Dilini Gorsia

Evaluation Activity 1: In what ways does your

media product use, develop or challenge forms
and conventions of real media products?
For the Unit G324 the task we had been set was to produce a
short film in its entirety, lasting approximately five minutes, which
may be live action, animated or a combination of both, together
with two of the following three options:
A poster for the film;
A radio trailer for the film
A film magazine review page featuring the film
The two I chose to do are highlighted above
What are codes and conventions?
Codes
Codes are better defined as a system of signs which create
meaning. Codes can be differentiated into two categories
Technical and Symbolic.
Technical codes are all the ways in which the equipment is used in
order to tell a story in the media text. For example, this includes
things like the cinematography within the film.
Symbolic codes, however, show the meaning beneath the surface
of what we see. For example, a characters actions and body
language may show you how the character is feeling simply by a
few facial expressions and movements in their body language.
Some codes fit both categories. For example, music is both
technical and symbolic.

Conventions
Conventions are the widely recognised way of doing something
which is to do with the content, form and style. Much like codes,
there are also types of conventions Technical conventions and
Genre conventions and written and sound conventions.

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Technical conventions are conventions within a technical area.

These include things like camera angles, movements and shots.
Genre Conventions are conventions that are associated with a
particular genre. For example, a convention for the romantic drama
hybrid genre may be something like a love interest, which is
typically heterosexual. Examples of these kinds of films may be
films like Dear John, The Vow and Titanic. Daniel Chandlers genre
theory states that genres are built from a number of texts, which
repeat the same conventions and motifs. He says that this allows
the audience to recognise, relate and understand a genre almost
automatically. John Hartley refers to more sub-genres and hybrid
genres like mine. He states that the same text can belong to
different genre especially with relation to their changing elements
of the genre and that introduction of new genres like romantic
dramas for example. In some ways this can be seen as a negative
thing due to the fact that the genre acts as a straightjacket and
therefore may limit creative potential. There are a number of
theorists that have their individual opinions about genre however
they all identify that conventions remain pretty much constant
within a given genre.
Written and sound conventions however show the narrative of the
story through the sound used.

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At the beginning of the year I had put together a range of ideas

including a thriller, a drama, and a romance but in the end I
decided to go with a hybrid genre and join my idea for my drama
with the idea for my romance and fix up any flaws in the narrative
in order to fit it into a five-minute piece. The general synopsis of
the film revolves around two girls and their confrontation following
a tough break up and cheating scandal. Steph, an 18-year-old
sixth form student and Natasha, a 19-year-old university student
have the all-important climatic conversation in order to decide
where to take their relationship next. Natasha was in fact found
cheating on Steph with her best friend Tia a number of times and
continues to blame Tia instead of herself. The audience are faced
with the final question as to whether the girls will fix their
relationship or whether its time for Steph to walk away from her
unfaithful love interest.
Setting/ Location
The setting of the production was the library. This was due to the
fact that it reflects the age of the two main characters and shows
that theyre both students that are in some form of education. The

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other locations used for the flashback scenes included the library
again, the park and the bathroom of Stephs house. These
locations were to put emphasis on how close the two girls were
and some of the memories they shared together. Furthermore, the
bathroom scene in particular was specifically used to show how
Steph was feeling inside and behind closed doors i.e. her house.
In a general sense, the audience should have been able to identify
the range of settings which showed that I had followed the less
specific codes and conventions of the genre as the production
included a diverse, multitude of settings implemented throughout.
Furthermore, as the only member in my group and the director in
particular, I tried to create a strong sense of realism through the
settings. This is so that the audience are able to identify with the
characters and the narrative a bit more due to the fact that it also
creates a sense of verisimilitude even though it is more of a real
world setting rather than a made up one. Moreover, the use of the
realistic setting and verisimilitude helps the audience to connect
with the drama genre and feel the dramatic elements a lot more.
Costumes and props
When planning all the vital elements to my production, I had the
job of ensuring that the costumes throughout were up to scratch
and followed the typical conventions of characters around that kind
of age group. For example, casual toned down clothing with a mix
of dark and light tones, simple make up and typical student like
details like a bag, a blazer etc. Furthermore for women in particular
the costumes were loose fitting or body shaping and held a casual
and calm appeal much like those of the romantic drama genre.
As a result of the costumes, the audience would generally be able
to keep up with the setting of the production e.g. the library and the
park.
As the production focused around a heterosexual love interest I felt
it was important to try and emphasise some of the stereotypes
through the clothing. For example, in many of the scenes, Steph is
seen wearing a black rather manly jacket. This was done in order
to connote the stereotype of her being somewhat butch and quite
masculine.
In terms of props, one of the most important props was the letters
that were given to Steph by Natasha as they created tension
between the two characters. The letters helped us to identify the
connection between the girls in order to establish their relationship
and create more drama between them. Furthermore, another prop

