Ancillary Task Two

Ancillary Task One

Final Film - Main Task

Evaluation: Question Four

How did you use media technologies in the construction and research, planning and evaluation stages?

Evaluation: Question Four on Prezi

Evaluation: Question Three

What have you learned from your audience feedback?



The feedback we got from other Media Students, and Non-Media Students has been very helpful, as we can see the faults in our film. It is hard to tell some faults when you are working on a project, but having someone new view your work is refreshing and helpful. They gave good feedback, and I was expecting some of the criticisms (constructive, of course). For example, I knew the stop-motion was slow, and a little boring, it did 'drag' in some places. I also knew the sound was off at the end, and didn't end on a perfect cadence. I am pleased with how most feedback was positive, stating that the story was easy to follow, the dream sequence clear and recognisable, and the effects being good. This was generally good feedback to have, and given more time, we could have rectified some of these mistakes. However, I am happy with the film.

I have learned that making things clear to an audience is trickier than pre-empted - I thought it was quite clear, but I knew the story beforehand. One student said the stop-motion was boring, and I agree. Watching it back, it does need to speed up a LOT faster. I think the feedback they have given Curtis, Sam and I is very helpful, especially as these students are obviously a lot older than our intended audience. I think the film has good intentions, and could have been better, had there been more time, and we had another group member. I have also learnt that films are a lot trickier to make than title sequences or trailers. I think we chose the most difficult brief, as opposed to making a music video etc.

It would have been useful to have some female feedback, and what girls thought of our film; maybe they would have followed the story more, or been more critical of costume/props/location etc - no male students mentioned this. Overall, I think the feedback has been very helpful, and been a learning curve for future reference.

Evaluation: Question Two

How effective is the combination of your main product and ancillary texts?

Evaluation: Question One

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

Film Poster - Final

This is my final film poster. There are some slight changes, such as the image being 'unposterized' and adding a release date. This is an important date - Alfie's birthday, and as he is the 'star', I thought it would be nice to tie all the dates back to him. This is the best film poster I have made, in my opinion, and therefore I think is fit to be my final film poster.

Film Review

This is my film review.



I wanted to act as a journalist, who is mother to young children, so I had a more positive perspective on the film. It is no good me writing a negative review of the film I have just made. There could be some improvements, and I may produce another review, which amends this one. As a first attempt, I think this is quite good; it could have gone a lot worse, however, I will seek out more reviews from viewers of my film to see if there is another persona I can write from. I wanted a colloquial tone running throughout this review, as the audience to this type of review are more likely to go and see the film, rather than if I wrote an educational review that could feature in 'The Guardian' , this is more colloquial, and is a humorous review more likely to be featured in 'The Sun'.

Finished Film

We have now finished our film and now have to just concentrate on our final Ancillary Tasks. The film will need to be uploaded to YouTube so we can put them on our blogs, and this will take ages. YouTube has decided not to work today, so I will have to upload it another time. I am very glad the film is finally finished, it's a huge relief to know this! It also gives us a more stress-free time and MORE time to make sure everything is up to date and everything is finished.

Software

I realised I have mentioned little software used throughout my project, so thought I would list them and give evidence as to where I used it.

- Adobe Premier Pro - to edit my film sequences, and add visual and sound effects to create a final film.
- Adobe Photoshop - to edit the images on my film posters.
- Paint - also editing my film posters.
- Microsoft Office Publisher - to piece my film posters together.
- muvee - to make small videos to put sound effects onto my blog.
- Wavepad Sound Editor - to edit the 'Peter and the Wolf' music.

There are other computer programmes I have used, but these are the main and more frequent programmes that have helped me develop my coursework project to this stage.

This is my third attempt at a film poster;



This actually features a shot from the film, an ultimate link between the 3 pieces of work I am completing. This seems more bland in terms of colour and information, yet has the image from the film. I may have to mix all three film posters together in a fourth poster to create the best possible poster, as each seem to have different strengths.

Film Poster 2

This is my second attempt at a film poster;



There are lots more snakes here, and so there is more happening in the poster - it is more interesting for audiences. I have also added a slogan 'ONE BOY. TOO MANY SNAKES.' This makes the poster seem more alive, and gives a bigger incentive for audiences to watch the film.

Ancillary Task

I have finally finished Ancillary Task number one - The Film Poster. Here it is;



I think this is a good first attempt at a film poster, as I have studied children's film posters previously. The credits at the bottom are in a similar font, the bright colours attract attention instantly, especially a child's attention. The large image allows audiences to be interested, as there is an animated element to the picture, the title font is very similar to that in the film too - everything links. This creates a sense of continuity for the audience and they recognise the whole film and posters surrounding it, they can make the link between it all.

