Finished Product

I apologise for the size of some of the intertitles, but this trailer was made to be viewed on a large screen. 

Evaluation Question 4

Scanner – this was used for scanning my storyboard.

Pros: Easy to use, saves you having to take photos of your work.

Cons: The scans are not always to the best quality, the scanning process is long and tedious (on my scanner at least).

Video Camera – I filmed my teaser trailer with this.

Pros: Easy to use, compact, the screen flips to almost any angle (you don’t have to be behind the camera to see what is happening).

Cons: Average quality picture, runs out of battery quickly.

Computer – this was used for various things during my project, such as recording my audio, blogging and creating my pitch PowerPoint.

Pros: Easy to use, makes life easier (don’t have to do research through books).

Cons: Crashes, lag.

Samson Go Mic – I used this piece of equipment to record my laugh audio.

Pros: Easy to use (as I am very familiar with the software), gives a good quality sound, compact, doesn’t require any additional equipment.

Cons: Buzzing sound after increase in volume.

Mac – this was used for editing my teaser trailer.

Pros: Easy to use, does the job.

Cons: Unable to add own fonts for titles, lack of decent edits/animations, can’t edit music tracks in any way once they are in iMovie.

Blogger – I used this website to create and update my media blog.

Pros: Easy to use, can personalise blog.

Cons: Sometimes it is difficult to place videos and images, Blogger will sometimes alter text that has been transferred from Word.

Youtube – this website was used for inspiration and embedding (on blog).

Pros: Quick and easy way of finding videos for information and inspiration, wide range of videos, helpful filtering system.

Cons: Some videos take a while to load.

Evaluation Question 3

The results of my audience feedback questionnaires were mainly positive, with the majority of people saying they enjoyed my teaser trailer and would watch the whole movie. In addition to this, most people felt that they got all the information they needed and everyone understood the genre I was going for. So, according to these comments, my teaser trailer was very successful and I should continue to work in this way, as people seem to enjoy it.

Things that worked well: Enigma codes, the build-up to the ending, Dutch tilts, pan up over shoulder, the ending itself, visual effects and the build-up of suspense/tension.

In terms of what could be improved, most people seem to think that I could have done a better job with the arrangement of my clips and intertitles (I’m guessing the clips at the beginning of the trailer became boring after a while), so this is something that I will work on in the future. I also got a comment about using better facial expressions, but as I am not a professional actress, I don’t really think this matters. I could’ve done a better job showing hatred towards the doll however, to fully demonstrate the relationship between the main characters.

Evaluation Question 2

I have already mentioned many ways in which my poster and magazine cover are effective in terms of drawing in an audience and promoting my film here. In this post I will continue to talk about the ways in which my ancillary products sell my movie, but with a focus on branding, narrative images and connections in my work.

One of the most startling connections between my finished product and ancillary tasks is the use of colour, as I have taken special care in ensuring that all three include very feminine shades of pink, cream and purple. This sells the film to my target audience (females aged 16-24) as it emphasises the femininity and youth in my movie, which would appeal to them.

The consistency of my tagline, “She’ll break you”, also works at selling my movie, as it presents a constant challenge to the audience, which invites them to come and watch the film to see if they will indeed break under Constance’s pressure. My recurring tagline, which focuses on seriously damaging a young girl, also emphasises to the audience that the movie will be action-based and dramatic, which will excite them and hopefully entice them too.

The considerable presence of my web address is another way I show promotion across my products. It is there on both my teaser trailer and my movie poster, and encourages the audience to find out more information about Porcelain and form some kind of connection with it, which would hopefully make them more likely to go and watch the film in the real world. As it is present on more than one of my products, it also means that, if a member of the audience doesn’t catch the web address the first time, they have another opportunity to see it (there is no way a viewer can miss it, which means I am maximising my chances of a big viewing audience).

This may seem like a no brainer, but I have made sure to include the name of my movie on all three of my products. This way my target audience will remember the name, and in turn the film, well, which makes them more likely to go and see it. Similarly to this, the release date of Porcelain is repeated, which means it is probable that more people will go and see the movie, as they are assured of when they can go and see it, and are also made to remember this fact.

Finally, the narrative image of a young girl being mentally destroyed reoccurs - it is implied in the trailer, but then literally shown on both the poster and the magazine cover - which sells my film as it is the most dramatic image/idea from my movie, setting the audience up for an amazing ride (which, incidentally, might not actually be fulfilled as the audience are given the best image/idea from the movie to look up to falsely). The recurrence of my narrative image in different ways (sometimes literal, sometimes metaphorical) also shows the convergence between my pieces, as the poster and magazine are enhancing the teaser trailer, offering a visually appealing interpretation of Shelly’s breakdown, which will work for members of the audience who are not satisfied with the metaphorical interpretation the trailer shows (the trailer shows Shelly in mental discomfort, but does not actually show Shelly breaking).

