Evaluation Activity 1

IN WHAT WAYS DOES YOUR MEDIA PRODUCT USE, DEVELOP OR CHALLENGE FORMS AND CONVENTIONS OF REAL MEDIA PRODUCTS?

I chose the title of my film shown in shot 9, as it was relevant to the basic narrative plot. This could be seen as a challenge to the conventions of a real media product title, as normally in a crime thriller genre film the title has a clearer link to the plot of the film. For example, Shutter Island, the title of the film is the same as the name of the island in which the film takes place. This is also where the main character of the film is investigating.

In shots 3, 4, 6 and 7 you can see that my film is mostly set on a beach, the location shots fit in with the conventions of a real media product. To show the setting I used an over head shot from the tricopter, similar to shot 3 and 6 to act as an establishing shot. After this I used close-ups of the beach location through the characters in my film e.g. in shot 5 and 7 the audience is aware that it is set on a beach as the characters walk across or onto the beach. I think that I have challenged the conventions in a real media product by having the over the head shots of the dead body, which add to the on-edge atmosphere that you get with a crime thriller films.

I decided to keep my costumes realistic but natural at the same time, this is shown in shot 6 and 3. My main female is in modern and young styled clothing, to portray a childish and naive side to the character and to fit in with the younger generation of my target audience. For the policeman and forensic I decided to go for a realistic outfit to make the film feel real and therefore add more tension to it. These costumes fit in with the conventions for a real media product, as most crime thriller films will have a casually dressed victim and policeman in uniform.

Throughout my film opening I have tried to use a variety of shots and angles, which you would expect to see in a real media product. I have also used different editing effects, such as the one in shot 1 of the motion blur, to challenge the conventions of a real media product by adding a slow and distorted effect to the shot. This then contrasts well with the next shot being a fast motion of her running down the stairs, shown in shot 7.

I decided that the font of the titles was going to be basic when I incorporated it into my footage. I decided to go with the font shown in shot 4 and 8, as it was clear and easy to read and fitted well with the conventions of a crime thriller genre. In addition, I believe that it shows the audience a clear difference between the camera shots and the titles themselves.

My opening challenges the conventions of a crime thriller genre film as it leaves the audience with many different views on how the film ends and the relationships between the characters we see during the film opening. We can see that the girl is being stalked and murdered by the mysterious male character, but we are unaware if he is caught, the relationship between the victim and murderer and whether he kills anyone else.

I believe that my film opening clearly shows the audience that it is a crime thriller genre. This is mainly highlighted by the murder and crime scene, which is a main convention of crime thriller films. Also the addition of a stalker adds to the thriller side of the genre, leading to a mysterious and tension building quality to the film. My film challenges the crime thriller genre as my victim is very young and many actors in thriller crime genres tend to be a lot older. This makes the genre less obvious and maybe lead the audience to think that it is a different genre.

The characters are introduced separately apart from the crime scene at the end where we are introduced to the policeman and forensic at once, challenging the convention of a real film opening. We are introduced to the girl in shot 2 where she portrays a naive and childlike sense, whereas the murderer is introduced as a close up of his feet slowly following her down the road. My opening consists mainly of shots of the main characters in my film, the victim and murderer. I did this to show the audience their relevance in the film, which makes it a clear convention of most film openings.