In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?
How the films I analysed challenge codes and conventions
How the films I analysed challenge codes and conventions
Narrative
Each of the films above have successful narratives which have influenced and inspired me throughout my own planning stages. 'The Crush' in particular tells its simple yet innovating story a in chronological narrative order. This was one of the first films that I analysed and its always been remembered for it's simple yet creative use of narrative.
Characterisation
In the short film 'Alarm' there is only one character, and having this enables the audience to connect and relate to just that one character. Every person who has watched this short film has informed me that they found it pleasantly enjoyable because of the fact that they can personally relate to the narrative. I was inspired by the way that 'Alarm' portrayed their only character by creative uses of mise en scene and cinematography, and this film was one the reasons for us choosing to have only one character.
Mise en Scene
Both 'Alarm' and 'The Crush' use mise en scene to portray the class of the character to the audience. When appropriate, it is vital that the viewers are made aware of the state of class in which the characters are in so that they can learn more about the character's lives.
In 'The Crush' for example, Ardle shows off his new brown, shiny shoes- this shows the audience that he is from a middle-classed family as his mother is able to buy her young son new shoes. Without the help of mise en scene, it would be challenging for the viewers to understand Ardle's background. Mise en scene is not just to make the film location look better, it is a vital convention that guides the spectators along the life of the character. It helps them to learn more about their background and often gives away little hints that become relevant later on in the film. For example the gun in 'The Crush' becomes evident later on in the film why it was originally there. This little clue leads the audience on and keeps the guessing as what may come- these techniques help to keep the audience fixed watching the film.
Genre Conventions
The genre conventions challenged in the short film "Paper or Plastic" enable the audience to connect with the narrative and story background in the film. The genre in this short film could be defined as comedy romance- humour lies within the story regarding a family whose expressions are neatly portrayed on a paper bag. Towards the end of the film we begin to see the romance in the film when her young friend too puts on a paper bag to win her heart.
Short films are an opportunity to experiment with your imagination and push boundaries in your story telling. Every short film ought to be a unique vision and doesn’t have to necessarily gyrate around a certain genre- short films allow directors to experiment with an array of genres. This relates to Buckingham’s theory, in which he argued that genre is never fixed.
Genres are commonly harder to identify in a film lasting only 20 minutes, whereas in a feature length blockbuster the audience are given hours, which in they can agree on the possible genre. It’s therefore crucial the maker of the short film, allows it to be clear to the spectators their choice of genre; in ‘Paper or Plastic’ it is apparent that the style of film is a humorous romantic production.
Editing/Post Production
The editing in the short film "The Alarm" makes the film a lot more watchable. This film uses a variety of smooth transitions to connect the story together- not only does this help the audience learn about the narrative but it also makes the film more enjoyable when the narrative is easily understood.
We learnt a lot from watching how successful editing is accomplished in short films as it inspired us when editing our own. Editing conventions enabled us to edit our film to a professional level, taking in mind every fade, wipe and transition.
In the short film "open skies" the lighting is used to reflect the mood of the characters. For example, when her son goes missing, the sun begins to set, portraying the darkness that is upon her. Pathetic Fallacy is often used to reflect the narrative as it helps set and create the mood of the film. This is also something that we incorporated into our short film but with the use of editing. We, for example, de-saturated the colouring of the shots at home so that his sad, depressed mood is illustrated through sad-like shots. Although we spent a long time de-colouring a variety of shots, we felt that it was necessary for the images to speak out the mood of our character Louis. Additionally, we thought it would enable the audience to connect more with the feelings and emotions of the character.
Here are some short films that I have analysed and found in the production of my own. These film conventions found in these films have inspired and assisted in the planning and birth of Liberation.
Oscar Winning "The Crush"
"Alarm" animated short film
"Paper or Plastic" by Doug Smith
Genre Conventions
The genre conventions challenged in the short film "Paper or Plastic" enable the audience to connect with the narrative and story background in the film. The genre in this short film could be defined as comedy romance- humour lies within the story regarding a family whose expressions are neatly portrayed on a paper bag. Towards the end of the film we begin to see the romance in the film when her young friend too puts on a paper bag to win her heart.
Short films are an opportunity to experiment with your imagination and push boundaries in your story telling. Every short film ought to be a unique vision and doesn’t have to necessarily gyrate around a certain genre- short films allow directors to experiment with an array of genres. This relates to Buckingham’s theory, in which he argued that genre is never fixed.
Genres are commonly harder to identify in a film lasting only 20 minutes, whereas in a feature length blockbuster the audience are given hours, which in they can agree on the possible genre. It’s therefore crucial the maker of the short film, allows it to be clear to the spectators their choice of genre; in ‘Paper or Plastic’ it is apparent that the style of film is a humorous romantic production.
Editing/Post Production
The editing in the short film "The Alarm" makes the film a lot more watchable. This film uses a variety of smooth transitions to connect the story together- not only does this help the audience learn about the narrative but it also makes the film more enjoyable when the narrative is easily understood.
