Retention - final film

Evaluation Question 7

Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product?

Throughout making this film, I have not only developed my skills in blogging, filming and editing using adobe premiere pro, but also teamwork and confidence.Throughout the creation of the preliminary task, I learned how to incorporate match-on-action into filming. This allowed me to have a wider range of continuity shots which I could then use in my two-minute film. Using Adobe Premiere Pro to edit the preliminary task allowed me to have some preparation in editing for when it came to editing our two-minute film, this meant that I wasn't having to waste time trying to find the right tools as I already knew where they were; which meant I could use my time more efficiently. From the preliminary task to the main task, I feel like I took on more of a leadership role which helped to increase my management skills and made sure to keep the group organised and ensure they each member of the group knew what they were doing and what tasks they had to do. I also helped to ensure that we stayed within deadlines and on target during the filming process as we had to re-film which set us back quite a bit. Our preliminary task enabled us to practice and incorporate our current film skills such as match-on-action the 180-degree rule and shot-reverse-shot. One strength of the preliminary task was we successfully used shot-reverse-shots and match-on-action which makes the audience member feel immersed whilst hiding the editing as much as possible.

I feel that I have gotten exceptionally better at editing clips together. I felt that when I edited the preliminary task, the transitions between the shots were choppy and didn't flow together smoothly. I realised my mistake which helped me to make the editing in my 2-minute film much better and more professional. For our final piece, we developed hugely in regards to continuity. This is important because having errors and mistakes in the final version would make our piece looks unprofessional and it would seem as if we didn't put a lot of thought or effort into the process of editing. Continuity was a big part of our film as we had lots of long scenes in one location and shots that carried on from each other; so we needed to make sure it remained continuous. For example, when one of the characters is walking up to the house and then enters the front door, we needed to make sure the transition remained smooth and that nothing looked jumpy or sudden. We developed massively throughout the process of our preliminary task to our main task. Through creating the preliminary, we learnt to understand the 180-degree rule which made it easier to remember to keep to one side whilst filming; which helped to not confuse the audience as they didn't see the character from an angle that would disorientate the setting. Match-on-action is also very important when not breaking the continuity of the film. We incorporated match on action where one of the characters is opening the door to the house and walking through it. We used the same shot types in our preliminary task which gave us some insight on how to properly edit the shots together.

During our preliminary task, we used all continuity methods such as match-on-action and the 180-degree rule. However when we filmed our preliminary task, we only filmed a few parts of the scene from each angle, this meant that we were limited to what shots we could use in the editing process. We realised our mistake of not shooting the whole scene from one angle and then moving onto the next angle and filming the whole scene again. We developed throughout the main task as when we were filming we knew to film the whole scene at different angles in order to give us a wider and varied choice of shots when it came to editing.

NOTE: I made a presentation to this question on Prezi, but it wouldn't embed on the blog due to Prezi being updated. Here is the link to the Prezi: https://prezi.com/view/ST1dhci7zVHc8iSBlJuX/

Evaluation Question 6

Evaluation question 6 from CourtneyHutton07

Evaluation Question 5

How did you address/attract your audience?

I think that our final film definitely reaches our target audience. One of the things that would help to attract the audience is the use of settings. Having our film set in an ordinary house which doesn't seem to be haunted at all would give it a better sense of realism and make the audience feel as if this is representational of a normal teenage or young adult life. The establishing shot of the house makes it look very homely however it also gives the audience a sense of anxiousness as it is quite an old home and something seems strange about it.

We used a range of mid-shots and shot-reverse-shot throughout the film when conversations are happening to make sure the audience feel immersed within the conversations between the characters. Doing this will help to attract the audience and keep there attention throughout the whole film as they feel as if they are a part of it.

By using a range of different characters with all different personality types, we are able to attract a wider audience as there is a character type that each viewer should be able to identify with. By having this type of feature, it allows the audience to become emotionally invested with the characters because they have someone that they can relate to and that character may become the one they are rooting for. This will grab the audiences attention as they will want to see if their 'favourite' character makes it to the end of the film.

I used an Audience feedback survey in order to find out if we attracted the target audience we were aiming for and what they thought of our film.

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Feedback Received:

All of the people which answered my survey were between my target audience. This is helpful as it gives an insight into what our specific audience thinks of our film and whether they would like to watch it. By knowing what our audience thinks, we are able to improve the film whilst still catering to our targeted viewers. The survey asked whether the participants would go and watch this film in the cinemas to which all of them replied 'yes' except for one 'maybe'. These results tell us that our film attracts the audience and makes them want to go see the feature-length film; proving that it would be a success amongst teenagers and young adults.

