Evaluation: Question 4 How did you use media technologies in the construction and research, planning and evaluation stages?

Below is the link to my Prezi document responding to question 4:

https://prezi.com/dkorqbblbziz/q4-how-did-you-use-media-technologies-in-the-construction-a/

Evaluation: Question 3 What have you learned from your audience feedback?

For this question I have evaluated how Kirsty and I responded to feedback throughout the making of the trailer, and when I was creating my poster and homepage. I then asked some members of the target audience individually of their opinion on the three products which enabled me to analyse whether my three products were successful or not among the audience. To present this I used Windows Movie Maker to display the video footage of some members' feedback as well as some written answers from different members. I then summarised their feedback from the finished products using Microsoft PowerPoint to display my response and save them as images.

Below is an animated GIF that I have created using Adobe Fireworks to present part of my answer to question 3:
There are 9 states of the GIF that will automatically roll round to present my answer. If, however, the animation goes too quickly, I have included my script below also.

Our main inspiration for the plot was inspired by The Babadook, the horror in this revolves around a children’s book and so we decided to base our plot around a relevant object that is the source of horror. From our focus group feedback we established that they like this idea of the psychological horror of using an object that creates the initial horror.

 Trailer

Once planning the trailer and having completed an initial storyboard, we gained some more audience feedback which informed us that more scenes of horror needed to be included to shock and disgust the audience. This helps make the audience feel anxious, disturbed and fearful. From this we incorporated animal organs to act as human organs to portray suggestions of disgust and horror. From our initial feedback from the focus group of our pitch from the beginning, the group liked the idea of having an Ouija Board because this makes them feel anxious and uneasy. Therefore we decided to include scenes of the four friends using an Ouija Board to communicate with Chelsie. Within these scenes more glimpses of horror were included on each of the characters, like hair pulling, strangling, coughing up blood and bleeding out of the eyes. They also stated how it was unclear as to why Chelsie was the one who died and so suggested that making her character become victimised would gain higher interest; therefore we tweaked the start of the trailer from Sylvia being at home looking through keepsakes, to a flashback of the camping trip when Chelsie was last seen. Another point that the audience made was that if all the friends were scared of the occurrences, that they would not go back to the forest because they were too frightened and so we changed it from all the friends having weird disturbances to the character Sylvia who was the bigger bully to Chelsie than the others. Her emotional breakdowns alongside the guilt and absence at school of the character Matt lead the friends to return to the forest. A member from the focus group thought that it wasn’t clear that Chelsie was dead because her last appearance was simply her walking off into the forest alone; therefore we created a news report scene after she left to make it clear that she had died to strengthen the plot. Our creative minds enabled us to create the suggestion of a police siren by using the strobe light with blue filter paper to then flash it against the police tape to produce the effect of a crime scene with police cars’ flashing lights.

Poster

My initial idea was inspired by the Silent Hills poster because I thought that the title of ‘Silent Screams’ reflected the idea of having no mouth meant that the scream would be silent. From feedback though the idea was thought that maybe layering a transparent image of Chelsie screaming could represent the idea of her screaming is silent because it is inside of her and she cannot be heard. However when creating the poster a member of the focus group said that they felt that the screaming image of Chelsie was more powerful than the no mouth one and so I changed my layering for the main image to be of Chelsie screaming with a no mouth image of Chelsie as the overlaid transparent image. Her appearance of pale skin whitened hair to age her made her look dead as well as intimidating due to her harsh direct address stare. The film title and image Chelsie screaming creates an oxymoron of her scream being silent as she cannot be heard. This makes her appear beyond normality whereby the image can toy with the audience to scare them and make them fear her character.

Homepage

To differ from my poster I used a long shot image of Chelsie in the forest of where she was last seen. I experimented with a video background of Chelsie stood in the forest and the frame zooms into Chelsie, because I felt that may this would incorporate more interaction among the audience and maintain their attention. However feedback given to me said how that it distracted them from the page and made the reviews become lost on the page and so was not effective. Therefore I went with my original plan of a still image taken from a long shot view of Chelsie stood in the forest.

