Evaluation

1.         In what Ways Does Your media Product use, Develop or Challenge Forms and Conventions of Real Media Products?

 Our film uses an enigmatic experience to emerge the audience. To do this we used conventions of sci-fi to add a suspenseful ending such as the blue light looming at the end of the hallway. We also used darkness and shadowing to break the illusion of  safety and artificial light surrounding our protagonist. This links the fear into the unknown and unnerving the spectator. As well as focusing on the mundane as the prospectus wished we added our own twist with the introduction of our protagonist. He is a stereotypical teenage boy, we wanted the audience to feel calm before taking them out of their comfort zone at the sudden change in pace of filming and editing. 
 When the power cut occurs instead of mass hysteria we had our actor act remotely calm and almost bored to convey his idleness within the situation. This links back into our primary resource of my first hand account of a major power cut at my school. Instead of panicking many wandered around unsure of what to do with themselves, checking their phones in case they miraculously turned back on. This can still be frightening as the audience are stagnant in a situation they cannot control.

Fonts Typically Used in Mainstream Films

 Our fonts have generic conventions of the genre including lighting, blue tinges of light, a futuristic font combined with a 3D effect. We also focused on heavy shadowing in the foreground to add enigma before the titles cut to black.

 Our poster develops on this convention by using the blue lighting to silhouette our protagonist like in the Cowboy's and Aliens poster. Our font is placed at the top of the frame compared to the leveled font. This was done because the mainstream film is star driven and will attract the spectators eye to the cast making it a more appealing film to watch. We also had a simplistic look to our poster as we decided not to include a billing block at the bottom. This was to allow the audience to focus on the main feature; the spectacle of the blue light and the blue title.

 In the Cowboys and Aliens poster the protagonist has larger proxemics compared to the font whereas ours focuses more on the name of the film itself. This was to draw a natural eye line from the font to the protagonists legs to the details at the bottom of the page. Whereas Cowboys and Aliens is horizontal we wanted ours portrait to add length to the hallway shot and make the poster more ominous.

 Our titles are a darkened grey so they can be distinguishable against the warm colours of the trees and sunset. We decided that we wanted the titles to fade up with individual letters because we wanted a robotic feel when introducing the boy. This is not conform to most sci fi films like Back To the Future. Zemeckis uses a white font that fades up all at once to not distract from the character building onscreen.

  However Back to the Future does use a continuous tracking shot at the opening revealing Doc's character through the objects he owns. We also use similar techniques to reveal our Protagonist, such as using a low angled shot to show our Protagonists black scruffy shoes. It also displays his yellow Adidas bag alluding to the boy's taste of branded items that many younger teenagers are targeted for nowadays.

 Another good example is where we both combine character development and using titles. Our title frames the mug and the water trickling down thus linking with the SFX we placed over.

 The mug then becomes the main focus of the shot and the spectator can gain insight into the boys interests. The graphic on the mug is from a violent Post-Apocalyptic TV show (The Walking Dead) which links into the Zombie game he is playing later on in the opening sequence. This obsession can convey to the spectator the flaws in his character, but he is willing to fix them by moving towards the blue light in order to a heroic side to the young teenager.

 Even though Doc isn't in shot we can tell that the man is an inventor because of the mechanical items he has invented. Clocks on the walls convey he is articulate in timing or has unusual characteristics. To emulate this we had the font frame our protagonist's mug so it drew attention to his personal tastes.

This simplistic Sci-fi font conforms to the conventions of the Sci-fi genre. With our film we decided to move away from this metallic font and go for complimenting colours. The black around the title enforces the titles so there is more impact upon its appearance.

 As our film evolved so did our titles. Whereas the words 'Universal' came up just before 'Pictures Presents', we added a high pitched Sci-Fi sound effect play. The 'Pictures presents' then appears in random letters before all the title cuts to black. This is to enforce the random events that happen in the opening. Universal is the producer of our product and we feel by drawing attention to our films  producer we will inherit a wider audience that will be intrigued by our film.

