Evaluation Question 7:

What do you feel you have learnt in the progression from the preliminary task to the full product?

These are annotated versions of our preliminary task and final film opening, comparing and explaining the techniques and tools we have used. I have learnt many fascinating things over the past seven months, however the most important thing I have learnt during the creation of our film opening is that working in a group (or a pair as we did) is not only better creatively but also practically. I feel lucky to have had Molly as a partner as we have cooperated well and shared out the work equally - we each knew our strengths and weaknesses and completed jobs based on these. I also feel lucky to have worked with two very patient and hard working actors, who participated in the film opening's success. Lastly I have discovered a new found respect for directors as I never anticipated how much effort goes into creating just a single shot. A year ago when I watched a film I would have never imagined the amount of planning and preparation that goes into film making; now when I watch a film I can appreciate not only the director's hard work but also the hard work of the whole cast and crew - as I have been through a similar process! Overall I think our film opening is successful as it's a simple concept made unique with our creativity, it also appeals to the target audience and uses a variety of different techniques. I have really enjoyed this learning process and hope that our film opening does justice to our hard work.

Evaluation Question 6:

What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?

This is a mind meister presentation, to view please click on the mind meister icon in the bottom right hand corner of the box. When the presentation has opened, please click on the 'note' icon which appears on each of the seperate topics, this will lead you to specific notes I have made on each section. I have also added some useful links to interesting pages which relate to particular topics, to access these press the 'arrow' icon.

Evaluation Question 5:

How did you attract/address your audience?

Evaluation Question 4:

Who would be the audience for your media product?

Question 4

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Evaluation Question 3:

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

What kind of media institution will distribute

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Evaluation Question 2:

How does your media product represent particular social groups? 

 

How does your media product represent particular social groups? on Prezi

Evaluation Question 1:

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

Evaluation Question 1

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Final Decision...

Molly and I have decided that our final film opening will be the version without the voiceover. We came to this decision by gathering a group of our target audience (female teenagers) that hadn't watched our film opening before; we then showed them both versions of our film opening (with and without the voiceover), and then asked them which one they preferred. The unanimous vote was the film opening without the voiceover. Every member of that group agreed that they thought the version without the voiceover had a bigger impact and was more effective and that the voiceover made the opening disjointed. Molly and I didn't influence their decision at all; however I do completely agree with their views. Overall I think this is a successful decision as I do actually prefer the version without the voiceover; despite all of the time we spent on making the voiceover.

The Story of Us Final without voiceover

This is our film opening with the original full 'Final Gripe' soundtrack without the added voiceover. I think this version allows the viewer more freedom to imagine the story of the couple's relationship without the voiceover over explaining the concept. However some people may feel that this version is more like a film ending than an introduction to a film and the viewer may find the explanation from the voiceover useful in understanding the film's concept.

The Story of Us Final with voiceover

I think the voiceover makes the film opening end nicely, as it co-insides with the closing of the book and the end of the music, so everything ties together. However I feel as if the voiceover is quite fragmented, disjointed and interrupts the flow of the music. The soundtrack fits really well with the whole opening sequence, so it would be nice to hear it fully for the whole length of the opening. In the voiceover it is possible to hear the echo of Amelia's voice; this can be interpreted as enhancing the concept of the voiceover, as it sounds as if she is in a dream or they are her thoughts, so this adds an interesting element to the film opening.

Voiceover Script

(Voiceover begins when the mid shot of Luke sat on the bench appears)
Katy: Theres Luke, he always did have such an awkward smile. It pains me to say this but that was the best day ever; it was the first time we met.

(Voiceover starts again when the two shot of the couple at the cafe appears)
Katy: Ahh... our first date, I have some great memories of us together. He made me laugh so much.

(Voiceover starts again when the two shot of the couple having a pillow fight appears)
Katy: yeah... we had our moments like any couple, but we always made up in the end.

(Voiceover starts again when Katy closes the scrapbook)
Katy: Anyway, I'm getting ahead of myself; I'm Katy and this... is The Story of Us.

