Audience Feedback

Explain why audience feedback is important to a production?

Audience feedback is vital to the successful of a production because the audience can comment on what went well within the film and what improvements can be made to improve the overall quality of the film. This not only allows us to know what the audience would like to see, but also gives us a chance to perfect our production before release. It is even better to pull in members of the target audience for feedback because they are who the film is targeted at. They can give you constructive criticism as to what they would like to see. This is highly beneficial because we could then take steps to improve and incorporate elements that they would like to see in a thriller.

How did you recieve audience feedback from your target audience?

To collect our feedback we showed a rough cut of our production to a group of members from our target audience for them to evaluate the work in progress. Once we had shown them our work so far we got them to give feedback on what was good and what could be improved or altered. We did this so that we could make our production better while still in the production stage, we took all the criticism into account and used them to improve our final thriller opening sequence.

How would this feedback benefit your production and the industry?

The feedback that we had gained from our target audience helped out our group immensely when it came to improving our production, it gave us the opportunity to see the negatives of our film that needed improving. It allowed us to make our film the best we possibly could while making sure it appeals to the target audience and meets their wants from the production. As part of the industry, the ability to gain feedback and make improvements based on it makes it more appealing to the target audience since you are taking into account what they would like to see. This could lead to the film being much more successful and making more profit.

Good aspects of our thriller:

1. Hannah Mahoney thought that our editing techniques used were conventional to the thriller genre and that they enhanced the experience as a whole.
2. Joe Waugh said that the setting of our opening sequence was a great choice because it was a dark, isolated area which is conventional to the thriller genre.
3. James Barry said that the portrayal of characters and actors in our production was good. It gave him and other members of our audience an opportunity to relate to the victim, making it scarier and more tense for them.

Bad aspects of our thriller to be improved:

1. Shaun McFarlane said that our use of cinematography was very limited. Suggesting that we should use a wider variety of camera angles.
2. Cara Gaffney criticised our production by saying that the low-key lighting used in the first half of the film was too dark, saying to us that we should make it brighter.
3. Scott Arbuckle said that the length of the build up the shed scene was way too long, he said it wasn't creating much suspense and that we should get into the action a lot quicker without time-wasting.

Our group did well to follow the set task we was given of creating a two minute opening sequence to a thriller. The feedback we recieved played a key role in a allowing us to identify what could be improved so we did. We tried to make our production as professional as possible to ensure that it was as good as possible. This allowed us to make a professional sequence that included many micro-elements, met the set criteria well and that the group was proud of producing.

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

We was made to make a preliminary task to show our current camera skills and so we can get very basic knowledge of using the camera and using editing softwares. It also gave us experience with things such as the tripod which I had never used before and it taught me that using the tripod is essential to getting good quality footage that isn't shaky. Our preliminary task used the tripod throughout and we saw that it had an effect on our video quality for the better, so we stuck with using the tripod as much as possible for our final thriller sequence. This gave us vital experience and prepared us for making our final production the best we could.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=evfuCwXWbcY

Question 2 - How does your media product represent particular social groups?

Since we didn't have a girl in our group to be our victim we had Cara Gaffney portray the role of a young vulnerable female which is very stereotypical, implying that being a female you are automatically vulnerable and a member of the inferior gender group. Since our killer is a masked man (Daniel Armstrong) it underpins the representation that a male killer is very intimidating and powerful which is conventional to thrillers, as well as making sure to be mysterious to conceal his identity. We chose to have the killer target their victim in a well-lit area and carry out the kidnapping there to show him as being ruthless and fearless, making him a more feared villain by the audience.
The victim's boyfriend is shown to be a commanding, bold, masculine character, when he is gone the killer strikes which emphasizes that the killer strikes when she is most vulnerable, walking home in the dark. This makes it relatable for the audience. We used a young, blonde female because it is conventional to the thriller genre and it is stereotypical for females to be vulnerable.

Question 1 - In what ways does your media production use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

Our media product uses a range of generic conventions, we incorporated many such as the use of enigma through the killer wearing a  mask, the use of a young blonde teenage girl and low-key lighting. An example of a real media product that uses such conventions as the ones we used would be the "Scream" films. In all of the "Scream" films the killer wears a mask which adds to the sense of enigma surrounding the film which creates tension. 

The masked killer in our thriller opening sequence is never revealed since it is, after all, an opening sequence. This builds suspense and engages the audience to watch the rest of the film. The female victim in our production was blonde which is a common convention in the thriller genre, she was abducted by the masked villain and killed in the end of our sequence, similar to the "Scream" films where many young blonde females are killed throughout the number of films. 

