Q. In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?
A.
Title:
My title 'Something More' would encourage the audience to continue to watch after my film after the first 2 minutes due to its sense of mystery and intrigue.
Setting/location:
The setting of my film is in a modern day, average looking room the with an overlook that complies with normal, daily life. However, in accordance with the conventions of a thriller I cross cut the 'ordinary' with a secondary storyline which creates an enigma for the audience. 'Elementary', the TV thriller series about Sherlock Holmes, uses a similar style at the beginning of some episodes as a way to hook the audience into the storyline and make them curious to find out more.
Costume & Props:
My main character is dressed, in plain, ordinary and casual clothes which look unsuspecting. I created verisimilitude by filming in a real home with the usual furniture and accessories. Films of this genre use this technique to convince the audience that this familiar scene could be happening to them in realty and then enables me to play on their fears when action is introduced. The shovel used in my contrasting shots symbolises, the fact that there is a secret buried along the storyline. I selected the items which can be scene throughout the sequence within the room specially as I wanted to keep with the convention of the overlook being normal, but on close ups, the products prove to be unique and eerie.
Camerawork:
I used slow moving panning shots to create the effect of the audience being able to submerge themselves in the scene by being able to look around. Shots of the character vary: long shots are used to get her portrait and canvas in the shot and to contrast, I used close ups of what she is working on and shots positioned so that we cannot completely see her face. Because both of these types of shots do not give a clear view of the main character, it gives her a sense of mystery and distance. In the film series 'SAW', we never see the antagonists face, just a puppet through a TV screen- giving a sense of the unease and un-known, making it become more terrifying as we (humans) fear the un-known.
Editing:
I cut my film very quickly so that it would be fast-pace and interesting to the audience. By having multiple shots from different angles of the same action, I was able to do this so that the story was not too fast but not boring for the audience. By having the contrasting, black and white shots the audience would be altered- keeping their concentrations. Nowadays, films are moving so quickly we expect to see so much change and movement particularly in the beginning of a film to keep the audiences appeal. 'CSI', the cop, TV drama uses black and white shots as well particularly at key moments of drama.
I also shot each frame several times from different angles and heights allowing me to have multiple types of shots to work with when editing to create the correct type of impression on the audience and a fast yet fluid rate.
Title font and style:
In my production credit I used the font Baskerville Old Face throughout the titles and LiveType to create my opening credits. I used an app called Motion to create the smoke like effect to introduce the film title establishing a further sense of unease.
Story and how it is set up:
From my studies I know that that narrative is not that repetitively engages the audience fully with the text. According to Tzvetan Todorov's Narrative Theory, my story starts with a state of balance, wholeness, equilibrium and harmony.Just like in the Lord of the Rings, the narrative starts in the tranquil starting in the rustic peaceful place of Hobbiton. I have then shown that something while break the state of peace shown in my cross-cutting which will cause disequilibrium.
Genre and how the opening suggests it:
I used eerie music to set an atmosphere from the beginning of sequence. I searched YouTube for un-copyrighted, sinister music. The Harry Potter series has been known for its use of eerie music - Hedwig's Theme over the opening titles of each film.
How the character is introduced:
She walks through the door in the second shot. She is the only full bodied person we encounter and so it is assumed that she is our main character (protagonist or antagonist is unclear).
Special Effects:
Once I uploaded my footage in iMovie, I edited the lighting of every shot by giving the frame a dark, blue hue. I used LiveType to create my production credit and Motion to create my film title. Most thriller films rely more on makeup and props than special effects to create the tormenting mood.
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