my characters are unknown wheres in "Memento" the characters are famous for example, "Leonardo DiCaprio", is one of the dominant characters therefore, is well known. Also, my budget would be very low. Furthermore, Summit Entertainment is a North American film studio. Moreover, I would promote my movie to my target audience in a range of ways for example, through trailers, advertisement, and local transport for example on the bill boards. This will attract my target audience as it will be constantly shown to them where every where they go, encouraging them to watch the movie, this can result as a good word of mouth. Never the less, I want my film to be distributed in different formats which will enable them to watch it in a lot of ways for example, Blu-ray and DVD's.

Evaluation 2: How does your media product represent particular social groups?

During our production we came to a conclusion that our dominant character, (protagonist) would be played by a female character. The female character would be represented in a stereotypical aspect at the opening scene, for example, vulnerable and confused. However, during the opening scene stereotypes are challenged through gender. Having been influenced by "Memento", in which the dominant character is played by a male, I decided to challenged these conventions, therefore, used a female as the main character for "REWIND". By having a female character as the main victim, I challenged stereotypes, for example, usually in thriller movies, the main victim is always played by a male character whereby he succeeds in meeting the truth however, in "REWIND" it is a female character who is the main victim where she succeeds in meeting the truth. Moreover, both dominant characters in "Memento" and "REWIND" consist similar stereotypical qualities, for example, they both are determined to know the truth, they both are confused and lost as a result to what has happened and both characters suffer from the same illness "amnesia". The fact that the female character in "REWIND" overcomes her confidence and is determined to establish the truth, is a typical stereotype of how victims usually respond to unusual situations that is not part of their daily routine. Moreover, I was also influenced by "Se7en", and as a result, this has led my horror sequence to be filled with suspense and tension that builds confusion, for example, the constant flashing images makes the audience confused, therefore grabs their attention, making them determined to see how this "puzzle" solved.

The characters costumes in "REWIND" are very different in comparison to "Memento". This enables the audience to establish what class each character belongs to, for example, in "REWIND" the female character wheres a black tank top, and through out the movie she does not wear any branded costumes, this represents that she is of working class. However, in "Memento" the dominant character is illustrated to wear ties, suits and shirts, this tells the audiences the male character in "Memento" is upper class, therefore, stereo typically more powerful as apposed to a working class person.

One might suggest that we have challenged how gender is represented in our film, due to the fact that usually in films the dominant character is a male character, however in "REWIND" the main character is female. One advantage "REWIND" consist of, in comparison to "Memento" is due to the dominant characters being played by different gender, stereotypical the audience generally feel more sympathetic towards females characters. Also, in thriller movies, the female character don't usually kill innocent people, however, in "REWIND" the main character kills innocent people. This challenges the stereotypes of of how females are represented to have expressive roles and are defenseless,. This can also illustrate that society is constantly changing within gender and we are moving away from a patriarchal society.
Here is a slide share that tells you exactly how my media product represent particular social groups and shows some questions I took into consideration.

Evaluation 2

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Stereotypes about gender and conventions are represented through different camera angles, for example:

The first shot of the opening scene represents a female characters arm from a medium high angle. The camera angle illustrates gender stereotypes, for example, due to the camera angle being a high angle, it tells the audience that this female character is not powerful.

This image illustrates a medium high angle of a female character. This tells the audience that the female character is less power and due to the camera angle being a high angle, "REWIND" consist of a voyeur whereby someone is looking down at the victim. Also, this engages the audience attention as they are positioned to be in the voyeurs perspective, therefore feel sympathetic towards the female character, as they know something is going to happen to that victim.

This image demonstrates a female character looking down, and the camera angle is a low angle. This significance of this is, it illustrates that the female character is superior. Furthermore, this image challenges stereotypes about females as they are represented to be weak.

To conclude the images below represent some of the flashback "REWIND" consist of. These images attract males because stereotypically males find suspence more appealing in comparison to females, therefore, are more engaged.

Evaluation 1: In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media product?

The image below represent the most valid clips which we believe to show conventions of thriller films which has been taken from our own thriller opening sequence.