Light Vs. Darkness

                                     

For this shot we used the reflector (Shown in a previous post) to bounce light from the window and into the shot. Lucie used a chair to get higher than our actor to frame his hand just right. I make sure the kettle and prop was placed back in the same place every time for continuity. It reverts the conventions of Sci-Fi as it is not particularly dark but allows the spectator to see intrusion of electricity in the tranquil opening shot.

 By using a stark contrast between the blue lighting and the amber evening sky to portray the change in the narrative. This conforms to the stereotypes of the Sci-Fi genre because it enables the audience the visually see when the danger is approaching. The spectator can also see the types of clothes the protagonist is wearing, alluding to the fact he lives in a structured society and is regimented in his living. This can be overturned if the movie was to continued having his clothes torn are become dirty representing the change in living the protagonist is going through.

There is a foreboding shadow in this shot which begins to introduce the darkness we will use in the Gaming sequence. This was caused by reflecting the light up towards the cup's handle instead of directly in front of it. 

The warmer tones are starting to fade out now and are being replaced with black and grey from the violent computer game. The robotic movements of the hands suggest the boys is used to this game and this is a typical way for him to relax.

This is one of my favourite shots in the film. there is a tinge of blue which differentiates the boy from the background and allows us to focus on his eye line. the sound is parallel to what he is seeing (the violent game). this not only shows his opinion on the game but his obsession with it.

The protagonist feels alone now without his technology. This is after the disequilibrium of the opening (the power has gone out) and he is unsure of himself and his surroundings. This is a typical convention of the Sci-Fi genre as the protagonist is seen a flawed but human.

The boy is showing more qualities of a hero here. He is wary of the light but is intrigued as to what he is seeing. The blue convention is used here to signify the  evil without showing the true horror behind the light. All we know is that it has changed humanity's existence; and our protagonist is willing to find out why.

the final pause before the reveal. it allows the audience to pause in reflection of what the boy is doing. This is typical of a linear structure as it gives the audience time to judge the character and the actions they are taking.

Our final shot before the titles brings the conventions of Sci-Fi and drama together.  The blue light reflects off the laminate wood to convey the contrast between the modern world and the natural one. This links back to the opening shot were the protagonist is surrounded by nature and there is little technology to be seen. He has fully accepted what has happened and is ready to investigate.

  

Use of Blue Lighting

                                                                             We used shadows to emulate fear in the hallway scene. Khan is highlighted in blue conveying he is the fear from Star Trek Into Darkness.  The first cowboy is taken in Cowboys and Aliens, this is a significant part of the narrative. One of the Convention of Sci-Fi is the use of mirrors which our protagonist conveys his Naivety to follow the blue light.

We emulated the blue used in other Sci-Fi films to create enigma in our film. Star Trek: Into Darkness and Cowboys Vs. Aliens both use this blue light to  create tension at pinnacle points of the film, such as a close up on Khan's face and the first Kill of a innocent citizen in Cowboys and Aliens. Our film continues this pattern by having the blue light just before the reveal of the menace who is causing all this destruction...the camera is filled with a white light.
In contrast we had the boy inferior to the blue light compared to Khan dominating it. Khan is in control and our protagonist is not, yet he still wanders towards the light.

Costume

 For our costume we had the teenage boy wear a school uniform throughout the narrative. This is so he feels restricted and conveys to our audience he is not seen as an unique character.
Compared to other teenagers such as Marty Mcfly, there is a distinct difference in the colour and pattern in clothing in Back To the Future compared to Grid. Whereas McFly wears primary colours of Blue and Red, our Protagonist wears black with the house colours around his collar. These colours of yellow connote danger in the narrative and foreshadow the danger that is about to come. McFly uses the bright colours to give hope and display his personality, but our character has restricted his character as he looses his identity to Smart technology (Xbox and Smartphone)

                             
 The same effect is used here in a similar fashion. Our Protagonist says no dialogue and the audience can only guess his personality through the clothes he is wearing. McFly wears Nike shoes which were a popular fashion brand throughout the 1980's and the logo is still recognizable today. Our protagonist does not wear branded shoes but we reveal him through the low angled shot. His shoes are scuffed and poorly cleaned alluding to a lack of care of presentation. This conveys he has no sense of identity and.  He does own many branded items (Such as the Adidas bag) that he places slightly out of frame but keeps himself hidden behind them thus relating back to the protagonists insecurities, making him a flawed but realistic representation of a teenager.