Below is the link to my Windows Movie Maker document on YouTube presenting the video footage from three target audience members:

https://youtu.be/NVHO3qDbz1M

Below are the questions I asked to some more target audience members I interviewed; I have collated their responses into one document and changed the font colour to distinguish three different people's answers:

Trailer

Did you like the trailer; has it made you want to watch the film?

Yes, got my curiosity

Yes, I would like to see the film, seems like an easy watching horror film

Yes, was intriguing

What do you understand from the trailer, does it make sense to you?

Yeah, got the beginning where the victim dies yet changes to the group of friends trying to communicate with her

I understood the film as a group of friends going to the woods, one gets killed and haunts and kills the rest of them. It follows a very clear story progression

Yes, that a victimised girl dies and haunts her so-called friends

Do you know what the trailer is trying to communicate?

Be nice to your friends otherwise they will seek revenge

A horror film, aimed a teens, around be nice to each other or they will kill you

That it is a horror film, and scares you

Any other comments about the trailer?

It communicates the genre well

Easy to understand story progression, and really like the font

Easy to follow

Poster

Do you like the poster, would it make you want to see the film?

Yes it would intrigue me

The poster does look scary, and has little enough information to catch my attention. It’s very simple and easy to grasp

Yes, want to know what it is about – why the girl is screaming

Do you think that the poster looks professional and realistic like a real existing horror film poster?

Yes because it follows the darkness of the horror film genre which are never light and colourful

Yes, I believe that it could be a real poster. It has kept it simple, yet portraits that it is a horror film

Yes, has all the features I would expect to see

Can you distinguish what the poster is trying to communicate?

It shows that the film is horror and not any other film genre

That it is a horror film and you won’t be able to hear the screams

Figure screaming silently, so I assume that she is dead

Any other comments about the poster?

Like the chosen title font because it’s different, and has the conventional features of a typical horror film poster.

I really liked the poster, it was probably my favourite, could really see this in print

I like the font choice; it’s different and catches your attention so gives it a scarier feel.

Homepage

Do you like the homepage, would it make you want to see the film?

Would get my interest of what the film is about

The homepage easily portraits that the film is a horror. I love the background as it is the writing that moves, so it seems she is always watching you. Has definitely made me what to see the film

Yes, makes me want to find out more

Do you think that the homepage looks professional and realistic like a real existing horror film site?

Yes, it has all the conventional things I would look for

Yes could easily be a real horror webpage. Love that there is a mobile friendly version, which is better than some real websites! Also there is not too much information on the page, so doesn’t feel like there is too much going on. The layout and navigation also works well, and the music just adds the right amount of creepy.

Yes, it has all the features of a homepage

Any other comments about the homepage?

Easy to navigate and get around the site, can get access to all the information needed.

Do love the webpage, seems really professional

Looks very professional, easy to use and follow

Below is my summary from reviewing my audience feedback of the final products:

Evaluation: Question 2 How effective is the combination of your main product and ancillary texts?

Below is the link to my Screencast-o-matic video answering question 2 uploaded onto YouTube:


https://youtu.be/ST7RaGswIHg

Below is my transcript:

How effective is the combination of your main product and ancillary texts?

The combination of my main product and ancillary texts has consistency throughout all three products because this is professional and prevents the audience from getting confused. Having consistency throughout enables the audience to identify the film and distinguish it from any other film – it creates a reputation and style that is specifically associated with the film. I have pursued this by using the same film title in the same font, the same institutional information and the same serif and sans serif fonts throughout all my products. This enabled me to communicate the genre of the film throughout all my products and create consistency across the campaign to reinforce each advertisement so that they convey the same messages about the subgenre, plot, themes and characters.

The homepage and poster have the same character of the girl who is the victim who then seeks revenge to become the villain. This creates the impression of how she is the one to be afraid of. As the poster and webpage images are still, it is hard to convey the idea that Chelsie was the victim and becomes the villain however the trailer enables this change to be made clearer by the equilibrium establishing her being victimised to later on in the trailer suggesting that she is the origin of horror. It is conventional to have the antagonist on the marketing products of the film because this portrays how they are the source of horror and draws the audience in to watch the film to establish their relevance and power. Her stern and intimidating expression further implies the horror that then makes the audience feel pressured to watch it. In both of the products Chelsie’s outfit and makeup is the same because it is representing her dead figure of no longer being alive and coming back to haunt her friends. Her appearance of pale skin, dusty hair and the white dress helps connote a ghostly character showing her aged from the equilibrium where she was alive.

