A2 Media Studies, Project Summary

A2, Post 25: Main task final

Below is the final cut of the main task for the advanced media studies A2 portfolio:

1. Create a promotional package for a new film, to include a teaser trailer:

A2, Post 24: Ancillary texts final

Below is the final cut of both ancillary texts as set out by the brief:

1. Create a promotional movie poster featuring your film:

2. Create a film magazine front cover featuring your film:

Series review: Game of Thrones (Some readers may find images disturbing)

With the recent debut of the medieval fantasy epic that is 'Game of Thrones'. I thought I would release one of my soon to be famous reviews upon it.

Game of Thrones is set in the dangerous continent of Westeros; where 7 mighty houses are each vying for power over the others. With a mind numbingly intricate plot of politics, war, lies and slander, who can be trusted? And more importantly, who cannot? 

It would seem that everything that could ever go wrong for the House of Stark has done so, the King's hand is dead (Murdered by the treacherous Lannesters?) and Lord Eddard Stark is called to replace him, and with him gone who will guard the Northern stronghold of Winterfell from the prophesied return of the deadly White Walkers? All that stands between the inhuman monsters from crossing the border is a once mighty and noble order that now lies wind swept and forgotten in the catacombs of Castle Black.  And all the while, the vengeful Targaryens amass a mighty barbarian horde with intentions of conquering all under the sun.

The mark of the dreaded white walkers

Such a plot promises for a mighty series of battles, love and adventure. The series is based upon a line of books written by George R.R Martin and currently focuses upon the fortunes of the Stark family; A strong and hardy house of nobles from the bitter Northlands. The series has been very cleverly written as there is no clear line between good and evil, granted you instantly feel affection for the characters you come to recognise, but such is the way of Westeros that no-one can be trusted and each and every person has an ulterior motive and it will be up to the viewer to decide whose side they are on.

The ruthless Dothraki barbarians

The books upon which this series is based has attracted a huge following worldwide and has also inspired a range of merchandise ranging from T-shirts and mugs to board games and replica weapons. The timeline of history in Westeros spans a massive 12,000 years which allows for an epic scope of additional publications.

I personally like this series because it has revived fantasy to a more adult level, no more is it fixed upon magic and unicorns etc and more on love, war and politics. It makes for gripping viewing and has such a complex storyline that even if the viewer did not enjoy it; they would have to watch it through to the end just to tie up the loose ends.

Never have I watched an episode of a series and felt withdrawal symptoms when it finished, but game of thrones I find myself pinning all week for the next fix, and when it finally comes, I'm never disappointment; this plot is so unpredictable and intricate that you truly do not know who to trust or who to feel sorry for.

Watch out for this series and witness the noble houses of Westeros go to war over the mighty Iron throne... there can be only one king, but who will rule the seven kingdoms?

The fabled Iron Throne

A2, Post 23, Audience research

If I was going to create a breathtaking marvel of a piece, I had to have specific audience bracket in mind or how could I pick a target to work to? I could crate the best production in the world, but if the viewers don't like it I may as well grade myself with a U there and then...so, who is my target audience?

I already knew that wildlife films and documentaries have a huge following, but what if I could expand that even further? And how would I do it?

I looked to one of the most popular genres in film today; Action and fantasy, both of which have a gigantic fan base, but what attracted them? I conducted a brief survey to find out:

Out of around 100 people, the vast majority stated that the soundtrack was one of the major pull factors of a trailer, if the music was not up to scratch, then why would the film be any better?

Another major factor was the way in which the trailer is presented, most people surveyed prefer a trailer that leaves the viewer in the dark and wanting more, it seemed that my trailer had to give as much away as possible while revealing nothing... tricky.

Finally, the actual footage has to be of a high quality so as to grab the audiences attention, if it looks like a home movie it's simply not going to make the cut. Which is exactly why I filmed it on my phone... yes, my phone (It has an HD camera and gives the impression of being in the field).



So I suppose my audience was to be those who view action and fantasy movies on a regular basis, perhaps mid - late teens going on to early adults. But how could I grab the attention of such a rowdy audience with something as soft heated and gentle as mere wildlife? Well... simple, replace the usual placid atmosphere with fast shot changes and an epic crescendo of a soundtrack. Nothing to it... well, easier said than done, look back through some older posts to see my soundtrack research, or check out the second powerpoint presentation in which I explain in more detail why I picked this audience and how I intend to deliver.

A2, Post 22, So where have I been all this time?

Location, location, location.... A topic that has been dogging my every waking moment since the start of September... I was to create a trailer for a wildlife documentary, but where would I go to film the wildlife?