We learnt a lot from watching how successful editing is accomplished in short films as it inspired us when editing our own. Editing conventions enabled us to edit our film to a professional level, taking in mind every fade, wipe and transition.
In the short film "open skies" the lighting is used to reflect the mood of the characters. For example, when her son goes missing, the sun begins to set, portraying the darkness that is upon her. Pathetic Fallacy is often used to reflect the narrative as it helps set and create the mood of the film. This is also something that we incorporated into our short film but with the use of editing. We, for example, de-saturated the colouring of the shots at home so that his sad, depressed mood is illustrated through sad-like shots. Although we spent a long time de-colouring a variety of shots, we felt that it was necessary for the images to speak out the mood of our character Louis. Additionally, we thought it would enable the audience to connect more with the feelings and emotions of the character.
Here are some short films that I have analysed and found in the production of my own. These film conventions found in these films have inspired and assisted in the planning and birth of Liberation.
Oscar Winning "The Crush"
"Alarm" animated short film
"Paper or Plastic" by Doug Smith
Our Film: Liberation
This is a shot taken from our film at the scene where our character, Louis, is playing the piano in his own home. We wanted to make it clear to the audience that he was interested in classical music and has a heart for the beauty of classical music. We decided to use a match on action shot here to give the audience a view of what is happening from every angle. After the spectators have seen Louis enjoying his music, the camera cuts to a medium shot from behind as his sister comes in and slams down the piano. We wanted this to give off the connotations that she wasn't interested in his music and thinks he should spend his time being more 'normal'. This brother/sister relationship that is portrayed shows how sometimes families do disagree as they don't always understand the situation from other people's point of view. Not only did we want to audience to connect with Louis' situation but we also wanted them to see the world through his eyes, so that they can sympathise with him, understanding his way of life.
Image 2
This is the image that is shown after the piano match on action scene. This shot is very significant in our film as it shows how he is really treated by his family members and how he feels abandoned and helpless, unable to defend himself. After this shot we see Louis reach for his drawing pad again,as after his sister's hurtful act he feels compelled to draw himself out of the world he so hates to be in. Throughout this shot the sound of him playing the piano is heard, but then when his sister comes and slams down the hood, his music is rudely interrupted. We wanted this scene to exhibit to the audience just how important classical music is to him and we feel that this medium shot portrays that perfectly. Enabling the audience to connect with the characters is what makes a film worth watching. Our aim was for every shot in 'Liberation' to reveal to the audience that little more about the character so that by the end of the film they feel as if they have deeply made a connection with who is and how he sees life.
Image 3
We wanted to incorporate a variety of creative shots into our film, and felt that having an 'over the shoulder shot' would give the viewers more of an image as to what he is drawing. Since we were very serious about developing our media products to become something that attracts our audience, using shots that can be clearly identified and have deeper meanings, allows our spectators to become a part of the film. We chose to opt for real life conventions- something that viewers can relate too. Not only does this shot exhibit his feminine side (his floral shirt is evident here), but it additionally shows that he is drawing himself to the locations, making it clear to the audience that this is how he transports himself there. The shot before this one is a medium close-up of Louis reaching for his drawing book from which he hid under his bed. This is also something that the audience are able to relate to, as when many people have hidden secrets they often hide their precious belongings in a safe place. This is what Louis has done to protect his only way of escape.
Image 4
This is the image that is shown after the over-the-shoulder image to give the audience a clearer shot of what he is sketching. We wanted to exhibit to the viewers that Louis wanted to escape to the pier- a place where laughter, excitement and exhilaration are found. Of course when he arrives, things begin to alter differently, causing him to quickly draw himself out of the situation he so hates to be in. We decided to add this into our narrative as we believe that so often in life people find themselves in situations where they wish there was an escape, or like Louis, they could just draw themselves out. We've given Louis the freedom to draw himself to places that define who he is- not only does it enable the audience to watch something creatively alternative, but it also enables a connection to be made. This shot allows the audience to recognise Louis' talent and learn that his talent takes him to his desired places. The fact that this is a close-up shot of a drawing, has connotations that this drawing is special (otherwise why would it be so in-focus) and that we want the audience to understand that the drawings are play an important role in the narrative.
Image 5
Image 5 is taken from the scene filmed at Brighton pier. We feel that this shot really illustrates just how our character is feeling, and we chose this specific location to enable the audience to understand that he draws places where he most feels free and at peace. This shot for me defines freedom. The contrast of clouds with the sunlight and positioning of our character shows that he has come here for freedom, letting go of every disappointment. We originally chose to use this image as our poster as we thought that it illustrated clearly what our film was about. However, after some unwanted yet useful challenges we chose to opt with a close-up image of Louis so that he is directly introduced to the audience before they meet him in the film. This shot again supports how we have used real media conventions in our products, as it connects our character to everyday teenagers who rely on the pier and beach for fun, freedom and feeling at peace.
