This is Question 7 of my media evaluation:

Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the main task?

I think that I have definitely learnt how to use Premier Pro more efficiently.  During my preliminary task I worked with Charlotte again, and I did a lot of the editing and she did the sound.  However, I think from creating our thriller opening we have both learnt that our strong points are the other way around and during the post-production stage I contributed more to sound and Charlotte focused on the editing.  On Premier Pro I would say that I can now confidently use the cutting tool, razor tool and presets. I also explored titling and the different ways for a title to be introduced to the screen such as sliding on and other styles. 
During our Preliminary task we did not use Mixcraft at all, however it was a vital instrument in the making of our thriller opening. Although I had already had a lot of experience using Mixcraft during music lessons during my GCSE years I have never applied a piece of music to a video and therefore this process helped me to learn this new skill. 

In terms of the equipment, I didn't really use any that I hadn't already used. However, it was still quite challenging because during the preliminary task I was in a group of three, meaning that we had a camera person.  Whilst making our thriller opening someone from my group dropped out meaning that there was only Charlotte and I, subsequently we didn't have a camera person as both of us were in the video.  It was too late in the process to start looking for other people to star in our thriller for us so we decided we would have to film it and be in it at the same time. This meant that the types of shots we could include were restricted as we had to leave the camera on the tripod, press record and then get in place for each shot. It also meant that all of our shots were longer than necessary as we had to prepare before actually starting whatever action was in the shot. During the preliminary task continuity and match on action was an issue but it was one that we were able to overcome due to having a camera person as it meant that Charlotte and I could just stay frozen whilst our other team member moved the camera.  In our Thriller opener, on the other hand, it didn't work this way because we would have to stop in the middle of an action and move the camera and then try to replicate our position exactly.  

As stated before we did have some issues with teamwork until one of our members dropped out and we were able to reliably delegate jobs that needed doing.  From our Preliminary task we had already worked out our groups strong and weak points.  Therefore we decided that Charlotte would be best at the editing whilst my strongest point was working out camera shots (directing) and adding and creating music (due to my Mixcraft experience).  This meant that we saved a lot of time and it also sped up the editing process as we were able to work quickly and efficiently. 

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

Question 4 and 5

We decided to film question 4 and five. I've uploaded it to YouTube and embedded it below.

After showing my mum my video response to question 4 & 5 she brought to my attention the way I described the elderly audience. On reflection "elderly people tend to fall asleep" is far too general and so to expand on this comment I would like to say that our thriller would have a rather complex plot that would require an audience's full attention. Typically an elderly audience prefer soaps such as EastEnders, that do not require a lot of concentration as they like to relax and watch these programs in the evening, and then discuss them with their friends. Therefore I doubt our film would appeal to an elderly audience.

As for gender and ethnicity we think that our product would appeal to both genders as it would have some action in it, which often appeals to males and the protagonist is female meaning a female audience may be able to relate to her.  Although we hope our thriller would attract audiences of all ethnicities it is likely that it would be more appealing to white people as it is a independent British film, filmed locally in Chesterfield, which is not overly racially diverse. Therefore the majority of our actors and actresses would most- likely be white.

Of course there is an BBFC rating for our thriller which restricts the audience. Our rating is a 15, for reasons I discussed in a previous blog post.

Question 3- what kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?

I decided to answer question 3 in the format of a power point which I have embedded below:

Question 2

I decided to answer question 2 in essay form in a word document;

2. How does your Media Product represent particular Social groups?

There are only two characters within our thriller opening; a teenage girl walking through the woods, who becomes the victim and Chloe, the mental patient who escapes.

In terms of the victim (played by Charlotte), she is a teenage girl, so we decided to make her quite generic and stereotypical as she isn’t a major character and we didn’t need to develop her or express any personality. 

We dressed her in a pink jumper and black leggings, simple but typical of a teenage girl.  She also carried earphones with her which she managed to easily pull out of her pocket and use.  This also reinforced the ‘teenage girl’ stereotype as we are known as the generation that are addicted to technology.  

We were not trying to convey a message to the audience through this character, as her only purpose was as a victim for Chloe, to show her feral nature.

A large theme in our thriller is mental illness.  To avoid representing mental illness in a totally negative way we did a lot of research into schizophrenia to better our understanding of the illness.  We also decided that to avoid accusations of discrimination against Chloe, we would make her the protagonist rather than the antagonist.  As a plot twist we decided that the terrible mental asylum she was in treated her so badly and corrupt her so her violent actions in the opening are due to her lack of trust in people.  Using this plot, we are ensuring that we’re not suggesting all mentally ill people are killers.

To show that she had been hospitalised for years I dressed in a long white nightdress.  I also applied white face powder, to make myself appear paler, as if I hadn’t been outside in a long time.  I used brown and yellow powder under my eyes to make myself look sickly and hollow.  We decided to create this image to show the neglect of the patient and also to alarm the audience. 

In terms of sound and editing, we focused of building tension rather than representing social groups and therefore i would say that our thriller does not represent any social groups.  However you could argue that the spooky music and spikes in pitch imply a sense of unpredictability in people with mental health. 

Question 1

I chose to answer question 1 of my evaluation on Prezi because I haven't used it before and I thought now would be a good time to learn how to. I have embedded the Prezi below: 

Famous thriller directors

Whilst creating our Thriller opener I decided to study some Thrillers and their directors to gain inspiration. After doing this I created this power point, describing different directors and their different styles. I found that each director has a different style and so it is important to be original whilst creating our film.