Evaluation Question 7

- Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product?
In reflecting on my progression from the preliminary task to my thriller opening, I can see that my skills have developed and that I've matured as a media student in that time.
The preliminary task opened with an establishing shot of Elliot and I. This shows that there's a distance between us and symbolises that an exchange of something is about to happen. It sets the characters apart and allows for the audience to differentiate the characters. 

This shot shows Elliot's character opening the briefcase. It was poorly directed as his arm is positioned in front of his face. This restricts how much of his expression can be seen by the camera. This was poor because his reaction to what is in the briefcase is a vital part of our prelim task. 
However, we thought our use of props was adequate as we used the briefcase and the light wand to create a Pulp Fiction style scenario. Elliot also introduced his glasses as a prop which added to the humour of the task.


The costumes were unsuccessfully planned also. I was wearing my normal college clothes, as was Elliot and Vickey which made the piece seem unprofessional and sloppy. Although we had planned for all of our costumes to be black as to fit in with the narrative and to create verisimilitude. 
Another poor point of our prelim was that the acting was quite awful. In this screen cap you can see Elliot smirking which indicates his lack of acting skills.
However, this was expected in our prelim as it took a long time to shoot and we had so little time to prepare effectively for it. 

There's an evident continuity error made during this part of our prelim. In the first screen cap, Elliot picks up his phone to ring Chloe's character. In the second shot he is seen in a completely different room which doesn't work to make the piece seem fluent.  It looks sloppy and messy which is why I think I've come so far during this project. 
The editing in the prelim was choppy and showed evidence of a lack of effort and care which added to the general messy look of the video. We used the sound effect of a gun as Vickey shoots Elliot to add dramatic effect to his sudden death. 

For Thirteen, we used an establishing shot also, however this time it was much more controlled and both characters were in costume. 
The shot sets them apart but also signifies that they have some sort of relationship as they both seem comfortable in their environment. 
The props being used are the books on the shelf and the pen and notebook that Elliot uses to make notes about Jasper's health and state in general. 
The use of the books makes the location seem a little more like a therapy room, however the television, radiator and ornaments hanging around almost cancel out our use of props as they do not make the room look as it should. 

To differ from the preliminary task, we used outside shots which helped create a much more realistic sense of things. Having Jasper sat across the pond thinking about what she's done makes the audience question her sanity and her motive at that moment in time. 
Having the branches cut in front of the camera almost makes it seem as though it's a POV shot and that someone is watching her. 
The diegetic sound of the wind and the leaves rustling gives a more atmospheric sense to the piece and creates mystery.
We used shot reverse shot between Benjamin and Jasper to show each side of the conversation. That way, the audience is able to see the way each character is expressing each part of their dialogue. This was a feature that wasn't used in the preliminary. 

The use of split screen didn't really work as we intended. However, the true intention was to demonstrate Jasper's anxiousness and also to represent how hastily Benjamin was making notes. His hastiness is reflecting his apparent concern for the situation and how he thinks that what she's talking about is of great importance and bares relevance to the reason that Jasper goes to see a therapist. This use of split screen was not as good as the use of split screen in the prelim, however it was still important to the narrative.

 We used different angles in the argument scene between Collette and Jasper to ensure that the audience could see different aspects of it.
The mid shot to the right is further away, creating a sense of distance. 

The high angle shot to the left foreshadows the event that is to follow. It looks down on Jasper's hand movements which appear angry and shows her want to push her mother. 
The next show shows Jasper's mother on the floor, dead. The high angle shot acts as Jasper's point of view, looking down on her dead mother's body. Showing the audience exactly what happened to make Jasper so uneasy and in need of therapy. This is dramatic irony as the audience then understands, but Benjamin does not. 

In general, I feel my skills as a director, editor and a media student in general have progressed largely and I hope that this is evident through my work.