Evaluation of this Unit

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

As I have mentioned before, we wanted to use some of Thrillers conventions, as they are the most useful tools to make our movie look realistic and professional however we didn't want to make it cliche and tried to develop most of the forms and conventions instead of challenge them whenever we could.

If there is one form and convention that we did challenge however, was that Thrillers normally have realistic characters that can be related to, to help the audience follow the plot and make the narrative more believable. In our opening we didn't want anyone to relate to the Lonely Boy, this is more for plot reasons than to just break  the forms and conventions of thrillers though. We wanted the killer to look like there was a possibility to emphasize with him, but again we made it difficult for an audience to be able to relate to him. We did this because we felt it fit our film better and made it a more original idea. In some ways our Killer is like 'Frank' in 'Donnie Darko', you like him although he is horrifying and is difficult to relate to because we can't understand him.

Sound plays a bigger part in ours than we originally planned it too. We had only planned to have one track in and that was 'The Killing Moon'. The reason for our original dislike of a lot of audio was because of the convention in Thrillers where, music raises tension and then when there is a lack of it, suddenly something shocks the audiences, because this is used so often in Horrors and Thrillers the scares become more predictable. So we wanted not to follow these and shock audiences by places surprises without making it obvious to the audience. 

However we decided not to use shocks like most Thrillers, we just kept it calm while Jake was on screen with 'The Killing Moon' and then contrasted that with some eerie noises Jake found on pacdv.com as well as some party ambiance that would heighten, the isolation Jake is feeling, especially when it is combined with the editing on the scene where time fast-forwards, we really get the feeling of solidarity and we are scared as viewers, however we did not use any shocks to scare audiences, just unsettling noises and editing. 

In my essay I mentioned how Thrillers don't really give characters the standard Proppean Roles (Propp's character type list). Propp says that there needs to be a hero in narrative, however I wouldn't say necessarily that anyone in our production is a hero, at the beginning the Lonely Boy takes someones drink and at the end, it shows everyone shouting at him, so audiences will pick up that he isn't the hero.  Also there is no prize is this narrative, there is no character giving someone a journey to go on. This was a form and convention that we wanted to stick by as it is what I believe to be what makes Thriller so popular.

How does your media product represent particular social groups?

When we new we were doing a thriller set a party, it became evident we would be representing young people today and the groups they fall under, mainly the popular and the unpopular. We did this through mise-en-scene and framing mostly and we also used a lot of editing to make sure the social gap was clear. The extras and myself were instructed to act natural, talk to each other about anything, drink and most importantly smile and laugh naturally, it had to be clear we were having a good time so it could contrast with the sinister events that follow.

Jake plays a sort of in between popular and unpopular, he could have friends if he tried to be social, which explains why he's there but chooses not to speak to anyone. Jake played this well, he made it clear that he is numb to the reactions of other people and that he lives in his own world, not only was his acting good but the way he edited the scene where he remains still at the party really captures his personality, and the hoodie which reflects his loneliness adds to the character, representing people who choose not to follow the crowds.

 Alex plays the mentally unstable, the lowest of the low in the social hierarchy. He shadows Jake, despite he is not the most popular boy, he is still who Alex chooses to follow. I suppose when we were writing about this character, we imagined his as the type of people in reality who are alone for so long, they crave attention and will go to extreme lengths to have a relationship with someone, despite the fact they are too unstable to communicate properly and have a high chance of resorting to violence as they no other way to solve their problems, much like 'Norman Bates' in 'Psycho'.

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

I think the group will all have different opinions on this question, however I think we would all agree that we would not be distributed by a large company like Warner Brothers, Sony or Universal, etc. And to be honest I doubt if this was made into an actual film we wouldn't have the budget to grab the attention of Pinewood or Working Title, which are two big players in the British film industry. Our film breaks a lot of conventions that these major companies guarantee their viewers which is how they attract such large masses to their films. 


If I were to have complete creative control of this film I would like to do what Kevin Smith (Director of Clerks and Dogma) is doing, which is to tour with his film, show it to individual cinemas then have a Q&A about it afterwards, however we would not have the funding to do this so I imagine that we would be distributed by companies such as 'Optimum Releasing', 'Film4' or it was still funded by the government 'The UK Film Council'. Reason for me thinking this is that they distribute Shane Meadows films which despite a very different genre have the same sort of tone as us and the way shows British violence.

Who would be the audience for your media product?

Our audience would be knowledgeable regular film viewers who are older than sixteen, the reason for this being that there are several homages and references in our film that not many people would be able to appreciate unless they had a wide interest in film, and I'm not saying that people under the age of sixteen aren't interested in film, just our film would, as you can probably guess from the trailer, contain disturbing scenes and violence in it. 