Naturally a few thoughts instantly come to mind such as the African plaines or perhaps the great barrier reef, but of course these were WAY out of reach, so I started to think a little closer to home with the following options:

1. The lake district

Admittedly not the best place for wildlife (To spaced out) but breathtaking potential for some panning or even time-lapse shots. Despite this potential though it was simply to far away and I had to find a compromise.

2. Breacon beacons

Not on quite the same scale as the Lake district but far more accessible, now, I DID manage to get here with filming in mind but tragically the camera broke on the first day, so I had to accept that my mountain shots were simply not to be.

3. The forest of Dean

By far one of the most beautiful places in the UK and perfect for filming wildlife up close and personal. The only downside being distance.. after quite the reality check I was forced to look even closer to home, but even still.. it's amazing what you can find when you look hard enough...

4. Blenhiem Palace

Hidden in plain sight was this architectural gem...but it was not the palace I was looking at, it was the 2000 acres of parkland surrounding it; complete with lake and waterfall, this was perfect:

(All below photos of Blenhiem are of my own taking)

The cascades provided the perfect level of drama for the production.

Even the parkland itself was breathtaking to behold and provided some magnificent panning shots

A view of the lake and the park gives a sense of scale to this magnificent location.

The parkland of Blenhiem Palace was used for a large amount of shot, not all of which made it into the final cut. But the setting of the lake was perfect for some stunning panning shots.

In addition to the Palace grounds I also took advantage of a road trip to Bournemouth in which I spent 6 hours in the local 'oceanarium', this provided the bulk of my shots as can be seen in the final out come of my project.

A2, Post 21, Ancillary texts

When I first chose these side projects I thought they would be a walk in the park to be honest. Nothing could have been further from the truth.

1. Make a film poster...
When reading this the first thing that came into my mind was Microsoft publisher, upon using that software I became aware of how amaturistic it looked compared to real world examples.

I enlisted Google images for a selection of movie posters with which I informed my work, I then faced the daunting task of putting it together. After painstakingly learning a new software I believe I have succeeded this to the level I intended.

I initially created a series of options from which I chose the best, and then I created 5 additional designs from that to create an overall piece that encompassed all the best bits from my research.

Below is the rough edit of the movie poster:

Overall I am very happy with this outcome as it has just the right levels of 'epic' and ambiguity to entice audiences, also, in a poll of roughly 50 people from all backgrounds (All year groups and staff), just over  40 said that this poster alone would swing the deal.

2. Make a film magazine front cover featuring your film:
This one was never going to be easy and required a lot of research, I could use 1 of 2 routes;
- Create a totally original piece ;
- Base project around existing publication but add as much original content as possible.

I opted for the second so that I at least had something to use as a template (I am a complete and utter beginner at photoshop).

I began by researching a number of film and media related magazines and ended up with "EMPIRE", a publication I have subscribed to.

Creating this piece was no mean feat, after about 3 months I managed to customise a similar font and format a layout that simulates the real thing to a high standard... all that remained was to add the actual 'filmy' bits.

Adding little magazine tidbits was fairly simple, but when it came to adding the section of my own film I hit a dilemma; do I make my production fill all the space or add it as if it was just another one of the films featured in this issue... I opted for the latter as covering the page in my film seemed to similar to the poster brief.

Below is the rough edit of the second ancillary text:

A2; Post 20, Research into similar products

I am aware that I have already posted some information regarding my inspiration but i thought it best to include some more just to consolidate my project.

In order to create a high quality film trailer I spent a good deal of time researching some trailers from around the film industry. As I was aiming for drama and suspense I stuck to action and fantasy movies such as Iron Man or Stardust. just to get a clear idea, are a few examples of trailers that I aimed to simulate:

1. Stardust (Fairly upbeat fantasy)

2. Pirates of the Caribbean 1/2/3 & 4 (Dramatic with gravitas)

3. Jurassic park (More sinister but great drama)

The above trailers are all very good at advertising films but are they right for my project? I'm creating a trailer for a wildlife film, so obviously a trailer for a horror film is inappropriate (Jurassic park out), but I do not want in to follow the same formula as other light hearted trailers (Stardust out). PotC is left, but what do I do with it? I can not just lift the tune... but I can look at how it is edited, with a slowly building crescendo of action and drama; that's what I will use. But now I needed to look at how wildlife trailers were presented, time for a trip to the BBC.

Time to pad this blog out...

With the dealdine just around the metephorical corner it's time to ensure that this blog contains all that it should...followiung this post will be a stream of entries to make doubly sure that I have met all criteria for this blog.

If all goes according to plan the following influx of posts will include:
- Research into similar products;
- Audience research;
- Locations;
- Shotlists (Hopefully I can get the scanner to work so I can upload the storyboard);
- Time Management.

In addition I aim to include a post detailing my ancillary texts and also to post my final piece.

A2, Post 19, Actual rough edit

Its been a while since my last post, this has been due to frantic levels of editing to glue both halves of the rough edit together, having now done that, here it is...

There are still a few minor timing issues but these will be sorted out in the next hour.
The final cut will be posted ASAP along with an evaluation and the finished ancillary texts

A2, Post 18, Rough Edit

Bit late but I have finally got together all planned filming and constructed a rough edit of sorts that is veiwable at the end of this post.

Only half of the piece is viewable as some of the file types are uncompatible with the software I'm using so after some converting I will be able to post the rest of it.

Please bear in mind that this is a first draft and there are some timing issues etc...

Rough edit 1:

A2, Post 17, Ancillary texts

Brief:

- A promotional package for a new film, to include a teaser trailer, together will two of the following three options:
          - A website homapage for the film;
          - A film magazine front cover, featuring the film;
          - A poster for the film.

I have chosen the second two texts (Magazine cover and poster) and aim to complete both of them inside of a week (I am aware that this is a tight deadline but owing to previous experience I believe I can achieve this).

I will repliate the front page of an edition of 'EMPIRE' magazine and work from that to create the poster.

The reason I have chosen this publication is that each issue features a vast array of items on the cover and keeps the eyes busy when reading it.

I hope to post a powerpoint showing my intentions in the near future.

A2. Post 16, New locations

Having E-mailed a variety of falconry centres across the county I have not been able to acquire a filming date so I am resorting to filming at Blenheim palace, at both the cascades and the butterfly house; 

As the photograph above shows, the grounds of the palace should provide a perfect setting for wildlife filming and they are home to a wide range of water fowl.

These are the Cascades, an ideal setting for herons and kingfishers or even a simple panning shot,

It may be cheating ever so slightly, but the specimins that can be found in the butterfly house are breathtaking and are easily filmed. 

A2, Post 15, PROGRESS!!!

It has been a while since my last post to say the least but never fear, I have returned. And not only that, I have returned with news of progress... and substantial amounts of it.

Over the last few weeks I have been occupying myself with a last ditch attempt at filming wildlife which I pulled off and I have now (After facing innumerable technical difficulties) have produced a rough edit of my final piece.

In addition, I have been experimenting with photography and set up a Flickr account (Cook4472 if you are interested).

School network allowing I aim to post this rough edit within the next few days, in the mean time I will focus on preparing a torrent of posts to compensate for the gap in activity containing film/documentary reviews and a few editions of the pipeline.

Film 2: Stardust (WARNING: Contains spoilers)

I thought it had been a while since my last film review so here is a review of 'The fairytale that won't behave'; Stardust.

Stardust is a fantsay adventure thatis both the perfect fairytale and one of the most originol plots I've seen in a very long time. Featuring treasures, kings, witches, pirates and magic; this film is one of 2007's greatest box office sucess stories.

Stardust was directed by Matthew Vaughn and features a star-studded cast (No pun intended) including Robert De Niro, Claire Daines, David Walliams, Rupert Everet, Ricky Gervais, Mark Strong, Michelle Pfeiffer and many more.

---------SPOILER STARTS HERE---------SPOILER STARTS HERE---------

The film opens in the small English village of Wall, unknown to the residents, their quaint little village shares a border with the fantastical hidden kingdom of Stormhold. A guard is posted at a gap in the wall to prevent anyone passing through, at the start of the story, Dunstan Thorne evades the guard and meets a young slave girl in the local market. 9 months later a baby arrives at the foot of the wall guard.

19 years later and Tristan Thorne (the baby) has grown up and dreams of courting the girl from down the road. In order to win her favour and gain an advantage over a competing suiter, Humphry, he vows to cross the wall and collect a fallen star.

The star in question was knocked from the sky by the pendant of Stormhold's dying King who has sent his 7 fratricidal sons to capture it. The stone has lost it's colour, claiming that only a son of Stormhold can restore the ruby and the King's last words, each of the 7 princes then methodically (And amusingly) assassinate each other until only Septimus and Primus are remaining.

To assist his son, Dunstan reveals the identity of Tristan's mother and supplies him with a Babylon candle, a magical devise that can take the bearer to the place they wish to be most. The candle is lit but Tristan breifly thinks of the star and is taken to the crater where it fell only to discover that the star is in fact a beautiful woman called Yvaine (And she is wearing the pendant).

