I believe that our media project was a success as a lot of effort was put into it. I am glad that we were brave enough as a group to change our idea from having the film set in the 1950s to it being modern; this is so it could be more relatable to the contemporary audience and it would also expand our target audience, which would also mean that our film trailer would have a higher chance to achieve accomplishment. Although we were a few weeks away from the deadline, I think we still made this choice because we were all so determined to do well and make something better when we struggled with our original idea. This decision worked out well because we did not have to make sure we find specific locations and buildings without double glazing windows, no modern technology in the background, no modern clothes/props/misé-en-scene, and so on. This made our working progress a lot easier, faster and more enjoyable.
Another thing that I am pleased with my group is that we all went out to do extra work without being told to, and we did it individually, which shows commitment and dedication. A member brought her camera with her when she was going to London on a day out with her dad so she could play around and take a few photos and film random shots on the way, the other two members decided to go out and take pictures of rundown buildings to get ideas for our film poster/magazine and I did a lot of research and created a list on different camera angles/techniques so that we would not just use the typical, amateur shots consistently throughout the trailer and be reminded that there are some challenging yet rewarding angles/techniques that could be used. In my opinion, this helped with our working progress once again and made us as a group work harder together and independently because we proved that we are able to devote our own time and effort into this project.
When it came to filming and choosing the best equipment to do so, we slightly struggled. For our AS coursework, we all used a video camera so we felt that it would be beneficial to use as we already gained experience by using it in the past. However, we also used a flip to film our animatics and also felt that it would be easy to film as it is small, light and the quality is similar to the video camera. However, not only was it hard to find a camera which worked in the school department, but the tripods were all taken by other groups which meant we could not film steady, proficient shots. Therefore we had to wait for them to be returned in order to start filming. This began to cause a problem within the group as a couple of us shared different opinions and an expected dispute began. A couple argued that we should film without a tripod and another member and I disagreed as it is nearly impossible to film without making it look amateur and degrading, therefore we should wait. We also had unreliable actors for our trailer, which also caused another difficulty within the group because clearly, we were not able to film without them. Fortunately, this was solved quickly as I got hold of other actors to replace the unreliable ones. And surprisingly, one owned a professional camera with high quality and a tripod, this meant we would not have to wait at school for students to bring back the equipment borrowed and get started straight away. The new actors were not only reliable, but they also helped us by frequently giving us important feedback. This was a big relief and made us work more efficiently. It also motivated us tremendously because we had a greater advantage than the rest of the class.
During filming, a prop list and camera angles/techniques list were also used as a reminder/guidance, this helped us to organize and get things done quickly. It was not hard to find the location for the trailer as we wanted to find a rundown area and because we changed the era to modern, we did not have to worry about being too cautious over minor things. I am convinced that the filming progress was successful and enjoyable. We all had a say and took everything into consideration before anything was done. When it came to editing and producing a poster/magazine, it was time consuming yet worthwhile. The poster turned out to be better than expected and was praised by teachers and others. This motivated us to keep working on that level and to keep up with the good work.
After we managed to film all the shots needed for our media project, I began to edit using Final Cut Express. Last year for our AS coursework, we used Pinnacle to edit so using Final Cut Express was a new experience for us as a group. I did not use Pinnacle this year because not only does the school now have new computers so Pinnacle was not downloaded, Final Cut Express offered more of a variety for us to choose from (i.e. effects) and it was a more professional program, allowing the outcome of our trailer look even more qualified and making it clear that it is A2 level work and nothing less.
During the trailer editing process, I did it all as it was on my computer and we all had different tasks so the working progress would speed up. For example, I edited the whole trailer, Ella edited the poster, Beka edited the film magazine cover and Olivia was helping all of us by giving critical feedbacks, telling us what she thinks would make it look better. Just because we did not take part in every task, we were all there for each other when it was done, we were told/explaining how it was done to achieve that particular effect and we also had a say as to whether we liked that decision or not. I thought this was a good plan/idea as we managed to successfully meet the deadline with all of our work polished and completed.
I thought the editing process was time consuming as I was going through different effects and ticking off the ones I thought would degrade our work. I also had to delete everything and start from scratch as we accidentally saved all of the shots/scenes in the student work and not on the computer itself, which was risky as all of our work, could have been potentially deleted and it would not show on the Final Cut Express. Therefore to solve this problem, I deleted the scenes that were saved onto the student work and had to move everything to the computer in order to make the scenes work. This meant I had to start all over again. It was honestly frustrating as I had to redo everything over something I forgot to do but the positive is that I knew what to do for future reference so I would not repeat this small mistake.
