My Own Research

I decided to do some research for the YouTube evaluation, i looked for a few more videos on youtube which can relate to our final product.

I found- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0UjnQGsGKS4

They use the idea of words an questions to the audiences aswell involving the audience and gaining more of their attention.


I also found one of Hollyoaks trailer that involved an annonymous note similar to our notes,

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PzJc7TIsbO8&feature=related Letters were cut out of paper and magazines to spell the word "Murderer"

Evaluation Three - (c) What Have You Learnt From Your Audience Feedback?

Our Focus Groups:

At the very start of production, as a group we carried out a pilot focus group consisting of our class mates, this enabled us to gain a brief understanding of how a successful focus group should be. It also gave us the opportunity to prepare our model questions in order to ensure they were wide enough for our target audience to refer to. This also aided us in making sure our pitch and treatment was clear and understandable.

We then carried out our first official focus group. We randomly selected a group made up of both genders aged between 17 and 18. These people fit directly into our main target audience. However, it was unfortunate that the results we received didn't provide us with the answers we were hoping for which could have helped us improve our soap storyline and character ideas. Positively, there were no criticisms of our product, which could show that we succesfully appealed to their age group.

Once our trailer was finished, we decided on creating another focus group. We chose the most beneficial way was to set up the trailer in a room with an audience of our target group. We then filmed them watching it and then their responses to it straight afterwards. This turned out to be very successful we received positive feedback on things that worked well and nothing was pin-pointed that didn't work well, people enjoyed working out the mystery and found the characters easy to relate to. We then edited it and it can be seen on out soap website.

We also created a questionnaire which we gave to people of our target audience. This was to help us to find out what soaps they prefer to watch and why these particular soaps appeal to them. We concluded that most people enjoyed the good, mysterious story-lines, and found different characters they could relate to. This helped us to incorporate more beneficial ideas into our product.

Our soaps website was also shown to a group of similarly aged people from our target group. This enabled us to identify whether or not we was successful in targeting our chosen age group. Many believed the wide variation of pages and the basic layout was easy to use but at the same time attractive and interesting to read and there was a wide variation of information that would appeal to different teenage types.

I presented my TV guide front cover to a group of random people of various genders and ages to see what they thought of it. Many commented on the use of colour and the designs, many also commented on the use of fonts in order to portray the more important information. They agreed that it would be the sort of TV guide they would happily purchase and read.

Facebook:

We uploaded our trailer onto Facebook in order to receive even more positive and negative feedback, many people commented with positive feedback, mentioning the music, the use of fades to create more tension and the camera angles which created suspicion. Someone said it would have worked better with more of how the girl was killed, but after a debate with other audience members they agreed on it then giving away too much.The people who had access to watch our trailer fit into our target audience.

Evaluation Two - How effective is the combination of your product and your ancillary text?

Trailer

The main strengths in our trailer are the effective use of fades and dissolves. i believe they help create the eery and confusing mood we are trying to create. I believe the music also best benefited our storyline aswell, it helped the storyline progress keeping the audience interested.

The main weaknesses for our trailer would be the length, it is slightly too long for an ordinary trailer but with it being our first and only trailer for our soap we made it long. Also, we created quite a difficult storyline to follow so we explained everything atleast once breifly in our trailer.

Overall i believe that we have learnt many things along the way during the experience we have had in making the trailer.
From day one filming where we where extremely unorganised, even though we had created plans they was no where near as detailed as they should have been, looking back to the filming day one all of the footage we shot hasnt been used, that really shows the unprofessional approach we began with. However, we learnt from our mistakes and began planning properly, we word processed everything leaving it to be easily edited and corrected.
Despite our trailer not being an exact follow from the plan, it still created a basic structure for us to follow giving us room to expand on ideas and our knowledge of the camera work/skills. If i could re-do the coursework my main priority from the beggining would be the planning.

Website

The main strengths regarding our website would be the planning, i believe without the planning as a group we would of run out of time and forgotten some of the good ideas we came up with. I also think we was creative with design and colours attracting the right audience types. We also have character pages and due to the type of software we used we were unable to create drop down menus meaning each character profile would come up as a page at the top, so we put full stops instead and hyperlinked the pages.





The main weaknesses about our webpage is that we could of had things that appealed to other target groups, we mainly focused on youth that surf the web, and this could work against us.



