1. In what ways does your Product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?
Our production company (Rom-Com Productions) produced our film Revelations that could be categorised as an independent, low budget film. This is due to it being a film that is produced outside the Hollywood studio system and our budget was very limited both in front and behind camera production.
Revelations (2009), directed by Millie Driver
My media product is an opening and title sequence of an
independent horror film called Revelations. The main theme of the film is concerned with devil worship, community and the idea of an outsider and evolves around a town in which the population all worship Satan. Our title sequence leads to the central figure arriving at a village whilst following her progress and involvement in this village, building from small suspicious events through to full blown satanic ritual and death.
My product does have some of the main conventions of contemporary horror films for instance my female protagonist is the victim within the movie. She often finds herself in vulnerable situations such as the presentation of a voodoo doll from an old woman in the town, in which she is taken aback by the strangeness of the situation. Although she is mainly the vulnerable person within the movie there is a decoy to switch the focus off her to make the audience distracted and more involved in the plot. This decoy involves her sister being killed which increases the tension within the movie, and the audience is more shocked when the focus switches back to the main woman. We utilised the notions of sacrifice in our movie as demonstrated in the ‘Wicker Man’ (1973) directed by Robin Hardy, where the last sequence showed the violent death of a policeman by fire. We thought the fire was significant to use and it symbolises not only death but rebirth within satanic rituals. We therefore used this in our title sequence with the burning of our nativity set which represents the destruction of Jesus and consequently the rebirth of the son of Satan.
Our horror film also has such conventions as; isolated locations for instance the town in which the plot evolves around and the church that we shot our opening sequence in, large and empty old houses, individuals against mass, satanic worship, contradicting music, fear and death. Although I chose to include these regular conventions that appear in some horror movies for instance in ‘The Shining’ (1980) directed by Stanley Kubrick and in ‘The Night of the Living Dead’ (1968) directed by George A. Romero. The plot of the film and the extent to which the Satanism is darkened for instance the changing of the lyrics of ‘Silent Night’ makes it unusual in comparison to other movies. In our title sequence a burning nativity set is the main subject which we utilise the depiction of religious iconography of everyday Christian worship. Challenging motions of dominant religion as a form therefore endorses the audience as it may contradict people’s views. From this we wanted to begin our movie with an opposing statement that will automatically grip the audience.
We used dominant forms of horror openings in the opening scene of Revelations being a long track which follows a priest walking from left to right in a church. Within the mise en scene whilst we follow the priest we are also shown a nun playing a piano and prior to a jump cut to the title sequence the nativity set comes into view. We choose to film in a church as the audio that goes along with the two minutes of footage that we have done is an adjusted version of the hymn ‘silent night’, but the words have been changed subtly relating to the worship of Satan. This therefore relates to the nun within the mise en scene and becomes the overall curiosity and edginess of the product as it challenges once again the Christian faith. E.g. the opening of the Omen both the original version (1976) directed by Richard Donner and the remake (2007) directed by Brett Ratner shows the utilisation of dominant Christian iconography such as the crucifix and images of Madonna and child. We used this dependence of imagery in our title and opening sequence because we thought that this exhibited some of the main premises of the content of our film such as religion and devil worship.
2. How does your media product represent social groups?
In ‘Revelations’ the social groups we presented were; a middle aged priest and an elderly nun in the representation of religious stereotypes. We carefully chose costumes, actors and appearance to represent this social group. We put both our nun and priest in traditionally religious clothing to juxtapose to the music playing in the background. We did this to distinct the visual religious stereotypes in contrast to the audio of ‘Silent Night’ which is a satanic version that we constructed to played throughout the piece.
In order to represent our priest we chose an actor (Mark Phillip-Morgan) who is tall and robotic in movement. We directed him to walk at a pace that portrayed the surroundings at the same time and make the audience suspicious of him as they came to understand the contrast between the song and location. Consequently his physical appearance is a very stereotypical representation of men in horror films (such as in ‘Frankenstein’ (1931)
directed by James Whale), as they are typically represented as strong, tall and larger that the women to highlight the disparity between the victim and the antagonist.
