Task 10 : Evaluation

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

My media product Peek-A-Boo, an opening to a horror film, uses a lot of the traditional horror conventions. For example our title font design consists of the colours red and black this is in line with a lot of the horror films on the market already such as Red Dragons opening sequence because the colour red gives a connotation of blood and gore. My media product also used this horror convention of blood and gore in the form of Dolly Pockets murder scene. This is another convention which is present in a lot of horror films such as Halloween where Michael Myers stabs his sister in the opening of the film. My opening sequence also uses the horror convention of a home video which is similiar to all the Paranormal activity films 1, 2 and 3 . My horror opening was also a physiological horror; I took the idea from various horror films such as Paranormal activity three as my film is about a mother’s physiological damage after her child dies. Although we have based our horror film on a lot of horror conventions that are seen as stereotypical we also developed and challenged the genre. For example we had a female antagonist in the form of Dolly Pocket whereas usually the antagonist is male because they are stereotypically the stronger and scarier gender e.g. Hannibal Lector and Dracula. Our horror film also challenges the hammer horror conventions such as violent epic deaths as one of the deaths in my film opening is natural. This is when Dolly’s baby dies in her cot naturally.We orginally were going to go down another plot root and Dolly Pockets baby was going to be murdered. Usually however the deaths in horrors are extreme and epic such as Van Helsing and Dracula's famous fights as they generally are known for having huge battles to the death with one another.However we thought it would make the film more dynamic and interesting to take a natural scenario and make it into something so dark and disturbing it is unexpected to the audience therefore adding a sense of surprise to Peek-A-Boo. Finally another horror convention I challenged was the type of antagonist in the film this is because as well as being female Dolly is also a mother. This is definitely different to a lot of horror films on the market because usually a motherly character is best suited to a romantic comedy. However I felt as this was the case to make the mother darker and very violent it would make the film  even more chilling and interesting to watch if such a streotypical loving, caring mother was actually a cold blooded killer in disguise.  

An image of the home video shot used in accordance with certain horror convention e.g The Paranormal Activity trilogy.

 

2)How does your media product present particular social groups?

The opening of my film Peek- A- Boo contains predominately Caucasian middle class characters in their early twenties who are mothers. This is because the film represents a stereotypical young middle class mother in the form of Tanya who is very prim and proper and reserved, who puts her child in day care as she can afford it. This is shown by Tanya's offhand comment she makes that she has dropped the” baby of at Susan's”. Tanya’s run down clothes also suggest her class to be of working class bordering on middle class young mother as they give a simplistic look to her character that is still young and edgy and mothers in general are stereotypically dressed down and appropriately in order to go about their daily routines of work and childcare. However we also represent the unconventional middle class young mother in the form of Dolly Pocket as she is the complete antithesis to Tanya because she dresses up in Fancy dress doll clothes something generally viewed as very childlike and babyish to the public audience. However Dolly Pocket is also represented as the stereotypical middle class young mother in the opening scene of the horror film as she is shown in a middle class house cradling her newly born child in basic clothes, talking to her husband who is also presented as middle class due to his posh sophisticated accent. The ages of all the characters in the film opening , both Tanya and Dolly, are around the same age due to the fact they are both in their early twenties. We did this because we wanted to show the complete antithesis to Dolly in order to show how different and far from the norm she really is.

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

For my film opening the kind of media institution that would distribute this horror film would be a film studio opposed to a TV company this is simply due to the fact horror films are generally not the type of films TV companies usually invest in such as the BBC and ITV. This is because they generally put there name to thriller and periodic films e.g. Poirot and Jane Eyre and  Peek-A-Boo does not fit into such a category. Therefore if the film was released it would do a lot better in a cinema environment under a film studio name. The film studios that would usually release a horror film like Peek-A Boo would be studios that have a lot of psychological horrors under their name, such as Paramount Pictures which is the film studio for all the Paranormal Activity films. Therefore because my film is a psychological horror because it involves Dolly Pockets mental breakdown due to her losing her baby it would fit in perfectly here . Another studio that may release a typical horror film is Hammer Films, which has put its name to films such as Dracula and Frankenstein which contain violence and gore. This fits in with my horror film as Dolly Pocket brutally murders mothers for revenge. Along with this Hammer Films have also released a lot of psychological thrillers, these may not be of the horror genre but they definitely fit in with the psychological element present in Peek-A Boo. Therefore suggesting there may be a space in the film studio for a different type of film such as Peek-A-Boo. Finally my film would be a big budget movie as if it is to be released under a huge studio name such as Hammer Films it would need to be made to a good quality. Plus the effects needed to make the film look realistic for example the murder scenes need to be good in order to add a sense of  realism to the film which is needed in order to make the film seem and appear scary because this is the main aim of horror films.

 

4) Who would be the audience for your media product?