Evaluation Question 1

Psychological Thriller

Note: Most of this is written with a view to a complete film.

Used

One key character (Shelly): I believe it is of vital importance to focus on one character and one character alone during a psychological thriller, as that way, it is possible to get into their deepest and darkest thoughts, resulting in an overwhelming flow of both disgust and sympathy from the audience, which is a very interesting atmosphere to create. This convention is very special, and sets psychological thrillers way apart from other film genres, as it has the power to create a totally unbreakable bond between audience and character. For these reasons and more, I created Shelly, the main and for the most part only character.

Mind games: Constance “plays” a number of tricks on Shelly (this is all in Shelly’s head), which test her sanity, patience and family relationships. As the tricks/unexplainable events go on, Shelly is pushed further and further into madness, which is vital to the final act of insanity (the smashing of Constance). These mind games also provide a visual pageant for the audience (cheap thrills).

Obsession: There is no special reason for my inclusion of obsession, other than it being the next step after paranoia for Shelly.

Developed

In psychological thrillers, the protagonist’s feelings will often manifest in actions. I have developed this idea by showing my protagonist’s feelings through an object: porcelain. For example, at the end of the film, Shelly smashes Constance, the porcelain doll, which reflects her complete and utter loss of mental control (breakdown). I have developed this convention in my own way as I feel objects are a subtle and clever way of presenting emotion, as opposed to obvious and straightforward actions which do not give a second level to a film.

Challenged

At the end of a psychological thriller, the protagonist will usually triumph over their enemy due to some sort of advanced knowledge, but in Porcelain, Shelly wins against Constance because of her brute force (she smashes the doll, which gives her a feeling of victory). My reasoning for this is rather simple - Shelly cannot possibly win against Constance in a battle of wits as dolls cannot think, talk or move. I also feel the imagery of a young, crazy girl totally demolishing a doll in a fit of rage is much more appealing and powerful as an ending to a film than two characters trying to mentally outsmart each other (in this instance anyway).

I have also challenged the ever-present convention of death for the “crazy person” (see Black Swan and Obsessed), making Porcelain a far more sympathetic psychological thriller. Shelly is indeed left in an inferior position (she is consumed by insanity), but, as she is not dead, there is something hopeful about the ending, as it shows the audience that mentally ill people are out there, and instead of pushing them aside and overlooking them, we should provide help.

Teaser Trailer

Used

Very few scenes/shots: I have decided to follow this teaser trailer convention by using only two scenes from my movie, therefore making my trailer very realistic.

Close ups and mid shots: Many of my shots are focused around heads and faces, to emphasise my genre and also the fact that most of my story is based around the fragility and wickedness of the mind. These shots are additionally good for familiarising the audience with the main character(s).

No voiceover: Voiceovers are used less frequently nowadays, and I have kept to this convention by steering clear of one in my own trailer. I did this not only to be realistic, but also to avoid a cheesy influence over my psychological thriller, making it appear more stylish and artistic.

Challenged

An extremely common feature of trailers and teaser trailers is an increase in pace towards the end. I have challenged this convention by creating a slow teaser trailer (aside from the fast music at the end) that skulks along gently, in order to generate a mysterious and chilling atmosphere. When a character is in a state of emotional turmoil, we expect a speedy and outrageous trailer to reflect this, but I have tried to subvert this, instead focusing on an uncomfortable calm that emphasises the fact that Shelly is just on the verge of breaking.

Evaluation Questions

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

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

3. What have you learned from your audience feedback?

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

Final Poster and Magazine Cover

After looking at my film poster, my teacher felt that I needed to make a few improvements, so I have added a rating for realism (so that my poster fits in with usual poster codes and conventions) and also some short reviews, to draw in the audience (they will see that my film is worth watching).

 

Analysis of my magazine cover

The main image provides a very literal representation of my tagline and the pink glow around the edges (Picnik.com) shows the dominance of females in Porcelain and also the pink and pretty nature of dolls. The photo of the shattered glass covers almost the entire page, so that it creates an aesthetically pleasing effect and is very attention grabbing.

Additional Info on Poster

The hammer is very big whilst the image depicting Shelly is very small, showing that Shelly is the victim in a clear manner, and that she will face huge problems during the course of the storyline. As the hammer is just resting above Shelly’s head, it is also implied that she is just on the verge of breaking, which poses an intriguing question to the audience – is she going to break or not? This would hopefully result in more box office sales, due to the audience’s curiosity.

