question two

How does your media product represent particular social group?

For our opening sequence, we decided our target audience would be the age of around eighteen and above as they are more likely to have an interest in complex issues such as mental disorders.
We chose to use an everyday setting for our opening sequence as this could make the audience feel more anxious or paranoid as they watch it because it could happen to anyone, even in an everyday setting. As well as this, the use of an everyday setting, with average houses represents a middle class or working class social group.

Why did we choose the character we have used?

Both characters are teenagers in this opening sequence, therefore this would automatically represent a teenage social group.

Another film that represents a teenage social group is House on the End of the Street. The two main characters are teenagers.

In this film, I think the male character looks a lot like our main character. His light blonde hair and blue eyes give him an innocent angelic look.

Similarly the use of an independent female character, although she is just a teenager could still represent not only teenage girls but independent women in general.

The film also represents a middle class social group due to the  middle class house they live in.

The idea that the character has suffered the death of his parents is indicated when he says "I miss you guys". This is a very serious topic and would be better understood by a more mature audience, such as adults or mature teenagers.

The film White Oleander also deals with a serious issue of child abuse, and a girl who must survive as best she can when her mother is sent to prison for murder. This film could represent teenagers (girls  in specific), parents and people who have been in similar situations.

The costume of the character would enable a younger audience to relate, such as a teenager due to the hoodie and baggy trousers. This could represent a working class social group because of his costume; it doesnt look very expensive and is a normal, everyday outfit for a working class person.

The idea of including a female character is in order to represent female social groups, especially through her costume, she is wearing a white dress, making her even more
feminine.

When showing Darren as he walks, we used a loose frame to show that he was alone and also to reveal the setting, which was an everyday street with working class houses. Additionally, the use of slow paced, high pitched music creates tension as well as a sad sympathetic atmosphere. We did not show his face in this part either to create some ambiguity and mystery. The use of over the shoulder shots and only showing him from the back created the illusion that someone was watching him or following him. This portrays the character as vulnerable and evokes sympathy from the audience.




Similarly, the use of a long shot when showing the female character, demonstrates that they are both alone in a secluded area and something detrimental could possibly happen due to this. Additionally the use of costume creates the impression that she is innocent or pure as she is wearing a white dress which has connotations of purity, however this is contradicted through the rest of her outfit, it is all black.

question one

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

Conventions of an opening sequence usually includes many close ups to show detail and also an establishing shot so the audience can again an understanding of the setting. As well as this there is a mixture of slow paced and fast paced editing to create tension.

  Additionally, opening sequences will always have titles and also music in order to set the scene of the film and to show what genre it is. For example in Monsters Inc, it is clearly a childrens film due to the bright shapes and colours and the bouncy uplifting music.

 

The title sequence from Sixth Sense includes dark colours and an icy blue font with shark edges, to reflect that it is a horror film.

For the titles in our film we used a white, simple font, with a shadow under it. It also had sharp edges giving the illusion of a knife or something dangerous. The colour gives a sense of something cold and unwelcoming.

Furthermore there will be low key lighting, dull colours and will typically be set in an isolated location.

This is an image of the location from the film "Let the right one in" which was set in a secluded city in Germany where there was a dark forest and murders could go unnoticed.
In my opening sequence, this convention was challenged as we set it in an open road with many houses and possible witnesses. This was in order to demonstrate to the audience how ordinary our character Elliot was an yet he still had a terrible fate, this may cause the audience to feel anxiety at the thought that it could happen to anyone, anywhere.

Another convention is that the villain is typically a male character, the hero is also male and then the victim is a female. For example in "spiderman" as you can see in the image Spiderman is rescuing Mary Jane which indicates their roles as the victim and the hero.
In our opening sequence, we challenged this convention by swapping the roles; the victim was the male and the villain was the female.









In my opening sequence, we used the convention of an opening sequence through the use of mise en scene. We used mainly grey and dark colours to create an eerie atmosphere and give the impression that something is lurking in the shadows, additionally the darkness may represent fear from the characters or represent death or evil.

  In this shot we have demonstrated our use of low key lighting and grey colours. This idea is also presented in the opening sequence of the film Dreamcatcher.

As well as the use of dark and dull colours, there are also many close ups in the opening sequence of "Dreamcatcher" as you can see there is a close up of tree branches and also some icicles which indicates it is outside and the cold weather also may make the audience feel uncomfortable.

Question seven

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

Looking back on my preliminary task I think i have progressed in terms of my media skills. In the preliminary task, i used the 180 degree rule, shot reverse shot and match on action, all successfully however it was not to the highest standard. Where as in my opening sequence, much more time was spent on editing the match on action and making sure it was perfect.



Preliminary task:



Opening sequence


I have also progressed in terms of my creativity when editing. In the prelimainry task, there were no special effects, or anything to create an atmosphere, where as in the opneing sequence, the editing was specifically used for the mise en scene.

In my opening sequence I have increased and decreased the speed to create a disorientating affect for the audience. I also edited it so it would look more grey and dull. In contrast to my preliminary task; no affects were used at all.

In the screen shot from my preliminary task, the lighting is everyday high key lighting. There has not been any thought put into it which contrasts to the opening sequence.


Similarly,I have developed in terms of learning how to use different equipment such as, a fig rig and an underwater camera. In my preliminary task I only used a camera and a tripod, which limited my creatively. Where as in my opening sequence, although it took a lot of time learning and practicing how to use the equipment, I was able to show my creativity well.

In the progression from my preliminary task to my opening sequence, i have learnt how to use other technology in order to edit my work. Such as Live type and Final Cut as well as iMovie which I did not use in my preliminary task. Initially I was not very skilled with however after time I was able to master it.


  Here is an example where I had to use Live Type, for the creation, placement and timing of the font, and Final cut to sync the titles with the music and the filming.

In the progression from my preliminary task to my opening sequence, I have also developed in terms of teamwork. Prior to the creation of our opening sequence I felt extremely opposed to the idea of teamwork, however after having being in a group and working so closely I have learnt how overcome this. Similarly,in the preliminary task I was not as confident in terms of my media skills, therefore I was lacking leadership skills, however through the progression of our opening sequence I have gained confidence due to the new media skills I have developed and have been able to lead my group successfully.