The audience for my media product would generally be people over the age of eighteen who stem from being in their late teens to around middle age. This is because in general younger people tend to like the scare factor in horror films more than others. However Peek-A-Boos target audience could also stem to middle aged people because the topics looked at in the film, such as child death and dealing with the aftermath are topics that are more relatable to the older generation as they are more likely to have experienced having children and therefore they understand the affects of actually having that child. Alsoanyone below the age of eighteen may find such controversial topics explored deeply disturbing and this is not the aim of the horror film. In terms of gender I think both men and women could enjoy the film. However as the cast is mainly female dominated and about being a mother and therefore looks at things from a female’s perspective, women may relate to the film more then men. In terms of ethnicity the target audience could be anyone as even though the cast in the opening scene is dominated by Caucasian females this is not to say that if the film was continued that mothers of all ethnicity's would not be targeted by Dolly Pocket as she seeks revenge on any type of mother. Finally in terms of social class anyone ideally could be attracted to the film and its storyline as everyone of any class or social grade has experienced being a mother. However in terms of relating to the film a middle class audience may be the widest market as the film is from a middle class perspective as the main character , Dolly Pocket comes from this background and the majority of her victims are of the same social standing and class.

5) How did you attract/address your audience ?

I have attracted and addressed my audience to my film Peek-A- Boo by creating a deep storyline that contains many dimensions people can relate to. This is because the film does not only contain gore but contains meaning due to the fact Dolly Pocket is murdering these mothers because she has lost her own child ,which has made her jealous and seek revenge on those who have what she does not. The characters also present in my film Peek-A- Boo such as Dolly Pocket were created in order to attract the audience as she contains a lot of mystery as she is a grown women dressed as a doll with baby fetishes which draws the audience in because it raises the question how has this person become so disturbed and distorted? My titles and the opening music to the film I also used in order to attract and address my audience as I based them on the different kinds of horror films already out in the market. Therefore attracting the attention of those who were fans of films such as Halloween ,which has the same fade in and fade out effects as my titles do and Red Dragon which has the same red and black coloured titles.  Many people may think my film is a lot like these films and go see Peek-A-Boo on this simple basis . As well as this my opening music “Pop Goes the weasel” is strong and dynamic meaning that it catches the attention of the audience and addresses a large area of the target audience (the younger audience) as it is upbeat and tense. When releasing my film  in terms of marketing hypothetically I would create film posters in order to address my target audience because a lot of the audience is in there twenties and late teens and therefore are more likely to use public transport and therefore they could view the posters on the side of buses and at bus stops. I would also use the traditional marketing techniques such as film trailers and interviews with the leading actress' and the rest of the Peek- A-Boo cast in order to create hype around the characters as a lot of middle aged and younger people enjoy watching TV. I would also use the new idea of online marketing and put on YouTube teaser trailers for Peek-A-Boo in order to send the message across the country or even the world. I would also create a web page for the film along with a facebook page in order to reach the younger audience as well as pop ups and i would slowly leak in pictures from the set to build up gradual anticipation for the films release in cinemas everywhere.

6) What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?
I have learnt from this process how to use a HD touch screen camera in order to achieve ideal and different camera shots such as an extreme close up and different types of pans. I also learnt how to create moodboards therefore i created a horror and a romantic comedy board on my blog in order to demonstrate the different ideas connected to a particular genre of film. I have also learnt how to use Adobe premiere pro in order to make and edit my film opening into a good and quality product containing techniques such as dissolves from scene to scene.Leading me to also learn how to export clips onto the Macs and use an external hardware along with how to edit scenes in order to make them seem cinematic. For example we learnt how to put effects onto the video footage such as making the scene darker in order to make the film more spooky and in line with the horror genre and changing the colour of the stabbing scene to red in order to signify that blood had been shed as Dolly murders Tanya. I have also learnt how to blog on BlogSpot. com in order to display the work I have done. From the process of constructing my product I have also learnt how to apply the 180 degree rule to a real film production scenario and within this how to achieve and edit in sync shots such as an eye match and a match on action . Finally I have learnt about technologies from the process of constructing my film opening, how to do screen grabs taken from my film to transfer to my blog and how to download music and finally the simple task of how to use all the equipment the camera comes with e.g. the tri pod and how to position the equipment to make the shot being filmed as steady as possible.

These two pictures show one of the affects we but into action . We learnt how to use colour corrector to make the shot look darker in order to look scarier and darker to match the themes in the film opening.We also learnt how to zoom in to the shot as demonstrated here in order to show the where the audiences focus point should be.

