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

 

Shot 1. Our company production name is TaLK Productions and we thought that a mouth would be the best way to represent this in our ident. Films often start  with the relevant distribution/production company idents and so we made an ident to include at the beginning of our piece. Some idents are silent but we thought that it would fit with the style of our company to include a voice. We reflected the clip and put our company logo in the middle, choosing effects that made it look bright and quirky. We used other idents like the ident for Bad Robots as inspiration for ours, especially in regard to using the voice in the clip. We decided to put it right at the beginning, before the other ident because of the use of a voice in the clip and we wanted to keep the other clip silent with only the background soundtrack to allow the audience to settle into the the mellower and more suspenseful atmosphere.

Shot 2.  Lakeshore Entertainment is a distribution company that has distributed, produced and exhibited many other films in this thriller genre. It is one of the genres that they are most well known for and they have distributed many successful films too. They also produced lots of other films aimed towards our target audience of teenage girls and young adults. Finally, the ident for this company is simple and the sepia tones make it quite mellow. This really helped to support to atmosphere we wanted to create at the start of the film. Some film idents have sounds that are iconic to their ident however we decided that it would ruin the atmosphere and decided instead to keep the clip silent but include the backing sound-track to help the flow between clips.

Shot 3. We made sure that Chloe, the little girl, wore bright and happy colours because we felt that it would show that she represented happiness in her sister's life. This shot shows that well as her bright pink and purple outfit contrast greatly with the grey road and the murky puddle. Also, she is in the process of jumping in the puddle and this represents her youth and energy. In films, you often find that the victim is instantly likable or seen as being innocent and cute and that was the effect we were going for here. As Chloe is taken quite early on in the film, the audience needed to like her immediately and feel the same sense of loss as her sister and family. this emotional attachment makes the film more enjoyable and poignant for the watcher. We felt that the titles needed to be simple so as not to detract from the images that are shown in the film. The white of the font was clear against the background images and the writing is big enough to be read clearly but not so big that the watch can't see anything past them.

Shot 4. Shot 4 is taken from a tracking shot that follows the Frisbee from when Tammy/ "big sister" throws it to when Chloe picks it up off the grass. We chose to include various shot types and angles because most films aren't shown from one stationary camera position. We wanted to keep it dynamic and interesting to watch. We chose a pink Frisbee because it is a very happy colour and it also stands out and is easy to follow. This scene is a very informative one as it shows the fun between the sisters and their relationship. It is cute and makes the audience want the film to go in their favour. I've noticed in many other films of this genre and for this audience, that they often make the main protagonist and 'good guys' likable and people the audience can relate to from the start of the film.

Shot 5. We used flashes of images like this, with Tammy writing a missing child poster with a poster of her, Chloe and their mum. This is foreshadowing the events in the future and the quick flashes mean that the opening is more interesting to watch. I think it brings you closer to the characters too because the watcher knows that the sisters only have a limited time left together before the events unfold. We used a high angle shot to make her look smaller and vulnerable but we were close enough that the writing on the poster could still be read. Pictures of Chloe when she was younger were placed around Tammy, we felt this would make the scene more sentimental and touching as well as give the audience an insight into her childhood.

Shot 6. This shot was one of the more obvious shots from the view of the kidnapper. The audience don't know this is the kidnapper but it is clear that it is a point-of-view shot and the way the person is concealed amongst the branches gives the impression that they don't want to be seen. We added the sound effect of a man breathing heavily to increase the suspense and tension and create and eerie atmosphere. The transition between this clip and the one previous to it is quite a sudden jump cut and there is a loud crackle of leaves, this should make the audience jump out of the false sense of ease they were experiencing before. While the opening is still quite calm and slow paced, this shot give the audience a preview to the suspense that they will experience later in the film. We framed Chloe and Tammy in the park to make it clear that they were the subject of the shot and they were in focus too.

Shot 7. We had originally planned to use the title 'Missing' that was on the poster but to make it clearer that that was the title we chose instead to overlay the title on the poster and then cut to the stark white on black. The title is simple and to-the-point. We took inspiration from film titles like 'Taken' and 'Gone'. We chose the effect because it made the title more dynamic to watch and maintained the tension.

Shot 8. The picture on the missing child poster is a scene from a birthday party with Chloe in the middle and Tammy and Justine (the mum) on either side. The previous shot was of the poster but zoomed in on the title 'Missing'. This shot is after the title and the camera returned back to the poster and zoomed in on the picture instead. The static photo comes to life, showing the scene where the photo was taken. We felt that this was an indication of the timing, showing that these events were happening before Chloe was taken. This also made a good transition between the opening scene and title to the start of the main body of the film. We also showed the change by the shift between the black and white photograph and the full colour of the film.

Shot 9. We set the location to look bright and colourful with party balloons and bright furniture. The scene was clearly a birthday party, shown by the party hats, balloons and birthday cake as well as the singing of 'Happy Birthday'. We had Chloe dressed in a girly party dress too, making her look youthful and a typical girly little girl. We wanted to create a sense of normalcy, this was just a simple birthday party. We chose to film the scene with a hand-held camera to give it the 'home-video' feel. This feels more personal and casual for the audience.

29. Editing Process

We edited using Song Movie Studio Platinum 12.0. We have yet to include the titles and we are still in the process of making our production company's ident, however, here are some images of the video in the making...

 

 

 

28. Shoot Our Film

We did our filming today at Aberlour House and down at Duffus park. Everyone was great and the rain managed to hold off until we were done with the filming! We've got loads off footage... time to start editing!

23. Shotlist

Here is a shot list for our opening sequence. We wan to film most of our shots at the Duffus Park so we will have to chose the day carefully so that the weather co-operates!

