The Final Products

The Film

 

Ancillary Text: The Poster

Ancillary Text: The Magazine Review

Evaluation: Question 4

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


To Zoom in, simply quick in the centre of the page and scroll. Move your mouse to move around.

Evaluation: Question 3

What have you learned from your audience feedback?

My audience feedback allowed me to learn my strengths and weaknesses in the production, direct from the audience. This would help me to improve any products that I may develop in the future.

To understand these strengths and weaknesses more, I made sure that I used a wide range of techniques to gain feedback; showing the film to friends and family, showing the film to a class of Media Studies students in the year below, sharing the video online through social media, using a questionnaire and conducting a video interview with two members of my target audience. 
The feedback I received was extremely positive and gave me a great insight into what I could improve in the future.

Showing the film to an AS Media Studies Class

To start my Audience Feedback, I decided to show the film to a group of 20 AS Media Studies students; being in the year below, not only would they fully understand the codes and conventions that I challenge, but also it will also help them in developing their products next year.

I asked the students to write down their opinion of the film on to post-it notes (see left), giving their honest opinion of the film anonymously. These post-it notes were then collected and each and every comment was read thoroughly. 

I found these comments very useful, all having constructive criticism and praise about my work. The majority of the class mentioned a "good use of camera shots and angles", "brilliant music" and even comments that it looked "professional"; all of the class strongly admired the film, especially the emotional connection created with the narration. However, in almost every one of these post-its, they mentioned that my documentary became "too dark" at the end and this meant that the audience couldn't see much on what was going on. If I were to recreate this film or I were to create another film in the future, I would use this advice to ensure that I don't make the same mistake.

Audience Questionnaire

To start my Audience Feedback, I created a questionnaire using Google Docs (which can be viewed here), sharing the link using social media and through e-mail in hope of responses. 

Although the response was fairly limited and I only received 9 responses, overall the comments were very useful and could be used as a way to represent the rest of the audience; although the majority of the people questioned were 16-21, 1 person was 60+ and this can be used as an estimate for the entire audience.
To start the questionnaire, I asked about the ancillary products, beginning with The Poster. I simply began by asking what would they rate it out of 10, with 100% of the answers being between 8-10, a staggering response.

I then asked if they found the poster's typography attractive; deliberately created to ensure the reader sees the poster advertising a documentary (due to helvetica being widely used in documentaries). The response for this question was also extremely positive with 100% of the people questioned giving a score of 9, proving that I have successfully challenged the conventions of a documentary poster's typography. To finish  my questions on the Poster, I decided to ask the audience whether or not they would watch the film from purely seeing the poster beforehand, once again 100% of the audience saying "Yes". I was really pleased with this score as I knew that I had successfully managed to attract the audience with the poster, I now know that this style is suitable and professional  if I were to make another film poster.

I then moved on to questioning about my other ancillary product; the magazine review, with all candidates rating the product between 8-10 another really positive response which proved I had created a professional and attractive review for my film. I then asked the audience what they felt they were mainly attracted to when looking at the review, providing a range of responses. Most of the people questioned said they felt they were drawn to the image, as well as the typography at the top of the page, in particular the bold blue text "inspiring" and "uplifting". I was very pleased with these responses in particular, as this is what I intended the audience to see first, along with the blue colour theme. To finish my questions on the review, I asked the same question at the end of the poster questions, asking whether they'd want to see the film after reading the review. Once again 100% of the people questioned said "Yes" and I was extremely pleased with this result, knowing that I had successfully attracted my audience through the codes and conventions that I have followed

To finish the questionnaire, I asked questions about the film itself, starting with what they would rate the film out of 10, with all people questioned giving a score between 9-10, and an impressive 89% of those questioned giving a 9 out of 10. I was extremely pleased with this score and I was happy that the entire audience enjoyed the film. I then asked whether they felt I had met the codes and conventions of a short film (did it look like a professional film?) with all those questionned stating "Yes", proving that I have in fact created a very professional product for the audience. After this, I asked whether they found Tom's voiceover effective and yet again all of the people questioned stated "Yes"; I was particularly pleased with this result because my aim was for the voiceover to emotionally connect with the reader and it is clear that I have successfully achieved this. I then moved on to ask about the documentary's music with 8 out of the 9 people saying "Yes", however 1 person said "No". I have managed to entertain the majority of the audience here but it clear that not everyone felt the music was appropriate, perhaps I would address this in the future by testing different songs against the film before release.

