Revisions of our Idea

As a group we have looked back at our research and feel that we still don't have the understanding of the Bollywood genre we would need to create a Bollywood inspired film. Therefore, we have decided to stick with our original idea of creating a pyschological thriller. This gives a chance to to focus on the technical areas of our title sequence as this will help improve our overall grade. Furthermore, as a group we felt that even if we had done all the research we needed we might still not have had a broad understanding of Bollywood becasue we are not confronted with it in our everyday life. Overall I am pleased with this decision becasue it means we can now focus on the technical areas of our title sequence and go away and look at any ways we can improve our overall narrative.

My First Attempt at Editing

In order to practice editing for our coursework, we were given the task of recreating a short extract of film in pairs from its raw files. We were given a sequence of unedited clips which we had to rearrange, cut, and add sound and titles to. In order to do this activity we worked used Adobe Premiere Pro because this is the software we will be using when we edit our final product which meant it enabled us to gain some basic experience in using and understanding the software. This is the video we created in the time limit for this task. 

Weaknesses

Unfortunately we ran out of time to add the sound effect of the message tone. In addition, another of our weaknesses was that we also ran out of time to add in the titles however, if we'd had enough time I did learn the skill needed in order to do this. 

Strengths

On the other hand, the reason we ran out of time was because we were making sure each clip was cut in the correct and precise place as close as we could get to the original. We also took a great deal of care when cutting the music and ensured we cut the music off at the end otherwise it would have carried on for another few minutes with a black screen. 

Storyboarding

We had a lesson today on storyboarding because this will help us when it comes to creating our own storyboard for our coursework. We learnt the importance of storyboarding and why it is so important to film makers.

In what ways is storyboarding effective to the director?

Storyboarding is extremely effective to the director because it provides the essential link between the planning and the filming process. Furthermore, it allows the director to start visualising the film for the first time as well as focusing on the structure and sequence of the film in order to analyse the links between shots and action/graphic matches. Alternatively it also gives the director a chance to revise the narrative sequence and make decisions and revisions on the overall piece. Some directors feel very strongly about spending a lot of time on storyboarding and making it extremely detailed. This is very cost effective because it means they are not wasting time on set making vital decisions such as the camera angle and shot because they have already been made in advance. In addition, it might also give the director a chance to prepare for specific parts of mise-en-scene that may be needed when it comes to filming. Storyboarding is also effective to the director because it gives them an idea of the timings, continuity and pace as well as technical awareness and understanding. Therefore, they are a vital part in the film making process because they overall provide a guideline to help the director when it comes to filming.

Our Narrative

This is a bullet point list of the narrative for our fianl piece.

• Opens with an establishing long shot of the female protagonist centralised in the frame.                                                                                                                     Setting - A dark room, low key lighting.
• Close up of her pouring a drink, body language should show signs of anxiety and distress. 
• Tilt up from her hand to an extreme close up of her eyes.
• Cut to white background and a non-diegetic sound effect to establish a flashback.
• In the flashback, the audience views a point of view shot of the protagonist from when she was told by a teacher her brother had gone missing. This should last up to 3-5 seconds.
• The whispering of the word missing is then repeated when the audience see's a close up of the protagonist back in the room. Non-diegetic sound will start to play over the top of this and the titles will appear in different corners of the frame.
• The protagonist starts to act agitated and distressed, this is shown through close ups of her fidgeting with her hair and scratching her head. 
• The atmosphere in the room builds as she starts to go through old newspapers and articles of her brothers disappearance.
• The pace of the editing will increase through a series close ups and extreme close ups of the props and the protagonist. She will be circling/underlining/ripping parts of old photos, newspapers, and articles. This should last 35 to 50 seconds.
• The title will appear on the screen and the sound would have built up throughout the scene until a loud noticeable notes. The title will appear for around 3 seconds.
• The male antagonist will then be firstly introduced with a medium shot of him stood in front of a mirror doing up his tie, attempting to look 'normal'. 
• He will then turn towards and walk out the door picking up a brief case and shouting (positively) "Bye!". This scene will last approximately 7-10 seconds.
• We will then cut to an extreme long shot of the antagonist walking out the house to establish the difference in location. Lighting should be brighter and contrast the previous scene.     

Bollywood Thriller Survey

My group and I decided to make a small survey to gain an idea on whether or not there was an audience for a Bollywood thriller film, and what that target audience would expect and like to see in one. The survey we created received 50 responses which means they should be fairly accurate. 

