Friday 4 April 2014

Evaluation - Question 5

How did you attract/address your audience?




































The annotations which we have added to to the video explain how the situation captures the audiences attention and mention how they are similar to scenes from other films such as James Bond. By using scenes like this, including location, costume and props, we followed what our target audience would be interested in and made our title sequence based on feedback from target audience.


Comments on our final Double Agent film.
We got 2 comments and 2 likes on our videos showing how our target audience found it interesting. 



Evaluation - Question 7

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

Cammie - Red
Emily - Blue
A conclusion of how you have progressed in skills/understanding of filmmaking?
We believe that we have greatly progressed in our with our skills and understanding of how to make films. These skills have been developed throughout our media course, whether it be our preliminary task or our the making of our Thriller we learnt a lot about; shot reverse shot, match on action, remembering the 180 degree rule, composition, power, prominence, the importance of props, closeups, locations, sound editing, music and planning.

Here are 9 frames with annotations on them of how our original preliminary has helped us with editing that we had to do in our final movie as it helped us learn from mistakes or see what was a good filming technique to use.



To get this how we wanted it however was not an easy task. There was alot of editing involved that got us our final product. Cammie, done the continuity editing, Emily done the sound editing and found the sound track. Then we both did the titles together. Here are screenshots of us doing our work.

Continuity Editing

We had to do continuity editing throughout the title sequence so that it all flowed perfectly. To do this we often had to use match on action shots and place all the shots together so that the storyline flowed. We had to learn how to cut the clip at the right time so that the cut between two clips does not jump. We learnt to do this using the slice tool in final cut pro. In the preliminary task we had to do this when showing match on action and cuts between shots. In our edit of 'Double Agent' we also did this with match on action shots and cuts. However with 'Double Agent' we also learned how to transition shots so that walking shots were shorter and took up less time. The comparison between the two is that in the preliminary task you can see the jump between one shot where we have tried to cut down the running scene but did not know how to transition and in 'Double Agent' you can the cross fade in some of the walking shots. To put together and finalise the continuity editing it took around 3 to 5 days as we had to find all the suitable and best clips for the title sequence, cut them down and add transitions to  some of the shots.


Sound Editing

When creating the sounds for the preliminary task we used the sounds that were recorded with the clip. Although this meant that sounds were in perfect time, the sounds are unclear and there are also unnecessary sounds included such as the wind, which has a huge impact on all of the shots. When editing the sound on 'Double Agent' we used prerecorded sounds to add to the title sequence. We had to put the sounds in with perfect timing so it appeared as though they were coming from the clip. This meant we had to learn how cut the sounds to the right length and put them with the right shot at the right time. We had to use precision and patience to be able to do this. To complete this editing task took 2 to 3 days. This was because we had to have perfect timing with when the sound was to go onto the sequence and how long the sound will last. We also added a soundtrack to the clip. When adding the soundtrack we had to make sure it was the right genre of music and perfect for the clip so that it fits in with what is happening. We had to make sure the tension was building towards the fight scene and the most tense part of the music was during the fight scene. We also had to make sure the sound for the foley and soundtrack were the right speed and volume. This meant we had to learn how to adjust the speed and volume of the sound in final cut pro. This was a new skill to us as we did not do this for the preliminary task as we just used the sound with the clip.


Titles editing

In the preliminary task we did not add titles as it was a practice of learning how to film and edit continuity editing. This meant that learning how to add titles was new to us and therefore more of a challenge. To learn how to do this we had to learn how to add text to a specific shot and how to edit the text on final cut pro. We also had to learn how to position the text in the shot so that it stood out and was visible. To add and edit all of the text it took us 4 to 5 days. This was because we were new to adding and editing text to the title sequence 




What have you learned about filmmaking/progressed your skills from Preliminary to Final Film?

We first had to develop our skills in filming and what angles to use depending on prominence and lighting. We developed our skills from the preliminary task as we learnt which angles would be best for the situation and we also positioned the camera so that the lighting did not ruin the shot. 
We have learnt about how to edit shots to make the whole clip flow fluently with sounds and titles. By doing our preliminary task we learnt the basics of putting different shots together and how to create a clip. We also could see that using sounds just from the clips was not good enough and did not sound good so to make it sound better would we have to use prerecorded sounds and place them onto our sequence so that they are in time and sound a better quality than sounds already on the clip. We also learned from our final task how to edit shots together perfectly and how to add cross dissolves to make transitions smooth and quick. 
We also learnt how to add sounds and how to edit them to fit in with the sequence. As we did not learn how to add and edit sounds when creating the preliminary task we fully developed new skills in introducing sounds to our sequence. This is the same for adding titles to shots. 

