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Feedback

https://youtu.be/aVtBywg6QGI 

+Liked that the relationship was shown through the actors actions

+Liked the animation portion - imaginative, original

-Animation stills lasted a bit too long

+Camera work made film more engaging

-Camera moved around when it wasn’t supposed to sometimes

+Editing matched the natural side of the film

+The fades created a dreamlike feel that matched the characters’ emotions

-Some scenes were either too short or not long enough

-Ending was cheesy and rushed

-Some of the characters’ actions were too unrealistic 

-Could have been better if music was used

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Evaluation Q4

https://youtu.be/AZjU4B7P11s

To help create my short film, I used a range of media technologies that would contribute to research, planning and my evaluation. Based on my experiences from my AS project, I used it as a base when deciding which technologies to use.

To keep all my work together, I decided to use the blog website Tumblr. As I had used it for my AS project, I knew how to work the site, and it was useful for keeping all my work in a certain order for presentation. With it, I could also post pictures and videos into my blog, however as the site’s video player isn’t great, I had to use a third-party website to host my videos and instead put links on my blog.

When gathering audience and focus group research, I decided to use the questionnaire website Survey Monkey, another site that I used for AS. Due to its easy layout I was easily able to navigate around the site, and as it was fast to do I knew I would get responses from recipients. After constructing my questionnaire, asking about the recipient’s opinions on genre and short films, I sent it out through Microsoft Outlook to my school, and quickly gained a lot of useful comments. However, there were issues with the site, as the free version that I had used only allowed for ten questions in the survey and I could only look at the first one hundred responses. Though this did hinder how many responses I could view, I did receive a good sample size that helped me in the long run.

When it came to shooting my film, I used a Canon Legaria HFR506 camera to film the footage. Again, this was another technology that I had used in my AS project, however I already knew how to use it which was useful during filming. I had also used it to film my focus groups, as well as my audience feedback. It also has a decent microphone, which I used to film my evaluation questions as I don’t own a microphone myself. When using it, I also decided to use a tripod, as one of the main critiques I had gotten from AS was that the camera shook too much as I had gone handheld. This allowed the shots to be more smooth and natural, matching up with the tone of my short film.

When I was editing my footage, I used a range of technology to help construct my film. Initially I had used Sony Vegas Pro to edit my focus group, however due to the trial period running out, I had to switch to a different editing software. To edit my main film, I initially used VideoPad Video Editor, however as it was a rather basic software, I couldn’t use it for the more complicated editing I wanted to do. Instead I chose to use Adobe Premiere Pro, as I had initially tried it when making personal projects and found it extremely useful.

One of the more complicated things I wanted to do was the small animation, which was initially going to be more complex. I had downloaded Abobe Photoshop and Abobe Animate CC, the former of which I edited the initial images in. However, when I tried to use Animate CC, it was too complicated to learn in the short time I had, so I ended up scrapping what I had done and instead did a simplified version in Premire Pro.

For the sound in my film, I wanted there to be music that matched the characters’ actions. I had chosen a website called Music Box Maniacs, where I was able to create the melody for my film. I then tried to edit it in audio software Audacity, however I could never get it to sound right so I ended up scrapping it and just kept the original audio.

To host my videos, I used the website YouTube, another site that I have used previously. It was useful for keeping all my videos in one place, and if I needed to I could reupload them after any final edits. However, there were issues with it, as every time I tried to upload a video, it would take up to 24 hours for it to finish. To avoid this, I used the software HandBreak to compress the file, allowing the videos to instead upload in around 20 minutes.

Finally, when creating my magazine article and evaluation questions, I decided to write them into Microsoft word. This allowed me to edit them when needed, and with the cloud feature I could add to them wherever I was without having to put them on a USB. When creating the look of my magazine, I used Microsoft Publisher, as I had used it before and it was the easiest software to use that I knew would get the desirable effect I wanted.

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Evaluation Q3

https://youtu.be/T3LIIaEjP-8

When looking at the feedback that I gathered from my audience, I learnt several things about my film that I hadn’t expected that an audience would like or dislike. When gathering feedback, I initially filmed my original focus groups and asked them questions, however as the files got corrupted I instead asked them to message me their feedback.

When it came to the storyline of the film, I was surprised to learn that most of my audience enjoyed it. Many said that they liked how simple it was, and that it was fun to see their relationship portrayed by the actresses’ actions rather than dialogue. As I had spent a lot of time focusing on the portrayal of the relationship during filming, the audience response taught me that it is possible to create believable characters and interactions through mise en scene and body language.