Although priests’ outfits are traditionally black we keep with this as we felt the black emphasised even further the extend of subtle evilness that we wanted our character to portray. We couldn’t shoot our priest in close-up as we didn’t edsire it to look unconvincing as he is not in fact middle-aged.
We also had this same problem with our actress who played our nun (Sarah Driver) as she is in fact middle-aged and not elderly. Though this wasn’t so much of a problem as we didn’t desire her face in the shot so we directed her to physically look elderly and move in a slower manner whilst playing the piano. Generally women in horror movies are stereotypically represented as weaker, more vulnerable and the victim in situations, as shown in ‘Scream’ (1996) directed by Wes Craven, in which a physically small, vulnerable women was attacked in her own house. Though within our opening sequence though our women is in fact no as innocent as she is perceived but this is achieved by the song that she is playing and singing.
3. What kind of Media Institution might distribute your media product and why?
My media product is an opening and title sequence of an
independent horror film called Revelations. The main theme of the film is concerned with devil worship, community and the idea of an outsider and evolves around a town in which the population all worship Satan. Our title sequence leads to the central figure arriving at a village whilst following her progress and involvement in this village, building from small suspicious events through to full blown satanic ritual and death.My product does have some of the main conventions of contemporary horror films for instance my female protagonist is the victim within the movie. She often finds herself in vulnerable situations such as the presentation of a voodoo doll from an old woman in the town, in which she is taken aback by the strangeness of the situation. Although she is mainly the vulnerable person within the movie there is a decoy to switch the focus off her to make the audience distracted and more involved in the plot. This decoy involves her sister being killed which increases the tension within the movie, and the audience is more shocked when the focus switches back to the main woman. We utilised the notions of sacrifice in our movie as demonstrated in the ‘Wicker Man’ (1973) directed by Robin Hardy, where the last sequence showed the violent death of a policeman by fire. We thought the fire was significant to use and it symbolises not only death but rebirth within satanic rituals. We therefore used this in our title sequence with the burning of our nativity set which represents the destruction of Jesus and consequently the rebirth of the son of Satan.
Our horror film also has such conventions as; isolated locations for instance the town in which the plot evolves around and the church that we shot our opening sequence in, large and empty old houses, individuals against mass, satanic worship, contradicting music, fear and death. Although I chose to include these regular conventions that appear in some horror movies for instance in ‘The Shining’ (1980) directed by Stanley Kubrick and in ‘The Night of the Living Dead’ (1968) directed by George A. Romero. The plot of the film and the extent to which the Satanism is darkened for instance the changing of the lyrics of ‘Silent Night’ makes it unusual in comparison to other movies. In our title sequence a burning nativity set is the main subject which we utilise the depiction of religious iconography of everyday Christian worship. Challenging motions of dominant religion as a form therefore endorses the audience as it may contradict people’s views. From this we wanted to begin our movie with an opposing statement that will automatically grip the audience.
We used dominant forms of horror openings in the opening scene of Revelations being a long track which follows a priest walking from left to right in a church. Within the mise en scene whilst we follow the priest we are also shown a nun playing a piano and prior to a jump cut to the title sequence the nativity set comes into view. We choose to film in a church as the audio that goes along with the two minutes of footage that we have done is an adjusted version of the hymn ‘silent night’, but the words have been changed subtly relating to the worship of Satan. This therefore relates to the nun within the mise en scene and becomes the overall curiosity and edginess of the product as it challenges once again the Christian faith. E.g. the opening of the Omen both the original version (1976) directed by Richard Donner and the remake (2007) directed by Brett Ratner shows the utilisation of dominant Christian iconography such as the crucifix and images of Madonna and child. We used this dependence of imagery in our title and opening sequence because we thought that this exhibited some of the main premises of the content of our film such as religion and devil worship.
