Blog closed

 



Final Film Opening

we have tried to post our final piece on our blogger but have had a lot of problems and we can not put it on here. However, we have our final film opening on the disc that is sent to the moderator.

Question 5- How did you attract/address your audience?

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

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

FRAME ONE- Title of the film

Frame one is how our title comes up. We use a slow fade to bring up the title, this comes up straight after the last scene of Laura's mouth, which indicates there is something different about one of these two girls and that one of them has a dark story behind her as the title is including one of the girls names. We thought having about 'My name is Alice' on its own and not over a shot of the film as it singles it out and makes it look more important as we want the audience to properly know what the film is called and not be distracting by anything happening in the background. We also chose it to be white on black so its very clear and the audience cannot miss it.

FRAME TWO- setting/ location

The time in our opening sequence it is set outside. Its mostly in the middle of nowhere which indicates that Alice can not meet the other girl in public. Its almost like she wants to keep her hidden so no-one else sees her. It shows she has to bike far to meet her as when it shows her biking its skips to different parts showing her travels. The majority of our location is near the countryside, we made sure of this so we didn't include any of today's cars as that would ruin the whole era we were aiming for as they wouldn't have modern cars in the 1960's. The whole bike ride also adds to her age as it makes her look cute and girlie, so you wouldn't expect her to have a secret.

FRAME THREE- Costumes and props

The costumes we picked for our characters were set to their age and the era. They wore blouses and skirts, as that is what most little girls wore in the 60's. also as they were wearing similar clothes it adds they were similar to each other and had the same taste that's why they got on so well. The main prop in our opening was the bike. W chose this bike specifically because fit perfectly with the era, adding effect with the whole basket and how its designed. We thought the bike was really good because that was exactly what little girls would do and it made them look more their age. As the bike is the main prop we thought it would be a good idea to try and add it into every scene so the audience knows that it has some importance. In the film now and then, there is a good shot that shows all of the characters outfits, as there isnt much else to look at, you take more notice of their costumes, which is what we were aiming for in the shot above.





FRAME FOUR- camera work and editing

The camera work we used at the start was panning the bird flying in the sky, this matched with the music that we had playing all the way through which was called 'Blackbird' by The Beatles. This was just to set the scene which was outside. We then moved onto a long shot of Sibel on the bike, where are bike ride begins, this was also to help set the scene, so we knew the kind of background her bike ride would have. We used fades along the way of her bike ride so the audience knew even when it faded onto a different part of the bike ride that she was still on her way. We used a match on action shot on Sibel's hands pushing the bike which showed more of the bike that was the main prop but also that it was coming up to a different scene as shes about to leave the bike and meet her friend. we also used medium shots when they are both sat down on the grass, this was so that the audience could get a good shot of both of them together and let them see what they were both wearing. during the end we did close ups this was to show the emotion they both had when they were speaking to each other, so the audience could see that they are happy when they are talking as they make each other laugh a lot.

FRAME FIVE- Title font and style

The font we chose is simple yet strong as most thriller films are. You don't need the title to look scary as long as what its called has a meaning to it, so our is 'My name is Alice' this then makes the audience know that one of the girls has a dark story behind her. This is the hook as the audience will want to know what her dark story is. We got inspiration for our title from the film ' The Lovely Bones' which is also a thriller but the title is simple. The size we chose for our title isn't too big but not too small we didn't want it too be overpowering in size, we wanted the actual name to have an impact.





FRAME SIX- story and how the opening sets it up

Our story is about a girl called Alice goes to visit her 'dead' friend Rosie who she thinks is dead when in fact it is actually Alice who is dead and shes living around Rosie and everyone else who are actually alive. When the title comes up that's when it would go back in time and explain in detail whats happened in Alice's life and explain why she thinks that she is so alive when in fact she is the one who is dead. The opening sets this up by the narration that the voice over says, there are lots of little clues that Alice is in fact not alive, but its not something you would actually think of. Also as the we have the opening in black and white this sort of refers to death and shows that something bad has happened. Also when the screen fades out we made sure that Sibel actually fades out before it so it links in with her being a ghost however if its the first time you watch it, its not something you would take in to account, the more times you watch it it would all click together.

FRAME SEVEN- genre and how the opening suggests

Our opening suggest that our film is a thriller through a variety of ways. one way is that the whole opening is black and white which links to it being like a flashback and not a colourful time. Also the voice over is creepy and what she says for her age is strange and not what you would expect from a 13 year old which links into it being a thriller. The other genre that we included was fantasy, we tried to add this in by using fade on her character adding the idea that she isn't real or alive. As we also chose a small hidden garden area for them to meet it looks old and creepy which is also strange for two young girls to go and meet up, you would expect them to go to a park where people around, this just shows that they are hiding something which links into the thriller genre.