Overall, from just learning how to use iWeb this year im very proud of my success within helping to create a website for our soap, with all of our combined creativity we was able to create a unique web page which best represents our soap and targets its specified audience. With the bright colours and big shapes and writing we have targetted it at an age range of 16-25.

We showed the trailer to a number of teenagers and recorded their feedback, this is also uplaoded onto the website for other teenagers to see what others think about it. If i had the opportunity to re-do the trailer i would make sure we have even more different shots, despite us having different camera work for the same shot i believe it would also benefit if we had more creative shots.

Front Cover

I learnt how to use photoshop recently, i used youtube to get onto step by step guides on how to use photoshop. i also bought a Photoshop starters manual aswell, and so i began structuring and designing my Television magazine front cover. i researched other magazinge guides and i decided to stick to the more sophisticated and modern front cover, despite our audinece being youths i still felt that with students they like to handle things they would never usually buy.

The main strengths of my front cover is the creative use of a black and white backround with the characters in colour and the colour red highlighted, drawing in attention. I also like the panel at the bottom which says IV on it, it makes it look proffesional which appeal to different audiences.

On a negative point the weaknesses in my front cover could be the idea that i dont advertise any other dramas or soaps and only IV, this could leave people to buy other guides which give out more.

If i had the chance to do this again i think i would change the layout and add other things like maybe a competition, for example "WIN a holiday!" drawing in more readers that would read the IV summary and watch it every week.

Evaluation Three (b) - YouTube annotations

We researched other soap trailers as inspiration and to back up our ideas. For example,

Eastenders:

This is the Eastenders trailer of Archie and Peggy's wedding. This supports our idea for having a single storyline, leaving it unconventional.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hDHBOfalY84

Hollyoaks:

This is a trailer from Hollyoaks supporting the questions to the audience in order to involve them more.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0UjnQGsGKS4

The trailer below uses the idea of anonymous notes to help create suspicion and confusion regarding the audience, all similar to our ideas with the IV trailer.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PzJc7TIsbO8&feature=related

Evaluation Three - (a) How Does Your Media Product Represent Particular Social Groups?

Andreas, 18

- He is seen as a comfortable member of the middle class. He lives in North London and aspires to become an architect. He enjoys a regular game of football, currently studying Alevels. Enjoys his evening relaxing in front of the TV, watching documentaries and is a fan of Skins. He is in with the recent fashion trends. He plays guitar and enjoys all sorts of styles of music from Rock to R&B. He enjoys having friends over competing on Xbox and Wii.
Favourite genre of film is comedy and thriller. He is a regular reader of the Sun Newspaper as well as Car magazines and enjoys Art. He enjoys watching Friends and other American sitcoms.


-I definitely believe our soap would appeal to him, especially with our current murder storyline working with his liking towards thrillers. I also think that with many of our other concurrent storyline's his liking of Skins will definitely attract him more, with the young, good looking characters with dramatised lives and problems. His liking towards the more gossip based newspaper could prove his interest in our magazine and website.




Anna, 15


-Lives in the North of London and is also seen as a member of the middle class. She is a young, bubbly girl into fashion and music. Listens to mainly R&B and Pop. Favourite films are Mean girls, St Trinians and Pretty Woman. She's into her pink and fluffy and loves to shop. She has a close group of girl best friends and enjoys sleepovers eating chocolate and sweets. Frequent veiwer of Hollyoaks and Eastenders. She reads gossip magazines weekly and visits style websites and shops online.


- I think our soap will appeal to Anna because shes into the young, bad girl type films like mean girls based around a group of popular girls as is St Trinians. She can relate to the idea of close friends and fashion aswell as the wide range of music styles. Also, positively our main inspiration was Hollyoaks so she would be able to find interest in soaps similar such as IV. Our TV magazine front cover will appeal to her with the young fashionable girls at the front. She would also enjoy the website which is bright and full of gossip and information about each character.



Andrea, 20


-Andrea is in the older range of target audience. She is currently in university studying social sciences, she fits in under a working class background and has been a worker since the age of 10 during her paper round. She likes partying and getting drunk. She has a big friend group but doesn't do "best friends". She listens to mainly Rock and loves a good holiday. Favoroutes Thrillers and Action film over Comedy and Chick Flicks. She isnt one for gossip magazines however enjoys browsing the internet.


