evaluation

1. 1. In what ways does your media product use, develop or
challenge forms and conventions of real media products?
Conventions of a horror film:
 Low key lighting that creates shadows and makes the
scene more dramatic.
 Close-ups of protagonist showing their emotions like fear
and giving personal identity to the audience
 Quick cuts and jump cuts that create tension amongst the
audience
 Short takes and hand held camera shots that can connote
the confusion of the character
 Isolated settings like haunted houses
 Handheld camera to create a fear of the unknown
 They are independently produced and distributed
Low Key lighting Close Up Isolated setting
Independent Production
Companies

2. Where did we meet/challenge these conventions?
In order to create a film that was close to the horror genre we had to
follow some of the conventions mentioned before. We tried to use low
key lighting in the bathroom. We didn’t create any shadows, but the
lighting was low key, specially in the shots of the funeral and bathroom.
This portrayed a more dangerous setting than it seems. A house would
not normally have this type of lighting, it would have a more yellow and
warm light connoting how safe your own house can be, we used the
uncanny, in order to make the ordinary seem unsettling. However, in our
production, this light was more blue conning danger and unsafeness. The
low key lighting or unusual lighting for a house would also link to audience
pleasures as it will make the audience feel unease and scared, giving them
emotional and visceral pleasure.
Low key lighting in the bathroom

3. The low key lighting that we intended to use in the bathroom did not
create as much tension and effect as we were expecting. The lighting
we used probably showed too much of what it had to be seen, maybe a
more dark and with more shadows lighting would have created better
connotations of fear and unknown of the person that was in the bath.
In the shots where the couple were together, an equilibrium was
shown. There was high key lighting, this showed a binary opposition of
safe vs unsafe and good vs evil.
High key lighting= equilibrium

4. Where did we meet/challenge these conventions?
A convention that we did not meet was the use of close ups of the protagonist.
There were meant to be a few but we found it very difficult to film and when
editing, it did not fit in with the other shots as it broke the continuity . This
didn't help to show how the character was feeling. The MCUs that were used
were not as effective and made our horror film look less like a horror. A CU of
the protagonist’s face could have made the audience feel personal identity,
looking in the character’s eyes and really feeling scared for him. This would
have also linked to a more sophisticated audience that was our secondary
audience as it challenges their safety and makes them feel connected to the
character and giving them emotional pleasure.
In our production we should have used quick cuts, following the convention of
horror. The editing were normal cuts which connote an equilibrium and didn’t
fit in with our narrative.
Continuity is well created through out the whole production, and was made
better in the final draft as the fist draft we produced had some shots that didn't
fit in and they didn't flow correctly when watching it.

5. Where did we meet/challenge these conventions?
Our production has quite long takes, which is not a convention of a horror film. We challenged
this convention purposely as we wanted to appeal to the more sophisticated older audience. They
would like to see something challenging and the long takes of the protagonist in the bathroom
challenges them as they are not letting the audience know that there is something dangerous
coming.
Our setting is in a normal house, this gives the audience personal identity and also challenges the
convention of a horror film being set in an isolated haunted place. We are using the uncanny in
order to create a sense of discomfort amongst the audience. This convention was purposely
challenged as we thought that a normal house would give the audience a fake sense of safety as
the primary audience would think that the safest place to be at is their own home. Our production
makes clear that this isn't true and that supernatural events can happen everywhere. This can
also give the audience visceral pleasure as they won’t feel safe in their own home.
When filming our opening sequence, we did not use hand held camera, we didn't choose to
challenge this convention, but after trying before the filming days started, we realised the effect it
would give to the production would not be one of suspense, but one of an unrealistic an with very
low verisimilitude. However, in one of the shots where the couple are together, there is camera
movement (track backwards) that due to the gravel on the pavement doesn't look steady, but a
bit shaky creating the effect of a hand held camera.

6. When filming our opening sequence, we did not use hand held camera, we didn't
choose to challenge this convention, but after trying before the filming days started,
we realised the effect it would give to the production would not be one of suspense,
but one of an unrealistic an with very low verisimilitude. However, in one of the shots
where the couple are together, there is camera movement (track backwards) that due
to the gravel on the pavement doesn't look steady, but a bit shaky creating the effect
of a hand held camera. We wanted to get the connotation of the couple walking into a
future together, but in our final production the movement doesn’t really work as you
cant really tell there is movement.

7. Where did we meet/challenge these conventions?
One of the filming techniques that is conventional in a horror film is the camera
following the subject, we have used this in most of the bathroom shots. The
character moves around the room and the camera follows him by tracking, tilting
or panning. It connotes that he is being watched by someone but he’s not aware of
it. This also creates a sense of the audience being in control, takes the power away
from the protagonist. The audience will feel like they are in the actually setting and
this will give the different audience pleasures like emotional or visceral.
We tried to make the sound of our production conventional for a horror. We
decided to create tension by the use of a rhythmical score that sounded like a
heart beat. This creates tension among the audience. We used two different scores
to distinguish the equilibrium with the disequilibrium. The one used to connote
sadness during the funeral included violin playing to appeal to the secondary
audience that is more sophisticated and would enjoy listening to this. The first
scored used is a more melodic one that connotes happiness and the equilibrium.
We also made sure that there was ambient sound (diegetic sound) present.
However, the taps we recorded with the H4n were too loud in our draft and the
door shutting as well. In our final draft.

