Final Work Evaluation

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

Our work does follow some of the industry conventions however there are some that have not been followed as a method of differentiating ourselves from other works within the thriller genre. A example of this is the usage of credits within the title sequence. thought the industry often the title sequence is cluttered with text. this is usually because in most title sequences not much is happening. for example the thriller panic room the title sequence does not feature any events crucial to the storyline unlike our own work. within our title sequence we have the main protagonist Stanley taunting his victim. As this is important to the story we have decided not to include most of the titles common in films. This I feel is very effective in keeping audience focus on the main action.

With the narrative style by choosing to do it in a non-chronological style built up the suspense. thus helping to build the tension as viewers would want to know how the girl ended up hostage. I believe that this idea was executed in a stylised and tasteful manner. With the audience wanting to not only know how she became a hostage but what happened after he was caught.

Characterisation was one of the big focuses during the development stages of our project. One of the main ideas was to portray the main protagonist as normal. In my opinion I believe this was done well as the audience is bemused as to why the girl is tied up in the hallway before he taunts her. it was deemed that Stanley should be a cannibal following conventions used in most thrillers in which a crime is at the heart of the narrative.

How does your media product represent particular social groups?

Our media product is designed to represent different social groups in a varied way. When developing Stanleys characterisation we crafted him to represent middle aged men as slightly mysterious. By him being a cannibal it ties in with the convention in most horror films, in which most middle aged men have a deep secret that they keep from society.

The Character of Shannon represents young females as helpless. This is shown through her character being held captive. Shannon is a young girl which is shown through the excessive make up usage (which has been ruined by her crying.) age plays a important part as younger people are represented as people who would prefer to make the mistake themselves rather than listening to somebody else previous experience. This is how Shannon ended up in her current position.

The usage of a northern accent suggests that this is in a northern town this gives the work a regional identity. Shannons physical ability is limited due to her being held capture.

What kind of media institution might distribute your media product, and why?

I believe that due to the topic covered by my thriller that it is a very niche market product appealing to people who prefer extremely gruesome films however there are elements of the thriller that would have mass market appeal.

Due to this the best way to distribute it would be via a limited theatrical release similar to that of 'paranormal activity.' With the film going to DVD release and television première earlier than typical films that had a widespread release. This will enable the people from the nice market to access the film if it was not screened in there particular area.

Therefore the film would be partly by private investors as well as independent organisations that are specifically formed for the funding of films. A example film would be kidulthood which was partly funded by the UK film council. I believe the best organisation to approach for partnership with private investors would be film4.

Independent cinema chains may be more interested in distributing the film based upon its unique angle on a taboo topic. it is similar to other films distributed in this way as it appeals to a narrower audience.

The thrillers unique selling point is that it tackles a subject not widely talked about. It brings the subject into the surroundings of the audience in a modern 21st Century home in England. Placing the subject on the doorstep of the reader making them feel more involved in what is happening due to the familiar surroundings.

Who would be the audience for your media project?

The target audience for the film would be primarily male aged between 16 to 40. I decided upon this because of the face that cannibalism is not a topic women would wish to view. The reason for the lowest end being 16 Is due to the fact that Shannon is at that age meaning it would be more realistic thus more appealing to them rather than people older than the characters age. Also target audience research revealed that this thrillers did not appeal to women as much as rom-com or drama. That is why I went with the male market.

The BBFC classification I am hoping to achieve is a 15. I believe that it should be rates ad such due to the fact that it is only the topic that may be found offensive. In which case the person would not watch the film. Within the opening sequence there is no swearing, no nudity, nothing of a sexual context and any violence is not sustained for long periods of time. Thus there is no reason as to why it should receive a higher rating of 18.

'Cannibal holocaust' is a covers this topic however is professional. This appealed to the same audience as our work and as such I believe that people who watched this would also be interested in our work.

How did you attract you particular audience?

The representation of the young girl would appeal to people at the lower end of the target market as they would be able to sympathise with her in the same way as if one of their friends were taken captive by a cannibal. Whilst older members of the target audience would sympathise with Stanley during his normal dull day to day routine. Thus when they find out he is a cannibal their sympathetic position will change.

Other attractions include the usage of thriller conventions to build tension such as music. The usage of music was highlighted in feedback with one viewer stating that the music helped to build tension keeping them on the edge of their seat.

What have you learnt about technologies from the process of construction the product?

The college equipment used I believe inhibited our ideas. Of the set of lights we were loaned one of the bulbs blew. This meant that we had to redo all the lighting to ensure consistency. However it did not inhibit our ideas as we were still able to carry out our needed shots. I mastered the camera control controls as I often help when others were unsure of what to do. My hand-held technique was however not the best and as a result we resorted to using a tripod.

I believe that the editing software limited what we were capable of. I mastered the editing software however with the effects it would have been better is text effects were more profesional. Rather than the 'power-point' type text transitions available. I believe that we were able to use sound effects appropriately to connote the desired mood.

Looking back to your preliminary task, what do you feel that you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product?

We specifically planned the preliminary task using three areas camera work, sound and in shot action. From the preliminary exercise feedback showed that in sound the usage of music helped to build tension. Due to the fact that we planned out every shot the quality of camera work was better as everybody knew what was happening. The in shot action was simple allowing the view to clearly follow the plot.

When we moved on to our final production all the planning was placed into more detail. With a scrip giving information on timings, camera movement and not just dialogue. During our final task we used a project schedule which was helpful in helping us to keep track of due dates and how much longer we may have had. By meticulously planing what we needed to do and when as well as how we were able to operate more professionally thus producing a great thriller.

I feel more confident with all equipment now that we are complete as I have the appropriate experience. I have developed a variety of new skills including blogging and editing. We worked well as a team with everybody working together rather than individually. With the professional working ethic we created a product that meets the brief and is of the same standard as professional products.