Evaluation Question 1

Evaluation question 1:

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

Throughout the film which I had created it was important that continuity was kept all the way through as this adds a sense of realism which the audience could then relate to. Also, by having continuity it would be easier for the audience to understand and follow the structure of the film which I had created. A shot which was used in my film was a match on action and this helped to link two shots in different locations. In this scene one of the main characters Laura has had an argument with Matt and storms closing a door. However, we needed two different angled shots as there were two rooms which needed connecting. The door slam also conveyed emotion in the film as it demonstrated the anger which the characters were feeling for each other. This reflected how the audience would feel about the characters as these are the actions which would be relatable. 

I then used a high angle close up which shows the character Laura making a cup of tea following the argument she has had with Matt. When editing the footage we shortened them down considerably to turn it into a sequenced jump cut. This shows the tea being made faster than it would have been normally. I chose to do this to this particular scene as it wasn't essential to making up the storyline. However, it was important to include as it shows passage of time after the argument when Laura has walked away. Also, by having an everyday activity of making a cup of tea it adds a sense of realism to the film as people also do the same.




Another key sequence within my film is the title sequence which displays different areas of our location. It also gives and insight as to who is in the film and who has done what. I think the title sequence helps to connect different scenes in the film which are not related. By creating this it has allowed me to easily connect the scenes together. This is also a montage as there are different video/images which are used which wouldn't make sense if they weren't together. Once connected the montage demonstrates the location and the characters within them. This also gives the audience and insight to the audience to see what the film could potentially be about. This includes iconic object and places in the film which could be symbolic later on. It also character builds within the sequence as we learn who the people behind the costumes are.

Other shots used are shot reverse shots. We chose to include this through parallel editing. By having shot reverse shots occurring at two different locations at the same time it establishes the communication between the characters and the time at which they are taking place. It also adds continuity as the conversation has flow between the characters consistently. Also, when Matt is in the shot there is background noise of the TV. When the camera is focusing on Matt you can always hear the noise of the radio which keeps the continuity throughout the film as the scene always remains the same as it is set in the same timeframe.

close up in my film

Close up in my film.

Home alone close up

 One key shot which was frequently used was a close up. We used close ups in our film for different reasons. The first reason being that we wanted to show the audience the characters face clearly. By doing this it is easy to convey the emotion that the character is demonstrating. For example, in this shot Laura is angry with Matt and her hand gesture and facial expression show this to the audience which helps to develop the plot of the storyline in greater detail. Another reason for the use of close ups is to help the audience understand the film better. As methods of verbal communication help to show the audience what is happening in the film we needed to convey this clearly in an alternative method to convey the storyline. When showing the communication on the post it notes we zoomed far in to show what was written to help the audience understand what was happening. I chose to include multiple clsoe shots as I had got inspiration from the movie Home Alone. Like in my own film Home Alone uses close ups to convey the characters emotions so we understand how they're feeling or reacting to something which has happened within the film. By doing this we can create a mood or feeling towards this character such as either empathising with them or taking a dislike to them through the way that they're presented to us.

Home alone establishing shot

Establishing shot in my film.

Throughout the whole production of my film I kept referring back to the research which I had conducted as this gave me inspiration of what I could include in my own film as well as how I could develop my own ideas.  I looked particularyly at the film Home Alone. I chose this as it had similarities linked to my own film. By having a film that is similar it is easy to see what positive effects certain shots can have on a film.The film Home Alone begins with an establishing shot of the house which is one of the main locations of the film. This gives the audience a sense of knowledge as to where the characters are and it gives an impression of what type of people may live there. As this was done in Home Alone I thought it would be a good idea to do this in my film as it would give the audience an insight as to where the film is set and what it is about. By doing this it engages them and will make them want to watch the film more.Once we had decided to use an establishing shot I decided that a sound bridge may work well as the argument noise could begin whilst the establishing shot is on and then continue when the interior of the house is shown. This shows that there is no time span which means that it is continuous straight throughout. This way the audience won't become confused.

During our film there is a time change through night and morning. Due to already using multiple cut and fade to blacks I wanted to use another method to show time change. When I had researched this I came across time lapses. The time lapse clearly established the time of day change as it went from dark to light. I created the time lapse by filming in the same spot and the same angle to keep the shot the exact same to keep the continuity otherwise it may look like a different location at a different time. Once filmed I sped up the shots to produce a quicker video to show time passage.

When we were creating the film one of the things we needed to focus on was demonstarting the genre which we were conveying. We did this through character representation and the plot ending of our story. At the start of the film there is not much demonstration that the film is a comedy. However, the arguments build up the film and add tension which supports the film ending. Generally in comedy films there is the funny aspect throughout the whole film where as in ours this doesn't happen until the end.This goes against the genre as the theme is normally present all the way through.
However, our film does support some themes to the genre which we were conveying. The location of the film shows the genre as domestic comedies as when you think of domestic comedies films such as Home Alone and Juno come to mind. There is also the relationship between Matt and Laura which shows the arguments and the struggles which takes place in the domestic comedy films.

Before we started creating the film we had already decided what audience we were trying to achieve. This meant that when creating the film we could have this in mind and make it as suitable for the target audience we wanted to achieve. We decided to choose this film certificate as then it would appeal to a wide range of audiences as it is a film which could be related to by many. This was also a suitable age rating as there was an expletive hand gesture which some parents may not want their children to see as they may copy. I'm confident that I achieved this as when we getting feedback our audience age range enjoyed the film and supported the ending which we wanted to.

After we had established the storyline of our film I set out to find similar examples which could help when I was developing my own film. I specifically wanted to look into short films as this would then be more relatable when creating the film which I wanted to a high standard. Below is a film which I found and analysed in order to get the post it note theme across.By looking at this film is showed me how to convey theme and character as well as showing a range of shots which I could use. By having this background knowledge of short films it contributed more into the success of my film as it impacted the way I made and produced my own film.

The film I have created