The audience also claimed that they enjoyed the small animation portion during the bus stop scene, as they claimed it was imaginative, and original within the film. I had initially planned to add in more of these segments and knowing that the audience really enjoyed it I would have put them into the film. However, I did also get a comment that some of the images remained still for a little too long. This taught me to be more precise with timings to make sure a scene lasts for the appropriate amount of time, so that they didn’t go on for too little or too long.

One thing that the audience was divided upon was the camera work during the scenes. They enjoyed the more creative shots, such as following the feet as the main character walks to the bus stop or the shot from inside the car. They claimed that these made the film more engaging to watch, and added variety amongst the more natural shots. The camerawork was also an issue however, as several people commented that they noticed the camera move when it wasn’t supposed to, such as during one of the bus stop scenes and the breakfast shot. Though this was a critique I had originally gotten from my AS project, this has taught me that I have to focus more to keep the camera from moving, and that if needed reshoot scenes to make sure they work.

Some of the audience members also commented on the editing of the film. They liked that the simplicity portrayed the more naturalistic side of the film well, and one claimed that the fades between shots added a dream-like quality that matched how the characters are feeling at the time. However, I also got

critiqued for this as well, as some scenes would either be too long or too short, and that the fades often happened too fast, especially during the scene. This has taught me the importance of editing, and to make sure I know my way around the editing software to understand how to get the most effective use out of it. I have also learnt about the use of transitions, and how they can affect the tone of a scene change.

One problem that the audience pointed out was that the ending seemed a little rushed, in that it wasn't very clear why the two characters broke up. They claimed that without the dialogue it wasn’t really clear why the characters broke the relationship, which some didn’t like as they felt it softened the tension of the scene. This has taught me to ensure that the story is being clearly told to the audience, and though I may understand what is happening the same may not be true for the audience.

An aspect that the feedback taught me is to focus on continuity. One of the larger criticisms of the film was the changing hair colour of one of the main characters, which resulted in being very distracting to the viewer. Knowing this, I would have reshot the scenes to have hair colour be consistent, and in the future will focus on keeping the continuity there to keep the audience’s suspension of disbelief.

Another criticism I got was how some of the interactions of the characters felt a little too awkward or unrealistic. Originally I had believed that this made them more endearing and believable as teens with their first loves, however upon reflection with the feedback given, I understand that some of the character’s actions felt too fake, such as their parting at the end of the film. If I were to do it again I would edit the ending, so that it would be less ridiculous than it currently is.

Something else that my audience didn't like was the lack of music in the film. Due to issues with the software, I had to scrap it, which ended up hurting my film as the audience thought it could have been more engaging if it had music. However, I did receive a comment that the addition of music could have made it look more like a music video rather than a short film. Knowing this, I would add music if I could do the project again, however I would have to make sure that it would fit a short film format more than a music video, which could be done through having subtle music and having it match up to the actions inside the film.

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Evaluation Q2

https://youtu.be/rS01lqxq67o

When creating both my short film and the ancillary tasks alongside it, I wanted to focus on making them as professional as I could, but not let up on the more simplistic branding that I had made. I also tried to focus on the continuity between the products, such as the tone or overall aesthetics of each piece.

When initially designing my poster, I took inspiration from the research that I had made into different eras of poster design, with my favourite being the more stylised alternate posters that have been becoming more and more popular in the 2010s. These posters can be sometimes being rather simple, being done in block colours and focusing on a specific set-piece from the film. I wanted to do something similar with mine, but my lack of graphics experience left me unconfident with creating something that looked wholeheartedly professional. Instead I decided to match the more simple and realistic tone of my film and had the idea of it being a drawing that one of the main characters had done. I thought this would be a good link to the film, as the style of the characters is the same as the one used for the animation for the film. Though it does look rather amateur, it looks like it came straight from the film, which matches with the branding. Another aspect I wanted to match in the film and poster was the clothes and positioning of the main characters. Originally, they were just going to be sitting with each other on the poster, but I decided to change their poses to match with their personalities in the film, linking more to the film. The clothing of the characters is also meant to match their film counterparts, so I redrew their costumes from two of the scenes to further match the film.

During my research of magazine articles, I focused on both the layout and text content of each article I read. Using magazines such as Empire and Total Film, I found that there was a basic structure to the review pages that was consistent across multiple magazines. I decided I wanted to use this general structure, as it would make my article look more professional. When constructing it I decided to have a theme for the article, that being a “short film spotlight”. I thought this would help give the review some context, as well as make more sense if appearing in a magazine. This also matched the general aesthetic of my film, as it would be designed to focus on small scale, low budget short films within the magazine. When writing the review, I wanted to the text to be accessible to the target audience, so tried to be more descriptive and informative about the film than go into specific filmmaking details, as a general film-going audience may not be aware of them. One thing I could have done differently however was use a photo from the animation portion on the review page, as that would have helped match better with the poster of the film as well.