Our first question was 'Would you be interested in watching a Bollywood style thriller?'. We felt this was a very important question because if the response had been no we would have had to change all our ideas and concepts. Luckily 61% of the responses said yes which makes us a lot more confident with our idea because we know there's an audience out there for it. 

The second question we asked was 'Have you seen any Bollywood inspired films? (b) If yes, please name the film'. We asked this to see how popular Bollywood films are, and discovered that 88% of the responses had seen a Bollywood inspired film and the most popular named example was, Slumdog Millionaire. This means that we will be able to go away and watch this film to analyse which Bollywood conventions are used within the film to make it so popular with the audience.

'Do you think that typical Bollywood aspects such as music help make a film authentic?' was our next question.71% said yes which presents my group with the fact that we will need to include several Bollywood aspects into the film in order to make it appear authentic.

Our next question was 'What would you expect to see in a Bollywood thriller?'. We asked this question to find out which themes were popular within a Bollywood thriller and which were not to give us an idea of which themes we may want to include in our final product. Our most popular answer was religion, therefore, we should make sure we look into this when deciding on mise-en-scene and props. Our second most popular answer was romance. Our original idea included the theme of romance but we discarded it due to the fact we believed it was to cliche. Hence, our survey shows that we were correct because 30% of our responses said that was what they would expect to see in a Bollywood thriller. This reinforces our reasoning for going against this stereotype and making our idea more original.

Our final question was 'What key themes would you enjoy to see in a Bollywood thriller?'. The idea we have thought of already consists of obsession being the key theme, and luckily our survey has shown us that this is a key theme our audience would enjoy seeing within a film. Obsession got 68% of the responses therefore, we are definitely content with choosing this to be our main theme. 

What have I learnt?

From this survey I have learnt what our target audience would like to see in a Bollywood thriller, and what our key theme should be within our final product. This is great help because it means we will be able to use this information to create a final product which our target audience will enjoy.

Development of our Storyline/Plot

My group and I originally liked the idea of using unrequited love as a theme within our storyline, however, we have discovered that we think it will be too cliche. Due to the fact we are doing a pyschological thriller we have decided that using the theme of obsession would be very appropriate so we are going to keep this idea. We will present an ambiguous relationship between our protagonist and antagonist who will be siblings, but their past has brought about an atypical relationship between them.

Summary
The brother went missing a long time ago and his younger sister was so distrort by this it drove her insane. The brother was found but the protagonist could not accept how and why he went missing in the first place so she became mentally ill and ignores this information. We shall show her ripping pieces of newspaper articles and drawing on photos to show her distressed situation. After the title appears we will then show the brother looking smart and relaxed to convey the juxtaposition between both their lives. This will reinforce her obsession over him and how she is unable to deal with his disappearance.

We have not decided on a detailed shot list yet, however, this is a rough idea of of the sequence of events in our opening.

• Shots to introduce the title of the film company
• Shots of the protagonist looking distressed and mentally unstable
• The first scene will build to a climax which will cut to the title
• The antagonist will be shot looking smart, and relaxed to contrast the opening scene and reinforce the juxtaposition between the two characters.

My group and I still have a lot to discuss and this includes how we are going to present certain ideas to the audinece through:

• Costume
• Lighting
• Camera shots/angles
• Editing
• Mise-en-scene
• etc.

Initial Ideas

After having looked at our initial brainstorm my group and I joined together to discuss initial ideas for our product. We focused on a Bollywood inspired film and the theme of obsession, from this we created a few initial ideas listed below.

Our first idea consisted of creating a Bollywood psychological thriller using the the theme of obsession because we thought this would be seen as an appropriate hybrid genre when linking it to the theme of obsession. In addition when looking at some of the conventions of Bollywood films, we found that love and romance was also expected by the audience as either the main or sub-plot in a Bollywood film. Therefore, we came up with a storyline that could bring these two themes together. It includes a male antagonist driven to the point of obsession due to unrequited love for the female protagonist. The reason behind the beginning of this love and obsession could be shown with a flashback. We also discussed some ideas that would modernise the product to relate it to our possible target audience. 

Our second idea had similar themes and ideas. It also included the themes of romance and obsession. However, this Bollywood psychological thriller consisted of the male and female characters being in a relationship, and the male antagonist being driven insane due to thinking his lover was having an affair. This would lead to a series of hallucinations and kidnappings.