Use of Technology

The difference in technology is obvious when compared to Back to the future. The characters portrayal is with an electric guitar, connoting a troublesome young man. The Xbox creates the same affect, the audiences knowledge of the game is connected with Violence and gore. This can make our audience judge our character without any dialogue being said.

TV Screen





2.         How Does Your Media Product Represent Particular Social Groups?

Our young protagonist conforms to gender stereotypes as a young teenage boy obsessed with video games. He is self centered and slowly becomes more human as a character. The teenager is also represented stereo typically (such as dressing up in uniform, typical of a teenage based film) has an eye for violence or branded items (such as the Adidas bag, the Walking Dead fan mug and the Xbox game). He believes that it will make his life better but it has the opposite effect. He ends up living a mundane life. It is only when the Grid cuts off the power that the action begins to arise.

Age Stereotypes-Teenagers

              

  Marty McFly in Back to the Future and John Boyega in Attack The  Block. Joshua Kinal is the main
  Protagonist in Grid.
Attack the Block was nominated for Outstanding Debut Winner BAFTA (2012). Rotten Tomato's described Attack the Block as 'Briskly packed Sci-Fi yarn with a distinctly British flavor' It highlights the divides and the stereotypes of the society of today and turns the people we believe to be villains into heroic protagonists. Our protagonist too feels isolated because of his stereotype (Obsessed with technology) until he finally makes a stand. His Naivety of moving to wards the light portrays the innocence of his young age as well as his courage driving the narrative forward. This means our audience and Protagonist both feel the same emotions when moving towards the blue light thus creating a connection between the two.

In Back to the Future Michael J. Fox hailed a good representation of a 'Typical lad' making him more relatable. McFly wants to be cool and ends up wowing an audience at his prom with his Johnny B. Goode performance on the electric guitar. Back To the Future was selected by the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being 'Culturally, Historically or Aesthetically significant'. Our film takes on these stereotypes but makes our character likable, such as his isolation allows the teenage audience to relate to him, much like McFly does when he is kicked out of the music cup.

3.      What Kind of Media Institution Might Distribute Your Media Product and Why?

Universal have produced films such as Oblivion and Schindler's List which shows their diverse capabilities in producing. Studio Canal and Working Title would help distribute our film as Working Title is owned by Universal and would be able to use it's sister company to further distribute the film. With our film we felt that Universal would be the most likely to be interested in backing the production of our film because it conforms to the conventions of Sci-Fi making it more marketable as a film.
We've also decided Studio Canal would participate in the production of this film because they are part of the conglomerate Vivendi. Because of this we made sure our film had element of a blockbuster to it with a linear narrative with a cliff-hanger. We felt this would grab our audiences attention and make them want to peruse the narrative after the opening credits.
Overall the group and I felt that our film matched the qualities that were seen in similar sci-fi films produced by Universal, but could also be linked into the distribution company Working Title.

 

We would have our film distributed by Universal and Distributed by Working Title

Films similarly produced by Universal are Paul and Worlds end who both use sub genres to appeal to their audience (Mixing Comedy with Sci-Fi) 

For our distribution company we decided to work with Working Title. Working Title are renound for their Rom-Com, Comedy and light-heated work while supporting films that have a sense of Britishness. Films such as The Theory of Everything conforms to their line-up of  a 'British' Film because it has a British cast, crew, setting and deals with British values within its narrative.

When selecting a distribution company Lucie, Tori and I discussed who we thought would be appropriate to distribute our film to a young audience. We knew that Working Title is a sister company owned by Universal, and since we had already decided that we would have Universal produce our film it seemed that by using synergy the company could earn more money.