Overall, I feel that the combination of my short film and ancillary tasks worked well together. They all have overlapping elements that match with the overall tone and genre and are all effective in creating a brand. However, I do feel that I could have done more to improve this link, such as the drawing style, which could have elevated it to a better branding style, as well as make the three more cohesive as a collective piece.

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Evaluation Q1

https://youtu.be/p6BxurxpmjI

When creating my short film, I tried to be wary about the forms and conventions of the medium and genre of the film I was making. By doing this I could decide if I wanted to subvert or play on these conventions in order to explore or deconstruct them.  

One way in which I subverted convention was through the "dialogue" of the film, of which It had none. Teen targeted dramas such as Riverdale or 13 Reasons Why often use their character's dialogue to convey their emotions or personalities, usually involving current or relevant slang to make these characters more relatable to the target demographic at the time. However this can often lead to them becoming annoying if the audience isn't aware of the slang terms, or they run the risk of becoming dated within a few years. To avoid this pitfall within my own short film, I decided to go against the convention by having my characters not speak, conveying their personalities and relationship through their appearances, mannerisms and costumes.  

However this led to me playing into a convention of the short film medium. A majority of short films don’t include any dialogue or speech to prevent their film from getting too long or complicated, and this shortness also allows the visuals to be at the forefront of the film. This feature is more often seen in animation more than in live action, as the freedom of the medium allow more creative visuals to convey their story in comparison to using live actors. Another factor could also be down to budgets, as independent student short films often don’t have or can’t afford voice actors, so have no choice but to work around this aspect. Despite being live action, I tried to invoke the dialogue-less nature of short films such as Paperman or Missing Halloween.  

Originally I had been planning to use a voice over for one of the main characters during the opening scene, giving an overall context and setting the tone for the film. At the time I didn’t know that this had become a staple of the teen media, seen in films and shows such as Mean Girls or The End of The Fucking World. Knowing this, along with my decision to not use any dialogue, I decided to cut this out as I wanted to go against this convention as a more “fresh” take against teen media.  

When it came to the structure of my film, I decided I wanted to have a rather linear three act structure, as it’s a convenient way to have the story play out as well as the best way to present the story that I had made. Though in short films it can often be more beneficial or entertaining to mess with the structure due to their short run times, presented in films such as Borrowed Time. I wanted my film to be able to fulfill a full emotional arc over the course of the story, so decided to go with a more narrative based approach that’s seen more in full length films. I decided that following the typical story beats of a Hollywood romance plot was also best, ie characters meet, get closer, conflict results in tension or a break up, realize they love each other and get back together before the credits roll. I decided to change the ending however, as most of traditional romance stories in film tend to follow the trend of the characters getting together or getting back together at the end of the film. I chose to have the characters not get back together due to their circumstances, but instead accept the fact that they can't be together and mutually separate. However, today there is a rise in the amount of films that don't follow the happily ever after trope. The highest grossing romance of all time Titanic had one of the leads die at the end, as well as Call Me By Your Name, which had the main couple unwillingly torn apart by their circumstances. Though this isn't a trope yet, it is starting to become more prevalent, and I thought it would be more interesting to have to have the characters' separation be mutual. I thought this would be a play on the convention, as it's still rare to see a break up in film that doesn't have a negative impact on the characters involved.  

Another thing that I decided to focus on was the aspect of an LGBT relationship. Originally, I had been planning to make the relationship taboo, such as in Brokeback Mountain, and had planned for one of the main characters to be Muslim, as I had initially thought it was a fresh look at the topic. However through my research I discovered that this has already been done, such as in Channel 4's "Ackley Bridge", and that LGBT representation is becoming a lot more normalized, even being portrayed in children's media like "Legend of Korra" or "Steven Universe". Knowing this I decided to steer away from the supposed shock value, and instead focus on creating a "normal" relationship. In ways this could be considered a subversion of a convention, as unlike many LGBT films like "Moonlight", the main aspect isn't that the characters homosexual, rather the main focus is the main character finding happiness through the help of another.

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Ancillary Task - Poster

When designing the poster for my short film, I focused on making something that was simple yet effective, matching the nature of the film. Due to not having a lot of experience with graphics, I didn’t want to use a software that I wasn’t confidant with as I didn’t want to create a substandard product. I instead decided to follow the aesthetic of the animation within the film, as the hand-drawn nature would allow me to have full control as well as make it look like it came straight out of the film. 

The overall idea I decided upon was the poster was meant to be a drawing that one of the characters had created. This is reflected in the slightly titled angle to show that the drawing is in a sketchbook, as well as having the pencil to further push this theme. This gave the poster a more simple look, and matches with the naturalistic tone of the film. 