11. 9 Screen Shots From The Dead Zone

1. My first shot is of a large old fashioned American house. I think it is effective because of the use of colour. It is quite a dull looking image, as in it looks quite dark. The sky is an ominous shade of grey that promises rain and the silhouette of the trees and the black on the house are both quite an inky colour. This makes it seem deeper and gives the image more depth. The house also looks empty and isolated.

 

2. In this second shot, two shapes have appeared on screen. In the foreground, you can see wheat and in the background, there are trees and fog. The crops and the colour of the trees indicates that it is autumn. The fog in particular, makes the image look mysterious and creepy. I like this shot because it is a very well composed image and it is mysterious too.

3. In this shot, more of the black shapes have appeared and I really like the growing mystery with the shapes. It makes the watcher wonder why they are there and what their significance is. The colours in this shot are similar to the previous shot and this indicates that it is from the same place. The colours are all quite faded and they have an orange/red tinge to them. In these images, you either don't see any people or they are only in the distance and this gives the impression of isolation and abandonment.

4. Because of the grain in this shot, the watcher gets the impression that the image is old. The fencing and the trees make the place in the image look isolated and closed off, giving the impression of secrecy. All the colours in the image look like they could be bright and cheerful but they are dampened and this makes it darker and gloomier.

 

 

5. More of the black shapes have appeared and they are starting to form the outlines of something. In the image, there is the sweeping corner of a road that disappears behind a wall of trees. The watcher doesn't know where this road leads and they can't see what they are heading towards. The road is abandoned and the way it is surrounded by trees makes it look secluded and scary.

6. This is the first shot where you can really start to put together the shapes and see that they make letters and words. I like this because it is forming the title and it is also very mysterious. In the background, we see a small country road, trees and power-lines leading to a house. The scene is very gloomy and the place looks unwelcoming.

7. The title is becoming clearer and clearer as the shots progress. I like this shot because of the simplicity of the image in the background. Everything above the 'equator' of the image is just trees, but below the equator, we a road and two people on motorbikes/scooters. Their size in comparison to everything else makes then look vulnerable or unimportant.

 8. The title is finally complete and this is when it has started to shrink toward the centre, giving the impression that it is moving away from us. The background image is more trees, fog and houses in the dull and gloomy colours that are featured through-out the opening sequence of this film.

9. The title has continued to shrink and it is fading out and we see an old fashioned school. I like this shot because it is clear that the movie is about to begin because the image is quite different to the others. The colours are clearer and the image looks sharper. I also like the way that the tree frames the image and I think that this also create a connection between all the previous images and this one because they all have trees in them.

10. Textual Analysis of 'The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo' Title Sequence

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo Title Sequence

The title sequence for the 2011 film adaptation of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo directed by David Fincher uses CGI to create a nightmarish sequence of images. The majority of the title sequence is in various shades of inky black and grey but the colour is made to look slick and shiny by having light coming from different places. Apart from the black/blue colour of the oil, the only colour is the bright orange of fire. This helps to make the fire stand out and gives it a more of an effect on the watcher because it is what you immediately notice as it is a stark contrast to the dark colours you are used to seeing. Not only are the objects in the pictures various shades of black but the background is also black and the models are coated in a black, oily liquid which is a computer generated image (CGI). Light shines from different angles and gives the oil a slick look which helps with the liquid effect. The oil effect is described by the creators as ‘that viscid, black ooze that seeps into everything, penetrating crevices, dribbling into lips and eyes, suffocating and sensual and silent. Each ebony form is made osmotic — surging and melding, torn apart and punctured, ensnared, set ablaze — thrashing in the deep. Through flashes of embers and murk, sticky vines creep, hands grapple, foul petals unfurl, and sable fists inflict their fury.’

The movement of the camera follows the direction of the oil and creates a flowing, oozing effect that looks like it consumes everything in its path. Close-ups of objects shows great detail and the textures of the scales in particular make the image interesting, dynamic and dangerous. To make certain images look more intimate, the camera angle is up high and when they are trying to make something look more ominous or dangerous; the camera angle is low and looking up at the subject.

Sound is important in this title sequence because of the tie between it and the editing. The music is ‘Immigrant Song’, originally by Led Zeppelin but in this case it was the cover by Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross and Karen O. The fast pace of the music was thrilling and the vocals is mostly just desperate howling and wailing. This gives the music a nightmarish quality that darkens the title sequence even more than the colours and images. There is a very strong drum beat which paces the sequence well.

The editing is very well synchronized with the beat of the music and therefore the editing is quite fast, especially at first. At the start of the title sequence, the images fade in and out really quickly with the beat, producing only flashes. After these first few clips of film, the majority of the rest of the editing is cut straight. There is also some cross-cutting for example, where is goes from the start of a clips of the fire spreading to a clip of people moving in the oil and then back to the fire spreading etc. To carry on with the oozing and liquid style of the opening sequence, they have used a dynamic, flowing font that moves too.

 

 

9. Graphic Breakdown of 'Panic Room' Title Sequence

4. Prelim Task- The Date Room

For our Prelim task we had to create a short video that showed that we understood Match-on-action, shot/reverse shot and the 180 degree rule. We also had to make sure that we had someone entering a room, sitting down and sharing a few words with someone else. We got the help of two of our friends and they starred in our video. It is called The Date Room and is about a blind date that is not very successful! We hope you enjoy :)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0R0uVa_j5Lw&feature=youtu.be

4. My Shot Library

I worked with Tammy and Kaisey to create a shot library. It is a collection of different shots and editing techniques put together to make a film that will help us in the future.

Here is the youtube link... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gZoNTiZsyRk&feature=youtu.be