EVALUATION - HORROR FILM OPENING SEQUENCE - AS MEDIA
The following link contains a video explaining how we began as a production company. It also explains how we went about getting our initial ideas, why we chose our target audience and also how we went about setting up the blog and the Samantake Productions YouTube channel. It gives an insight into how we went about doing things before the shoot and explains some of the key areas on our blog which helped shape our opening sequence.
Evaluation 1 | Ideas & Starting Off - Before The Shoot
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=84gzJvnP0Ac
The next link contains a video explaining our aims and how we incorporated the horror film conventions researched in our blog into our film in order to make it look like a genuine horror film opening sequence.
Evaluation 2 | Our Aim & Incorporating Conventions - After The Shoot
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R8tGB2za4yc
Cont.
In addition
to identifying and using certain conventions from horror films we also thought
of ways which we could increase the realism of the opening to make it more
believable and frightening to the audience. As knew that our target audience
would be mostly teenagers and young adults, we decided to use the main character,
Anthony, who was a similar age to that age range. By using someone of similar
age, the audience would then be able to relate more. Also, as many teenagers
would be curious about, he decides to break in and explore and old abandoned
building which would hopefully arouse their curiosity. We decided to represent
the particular social group of teenagers in a way that would seem realistic so
that they would be able to relate and by having Anthony break in and exploring
an old abandoned building, this would seem relatable to many teenagers as they
like to explore and discover new things. Most teenagers are also confident and
Anthony, at the start of the sequence appears confident but soon panics when
something out of the blue happens. Many teenagers would do the same in this
situation.
Distribution:
Distribution:
The kind of
media institution that might distribute our media product would be a worldwide
film studio such as Universal Studios. Despite being set in the UK, the film
opening can be watched globally and still seem realistic and relatable to many
people. A person breaking into an old abandoned building and something terrible
happening to them would be something that would appeal to many horror film fans
around the world. Depending on how the movie would pan out if developed further,
it can be made to suit a global audience. As there is no dialogue in the
opening sequence, no subtitles would be needed and therefore it can be watched
by a global audience and there would be no difficulty in understanding what is
going on. Also, no regional dialect is used so therefore the film would not be
limited to just a UK audience despite being set in Britain. If chosen to be for
an international audience, the accents used would be easy to understand by many
different people but on a whole, the film so far can be released on an
international scale. If there was to be a minimal release, such as just in the UK and maybe some other countries around Europe then our other option would be Working Title.
As already mentioned, the audience for our media product would be teenagers and young adults (aged 15 – 25) as these are the people who are most likely to watch and enjoy horror films. Also, as research from demographics stated, teenagers and young adults tend to want an adrenaline rush from being fearful of something or someone which can be done on screen. Also, if we are to be more specific, males aged 16 – 35 are more likely to watch horror films as they are more likely than women to be able to interact with the characters on screen, this is why we used a male as our main character at the start of the film. In addition to this, most horror films are classified as age 15 or 18 which helps add to the scariness and anticipation of watching the film as people want to know why it has been classified quite highly.
How we attracted and addressed our target audience:
We firstly
attracted and addressed our audience by selecting a location that would be
familiar to them (a busy main road). We then chose a rather old looking
building that looks abandoned which would also be familiar to them. We secondly
attracted our audience through our main character who was of similar age –
someone they would be able to relate to. By being the same age and doing the
things he does, breaking in and exploring a very old dark abandoned place, the
audience would be able to put themselves in his position and determine how they
would feel by seeing the things which he does and have happen to him. We also
address our audience by making him give certain reactions that they would if
they were in this situation. An example of this is when Anthony hears a loud
bang and begins to run as fast as he can in a confused state. This is something
which many teenagers and young adults would do if such a dramatic thing
happened within seconds of their being silence. Anthony also walks in the way
that a teenager would do alongside the busy main road, hands in pockets,
walking casually – this also contributes to them being able to relate to the
main character.
What we learnt:
What we learnt:
On a whole,
we have learnt a significant amount about the technologies from the process of
constructing the film opening. Throughout our time planning, shooting and
editing we have learnt many different things which all helped contribute to the
completion of our film. One of the first things we learnt was how to use the
camera equipment, this was everything from the focus, exposure, white balance,
setting it up on a tripod and shooting and recording in different ways
(including low angles, high angles, medium close ups, extreme close-ups and
long shots). We also learned, when filming our prelim task, how to shoot a
conversation and ensure that the continuity is to the correct standards.
