Question 4 - How Did You Use New Media Technologies In the Construction and Research, Planning and Evaluation Stages?

New Media Technologies Definition - New Media is a broad term in media studies that emerged in the later part of the 20th century. For example, new media holds out a possibility of on-demand access to content any time, anywhere, on any digital device, as well as interactive user feedback, creative participation and community formation around the media content. What distinguishes new media from traditional media is the digitizing of content into bits. There is also a dynamic aspect of content production which can be done in real time.


Most technologies described as New Media are digital. Examples are:
- The Internet
- Websites
- Computer Games
- CD-ROMS 
- DVD's 


Wikipedia Definition: New Media Technologies

Below I have made a collage of various New Media Technologies I used during my short film project. I have numbered them and below my collage I will state how they helped me.

1. Social Networking Sites - With the use of social networking sites our production group was all able to contact each other. For example the use of Facebook and Facebook chat allowed us to arrange times and dates to film and discuss various information about our short film.

If social networking sites were not available then it would not of been to much of a problem as there would of been various other ways of managing to communicate with each other. Facebook was just a quick and easy solution.

2. Digital Cameras - We used digital cameras during our short film project to take pictures during our production day, during editing and for our location reccee photographs. Taking these photos has allowed us to be able to make our blogs look visual and be able to provide evidence of our hard work.

If Digital Cameras were not available then to be able to make our blogs look visual we would of had to use other ideas. For example we would of had to draw our location recce and scanned them to be able to get it on our blogs.

3. The Internet - The Internet was one of the most important parts of our short film project. We used the internet for our written side of the coursework. We used blogger to complete all work set by our teachers and to provide evidence for pre-production and post production task also any workshops we did and any photos taken. We used search engines such as Google and Bing to research key words, equipment and material relevant for our blogs. Youtube was also used to collect any videos we had filmed to put on our blogs. Any workshop practical research we had done with lighting, 85 filters etc. It was also a place where our short film was uploaded to. We also used Youtube to watch examples of short films in our planning stage of this project.

If the internet was not available to us then completing this project would of been near enough impossible to do so. Therefore the internet is one of the most influential and key new media-technologies around to date.

4. Mobile Phones - We used mobiles phones to communicate during our production of our short film. Our Director Anton would text us latest updates to do with production days, editing and any work that is needed.

Without mobile phones then we would of had to find another way of communicating to each other.

5. Laptops/Computers - I used Laptops/Computers to access all our work. They enabled me to get on the internet and get on with my blog. Also it was where we could scan all our work onto. For example the storyboards in pre-production and our postcard designs. It was a safe place to store all our work.

With out the use and access to laptops/computers then complete this project would of been very hard and near enough impossible.

6. Flip Videos - We used the flip video cameras to record short films and information to post on our blogs. For example when we was on our production day we filmed short films of us all in action for evidence to post onto our blog. We also used the flip videos to record feedback of our short films.

Without the flip video cameras then we would of had to find other ways.. Most probably the solution for this would be to upload photographs.

7. PD150 HD Camera - We used the PD150 camera to record our short films.

Without the PD150 Camera then we would not of been able to film our short film.

8. Edit Suite - We used the edit suite to successfully edit our short film. In our group we each took turns editing on the software abdoe premier pro.

Without the edit suite then editing and putting together our film would not of been possible.

9. Scanners - I used the scanner to scan and upload key work needed to be posted onto my blog. For example the storyboards & postcard designs.

Without the scanner then none of my written work or drawing would of been able to be put onto my blog.

           
  

Question 3 - What Have You Learned From Your Audience Feedback?

Once all three production groups had completed their editing and moved onto there evaluations we decided that as a class we will review each groups short films.

Miss Shipp screened all 3 films in lesson and we all took notes on what we thought of each film e.g. what we thought of the films storyline, lighting, acting, strengths and weaknesses etc.

We created questions to ask the other groups then recorded thier feedback. The questions we asked were:

- What Did You Perceive of the Overall Message of the Film?
- What Were the Srengths of Synchronicity?
- What Were the Weaknesses of Synchronicity?
- Did You Feel the Music Was Fitting With the Scenes And Visuals You Were Getting?

 We used the flip video cameras to record them.

The groups feedback can be seen below:




The first group we interviewed was the creators of Karma. This is the feedback that we received from them.

What Did You Perceive of the Overall Message of the Film?:

- Karma believed that the message of our film was not very clear. They said that the only way they would of understood the message is if they were told before hand.

What Were the Strengths of Synchronicity?:

- Karma believed that the setting we used was a strength because it fitted well with our story-line. Also the props we added in were also effective.
- They believed the camerawork was good with the theme of the story.
- The credits at the start were good.

What Were the Weaknesses of Synchronicity?:

- They felt that the acting in our film was to scripted. So for example the actors did not put much emphasis or expressions into there lines. One of the reasons could of been because our actors spoke with foreign accents and therefore may of struggled to adapt to English grammar.
- The sound seemed to be out of sync and not leveled to the right sound in certain scenes. Some shots were much louder than others.
- The overall message was not clear if it was aimed at the parents or at Isabel.