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that was used was the book. This not only emphasised the fact
that the setting was the library but also further emphasised the age
of the two girls and the fact that they were still students. As well as
this, it also showed the unity between the two girls as in the
flashback, they sat on the library floor together, reading the same
book, showing their relationship with one another as something
more than friends.
Editing
Editing is a vital part of any production as it plays a huge role in
putting together the final product. For example, if you were to try
and build tension between characters you would use slow paced
editing and sound effects gradually changing into fast pace editing.
Also, juxtaposition of shots is another part of editing as it helps
ensure the production has good continuity throughout and is in the
right order of events allowing the audience to make sense of what
is going on. The use of the flashbacks enabled us to create a
variety with the locations in order to meet the convention of using
diverse settings. As well as this, it also made the production more
interesting as it allowed the audience to see what the relationship
between the girls was like. The most used editing techniques
throughout the production were shot reverse shot and match on
action. The shot reverse shot was important as most of the scene
consisted of a conversation between the girls making it beneficial
as it allowed the audience to feel as if they were a part of the
conversation as well as bing able to see the facial expressions of
each character. Match on action on the other hand is important as
it emphasises the props and shows their importance through the
extreme close up. It also helps with continuity again as it enables
transitions to flow smoothly between scenes and locations.

Shot

Reverse

Shot

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Characters
The representation of the main characters was arguably
stereotypical for example, the way both characters were dressed
was casual and rather young which accurately represented their
age. As well as this, the production also slightly went with Stuart
Halls idea of the white holding the
major roles, as Natasha and Tia
were one of my three characters
and also because of the fact that
Natasha cheated on Steph with
Tia. Furthermore, due to the fact
that this occurred it also goes with
Bell Hooks theory that there are colour codes and that lighter
skinned women are considered more desirable and fit better into
the western ideology of beauty i.e. Tia.
Narrative
The narrative of the production consists of a range of elements
and theories. For example, it could be argued that there is some
elements of Roland Barthes enigma code due to the fact that the
element of the story is not fully explained at the beginning and is
uncovered as the production continues. With an enigma code, the
purpose is usually to keep the audience guessing. An example of
this occuring happens right from the beginning when Natasha asks
Steph if they can talk. From this point onwards, the audience are
left guessing what she could possibly want to talk about. Also,
there are other points i.e. after the kiss where the audience are
unsure about the reactions and how the story will ultimately pan
out. Another narrative theory that is used is Claude Levi Strauss
binary oppositions. Although it isnt as obvious you could identify
the two girls as the antagonist and protagonist with one fighting for
love and the other showing hate. This is represented by Natasha
kissing Steph and Steph slapping her back. Even though Natasha
is trying to fix her mistakes her overall actions in the first place
show her off to be an antagonist.

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Other aspects
Lighting The lighting throughout most of the production remained
fairly natural of high key. The main senes where the lighting
changed included the positive flashbacks e.g. the library and the
park. This was because in typical romantic dramas, high key
lighting usually signifies romance. This was especially important in
the flashbacks as they were used to show the love between them.
The lighting changes in these flashbacks was mainly done through
editing as filters were added in order to give the flashback scenes
a bright effect.
Sound for most of my production, the sound was generally
diegetic. For example, diegetic sounds that I used included things
like dialogue, reactions, the general atmosphere and footsteps as
the girls were walking up the stairs. These were all typical sound
effects used on most romantic drama productions. The only non
diegetic sounds that stood out was the score music however it
didnt conform to the codes and conventions as much as it was
fairly slow and relaxed rather than tense and lively.
Finally, the production included mild action during some of the
scenes e.g. the slap and the park and bathroom flashbacks. As
well as this I think it also included one common theme by being
more of a summer drama as opposed to a kidnapping drama. It
was a summer drama as it was mainly set up over events that
happened during that time and was based around a love interest.
Conclusion
To conclude, I am extrememly pleased with how my final
production turned out as I feel that it has met most of the typical
codes and conventions of a romantic drama and has as good
narrative to match all the elements together perfectly.