8. Conventions of an opening sequence:
 Narration to involve the audience
 Establishing shot to let the audience know where the film is going to be set
 Production and distribution logo
 Flashback
 Action scene for the audience to be engaged straight away
 Credits
 Key characters are introduced
 Film title
Establishing Shot Film Title Credits

9. Where did we meet/challenge these conventions?
There are a number of conventions that we challenged, like the use of narration or a
flashback. We did use a flash forward after the scene of the couple to when she has
already died and it’s her funeral. We didn't use narration because we thought that if
the narrator explains to the audience what is going on, it would not give them a sense
of confusion and uncertainty that, as a horror film, we wanted to give to the audience.
We also didn't use an establishing shot, that in my opinion could have worked better
rather than just starting the film with a shot of two people. We could have also shown
an establishing shot of the house where the character lives, before he goes into the
toilet. This could have helped give the mass market primary audience personal identity
and a more simple way of knowing where our character lives instead of them working
out that it was his own bathroom.
We did not follow the convention of an action scene for our opening sequence, we
thought that it would not fit in with our genre as it was a horror, an action scene could
have worked better in an action or sci-fi film. However, we did go straight away with
the supernatural events as we thought that this could engage the audience as soon as
they start watching the film. I do believe that maybe we did show too much of our
narrative in in just the opening sequence, and that maybe it looks like a trailer.
However, it can also work as an opening sequence as our narrative has more to it than
just what it is shown in the opening sequence we produced.

10. Where did we meet/challenge these conventions?
We chose to start our film with the production logo as we thought it was
important to show our audience that it was produced by an independent,
the niche secondary audience would know that and by the reputation of the
company, this sophisticated older audience will be engaged and interested
on our film from the first second the logo appears. We also chose to meet
the convention of the title sequence as it is important to give credit to the
actors that are starring our production. However, we did not give credit to
the director, casting, costumes, music or executive producer. These are very
important roles that I think should have been mentioned and given credit to.
We didn’t follow the convention of the order of credits in an opening
sequence.

11. Applying our theoretical genre research to our production
The death of a character happening at the start, instead of the end of
the films. The fact that some of the events that happen in the film are
very unexpected even for a more sophisticated audience. Usually the
death of who seems to be the protagonist is not conventional. This
would provide entertainment as it is something unusual to happen in
a horror film and would also link to the secondary audience who like
to see and experience new things.
However I don’t think that we see her enough before her death to be
too shocked about it. Our signature as directors can be making the
male character the person that is being haunted and not the female,
playing with the traditional conventions. I believe that we could have
developed our signature further by the use of some key technical
elements like for example the use of no hand held camera in horror
films.

12. Comparing our production with a similar one
It follows
Is a supernatural horror film directed by David Robert Mitchell, Jay is being
followed by a supernatural entity that she “caught” after having sex with her
boyfriend. The only way she can get rid of it is by having sex with someone
else. This is playing with teen horror conventions as it is representing sex as a
bad thing that taints you and opens the door to being killed.

13. How are they similar or different?
The opening sequence for ‘It follows’ uses establishing long shots of the
setting, something that in my opinion we should have done, they connote
the normal setting and uses the uncanny to create a greater effect on the
audience. It allows the audience to understand the plot of the film further,
as it is giving more information about the character’s surroundings. Our
production starts too soon. The fist shot is already of the couple and it might
confuse the audience due to their young age and the fact that not many
mass market films start like ours do. They all have establishing shots in their
opening sequence.
Establishing shot Long Shot

14. Something about our production and this start of film is the lighting of the street and
the alley way. They are both surrounded by trees and the use of the long shots of the
girl and couple in each one are very similar. However, they both have different
connotations. The girl is on her own, the long shot connotes her loneliness and the
fact that she is hopeless. There is no one that can help her. In this film they also use
more extreme long shots of the character, you never really get to see her face
because she is not the protagonist of the film. However, in ‘Unperceived’ we go
straight into showing the character. There not as many long shots compared to the
real production, this is because we show the main characters earlier and we want the
audience to recognise them. But the long shots that we have connote that they are
on their own and no one is going to disturb them and their relationship is going to
last as long as life lets them. However the LS in it follows connotes that she has no
one that can possibly help her.
Long shot

15. How are they similar or different?
In both opening sequences the death of a character is presented. They
both show it in such a different way, however. ‘It follows’ shows the
dead body, the broken leg and all the blood. This all connotes the
violence of the attacker, his power over a young girl and reinforces the
connotation of the girl being helpless when she's on the street. Our
production doesn't show anyone dead. The use of a black screen and a
sting before a scene in the cemetery makes it clear that someone has
died. The connotations of the black screen and sting are that the death
of the female character were unexpected.
The opening sequence of ‘It Follows’ starts with a really long take. The
camera moves to show what the character is doing but always staying in
the same position. In our own production, the takes are also long and
some of the shots cut to the faces of the characters. This connotes that
they are happy but that this happiness might not last very long.