Image 6
After Louis visits the pier he arrives back at home to further encounter more family difficulties. This time he finds his sister trying to burn his creative and artistic drawings, which he so very loves. Having his sister burn them followed by a shot of him pushing her out of his room, portrays to the audience just how much he values his drawings. It also stirs the emotions of the viewers, resulting in them feeling sympathetic towards Louis. We tried to make it as clear as possible that she was burning his work, so we ensured that the same actor was used as in the shot when she shouts at him throwing his magazines down. This will allow the audience to think of the scene when his sister shouts at him, and it will give them further knowledge of what she is burning and why.
Image 7
This image is the image gracing our film review- it's also the image that has been marked our favourite in the entire film. The clouds represent him being at peace and displays the freedom he so wants to have. As with most of our images, this also is an image that we have casted into our film so that the audience can relate to him and can understand how he feels. Louis has mainly the same expressionless emotions throughout the film; we want to audience to learn that he is feeling so mixed inside that not even his emotions can express his inner feelings. This is why we chose locations that illustrated his emotions for him- mise en scene helps to express his inner emotions that the audience can connect with.
Image 8
This image is the shot that follows image 7 (above) and happens right after Louis' peace is disturbed by a large amount of laughing and loud discussion. Here we really wanted to audience to understand that Louis is by some extent frightened by shouting, which is what pushes him to draw the next location. By this point we assume that the viewers would have understood that every time arguing occurs, it forces Louis to draw himself out of the situation.
Image 9
When we first took this shot we carefully planned the framing and positioning of our character so that his distort emotions would be displayed through the shot. This is one of the only shots in the film that fully exhibit his emotions through deep body language (he is curled forward in the fetal position, trying to hide from everything that has gone wrong). This makes the audience feel sympathetic towards Louis and feel sorry for everything that has happened. We intended on making the audience feel this towards our character and used this clear shot to represent to the audience just how he feels. It also makes the ending of the film stir a variety of emotions in the spectator as they almost have been part of Louis' journey- from the start of his drawings to the very end when he becomes trapped. We wanted to take the audience on a journey that they wouldn't forget, and using more distort shots enable the audience to be taken on a path of mixed emotions.
Our film uses a variety of forms and conventions of real media products to present to the audience a story that reveals a hidden truth which enables the spectators to relate to.
We wanted the depth of our story to be felt in a personal way, so it was key that our locations, camera angles and use of mise-en-scene fore told this accurately.
Narrative Organisation
Our narrative tells a story of a teenage boy with a slightly feminine side. His family, however, disregard the real him and choose to ignore the fact the he appreciates classical music and fine art. We wanted our narrative to tell a story that people can relate to. When researching we found that films with a simple narrative structure had seemed to work most effectively when it came to attracting the audience and organising the plot. Although we had discussed more in-depth narratives, we felt strongly about having a simple chronological narrative as it meant that we could fully focus on adopting creative shots and techniques into our film.
When we began discussing possible narrative ideas, we had always had our eye on the thought of having our character draw himself to places for a reason of escape- that reason, however, was undecided and we spent a long period of time analysing reasons as to why he wanted to escape. We finally agreed on having a feminine character who lives with a disrespectful and unloving family- this is often the case in our modern day society.
Having a touching and emotional storyline meant that we could work on close-ups and long-shot's so that his body image and expressions are evident to the audience. Image 7 (above) is a medium shot of him looking out at the sea; we thought that this worked well as it shows that he feels lost and is consistently looking for a way out. Just like the end of the film reveals, he feels trapped.
We chose to order our narrative in chronological order so that following the film is somewhat easier, allowing the audience to fully focus on the plot. In our thriller opening that we created last year, we used flashbacks to foretell the meaning behind what was happen to the audience. Whilst showcasing our opening to our audience we were asked a variety of questions regarding the flashbacks and their meanings. From this we have learnt that having a chronological narrative is something that we definitely wanted to use in this short film. Taking audience feedback has led us to making a film that appeals to our viewers. Overall a film is something to showcase to others, so taking on board their views is vital in the world of film.
Characterisation
We chose to only have one character in our film, Liberation, so that we could truly focus on him as an individual and work on perfecting our storyline, shots and mise-en-scene rather than worrying about a detailed script and a multitude of characters.
Having only one character enables the audience to connect with him, just like we have throughout making this short film. It gave us time to present our character to the audience in the right way, sending off the messages that we had intended to do.
We used the beginning of our film to properly introduce our character to the audience. As we had chosen to have only one main character it meant that we could turn all our attention to him and work on camera techniques and shots to present him to the audience. We had still shots of his bathing products, his art work, him reading magazines, drawing and him playing the piano so that the audience are introduced to all things Louis. As our film tells the story of his struggles and his life it was vital that we presented him correctly. We spent a long time planning on how we could incorporate his interests into the film to enable the audience to make a connection.
Camerawork
Since we decided to creatively use a variety of locations to shoot this film, we wanted them to be beautifully shown in the film. We therefore opted for a variety of long-shots to represent the places that our character wanted to go to. Choosing the beach, the pier and the derelict funfair meant that a variety of creative shots could be taken, not only to present our abilities, but to also illustrate to the viewers that our locations play a very important role in this film.
Match on action is also something that regularly occurs throughout our film- since we hadn't used any other techniques we wanted to really focus on our use of match on actions throughout the film so that the storyline flows more together. It additionally makes watching the film much more fascinating as it's not just simple shots followed by one another. It enables the story to be easily identified, giving the viewers a real feast for the eyes.
The camerawork conventions seen in the film "The Alarm" created a desire to creatively play around with our own camerawork. Although ours isn't an animated film, it still opened up our eyes for innovative shots that draw in the audience. We couldn't stop watching this film and found ourselves constantly admiring the sharp close-up's, match-on-actions, and clever uses of the 360 degree rule. When we went out on the various days of filming, we had in mind a number of films that we had seen, including "The Alarm" so that every time the camera started these conventions would be remembered and casted into our own short film.
Additionally, we asked a few people (those in our 15-25 target audience) what they thought of the short films that we had analysed so that we knew what people notice when watching a film. When I showcased 'The Alarm' to some of my target audience, the thing I noticed about their response was that they were relatively interested and taken back by the films creative use of camera. From hearing this feedback, I knew that we too wanted to hear this response from our film, so after I was aware of what stands out to the viewers I knew what we had to do to attract our demographic.
Sound
We've never been large fans of having character's talking on screen, as we find the music and shots can be just as powerful.
Our piece of music that runs through the entire film is a touching and emotional sound that marries perfectly with our narrative. We felt that it reflected the mood and atmosphere of the film in ways that no spoken script could have done.
To create a realistic feel, we used garage band to create sounds such as the door slam, the people on the beach laughing, the waves, and the water from the shower as these sounds were initially badly recorded during the process of filming, so using pre-recorded sounds worked just as well, making them just as believable to the audience.
The conventions of sound that are used in 'Liberation' portray his emotions through the sad, low-keyed tones. Since our film has no speech, it relies purely on the music to reveal to reflect the mood of the film. We spent a long time discussing sound possibilities as with only 5 minutes to showcase the narrative, the sound needed to fit the tone and atmosphere of the film. Coming across a free song download website- - meant that we were able to browse through endless song choices and choose one that truly defined our films narrative.
Mise en Scene
Mise en scene plays a very important role in our film- we relied on mise en scene to exhibit to the spectators the kind of person that our character really is. The shower gels, magazines and drawings, for example show the sorts of interests that our character has.
We chose to feature objects, such as the piano so that his interest in classical music is evident to the audience, and so that it answers some of their questions.
As Louis comes from a middle classed family we wanted to make this evident through our use of mise-en-scene. We spent a long time discussing the possible location ideas to ensure that they display to the audience just who he is and give them a little background information regarding his life. Choosing a fully furnished house with a grand piano showcases his middle-class background to the audience. Additionally, the large kitchen and well-attired outfits also illustrate wealth and family class.
Choosing to clothe our character in feminine and bright clothing could result in him being stereotypically classed as a very feminine man, but with the limited resources, locations and time, it was necessary for us to portray him in this way. We needed to fully introduce him to the audience within the first few seconds of the film, so clothing, props and body language had to all work together, even if it meant portraying him in a stereotypical way.
As Louis comes from a middle classed family we wanted to make this evident through our use of mise-en-scene. We spent a long time discussing the possible location ideas to ensure that they display to the audience just who he is and give them a little background information regarding his life. Choosing a fully furnished house with a grand piano showcases his middle-class background to the audience. Additionally, the large kitchen and well-attired outfits also illustrate wealth and family class.
Choosing to clothe our character in feminine and bright clothing could result in him being stereotypically classed as a very feminine man, but with the limited resources, locations and time, it was necessary for us to portray him in this way. We needed to fully introduce him to the audience within the first few seconds of the film, so clothing, props and body language had to all work together, even if it meant portraying him in a stereotypical way.
Use of Genre Conventions
Our film falls into the genre category of social realism, as we touch on the issues that many people experience in their own lives. We have always been drawn to films that tell a story that we can relate to- these mostly being social realism films, as the foretell stories real-life events that are relatable. We have challenged the convention of social realism in a new and exciting way. We aimed at taking a social realism but tuning it in to become something different and innovating so that our audience are connected and entertained.
We had initially opted to produce a film that touched on a social realism, so that our audience would in some way be able to relate to the position of our character. We also felt strongly about being able to project our characters emotions through the use of sound, mise en scene and beautifully captured shots. Having a film that is a slight mystery also draws in the spectators, leaving them only wanting to watch more.
After looking into genre conventions and how they have been challenged in other films made us aware of the types of genres that work effectively in short films. When planning our film and coming up with genres that we could have, we wanted to choose one that we suit our audience.
After looking into genre conventions and how they have been challenged in other films made us aware of the types of genres that work effectively in short films. When planning our film and coming up with genres that we could have, we wanted to choose one that we suit our audience.
Themes and Issues
Our film touches on the key themes and issues that are now much more common in our modern society. Our character is a feminine young man who is not accepted by the people who are meant to otherwise love him. We felt it was right to touch on these issues as it would be something that a variety of our audience could relate to.
