To give us an idea of how our film would do when put up on site to appeal to our audiences and to get a buzz out, i decided to upload it onto my facebook page.
My group and I worked very hard together co-operating really well to make the film and i thought that analysing external audience feedback would help us before we decid
e to upload it onto other promotive sites like youtube,
or vimeo.
Out of the three times i posted the film on facebook this post received the most views, comments and likes therefore i have decided to upload this one. The audience generally seem t
o
appreciate the film and give
it positive ratings. My group and i were very pleased with the f
eedback and have therefore decided to post our film on youtube to hopefully continue the bu
When comparing our preliminary film to our final piece there is a big difference in the steps we took to progressing to the stage we strived to. There are obvious differences between our basic camera work for example. A lot of our work in the preliminary is out of focus and blurry.
Another progression that is visible is our variation of shots in out final cut piece which ranges more than that of the preliminary. The shots match the situation and there is also much better use of steadi-cam. This has allowed us to show our better understanding of shots and enables us to utilise it well in our film.
Another aspect in which i think we really did well in trying to improve is the dialogue in our films. The sound in our final cut is much clearer and and story is more plausible with better acting.
Another feature in our preliminary is our use of live type in creating titles which made our film look a lot more realistic than the preliminary which was shot straight from the start. This was important in introducing our film to the audience and giving the initial detail of our film.
Live Type is a program that is included in the Final Cut Pro suite and is used to create animated title and text sequences for your film project. there are a variety of animations to choose from as well as colors, fonts sizes and backgrounds
Where you are creating a text slate, you first have to decide how animated and customized you want it to look. Go to the upper right-hand box in the Inspector and enter your text. The text will appear in the Canvas as a white, hollow-looking interpretation of your words. It will also appear as a bar in the Time line, representing the length of the clip. From here, you can go to the tabs in the Inspector to adjust the nature of the text, such as its opacity and width. In the Canvas, you can reposition the text to where you would like it to appear on the screen. In the Timing tab in the Inspector, you can change how long the clip will stay on the screen.
Effects are one of the best aspects of Live Type, and often the main reason to use the program. You will again be given a Category menu, which, once you select it, will give you are variety of options. Double-click the ones you want; they will be applied to your text or background, depending on which block track you have highlighted in the Time line. These effects range from the activities of the text while on the screen to simple transitions such as Fade In and Fade Out. Go into the Time line and decide exactly how long you want the text, backgrounds and effects to last on the screen. There should be a nice synergy between all three. Make sure the transition effects do not take up too much of the text’s screen time, otherwise the audience will not be able to read it fully. If you are using a background texture or object, make sure they appear a little before the text, and not the other way around.
i was shown a tutorial for Final Cut Pro to learn the basic skills in editing films on the apple macs. I learned how to mark in and out I for in and O for out of the films to pick out specific footage, also why two screens are needed in order to edit, how to overwrite, insert and replace the film, how to add effects and music.
the film can also be decreased using the razor blade tool, i also learned how to insert music and how to position it carefully.
A quantity of ammunition believed to have been discarded as long ago as the 1950s has been found in the grounds of a youth centre in Belfast.
It was found by workmen in the garden of Clonard Youth Centre in the west of the city.
A number of police officers moved in to examine the area following the discovery on Thursday evening.
Police later said they believed the ammunition had been there for several decades.
Teacher Peter Harvey cleared of attempting to kill boy
A teacher who struck a pupil with a dumbbell has been acquitted of attempted murder and causing grievous bodily harm with intent.
Peter Harvey, 50, hit the 14-year-old with a 3kg (6.6lb) weight at All Saints' Roman Catholic School, Mansfield, in July 2009, a jury heard.
The boy, who said he could not recall the attack, suffered a fractured skull.
The science teacher had previously admitted a charge of causing grievous bodily harm.
Harvey had returned to work after being signed off with depression and stress for several months.
But the court heard he had been mocked by pupils moments before the attack.
In a statement Peter Harvey thanked supporters
The jury at Nottingham Crown Court took less than two hours to clear the father-of-two.
Police probe votes Twitter gaffe by Bristol candidate
Kerry McCarthy is Labour's new media campaigns spokeswoman
A Labour candidate has apologised for revealing a sample of postal votes on the social networking website Twitter.
Bristol East candidate and party 'Twitter tsar' Kerry McCarthy said she was "kicking herself" after the gaffe.
Avon and Somerset Constabulary said it was looking into a possible alleged breach of electoral law.