We also wanted to find out what each persons' favourite character was. By asking this question, it gives us an insight into which characters each member of the audience identifies with and which character is the most likeable by the viewers. By doing this we can give the most liked character more screen time which essentially would attract the most audience members as they can easily align themselves with the favourite. The results show that 'Malia' and 'Jace' are the most liked characters. The girls who answered the survey chose 'Malia' as their favourite whilst the boys chose 'Jace' as their favourite. This shows that our characters are easy to identify with and that each member of the audience will have someone to relate to.


As a group, we believe that a successful step in our film was the music and soundtrack. We asked the audience's opinion and they all agreed that the music and sound effects that we used created a tense and suspenseful atmosphere. This is important as it makes the audience member feel anxious and attracts their attention to the screen.

In order to help improve our feedback we asked a question on what we could improve if we were to re-film the film.
One of the improvements was better lighting throughout the Ouija board scene. We had problems with the lighting as the place where we was filming didn't have enough brightness in order for the clips to turn out in high quality, we improved this by filming in the day light however it still wasn't as good as it could've been. We would have been able to prepare better lighting if we wasn't already delayed by having to re-shoot the entire film and was already nearing the deadline.

Evaluation Question 7

Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full project?

The task that I was working towards was the main task, this was to create the opening of a film with the genre of your choosing which lasts around 2 minutes.

In the preliminary task I learnt the basic camera angles such as mid close ups and behind the shoulder shots, I used both of these in my opening two minutes when the characters are having a conversation, I used these shots with the 'shot reverse shot' editing technique. The preliminary and this task have many similarities, the first of which we incorporated the opening of the door and walking to sitting down in my film, this was the exact same as in the preliminary task. We got better at this as we included many more camera angles and levels. This made the film look more developed and professional.

The scene which I am most proud of and which we used the most filming technique in was the attic scene. This showed Jace walking in from a low level shot, climbing the ladder in a mid shot (changing using a match on action when he steps) this carries on from when he climbs up the ladder to getting into the attic, more match on actions and other shots are used in this sequence and I feel that it flows throughout.

Evaluation Question 6

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

To conduct this project, I used the website Blogger. Blogger is accessible on any device and is very easy to use, it enabled the group to conduct and view group tasks/individual tasks and confer on them. Blogger allows anybody on the internet to see what we have posted, this could help  the film gain popularity.

To make the feedback surveys I used the site Survey monkey, this was a free site that allowed people to conduct 10 questions which anybody on the internet could view and answer to.

This was an easy website to use and we could embed it into our blog easily. 

This is what the site looks like when making a new survey.

To film this film we used one of the camera provided by the college. However, instead of using the new camera's we chose to us the older camera as this was the only one which we could do an effective focus pull on. As of yet I do not know if this was a good decision or not as a con of this was that it was lower quality than the new camera's, although a pro of this was that we could keep and use the camera for a longer range of time as we were the only group using it. This was the first time that I have used this type of camera and I feel that it went extremely well. If given the choice I would still have chosen this type of camera  as it had all of the basic functions that we needed to film with.

I created the logo on Photoshop, this was done quickly as because I am a graphic design student I already knew how to use it and once we had the image we were going for in mind we easily created it.

To finish the film we needed to use Premiere pro, an adobe app that you edit films on. This was difficult at first to use as I had never been on it before and didn't know how to use it. But before long I had got the hang of it and my group was able to use it with ease. The only difficulty we encountered was taking the sound out of one part of footage and adding it into another with ease to keep to continuity. This worked out well as the viewer cannot sense when this change occurs.

Evaluation Questions 1-7

Evaluation Question 4:

Evaluation question 4 from CourtneyHutton07

Evaluation Question 3

What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?

Possible Distributors Of My Film Retention:

WARP FILMS:

One possible distributor of my film could potentially be Warp Films. Warp Films are an independent distributor and have distributed to film and TV, they are also experienced in production. Warp films have two locations in the UK; Sheffield and London. They are also affiliated which a Warp films company based in Melbourne, Australia. Warp films could be a good distributor as we have made an independent film and they are an independent distributor. They are based in the UK which is where we would most likely want to distribute our film and if possible, also Australia and they are affiliated with the Warp Films there.

