What I have learnt from producing my final text..

From looking back at my preliminary task It looks to me as if i have learnt a lot and gained skills of which i never knew existed at the beginning of this course. 


The skills of which i have learnt range from technical skills to team skills. Here are the things i have learnt from each category. 


Technical Skills: One thing of which i have improved drastically on is the editing side of my film, in the preliminary task the cuts were slightly off and sometimes did not look as if they worked well in the task although looking at my finished text, my cuts are very well placed to create a smooth transition from clip to clip. Other technical skills of which are linked in with the editing section that i think i have improved on are the title adding, in the preliminary task me and my partner both wanted to add a title to the clips as we wanted to give a more 'professional' look to it but we could not find a good place to insert one or even a nice looking title to input. Throughout the course we have learnt various techniques into adding titles and in the final text we created our own title and inserted it into a well chosen position. 


Time Management: From doing the preliminary task we found out how long it takes just to film one clip. We have to find many different angles to film from and then assure that the actor does the exact same action again to maintain an authentic looking film. Although we knew this was going to happen, we did not manage our time to the best of which we could have. The film took us right up to the last minute to complete but we managed to finish everything on time! :) 


Team Skills: The team of which I was working in cooperated very well together, the actors were great with following orders which is always good as you need them to be on top form to make your film look good. We learnt from doing the preliminary task that it would be a very stressful and tormenting task to be an actor as the slightest wrong movement can ruin the clips and the way it is flowing. This helped us choose easy, laid back people who dont become stressed out too easily. The actors even offered ideas of which we used to keep them happy and thank them for agreeing to let us use them in our film. 


The Finished Product: I think me and my team have worked very well and created a smooth running, realistic opening to a film. The genre is very easy to spot due to the Mise en Scene throughout the opening and we stuck to the conventions of a Crime and Gangster film.

What I've learnt about technologies from the process of making this product

Throughout the making of my media text it has been essential to have a tripod, all of the shots i use apart from a few have had to be done via a tripod. If not then all the footage comes out looking tacky and wobbly. When the camera is still and on a tripod it focus' easier on the things of which are in the center of your shot and allows the quality of the image to increase. On the other hand when we were trying to freehand with the camera the shot would focus on something and if there were any sudden movements then it would go out of focus. The shots of which we have not used a tripod for were either to get into very awkward positions to get effective shots or to give the effect of a character walking by having the camera in front of the character as they walk. 

We have also learnt how the 180 degrees rule can not be broken on a trial and error basis, we thought that when dialogue was in progress we switched over to the other shoulder to do the filming although it ended up looking as if they were talking in the same direction, this can put viewers minds on edge about the film and you never want to take the viewer 'out of the moment' so when you see the chance if this happening avoid it at all costs. By keeping the shots the right side it allows the film to run smoothly and the clips to come together well to create a smooth transaction between each. 


One of the very helpful things we found about the camcorder is its Playback attribute, this helped us to reassure ourselves about the footage we had before we went on to record from either a different angle or a new shot. It is very stressful when you think you've gotten all of your footage and you look at it and there is something wrong with it. With the playback feature you can watch over all the stuff you have just filmed. 


There were many different features we had to learn to use when editing the sequence, one of the hardest things to do and probably the most crucial was setting our preferences at the beginning of the editing. We edited our footage upon a software system named Corel Video Studio Pro and the footage we were uploading to it had to be linked to a folder from the beginning or else it wouldn't save. This happened to us, unfortunately we only realized at the end of editing the majority of our film and therefore had to start again. This was a major learning curve. 


One major advantage for the editing of the footage we had, to make it more precise cutting to help the film run smoother was the Multi trim button, this brings up a pop out box and allows you to drag the shot frame by frame to where you want to end the clip and allow another clip of the same action from a different angle to proceed. Thus allowing a smooth changeover and creating a great interchange for the viewers to enjoy. You can also edit the beginning of the clip to make it shorter by doing the exact same process but choosing to start the clip from a different point, avoiding clips from dragging on and producing tedium among the audience. 


As well as these, i learned how to make clips speed up, this allows me to synchronize how fast the actors are moving in all of the shots. All you have to do is click on the clip, then options and edit the playback speed. This helped my film a lot as it allowed me to make sure that walking paces were not completely different throughout the film. This also allowed me to be a lot more confident with the filming side of our production as i didn't have to worry about re-doing shots so that the speeds are the same. 


On the film, there are additional post-production effects we have added due to our lack of resources when filming the film so we added sound effects such as gun shots. To use this we learnt how to import a media file and synchronize it to the film itself so that the sound does not sound out of line with the gun shot. This helped us out greatly as it allowed us to create a realistic situation. When doing the gunshot we also thought to improvise and include the sound that goes over the top of the film so we ended up importing it as well, the song goes very well with the film and matches the genre of which we have done. 


When it came to adding titles, we left this until last. When all of the editing was finished and the music was over the top we just went through and looked for a correct spot to add titles, from adding the titles i learnt the amount of different techniques you can use to make an effective title. I learnt to create names and titles coming out of people as they walked away. it creates a clever look. 

Elements that attract my Target audience

I have specifically made links between the conventions in my media text to the target audience, this is because you need to be able to make the film satisfactory and make sure that it is the type of film that the audience was expecting. In our case we have added stereo typically known activities for the age group of our target audience such as playing Poker and Drinking alcohol with friends. 