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Ancillary Task - Magazine Article

For one of my ancillary tasks, I created a magazine article which reviewed the short film I had made. 

When looking for inspiration for my article, I looked at both online reviews from websites such as Rogerebert.com and print articles from magazines such as Empire and Total Film. I chose to look at both as it would give me an understanding of how to format the layout of the article, as well as how the style of the reviews written in them. 

When it came to creating my own article, I decided to use Microsoft Publisher, as it was the easiest to use for formatting the layout of my magazine. I decided to focus on a “short film spotlight” section of a magazine, and tried to write a balanced review of the film I had created with the help of my feedback. When formatting the look, I tried to invoke the articles that I had researched, using a splash of colour in the title to draw the reader in, as well as the layout of the text in line to the image.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/10gjzqWFQRdJBaCo5yqPMIIu-5AdjRo7P76luY6lPcYs/edit?usp=sharing

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FINAL FILM (FINISHED)

https://youtu.be/jx3gleTNq3A

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Final Film (DRAFT)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F5_YihzrZCE&feature=youtu.be

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Shooting Schedule

Week 1: 

-Location scouting

-Deciding costumes

-Coordinating filming times

-Finalising script writing

Week 2:

-Filming the cafe scene

-Filming one bedroom scene

-Filming the kitchen scenes

Week 3: 

-Filming the other bedroom scene

-Filming the bus stop scenes

Week 4: 

-Filming the final scene

-Filming the book shop section of the montage

-Filming the cycling section of the montage

Week 5:

-Filming the cliff side scene 

-Re-shoots (if needed)

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Costumes

Lillian: 

For Lillian, her outfits mainly consist of rather simple clothing, such as skirts, leggings, cardigans, shirts and trainers. Her clothing is rather modest to fit her rather shy and introverted lifestyle. This aspect was originally going to match up with her religion, however that aspect was taken out of her character, but the clothing style still matched with her personality so it was kept. Her glasses also gives off the same idea, as glasses are stereo-typically associated with characters who are quiet and a little outside the norm. She doesn’t wear make up either, which could suggest that her outlook on life means she doesn’t feel the need to do herself up everyday. 

Shauntelle: 

For Shauntelle, her clothing is also rather simple, as it mainly consists of a range of graphic t-shirts, jeans trainers and boots. Despite how minimalist it is, her shirts are often colourful, in comparison to Lillian, and their different pop-culture references present her as someone who enjoys the media. Her interest in movies is also hinted at through her shirts, including references such as Star Wars, Alice in Wonderland, Kubo and The Two Strings and Scott Pilgrim VS The World. Her choice in jeans also presents her as fairly practical, which suggests she disregards the current fashion trends in exchange for functionality. Her reading glasses also represents this, as she has them constantly perched on her head in case she needs them, and also suggests that she enjoys reading too. With makeup, she chooses fairly simple things, such as mascara and sometimes a bit of lipstick, which presents that she may enjoy wearing it, but doesn’t need, or have time, to put more on.

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Location Scouting

When choosing the locations for my film, I decided to choose places that would suit the nature of my film, as it was fairly grounded in reality. I also had to consider convenience with public locations, as I had to make sure that I was allowed to film in that area and that I wouldn’t disturb the public. 

The longest scenes would be the ones at the bus stop, in which there are jump cuts to present the passing of time, along with clothes and mise en scene changing each time to present that. The place that I chose was mostly out of convenience, as my friend lived very close by so me and the other actor could change into different costumes and be back to filming again rather quickly. It is also a bus stop where busses don’t come very often, which meant we can have more time filming there without the public disturbing the shot. 

Another long scene would be the final one at the main character’s house, where one of my main concerns would be the shot getting interrupted by civilians. The house I ended up choosing was on a very small street, which meant that there wouldn’t be a lot of background noise in the shot as well. The house also matches with the bus stop scene, as filming will be on the same street, so it matches up with the continuity set up in the film. 

The bedrooms of each character had to be different, as I wanted it to reflect their personalities in some way. With Lillian’s room, it had to be fairly plain to match up with her monotonous view of life, so her walls are barren with just the furniture of necessity in her room. With Shauntelle, only a small part of her room is seen during the montage. Apart from her plain walls, behind her bed you can see shelves covered in a collection of knick-knacks and figurines, which can present the fascination that Lillian has for her. 

The cafe scene was a difficult one to decide upon, and is the location that had the most changes over the course of production. Originally it was going to be shot inside a chain coffee shop, however concerns about whether or not they would ask us not to film in there or if we got kicked out for filming. I then decided to move the scene outside to prevent any issues, however the majority of coffee shops in my area are in very public places, so there was a concern about members of the public disturbing the shot. Eventually it was decided that the filming occur outside a coffee shop on the edge of town, as it was fairly quiet and we were less likely to be disturbed. 