They have distributed films such as:

• Hush
• 71
• Dead Man's Shoes
• Submarine

BRAIN DAMAGE FILMS:

Brain Damage Films is a company based within the US and is a worldwide independent film producer and distributor. It was founded in 2001 and a second division was launched in the UK in 2009. Brain Damage Films are very well-known for distributing independent horror films across the globe so it would be a good choice to consider. They are located in two different areas across the globe which means that we may be able to distribute it to a wider area than just the UK. They are also one of the most respected independent horror film distributors world-wide.

They have distributed films such as:

• Fear of the Dark
• The Zombie Chronicles
• The House that Screamed
• Traced of Death

LEFT FILMS:

Left Film distribution is an independent distribution company located in the UK. Most of the films

they have distributed in the past are horror, sci-fi and comedy and they like to work with new indie film-makers to help get there work out into the mainstream media. They are experienced with distributing horror, however the films they have distributed in the past are mostly horror thriller, whereas ours is a paranormal horror; so it may not be a suitable idea.

They have distributed films such as:

• Devil's Crossing
• Ninjas' vs Vampires
• 7th Hunt
• Alien Undead

I did not choose any of the 'Big Six' companies such as 20th Century Fox, Warner Bros., Disney and Paramount to be a possible distributor as they are too mainstream. We have produced an independent film so it is an obvious choice to use an independent distributor as it would be less time and money-consuming. Our film had a small budget and usually independent films do not go far when distributed by a major company. Although they may provide the marketing needed to gain popularity, movies from the 'Big Six' are not always a success.

Chosen Distributor

After researching and reviewing all of the possible distributors I mentioned above I decided that Brain Damage Films would be the best possible company to distribute our film; Retention. Although Warp films is a larger distributor and more successful, they don't regularly cater to our target audience and hardly release horror films which may cause my films downfall. However, Brain Damage Films would know what they are doing when distributing a horror film as they have released many horror films beforehand. They are also a largely respected company among independent horror film distributors due to their success in the horror genre. They will be able to attract the right audience as they are well-known for releasing horror movies in the past, meaning they will already have an established horror fan-base.

Our film submission should include a DVD screener along with a press kit and we should send that and any other materials to their address:

Maxim Media Marketing
ATTN: Acquisitions
6929 N. Hayden Rd. Suite C4-246
Scottsdale, AZ, USA
85250

Brain Damage Films are looking for feature length films that are greater than 65 minutes in length and they accept compilations of short stories or films. Brain Damage films specialize in horror which is good as our film in categorised as a paranormal horror; however they also review sci-fi, action, thriller, suspense and dark dramas. They look for a coherent and engaging story which will capture the viewers attention, professional and believable actors, professional editing, clean effects and fitting music. They also look for a medium to high production value and the film needs to be fully licensed and broadcast-able.

Evaluation Question 2

Evaluation question 2 from CourtneyHutton07

Evaluation Question 1

Question 1:

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

A lot of research and thought was put into our film regarding using the right codes and conventions which portray a standard horror film. I did extensive research into films such as Ouija (2014) and Rings (2017) which are both classed as paranormal horror. By looking into other films of the same sub-category of horror, I was able to find out about certain conventions underlying that genre; which helped me to depict them in my own film.

My film follows a linear narrative, with the films events running in chronological order from start to finish. The beginning starts with the characters meeting together at the house and it ends with the lights shutting off after the characters have been messing around with the Ouija board.

Most horror and paranormal horror films I have watched and researched follow a linear storyline whilst some follow a non-linear. Most non-linear horror films start with a suspenseful and climatic event and then cut back in time to show the events leading up to that, giving the audience prior knowledge, whereas a linear horror is shown in chronological order. For our film, we chose to follow a restricted and linear narrative in order to keep the audience on the edge of their seat and to ensure that they and unbeknown to the events that are going to unfold throughout the film. Horror films can be very action packed and fast paced and I believe that having a linear narrative instead of a non-linear one will help the audience to not be too overwhelmed with the storyline and stop them becoming confused.

The genre of our film is horror; more specifically a paranormal horror. This is because our main antagonist is a ghost/demon. A paranormal horror is a frightening film which contains supernatural and celestial entities or powers that are not proven to be real in the scope of normal scientific understanding. The Ouija board is the main prop in our film which portrays the paranormal horror sub-category. A Ouija board is used to summon spirits and entities from the afterlife which is what our characters use it for in our film. In one scene, we also use candles which lead up to the Ouija board, I found that candles have a strong connotation of witchcraft and spiritualism as they are often used during spells and séances.

The switch between the scenes shot in the day, to the ones shot during the dark, indicates danger. This is because dark lighting gives a feeling of uneasiness and makes someone feel unsafe and vulnerable as they don't know what's lurking around them.

