Becky: Film Evaluation.
Ways that ‘Grace’ is similar and different to the
typical short film conventions.
Short films started to appear in North America in the 1910`s and has evolved considerably fast since and has became increasing popular. Short films vary from live action to animation, however Comedy was extremely popular, famous comedians such as Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton and others are well known for staring in the early short films. Mediated
Even though the themes of short films vary, its narrative structure stays relatively the same. Similar to main stream films, there is a beginning, middle and an end to it; however everything is more compact as there is less time to mediate to the viewers. Frequently short films have twists and unexpected outcomes as well as fast pace sections and moments that are included to make the viewers jump; all of these important techniques keep the viewers intrigued and keeps them interested. In our film ‘Grace’, we included twists and changes from old to new to keep our viewers interested, also it tests them on what is real? This is similar to a variety of Shakespeare plays such as ‘Much Ado About Nothing’, as it tests the audience on what they perceive as real. This means that our film even though has a unique set up and theme, still fits comfortably in the typical narrative structure of most short films.
Unlike mainstream films the overall number of characters are very small; allot of short films such as ‘LoveField’ by Mathieu Rathe and ‘Post – It Love’ directed by Simon Atkinson, only have two main characters. In our film we have one main character which is ‘Grace’ as she is present in every scene. There are other characters present in the film including the over confident director.
In conclusion the amount of characters in short films are significantly smaller than the vast amount of characters in main stream films such as ‘Final Destination’. As well as this, the characters in short films are not usually well known, however actors/actresses may have started their career playing roles in short films, but as it would have been before than became famous, at the time they wouldn’t have been well known. The reasons why famous actors/actresses don’t appear in short films are because, short films aren’t widely published also do not make as much money compared to main stream films. This is the main reason why we do not have any famous people in our film.
The low budget that is set for the making of short films are one of the reasons why there are only a couple of locations featured in the films. As well as this the locations are usually outdoors in public areas as it provides a wider space to film also it is usually free. This was the same with our film as the majority of the shots were filmed in a park with open land. However our interview scene was set indoors in a minimalistic, bright open room; this room was available to students so did not cost anything.
By watching a variety of short films prior to the production of ‘Grace’ it was apparent that not all shots were filmed on tripods as some shots were shaky and unsteady. This technique is ideal for documentaries as it brings a realistic feel to the film. Also as most documentaries are filmed outside, the majority of the land is uneven; if the tripod was used for each individual shot, it would have to be altered to assure that it was level, overall this would take up a lot of precious time. We used this technique in the last section of our film as we were aiming to trick the audience to think that it was a real documentary, but it was highly constructed and planned just as much as the other scenes but wasnt edited as much to enhance the natural, real affect. The other scenes such as the period drama section and the interview scene were clearly staged and planned as the camera was waiting for the main character to arrive; this is the same in most programs and films such as Top Gear. What we see may look real and untouched but the footage we see has been retaken many times and edited before shown; even documentarys are constructed and planned as it has a start and an ending, also we only see what the director wants us to see.; we are not shown what is happening behind the camera.
Also the majority of short films are not dominated by dialogue but by imaging and footage, this means that the viewers have to concentrate more to understand the plot. Grace differs as it is dominated by dialogue, this is because the complex plot needed it to make it comprehensible otherwise each individual scene would not have any meaning to the next one.
Similar to main stream films, posters are available for the public to see at special occasions such as film festivals, also they are highly accessible on the internet; posters are a source of advertisement and are produced to invite and persuade the public to watch their short film. The posters are usually simple with one main picture or drawing as the main attraction point, however this picture/drawing varies from a person or object to a location. My poster has one attraction point and that is a photo from behind of the main character ‘Grace’ surrounded by blackness; I decided to black out the background to keep the location a secret, also it draws all the attention to the image and the title, which is bold and bright.
GodFather Death by Star Wipe Films
This film poster is simular to mine as there is one focus point which is the main image, also this image is surrounded by darkness.
The combination between ‘Grace’ and the effective ancillary texts.
Ancillary texts such as posters and reviewers can make or break a film. It is vital that the poster matches and connects with the film; the theme or image on the poster needs to relate to the film as it is advertising it to the public and marketing the film. There are different types of film posters from cinema to DVD posters, each are cohesive and connects with each other as well as the film, this includes the font of the title and information. It is important that the title is in the same font and colour for each poster as it brings them together, as well as this it plays the same part as a logo for a company; people remember the name of the film. Also it is crucial that the text is clear and easy to read, to assure that the public are able to read it with ease.
It is important that the information such as the dates the film will be released, the cast and crew names as well as the title of the film are clearly present on the posters, as these dates informs them when the film is available for them to watch and potentially enjoy. My individual poster included all these essential parts of a typical cinema poster. As well as this, the image I decided to use was captured by a high quality camera which enables the poster to be blown up to the size of a real cinema poster, however this would be very costly, so the majority of short film producers create smaller, cheaper posters.
Each film has a specific target audience which can vary from a certain age group or gender to people which a certain job description or interest e.g. archaeologist may have a greater interest in historic films such as Gladiator or Jurassic Park. Anchoring a specific audience can be done by designing the poster to suit its target audience e.g. for a children’s film, animated characters and bright colours are often used to attract the younger generation.