-Although Andrea is an opposite character in terms of the target viewers so far i think that with IV's follow of a mysterious murder it will attract her in trying to work out who did what and why. This risky start to the soap would work to benefit us if viewers such as Andrea tuned in. The website is full of time enduring and interesting information and i am confident she would enjoy browsing through it.



Elena, 17


- Is currently an Alevel student, she is moving on to university soon and is seen as a working class constituent. She enjoys shopping and watching soaps like Eastenders, Hollyoaks and Coronation street. Favourite films are Sex and the City, Wild Child and Adulthood. A fan of Skins, Material Girl and Waterloo road. Prefers to listen to classical music but enjoys R&B. She enjoys reading gossip magazines and loves chocolate.


-I feel confident with Elena's interest in IV. Her strong liking towards soaps, films and dramas such as above stated will definitely attract her towards this soap. The soaps friendship conflict, relationship and school storyline's work with people in order to help them relate and feel a part of the soap. Her strong interest in gossip will also benefit from the gossip friendships present in IV. I feel Elena will definitely fit within this category.




Anthony, 18



-Anthony comes under the middle class category, he is at his first year at college he is doing a BTEC course in media. He is a very big football fan and likes going out with his friends. Enjoys watching the occasional soap and loves Waterloo road and Skins. Favourite films are Scar Face, You Got Served, and Rush hour.


- Similarly to Andreas he enjoys his football. He enjoys browsing the internet for funny videos and jokes and he enjoys his regular read of classic car magazines. I believe that being a young teenager he would find the storyline's present in IV easy to relate to. With the competitive nature between many of the characters in a school based environment could also leave him a lot to compare himself to. He may find the IV website appealing with the outake videos and character blogs. I think being a young teenage boy himself he may take a liking to the young, attractive characters that are involved in the soap.

Evaluation Four- What I Have Learnt About Technologies From The Process Of Constructing My Product

1. Photoshop

Applying the new skills and techniques i have learnt on Photoshop this year, i have managed to create many different things throughout my project, including this collage and the TV guide front cover, where i experimented with the blurr techniques, cropping tools and slice tools etc. This is the first time I have ever used Photoshop properly so I feel I have learnt a lot, especially how to use the basic functions of it.

2. Final Cut Pro

Using my developing skills on Final Cut Pro i managed to edit our trailer, i learnt how to cut music and footage effectively adding transitions and fades. I also experimented with different shortcut keys making editing a faster and easier process.

3. Vimeo

This is the video sharing site we uploaded our trailer to in order to make it easier to show and upload to our blogs. It was easy to upload in HD giving us the opportunity to show our trailer in the best quality possible.

4. Google

Google search engine came of extreme help to me, i was able to easily access relevant research and pictures

5. Blogger

I used blogger to upload my weekly schedule, uploading pictures and evaluations of my work.

6. iWeb

iWeb was the software we created our website on, completed on the apple macs. From the group all being new to this software we learnt off of eachother, experimenting with different ideas, colours, fonts and pictures.

7. iMovie HD

We chose to edit on iMovie HD when editing our interview and outtakes, we wanted to take the opportunity in learning two different editing softwares, however this one was very different to Final Cut Pro, there are less effects available and is harder to understand.

8. London Grid For Learning- Audio

Here is where we found our soundtrack from, available to download copyright free. We also used this website last year for our Thriller coursework.

9. YouTube

Here is where we uploaded our trailer in order to add annotations this was also a part of our evaluation task.

10. Apple Mac

Due to iMovie and iWeb software only being downloaded onto the Macs we used them more often. We where able to create and publish our project to the best we could with access to the Macs.

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The camera was simple to use and easily held and balanced, with the wide angle lense we was able to get more of the shot in and in better quality. The Tripod ensured a steady balance and also allowed us to experiment more with the techniques available on the camera i.e. zooming.

We connected the camera to the TV in order for the whole group including the actor to see what was being filmed and for everybody to have the opportunity to comment and give positive/negative feedback.

We connected extension leads to the microphones in order to get as close to the action as possible, eliminating any natural sound coming from the crew and camera. we also used one of the microphones pointing towards an open window, this helped to create a more realistic silence also helping to set the mood with singing birds and distant sounding cars.

