AS Media Project "Clarity" Evaluation

In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products? (i.e. of film openings)

We decided to use many codes and conventions of thriller films, such as quick cuts, creating an enigma, hand held shots, close up’s and over shoulder shots. Using these codes and conventions were essential, as, without them, our project would not be considered a thriller. However, we also developed and challenged forms and conventions of thrillers, in order for our product to be relevant and slightly different in order to attract our primary target audience of women between 18 and 24. Therefore, we used a female protagonist, which our target audience could connect with and admire. Using a female protagonist can be seen as developing the codes and conventions of a thriller, as although it is becoming a more common occurrence, it is still more recognized to have a male protagonist.

In addition, we filmed our product in daylight, rather than at night. We believed that this would create more suspense, as the audience would not be so used to this format as a thriller, leading to their senses being further heightened. 

How does your media product represent particular social groups?

My media product represents only one social group, young, independent business women. We managed to do this is many ways, such as casting. We chose a white British female, as our media product was meant to resemble a British film. She would then also represent young, white British women. We then carefully planned our protagonist’s costume to ensure that she looked like a business woman. We did this by using more mature and sophisticated clothing, such as smart black trousers, black heels and a black blazer. We also styled her hair in a classic up-do, adding red lipstick to give a more professional look to her character.

We further represented this social group by our use of props. Although we only used two props, the briefcase and a mobile phone, the style of these objects clearly indicate the professional side of our protagonist. For example, it would be more likely for a professional to be carrying a smart briefcase than the average person.

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

I believe that the kind of institution that might distribute my media product would be an independent label, focusing on a niche market. I believe this because it is a typically British film, including gritty roads and graffiti infested alleys, and so a major American company would not produce it. In addition, I believe that the institution would focus on a niche market as the fact that the protagonist is a female, especially in a British film, is less commonly found.

I created a media institution myself, “Golden Earring Productions” which is an independent label focusing on a niche market. We did this as we decided that our production group would produce only films including a female protagonist, rather than a male.

Who would be the audience for your media product?

The audience for our media product would be females between the ages of 18 and 24. We decided that this would be our primary target audience, as the use of a strong, independent female protagonist would appeal to females as they would idolize and admire the protagonist. This would also enable our target audience to connect with the protagonist, which would possibly ensure that they would then enjoy our product more.

However, we also believed that males would also enjoy our film, despite the fact that they are not our target audience. We suggested that this may be the case as a strong, independent female protagonist may also appeal largely to the male population, as they would admire this and possibly be attracted to this type of independence.

How did you attract/address your audience?

I addressed my audience through the female protagonist in my film. We did this by ensuring that although she appeared to be business-like and professional, she also appeared to look like the average person you could easily see walking down the street. This would enable our audience to connect with her character, and so attract them further to our opening.

I attracted the audience by the using of titles throughout the opening sequence of our thriller film, in order to receive their full attention. I also attracted my audience by my use of music. I did this by adding modern, upbeat music that also fitted with the genre of my product. As the music was modern, it would easily attract my target audience (18 to 24 year old women) as this could likely be along the lines of their music taste.

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

From the process of constructing this product, I have learnt that technologies are only as good as the user. I learnt this very quickly, as I found filming very difficult due to the fact that never before have I used technological devices in such a way. I therefore found using the camera itself challenging, as well as ensuring that I used particular shot types to create my desired effect.

In addition to this, I have also realized how unreliable many forms of technology can be. For example, I often found that during filming my camera would run out of charge, creating issues as we had a certain time frame in which to finish our filming. Also, editing and exporting my final edit of my product proved challenging, as there were many issues with the computer network, meaning that the computer would often freeze and become barely usable. This made editing especially hard, as it became very difficult to cut scenes as often I could not watch my opening the whole way through in order to establish which parts I should cut, and which I should use.

However, despite these issues, I have learnt that technologies can be empowering and relatively easy to use as even I, an inexperienced technology user, managed to film and edit my own thriller opening. For example, I was able to create a loop on Garage band to use for the end credits in my product by simply dragging and dropping different aspects which I then made into one unanimous loop.

Looking back at your preliminary task (the continuity editing task), what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to full product?

Since completing my preliminary task, I feel that I have learnt many things from progression to the full product. My understanding of filming itself has improved rapidly, as I have learnt about techniques and rules that never before had I come across in any other situation, such as “crossing the line” and the importance of a wide variety of different shot types and the effects that they create. This was due to wider research and continuous practice when filming. As I would show my teacher my work, he could comment and offer advice on a regular basis, pointing out any issues that must be reconsidered or changed. For example, my first day of filming that I had done was later re-filmed as I had not changed the camera’s automatic white balance setting, which if left unnoticed, would have resulted in my film appearing off colour and unprofessional.

In addition to this, I have also learnt how to manage my time, as this soon proved essential when starting my product. I created a Gantt chart in order to help me plan how long to spend on each section of my product, in order to ensure that I did not fall behind or leave anything until the last minute. I have also learnt that it is essential to ensure that all work is done, as other members of teams cannot always prove reliable. In my group, my other member was not very committed to our project, resulting in myself doing the majority of the filming and all of the editing. This had a large impact on my work, as I struggled to manage to complete each section of the project.