Although we didn’t use a conversation in our opening sequence, it was useful to
have and what we learnt on how to shoot a continuous scene from different
angles helped us significantly when filming the scene showing Anthony walking
down a busy main road.
After
learning about camera and shooting techniques and having shot our film opening
sequence footage, we then learnt about editing. We used one of the professional
industry standard software known as Adobe Premiere. Here we learnt how to cut
and piece together our footage as well as adjusting the colour of each of the clips
in order to help add to the dark and mysterious setting. We also learnt how to
add and cut sound, adjust the sound levels and add a letterbox framing that is
used within the majority of films - to
make it look like an authentic piece of cinema. Once having these elements
complete, we learnt how to add titles for our opening credits. We customised
the font style and colour until we found something suitable which tied in with
the horror genre of our film. We also added transitions to the credits such as
fades which helped to provide a smooth and mysterious flow to the piece that
tied in with the genre.
Looking back
on our prelim task, we realise that we have learnt so much about what elements
are needed for particular genres. We realise the importance of how micro
elements such as sound, mise en scene, camera and lighting all work hand in
hand in the creation of an effective horror film. We also know how to shoot and
edit a scene for continuity effectively and what camera angles are most
effective. We realised that in order to add suspense, we needed to use a
handheld camera as the shakiness provides a sense of unease to the setting and
helps add to the atmosphere. In addition to this, we have also learnt how
important it is to work out people’s strengths and weaknesses within our group
and determine which role will suit them best in order to gain the best possible
outcome for all of our work.
We identified
that Samantha Lee was extremely creative and had some excellent ideas, we
therefore, from our experience with her when shooting our prelim, cast her as
director. She helped to develop the storyline, worked with Anthony on the way
he should walk and the things he could do and also provided me with assistance
of how she wanted things to look on camera. Samantha also helped to create the storyboard, script and got involved with filming and editing. Anthony we knew had good
performance skills and was willing to get involved right at the heart of the film
and we therefore cast him as the actor. He was also very good at giving a
helping hand with equipment and other things that were needed during the film
such as props. He helped to set up our blog and come up with our company logo
as well as contributing to ideas. As for myself, Anthony and Samantha
identified that I was good at working the camera and shooting and framing
things well. Also, from past experience, I knew how to edit and so was chosen
to be camera operator and editor. I worked with Samantha in helping to develop
ideas and storyboards and also kept the blog updated. I helped
to keep the group organised by coming up with shooting schedules and working
out when would be best to film at the location (where my dad has a work’s unit)
as well as setting up equipment. I also produced the evaluation videos in this evaluation.
The following link is of a video containing interviews done with a number of people regarding the strengths and weaknesses of our film opening sequences. They identified what the thought worked well and what didn't and from this we would be able to identify where we may have gone wrong and what we would need to alter if given more time. The good things about interviewing these people is that they fit into the age range of our target audience which is mainly teenagers. The people we interviewed are those of the ages 16 and 17 who would most likely watch a film of this genre.
Evaluation 3 | Strengths and Weaknesses (As identified by other people)http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8J3qErwFCbM
From the positives mentioned in the interviews, such as those relating to camerawork, sound and editing, we all believe we have successfully managed to achieve our goal is making a convincing horror film opening sequence with the help of conventions from other horror movies.
Alongside the positives, negatives were also mentioned which will help us to understand where we can improve and what we can do if we had extra time. The following negative points were mentioned:
- Could see the shadow of the camera
- Didn't understand the point of the newspaper
- The director's name only came up for a short amount of time
In order to correct the shot with the shadow of the camera, we understand that we may need to somehow put a filter over the shot which will have the centre of the shot in view and the surrounding areas covered by faded darkness. This will therefore help disguise this shadow and the problem will be alleviated.
