AS media evaluation - question 6

1. Question 6 – What have you learnt about
technologies from the process of constructing this
product?
Technology in the film industry
Throughout the filmmaking process (pre-production, production and post-production)
there are a wide range of technologies used. During the pre-production stage detailed plans
need to be made about every aspect of the film: initial ideas, script, actors, location, shot
lists, floor plans etc. Websites such as Prezi can be used to create detailed presentations or
Inspiration 8 which provides a format for displaying mind maps. Prezi is programme made
available for the film industry as a result of advanced Web 2.0 technology. The production
stage involves filming the footage which can be filmed on various different cameras. For
example, a conglomerate which has huge amounts of finance available may choose a 3D
camera. This is because these special effects have the potential to attract a wider audience
for a filmas the film can be available in a number of formats. Independents often use only
the simple digital camera as they are often unable to finance special effects cameras. As
cameras become increasingly advanced they allow for better quality producing images
which meet the expectations of the high definition cinematic experience. For diegetic sound
within a film huge microphones can be used to enhance the sound quality. In post-
production there are a number of technologies used to edit the filmand add special effects.
Editing software such as premiere pro is used across the filmindustry to add these effects or
simply put the footage together. This is used by many different filmcompanies; both
conglomerates and independents. In the distribution and marketing process of filmopening
there is once again a vast number of technologies used. Trailers are produced and published
on sites such as YouTube which can then be shared to social media. This is a form of
advertising which is very beneficial for independent companies in particular as it is free and
information is spread from one person to many others in a short period of time. This
happens through many media platforms on different technologies: phones, laptops,
computers, iPads, etc. This summary demonstrates how technology is a crucial part of the
film making process for all companies in the film industry.
Technology usedto construct my media product
Pre-Production
During pre-production I have used the internet to complete primary
research to find out about codes and conventions of my genre, my
target audience and similar existing media products. This involves sites
such as Google, YouTube, and Wikipedia. The internet has excessive
amounts of information available which is needed for all research

2. before the film production processes begin. I also used filmsite when completing genre
research: http://www.filmsite.org/genres.html.
I also learnt how to operate Blogger where I started a blog
which I have used to document all of my coursework. This
has allowed me to upload my research and evaluation in an
ordered sequence and provides the date all of my work
was completed. I have also created sections for each of the
segments of my coursework: the preliminary task, pre-production and the evaluation. This
allows me to publish my work online in an organised way. By using Blogger I have learnt
how to create blogs for future use, for example coursework in other subjects. Blogger is also
very easy to access, this meant that during the filming process I was able to quickly log onto
my blog to check the floor plan or shot list instead of carrying around the paperwork.
I chose to use the online programme Prezi to display my research on the codes and
conventions of horror films. This provides an alternative use of software than PowerPoint
and is a good method of presenting work. The format could make the information more
interesting as different themes and colours can be used to represent the information on the
Prezi. Below is a screenshot of the Prezi I made when conducting genre research. Because I
was genre is horror I represented this through the dark background colours; which made the
presentation much more interesting.

3. Production
Before starting media A-level I had never created a film before, so I had also never used
technologies involved with filming; for example a camera and a microphone. I used a Canon
700 and a RODE microphone which were both provided from school. When using this
equipment I learnt how focus shots to the highest quality and the importance of this. For
example, I found that many shots would have to be filmed multiple times to ensure the
focus was correct and the correct camera angles were used. For many of my shots I chose to
follow a moving object, this meant that I had to ensure the camera focused throughout the
shot and not just at the beginning; I did this by switching off one shot auto focus.
Furthermore, from my preliminary task I discovered the importance of using a microphone
to film the dialogue. The music can easily overpower speech so therefore I used the
microphone when filming my media product. This is another piece of equipment I had not
used before so I soon realised the effectiveness of a microphone when emphasising sound
and how to fix this microphone onto the camera.
Post-Production
To create my film company’s logo – 'FryFilms', I used software called After Effects, this is
another programme which I have never used before. I learnt how to fade in/out writing and
I used this effect to introduce the logo and also the lines surrounding it. I wanted to keep
the logo simple and therefore I found this fading was a quick and easy technique which kept
it simple yet professional. Below is a screenshot of the company logo I created using Adobe
After Effects.

4. I edited my entire film using Premiere Pro, again this was another programme which I had
not used before creating my preliminary task. Between the transitions of some shots I
decided to use a fading technique adding new key frames and spacing them out to give this
desired effect. I wanted to demonstrate that there had been a change in time and location
between two scenes. So instead of simply letting the two shots follow one another or just a
plain black screen I decided to fade them into each other. For this effect I found Premiere
Pro a very quick and easy programme to use.
In relation to existing media products, Vertigo films' 'Monsters' was also edited entirely on
Premiere Pro. This shows how both independent filmstudios and the general public can use
industry standard software to produce profitable and successful films.
Furthermore, I also learnt how to cut frames from a clip to create a feeling of disorientation
for the audience. I edited a cutaway shot to cut from one continuous shot of the villain
chasing the victim with a shot of the victim running interrupting it throughout. This
technique made the chase sequence much more intense and quick. I also used this cutting
technique to create a distorted image of the victim’s point of view when waking up in the
forest. I feel that by doing these simple effects on Premiere Pro I was able to create a sense
of fear amongst the audience as it shows the victims vulnerable state. This photo below
shows how I used a cutaway and layered shots over one another.

5. I also learnt how to add background music to my film and how to fade this in and out using a
similar technique used for the titles of adding key frames. By using this fading effect I was
able to reduce the volume when there was dialogue and increase the volume through the
chase sequence to intensify the fear. I also faded the music out at the end of my film
opening as it prevents the sound from coming to an abrupt stop. I learnt to lower the sound
level of music during this task as I did not do so for my preliminary which meant the
background music was very overpowering so the dialogue couldn’t be heard. The image
below shows a screenshot of how I faded out the music at the end of my filmopening.
Evaluation
When writing my evaluation I have had to use a range of software and programmes to
answer the questions. For one of my questions I decided to use PowToon, again something I
had never used before creating this media product. I found this programme very time
consuming to use due to my lack of experience, however the finished product shows how a
different programme can make the information seem much more interesting. The
illustration was also fun to use, for example using avatars with speech bubbles to present
the information to the reader. I found PowToon very fun to use and therefore will be used in
future use to create presentations as an alternative to PowerPoint. Below is a screenshot of
how I used PowToon to answer question two and an example of the animation used.