 Story of how the opening sets up:

I wanted to start my horror opening sequence by creating suspense in order to grasp the audience's attention within minutes of the opening scene, so that they would be more engaged to watch the film. I decided that the arm of the female character would be most suitable, as a result taken from a high angle shot, this would illustrate that the female character is vulnerable and powerless. Furthermore, the camera angle that displays a female arm makes my opening sequence more dramatic. The first shot taken for my film was a medium to close up shot, capturing the female characters arm and specifically showing all the detailed blood marks on her arm. Using this particular shot enables the audience to identify that something is wrong and something bad has an is going to happen. 
Moreover, the main character is represented to be in a deep sleep, the costumes illustrate this, for example, the main character is wearing a black tank top and black joggers. This represents that she has a dark side to her and in a deep sleep, moreover, it also tells the audience that something bad will happen which attracts their attention. Also considering I used high key lighting  enables the audience to identify the blood marks on the characters arm and by using a variety of  medium-high shots, we were able to create a successful horrror opening sequence that builds suspense and grabs the audiences attention. Also, this encourages the audience to believe that something unexspected will occur. Most hybrid movies that has a combination of horror and thriller usually contain constant flashing images which also creates suspense as it builds up tension for the audience making them raise questions in their head, as a result I was influenced by 'Se7en' therefore used constant flashing images throughout my opening sequence to really capture the audience attention and puzzle them.    


Camera Work and Editing:


This image on the right provides the audience with valid information concerning the dominant character in this film. It becomes clear that the female character keeps a diary in which  she records the amount of people she has killed. I decided that it would be best if I used an medium shot to create suspense for example, when the female character is writing the audience at this point are extremely engaged as they are positioned in the characters shoes and are encourage to know what the character is writing. However, at the beginning when creating my story board I thought a close up shot would be best ideal however,  later on I realized  the audience can easily get confused, therefore, I then decided to use an extreme long shot however, this took the attention off the diary and did not represent its significance.  Additionally, a medium shot seemed perfect to address to my audience. This enabled my audience to understand the importance of the diary and be able to read the content clearly.  Moreover, by using low key lighting in this particular shot, enables the audience to  focus on the content of the diary, rather then having them focus on a range of things. Moreover, in Final Cut Express I edited the footage to make it black and white. This was extremely important as it tells the audience that this footage has happened in the past. One reason I thought I should have the past shots in black and white is due to 'The Ring'. This movie also uses black and white editing to represent the past which attracts the audience attention as they are curious as to what is it that happened in this characters past.


The title of the film:

The image on the left represents the title of the film which appears in 'dirt drop' in colors of red and yellow. The color red signifies blood and death and the yellow represents friendship. The fact the the actual title is written in yellow and then out layered in red represents how the female characters friendship is betrayed causing her to kill her best friend. Furthermore, each scene follows on to the next, the effect in which the letter are gone is "TV OFF". This represents that something is going to happen as stereo typically in thriller/horror movies when people turn the TV of the victim is most likely to get killed. One of the main reasons for using a male character as the background of the image is to represents that someone is always watching the victim. Moreover, the close up shot represents the male characters eyes, this positions the audience in the victims perspective; someone is always looking at them which gasps their attention. I first decided to use a plain black background for the title of the film however, this didn't emphasis the power of the title and attract to the audience to the best standards therefore, I decided to use a male character which would suddenly grasp the audience attention and build suspense. By using capital letters though out the title of the film, adds boldness whilst capturing the audience's attention, which was my main intention. 


How the characters are introduced:

To introduce the characters through flash backs to our target audience, I decided the first shot that I would use is a medium shot. This illustrates who the dominant character is in the film to the target audience and it establishes the characters 'illness'. Moreover, due to the effective camera shots the audience are able to understand the characters action that has been represented though the body language. This particular image enables the audience too see that this character is going to do something terrible. The fact she is looking directly at the camera with a smirk on her face illustrates this. Also, the darkness of the image tells the audience that this character is associated with secrets. Furthermore, the tank top worn by this character is black, this demonstrates to the audience that this character commits crime as black is associated with death, for example, when participating in a funeral. This image establishes the conventions of thriller and horror films as at this point in films the story line being to unfold and builds suspense. 