Evaluation One- In what ways does your media project use, develop and challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

1. Title - IV: independent Variable

The title of our soap is shown in the first box, it was created on Final Cut Pro, It is the font "Neon" It is also 3D and spins on its axis

We decided on the title I.V simply because of its definition, it is short for "Independent Variable", defined as a thing or object that is changed or manipulated over time. We believe that this best relates to our soap because through the duration of the soap characters continue to develop as a result of experiences and things happening around them.

Our chosen font gives the soap a sense of drama and also helps it remain "cool" with the almost bubble writing effect.

The continuing line which extends in sync with the music plays with the idea that the soap follows a continuous storyline, and also symbolises the idea the soap will be broadcast longer

2. Costume/props - Bedroom

I chose a picture representing the main focus of our trailer, the bedroom scene. It is the most referred to throughout the trailer and best symbolises our characters and soap. It shows a teenage girls bedroom, with close attention payed to the mis en scene with posters on the wall and books and pictures helping to create a realistic feel, leaving audience members the ability to relate.

3. Props- Olbas Oil

I chose the Olbas Oil picture because it was a technique we used in order to make the main character in the trailer cry. It was good fun and an interesting experience, it also really help set the mood, leaving it a lot more realistic.

4. Camera Work

I chose this picture because it shows our group at work, dealing with the sound and the lighting behind, it also shows our effective use of digital technology using the zoom technique and focusing in and out.

5. Editing- iMovie HD

Despite using Final Cut Pro on our trailer i chose to put up the picture of us using iMovie, it successfully shows us editing the focus groups to put onto the website, we experimented with fade in and out and dissolves, we also added black pages in between cuts showing the questions that where asked.

6. Storyline- Dead body

i chose this picture because it is the most powerful shot in our trailer, it pieces the storyline together and the build up to it is flashed throughout the trailer starting from the first shot shown. I believe it broadens our target audience because of the broad and confusing storyline.

7. Genre - Drama Soap

Our soaps story-lines are different as the show progresses so identifying one particular genre is difficult. However, for my picture i have highlighted the main story in the soap, the girl group ganging up together against one girl who is left to the side. With the black and white version it creates suspense and mystery playing up upon the genre of this particular storyline.

8. characters (how they are introduced) - Girl Group

The picture best represent the stereotype of a traditional girl group, close, attractive and stern. It portrays them as being hard to talk to and harder to be a part of, they look like the type to get what they want and are never let down.

9. Soundtrack- London Grid For Learning (lgfl) Audio

I uploaded a picture of the lgfl website logo, this was one of the websites where we could download tracks without breaking copyright laws, we found a suitable track and altered it in order to fit in sync with the surroundings and movements in our trailer.

IV Trailer

We uploaded the video to Elena's brothers Vimeo account, Vimeo is an easy video sharing site giving us the opportunity to upload videos wherever and whenever .

IV Trailer from Louis Christodoulou on Vimeo.

My individual analysis of everything i have done so far

Trailer

Overall i believe that we have learnt many things along the way during the experience we have had in making the trailer.
From day one filming where we where extremely unorganised, even though we had created plans they was no where near as detailed as they should have been, looking back to the filming day one akll of the footage we shot hasnt been used, that really shows the unprofessional approach we began with. However, we learnt from out mistakes and began planning properly, we word processed everything leaving it easily edited and corrected. We added fades and dissolves where we wanted which helped benefit during editing, we also planned more than one shot for most of the filming in order to give us a wider variation when editing.

Despite our trailer not being an exact follow from the plan, it still created a basic structure for us to follow giving us room to expand on ideas and our knowledge of the camera work/skills.

Website

From just learning how to use iWeb this year im very proud of my success within helping to create a website for our soap, with all of our combined creativity we was able to create a unique web page which best represents our soap and targets its specified audience. With the bright colours and big shapes and writing we have targetted it at an age range of 16-25.

We showed the trailer to a number of teenagers and recorded their feedback, this is also uplaoded onto the website for other teenagers to see what others think about it.

Front Cover

I recently learnt how to use photoshop , i used youtube to get onto step by step guides on how to use photoshop. i also bought a Photoshop starters manual aswell, and so i began structuring and designing my Television magazine front cover. i researched other magazinge guides and i decided to stick to the more sophisticated and modern front cover, despite our audinece being youths i still felt that with students they like to handle things they would never usually buy.

The Planning For Group Filming Day One- Three

For every filming day Me and Natalie M organised a plan in order to make our filming days run smoothly.

