Evaluation.

A2 Film studies. FM3 Unit 3 Creative project Evaluation. ‘The brief is to create a short film (3-5 minutes), while creating the film we must engage and apply the issues raised in FM1 (Film Language) in relation to the production of meaning and the study of film and stylistics.’ For the coursework unit of our A2 Level Studies in film we had to used skills learnt from FM1and apply this to the creative project section of year two, this would come in the form of either a short film of the sequence of a long film. I decided that I would create the opening/mid- sequence to a longer film. In this evaluation I will break down and analysis the ways in which I created my film, choices taken, the narrative structure, and apply my understanding of film theory learnt from the creative units in my AS year to my coursework. The aims of my creative project, were to create a horror film, however allowing it to fall into the sub-genre of found footage. I would use the stylistics of mise-en-scene, cinematography, editing and sound. I will use these elements to help create a sense of horror and isolation for the audience. Within the narrative I will use elements of cliché American horror to create a predictable narrative and sense of genre. Firstly I will begin with the aims and the context and the research behind my film. I decided I would want to create a horror film, this was due to the main conventional aspects which I could analysis from the genre of horror and apply to my own workings, for example the many sub-genres on horror. I came to the conclusion I wanted to look at the Sub-genre of ‘Found Footage’. I chose this mainly due to the recent explosion in American Blockbuster films due appearing at the cinemas in the past few years for example; Cloverfield, 2008, Matt Reeves. Paranormal Activity, 2007, Oren Peli and Paranormal Activity 2, 2010, Tod Williams. However at the same time it remains a relatively new genre. Once I carried out the research in to genre and looked at how I could use the custom conventions within the genre to create my film, I began to draft together a narrative for my film. I wanted to create a horror film with the use of the conventions or horror, however also capture a sense of realism and verisimilitude with the use of conventions from the sub-genre of Found footage. The narrative of my film followed a cliché narrative of the horror genre; Equilibrium at the start of the film as the family set off on a holiday. The disruption is created due to the family being involved in a hit and run along with the killer. The quest becomes their survival and the killers revenge. The climax is seen as the families death and the resolution is the finding of the families holiday video by the police, showing the families murders. A major element that I wanted to install into my film was the use of handheld footage to give a sense of realism and fall into the conventional characteristics of the chosen genre of film I studied before hand. Once I knew the what my film was going to be about, I needed research my target audience the film would be aimed at. I carried out audience research on my blog by asking questions related to age and genre for example; What age category do you think that the mainstream horror genre would be aimed at;- 10-15, 16-21, 22-27, 28-33 or 33+. This would allow me to figure out the type of stylistics or narrative alterations to be carried out when creating the storyboard, script and overall film for my creative project. Alongside my primary research into my audience, I also used knowledge I learnt from FM1 to help gather a general idea for my audience. I knew that the main target audience for a horror film is usually aged between 16 and 25, and primarily made up of students. Therefore I knew I had to make my film so I would appeal to people within this particular age/social class grouping. Based on gender, statistically male audiences fall into the audience that find the horror genre more appealing. To gain a further understanding into my audience, I would hold a screening of my finished project, whilst also handing out a questionnaire for them to carry out. This would allow me to gather information post-production and see if my theories into my audience were correct. Secondly the planning and making of the film. This involved looking again at the conventions of my chosen genre and how I can install those conventional codes into my film sequence. The first aspect I had to look at was the location of my film and how that translated into my film. The first aspects that I wanted to capture was a sense of isolation within the digesis, making not only the characters but also the audience feel alone within the narrative. I decided to film the parts of the video in Brantingham near the church. Due to the time of the year and the isolated feeling near the church within the woodlands in became the perfect back drop for my location. Alongside the use of the woods setting within the narrative, the aspect of the handheld camera, reinforces the sense of isolation and the feeling of the audience experiencing the ‘horror through the eyes of the character’. On the other hand the other location I chose to use for my filming was the Church and surrounding ground, this also gave the impression of isolation. I finally decided that I would film inside the family car as they go on their journey. This would reinforce the use of realism due the families reactions and give the audience a more personal perception of the characters, also a sense of realism as the car is a main element to my film. Once I had chosen my locations that I would film in, I decided that I was going to refer back to my initial audience research and look at how I could use the information I had found out from audience research and apply this to my locations when deciding on how I could film and capture my ideas. For example, I knew that one of my main audience types were males aged between 16 and 25, along with this I knew that a main feature of the found footage genre is the use of realism within he first, therefore I would feature a chase scene within the woodlands. This would capture boy the sense of a masculine appeal of a chase scene, yet the use of the handheld camera and the