Lighting:

The lighting in this image is used to highlight the blood marks on the victims hand to illustrate she has comited this murder. Moreover, the fact that she female characters shadow reflects on the dead character represents her power. Moreover, I decided to use a long shot, and low key lighting to illustrate the darkness within the characters to the audience. By using low key lighting in this frame, it enables the audience to focus on the arm. Moreover, I believe it was very important to use low key lighting t illustrate shadows which would represent the darker side of the story. Additionally, the use of lighting enable the audience to see that everything with in this shot was not what it shows, and there's a deeper story towards it. 


Setting and Location:

This particular image on the left represents a room. This shot is taken when the victim turns around to see if someone is behind her however, spots no one. The reason why I chose this particular setting was because it seemed more realistic, where someone casually in is in their room typing on the laptop. Moreover, the audience at this point are engage as they assume something terrible is going to happen within the next few shots. The use of the soundtrack and lighting creates a realistic atmosphere therefore, it represents that something unexspected is going to happen to the character. Moreover, the image is a medium shot. The reason for this is because it enables the audience to establish what the setting is. 


Genre and how the opening suggests it

These two images represent exactly what genre this film belongs too. This film is a hybrid, is contains conventions of thriller and horror. Furthermore, within a few minutes of the opening sequence, the female character is represented killing a victim. This illustrates a successful film opening as it creates a range of question for the audience for example, why is she killing her? What is going to happen next? Will anyone find out? What is she gaining from killing this innocent person? Are these two characters related in any way? By building suspense and raising question in the audiences mind, these shot achieves the film goals. When creating 'REWIND'  I had no intention of creating a hybrid, the genre was specifically meant to be a thriller. However, by challenging the conventions of thriller movies 'REWIND' resulted as a hybrid, containing the genre horror. Some horror conventions that 'REWIND' consist that this image represents are: frighten and panic the audience. The victim was casually typing on her laptop however the protagonist comes and kills her, this makes the audience panic and frightens them as to what will happen next. Also, another convention this image represents is 'Fear of death' before she is killed.


Special effects


This image represents an eye looking directly at the audience. however suddenly the eye is moving and overlaps against where it was first position. The reason I used special effect on the eye is to capture the audience attention. The fact that the eye is constantly moving indicates that the antagonist is always watching from different places and angles. Also, it emphasis's how the victim can not think straight and is all over the place. The actual eye itself grabs the audience attention as the eye is looking directly at the audience as a results creates a frighting emotions. The fact that the opening sequence suddenly ends with a eye is one reason why 'REWIND' is a hybrid. Horror movies such as 'The Ring' and 'Grudge' have close up shot of eyes at random times just like 'REWIND' to create suspense and fear for the audience.

How the suspense is created:

The image on the left represents the victim identifying loads of images on the wall of people however she is unaware of who these people are. This creates suspense as the audience are positioned in the victims point of view therefore are puzzled as to why there are loads of pictures on the wall, who the people are, and what does it mean. The medium shot enables the audience to see all the pictures and the wall and view what the female character is doing. Also, it creates a focus point on the image and the dominant character which creates suspense as the audience are intrigued as to what will happen next within the next few shots and whether their questions are answered. Throughout the whole opening scene questions are constantly raised and created for the audience through flashback and prompts such as the diary. This instantly creates suspense as the audience are engaged and are interested to see how the puzzle is solved.  

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Construction: Final Cut peer assessment

I decided to analyse 'Dream chaser' which enabled me to see the similarities and difference it has in comparison to 'REWIND'. Down below are some questions I answered inorder to analyse 'Dream chaser'.

• How does the opening sequence engage/create interest for the audience?
 I believe that "Dream Chaser" was very good and interesting. One reason for this is simple because of their effects for example, noise and bad TV effects where used for the CCTV camera, this engages the audience attention, making them know something is wrong/going to happen, and it also emphasis the importance of the CCTV as it is constantly being shown. Moreover, they used a lot of camera angles/shot for example, at the beginning the male character is featured with a medium-long shot. This enables the audience to see what the character looks like and what he is doing. Furthermore, the thriller ends with a close up of an object. This indicates to the audience that the object is very significant and makes them want to know more about the object creating suspense. Moreover, the editing is also very good, for example, the time is edited with the audio to make the shot flow. This encourages the audience to watch the movie.


