Evaluation 1

1. In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of media products?


Many of my techniques for acquiring the footage I needed for my film involved using or being inspired by current ideas. After seeing the stability and accessibility benefits of using small, high-resolution cameras such as DSLRs I decided to use a few for my film. The sensors in DSLRs are more sensitive and generally better quality than other hand-held cameras, without spending thousands of pounds. I also built my own camera rig which proved extremely useful for moving shots or to steady the camera when in a location that did not permit carrying tripods.

Here is Adam Colton, an extreme sports film-maker using a DSLR with a camera rig (left) and myself (right).

The music in my trailer is of a similar genre to other adventure-sport films. This genre of music appeals to the new generation of perceived 'gung-ho' youth. Here is an example of similar music used by Red Bull.




Powerful diegetic sound effects that were not recorded on scene such as the heart beat-like sound and the tinnitus after an accident appear in both this trailer (left) and my trailer. These sounds help enhance the atmosphere whilst showing the break of equilibrium through the character's eyes.

The mise-en-scene is similar in other adventure-sport films (Black Diamond films, left) mainly due to the equipment and surroundings. In both the BD example and the screen-shot from my trailer you can see specialist equipment being used such as prussik, ropes, belay devices, etc. By filming this equipment in use the viewer is somewhat flattered as they know and understand what this equipment is for.












The stunning, mountainous backdrops add to the immersive diegesis when constructed and positioned effectively in the camera frame. As shown in the BD screen-shot and in mine (right), the frame has been delicately composed to effectively fit all of the subjects in.

 














The Collective Film's short-film, "Seasons" features seven riders as the main characters. "Strength In Numbers" by Ant Hill Films is another example of a small group being used as the main characters. According to many famous psychology memory models, approximately six 'chunks' of imformation is the most ideal amount to store in short term and long term memory.

This means that by featuring roughly six (or less) characters in your film, all of them should be easily memorable after watching the trailer or film. My trailer conforms to this idea of using a small group - big enough to show individual differences in characters but small enough to recall each member - as my group size is five.

The narrative of my trailer is also very conventional to the genre: a group of characters go on adventure, equilibrium is broken when a character is in danger of death, the person is saved/recovers and finally joins the group and restores the balance. This plot is identical to Touching The Void for example. It is very simplistic but allows room for very individual experiences to be portrayed during the film. The final stage, the restoration of equilibrium, is not shown in trailers of this genre. Much like my trailer, in 127 hours the main character has his life threatened and we do not see much more - this leaves the audience wanting to complete their experience of the film by watching the feature-length version.


I found myself presenting titles and credits as selling points or as key information throughout my trailer as other trailers do too.

My trailer also subverted some concepts that are common or conventional of the genre.
For example, the only dialogue in the trailer was the swearing in the beginning scene - this helps exaggerate the sweating and make it stand out as more potent and meaningful than it would have been if there were lots of dialogue. Most trailers are more consistent though and either have no dialogue or a commentary throughout. Whilst my trailer seems less professional by having this snippet of dialogue, it has a potent affect on the audience.

Aim for Eddie Trailer

The first third of my trailer used diegetic sounds only, as the last two thirds used music to build atmosphere and tension. Again, most trailers tend to be more consistent with their approach.


I have pushed the boundaries of conventionalism when it comes to relatability: whilst frequent facial expressions is nothing out of the ordinary, the inclusion of overt POV shots (left) where the perspective is clear or even part of the filmer is visible is a gamble of mine, sacrificing professionalism for a more powerful feeling of impressiveness. The audience are not just watching us perform sports, they are doing them and filming them with us.




 



Here the shadow of my arm and camera is one of the main subjects and stands out thanks to the contrast in light. It makes the scene relatable and helps the audience feel as if they are in the world we have created.

Here is a car mirror shot. This is the kind of view a person would get if they looked out of the car window - again, helping the scene become relatable.







Here is a shot of Mike holding my rig whilst I am filming with a set up tripod. We can make the audience feel like they are involved by showing the filmer in the shot - this technique is also useful as it almost creates a shot reverse-shot effect where we can use visual subjects to create a clean transition between shots.This challenges the conventions of the genre at present but I would not be surprised to see it becoming more common in the future, especially as many sports videos are of athletes with skill levels so far beyond the common person that the films are no longer very relatable.