It is illegal to reveal the votes cast before the end of polling day because it may influence the outcome of the election.
A Bristol City Council spokesman said the authority had reported the matter to the police after Ms McCarthy brought it to their attention.
'Random sample'
In a statement, Ms McCarthy said she had called the council's returning officer and had removed the post from the website within minutes.
She explained: "On hearing the results of a random and unscientific sample of postal votes, I posted them on Twitter.
"It was a thoughtless thing to do, and I very quickly realised that it was not appropriate to put such information in the public domain.
"Because this was not official information, and no votes had been counted, I thought of it as being akin to canvass returns, ie telling people how well we were doing with Labour promises on the doorstep, but I appreciate now it was wrong to do so."
She said the returning officer had advised her that it would not be lawful for anyone else to publish the information, for example by re-posting her tweet.
'Criminal matter'
A Bristol City Council spokesman said: "The city council this afternoon learned of an alleged breach in the Representation of the People Act 1983 section 66(4) (d).
"This is a criminal matter and will be for the police to decide what action to take."
A spokesman from Avon and Somerset Constabulary said: "Bristol City Council contacted the force this evening about a possible alleged breach of electoral law. The matter is being looked into."
Last year, Ms McCarthy was appointed Labour's new media campaigns spokeswoman.
The role involves improving the party's use of social media websites ahead of the election.
The candidates for Bristol East are: Conservative: Adeela Shafi; Labour: Kerry McCarthy; Liberal Democrat: Michael Popham; British National Party: Brian Jenkins; UK Independence Party: Philip Collins; English Democrats: Stephen Wright; Green Party: Glenn Vowles;Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition: Rae Lynch.
Oxford West candidate rejects 'Dr Death' accusation
The Liberal Democrat candidate for Oxford West and Abingdon says an opponent's leaflet campaign describing him as "Dr Death" is a disgrace.
The Animal Protection Party claim Dr Evan Harris has an "enthusiasm for euthanasia".
Dr Harris said: "To use a term which is associated with Harold Shipman is offensive and disgraceful".
He said he did not support extending the time limit on abortions, one of many accusations he said were untrue.
"I support the right of competent adults who are terminally ill and suffering and who want to die to have the right to ask for help to do so. This is far from being 'enthusiastic about euthanasia'," he added.
The Lib Dems said donations from members of the public to Dr Harris's campaign had gone up since the controversial leaflets were delivered to households earlier this week.
"During the last 48 hours we have received more than £2,000, about five times the usual rate. We have had scores of requests for posters and several offers of delivery help," Dr Harris added.
• Candidates in the Oxford West and Abingdon constituency are: Conservative: Nicola Blackwood; Green: Chris Goodall; Liberal Democrat: Evan Harris; The Animal Protection Party: Keith Mann; Labour: Richard Stevens; UK Independence Party: Paul Williams.
'60 Minutes' (2010) develops and challenges the conventional aspects of a real thriller film opening sequence, for instance, 'Lord of War' (2005) directed by Andrew Nicool is essentially a thriller with crime and drama subgenres, this is similar to '6o Minutes' which is a political espionage hybrid genre. Mise-en-Scene, sound, camera shots and editing are combined throughout the two minute thriller to create verisimilitude and mount suspense.
The ‘Lord of War’ sequence opens with a low angle tilt downwards; black and grey connote a monotonous workspace. Similarly ‘60 Minutes’ opens with a close up of a telephone and tilt upwards to the main character, Gabriel Smith (with diegeticringing in the background). The use of tilting builds suspense as the audience wait to identifywith the character.
Niccol employs a zoom into the machinery which further builds suspense, however in ‘60 minutes’ zooming was avoided to avoid appearing amateurish. Instead we used a shot reverse shot to reveal the tense phone conversation, and thus constructtensionand continuity. This is an example in which we challened the conventions of thriller films. Instead a tracking shot is used in ‘Lord of War’ to follow a (CGI) bullet, alternatively in ‘60 minutes’ a split screen was implemented (since didn’t posses a Hollywood budget to use CGI) as the character raced through the city, this condensed time and challenged conventions.
Andrew Niccol extends his innovation: a bullet on a conveyor belt is shot using centre-of -frame-focusedshots allowing the audience to witness the ‘life-cycle’of the bullet. Opening the Hollywood title sequence with a bullet instead of an A-list actor challenges the conventions of thriller openings as the issue of the arms trade is brought to the forefront of the film and thus catches the audience’s attention. On the other hand, ‘60 Minutes’ focuses on the character, which develops thriller conventions to create a suspenseful, tension-building and palpitatingopening.
