EVALUATION ACTIVITIES

EVALUATION ACTIVITY 1: in what way does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

In filming my media product I have tried to challenge film forms and conventions, as well as sticking by them. Since I am filming a horror/comedy it is important I stuck to some of the conventions of the horror genre in order to be able to mock them.

Firstly, I should talk about the title of my film "Boxed In". I chose this title wholly on the appearance of the murderer, who wears a cardboard box on his head. It is a play on words, the definition being “enclosed in or as if in a box”. To feel boxed in is to feel trapped, as in when the murderer corners his victim at the end of my clip. Yet the murderer himself is also technically boxed in, since he has a box on his head. The name of this film is rather like “Scream”, since the title is connected to what the murderer makes his victim do. Yet the mask the murderer in “Scream” wears is also screaming.

I chose to have the scene set in the victim’s house because, as with a lot of horror films, the directors often choose to have the victim attacked where they feel most comfortable and secure, i.e. in their own house. I feel that this adds to the horror of the situation. But there is also a sense of insecurity when you’re in a house alone, especially when its dark and you can’t see much. Again this setting is same the opening scene in “Scream”. It is also used in the spoof of Scream: “Scary Movie”. Both sequences work effectively on the concept of fear when alone in your house. I have introduced the “victim” when he is playing his computer game, comfortable and happy. His surroundings and actions show us he is a typical teenager and there is no apparent threat. The appearance of the murderer in the dark doorway, is then a shock, all the more so because he is hard to see.

Where I hope my film differs from “Scream” and “Scary Movie” is in the initial ambiguity as to who is the victim. I chose to have the “victim” play a popular and very violent computer game and included close ups of his kills. This is intended to introduce some doubt in the mind of the viewer as to whether he or she is watching the murderer or his victim.

When thinking about what costume the murderer should wear, I had a look at popular horror figures such as Jason, Michael Myers, Ghost Face and Leather Face, all of whom wear masks that look scary and cover their identity. I thought I could use a mask to my advantage to add comic value to my film. I chose a cardboard box with a face drawn on it because it follows the conventions of using a mask in horror films but it makes a serious and frightening situation, like the arrival of a murderer, seem a little more funny and light hearted. The fact, for example, that the murderer appears to have forgotten to cut eye holes in his box adds to the comic value the mask. More subtly the box is also a symbol of the job the murderer does, and which has led him to receive the abuse that has ultimately turned him into a murderer.

When filming I tried to include an interesting array of shots and movement in my camera work. I felt it important for the camera not to stay stationary, that is why I included the pan in the beginning and the Constantia shot at the end. The camera in “Scream” follows the victim around the place, giving us the feeling she is being watched. I also feel changing camera angles and movement helps generate a feeling of anxiety and imminent threat in the minds of the viewers.

During the editing process, I tried make the scene sharp and snappy, not hesitant as is so often the case in other horror films. I felt that a quick pace is better suited a comedy, slapstick if you will. I didn’t like, for example, how the title sequence of “Scream” drags on rather.


I kept fonts of the titles quite simple, so it could be easily read, but the way they come onto the screen is quite stylistic. They tend to exit due to the characters’ movement. The colours of the titles are white, black and red because I felt when together they can be somewhat menacing: red having connotations of blood and anger, black having connotations of death and white balancing the two out, but also being the colour of a shroud.

I tried to make the title sequence not give too much away about the rest of film. The audience gets introduced to the murderer and see him kill someone. They don’t how many he has killed and why but they are introduced to the threat. Most horror movies start with a murder. It’s a good way to get the audience scared and ready for the rest of the film.

The genre of my film is comedy/horror so I had to get the right balance of the two. The comedy in this scene consists of the murderer having a box on his head, the slapstick when he walks in to the wall, the swing of the axe around to Benny Benassi and the over dramatic acting by the victim. Basically I have taken the horror genre and exaggerated it. However, I have more subtle humour than “Scary Movie”, and hopefully haven’t over done it. There is nothing worse than unremitting gags that get less and less funny the more there are of them. I would almost go as far as to say the title sequence in my film is more scary than funny. In this way the humour has more impact when it does occur. I think subtle humour can be more effective than bold, when done well.