After asking more "style" based questions on the film, I decided to ask about the film's deeper meanings and connotations, seeing if I had managed to portray the message across to the audience successfully. I asked the audience whether or not the film had increased their awareness of Autism and I was very pleased with the response, with 100% of those asked stating "Yes" and proving that the connotations I had intended to portray, successfully attracted the audience, managing to increase the awareness at the same time. To finish I simply asked if they would reccommend the film to others, with all of the audience saying "Yes", more evidence that I had successfully attracted the audience.

Target Audience Feedback Video Interview

 

To learn more specifically about my film's effect on the viewer, I decided to interview two people from my target audience using similar questions to the online questionnaire. I felt if I interviewed two people in more depth, I would greater understand any issues with my products.

I started this interview by talking about my poster, it's style and the meanings portrayed. The audience noticed that the font used was Helvetica, a font widely used in media texts and noticeable as a documentary font. They also understood my reasons behind using a blurred image in the background and it's connotation of autistic traits and behaviours, as well as enticing the viewer to know more. Both my interviewees say they would watch the film based on purely seeing the poster, proving it a success. 

I then moved on to talking about the magazine review, starting by asking what instantly drew their attention on the cover. Similarly to the questionnaire, both stated they were immediately drawn to the blue font and colour scheme. One thing that wasn't mentioned in the questionnaire but was in the video, was the fading of the image which is used to create a visually aesthetic effect that leads the viewer's eye across the page. I was also pleased that someone mentioned the fact my article was in columns as I created this to fit the codes and conventions of a music magazine article, as well as being written persuasively. If I were to make any improvements, I would perhaps maintain a smaller range of fonts to keep a more stylish appearance.

Finally I moved onto my film, asking firstly asking if they thought the film followed the codes and conventions of a short film or documentary. They replied noticing the connection between the voice-over and the imagery shown, creating an aesthetic effect. More importantly, my interviewees discussed the topic itself, stating how it may be a new area of knowledge and therefore it would appeal to a much wider audience (which could explain it's success online, seen below and in the end of the video above). I then moved on into asking about the music in the documentary, the response was very positive with the audience noticing my intended connotations; the solemn music at the start and the uplifting music at the end. Finally I asked about the camera and editing style, followed by an overall response to the film. Both the interviewees stated it looked very professional and then saying that they really enjoyed the film and the story told.

Reddit

When I completed my film, I decided to share it on the social news and viral site "Reddit", I recieved an overwhelming response - click here to see the comments or watch the video above.

The comments I received were extremely positive and gave praise to both Tom and myself on the film.

Evaluation: Question 2

How effective is the combination of your main product and ancillary texts?

My poster is designed to tease the viewer and as well as giving an insight into the film. My blurred poster of Tom connotates the Autistic traits in Asperger's Syndrome; being unable to fully comprehend facial expressions. It is this deeper meaning that encourages the viewer to want to learn more about the character. The poster's typography follows a very clean appearance, it's also very simple and stylish and may attract the viewer's attention through it's bold appearance. It's not the text on it's own that attracts the attention though and it is mainly the confusion in the image that encourages the human nature of wanting to know more.

The film magazine review also follows similar techniques, such as Barthes' Enigma Code and this attract's the eye of the viewer. The magazine follows closely to the the conventions of a standard film magazine and this would instantly interest any film or documentary fan. In this case, it is not particularly the image that grabs the viewer's attention, but it is the bold and bright typography of "different" and it is here that the reader begins to understand the genre of the film as a documentary in the format of a short film. There are many similarities between the products such as the use of black and white, helvetica for the title and also a portrait of the antagonist; all of which would help the viewer of the poster to understand more in the review. As a film magazine, the reader is likely to take what it written as "gospel" and will probably follow the opinion of the magazine; Two-Step Flow Theory can be applied here, with the magazine company being the opinion leader, following Mass Media of other film magazines, the reader will likely see the review as the "best" review.