Special Effects

We have had lots of experiments with special effects on 'Adobe Premier Pro', but have decided to keep the dream sequence a little more simple than first anticipated. As we have quite fast shots in the dream sequence, a few jump cuts and lots of quick edits, we decided to keep one theme throughout the dream sequence. We have made the dream sequence 'Posterized' and this adds a slightly animated feel to the sequence, making it more child-friendly. By posterizing the sequence, the colours are brighter and more vivid, impersonating a dream and making it come to life.

Sound Effects

This is the 'Wilhelm Scream' we intend to use in our film. We realise it is quick and there is a little feedback, but this is the only copyright version we could find online. I think it will work quite well if we time it right.



This is a preview of an edited version of Prokofiev's 'Peter and the Wolf'. This is the theme tune for our film. These are two very well-known sounds, something all audiences can relate to.



This is the sound we will use to show audiences Alfie is falling asleep. We are yet to decide on an effect, but I am hoping for some kind of shimmer/ripple where the scenes can dissolve into one another.

Editing

We have now completely finished the editing - everything is all in sequence and in chronological order! We now have to put special effects on the dream sequence and add sound. We best get experimenting! I have previously looked through some effects we could use in the dream sequence to make it surreal, and I quite liked the 'Solarize' and 'Posterize' effects used on 'Adobe Premier Pro'. As for sound, I emailed a list of sound effects to Curtis, to see if he could get hold of any, which he has! Time to put them on the film!

Editing

We are near the end of our editing process, and are finishing the last few sequences. We are yet to enter the post-production stage, such as adding sound and special effects to our film, but this is the fun part where we get to experiment! Hopefully, by the end of next week, we can have our film completely finished - hopefully!

Children's Film Posters

I have looked at these film posters and decided on similar fonts, compositions and techniques to use for my own poster. I may take a characteristic from each poster to use in my own, so I cover all posts to a certain level - I want audiences to know this is an advertisement for my film.



This is a film poster advertising the children's film 'Charlotte's Web'. This is a very simplistic layout, even though it seems as there is lots going on in the poster. I like the central large image of the main character. I also like how the font of the title is the same as in the film. There is also a slogan that represents the film, another characteristic I would like to use.



'Finding Nemo' is the next film poster I analysed, as this is a well-known, much-loved children's film. The same technique is used here; the large central image, of a key character; the title font is the same as in the film. There is a slightly different technique used here, where no-one is named, just a simple release date and creator of the film.



'Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix' is the third film poster I looked at. This is very dark and mysterious, which will appeal to an older audience. I wanted to look at a 'Harry Potter' poster, as this is featured in our film. This shows a lot more information, in a certain font at the bottom of the poster than the other two posters. This poster is a lot more complicated than I want mine to be, but this is an example of how I don't want my film poster to look like. The only similarity I would like, is the font of the title to be the same as featured in my film.

Looking at these posters has helped me to design my own, and made me realise how simple my poster will need to be, to appeal to the right audience.

Lighting

The lighting we used for our Media project was supposed to be realistic. I think we achieved this, however, looking back at our edited clips, I can see we may need to make some scenes lighter, as they are supposed to be outside during daytime. The lighting inside is artificial, therefore, gives a slight glow to the film. This, so far, is working quite well, as it applies most to the dream sequence, where our aim is to make it look a little distorted and surreal. I think we have done a good job with the lighting, as it is a very tricky technique to get right, and we can amend it if need be!

Editing

We are still editing our media piece. We haven't made significant progress over the past couple of weeks, as we have had group members away for various reasons and it being half term. Instead, we have been individually working on our ancillary tasks. I have made more progress with mine than other group members, because I haven't had any time off, however, we will all be at the same stage soon after they have caught up.

Props

The Props we have used for our film are;

- the 'Stan' teddy
- the remote control
- the toy snakes from IKEA
- Alfie's rugby kit from his school
- My bunch of keys
- Alfie's school bag
- Alfie's everyday clothes
- A child's book
- A lamp and a puzzle

These all tie in very well with our film, as they are props used in a young boys life. they create a continuity with the audience, so they understand Alfie's character. They represent different aspects of his character; the Southpark teddy shows Alfie is older than his years, the rugby uniform shows he is still at school. The book, puzzle and lamp show he likes reading and challenging himself, before bed as it is in the scene where he falls asleep. The keys and school bag show he is old enough to be trusted with these items, he has a sense of responsibility. The toy snakes from IKEA show he dreams of soft, toy snakes hurting him; not scaly monstrous snakes, this contradicts his mature take on other aspects of his life, such as owning a bunch of keys.

Sound Effects.

We also need some sound effects to go with our film. This is the list I made for our group, with what sound effects would be best.

Sound

We have been thinking about what music we should have with our film, and the possibility of using the famous 'Peter and the Wolf' music came up. We will obviously have to find a copyright-free version, and use this one, but this is a well recognised piece of music, with all generations, so will be recognised by the audience.

