Question 7

Media Q 7

Question 6

Media Q 6

Question 4 & 5

Media Q 4 & 5

Question 3

Media Q 3

Question 2

Narration -

When planning to create our film, we looked into the representation that is shown in horror films. We gathered this information from doing a target audience profile that showed who the film is aimed at. We both started by looking at what gender the film would be aimed at and discovered that males watch more horror films than women. However, when researching online I found that there is, more recently, an increase of women watching horror films who enjoy the thrills and excitement.

In horror films males are normally portrayed as being of strong character and not being scared. However, in our film opening, we see the opposite of this. We chose a male actor for the opening scene of our horror film because by showing the male character scared, running and ultimately dying in this sequence, we hope the audience will feel that there is no hope of the other characters who appear later in the story.

We aimed our film at the age group 15 – 21. From our research we discovered that this age group watch horror films as they enjoy the thrills and excitement. However, we could not make our film too gory, as this would change the censorship category, making it an 18 and therefore we would exclude some of our audience who would be in the 15-18 year old age group.

Our film is viewed from the eyes of both the protagonist and the antagonist. The beginning of the opening shot is viewed from the protagonist’s point of view. This enables the audience to pick up on the fear and isolation he is feeling. His expression and body language give the impression that he is being chased …but by whom? Some parts of the opening scene are shot as though the viewer were the protagonist. For example, when he sees the body in the trees. The point of view changes towards the end of the scene, when the audience takes on the role of the protagonist. This gives the audience the feeling of both good and evil.

Question 1

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

Generic conventions of Horror films are shown as gory and low budget. When watching the horror film that we created, I feel that we have filled the conventions shown in horror films. Our film can go into different sub-genres such as Supernatural Horror Film and Psychological horror. We set our film late at night because night is stereotyped as being forbidding and mysterious. We also set the action in an empty field that makes the audience think they are lost or they have no escape. In our film we make the camera come close the actor’s face so the audience can see the emotions on his face.

When we were planning to create our film we wanted to keep the same type of title sequence that is shown in horror films. We wanted our institute logo to be shown first, followed by the director and co director titles. After this, the actor’s names appear.

Movie opening

Here is the final edit for our movie opening. When filming, we used one camera and a shot-gun mic which we took in turns to use. So when I was recording sound Mat was filming and when I was filming, Mat was recording sound.

During editing, Mat and I took it in turns, with me doing visual effects and editing.

Locations

To find what location would be suitable for our filming, I explored, the local farmers’ fields that are located near the school (about a 5 minute walk). We both wanted a dead wasteland that included an eerie looking tree. I found a possible location that has a willow tree, with twisted metal and large girders lying next to it. This could tell the audience that there had been human present in the past but that the area was now derelict.

Costumes

I did not create the costume document. However, I had input on deciding what costumes the male character should wear. In our film we only have one main character. I felt that the male character should wear casual clothes to help make the audience feel that was happens could happen to them. However, we could not decide what type of upper clothing the male character should wear. When we come to film, we will be in the middle of winter and therefore we wanted the male character to be wearing warm clothes. I said he should wear a jumper but Mat wanted him to wear a hoodie. We came to the conclusion that the male character should wear a hoodie because this film is being aimed to appeal to the younger viewer (15+). Please see the group blog for more information.

Casting and audience

When casting for our film, we held auditions so we could choose the best actor. Our film has a small script but a lot of stage directions. So, we asked the actors to play the opening of our film that had very few in it. We wanted to look out for the actor who showed the best emotion and body language. We gave each actor 20 seconds to show us his or her best performance. Mat and myself both agreed that Tayo was the best actor by far.

Similar media works

As a team, we created a PowerPoint slide show that looked into similar media work that was related to our genre, which was horror. We took it in turns in creating each slide. To see the slides that I created, please see the PowerPoint in the bottom right hand side of the slides - my name should be shown (“Matt Thomas”).

Target audience

To see who our target audience is for our film, I researched to find the right age group who would get the most enjoyment from it. We analysed our research to determine what was the correct age group for our film and what rating we should give it. We both decided that the film would be rated at 15. I created a questionnaire that I asked twenty people within our target audience age range to fill out. This was very useful information because we have backup on our research.

Storyboard

When creating the storyboard, both Mat Bigg and I worked together. We decided that I would mainly do the drawing on the storyboard. We worked together discussing what each shot should consist off. We changed the ideas used for the opening of our film a lot while we where creating it. We jointly discussed our ideas and I was pleased that I had many of my shots placed in our film. I wanted the male character to sit up from a laying position and to then have his face fill the screen. Please see the storyboard that is on our group blog.

Initial ideas

To create our film we needed ideas. We created a mind map on Word containing our ideas. We both had different ideas for what we should create. Consequently, we found it hard to decide what idea we should use. My idea was involved someone waking up in the middle of nowhere and seeing a beam of light. The male character runs towards the light and then the viewer is given the feeling that something dramatic happens. The viewer doesn’t see what happens. Matt and I combined our ideas, which we considered created a scary story line.