Our Final Production of 'Snatched'- Dale Hill, Lisa Clayton, Luke Greenslade & Becky Mcbain.B

Evaluation - Rebecca McBain

1. In what way does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of media products?

Our final media product was based on an idea similar to the one used in the film The Hole. This idea is that the story is told including a series of flashbacks to show what happened in the past event. The flashbacks build up along with the present story to eventually reveal the identity of the "Snatcher". The inspiration to use flashbacks came from the film The Hole. When we decided we would use Thriller/Horror as our genre we realised that this would be a good way to build tension. We also looked into the way The Ring build tension in their film and found that using close-ups and medium close-ups is a good way to show the expressions of the characters at points of fear and anxiety so tried to incorporate this into our film. We used a variety of close-ups and medium close ups throughout our film. Mostly in the third scene of the film when the most tension is needed. The film The Hole starts out as a girl talking to a pshyciatrist. It then goes on to show flashbacks of the girl and her friend planning to have a priivate party with two boys in an old bomb shelter where they would stay for three days. It follows on having flashbacks of how their plan went wrong as they find themselves locked in the old bomb shelter as two of them try to leave. She continues to tell the story of the events that took place as the story starts to unfold of how her friends were killed. This is shown in the link that follows. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mfb-KmKpC6U .In our film two girls are seen having a conversation when one of the girls' phones ring. To their horror it is their friend who got snatched by an unknown person from a club months earlier. It then shows how the girls go to look for their friend and flashbacks appear of the day when their friend got took from the club and the story unfolds of what happened on that dreaded day.

2. How does your media product represent particular social groups?

Gender and age stereotypes are portrayed in our film. As young female women help each other to try and find their friend. They are seen as being quite defenceless and vunerable. Whereas the male character is seen as dominant and powerful as he has control over the female characters' actions. In the scene of recieving the phone call and going in search of their friend Kirsty many expressions are shown of them being scared and withdrawn. If these characters were male they might appear to take a more active role within the situation. Our film is mostly aimed at the teenage population. As our character are of a similar age it would be likely that they could relate to the characters thoughts and feelings.













The Characters on The hole and the characters in our film appear to be around the same age.


3. What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?

Because of the genre of the film it could attract a wide target audience which i believe would make it suitable for release. We found using our questionnaire results that horror/thriller films are a popular genre. However our film is a low budget production. Which means that it would be most suitable for release at a small chain of cinemas and a TV movie. Because it is a low buget production we decided that the best company to distribute our film would be Lionsgate as it is a low budget distribution company. One of the probs used in our film is a Morph suit which is a possible idea for merchandising. This could also be used a halloween costume as it is used by the "snatcher". Other merchandise could include T-shirts, mugs and posters.



4. Who would the audience be for your media product?

We decided that the target audience for our film would be 15-25 year olds so we decided to certify our film as a 15 as most horror/thriller films contain strong language and scenes of a violent and graphic nature. We used the http://www.bbfc.co.uk/ to help us decide the right certificate for our film. Other films that are certified 15 and similar to ours include The Ring and The Grudge also, the SAW collection and The Hole which are not too dissimilar to our production but is certified at 18. If our film would have contained more graphic scenes we would have certified it as a 18. However, as the scenes that are used are more violent than graphic we decided that a 15 certificate would be more suitable. From carrying out our research we found that most people that enjoyed watching horror/thriller films expected them to contain violence and like them to leave them unexpecting of what is going to happen and have unexpected twists. They also said that they like the film to be able to make them jump. After carrying out the research we tried to fit our film around these characteristics as much as possible.

5. How did you attract/address your audience?

To attract our audience we used the results from our research and tried to incorporate their ideas into the film. We also used characters of a similar age to the target audience as to make it possible for them to relate to the emotions and thoughts of the characters, therefore they can put themselves in the characters' position. In our film we used close-ups and medium close-ups to build tension and show the expressions that were being shown. We also used long shots to establish the location, which could be seen as a spooky location. Some shots used are of Laura and Charlotte looking around and having to walk around corners. This will build suspense for the audience as they will not know what could happen next or who is around the corner waiting for them. One thing about the storyline that could terrify the audience is the fact that it is not far-fetched. Knowing that the storyline could be realistic could really increase the intensity of the fear.

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

We used a Sony HDV camera to make our film. One strength we found with using this camera is that it was really good quality compared to other cameras that we have used during our media course. However we did find it quite complicated to use. One problem that we faced during filming is that the people that had used the camera before us had changed some of the settings which we found quite hard to change back. With a bit of patience we managed to find the right setting to change it back to what we needed. We used the software Final cut to edit our film. We found this really easy to use and it was really good for matching the shots together and to get our match-on-action shots close to perfection with timing. It also allowed us to change the shape and size of shots as to cut out any parts of the shots that we didn't want in the film. We did this on the Flashback of kirsty getting dragged across the floor as there was some carpet visible that we didn't want to be there.