Our film would be perfect for Working Title as it is based in England and features an English cast and crew. What's more the location of the shoot is in Kent and is based in a small village. Working Title support films that deals with brutishness in its narrative, actors/actresses or is funded by a British funder. We feel that our film meet the criteria Working Title look for in a film, such as juxtaposing the Kent countryside with the overwhelming use of technology.

Working Title have been known to support productions like this, furthermore if the narrative was to continue the protagonist would stay in the county of Kent, and we would be able to see the panic and mayhem that slowly evokes fear from people living in England.

Overall we felt that Working Title would be the best to distribute our work because of their commitment to support new talent and to include themes of Britishness in the films they distribute. We too wish to emulate this and did so through the use of location and the fact we are young Film makers makes it more plausible Working Title would be interested in working with us.

                                  4.      Who Would Be the Audience for Your Media Product?

After looking at various films on IMDB we found that a common age range for an audience was between 12 to 30. We researched on sites such as Prezi (Seen Below) about the statistics of the genre we were in.  We found out that a 12A rating allows anyone under that age range to be allowed in if accompanied by an adult. This would allow us to give our message to a younger audience as well as expanding out to older audience members.A Sci-Fi film appeals to both genders but the male audience is increased This can be because of the use of violence (as seen in Oblivion and Cowboys Vs. Aliens) but we as a group feel it is because the trailers are aimed at a male audience and therefore attract men more than their counterparts. Our film subverts this idea even though we use a male protagonist, opening up our audience to encourage them to have their own opinions.

The audience for our movie is for a younger audience between 12-25 years old. It links into action and suspense of the films that interest younger audiences and is similar to films that Universal have produced (Oblivion and Cowboys Vs. Aliens) both of which both engage a young teenage audience.
We understood the spectator would most likely use convergence technologies such as smartphones, so it was beneficial for us to use social media websites to attract their attention.
By varying the sub genre we were able to appeal to a wider market by adding in drama through the protagonists isolation and insecurities. This would increase our profit at the box office.

A typical age range for a mainstream/blockbuster film is 12-30 years old. The reason the audience is so broad in age is because the films use linear structures that can be understood by a lot of people. Having a star driven film can also bringing in audiences such as the Sci-Thriller Edge of Tomorrow with Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt. Warner Brother knew that they would be able to engage their audience by having the stars take part in interviews to increase hype about the film. We understood that our film aimed at a younger audience which is why we specified that our film be marketed and distributed on YouTube and social networking sites.
 

5.      How Did you Attract/Address Your Audience?

We used a harrowing soundtrack and uploaded the opening sequence to quench their thirst for the film. We slowly built tension in the film before revealing the ominous blue light. We shared our opening on social networking sites such as Facebook, YouTube and Twitter in order to gain feedback for our opening sequence.
Our character is conventional of the genre. As a teenager he is unsure of himself and his surroundings. A convention of this is the protagonist doubts if can be of any use, yet he still walks towards the blue light, this being a realistic representation of the younger generation.

Using Facebook

                                                       

 First release of BTS footage                                                           Our release of the film was met                                                                                                           with positive reviews

We originally put out teaser photos of our lighting test shoots. The responses were positive and encouraged us to continue the shoot. This was helpful as the advice came from the target audience we were aiming for so we knew we were creating positive intrigue whilst still in the production process. We then released our film on Facebook and other commented on our work. When we released the soundtrack and posed the question 'What genre of films does this soundtrack make you think of?' The majority of the comments read Sci-Fi or futuristic based. The sub genre mixture between thriller or horror but some did comment to us that they felt the piano introduction was very heavy and dramatic which is what the we intended the desired effect to be. This was interesting because the spectator's could not see the visuals of the film but still caught onto the genre of the film, this proved that our conventional music was a success in reaching our target audience.

Annotated Opening sequence

We used a high pitch sound effect to have a sci-fi element to the opening shot. This allows the spectator to know right away that the film they are watching is of the sci-fi genre. There is a resonance to the sound which makes the titles seem like they are in a dark confided room adding suspense to the opening shot. The reason we chose the random fade up is because is a common convention among Science fiction films to emulate this type of effect.