KEY 
Cammie - Red
Emily - Blue

Thursday 3 April 2014

Evaluation - Question 6

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

During the making of our Thriller we both learnt alot about different websites, filming kit and editing software that has allowed us to create the best version of our Thriller using these different technologies to help us with our research and planning, filming, editing and evaluation.


Internet

In order to create our Thriller we have used alot of technology in order to get our final product.
One of the first things that we used was a online website/blog creator program that allowed us to post all of our 'research and planning', 'Final Film and Evidence' and 'Evaluation' online so that it can be clearly viewed and also possibly help the those taking media at a later date.
Also, from here, as the image to the left shows it was easy to go back through our work to see what we needed to do in order to make our Thriller, what needed to be done to make it better and also to show ourself changes as work was split up in the group it was also easier to see what someone else had done and what needed to added or changed in order to add this idea.

 All in all, we have learnt much about the website blogger. We have learnt key factors to this program, for example; all videos must be on youtube before they can be put onto the actual 'blog post'. We have learnt how to edit the blog in order to make finding posts easier, with links to our other blogs, labels; names and evaluation etc.

With this technology we were able to learn how to organise a site effectively in order to make looking back at the work easier. Learn from this site the importance of linking to other sites; YouTube. With these skills in the future we would be able to make a blog or even if we just make a webpage we would be able use our gained knowledge of that everything is easier to find when there are label etc or the idea that if everything is linked together it is easier for people to see a range of work rather than just one element of it.


From Blogger another important website came into play as it allowed us to post our videos online and see feedback from others. YouTube is well known around the world, so maybe the fact that our Thriller video is on Youtube allows us to reach our target audience as well as if someone in our target range wanted to find new Thrillers or just look for new films then our thriller opening sequence would come up as it is the type of film that our target audience would be looking for.
The image to the right shows a few of the videos on one of our (Cammie's) YouTube Channel. We have learnt to post videos online and with questions 5 learnt to add annotations also to the videos. With these we made it so that our target audience found out more about what inspired us but they could also use this to see other videos that might appeal to them. Also, once again, the idea of labels has made it so that with certain key words typed into
With these skills that we have developed if we ever put a video on YouTube later on we could use labels and annotations in order to a, make my video find more viewers, specifically our target audience. Also the idea of annotations would, if there are any negative comments, either give us the opportunity to either correct them by putting a annotation over the top, e.g. if it was writing, to correct the spellings, or even to thanks the audience for their nice comments to show they were appreciated rather than commenting on each of the videos.

Filming Kit

When it came to filming there was so much we learnt about the different equipment that we used. The image to the left shows the two main peices of filming equipment that we used. As you can see both the major equipment was a Camera (Sony HVR 1000p) and a Tripod.
The Camera isn't new technology however it was still quite complex we found when we first started to use it. However we found, after a while, that the camera was simple. The technology became easy to use after that and we think that now we have grasped an understanding of this Camera that when we use other cameras we would have experience and knowledge on how to use them, also maybe on learn from experience the good and bad techniques we should use.

Editing Software


We used the software Final Cut Pro. We used final cut pro in order to get our final Thriller film the way it was. The film allowed us to cut the clips down that we got from the filming equipment, edit the clips with features like colour correction, transitions and add in the text to piece it together. This was a very complex detailed program that we found made you look into every detail in depth. When looking at other programs after a we found this to be the easier but more than likely this was due to the fact that we had gotten used to the program.
On this program though we think that the key features we learnt was finally putting match on action into play, sound editing and from there it was making sure it all matched up/ fitted togther well and that what finally cut pro has taught us. The technology behind finally cut pro makes the user become picky and attention to detail is great with this program. 
This proving to us that we have a basic understanding of the Final cut pro program so all when we need this program at a later date.

Imovie was the first software that we used to make our production companies opening logo. We done this using a template on the imovie software.
We learn how to add text, edit/add music, edit text font from imovie that we think would be important at a later date if we ever needed to make something similar or put together a short film we can use the skills that we got from imovie to create a film at a later date.                                                                                                                                                                            

Question 7: Prezi/ 9 frames










FOLEY FOR FILM:




Question 6: blog and shoot/edit screen grabs


SOFTWARE:

After Effects: 
I used this to use the mask tool so that my text
would appear to be part of the scenery
This was easier than doing motion tracking as the colours weren't contrasting enough to allow the text to stay on a certain point.
However, the mask tool was a lot easier as I had to draw a template around the character and then expand it as he walked so that the text gradually disappeared.
I learnt to use this software through help of a teacher and other students in my class and the upper year, but mainly through youtube tutorials that allowed me to learn all the important parts I would need to edit my text onto my video.