Did You Feel the Music Was Fitting With the Scenes And Visuals You Were Getting?

- Karma believed that the music fitted very well with the visuals. Especially at the beginning.




We then went on to film the group that produced Fleeting. This is the feedback we received from them.

 What Did You Perceive of the Overall Message of the Film?:

- Fleeting's director Bobbie(right) answered this question. She got that the message of the film was clear. She understood that the parents were lawyers and that they did not have time to play with there daughter. She also understood that Isabel caused the train crash by pulling the train set off the table.

What Were the Weaknesses of Synchronicity?:

- Matt (middle) answered this question. He felt the weaknesses like Karma said was the acting. He felt they came out of character at certain points and would focus to much on there script.
- Also he felt that the scene with Isabel playing with the train set dragged on for to long. This lead him to becoming very bored and not understanding why the scene was so long.

What were the Strengths of Synchronicity?

- Emma (left) said that the overall story line was good and that she could adapt well to Isabel's emotional story.  
- Bobbie said she liked our Mise-en-Scene.
- Matt feels the lighting was very good. For example the blue lighting created by the gels.

Did You Feel the Music Was Fitting With the Scenes And Visuals You Were Getting?:

- Like Karma, Fleeting said the music fitted well with the visuals they was getting.



Once we had finished receiving feedback from our class piers we decided that it would be good to interview a more professional approach and someone more in our target audience range.

We decided that we would interview our learning pastrol care supporter at our school Ms Wright. We asked her the same questions as we asked our class mates. This is the feedback she gave us:

Our Short Film Is Drama. Is This Clear To See?:

- Ms Wright said that is is clear to see the short film is Drama

Can You follow What Is Happening in Our Short Film?:

- Ms Wright said it was really easy to follow. Straight away you can identify who the main characters are and can simply follow the story.

What were the Strengths of Synchronicity?:

- The positives we had was the clock. She liked the way it showed that time was passing on throughout the day. 

- The way it cut between the story and the little girl. You had both sides to the story. 

- The music was haunting. 

What were the Weaknesses of Synchronicity?

- With Isabel hiding. The parents did not panic as much as you would expect parents to panic if there little girl went missing. 

Audience Feedback Conclusion:

From the feedback I got of my class piers and teachers this is what I have learned about Synchronicity. 

The message of our short film had mixed reviews. It is important that when making a short film you're message must be clear for the audience or it will not be successful. It was clear that our piers did not really understand the message but our target audience with Ms Wright did. This maybe is because our target audience our more likely to understand the message as they have experience themselves. 

We had many Strengths. The clock shots were brought up a lot and this was pleasing because it was an important part to our film and showed the time difference of Isabel being ignored. Also the credits were a positive as we felt we could grip the audience at the start with them and it was to our advantage they found them gripping. 

The weaknesses were the acting and this was disappointing as the characters were a key point to making our story line good and understanding the message. This was maybe because we didn't give them enough of a chance to learn the scripts.    

Question 2 - How Effective Is the Combination of You're Main Product and Ancillary Texts?

In this post I will be talking about how effective the combination of my main prodcuts and ancillary texts are now we have made our short films.

These ancillary tasks were my Postcard and Film Review.

I have decided to talk about my own personal view on how effective I thought they was. I also received feedback from other students on how effective they thought they were having watched my short film.

I first decided to record an audio file of me talking about how effective I thought my ancillary tasks were. I printed out my postcard (front & back) and planned out what I was going to say on what I thought about it.

Posted below is my planning that I have scanned on:

I first planned out what I was going to say with the postcard. I highlighted and circled key ideas I thought about my postcard and how effective they are. I then got a sound recorder and recorded an audio file of me explaining the points I made.  

The audio file can be played below:

Ryan by MrsShipp100

Below I have re posted my postcard (front & back) and circled the key points I have talked about. This is because it is a lot clearer to see with visuals. 

Below I have uploaded some screenshots I have taken from my short film that will illustrate the points I have been making in the audio clip.

Peer Feedback:


Once I had finished talking about how effective I found the postcard and film review I decided to ask some of my fellow students for there feedback.

I asked Liam to discuss how effective he thought my film review was and how it reflective when he watched my short film. I asked similar questions to Carolyn and Matt who gave me feedback on the front & back of my postcard.

This can be seen below:

  

Liam gave me very detailed and good feedback on my film review. I learned that that the image I decided to use with Isabel and the train set was good as Isabel is the main character and audiences can relate to her when they watch the short film. Also I learned that in my film review I wrote a paragraph on the importance of the clock. Liam found this very effective as it was well explained for anyone wanting to watch the short film.

Carolyn's feedback on the Front of my postcard was also very well explained and I learned a lot through the feedback she gave me. As I mentioned in the audio clip I uploaded to Sound Cloud the font I used on my postcard was very effective. Carolyn liked it as it was childlike and creepy at the same time. This fitted with the overall message of the film so this was very pleasing.

Matt gave me feedback on the back of my postcard. I learned that the font gets the audience thinking about the small girl that is very effective. The picture of the bear and the lonely figure of the bear will show the audience that the girl is very isolated.