The Mise-en-sceneof ’60 Minutes’ which consists of the protagonist’s secret documents and government missions is indicative of the thriller’s genre being a political-espionage thriller, mise-en-scene conveyed meaning. Many panningshots combined with fast paced editing reveal the character speeding through busy London streets. In ’60 Minutes’ a point of view shot gives the impression that the antagonist is spying on the central character. A low angle point-of view-shot make the soldiers appear powerful, whereas in ‘60 minutes’ we initially employ an extreme close up of the villains face to conceal his identity, thus building tension and suspense.
Director Andrew Niccol uses a long shot to depict the militia men preparing their weapons. Likewise we use a long shot at a high angle to make the character appear weak.
Aslow motiontracks the bullet as it flies through the war zone, similarly we use slow motion and diegetic panting as the character reaches his destination to illustrate exhaustion, as well as a point of view shot to show that the character is just one minute late!The watch acts as a prop as it develops the narrative whilst at the same time expanding on thriller conventions, characters are typically seen trying to beat the clock and prevail over evil.
The penultimate compelling scene in 'Lord of War' shows a close upof a child’s face, as the bullet’s life ends. Similarly we use an over the shoulder shot; this too builds suspense as the character is furious, moreover the folder prop is a key convention of thriller films as secret documents are often stolen; further developing and communicating the political-espionage thriller genre.
’60 Minutes also used binary opposites to challenge thriller conventions. Ethnicity is alternated as the black character’s portrayed as the protagonist whilst the white character becomes the antagonist.
The music in Lord of War is atypical of a thriller film. The Buffalo Springfield backing-trackis sentimental and reinforces the anti-war message. On the other hand, in ‘60minutes we use an original high tempo musical score created in Soundtrack Pro which intensifies the suspense and tension, developing the conventions of thriller film openings.
Overall 'Lord of War' produced by Andrew Niccol uses unconventional features that deliver a strong anti-war message, whereas in ’60 Minutes’ enigmas are constructed andmicro-featuresare developed and challenged to create a high-octane, palpitating and suspenseful film, which expands on the thriller conventions and constructs verisimilitude.
2) How does your film represent particular social groups?
Gabriel Smith is synonymous of a city slicker, an aspiring politician and MI5 agent, whilst the extortionist’s demeanour remains anonymous. The reluctant hero and menacing villain are archetypal characters in thriller film sequences, like Collateral (2004), starring Tom Cruise-as Vincent-and Mark Ruffalo, as Fanning.
Gabriel Smith is similar to Vincent: both are cautious businessmen of a high social group. The costume which includes a formal black suit and the props consisting of broadsheets, extravagant watches and secret documents suggest the character is of a ‘select’social group and is academically educated. However it’s evident that Vincent is wiser as the scene unfolds, Gabrielle is inexperienced-he ventures out unarmed.
Likewise the anonymous extortionist is similar to Mark Ruffalo’s character, Fanning. The black costume holds connotations of negativity, secrecy and danger. The black suit is shot from low angles and extreme close ups conceal his identity; this mounts suspense and tension amongst the audience and makes the character appear powerful and overbearing. The dialogue too suggests that the character is clever and devious- he succeeds in manipulating Smith.
Overall both characters represent an upper middle class social group (comprising of A and B) positively, meanwhile cosmopolitan commuters are portrayed as oblivious and innocent, but the two agents as conniving, brave and inconspicuous. The characters are clever, witty and armed with the skills of their unconventional fields. Affluent professionals will be able to identify with them as well as idolise them due to their seemingly thrilling professions.
3/4) What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why? How will you attract/address your audience?
60 Minutes would have an independent release, largely due to its minimal budget. Despite having a small budget an independent release would have considerable advantages, due to our location. London, particularly Soho, is the hub of the independent film industry; the niche market has become increasingly popular and trendy.
There are an abundance of independent film houses in London. For example: Curzon-the art house has three digital screens which caters to a niche audience; Rio Cinema-located in East London was founded in 1915 and is the opposite of a mainstream cinema; Screen on the Green- is renowned for its British film exhibitions which would favour ’60 Minutes’; Prince Charles-situated in Leister Square. These cinemas would be well suited to my purpose of attracting a niche audience, as the sites are local and should be familiar to my potential audience.
