Audience Feedback

After one of the screenings for our title sequence we managed to collect as much feedback from our target audience and the sheet above appeared to be the most responsive and helpful. We feel the comments made were very necessary as we we also unsure about the adjustments between the music. After receiving this feedback we managed to fulfil our audiences expectations to a further level and gave them the final title sequence which they would most enjoy.

Title Sequence Evaluation

AS Title Sequence Evaluation

Our brief was to research and produce a title sequence based on a specific genre in which includes typical and maybe none typical codes and conventions for a new film. The title of our film is ‘Ronald: Grade A killer’ We felt the title had to be very convenient towards the characters importance but also represent the humour this dark comedy with a sub genre of horror will involve. We came up with many titles but after doing some audience research through a questionnaire this appeared to be the most successful. Our title sequence begins with a boy hiding in a cupboard watching a teacher role play a scene with another student but this is unfamiliar to the audience and Ronald and both automatically thinks the boy is being abused. A freeze frame is used as Ronald’s exits to the cupboard and strikes the teacher with a lamp which creates humour due to the random object, a voice-over is then used and we are taken back to the beginning of Ronald’s day from the moment he wakes up. Showing Ronald’s life we experience his every day morning and walk to school which helps develop his character throughout the title sequence. The title sequence ends with Ronald entering the classroom he started off in at the beginning of the sequence ready for the life changing attack to take place.

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

As the genre of my title sequence is dark comedy I was able to carefully follow the codes and conventions from a comedy and in some ways horror genre film and how they could be communicated within my title sequence, this consisted of red iconography and typography, many close up to leave enigmas and a upbeat soundtrack to keep the audience amused and create a sense of humour. I combined some of the typical title sequence conventions that are included in various title sequences (not all) such as, typography of cast, crew & title, sound, some form of clip and including the main character with the horror and comedy conventions to produce a final and most successful title sequence. Also included within our title sequence is fast cuts to combine with the music so everything is moving fast which symbolises escape as typical to almost every other horror film, there is a killer on the loose. We decided to keep these conventions as it would help to communicate the genre of the film to the audience and make it recognisable and meet their expectations and to also avoid disappointment.

Featured in our title sequence was the typical horror location of a frightening place in which looked ordinary but was far from it, the chosen place was a current and local secondary school and this is due to the narrative. The school is featured at the beginning and end of the title sequence and this therefore creates a loop in the title sequence as the audience finish where they started; this states the importance of the location but also portrays the plot to the audience as death has been foreshadowed so the audience are aware of what is going to happen. After watching ‘Hot Fuzz’ a film which is mainly a comedy but has manipulated murder, the title sequence also features the location at the start of the film; the location is not key to the narrative but key to the character as he is a police officer and it shows his commitment within his career. ‘Hot Fuzz’ title sequence is also very fast paced featuring up beat music so this was one of the inspirations that lead me to my final sequence. We challenged the codes and conventions of a title sequence by including a clip of the film before the actual title sequence began, due to the duration of it unfortunately this had to be removed but a short clip has been kept and cut down too still establish the narrative to the audience.

How does your media product represent particular social groups?

Featured in our title sequence is a stereotypical teenage geek named Ronald. The stereotype was constructed and portrayed to the audience through the use of Mise en scene and costuming, Ronalds outfit consisted of a tucked in shirt, blazer too big and a long tie. Even though these props were an over exaggeration, it helped to establish the character and his personality. Ronald’s accent was also taken into consideration when voice over’s were used, a stereotypical British posh voice was featured to make him sound well spoken and brought up within a wealthy home. The stereotype has been manipulated throughout the narrative of the film as the innocence of a ‘geek’ is no more after several murders are committed. Due to this manipulation it leaves the audience wondering whether he still is the boy they met at the beginning or has these accidental murders really changed who he is. Ronald is a representation of all the stereotypical geeks in secondary school that are tormented, abused and bullied throughout what’s meant to be the best days of their lives. Many of the audience will be able to emotionally communicate with Ronald due to previous experiences of bullying but can look at the manipulation of the stereotype and fine the humour behind it as it is his personality that keeps him unknown of being the murderer.

What kind of media institution might distribute your product and why?

