Tuesday 18 April 2017

What have you learnt about Technologies from the Process of Constructing this Product?

What have you learnt about Technologies from the Process of Constructing this Product?

During the process of constructing my title sequence I have learnt different methods of using technologies to my advantage, with the knowledge I was able to create an opening title sequence for a Thriller film.

As cinematographer it was my job to film as much as I could using a variety of different shots for the editor ( Max ) to chose from, this included in reshooting the same scene multiple times therefore he had different options to chose from in order to create the best possible outcome. I shot all of the footage using a DSLR Camera, this is because it was the best piece of equipment the school had to offer. I booked out and used other equipment like the steady cam and a tripod, this was to make sure all the shots and angles were steady and professional. There was certain shots that required to be recorded without a steady cam or tripod. This is because using hand held footage, much like shooting canted angle shots, has the effect of distorting the audience plus it also adds a realistic aspect towards the title sequence which engages the audience.

 The tripod enabled me to use both panning and tilting techniques. Panning came in handy when I wanted to show as much of the set as I could without necessarily using a wide-shot. An example of when I used panning would be when I was filming an extreme close up of the investigation board but panned towards the right so more of the investigation board was revealed. An example of when I used tilting would be when i tilted the camera upwards from the end of the table. I did this because Harry ( Killer - JK Simmons ) was at the opposite end and though tilting the camera upwards from a low angle shot it presented Harry to be powerful which intimidates the audience as he is the antagonist.

Although I was cinematographer I also learnt a lot of editing techniques through Max. The first editing software I experimented with was Motion. Motion is a new programme recently added to the schools servers that was advised by my teacher to try out incase we wanted to use it to create our titles in our sequence. Myself and Max was experimenting with it in class and he explained how it was similar to Cinema 4D because it has a similar layout and it works the same way as Motion. We also decided to play around with our title by making it look creepy to match our genre because we wanted to know if that could be a possible option to use in our final cut. In the end we decided not use to use the motion titles and use the basic 2D titles from after effects.

To conclude, initially it was hard working and adapting with new technologies especially in our continuity sequence however the more I worked with this equipment the better I became at it. I am also confident with working on my coursework for Media Studies next year, now I have learnt a variety of techniques that make a good Cinematographer.

How did you attract/address your audience?

How did you attract/address your audience?


This link will take you to ur sound cloud page where the evaluation question will be answered.

Who would be the audience for your Media Product?

Who would be the audience for your Media Product?


This link will take you to ur sound cloud page where the evaluation question will be answered.

Looking back at your Preliminary Task, What do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full Product?

Looking back at your Preliminary Task, What do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full Product?


How Does your Media Product Represent Particular Social Groups?

How Does your Media Product Represent Particular Social Groups?



What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?

What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?

In What Ways Does Your Media Product Use, Develop or Challenge Forms and Conventions of Real Media Products?

In What Ways Does Your Media Product Use, Develop or Challenge Forms and Conventions of Real Media Products?




What Kind of Media Institute Might Distribute your Media Product and why?


What Kind of Media Institute Might Distribute your Media Product and why?


The film Studio we chose to distribute our media product is Warner Brothers. This is because they are one of the big 6 and a very well known conglomerate recognised all around the world, which ensures it will be marketed and promoted up to a brilliant standard. Our film is also similar to their body of work because they have released award winning Hollywood thriller films like Syriana (2005) and recently released The Accountant (2016) which had huge commercial success and brilliant reviews by professional film critics. Due to our film being promoted by a Hollywood film studio our main goal is to create as much money as possible which is why we need to have a lot of star power.

In order to make a film a box office hit and to be a commercial success, star power is key. The protagonist in our film is played by Leonardo DiCaprio, this is because he is one of the worlds most recognised actors and ensures an established audience from his fan base alone. He is also very ideal to play this role because not only is he a talented actor but he has also been the main star in other thriller films like Shutter Island and The Departed. These are both Crime/Thriller films which happens to be the same genre as ours. In The Departed, Leornado DiCaprio plays the role of a detective. Therefore, he already has knowledge of being this character. The Departed is also a Martin Scorsese film, which was produced by Warner Brothers, which fits perfectly with our film because Scorsese is our director. We chose Scorsese as our director because he has directed brilliant thriller films in the past both critically and commercially; however this wasn't the only reason to why he was chosen. In my pitch I explain how ideal of a director he would be because he has worked with Leonardo DiCaprio and Warner Brothers before, he has also directed some of the worlds most critically acclaimed films which ensures he will do his job well. In addition to this, JK Simmons ( our films protagonist ) starred in the Warner Brothers most recent production " The Accountant " of which is a thriller film. Therefore, he would be ideal for this role as he can work well in this type of environment.

Due to our film being a Hollywood movie it will be integrated vertically, this is because Time Warner  is a successful enough production company to be able to pay for all the aspects of producing and distributing our film where as an independent film studio would use horizontal integration.

In conclusion Warner Brothers is the perfect option for us because it is completely compatible with our cast, it has previously produced similar films to ours and I also want to make as much commercial success as possible which is the same goal as Warner Brothers'.















What I would change


What I would Change


If given a second chance to recreate my title sequence there a few aspects that I would like to change, although I am pleased with the final outcome i still believe there is room for improvement. 
The first thing I would change would be both characters outfits, this is because I think if George was wearing a shirt and tie along with his blazer the audience would be able to understand his role bit more. The same with Harry, if he wore perhaps a big jacket with rips in it rather than a flannel shirt he may appear more threatening.
Another thing i would change would be the soundtrack simply because it was too much of a hassle to sort out and i think a professional sound track could have fitted better within our title sequence.
As cinematographer i wish i got more canted angle shots in the killer scenes to distort the audience and make them feel uncomfortable and I also wish I filmed more shots using the strobe lighting as it came out really well.