The story told takes the audience on an emotional and touching journey- we wanted the audience to be able to relate with how our character is feeling and sympathise towards him and how is being treated.
We used the idea of wanting to 'escape' as we felt that many people in this modern society also feel like they want to escape from their daily lives. We feel like the audience are taken on an emotional journey with our character and are left feeling sympathetic towards his situation.
Editing/ Post Production
The editing, for us, is always one of the most challenging parts in the making of our film. Countless hours are spent selecting sounds, various shots and combining everything together so it creates a cohesion of all sorts of techniques.
We wanted to portray our abilities through creative editing so we opted for transition fades (which show his passing through the paintings), along with altered lighting to show his dreary mood whilst at home.
Moreover, since we had a more daring and interesting storyline, it meant that we had to spend more time editing to ensure that all the various scenes, shots and transitions all beautifully flowed together so that they narrative is evident for the audience to identify.
The Crush
Narrative Organisation
This short film tells the story of a boy who has developed a crush for his primary school teacher, who then try's everything he can to try and win her heart. With inventive and creative twists this film foretells a story that many young boys endure on a daily basis. I have chosen to analyse this short film as it, just like ours, surprises the audience, especially with it's unexpected and creative ending.
Our film ends with an innovative and diverse ending- it's something that the audience don't expect to see- and additionally in 'The Crush' the ending is somewhat surprising, especially for a young boy of Ardle age.
The narrative of this film flows well together which enables the key themes and issues to be easily identified. Each key scene releases a little more information for the audience of the narrative and prepares them for the unpredictable ending. Mise en scene also assists in showing what may be to come: the gun, the close-ups of Ardle's face illustrate that he may well be plotting something against this man. Of course the audience are kept waiting until the very end. A tone of suspense and a feeling of the unknown runs through this short film.
Characterisation
Close-up shots present Ardle as the young, innocent yet slightly deceiving boy that he is. It is clear that he is the main character as the film is told from his perspective and it allows the audience to connect with him.
The camera often zooms in for a close-up detailed shot of what Ardle is doing, for example writing in his diary and getting out the ring. This is so the audience understand what he is doing and can understand the reasoning behind his actions.
The camera often zooms in for a close-up detailed shot of what Ardle is doing, for example writing in his diary and getting out the ring. This is so the audience understand what he is doing and can understand the reasoning behind his actions.
Camerawork
'The Crush' uses a variety of close-ups and long shots to portray the character Ardle and his situation to the audience. The camerawork is specifically well used at the end of the film when Ardle surprises the viewers with his gun-shot scene. Match on Action is seen here as the conversation between the man and Ardle begins to turn nasty.
We were taken by surprise at the clever use of close-up shots, which enabled us to identify with the emotions of young Ardle. We too wanted to incorporate this into our film so that the audience are apparent with the emotions of our character.
Sound
Sound
The music at the beginning of the film represents love which ties in well with what the film narrative is about. There is often a silence throughout the film which enables the audience to rely on character behaviour and shots to tell the story. This is again what we have done in our short film, as we feel that at specific parts no sound is needed as the actions themselves have the power that no sound could match.
The music in this film also reflects the mood, to allow the audience to understand how Ardle is feeling. For example, at the start, as he walks home to sound is up-beat which reflects his happiness. Our short film also uses smooth, emotional sounds that display just how our character is feeling.
Having music or sounds that reflect the mood of the character enables the audience to fully tune in to the emotion of the character, allowing that character/spectator bond to be created.
Mise en Scene
Just like in any film Mise en Scene plays one of the most vital roles in the production of the movie. Mise en Scene is anything from location to costume, lighting to hair and make-up. It assists in allowing the audience to establish who the characters truly are. Miss Purdy, Ardle's teacher for example, is a middle-classed teacher who uses her smart dress sense to present herself to her class in a teacher-like form. Without Mise en Scene, this understanding of who Miss Purdy is would not be possible.
Again, location suggests to the audience where the characters live and this will again open up what may later come in the story.
Use of Genre Conventions
The genre of this film is not as evident as some films, as it touches on many areas and may fall into the category of a variety of genres. Whilst researching into 'The Crush's' genre categories I came across some genre types that this film is categorised into.
Short, comedy and drama were then genre responses that I had found. After watching this short, it is evident as to why it falls into the 'comedy' category. Any film that bases its story on the life of a boy who plots to kill his teacher's fiancé is bound to make the audience laugh.
This film has also been defined as a 'drama', which is similar to our film, Liberation. We too take something that could essentially happen to anyone, and put our own individual twist on it so that the film becomes something fresh and original for the audience to enjoy.
Themes and Issues
Just like our short film 'The Crush' also touches on events that are likely to occur in anyone's day-to-day life. For example here, it is common for young children to develop a mild crush on their teacher, and I think that this film has presented it in such an original and fascinating way, that this film is simply one to watch again and again.
One of the more serious themes that is touched on in this film is the relationship troubles between the teacher and her fiancé. At the end it is especially evident what her fiancé is really like; this too is something that some members of the audience would be able to relate with.