Considering the similarities between our title sequence and ‘Hot Fuzz’ we decided Working Title would be our most successful distributor. Both genres film are in some way relevant to each other as the narrative are almost the same and typical to the horror genre. Due to the similarities we feel working title will be our best choice as they will be experienced in how to sell a film such as this to an audience. They are also a recognisable British company and therefore will definitely meet our pitch.

Who would be the audience for your media product?

We decided out target audience would be 15-23 year old boys. We decided on this particular age group as this allowed the film to communicate with the audience as they will either be going through their teenage days or old enough to nearly forget them and would be reminded of social events/ particular memories that may have happened. A specific audience this would be aimed at is victims of bullying. It helps victims of bullying to discover the humour behind their stereotype and how they can use this film as a way of ignoring the insults and making them not worth it. Our target audience has also been chosen due to the violence featured in the film as boy are stereotyped to be the tougher and more aggressive gender and therefore can handle the brutal murders and thrilling moments.

How did you attract/address your audience?

We addressed our audience throughout our title sequence as they were put in the perspective of Ronald’s everyday life. They are able to relate to Ronald’s walk to school and the things he comes across during that walk, they can also begin to imagine and realise how a ordinary day can be changed into something completely bazaar. We managed to involve our audience also on the production side of the title sequence by creating a questionnaire for which would be our most successful and favourite typography and we also had many screening of our title sequence as improvements had been made to get our final feedback in order to have the most successful title sequence possible. A common and popular comment that was made from our audience focused on the sound of our title sequence and how the volume needed to be adjusted as different moments were louder than others, We took this feedback into consideration to give our audience what they really deserve, a perfect quality title sequence.

What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?

During this process I have learnt some new techniques through the practise of editing and cinematography. Using Final cut pro I found this programme very challenging and therefore never participated that often but I did learn the skills of being able to cut down certain parts of a clip and amend them in places they needed to be. Also I managed to improve my cinematography skills very well as I was able to focus on how different shoots can create meaning as it can shows someone’s authority/class and I put these in place using low angle shots when the walk to school took place. A final thing i learnt was how music is very key within a title sequence and how it can affect the mood/tone of the film. After trying many horrific songs we realised horror was being represented too much within the sequence as this was only a sub genre. We then decided to spice the sequence up a little bit by adding a upbeat, fast pace soundtrack as I said before this combined well with the short cuts.

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

Since the preliminary task I have gained and produced many different skills that I had not came across before. I now realise and understand how a storyboard is so important and determines the exact shots you would like to produce but is also a guideline to help you get the best quality shot. Another filming technique I have improved on is my choice of location, different to the preliminary task the location is key and had to stand out from an ordinary cliché school location. The weather had to be right and the location had to be confirmed with permission was need to film so therefore planning which is another key filming process had to be carefully considered. A final thing I learnt through this process is that acting had to be key. An actor can either make or break a short film/Sequence so therefore the standard had to be a quality in order for the title sequence to be interesting to watch and most effective. 

28/02/12

In today's lesson we decided to redo our voiceovers due to them not being as clear as possible and some times fuzzy and unable to hear. We feel this has ben very successful as it definitely makes the piece look a lot more professional as the voiceover also helps to establish the character due to the use of his diction and accent in the voice. This process did not take as long as expected and has ben added to our final title sequence.

21/02/12

In today's lesson we showed our exported title sequence to the class in order to get the maximum feedback possible before our final cut. The feedback was very useful as it has encouraged us to edit our piece and the main improvement we have been advised to make is focused on the sound, diegetic and non diegetic. We also found that having a extra piece of film before the title sequence extended it over its time limit but it will still be posted.

02/02/12

In todays lesson we continued to edit our title sequence and configure and change some of the unsuccessful shots. This included some shots involved in the pre title sequence. Due to shot not working out as it appeared to be jumpy and un-smooth, we began o shoot different shots in order for them to flow with the narrative. We then upload theses shot in order for us to have the most thought about and sucessful final piece.

24/01/12

In todays lesson, we began to properly and more carefully start to edit as a group to get the final piece done based on a group decision. I participated with adding some of the typography to the final piece whilst my group focused on the cuts and editing. I found this lesson very successful as we discovered what works and does not. It helped us develope our final cut pro skill so enable us to have the best final piece we can achieve. 

