Thursday 29 October 2015

Research: Codes And Conventions Within Existing Media Products


Dead Wood 




Use of Camera



  • The Point-of-View shot makes the audience feel more tense as it puts them in the mans shoes.
  • The worms eye view shot is used to trick the audience into believing that the man makes the jump successfully. This makes the effect of him missing it more dramatic.
  • The high angle shot makes the man seem small and insignificant.
  • Low angle shot highlights the fatal height of the drop. It also makes the man look powerless and weak compared to the river below him.
  • A mid-shot of the man displays the trees shaking in the background – shows that the danger is right behind him.
  • Tracking behind the man gives us the expression that he is being followed.
  • An arc shot around the man creates an uneasy atmosphere as the surroundings aren’t in focus.
  • The close ups of his face are used to reveal his scared, panicked facial expressions and to also make the scene more intense as the audience is unable to see what is behind him – we dont know where the “killer’ is.
  • The shaky crabbing movement of the man running through the woods gives the audience a sense of danger and suggests that something may be chasing after him.


Editing



  • Linear filming ensures that the story line makes sense.
  • Fades into the first scene.
  • The slow motion over the ditch emphasises the importance of him making the jump. It also increases the intensity within the audience.
  • The cuts gradually become more and more frequent. This makes the pace of the film faster and more intense.


Use of Sound


  • At first, the music is eerily peaceful and also has a haunting feel to it due to the slow tempo and low sounds. Sounds of birds and nature has been added to give the audience a sense of location.
  • During the chase scene the sounds become more textured and have a higher pitch which resemble stabbing motions.
  • Tempo becomes faster during the chase scene.
  • A long string sound builds up suspense by going from low to high.
  • Silence is used to create suspense – allows the characters breath to become more emphasized and for background noise to be more noticeable, such as the “monster” coming through the trees.



Mise-En-Scene



  • The female is wearing revealing, provocative clothing to symbolize the stereotypical girl.
  • Shallow space highlights that the thing chasing the character is extremely near. It shows that it is approaching the male which creates suspense for the viewer.
  • The blood on the males face suggests that he has encountered the monster already and managed to get away from it.
  • The blood that comes out of his mouth shows the audience that he has been killed.
  • Low-key lighting to make obscure shadows to give a mysterious atmosphere.
  • The male character is wearing a Hawaiian shirt which gives the audience the impression that he may be a bit foolish.



Conventions



  • Somebody dies within the first five minutes.
  • A character falls over during a tense part
  • .A secluded location.
  • Fairly young boy and girl (possibly a couple).
  • The male becomes extremely close to safety but doesn’t reach it.
  • A chase scene, with the killer right behind him.
  • Separation between the characters.


Dead Mary






Use of Camera


  • Extreme close-ups of the sign which gives the audience some sense of location but still has a mysterious element to it.
  • In and out of focus shots to, again, add a sense of mystery.
  • Long shot of the sign highlights how the woman is in the middle of nowhere and it also adds a bit of the backstory; by showing a gas station sign it suggests that a car may of broken down etc.
  • A low angle close up of the car emphasises the isolation as the audience can see the long stretch of road in the background.
  • The point of view shot again emphasises that no one is around.
  • A long shot of the car acts as a point of view shot and reveals that something is watching her. The camera is also tracking forward to show that, whatever it is, it is coming closer to her.
  • Close ups of the woman's face feel unnatural and shows her as being quite vulnerable.
  • Close ups of important items such as the keys, her phone, the radio and the flare gun - highlights the fact that he is in danger.
  • High angled shot of the woman looking for signal makes her look small and vulnerable.
  • The camera constantly tracks the woman's movement which gives the impression that she is being watched.
  • Long shot of an out of focus figure walking to the car - adds tension to the viewer as we are unable to identify if he is good or bad straight away.
  • Shot reverse shot shows that the two characters are conversing.


Editing


  • Linear editing ensures that the story line makes sense, so does the match on action.
  • The cuts are generally quite slow paced which create an eerie atmosphere.
  • Constant cuts from views inside the car ad outside the car - this shows two different point of views, which suggests that there are two people (her and whoever is watching her).
  • The cut to the sudden dropping of the petrol cans may act as some kind of jump scare.

Use of Sound


  • Metallic sounds in the opening which can be associated with chains, being trapped. Usually quite a spooky sound.
  • Are able to hear birds and nature sounds in the background. This highlights the secluded location of the woman and how quiet it is out there.
  • The lack of music makes the scene quiet realistic but also add suspense.
  • During the point of view of someone looking at the car, the sounds become more warped and twisted which gives off an evil atmosphere.
  • The radio sounds are creepy and weird noises can be heard such as a woman who seems in pain and an odd, demonic laugh at the end - could possibly foreshadow future events.


Mise-En-Scene


  • The female is wearing clothes that reveal a lot of skin in order to symbolise the stereotypical female. It could also be to show that she is vulnerable.
  • The sign shows that they are away from civilisation.
  • The close up of the flare gun highlights that they may need it later on.
  • Petrol can shows that the male went off to get petrol due to the car running out of fuel.


Conventions


  • The location is secluded.
  • There is no signal which is shown by the use of the radio and her phone.
  • There are two fairly young people, a boy and a girl.
  • Car won't start.
  • The audience is unable to see the killer but they know it is there.
  • The characters separate and the female is left by herself.





Tuesday 6 October 2015

Learning To Edit With Adobe Premiere Pro

In the previous lesson we were introduced to the basics of Adobe Premiere Pro - this was the first time I had ever used an editing programme. 

I have learnt:

- How to import clips and audio into Adobe Premiere Pro.
- How to navigate through the video.
- How to crop clips and move them into different locations on the timeline.
- How to use the razor tool to create precise cuts.
- What keys are shortcuts to control/do different things.
- How to add transitions and effects onto my project. 
- How to render and export my project. 

I also managed to work out things for myself including how to adjust audio and add in music. I solved some problems as well, for example, the box in the right hand corner wasn't showing the whole image so I played around with the settings and sorted it out.

Here is the final clip: