February feedback

You have made great strides to complete coursework and your attempts to learn new skills in using digital technologies to evaluate is to be commended.

January feedback

Research and Planning - 15

Planning and research is complete, and at times detailed. There is some proficient research into potential target audiences, including a look at demographics, audience reception theory etc. There is excellent research into similar products and some proficient planning, including scripts (although this doesn't follow conventions), schedules, shot lists, and an excellent storyboard. The organisation of locations including a recce etc is excellent and shows a great deal of planning on this project.

Main Task – 57

The tone is set stylishly in this simple but sophisticated film opening. There is an excellent variety of camera movements, tilts and pans, as well as some creative and excellent framing, notably the dead body arm in the foreground while the antagonist approaches. The credits follow conventions and keep pace with the slow but sophisticated pace. There is a clear narrative and the editing is excellent with a clear build up of sequences and match on actions. This is clearly fulfilling the task set and meaning is conveyed through editing, the sophisticated soundscape and editing.

Responding to Feedback

Responding to Feedback

In the feedback we received from Miss Spencer, we were told that the soundtrack made the first cut sound like a trailer. Whilst we didn't want it to sound like a trailer, we also didn't want it to be just diegetic sound, as this does not create the tension needed for a horror film. We decided to get feedback from the music teacher in the school who said that it may be beneficial to use .....

When we removed the music, we realised that the natural sounds in the background were a lot louder in some shots than others. This is mainly due to moving the camera during filming. In premier pro, you can change the decibels of each shot. After altering the sound, we found that the shots flowed together much better and it made it seem like it was all a scene, rather than shots put together.

We completed filming on the flashback sequence. We decided to use close up shots throughout the whole sequence, as it helps to represent that these flashbacks are based off the memories of the killer. We also didn't want to show the actual kill, as we thought it would be beneficial to the story if we left it for later on in the film.

Feedback - Miss Spencer

First Cut Feedback

There are some fantastic elements to this film, the pace is excellent, giving a feeling of a slow start with a build up towards the end of the opening. There is a variety of camera shots, angles and movement and your narrative is starting to become clearer.

In order to help with progress think about the following:

• Sort out the sound glitches and differences in volume.
• Think about adding some more ambient sound to the opening
• the music makes it feel too much like a trailer - think about losing this entirely and replacing with interesting sound effects
• build up your flashback scene, using an aftereffects zoom into the eye. This will help the narrative flow better. Ensure that this part has a clear colour differentiation so it is clear this is a flashback.

First Cut Video

First Cut Review

Cut
We first had to narrow down our clips to ones that were usable and without mistakes. We reduced the need to re-film any shots due to having several shoots of each shot. Despite making it time consuming in post production, it was worth it as it would have been more time consuming to go out and film again. We made the decision to go from very infrequent cuts at the beginning to quite frequent cuts towards the end to show a build up of tension and also to tease the audience that something eventful was going to happen.

Effects
We added a light blue filter to our project. This is to adhere to the convention of horror because it is a quite cold colour and the one thing we didn't want to do is make the setting look vibrant. Therefore taking away some of the natural colour was crucial. We are currently trying to decide upon which filters to use in our flashback sequence, as we don't want it to look to similar to the others in that you cannot know if its a flashback or not, but equally we don't want it too different that it looks out of place in the film. We could consider maybe a tilt shift or a shorter depth of field, as this could show that the killers memories are not too clear.

Sound
We tried to make our film tense and eerie but it was difficult to do because of the lack of action in the opening of the film. Therefore, we needed to try and add this with the use of sound, as sound can be powerful in films. A film that incorporates a great soundtrack is Interstellar (2014). Christopher Nolan worked with composer Hans Zimmer to create a soundtrack that emphasized the scale and mystery of the film. However, as we are so early in the film, and the audience had no clear understanding of what was going on at this point, we felt that adding music would be unnecessary. As a substitute, we decided that we should have frequent ambient sounds to maintain the intensity of the scene.

As well as this, we needed sound effects. We decided that we wanted a crow sound in the background that alerts the killer during his meditation. This is because crows are usually heard at graveyards and often symbolise death. Also, it is a very aggressive sound and it keeps the audience on edge.

We decided to remove the sound completely in the scenes that he was meditating in, as we believed this would convey that he was untouched by his surroundings and in deep thought. It also clarifies that he is meditating. The silence also helped with emphasizing the crow sound effect, as it is heard from silence. The sound returns as normal after this to show an awakening.

Risk Assessment

Organisation name: Medium Carmine Productions

What are the hazards?	Who might be harmed and how?	What are you already doing?	Do you need to do anything else to manage this risk?	Action by whom?	Action by when?	Done
Slips and trips	Staff and visitors may be injured if they trip over objects or slip on spillages	We can look at the surrounding area we are going to use and remove any sticks or twigs that may be a trip hazard.	Have spatial awareness.	All of the film crew.	20/10/2014
Weather	The weather may be rain on the day of filming, which could cause an issue as the filming equipment could be damaged.	We have looked at the weather forecast to determine the best day of filming.	We can choose to film on a different day	All of the film crew.	20/10/2014
Objects falling from the sky	One of the crew members could be harmed and it may cause head injury.	We are looking at the surroundings and seeing what objects could fall.	We could wear hard hats to reduce the damage they can cause.	All of the film crew. (except actors when on air)	20/10/2014