Coursework2
- 1. In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?
- 2. TITLING Typical generic conventions: In “The Secret Window” and “Hannibal” the titles are red and suggest an eerie and sinister atmosphere. The titles for “Hannibal” appear over black, which suggests danger and darkness. The common reoccurrence of red titling suggests that they are used as a way of foreshadowing events that will take place later on in the film. Our final media product: For our production, we used the titling for “ Hannibal” as our example. Our title “Neurosis” was placed over a black background in order to convey darkness. However our font style was different from “The Secret Window” and “Hannibal”, it was more eroded and sharp in the edges. Also, our film title is in red because it foreshadows darker events that will take place later on in the film.
- 3. CAMERA MOVEMENT Typical generic convention: In “Perfect Stranger” the is tracking the character’s movements, which suggests that she’s the main character and the main focus of the film. Our final media product: In our production, we challenged this convention and kept the camera stationary for most of the time apart from the opening shot where the camera tilts down to reveal the two characters walking. We did this in order to let the audience digest the scene instead of making it a fast paced thriller where the audience is being taken on different adventures. We want to make it clear that the main focus is Horatio, his isolation and his obsession with Mia.
- 4. FRAMING OF SHOTS Typical generic convention: In “The Secret Window”, the opening consisted of medium close up of the character’s face in order to convey his facial emotions such as the dark circles under his eyes suggest stress and lack of sleep and his pale skin colour suggests that he’s drained of energy and is battling with inner conflicts. Our final media product: Similarly, we used a medium close up of Horatio in order to convey his concentration when he’s writing the article on Mia. We also used a wide variety of medium shots in order to display the atmosphere and introduce the different scenes.
- 5. CAMERA ANGLES Typical generic convention In “Cold Creek Manor” a bird’s eye view was used to establish the change from urban life to rural life. Also, in “The Butterfly Effect” a slightly low angle shot was used when Evan was playing with his dog in order to emphasise that Evan has power over the dog. Our final media product: For our production, we challenged this convention by not using low angles or high angles because high angles are used to establish authority. For example a high angle conveys inferiority and a low angle conveys superiority. We did not want to convey inferiority and superiority because we felt that we should let the audience decide who is inferior or superior. For example Mia is superior in terms of popularity however Horatio is superior in terms of intelligence.
- 6. SELECTION OF MISE-EN-SCENE Typical generic convention: In “Hannibal” the opening sound is eerie and spooky which suggests darkness in the film. The props used in the film old fashioned which gives an old fashioned vibe. The lighting used is also very dark which helps in creating a mysterious atmosphere. Our final media product: Similarly, for our final media production we used a music piece called “Sad Story” from a royalty free music website in order to create an eerie atmosphere. Also, we used dark lighting when Horatio is in the newsroom in order to convey his alienation from his peers and also to add to his suspicious behaviour.
- 7. EDITING DIRECTIONS Typical generic convention: In “The Butterfly Effect” the director uses cut shots, fade ins and reverse shots to establish the atmosphere and the main characters. The fade introduces the suburban area, the quick cut shots highlight the character’s quick movement in the office and the reverse shots show the conversation between Evan and his mother. Our final media product: In our final media product, we used cut shows when Horatio’s in the newsroom to highlight his movements up until the article and to also highlight the article itself. We used a fade in in the beginning to introduce the surroundings, Mia and Horatio.
- 8. SOUND Typical generic convention: In all the films I studied, a mixture of non-diegetic and diegetic sound is used in the opening. For example in “Secret Window” the opening consists of diegetic sound and dialogue where the character is telling himself to “turn around” and as the opening progresses the viewer is introduced to a remote setting with non-diegetic music in the background. Our final media product: Similarly, for our final media product we used a mixture of non-diegetic sound and diegetic sound. In the beginning we used diegetic sound where Horatio is breathing heavily and we used non- diegetic music for the rest of the opening in order to intensify the mystery and tension already in the opening.
- 9. ACTOR’S POSITIONING AND MOVEMENTS Typical generic convention: In “Perfect Stranger” the main character always in the centre of the shot. Her walk is cool and confident which suggests that she’s confident and a high flying career woman. Also the fact that she is walking fast suggests that she’s in a rush and does not want to waste time. Our final media product: In our final product, we used this convention and made sure that Horatio was always in the centre of the shot to make it clear that’s he’s one of the main character’s. Also, Mia’ movement in the opening shot and the fact that she’s looking straight ahead suggests confidence and the fact that Horatio nervously pushes his glasses up suggests that he’s nervous.