Music Options

Shoot The Messenger
https://audionetwork.lgfl.org.uk/show-production-results.aspx?stype=4&keywords=shoot+the+Messenge

Walking The Dog
https://audionetwork.lgfl.org.uk/show-production-results.aspx?stype=4&keywords=Walking+The+Dog


Yeah Boy
https://audionetwork.lgfl.org.uk/show-production-results.aspx?stype=4&keywords=Yeah+Baby


Maybe Not Now
https://audionetwork.lgfl.org.uk/show-production-results.aspx?stype=4&keywords=Maybe+Not+Now

Final Poster

Above is the final poster for our film. We have kept all the features used on the mock-up but this time we have used our own images. We took a photo of our star of the film in front of a green screen then cropped it our on photoshop. I really like the outcome of the poster as it uses all the right conventions but also look slick and professional. 

20/01/12

In today's lesson we were able to achieve our target and shoot the shots we planned to do in the previous lesson. We discovered that it was easier to shoot with a script aswell as this includes a more organised shooting plan, this avoided a lot of mistakes and kept us on track unlike last time. With the help from our teacher, we where able to keep expanding and improving our intital ideas and therefore make our final title sequeces of a high standard.

Title Sequence Script

Ronald: Grade ‘A’ Killer

Scene 1

The film opens in a dark room where all is seen is a beam of light vaguely highlighting a young boy’s face. His facial expression indicates that he is watching something but the audience is unclear about what exactly is happening. There voice about halfway into the shot…

Voice: I am feed up with all these perfetic excuses, you have had me wrapped round you little finger for too long…

In the next shot, we are shown the point of view of the character in the dark room peering through a tiny gap where, what looks like, a door opening. We can now see clearly a classroom where a teacher is standing over a student. The student voice cries…

Student: Please I didn’t want it to go on for this long, I just need the answers. That’s all, you understand right?

Teacher: Sure I do (sarcastic), this was all one big misunderstanding. You haven’t turned my life into living hell or anything, I’m just going to let you just walk on out of this room without you being punished…

Student: Yes please just let me go… (Almost crying)

Teacher: Well actually I’m not going to let you go, but I am going to make sure you pay for every bit of misery you caused me. This will be the end for you…

Student: Please I don’t what to die all that stupid stuff I did, I’m sorry…

Teacher: Well that isn’t good enough.

Now we are back to the dark room where we again see the mysterious outline of this young boy where suddenly we are submerged in darkness until the light is turned on to reveal a young smart school boy in his school uniform. He is panicking…

School Boy:(in his head) Oh crap what the hell is happening, more to the point why is it happening to me. I’ve never done anything bad to anyone. Snap out of it Ronald, you need to save that student, you can’t just stand in here and listen to him get beaten to death. I need to find a weapon…

(We then see Ronald vigorously searching through the shelves)

Ronald: Roll of Paper; not the most strong weapon maybe something a little harder, Spray can; not good enough I’ll only be able to get one hit, Lamp; not my ideal weapon but light, this will have to do.

Then we are back to the classroom where the young student is curled up in the corner. The teacher is stand away from the student still shouting fears demands…

Teacher: Right you avoiding this anymore, you are going to die today and there nothing that you cunning mind can do about it…

Then suddenly Ronald appears behind the teacher with his weapon raised high, he has angry face swings for the teacher and just before impact…FREEZE

TITLE SEQUENCE

Ronald: I bet you are curiously wondering how a little small time geek like me ended up in an epic fight for survival, well my started like any day in the small crappie town of Welling, where my life is normal and boring and nothing really exciting happens. I thought I would have to spend my entire life here; well that’s what I thought…

Ronald: As you can see my life is pretty average, there’s nothing special about it, but that’s all about to change, a soon as I step through the gates of Wellington Secondary school…

BACK TO FREEZE

Then we are back to where we left with Ronald about to swing for the teacher when there’s a knock at the door…

Student at Door: Sir, can look at this essay that was due for tomorrow but I wanted to make sure it was all oookkaayy… (Shocked face)

17/01/12

In today's lesson we took the time to look over the footage that we had and began to decide what needed to be re-shot and what was okay. We discovered that the shot we took when filming in our school location did not look as good as we expected when edited together due to lack of preparation. We decided to re shoot as soon as possible to get the best achieved shot. The main part of the lesson was about how to use the editing software Final Cut Pro on the iMac's. We where given a basic principles tutorial to really get to grips with using it. We then got given the chance to start playing about with the software. I struggle at first on how to use the software but my skills became stronger after practising on a practise clip.