The colours throughout all the products correlate because all of them include black and white with hints of red. The hints of red were used to make key information related to the film significant by the use of colour consistency to suggest the paranormal subgenre. For instance on my poster I made the tagline red to connote danger, blood and violence which are associated with the horror genre. On the homepage I made the release date red to maintain the connotation of danger, blood and violence in addition to making it significant against the surrounding white text of the title, tagline and navigation bar so that the audience notice it. The use of red helps communicate violence across all three products because of the association of the colour with violence; on the poster Chelsie’s facial expression suggests the idea of fear from the scream, yet intimidating and frightening through the harsh direct address of her eye contact. On the homepage her appearance from her outfit and makeup implies her to no longer to be alive in addition to her isolation in a forest highlights the idea of her distancing from others. Incorporating an uncomforting and eerie sound track to the homepage helps indicate that Chelsie is the cause of horror among the other characters. The trailer hints at violence towards the end when the pace is at its quickest – there are short glimpses of each of the protagonists experiencing horrifying situations due to Chelsie seeking revenge.

Sound is used in the trailer and on the webpage; this communicates the genre because the tempo and pitch of the music is associated with horror. The score used on the website was incorporated in the trailer and so remains uniformity throughout the products enabling the audience to identify how they interlink and that consideration has been thought out when making the products. As well as reminding the audience of the other film products subconsciously to give the same emotional response of feeling uncomfortable and uneasy.  This prevents confusion among the audience and makes the products conventional because it is common for existing horror film trailers to have sounds within them that are then included in the ancillary products, like on a website and soundtrack.

Evaluation: Question 1 In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?



Below is the YouTube link to my question 1 response:

https://youtu.be/KFvk9ieG6II

In case my speech is too fast or unclear, my transcript can be found below:

Trailer

The trailer uses conventions of real horror trailers because my research of the camera work, mise-en-scene, editing and sound enabled me to identify and understand them.

The trailer’s camera work is conventional of real horror film trailers because we start the trailer with an establishing shot of the group of friends walking in the forest. This portrays how they are in an isolated location which instantly creates suspicion of horror. We used close up shots throughout the trailer when showing facial expressions to give the audience a clear view of the characters’ emotion and create a close connection with them. We included long shots to show the surrounding of the character in the frame to help establish the scene. We also included point of view shots to make the audience feel as though they are seeing parts in real life as though they are part of the horror. We used the camera movement of tilts to slowly reveal parts of the scene so the audience can follow the movement themselves and feel part of the action. For example when Sylvia opens the door to find the parcel, the camera is over her shoulder and tilts down to the ground where the parcel is. This allows the audience to see what Sylvia sees at the same time making them feel part of the horror as well as building up tense by slowly revealing what is on the ground and the cause of the unexpected knock at the door. 

The trailer’s mise-en-scene is conventional to real horror trailers because typical settings are in isolated places or homely locations, both of which we included; we have scenes set in a forest, at home and at school. At home and school make it relatable to the audience which can enhance the horror by making them feel vulnerable themselves inflicting the idea that they could experience similar situations. The costumes used were basic clothing for the ordinary characters and then a white dress for the ghostly figure of Chelsie which is typical of horror films connoting the supernatural theme. The facial expressions vary throughout the trailer from basic every day expressions during ordinary events to fearful and frightened during the events of suspense and horror. We used a range of props that suggest horror like the Ouija board, animal organs and fake blood. The necklace belonging to Chelsie was used at the start as the source of horror.  Throughout the trailer we used a range of lighting of natural, low-key dark and shadowy. This helps create a spooky atmosphere because the darkness restricts what the audience can see and the shadows created an unnerving atmosphere. We used a strobe light to create the flashing effect within the intense scenes.