EVALUATION ACTIVITY 2: How does your media product represent particular social groups?

Effectively there are two social groups in my film. The first is the dominant, socially acceptable group – the teenage victims. They are reasonably affluent, wear the clothes of the day and do the things normal teenagers do. The use of the computer game ‘Call of Duty’ is a quick motif that most teenagers will relate to. The teenage victim in the opening shot is also wearing ‘Abercrombie and Fitch’ – a popular clothing brand among teenagers.
The second social group is the disaffected elderly population, as represented by the murderer. He is working class, unlikely to have been well educated given the job he does (stacking shelves in a supermarket). He is old and out of luck. He has had a life time of verbal and possibly physical abuse from young people better off than him, but with little moral sensitivity or empathy. He recognises the unfairness of the situation and finally decides to act and reek vengeance on those more fortunate than him, who have lorded it over him for far too long.
Where my film differs from others in this genre, is that I am trying in the story line to encourage viewers to have some sympathy for the murderer, not just hate and fear him because of what he does in the film. By the end of the film I would at least hope viewers would understand, and to some expect sympathise with, the murderer’s motives for murder.
In this respect the murderer in my film is similar to Jason Voorhees from ‘Friday the 13th. Like my character he has been seen as a sympathetic character, although one whose motivation for killing has been seen as driven by the immoral actions of his victims. He also wears the cult mask that you see so many horror figures wearing in films. Their whole attire is pretty similar, they both wear dark concealing clothes to scare and to hide their identity from their victims.

EVALUATION ACTIVITY 3: What kind of media it institution might distribute your media product and why?

EVALUATION ACTIVITY4: Who would be the audience for your media product?

Here is the link to a Facebook of someone i think would watch my film, the target audience if you like.
As you can see he is very much in to horror films. Those who are into horror are a good target audience because a comic version of their favourite genre will be an attraction to them. He is also a outgoing, active guy who likes a laugh, I'm sure a high octane, gory, comedy horror will match his taste.The music he likes also matches that of what would be included in the film.

The fact Dan is a pretty stereotypical teenager like the on in "Boxed In" means he can relate a bit more to the films protagonists (who are teenagers), maybe even making the experience a bit more personal and scary.

EVALUATION ACTIVITY 5: How did you attract/address your audience?

EVALUATION ACTIVITY 6: What have you learnt from the process of constructing this product?

FILMING:

JVC Everio HDD hard disk camcorder

I used this camera to film my title sequence becuase i felt it produce a good quality, clear footage.

Tri-pod

I used this to keep my footage still and prevent the shake i would get from using my hands.

EDITING:

Mac Book

I used this because it had the editing equipment I wanted and is fast and easy to use.

IMovie

I used this because i felt was the easiest to use that also gave a smooth and clean finish.

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

I feel my camera work and editing has improved greatly since my Preliminary task. I have taken what I have learnt from practicing with the 180 degree rule, match on action and shot/ reverse shot and included it in my film where needed and added a variety of other shots and angles. I have had a chance to improve my editing skills with this new film, using a few techniques that I didn’t use in my preliminary task.

The jump cuts here that I have used are a good example of where I have improved. I used editing to create fast and jumpy cuts in to the teenagers face. This makes the scene less static and adds suspense.

I used match on action in my title sequence as well as my preliminary task. I made sure, using IMovies Precision Editor, it was as accurate possible.
I didn’t use the 180 degree rule in my title sequence because I felt it was not needed and that none of the scenes would end up confusing the audience. I also didn’t use shot/ reverse shot because there is no dialogue in my title sequence hence it would not be relevant.

Here is a good example of where I have taken what I have learnt in my preliminary task and used it in my title sequence. I liked how the high over the shoulder shot portrayed the dominant character.