One area that was only decided upon after I had begun filming was the hiking trial and shack on the side of the cliff. Originally the main characters were going to admit their love for each other whilst watching a film in one of their rooms, but after filming the scene it didn’t have the right gravitas that I wanted it to have. I decided to change it, and I chose the cliff overlooking the town as i thought it would be more dramatic and interesting for the viewer. 

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Screenplay

FADE IN:

INT. LILLIAN’S HOUSE – LILLIAN’S ROOM - DAY

A teenage girl’s bedroom, small with simple furniture, along with a muted black and white colour wash. Said room’s owner is  LILLIAN,who is just waking up.

She is seen getting ready for the day, and before leaving looks at herself in—-

THE MIRROR.

Her face look tired, and her general body posture and demeanour matches her exhausted expression. Her clothes and overall appearance is plain and modest, not helped by the monochromatic colours.

She flattens out her skirt, starring at it in the mirror, almost as if she is contemplating what colour it is outside of the black and white. Before leaving, she picks up a rucksack and then heads out of the room to--

THE KITCHEN.

As Lillian enters the kitchen, her MOTHER turns around to greet her, but black squiggled lines cover her face. Her mother asks Lillian questions as she sits down, to which she gives a half-hearted nod.

She appears disinterested and when her mother tries to kiss her head, she does not react. As she eats her cereal, the camera starts moving to the left, FADING INTO--  

 EXT. BUS STOP - SAME DAY

CLOSE ON Lillian’s feet walking to the right. When the camera pulls back to a MEDIUM SHOT, she is seen walking to a bus stop, and after a quick shift of her bag she sits down and stares at her hands on her lap.

Camera pulls back to a MEDIUM SHOT, where we hold for a few seconds as someone walks past Lillian, also having their face blacked out by the squiggled lines.

CLOSE ON Lillian’s face, who sighs as a shadow looms over her. She turns to see who it is, and her eyes grow wide. As the camera PANS UP, SHAUNTELLE, an odd looking girl reading a book about film, is revealed to be the only thing in colour.

Lillian continues to stare, to which the other girl doesn’t notice.

INSERT LILLIAN’S DAYDREAM - A small animation appears next to Lillian’s head. In it, it shows a variety of scenario’s she is imagining on how to greet Shauntelle, including talking to her, giving her some flowers, telling a bad joke etc.

The daydream is cut short, as a bus appears and Shantelle gets on it. Lillian watches it drive off, and decides that she will talk to her next time she sees her.

MONTAGE

Over the next few days, Lillian is seen sitting next to Shauntelle at the bus stop, and every day the camera ZOOMS IN slightly more, as well as Lillian moving slightly closer to the other girl.

END OF MONTAGE

On the final day, Lillian reaches out to tap Shauntelle, but pulls back out of a new fear of rejection. She has another DAYDREAM, in which Shauntelle is laughing at her, but is pulled out of it by a hand on her shoulder.

She quickly looks up and sees Shauntelle smiling at her, and she starts to blush as the camera PANS OUT.

CUT TO.

EXT. CAFE - SAME DAY

The two girls are sitting at a table together near the back of the cafe, with a cup of coffee and hot chocolate in front of them.

Lillian is nervous, and struggles to make eye contact, but Shauntelle just smiles to calm her down. She asks for Lillian’s phone, and puts her number in it for her, before doing the same with her own. This causes Lillian to smile for the first time.

MONTAGE - VARIOUS

A) EXT. TOWN CENTER - DAY- The two of them wander through town after their time at the cafe.

B) INT. BOOK SHOP - DAY- They show each other which books they like, which includes the film and manga sections.

C) EXT. SEAFRONT - DAY- They walk along the beach together

D) INT. CINEMA - DAY- They’re in the lobby, deciding on which film to go see.

E) EXT. PARK - DAY- They’re riding their bikes across the field.

F) INT. SHAUNTELLE’S ROOM - Day- They’re sitting on the bed, watching a film. Shauntelle reinacts the boombox scene from Say Anything…

END OF MONTAGE

CUT TO.

EXT. HIKING TRAIL - DAY

The two girls are climbing up a mountain trail, with Shauntelle practically dragging an exhausted and wary Lillian. They eventually arrive at an abandoned brick shack, built into the side of the cliff. Shauntelle helps her friend up onto the roof, and reveals that from there they can see the town skyline. Enthralled, they sit down on the edge together, and stare out at the town for a quiet moment. The camera FOCUSES on their hands, as Shauntelle subtly places her hand on Lillian’s. When she realizes, Lillian blushes, then leans over and kisses Shauntelle’s cheek quickly. The two of them stare at each other in shock, and colour floods back into the screen. They then lean back in as the camera PANS downwards.