Improvements from feedback...

Molly and I have discussed our feedback and have made some alterations to our rough cut to improve our overall film opening. We started by looking at the written answers from out target audience;


1. Do we need to add a voiceover to our film opening?  'I don't think a voiceover is needed as the music creates a good opening sequence.' 'Voiceover would be nice as it shows what she's thinking.' 'Voiceover would make it seem more like an opening - combined with more inter-titles.' 'Voiceover not needed.' 'Voiceover would be good to show the characters point of view.' 'Don't think it needs a voiceover, the music fits in well.' 'Include a voiceover in parts of the film opening but not all the way through to explain the feelings in the story.' 50% of the people we asked said we needed to include a voiceover to break up the soundtrack and explain the events to make it clearer. So we wrote a script and recorded Amelia (our lead actress) reading it. It's only a short voiceover which appears at key moments in the opening to make the audience understand Amelia's character's emotions. However we have decided to produce two versions of our film opening, one with a voiceover and one without and then choose our favourite as the final version. A few people have also said we need to include more inter-titles to make it seem more like a film opening, so we analysed the opening sequence and found one more space in the scrapbook where a credit could occur. This has enhanced the continuity of the credits and made them much less disjointed and more flowing.

2. Is our Production company name; Messy Productions, appropriate for our film? 'The Ident is really good - it fits in with the genre.' 'The Ident is fine, don't need to change it.' 'I like the typography used - very effective.' 'I like the name - it's creative and imaginative.' Molly and I have decided to keep the Production company name, Messy Productions, as about 75% of the people we asked said they liked it. We also think it represents our genre well, as it evokes an arty, creative mood which links in with the central prop of the scrapbook. The name also adds a personal touch to our film opening as it's a combination of both mine and Molly's first names: Molly + Jessie = Messy!


3. Is our film opening too long? If so which scenes do you think we should cut? 'It did drag on a bit, maybe cut out the 'swing in the park' scene as it's the most forgettable scene.' 'Cut out the unneeded shots when the characters are entering the cafe.' 'Try to shorten some of the clips to quicken the pace.' 'The scene on the swings could be cut, as it's my least favourite.' 'Get rid of the opening of the cafe door, but keep them sat in the cafe.' 'If you have to cut one scene, then either cut the 'swing' scene or 'bedroom' scene.' Molly and I have completely cut out the 'swing in the park' scene as we felt it wasn't relevant to the story and didn't add anything important - plus it was only a short shot anyway. This was one of the scenes that the feedback highlighted we should cut. However the other scene they suggested was the 'bed' scene, we have not cut this scene as we felt it fits well with the music and reinforces the romantic genre. We have also shortened the 'cafe' scene to make it smoother and to quicken the pace, as the 'entering the cafe' shots were not needed, this makes the 'cafe' scene more flowing.

Initial audience feedback...

This video shows three people's initial reactions after watching our film opening rough cut. We also asked for written answers, which we then collected. There were three questions that we asked them to write answers to; 1. Does our film opening need cutting down (and if so which scenes should we cut)? 2. Is the production name, Messy Productions, appropriate for our film - does it portray the right message? 3. Does our film opening need a voiceover?
After the target audience wrote down their feedback, we collected the responses and discussed them to decide how we should improve our rough cut. This has really helped us to focus on the particular areas we need to improve, such as cutting down shots to quicken the sequence, and adding a voiceover for a better explanation of the opening. Molly and I will now brainstorm all of the feedback ideas and decide which shots we need to cut, which bits we need to edit and also we will write the script for the voiceover which we will then record.

Film Opening Rough Cut: The Story Of Us

This is our rough cut film opening which we will show to our target audience and then ask them for their feedback, either written or spoken to a flip camera. The main issue we have with our rough cut is the length; it is over 2 minutes, so we need to cut out some irrelevant scenes to shorten the overall length and avoid the opening becoming too repetitive.

Classification of our film opening...

