evaluation activity 7

The preliminary task was to produce a short video which showcased the skill we had at the time. We had to use various techniques such as shot reverse shot, 180 degree rule and match on action. Firstly it is important to understand that we used a basic handy cam to shoot the preliminary task and we used a mini dv camera and a tripod for our thriller opening. The shots on the preliminary task were very shaky and clumsy where as the shots taken in our thriller opening were smooth and professional because we had more time to do the task and we had better equipment. we also edited the two videos on separate programs. the preliminary task was edited in windows movie maker which is a very basic level of editing program and was therefore harder to acheive a high level of finish.For the editing of our media video we decided to use an industry level of editing software that would give a degree of professionalism to our video. The Problem with this is that none of us knew how to use the software and therfore it was a steap learning curve. We had help from online tutorials which allowed us to use the complex program. The program I keep mentioning is called adobe premier pro cs4. It allowed us to acheive complex effects with black and white and introducing bits of colour, as can be seen on the left.
For the editing of our media video we decided to use an industry level of editing software that would give a degree of professionalism to our video. The Problem with this is that none of us knew how to use the software and therfore it was a steap learning curve. We had help from online tutorials which allowed us to use the complex program. The program I keep mentioning is called adobe premier pro cs4. It allowed us to acheive complex effects with black and white and introducing bits of colour, as can be seen on the left.For the editing of our media video we decided to use an industry level of editing software that would give a degree of professionalism to our video. The Problem with this is that none of us knew how to use the software and therfore it was a steap learning curve. We had help from online tutorials which allowed us to use the complex program. The program I keep mentioning is called adobe premier pro cs4. It allowed us to acheive complex effects with black and white and introducing bits of colour, as can be seen on the left.

Our camera work has improved a lot since the preliminary task, for example, we are now better at holding a handheld camera and making our hand steady, also we know where to place the camera in order to have the characters positioned in the frame well. For our thriller opening, because we used a Mini DV (digital video) camera, which is very heacy, so instead of us to hold, we used a tripod for some of the scenes to catch a steady effect.

Because this camera was of industry standard we could use special effects, for example, bluring out the backgroud to emphasise the object in the foreground and vise versa.



To emphasise the specific sounds we have, the burning fire, the zippo lighter, striking of a match, burning of tobacco, we used a seperate mic to record them whilst we was filming. This made these specific noises louder and more noticable. It also adds an effect to the piece.



To get a different type of shot, a birds eye view. We put the tripod on the table, to make a birds eye view shot of Andreas looking into the briefcase because the point of view shot was too hard to achieve using a large heavy camera. We had to spread the legs of the tripods out so that we wouldn't get it in the shot.

evaluatiom activity 6

Here we have made a collage of all the computer programs we have used for this whole Thriller Opening Project:

GOOGLE - has been used to search and collect information we have needed such as pictures for example.
IMDB - is a film database. So we have used this to find information on Thriller movies.
BLOGGER - is where we updated our Group blogs and Individual blogs.
YOUTUBE - is where we've uploaded our tasks and our final video.
PHOTOSHOP - is where we've edited our company logo and other pictures we've needed.
ADOBE PREMIERE - is the video editing programme we used to edit our final video.
APPLE - we used Macs at school on certain tasks we completed.
PICSEARCH - is a website specifically used to search for images which we used.
MICROSOFT OFFICE - we have used Microsoft programmes such as Microsoft Word.
WINDOWS MOVIE MAKER - at school the video editing programme we used was Windows Movie Maker.

The most important program on this list was adobe premier pro. This is an industry standard video editing software. Premiere Pro supports high quality video editing at up to 4K x 4K resolution, at up to 32-bits per channel color, in both RGB and YUV. Audio sample-level editing, VST audio plug-in support, and 5.1 surround sound mixing are available for high audio fidelity. Premier pro has a large number of special effects which can be added to your video which have a higher quality than the standard effects in windows media player. These affects can be seen in my work. I have made bursts of colour show through the black and white. I started to learn this program from scratch, it was quite difficult to use but I used youtube tutorials and the internet to help me. I also used photoshop to design the logo for my production company

evaluation activity 5

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NCMJtyoN-Wg Here my thriller opening has been annotated. I have made comment on how we created certain aspects of the video, they are in regard to music, camera shots and editing,

evaluation activity 4

This is Jack Williams. He is 19 years old and lives in England, North London in Islington. He is currently doing a degree in Economics at the Queen Mary University. As a typical student, he spends his time socialising with friends and attending parties.