Problems with making a Bollywood Thriller 
Deciding to make our coursework in the style of Bollywood, is very different and unique. This means our product should be original and new. However, there is one main problem we have had to face when considering making a Bollywood inspired film. This is the fact that many Bollywood films are known for their upbeat music and dancing scenes which may not link with the dark tone and mood we may want to create. However, after having done some extra research we have discovered that we could use a slower, mysterious style of Indian music in order to create the correct mood for our coursework. In addition, we discussed how upbeat theatrical dancing would not be appropriate for our opening and if any dancing was to appear in the film it would be more suited to be located towards the end of the film, and therefore, would not feature in our coursework. 

Writing Skills

In our lesson today we focused on our writing skills. We worked in groups and learnt how one shot could provide us with enough information to write at least one whole paragraph on. After being given a shot from an extract of Doctor Who, we brainstormed ideas about what each part (mise-en-scene, camera angle, distance, lighting etc.) added and represented within the shot. In our groups we wrote a paragraph on the individual shot and linked it to ideas about representations of gender as well as peer-assessed other groups work by writing targets and things they had done well in their paragraph.

Above is the paragraph my group and I wrote. The blue post it notes have what we did well and our targets to improve on. They included notes such as, good analysis and use of terminology, and the need to talk about the audiences reaction.

This is important to my coursework because it presented me with the importance of each and every shot included in a piece of media text. It also provided me with the knowledge of how every small detail is thought about when producing a media text, which is something my group and I shall have to consider when we start filming. 

Bollywood Conventions

Due to the fact that we are strongly considering making our coursework with a Bollywood inspired theme, or style, I decided to do some extra research on the typical conventions of a Bollywood film to see how they differed to traditional Hollywood. This is to see what codes and conventions we may need to include in our product to make it realistic. 

Bollywood Codes and Conventions

• Dominance of one or two actors (Usually a male and female)
• Using other forms of performance art such as playing an instrument, singing and dancing
• The presence of a religious figure that all the characters believe in, such as a God or Deity
• Romance is the main plot or subplot in the story (This might include love triangles)
• Large studio sets with elaborate design and decoration
• Films are usually set in Mumbai, India (However, some popular Bollywood films have been set in western cities such as New York City, and London
• Authentic and elaborate costumes, such as traditional clothing (i.e. saris and dresses)
• Other key themes include; melodrama, obsession, and kidnappings.

There are also some traditional gestures and symbols used in Bollywood films such as:

• Seeing someone tug on their ears – When someone tugs on their ears it is usually seen as an apology and the quivalent of saying sorry.

• Seeing someone touch another person’s feet - According to Hindu theology feet are the most polluted part of the body because they are the closet body part to the ground. So when a person touches someone else's feet it is a sign of great respect because they are honoured and touching their feet is a privilege.

• Someone waving their hands over another person’s head - Usually a person will do this to a bride. They will wave their hands over the bride and then make fists of their hands and crack their knuckles on each side of their own head. Whoever does this takes on any evil that may be sent toward the bride.

• A woman wearing red dye in her parting - This red dye is called vermillion and when a woman wears it in her parting, it signifies that she is married and her husband is still alive.

• Kohl is placed on someone’s cheek - When someone looks strikingly beautiful it is assumed that they will attract a lot of jealousy. Therefore, a black dot (kohl) is placed on their face as a blemish to ward off jealousy of a person's perfection.

• When someone presses their palms together - When two characters first meet, one of them will press their palms together and say “Namaste.” This is equivalent to the American/English handshake because it shows the possession of manners. However, it holds a higher level of respect than shaking hands.

Evaluation

After having done this research, I have gained a greater understanding into what codes and conventions of Bollywood films we might want to consider using in our product. We will want to combine some of these conventions with the conventions of a thriller film as well as look at what the audience would like to see in a Bollywood film in order to start planning our final product. We will have to consider carefully which conventions to include because we don't want to make our product to unique and different so it becomes distant to the audience. In addition we will have to think about our target audience when we consider whether or not we want to include some of the traditional gestures or symbols because they could be seen as difficult to understand to a foreign audience. On the other hand we will now be able to use some of the conventions of a Bollywood film to help structure and plan our coursework. 

Initial Brainstorm

Below is an image of our initial brainstorm. We listed thriller sub-genres, and hybrids on the right, and themes and ideas on the left. 

