The Chase Opening Title Sequence - finished

https://youtu.be/cS0C6mESBEM

question 7

question 6

During the process of creating the media product I have learnt a lot about technologies. When creating the blog I learnt that keeping all of your work on a blog can help to prove that you know what you are doing when creating the media product as it provides a consistent record of the process involved in creating the film and why you make choices about the film.


The blog is also positive as it is a permanent record of your work, and so you cannot lose any of the work that you do. It also provides easy access from anywhere with an internet connection, such as your phone, laptop, tablet etc, allowing you to update it wherever you are.


The blog also allows easy planning for the work produced as you can save drafts and update them as well as embedding pictures to allow it to be visual and for the work to be easier to understand. I have been able develop my ideas through the use of the blog as I have been able to see each process during the pre-production and planning visually and in an organised manner, allowing me to see where I need to make improvements, and allowing me to easily compare my title sequence to the previous sequences that I have looked at. 

During the production of the film I learnt a lot about the technology involved in creating the footage. I learnt how to use a Cannon filming camera, such as how to use the composition grid, allowing to correctly use the rule or thirds.

I also learnt how to focus the cameras and that auto-focus is easier to use than manual. I learnt how to place the cameras on a tripod safely so that they do not fall off and I learnt that the tripods need to be level before filming. I also learnt that if you zoom in with the lens on the camera, the lighting changes and does not look very good, so you should manually move the camera to zoom in or out. Also, the cameras we used are not tape based, and so this allowed it to be quicker and easier for us to load the footage on to the computers and allowed better quality footage.

During post production I also learnt a lot about editing technology. For the preliminary task we used Premier Pro to edit the footage as this helped us to understand how to create match cuts, understand editing and understand the process of editing footage. I also learnt that editing software cannot make the footage look amazing unless you have good footage to begin with.

Another piece of technology that has supported my ideas throughout creating the final title sequence is laptops and the internet. Through the use of the internet, I have been able to research into similar title sequences, as seen on my blog. Being able to research into similar title sequences has allowed me to gain inspiration and fully understand the forms and conventions of a thriller title sequence, such as the audio and visuals related.

question 5

question 4

The main audience for my film "THE CHASE" is a younger audience, of people aged between 15 – 21. It is mainly focused on males with a higher percentage of males to females at 80%-20%. Our film is not aimed at a specific ethnicity, therefore giving me a higher mass audience. The target audience would be people who are interested in thriller films and like a lot of action. This is why I aimed my film at this particular age group.

I used a lot of slang/ typical chav language, e.g. swearing in my OTS. This attracts my audience of 15-21 year olds as they are portrayed as fun and loud, but all have the knowledge of people like my characters I wanted to portray this attitude in my OTS.

The target audience are always looking for the latest film that has come out. Therefore I would make sure that the trailer would be able to make them interested and make them want to see more.

question 3

My film opening has a target audience of 15-21 and mostly male. This is a very mainstream audience which would best be distributed by a large mainstream distribution company. However due to my low budget, location and amateur  filming, it is more likely that an independent film distribution company is going to be more interested in my film. Despite my film not having expensive sets, editing and well known actors it still accompanies the mainstream themes and ideas. However my target audience are not a niche audience and will easily be reached through social media and other tools such as posters. Therefore my film may not need a mainstream distributer despite my similar characteristics in theme and target audience.

There would be a lot of benefits to my film if I managed to get it distributed by a mainstream company such as Warner Bros. People would be much more likely to watch my low budget film as Warner Bros are very well known and have produced a lot of successful films e.g. Dark Knight & Harry Potter. Warner Bros would be able to spend money on the film to advertise and promote it very well. They would spend money on making a trailer and advertising it in advert breaks on TV.

There are also benefits to my film being distributed by an independent company. Firstly they would be able to reach my target audience very quickly by using social media to promote the film. My film would also not be under any competition with other big films made by the larger companies e.g. viewing times in cinemas.