PRE PRODUCTION

Pitch

My film is of the horror comedy genre. The plot is based on the summer holiday of six teenagers who are terrorised by an axe wielding psychopath wearing a cardboard box on his head. As the film progresses he clumsily, but brutally, picks off each teenager one by one as they struggle to stop him. Eventually it climaxes with the final battle between the last teenager and the psychopathic box man as he tries to murder his last victim. The teenager manages to set alight the cardboard box and the murderer is forced to take it off, revealing his face. He turns out to be an old man who worked at the teenager’s local supermarket, stacking boxes. The teenage victims all troubled this man and lost him his job. Since then he swore to someday take his revenge on them. The last remaining teenager manages to defeat the murderer by knocking him from the building they were fighting in. A year later the traumatised teenager has moved from his home town to a nice little village. He has got a job at the local supermarket stacking boxes. One day at work he hears a bang, he goes to explore. The film ends with him finding all the stacked boxes have got the same scary face drawn on them as the axe wielding murderer he thought he had defeated...
The title sequence shows the murderer kill his first victim. He attacks the teenager in the comfort of their own home. He stalks the victim until he is spotted and a comic chase ensues. The murderer eventually catches him and kills him.


Treatment

Camera pans the room until it reaches a teenage boy sitting on a computer chair playing Call of Duty 2. The boy heckles the computer getting into the game. The camera does a close up of the game and the boy kills an enemy, shouting with joy as he does. The camera cuts to a side view of the boy as he shouts again after another successful kill. The camera cuts to a mid shot of the boy’s body and face. Suddenly a loud bang is heard and the boy looks very shocked. A close up of the boy’s face shows his scared expression. The camera then cuts to the other side of the boy shown before; the shot also includes the open door. The camera cuts sharply past the boy staring at the door and into the dark doorway. The camera then cuts back to the side view. The boy gets up and exits down the stairs. The camera cuts upwards, giving a view of the boy slowly walking down the stairs. The camera cuts to a shot of the boy walking along the first floor corridor. The murderer is standing in the bathroom doorway wearing a box on his head with a scary face scribbled on with a marker pen, he is clutching a hatchet. The boy doesn’t notice and walks past and starts to walk down the second flight of stairs. The camera cuts again but this time of a shot looking up the stairs. The axe murderer follows, but ends up walking into the wall due his lack of sight with the box on his head. The camera cuts to the bottom of the stairs looking up; the boy hears the bang of the murderer walking into the wall and turns round. After seeing the murderer he starts to runs. The boy runs past the camera screaming and the murderer, after recovering, follows. Camera cuts in to the living room were the boy jumps dramatically behind the kitchen counter and starts whimpering. The camera pans to the doorway were the murderer slowly walks in, stops then looks left and right. The murderer runs his finger down the hatchets blade, and then swings it around madly as if practising martial arts. The camera cuts to a close up of the boy’s worried face and he lets out a little scream as he watches the murderer swinging the hatchet. The camera goes to a close up of the murderer and his heads immediately turns to where the boy is. A Constantia shot of the boy craw away from the murderer. The camera cuts to a two shot showing the murderer lift his axe ready to strike. He swings the blade down but stops just before it hits and starts laughing, the boy shrieks. “Got ya!” the murderer says. Then he swings it down fully this time at the screaming boy. The screen goes black and a sound of crushing flesh and bones is heard and the screams stop. The title of the film appears on the screen.


