Evaluation Activity 1

In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products? (I.e. of film openings)

Shown below is a nine frame analysis of our opening sequence. I specifically chose these screenshots because each one shows either a different aspect or technique which is included in our opening sequence. This includes special effects, different types of scenes, camera angles etc.



1. This is a shot of a gun on a table. This shot is included in the first scene of the opening sequence and the reason we decided to show this was because we wanted the audience to see a negative portrayal of the following people who were going to be shown. We did a close up of the shot because we wanted to make sure that the audience seen the gun and knew exactly what the object on the table was. We felt that it was definitely necessary to include this in our opening sequence because guns are associated with gangsters and thugs and these are the type of people who are shown in our opening sequence. I felt that this should be the first shot in our analysis because it is quite a significant shot.

2. This is an over the shoulder shot of two of our main characters. The character which the camera is over is a gangster who has kidnapped the other character. This is a significant shot too because this scene is the first scene which the audience sees where characters are introduced. In this shot, the audience can see a major difference between the two characters as one is over the other and therefore they can see that one has more control whereas the other is helpless. This shot shows one of the characters with blood all over them which signifies violence. This is a huge factor in our film and so we definitely needed to include this.

3. This shot is a sideview of the two characters again and also it is the same scene, I wanted to include this screenshot in the analysis because this really does show the difference between the two characters. We used this camera angle in order to show this properly. One is shown a lot higher than the other and so the character feels belittled. The main character has some light reflected onto his head which indicates he is under interrogation. This may make the audience feel sorry for the character which is what we were aiming for. This shot is quite dark and creates a eerie, mysterious atmosphere.

4. This shot is a close up of the main character. I wanted to include this in the analysis as this shot really makes the audience see a nice side to the character where he is restricted and cannot do anything about the situation. This is the first shot where the character is properly shown as it is a close up shot and where the audience can see his face with all the blood over it as previous shots were over the shoulder or from the side. This is an important shot because only the character's face is shown and not any of his clothing so the audience can not really tell what the character is like. We really wanted to use blood in the opening sequence because it shows dominance and fear. We decided to show my character bleeding because it shows the gangetrs are not to be messed with so this then makes the audience fear for my characters saftey. This shot displays the actors name which is titled bottom right of the shot.

5. This shot shows the beginning of the chase and the location surrounding the character as it is a long shot. This shot includes my character and Zeeshans character who will be chasing my character. This specific location is discrete and mysterious. We chose to film the chase scene here so the audience would not know what to expect when I am chased into different sections of this location. This shot also shows danger because my character is in full speed running away so the audience will then know if he is caught he will then most likely be killed so this then gives off a sense of urgence because he is essentially running for his life! The railing in this shot divides the two characters giving my character a greater chance of getting away, the audience will see that which will then create a thrilling atmosphere.

6. We decided to use this long shot in our analysis because it shows a different camera angle and a different part of the location where we were filming. We again included both characters in this shot as we wanted to continue the previous shot. We also wanted to show the audience that my character was still being closely tracked and was not getting away. The background is blurred which allowed us to focus on the two characters only as there was to much going on behind which may take the audience's attention away so we did this to keep the audience's attention on the two characters.

7. We used this shot in our analysis because it is unique as the character is show in a different way. This long shot shows my character will go to all lengths to get away from this evil gangster as he is pictured climbing over a huge dangerous gap extending his right leg onto a small ledge which looks damp and slippy and if he was to fall he would be seriously injured so this shows the audience that he would rather be seriously injured than caught by this notorious gangster.

8. This shot is a long shot because this shows the location of where the character is. We decided not to show the character's face in this shot because this creates a mysterious atmosphere as the audience are left wondering what is happening during this scene. What we do show of the character are his legs because this indicates that he is running away and the church which is shown behind his legs adds to the mysterious atmosphere and also makes it eerie.

9. This shot is the last shot of our opening sequence and all it shows is a black screen. I wanted to include this in my nine frame analysis because it holds a lot of significance. The reason the screen is black is because my character was shot. This really leaves the audience on the edges of their seats as they will then wonder what happens in the remainder of the film. We felt we had to include this at the end because it is a really good cliffhanger.

Setting/Location - For our opening sequence, we decided to use a variety of locations in order for the opening sequence to be more interesting. The introduction was filmed in the theatre of our school as this is very dark and we could easily access it without causing any hassle. The chase scene was filmed in town during a quiet time so we would not have any distractions. The scene where I am climbing and then eventually get shot was also filmed in town but in a different part of it. All scenes were shot in Coventry as we did not want to go anywhere which we were not familiar with and we felt that all locations we needed were already in Coventry so we did not need to go any further.

Costume/Props - All costumes which the characters wore were already purchased by each one of us. I provided my own clothing and coats, jackets and ties for the rest of the cast. This was for the interrogation scene and also the chase scene. For my character, we decided to keep the clothing casual as we wanted to show the character as a 'normal' teenager. Raqeebul and Zeeshan needed to wear smart clothing with similar taste to what gangsters normally wear. I think the clothing fitted in perfectly with the looks we were going for for each character.

Camerawork/Editing - We used many different camera angles and shots in our opening sequence so that it was very effective overall and so that the audience would be kept interested by all the different perspectives we put through. The camera shots and angles included close ups, long shots, over the shoulder shots, point of view shots and many more. We used a tripod for some of the filming so that we had stable shots. For the point of view shot and the climbing scene, we deliberately made this a bit shakey in order to create a greater effect. For the editing, we used Adobe Premiere Pro to crop scenes, add audio and video effects. 

Synopsis of film and how the opening sequence introduces this - The synopsis of our film is that a boy falls in love with a girl whose brother is a mob boss. When he finds out, he is definitely not happy and so decides to take action. He sends his men to find the boy and then surrounds him with people before shooting him. He then kidnaps him and interrogates him. However, despite this, the boy and the girl are determined to work it out and try to be together however throughout the film, it is shown that this is proved difficult for them as her brother is tracking their every move. The opening sequence portrays the negative side of the film immediately. It starts off showing a gun on a table and the interrogation scene is the introduction. The opening sequence then shows the mob boss finding the boy and shooting him. It ends with a black screen so that the end of the opening sequence is left with a mysterious atmosphere. We did not want to give away the whole story and so we decided not to include the girl in the opening sequence and to introduce her soon after.

Genre of film and how the opening sequence portrays this - The genre of our film is action and crime with a hint of romance. Our opening sequence definitely portrays all three genre's. Action is portrayed through all the running and the shooting scene. The crime section comes in straight away at the start of the opening sequence as it is the interrogation scene. The romance is introduced as my character mentions he is in love with the mob boss' sister. The voiceover creates an eerie effect which fits in nicely with the crime genre. Also, throughout the opening sequence, all the moods are negative and so both action and crime fit in here. The interrogation scene is very dark and dull and is an excellent way of creating mystery which fits in well with the crime genre too. There is not much romance shown in the opening sequence as the female has not yet been introduced but it is not completely absent. 

How characters were introduced - The introduction of the opening sequence immediately introduces my character and Raqeebul's as he is interrogating my character and so these are the first people the audience see. Then as the opening sequence progresses onto the running scene and the climbing scene, Zeeshan's character is introduced. Each character is shown very stereotypically as their clothing explains this.

Special effects - Our opening sequence consists of different effects which we put through during editing. This includes fading which we did when showing what happened earlier on before the interrogation. Cutting from one shot to the other very quickly which we did during the running scene in order to make it more intense. We also added in a video effect when Zeeshan used the gun to shoot at my character in order for the shooting to look more realistic.