2. How does your media product represent social groups?
In ‘Revelations’ the social groups we presented were; a middle aged priest and an elderly nun in the representation of religious stereotypes. We carefully chose costumes, actors and appearance to represent this social group. We put both our nun and priest in traditionally religious clothing to juxtapose to the music playing in the background. We did this to distinct the visual religious stereotypes in contrast to the audio of ‘Silent Night’ which is a satanic version that we constructed to played throughout the piece.
In order to represent our priest we chose an actor (Mark Phillip-Morgan) who is tall and robotic in movement. We directed him to walk at a pace that portrayed the surroundings at the same time and make the audience suspicious of him as they came to understand the contrast between the song and location. Consequently his physical appearance is a very stereotypical representation of men in horror films (such as in ‘Frankenstein’ (1931)
directed by James Whale), as they are typically represented as strong, tall and larger that the women to highlight the disparity between the victim and the antagonist.Although priests’ outfits are traditionally black we keep with this as we felt the black emphasised even further the extend of subtle evilness that we wanted our character to portray. We couldn’t shoot our priest in close-up as we didn’t edsire it to look unconvincing as he is not in fact middle-aged.
We also had this same problem with our actress who played our nun (Sarah Driver) as she is in fact middle-aged and not elderly. Though this wasn’t so much of a problem as we didn’t desire her face in the shot so we directed her to physically look elderly and move in a slower manner whilst playing the piano. Generally women in horror movies are stereotypically represented as weaker, more vulnerable and the victim in situations, as shown in ‘Scream’ (1996) directed by Wes Craven, in which a physically small, vulnerable women was attacked in her own house. Though within our opening sequence though our women is in fact no as innocent as she is perceived but this is achieved by the song that she is playing and singing.
3. What kind of Media Institution might distribute your media product and why?
Our production company (Rom-Com Productions) produced our film Revelations that could be categorised as an independent, low budget film. This is due to it being a film that is produced outside the Hollywood studio system and our budget was very limited both in front and behind camera production.
Our finance was funded primarily by the input from our team of three (me, Rory Skeoch and Oli Bayliss) although the cameras and locations we organised/paid for by the school initially, we then had to pay them back out of our own funds. For our opening and title sequences our budget was £800-£1000, so for the whole film to be made we would limit ourselves to under £15,000. Compared to other low budget films which are generally between £750,000 and one million pounds our overall budget is low, this is because of our expenses would be coming out of our own funds so it is harder to generate the money.
Our cast of two were unknown actors and we managed to get them to star in our opening sequence without paying them. This therefore added to the fact that it is independent and low budget, therefore meaning that it wouldn’t have been able to be a mainstream or blockbuster film because they were unknown actors.
Both our locations were pre-existing including the basement of our school and the interior of Holmbury St Mary church. This therefore reduced the budget of the production of Revelations as we didn’t have to fund our locations to be made separately and provide a space for them to be situated during the shooting.
Rom-Com Productions were also responsible for the making and producing of our own product including the pre-production, production and post-production. As a result of this we didn’t rely on any external agencies to help in the making of our final product.
If we were to distribute our product, Arrow Films would be a suitable company to distribute it because they are a distributing company that uses a network that distributes low budget horror releases. They also have a limited release date within the South East and London releasing there products on DVD within two months of release, consequently making them most appropriate for our situation.
4. Who would be the audience for your media product?
Our cast of two were unknown actors and we managed to get them to star in our opening sequence without paying them. This therefore added to the fact that it is independent and low budget, therefore meaning that it wouldn’t have been able to be a mainstream or blockbuster film because they were unknown actors.
Both our locations were pre-existing including the basement of our school and the interior of Holmbury St Mary church. This therefore reduced the budget of the production of Revelations as we didn’t have to fund our locations to be made separately and provide a space for them to be situated during the shooting.