use of location would reinforce a sense of verisimilitude from the features applied during the editing process. After planning the locations. I began to look at resources of various filmic texts which I could use as research for initial ideas. Firstly I began to analysis a scene from a film of my chosen genre, Found footage. I chose a classic film within the genre which has become an iconic film with in the genre, and also became a source for audience research due to the way in which I was marketed before its release. The Blair Witch Project, 1999, Daniel Mercy (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cMQQpmm5u3w) . With the aid of the end sequence of this film, I was able to see the conventions being used in their context. I analysis the sequence using the stylistics and took in many of the features from the genre and the clip, with this I was able to apply the conventional features of the genre in my own work for example the use of amateur camera work. The second clip I analysis, I chose due to the sense of realism I wanted to create within my creative project. I chose to look at Jean Luc Godard’s Breathless, 1960, Jean-Luc Godard (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1KUVwKp6MDI) . One of the main features I wanted to capture within my film is his use of jump-cuts to convey the sense that the film is just a film. The sense of jump cuts would also provide a platform for the realistic sense of horror I wanted to provide within the diegetic world of my film. I knew I could apply the effect of jump cuts later on, during the editing process. The final film, I decided to look at for inspiration was the Motor-van sequence from the original Texas Chainsaw Massacre, 1974, Tobe Hooper (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-73BUDHcCCc). I chose this as it illustrated, how to create a sense of fear and claustrophobia within a films narrative. Due to the character types along with the events that unfold in the van, the use of stylistics create a sense of horror within a small environment, such as the low angle shots of the ‘hitchhiker’ changing to stronger, bolder high angles shots as he gets more aggressive the more the sequence progresses. My initial aim for my creative project is to use the analyses carried out along with my own knowledge, to create a sequence in which the audience can identify the genre and also apply stylistics meaning the audience get a sense of realism alongside the aspect of realism within the film. After carrying out research into my chosen genre and looking collectively at my analysis examples I began to draft ideas that I could carry forward into my project. I decided to create a digital mood board to capture a essences of what I winter my film to be about, for example I had images such as; a handheld camera and a car. To give visual aid into what elements I wanted to add to my project. Once I knew what was going into my film, I began to draft my first story board and script to help me structure how I filmed my sequence. Within the storyboards I made a note of the stylistics that would be used within the creative project, for example; the Mise-En-Scene (Location, costume, setting), Cinematography (Angles, Distance, shot types), Editing ( The type of edits applied to my footage, how I can create continuity within the sequence) and sound, (How I could apply diegetic and non-diegetic sound to commit to my project.). Once I had drafted my storyboard I began piecing a script and screenplay together that would allow me to give the actors a dialogue and setting to follow. I applied cliché characters to my script to reinforce the stereotypes I wanted to create in my script. That would follow the conventions and genre of my film. Once I had drafted a storyboard, and script based on my findings of found footage genre, during my the research period of my project. I needed to begin the filming and editing process for the film. I chose to film the footage during the Christmas Holidays, as I would get the perfect setting for mise-scene aspects of the film. To film the footage we used; a Canon MD205, this meant that I was able to put the footage on tape and upload it onto the edit suites later. I began by filming the sequences in the woods as theses were a major part of the project and provided a platform for the use of time elapses on the tape within my video footage. The uses of cinematography played a major role in the filming of the specific scene, firstly due to the nature of the scene (a chase scene). Secondly the sense of amateur camera work I wanted to capture within my film. The sequence begins with the character running through the woods, with the camera mad running behind. I chose to use a medium, handheld tracking shot. The use of this camera work reinforces my aim to create a conventional sense of isolation within the film (The medium shot shows the characters relation to the setting), following the conventions of the found footage sub-genre. Furthermore, the second part of my aim used with the technique of the free hand camera work, as this gives a sense of real events taking place due to the unplanned nature of the camera work the footages gives. I used the same sense of filming for the rest of the filming within the wood, this allowed me to give a slight sense of continuity within my film during the edit process. When it came to editing the footage filmed in the woods, I decided that to capture another element of the found footage sub-genre, the aspect of isolation at night. I need to change the footage I captured from daylight to a contrast of night, this in turn would give a strong and bold up lift to the footage as it would add to the fear within the film. The editing software used was Adobe Premiere Pro 1.5, on the software I was able to take the footage filmed during the day and used the effects, to alter the colour saturation this changed the colour from a normal daylight to a deep blue, this work well giving the setting a eerie feeling, the use of the colour also complimented the setting due to the shadows from the trees, the overall out come became a gothic type of setting which works well with my narrative. Also during the editing process, I created a static effect which would be placed