Adobe Photoshop

Whilst we have been editing the footage, I have also had spare time on my hands at college, from lessons being cancelled etc. So, I came to the media suite and used 'Adobe Photoshop' to edit my image for my film poster. I have made the colours bright and colourful, and the image looks slightly animated; always a winner to engage children! This is the image I will hopefully be using on my Ancillary Task.

Cartoon Alfie ?

Today I had a little experiment with creating a cartoon Alfie to put on the front of my film poster. I managed to make this image, but decided against it, as it does not look anything like Alfie, and therefore would be useless on the film poster - nothing would link, and people would question the image on the poster. Instead I have decided to use on of the images shown below (I'm still undecided) to create an image for the poster, as it is more realistic; it is also easier for audiences to make the link between the film and the posters.

Editing

Today we started on the dream sequence, trying to make it abstract and surreal. We wanted a break from trying to do the editing chronologically, so we keep it fresh and it doesn't get boring! We had fun experimenting with different effects and lighting on the shots, trying to make it really surreal and fun! We experimented with different modes such as 'solarize' and 'posterize', 'ripple' and 'twirl'. We thought, as long as we are just experimenting at the moment, nothing is set in stone, then we can always change it later. Also, we decided to just piece together the sequence and not waste time using all the effects, as it was very time-consuming and we obviously won't be using all the effects.

Editing

We have now started to edit our film, and are doing so in chronological order. We have started with an establishing shot, panning with Alfie as he walks to his house. We have started to edit a part with the gate, making sure there is complete continuity running through the shots. I am glad we have finally started editing, and our film is taking shape, however we have a long road ahead before it is completed.

Ancillary Task Photo

I have now decided the image on my film poster will be this one:



This is the friendliest image to use on the film poster, and is the most inviting for young children and adults to go and see the film. I think the colour scheme should be a lime green and a cerise red as they are bright, and are also the colours of the snakes in the film; I want all three tasks to combine, as they would if they were properly being published.

Capturing

For the past two weeks now we have been capturing. There have been some setbacks with this because there are only certain cameras at college that capture the footage, and other groups in our class have needed to capture as well. We have had to rotate cameras each lesson, and have allocated time. The rest of the time we have been working on our ancillary tasks and our blogs.

Capturing

This past week we have been capturing the footage we logged. Everything is so time-consuming, and we haven't even hit the editing stage yet. However, we need to get it done, and I have been coming into the media rooms in my college frees to capture some footage. I am trying to catch us up and get us back on schedule. We only have a little more to capture, and then we can start properly editing, in depth.

Logging

Today, we logged the footage we re-shot at the weekend, making it easier for us to capture in the next week or so. There have been some absences through the logging process, making it extremely difficult and time-consuming for two people to do. However, absences aside, we got it done. We are two weeks behind schedule at the moment, but we will catch up and finish the project. We will have to do some in our own time. The setbacks have been because of work commitments and the Christmas holidays. We also had a few weeks of just two people in the group, then introducing a new member, all time consuming and difficult for the group dynamics.

Re-Shooting

Today, I took Alfie back to the location, and we re-filmed some of the footage. Hopefully the framing is better and the actions match, or we will have to re-shoot again. There shouldn't be a problem with continuity now, as I played the current footage and tried to match the angles and perspective.

Logging

We are halfway through the logging process, but as the weekend is coming up, I will have to re-shoot some footage before the process is finished. This shouldn't matter, as hopefully the second half of footage is better than the first, meaning we shouldn't have to re-shoot any of it, we will have to see.

Logging

Today we logged all the footage ready for capturing. We now know exactly what parts need re-shooting! No doubt, when the editing process starts next week or so, we will need to film some footage to bridge other shots together, but for now there are only a couple of blips, that break the footages continuity.

Re-Shooting

Today, we decided on a time and place we could re-shoot some of the footage. I am going back to the location on Sunday to re-shoot some scenes with Alfie; particularly the bedroom and living room scene. Unfortunately Sam can't make it, and Curtis has work, so I will be filming on my own, however this is not a problem. Hopefully, this will be all that needs re-shooting with Alfie, because I can do some stop-motion anytime, in my frees at college, and not wait for Alfie to finish school.

Film Poster Photo's

I don't think the photo's of Alfie on the sofa are particularly good, or they aren't what I had in mind for my film poster. Even though I can photoshop out the sofa, they aren't what I had in mind. I think the ones where Alfie is stood with the snake around his shoulders are the best, and are the friendliest for the audience and tone of my film.

Film Poster

I have taken some images of Alfie holding the snake, and am yet to choose what image would look best on my film poster.

Film Poster

I have been looking through the national newspapers such as The Sun, The Mirror, The Guardian and The Times. These all do film reviews, so I wanted to research the tone to take with the style of film. I have decided, however inaccurate the tabloids can be, they have the best film reviews, and my film ties in more with the films used in the tabloids, than the art and educational films used in the broadsheets. The tone is more colloquial and this is more applicable to the film's audience.