The two ideas that stood out the most to us at this stage are, Bollywood and the theme of obsession. If we went down the route of obsession we thought that making our coursework have a sub-genre of psychological thriller could become appropriate. We liked these ideas because they were original and different and would give our coursework an interesting twist. However, if we decided to stick with these two ideas we would have to ensure there was enough familiarity for the audience to be confident that our coursework would not become to distant and unlikable. 

Evaluation of my Progress so Far

What have I learnt?
I have learnt the way the camera is used in a media text to portray a character, setting and atmosphere through the different shots and angles. For example, I have learnt that a high angle camera shot portrays a weak and inferior character. I have also leanrt about mise-en-scene which is everything related to what you see in the frame of a pice of media e.g. costume, props and lighting, and how this can be used to add and create effects, as well as tell us more about the characters we are seeing. I now understand how different types of music and sound can be added to a piece of media text for a number of different reasons. For example I now know there is diegetic sound (within the scene) and non- diegetic sound (added through editing). As well as this, I have learnt the other techniques that are used such as amplifying a sound such as a watch ticking, to make it more noticeable. In addition, I have leant about how sophisticated genre is, and the codes and conventions of many genres, in particular, thriller to aid my coursework. Furthermore, I have gained a better understanding of title sequences and I have analysed many to find out key aspects of them to learn from.
In addition, I've also learnt how to share responsibilities within a group and ensure I manage my own time and work to make sure I'm organised in order to meet deadlines. Furthermore, I have learnt how to blog on a website because I had no knowledge of this when I joined the course. This doesn't just concern my ability to blog content that we have covered in lessons, or my own individual work. But I have also learnt how to improve my evaluative skills in order to evaluate and highlight what I've learnt from my own and my groups individual work.

How have I learnt this?
I have learnt a lot through going to my media lessons and being told how camera, mise-en-scene etc. affect a piece of media text, and what we can learn about the text from this. We usually then put our learning into practise by watching a past exam clip, making notes, and discussing what we have seen as a class. For example, recently we looked at how editing was used in an episode of Dr Who. I have also learnt through questioning my coursework group to see how and if they understand something I'm not hundred percent sure of. If none of us are too sure we tend to research it together so we can all learn from the experience. Furthermore, I have gained a better understanding of some topics through taking what I've learnt in lessons, and then adding to my knowledge by doing some individual research in order to post it on my blog. I also find it useful to have a look at other blogs from my class and see if anything they have posted can add to my learning.

My Strengths
I see myself as a rather efficient person which means I like to see what jobs I need to do, study deadlines, then complete my work in order to meet them. Therefore, I believe one of my key strengths is my time managment because I like to be orgainsised and up to date with my work. I also believe another of my strengths is to produce thorough evaluations of my own, and my grops work in order to show exactly what I've leanrt. In addition, I feel my understanding of how a camera is used in the media is strong, as well as my undertsanding of mise-en-scene.

My Weaknesses
I think one of my weaknesses would definitley have to be in my ability to edit a piece of camera work. I would say I have very basic knowledge in some of the techniques used to edit camera and film, but at this moment in time I would be very unsure as to how to put this into practise. Another of my main weakenesses is that I've stuck to mainly typing and adding a few pictures to my blog and I haven't yet shown a variety of ICT skills by adding presentations, audio, or video. I also struggle with understanding some of the semiotics we learnt at the beginning of the term. Even though I have gone back and revised them, I continue to get confused with the differences between an iconic and symbolic sign. This means that I will have to try another technique of attempting to learn this.

Targets
I have set myself some targets in order to aid and continue my learning.
1. To study and attempt to learn some basic techniques of editing a piece of camera work, to ensure I have a better understanding when it comes to editing our coursework.
2. To show a range of ICT skills on my blog by adding audio and video to some of my posts.
3. To have another attempt at learning the difference between an iconic and symbolic sign, possibly by using the textbook, or talking to one of my teachers.

Overall Progress
Overall I believe I've progressed a great deal as an A level media student so far. I have gained a lot of knowledge on techniques used within the media for example, camera and sound, and ideas about representation and genre. As well as learning to develop a number of skills such as, working in a group, evaluating work and blogging. Having identified my strengths, weaknesses and setting targets, I now know what specific areas I need to work on as an individual to progress even further.

Reflection of my Research

Sound

On Monday's lesson we discussed how sound helped represent sexuality in a clip. Here are some notes from my lesson about sound as well as some of my own background research.

Direct Sound - Live sound. This may have a sense of freshness and spontaneity, but may not be acoustically ideal. 

Studio Sound -  Sound recorded in the studio to improve the sound quality, eliminating unwanted background noise (ambient sound). This can then be mixed with direct sound.