Pictures of the making of the third shoot.


Pictures of the making of the third shoot.


Within the following pictures you can see my group beginning to set up the scene we was about to shoot. It was ket to have good miss en scene in the investigation scene otherwise the audience would have been lost and wondering who this character is and his role within the film. As cinematographer I had to set up the camera in positions where I could establish the set as the first shots, this can be seen within the pictures below as well.



Monday 17 April 2017

Change In Narrative

Change In Narrative


During the process of making our title sequence we realised that we would need to change our narrative bit because originally we wanted the protagonist to be a father who would be filmed in his home solving the crime however due to us not have time to go and film in someones house we decided that we would just have a detective working in his office. We still-think that it could work having him be the father of the child that has been kid napped however in our new narrative he is already a detective.

By Max and Tommy.

Editing Our Title Sequence


Editing Our Title Sequence




Max is our groups editor therefore the following is all the work he did on the title sequence, As an already experienced editor it made sense for him to take this role which he did very well. He also came to me asking for my opinion and if I had any ideas.

The editing software we used was Final Cut Pro because that was the only editing software available on the Macs at school. It didn't take max long to figure out how to use it or lean the specs that we would need to use like the transformation tools including scale, rotation, and anchor point. Final cur has plenty of filters to choose from which comes in handy in case we want a scene to look darker or lighter. The filters can also change the levels of intensity. Max said using Final Cut Pro wasn't easy for him because he is used to working with other software.

We filmed new footage which meant there was more editing for max to do, we realised some shots could be used as transitions from the investigation scene to the killer scene. For example a high angle shot I filmed looking down at his book looks similar to the birds eye view shot of the detective looking down at his work, this meant max could fade the shots so they work together and the title sequence is able to progress.

Sunday 16 April 2017

Final Title Sequence


Final Title Sequence

The following video is the final cut of my title sequence.

Thursday 13 April 2017

Typograpghy for our title sequence

Typography for our title sequence


The final font we have decided on is "Mistral".


Mise En Scene - Killer


Mise En Scene - Killer

For the killer played by JK Simmons (Harry) we wanted a very rough look, the outfit we chose was black ripped trousers, big black boots and a bloody flannel shirt.
We also added make up to him to make his hands look like they have been working. We rubbed charcoal all over his hands which made them look very dirty (making sure to get it under his finger nails) and we also added fake blood to his costume and make up. Overall this effect worked really well and his role is clearly established within the title sequence.
As Cinematographer I made sure to get extreme close ups of significant parts of his costume like his boots and hands.


Mise En Scene - Detective

Mise En Scene - Detective

The detectives costume is a suit, we also combed over Georges hair to give him a clean cut haircut and make him look smart. His suit represents power and authority however we didn't add any make up like we did with harry the killer.
The setting for the investigation scenes are in high key lighting to show the binary oppositions of good vs evil and day vs night, the set itself is a conference in our school because it has a computer and a pin board. We needed both these things in order to persuade the audience that the set is actually the detectives office.
I made sure to get to extreme close ups of things like binders, coffee mugs and the investigation board itself as well as a wide shot to establish the set.

Wednesday 12 April 2017

Making of the Sound Track


Sound Track

The sound track we used in our title sequence is very original because harry and George created it themselves using logic pro, this was because we wanted a unique piece of music that would fit perfectly with our footage, I would not recommend other students to do this because it requires a lot more added work however we are all Music Tech students so it was fairly easy to make criticise and perfect.

This is the soundtrack - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WKidd5HKFOk

Ideal Release Date

Ideal Release Date

Ideal dates to release our film would be during Easter holidays because that's when teenagers are of school therefore they have a better chance to go and watch it which ensures more commercial success.
An alternative date would be in October as this is a very violent and gory thriller which fits well with the theme of Halloween.
Max also had an idea to show it at a film festival because we may be awarded and will get recognition.

Filming the Investigation scene

Re-shoot of the investigation scene 

After getting feedback from our second screening a re-shoot of the investigation scene was due. Many of the same angles were used again but they had to be re-shot because we changed the conference room due to bad lighting.

I used a wide shot to establish the setting and the protagonist, this is so the audience begin to get an understanding of his role within the film. Once George was in the conference room I used high angle shots and Ariel shots to show what he was looking at and the work he was doing.

Harry and max set out the investigation board again which i got close ups of and extreme close ups, I also instructed george to write on certain pictures and link certain photos to others, this was because I needed to capture him gathering evidence and trying to hunt down the killer to create tension.

audience profile


Audience Profile-

Target Age: 15-25
Target Gender: Male
Occupation: Young adults in part time jobs or students with an interest in thriller psycho killer movies with a crime style to them.
Education: Any
Personality/ Interests: An interest in thriller movies with a bit of gore in and murder cases. People who enjoy the thrill of a movie and are looking for surprises. Males tend to watch these kinds of movies more often then women as most enjoy watching violent kinds of movies and dont mind a bit of gore here and there.

Students who may attend colleges only have to attend a few days of the week meaning they have more spare time to go to the cinema and view the film. Young adults would have finished their education and looking for jobs so during this perios of time they are free alot of the time giving them the option of going to the cinema more often.

Our secondary audience would have to be Adults (roughly 30+). Even though i say secondary i still believe they could be classed as the primary because majority of people do enjoy watching crime films so i wouldn't expect people 30+ to not watch this film.

By Max and Tommy

What have you learnt about Technologies from the Process of Constructing this Product?

What have you learnt about Technologies from the Process of Constructing this Product? During the process of constructing my title sequen...