Evaluation: Question 1

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

Our film's title is displayed at the end of our film; we thought it would be a nice touch if it was displayed at the end as even if the audience hadn't already pieced together what the 2 girls did (sing) then the title would ensure full understanding that they were 2 singers getting stalked by a mysterious figure.  Initially, the image was just taken from Google, however we edited it on Photoshop to make it more appealing and well suited to our film and the idea we had in mind. After choosing which image we wanted we copied the picture to photo shop and decided to smooth the edges out; by using the blur tool the edges become softer which allowed us to edit the edges better through the Eraser process.

We then uploaded the picture and cropped it using the lasso tool. The magnetic Lasso tool is easier to use as it finds the areas you want to crop, attaching itself to the areas you are going round with your mouse and therefore makes the cropping process easier and makes the picture look smooth; this is the effect we wanted.

The dimness of the image used in our title is conventional as the lights around the mirror have been dimmed via Photoshop lighting effect therefore looking less brighter adding an element of darkness to the title, whereas if the image was to stay the same with the brightness of the lights then it wouldn’t seem like a thriller, however after the editing process it seems more appealing to our film.

Also, the fact that our production logo is black, red and white add to the fearfulness of thrillers as the black background against the white masks contrast, the use of the red lipstick on one of the masks and the use of the red text adds to the ‘thriller’ effect. Also; the production name which is situated below the logo is red which merely says ‘M.A.S.C productions.’   Using red lettering, this fits with the theme of stagegirls; the use of the black background therefore allows the red lettering to really stand out. The colour red has connotations of fear and danger therefore fitting nicely in with the genre of the film.

Throughout the 2 minutes sequence music plays a major part. The music we chose to use in our film sounds like a drum; which allows the audience to anticipate what is going to happen as the music is quite overwrought and tense.  This type of music is particularly common with thriller/ psychological thriller type films as the initial aim is to have the audience wanting to know what is going to happen next and this tense beat assists in getting that fearful element across to the audience. The music is then followed up by a piano being played, this orchestral  piano based music is played throughout the film when Alex is searching for her friends and having the flashbacks.

Settings and location

Initially, we started filming the opening sequence near our college, however our teacher advised us to re-film as part of a better mise-en-scene, therefore we took the constructive criticism and decided to film at various locations that would fit into our film. The locations included: a park, the local hospital, train tracks, pebbled streets and more isolated areas to add to the isolated effect we wanted to create in our film.  The reason we decided to do this is because the fact that the primary protagonist is having flashbacks throughout the film, the film begins with her lying down on the side of the canal. This allows the audience to think why she is there, and how did she end up there...this is also a way of engaging the audience as they will think up their own ideas to why she is there. The fact that we have filmed at the hospital provides information to the audience about the missing characters whereabouts.  The isolated, secluded areas we used is genre conventional as it is popular amongst thrillers to use these kind of locations, for example ‘murder by numbers’ which is a popular thriller, in this film the characters were secluded on a cliff, also; in the psychological thriller ‘Donnie Darko’ we first meet Donnie on a isolated road by himself. The use of the isolated scenes/locations hints at the audience that something is not right and that something awful is going to happen. Also; one of the settings we used was a theatre due to the fact that it is part of the many flashbacks the primary protagonist- Alex has.

Costume and props

This is an example of a typical media convention as every film has costumes and props. In our film props have played a fairly big role; the two ‘stagegirl performers’ who have gone missing are dressed in long, evening dresses, this suggests to the audience that before the girls were kidnapped they were singers/performers as some of the flashbacks suggest; therefore relating to the title. The primary protagonist who is searching for her friends is dressed in quite laid back, normal attire i.e. skinny jeans, t shirt, jacket and a scarf which is an everyday look for teenage girls these days.  One of the main props that was used as a trigger for the audience was the green scarf which gives the audience something to focus on, and adds elements of questioning; the audience is left asking why the stalker took the scarf, later on in the film it is revealed that he has kidnapped them, that is the reasoning of the obsession with the scarf.  

Camera work and Editing

Due to the fact that our film doesn’t have much acting, we have relied/ focused more attention upon the editing process.  Cross dissolves were used to create the impression of Alex having flashbacks; cross dissolves made the character seem as though she was thinking about the last time she saw her friends and where.  The opening sequence also has a number of reoccurring images e.g. the performance, playing of the piano, the camera flash and the taking of the scarf, the fact that we used these re occurring images was because it attains the audience’s attention.

It was vital to utilize close up shots as close up shots show the facial expression of the actors, we also used a range of shots such as medium and long shots, the  long shots showed the different locations we shot in.  We have used the 'layering' effect and made 2 shots combine and opaque by reducing the opacity. This gives the effect of Alex thinking about the missing characters that she has been layered onto. A layering effect followed by a close up shot was used for Alex waking up and wondering where her friends are. The close up shot shows the confusion and sadness on her face.  Another close up was used regarding the ‘scarf incident’ the close up shot of the stalker picking up and holding the scarf I dropped shows that he holds the scarf close to his nose and smells it; this gives a disturbing element to the film which also engages the audience as they think why, the close up shot emphasises on the strangeness of the situation.

Title font and style The name of our production company 'M.A.S.C Productions' comes from each individual group member’s First name. The irony of it being pronounced like ‘mask’ made us think about having our actual production logo as a set of face masks. Eventhough the title 'Stage Girls' in the mirrors quite ‘girly’ it is relevant to the film as it is based on a group of girls, however the ‘girliness’ is  reduced as the thick, bold, solid, black font gives a slight different element.  

The way in which our film has been produced uses the generic conventions of a thriller, therefore meaning that the film needed to be fitting in with the genre we had chosen; psychological thriller, i.e.  Mysterious with an element of excitement. The theme should also play with the audiences mind and make them have to think.  Our film ‘Stage Girls’ fits with the generic conventions of a thriller because it is about a stalker kidnapping two girls and the quest to find them. We use different techniques to bring our plot theme across in the best way possible.

Story and how the opening sets it up


The opening gives a sense of mystery, the fact that someone is waking up in an isolated, secluded place all alone triggers all sorts of questions like ‘why is she on her own?’ ‘Where is she’? ‘What is she doing there?’What has happened before hand which resulted in her being like this?’ then it follows with a range of flashbacks and memories; with not much of a structure.

Genre and how the opening suggests it The use of the piano playing over the opening scene and part of the flashbacks assists the genre conventions by giving an eerie element and also gives a sense of mystery. The use of the layering effect also gives the impression of flashbacks and mind games; consequently our genre being based on mind games with it being a psychological thriller. 

How the characters are introduced

Alex is the primary protagonist shown on the shown in the film; she seems to have woken up...stunned to find where she is. Her shocked, worried expression on her face shows that there is something wrong and emphasises on the seriousness of the particular situation which is nicely followed on by the flashbacks.

Regarding the flashbacks there is a range of footage of Micheala playing the piano, myself and her walking in the park (this is when I am introduced).Aaron, the stalker is first introduced watching myself and Michaela in the park and by picking up my scarf and holding it close and smelling it suggests he is psychologically not right and his instability shines through onto the screen...giving the same impression to the audience of his instable mindset.

Special FX

We have also used a layered effect throughout the sequence; meaning we have layered many clips on top of each other, making it look like Alex is recalling more than one memory. This engages the audience by making them intrigued into find out what is happening, therefore this also adds to the theme of thriller. For most of the clips we have used an opacity effect, this makes the clips seem like memories and emphasise that Alex is remembering her friends and wondering about their whereabouts.