The ending of the trailer is conventional to real horror film trailers because the length of cuts decreases to create a faster pace. The length of cuts varies throughout the trailer; the beginning of the trailer has longer shots with fewer cuts because there is a calmer pace to establish the equilibrium. Then as the trailer progresses the length of cuts decreases to become shorter cuts with a faster pace of editing during the scenes of intense action. This creates short glimpses of what is going on to excite the audience by creating enigma leaving them with unanswered questions. Furthermore the audience only get to preview small parts of the film that intend to entice them into watching the entire film. This prevents them from seeing too much of the footage that it is too repetitive when watching the whole film. The editing of the trailer is conventional because we used varied length of cuts, and transitions of fade-out and fade-in from black. We used fade-out to black when the pace was slower, and straight cuts when we wanted the pace to be quick and intense. is commonly used, which we used in our trailer when the pace is slower, and straight cuts when we wanted the pace to be quick and intense.

The trailer includes sounds over the video footage to enhance the viewers’ experience. We layered sounds over the score to match certain actions to fit with the visuals; such as the knocking at the door and the running tap water. The combinations of sounds create a more dramatic atmosphere that excites the audience in addition to creating a chaotic atmosphere that disorientates the audience. Sounds that are unusual with a deep tempo are used with scenes of the villain Chelsie to convey her character. All of which are conventional of horror film trailers. This helps set the scene and pace of the trailer in addition to creating chaos to make the audience feel uneasy. We included variations in the tempo of music and pitch to disorientate the audience as again this is a conventional feature of horror film trailers. In addition, we included stings at parts of the trailer to signify events, such as the revealing the necklace in the bath, to make the audience fearful. We included more sound effects to build up tension and drama to create chaos for the intense action to further disorientate the audience to make them feel anxious and apprehensive.

Poster

My poster uses conventions of real media posters because the title of the film is made the largest so that it is the most noticeable. I have located it towards the bottom of the page, underneath Chelsie’s face because typically audience read from top to bottom and so the audience will see Chelsie’s expression first and then see the film title. This should enable them to visualise the image and establish that it is a horror film and then remember the film title so that they can find out more about the film. The tagline is underneath the title in a smaller font so that it complements the title but does not take attention away from it. Likewise with the release date, it is made clear by being in a simplistic font of a suitable size that is noticeable yet does not take away the main focus on the film title or poster image. The production company is made small so that it is credited but does not take up much of the poster, similarly with the credit block which are is found at the bottom of the poster. It is common for movie posters to have the credit block at the bottom of the poster in the smallest font of the entire poster because it gives credit to those involved yet does not take away focus from the main features like the title and image. All of the text elements are located centrally in the bottom rule of third segments so that the audience remember the key information like the film title and release date.

Homepage

My homepage follows the conventions of real horror homepages because the navigation bar is at the top of the page and is on all pages because this is common on existing sites and so makes it easy for the audience to navigate around as this is what they would expect to have on a website. I have included sound to enhance the horror experience as well as multimedia and social media links. Including the social media links for Facebook, Instagram and Twitter enables the audience to connect with the film by following posts and updates. This creates a buzz among them which helps build up interest and excitement among the audience. I chose these links because these particular social media sites are commonly used by the target audience and so it should reach a broader range of viewers that can have insight into the film that is likely to help sell it. This is particularly important for independent filmmakers like us who do not have an existing reputation that audiences are familiar with. Producers that have a well-built and familiar reputation are likely to have people watch new films they produce because they like previous products the producers have made. The credit block is found at the bottom of the page to give credit to those involved, like on the poster.

However my homepage challenges real media homepages because most horror film websites do not have reviews around the main image on the homepage, however I felt that this worked well for my page because the website is based upon a new producer and new film and so it is unfamiliar among audiences. This should then help to sell the film to audiences because they can be used as a form of persuasion because the casting and institutional information are not likely to manage this having been an independent film producer with unknown actors and actresses. Having reviews from film critics and film festivals informs the audience that the film has some interest to gain reviews and feedback from these specialists giving the impression that it will be worth watching. The review “Extraordinary debut film” makes it clear that the film is a debut and immediately notifies the audience that it is new. Including the adjective ‘extraordinary’ highlights how the film is remarkable and different which can help sell the film to audiences. So that I could incorporate multimedia on my homepage I animated the reviews to create some moving features alongside the soundtrack, main image, hyperlinks and trailer video.

Silent Screams Website

Below is the link to my film website:

https://tashahares14.wixsite.com/a2mediasilentscreams

Silent Screams Trailer

Below is the link to YouTube that has the Silent Screams Trailer:

https://youtu.be/v0T9ZhmpQ_s