Day 2- Filming Schedule Sheet

FADE IN

1. Wide shot

- Thegla sitting on the bed, crying, everything in shot.

-Hair down, make up running

-Props: tissues on bed scrunched up, notes on bed, artificial lighting.
2. Close up

-Front shot of Theglas face, crying red eyes, looks down at notes
3.

(i) Point of view shot

- looking down at notes, Theglas hands and legs in shot.

(ii) Over the Shoulder shot

-Side of Theglas head in shot, her head begins focused, notes can be seen but out of focus, she picks up note “WE”, note focuses, head unfocused.

FADE/DISSOLVE

4. Low shot (floor)

- Feet walking past the camera, shadows help to add to the dreary effect
5. Wide shot


- (i) letter box, post dropping

- (ii) Post drops, Thegla walks into shot picks up post

- Props: Newspaper, note: “WE”, basic letters, leaflets (-focus on newspaper to allow audience to understand note later on)

FADE/DISSOLVE

6. over the shoulder shot

- (i) See Thegla putting the note “WE” away from the other notes

-(ii) same shot, Thegla in focus, picks up the note “KNOW” , she fades out of focus, the note focuses .
Props: tissues on bed scrunched up, notes on bed, artificial lighting.

FADE/DISSOLVE

7. Side shot, panning around Thegla from right hand side to over the shoulder-

-Thegla sitting at the table- sorting out her books, getting a pen out of her pencil case.

-when camera stops over the shoulder she opens her folder, turns pages, sees post it note with “KNOW” written on it, goes to pick it up- assuring the audience she has seen the note.

-Props- Folder, pencil case, phone, pens, highlighters etc

FADE/DISSOLVE

8.
(i) Reaction shot-Close up, shocked, loud breathing closes eyes, tear falling.

(ii) Pans around from front shot to over the shoulder- Theglas head in focus puts down note “KNOW” next to note “WE” which is separated from the others, notes out of focus.

(iii) Thegla picks up note “WHAT”, as note is brought closer to her, it focuses- shows her hand shaking.

Props: tissues on bed scrunched up, notes on bed, artificial lighting.

FADE/DISSOLVE

9. Wide shot-

- shot from the hallway, (sound of keys) Thegla opens the door walks into the house carrying shopping bags, walks directly past the camera.

10. side shot-


- Thegla walks into shot, stands with the camera on her side, tips open one of the bags onto the table, and she picks up the clothing- now on the table, as she unfolds clothing, note falls out drops onto the floor- doesn’t take much notice of it.

Props: keys, shopping bags, clothing, note

FADE/DISSOLVE

11.

(i) Reaction shot-Close up, shocked, loud breathing closes eyes, tears falling.

(ii) Wide shot - Thegla picks up note “DID”, as note is brought closer to her, it focuses- shows her hand shaking.

Props: tissues on bed scrunched up, notes on bed, artificial lighting.

FADE/DISSOLVE

12. DID - outdoor scene walks in note is in pocket


13.

(i) Reaction shot-Close up, shocked, loud breathing closes eyes, tears falling.

(ii) Pans around from front shot to over the shoulder- Theglas head in focus puts down note
“DID” with the other notes.

(iii) Point of view shot - Thegla looking at notes in order of “WE KNOW WHAT DID”.

(iiii) Reaction shot – Thegla looking confused but still worried, tears and make up running down
her face.look of recognition appears.

FADE/DISSOLVE

14.
(i) Wide shot Thegla sitting watching tv, phone beeps

(ii) Over the shoulder shot – Thegla opens text from unknown sender

(iii) Point of view shot – text on the screen showing just the word “YOU”

(iiii) Reaction shot – looking worried but not taking too much notice of note. Puts phone down

Props: tv, phone

FADE/DISSOLVE

(v) Wide shot - Thegla gets up off bed and gets her phone

(vi) Point of view shot, phone in focus, hand shaking – text seen earlier with the word “YOU.”

(vii) Thegla places phone in place between notes “WHAT” and “DID”.

(viii) Reaction shot – Thegla looking terrified, panic in her eyes

15. Point of view shot- all notes including phone.


Props: tissues on bed scrunched up, notes on bed and phone, artificial lighting.