Editing/ Post Production
The editing in this film is something that beautifully pulls the film together- smooth cuts, transitions and match on action assist on making this film into a work of art.
I was particularly inspired by 'The Crush's' use of match on action and how the story is often told through the eyes of young Ardle. This is something that we developed into our own film, so that the audience are able to fully build up a relationship with the characters, especially when they are able to view things through a character point of view shot. For example, we see, through Ardle's perspective as he removes the ring from his pencil case, giving the audience a chance to learn who Ardle is and what his intentions are.
Furthermore, most of the point of view shots that we saw in 'The Crush' was the reasoning for them to be adapted into our own film. In our shots of the character running through the woods we turn to a P.O.V shot so that it allows the viewers to familiarize with the emotions of the character. These camera techniques essentially gives the audience the 'eyes of the character'- something that works very effectively in short films.
Poster Analysis: Angus, thongs and perfect snogging
Whilst researching for poster ideas I came across this British-made film that happened to be a huge success amongst its targeted demographic (teenage girls). Here is my analysis of what I found whilst further looking into the poster of 'Angus, thongs and perfect snogging' and how we were inspired by the graphological features in this image.
Narrative
From the fun, exciting poster the audience can understand parts of the narrative that are revealed through the imagery. It is evident that the girl centred on the poster is the main character in the film; the short sentence "Georgia Nicholson's not going mental, but her life is" also reveals a snippet of what the film is about.
Some films posters, not all but some, reveal a segment of the narrative, giving the audience an insight into what is to come. In film it is very important that the audience understand what the narrative is going to be, as everyone wants to have a rough idea of what the film is- this way people know whether they are going to like the film or not. I mean, who goes to watch a film without watching an advert of viewing a poster. Not many people. Therefore it is the up most important that the message the poster portrays is the message that they want the audience to receive.
Representation
This poster represents a film that is perfect for a girls night in. It defines fun, pink and attraction in boys. The film title 'Angus, Thongs and Perfect Snogging' represent what the words mean. As soon as this title is read, an automatic 'girl' audience is thought of.
The loud, crammed images placed above the girl illustrate that the film is going to be crammed with fun, loud, and exciting story lines featuring all sorts of dramas and twists. This really appeals to the audience, young teenage girls, as attractive fun-to-look-at images that create a feast for the eyes will draw in the audience.
The images compact with prismatic hues and fun-filled loud pictures portray the story yet to come. If a poster is quite and sombre, it is more than likely going to reflect the quite, sad film. So, if a film like this one, being as fun and inviting as it is, uses bright, crammed and loud images, then it is only going to attract more of the targeted audience.
The way that the poster has been produced represents the film to its audience. The words 'angus, thongs and perfect snogging' are all written in lower-cased letters. Having it written like this denotes the film narrative being casual and laid-back- the story, after all is told through the eyes of Georgia Nicholson and they have used the poster as her own expressive space to introduce the audience to the character.
Genre
The genre of 'Angus, Thongs and Perfect Snogging' is classified as a romantic comedy, coming of age and teen film. From the genre categories that it falls in to, shows just who the audience may be. 'Teen film' enables us to identify that this has to be a teenage must-see. And from the name of the film, it isn't surprising that this film has fallen in the 'Romantic Comedy' category. As the main character featured on the poster is deemed to be a young teenager, it enables the audience to identify with the genre without even reading into the narrative.
The fun and childlike images also represent that the audience would be teenagers and young people. If it was a film aimed at adults, the images and colours used would lean more towards sensibility and seriousness rather than something fun, funky and interesting. I'm sure if any teenager at school was asked their views on this poster, they would most definitely be interested in how the images tell a how new story and grasp the audience to watch the film.
Audience
This poster reveals a lot about it's audience and who it is targeted at. The name of the film alone reveals the type of people that might be interested in this film- it is more likely that young female teenagers are going to be wanting to watch this film as the title reveals typical teenage topics that all young females encounter. Often young people like to read books and watch films that touch on topics that they too deal with so that they can have someone else's view on how to deal with it.
The loud, bright images also attract young people. These images connote a message that reveals parts of the film: extra characters, topics that are covered and things that interest this targeted age group. If anyone were to walk past a billboard advertising this film it would become evident to them of who the audience are. Not all posters denote a message that reveals the assumed audience, but a film like this, is much more easier to identify with. It is unlikely that an elderly person will watch this film after seeing the fun youthful image- people judge the film by viewing the poster. They say not to judge a book by its cover, but a film is always judged by its poster. This is why a poster plays such a crucial role in the advertisement of a film; it can either attract or scare away customers.
Film Language
This poster uses bright light images to make the whole photograph much more appealing. A dark poster reveals fear, showing that it is more likely to be a thriller. As well as clear easy-to-see images, bright mixed hues makes the image fun to look at. The audience, young people, love to have fun and enjoy every day, so they are more likely to be attracted to an image that has a fun, lively tone.