In order to make our film visually pleasing and interesting to watch, we used a variety of different shot types and camera angles. After researching different camera angles, I found that shots such as tilts and tracking shots are very effective in horror because it indicates confusion and a feeling that someone is stalking and watching the characters. Most of the shots that we used had a restricted view which meant that the audience could not see everything going on in the scene which helped to build up their anticipation and anxiousness as they didn't know what was around the corner.

One of the shots that we had to film was Jace at the top of the ladders leading into the attic. This shot was particularly hard as it was quite high up to film and the tripod didn't extend that far up. Due to this we had to balance the tripod steadily on a chair to ensure that it didn't fall. This shot was executed well as there is no shakiness in the camera and it is steady throughout. This shot helps us to establish the outside of the attic as it shows the worn bricks and old rickety door.

Another shot we used was a birds eye view at a slight tilt. This shows the audience the layout of the table; the candles which lead to the Ouija board. The only source of light were the candles in this shot indicating isolation. This shot is used to build up the suspense as the shot moves from the candles to the Ouija board.



There is quite a slow pace at the start of our film as it is very natural and realistic. We used a slow pace during the start of the film to ensure that there was a contrast between the beginning and when chaos ensues. It begins to get gradually more fast-paced towards the end where the characters are conducting a séance to convey how chaotic and panicked the situation is.
We tried to ensure that our film had continuity throughout, which was very difficult throughout filming as we kept having to re-do scenes after we found continuity mistakes within them. I think our final film has good continuity.

It was quite hard adding sound to our film as we had many ideas that didn't work out. At the start of the film when the party scene is commencing, we were going to add some sort of pop music over the top, but we didn't end up finding any royalty free music which fit into the sequence. The pop music would have also took away the element of horror from that scene so instead we decided to place atmospheric music over the top to create a eerie ambience. We picked out a music clip from a website which we were going to using during the Ouija board scene, and we was deciding whether to scrap the music as it was corrupted and there was a loud beep every 10 seconds during it. In the end, we decided to make it work as it was a great piece of music for our film; we ended up cutting parts of the audio file out where the beep was and then fading the remaining audio c

lip together so that it flowed smoothly. This helped to keep the continuity as there was not noticeable breaks in-between each piece of sound. During this scene, we incorporated rhythmic editing which sped up the pace and helped to create a tense atmosphere which is needed in the horror genre. In the opening we had parts which were just left silent. This was used to show how to characters were reluctant and scared to speak which helped to convey the seriousness of the situation.

For typography, we researched different fonts as we wanted to find the right font to fit the genre. We used a very simple font which still looks sophisticated and creepy. Because of the dark background and only candle light, we couldn't use a typical black or white colour as it wouldn't show up very well on screen. As red has connotations of danger, blood, death and rage, we decided to go with that as many horror films have the iconography of red and blood. We placed the title in the centre of the screen as that's where the viewers gaze is directed so it would draw more attention. We used the Serif font as it looks very ancient and old-fashioned and the simple style will allow the audience to read it more easily.

Feedback Survey

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Evaluation Question 5

5.  How did you attract/address your audience? 

To attract the audience we went through many methods such as incorporating the audience's opinion, essentially caring what they think about the film.
I feel that we did reach our target audience as the certificate is a 15 stating that anybody below it cannot watch it and by basing the film around a similar age group as people can relate more to people of their own age. This is because most of the time, the humour and the attitudes are similar.
I know that I have attracted the right audience as the only people who answered the survey about my film was from the ages 15-19. This is not a vast age range however it was the target demographic which I was aiming for.

Audience Feedback  Create your own user feedback survey 


Through this survey, I have found out that the audience liked the music of the film as they felt that it was suspenseful and helped build the tense atmosphere. This is proved by:

This shows that out of all the answers, all of the answers state yes.











In this survey we also asked extra questions such as what character is liked the least and which character is liked the most. This was to see who the audience aligns with and relates to essentially which character could bring in the most sympathy form the audience. From this I found out that The least liked character is Riley, this could be because Riley is snobby and stuck up, degrading others around her through out the beginning, this was intentional as in tradition horror films there is always the 'mean' girl. The most liked character was Malia, this is positive feedback as Malia is the main character in the film. This information is backed up by these images:

For this film we looked for feedback all the time to ensure that film was to the highest standard, on

the comment section of the questionnaire, the feedback we received was:

1. A wider range of shots used and to show the antagonist

2. Show more of  the antagonist / ghost in action.

My response to this feedback is that in the short time span between making the film we did not have the technology or the time to create the antagonist effectively.