in points of the film as a time elapse to show the tape is being played in different places of the filming. This would give the realism that the film is actually like a family holiday film that acts as true events. The mise-en-scene within this scene is predominantly made up of the setting (the woods). However the costume of the male character running through the woods, follows a conventional code of ‘American Horror’ the use of a typical American high school student, this is represented with the base-ball jacket attire the character is wearing. This represents the American influence with my film, the use of the American Blockbusters within the horror genre. The sound in this scene is diegetic sound of the two characters (Ryan and Camera man) running through the woods, e.g.; panting, shouting and calling out to one and other. The second scenes I filmed, were scenes around the church area. As the film was going to start with future events and the scenes within the church area were set in the past. I needed to film during the day to get a good contrast in time for the film. The shots around the church again evoked the conventions of my chosen genre, in the form of amateur camera work. This means as the characters head towards the church the cinematography, broken downing is a basic tracking shot showing the characters walking towards the church, on the other hand the camera has a shaking effect to it, this is to reinforce the use of realism and the concept of the camera man being just another member of the family. When filming the sequence heading towards the church door I initially filmed as one whole shot, however when it initially came to editing I decided I wanted to incorporate the use of jump cuts I looked at for research earlier. Although I wanted to give my film realism, I also wanted to recreate the image of French New Wave cinema, and show my film was just a film. On the other hand the use of jump cuts in this sequence also aids as a way of illustrating the passing of time, this work effectively well due to the original shot being 8 seconds long, after the use of the jump cuts it became four 2 second shots with jumps over time. The aspect of time plays a major role within my creative project, this is because of the use of time elapses within my film, it jumps from one part of the narrative to another part of the narrative. I did this to purposely recreate the type of confusion and delusion the family would be suffering, for the audience to trigger an emotional response from the audience. Once I had filmed the sequence walking towards the church. I then filmed the dialogue between the two characters in front of the church door. This meant I had to feature pans medium close-ups in the sequence, which would mean there would be a more personal approach towards the family as the audience could see the emotion on the characters face while he spoke, while at the same time get a first person point of view with the aid of the point of view shot coming from the camera man. Once the dialogue between the characters had finished the camera pans back towards the end of the church, whilst doing this I overlapped some of the static footage, this give a staggered effect to the video, again reinforcing realism yet at the same time giving the sense of horror, much like in most found footage genre films for example Cloverfield, 2008, Matt Reeves (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ufYF0f-zMgY), in which the main character, Rob and friends running through Central Park. as he turns his camera stutters and causes static to play over the video. This again is a conventional code in the genre of found footage as it echoes the narrative and how it will play out. The main sound in this scene comes from the use of the characters walking and The next part of the project I decided to film was the montage sequence I was going to place in the middle area of the narrative. I wanted to use this as a signifier to the audience that the film is just a film, yet at the same time allow an aspect of time. The filming process for this sequence was a simple task as I uses a close up out of the cars window. This was to capture the journey as the family move on. I also filmed some of the conversations within the car. However I did’t want to capture the dialogue or anything to do with the narrative, whilst doing this. Instead with their own permission I filmed my own family having a cogeneration within the car. Once I had filmed it I would take away the sound and just be left with the footage. The reasoning behind this was to capture the essence of a real family atmosphere within my film, much like in Alien, 1979, Ridley Scott (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uuapyExYJBI) However the cast did’t know that a Alien was going to burst out of a crew members chest , still the real reaction was capture on camera and used in the film. My idea worked on the same principle, however my cast knew I was filming just not the actual scripted narrative. Once I had all my footage for my montage scene I began the editing process, I chose to slow all the clips down, to give the sense of time passing, however I did this to juxtapose the earlier scenes in the woods, I did this to connotated the effect of safety (Slow motion scene) and danger (Fast Scenes) I think this worked well as it had the division of the static in-between the scenes meaning the fast and slow shots contrasted, rather then clashed. Another major effect I used while putting my film together was, a noticeable dissolve between the now slowed down montage sequence. The dissolves between each scene give a high intensity light as each shot changes. This acts as a representation for a heartbeat, the connotation is as the journey connotes the families fate is sealed the more the travel to the destination. Furthermore I also applied the effect used earlier in the film on the scenes filmed in the woodland. The use of the high saturation in the woods, I applied this effect to the later shots, this was simply to show the transmission of time over the period in which the family are taking their journey. From day to night. However in the earlier scenes I chose not to use any effects and opted for a more natural look to my