BLACK OUT/FADE IN

15. Close-up of dead body, camera zooms out showing a wide shot of dead body lying in the street.

FADE IN

17. I.V appears on screen

FADE OUT

by Elena Christodoulou

Group Filming Day Three- Photos

Theres a picture of me and Natalie M dealing with the lighting issue, there is also a picture where Natalie M is laying on the ground, we believed that this position particularly was to staged and unrealistic so we opted for the more rundown end of the alley, which really added to the realism.

Finding The Music

There was an OCR sheet that had a number of links for music websites, many of them had to be bought and prices ranged from $30-$50.

I found a track i liked from "West One Productions" however after emailing them if it would be possible to use there track i decided to take the safer option and just carry on searching for copyright free music.

I remebered that from last years music problem we found the London Grid For Learning (lgfl) website where track downloads are free and downloadable via the school, however they where still low priced so i decided to just purchase it from home and get on with the editing straight away.

Editing progress

EDITING

We chose to use Final Cut Pro because i feel more confident with this programme and feel more comfotable using it.

I ingested all the film from day one and two filming including the interview scene too, within correct time codes and waited for the clips to render. i used keyboard shortcuts to cut in (I) and cut out (O) of the film in order to save the clips i renamed them in order to make editing easier. For example, during the interview scenes i renamed them as Question one Take two, Question two Take three, Question 3 Take one, etc...

I arranged the scenes in order of the way they come up, for example, the note DID comes before the note WE is found.

............................................................................................................................................

Yesterday (Monday 1st February) I ingested the film from Day 3 filming and watched it through to make sure the sound was alright, because during filming we noticed that the sound was jumping, so we changed the tape just incase it was faulty.

I went through the clips and marked them in and out, renaming them to make it easier to establish between the different scenes. I began editing together the clips adding fades and black outs, i decided a dissolve effect was better than a fade in fade out effect because it looks more dreamy, asif the character was having a flashback.

Our planning was beneficial because i new exactly how the group wanted it and was able to follow through faster. The group came round to see my progress and gave valid points on things which they felt needed to be added and changed.

With the music, i found one which best suited the video, its low percussion, piano with a slight beat 30 seconds in, i like the way it fitted perfectly with the scenes i have editied so far and i wont need to edit the music as it ends dramitally already.

............................................................................................................................................

Today (Wednesday 3rd February) I did a bit more editing, i experimented with a few random shots we'd filmed, arranging clips in order to confuse the audience more, i added a few more fades/dissolves and edited a bit more of the interviews scene, the interview scene is by far the most difficult, we didn't plan it very well and so the shots are all over the place with no real structure to show where everything goes.

.............................................................................................................................................

Today (Saturday 6th February), i set myself a target to finish all the editing for the trailer today and i did. I began with picking out all the clips that looked best again trying to avoid the ones that had the mic boon at the top, after i had found all the good clips, i began arranging them from where i wanted them to cut in. i experimented with the saturation, mids, blacks and highlights, adjusting the warmth of the pictures by adding oranges and more blues to make it colder.
Under Video filters- colour corrector then i had a choice of yellows, greens, blues etc.
I took down the saturation by about 15% , shifted it slightly to the blues.
This was all a part of colour grading perfecting the lighting in order to create the moods we wanted. giving it a uniform feel, making some scenes warmer, for example, the scene with the dust and the sun coming through the letter box. i changed the colour magnitude making the door richer in colour. bumping up the highlights made the sunlighting coming through the letter box sparkle more.


With the IV Natalie N came up with the idea of having IV written along a line, so i downloaded a Font called Neon, under Video Generator effects, i clicked Boris then text scrambler, i increased the reveal time , decreasing the opacity creating the effect on IV....................
I experimented it with 3D by adding a spin in the axis, i then decided to add INDEPENDENT VARIABLE to the IV effect i did the same making it 3D nd put it underneath the IV line...............

To create the words, i clicked Apple V (paste) to keep pasting new clips and on each one i typed different words that best represented our soap, For example, like Love, Revenge, Hate, Success.etc it was rendering slowly so i created new sequence and pasted the words in because the text requires rendering and laying them all on top gives it a lot to do at once so it takes longer.
However one problem i had with the words was when the computer froze, after a quick panic, i was thankful to have saved it just before it closed but i still couldn't add anymore to it but i think i had added enough words anyway so i am grateful that worked out too.

