Beth Holland

Progress from AS to A2

Digital Technology
Before beginning Media Studies I had little knowledge of how to use the software, as well as how to use the technology required. Therefore initially I struggled when it came to editing and filming our opening thriller sequence, however with practice I found these easy to progress is. I used the software Abode Premier pro along with an advanced camera, this being the main piece of technology used. Although not having used a camera for filming before, this was not a struggle for me as I ensured I practiced taking different shots and learning how it worked beforehand.
The software 'Adobe Premier Pro' was a challenge for me as I had never used it before, therefore I ensured I learned the basics. To do this I asked our most experienced member of our group with this software for a lesson, from this I learned how to drag the clips into the timeline, put them in order, how to cut the clips when needed, add music etc. This was extremely helpful as I then had a clear understanding of the main tools available, therefore I was able to help with the editing of our final sequence. I feel that my inexperience with Adobe allowed me to be more creative when coming to our opening sequence, as I had to experiment with many different tools and effects before concluding which was best. Therefore this helped to capture different ideas for our final piece, as we had to try out all different effects to see which was most effective. As well as this I researched into a few of the tools I was unsure of and watched various videos on them, allowing me to understand how the tool is used and what for. I was aware that using this software and being able to edit was a skill I required not only for our opening thriller sequence but also for A2. Therefore I ensured I learnt as much as possible about the programme, enabling me to work independently when coming to my A2 coursework. In addition I feel that digital technology enabled us to be creative, the main benefits being that we were able to enhance shots and certain sounds to create a dramatic effect, which was necessary for our opening. Alongside these two main areas which helped me to gain experience with the technology, I also found the Continuity Task and the first few drafts of our thriller opening very helpful with practicing the editing process, contributing to my confidence in this area. Overall I did have difficulty to begin with, with the technology, however I am happy with the progress I have made from both my individual learning and practice, as well as from the help of others in my class. Therefore I am now confident in these areas, which will continue to be helpful for my A2 coursework, as it is a necessary skill.

Creativity
As a group we tried to be as creative as possible to make our opening sequence unique and engaging, some of our ideas being more successful than others. We wanted to ensure we were creative throughout the making of our opening sequence as we did not want it to appear too similar to other openings we had viewed, as well as to make it unique and interesting. In order to balance the thriller conventions required with being creative we were aware that we needed to keep up with our research and planning, allowing us to identify which ideas were successful and which were not. I feel that many parts of our opening thriller sequence are original, for example using teenager suicide videos which are found on youtube. However our idea of the teenager girl having a male stalker is a more common element amongst psychological thrillers. Despite this I feel our storyline was original as although we incorporated the suicide tape idea that we had discovered, the actual plot around this was created and planned by us as a group. Throughout the creating process I learned that being unique and creating an original product is important in order to challenge the conventions, however the conventions must be kept to and refereed back to in order for the product to be successful. Furthermore individually within our group we researched into thriller openings, such as 'The Black Swan' and 'Seven' which helped influence the type of storyline we wanted to create, being dark and earee. Technology helped us to create this kind of opening as we were able to use similar camera angles and edit the shots, using effects to slow down the pace, make them darker etc. However as well as using similar angles to the ones we had research, we tried out different angles where suitable. For example we use a slow pan across the protagonists bedroom wall, which we felt was effective. This pan presents a wall of cards with various words on describing how the protagonist feels, we felt this was another creative element to our opening as we had not seen it before and it emphasized how she was afraid to speak about what was happening to her.