I would be able to advertise my film best through a lot of social media and posters. I could use flyers and posters which would be handed out on the street as well as sticking them up to let people know of its upcoming. I would use social media in  a lot of different way which include; Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter and my own YouTube channel which could display exclusive footage, interviews and spoilers.

question 2

• The social group I have attracted is young adults aged 15 – 21. The way I have portrayed this is by using age and gender representations, e.g. in my film there are teenagers who act as gangsters and a lone younger boy who has to try and escape there clutches.
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• I have shown this through mise-en-scene, language, costume and camera angles. The way I have represented my social group through language is by using a mixture of slang and stereo typical chav language, e.g. swearing. This represents the social group because 15 – 21 year olds are fun and loud and are not as mature as people older that that, but all know about people like my characters so I wanted to portray this attitude in my OTS. I have represented my social group through costume as stereo typical chav clothes consist of hoodies, tracksuit bottoms and bandanas.
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• This social group cares about their appearance and how everyone perceives them so I wanted to portray a teenage boy that they are like so they can connect with them. I used a boy that was in the same age as my social group/target audience so it represents them and clearly shows the OTS is directed at them. His clothes are similar to what my target audience wear so again it represents them. The props I used in my OTS were guns that are used by the gangsters. This represents the social group who are frowned upon but widens the range of audience to fit with people in that class or background. 
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• The low camera angles i used from the teenager perspective makes him look weak and unimportant. However as the OTS progresses you can see that the boy has wit and backup. He gradually gains power over the gang, however that is revealed over the course of the whole film. This will attract my target audience because they may aspire to be like him (Kenneth) and want to know more about him. 
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• The location I used was an abandoned barn near my house. This doesn't look very urban but particularly eerie. This will attract my audience because it is different. The use of font shows it is aimed at a young/middle aged social group because it is in bold capital letters making it look informal but serious at the same time. 

question 1

My OTS followed a large number of conventions demonstrated by some of the sequences we watched and analysed. 

One of these conventions acquired in our film was to do with the 
credits shown in myOTS. During the credits I tried to make the main characters known first by the audience, which portrays them as the main characters within the film. Our main character was seen straight away as he was dragged in but he was covered to keep the audience wanting to know who he was, this will make them want to carry on watching the rest of the film. 

The title of our film was also larger for emphasis which is done by many other thriller films such as 'The Dark Knight' which we did for our prelimarly task. 

We thought of the idea seen in many of the thriller films I analyzed as where they used pan shots commonly on a group of people the audience is interested in, we used it on locations of importance combined with a high angle. 

Furthermore while many thriller films zoom out or in of locations so the audience may focus on an object or person of interest during the film and our film applied and developed this idea on focusing on a character of interest and zooming out of them so, while it in the beginning shows barely any of the character and they are shown to be mysterious, the zoom out slowly unravels the character to the audience and their intentions.

Textual analysis of an OTS

The opening title sequence 'The Marksman' which is also made by another AS student gives an excellent example of a sequence that I would also consider to include in my own OTS. Its characteristics of a group of gangsters and guns is something I would want to have apart in my own as they are situated in a secluded area where they have an objective to complete which would also be perfect as we are filming our OTS in an abandoned barn. 

Many techniques such as, a soundtrack, sound effects and high level camera shots/angles are presented creating an action packed filming which is also tense at some points. Micro elements of film sequencing such as sound and editing I would consider in my own OTS as this could be used to create suspense and fear. The sound tracks used help create a dramatic build up which adds to the climax  I would also consider including similar music like this, as long it is copyright free.

Mise en scene for props, costumes, location, facial expressions and body language are shown well in this OTS. Costume used for the hooded characters and aggressive facial expressions show their identity and sum up their background in society. The location is in an urban street area amongst flats with graffiti, this is where you would associate gang members to be. It looks like that it could be in London because of the high-rise flats.