 "Another factor shows that strong threat and menace are permitted unless sadistic or sexualised aswell as dangerous"

Our film doesn't exactly sexualise threat and menace, however it does have a perverse nature to it, which means it at least has to be a fifteen. 

'15' films can also use frequent strong language, however the language must be justified if they use the strongest terms. 

If we carried on, we all would have to admit there would be swearing, it wouldn't be a convincing portrayal of British youth if a few swear words weren't uttered, in the shouting scene in the opening, we allowed the extras to shout whatever came to them.

"The final factor is violence, violence in the films may be strong but should not dwell on the infliction of pain or injury."

Violence isn't what our whole plot would be about, in fact the most violent scene in our Thriller (if we were to finish it) is the opening, and nothing is even seen, just footage of a knife. We wanted to leave the gore and the terror to the audience to decide, which links in with question one, this is a typical thriller convention that we wanted to use in our performance.

How did you attract/address your audience?

Something that has always been able to sell a movie for me, are movie posters. Television adverts are very expensive and require a lot of money an Indie film wouldn't be able to afford so they normally have to be creative online, by using something original to advertise the film and give enough mystery to keep the audience interested. A great example in my opinion was 'Black Swan's' original posters, they were very arty, and suggestive to the plot however nothing could be certain, which I wish we could of done something similar with ours if we were to advertise it.

 

Also another inspiration movie poster I saw was one for 'The Dark Knight'. It was a normal 'Dark Knight' poster like one you would see outside a cinema if it was showing however it had been altered to relate more to the narrative, I was so impressed with it I desperately wanted to make our own poster similar to it, however due to lack of time, we just referenced it in our film instead.

Unfortunately we didn't have the time to make posters like this that would attract people to see our Thriller, we just told them to pass it on to their friends if they enjoyed it, and considering the amount of views that we have had on the video I think it did well enough to get to a big enough audience. However elements of our performance that did attract audiences was our original idea. I can safely say I have not seen a media piece like ours before, sure there is a murder and a freakish looking killer, but they lacked the depth that ours had, the points where they would consider too far we would film and edit into something brilliantly fitting. 

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

 

 I think the main lesson about technologies that I've learned during this whole experience is the power of the internet. The Internet is possibly the best way for an indie film to market it's film. It allows us access to details of movies and gain information that before it was invented we didn't have the ability to access. Youtube is the main website for video sharing and it is where we got the majority of our feedback. This website has helped thousands of upcoming stars become both virally and international famous on a celebrity scale, a well known example being 'Justin Bieber'.  

HD technology was originally the main focus of the the Opening Thriller sequence as our last piece, 'Russian Roulette' really lacked a professional look, so we were eager to try our hardest to change this second time around. we used a Kodak ZX1 camera which we acquired from the teacher to ensure high quality video making sure we looked professional. Although after filming through all the difficulties of having a smaller camera, Jake found out we could of used a standard camera and up-scaled the footage using modern software such as 'Sony Vegas' which was irritating. 

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

I think it is obvious from the footage of 'Russian Roulette' that the standard is considerably lower than our final piece. Several lessons have been learned since this piece and they include:

• Lighting: As you may have noticed the lighting is extremely 'shakey' in some shots of the first piece, there were shadows of the crew and a lot of things that we had actually put effort into acquiring couldn't give their full visual affect, for example the costumes couldn't be seen. Because of this, in our Thriller opening, we decided to have two lamps shining on things we wanted to film at all times as well as natural lighting to ensure there were no mistakes or unwanted shadows on film.
• Video Quality: As I have mentioned before, the quality of the Continuity piece drove us to go the 'extra mile' when it came to getting a camera for the Thriller piece. There were random blurs making our piece look amateur, and occasionally it shook, this is what led us to use a tripod in the next project, overall I think this is the most important lesson that we learnt.
• Atmosphere: The Drama Studio really didn't do any favours for the banality of the scene, especially considering we only had one track throughout the whole piece excluding the ending music. This made the video obviously look unprofessional, something we wanted however never actually acquired was ambiance in the background. This is something we made sure of for the Final Piece, ambiance is much better than just having silence because otherwise any noises the crew make can be picked up. 

In conclusion I feel that the mistakes we made in the preliminary piece were major problems that we couldn't afford to make in our final piece and so we looked at them all in detail. After this we came up with solutions that could be implemented into our final piece to make it as professional and aesthetically pleasing as possible. 