Whilst I was editing, I realized I used Additive Dissolve frequently. My reasoning behind this is that it accentuates time passing. I also thought that the other effects were very amateur-like as it consisted of a lot of twirls, iris effects and so on, making it seem like I was trying to recreate some of Hitchcock’s films. It made the trailer look more like an arty presentation for children (despite the violent shots) instead of a striking trailer targeting mainly men. I also used slow motion for two scenes, the characters walking through the run down alley and one of the characters stamping. For the scene where the characters were walking through the alley, I used Light Rays midway through. My reasoning behind this was that the glow from the Light Rays effect would distort the characters’ faces, which would make them look sinister and mysterious as it is obscuring their identities. I decided to use it mid-way through and not straight away because when the characters start walking, they are too far for the audience to recognize them, and when they come closer to the screen, the glow would disguise their faces, creating an ambiguous feel. Reservoir Dogs was a huge inspiration of mine and they did something similar, they used sunglasses to conceal their identity in the film but I wanted to do something different and portray a unique approach. I also added a slow motion effect mid-way through the shot where the character was stamping relentlessly because I wanted to portray the character’s anger and passion through the slow motion effect and I also want to make the audience engage and react to it more. When I was filming this shot, I used a low angle shot to emphasise his authority. I deliberately chose to use a small, dark confined room in order to reflect the darkness with his insane side of him. When I was watching this shot, I noticed that it portrayed one of Stanley Kubrick’s theme of man’s inhumanity to man. This shot suggests that the inner animal is merging out of him and that it is part of the human nature that always has that urge to attack. This shot was also an inspiration from the film ‘Drive’ where Ryan Gosling stamps, time and again, on the enemy’s skull. It shows that violence is uncontrollable and ubiquitous. Other violent films such as La Haine, Matrix and Sherlock Holmes also used slow motion to create effect so I thought it would be arresting if we used the same method.
When creating our own music, we used Garage Band. This was also new to us as we did not use this for our AS level work when producing a short film opening. Last year, we were told to go online and find a soundtrack, but had to make sure it was copyright free. This year, with the new computers, we were able to use Garage Band to create a soundtrack for our trailer. Comparing what we did last year to what we are currently doing this year, I prefer what I am doing now as we are told to create more things and deal with challenging and professional programs/technologies. Garage Band was probably (in my opinion) the most time consuming task we were given. Not only were there a number of categories, from Percussion to Conga, from Country to Jazz, from Vibes to Acoustic, and so on, there were also endless lists of options after you have clicked on one category. This made it stressful and also boring to go through. However, we did manage to produce a short soundtrack that consisted of electric guitars, kits playing, a male singing and jingles. I was pleased with the outcome of the soundtrack but I thought it was too repetitive, making it tedious to listen to the whole thing, so I wanted something different. I didn’t know what I wanted specifically but I just knew that the soundtrack had to be changed around slightly. To our surprise, one of the characters has a friend who owns a studio in London and offered to sing a song for us. Beast in me by Johnny Cash was chosen because not only was it symbolic as the lyrics match the genre, it is also slow so it matches with the slow motion shots. After we got hold of the song, sung by the character himself, we used it for our trailer, along with the upbeat soundtrack we made from Garage Band. A couple of members did not think the song went well with the trailer, but the teachers did not agree. I like the way in which both soundtracks create a different mood and from my research and my knowledge from watching trailers on the television, I have noticed that in a few trailers, different soundtracks are used and it still works well.
During the process of making a film magazine cover, we decided to produce one that solely focused on Britain and British films/actors. Initially, we decided to use 'EMPIRE' as our film magazine title as it is the world's leading movie magazine. However, we moved on from that idea and chose to create a new non-existing title "ENIGMA", this decision was intended so that we could use our own ideas so we would not have to conform to the typical codes and conventions of the EMPIRE magazine. This allowed us to have full control within our grasp and enabled us to do anything we thought would be best. This was an easier decision, as we were able to choose any font or style and it allowed us to agree on things due to our freedom we have with editing.
If we had a chance to change anything, I don't think I would know what I would like to change, as I am very pleased with our completed project. Although we had a few problems, they were dealt with quickly and made us work even harder as a team. I am happy with Grow Your Own as the genre is clear, there are many connotations of blood and violence and I believe it is pretty unique seeing as Crime & Gangster is a genre which is hardly chosen to be made, so by giving ourselves a challenging task, it shows originality and valor.
Audience feedback was absolutely essential and it helped us as a group to adapt our work and improve it. The general feedback from the audience were all very positive and a minority only criticized that it did not show enough violence but we argued that if they looked at the BBFC properly, it says that all elements are suitable for ‘ALL’ audience, meaning we had to be careful what we were showing so the young audience will not be affected. However, we did show enough to tell our target audience that there will be violence through the use of blood in the shots.
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