The reason we had 'Universal' larger than 'Pictures presents' was because we wanted to attract our audiences attention to the production company. This would reinforce their confidence in the film because of Universal previous productions such as Oblivion which as a prominent sci-fi narrative.

This title suddenly cuts off with a 'power down' SFX we downloaded from YouTube. This sudden change foreshadows the narrative of the film whilst not giving away any of the details.

Before the first shot appears we had the Leit Motif of the piano begin to play after the first title. This was done to grab the audiences attention and introduce the mundane life of our protagonist.

 The first title appears at the left hand side of the frame. We used a grey font so it could stand out among the earthy colours surrounding our protagonist. We decided to have the title level with the protagonist so it brings to the spectators attention.

The depth of field is shallow to convey the emotion of the boy, he feels isolated on his walk home. Because this is the opening shot we made sure that the countryside the protagonist is walking through connotes with displaying a small British village. Even though the depth of field is narrowed the outlines of trees can till be noticed, we are hoping to use this to contrast with the technology in later shots which is a convention of the Sci-Fi genre.

Studio Canal appears near the shoulder of the protagonist so the audience have a natural focus point that leads them to our protagonist. We can tell that he is isolated in the medium long shot and we get further details on the surroundings. The yellow bag that connotes danger is more visible in this shot and foreshadows the danger that is to come in the opening.

Complying with the sci-fi genre we had the titles once again fade up and out in a 'random' effect in After Effects. Because we wanted to continue this sci fi feel even though no technology has been introduced yet. This prepares the audience for the boy's technology dependant lifestyle.

The shot gives the details of the worn out shoes and the boy's bag. We decided to frame the Title screen left to give attention to the shoe and bag in shot. The scruffy shoes convey the protagonist's lack of presentation, which displays a flaw in his persona without any dialogue. 

We held the camera level with the ground to gain the detail of the bag and the shoes. We wanted the bright yellow bag to contrast with the earthy colours of the household, such as the wooden door in the background, to make the technology and bag seem foreign in the hallway. We continued the random fade up for this font because we were still alluding to the technology that was about to be introduced.

The cool colours of blue, white and black in the kitchen add to the mundane effect. We held the camera in a bird's eye view to have full vision of what the protagonist was doing. We did this to visualize the dull hand movement in a more creative way as we felt a straight on medium close up would not be as interesting for the audience. We made sure to focus on the top of the kettle more than the mug as we wanted to reveal the print on the mug in the next shot.

We had to include a 'click' for the kettle as the audio was too quiet. By adding in our own sound effect we had more control of the loudness of the button without the fear of having fluxing sound.

We framed the titles on top of the coffee mug to bring attention to the name (Tori Holness). This brings more attention to the left hand side of the frame as the water trickles into the mug. We felt that if we had placed the font to the right of the frame it would have distracted from the mug and the trickling water.

We had the sound halt momentarily as the pouring of the mug is added in. We still have the warm lighting to juxtapose with the conventions of sci-fi, however this was to lead the spectator into a false sense of security.

 I have separated this long shot into two screenshots to show how two separate shots can be combined to create a greater effect. The camera cuts from the serene mundane lifestyle to the quick action of a computer game. As soon as the camera tracks out (as seen below) the spectator will now realize that they were inside a computer game. In this shot we had the camera tracking out of the TV, this was so the audience would feel disorientated. This shot coupled with the non diegetic sound allows the spectator to be taken out of the game and back into reality.

A typical Sci-Fi film will combat social issues of it's era. We have decided to demonstrate this through the films overwhelming use of violence in the computer game. We juxtaposed the calming Piano with the 1st person shooter to portray that the game that is seen as common in the household. This will then get the audience wondering about societies views in this game and the exposure young teenagers have.