INT. LILLIAN’S KITCHEN - SAME DAY

As the camera PANS down, Lillian is walking back into her kitchen, looking elated. Her mother is waiting for her, and tells her some news.

INSERT LILLIAN’S MOTHER’S ANIMATION - An animation appears next to her head, implying that they are going to be moving.

The daydream cuts off, leaving Lillian greatly upset by the news.

EXT. OUTSIDE CINEMA - DAY

The next day, Lillian is waiting outside the cinema to give Shauntelle the news of the move. When she appears, she seems ecstatic, which hurts Lillian even more. She forces herself to pull out of an embrace, and tells her about what has happened. Shauntelle’s good mood vanishes, and though appearing reluctant, she agrees to break up with Lillian, and the two go their separate ways. As they leave however, Shauntelle looks back at her, and a light shines in her eyes as she makes a plan.

TIMESKIP - THREE WEEKS LATER

EXT. OUTSIDE LILLIAN’S HOUSE - DAY

Lillian has finished her mum pack up the car, as they’re about to leave. She sighs, taking one of her final looks at the house, now back in black and white. Suddenly she hears music playing from around the corner of the drives, and goes to have a look. Shauntelle is standing there, holding a piece of paper with a boombox drawn on it, and a sound playing on her phone. Lillian realises that she’s rein-acting the scene for their favourite movie, and runs over to hug her. She hugs back, and this time the girls give each other a proper farewell.

INT. LILLIAN’S CAR - SAME DAY

Lillian gets into the car, and as it drives off she waves at Shauntelle who is getting further and further into the distance. Lillian turns back to the front, and as she smiles her body begins to regain colour once more.

 END

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Ancillary Task Research: Posters

To go with my short film, I have chosen two of the ancillary tasks to accompany it, being a poster of the film and a film magazine page with a review of my short film. With a poster, a film can present itself and its identity without having to reveal any of the content to the audience. They are important for marketing, as unlike a trailer or film clip, their analogue nature allows them to be inserted into any context, including magazines, billboards, physical posters in public places, the internet etc. They could be seen as the face of a movie, as they need to be able to present the character of the movie without the aid of it’s audio visual medium.As well as this, aside from the trailers, they are most likely going to be the first exposure someone has to a new film, so they have to leave a lasting impression. I categorise these posters by their year and contents: pre 1960, 1961-1990 and 1991-present day.

Film posters, like the nature of film as well, have slowly been evolving with history. Up until around the 1960s, film posters tended to have a very distinct style. The film posters of the pre-60s era took heavy inspiration from theater and musical production posters, as film hadn’t completely distinguished it’s own identity from theater, with many still being filming to look similar to a stage play. The posters of this era were typically traditionally painted due to limited technology, as well as depicting certain shots from scenes in the film. In terms of their colors, the 1910s tended to have more muted and washed out colors. However, in the late 1930s, The Wizard of Oz and Gone With the Wind debuted in Technicolor, which turned out to be hugely successful. Even though many films couldn’t follow this trend due to the high costs, the posters from the early 1940s onwards became much more colorful, often using colors such as yellow and orange, as due to their bright and bold nature they were able to stand out and be more enticing. Another trope of this era was that posters often included the process of how they were made, for example Technicolor, however this began to leave posters around the 80s/90s. 

The 1960s saw a change begin to happen with film posters. One reason for this could be films diversion away from traditional stage production elements, becoming more of it’s own medium. We were beginning to see examples that used photography of their actors instead of original painted pieces, which came from the new technology that was in use. However much of the photography used is in black and white, which wasn’t as eye-catching as the colorful painted posters, so some decided to put a color wash over the people to make them stand out, such as with Hitchcock’s Psycho. 

The 1970s is where film posters began to change more drastically than before. Though they still often used hand drawn paintings, it was their content that was different. Posters of this era were a lot more simplistic, often having an image/images in the center of the frame with a white background. Whereas before the content filled up the entirety of the poster and would appear cluttered, they now had a focal point for a fast-glancing film goer, as well as providing a general idea of what the film would be about. These posters also began the trend of having the general credits in smaller print at the bottom of the poster, which put less emphasis on the filmmakers or the studio. Main actors names still remained as a focus point, usually at the top of the poster, as famous actors were (and still are) a great way of enticing an audience to watch a film. 