• Does it establish characters? How?
In my opinion I believe dream chaser does establish characters to a certain extent for example, it represents that the victim is buying DVD's and it establishes who the two dominant characters are as they are the only two characters being shown throughout the opening sequence. Furthermore, one character is represented to by a typical 'rude boy/gangster' though the costumes for example, he is wearing a ero-cap,  whereas the other is portrayed to be innocent.  


• Does the opening create a mood or story/narrative? How?
The opening creates a specific mood at different stages for example, at the beginning of the opening sequence the audience are calm and relaxed as the characters are introduced minding their own business however, the mood/atmosphere suddenly changes and suspense it build when the 'rude boy' leaves an object on the floor. Furthermore, when the two dominant character bump into each other; the footage is constantly being replayed this symbolizes the importance of the two character 'bumping' into one another.  


• How is enigma established?
Enigma is created from the beginning of the opening sequence for example, firstly the CCTV camera implies someone is always watching the character therefore, the audience are determined to know why are the characters constantly being watched, and is there a main purpose for this however, when the two characters face each other that is when tension and suspense takes place. At this point the audience are interested as to what the significance of the object is therefore, they constantly have questions running through their mind as their attention is grabbed.  

Construction: How do I know that "Rewind" is a Horror movie and not a thriller movie? and interim

As you can see, "Rewind" has become a horror movie. In order for me to establish this, I had to do research on horror movies.

As a result, my research enabled me to identify why "Rewind" is a horror movie. Down below is a list of horror conventions that "Rewind" establish.

Camera shots/editing:

Fast editing during shock - At this point the audience feel very confused, the tension is built as the enigma's set in place and the audience at this point are very focused.
Slow and long cut when tension is built - for example when the female character picks up the image, the shot is very slow, however, before that the shots are very fast, this builds tension as the audience are able to see the importance of the image.
Long shots to emphasis vulnerability of protagonist
Close up of threaten face - This makes the audience feel sympathy towards the female character
Panning shot to build tension - In "Rewind" there is a victim who sitting on a chair, she then turns round, at this point the antagonist, (killer) has approaching however, a panning shot takes place so that the audience are in the perspective of the victim. At this point the audience are very engaged as they want to know whether the victim will see the antagonist, and if the victim doesn't see her, the audience know that the antagonist will still kill her. Therefore, at this point tension is built to be very high.

Now I will talk about the mise- en scene for horror movies and how it relates to "Rewind"


Mise-en- scene:

Dark, mysterious costumes for the antagonist or threat - In "Rewind" the character is wearing black, this emphasizes on the fact that she is a killer, and that there is death associated with her where ever she goes.For example, in funerals people wear "black" when somebody dies. Therefore, the same way, the character is wearing black to represent death.
Ominous setting in this case a house

Sound:

Silence is used to build tension - At the beginning of rewind, tension is raised through silence, which can also build an enigma for the audiences; also at this point the audience attention is grabbed because they want to know what happens next.
Music is used to slowly increase anxiety in audience - when the female character puts the image back down a "music box" is playing.
Loud sudden beats to shock the audience - when there is constant flashing shots, loud noises suddenly play, this shocks the audiences and makes them feel even more scared.
Diagetic sound - this takes place when the female character looks at the body. At this point the audience feel scared and are shocked to know what they see, moreover they are positioned in the victims view therefore feel sympathetic towards her.

To conclude, by establishing the conventions of a Horror movie, I felt that "Rewind" more likely fits in under the genre: "Horror". However, just to make sure I decided to watch a few horror movies, these consist of "Saw", "The ring", "the grudge" "butterfly effect" and "The howling". One this each movie had equivalent was the use of flashing shots. Each movie represented shots flashing or a flash back. Moreover, "Rewind" constantly has flash backs and flashing shots which builds tension, as the audience attention at this point is very focused.

Having done some shots with my group I decided to work individually by exploring and experimenting. The reason behind this was because with the shots that we produced, whilst having a look at them in school I was not very fond and happy with them. Therefore, I wanted to shoot better footage however, my group refused and that is why I thought working on my own would be much better. I feel by working individually I was able to achieve many things, for example, I explored how to create effects on my footage by editing them. Moreover, this enabled me to understand how important effects are for example, by using effects it grabs the audience attention. Furthermore, I can now create credits by adding effects on them using a program called "Live type". At the beginning when doing my Juno video I was unaware of this program and was clueless on how it functions however, now I feel very confident to use it, therefore, can create a lot of credits using different effects. Moreover, I learnt that instead of having a range of different effects for the credits, it is better to keep the effect consistent. Also, I strongly believed I used my camera angles and shots wisely for example, when the female character picks up the image, there shot is a close up of the image. This puts the audience in the female position and signifies the significance of it. Therefore, I believe I learnt how camera angles and shots can make the audience feel a particular way about the atmosphere, location, prompts, costumes and characters.