 We used a track and dolly to create the smooth shot to slowly reveal the barriers of the TV. This allows the audience to understand how immersed the boy is within the game. This makes the spectator question our characters involvement within the game and how teenagers of his age might be overindulging in these types of games. The use of technology is represented in a bad light here because of the boy's age.

The blue on the right hand side of the frame allows the protagonist to stand out in the frame. This gives more depth of field to the shot as well as a Sci-Fi element with the use of the colour blue. The shadowing on the protagonists face contrasts with the light coming from the TV screen showing the boy's concentration on the game. This cold lighting contrasted with the natural light gives for an intriguing shot while the actors name appears on screen. We decide to place it here because it is level with the protagonist's eye line to make it more noticeable for the spectator to then read.



The close up of the Xbox controller cuts away from the violence and allow the audience to calm down. The silence builds tension and gives time to reflect on what the audience has just seen. An ominous swell in the music is heard before we cut away. Once again technology is used heavily through the controller. The close up has natural lighting coming from the window which differentiates it from the blue lit shot previously.

We had no diegetic sound in this shot so the audience couldn't be submerged in the game. Because the audience already knows the protagonist is playing a game the music allows the audience to reflect on the boy's decisions and whether his judgement is right or wrong. This conforms to the conventions of both Sci-fi and Drama as it deals with developing characters and question social norms. This shot is also closer to the TV screen to entice the audience to think about what they are seeing and have an opinion on the matter.

We had the power go out in one shot to emulate how quick situations could change. The technology becomes useless after one fatal blow to the Grid circuit, and now the boy and the technology is powerless. The music slowly rises to a crescendo to heighten the audiences expectation. When the powercut sound plays we made sure to make this more impactful by having the only source of light coming from the back window. The cold lighting conforms to conventions while also giving the room an ominous feeling.

The natural lighting from outside allows there to be some hope for the protagonist. This allows the shot to still have some light so we can see the protagonist out of shot but also to have the darkness stand out.

The protagonist has no power as he lays down on the sofa making him inferior to his surroundings. We dimly lit the shot so the boy looked alone and isolated. We introduced a buzzing noise that was electronic to emphasize the electronic feel to the film.



The boys only source of hope is the light coming from his phone. We had this in a close up to convey how this is a beacon of hope for the protagonist. This is a positive reflection on technology and how it can benefit people in a crisis. this allows the spectator to now reflect on the conflicting notion that technology has.

 The light lights up the protagonist's face, giving the boy some hope that he will be able to contact his parents. Although the light is artificial it signifies a turning point in the film and that the boy is not entirely alone.

We added sci-fi glitch effects to have the phone malfunction since we couldn't have the phone glitch on screen. We wanted the audience to be taken back by the phones malfunction. We are now hinting that some extra force is causing the pandemonium as it is not normal for a phone to break down during a gird powercut. This use of controversial science (extra terrestrials, Unknown world disasters) is common of the conventions of Sci-fi and we decided to use it to our advantage to create pity for the young protagonist because he is helpless and in need. We took inspiration from the clip 'When the power goes down' as it showed peoples phones malfunctioning before their eyes, causing confusion among the character.s

The light fades away and leaves the protagonist where he has begun, feeling more downhearted than he did previously. The drums that boom in the background add suspense as to what the protagonist will do next. We repeated thee cold lighting techniques here also so the spectator understood how helpless the protagonist is now.

The depth of field changes here in this shot. I have separated into three different shots to display this.  the first shot shows the boy in focus and the darkness surrounding him. He is unsure what to do, we conveyed this through the darkness taking up 3/4 of the frame.

Suddenly a blue highlights the hallway and the camera focus on the blue light. The boy's hands go out of focus and focus on the hallway's eerie blue light. the boom sound we added in to over exaggerate its appearance. The electronic sounds also help create another worldly feel to the light conforming to the conventions of sci-fi.

The boy's silhouette is outlined by the blue light, This impedes him and gives the illusion that he is inferior to the blue light. We wanted the audience to be curious of the blue light also and by having our protagonist venture towards it the spectator acknowledges the boy's bravery but also his naivety. we consider this to be a good representation of a young teenager and building up his character so the spectator latches onto him. 