As Shelly is represented by a sign usually associated with normal, average, day-to-day females (female toilet sign), it creates a nice ironic effect, as Shelly is far from regular (she is crazy). The girl is also faceless and dull, suggesting that Shelly has lost all identity, as her life is now consumed by Constance.

The simplistic design is very mysterious and leaves much to the audience’s imagination, as there are no actual photos from the film included. This would build excitement tenfold as the viewers still have so much to find out – they are only being given a taste of what they are in for.

As Shelly and the hammer are the same menacing colour (black), it is suggested that Shelly will end up just as evil and corrupt as the doll she fears is against her.

Analysis of my poster

Magazine Analysis

Please enlarge for best quality.

Black Swan Poster Analysis

Please enlarge these pictures for the best quality.

Web Address

Quick note: I have added my wed address to the end of the teaser trailer. I’m not too sure why I overlooked this previously, but now that it’s present, it makes my trailer seem far more current and realistic. The web address also aligns my trailer with the branding I have been applying to my work.

Editing Update

Sepia: I have now decided on the colour technique I want to use for my clips, and that is sepia, layered with a decrease in brightness. This will give my teaser trailer a professional look and a feminine vibe, hinting to the audience that this is a film dominated by females.

For my final clip (Constance hanging), I am going to use a beautiful, jewel-like red sepia. I feel this will represent Shelly’s anger, Constance’s “pain” and again, the dominance females have. It will also show that this shot has nothing to do with the previous ones (change of scene).

Pan shot: I filmed a panning motion, but it fluctuates between fast and slow movements, leaving the shot looking awkward, so I have decided to cut it from my trailer. I am going to cover the free space with an intertitle.

Pitch

Couple of mistakes with this:

On the music slide, I say that “Porcelain” is my final intertitle, when it is actually not.  

On the layout slide, I talk about one scene that is intercut with dialogue, music and intertitles, when I should actually mention two scenes (the kitchen scene and the hanging scene). I think I made this mistake because the kitchen scene forms the majority of my trailer, and therefore I sometimes forget about the hanging scene.

Intertitle Animations

To make it absolutely clear, these are the animations I am going to be using for my intertitles:

Fade in/fade out: This will be used for all of my intertitles except the very last one (“She’ll break you”), and I like it because it’s spooky yet simple.

Quick zoom: This will be used for my very last intertitle, in order to complement the shock About to Detonate delivers.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Increase in size: This is not necessarily an animation, but I am going to make my intertitles increase in size as they go along, to give a sense of something lurking and creeping up.

Representation

In this post I will discuss how mentally unwell individuals are represented in my teaser trailer.

During the finale of my teaser trailer, Shelly laughs and takes pleasure in Constance’s “pain”, which presents mentally ill persons as having a slightly sadistic temperament, even though the majority of psychological ailments do not entail an aggressive disposition. Another representation that can be drawn from this teaser trailer is that mentally ill people have stark and vivid hallucinations that are beyond their control, which gives a very limited view on psychological disorders, as not all of them involve wild visions or otherworldly experiences. Finally, due to Shelly’s bearing of a modest hairstyle and typical teenage clothes, mentally unwell persons are displayed as having a small obsession with being socially acceptable.

Storyboard

I went through a lot of creative glitches when creating this storyboard, therefore some of it has been blocked out. There may still be some problems or inconsistences however, but as this is for my own personal use I don't suppose it really matters (it still gets across the gist of my idea).

Filming

Today I filmed my production with the help of my friend, Philip Newsham. I directed all of it, but he was there to help me with any impossible shots (when working alone).

I feel the process went very well, as I made certain I was totally prepared before beginning. I had a bit of trouble getting my head level for the high angle shot, which wasted some time, and it was difficult to create the doll’s hanging scene (I had to make sure that I included the rail above the doll, and that the string was visible), but apart from these minor setbacks, I feel my filming day went very well, due to careful planning and an easy setting (it is simple to control the environment inside a house).

Props and Clothing

In my teaser trailer, I will wear this dress when portraying Shelly. It is a dress typical of a teenage girl, showing that Shelly wishes to be accepted as normal, and that she is always striving to be the same as everyone else (in a desperate attempt to reject her insanity). 

My trailer does not require any props (apart from the doll), seeing as eye contact between Shelly and Constance is the main focus. I do need to find some string or rope for the hanging scene though.