Marketing will be a local London-based campaign. Shaun of the Dead (2004) produced by WT2 used radio stations to recruit zombies. Similarly I’d use radio stations which are popular amongst my niche audience like LBC, Capital and Radio 1 to promote ’60 Minutes’ and enhance my distribution.
Like Rock’n’Rolla (2008) I’d start a viral campaign by email to reach a wide audience with the compelling tagline: ‘They weren’t supposed to know...but now they know too much’. Since most people in the UK use a computer the campaign will be able to spread quickly and direct the audience to the film’s website. The instantaneous method of e-mail would be particularly effective as it has the potential to circulate amongst thousands in a matter of weeks.
In addition: Website-trailers, photo galleries and merchandise would be online; OOH- small billboards and posters along junctions and buses would be employed; ‘fan-sites’ like Facebook and Twitter will be utilised as it offers free promotion; internet video sites like Youtubeand Vimeo would also be used to further distribute my film. I would also create a ‘buzz’ around my film by having ‘followers’ on Twitter and ‘fan-sites’ on Facebook.
Following the local success of my film due to the different methods of advertising I’d take the film to a variety of film festivals including, the Tribeca, Sundance, Raindance, Cannesand theLondon Film festivalin the hope of obtaining a distributor and reaching a far-wider audience. I would also aim to promote my film on the film festival websites.
On securing a distributor, like Studio Canal, a variety of media would promote my film. For example: magazines- GQ and The Big Issue would capture niche and mainstream markets; Synergy- DVD box sets like ‘Top 10 Thriller Independents’ would be available from online retailers like Play.com, a limited edition mobile phone with the soundtrack and wallpapers and Caffe Nero coffee coupons would be sold alongside film tickets; Sponsor- ’60 Minutes’ would be sponsored by the elite ‘watch super-brand’ Rotary Watches and limited edition designer watches could be purchased (synergy); Convergence- ’60 minutes the soundtrack and eventually the film would be available to buy on ITunes, hence it can be downloaded and played on IPods which would especially appeal to the younger target audience, affordable IPod Applications, such as a countdown timer and London street and tube map would be available for the IPod, which fits in with the film's context and its target market.
Here's an example of another AS Media Student's Thriller Film opening. They've aimed for an on-line distribution and posted their thriller on Youtube , a popular consumer site, with currently over two thousand views.
5) What would be the audience for your media products?
Harry is a British make in his early twenties, graduated two years ago and currently works for a well established finance company. He shares a high rise apartment with his friend John, enjoys drinking in trendy wine bars three nights a week and goes out for meals twice a week. He watches Spooks, loves Thrillers and listens to Coldplay. He's been dating Sarah who works as a store clerk at Selfridges, for six months. Harry enjoys travel and read the Financial Times on his way to work. His psychographic research suggests he's a Succeeder.
—Core Audience- Male skew 16-35 67%
—Social Class: ABC1 70%- They’ll have a disposable income and have an interest in current affairs and crime-political thriller genre the film consists of
—C2DE 30% due to action and suspense created.
—Secondary Audience: Female skew 18-25 33%
Here's a montage of the contents which would be in my ideal target audience's bag: a Blackberry, D&G sunglasses, Diesel perfume, a HCBS Premier card, keys to a high-rise apartment, a Virgin Active gym card, a fountain pen, a wallet, an issue of GQ magazine, an Ebook and a best-seller paperback book.
6) What have you learned about technologies from the process of constructing this product?
7) Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learned in the progression from it to the full product?
I believe I have made immense progress from my preliminary to my final thriller film. For instance: I'm more confident when dealing with media programmes such as LiveType,Soundtrack Pro and Final Cutalso I'm more creative and I experiment with different camera angles and shots, also I've notice that framing has improved in the final edit the central character was in the centre of the frame.
Teamwork was also essential, I believe we worked well as a group by sticking to set plans during our filming and editing (the production stages) and each taking an equal role in responsibility.
I believe this increased knowledge of media products have contributed to my group significantly and have resulted in a suspenseful thriller; as I am able to realise my creative ideas and construct a tense, suspenseful and entertaining thriller film.
Particularly when I compare my preliminary exercise to my final edit, I've noticed that camera shots are steadier and focused, I'm more concious of lighting on set and every shot presented in the sequence has a specific purpose, when communicating narrative to the audience.
Through the development of these skills I've been able to helpcommunicateconcisely and clearly a suspensefulnarrative to my audience.
We received a lot of positive feedback from our viewing audience when we showcased our Thriller film opening sequence at the Screen on the Green, an independent cinema.
