Creative Critical Reflection
Midway Creative Reflection
Halfway through the project, I completed an interview with regards to the progress on the course. The video shows all of it.
Peer Review
Similar to the first assembly feedback, I have shown the final edited opening to my peers and we sat down for a first-time reaction and I collected their review on the video.
Here are some of the summary of their points:
SC Productions:
- the narration is still unclear
- for a romantic comedy genre, the tone is a bit too serious
- the part 'Don't Go', seemed a bit comical.
- the (sound) feedback was obvious, the sound editing needs improvement.
- Apart from those, everything seems okay.
Midnight Productions: (Apologies for the vertical video and the noisy background)
- the acting was really good
- colour grading adds to the atmosphere
- shaky camera movements
- subtitles positioning needs improving
- things could be more realistic, such as acting or clothing.
Director's commentary
I have decided to complete a director's commentary based on the AS Exam Question; How is meaning created in this extract? This is a screen recording along with my voice on top, breaking down each scene and every micro element on how they construct meaning in the opening.
Creative Critical Reflection
This Creative Critical Reflection is a similar video to the Midway Review but the questions are now answered after the final cuts and editing of the film. We are to critically reflect on what we have done with ourselves and this project and we are to creatively display it using different types of multi media.
1. How does your product uses or challenge conventions and how does it represent social groups or issue.
In this video, I have included almost EVERYTHING I need to talk about to answer this question. Example clips and videos about codes and conventions used in a similar genre and what kind of social group or issue is brought up to light in this video.
My film includes hot and clumsy but unique characters, high school setting, realistic romantic story, typical student props, the theme of love, and depressing situations and some exciting events. Codes and Conventions are usually said together. Codes are systems of signs in which creates meaning below the surface we see. This is made through the object, colour, clothing set. We use it in a way that will accomplish the goal or the visual that we wanted to create. You may see through my idea development page, we had a certain image that we wanted to create and develop a certain meaning through it. In my midway critical reflection, I had mention certain groups or issues that we wanted to highlight in our film. This question could be about how we use codes and conventions to represent a certain social group or issue which is the second part of the question. In representation, it could be all about the mise-en-scene of the film. Our meaning is to create an understanding of the importance of youth and puberty and the feelings they adopt shall not be bypassed as a childish act and are recognized as important stages of growing up. Especially children these days in the modern world, I feel as though my age group 16-17-18 y/o are being neglected. We are forced to study, to work to achieve our dreams, but our feelings, the things that our brain develop to think, is not well supervised and are neglected which highly leads to us being prone to depression, anxiety or other mental health problems. BUT our film is nothing dark or any sort of that genre, that is why we are using the convection GENRE to portray this issue. There are sometimes stereotypical signs that appear in certain conventions. Like for horror movies or thriller movies. But we decided to choose the idea of romantic comedy to highlight the inside deep secrets of high-schoolers. This is irony. Or juxtaposition. Basically putting two opposite ideas together to create a contrast a hopefully the meaning is popped up to the mind to the viewers. We’d like to give audience gratification as well as raise awareness through the convention of the genre.
According to the peer review that we have, I believe we were not able to fully comprehend the meaning to the viewers as it may come off as either serious or funny which doesn't show the subtext of our film but only sees the upper surface of the film. I believe if we were to show the entire film, in which the story has a moral, it would allow the audience to understand and appreciate what we were trying to create. I do feel like we are reaching that point to create irony or juxtaposition to make a contrast in conveying the meaning but it is not yet efficiently accomplished due to the confusion that is made instead.
Secondary Research on YT
about lighting
In conclusion as a summary, we may or may not have challenged conventions to represent a certain group/issue to the audience and it is a question of whether the audience can understand what kind of meaning we are trying to present and whether they are able to participate as active audience to look beneath the surface of this romantic comedy drama.