From the image of Jack, we can see that he dresses quite casual yet still cares about his appearance. When he does shop, he would normally shop in Topman, River Island and occasionally sports shops such as JD Sports for trainers and bags.

When Jack does have time to watch television, his favourite programmes are, Match of The Day, Lost, CSI: Miami and Heroes. As well as his favourite films which as, Taken, The Bourne Identity and Speed.

The music Jack would listen to would vary from heavy rock to indie pop. Groups such as Coldplay, Paramore and Green Day are his favourites.

I think Jack Williams would watch our film because he is an average teenager who would be interested in Thriller movies, and his favourite movies are similar to our movie synopsis.

Evaluation activity 3

The image pictured on the right is the logo for our production company. The reason we chose the name fatboy production company was to appeal to the humour of ou young male audiences. The logo is funny and therefore memorable. So what is a production company? Production companies are firms which create their own media, music, television and film are all possible types of media which could be produced. Examples of large production comapnies could be universal pictures, Warner brothers, 20th centuary fox and even disney. So the production company is responsible for creating the film but they are not responsible for the distribution, who is? Ironically the film distribution companies are responsible for this. Thei job is to take the films from the production companies and get the media into the market and into the film exibitors such as cinemas. The Distributors I would want to distribute our film would be universal pictures. The reason for this is they succesfully distribute the Bourne trilogy, films which share the same audiences as our film will attract. Click here for universals website. This would be a British film and therfore we would seek the funding for the production from the UK film council and the national lottery.

Evaluation activity 2

Here I will be analysing the differences and similarities between the our main character and the main character in a similar thriller to ours. The character we are using to compare our character with is Jason Bourne from the Bourne trilogy, directed by Doug Liman. Similarities starting with appearance. Both of our characters wear dark unsophisticated clothing, jeans, jumper and a jacket. his clothing allows them to blend in with the public. Both characters are male and have a constant look of seriousness. There are also differences in appearance, this is governed by difference in the personality of the characters. Nathan (my character) is a protaganist, and so is Jason Bourne, yet they are both so different. Nathan is a very dark character, he has a rough stuble on his face and unkept hair, He smokes cigar which is sterotypically the "evil" characters choice of pleasure and he also drinks whisky, these are all signs that he is a fallen hero who has lost grace. Jason Bourne is a more clean cut character. He has a clean shaven face and short hair, he doesnt smoke or drink.

Evaluation activity 1

The first image shows the bible extract that gave us the inspiration for the title of our thriller, we used this extract because it is in relation to revenge. The font is very basic and is simply white type on a black background, this is so that the viewer concentrates on the message we are trying to convey and also gives a sense of seriousness.
- The titles of my thriller opening can be seen in image 2. The Title can be clearly seen because of the strong font and the contrast in colours. The blue flames in the background ignite as the titles come up on the screen. The flames give drama and importance to the title.
-Image 3 shows the establishing shot. This sets the time and location and allows the viewers to understand the position of the characters. The time and atmosphere is typical of the thriller genre. The characters are in a dark room, their faces are dimly lit leaving parts of their faces in the shadows.This, along with the black and white theme gives an edgey feel to the video.
- Image 4 is a demonstration of how we used camerawork and editing to fit our video in with the conventions of a thriller. In this scene the camera switches focus from the whisky bottle to the glass. This is another little touch which gives the opening a dark feel. The shot also shows the continued theme of black and white. Image 5 is another deomnstration of how we used editing to make our video adhere to the conventions of a thriller. The image shows the embers of the cigar in colour and the rest of the scene in black and white. This continues the theme of highlighting flames in our video, the match lighting up, the cigar, and the fire lighting the titles. Fire has the conotation of being evil.
- Image 6 shows how we have concealed the face of our main character through the video, we either show part of the face or the whole face with only some parts liten up. This gives the opening an element of mystery, who is he? is he good or bad?
- Image 7 shows a character being tortured or heald hostage. She is boung and gagged with blood on her clothing. This is a shot taken from the flashback which is now in colour to draw attention to this part of the video. The flashback is very sudden and has some hevy sound effects, all of these things are in line with thriller conventions.
- Finally image 8 shows how we have used the camera to shift shots in and out of focus. this shot is a cut away during a conversation. Tight shots, and switching focus are often used in thrillers, they give an eerie unsettled feel to the video because they are not giving the viewer the whole picture, these effects therfore provide tension.