Mise-en-scene additionally plays a huge role in this film poster. The large image above the main character is filled with small snippets of the film, giving the audience an insight into what is yet to come. Posters can make people very excited as it enables them to identify with characters and puzzle together any evidence regarding what is to come.
The laid back clothing of the main character denote her personality and allow the audience to identify with her social class. Wearing casual socks (with no shoes) shows that she enjoys being at home, and her comfy top with simply trousers show that she's just a young teenager wanting to fit it with all her friends.
Our Final Poster
Our First Poster Draft
We chose to use an image for our poster, that would immediately introduce the audience to the character, as we felt very strongly that this worked effectively in other posters that we had analysed. We initially had chosen to use an image which was just the back of our characters head, however the image itself portrayed other ideas and lead people thinking other things. Our main intention was for our poster to invite the audience in, giving them a little piece of our film, and we therefore felt more strongly that this image connotes the tone of the film.
Here is an image showing the drastic changes that we took to ensure of poster looked and portrayed the message of our film correctly.
Going through these changes meant that we could mould our poster in something we wanted it to become. Although the sky image in the first poster draft was truly wonderful, we felt that it didn't allow the audience to meet with the character before learning about his life in the film. We now feel happy and at ease about the image and layout in our final poster. This slightly distort image foretells our characters emotions to the audience, yet without giving away the entire narrative.
We wanted our narrative to be evident through the text/image cohesion that we opted for on the finished poster. Placing the words "Liberation" on his head was something we did as it denotes the message that the film is about him and that everything comes from his head. Although placing the words across his head was a risky move to make, (we didn't know what the outcome would be like), we were certain that it was right in terms of expressing the narrative through the poster.
Additionally as our film is about our only character, Louis, having an image not of him would lead to possible audience confusion. We wanted to ensure before the viewers watched the film that they had already come face to face with our character. We planned to do this in a way that didn't reveal the entire narrative to the audience; just small snippets. This shot used is a similar one to many featured in our film. Just after Louis draws his desired location he closes his eyes to force the wish to happen. This image we used in the poster is a very similar one to the shots taken just before he closes his eyes. As these shots are some of the most important in the entire film, we knew that we wanted to some how incorporate it into our poster- using a close-up distort image of him (similar to the ones in the film) would make our poster the perfect sibling to our film, expressing it in every way.
We decided on removing any brand or company names, as well as crew and character recognition as we felt the audience could connect more with a poster that isn't buried in unnecessary words. As our film is fairly stripped back (simple chronological narrative following the life of just one character) we thought it would be appropriate to carry this stripped-back and simple tone into our poster, and too review. So, we've kept the main focus of our character, only surrounded by vital extras, such the Dolby and BBC logo and a duo of quotes.
As our character's eyes are so wide open, it will be almost like the audience are looking into Louis' eyes, reading his emotions. Our film is all about character connection, so carrying this through into our poster was something we felt strongly about doing. Overall, we are happy with the outcome of our poster regardless of the time we spent changing and altering the layout. This poster allows the audience to meet with Louis for the first time before they meet him in the film- we wanted the viewers to be able to look into his eyes and become aware of his emotions, without learning the whole narrative. That they will have to wait to watch the film to learn that.
These are two images taken from our film that are similar to the image used on our poster. As these shots are reoccurring used, we felt that incorporating it into our poster would help the audience to define the meaning of our film.
A Little White Lies Film Review
As we were challenged with the task of writing a review in the style of the film magazine, Little White Lies, it was crucial for us to gain some in house knowledge of their specific styles and techniques so that we too could incorporate them into our review. In order to do this we read a wide variety of different reviews all of which were published for Little White Lies so that when it came to writing the review, we knew how to style it. Both Dilys and I contributed in the writing of this review as we wanted it to reflect both of our abilities and allow the reader to learn more about Liberation. We drafted the review many times to enable it to become something that mirrored our film narrative.
Liberation Film Review
Having review guidelines from those published at Little White Lies made producing our own that lot more easier. Even though we made a variety of mistakes regarding font sizes and image alignments, we always turned back to the professional work at LWL. Here I have written up the difficulties and how we kept to the conventions of film reviews as creating our own came about.
How effective is the combination of your main product and your ancillary tasks?
Video Answer Part Two
What have you learnt from your audience feedback?
When we were in preparation mode for this film we made it clear that our audience demographic were defined. It was vital to us that we knew exactly who were wanted to target, so that we could shape our film into something targeted at our specific audience. We had much discussion regarding the demographic of people that we wanted to aim this film at. We learnt from our last film that it is extremely important to aim your film as early on in production as possible at the specific audience so that they are always at the back of our minds.
Whenever we would shoot a scene or map out something for future filming, we would always bring up our audience and discuss whether this specific shot or song rhythm would assist in reaching the right people. Audience, for us, is just as vital as the titling you use in your film. We were certain that we didn't want to go wrong and shoot a film that was written to target a specific group but ended up as a film that looked like it aimed a different demographic.