FRAME EIGHT- How characters are introduced

We introduced our main character, Alice, by showing her first, so the audience can tell that she is Alice and one of the main characters in the whole film. She is firstly introduced riding her bike round the corner on the beginning of her bike ride. Rosie is introduced quite quickly, as when Alice is at the place, Rosie is already sat there, so she appears quite abruptly. This also adds in effect of the whole thriller fantasy genre, its not normal how she has appeared. It shows that they are eager to see each other a lot, and must of organised a time to meet before hand as there's not ways to contact each other at there day and age.

FRAME NINE- creating that enigma


We created the enigma in our title opening as the audience will not understand why Alice and Rosie have met up. From our opening they wont understand why the title is My name is Alice because they wont understand that she is in fact the one that is dead, because at the beginning they think that both of them are alive. The only thing they have to go on is from what the voice over is saying about Alice's life as she says certain things like 'the weight of the world on her shoulders' and 'my family never really acknowledge me', this leaves the audience confused but wanting to keep watching the film.

Evaluation question 6- What have we learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?

During our film making we have used a wide set of different types of technologies. We used the sound booth in order for Sky to say the script and get it recorded professionally so it sounded more smooth and clear when its in out opening. We learned a lot from the sound booth because before hand none of us knew how to use it. However, Mr. Norman taught us the basics on how to record and use some of the equipment in order for it to sound its best. Whilst being in the sound booth we also had to learn a few things on the computer, whilst Sky was recording her voice into the microphone using the software Audacity, I was on the computer cutting and putting all the right clips together, so we didn't get confused when we came back to it to add it into our movie.

We also had to use a lot of equipment for the camera which was Sibels, it was a S2995 Digital Bridge Camera, in order for us to get certain shots and angles. We used the tripod, for us to get the camera at the right height during filming, this way we didn't have to hold it ourselves so it didn't come out shaky. The tripod was also helpful when we were recording round and we had to follow Sibel with the camera as it did it very neatly and made it look good.

Putting our whole film opening together, we had to use the school computers. The main software that we used was PremierePro, which was the best movie making device that the school had. Firstly, We had to get the ICT technicians to move all of the videos we filmed from Sibels camera onto their computers and they then moved them into our media folder. That's when we started to put our film opening together. It was very tricky at first because none of us had used the software before, but taking a few goes on it, it became a lot easier. Along the way we had to add in titles, we had to use effects on PremierePro, all little things that made it all come together. We struggled a lot to make our opening the standard that we wanted it as the PremierePro didn't work as well as we hoped, it was slow and was very jumpy. So we could never see our opening the way we wanted to.

We also used Prezzi in our work, this was too show our knowledge about BBFC and the hostory of it. Prezzi helped us with presentations, it was a good way to show our knowledge in a fun way and make it more enjoyable. This was the first time any of us used this software, so we learnt how to do a lot of different things on it an dit would help in the future if we wanted a fun way in presenting work.



Evaluation question 4- Who would be the audience for your media product?

Females between 13 to 25 years old is our target audience as it is similar to The Lovely Bones because we have to the same sort of film, so we're thinking the same sort of age group would be interested in watching our film. I think it is aimed mainly at girls over boys because the film is all about a young girl which appeals to females more and as females can understand it more than males they can relate to it. Music that we think these girls would listen to is older songs as our film is set in the 1960's we have added in music from that year, so maybe they would like them sort of songs. These girls could shop in vintage and retro sort of shops as that is where they sell old fashioned clothes and they wear that sort of style in our opening. We picked the age group 13 to 25 as our film includes a twist and you have to be a certain age to understand that and figure it out and we think it would start from the age 13 where they would be able too.

Evaluation question 2- How does your media product represent particular social groups?

This is the character Suzie Salmon from the film The Lovely Bones, we got our inspiration for our character in our film opening from this movie as the whole film is very eerie and that is the aim of our film. We aimed our film opening to younger people, like teenagers; male or female. We also have 60's style clothing and hair styles as it is set in the 1960's. The age of the characters in our film opening are also similar to Suzie Salmons age as it makes it that bit more creepy because the scary things are happening at such a young age. As in our opening we only have two young girls, Suzie Salmons character represents their age perfectly, as they are a little naive as they dont really understand whats going on. The way they act is also similar, as they always look happy, even if they are not.

Evaluation question 3- What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?