Film Classifications

The British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) catagorizes the main issues into the categories below. The following information set out guidelines such as violence and language to be applied throughout 'U' all the way to '18'. The criteria should be taken into factors such as, whether the material is in conflict with the law, whether the material may cause harm towards the catagory concerned and whether the content is generally acceptable at the age group concerned based on a broad public opinion. The main issues are also taken into concern which contain, Discrimination, Drugs, Horror, Imitable behaviour, Language, Nudity, Sex, Theme and Violence. 

'U' - Universal is suitbale for all ages above four. The films should be set within a positive moral framework and should offer reassuring counterbalances to any violence, threat or horror. By using the main issues, 'U' films should contain discriminatory language or behaviour, no references to illegal drugs or drug misuse, unless a clear message of anti-drug message. Scary sequences should be mild, breif and unlikely to cause anxiety to young children. No glorification of easily accessable weapons with dangerous behaviour in which children may like to duplicate. Infrequent use of very mild bad language with occassional natural nudity, however no sexual content. While problematic themes may be present, their treatment must be sensitive and appropriate for young children. Finally, mild violence only with an occassional mild menace or threat.


There is actually also a Uc rating for pre-school children however it is not often seen.

'PG' - Parental Guidance is suitable for children aged eight and over. From the main issues a 'PG' film should consist of discrimination by a character with which children can easily identify. References to illegal drugs or drug misuse must be innocuous or carry a suitable anti-drug message, frightening sequences should not be prolonged or intense to affect the child. The films shall consist of no detail or potentially dangerous behaviour which a young child is likely to copy. Bad language is only suitable unless it is mild, natural nudity is acceptable however, no sexual context. Sexual activity may be impiled, but should be discreet, when more serious issues are featured such as domestic violence, nothing in their treatment should condone unacceptable behaviour. Finally, moderate violence is allowed although it must be justified in its context such as history, comedy or even fantasy.

'12' - 12 is suitable for children aged 12 and over. From the guidlines a '12' film, discriminatory language or behaviour must not be endorsed by the work as a whole. Any misuse of drugs must be infrequent and should not be glamorised or give instructional detail, moderate horror is permitted, however frequent sequences are not allowed. Dangerous behaviour which can consist of self harm may not show detail which can be copied, In a '12' moderate language is allowed, aswell as nudity. The use of sexual activity may also be portrayed, but discreetly, moderate violence is permitted in the films however the use of emphasis on blood or injuries shall not be included. Finally in a '12' film you can use mature themes, but their treatment must be suitable for young teenagers.

'12A' - '12A' guidlines are identical to a '12' film. The classification only exists in cinemas where a adult can choose whether the film is acceptable for a child under the age of twelve, compared to '12' where children under the age of twelve in not allowed to view the film.

'15' - These films are acceptable for ages 15 and over. The guidlines portray that the work as a whole must not endorse discriminatory language or behaviour, drug taking may be shown but the film as a whole must not promote or encourage drug misuse. Another factor shows that strong threat and menace are permitted unless sadistic or sexualised aswell as dangerous behaviour for example, hanging, suicide and self-harming but should not dwell on detail which could be copied. Sexual activity may be portrayed without strong detail aswell as nudity, no theme is prohibited, providing that the treatment is suitable for the ages of 15 above. '15' films can also use frequent strong language, however the language must be justified if they use the strongest terms. The final factor is violence, violence in the films may be strong but should not dwell on the infliction of pain or injury.

'18' - These films are only suitable for adults. No-one younger than 18 may see an ‘18’ film in a cinema. No-one younger than eighteen may rent or buy an ‘18’ rated video. In line with the consistent findings of the BBFC’s public consultations and The Human Rights Act 1998, at ‘18’ the BBFC’s guideline concerns will not normally override the principle that adults should be free to choose their own entertainment. Exceptions are most likely in the following areas; where the material is in breach of the criminal law, or has been created through the commission of a criminal offence, where material or treatment appears to the BBFC to risk harm to individuals or, through their behaviour, to society. Also where there are more explicit images of sexual activity which cannot be justified by context.

'R18' - The ‘R18’ category is a special and legally restricted classification primarily for explicit works of consenting sex or strong fetish material involving adults. Films may only be shown to adults in specially licensed cinemas, and video works may be supplied to adults only in licensed sex shops. ‘R18’ video works may not be supplied by mail order. The following examples are not acceptable: any material which is in breach of the criminal law, including material judged to be obscene under the current interpretation of the Obscene Publications Act 1959 and any sexual threats, humiliation or abuse which does not form part of a clearly consenting role-playing game. Strong physical or verbal abuse, even if consensual, is unlikely to be acceptable.