Macro elements make a genre which in this case is a thriller/action due to its exciting plot, involving crime. The narrative was constructed very well and presented to the audience so they could easily spot that it is a plan to attack, where the group had an objective but were stopped in their tracks from the masked man. You should be able to identify this without having to look at the logline or treatment.

Re-creation of an OTS

As practice for filming our own OTS, we had a task to re-create the opening titles from a film. We chose to do 'The Dark Knight'.

 

The Original Titles:

 

 

Our Re-Creation:

 

Evaluation:

When deciding on what opening titles to re-create we thought that The Dark Knight would be a simple thriller opening title to make. However, when it came to filming and editing this, we found it a lot more challenging than we first thought.

The editing done in this OTS was created by mainly special effects and so we were unable to re-create this. We also found filming difficult as we could not get the specific movements between credits right, as the camera jumps quickly between the different shots of the cards burning, our set up was also difficult to mimic this because the lighting in the sequence is dimmed, but we used natural light outside.

When it comes to creating our own opening title sequence, we will make sure  that we do not choose any shots or edits that would be too difficult to perform.

Audience research methods

Audience research is research into the make up and habits of the audience of a particular television or radio programme or network audiences.

This can be carried out by using: 

Questionnaires 

Surveys 

Online forums 

Interviews 

Focus groups 

Film ratings

U - Universal, suitable for all.

PG - Parental Guidance

12 - Video release suitable for over 12's.

12A - Cinema release suitable for 12 years and over.

15 - Suitable for over 15 years.

18 - Suitable for over 18 years.

R18 - Adult works for licensed premises only.

Film ratings are used to limit the age of the viewers' based on the content in the film.

 

Comprehending Time

In films, on screen stories are generally not taken in real time. Films present lives of characters in a short time. There are different techniques that directors can use to show time passing, e.g. time/date information typed up on screen, a flash forward or flash back, repetition, reverse motion and freeze frame.

A flash forward moves the narrative further into the future. These are used to represent events that could happen, whereas flash backs view events that have already happened that are being looked back on to give further depth to a narrative.

Independance vs Hollywood

Independent Films: film production resulting in a feature film that is produced mostly outside of the major film studio. 

Hollywood Films: the entertainment industries involved in producing and distributing blockbuster movies.

 

Some films are made independently rather than by a global film distributors. The Hollywood film industry is much more powerful than the whole film industry because many people who want to see a new release will almost 100% of the time go to see a film in a multiplex cinema. Generally, the marketing of independent films is characterized by limited release.

Film Distribution

Film distribution is the process of making a film available for viewing by an audience. This is normally the job of a professional film distributor, who would decide the marketing strategy for the film, the media by which a film is to be shown or made available for viewing, and who may set the release date. The film may be exhibited directly to the public either through a cinema or TV.

Film Marketing

Marketing a big movie can be a very expensive. Movies have to be a hit on their opening weekend, or even on their opening day, otherwise they tend to disappear very quickly, and the distributors usually make a loss on their investment. Film marketing generally includes press releases, advertising campaigns, merchandising and media, and interviews with the key people involved with the making of the film, like actors and directors. Trailers are a key factor of film promotion, because they are delivered directly to the audience. They are usually shown in cinemas before movie showings. Generally they tell the story of the movie in a highly condensed fashion compressing maximum appeal into two and half minutes.

Convergence

Convergence  is the process of new technology moving to single platforms which can perform multiple media outputs that can be used to reach audiences. An example of this is and Xbox, it's main function is to enable people to play games, however, you can watch films, listen to music and search on the Internet.

Digital projection is a form of technological convergence because films that have been produced by digital means have moved away from the physical production, that can be supplied to theatres in digital format. This lowers costs for film distributors because less work will need to be carried out to get the film on to Blu-Ray, DVD, internet trailers, because the film was produced digitally.

Cross Media Convergence is where a company produces more than one type of media.

 

Synergy

Film Institutions

My Audience

This is a link to my 'Lino' on my audience.