Film 4 is a production company that would distribute our media product as it is a low budget film company so it doesn't broadcast huge blockbusters on their screen, which is good for our media product because it won't look out of place against the other films that would be shown along side it. A film distributor such as Film 4 would be more inclined to distribute our media product than any other film company because others are large companies that are very picky about the types of films that are distributed through them, whereas Film 4 distribute low budget films happily. If Film 4 was to show our media product on air, they would introduce our production with our film logo and name to their viewers before the film, of which we have created.

We have a logo and name for our production and looks professional for the film company Film 4 and it won't put them off distributing our media product when we have thought about the ins and outs of the distribution of our film opening.
We would show the Film 4 company about our story outline and show them a clip from it so that they can see whether they want distribute it through their company. This is usually a group of people that we would have to introduce our film to, in order for it to be agreed upon in order for it to distributed.
Our film idea is very similar to the film 'The Lovely Bones', which is actualyl also a film 4 movie. This film is a fantasy thriller where the main character is dead and it shows her heaven which is very fantasy-like. Also a set series that have previously been on TV such as 'Marshlands' which is a thriller also.
Below is the Film 4 logo.
http://youtu.be/aYJ7praGkw8 

Weather conditions

We have had multiple chances to film our opening video however we have had many complication and difficulties to do this because of the weather. Our original idea was that the scene would be set in a spring days however with it being winter it is difficult for us to do this. Some errors that we have witnessed is that shooting in the opposite weather to what you want really is more difficult than expected. As we need a bit of breeze and sunshine we have been getting rain and snow. 

On the first Monday we tried filming it had snowed, we then planned to film later that week but the snow hadn't gone and just turned into ice. This would of been dangerous as we have to bike in the filming therefore it isn't good to put ourselves in danger. 

After that we planned to film the following Monday and Tuesday, but unfortunately we were expected heavy rain. 

We have decided to film on Sunday and Monday. With the complications we have experienced we have made sure to check the weather to ensure these complication don't happen again. 

Letter to Apple Records

Below is the letter we wrote to Apple Records asking if we could use The Beatles - Blackbird in our opening.

Apple Records
27 Ovington Square
London, SW3 1LJ
ENGLAND

To Whom this may concern,

I'm currently studying A-Levels at Ken Stimpson Community School. As part of my Media course I have to create a filming opening.

To my knowledge Apple Records owns the rights to the song Blackbird by The Beatles. If this is the case then please may I use the song as part of my opening. The film opening is for educational purposes only and will be only seen by my teacher and the examiner.

If I don’t hear from you then I assume it’s okay for me to use the song.

Yours sincerely,

Laura Clark

Location

We used two main locations for our filming. We aimed to find places that were near fields and seemed like it was in the old times as we didn't want any traffic affecting our film opening because obviously at the time of the 1960's there wouldn't be any modern cars driving in the background. We did the biking scenes in a different place to the part where Alice and Rosie are talking because they both were what we needed and fit together well. The Fact that the trees have no leaves on the side of the path made us like this location more also as it makes it look creepy because its just twigs. 

Filming

We scheduled for days in order to film the opening of our film, however we came across complications because the weather wasn't what we wanted for the days that we picked so we had to keep re-scheduling and hope for the best. We ended up finding a few good days that we used to film in and got as much done as we could in different places in order for the journey part of our opening to be longer and better in order for the speech overlay to be used because there is going to be quite a lot of it. We also found the perfect place to film the bit after the journey which a cute and right for what we was aiming for with the two little 60's girls in our opening of our film. We still need to go back to the place in which we filmed the journey in order to get some close up shots which are needed for the opening to be more successful and so that we are marked better at the end.

Our script

This is what Sky says over the whole of our opening title.

When I think of growing older I get a strange feeling in my belly. It’s like, it’s not meant to be.

And if I never grow older, well that will be a comfort.

That’s me. You don’t know about me.

But I know me

Like a black bird carries the sky on its back, I feel like I carry the weight of the world on mine.

I have so much I wanna say but no one to hear it. I just need to there’s someone out there that listens and understands.

I often spend my time out, my family never really acknowledge me.

And if you don’t know where your heading any road will take you there.

I’ve not always been this way, so negative.

My life used to be so good and happy, but you’re not supposed to look back, you’re supposed to keep going.

I used to think it would be nice if thinks made sense for a change, but now that’s all different.

Now I have Rosie, she listens to me and I like that.

We found peace in each other, when I’m with her I’m not alone and nether is she.

And I wouldn’t go back to yesterday because I was a different person then. And life doesn’t stop for anyone.

So let me tell you a story, my name is Alice.