In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products ?
There are several conventions that an audience expect to see in a thriller such as low lightining to build up the tension atmosphere. This is also reinforced with background music which brings the environment to life for the audience. It indicates to the audience to be prepared for events to come. Quick cuts are also used to show the fast action.
Our opening sequence does not challenge any conventions of the thriller genre, there are most things that you expect to see or hear: non-digetic sound is used to bring suspense, our storyline follows is of the psychological theme ( a pyscho seeking revenge ) lastly credits font have a thriller look (sharp and edgy) to them. One way that our product goes against the norm is by the use of fades, rather than quick shoots. This is because we wanted the audience to view the link between the two characters, (helping the audience understand the storyline) if we replaced the fades with quick cuts. The location setting is similar to the denotation of a psychological thriller, in some detention camp, mental institution or prison- we have highlighted this by making the metal bars visible in the middle section..Unlike most psychological thrillers ours did not have special effects simple because we did not have the resources to do so, however I do think we have added effects as it adds an USP to the film, and in particular the target audience would have liked to seen that.
If I compare our opening sequence to Gothika , it's more clear to identify the thriller genre because of the location and the movement and speech of Penelope Cruz whereas my OS is very little dialogue and the background aiding the story. Also the way the credits are zoomed in and blurred adds to the meaning that the film will have unforseen events, compared to ours which is on a black background with white text makes our one seem more simple.
How does your media product represent particular social groups?
The character of Nathan Atkins represents the stereotypical black male, who has been deterred by prison from his old ways. However a former inmate wants some form of revenge. In our society today this is a very common issue that black males who come out of prison, wanting to better themselves are pulled down by others who don't want the same. So it's battle between; falling in bad ways/habits/companions and changing life for the better. TV dramas we learn how different social groups are portrayed in the media and subversion of the stereotype. If we have to make a full-length film, the audience would have seen the full character profile. The other main character Chris Chambers fits into this social group as Atkins as he has been given chance to redeem himself however is not taken the best route
What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?
I recognise that the distribution of a film is very important to audience because promotes the film using different marketing strategies. This includes viral marketing which relies on the individual to pass on the information of the film. Viral marketing would be used heavily in the distribution of Psycho vilgante as it aimed at 15-20 year old and social networking site like facebook are widely used by the target audience (a form of viral marketing. ) After researching into films similar to ours like Adulthood pathe whose parent is 20th century fox will have the necessary tools/experience to promote the film to the best of its ability.
The main reason I chose pathe is a subsidiary 20th century fox that have distributed major films such as : avatar, home alone, night at the museum. E.G avatar collaborated with coco-cola with a worldwide campaign to promote the film also use synergy with McDonald's happy meal in Brazil, Canada, china and the US. Obviously our film is of British origin so will naturally have a lower budget than a US film- however pathe have distributed successfully British films that have been top of the uk box office like adulthood, kidulthood and slumdog millionaire. Adulthood are of the similar target audience so they will already know what the marketing campaign needs to be like and what elements should be used to attract the target audience.
Outside France pathe do not distribute their own films. Films that 20th century have distributed are What lies beneath, 20th century had a budget of $90million and had gross approximately$300 million in return worldwide gross was over $51million. Showing the great amount of success the film generated.
In the UK there are 6 classification for films : U, PG, 12A , 15, 18 x rated. When we first was given our assignment we already knew the audience that we wanted to target 16-24 year old, and from the feed back over 50% of the audience was 15-20 years old. Consequently we have to make the film legally accessibility for them to watch
Psycho vilgante is rated 15. Before we started with the film idea,we carried out market research to what they expect to see in a film and what they wanted to see, with these results we found over half enjoyed psychological thrillers and good plot, decent acting. We tried to make the plot good, and something young people can relate to. Our storyline is about seeking revenge, as Chris cousin was killed through drug culture. Which is something young people are heavily involved in. By having a storyline that would be expected in the thriller genre- also making the sequence carry suspense will also engage the audience more.
The best way to advertise our film is through texts messages, adverts on socialnetworking sites and bus and train stops plus word-of-mouth as this the form of advertising as people are more likely to watch a film if a friend has watched.
What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?
I have learnt how useful, important and effective different software are in producing and enhancing quality of my opening sequence. iMovie allowed the group to add credits, change the size and font to make it more desirable . Also through iMovie I was able to learn and play about with different effects using the appropriate ones to fit sequences and adding music in, lowering it at music at certain points create suspense. This is my second time using iMovie and have become more knowledgeable of using the software ( maneuvering things about ) and producing work to good quality. However the essential equipment is a video camera and knowing how to film good footage is more important than the other software. Example what attracted most people to Avatar ( what broke records ) was the 3D effects which was made by a new technology e-motion, showing how technology can have a great impact on a film.Firstly, using a tripod makes the shots more steady and professional, knowing how to use the zoom properly and effectively is important - this is a skill I need to improve on.
How did you attract/address your target audience?
These results show that audience were interested in good acting and storyline. We were successful for producing good acting as our response questionnaire showed. Also over 80% of the repsonse were 15-20 which makes are data more reprensentive.
There is above and below the line advertising and this can take place in different forms like Billboards, adverts, trailers, PR interviews and more. We invited some students to a screening of the thriller and ask them what they thought of the sequences and ways to improve it. Within our sequence. Firstly the storyline, has a sinister idea to it which revenge common connotation for a thriller genre.
the bold and edgy credits makes it stand out on the black background. Addressing to the audience that the film should be serious and not of the comedy genre. What lies benath is also in capital letters however the misty background gives it a hunted effect.
Looking back at your preliminary task what do you feel you have learnt from the progression to the full product?
Looking back from the preliminary task, I have developed a better knowledge of the codes and convention, technical language and codes how this can be addressed to the audience. In our preliminary task we was taught shot reverse shot is used to show conversation and encourages the audience to engage more. Match on action which shows a time ellipse but continuity and 180 degree rule.
I have learnt that planning and preparation is an important part to the success, as it gives you a goal to work towards and cuts down time-wasting. I have also learnt that, they are going to be times where members of the group are not pulling their weight - and its much easier to give up than carry on. But then you at the bigger picture and carry on. So its also taught me to persevere , when the going get tough and feel like giving up because its worth it in the end. I have a better use of technical language within the 4 technical codes I know a good amount of them by head and used it through the course and tried to use it in this evaluation. I am better at using the camera than I was before, being able to produce more complex shot like match on action. Knowing different camera shots allowed me to look at opening sequence in the same genre for my market research and try and use them in mine sequence. My skills on the iMovie software has improved greatly, am I now able to use transitions effectively to better the quality of the sequence. Compared to the preliminary as we didnt get the opportunity to use iMovie