Daylight Macabre Feedback

After barely three days we have had 137 views on our thriller video on Youtube, and on Facebook, using it's 'like' (thumbs up) system we have received 24 so far and I am confident that this will continue increasing. This is the feedback we received after one video post to Facebook from only one member of the group.

We also received comments on Ben's video post to Facebook too, they were also very positive and gave us a lot of confidence that our final piece was as good as we had wanted it to be and all our efforts to make it look professional had paid off.

"This is soooo good!"
"Impressed ben mate. Very impressed"
"Wow ben im impressed thats dead good!"

Despite the fact these comments are very comforting and positive, they lack any instruction to improve or particular scenes which they thought worked well, however there were a couple of comments on Youtube that were precise in what went well, that we could use when we are making our next project.

"Great use of sound, the cinematography works really well. Good job on the editing! :D"

-TimanaSauce

"great job, does a good job of building suspense"

-kasrkin45

Final Piece!

Enjoy!

This is our final piece, we filmed it on a high quality camera so when being watched on Youtube change the quality to the highest, I believe it proves that the little camera that we used despite it's disadvantages, works a lot better than the standard Canon ones.

We are all very proud of this, including the extras, it took five hours for Jake to edit it, and around six hours to film and I think it has all paid off. This isn't how I imagined it, but personally I think this is better, we lost tracking shots and gained other components that really make this Thriller look professional and I am proud to have been part of this production. 

The Title of our Film

This actually turned out to be the most difficult decision of the whole process. We were all against one word titles and we wanted something completely original that didn't sound like a Horror film. Some days we would all agree on a title and then the next we would all say we hated it and wanted it to change. Ben suggested that we use a long winded name to make the film sound indie, but we were all against it and couldn't think of anything that suited the style of our film. I made the suggestion we should use an oxymoron in the title, and my first few examples were:

Beautiful Filth: A title that describes the Killer, beautiful being how he perceives himself, and filth being how he is seen by audiences and other characters.

Beautiful Slaughter: Again beautiful being Alex's perspective on what he does, who he is and slaughter just being the murder at the party.

I made the suggestion as well of 'Daylight' something, considering we were shooting in the day to take away people's assumptions that only 'bad things' happen at night. Macabre then got added in afterwards and we all immediately agreed that it was the best name we would come up with that the whole group would agree on. I am very glad that this worked out the way it did as it went with the 'Shutter Island' part of the soundtrack, 'The Nature of Daylight' which I thought fell perfectly into place.

Making of the Time sped up Shot

This is my favourite scene in the whole Opening, mainly because of the effort that went into to it, and just the fact that it looks really professional. The idea came from seeing this style sequence in many films, not just thrillers. For example, the fast-forwarding scene ours is most similar to I would say is Zach Braff's 'Garden State', where the main character has just taken drugs and sits in one spot the whole party, which is sort of what we were trying to do except, we wanted him to just be sitting there because he has no one else to sit with and is a recluse.

As you can clearly see here, Ben knows exactly what and when things need to happen, he is confident in his decisions and proves why it is fitting for him to be the director. All the extras were involved in this scene, which made it very hard to be able to do this first time without mistakes, in the end it took three takes till we were happy with the results, the cast all did a great job taking it seriously and Jake for managing to stay still for the whole time.

Making the Mise-En-Scene for the Card Game Shot

Something we had noticed from watching other groups Thriller openings was that when they decorated their sets,  the mise-en-scene was never really convincing enough to make us generally believe that they were actually having a party, so we used everything we could, in a variety of different places to ensure this looked like a genuine house party, here is just one of the scenes we decorated to look in this way.

As you can see, even the extras knew how the scene needed to be decorated, it had all been made very clear. Ben wanted everything to be perfect and as you can see here, even the tiniest scenes he got at least three people to set it up just how we imagined it.

Making of the Wall Shot

I am putting up the Behind the scenes videos separately to avoid a complication which results in them all playing at the same time. We filmed these behind the scenes pieces on Ben's camera whilst filming when we were doing shots that required certain things or we thought we should the effort we put into our work and the consideration, so here is one of the behind the scenes moments about a random idea someone had to have the extras and myself on a wall.

Originally I thought that this shot was unnecessary and it didn't really have any need to be in the film other than it's a party shot that we could just flash up at any point. However after filming it, I realised that it's a shot that doesn't have Jake in at all but the majority of the extras, because of this i started to believe Ben, who said that it would further suggest the isolation of Jake and how he doesn't fit in the group.