Selective sound - Removing some sounds and keeping others to make significant sounds for dramatic effect. For example, selective sound (and amplification) may make us aware of a watch or a bomb ticking.

Sound perspective/aural perspective - The impression of distance in sound, usually created through the use of selective sound. Even in live television a microphone is deliberately positioned, just as the camera is, and therefore may privilege certain individuals.

Sound bridge - Running sound (narration, dialogue or music) from one shot across a cut to another shot to make the action seem uninterrupted.

Dubbed dialogue - Recording the voice-track in the studio after filming, so the actors can match their words to the on-screen lip movements. 

Wildtrack (asynchronous sound) - Sound which is evidently recorded separately from the visuals it is shown with. For example, a studio voice-over added to a visual sequence later.

Parallel (synchronous) sound - Sound 'caused' by some event on screen, which matches the action.

Commentary/voice-over narration - Commentary spoken off-screen over the shots shown to the audience. The voice-over can be used to:

1. Introduce particular parts of a programme,

2. Add extra information not evident from the picture,

3. For the audience to interpret the images from a particular point of view,

4. Link parts of a sequence or programme together.

Sound effects (SFX) - Any sound from any source other than synchronised dialogue, narration or music. Dubbed-in sound effects can add to the illusion of reality. A stage- set door may be used to add the sound of a heavy door slamming or creaking.

Music - Helps to establish a sense of the pace of the scene and the rhythm of music usually dictates the rhythm of the cuts. As well as setting the mood and atmosphere of a scene. Background music is not normally intended to be noticeable, for example, conventionally, background music accelerates for a chase sequence. Through repetition it can also link shots, scenes and sequences. 

Silence - The juxtaposition of an image and silence can frustrate expectations, provoke odd, self-conscious responses, intensify our attention, make us apprehensive, or make us feel dissociated from reality

Evaluation

From this I have learnt how sound is used when producing a piece of media text which is very useful because I will need to understand all these techniques in case we decide to use them when producing and editing our coursework. In addition, I have also learnt how these techniques link to a piece of media text so I can understand how they are used to create different meanings and represent what a character may be feeling.

The History of Thriller

In our lesson today we had a look at how useful our research was and made sure we had all the information we needed. My group found that we could do with some research on the history of thriller as a genre and how thriller films have differed over the years.

1920's -1930's
The first thriller film was Alfred Hitchcock's, The Lodger a suspenseful Jack the Ripper story and out of Hitchcock's major features only 6 were suspense. However, from 1935 on wards most of his films were thrillers.

1940's
Hitchcock continued to make suspense-thrillers including his favourite, Shadow of doubt' based on a true story of a serial killer. In 1994 one of the first psychological thrillers, Gaslight, was made about a husband driving his wife insane in order to gain her inheritance. Spy films of this time had post-war melodrama story lines which tended to represent Germany negatively, e.g. Cloak and Dagger'.

1950's
Glamorous film stars were added to the films in this decade, and many of the films remained very classical in terms of their conventions. Furthermore spy films continued to be related to World War II, e.g. 5 Fingers.

1960's
After the classical films, Hitchcock produced a shocking film Psycho in 1960. A number of romantic thrillers with shocking twists started to be produced too, and the James Bond films inspired a number of spy films to be created.

1970's &1980's
Thriller films started to become more violent, for example, Frenzy (1972). Psychological thrillers included themes such as guilt, paranoia and obsession  and some included killing off the main character early on to switch points of view. In addition, spy and conspiracy thrillers scattered across the two decades, many including story lines about the government. 

1990's to Present
Nowadays thrillers borrow themes and elements from those produced in past decades. However, to stop repetitiveness there are a number of recent thrillers with aspects of the horror genre, with more gore/sadistic violence, brutality  and terror. For example, Captivity made in 2007. Action scenes in thrillers have also become more elaborate especially in spy thrillers e.g. A history of violence. 

Research

Callum's analysis of Se7en

Callum's final analysis was on the horror thriller Se7en directed by Kyle Cooper. His analysis is below. 

My Evaluation

Callum states how the opening of this opens with an ambiguous tone through extreme close up shots of an anonymous character. He also mentions that an interesting technique which has been used in this opening, whereby lots of graphic images appear on screen for a few seconds. But because they are so shocking, that is all they need to stick in your mind. If we decide to make a horror thriller we might want to consider using some of these techniques ourselves to create an ambiguous atmosphere and add a sense of fear to the audience when they watch our opening.

