This document summarizes a student's media evaluation project. The student created a film opening scene based on conventions of teen dramas like Breaking Bad and Requiem for a Dream. Their opening scene represents older teenagers ages 17-21 and portrays the struggles they face with money and drugs. The intended audience is people ages 16-25 who would find it most relatable. Through the process, the student learned how to use movie editing software and camera techniques to construct their opening scene. They felt they improved at editing over their previous continuity task and better understand how to craft different genres and moods.

1. Media evaluation
Jack Saward

2. 1. In what ways does your media product use,
develop or challenge forms and conventions of
real media products? (i.e. of film openings)
• My/our opening scene was based on the real conventions of young
teenagers. Our film opening does have conventions of other film
openings e.g. adding blur effects to scenes and chaining the colours
to add a more ‘sad’ feeling. We also tried to add our different style
to it by choosing drama as a genre and focusing on drug abuse
seeing as not a lot of people choose to that and would maybe
appeal to the audience because it differentiates from the norm.
• Also by looking at other film openings and TV-dramas that our
related to our genre, breaking bad and requiem for a dream, it gave
me and my group ideas for what our film opening should be like
and create the story it self.
• Also from doing media last year and looking a guides I learnt what
effects to use and what would fit best with our genre, examples
blurring the scenes for the flash back effect and the black and white
to add a certain ‘mood’ to the opening.

3. 2. How does your media product
represent particular social groups ?
• My Media product represents social groups of older teenagers in
the age 17-21. The reason for this is because stereotypically after
you become 18 your legally allowed to purchase alcohol and
therefore end up experimenting and trying different things,
however these can lead to trying some pretty rough stuff and
meeting the wrong people that force you to do stuff and end up
putting your life in as disastrous path.
• Also the what my film opening represents is the struggles of
teenagers e.g. money, not having to buy the stuff you and when you
have it end up wasting it on drugs and alcohol. We portrayed this by
using a dark bedroom and making it look messy and were someone
with not a lot of money would live. Also our character is a 17 year
old and had to wear ‘indie’ genre clothes to portray the age
properly.

4. 3. What kind of media institution might
distribute your media product and why?
• Media institutions that might distribute our film could
be dvd stores such as block buster or HMV, but not that
likely seeing as the are going out of business.
• Popular film streaming sites such as Netflix, which is
also very popular with young people and would suit my
film opening very well seeing as it portrays youth.
• Also maybe youtube could advertise our film opening
when people watch a youtube video, e.g the adds that
come on before the video beings. This would help
promote our opening.

5. 4. Who would be the audience for your media
product?
5. How did you attract/address your audience?
• The audience for our media product would be people between the
age of 16-25. This due to the representation of drugs and the age
group being represented in my film opening. Also people within
that age group would find it easier to relate too seeing as they are
soon to be the same age. While people older than the targeted
audience might not find it as useful and not as relatable.
• We attracted our target audience through the usage of clothing
style which we used as indie which is currently what our age group
wears and therefore can easier attract and relate my film opening.
• Also the main character of our film opening, Dan, is a stereotype of
troubled teenagers that are having a tough time in their life and
therefore can relate to dans story and somewhat feel
compassionate with the character.

6. 6. What have you learnt about
technologies from the process of
constructing this product?
• During the process of creating the film
opening i have learnt some new things about
technologies. To edit my film opening we used
movie plus x6 which was quite easy to use and
has certain special effects which suit our film
opening. Also using how to use a sony hand-
cam which was very good, and learnt more
about editing and how to put things together.

7. 7. Looking back at your preliminary task (the
continuity editing task), what do you feel you
have learnt in the progression from it to full
product?
• looking back from the preliminary task the editing
the film opening I feel I have learnt more and also
from having the knowledge from last year as well.
I also feel I have improved in how to edit by
having gained knowledge about the different
editing software. I was have gained new
knowledge about camera angles and to use them
in a different genre such as drama, to create a
different mood e.g. with the usage of close ups.