Through the uses of all the conventions incorporated into our finished product we have created suspense and tension while keeping the audience of the edge of their seats and keeping them engaged in the conventional yet interesting narrative. Although we made sure to follow and develop common forms and conventions of the thriller genre, we considered attempting to challenge some conventions but we decided it was in the best interest our opening scene's quality not to. We thought our agreed screenplay would be sufficient without challenging any conventions.

Planning Sound - Miss Miller

Planning Sound

Planning sound for our thriller opening scene is key because it consists of everything that you hear. It is used to create tension, suspense and to thrill the audience. Sound can also be used to make different shots flow together, and allows characters to be depicted in certain ways. For example when we hear uplifting music we can tell that the character is happy. Planning the sounds that I will use in my sequence is important as it enables us to choose which types of sound we want in certain places and what effect they will have on the audience in our opening sequence and how they challenge/meet conventions. 

Non diegetic sound in the form of tense music will be used within my opening sequence. This will build suspense among the audience and also inform them when something may be about to happen. This sound technique also will make the victim seem inferior and as if she is in some sort of danger, this will allow relationships to be built between the audience and the character as they will want to tell her that something is going to happen. Non diegetic tense music is conventional to the thriller genre as it creates suspense, thus being one of the most important conventions in a thriller film.

Contrapuntal sound is also something that I am going to try to incorporate into my opening sequence, this could be in the form of happy music. This will make the audience feel uneasy as they would not expect to hear this music in relation to what may be about to happen, and this therefore builds suspense and tension. This sound technique will also portray the strange and eerie characteristics of the antagonist. This sound technique is less conventional of the thriller genre but it can still be used as a way of building tension.

I am also going to be using diegetic sounds in the form of the antagonist laughing and the victim heavily breathing, this will be used to portray how scared the victim is at this moment in time. The diegetic sound of her breathing heavily will depict a sense of panic towards the audience and this will therefore leave them in an uneasy situation. The diegetic sound of the laughing antagonist will create an eerie atmosphere as you would not expect to hear someone so evil laughing. This also portrays the antagonist to be twisted as he is laughing at what he is about to do. Diegetic sound is conventional of a thriller as it involve the audience with the characters and they can see exactly how they are feeling, this allows relationships to be built.

I will also be using non diegetic sound effects in my opening sequence, these will be in the form of a sudden jumpy noise when the antagonist appears. This will be used to firstly scare the audience and make them feel uneasy, but it will also be used to create a sense of superiority surrounding the antagonist. This sound effect will also grab the audiences attention and make sure that they see the antagonist. The sudden jumpy sound will also convey to the audience that the victim is in danger as it has alerted them. This is conventional of a thriller film as it scares the audience and this therefore creates tension among them.

I think using sound in my opening sequence is very important as it creates tension and portrays certain emotions across to the audience. The use of sound also makes it easier for the audience to follow what is going on and they can judge characters through the sound that has been used in relation to them. I am hoping that the sounds that I have chosen for my opening sequence will create an enigma and enable the audience to build relationships with characters. I believe that the sounds I have picked are conventional of the thriller genre as each of them create an enigma, tension and an eerie atmosphere, all of these being the main conventions of the thriller genre. I found planning sound very helpful as it has allowed me to evaluate which sounds I want to include in my opening sequence and what they are required for.

Planning Cinematography - Miss Miller

Cinematography is the art of movie photography, this includes both the shooting and development of film. Cinematography consists of many different camera shots and angles. In this blog I am going to be planning and discussing the cinematography that I will be using in my opening sequence. Cinematography is an important element within films as it connects the audience to the characters and it allows them to relate with them. Planning my cinematography is important in order to create an excellent opening sequence as it will allow me to evaluate which camera shots and angles are most relevant to use in order to create the effect I want.

The first use of cinematography I will be using in my opening sequence is a panning shot, this will be at the beginning and it will pan from a large tower with a dark night background into a young girl saying goodbye to her friends. This piece of cinematography has been chosen here as it sets the scene and allows the audience to know where the setting is and that it is at night time. I am hoping that the panning of this large tower will create an eerie effect.

I will also be using a close up shot of the victim in my opening sequence, this cinematography has been used here as it allows the audience to visualise the victims face close up, this therefore portrays the emotions that she is feeling very scared. This means that the audience will be able to relate to the victim more easily, as they can see the genuine fear in her face. The impact of this shot is that it fills the screen and the audience therefore have no choice but to focus on it. This cinematography is conventional to a thriller film as it allows the audience to see that the victim is scared, this therefore makes her look vulnerable, and a vulnerable female victim is conventional of the thriller genre.