We once again used the blue light to create a sci-fi element in the opening narrative. The boy's focus is off camera allowing the audience to use their imagination as to what he is visualizing. We also used heavy shadowing to add suspense to the end of the sequence conveying that our protagonist is shrouded in mystery and stepping into the unknown. This develops his character better and he becomes more likeable for doing so. 

The use of the mirror converts with drama/Thriller elements. It also gives a nauseous effect, giving a second angle of the same situation. The camera frames the boy with just enough head room but in the mirror we see the emptiness that communes him. As he approaches he halts to decide whether to approach or not, at this point the sound of the technology hisses before suddenly cutting to silence. This unnerves the spectator and gives them a sense of dread before the boy continues on.

This is one of our favorite shots. The blue lighting bounces around the room narrowing down how much we can see of the hallway. The music reaches a crescendo with the ringing sound that was previously played at the beginning of the opening returning to add a cyclical feel to the ending shot. By adding in a mixture of darkness and a striking blue light this further builds tension and allows the spectator to imagine what is lying in wait behind the blue light.

 

By incorporating the colour blue we had the sci-fi elements shown through the opening title. We wanted to incorporate the conventions of sci-fi in this main title by having the electricity board running through the main title. As the lights flicker off the same 'Boom' sound is played to endorse the same amount of fear the spectator felt when first hearing the boom.

Using YouTube

We uploaded our video onto YouTube as we know this is a platform that would be spread widely over the internet. YouTube is a very accessible site and it would be easy to share and pass on the message of our film. So far we have gained 123 views on our film and 22 views on the soundtrack.
The means of distribution vary between each audience you are targeting, also if your budget is slow you may benefit from saturation release over various media convergent devices (Laptops, iPod, Smartphone, Smart TV)

Using Twitter

We released our film on Twitter too, we tweeted out to our followers which include upcoming independent film companies and budding film makers. We ask them to review our As film and take a look at our work.

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

We used different types of software for our film in order to get a professional looking opening. We used a mixture of Premier and After Effects to achieve this which allowed us more freedom over the result of our film, such the choice to fade out at the end before the titles and to design the main title in a different software to import it into Premier.

After Effects

                                                                                           



Original tutorial by Video Co-pilot                                                    Our version of the title Grid.

 The majority of modern Sci-Fi films (Prometheus, Edge of Tomorrow, Oblivion etc.) are films that heavily depend on the CGI spectacle to sell themselves to their audience. Unfortunately we do not have the benefit of Mocha (Effects Editing Software) so we had to be inventive with the software that we used such as using pace, diverse lighting and the use of a impressive title. The title was very important for the film because it cuts from the pinnacle spectacle to the main title which grabs the spectators interest in the process.

There were two layers to this effect. The first was the moving electricity in the background (which I will talk about later) and the Grid font itself. I had to create the moving electricity first before adding it to a new composition layer with the title on it.

(what is a lighting bolt, conductivity state...) (include pictures)

 

First of all I composed a new layer and added a lightning effect to it from the 'Effects and Presets' bar on the right of the page. I can change the look of the lightning bolt by varying the light, conductivity state, angle and position. The lightning looked more like a circuit board, but it was still white and would need to be colourised later. I added a fade in to look like the circuit was 'growing' across the screen.

   

 
 

•  I then played around with the settings such as the conductivity state. This allows me to change the look of the electricity and make it more robotic.

• I then placed the lightning closer to each other so it looked like they were connecting across the screen.

• Next I duplicated these lighting effect and varied them in size, conductivity and angle. I had about five in total. I then added on colour correction, ghost effects and parallel effects to vary the look of the circuit.
• We did alter the colour from green to blue as it linked into our film more. We felt that the green would not go with our overall theme of blue and would tie the opening sequence in.

• I had to then move the title into Z space to get the distant effect. I added a mirror effect to define the edges of the title so it would look 3D in the space.

• for finishing touches I experimented with the appearance of the font and the timing of the blackout.