Each person in our group designed and created their own poster, Leonie and Martyn amplified the modern side to our film by including an image of giant video camera, where as Craig and me based our posters on the period drama section. By doing this we have expanded our target audience, as people who are interested in media studies and the filming industry will be influenced to watch the film by the image of the camera, where as others may enjoy period dramas which will connect better with mine and Craig’s posters.
As well as film posters, reviews play a significant part in the success of a film as negative reviews can persuade other people not to watch the film. However positive film reviews can encourage the public to watch the film as if a group of people enjoyed watching it, they may like it too. Also it is important who requests the film such as specific newspapers or magazines e.g. Vogue or Heat magazine may request a ‘Chick Flick’ which may persuade viewers who are intensive readers of these magazines to watch the film. We all created our own reviews for our own product ‘ Grace’; as we produced it ourselves we would not want to write a negative review as it would be difficult to do, also would reduce the amount of viewers, so each member of the group wrote positive reviews which in the filming industry would attract potential viewers.
Audience Feedback
Each member of the group has a copy of our film ‘Grace’; to receive other people’s opinions about our film we were assigned to present our short film to a variety of people, from different ages and gender. I previewed our film to 6 people who were separated into two groups and asked for their individual opinion. To assure that they tell their honest opinion I did not inform them that I was part of the making of the film they were going to see. Here are their reactions and opinions:
Stewart Aged 45: “The film was different from anything I have watched before. I have never watched short film until now; I can see why they are getting more popular as they can be watched in your free time. The film defiantly tested me on what I thought was real; all of it was believable which made the directors cuts a surprise, good twist”
Jacqueline Aged 67: “I enjoyed the period drama section allot. I never knew that short films exists so I have not watched any so it is hard to compare to an actual film, however the period drama section reminded me of books by Jane Austen as frequently older men marry or attempt to marry women that are considerably younger in them.
Matt and Megan aged 18, both study Media Studies at college: “We think the usage of a hand hold camera worked well as it gave the film a documentary appeal, also made it feel more believable, it reminded us of the film Clover Field which is an awesome film. We have never seen a short film like this, the plot is defiantly unique”
Daniel aged 21: “Grace really tested me on my perception of realism because at first I thought it was a documentary but the ‘cuts’ made me rethink, what was real, or was it all fake? The argument scene was my favourite, if it was fake then they are really good actors because I totally believed that it was real”
Tasha aged 16: “At first I didn’t really get it, but after talking with Daniel I realised what the people were trying to do, test us on what we believe is real and fake”
I decided to choose these six people as there is a variety of age, includes both genders, also have people with cinematic knowledge (Matt and Megan). I am pleased with their feedback as the majority of what they said was positive. This makes me even more pleased of our short film we have produced. Also as most of them understood the plot, our target audience is appropriate as all are over the age of 15. I have learnt that our film accomplished what we previously aimed it to do, test the audience on what they perceive as real.
New Media Technologies
Throughout the whole process of researching and planning for the film ‘Grace’ as well as evaluating it, was submerged in new technologies from the internet such as Firefox to programs such as Photo Shop and Magix Movie Edit Pro.
Photo Shop
(Used for film poster)
Magix Movie Edit Pro
(Used to edit our film 'Grace')
Right at the beginning of the process a high amount of research had to be gathered before even thinking about our film. This research was extremely important as it gave us a better understanding of the filming industry from successful directors who started off directing short films e.g. George Lucas and David Lynch, to different programs such as Edit pro, which is an editing program that I used to develop the raw footage to create smooth flowing scenes.
A new type of technology that I had never used or done before was blogging; at first I was apprehensive that it will be very complex and hard to use, but after practice and many posts later, I got the hang of it and now believe that it is a great way to keep an online diary of this whole process.
There are many benefits of new technology including:
- Can keep in contact with friends and family overseas for free via Email.
- Photos captured by a digital camera can be uploaded onto a computer which then can be transferred to a CD which can keep the images in better condition. Also the quality of picture has improved overtime, as now they can be captures in high definition.
Even though technology has ‘improved’ our way of living, it has caused and created alternative problems such as:
- Instead of people going out to talk to someone or send a letter, they can just send an email or speak on Instant Messenger (IM); things can be planned without exiting the house, yes these methods are less time consuming but what has happened to face-to-face communication?
- Expensive: New technologies are normally connected some way or another to computers and the internet, this means that the consumer will have to pay to have excess to it, also the electricity bills will increase as its usage of it would have amplified. As well as this, if the computer isn’t fully protected (which can cost) and has access to the internet, viruses can be transferred which may result in the computer/laptop breaking.
- Cause accidents: Since mobile phones have become extremely popular, many more road traffic accidents (RTC) have occurred; frequently they are linked to mobile phones being used whilst driving.
As technology is growing it is apparent that camera sizes have decreased and are now designed to be light and easily portable. The video camera we used to film our footage was no larger than an individual pack of tissues; not so long ago the smallest camera was very heavy and extremely chunky, this just enhances how much technology has evolved. Now there are HD TV’s and cameras which also have usb connections, it is amazing, yet slightly scary how fast technology is improving; new electrical products are being designed and manufactured every day.
