midway creative critical reflection
11/12/18
In the first creative critical reflection, I was asked about my media product (film opening) and reflecting on the work that I have done. The questions include things like how the opening use or challenge convections, how it engage with the audience and how has my production skills have developed throughout this project.
peer feedback 6/3/18
In this Peer Feedback, we have collected feedback from our friends and teachers about the film. The majority of them had highly positive experiences, finding the mood and tone very clearly established with the use of melancholy music/black and white, and said that they wanted to watch the whole story. However, a number of them commented on the quality of the footages and how the scenes looked a little too dark for some of them, which is what we could have improved if we had a chance to refilm.
I have decided to complete a directors commentary based on the as exam question “How is meaning created through this extract?”
directors commentary 6/3/19
In our film opening, a sense of tragedy and mystery was created through the use of cinematography, mise en scene, editing and sound.
Final Creative critical reflection
q1 how does your product use or challenge conventions and how does it represent social groups or issues?
Unique genre ; My film has a unique genre compared to the others, I chose romantic tragedy whilst others tend to go for horror or thriller as it is easier to achieve emotional response from the audience. I chose romantic tragedy as I see that it is a challenging genre, which will give me an opportunity to challenge myself and improve my skills.
Cinematography ; Close up shots are used to place an emphasis on the character’s emotions, so that the audience is able to grasp the feelings of the characters better or show the audience a significant object.
Shot reverse shot is a technique where one character is shown looking at another character and vice versa. This is used to clearly establish a connection or relationship between the characters.
Mise en scene ; The settings of a romantic tragedy are normally very realistic. This is mainly done to promote a sense of realism to the film, making the events that occurs in the film seems normal, encouraging audiences to empathise with the characters and the plot more, allowing them to engage, and develop emotional connections with the film. The costume in romantic tragedy follows a very similar route to that of the settings. It consists of very realistic and normal clothes which are very common.
Editing ; Continuity and classic editing is used in my film to create a clear story line whilst maintaining the authenticity of the film.
Sound ; I have used soundtrack and sound effects to add depth and authenticity to the film, the soundtrack will also help to enhance the overall mood and tone of the film.
Topic ; Our main topic of the movie is the idea of “Attachment”. We want to explore the psychological aspects of attachment, such as the attachment theory. Attachment in psychology is a deep and enduring emotional bond that connects one person to another across time and space. It does not have to be reciprocal. One person may have an attachment to an individual which is not shared. Attachment is characterised by specific behaviours in children, such as seeking proximity to the attachment figure when upset or threatened (https://www.simplypsychology.org/attachment.html). The attachment theory in psychology mainly looks into behaviours of young children and babies, however, we will be looking into the attachment between a couple.
There are 4 types of attachment in a relationship; Secure, Anxious Preoccupied, Dismissive Avoidant and Fearful Avoidant. In our movie, we will be looking into Secure Attachment (https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/compassion-matters/201307/how-your-attachment-style-impacts-your-relationship ). Secure attachment is a form of attachment where individuals feel secure and connected with each other, giving support and comfort yet loving towards their partner. This is the healthiest form of attachment in a relationship. However, we will be looking into the idea of attachment in a situation when one partner is departed, coming back to the other person as a spirit because of their attachment towards each other.
q2 How does your product engage with audiences and how would it be distributed as a real media text?
For my second question "How does your product engage with audiences and how much you how would it be distributed as a real media text?". My product is a full feature film, and my target audience demographic aims at mainly teenagers and adults, as the content is rather mature and difficult to understand for children, therefore making it not appealing to them. The story would be suitable for both genders, however there is the potential of the film appealing to more female than male audience, as the genre is romantic tragedy which normally suits female audience more. The target ethnicity would be English speaking countries because this is my opening would be made into a full feature film the soundtrack and dialogue will be in English, however, the ethnic city is not a big issue currently because there are no conversation in the opening. If the film was to be distributed it will mainly be put into local theatres, and if the film is successful in the country it might be promoted internationally too. There will be promotion and advertisements put onto online platforms such as Instagram, Facebook and YouTube which increase the exposure of the film to the public community. As a result, more people will know or have heard about the film, which increase the possibility of people watching the film. If possible, I would add special events such as meeting the actors, and allowing the audience to share their experience watching my film, this will help to influence the others into watching.
This is the official poster of my film, it would be advertised in cinemas and online platforms if it was to be distributed as a full feature film.
q3 How did your production skills develop throughout this project?
This is my third question "How did your production skills develop throughout this project?". Throughout this year, I have developed so many production skills that will be beneficial for me in the future works. before I started this project I have very little knowledge regarding media and production in general. I didn’t know how to properly operate a DSLR camera. I didn’t know how to edit properly and have had very few and brief experiences of filming and editing. Throughout this project I have learned how to fully operate a camera I have learned to edit a video and sounds using software such as iMovie and Adobe Premiere Pro. I have learned to and created a website showcasing my work in progress through the use of Wix. I have also learned to scout for locations and research on costumes finding out which style of costume is suitable for certain genre of films. Moreover, I have worked on my make up skills during filming to give actors such a looks in each scene of the film. Lastly I have learned how props can be of great importance in a film for example one of the props that has been used in our film is a flower bouquet.
these are top trump cards showing my skill set in media
/ production skills
before and after this year. as you can see, i have learned many things that are beneficial for me now and in the future.
q4 How did you integrate technologies - software, hardware and online - in this project?
This is my forth question on the CCR "How did you integrate technologies - software, hardware and online - in this project?".
​
Firstly I'm going to start with hardware technology. I have used a camera a tripod a sound recorder and a laptop to film and edit my opening.
Secondly software technology, I have used a couple of editing softwares during the process of post production to edit my film, I have used Adobe Premiere Pro and iMovie to edit my opening, I have used Adobe Premiere Pro to edit some of my film. It is a very useful software with many tools that can be used simultaneously with other Adobe software such as Bridge and Aftereffects. I mainly used iMovie in the process of editing, it is a simple easy to use software with ample tools to edit a film, I have used colour grading tool in order to alter the colours of my footages, enhancing the mood and tone of the film.
For online technology, I have used Wix, an online web creator site to showcase my progress and development throughout the year from idea development research to production diary. Wix has allowed me to update my progress make plans about my film and show that I have done several research for pre-production, production and post production regarding my film
This is an example of a page in my blog, it showcases my Fresh and Unique research which shows how I can make my film unique when compared to other films in the industry. I can add youtube videos I found useful, images that I can use as references for camera shots, and I later made the evaluation box to show what this research helped my in the pre-production of my film.
If I was to improve my film further I would have used a variety of online technologies. I would upload the trailer onto Youtube and various social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. I will also make social media accounts in platforms mentioned earlier to create an interaction with the target audience and show the film to a larger group of audience. If possible I will try to create online movements or campaigns promoting my film, such as a hashtag or a challenge people could take part in.