The 1980s era of film posters seemed to be a blend of all the conventional tropes that was seen before it. One of the main aspects was that many of these posters included original artwork done specifically for the poster, which led to many posters from this era becoming extremely iconic. Another aspect is that the taglines became a practically permanent part of the poster, whereas before they weren’t as prevalent. They also typically tended to be at the top of the poster, so that it wouldn’t interfere with the main image. 

The 1990s was the start of the traditionally painted poster’s decline from popularity, favouring the more photographic poster. This could once again be down to an advance in technology, as the vast improvement of CGI during the 90s allowed for things that could have never been done before in film. We no longer needed painted posters to portray the outlandish concepts that couldn’t be filmed or photographed, as we could now photoshop them to look however we wanted. These were also the start of the modern poster, as the trend of these poster’s content continued into the 2000s and present day. 

The posters of the early 2000s are very similar to those from the 1990s, tending to use the same photographic editting that was seen in this era. However, by the 2010s, the content of film posters has once again undergone change, but it’s different from before. As many of those who grew up in the 80s are now creating current media, there is a lot of nostalgia for this decade, including it’s content in film posters. Alongside the photographic posters, there is a surge of original painted posters, especially towards the end of this decade. There is also a rise in multiple alternate posters, allowing marketers to be more diverse and creative with a poster’s design. 

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Focus Group Research

https://youtu.be/vPsdFwTC_5o  

https://youtu.be/a66sUhEzcQM                  

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Short Film: Second Draft with Audience Research

After conducting my audience research, I have decided to include and change aspects of my project to make it more unconventional than what is suspected of its genre. The main story line of a teenage girl trying to find meaning in her life is remaining intact, rather it is more the details within the project that I’m going to change. 

From my question on film genres, I discovered that many people enjoy romantic films when there are comedic elements, or just comedy films in general. Originally I wasn’t planning to have any comedic moments, as I wanted the film to be taken seriously by the audience. However, I have since changed my mind on that, as by not having some lighthearted moments the film may seem rather dower or slightly dull. I’m planning on having the small animation daydream section be a little comedic, as it will balance out the more depressing aspects of the start of the film. 

The follow up question asked why they enjoyed these genres, to which many answered that they found them interesting. To make my film interesting as well, one thing I’m going to put more focus on is the characters. Originally, only the main character was going to have the majority of focus, but now I’m planning on switching the focus over to the second protagonist near the start of the third act. This means that I can give her more time on screen, as well as more opportunities to give her characterization.

With my questions about short films, I have learn’t what people enjoy in short films. Many enjoyed how they can be more experimental with the structure, as well as having short, creative stories that wouldn’t necessarily work as a one and half to two hour feature length film. Taking this into account, I’m still planning to have the story roughly the same, but unlike in my AS, I’m going to focus more on creating a believable scenario, with better characterization and relationship presentation. This will be more challenging than before, as everything will be done without dialogue, but the visuals, actors and sound design should be able to present the messages and themes I want to convey. From the follow up question, I noticed that many people already had an idea of what a short film is, so I won’t have to spend too much time simplifying or complicating things for the audience. 

My next few questions revolved around romance in films, and what the participants liked and didn’t like about the genre. I discovered that many didn’t like how conventional and samey many romance plots were, and that their lack of variety often made them boring and uninteresting. One such complaint was that the main characters in the romance plot often have a falling out at the end of the second act, then get back together at the end of the film. With this information, I am changing my ending slightly, as originally the main characters were going to break up with the excuse of a misunderstanding between the two. I have decided to change that so it’s a mutual break up, subverting the misunderstanding trope and having the characters be fully aware of the situation. Another thing I’m going to do is have my main characters’ homosexuality be a surprise in the film, so rather than have it blatantly shown when the two first meet, I will make them appear as friends first, then their relationship will start to deepen later into the film. So that it doesn’t come completely out of the blue, I am going to include small and subtle hints in the animation segments, as they are the only physical representations of the main character’s thoughts and emotions outside of the general cinematography. The LGBT aspect is still going to be one of the more subtle themes in the film but I still want it to be prevalent, as my audience research told me that people want to see more of it in mainstream film. 

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Audience Research: Results and Analysis

To gather my audience research information, I used the website SurveyMonkey.com. I used it before for my AS project, and it was useful as it was easy to use, free, could present my data in an easy to read format, and could easily be sent out en-masse via email. The downside to using this service however is that since I did my AS project, the website has become more exclusive for paying members, and as I don’t have a membership to the site, I was limited to how many questions I was allowed to put on, how many answers I could see, as well as having less options when it came to analyzing the results. Despite these limitations however, I do feel that my audience research was successful, as I was able to gather over 100 responses, but only able to see the first hundred.

For my first question I wanted to know the age of my respondents, as the target age for my project is around 13-18. As the majority of my results landed within this demographic (around 84%), this would get me the best results in terms of what my target age group want. 