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

When we first got told what the task was we had a good idea of the genre that we would like to cover. We also had a good idea of what we would like to include in our film. We then set down to research the genres horror and thriller. The group then came together to decide what the film would actually be, where we would do it and other details such as the production company name. Research was done to find films that fit into the idea of our film which helped us come up with a few more ideas of what we could use in our film.

We were then able to draw up a rough storyboard which we were able to to finalise once we had seen the location. The best shots were chosen to fit the genre of our film to build the tension anxiety that we desired. When Filming we tried to do the shots in the order they would be in the film, as to make it easier when editing it. I believe that our shot types have improved alot since starting the course as we were able to use match on action shots and different camera shots such as long shots and medium close-ups in order to get our required expression. I do feel more confident with the equiptment and i think as a group we arre more confident using the equiptment as we were all able to help out with using the different equiptment when needed without any problems. Overall i feel that our end product was successful at fulfilling the task as the final product turned out jst as we liked it to and got good feedback from the audience. Some of the comments we got were: "The lighting used in the staircase was good", "I really enjoyed the title sequence" and "continuity was accurate" However it was said that it was hard to hear the voices because the music was a bit too loud. All feedback can be seen at this link - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BJ980QRQ2qo

Props - Rebecca McBain

Not many props were used in our opening sequence.

However these were the props that were used:

- Torch

- Pop bottle

- Mobile phone

- Morphsuit

Example of a Morphsuit :

Evaluation - Lisa Clayton

Media Coursework Evaluation

1) In what way does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of media products?
Our media product incorporates generic conventions by use using flashbacks to the give the background of the storyline. The flashbacks link to the film The Hole, we used this as inspiration for our storyline. Through the research of our media product I looked at the film The Ring, this is a horror. Throughout the film they have used a lot of medium shots and medium close ups to outline the characters facial expressions; we used this in our film in scene two as the tension was building to further the impact. The flashback shows an example of films which have influence our work. It indentifies what Charlotte and Laura have gone back to the snooker room for. Our work has a sub genre of a thriller this makes it different to the generic convention we have looked at because of them being ‘gory’. Ours is more subtle even though it is a horror, this is because we had to make it appropriate to the purpose. The film indicates its sub genre through the first scene this establishes the setting. In comparison to The Ring both works uses similar shots. We have used a lot of close ups through our work to make the atmosphere in the film tense and nerving, The ring uses this shot for the same effect. The Ring has a lot of changes of location inside the house; this is similar to our film because we used tracking with the camera to show the characters moving. However, our work doesn’t use many long shots to build on the tension; The Ring uses this shot to signify the distances when they have changed location. This isn’t a symbolic feature in our film because we had to obey the 180 degree rule.

2) How does your media product represent particular social groups?

The product represents women stereotypically because they are portrayed as the victims in the film. The male in the film is the attacker; this gives the character a symbolic quality because this is typical of a horror film.

Men are seen as the dominant role because of them being more powerful, this is identified in our product thro

ugh the flashback. The male drags the women across the floor this outlines his characters powe

r in the scene. This links to the target audience of the film because of its classifica

tion for 15, this is an expectation in which genders are portrayed

in horror film.

3) What kind of media Institution might distribute your media product and why?

Our media product is a low budget film, through the research process we looked at

distribution companies, which were small. Our film

would be a TV movie because of the

storyline being common. Through our research, we looked Lionsgate and paramount pictures. Lionsgate would have the preferred co

mpany to distributor our film

because of it being low budget, it would be release because of the thrilling factor of the work. Due to the film including pacing and frequent action it would make it worth the release. The film would be best suited as a TV movie because it would be able to get further distributor as horror films are a popular genre, this was identified through the results of our questionnaire. The target audience of the film would also make

it suitable to be released as a TV movie because of being aged between 15 – 25, this is a popular age range for watching films a home rather than cinema. The flashback in the film enables opport

unities for the product to be merchandised because of the male character

being in a black cat suit, Lego could be suited for creating acti

on figures. The costumes of the other character would make it difficult to create figures for due to it not being p

ersific. Lionsgate have now combined with Sony Pictures Entertainment and T

he Walt Disney company this will make the merchandising cost effective.

4) Who would be the audience for your media product?

The genre of the film is a horror, through our research we decided audience would be best suited to a 15 – 25 male group due to th

e storyline featuring action. Female audience would also be suited to our product but it would mainly preference males due to our film stereotypically matching thei

r gender. The Grudge is a similar film to ours, it has a film certificate of 15 due to their being scene of violence and menace. We felt the classification of the film would

be a 15 due to none of the scenes containing strong bloody violence or nudity, the work only includes moderate threat. We went onto decision of further classification by watching clips of 18 films and felt that these would have too violent to pursue. The language used in our film isn’t strong nor violent so this wouldn’t have the expectation of an over 18 audience which made it be more suited to a 15 classification.
http://www.bbfc.co.uk/

5) How did you attract/ address your audience?