• I did have a problem with the circuit. I made the sequence too short for what we realized we need it to be. To solve this Tori added a 'Boom' sound effect to look as if the electricity was cutting out on the title too. this was a powerful effect to add as now it looked like the power cut had control over the narrative and not even the title was more powerful than it. 

(VIDEO HERE)

Overall our Title is much darker than the original tutorials showed because its links into our narrative of the power cut and the dark times the protagonist will have to live through before the equilibrium.

This is the completed After Effect for our final title. It took me five hours to create this three second title (and five previous attempts) because I was learning as I was going along. However I persevered and have made the title that lasted three seconds long. this is placed the end of our opening to grab the audience attention in preparation for the rest of the duration of the film.

Premiere

I was able to work on Premier and After Effects for the first time and had fantastic results. The software was so much smoother and easier to render than iMovie. I was able to import and export the footage to other software's such as After Effects so I could include the font effects which further enhanced our film's look and style. 

• I imported the footage onto the computer and then imported them into Premiere
• I then viewed all of our shots so in knew what I had to work with. As I was watching I took note of what shots I liked and what I would use in the draft edit.
• I began cutting and adding videos to the timeline.
• After completion of the edit I exported the title shots into After Effects and added a random fade up effect to the titles. I then added them back into Premiere.
• Originally I wanted to add a Sherlock type font, which tracks the motion on the screen. Unfortunately it lacked in presentation and was distracting from the visuals. Once we changed the effect we were happy with the results.
• I also had a glitch with replicating the correct font. I could have ensured this by using the clone tool at the top of the text font but I was not aware of this feature until after Post Production.
• I added final touches to the edit by checking parallel sound, ensuring the titles were the same font and the edit ran smoothly.

                             
I did have a problem when trying to edit my film. I accidentally merged the files all into one clip thus I couldn't edit the footage together. This was a mistake on my part, however I was able to solve this by re importing the footage and editing to what my eyes and ears could see and hear. It took me two hours to edit the footage together but i was able to make the edit better than it already was by noticing how the film would look like when rendered.

Overall I am pleased with the edit of this film and feel it is my best work to date. To improve I would use the clone tool to save time when creating the titles and would prepare in production with a dolly to keep the shot smooth. this would make it easier for the computer to tack the target I want.

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

We were told to practice our techniques of the 180 degree rule. Above is our response to the task.

I have learnt to be more wary of preparation before shooting. At the beginning of our production the shoots would have been more positive if they had the correct working equipment and the right props available to us. I also feel we have improved as filmmakers and have become more independent in our film making decisions such as narrative, style and music. Our Lighting techniques have dramatically improved compared to previous films as we were in a controlled area (living room) and had full control over the intensity of the blue light. However we did have to time our schedule carefully in order to film the opening shots in the correct light for continuity. We were able to improve the light.

Canon Vs. Nikon

In our first draft we had the title enter from a panning shot. The title wasn't framed correctly and so we decided to have the shot track out of the TV instead. This worked a lot better than our original shot and we received comments on this shot about this (Including our finishing shot)

Our vision for the Phone scene also evolved from having a title by the phone to a smartphone. We also got rid of the title because it was distracting from the phone. It was important for the spectator to realize the boy is trying to make contact with a loved one or family member before the blue light interferes with the phone.

This is one of my favourite shots in the opening. The audience is engrossed in the shot before it slowly tracks out to reveal it is on a TV screen. The spectator can now parallel their emotions with the protagonist. This opens up questions about how graphic console and computer games can be and whether a teenage boy should be allowed to play it.

You can see the distinct difference in the style of our shot and the quality of the camera. The blue tint we used with a blue lighting to add depth of field to the shot. We liked the way the shot turned out compared to the previous shot we did, I also asked the Cinematographer Lucie Potter to have a wider shot to get more detail to how the boy is isolated.

(Discuss the changes and improvements from previous test shoots and using the blue light more to add depth of field/stand out)

Final Edit: Grid

Lucie Potter, Shona Kinal and Tori Holness