Down below is a list of all my achievement along this process:


1. Expanding my skills on "Final Cut Express"
2. Using a range of camera angles
3. Broadening my skills on editing
4. Understanding the importance of credits
5. Expanding my skills on "Live type" when creating the credits
6. Understanding mise en scene and using it wisely in my video
7. Combing shots together
8. The importance of sound and why thriller opening usually have non-diegetic sound
9. How to identify my target audience
10. The importance of planning
11. Importance of research
12. Conducing research
13. Conducting Planning
14. How evaluating and analyzing other thrillers can help me make my thriller video
15. Understanding of equipment and how to use it
16. understanding and a better knowledge of horror conventions

Construction: peer-assessment

By analyzing Mathuras rough cut it helps me improve mine, by inspiring me with ideas. For example, the way in which sound was used, was very effective in creating tension. It really grasped the audience's attention by making them feel emotions, such as fear and curiosity, which effectively made the audience want to carry on watching. In the opening scene, the music is quite deep and intense, therefore it created suspense. Furthermore, the groups use of lighting was very good. They used the dolly very well, for example, when the character is on the floor, you can see her facial expressions very vividly, as the lighting brings attention to the female characters face. This engages the audience and they are made to feel sympathetic towards the character because she looks as though shes been hurt by someone. One reason for this suggestion is because the light clearly shows the blood on her face. However, if there was no light on that character the audience would not feel connected to her and understand her importance. Furthermore, one thing she could improve on it adding more credits, if they included more credits it would makes the movie more seem more real. Also, one thing I would recommend them to do to improve is, the costume. The character costume does not signify the characters personality and establish the character. Therefore, the audience are not as attached to the character. If the character costume consisted her wearing dark colors it can signify death, which promotes the characters past as in her past there is a lot of death involved. Moreover, Mathura's thriller opening introduces "mood". For example, at the beginning of the thriller movie, the audience are sympathetic towards the protagonist, laying on the floor, however, the mood changes as she is suddenly reminded with a flash back. At this point the tension is building up and the audience are engaged. However, the mood then suddenly changes when the female character identifies a body on the floor. The atmosphere becomes very tensed and at this point the audience are urgent to know why that body is there. Therefore, have a lot of questions that needs to be answered. The opening also introduces the narrative, for example, it illustrates there is a girl, that wakes up in a strange room, who remembers only a bit of her past. The female character then sees loads of pictures on the wall, her hands reaches on image and by mistakes she drops it onto the floor, just then she is shocked by what she sees. The body on the floor is the exact same girl that she saw in the picture she dropped. Through the use of camera, body language, lighting, editing, effects and facial expression of the characters, the narrative is told. The effects of the titles are consistent which is also a positive thing, because it doesn't distract the audience attention from the main focus point. Furthermore, there are loads of way in which enigma is established for example, when the dead body is lying on the floor automatically the audience start to raise questions in there head; "Why is that body there?", and "who killed her?". This makes the audience want to find out the missing pieces of the puzzle. Overall, I think that there video was very good especially due to the sound.

Construction: Feed back

I showed my class my rough cut and they gave me feed back. They told me what areas I should improve on and thing that worked effectively.For example, one of the things I need to include are the credits, they said if i don't have credits the opening is not realistic. Also, another thing I should focus on is, audio. They explained that I should carry on including a bit more audio because during the opening some bit have audio therefore, it will create excitement for the audience, however, it just stops half way and therefore, does not seem to be realistic.
One thing they said I did very good is adding in effects, they said that it was something unusual and unique, moreover I explained how I was inspired by Memento's video therefore, added similar effect. Also, they like the idea that each clip was short however, when the character picked up the picture and it slowed down, it made them see that the person in that picture has some sort of connection towards the character therefore, makes them what to know what it is.