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Some of the techniques i used:

• Additive dissolve- added the pictures together, and as a result the contrast inbetween becomes lighter


• in order to render i typed Alt- R


• During the bag swinging in the trailer i changed shot making it look more effective


• Snap time line, blade it and click A to select it


• One problem was with the mic boon in the top, so we zoomed in inorder to cut out the mic and keep the shot we had selected


• experimented with blurs, motion blur, wind blur, slit scan, bad tv, we finally chose effect light rays because it worked better than just a blur, it gave a dreamy/confusing effect.
• In order to make editing easier for me, i printed off a shortcut guide for editing.

Group Filming Day Three

Sunday 31st January 2010

Today was the day we planned to finish off the filming for the trailer.

We all met up at my house and began discussing the props, we spoke about the lighting outside because we was going to film the dead body scene aswell and we wanted the most beneficiallighting we could get.

We decided to film a few of the note finding scenes before going outside to use the powerful glare of the sun throught the window.

The first note was found through the letter box. We set up the camera up on the tripod and prepared for the wide shot, we positioned it at an angle to the front door which best benefited the effect we aimed for. The camera was positioned by the side of a plant, we decided to have a part of the plant in shot as well to add to the dark atmosphere, we focused on the plant and then focused on the post (pull focus). we also decided to use the dust in the air as another benefiting factor. the overall outcome was extremely creative.

Natalie N was posting the letters through the door, we filmed numerous different shot, wide shot of the hallway, close up of the letter box, close up of the floor underneath, wide shot of thegla walking into shot and picking up post.

In a number of these the note blew out of the pile, we used this to our advantage and took a number of close up shots, narrow depth of field etc in order to show the audience the notes. However the light became too strong so we decided to cover up the window with dark paper in order to eliminate some of the glare.

The next note was Thegla (Andrea) walking into the house, as she goes in her pocket to find the keys she finds a note, we again took a number of different camera shots, wide shot, over the shoulder, tracking shots close ups and reaction shots. With the tracking shot, in order to create a steady cam effect we dismantled the tripod pole and attached a clamp to it in order to gain weight at the bottom in order to equally weight out the camera. attached

The third note was found with Thegla sitting at the table about to do some work, she has her folder and laptop etc in front of her, with our added props like the pens and highlighters it looked very realistic. As she flicks through her folder she sees a post-it note stuck on one of the pages reading another word. For this shot in particular we decided to film from the side establishing where she is and what she was doing and then panning around to over the shoulder, in order for the audience to see the note at the same time as she does. For this shot we had a slight problem with the lighting it seemed very dark as we was shooting against a window again however we turned up the brightness of the camera and it fixed the problem substantially.

For the fourth note, we filmed Thegla walking in with shopping bags, tipping them out and a note being tucked in between one of the items of clothing. This was filmed as a wide shot, and then a zoom/pan of the note.

The last note we filmed in the house was the one she received via text, we chose a realistic acting with Thegla watching television when she receives a text, she simply picks it up to read it and it cuts, a fairly quick and easy scene to shoot. then when she receives the text a close up shot was filmed.

The day ran smoothly and the weather stayed dry, for the final part of our trailer we decided to film a dead body. Natalie M played the role of the dead body. We found a alley way with all sorts of rubbish and graffiti around it, it looked dark and dreary and with the advantage of the beutral density filter it looked even better. We filmed extreme close-ups, panning shots, wide shots and low shots, shots behind trees and branches and experimented with focusing.

My Individual developments

Today (Saturday 30th January) i decided to look through all the footage we have shot and i wrote down all the time codes of the takes i felt where best in order to make it easier later on during the editing stage.

Some of the problems id noticed was the microphone sometimes being in the top of some of the shots, i also heard a lot of crackling in some of the scenes which can be eliminated next time by fiddling with the sensitivity of the microphones and maybe not having two microphones and sticking to the one in order to control the sound closely.

Development of the Website

As a group on Tuesday 24th November we visited the CLC centre in order to learn how to use a programme called iWeb. We was taught how to create our own webpages and also creating games that can be played on them.

People present:

Me, Thegla and Natalie N.

We all experimented on our own computer practicing and experimenting on what was available. We got our work saved onto Cd's and went back to school. however once we had got back and attempted to retrive our work it only came up as a picture so we was unable to edit it further.