Scenes in the film which would appeal to a 15 certificate are, the violence in the flashback where the character is dragged across the floor and, the girls walking down the stairs shows some moderate threat. The use of camera shots used i

n the flashback is an establishing shot to outline where the characters are in the club; this allows the audience to understand the change in location. The camer

a is put on a high angle as it is looking down at the character; this is to emphasis the distance. We have used a lot of frequent close ups in the film to give impact of their fear and also medium shots so the audience can identify the gestures between characters. This appeals to a 15 audienc

e because of it being two girls who are

victimized through out the product, a young male audience would find this more entertaining. The audience would be asked to put themselves in positions of the two girls walking down the hall way, as the characters are of

a young age this would also make it more appealing to a 15. Through this they are being allowed to witness how the girl was snatched. The phone call at the beginning of the film makes it more appealing to the audience because it builds up the

tension and it allows them to sympathize with the characters, it also creates suspense. The Ring is example of a horro

r film which creates suspense; it is a symbolic feature throughout the open

ing sequence. The build up through having a long shot of the girl standing in the corridor looking at the phone ringing, creates a suspense because of what they have been told about the video. The characters are wondering how much ti

me they have got left until the ru

mors come true. For the audience this makes a high range of tension because they are put into position of the characters so that they understand their fear. The

suspense in the film

is also established through the audience’s realization that the girls are alone in the house; this is also a feature in our media product.

6) What have you learnt about technology from the process of constructing the product?

Through using the Song HDV camera it has made our shots look m

ore effective due to t

he camera being able to establish more of the setting. Problems w

e had with the camera was being able to understand the

setting, this was solved within a few minutes of looking at setting list on the menu in the camera. Through using a Song HDV camera it has made the editing process

easie

r because of it being able to be done much quicker due to not having to change to shot. The software we used for editing created useful effects for our film, we were able to include a torch light through the title sequence which matched with the torch light in the film.











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

The finial product took a lot more planning and research due to us having to have a full understanding of the expectation and also, understanding of different film genres so that our product would include the elements which matched the specific genre. This helped to produce the film because of us knowing information about horror films we were able t

o include red herrings and cliffhangers so that it would be suited to it target audience. The preliminary task helped in the progression because we knew which shots we were doing due to writing them down this helped the transitions through each scene look smoother. It was also more effective to make create a shot list as we could refer to it throughout the shooting process. The preliminary task helped to develop our use of shots because we were told what shots had to be included, e.g. match on action, this is developed throughout our film because of us using it more frequently to show what the characters were looking at. This had to be a recurring shot due to our film being a horror, the characters are scared of the surroundings, by having this shot it helps the audience to understand their anticipation. Shot reverse shot has also being developed through the preliminary task because it has been used to empathize were the killer had Kirsty tied up but also it helps to give a realisation to the audience. A sample of our target audience were asked to review our film, they were asked if they like the film, elements which they like and how the film would be improved if it were to be released in the cinema. The answers they gave were, "scene on the stairs was good", "continuety was accurate" they also said that our film could have been improved by the music being at a lower pitch so that our voices were easily heard.

Media Production Evaluation. Dale Hill

Media Production Evaluation.

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

We tried to make our film (Snatched) follow the generic conventions of horror films. To achieve this we tried to use similar techniques used by films in the same genre. Some of these techniques included low lighting and close up shots of the characters reactions. When used together these helped to create the horror typical conventions used by commercial directors. As with most films in this genre, we used vulnerable lead characters that the audience could relate and form a connection with. In Snatched these were Laura and Charlotte. Laura is the stronger character, where as Charlotte is the girly girl who is jumpy and more openly scared. In the scene where Kirsty rings for help, we used non diegetic sound to create the feeling of terror and mystery, ending the call with a stereotypical scream, leaving the viewing audience wondering what may be coming next, which added a mystery type sub genre.

2 How does your media product represent particular social groups?

The production is stereotypically representative of young women (teenage women). The girls in the production are shown in a stereotypical weak and scared manner. They form a union as friends to help support and carry each other through their most scared times. The audience can relate and connect with the pair and possibly form their own bonds and relationship as the film would progress. The male we used in the production is again used in a stereotypical manner, as he is seen as stronger and more dominant as he snatches Kirsty in a flashback. The audience would be less likely to relate with a group of males, where one of their friends had been snatched by a female assailant. Besides the gender representation, young teenage groups were represented along side with the age group. Young venerable females are much easier to relate with, than strong middle age females. This wouldn’t follow typical gender rules and wouldn’t create much sense of horror. For this reason, the use of young groups and female character groups helps create vulnerability which works in hand with audience relationships being formed with the lead characters. In our production young white women are represented but there was no social race group intended to be represented.