Callum also describes how an edgy and tense mood is created through loud, disjointed, non-diegetic sound, connoting danger, or perhaps it might be an insight into the characters mind. We might want to consider using this idea of using sound to portray aspects of a particular character in our coursework. 

Callum goes on to talk about the mise-en-scene, he states that there is a dark atmosphere, which from my research I have learnt this to be very popular in many thriller film openings. This is generally used to connote some kind of danger. 

Finally, Callum talks about the titles. He describes how the font looks like handwriting which could be related to the action within the frame (a man writing in a book). The technique of linking these two together might be an interesting idea we could incorporate into our own coursework. 

Mark Scheme

My group and I are aiming for a level 4 in our coursework. This includes the video, research and planning, and evaluation. Below is the mark scheme for level 4 of each of these criteria, and shows us what we will need to include in order to achieve this level.

Video

Research and Planning

Evaluation

So far I believe our research is on target to get a level 4 in research and planning because I think that our research shows excellence in similar products and potential target audience. Our target for the group will be to ensure that we continue to show excellence in our organisation and planning because this is something we shall be assessed on at a later date. I have also set myself a target of using a variety of ICT and technology skills in my blog posts, such as using video and audio as well as writing and posting pictures because this is also something I will individually be assessed on during this task.

Final Survey Results and Evaluation

We had over 100 responses to our survey which means the results we have collected should show a fair and accurate response to the questions we asked, therefore giving us the ability to give an accurate evaluation.

The first question we asked was 'How old are you?'. We asked this because it gave us a rough idea of our target audience. Our results told us that 70% were aged 15 - 17 years old, therefore this tells me the general age of the people interested in our personal work, which means we should make our title sequence appropriate for this age. 

Our second question was 'Do you prefer a film with an age rating of 15 or 18 and why?'. This question reinforced our answer to the first question because the majority of people said they preferred a film with an age rating of 15. From this I have learnt that we should definitely consider the results we have gained from our survey and create a film opening with an age rating of 15. 

 Our third question told us that 62% of the people who answered our survey said they paid attention to the title sequences of a film. This means that, when making our coursework we must ensure that we take time and care over making the title sequence because our results have told us they are important.

The next question we asked was 'Do you prefer title sequences to be fast or slow?'. 57% said they would prefer fast, which means that we should consider giving our title sequence a fast pace when planning our coursework to increase our chances of the audience liking it. 

The fifth question we asked was 'What is your favorite sub-genre of thriller?'. Our results told us that crime was the most popular followed by supernatural. Therefore, I have learnt that we should consider including aspects of these sub-genres to increase the chances of a guaranteed success. However, even though these sub-genres are popular they may be a saturated genre and therefore, we should make sure that our opening is unique. 

The next question we asked was 'What do you expect to see in an opening of a thriller film?'. We had a range of answers but the most common were, suspense and tension, action, and a dark atmosphere. I have learnt that these are the most popular answers from our audience and therefore, I believe we should consider using these conventions in our title sequence.

We thought it would be a good idea to ask our audience what they thought ruined a film because we don't want to include anything in our title sequence that may be seen as offensive. Our results told us that gory scenes, closely followed by homophobic and racial discrimination were the most popular answers when thinking about what ruins a film. This means that I have learnt what an audience doesn't wish to see in a film, and therefore, we should attempt to not include these things. However, if we do they should be limited. 

Our penultimate question gave us an insight into which title sequences the audience preferred  out of a choice of some popular thriller films. The most popular was James bond at 38%. This tells me that I should watch this title sequences and use it to inspire me before we start planning our coursework, but we will not want to copy or make our coursework too similar. The Woman in Black also had a fairly high rating of 29%, which means that we might want to include aspects of horror into our title sequence. 

Our final question asked the audience why they thought the title sequences from the question above were so successful? Our results clearly showed us that music was very important. Therefore, we will have to think very carefully about the music we include in our title sequence and ensure we don't rush any decisions about it. Editing and effects followed at 14% each, which tells us we should also consider these carefully, however, we should prioritise the music.  

Overall I am extremely happy with my group and the survey we made. Each question has helped us gain an understanding into what our audience would prefer which will significantly help us when we start to plan our coursework. Due to the fact we made 2 pilot surveys, I believe our final survey has allowed us to get fair and accurate responses to help us gain all the information we needed. 