I've included the cinematographic technique of shallow focusing in my opening scene, this will be when we first see the antagonist. In this shot we will see the victim in full focus and then in the background we will see the antagonist standing out of focus. The impact of this shot is that it creates tension as the audience know that something is there but they don't know the true identity of what it is. This cinematography will convey to the audience that the person standing out of focus has bad intentions as their identity is being hidden through the blur. This technique will make the audience feel more alarmed as they want to tell the victim that there is something behind her, I am hoping that this will build relations between the audience and the character. This camera shot is conventional to the thriller genre as it creates an enigma as the audience are unable to clearly see who it is.

I have also included a point of view shot in my opening sequence, this shot will be used from the point of view of the antagonist. In this shot we will only be able to see eye holes as the antagonist is wearing a mask. The impact of this shot will be to strike fear into the audience, as they are put in the position of the antagonist, this will make them feel uneasy. The P.O.V shot will allow relationships to be created between the audience and the antagonist as they can see things from his position. Furthermore it depicts the fact that the victim is so isolated, as she is being watched but she is unaware of it. This shot will create low key lighting as most of the screen is blacked out apart from the eye holes, this is conventional of the thriller genre. This piece of cinematography emphasises the fact that the antagonist is wearing a mask, and shows that his identity is hidden.

In this opening sequence I have also used a long shot, this shot is used to show the antagonist for the first time clearly. The shot will show the antagonist standing in a mask and holding a knife. The impact of this shot is that it allows the audience to see the whole of the character and the setting in which they are in. This shot allows the audience to identify that the antagonist is wearing a mask and holding a knife, thus creating a terrifying atmosphere. This therefore creates relationships between the audience and the victim as they are both scared at what may be going to happen. This shot also portrays how isolated the victim is as they are alone in an empty car park, thus making the victim look extremely inferior and vulnerable, which is conventional to the thriller genre.

I think the use of cinematography in my opening sequence is vital in evoking a reaction from my audience as it allows the audience to create a relationship with the characters. The cinematography I have used also permits me to portray certain emotions toward my audience, for example the close up portrays the emotion of fear to my audience, thus creating fear among my audience. I feel that the cinematography I have used is conventional to the thriller genre as it extracts the key features of a thriller film such as low key lighting and an enigma etc. In planning and discussing the cinematography that I will be using in my opening sequence, I have been able to see what effect each of my camera shots and angles creates, this has been extremely helpful as I can identify which areas I need to improve on in terms of cinematography.

Planning Group Storyboard - Miss Miller

In this blog I shall be evaluating our group storyboard, including the content of the storyboard and the specific elements we have used from our individual storyboards. The purpose of the group storyboard task is so that we can incorporate all the ideas of each individual into one storyboard. The storyboard will allow us the organise the shots, editing, iconography, actors, sound and lighting we will be using in each frame. This will allow us to keep organisation and structure when it comes to filming.

In our group storyboard we have included several elements from each of our own individual storyboards that we created. In frames 8 and 12, we incorporated Joe's idea of a point of view shot from the antagonist's position, this means the camera shot will be filmed as if he is wearing a mask. This was an inspiration from the original 'Halloween' film. This frame allowed me and Dan to see Joe's idea and the features of a thriller that it would generate, such as low key lighting and hidden identity.

We included the long shot feature of my storyboard, these long shots consist of the victim and the antagonist. The reason we included this feature in our group storyboard was because it creates the atmosphere of isolation as we can clearly see the empty background. This allows the audience to identify the fact that the victim is helpless and alone, thus therefore will create a relationship. We included this element of my storyboard as it generates the convention that this creates is a vulnerable female victim.

In using the group storyboard it enabled us to split our narrative into separate sections, this allowed us to see where we wanted low key lighting, diegetic sound, editing etc. This is helpful as when we are filming we can make sure that each element that we require for each shot is available. Using the group storyboard has also enabled us to not only note the key elements that we will be featuring in each frame but also conduct a sketch to make it easier for each member of our group to visualise our ideas.

I think our storyboard is very good and has been managed very well as it has broke our opening sequence down into separate segments making it easier to understand and also make it easier for filming. I found that the ideas each member of our group put forward were very helpful as we have built a very well structured storyboard. I thought it was a little bit tough incorporating all of our ideas into one storyboard as we had to leave some out. But overall I do believe that we have made the best possible storyboard with the ideas that we had.