All this feedback was very pleasing and I feel all the work I put into my ancillary tasks paid of as they seemed to be very effective. With the audience feedback I got I established this.  

Question 1 - In What Ways Does Your Media Product Use, Develop or Challenge Forms and Conventions of Real Media Products?

The first evaluation question I was set was to look at our short film and ancillary tasks, my postcard and film review. I then had to state whether develop or challenge forms of conventions of a real media product. 

I first looked at my short film Synchronicity. I selected 16 screen shots from my film and made a grid to show them all in. Below I will explain whether they challenge, follow or develop media conventions.   

My 16 screen shots can be seen below:

  

1. The first shot I have chosen follows media conventions. This is because we have put our titles at the begging of our film. This is where generally you would expect to find titles in a film either over shots all on in one go like our group has done. This was common in many of the short films I watched before we began making Synchronicity.

2. The second shot shows the name of our film. This follows conventions as you would expect to see the name of the film you are watching at some point at the begging of the film. This was common in all the short films I watched for examples. 

3. Shot three uses forms and conventions of real media texts. This is because it sets an establishes the scene for the audience. For example the audience will see the house when the camera pans round with Isabel skipping across the patio and be able to locate to the location. 

4. Shot 4 challenges real media texts conventions as straight away the audience is thrown into the storyline and usually you would get the main characters story built up. But in Synchronicity Isabel's story is built up as the storyline goes on. You can see a two shot of Isabel and Lisa the followed by shot-reverse shot when there is dialogue. 

5. Shot 5 shows Isabel being ignored by her father Simon. This challenges conventions as you would usually expect to find parents playing with there children. But in Isabel's case you can clearly see she is being ignored.  This links to the story when she eventually destroys the train set. 

6. Shot 6 does follow conventions of real media texts as it shows the main character Isabel isolated from her parents as she is shut away to play in the living room with just a train set and teddy bear. In my research I did I found out the main character usually has a problem and this usually relates to the overall message of a short film. 

7. Shot 7 shows the clock that links each scene together after Isabel has been turned away by her parents. This challenges real media conventions as you would no usually expect to find something like this in a film but it clearly links each scene together very well and is easy for the audience.

8. Shot 8 shoes a close up to Simon's reaction after hearing that his train case has gone down down the pan. We have used conventions by showing a close up of Simon. This is because you would usually show someones reactions by using a close up shot.  

9. Shot 9 shows Isabel playing with her train set. We are following conventions by showing Isabel is being ignored by her parents and the train set is showing that Isabel has had it for a long time and is continued to be ignored.

10. Shot 10 is showing the clock-face. It showing a different time to shot 7 and we have followed conventions by using the same shot size and used a cross dissolve to show the differences in time.

11. Shot 11 shows Isabel throwing her teddy bear at the train set. We have filmed it from under neath the table and the train set for effect. This challenged conventions as it was a difficult and dangerous scene to try and film.

12. Shot 12 is showing Isabel pulling the train set of the table. We have followed conventions by using a medium close up to film this. In other examples of short films such as Wasp it showed mediums close ups to catch important parts of the films so audiences do not miss them and it is clear to see. 

13. Shot 13 shows a two shot of Simon and Lisa watching the T.V screen. We have followed conventions with the two shot and also with the shot-reverse shot when they are talking in dialogue.

14. Shot 14 shows a close up on Lisa to show her reactions to Isabel going missing. We follow conventions by using a close up to show her reactions.

15. Shot 15 shows Isabel hiding in the shed. We have not followed coneventions by not using any light or gels. But with her reactions we have used a close up which follows conventions.

16. Shot 16 shows our credits. We have stuck to conevntions by having them all at the end of a film. This is usually where you would expect to find them. This is common to all other short films I have watched for examples.

Film Review:

Below I have re posted my film review. I will explain below how I have used, developed or challenged forms and conventions of real media texts. 

      

I decided to base my film review like an article from the Sight & Sound magazine we looked at when researching into film reviews. It was important when making my film review that I stuck to conventions in order to achieve a good mark for it. 

I stuck to conventions by using the big picture of Isabel at the top of my film review. This adds visuals for the reader and in any film review you would expect to find a picture of the main character or a key point of the film. I also used conventions by placing other film reviews on the side of the page. In the article we looked at you had other film reviews down one side of the page. 

An area where I have broken conventions and challenged them is with the overall text in the film review. Sight & Sound is a very formal magazine for people who are in the film industry. With this in mind I was finding it very difficult to write one for my short film in this style. I decided to break conventions as my film was a short film and you would only expect to find feature films in Sight & Sound. So I decided to base my article as a short film special page and write it out in my own style. 

POSTCARD:

I have re posted my postcard and below it I will discuss how I have used, challenged or developed forms of conventions.  

FRONT:

BACK:

I have stuck to conventions on the front of my postcard by having a main picture of the protagonist (Isabel). In the research I did in Post 16 I found out that you would usually have a main picture of the main character on the postcard. I decided to stick to conventions with this. The picture also was intriguing and this would make the audience be interested in watching the short film. I have also stuck to conventions with a slogan on the back and small synopsis along with the cast list an production logo.