earlier scenes within the montage. Within the editing I applied a time and date format in the left and right bottom corners of the footage, this applied for all scenes and lasted through out the entire sequence. This meant that the film would have a conventional feature of the found footage genre; the use of a handheld format, but again illustrate the aspect of time and how it changes throughout my film, this way the audience would also be able to be aware of the way in which the film transients thoughout the film. Once I had completed the production stages of the production process, I needed to gather audience feedback from my target audience, this meant creating a questionnaire to hand out once people had watched my film. My questions varied from looking at editing to looking at the use of sound for example;- 2.Do you think the use of ‘Saturated colours’ (Dark scenes in the woods) works well to convey the genre of my sequence? Why/ On a scale of 1-10 (1 very well-10 very poor), how would you rate the use of soundtrack to give a eerie feel to the montage sequence?. With this use of questions I was able to get a varied sense of my audience types and what interests them. Out of the 6 people I used for audience feedback, (I chose a equal amount on male and female audience members to get a symmetric style of feedback of the film). The main and best feedback came from my first question on the questionnaire, this asked if the audience could identify the genre on my film from the clip, here they had a option to chose which of the follow genre they believed my sequence to fall into these were;- Comedy, Horror, Drama, Thriller and Romance. The majority were able to decided which genre the sequence is, all of my participant’s answered and chose the genre of horror. This allowed me to know that part of my aims were fulfilled by the means of the audience being able to identify the genre. However I did want to capture a more qualitative response to my film so I Asked more in depth questions that would allow me to get a more emotional response to the film also this acted as a more personal approach to my audience, therefore getting a closer individual response from the participants. For example one of the questions was; Did you find the narrative of my opening sequence easy to follow? Why?. Here I was able to gain a better understand of my audience feedback due top my audience having the option to display their feeling as opinions towards my work with the question expressing the option of explaining their answer. From all my feedback sheets, I was able to see that there was a distinct positive sense of feedback from my audience and that all of the people asked were in fact able to understand the narrative of my sequence. Not only were they able top understand the narrative they even gave points which stood out in the narrative that they thought helped them understand it for example; A male participant said, ‘The use of dialogue and pace helped to progress the narrative helping me understand it. Furthermore a female participant spoke more about what made the footage easy to follow., The sequence was easy to follow as there were clearly defined edits within the narrative. From the use of my qualitative questions I was able to reflect back onto my work and see the points that maybe I could have changed or how I could have added to my work. The strongest feedback came from questions centred around the participants likes/dislikes of my footage. Most the feedback was positive with many saying they enjoyed the use of the editing and the use of the colour saturation. Furthermore with the use of this method I could reflect on the negative points that were given for example one participant said; The footage would have been better if there was more scenes in the woods, possibly more action in the woods. Comments like this allowed me to see the footage from my audiences perspective and also see how I could improve the sequence if I had to do it again. In conclusion to the audience feedback I was also able to reflect on my own work and see how I felt about the final outcome of my creative project. As a whole I feel the project was successful in the ways of which I was trying to appeal to my target audience, this can be seen within my audience research. Furthermore when I watched the over all film myself I felt that that use of skills I had learnt when seeing out on the project, for example the use of the edit suites proved challenging yet allowed me as a student to adapt to the way they worked and managed to produce my over all creative project. When reflecting on my work, I saw that there were a few things that if I could redo the project I would change or restart. For example I took into account the feedback I got from many people that the project could use a sense of more footage shot in the woods. Alongside peoples opinions on the footage in the woods I also looked at the fact many participants enjoyed the footage in the woods from the entire sequence. Taking this in I realised that with the use of more scenes shot in the woods, I would have improved the opening sequence more. On the other hand, my main aim was met within the film, that was to allow the audience to be able to identify the genre of my film with the aid of the stylistics, this was successful as it was the question within the best response within my audience feedback.

Finished Film

Here is the finished version of my film. Due to it being uploaded on to YouTube, I can generate audience feedback to help me with my analysis.

Anamatix

Post Update

Currently I'am still editing the footage. At this point I have just the sound and a small section of the footage to finish editing.

Update.

Currently I am editing my footage, using the edit suites. I will upload different pieces of footage to show how I have edited each piece.

Robyn - Jag Vet En Dejlig Rosa

This is my chosen sound track. I chose this song do to the Gothic nature of the bass, yet at the same time has a upbeat yet eerie sound. I decided to use this alongside the slow-motion footage of my montage scene as the family head towards their destination.

Film Blog Update 13/12/10

Currently I am finishing my storyboard and script. Once finished I shall upload them.