We have also given our characters costumes to adapt to the Crime and Gangster genre to add to the authenticity of the film. We have both of our main characters wearing modern but 'chavvy' with jeans and hoodies. Knowing that track suit bottoms are also known to be 'chavvy' we chose jeans over this as we though that they didn't look as tacky and allowed the audience of which we have relate to this. This also allows the actors to look more attractive and therefore draw in more customers. 







As well as this i have the characters meeting up, this also relates to the audience as it is a thing of which everybody does. We have chosen unknown places for this as they are portrayed to be crimesters and making money exchanges and drug deals and this can not happen in a public area. The mobile phone of which they use is a very modern phone and is touch screen, this also adds to the audience desirability, meaning that the audience wants to be the actors and actress' with a factor of envy. 

The way of which we have represented the characters plays a massive role on influencing our target audience and attracting them to the film. In our case we have represented the characters as part of the younger generation through there attitudes towards law and how they socialize with friends, we show this through the poker game and how they all meet up and enjoy themselves with alcohol and maybe drug use.

The other key elements of which i have altered to attract my audience to my media text are the language and setting. The language that the actors in my film have been given in the script use hip words that are known to be said by young 'hoodlums' such as 'man' and 'blud'. This can relate people who know the stereotype and people who are under this stereotype category to the film. We also have a clip in the film where we have one of our main characters send a message to the other one and it is using 'text-talk' therefore abbreviations of words. This is also used by many people all over the world so it allows them to relate to the film and make them feel comfortable. The last element of which i have used to attract the audience to my film is the setting, we have manipulated this so that it gives the illusion as if we are in a hidden place as there is no sign of traffic and or people, whereas really we have filmed it behind an old building just off of the main road. By allowing the audience to think that we are in a hidden location it makes them wonder what types of places near them would be anything like this and therefore making the audience think. This is a good thing as it enhances the mind and tricks them into making them feel as if they are in the situation. 

On the right is an image from across the road from where the opening sequence is held, as you can see it is right beside the main road although in the final text it looks as if it is in the middle of nowhere.

The audience for my Media project

To add to the Powerpoint slide i have just posted is the things of which my audience will be looking to spend there money on. The type of person i would aim to attract to my film would usually be either an outgoing or fun person and therefore would lead an activity packed lifestyle therefore enjoying a lot of there time in the cinema and going out with friends. 

Things that they would spend there money on would mainly include clothing, junk food and drinks along with a vast amount of alcohol. This is quite frankly due to the fact they are out all the time and need high energy foods which fuel them for there lives. Also, a main thing of which they would spend there money on (being teenagers and +) would be travel costs for thins such as trains, buses and fuel. 


Through this i could tell that major industries and brands would like to advertise the film such as: 

• First Buses- Due to the fact they are the largest transport chain in England and would love to attract more customers and take people to the cinema they create a great place to advertise. They have done this for many other mainstream films such as Avatar and The Kings Speech.
• Clothing brands- As the consumer is more than likely going to like to spend there money on clothing then the clothing brands would like to take advantage from this and advertise it to draw customers watching the film to them. Clothing industries are a great place to advertise a film as if people have money to spend on lots of clothes then usually they also wouldn't mind spending money on a film in the cinema.
• Alcohol brands could also sponsor the film although this can sometimes lead to the film looking tacky and therefore not as authentic. This leading to less of an attraction to go and watch the film. This is also another great place to advertise a Crime and gangster film as my target audience would be for the male population above 18 whom of which have a tendency to drink.

The types of media that my target audience would like to watch or read would be all of them, but mainly Television as most people who watch a lot of TV are more likely to be interested in watching films. The only form of media that i would not think my target audience would enjoy would be magazines as males are not notoriously known to read them although they do advertise a lot of great male films. The television programs of which my target audience would watch can range from comedies such as Mock the week to programs involving a lot of crime such as Hustle. This is because of the nature of the texts, they also attract the type of audience i am looking for in a young and hip style.

The audience for my Media project

Media institutions that may distribute my text

The institution of which I would choose to distribute film is called Universal Studios and they have been dealing with many different genres and sub genres since May 1935 and have therefore become a popular corporation, i would choose these to distribute my film as they are notorious for being good at handling these types of films and would therefore be a great choice for me. The films of which they have distributed in common to mine would be Die hard, this film is an action packed film which is also highly riddled with crime all throughout.

Other media distributors of which we could have chosen consist of Universal Studios or Lions Gate Entertainment. Both of these have distributes many Sub genres of our chosen Crime and Gangster theme. We chose 20th century Fox as it is the most known distributor out of the choices of which we had. Lions gate entertainment hav distributed well known crime and gagngster films such as Harry Brown & Abduction. The other distributor we could have chosen was Universal studios, they have distributed a major crime and gangster film called American Gangster. These two distributors were major competitiors towards our decision but we chose 20th Century fox due to there high quality films and great customer satisfactory levels.




The text of which we have produced would be made to try and stay mainstream and not overboard with crime and violence so that is easily suitable for friendship groups to go and see. We have done this to attract a larger target audience and therefore produce more profit for the producers, thus helping us draw in production lines to help promote the film. We have also produced twists to entail the viewer into believing they are in a more individual setting, this helps the film give off a better inner feeling to the audience but by sticking mainly to the traditional Crime and Gangster conventions it will stay on a more mainstream level and be successful.

As time goes by different media producers & distributors change the genres of film that they would like to invest in and take there time to promote to create the best outcome for but at the moment the media institution i would choose to invest into our film would have to be New Line Cinema. I would choose thee due to there extensive funding and great teams they have help you behind the scenes. They have been the team behind great films such as Se7en and Nightmare on Elm Street.