Rom-Com Productions were also responsible for the making and producing of our own product including the pre-production, production and post-production. As a result of this we didn’t rely on any external agencies to help in the making of our final product.
If we were to distribute our product, Arrow Films would be a suitable company to distribute it because they are a distributing company that uses a network that distributes low budget horror releases. They also have a limited release date within the South East and London releasing there products on DVD within two months of release, consequently making them most appropriate for our situation.
4. Who would be the audience for your media product?
‘Revelations’ would be defined on release as a certificate 15 film. Under the guide lines of the BBFC, it’s allowed to have frequent use of strong language but only justified within context. If nudity occurs it will only be allowed in the sexual context but without strong detail, which could happen within the birth scene of Satan near the end of the movie. The violence within the movie is allowed to be strong but must not dwell on infliction of pain or injury. Representations of violence will be shown but will be suggested rather than shown. These guidelines would therefore not cut out any the intentions of the film and consequently would suit the issues that are discussed within ‘Revelations’ both the plot and the satanic rituals that are introduced. They also influenced us to keep within them in order for the classification to be an easy process and reduce the time in which it would take to fully produce the film.
This would therefore allow a fifteen plus audience to see the film, so teenagers would be permitted to have the enjoyment of the thrill and excitement of watching a horror film. The audience will be intrigued by the fact that there is an absence of children in the film and yet the target audience are teenagers. Due to ‘Revelations’ being an independent, low budget film the distribution would most probably be a national audience and it couldn’t compete with other films that are nationally distributed and are a more nationalised base for distribution. It would be released on DVD after the main cinema release in order to increase sales/profit or ‘Revelations’.
In a secular society an audience can be attracted by the representations of satanic ritual and how they undermine a possible Christian hegemony and our film focuses upon this interesting contrast.
5. How did you attract/address your audience?
This would therefore allow a fifteen plus audience to see the film, so teenagers would be permitted to have the enjoyment of the thrill and excitement of watching a horror film. The audience will be intrigued by the fact that there is an absence of children in the film and yet the target audience are teenagers. Due to ‘Revelations’ being an independent, low budget film the distribution would most probably be a national audience and it couldn’t compete with other films that are nationally distributed and are a more nationalised base for distribution. It would be released on DVD after the main cinema release in order to increase sales/profit or ‘Revelations’.
In a secular society an audience can be attracted by the representations of satanic ritual and how they undermine a possible Christian hegemony and our film focuses upon this interesting contrast.
5. How did you attract/address your audience?
If we were to distribute ‘Revelations’, we would use a distribution company such as Rom-Com productions that would market it through both standard and viral marketing. Within standard marketing we could aim to involve our target audience by selling t-shirts having images of still-shots of the movie, or ‘Revelations’ simply on a t-shirt as a direct marketing technique. Furthermore we could use our soundtrack as a selling point and sell the soundtrack or use it as a backing for our other marketing techniques so the audience would retain it in their memories. Another way of using standard marketing would be to give away products along with other company’s products, in cinemas or as part of a launch campaign. 
Another way we could market our film would be through viral marketing. This includes using social networking sites, such as Facebook, to promote the soundtrack, uphold adverts and maintain the selling of merchandise. Another way to virally market ‘Revelations’ would be to have a website, which would promote the film whilst being an interactive way to illustrate the film. It would also create an internet buzz through the means of consultation in forums and discussion boards. The web is also an excellent arena full of film enthusiasts looking for new independent films which is perfect for the endorsement of our film. The use of YouTube would also be an
effective way to promote ‘Revelations’ as footage could be put on it to show sections of the film visually consequently this would endorse the audience to want to watch the film.
I would use stills from our film (like the ones to the right) as posters for our film. The second one shows an effective image of Jesus burning which is shown in our title sequence, therefore showing the extend to which Satanism is contrasted to Christianity. The first photo is also an effect image that shows the darkness, due to black background, of the film just through a simple image. The word ‘Revelations’ is also the dominant focus within the image so would grasp the attention of the audience and consequently make people remember the word and therefore want to see the film.