Final Cut Pro:
I used this to edit my footage together, colour correct the image to create the right mood/ atmosphere, to create the foley and soundtrack and then also to put the still text onto the videos. This software was rather simple to pick up after watching a couple of tutorials on youtube and asking the upper years for pointers but I was best with this piece of software than any other.




iMovie:
Emily used this to create our production logo by using a template to create it. This software is very straight forward to do but lacks a lot of the necessary, good parts to it for editing that Final Cut Pro has, which is why we didn't edit our video in this software.
Youtube:
To display our work we had to upload our work to youtube- to do this we had to make ourselves an account. All our progress with filming and editing was uploaded to our youtube accounts.
Blogger:
This is where our planning, research and progress with ideas, filming and editing was displayed so that we would be able to follow our thinking and where we were in our project. To show our videos on our blog we embedded the HTML address for the video into the HTML tab in blogger. This website was easy to use and pick up along the way.

Overall the amount of software I have used through this project have been numerous but I have learnt a lot by completing different set tasks we were given to test our skills and knowledge. I am confident with youtube, blogger, final cut pro and imovie and I am adequately skilled with after effects but still have room for much improvement. 

EQUIPMENT
Camera: 
As I have had past experience with this piece of equipment I was able to use the camera very well, I taught my group the basics but they were really quick to pick it up anyway. The only problem we had with the camera was the battery as it did not hold its charge even though we charged it overnight. This reduced the amount of time we were able to film for the video. We used the camera to film our footage and then I used the microphone with the camera to record my foley; this was quite tricky as I couldn't get any background noise from the school but I managed to succeed quite effectively.
Tripod:

This helped us keep our shots steady in the first shoot however during our second shoot we were given the wrong tripod meaning we used the tripod as the height but had to try and keep the camera steady ourselves. We learnt from this mistake to check the camera fits onto the tripod correctly before we hire it out.

Tuesday 1 April 2014

Question 5: Prezi/ Blog with Video



this is the final video with annotations explaining the genre conventions, music and effects, use of characters and the stories, similarities with other movies and our unique selling point.



this video shows 18 year olds saying what they expect in a thriller and what their favourite thriller films were; this helped us in incorporating what the generation expects and likes from this genre of film: mystery, suspense, action etc.

Friday 28 March 2014

Evaluation - Question 4



Who would be the audience for your media product?

You should have a drawing of your target audience member and an explanation of what kinds of taste they might have

To find out the typical age and gender which are interested in thriller films and will make a good target audience for our film we did some research on reviews from groups of people on similar films to ours. We found that the best audience for our target audience would be males ages 18 - 29. This is because we can then give the film more of an adult plot to the film meaning we can include features such as violence and/or explicit scenes.





The target audience is likely shop in many different shops. They are likely to be a working man, possibly a business man so will therefore shop in shops such
as House of Fraser, Burton or Topman for clothing like suits. If he was to dress casual he may also shop in these shops, but may also shop in shops such as O'Neill, Zara and All Saints. They would most likely shop here because they are likely to be able to relate to the main character in the film so are likely to dress like him. Due to the style of clothing of the main character in the film it is clear to say that the audience is likely to shop in these shops. As you can see from the image, this is the sort of clothing style our audience would aim for so will therefore shop in these shops.


The target audience taste in music is likely to be Urban, which includes hip-hop, R&B and rap. Being a young adult and liking a thriller film they are most likely to like this genre of music because it could be seen as macho and intimidating. This would be the type of identity someone within our target audience is likely to be aiming for so will therefore listen to this genre of music. This genre could include artists such as A$AP Rocky, Drake and Kid Ink. 


As our Thriller is based on that of James Bond it is obvious that our audience would like James Bond films. This also meaning that they would like Action and Adventure Thrillers. These types of Thrillers however are also typically linked to Sci-Fi Films. This meaning that the films our Target Audience Member would like would be;


 All of these films are perfect example of what our Target audience would find appealing as they all contain, Action, Adventure and of course are Thrillers. Some even contain the added element of Sci-Fi. Which is quite common in Adventure Thrillers as the idea of it not being in the typical world is an adventure for the audience themselves.
However our Thriller is only an Action Thriller and partially an Adventure Thriller meaning that the aspect of Sci-Fi wouldn't be in it, however we have the major aspects in our film that our target audience would be looking for. From looking at this it is easy to see that our target audience wouldn't care whether or not the films they watch would be mainstream or independent films. Our target audience would care more about whether or not they liked the film and if it kept them in suspsense.