Evaluation Question 7 Notes
- 1. 7. Looking back to your preliminary task, what do you feel that you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product? Quality Summary 7. Looking back to your preliminary task, what do you feel that you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product? Quality of holding a shot In our preliminary task we did not use a tripod when steady filming; this meant that many of our shots were unsteady. When looking back at our preliminary task we realised this was something we could change. In our final film we used a tripod for all our shots; this meant we were able to gain steady shots, which were of a higher quality. We learnt to use different camera techniques such as tilt shots, for example the shot of the pictures of Mia; these techniques helped us to convey to our audience the themes and ideas explored in our film. Quality of the framing shots The framing shots in our preliminary task were often faulty as the characters were not central in the frames, or did not fit entirely into the frames. In our finished product however, we made sure that the characters were always in the right place in the frame depending on what ideas or conventions we were trying to portray. For example, when Horatio is following Mia we made sure both characters could be seen, and that Horatio was walking behind Mia a little to her right, so that both could be included into the frame; which helped to convey to the audience the idea that Horatio was following Mia. Quality of shooting In our preliminary task we were not happy with our material appropriate to the reverse shots as they didn’t flow well and there was task set- i.e. the content of a lot of space between them, we realised that our your film pre and post shots needed to flow better, and so in our final editing was consistent with product, although there are no reverse shots, we the exam directives cut each clip more carefully and precisely to allow our film to flow much better, making it easier for an audience to follow the film and for our film to keep their attention. During the preliminary task we tried to stick to the exam directives, however some of them we did not successfully use, we realised that research and planning before filming were important, and so in our final product we did a lot of research into the codes and conventions of a psychological thriller and also how to film certain material to convey a certain idea. The last shot in our final product of Horatio’s eyes is a classic example of the conventions of a psychological thriller, and also the
- 2. way we filmed it, by zooming in on Horatio’s eyes, was classic of the conventions of the genre psychological thriller. Quality of selecting mise- The mise-en-scene in our preliminary task was good en-scène including colour, in the way we prepared props beforehand and figure, lighting, objects and thought about the props, however we did not setting; consider atmosphere or trying to create a meaning, instead we simply found semi-appropriate location and used it. When watching our preliminary task there was no sense of atmosphere or mood during the film, and so in our final product we thought about everything needed to create meaning, atmosphere and convey the codes and conventions of a psychological thriller. We thought about how we could use lighting to create the right mood, for example when Horatio is in then news room we used low lighting to create quite a sinister atmosphere. We also used appropriate music to go with our film, which made it more obvious to an audience that the film was a psychological thriller, and the music also created an eerie mood. Costume was important in conveying the character’s roles and personalities in the film, as well as a forewarning of what was to come later in the film, such as Mia wearing black, which symbolises death and danger. Our settings were appropriately chosen and make it easy for the audience to gather what is going on in the film, and the intentions of the characters, such as the media suite being used for the newsroom, and Welham Road for the street where Horatio follows Mia. We also thought more about whom we chose for our characters, by researching the conventions of a psychological thriller and identifying the certain characteristics of different roles. Quality of editing so that The editing of our preliminary task was quite basic, meaning is apparent to the and we mainly used it to try and make the film flow, viewer however often the film did not flow as well as it could. In our final product we used editing to properly make our film flow well, but also to help convey meaning and some of the ideas of our film. For example we faded most of the clips together to make them flow after one another. Also, instead of using reverse shots we used separate shots of Horatio to convey his isolation. Quality of using sound with In our preliminary task we used no sound except images and editing dialogue and occasionally the dialogue was
- 3. appropriately for the task unclear, we also sometimes had background noise set; too. From this we learnt that we would need to find a way to get rid of the background noise and if we included dialogue, make it clearer. In our finished product we used appropriate music to create an eerie mood, the music changes and becomes slightly more sinister as Horatio types up the article about Mia, as this is where the opening two minutes becomes more sinister and reveals more about Horatio’s character and intentions. In the very beginning of the clip we recorded the sound of heavy breathing, to convey the idea to an audience that Horatio is breathing heavily, meaning he is determined and serious about following Mia. We also edited out any background noise in our film, as this would distract the audience from the action of the film. We used no dialogue in our film, which makes it more mysterious and leaves the audience with unanswered questions. Quality of positioning and The movement of actors in our preliminary task was movements of actors sometimes a little unsmooth and seemed too rehearsed to be believable to an audience. We wanted to make our final film as believable and seem as unrehearsed as possible, so we did this by trying to make the movement of our actors more natural and help convey their intentions more obviously. Horatio has a signature action which is when he touches his glasses, pushing them up his nose; he does this twice in the opening two minutes. We used this idea of a signature action, because it helps portray part of Horatio’s character and also makes him seem as if he is determined and serious in his obsession with Mia. Quality of group planning, During the making of our preliminary task, our group meeting targets, worked well together and met the targets; however organization we found that we lost time by not always organising everything properly. When it came to making our final product we still met all the targets, and our planning and organisation was much better, as we planned everything, including when we would film and when we would edit. We also communicated a great deal better too. Group dynamics i.e. how In our preliminary task our group worked well as a did your group work team, but we carried out all parts of the task as together whole group, and although we met the deadlines, we found we lost time because of this. When it came to making our final product, we knew that
- 4. allocating specific roles to different people in the group was very important for making sure everything was done in time and to a good standard, and so we allocated different roles, but also worked together on some bits to gather everyone’s opinions. We found communication much easier this way, and made sure everyone in the group was clear about the ideas and opinions of others. Other points of evaluation We found that in our preliminary task, our main (e.g. equipment related problem with equipment was that because we etc) filmed it all by hand, our shots were often jerky and actors didn’t fit into the frames. We also were unhappy with our location in the way that it had many objects in it that we didn’t want in the shots, making the film less believable. In our final product we improved on these things by using a tripod at all times to gain steady shots, and we chose locations we knew would be ideal, and if there was a problem with the location such as unwanted objects, we ensured they were moved and not included in any of our shots. We also allocated the role of equipment manager to one person in our group, which helped us to always have the equipment ready at the right filming times.