Evaluation Question 4

How did you use media technologies in the construction, research, planning and evaluation stages?

Arcane Evaluation Question 4

Evaluation Question 3

What have you learned from you audience feedback?



Evaluation Question 1

In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

Arcane Evaluation Question 1

After exporting our video from iMovie, there was a glitch in the video which has caused our music from our trailer to play over the top of a section.
The following transcript is what should be heard:
"One of the conventions we challenged was the idea of having a voiceover. We found that generally in a teaser trailer, the voiceover was speech from part of the film, which is proven in the trailer for Man of Steel.
(Voiceover) One day, you're gonna have to make a choice.
This adds to the air of mystery and grabs the viewers attention, however we found this was not necessary or suited to our trailer.
(Voiceover) Stay safe.
(Voiceover) What do you want from me?
We tried using a voiceover and found that it took away from the look of the trailer, so decided against it. We do not feel that this hindered our trailers appeal as it meant that the audience are more focussed on the shots and what they are being shown."

Initial Poster Draft (Poster 2)

This is our initial Poster Draft. 

We previously posted our Poster Deconstructions of 'The Bourne Identity', 'The Bourne Legacy', 'Limitless', 'Enemy of the State' and 'Die Hard'. The reason why we looked at existing posters prior to producing our own is to look at conventions and similarities. 

We provided a link to our survey which was primarily used to help demonstrate which poster appealed more to our viewers.  The table below shows our results. 

Poster 2 (which is the draft image above) has received 72.4% compared with Poster 1 which was given 27.6%. It is evidently clear that Poster 2 is the most appealing, which is why we have selected this particular poster as our Draft.  

The Title has been modified by changing the font. We have used the font which appears in our Teaser Trailer and on our website to keep it consistent throughout. Placing the white title over the black background helps it to stand out and makes it appear more bold. All of the typography that is visible on the Poster is in capitals. 

We have positioned the target slightly lower and have closed it in a little to create more of a focus on our main character. 

The Poster credits have taken inspiration from other poster designs, where the font, size, colour and overall layout have strong similarities. We decided to position the credits centrally at the bottom. 

Finally, we added an 'Age Rating' next to the title on the right hand side. This informs the viewer on whether it is suitable for themselves to view this particular film or not. 

DECONSTRUCTION: Die Hard Website

This is the second website deconstruction which enabled us to look at more existing media products before creating our own.

More Problems and Solutions

After reviewing our initial problems and solutions post, which can be found here, we have created a new table with the new problems we came across, and what we did to solve them.

Problem	Solution
WEATHER (SNOW) Due to the snow, there were disruptions to travel and we didn’t feel the aesthetic fit with the conventions of the genre.	We had to postpone our filming and continue with other elements including the blog, poster, website and editing the footage we already had.
ILLNESS One of our group members became ill and was unable to attend school for a number of weeks.	We ensured our whole group were informed as to what was going on and did as much as we could with two of us until her return.
ACTORS Our actors had a hectic schedule and were unable to attend some of the filming sessions we had planned.	We eventually planned a day where all our actors were free to film and in the meantime, we continued with our other elements.

DECONSTRUCTION: Die Hard Poster

The second poster we have looked at is Die Hard.

DECONSTRUCTION: The Bourne Legacy Poster

We decided to look at some existing posters for films within our genre and have deconstructed them to discover some of the conventions of a film poster. The first poster we looked at is for The Bourne Legacy.

Age Rating

Our film will need an age rating that will inform the viewer what to expect, and whether there is anything unsuitable for children. We have looked at the different age ratings below and outlined what each of them means. We will then decide upon our rating based on this, and this information will go on our trailer, poster and website.

 Universal: All ages, nothing unsuitable.

 Parental Guidance: All ages, some scenes may be unsuitable for children.

 12: Nobody younger than 12 can buy or rent - may contain mature themes, discrimination, soft drugs, moderate swear words, infrequent strong language and moderate violence, sex references and nudity.

 15: Only those over 15 can buy/rent- may contain adult themes, hard drugs, frequent strong language and limited use of very strong language, strong violence and strong sex references, and nudity without graphic detail.

 18: Only adults admitted - can contain hard drugs, explicit sex references with detail, strong, gory and/or sadistic violence usually permitted, strong sexual violence.

After looking at these classifications, we believe our film would be a 15. This is due to the occasional violent scenes and strong language.

Typography

 In the titles for our trailer, the film title will appear on a black screen. We have looked at some fonts here, and can use effective fonts to enhance the trailer and reinforce the genre of our film.
1. The first is a sans serif font with white lines cutting across the black text. This distorted effect could be ideal for our film as it suggests disruption.
2. The second font is in the style of those used on a top secret file. This links to the idea of the government scandal and mystery surrounding this.
3. The third is a serif font that has been distorted in ways. This has aesthetics that can link to the military and government.
4. The fourth font is reflective of an old typewriter, and with that there is a link to files, and secret files. It is a fairly simplistic serif font that could be effective in the titles of our trailer.

5. The final font has the same distorted effect as
the third and has the silhouettes of a city skyline. This reflects our location (as being London) and disruption that is key in our plot.

The font we have decided to use for the title of our film is the 2nd as it has significant links to our plot and reflects the genre well.

Shooting Script

This is the table outlining our shooting script. This includes all the necessary information such as location, the shot types, any dialogue that may be used and travel information so everything can run smoothly.

Location	Shot	Dialogue	Travel
London Eye	Long shot of Alex and Harriet walking along by London Eye	N/A	Charing Cross Station then walk
Food stall by London Eye	Long/medium shot of Alex buying food for himself and Harriet	N/A	Charing Cross Station then walk
Screens at Picadilly Circus	Medium low angle shot of Alex and Harriet looking up at screens/around Picadilly Circus	N/A	Picadilly Circus Underground
Being followed around Leicester Square	Hand-held long shot of Alex and Harriet followed by Ben through Leicester Square	N/A	Walk from Picadilly Circus
Sitting on wall in Leicester Square	Medium shot of Alex and Harriet sitting together on wall in Leicester Square	N/A	Walk from Picadilly Circus
Following Alex and Harriet around Covent Garden	Hand-held long/medium shots of Ben following Alex and Harriet round Covent Garden	N/A	Covent Garden Undersground
Ben in hoody puts memory stick put in Alex's back pocket on Hungerford Bridge	Medium shot and close up	N/A	Charing Cross Station and walk
Confrontation between Alex and Ben in alley	Medium shot to close up, and close up of Alex and Ben individually	“Give me what I want” “I don't have anything, I don't know what you're talking about”
Hungerford Bridge	Pan from Houses of Parliament to London Eye	N/A	Charing Cross Station
London Bridge	Pan of London Bridge	N/A	London Bridge Station
One NewChange	Pan of London from roof of NewChange	N/A	St Pauls Underground
Walking through Picadilly Circus	Hand-held shot walking through Picadilly Circus	N/A	Picadilly Circus Underground
Shot of buses at Picadilly Circus	Long/medium shot from side of road of buses coming along road past camera	N/A	Picadilly Circus Underground
Chase along street	Long shot from front of Alex and gov. chasing Low angle medium shot of feet running past camera POV of Alex POV of government	N/A	Tunbridge Wells
Alley	Long shot of Alex running into alley to hide Close up of Harriet phoning Alex Close up of Alex answering phone Close up of Alex shouting down phone Long shot of gov. running into alley	“I can't talk right now” “Stay safe”	Tunbridge Wells
Car park argument	High angle from corner Long shot from side Close up of Alex's face Close up of gov. faces	“What do you want from me?!” “Give it to us!”	Tunbridge Wells
Laying on floor looking up at gov.	Low angle out of focus shot	N/A	Tunbridge Wells
Roof of car park	Medium shot of Alex looking over edge from behind Close up of Alex's face from side looking down Medium/long shot of Alex looking down with gov. running in from behind Long shot from behind of gov. looking over edge	N/A	Tunbridge Wells
Alex looking behind	Close up of Alex from behind looking over shoulder	N/A	Tunbridge Wells

Production Company

A production company is key in the making of a film, as it can carry conventions of what to expect from a film under that company and acts as an investor for a film, allowing the producers and directors to have a larger budget. We have looked at some production companies to find one appropriate for our film.

Lionsgate are the production company for films including Reservoir Dogs, Total Recall and Young Guns. These films are of the same or a similar genre to ours, making Lionsgate an ideal production company for Arcane.

Universal Pictures are another production company which we thought would relate to Arcane. Films which have used this particular production company include The Boxer, The Fast and Furious, The Bourne series and Smokin' Aces. 

The final production company we looked at are 20th Century Fox. Films include Die Hard, Speed and The Day After Tomorrow. These once again relate to our genre, although 20th Century Fox are associated with a wide variety of genres, with other films including Notting Hill, Castaway and Ice Age. This may make it unsuitable for our use.

Instead of using Lionsgate, Universal Pictures and 20th Century Fox, we thought we should create and design our own production company that ultimately sets the physical basis for our film trailer.
Our production company has been called 'City Productions'. By looking at the background image, which displays the London Eye, the viewer automatically knows that this is a British based company. It is a 2 second clip showing the Ferry entering the still shot. Editing the footage to Black and White gives the overall image a 'Traditional' and very 'British' look. We placed a 'Ripple' transition after the two second clip to create a smoother change-over. 