Evaluation Question 4 (wrong number on the prezi!)

This is evaluation question 4, I have wrote the wring number on the Prezi.

Evaluation Question 3

Evaluation Q3 by Gina Allen on Scribd

Evaluation Question 2

Evaluation Question 2 by Gina Allen on Scribd

Evaluation Question 1

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

My media project uses the right codes and conventions to support the genre. I researched into great detail watching films from the past such as Psycho (1960s) to films from this year such as Rings (2017) to ensure that this film would fit into the right genre and be classed as a horror.

This film runs on a linear narrative, the film running in chronological order from start to finish. With the beginning starting with the characters meeting and the ending of the opening sequence finishing with the lights going out because of the board. My research into paranormal horror films has suggested that most films follow a linear narrative. However, instead of starting with establishing the characters like we chose to do, some horrors start with a significant event which explains why a place is 'haunted'. This gives the films an Omniscient Narrative as the audience knows more than the characters. For my film, the group chose to have a Restricted Narrative as I feel that it gives a more horrific effect if nobody knows what's going to happen. Another reason for choosing a restrictive narrative is that they keep the audience enthralled until the end as the viewers want to watch until the end to know the full story.


The genre for my film is very specific. The group chose a Paranormal horror, this is because the main antagonist is a ghost/demon which has been summoned from the board.

The candles in a row leading to the board

The parts in the film which relate to this genre is the Ouija board scene. This involves the use of many candles and a spirit board. Through research I have discovered that candles have a strong connection with spiritualism and where a must have in the making of the film. This is in the exact middle of the film, where is switches from light to dark. This is to signify the change from safety to danger. The candles could be to imply the light in the darkness essentially the only thing that's keeping the characters safe, although we ensured that the candles are blown out portraying that nobody is safe.

We used an array of camera angles in this film as to not make it generic and the same as every other film. My research suggested using camera angles such as tilts, low level shots and tracking shots to fit the horror genre. All of these shots restrict the view and cut some of the scene out, this relates to horror as it is always hiding something. My original plan was to involve a tracking shot from when Jace enters the house as this gives the effect that somebody is watching/following them. This shot was scrapped in the end due to it being too messy.

This shot was especially tricky to get as it is shot from when Jace is at the top of the ladder, this being very high up. Because it was so high up the tripod didn't reach and we had to balance it on a chair, holding it steady so that it doesn't fall and the camera is steady. I executed this well as the camera doesn't shake throughout this sequence. The mirror was useful in this shot as it lets us see the face of the character while still being behind him. This shot is establishing the setting of the old attic, showing the bricks and old door of the attic.

This shot is a tilt from a birds eye view angle. It establishes what is on the table ( the row of candles leading to the Ouija board).  This was filmed in the darkness, the candles being the only source of light. With non-diegetic music behind the shot this tilt is used to build the suspense.



The pace of this film is fast throughout, but the editing getting faster toward the end. This is to create the effect of chaos for the viewer and panic for the characters.

The sound for this film was complicated. The original plan was to have party music at the start of the sequence as this reinforces that they are having a party. We scrapped this idea as it made the film look less like a horror. Instead we placed suspenseful music over the top and this created the eerie atmosphere. The main music that we used for the Ouija board scene was corrupted, this is because every 10 seconds there was a loud beep. The music was perfect for the film so we cut the music so that the beep wasn't there and faded it out and in to make it seem like it flowed. This worked to our advantage as the music stayed the same with no noticeable breaks in continuity.  Towards the end we incorporated rhythmic editing, this sped up the editing pace and made the scene have an extremely tense atmosphere which supports the horror genre. We also included bits in the opening which only involve silence. This silence was used to show how scared the individual characters are to speak. The silence was effective as it represents the seriousness of the situation.

For the typography we wanted a font that fit the genre and was still serious, we backed the title onto a film of candles. Because of this the scene was dark and therefore we couldn't use a black font as it wouldn't be able to be see., as we couldn't use the colour black we chose to use the colour dark red as red has connotations of danger, warning, blood and rage. These themes are present in most horror movies.

The title is placed in the exact middle of the screen as this would draw the most attention and direct the viewers gaze to the title. The font is in serif and this gives it the old fashioned look that we aimed for. The old fashioned look was inspired by the horror films from the 60s. The writing is evenly spaced apart and this enables the viewer to read it easily. The red has a dark show around it which makes it look slightly 3D.