7. Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you've learnt in progression from it to the full product?

When I look back upon my post about my preliminary task, I realise how much I have learnt. I remember that when I filmed my preliminary task, I struggled in using the 180 degree rule and shot reverse shot. Without a tripod, I also struggled to keep the camera still.

Since then, I have learnt about the variety of camera shots and effects I could apply to my final film opening. In my preliminary task I didn’t use any special techniques, simply used continuity editing and a match on action shot. Apart from that, the rest of the film was kept the same.

However, when it came to my film opening, I made sure that I explored more techniques in order to make my film seem more professional.

I also learnt how different camera shots represent higher and lower status, and so I was able to apply this to my film. Examples of this are when there is a low shot of Ben and Amy kissing, and a high shot of Amy kneeling on the ground and when she is screaming.

As my understanding of Final Cut Express grew, so did my ability in editing and this is apparent in my editing – the match on action is smoother in my film opening than it is in my preliminary task, and the cuts between scenes is also slicker in my film.

Framing shots was difficult during the preliminary task as I was inexperienced in using a video camera and therefore found it hard to keep the tops of heads in the frame and not cutting them off.

Through theory, I have learnt about the micro-elements such as mise-en-scene, camera shots, sound, and editing. This is apparent in my film opening as I have included more relevant micro-elements which help to represent the story and characters.

My progression across the year means that I am better prepared in filming and have a better understanding of how to create good, professional looking shots.

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

Before starting the media course, I had never properly used an Apple Mac before. This meant that not only was I experiencing a new programme but also whole new software. The programme that I used was Final Cut Express. I had to allow myself time to familiarise myself with how to work the system but managed to grasp it within good time. The camera I used to film my opening was a Panasonic camera. Although it was my sister’s, I had never used it before and therefore had to learn how to use that too. I feel that I now have enough of a proficient understanding of Final Cut Express and the camera to be capable of producing similar material again. The advantage of using a camera from home meant that I did not have to book it in advance and avoided the issue of not having access to a camera spontaneously. I had also minimal experience in blogging and so had to take a lesson to learn how to post blogs and edit them. If I had not have done this, my entire portfolio would have been a struggle to create in an easy to read manner.

I managed to use the effects available on Final Cut Express to cut and edit shots effectively, while also taking full advantage of the ability to separate the sound from the film. This technique is seen in the first few moments of my film when there are ducks quacking while the titles are showing. The sound then flows onto the actual film.

There were a number of special effects that I would also have been able to use, but decided against it in order to keep a sense of reality in my film. 

5. How did you attract/address your audience?

Firstly, I ensured that I knew who my target audience was. Then, I thought about the different issues that they would be interested in. One idea which stuck out was to disprove the stereotype and general assumption that teenagers are criminals and have negative influences upon others and society. Therefore, by having a sensitive topic which requires maturity and dedication, this would disprove that assumption. I feel that this would be something that teenagers would like to see as it would restore some self-esteem within their generation.

During teenage years there is almost an obsession with relationships and so this need is fed by having the romance of Ben and Amy as we watch as their love struggles and thrives.

The fast-paced lifestyle of a teenager means that patience is often low and so I realised that a member of my target audience would not want to sit around in a slow-paced film. Therefore, I made my 2 minute opening introduce the storyline, protagonists and setting so that attention would not be lost.  

4. Who would be the audience of your media product and why?

I feel that the age certificate on my film would be 12 due to the sensitive issues at hand. Anyone younger than this age will, I believe, struggle to understand the difficulties.  Ideally, my target audience is teenagers aged 15+, but this is because of the maturity people this age will have. If a teenager younger than this wanted to see this film, then if they are mature enough then they will be able to watch this film with the same ease as an older teenager. This is why I did not certify my film age 15.

Ben and Amy are around the same age as my target audience, which means that the viewers will find them easier to relate to than if there was a large age gap. As previously explained, in a romance it is important that the audience can relate and understand the characters.

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

There are many different distributors which suit romance films, and therefore I think the best distributor for my opening would be Momentum Pictures (‘P.S. I Love You’) or Universal Pictures (‘Charlie St. Cloud’). Reasons for this is that they are well known, established, international distributors and therefore by having my film distributed by them the public will be more inclined to respond positively.

My 2 minute opening would be useful to upload onto YouTube as the video-sharing site would allow the public to catch a teaser of what my film is about. This is why it is good that my film opening introduces the characters and the storyline without going into the present day story which the majority of the film is based upon. YouTube allows its users to share videos on social networking sites such as Facebook which means that my film opening has the potential to be heavily advertised and discussed amongst my target audience with no expenses. 

2. How does your media product represent particular social groups?

I feel that my media product does not strongly represent any particular social groups. This is because the two characters seen in the opening do not conform to the stereotypes.

Stereotypically, teenage boys struggle to take things seriously and attack issues in a mature manner. However, we see that although Ben finds it hard to understand Amy’s condition, he knows that it is a serious situation and handles it in an adult manner. There is also the stereotype that young male adults find it difficult to commit to relationships, but we see Ben as a countertype here because although he is finding it difficult to handle Amy’s condition, he is trying to find a way to get through it with her.

On the other hand, his style in the way he styles his hair and dresses conforms to the stereotype. I thought it was important to keep it close to the stereotype in this sense to make his character seem more believable. The same applies to Amy.

Amy is a countertype as there is the assumption that teenagers think of themselves as invincible. However, we see through Amy’s condition that she is in fact extremely vulnerable and understands this.

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

I decided upon a romance genre for my two-minute opening. Romance films challenge the audience’s emotions and require emotional involvement and attachment to the characters. My film opening does this as the audience hears Ben’s non-diagetic monologue which gives the impression that he is confiding in the audience, conforming to the conventions of a romance genre film.

However, to create a more unusual film I decided to have a conflict of romance (which is typical of the genre) by having one of the main characters suffering from a mental disorder (atypical of the genre).  

The titles in a romance film tend to be quite understated and I chose to include this in my opening by having simple white text on a black background. The advantages of designing the titles in this way means that the audience is not distracted from the characters as for a romantic film to work, the audience need to believe in the story. To do this, the film needs to be kept as close to realism as it can. To build upon the realism, the majority of the film would involve continuity editing. However, the opening of the film is made up of memories so that the audience is introduced to the background of the characters and story. To separate the memories from the linear storyline, I decided to have the film title at the end of the opening in order to create a divide.

‘The Notebook’ is a film which is quite similar to my film as it involves a romance which has been separated by a mental illness: dementia, in this case. It also involves memories. However, my film flips structure of ‘The Notebook’ on its head. This is because my film begins with memories, and is then a linear storyline, whereas ‘The Notebook’ is more involved with past memories with only snippets of the present.

I chose to not stray too far away from the conventions of the romance genre as the typical conventions are there to make the characters believable and play on the audience’s emotions. Therefore, I feel that if I were to challenge these too much, the emotion would be less powerful.

Finished!

I have now finished my film opening, and although the editing process ran quite smoothly, I did make some alterations.

For example, having the original version of 'All Good Things' by Nelly Furtado, the words from Scott's non-diagetic monologue became blurred. To rectify this problem, I decided to use the instrumental version of the song instead, which works better than I had originally thought. Some scenes were also switched or removed for reasons that the shots either fit better in a different place, or they were unnecessary. 
Despite this, I am very happy with how my film worked out.