Evaluation
1. In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?
One of the conventions of short films is to not stick to Todorov’s narrative structure. With my short film I challenged this by doing the opposite, as it’d be narrative structure that the audience would be familiar with. Though it could allow the audience to become passive, I think that it makes them focus on the conflicted argument scene and the issues the film covers. By focusing on these, it’d hopefully make the audience think more about what the film is saying to them – that even in our society, it’s still important for everyone to find acceptance with their identity.
Short films synopses go round a full circle, which is a convention that I followed. I thought that it was important for the audience to see that the protagonist had questioned her identity, but through this she finds acceptance. Another reason I followed it, was that I felt that it would work well with the classic narrative structure that I was following. It needed the synopsis to go in a full circle as it does the same. I felt that this particular convention would give the protagonist more depth, as the audience would see her overcoming the situation.
A convention that I hoped I challenged was the audience’s expectations, and was achieved through the conflicted argument scene. It could have shown through the conflicted argument as non-diegetic voice over, accompanying the action that has made her come to doubt herself. I feel that this is how it’s shown to the audience with most moving image media. I decided to show mine through having one side of her face being face painted, as it’s the side that she feels society wants her to be. Whilst the other remained plain, as it’s who she wants to be. By challenging the audience’s expectations through this scene, it will create a stronger impact. Hopefully this could make them become an active audience, as they may start to think how the themes and issues in my short film can affect society and even more importantly individuals. Through challenging the audience’s expectations it may allow them to relate to the situation the protagonist is in.
2. How effective is the combination of your main product and ancillary texts?
I think that my film is effective. I think this is done through the conflicted argument she has. Through the direct address to the audience in a first person narrative, it shows how the situation can affect everyone. During this scene, both sides and question and justify about her individuality. The protagonist is questioning herself hopefully it’ll make the audience question the situation too. By the audience becoming an active one, as they think about their own identity and if they accept it. This shows the impact of the script and how effective the film is.
My film poster reinforces the confused tone. This is done, by having one picture, which is her eye. I used this because of the expression “the eyes are to window to the soul,” indicating that the person knows who they are. I made the pupil of her eye really dark showing this is a dark moment for her. All around the eye, there are different quotes from the film in different fonts. This shows that she confused and the definition of the expression, doesn’t apply to her. As she doesn’t know who she is. I think that this makes it effective, as there is depth to the poster and that’s why it’s effective.
3. What have you learned from your audience feedback?
My film review reinforces the point that the film is about accepting who you are. This is done through the language always reminding you that it’s ok to be an individual. In one of the paragraphs it questions if the role models we have are right to say what a suitable identity is. Hopefully it will then make the reader think about the role models we do have, and if they’re suitable to be our role models. By the reader then becoming an active one, it shows how the film review is effective. It tells them that they should accept who they are and their identity. Not change our identity because it’s what our society and role models tell us to do.
When I was editing and constructing my film together, I was worried that the opening scene before the opening credits wouldn’t work. I wanted to establish who the protagonist to the audience and show the naturalistic environment that I was creating through the handheld camerawork. From my feedback I learnt that the audience thought that it did work. I found that everyone had a different interpretation about what it added to the film and they were...
• It created establishment
• It created the mood of the piece
• Showed her coming back to her comfort zone
• Introduction to the character, setting and pace of the film
• It acted as the resolving point
This was a chance for the protagonist to be introduced, and brings you into the film gradually. When she shuts the door in front of the camera, it’s almost her telling the camera to leave her alone as she’s found acceptance with herself. I learnt that it allowed the rest of the film to be a flashback.
At times when the editing went to a different shot the sound was a little abrupt. After we got our audience feedback, we had the chance to edit and improve our films, which I decided to do. In one scene in the film I had a montage scene of her changing and was interrupted with flashbacks with her sister, which is why she’s changing. With this scene I learnt that the mise-en-scene could have been clearer, because if the audience had seen what she was wearing, it might have added more to her conforming. This perhaps was lost because of the camera shots, which were mainly close-ups as I wanted to create a tense mood and the impression that the audience was there with her. So the naturalistic environment was reinforced.
The institution that I wanted to show my film on was the BBC Film Network, as it shows short films. I thought this would be the best one for my short film. After my feedback I found that it the majority thought that it could also be shown on Channel 4. This institution could also work well for me to display my film, as the channel likes to ‘demonstrate innovation, experiment and creativity in the form and content of programmes.’ This could work as my film is experimental, especially with the way that the conflicted argument is presented to the audience. From this I learnt that I should have considered if beforehand, because if it was on Channel 4 it could break the niche’ audience for short films. My short film involves the protagonist talking directly to the audience about how society perceives women. By having it on a popular channel like this, it could work as the protagonist would be talking directly to society.
4. How did you use new media technologies in the construction and research, planning and evaluation stages?
For my visual research I looked at the public network site BBC Film Network Site, which was the institution that I planned to show my film on. This was a new media technology as it was a public network site, which showed how the internet is growing that we can now upload films and don’t have to put them on a DVD. When constructing my poster I used Photoshop. This is a new technology as when creating my poster it allowed me to edit the size, the quality of the picture by sharpening it. I was also able to put words over the top of the picture and change them through size and rotating them, so they’d fit the shape of the photo. When I was constructing my film, I used the programme Final Cut Pro. This allowed me to use all the skills that I had learnt over the two years to edit a short film successfully, but in one timeline, showing how editing has advanced in recent years.
The most recent new media technology that I used was the public network site Blogspot. As it allowed me to present my work onto an online Blog. I had to create a Blog and for each element of my research, planning and evaluation stages had to have their own posts. Then during these stages I wrote up the information on each different post. If I wanted to put in a photo – such as my storyboards – they had to be changed in Photoshop to a JPG file. Once I had done that I clicked add image and once it was imported I could then edit it. The reason that this is the most recent new media technology is because, it’s a new way to present a project for example. It also means that it’s accessible for anyone to see at any time, because it’s on the internet. Once again this shows how new media technologies are always advancing, as we now use a public network site such as Blogspot, instead of Word.