So we came to the decision on making a new website together at school, so combining all of our developed skills and techniques we began on deciding which templates and colours to use, I drew out a plan for what styles and fonts we wanted and we began designing.

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The downside of iweb is that we can only use the computer that we started on, there isnt a way of saving our work and moving it somewhere else, so the time we have to work on our website is limited to school hours only.

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Tuesday 26th January

Today i had a look at what the girls had been up to with the website, i gave my input with some of the designs and colours and booked in a day i was going to do some too. We have character pictures which are hyper linked to their pages, which say their favoroute colours, foods, films and music, it also outlines their character type in the soap and has a small gallery of on and off set pictures.

We also added competitions where people can win a day on set and meet the soap characters. This helped it look realistic and can help draw in people from different age ranges.

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Thursday 28th January

Today Me and Natalie M stayed behind after school for a few hours to add a few more things to the website, we discussed colour and font, i suggested to change the font to "Bradley Hand ITC" i felt that this looked nicer than just Arial and it looked more appropriate for a young audience. We also decided to change the colour of the titles to red, this stood out more drawing in attention to the important points on our page.

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Tuesday 2nd February

Today as a group we went through the website again, everybody gave their input, i asked other people in the class what they thought and if they think i should change anything on it. i took in all useful comments and applied it as much as i could.

When looking at the pages i felt as though they seemed empty, i decided to put speech bubbles on the characters pages, i wrote comments from the real characters and quotes that best represented the characters, this helped fill up the pages, making them look more interesting and allowing the viewers/fans to get a real understanding of the characters aswell as the people who they are played by.

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Tuesday 4th February

Today we altered the website again slightly, i asked the group what they thought of the colour on the homepage, we decided to change it to something more plain.

when looking over 'Andrea's Diary' i felt as though it was very plain and basic, Natalie M agreed and so we tried to think of something different to add, i came up with the idea of putting stars on two of the sides of the page, i experimented with the amount of points on the stars i wanted, i added shadows to highlight th

em more, we couldn't find a way of adding colour but the shadows gave a good effect.

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Our drawn website plans and the macs with the website character page open.

Final Draft of Magazine Front Cover

I designed my magazine front cover based on the 'Radio Times' i believe that it looked lot more proffesional and still targeted a variety of age groups. I felt that this best emphasized our soap, leaving it to look more professional and most importantly watchable.

For the design of my front cover, i used photoshop.

I used different colour schemes and fonts, i finally found the font i felt best suited my design and the most beneficial colour.

I experimented many times creating many rough drafts, id finally found what id wanted and i used a tool which made the background look asif it had been drawn, this helped target at the younger audience.

I also advertised the fact that it was a new soap and went against the idea of promoting the first big story line of 'MURDER' and instead stuck with a critics comment.

Pictures from Filming Day Two

Group Filming Day Two

Saturday 23rd January 2010

Today we began filming for the trailer of our soap. Thegla, Natalie M and I met together early and organised set, we set up the camera and the microphone, altered the lighting and organised the props.

From the last filming day being less organised that we had hoped, this time around we typed up all the shots we needed etc (on the blog above)

After everything was sorted on set we got together and went through the plan, we decided to do all the over the shoulder shots first, then allow time for Thegla to prepare to get in character and cry for the reaction shots and close ups. We again managed to get numerous shots from many different angles so that when we are at the editing stage we would not be limited in our choices.

So we got filming, the over the shoulder shots where the hardest, we had to make sure we never moved anything/ or placed things back in the right place before filming again. We had the slight problem with Thegla sometimes moving in front of the camera but we filmed this take so many times there are still many to pick from. Some of the shots we experimented with where: Zoom, close-up shots, over the shoulder shots , panning shots , wide shots, reaction shots.

Me and Natalie M took it in turns to film and to hold up the microphone to which we attached to a pole in order to get closer to out actor and it not pick up our own movement.

With the lighting we used the daylight to our advantage, in the close up scenes the daylight lighted up half of Thegla's face really adding to quality of the picture as well as the emotional effect we was aiming for.

Some problems we experienced was with the text on the phone, it came up very small and the camera found it hard to focus, so we came up with the idea of taking a picture of it from the newspaper and leaving it widescreen.

We also changed the plan slightly, mixing up the order Thegla finds the notes leaving the audience more questionable and confused.

Overall today was extremely successful, we covered everything we needed to and there where no problems throught filming.