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

I have learnt from the progression from my preliminary task to now how to work as a group and how important it is to listen to the different ideas everyone has to offer in order to create a film that is the best it can possibly be. This is what i did when discussing what the horror film opening would be  like as we brainstormed all our ideas in order to make sure everyone’s opinion was heard. I also learnt it was key to be a good team member as we had to work together in order to make the process as fast and as smooth as possible .We did this by planning when and where we were going to meet up and film and making sure we showed up at the respectable times. Another thing i have learnt from the progression from the preliminary task to now is how to use a HD camera appropriately and effectively in order to obtain the best camera shots and frames possible. Therefore we filmed all different types of camera shots and frames in order to show our true range of skills some examples are ; the downward pan when the camera comes down from the trees and focuses on the character Tanya and the medium close up of Tanya’s face as she realises someone’s following her . I have also learnt how to put into action the 180 degree rule whilst shooting my film opening. As we learnt this in the preliminary task i finally got a chance to put this into action in my film opening in order to make sure the film looked and followed the rule appropriately. Mainly i have learnt that the film process is not always smooth this is due to the fact we did come head to head with a few promblms during the filming period for Peek-A-Boo such as lack of props. This was the case for the murder scene where Tanya originally was meant to be pushing a pram containing her baby . I learnt to overcome these promblms , something i would have hesitated to do if the dilemea had occured during the pre-liminary task. We overcame this particular promblm by changing the scenario in which Tanya found herself and replaced the prop of a pram with a mobile phone which meant she could state she had dropped the baby of into the care of another. I have also learnt from the preliminary task how to change and adapt a scene in order to make it better and stronger than the orginal filmed sequence . This is a skill i learnt in the preliminary task as we had to shoot numerous times  before the end product was complete and up to an ideal standard . I applied this to my film opening Peek-A- Boo and instead of having the opening sequence consisting of pans and numerous close ups of toys we replaced the idea with the home video sequence in order to add depth to Peek-A-Boo as it made the story clearer something that it was not orginally with the planned opening.Therefore i have learnt from progression from the pre-liminary task to now that what may look good and work on paper may not always work on film neccesarily.This was the same  when looking at camera angles and frames after filming the preliminary task i learnt that camera angles and frames add alot to the look at the feel of the film . Therefore i applied this learning curve to my film production and strayed from the orginal planned story board shots in order to capture the true essence of the plot line for Peek-A-Boo . An example of this can be found in the murder scene when we changed the standard long shots pre planned to hand held shots in order to give the sense of confusion Tanya is feeling as Dolly hunts her down and also to give of a sense of realism to the scene.   

   Medium close up of Tanya       
   and the downward pan from
   the trees to Tanya working
   home.

The Film Peek-A-Boo

This is the opening to the horror film Peek-A-Boo by Chloe Ravenscroft and Frida Eide

Behind the scenes

We decided to film a behind the scenes look at the make up that would be used in our production in order to show the kind of designs we were looking for when creating the character of Dolly Pocket.
Step by step guide to make up

First we applied a white base to give the character a ghostly look as ghosts are a stereotypical horror creature. We then added black around the eyes and mouth in order to create a demon , evil look in order to portray the characters true nature .

We then added large rosy cheeks to the face in order to create the image of a large porcelain doll , to show how far Dolly Pockets obsession has gone because She even dresses in children's clothing and and goes to the extremes of making herself into a child's play toy.Therefore indicating her true mental state.

We then put the hair up into pigtails to reinforce the idea of Dolly's doll image as it is a very childish hairstyles that adults generally do not wear.

Finally the look is completed that contains all different aspects of typical horror traits such as the bloodless white skin and the creepy inhuman nature about the character.

                                                           The end result

Film settings

A big decision we had to make when making our film opening of Peek-A-Boo was where we were actually going to film the scenes. We came up with two different setting these are the inside of Dolly Pockets house and the outside of Tanya's house where she is stabbed brutally by Dolly Pocket.

Here is a picture of inside Dolly Pockets house before she turns into a killer. As you can see the setting is very light in colour compared to scenes later on when Dolly has turned bad. This is because the connotation of lightness is pure and happiness something we wanted to convey Dolly feeling here in the scene as she has just had her baby and is overjoyed. We picked a standard middle class house to film our scenes in to give a sense of realism to the film.

These two images here show the outside setting we used. We decided to pick a place with large towering trees that were leafless as it gives a sense of isolation which in turn gives a very creepy connotation of danger ,as nobody is aroundto call for help.Something that is highly associated with the horror genre. We also chose a place which was highly isolated in order to shoot our film at ease as there could be no interruptions and our filming  would be realistic as Tanya is meant to be all alone when she meets her fate.

This is a picture taken from the stabbing scene . Here we used a plastic knife in order to avoid injury. Also as we were in public it wouldn't have been appropriate. We decided to film the actual stabbing on Tanyas doorstep. We did this to add a sense of sadness to the scene as she was so close to being safe. There is also something quite wrong and twisted about killing someone in there own home area , as a home is usually a connontation of warmth and safety , a convention we challange here in order to corrospond with the horror genre.

Here is another picture from the final scene of the opening to are film. We chose a setting full of different toys for Dolly to live in in order to show her obsession with child belongings in order to give the audience a deeper look into Dolly Pockets life and obsessions.