3 What kind of media Institution might distribute your media product and why?

The production would be released at main stream cinema chains, before being released on a commercial mainstream television showing. Thirdly, as the film ends on the one off television release the film would be made available for internet only download. This could be the option used to create excitement and a vibe about the film, hopefully bringing in mass audiences and generating huge sales. Secondly by incorporate new technologies, this would aid on saving money by eliminating the need for hard copies, for example DVD or Blue ray. By doing this the film could be offered at a lower price which might encourage young generations to buy and download the production instead of illegally acquiring copies. The film also offers opportunity for limited merchandising. This could be limited to Halloween costume type sales and simple film sponsored memorabilia, such as t-shirts, mugs and posters.

4 Who would be the audience for your media product?

The production would be aimed at 15 to 25 years old. For this reason we chose a 15 certificate for the film. We gave it a 15 certificate because the film would include strong language and horror scenes too frightening for younger ages. For further information on certificate classifications go to http://www.bbfc.co.uk/ . The chosen audience age range is similar to the films cast of characters and targets the main age group who would worry or have concern over the content of the film. By this i mean young women worry and have concern about being mugged, attacked or kidnapped. By using this, the feeling of terror is magnified as the target audience can relate with the panic and worry of the main characters, Laura and Charlotte.

5 How did you attract/ address your audience?

By selecting the target age group audience we did, (15-25) we were able to put the viewing audience almost in the friendship, unity or group along with Laura and Charlotte. By doing this we gave the opportunity for the viewer to relate and experience the emotions the group experienced or are experiencing, first hand. Emotions such as fear, panic, anxiety and desperation could all be felt, if the audience felt they could strongly relate with the characters. On the flip side male audience members may of experience similar emotions but with the difference of being outside the group. By this i mean they may have concern as the older male figure such as an older brother or boyfriend. This view point allows the viewers to see the terror experienced by the victims of attacks. The point of view of the attacker is nonexistent and all hate and negative emotions are aimed towards the attacker. These impacts on the viewing experience for the audience. They are almost forced into feeling the pain, terror and frights of the victim’s friends. For these reason single males, females or couples could enjoy the film, whilst all experiencing different emotions. To achieve this feel, we attempted to use camera shots, such as close ups to really draw the audience’s attention to the emotions being displayed by the character. For the younger end of the target audience (15-19) the fear of being ‘snatched’ themselves would particularly add to the terror and scares of the experience.

After we had finished our film we showed it to a sample of our target audience who made comments on it. Some of these comments included: Good reviews about the scene on the stairs in the dark.

They enjoyed the title sequence

They felt there was good continuity throughout the film.

And they were able to recognise the genre straight away.

Some bad points were they felt the volume of the voices was a little low compared to the music level.

6 What have you learnt about technology from the process of constructing the product?

Throughout the production I feel I have learned and developed my skills in media production technology. These include planning skills, such as story boarding or camera shot lists, camera skills, such as shot selection to achieve an effect and editing skills, such as match on action shots and adding effects and music. We used a Sony HDV1000 camera. The camera has built in microphone and was really easy to use. After white balancing the camera, I found using the manual focus setting instead of the automatic setting gave better effects and results. I say this because with the automatic it would refocus on items that may of moved closer to the camera, distorting the overall look of the production. The manual setting stayed in focus within the selected range and I found this gave the desired shot. When editing we used Final Cut editing software. This was the most enjoyable part of the production. The different shots and angles we had used all came together to give a more professional finish to the production. Matches on action, close-ups of emotions and effects could all be added using this software. This is also where we added the title sequence, choosing from a number of effects allowing the perfect shot to be matched to give the feel of horror film sequences.

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

We started the full production by brain storming ideas for the film genre, storyline and name. After deciding we started to draw a rough script. After this we drew a rough storyboard and then we able to revise or script. Following the final script we drew a second storyboard and were able to create a detailed shot list. Connecting this with the genre research we had done, the careful planning steps we had taken allowed for a smooth filming process. We were able to set up for the shots we needed and quickly had the required footage to begin editing. Compared to the preliminary task, we were much better prepared for the full production that we were the preliminary task. However the match on action we had used on the preliminary task came in useful for the full production, as we had already had experience filming and editing the shot. Overall I think as a group we felt more confident using the equipment and producing the film. We were able to assign assignments to group members that may have best suited them, for example the script to the most imaginative or the storyboarding to the best drawer. As a group we had all the needed elements to produce an impressive final production. I feel it has the required elements of the genre and is obvious to the audience which genre they are viewing even without prompts. Overall I think the product has fully fulfilled the task requirements, from the planning, editing and the final product with music and effects.