Our Final Survey

Primeval Essay

Discuss the ways in which the extract constructs the representation of gender using the following: Camera shots, angles, movement and composition, Editing, Sound and mise- en- scene.

In the opening of the extract we see some contradicting representations of gender. Firstly, we see a woman leaving the camp, this implies her fear and weakness as she’s seen to be running away. Furthermore non diegetic sound of sad music adds a melancholy atmosphere giving her absence emphasis because it means there is now only one woman left in the camp. On the other hand, the next thing we see is a high angle camera shot of a man wearing a pink t-shirt and a scarf. The colour pink connotes femininity, and the scarf is an item often associated with women. The high angle shot also portrays his weakness conveying this character atypically and feminine.

This atypical representation continues in the clip because a low angle shot of a woman sat, and controlling a JCB is used. The low angle and that fact that these diggers are big, bulky and angular and are often associated with masculinity make her character look strong. In addition the sound of the digger is loud, mechanical and robotic which also conveys masculinity. Furthermore a shot reverse shot is used to show her reaction when we hear the roar of the sabre tooth. Her facial expression isn’t scared which contrasts with the shot reverse shot used to show the man’s facial expression when finding the hand. His facial expression denotes fear which means that so far the characters are not living up to their stereotypes. When the sabre tooth arrives, the man jumps into the hole for protection, meaning he is shot from a high angle, this highlights the portrayal of a weak and inferior character which is atypical when looking at representations of gender.

This is reinforced as the clip carries on, although the man distracts the sabre tooth to save the girl, which is one of the stereotypes of a male role in a narrative, making him appear more masculine. He continues to be represented with fear and vulnerability because he is running away. He is marginalised in the frame when attracting the sabre tooth which makes him look smaller as well as implying his character is not very important. This representation of fear continues through a series of fast cuts when the man attaches himself to the zip wire because it conveys the speed at which he is trying to run away. A point of view shot and the diegetic sound of his feet on the trees reinforces this sense of rush and fear. Therefore, this represents his character atypically. Similarly, the man is again shot from a high angle due to the fact he falls on the floor making him seem vulnerable. This means that the sabre tooth is shot from a low angle to make it look bigger and stronger. As cats are often associated with femininity, this adds to the atypical representation of gender in the extract. Furthermore, the woman then comes and shoots the sabre tooth, rescuing the man. She doesn’t fall back when doing this which adds low verisimilitude to the extract as you would expect to see her fall. Therefore, it could be argued that this is a feminist text which tries to prove women can be a strong gender.

As the extract continues more traditional ideas of gender are created. The female character is marginalised within the frame as well as being marginalised due to the fact she is the only woman. However, the camera contradicts this because all four characters are shot at eye level giving them equal status. On the other hand, men continue to dominate the scene through the editing because the female character has limited screen time over the males. Mise-en-scene can be brought into this because, we see that the woman has to present herself atypically and more manly to make her look stronger. This is done through dark coloured clothes, combat trousers and short hair which are all symbolic of masculinity.

The extract ends with more traditional stereotyping of gender during the scene in the barn. Although at the start both the male and female characters are shot at eye level conveying equality, the woman then finds herself in a position of weakness and she is shot from a high angle representing this portrayal of vulnerability. The momentary use of slow motion presenting the man and dogs highlights his masculinity. In addition the diegetic sound of the gun shot and the dogs barking reinforces the strong stereotype of the man’s character and the power he gains from holding a gun. The woman is then saved by another male character which connotes more stereotypical representations of gender. 

Essay Feedback and Revision

Last week I got my first as level media essay back. The essay was about binary oppositions in Titanic and I was given a grade B-. I was thrilled with this because it was our first essay this year. My targets for my next essay are; to not generalise and therefore centralise my analysis, and to revise the difference between iconic and symbolic signs. So I decided to go back and revise some of the semiotics we learnt at the beginning of the year to. 

Iconic Sign: When the signifier resembles the signified e.g. a picture.

Symbolic Sign: Where the relation between the signifier and the signified is culturally specific e.g. most words.

Indexical Sign: A sign where there is a causal link between the signifier and the signified, e.g. smoke signifies fire.

Research

Evaluation on Callum's film analysis of A history of violence

Callum's second film analysis is on the film A history of violence directed by David Cronenberg.  His analysis is below:

My Evaluation

Callum has gone into detail on the different camera angles and shots used in the opening of A history of violence. This will be useful because it will help us when making our coursework as he has explained why the different camera angles and shots have been used. Callum also mentions how the editing is slow and may connote boredom. This might have been used to reinforce the dull environment the characters have been set in, and are some ideas we may want to consider when editing our coursework.