We finally came to the decision that we wanted to target a similar audience to that of our primilary task last year of making a thriller opening. Ranging from the age of 15 to the approximate age of 35-40 was our targeted demographic, and since we had such positive feedback from people in those age categories we thought it would be perfect if we stuck with the same targeted group. And, since our film is in some ways similar to our opening (both have just one character, no speech, and rely heavily on music and special effects) it would make sense to reach out to those in a similar group.
Showcasing Our Film to Our Audience
Although the thought of finally finishing our film lit an excitement inside of us, we were slightly anxious at revealing our film to friends and family (those who fitted the target audience mould) as hearing their outcome was something we hoped that would increase the smile on our face. Even though we knew that any negative feedback would assist in learning where we went wrong and how we could improve in the feature, we, like any other producer, wanted our hard work to be recognised.
In order for my film to be seen by many, I sent links around virally so people were aware of what we had just created and also took my laptop along with me on various days off so whenever a possible moment arrived, I could show them our film. My family at home, also found joys out of the replay button when it came to showing them our film- I guess you could see this as a hopeful sign. Although it was challenging to recall and gather the response from everybody, I tired my utter most hardest to collect and then analyse the feedback from our targeted audience.
Since we are media students and are unable to afford the benefits of high-cost promotion (billboards, Internet advertising) making people aware of our film was somewhat of a challenge. However, we tried our best to inform people by sending links and showing our film to various audience members who were in reach of a computer.
Our Feedback
"Very captivating and unpredictable- kept me hooked!"
(Leah Walden)
"The brilliant use of light and camera angles helps bring the narrative to life"
(Peter Walden)
This shows just some of the statistics of our blog and how many people we have reached. As you can see, Liberation, our short film, reached 8 not including feedback from social networking sites.
Having a blog enables us to connect with other bloggers and promote our blog to them. Additionally, it shows how many people we have reached and what we can do to gain more of an audience.
As our audience demographic are those aged 15-25's, gaining their feedback on a social media site such as Facebook is perfect from receiving feedback from a place they spend so much of their time on. As Facebook is a site where status' and pages are quick to spread around coming into contact with thousands of accounts, it is a free way to promote a short film.
How did you use new media technologies in the construction, and research, planning and evaluation stages?
My Prezi: Click Here
When we were in preparation mode for this film we made it clear that our audience demographic were defined. It was vital to us that we knew exactly who were wanted to target, so that we could shape our film into something targeted at our specific audience. We had much discussion regarding the demographic of people that we wanted to aim this film at. We learnt from our last film that it is extremely important to aim your film as early on in production as possible at the specific audience so that they are always at the back of our minds.
Whenever we would shoot a scene or map out something for future filming, we would always bring up our audience and discuss whether this specific shot or song rhythm would assist in reaching the right people. Audience, for us, is just as vital as the titling you use in your film. We were certain that we didn't want to go wrong and shoot a film that was written to target a specific group but ended up as a film that looked like it aimed a different demographic.
We finally came to the decision that we wanted to target a similar audience to that of our primilary task last year of making a thriller opening. Ranging from the age of 15 to the approximate age of 35-40 was our targeted demographic, and since we had such positive feedback from people in those age categories we thought it would be perfect if we stuck with the same targeted group. And, since our film is in some ways similar to our opening (both have just one character, no speech, and rely heavily on music and special effects) it would make sense to reach out to those in a similar group.
Showcasing Our Film to Our Audience
Although the thought of finally finishing our film lit an excitement inside of us, we were slightly anxious at revealing our film to friends and family (those who fitted the target audience mould) as hearing their outcome was something we hoped that would increase the smile on our face. Even though we knew that any negative feedback would assist in learning where we went wrong and how we could improve in the feature, we, like any other producer, wanted our hard work to be recognised.
In order for my film to be seen by many, I sent links around virally so people were aware of what we had just created and also took my laptop along with me on various days off so whenever a possible moment arrived, I could show them our film. My family at home, also found joys out of the replay button when it came to showing them our film- I guess you could see this as a hopeful sign. Although it was challenging to recall and gather the response from everybody, I tired my utter most hardest to collect and then analyse the feedback from our targeted audience.
Since we are media students and are unable to afford the benefits of high-cost promotion (billboards, Internet advertising) making people aware of our film was somewhat of a challenge. However, we tried our best to inform people by sending links and showing our film to various audience members who were in reach of a computer.
Our Feedback
"Very captivating and unpredictable- kept me hooked!"
(Leah Walden)
"The brilliant use of light and camera angles helps bring the narrative to life"
(Peter Walden)
This shows just some of the statistics of our blog and how many people we have reached. As you can see, Liberation, our short film, reached 8 not including feedback from social networking sites.
Having a blog enables us to connect with other bloggers and promote our blog to them. Additionally, it shows how many people we have reached and what we can do to gain more of an audience.
As our audience demographic are those aged 15-25's, gaining their feedback on a social media site such as Facebook is perfect from receiving feedback from a place they spend so much of their time on. As Facebook is a site where status' and pages are quick to spread around coming into contact with thousands of accounts, it is a free way to promote a short film.
How did you use new media technologies in the construction, and research, planning and evaluation stages?
My Prezi: Click Here
