Final Product : Project Slaughter

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

The preliminary task involved creating a 30 second scenario of 2 characters engaging in a conversation where we had to use a variety of shots and angles. The purpose was to help us with our final product by learning how to operate a camera and edit a short sequence. It helped me with filming as I gained skills with filming for example using different shot angles and sizes. Also I learnt how to use a tripod and how this is essential within filming. For editing, I got a better understanding of how to use final cut pro which helped me whilst editing my final product as I knew how to function it. Lastly it gave me a better understanding of the group roles as we could decide on these roles depending on the skills and abilities each individual had to offer which was influenced by our preliminary.


Where my technical ability has improved:

1- Filming: I gained skills of using the camera which now allows me to capture a variety of shots for example I have more confidence in filming an over the shoulder shot where it is clearer to see the character in focus whereas in my preliminary this wasn’t as clear.

This is a comparison of an over the shoulder shot of my preliminary to my final product. In the preliminary the shot wasn’t clear as the audience couldn’t tell what the character was looking at however, in my final product its clear what the character is looking at and why he’s there. It was also used to hide the identity of the character to add mystery.

 

2- Filming:  I learnt how to use a tripod more effectively to capture stable and clearer shots whereas in my preliminary my shots weren’t stable and clear which made it difficult for the audience to understand

1- Editing: I am more confident using final cut pro to edit my work as I know how to access all the different tools I need in order to edit my final production. Whereas before I didn’t know how to and therefore my editing was limited. An example of a tool I used was the blade tool.

2-Editing: I am now more confident with adding sound into my thriller to make it more effective. An example is the soundtrack I created and added. I believe this with have a bigger impact on my audience members. In my preliminary, my use of sound was very poor as there was a lot of noise in the background and therefore the audience wasn’t focused on what was taking place during the scene.
The long shot is used to show the environment the characters are based in. In my preliminary this wasn’t clear to the audience as they couldn’t see the surrounding we were in properly. On the other hand in the Final product the audience could evidently see that we were based in an isolated forest with no use of roads near it.

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In the Preliminary task, to show that the characters were walking we used a long shot. On the other hand in our final product we used a panning shot to show the characters walking to the side which is more effective. This developed because it allowed us to learn how to use a shot that would give the audience a clearer understanding.

From preliminary, the planning became essential as I had to ensure that I followed all conventions of a thriller. By creating the preliminary I was able to make sure that all my shots and editing would be at its best in my final production and this would be achieved by planning carefully. For example the use of the storyboard and the group roles ensured that we knew exactly who was doing what and what was going to happen next which made sure that we didn’t waste time and just go on with it. We also created pre-production paperwork to ensure everyone in the group was allocated with a job.

Progression from my preliminary

Personal Reflection:

I believe I made a successful thriller as I followed all the generic conventions of a thriller for example the way all my characters were presented through the way they were dressed. My victims were represented by light colours for victims and dark clothing for the antagonist. Secondly from my audience response and my focus group responses I can infer that I met up to the stands of my target audience as generally the feedback was positive.

I most enjoyed planning the narrative for my final production as throughout the planning stages we all put in creative ideas that kept changing over time. This allowed us to think of other thrillers that used lots of different types of narrative plots by including twists etc. to confuse the audience.

For my thriller production lighting could be improved, as it got dark really quickly some of the footage appeared to be darker than it should be which didn’t really make it clear of what’s going on. Therefore this could be improved by filming earlier in the day

The main things that I have learnt over the whole process are how to operate the camera to capture action and movement in different forms to create different effects and interpretations. I also learnt about generic thriller conventions as I don’t watch thriller movies which expanded my knowledge. Finally using final cut pro helped develop skills which I can now use for other types of projects. Overall I learnt how to create an effective media product to reach my audience members standards by using different equipment’s.

Evaluation: Question 6) What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this media product?

Evaluation: Question 5) How did you attract/adress your target audience?

Secondary research:

Secondary research was very important for my research and planning. Firstly, researching into other thriller films helped me have a better understanding of the generic conventions within the thriller. As a result I gathered a better understanding of who the target audience was for thrillers. For example they’re normally above the age of 17, both females and males; they love the feeling of their blood rushing whilst getting surprised. Moreover, the audience would generally be students/ young adults who enjoy horror and thriller genres.

In addition from my research I found out that the audience members love to experience their heart beating faster than usual. Also, they love getting surprised and staying alert by being on the edge of their seat at all times. To ensure that I provided my audience members with these emotions I added a lot of surprises into my thriller and intense scenes that will keep them alert, worried and on the edge of their seats.

After my research, I decided that my target audience for ‘’The Unknown Massacre’’ should be students and young adults (17+) as they can relate to the characters starring in the thriller with the same age group. For example our thriller consists of a group of media students who go out to film for their media production and therefore young adults and students can relate to this type of lifestyle. We also added a twisted plot to make them more attracted to what’s going on throughout the thriller.


Further details of my target audience are as follows;

Age: 17+
Gender: Both genders (Unisex)
Ethnicity: All as we have diverse cultures within our thriller
Occupation: Students, employed – E, D, C1, C2, B, A
Hobbies:  Thriller genre, socialising, going cinema and playing spots as it makes there heart beat faster which relates to thrillers.

The questionnaire was relevant because we got more information about who the target audience was and what their interests were.  This also allowed us to get quick feedback, and the information we wanted was specific. Also, the graphs created are easy to record and develop my feedback on. My results were beneficial to me because I got a better understanding of what my audiences expectations are of a thriller.

Some of the key questions I asked were;

1) What themes do your favourite thrillers involve?
2) What are your expectations from a thriller film?
3) What colours do you expect to see in a thriller?
4) Which types of characters do you expect from a thriller film? Please select two.




These four questions helped me with gather specific information for my thriller in order to make it up to my audience member’s standards and expectations in order to create a thriller they would enjoy. These key decisions had a huge impact on my thriller as we had a better sense of idea of what to include with things such as costume, themes etc.






Focus group:



To also make sure we followed conventions and appealed to our target audience, I created a focus group to showcase my production. Some of the feedback I received was;



‘’Oh wow, you guys made it seem really realistic!’’

‘’That was so good! Especially the end twist that proper had me puzzled until I figured it out’’