Location, Location, Location...

For some of our shots, we had the idea to film on a rooftop with our main character, Luke, in a confrontation with the govenment officials. We also want some running shots in a similar urban setting, with inspiration coming from a scene in 'Enemy of the State'. We have found some companies that focus on location shots for moving image and photography. The first is 'Bridge Creative Studios' (see images below).

The next company we found are 'Still Productions', who provide a more extensive range of locations, some of which are shown below. This includes both rooftops and urban settings. We have posted some more images below.

The final location we have looked at is a shopping centre called 'One New Change'. With panormaic views of London, the rooftop overlooks St Pauls Cathedral and would be an ideal location for some of our scenes.

After investigating all these locations, we discovered the first two locations were out of our budget, so we will be considering the third (One New Change).

Alex Gylanders Profile/Audition

A recorded audition of Alex Gylanders, applying for the role of our main protagonist.

We began by asking him to introduce himself, which would give us a better understanding of his abilities and background/experience. We then devised some questions to ask, which we had not told him beforehand. We wanted to gauge how well he could communicate without preparation and whether the way he came across changed. Finally, we had asked Alex to prepare a short monologue which we filmed to see both his acting ability and the way he looked on camera.

After reviewing the footage we had got with Alex, we realised that although he is an ideal actor to cast in our teaser trailer, his presence has altered our ideas about genre. Before meeting him, our genre was more based around being a Conspiracy Thriller, however we feel he would be more suited to being in an Action Thriller. We will need to do some more research in light of this change.

DECONSTRUCTION: Chungking Express

Chungking Express is a romance/mystery/comedy/drama set around Hong Kong's notorious Chungking Mansions. After watching the trailer, we found that we were influenced some of the stylistic elements, and have deconstructed the trailer to have a better understanding of them. The full trailer can be seen here.

Age rating screen informing audience as to whether it is appropriate or not

Film distributor- Miramax Films who are known for distributing independent and foreign films
Dramatic orchestra score begins (non diegetic) - rising and falling violins etc

Establishing the location - low key lighting outdoor shots of the surrounding area - industrial looking, polluted built-up area
Voiceover (non diegetic) - "On the streets of Hong Kong..." - setting up the narrative

More establishing - low angle shot, low key lighting - sky is barely visible - dark and polluted area to live
Voiceover (non diegetic) - "On the streets of Hong Kong..." - setting up the narrative

Slightly low angle shot of woman with blonde curly hair, sunglasses and beige trench coat entering a lift  - mystery, hiding
Voiceover (non diegetic) - "A mysterious woman..." - character establishment






Lift door closing -  shutting woman out, taking her elsewhere - following her journey
Voiceover (non diegetic) - "A mysterious woman..." - character establishment

Man in busy marketplace looking around
Wearing a shirt and tie with beige jacket - like blonde woman - suggests a link between the characters?
Voiceover (non diegetic) - "A young cop..." - further character establishment

Trying to avoid the busy people - suggests struggles and obstacles in the plot
Voiceover (non diegetic) - "A young cop..." - further character establishment







Young woman sitting at countertop - looks like a restaurant - food around and wearing apron - job?
Leaning on hand - looks troubled or thoughtful
Low key lighting with light shining on her face - hope? Reflective of voiceover "dreamer"
Voiceover (non diegetic) - "And an innocent dreamer..." - introducing another character

Blonde woman in same market as cop - looking over shoulder - avoiding him, up to no good
Voiceover (non diegetic) - "...are about to meet"

Point of view from blonde woman's perspective -looking back
Man carrying a shop dummy with blonde curly hair - blocking view
Voiceover (non diegetic) - "where mystery and romance..." - establishing the genre and plot expectations

 Cop catches doll mistaking for blonde woman
Voiceover - "collide..." - reflective of scene unfolding and helping establish the rough plot
Orchestral music fades to a rock song (non diegetic)

 Blonde woman fires gun in air 3 times consecutively (diegetic)
Music- "Dream Person" by Faye Wong (a take on the song by The Cranberries) (non diegetic) - allows people of various nationalities to recognise and relate
Song title links to the "dreamer"

 Blonde woman fires gun in air 3 times consecutively (diegetic)
Quicker paced, fast cuts
Motion blur used - confusion and fear

Blonde woman fires gun in air 3 times consecutively (diegetic)
Quicker paced, fast cuts
Motion blur used - confusion and fear

Film distributors listed in white with black background
Voiceover (non diegetic) - "Miramax Films and Rolling Thunder Pictures present..." - highlighting the different distributors