I have had a look at the British Board of Film Classification website to evaluate what classification our film would be. I think our film follows the Universal guidelines however I think our target audience may be put off watching a 'U' rated film, so if the full length film was made I would consider pushing up the rating to a 'PG' or even a '12', as the guidelines are quite similar. I have sourced some guideline information from the 'Universal page' of the website and will analyse whether our film meets the Universal standards and whether it fits into this category...

 A ‘U’ film should be suitable for audiences aged four years and over. ‘U’ films should be set within a positive moral framework and should offer reassuring counterbalances to any violence, threat or horror.
I think our film would be suitable for audiences aged four and over as it conveys a positive, happy attitude to relationships; this is also a healthy message for children to learn. Our film certainly doesn't contain any violence or aggressive scenes due to our chosen genre being a romantic drama so it wouldn't fit in with the atmosphere.

Discrimination
No discriminatory language or behaviour unless clearly disapproved of. Our film doesn't contain any discriminatory language or behaviour; there is no dialogue within our film opening apart from a voiceover. The voiceover won't contain any discriminatory language as we don't want to portray our characters in this way - they have high moral values.

Drugs

No references to illegal drugs or drug misuse unless they are infrequent and innocuous, or there is a clear educational purpose or anti-drug message suitable for young children. There are no references to drugs during our film.

Horror

Scary sequences should be mild, brief and unlikely to cause undue anxiety to young children. The outcome should be reassuring. Our chosen film genre is romantic comedy so there are no scary scenes in our film. Anything that may cause anxiety to young children (such as the couple breaking up) will be resolved in the end, so there will be a happy outcome.

Imitable behaviour

No potentially dangerous behaviour which young children are likely to copy. No emphasis on realistic or easily accessible weapons. The characters in our film never behave in a dangerous way; they are sensible, however they are shown having fun as we must make it appear as if they are real teenagers. The only potentially dangerous behaviour that young children may copy, is the male protagonist swinging too high on a swing or the couple having a pillow fight. 

Language

Infrequent use only of very mild bad language. The audience won't actually hear the couple exchanging words in the film opening as there will be non diegetic music and a voiceover playing over the top. The voiceover is there simply for the femal protagonist to explain the background information and her feelings while the audience watch her flashbacks - she won't use any strong language and if she does it will be spontaneous and very mild (not scripted).

Nudity

Occasional natural nudity, with no sexual context. There is no nudity during our film opening as its winter so they are wearing lots of layers for most of the time, even when they are in bed together they are still wearing clothes.

Sex

Mild sexual behaviour (for example, kissing) and references only (for example, to ‘making love’). There is only one scene that may have sexual connotations and that is the bedroom scene. But the couple are either having a pillow fight or simply chatting so there is no sexual behaviour. They don't kiss during the film opening, however if we made the whole film then we would have to include some shots of the couple kissing as they are in love and it would make their relationship appear more realistic. 

Theme

While problematic themes may be present, their treatment must be sensitive and appropriate for young children. There are no problematic themes in our film opening as its a light hearted, happy film. However when the couple break up it may cause worry for young children.

Violence

Mild violence only. Occasional mild threat or menace only. The only reference to violence during our film opening is a pillow fight, however it is more an affectionate, fun pillow fight with no negative morals or damage caused.

Live Type Ident

Here is our film production company Ident that we made on Live Type. We decided to call it Messy Productions as 'Messy' is a combination of both our first names; Molly and Jessie. The word 'Messy' makes me think of a creative artistic collaboration of ideas, however it may evoke connotations of an untidy, un-organised film which we definitely don't want our viewers to think. We will ask our target market for feedback on the name when they view our rough cut, as we want our film production company name to represent our film opening theme and genre. We decided on the bright feminine colours as it conveys the film genre of romantic comedy.



The typography for our main film title 'The Story of us' was made in Live Type, as we wanted to add movement to the title to evoke a fun, playful vibe. We used a plain, bold font as we didn't want the title to be too over the top and we used the colour black as the background is pale so we wanted it to stand out. However I can't upload our film title ident to my blog as it is black typography against a black window background so it won't show up.