Script

INT. “Victim’s” room - late night
It is a modest home in the suburbs where, if anything bad was to happen, it would be unlikely that anyone would notice.
The “Victim’s” room has a book shelf packed to the brim, the TV is placed on a cupboard and the PS3 is on the floor in front of it.
The lights are low; the “Victim” is sitting on his favourite bean bag happily playing a violent military videogame. He looks comfortable and is immersed in the game. He exclaims every now and then at the game, jumping up on his seat, whenever something bad or good happens. After a while a sudden a loud BANG is heard down stairs, shocking the “victim”. The “victim’s” facial expression is extremely scared. He turns his head and glances at the pitch black doorway leading to the stairs, he whimpers slightly in fear. The “Victim” apprehensively gets up and tip toes toward the menacing door. The “victim” disappears through the dark doorway.
INT. Stair case
The lighting is dim and the “Victim” is creeping down the stairs he is very cautious and looking around carefully for any movement. He passes the camera and out of sight.
INT. First floor landing
The “Victim” walks slowly across the landing not noticing Box Head in the doorway of the bathroom. After the “Victim” passes the bathroom and starts to walk down the stairs, the Box Head follows slowly.
INT. Second stair case
“Victim” creeps down stairs. On his way down Box Head doesn’t see the wall (due to the lack of sight with the box on his head) this causes the “Victim” to turn round. After getting over the shock of seeing the Box Head the “Victim” runs off waving his arms around and screaming. The Box Head slowly recovers and from the collision with the wall and then starts to follow the “Victim”.
INT. Living room and kitchen area
The “Victim” runs through the doorway and into the living room panting and whimpering and then quickly jumps dramatically behind the kitchen counter. After a while of the “victim” hiding behind the counter, the Box Head walks though the door triumphantly. The Box Head stops and looks robotically left and right. It then starts swinging it’s blade around ridiculously, almost like a martial arts expert, but obviously not. Seeing this causes the “Victim” to let out a scream. Box Head immediately spots the “Victim” and walks over to him. The “Victim” starts to scream like a little girl. The Box Head towers over him and slowly lifts the axe while the “Victim” cowers below him. Box Head swings the blade down with two hands but stops just as the blade is about to hit. This terrifies the “Victim”.
BOX HEAD: (In a low creepy voice, laughing) Got ya!
Then Box Head swings the blade again, this time it goes completely down while the “Victim” screams. The screen goes black and the sound of crushed flesh and bone can be heard as the title of the film appears and the screaming stops.



Story Board















Location Stills

Here are the stills of the location that i am going to film in. I wanted to see how the shots will look like and whether the lighting will work. The pictures that are very dark and hard to see are taken without flash. So will need to use so form of lighting to get the right shot.



Schedule

Staffbreakdown

Isaac Ellcock

Role: Victim
Costume: Casual, Teenage clothes
Number: 07506648295
Getting to location: Walking
Needed on: 13th March
Needed for: 2 hrs



Alex Pavlopoulos

Role: Murderer
Costume: Cardboard box with face drawn on, scruffy clothes and pillow to stuff under shirt to look fat
Number:07947582715
Getting to Location: Lives there
Needed on: 13th March
Needed for: 2 hrs

Equipment Checklist
• Camera
• Axe
• Scruffy clothes
• Cardboard box with face drawn on
• Casual, teenage clothes
• TV
• PS3
• Lighting

Music Permission

here i have requested permission to use the songs "My Generation" by The Who and "Satisfaction" by Benny Benassi.

below is a copy of one of the letters I sent

Dear permissions manager at Track Records
I am making a non- profit film for my Media AS in which I would like to include the song “My Generation” by The Who. If you would kindly give me your permission to do so, I would be very grateful. Again I would like to make clear I am not going to make any money out of this film, only an AS (hopefully).
Thank you for your time.
If you could back to me as soon as possible I would appreciate it. If it is more convenient for you my e-mail address is mihali@hotmail.co.uk
Yours faithfully,
Mihali Pavlopoulos

RESEARCH

Here i have collected some title sequences to help get ideas for the horror comedy genre. i have got clips from both genres (horror and comedy) and some horror comedy to find out the conventions and use them to my advantage. i want to stick with a person troubled by a murder in the comfort of their home.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7MKUgE-vsOc

^ Scream title sequence
This is probably one of the most famous and iconic horror title sequences. Suspense is created very successfully and you really go though the ordeal of the murder with this victim.