A possible tagline for our film could be ‘Son of Tyrus, fears pure light’ as it is gripping and suggests the idea of Satanism along with Christianity as it is the changed words to the hymn ‘Silent Night’.
6. What have you learnt about Media Technologies from the process of constructing your product?
Another way we could market our film would be through viral marketing. This includes using social networking sites, such as Facebook, to promote the soundtrack, uphold adverts and maintain the selling of merchandise. Another way to virally market ‘Revelations’ would be to have a website, which would promote the film whilst being an interactive way to illustrate the film. It would also create an internet buzz through the means of consultation in forums and discussion boards. The web is also an excellent arena full of film enthusiasts looking for new independent films which is perfect for the endorsement of our film. The use of YouTube would also be an
effective way to promote ‘Revelations’ as footage could be put on it to show sections of the film visually consequently this would endorse the audience to want to watch the film.I would use stills from our film (like the ones to the right) as posters for our film. The second one shows an effective image of Jesus burning which is shown in our title sequence, therefore showing the extend to which Satanism is contrasted to Christianity. The first photo is also an effect image that shows the darkness, due to black background, of the film just through a simple image. The word ‘Revelations’ is also the dominant focus within the image so would grasp the attention of the audience and consequently make people remember the word and therefore want to see the film.
A possible tagline for our film could be ‘Son of Tyrus, fears pure light’ as it is gripping and suggests the idea of Satanism along with Christianity as it is the changed words to the hymn ‘Silent Night’.
6. What have you learnt about Media Technologies from the process of constructing your product?
HARDWARE: SHOOT DAY
As a group we worked well through out the shoot day which made it an enjoyable experience. We were very professional as a team and when problems occurred we dealt with them efficiently without creating hassle, therefore this taught me that teamwork is a key aspect to have when working in a group. (Refer to both blog posts called 15/01/09 - production log 1 for details of work done and problems on the shoot day).
We used the JVC camera (as shown below) to shoot both our opening sequence and shots for our title sequence and even though on the day I wasn’t the camera operator I learnt a lot about how to operate it and how to get it to work to its full potential. We also used 3-point lighting and the use of Redheads and Blue gels (they remove the orange tangent bulbs to make the light look like it was coming from the exterior as apposed to artificial light). We record sound/audio on our shoot day as it was not necessary for our footage so I was not aware then what was necessary in order to produce a clear sound.
The technical skills that I learnt from the shooting day were using a track and spider dolly which all contributes towards the shot construction. In addition I learnt how important lighting is within a shot to create both interior and exterior lighting and create the overall effect wanted.
As a group we worked well through out the shoot day which made it an enjoyable experience. We were very professional as a team and when problems occurred we dealt with them efficiently without creating hassle, therefore this taught me that teamwork is a key aspect to have when working in a group. (Refer to both blog posts called 15/01/09 - production log 1 for details of work done and problems on the shoot day).
We used the JVC camera (as shown below) to shoot both our opening sequence and shots for our title sequence and even though on the day I wasn’t the camera operator I learnt a lot about how to operate it and how to get it to work to its full potential. We also used 3-point lighting and the use of Redheads and Blue gels (they remove the orange tangent bulbs to make the light look like it was coming from the exterior as apposed to artificial light). We record sound/audio on our shoot day as it was not necessary for our footage so I was not aware then what was necessary in order to produce a clear sound.
The technical skills that I learnt from the shooting day were using a track and spider dolly which all contributes towards the shot construction. In addition I learnt how important lighting is within a shot to create both interior and exterior lighting and create the overall effect wanted.