As for the newspaper, we wanted the audience to realise that this abandoned section of the mill had lay empty for many years. As soon as Anthony picks the newspaper up, the shot changes to an out of focus close-up of the newspaper. The shot then changes back to Anthony looking at the newspaper before cutting to the same shot as before which now shows the newspaper in focus. When the newspaper is in focus, it reveals the date of when the newspaper was published. It mentions the year 2002 which suggests that the mill has been abandoned for a number of years. In order to address this problem, we may need to lengthen the shot of the newspaper focusing more on the year or possibly removing this section entirely in order to avoid confusion. We are aware that the flicker between the out of focus shot to the shot of Anthony and then back to the newspaper may be a bit confusing for the audience.
Megan mentions that the director's name only comes up for a short amount of time at the end of the film. If we were to take her criticism on board, we would have to lengthen the amount of time this piece of text stays on screen for. On one hand this may be a good idea as the extra length provides an impact and ensures the audience are aware of the person who has directed it, but on the other hand it may be sensible to make this short and dramatic and then go straight into the heart of the film. Again, we were also limited to the amount of time the opening sequence could be so we tried to keep this at a minimum.
Overall, we were extremely happy with the feedback we had received and this has helped us to identify the strengths and weaknesses of the piece and know that it does in fact appeal to an audience of this particular age group.
The following link is of a video of our group's thoughts on some of the complications we had and what improvements need to be made from our own point of view. It also forms the conclusion to the evaluation of a project we really enjoyed doing.
As an entire group we believe we have successfully made an opening sequence to a horror film following the typical horror film conventions which we learnt about through our research.
Thank you for reading and watching.
Evaluation 4 | Complications, Improvements & Conclusion
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3gsJLXgiiUk
The following link is of a video containing interviews done with a number of people regarding the strengths and weaknesses of our film opening sequences. They identified what the thought worked well and what didn't and from this we would be able to identify where we may have gone wrong and what we would need to alter if given more time. The good things about interviewing these people is that they fit into the age range of our target audience which is mainly teenagers. The people we interviewed are those of the ages 16 and 17 who would most likely watch a film of this genre.
Evaluation 3 | Strengths and Weaknesses (As identified by other people)http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8J3qErwFCbM
From the positives mentioned in the interviews, such as those relating to camerawork, sound and editing, we all believe we have successfully managed to achieve our goal is making a convincing horror film opening sequence with the help of conventions from other horror movies.
Alongside the positives, negatives were also mentioned which will help us to understand where we can improve and what we can do if we had extra time. The following negative points were mentioned:
- Could see the shadow of the camera
- Didn't understand the point of the newspaper
- The director's name only came up for a short amount of time
In order to correct the shot with the shadow of the camera, we understand that we may need to somehow put a filter over the shot which will have the centre of the shot in view and the surrounding areas covered by faded darkness. This will therefore help disguise this shadow and the problem will be alleviated.
As for the newspaper, we wanted the audience to realise that this abandoned section of the mill had lay empty for many years. As soon as Anthony picks the newspaper up, the shot changes to an out of focus close-up of the newspaper. The shot then changes back to Anthony looking at the newspaper before cutting to the same shot as before which now shows the newspaper in focus. When the newspaper is in focus, it reveals the date of when the newspaper was published. It mentions the year 2002 which suggests that the mill has been abandoned for a number of years. In order to address this problem, we may need to lengthen the shot of the newspaper focusing more on the year or possibly removing this section entirely in order to avoid confusion. We are aware that the flicker between the out of focus shot to the shot of Anthony and then back to the newspaper may be a bit confusing for the audience.
Megan mentions that the director's name only comes up for a short amount of time at the end of the film. If we were to take her criticism on board, we would have to lengthen the amount of time this piece of text stays on screen for. On one hand this may be a good idea as the extra length provides an impact and ensures the audience are aware of the person who has directed it, but on the other hand it may be sensible to make this short and dramatic and then go straight into the heart of the film. Again, we were also limited to the amount of time the opening sequence could be so we tried to keep this at a minimum.
The following link is of a video of our group's thoughts on some of the complications we had and what improvements need to be made from our own point of view. It also forms the conclusion to the evaluation of a project we really enjoyed doing.
As an entire group we believe we have successfully made an opening sequence to a horror film following the typical horror film conventions which we learnt about through our research.
Thank you for reading and watching.
Evaluation 4 | Complications, Improvements & Conclusion
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3gsJLXgiiUk
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