Analysis
The scene starts off with the sound of a women screaming as the title of the film appears, this is then overlapped by the sound of the phone ringing giving a sense of foreboding about the phone call. The first shot of phone is pretty close up this distance is kept though out the first few phone calls. Shows her reaction to the creepy voice and as the phone ring promptly after the first time you start to see the uneasiness on her face. We are then faced with an establishing shot of the outside of her house this gives the feel of how isolated she is in her huge house. The shot also feels as though it is the view of someone or something watching her. There is then a quick cut to the stove being turned on and the sound of flames giving the viewer a shock and bring to attention. The more times the phone rings the more evil it becomes.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6cu8ynFSiuM

^ Scary Movie title sequence
This title sequence is a spoof of the scream opening sequence. it manages to get a good balance between comedy and a slight hint of horror and threat.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AjLu4Ch0XJU

^Scary Movie 3 title sequence
Again this is a spoof of a famous horror film "The Ring". It like the other "Scary Movie" film, it is very comic but manages to have some suspense and horror in it.


Order of titles

Order of titles in Forest Gump









^ Click
production company
producer
director
actor
film name
actor
actor
actor
actor
casting director
co-producer
executive music producer
visual effects supervisor
costume designer
composer
editor
production designer
director of photography
author of novel the film is based on
screenplay
producers
director

Othe order of titles varies in each film and there is no strict conventions. At the end of the day its the directors decision what order the title go in. But for my film it might be wise to follow the order from a professional film like "Forest Gump".


Questionnaire

Obviously the results of this questionnaire won't be a definitive answers because only 20 people answered it but they can be a good bases to work with.

I choose to quesion a an equal amount of both genre's because even though I am likely to have more of a male audience I feel it is important to have data on both sexes. I focused on the age range of 14-26 because I think they would be the mostly likely to watch a film like mine.

I was intrested to find out what music people preffered so I could try and include it in my film. as we can see Rock seems to be the most popular.

Intrestingly Horror seems to be the most popular Genre then Comdey making a Horror Comedy perfect to do.

When releasing my film knowing how and when people watch films is useful for the Distributor to know.

It is good to know whether your audience is easily offended or not by violence especially since im doing a horror film which will probably have some violence in it somwhere. As we can see from the results the people I asked don't seem to have a problem with violence.

PRELIMANARY TASK

The media institution that would most likely distribute my media product is T.V. The most accessible form within TV would be drama, as there is plenty of evidence that key issues of the day can be effectively aired through the medium of drama (The Bill, Eastenders, Red Riding etc.).

My preliminary task - a short film about a club owner criticising a bouncer - is different to most T.V dramas because it is shot in black and white. I chose to do this for two reasons: firstly because it makes it less obvious that we are not actually filming in a night club (due to budget and time constraints), and secondly because I felt it added to the tension of the drama. Sticking to the conventions I have observed in TV dramas, I have used the following camera shots: Shot/ reverse shot, Match on action and the 180 degree rule. I also used different angles to show the dominance, and relationship between, the two characters. For example I filmed a high shot/ reverse shot looking down on the less dominant character.

My media product contains both social stereotypes and other characters who behave rather differently to how they are usually portrayed. The bouncer (a working class dad) is shown to be kind at heart and not as aggressive as people would expect - until he is pushed to the limit. The club owner, on the other hand, comes across in a manner that most people would expect: rude, bossy and offensive.

I think the audience for my media product comprises young people - 16 plus - as they will recognise the world in which it is set. However, there is a slightly older audience who may still enjoy the drama as it reminds them of the time when they too spent their weekends at clubs and raves.

I hope I have attracted and drawn in my audience through the use of humour, but held their attention through deeper meaning and message that is woven into the drama. It is comic but the portrayal of the club owner is some what a criticism of the way clubs are run. The music I used is popular clubbing/raving music with a lot of teenagers today which will attract the 16 to 20 year old.

In hindsight the technology I used could have been better. The image quality of the camera (Cannon MV 900) I used wasn't very clear, and I could have improved the sound quality by using a mic. The editing program I used (adobe premier) was easy to use and effective. This has meant I was able to put together the film quickly.