SOFTWARE: EDITING
The editing of ‘Revelations’ was a learning process in which I learnt how to use Final Cut Pro including how to log and use the time line etc, and also about the digitalization of film and how to construction meanings through the process of editing. (Refer to blog post Editing – without sound). The general process of editing has educated me on how to use Final Cut Pro in the same way that they would in the film industry. This has therefore helped me further to feel more confident when using it. As a group we found it hard to work as a group beside each other as only one of us could do the editing at one time. Though we were all there to help with the imputing of ideas in order to generate a group effort.
7. Looking back at your preliminary task what do you feel you have learnt about the progression from it to the finished product?
The editing of ‘Revelations’ was a learning process in which I learnt how to use Final Cut Pro including how to log and use the time line etc, and also about the digitalization of film and how to construction meanings through the process of editing. (Refer to blog post Editing – without sound). The general process of editing has educated me on how to use Final Cut Pro in the same way that they would in the film industry. This has therefore helped me further to feel more confident when using it. As a group we found it hard to work as a group beside each other as only one of us could do the editing at one time. Though we were all there to help with the imputing of ideas in order to generate a group effort.
7. Looking back at your preliminary task what do you feel you have learnt about the progression from it to the finished product?
Our preliminary task was a continuity exercise in which we had to film and edit a short sequence involving two characters in conversion with each other within an interior set. The sequence concerned one character opening a door; crossing a room and establishing his or her self opposite another character and exchanging a few lines of dialogue.
We shot this task in October 2008; the beginning of our AS course and therefore had a very limited knowledge about pre-production, production and post-production. The shooting was carried out in one hour within our lesson so the organisation prior to the day was very limited on our behalf. Throughout the filming we had to make sure we were organised enough to gain the footage needed to create an effective sequence. This meant that we needed to be direct and efficient when deciding the shots needed, and the extra shots that would add to the value of our piece. As a result of this the planning and development was also limited prior to the shoot but was carried out as we went along coinciding with the organisation in our group.
This learning experience helped a lot in the process of my final piece as I felt the need to plan, develop and research into the whole production of our sequence ahead of the shoot so we would be prepared and it would flow more easily than it did with the preliminary task.
Also when carrying out our preliminary task we had a restricted knowledge about using the camera, what should occur in the mise-on-scene and the editing. Therefore although we managed to create a piece that was successful within the brief, looking back on it now, post doing our final product, I would have altered the way in which the overall product was established so that the final complexity was more of a wow factor than it is.
The research that I carried out for my final piece was very thorough, subsequently meaning that it made the rest of the process an easier one. This was because I researched a great deal into other horror movies so when thinking up ideas of an original plot I was influenced by other films but had the ability to change them to make them unique and dissimilar to movies already heard of.
As a group our planning was dysfunctional at times due to our ideas continuously changing and developing however this meant that we achieved the highest we could as we considered all options and approaches to the task that were necessary.
When allocating roles within the group we were all happy to take on any role we decided, so the decision wasn’t as strenuous as I thought it would be. Looking back now it would have been a more appropriate decision to make either myself or Rory Skeoch the producer as Oli Bayliss was ill for a period of time in when the jobs in which his role entailed were supposed to be done.
We could have also improved our preliminary task by instead of our shots being static by using a tripod we could have used tracks and a spider dolly similar to what we used to shoot our opening sequence to increase the interest of the piece. It would have also given the final completion drive and momentum that was emphasised in our final product, ‘Revelations’. Also what could have been improved upon, in which we learnt from and was used in our final piece was to use 3-point lighting as apposed to the one/two point lighting that we used in our preliminary task. The lighting that we used in our preliminary task made the piece flat and didn’t create such a contrast. Whereas in our final piece the use of 3-point lighting made it more effective as the back light created darkness and shadows onto the set which was useful when creating the mood for our horror film.
The editing in both products could have been improved if we were to have had more time in which to experiment with it to make us more confident when using all aspects of the programme. Though from doing the preliminary task it did teach us the skills in order for our final task to be better and due to having more experience we could have created the suspense that was needed for our final product.
