Short Film A2 Evaluation

In what what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

Narrative
I think my production primarily falls under the theories of Claude Levi-Strauss. There is a battle between the binary opposites; in this case it is between the male and female sexes and how a sly female character holds the power without actually having a visual role within the movie. An example of this in my coursework is the message that Laura leaves on Terrys phone, it shows she is weak but still capable of crushing her opponent which can both be argued as typical traits of a villainous character. I think that although the battle of binary opposites, in this case, male and female is very conventional for the romantic comedy genre. However, I think I have made an unconventional romantic comedy by making both of the main characters male. In my short film there is use of anachronic and forking path narratives. There is a scene where Jim has a flashback of him playing violent video games and listening to romantic music, these flashbacks tell the audience that Jim has been depressed over his recent break up with the antagonist Laura. The use of forking path narrative comes in when Terry has a hallucination that Jim might murder him when he finds out that Terry and Laura have been seeing each other. I think this is important because it shows that Terry is a weak and narrow-minded character.

Mis-En-Scene

In terms of Mis-en-scene my production follows the forms and conventions of real media products. For example, the first scene was shot in my bedroom, the posters and stickers on the bed show that the room is that of a teenagers. An example of this being used in mainstream media is in the popular E4 television programme Skins. In Skins there are frequent shots of the main characters bedrooms. These shots give a clear insight into the characters personas. For example, the beige bed sheets that Jim has show that he is a softly spoken and polite character. This still from Skins shows that this character is unorganised and messy. However Skins represents a more stereotypical type of teenager whereas I think I have presented a type of teenager that isnt often presented in contemporary real media products such as Skins and Misfits.

Sound
With one particular piece of music I have followed the forms and conventions in my short movie. The song Avril 14 th is a melancholic piece of non-diagetic sound that gives the audience a sense that Jim is upset. I think that by using this piece of music I have followed the forms and conventions by using non-diagetic sound to convey the characters moods. However, I believe that some conventions are broken in terms on the non-diagetic sound I have used in my film. Romantic Comedies usually use a non diagetic soundtrack to show that two characters are in love. This is usually done by using music that constructs a romantic tone. Although I have used music with a romantic tone in my film I think that I use it in a way that subtly mocks the conventions laid out in more typical Romantic-Comedys.

Scene 1: Bedrooms and Flashbacks

This scene starts with the song Avril 14th. I decided to use this because it sets the mood of how the films protagonist is feeling. The soft piano resonates with the sadness that Jim feels. Originally I planned to put a phone message from Laura, breaking up with Jim at the start of the movie to explain why he looks so upset. However, I later thought that it would be better not to give this away so soon in the film. The flashbacks in this scene were influenced by the hit U.S television show Family Guy. Family Guy is known for its comedic cut aways that drive the plot of each episode and also make the audience laugh. I wanted to both move forward with the plot and make the audience laugh with my flashbacks, it was important to me that the flashbacks were key to building the character of Jim and I think I did this by portraying the anger and sadness he feels at this point in the film. I wanted to make it obvious to the audience that these were flashbacks so I made a swooshing effect to go before and after the flashbacks. My primary source of inspiration for this were the noises used before and after flashbacks in the U.S television series Lost. To make the swooshing sound, I recorded the sound of me waving a bamboo stick through the air. I then needed a clip of something swooshing, for this I filmed a panning shot of a light bulb, I then used a monochrome filter to make sure that it didnt look like a light bulb. Finally, I sped up the shot to make it seem like a trail of light.

Scene 2: Jims Routine

This short scene, without dialogue, is supposed to show Jims mundane routine after his break up with Laura. This mundane routine matched with the expression on the characters face is supposed to show the audience that Jim is sad. I think that I achieved this as my audience feedback taught me that the plot and characters in my short film are easy to understand. To further show this, I used the speed up effect on iMovie whilst Jim was eating toast. The only thing in the shot is moving at the same pace as him, this is supposed to show how his days go so quickly without Laura.