Research and Planning

In my opinion the research and planning of our opening was very beneficial as I had little understanding of the thriller genre beforehand. By looking at the codes and conventions of the genre we were able to understand what elements where required in our opening in order for it to be a successful thriller. We researched into these, making us aware that the lighting is often dark, the villains appear in dark clothing, locations such as alley ways are often used etc, therefore we were able to incorporate some of these elements into our opening. Also during our research and planning we looked into the audience of our opening, which again helped us to understand the different elements and how to meet their demands, as well as ensuring all content was suitable. We discovered what our target audience liked to see in thrillers with audience feedback, which we carried out with surveys. This influenced our planning further as it gave us ideas to include in order to ensure our opening appealed to it's audience. For example in our final survey 43 out of 50 people preferred thrillers with a certificate of 18 oppose to 15, despite the majority being under the age of 18. This suggested to us that the scarier the thriller the more appealing, therefore we took this into consideration throughout the creating process.
Moreover before beginning filming we made many storyboards, animatics, shot lists etc to help give us a clear structure of our opening. I feel that the storyboard was very effective during filming as we were able to refer back to it throughout, allowing us to include the correct props, setting, lighting etc. I found completing the animatic storyboard very helpful as we were able to visualize what our sequence may have looked like when completed. Although the animatic gave us a rough idea of the final sequence, it allowed us to see where more detail was needed, such as the timings and angles. This all contributed towards the improvement of our product. I feel as a group our planning was very effective and helpful as we assigned each of us different roles, ensuring all areas of research were covered and completed. I am now aware of the importance of researching and planning due to how much it helped me with creating and progressing in my coursework, therefore I plan to continue in the same way with my A2 coursework.

Post Production
The title sequence of our opening was the main part made entirely in post production. Reece created the title sequence using Adobe After Effects, and as a group we all input our thoughts on what colours, font etc looked most effective. We used Adobe Premier Pro to achieve a darker, more mysterious feel to certain shots, using various effects. As well as this we used this software to slow down the pace of the footage, for example when the protagonist is extremely frustrated. This was decided as it made the shot more dramatic. Furthermore the music for our opening changed numerous times before we decided on a final piece. I feel the piece we chose fit well with our opening and helped intensify certain parts, overall creating a tense feel. I am happy with how we cut the music piece as the sharp sounds throughout are effective in relation to the footage, such as when the laptop is opened. In some sections of our opening we felt that the sounds produced when recorded were not dramatic enough, therefore we used recorded sound effects to emphasize these. An example of this would be where the chair is knocked over by the protagonist's feet during the hanging scene. Throughout my AS coursework I feel I have learned a lot about the importance of sound and how effective it can be if used correctly, therefore the progress I have made will help me when carrying out my A2 coursework. In my opinion a lot of meaning was created in our product, with the storyline, the music, the lighting etc. I feel that our end product was successful in fulfilling the task as we met many of the conventions of a psychological thriller, while still encoding meaning in our product by addressing a very real and important issue of the dangers of social networking. I feel that encoding some sort of meaning within a product is important, as learned from my AS coursework, therefore I plan to do the same in A2.

Using conventions from real media texts

Throughout our opening we used media conventions to allow our target audience to understand and relate to the film, however we tried to combine these with our own original ideas. I feel we used many thriller conventions throughout our piece, such as with the lighting, camera angles, plot etc. For example in the opening of 'Black Swan, a long shot of the main character Nina is used, with a black backdrop and dim spotlight shining on her, which highlights her importance to the audience and gives an eerie atmosphere. As a a group we decided that similar lighting to this would be effective in our sequence especially in the opening, being a suicide tape, therefore I feel we used this convention successfully.

Furthermore while we understood the importance of using conventions from real media texts, we also knew it was important to challenge these in order to make our piece original and interesting. One way we challenged typical thriller conventions was by using the idea of teen suicide tapes from youtube, where the teenager holds up cards to inform their viewers how they are feeling. This idea didn't come from a film opening, however came from our research on teenage suicide tapes. We receive feedback from our teachers on this idea and it was evident that the problem with using these cards was that out piece would lack camera angles, as well as become to repetitive. To overcome this we added live action into our opening as well as used different camera angles of the protagonist holding up the cards, such as an over the shoulder shot. I feel that this idea challenged the conventions of real media products as it is not typical, and although we faced many problems with this idea I feel our opening uses it effectively.
Overall I am happy with the progress I have made from my AS coursework to A2, as when it comes to creating one of the three briefs I now know to look into depth with how I am challenging the conventions and if the camera angles, ideas etc will be effective beforehand. Therefore my AS coursework has been very beneficial to my learning process and has allowed me to develop my use of media conventions, which I hope to use successfully in my A2 coursework.