The whole experience taught we a great deal about what it would be like to work within the industry as we carried it out in the same manner, though obviously in a much more amateur way. But it has specifically taught me how to use media technologies, a film camera (such as the JVC we using in our final product) and Final Cut Pro in order to edit both sequences. I am now able to use a camera as I have the basic knowledge to shoot and achieve a good outcome; therefore I have the ability to use a camera on my own without the help of the assistants. Also from this experience I have both the knowledge and ability to use Final Cut Pro to an extend that I can edit a low-budget film successfully. So I have a clear understand of the three stages to make a film (pre-production, production and post-production) similar to that of the film industry.
We shot this task in October 2008; the beginning of our AS course and therefore had a very limited knowledge about pre-production, production and post-production. The shooting was carried out in one hour within our lesson so the organisation prior to the day was very limited on our behalf. Throughout the filming we had to make sure we were organised enough to gain the footage needed to create an effective sequence. This meant that we needed to be direct and efficient when deciding the shots needed, and the extra shots that would add to the value of our piece. As a result of this the planning and development was also limited prior to the shoot but was carried out as we went along coinciding with the organisation in our group.
This learning experience helped a lot in the process of my final piece as I felt the need to plan, develop and research into the whole production of our sequence ahead of the shoot so we would be prepared and it would flow more easily than it did with the preliminary task.
Also when carrying out our preliminary task we had a restricted knowledge about using the camera, what should occur in the mise-on-scene and the editing. Therefore although we managed to create a piece that was successful within the brief, looking back on it now, post doing our final product, I would have altered the way in which the overall product was established so that the final complexity was more of a wow factor than it is.
The research that I carried out for my final piece was very thorough, subsequently meaning that it made the rest of the process an easier one. This was because I researched a great deal into other horror movies so when thinking up ideas of an original plot I was influenced by other films but had the ability to change them to make them unique and dissimilar to movies already heard of.
As a group our planning was dysfunctional at times due to our ideas continuously changing and developing however this meant that we achieved the highest we could as we considered all options and approaches to the task that were necessary.
When allocating roles within the group we were all happy to take on any role we decided, so the decision wasn’t as strenuous as I thought it would be. Looking back now it would have been a more appropriate decision to make either myself or Rory Skeoch the producer as Oli Bayliss was ill for a period of time in when the jobs in which his role entailed were supposed to be done.
We could have also improved our preliminary task by instead of our shots being static by using a tripod we could have used tracks and a spider dolly similar to what we used to shoot our opening sequence to increase the interest of the piece. It would have also given the final completion drive and momentum that was emphasised in our final product, ‘Revelations’. Also what could have been improved upon, in which we learnt from and was used in our final piece was to use 3-point lighting as apposed to the one/two point lighting that we used in our preliminary task. The lighting that we used in our preliminary task made the piece flat and didn’t create such a contrast. Whereas in our final piece the use of 3-point lighting made it more effective as the back light created darkness and shadows onto the set which was useful when creating the mood for our horror film.
The editing in both products could have been improved if we were to have had more time in which to experiment with it to make us more confident when using all aspects of the programme. Though from doing the preliminary task it did teach us the skills in order for our final task to be better and due to having more experience we could have created the suspense that was needed for our final product.
The whole experience taught we a great deal about what it would be like to work within the industry as we carried it out in the same manner, though obviously in a much more amateur way. But it has specifically taught me how to use media technologies, a film camera (such as the JVC we using in our final product) and Final Cut Pro in order to edit both sequences. I am now able to use a camera as I have the basic knowledge to shoot and achieve a good outcome; therefore I have the ability to use a camera on my own without the help of the assistants. Also from this experience I have both the knowledge and ability to use Final Cut Pro to an extend that I can edit a low-budget film successfully. So I have a clear understand of the three stages to make a film (pre-production, production and post-production) similar to that of the film industry.
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