Scene 3: Daydream Scene

I took a lot of inspiration from the Canadian mockumentary series Pure Pwnage whilst planning this scene in my film. This whole scene is loosely based on this scene in Pure Pwnage where the protagonist Jeremy has upset his girlfriend and he has various hallucinations of her killing him in a comical style. So this shows that I have followed the forms and conventions of real media products. For the rest of the scene I thought it was important to make it obvious that this was a daydream, to do this I decided to use a purple filter and the Vignette effect on the shots to make the whole scene seem a bit more dreamier. Aswell as this I used iMovies feature of speeding up and slowing down clips to make some shots otherworldly. For instance, the shot of Terrys face pulls out and is purposefully blurred, however I slowed down the shot because I initially shot it too fast. An example of me using the speed up feature in iMovie during the editing process was when Jim lunges towards Terry with the knife, I sped this up so the shot would flow seamlessly with the close up shot of Terrys face when he realizes he was dreaming. Another way in which I made the whole scene very dreamy was with the diagetic sound. I used the Digital Audio Workstation software Ableton Live to edit the sound of Jim talking. I detached the audio from Jims line You wouldnt have slept with her! in iMovie and imported it into Ableton live. I then used a pitch plug-in to alter the pitch of Jims voice, I decided to move the pitch of Jims voice up to further increase the tension of the scene but also make the scene even more dreamy.

Scene 4: Confrontation

This scene sees Terry confront Jim about him seeing Laura. Development of character is very important in romantic comedies. With only 5 minutes to do this it was difficult. However I believe with this scene I develop both characters quite well through the use of camera work, lighting and dialogue. Firstly, I mainly natural lighting within this scene, this gives the scene an organic feel but also makes both characters seem normal, this helps the audience empathize with them even though the situations they find themselves in are over exaggerated which is a common trait of the romantic comedy genre. Secondly, I paid less attention on keeping the camera steady when I was filming shots of Terry, this shows how the character feels frustrated and how he has overreacted. I used a variety of shots in this scene to keep the audience interested, but I also used various shots to develop characters, for instance, I used a close up shot of Jims face to show how childish he thinks Terry is acting. This could also be called a reaction shot. These types shots are often used in sitcoms like Scrubs and Friends, it helps the audience understand how the character is reacting to unfolding events. With this shot I followed the forms and conventions of real media products.

Camera Work
I decided to shoot my whole film hand held (with the exception of one shot). Stylistically , I think this gave my film a more natural and organic feel. I think that by shooting my film handheld has reflected that my production was shot on a very low budget. This style of filming was borrowed from Television shows like The US Office and Arrested Development. Arguably This style of filming makes the audience feel closer to the characters and can also empathize with the situations the characters have gotten themselves into. However, the handheld use of camera is also used to create tension. For example, In the daydream scene where Terry is afraid Jim will respond to his actions with violence I purposefully shook the camera to show that something was about to go wrong. This technique is used in many Television shows and films to create tension.

Title Shot
I strayed away from the forms and conventions of real media products by using a title shot at the end of the movie instead of the start, like many other films. My reasoning behind this is that the title Phonebook only makes sense to the audience just after the final shot. I think this is important because I wanted the audience to understand the meaning of the title, this may have lost if I used a title card at the start of the movie

However, the aesthetic style of my title card does follow the forms and conventions set out by real media products. My main inspiration for the title card came from the Martin Scorsese film, The Departed. I thought that the monochrome colours used in the title card reflected upon the films suave style, and although my films genre is completely different to the genre of The Departed, I still wanted to reflect the style of the film with a aesthetically pleasing title card. Another reason why I decided to use monochrome colours was to represent the simplicity of the plot and shooting style of the film.

Poster
In terms of where I have placed the main title, my poster follows some forms and conventions of the romantic-comedy genre. In terms of layout, it also replicates where the billing block has been placed. Another similarity is where the release date has been placed, although the coming soon on the (500) Days of Summer poster indicates that this is more of a teaser poster. The poster I have made is more of a final poster due to the definite date on the bottom of the poster. In some ways I have shied away from the forms and conventions set out in many romantic comedy movie posters. A noticeable trait featured in romatic comedy posters is that they often use red fonts. Red is universally a symbol of love and affection, which is why it is used so much in these kinds of posters. I decided to use very plain colours in my poster because my film doesnt strictly follow the guidelines that most romantic comedies set out, such as a relationship being salvaged at the end of the movie. I used colours in my poster that are very unisex because I believe that my short film can be equally enjoyed by both males and females.