2. How does your product engage with audiences and how would it be distributed as a real media text?
In this video, I talk through the target audience that we try to aim at and specifically mentions the LCAGES that we're trying to get to. I also mention how gratification theories are accomplished in this film and talk about the reasons behind choosing certain media platforms.
In the video above, I only talked about how I would distribute them as real media text, and not actually did it. Below videos are some secondary research that I've conducted in order to explore how to use social media to get our my film out there if it was real. As I see with what other short films do is they create a trailer, and post them on Youtube, but they always have another way of distribution through social media such as Instagram or Facebook. Snippets of clips are posted on their pages or behind the scenes videos are uploaded to hype the users and followers of the page to get them to watch the film. An official poster is also created to advertise it on different walls/timeline on different media platform, not only limited to social media. I did not take them in action because I didn't think it was necessary for this coursework but research is carried out to analyse what would be the difference if it were to be distributed through these means. My colleagues working their own coursework had the idea to try out this tactic by making an official Instagram page for their production company. We could've done the same but with the limited time we did not go for it.
In conclusion as a summary, as our film is to replicate a Korean drama, our target audience is mostly teenage females but it is not limited to them as personal preference plays a huge part. It could be open to all genders and age who are interested in this kind of genre. As we are targeting the modern lifestyle, we are planning to distribute through social media which is very widely used. Next terms of distribution could be through submitting in competitions to get to a wider demographic and geographic market.
3. How did your production skills develop throughout this project?
This self vlog interview video talks through every skill that I have developed throughout this project and how it had changed me personally and my approach to life as a whole.
I used the app TopTrumpIt, a mobile app where you create on your own, to show how much my skills have changed and developed over this project. The Hardware and Software grades are out of 10 (being the best). ​
This question is very straightforward about the changes that I find in myself as I went through this and the video answers EVERYTHING in details about what had happened to me. In all honesty, it is not just 'developing' skills but also 'picking up new' skills. I've never used Premiere Pro, I've never had to make a website, but now I do. And this is picking up new skills which I now love and wants to continue to develop more. I have previous experience in filming and story/script writing but through this project is where, I am able to push myself and find myself where my limits are, and to exceed them. Before it was just a small task/class project but now it is my Media coursework. Not only am I applying these skills that I've got into my studies, but also a wider contribution to the society outside, such as the film competition that I've mentioned down below. I would also like to learn the use of technology more outside of this course which could be beneficial to myself in the future. I could do this by, starting with, reading books from the library which I have total access to. Or even easier, actually trying out new tutorials on Youtube. I could put my practice to use by making short films or even try it out in photography.
In terms of skills developed as a writer or an organizer, I could apply them in other ways. I would like to explore my creative story making skills by writing short stories or scenarios. Sometimes I put them to actual use with groups and writing clubs online. As an organiser, this skill could be used in almost everyday work and use it to improve me as a leader.
The submission for the AAYFF; and experimental short short (not a narrative, does not fit into any category, and under 60 seconds)
"an Ode to Solitude"
In conclusion, being a cameraman, editing, directing and organizing has helped me grow as a whole. They are all the underrated skills that we actually learn and develop through this project. Not only the media-related skills are nurtured, but also other unrecognized skills such as time management or leadership is also developed through the course.
4. How did you integrate technologies - software, hardware, and online - in this project?
Hardware and software are mostly related together and online can be part of software. For this question, this is about anything else apart from our brains that we have used to make this video/film by actual objects and programmes or research articles and Youtube videos online.
For referencing all the online integration I have done.
For referencing all the software integration I have done.
In conclusion, this project would be almost impossible without the integration of hardware, softwares and online resources. But because we are independent and are able to choose on our own, the Internet has guided us to what hardware and software we need as well as on how to use them to improve our films.
Software Integration
This is an example of software integration which uses Photoshop, a photo editing software, to create our movie poster.
The example below is a hardware integration which uses my camera, Nikon D5600, a DSLR camera, and the functions that I've learnd throughout this project and integrating as part of my film opening sequence.