The film itself also ensures success through several techniques. In the review, it mentions of the film being shown in Curzon and PictureHouse cinemas, chains that specialise in independent film making and this ensures that the target audience are watching the film, as fans of independent work. The fact that the video is also on the site Vimeo creates a similar effect through it's speciality in art based film. The film also uses a short prologue and this creates a sense of excitement . I also used a strong amount of anchorage in the film, which conveyed strong meanings in the product, linking it back to the title; for instance in the voiceover Tom uses the title as a phrase "living with autism is an arduous task".


Overall the combination of the three products is extremely effective as it is clear the film is about Tom, with his portrait frequently appearing across them; he has become the icon for the film. Whether it is physically mentioned or not, all the products encode Autism and this also adds to the overall genre style as a short film. The ancillary products work together particularly well, creating a buzz for the film and encouraging readers to share the film online with friends or family and this overall creates a strong awareness for both Asperger's Syndrome and the film.

Evaluation: Question 1

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

media products?

Ancillary Task 2 - Film Magazine Review

The Making of:

Here I used Adobe Photoshop CS3 to create a film review for my short film. After a strong amount of research into magazines from last year, I chose to go with "Empire" magazine for their well reknown professionalism. The article mimics the "illustrative" feel of Empire's current style of bright colours and monochrome photos, as well as a range of typography. I also used Photoshop's "guides" feature to mark half way points and other important features to ensure that the article had a professional feel. I also used a brush to mimic the spray can effect, which is popular for most film magazine headers. I felt it was important to maintain the codes and conventions too, providing a page number, the "Empire" logo and the date at the very bottom of the page.



The Final Product: 

My final product displays the codes and conventions of a standard magazine review, using columns, headers, a colourful theme and a range of typography. I feel I have produced an effective and attractive review.

Ancillary Task 1 - Poster

The Making of:

Here I used Adobe Photoshop CS3 to create a poster for my short film. After plenty of research into fashionable posters, I decided to create two posters, of which one would be the final product.
The first poster was inspired by some of the posters from the artwork "The Social Network". 
For both of the posters I decided it would be important to use a the portrait of the subject (Tom) which is extremely common in documentary posters and gives an insight into the person it is about. However, the thick bar of text obstructs the viewer from seeing Tom's eyes, blocking the relationship with the reader and therefore imitating the affect of autism and not being able to understand the facial expressions and emotions of other people. I also used a black and white colour scheme to create a similar effect and to emphasise the dramatic story.

My second poster was inspired by the current trend of "vintage" and "retro" styled posters of modern films, in particular that of "Cowboys & Aliens" and "The American". This poster has a much more artistic feel than the previous but sticks to using the Helvetica typeface, a very stylish and popular font used in documentaries today. I also used other elements of typography such as letter spacing to make the letters closer together, creating an aesthetic effect. The spiral in the background is used merely to mimic the retro design, but can perhaps focus the reader's attention into Tom, making a connection. This leads on to the image of Tom itself; I wanted to create a vintage effect and researched into several methods into what worked best. I found that a "Gradient Map" using a vintage colour swatch worked best.  To finish, I found an image of an aeroplane in the sky, to conotate Tom's struggle of getting into aviation, this acts as a sort of snippet into the documentary.

The Final Product:

Before I chose a final product, I gave my peer group a chance to pick one and give feedback. After much discussion, I came to realise that neither poster had a strong "documentary" feel to it. I was recommended to keep the black and white theme, but to use Tom's image in a different manner and perhaps make the typography a lot larger. 
To create this image, I added a "motion blur" in Photoshop and then a "Film Grain" which gave the affect that the image was created by long exposure. This blurred image mimics the characteristics of Autism by blurring the face and making it obscure, as Autism sufferers cannot understand facial expressions. The large text also blocks the face and also makes the story more appealing to watch. To add a more professional feel, I used the font "Steel Tongs" to mimic a professional film poster's credits. Overall I feel this poster worked extremely well and convinced me to use it as my final product.