The font of my masthead does follow the forms and conventions of other real media products. It stands out as the main feature of the poster and is also in a bold font that stands out in the middle of the page much like the (500) Days of Summer poster. I have also followed forms and conventions in terms of the tagline. I have placed it just under the masthead much like the tagline on the poster for The Proposal.

Another way in which I have avoided the forms and conventions set out by other media products is the way I have used the photograph taken for my poster. Most posters featuring the main characters cut out their body and place it on a different colour background. I decided to not do this because the dark shadow of the protagonist gives the audience the impression that this film is not a typical romantic comedy.

Double Page Spread

I followed forms and conventions in some ways in the production of my Double Page Spread. I decided to use one picture to fill up the whole A4 page of the Double Page Spread much like this feature on the movie Clash of the Titans in Empire magazine. I have also used Times New Roman text because it gives the publication a more professional and stylish aesthetic. Another way in which I have followed the forms and conventions of other real media products is the first letter of my article is a bigger size font than the other letters to make the actual article stand out among the rest of the page. Another way in which I have followed the forms and conventions of real media products is the costume both the main characters are wearing. The main characters wear this costume throughout the whole film, by both actors wearing these costumes it gives the reader a sense that they have been interviewed on set. I think this gives the article a more professional aesthetic. However, I think I have strayed away from forms and conventions with a minimalistic approach towards the whole double page spread. By using monochrome colours I have made my double page spread very stylish. I think this reflects my short film as it is simple and organic with the use of handheld camera work

How effective is the combination of your main product and ancillary texts?

The use of phones is very important in my main work and ancillary texts. The use of phones in my film (first and last scenes) both mirror the film poster I created. The protagonist, Jim, has a phone in his hand. Pair this with the title of the short film, Phonebook, it is apparent to the audience that the film is loosely based upon new technologies. Again I did this so my film would appeal to younger audiences. Teenagers understand new technologies and I thought it would be essential to feature some kind of technology that is widely used by teenagers.

I tried to link the styles of my poster and film by creating an aesthetic that seems familiar to the current teenage generation. For my poster I used filters on the photo that make the photo look old, as if they had been taken on a film camera. I did this because this style of photography has become popular with teenagers, mainly due to the iPhone app Instagram. This teenage fascination with vintage photography inspired my visual decisions with my short film and ancillary texts. I also used warm filters that gave a vintage feel to my film, the last scene for instance where there are shots of trees and the sky. I used the trees and sky with the warm filters to please teenage audiences but also to shows that balance had been restored by the end of the film. I also used a light red filter in the living room scene to present tension between the two characters, I also did this ironically to steer away from red being presented as a colour of love.

What did you learn from your audience feedback

First Cut of the Daydream Scene http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G8 7pq9C9nak

From my audience feedback I learnt that my plot was easily understandable, this was an important thing to achieve with my film because most other romantic comedies follow a very linear and understandable plot. I filmed and edited my film in stages, I would film a scene or two and edit it, after watching it I would send it to people via facebook and twitter and ask them what they thought of it. For instance, the first edit of the daydream scene was completely different to the final version. My audience feedback on the first cut of this scene showed me that a majority of people thought that the film may have been a drama due to the slow paced, piano led music featured in the scene. As my film is supposed to be a romantic comedy, I thought I would change it to make it more obviously dreamy by using filters, effects and upbeat electronic music. My audience feedback on this scene also made me change my mind about what music I was to use on this particular scene. After I received the feedback I thought that the slow piano music did not represent the new technologies that my film is loosely based on (Phones, laptops etc) I then changed the music to a more tense electronic song which represents youth and technology in a far better way than the piano music I used before. Using this electronic music also gave me the chance to edit the clips with a faster pace instead of the slow pace set before with the piano music. Audience feedback also helped me decide what pictures to use for my ancillary texts. I asked people who they thought the main character (protagonist) was and nearly everyone I asked said Jim. I decided to use a picture of Jim instead of Terry on my poster.

How did you use media technologies in the construction and research, planning and evaluation stages?

I used the blogging website Wordpress to upload all of my planning and research in a straightforward and chronological order. Wordpress features useful features that helped me present my planning and research, for instance the ability to imbed videos from Youtube helped me show what was influencing my film. And also the ability to imbed Scribd files into wordpress posts was efficient and saved me uploading every slide as a JPEG onto a post.

I used Scribd, to upload powerpoint presentations onto my wordpress blog. This was extremely useful because having to download powerpoint presentations from my wordpress blog can sometimes be hard, especially if the person downloading the file has not got powerpoint on their home computer. By using scribd, anyone can read the powerpoint presentation all on one page.

I used the Digital Audio Workstation software Ableton Live 8 to edit various non diagetic and diagetic sounds in my film. The phone message near the end of the film was recorded on a Zoom Handy Recorder. I then used the memory card to upload the audio into Ableton. However, the original voice clip needed to sound as though it was recorded straight from a phone. To do this I decided to put an overdrive and filter effect onto the audio. These effects gave the audio a low quality sound that was reminiscent of a real phone message.

Camera
I used a Pentax K-X to film Phonebook. I think that using a DSLR gave my film a professional look, especially with the filters used throughout the film. I only used a tripod for one or two minor shots in the whole of my film. The quality of the shots and the use of handheld camera work gave my film a great balance of professionalism and low budget film. However, the camera made a buzzing sound whilst filming, although my film was not marked on technical faults I still thought that It could have been improved by downloading the software Avidemux to reduce the sound of the buzzing

I edited my film entirely on iMovie. I had already learnt how to use it before editing my film which made the editing process easier, but I still encountered problems with sound and making all the shots flow naturally into each other. I decided to stay away from iMovies shot transitions (Bar fade to black) because I thought they looked unprofessional, I wanted to make it look like my film had been shot with various cameras, and make each shot flow seamlessly into the next. Like I have said before, iMovies filters and effects helped shape the Daydream Scene, which is my favourite scene in the movie.

I used Youtube to both publish my movie but also to show what was inspiring my decisions during the process. The ability to embed videos into my wordpress posts gave my blog a good aesthetic but was also practical for the viewer. Putting my film on Youtube also provided audience feedback with the Like Bar and comments section. From this screenshot you can see that at this point in time I have 1 comment and 2 likes. This shows me that my film is popular amongst the people who have seen it.

I used photoshop to edit my movie poster. As I have used it for my Media AS coursework task, most of the features in photoshop were already familiar to me which helped me with the process of creating my poster. I imported the picture I wanted to use into photoshop and made the picture A4 size with the resize tool. I put a warm filter onto the picture to subtly show that my film is a romantic comedy. For my poster I used free fonts from the website Dafont.com. I think that the stock fonts found on Photoshop would look unprofessional and easily recognizable on my poster. Firstly, I had to install the texts to the computer I was working from and then into Photoshop itself. I then used the text tool to enter the text boxes onto the picture. I then proceeded to edit the fonts and resize them. I then used the magnetic lasso tool to select the shadow of Jim. I thought that the shadow on the original picture was too light so I then decided to edit the shadow with the contrast setting tool.

I used Adobe Indesign to create my films double page spread.I had already used Indesign for my AS Media coursework so many of the features seemed familiar. Firstly I imported my images from Photoshop into Indesign. I then placed it onto half of the spread and inserted a thick black border on the picture, this makes the picture look like it has a frame. On the next page I had used downloaded Fonts from Dafont.com. As the fonts were already imported into my computer they were already in the font cache in Indesign. I then created two columns for text, i decided to use times new roman font here because it looks professional and thats what newspapers and magazines usually use for articles and stories.