Similar to the first question, I also wanted to know the respondents’ genders so I could cross-reference it with my target audience. As it is female, I wanted to know how many females answered the survey to see how relevant the answers are to my research. The results were that the survey was answered by an overwhelming amount of  females, which means that almost all of it will be relevant to my target audience and the film’s content. 

For my third question, I wanted to know which genres my audience enjoyed, so that I could tailor my film’s genre to fit to what appeals to them. The majority answered with romance,  as well as drama being the second most popular. This is convenient for me, as I was planning for my film to be a romantic drama so there is a slight guarantee that they may enjoy it simply for the genres used. Another one that was popular was comedy, which came under other, which didn’t surprise me much, but what did was that a lot of these were romantic-comedies. Because of how many people like it, I am considering adding a few comedic elements to my film, mostly used in the short animations of whilst the couple are getting to know each other. 

As a follow up question to the last one, I wanted to know what about different genres people liked. The majority of answers I got said that they enjoyed them because they were interesting, or liked that they could get lost in a film’s world as a form of escapism. Though not as detailed as I would have liked, it tells me that I need to make a film that people will find interesting, which I can try to do through characterization and the cinematography, as well as have a scenario that can be believable but not too mundane that the audience lose interest. 

In terms of the format of my project (short film), over the next few questions, I wanted to know how many people were aware of short films, and what they knew about them. Results for this question were better than expected, as I didn’t think as many people would have seen short films as this. The not sure category was surprise, as I thought more would have been aware that they had seen one. However, over half of my respondents had seen at least one, so I could get some relevant information off of them. 

To those who answered “yes” there was a follow up question, which surprisingly was answered by more people than who actually gave “yes” answers. Answers were mostly that they enjoyed them, due to either their stories, length or themes. A lot of answers were mixed between the strength of the length time, with half saying that the short run time allowed the filmmakers to be more creative in how they got across the story, whilst some were limited as they need more time to explore their stories. With this information, when writing my screenplay and deciding on what to include, I’m going to have to make sure that everything makes sense within the film itself, as well as have any messages or themes prevalent through narrative rather than outright saying it. 

For my next question, I wanted to know how people defined a short film, as it would give me an idea on how much they knew about them. Though a vast majority just called them “short”, more than I expected gave more in depth answers. Several pinned down a run time from roughly five to forty five minutes, as well as pointing out certain aspects of a short film, such as a focus on story and characters. This tells me that some of my audience already have some idea of what to expect from a short film, so I don’t need to make things too simple or complicated. 

In the next few questions, I wanted to understand what people knew about the romance genre and their conventions, as well as the aspects about it that they did or didn’t like. In this question, I asked what people would expect to see in a romance film, which would show me what people expect when they think about a romance film or storyline/subplot. Pretty much everyone knew the general conventions of these films, with many answers including the common story beats for a romance plot. These answers told me that there isn’t much variety in terms of what romantic plots offer in their films, with many being predictable and samey, something I want to avoid in my own project. I also received some answers that detailed the sexuality of the characters involved in the romantic plot. Many pointed out that the majority of movies, particularly those in the mainstream, have a lack of non-heterosexual representation when it comes to main character romances/subplots. This tells me that even today where homosexuality is almost fully accepted within society, it still surprises people when there are LGBT characters in mainstream main roles, especially when they are involved in romantic plots. With this information, even though my main characters’ homosexuality is not going to be one of the main focuses of the film, it may be more interesting to the audience as they may not expect to see it. 

For my last two questions, I wanted to know whether or not the audience actually enjoyed romantic films/plot lines, and why that was. This was done so that I could get an idea of how many people would actually enjoy it for the fact that it’s a romance, as well as why they would or wouldn’t enjoy them. I was rather surprised by how many people said they enjoyed romance films, as I expected to see more in the “no” category based on how many answers from the previous question were rather negative. 

In my final question, I wanted to know what people did and didn’t like about romantic films/plot lines, as it would give me an idea of what to include and cut out of my project. I got a fairly even mix of results, with a positive aspect for many being the idea of escapism, as they could live through the characters and feel the same joyous emotions that they did. Another positive was that people liked the romance as they were more of a fantasy, and enjoyed the less realistic approach. Others did not like this however, as they felt the lack of realism could be distracting and take them out of the film, especially when the romantic aspect is a subplot in other genres where one isn’t needed, with one example being the latest surge in superhero movies. Another thing people didn’t like about romance plots was how predictable and formulaic they are. I received several responses that detailed certain plot points often seen in romance films, ie two people meet, fall in love, have some sort of misunderstanding or conflict, get together at the end anyway.