13/01/12

In todays lesson we began our first shooting session and suceeded with filming some of      the shots form our storyboard. This was working well until a few changes had to be made to our film but also our storyboard due to the narrative structure and the flow.  We were considering better ways that the original shots could be adapted to broadcast different meaning that could be interpreted in a easier way for audience members. This was our first real step in the production side of the coursework and we now know how hard it is to film but also how enjoyable it is.

Calendar plan for january

10/01/12

In todays lesson we began to create the typography for the titles being featured in our film. After varying the font size and style we came to the conclusion of keeping it the exact same as the main titles typography to represent the death and darkness throughout the whole sequence but to keep it formal and subtle. The font size varies depending on the importance of the cast and crews role. The titles will be added approximately according to the storyboard but may vary as we may decide it will look better placed somewhere else with the frame of the sequence.

Poster example

Above is practice poster that we could possibly use to advertise our film, we have used all the right conventions including billing block, USP's (Director) bold images and also the title (the chosen one). We have chosen the a typical dark colour scheme to represent the genre through the use of dark blacks and red. This is shown by the contrasting black and white back ground. This also shows the progression of how bad things get thought the film. I have chosen to keep the audience focus on the character who is dominating the poster in a certain composition. I have done this to signify the main character that this film is focused on thought the move. The dead body silhouette is used to high light possible story narrative that will be featured in the film. Overall I like the outcome of this poster and I believe I would be successful if it was used. 

Title sequence designer: Logo

Here is a self produced title sequence designer logo for our company 'Lubilu'. The logo looks very formal and professional and will stand out in our title sequence due to the different colour and font. We used the two blues as they are in contrast and very different tones therefore will meet the audiences eye better. The font is very big, bold and in your face so it automatically attracts attention and due to its size and font shows its importance.

06/1/12

In today's lesson me and my group main objective was to finish the pre-production work. with some extra time after school we also managed to create our animatic for our finished storyboarded title sequence. Considering we are now one step ahead of our schedule i find this very successful as it leaves us more time to do some extra editing and filming if needed. The pre production we had completed were; Title sequence designer logo, production company logo and a practise poster. Al of the productions were thought abut and made as professional as can be. the thought that went into the creating was would it meet our target audience expectations and interest then to be able to draw them towards the film.

Ronald Grade 'A' Killer Animatic

Final Typography And Title

We have decided to stick with the original typography created when we thought of the title name for the questionnaire. This is because of the use of font size, style and the iconography is represents of darkness and death. Due to this being the chosen title in the questionnaire we felt this would most please the audience as we have taken their thoughts into consideration.  As a company we also felt this would be the best title due to the title being so simples and suttle but holds a enigma which is different to the other titles we put into consideration. 

Production Company Logo

This is the final production company logo created by myself and my group. It was self produced and will be included within our title sequence. The Logo was created in Photoshop and the name 'Obscurity Productions' was decided on amongst the group as it is unique and professional.

Storyboard

EXTRA SHOT:

05/01/12

In today lesson we had finished our storyboard and also decided on the films name following the questionnaires results, the final decision made was; Ronald: Grade A Killer. At the start of the lesson we firstly began to finish the storyboards and therefore we were able to get a clear idea of what our final storyboard was going to look like. We also where given some helpful advise from Shaun to add some extra shots to our film in order to create a more humorous effect and a better flow to the title sequence. This abled us to get a decent length final storyboard in which we where able to start colouring in. 

03/01/12

In todays lesson we began to put together a storyboard for our new black comedy title sequence. This was a key part of the film making process as everything on the storyboard will contribute to the final film. We had to consider the conventions of storyboards to insure that ours is professional and usable. We had to make the story board very specific as it had to be a guideline and easily understood. 

Questionnaire design for film title.

We had given out 15 questionnaires to a audience varying from 16-18. The results were as shown below:

Ronald: Grade A Killer - 6

Books, Babes & Brutal murders - 4

Student Body- 2

Big Mistake - 2 

Books, babes and brutal Deaths - 1

Detention - 0

Late Slip - 0

Secondary Psycho - 0

Bods, babes & Brutal Murders - 0

Secondary Scoundrel - 0