Title in centre of screen getting larger - yellow with white on black background - bold and bright and in two separate parts
Voiceover (non diegetic) - "Wong Kar-Wai's Chungking Express" - introduces director, putting a name to the film

Title cross blur to close up of leg on bed with person running toy plane up leg
Link to innocence, childlike - link to "dreamer"









Close up of leg on bed with person running toy plane up leg
Link to innocence, childlike - link to "dreamer"
Sound effect - plane taking off (non diegetic) - travel, journey

Low key lighting, man laying back brushing stuffed toy fur - further link to childhood, innocence, dreaming

Woman peering over shoulder looking back - medium shot 
Sceptical facial expression, watching someone/something
Voiceover (non diegetic) - "Time Magazine calls it..."

Voiceover (non diegetic) - "A Delicious Romance!" - highlighting the reviews, encouraging target audience to watch

Close up of woman turning head - camera follows her eyeline
Low key lighting - some lighting in background - romantic, atmospheric

Camera pans to medium shot of cop - love interest - attention averted - unrequited? complications? 

Side shot of man and woman kissing - him restraining her - dominant, control, power
Light from window behind - hope








Woman in apron dancing - medium shot - medium lighting
Carefree, happiness - mood of trailer becoming more positive
Female singer starts singing in Chinese - "Dream Person" The Cranberries cover (non diegetic)

Woman opens door and looks up - medium shot
Curious facial expression - not expecting anyone

Medium shot of cop standing at door looking up at her - looks innocent
Slightly higher angle - power switch - she's in control

Longer shot from behind cop with him in shot too
She screams (diegetic) and slams the door shut
She's in control of the situation

Voiceover (non diegetic) - "A Knockout... Terrifically Stylish!..." - highlighting the reviews, encouraging target audience to watch

Close up shot from the floor of womans foot stepping into the shot
Low key lighting - night time - darkness - dark things happening
Voiceover (non diegetic) - "...raves the Los Angeles Times"

Medium/close up shot of blonde woman with sunglasses on smoking
Night - looking negatively upon her
Voiceover (non diegetic) - "...raves the Los Angeles Times"






Medium/close up shot of blonde woman with sunglasses exhaling smoke
Looks troubled
Night - negative, in the dark






High angle shot of woman going into apartment and shutting door - looking around, checking for intruders?








Medium shot woman pulling cloth off table- anger, frustration?
Clash of symbols in none diegetic song - adds to idea of anger, frustration







Long low angle shot of woman leaning out open window throwing paper plane
Dull, gloomy buildings around contrasted with the innocence associated with paper planes






Pan following paper plane going through air
Dull, gloomy buildings around contrasted with the innocence associated with paper planes

Medium/long shot as woman falls back on sofa -carefree, change from the anger/frustration to more laidback








Medium shot of woman dancing in room - reflective of earlier dancing, carefree tone
Slightly low key lighting with light from windows behind - hope, innocence






Long shot through window of policeman peering in - obsession, infatuation, love?
Voiceover (non diegetic) - "And LA Weekly calls it..."







Voiceover (non diegetic) -"A Genuine Wonder! Intoxicating from first frame to last!" - highlighting the reviews, encouraging target audience to watch

High angle long shot of cop running along road - urgency, obsession
Song - several drum beats - reflect running pace








Long shot pan down from ceiling to blonde woman - reflects cop before running -similar motives?






 Several rapid medium shots of blonde woman looking around, being followed, or looking for someone/something? Faster pace reflects urgency?

Several rapid medium shots of blonde woman looking around, being followed, or looking for someone/something? Faster pace reflects urgency?

High angle close up of woman's hand (blonde woman?) taking gun out of a small locker - danger, nails are red which also carries connotations of danger

Long shot of blonde woman hitting wall and turning to walk down corridor towards camera - anger, excitement?









Long shot of several men running towards camera - chase, danger? Links to clip before - like they're chasing her, or she's chasing them?
Low key lighting reflects potential danger






Several rapid shots of woman looking around and continuing to run - long shot - public place? Signs all round - danger is everywhere?








Gun shot followed by next shot fading in with white wash - white carries connotations of coldness or purity - contrast to shooting









Long angled shot of woman walking away into light - leaving darkness behind, leaving danger and wrong-doing behind in the dark







Close up of blonde woman dropping wig on floor - disguise, deceit, reflects her leaving darkness behind and stepping into light - life without danger?






Voiceover (non diegetic) - "Chungking Express, a film by Wong Kar-Wai" - highlights titles that's on screen









Credits - important information only - production company, producer, director etc
Music fades out