Furthermore, Callum mentions the use of binary opposition in the sound through the upbeat music against the scenarios the characters are situated in. Therefore, we might want to consider using some kind of binary opposition in our coursework ourselves for increased effects.

Callum has also gone into detail on the mise-en-scene used in the opening of this film and suggested an interesting idea of how the working class clothes represents standard citizens therefore it gives the impression it could happen to anyone, creating a spooky atmosphere. This means that, this might be an effective idea we could include into our coursework if we decide to add some horror into our opening. 

Finally, Callum talks about the fact that in this opening the font used in the titles is very small and unnoticeable . Therefore, we will have to ensure we don't make the same mistake when making our coursework, to make sure the writing is noticeable to our audience.  

Editing and Representation

In today's lesson we looked at editing and representation. We used this knowledge to develop our analytical skills because many students including myself find it easy to talk about camera angles and mise-en-scene, but struggle with going into detail about the editing and what it tells the audience. Below is some notes on different editing techniques and how they represent meaning within a media text.

Evaluation

Before today's learning I had very limited knowledge on the different styles of editing used within the media. I now have a much better understanding and would be able to use many of these techniques in my coursework with confidence to portray meaning. I have learnt about:

• Action match - highlights parralles/ contrasts between two different characters in two different situations.
• Eyeline match - Provides an insight to a character's private thoughts.
• Final shot - The last character shown in a sequence is often the character with whom the audience is expected to identify.
• Intercutting: juxtaposition - Highlights a point of difference.
• Intercutting: tension - Creates tension and increases the audience identification witha character.
• Jump cuts - Used to suggest chaos and disorder.
• Motivation - Refers to an event outside the frame, the director is then motivated to cut to show that event.
• Pace of editing - A fast pace may suggest panic or energy, whereas a slow pace may suggest a much calmer attitude
• Prevalance - How much screen time a character receives. The more time we see them in the frame, the more important their role is.
• Selection: to show or not to show -  Where a director has to choose what and what not to show in order to create the correct atmosphere.
• Shot/reverse shot - Indicates the relationship between two characters and might exaggerate their closeness or their opposition.

Therefore, this will give me a clear reference when it comes to making my coursework as to which types of editing I might see appropriate to include, as well as what effect and representations they give to an audience.

Research: Audience Survey

Overall my group and I are pleased with our second pilot survey. However we felt as though we still needed some more specific information from the audience, therefore, we decided to trial a couple more questions. The first question was:

What do you think ruins a thriller film the most?

• Gore scenes
• Sexual scenes
• Over use of violent language
• Homophobic and racial discrimination
• None

We have asked this question to determine what we should be wary of when making our opening titles. 50% of our audience answered gore, therefore this tells us we shouldn't include too much gore in our opening sequence. A further 20% answered that homophobic and racial discrimination ruined a thriller film. This means that we should try not to include much of this, in order to ensure we do not make the audience feel too uncomfortable in any way.

The second question we asked was:

Out of these popular film opening title sequences, which one do you prefer?

• James Bond
• Woman in Black
• Karthik calling Karthik
• Psycho

By asking this question we can see which title sequences are most popular with an audience, and from that, use the opening sequences to use as inspiration for us when creating our opening. Our results were tied with Woman in black, and Karthik calling Karthik, telling us aspects of horror and Bollywood seemed to be popular with our audience. This means that we might want to think about including this in our opening. 

The third question we asked related to the previous question:

Why have you chosen this film? 

• Music
• Font
• Editing
• Effects
• Camera angles/shots
• Mise-en-scene (costume, lighting, setting etc.)

We decided to include a part b to this question because it gave us more information as to why these opening title sequences were so popular. Therefore this would give us a better understanding of how we can make our opening sequence more appealing to our audience. From our previous pilot surveys we found out that music followed by mise-en-scene was important in the opening of a film. This means that I have learnt these aspects need to be chosen with great care. 

Overall, I am pleased with myself and my group for creating this survey and believe these questions should give us the information we are looking for in order to create a successful thriller film opening. Therefore, I am happy for us to now go ahead and make our final survey. 

Research: Are we on track to meet the deadline?

The picture below presents what tasks within the research section of our coursework we have completed, who has done which task, and what we still need to do. We have nine days until our deadline and from doing this task today I fully believe we are on track to completing our research on time.