Pitch PowerPoint

Note: On this slide it says “a single scene that is intercut with dialogue, music and intertitles” when in fact it should say “two scenes intercut with dialogue, music and intertitles”.

Dutch Tilts and Security Camera Shots

In my teaser trailer, I am going to use Dutch tilts to create a feeling of disorder.

Dutch tilts are often used to depict the psychological discomfort in the subject being filmed. This shot is achieved by tilting the camera to the side, and the majority of Dutch angles are static shots (I have challenged this by including a Dutch tilt that zooms in). Dutch tilts can also add a feeling of creativity to a piece and make the whole aesthetic of a shot more eye-catching. 

I am also going to apply security camera shots to my work.

Security camera shots are a speciality form of high-angle shots, taken from the corner of a room. In my teaser trailer, I am going to use security camera shots to show that an all-powerful force is watching Shelly and Constance. The unknown and dominant being is Shelly’s insanity, as this is the real villain/problem in my storyline, not the doll. These shots will also help to establish where my main characters are sitting (180 degree rule).

ROUGH Storyboard

Here is a rough “storyboard”. This is for my own personal use, so that I can get a good impression of how my idea works with music and get a clear outline of the timing.

Tagline

“She’ll break you”

I feel this is a good tagline, as it is both a reference to Shelly's brutal demise (at the hands of Constance) and also a play on the easily breakable nature of dolls. As well as this, the direct threat - “She will break you” - presents a challenge to the audience, which would hopefully, in the real world, result in lots of box office sales from people interested in testing their nerve.

Note: Constance is the name of the doll.

Binary Oppositions

Today we talked about dominant and oppositional ideologies, and created a chart of binary oppositions.

Shelly is a mentally ill girl left in a bad situation by the end of my film, and therefore she fits in with the dominant way of thinking, which states that mentally challenged/disabled people are unworthy of a happy life/acceptance. However, as Shelly is the main character, my movie also crosses over into oppositional territory, as it’s not like I’m ignoring the issue all together, or pretending that it doesn’t exist.

Dominant: Men, white, thin, healthy, able, sane, working

Oppositional: Women, black, fat, sick, disabled, insane, not working

Ideology

Ideology is often referred to as an unconscious set of values or beliefs that a group, society or individual hold to be true or important, and provide a particular view of the world.

The values and beliefs perpetuated by the majority within a society may be described as dominant ideologies. Dominant social institutions include the BBC (who stand for traditional British values and fairness), schools (who instil respect and good behaviour) and the NHS. Some dominant ideologies may be hidden by the “common sense” view or the “naturalised” view. An example of this would be the view that all girls are “naturally” meek and feminine.

Such a consensus view of society is achieved with the consent of the majority of a particular society as a whole, and this has been termed by Antonio Gramsci as hegemony (the way one belief system comes to dominate society).

Crazy Madam Productions

I’ve decided to call my production company Crazy Madam Productions, which is a feminised play on the common phrase “crazy madman”, to match my insane female lead, Shelly. 

The logo contains a pair of pink lips in order to highlight the femininity in my company name, and the distorted/faded nature of the lips reflects Shelly’s broken mind. 

Anna Reece (Audience Profile)

This is Anna Reece. She is 19 years old, and lives in a semi-detached house with her mum, dad, and two sisters in Nottingham. At the moment she is away at university staying in a dorm with two other females.

She dresses casually and fashionably, usually donning a printed dress and brogues. She enjoys hanging out with friends, dancing, listening to music and reading. She also likes blogging on the internet through Tumblr, and interacting with her peers on Facebook.

She likes films such as Mean Girls, Black Swan and My Sister’s Keeper. She goes to the cinema to watch films such as these about once a month, and then she will purchase her favourite ones on DVD to watch at home with her friends.   

She watches television programmes such as Hollyoaks, Gossip Girl and The Only Way is Essex. She is very interested in soaps as she likes the vast similarities she shares with the female characters.

The main music genre she listens to is pop, as she enjoys the visual effects and costumes.

Now that she is out of school, her opinions are starting to become her own, but as she is still in student territory, many of her values continue to be formed from her peers.

She has a part-time job at a nearby Tesco, meaning that she is making an average wage, but with university costs to take care of, she sometimes finds herself strapped for cash.

Audience Research: Cinema Going Habits

How often do you go to the cinema?
Once a week

Once a month

Once a year

Less than once a year

Female 1

Once a month

Female 2

Once a month

Female 3

Once a year

Female 4

Once a month

Female 5

Less than once a year

Female 6

Once a week

Female 7

Once a year

Female 8

Once a month

Female 9

Once a year

Female 10

Once a year

Target Audience Mood Boards