Tristan takes the star with the intention of returning her to his bride to be. As they travel it becomes clear that he was not the only person who wanted the star. A group of fanatical witches are seeking Yvaines heart in order to gain eternal youth, led by the queen of witches Lamia, they pose a major threat to Tristan's efforts.

After a run on with the witches that they barely escape, things go from bad to worse when Tristan discovers that Prince Septimus (Now the only remaining son) is seeking him out for the pendant, after a number of dramatic conflicts (One of which involves a highly amusing Captain Shakespeare (De Niro) prancing around in dresses and fighting to the can can) each character is in a race against time to reach the wall. Tristan realizes that people from the magical world cannot cross into the real world and attempts to stop Yvaine before she crosses, just as he does this, Lamia arrives and captures them along with a slave girl she caught before hand (Tristan's unknowing mother) and takes them to her lair.

Septimus and Tristan arrive at the castle and barge in on the 3 withes and a scene of magical chaos ensues, after a worthwhile last stand, Septimus is killed. Thinking that he has won the day, Tristan moves towards Yvaine, but Lamia has one more trick up her sleeve, using a voodoo doll, she brings Septimus back to life for one last fight. Once Tristan has dealt with the witches using the raw power of the star herself he takes the ruby from the floor to return to her, in his had it turns red. Una (the slave girl) reveals her identity as the missing daughter of the dead king, making Tristan the surviving male heir to the throne.

Tristan and Yvaine are wed and become the rulers of Stormhold in a stunning coronation scene featuring a guest list of all major cast members.

------SPOILER ENDS HERE------SPOILER ENDS HERE------

One of the main reasons as to why I enjoyed this film so much was it's level of unpredictability, with most fairytale plots the viewer can easily guess what is going too happen next, this is simply not the case with Stardust. Which each new scene the audience is transported to another area of fantasy that is both totally original and inspiring, be it a flying ship that catches lightning or a cosmic star that is actually a human.

Special effects and CGI also play a major role (As is the case with most films) but is not over used and has been well placed in the film by adding to the sense of fantasy without making everything seem overly artificial, the conflict between Tristan and the witches is particularly well executed.

I would highly recommend this film to anyone of any age. Featuring a good mix of love, drama, action, magic and thrills it makes for a wild and enthralling production. 

A2, Possible soundtracks

Just as a warning...this is going to be a BIG post...

Proof that some degree of progress is being made:
I am now scouting the Internet and other areas for ideal soundtracks to accompany my final piece, what I am looking for is something that either builds suspense or drama, or just a straight forward epic...the following are a few clips of possible tracks from popular films.

Whether I actually use these or a totally different piece is yet to be determined, currently I am carrying out a preliminary search...

This is the main score from the well known Pirates of the Caribbean and is one of the most recognisable scores out there:

Now, this sort of thing would be perfect for my piece, it is fast paced, dramatic and well arranged, but the reason I will NOT be using this or indeed any others from this film is simply because they are so iconic and I am creating an unique piece. My trailer would simply not be taken seriously with such a familiar score.

Equally dramatic but not quite as well known, the next track is from the film Stardust. The track is called 'Corronation' and creates a perfect mood of awe and majesty. This will undoubtedly be in my final short list or at least in a few mock ups:

The above clip compliments the slow and majestic and would fit well along side long dramatic shots of landscapes...this next one (Septimus) is from the same film and would better suit a faster set of clips but may not fulfill the 'epicness' of the piece:

Another ideal piece would be the many soundtracks from the film The Rock, almost all of which include fast paced rhythms with epic crescendos.
The chosen track from this film is considerably longer than my time frame and will have to be chopped but it still has a lot of potential (Rock house jail):

Pay attention to both the start and the half way point (Around 4:00 onwards).
Finally, a very fast paced and action packed score:
This ios the main theme for The Dark Knight, an almost perfectly fills the criteria of what I am looking for:

A2, Resarch into similar products

Having finally figured out a way to upload multi-media files onto the blog, here is an example of the kind or product I am hoping to produce.

Trailer for 'Life', produced by BBC and Discovery:

In addtion to this, once 'Scribd' starts behaving, I will upload another Powerpoint presentaion outlining current progress and plans.

Doc 1: Nature's great events; The great tide.

Another new installment, seeing as I am creating a documentary trailer for my A2 project, I thought it would make sense to review some documentaries in order to appreciate how they are put together.

The first documentary I will review is an episode from the recent series; Nature's great events (BBC 2). Specifically, the final episode; The great tide.

Nature's great events is a wildlife documentary centered upon some of nature's greatest spectacles such as the Salmon run in North America or the great migrations of Africa.

To me, the most inspiring and influential episode was 'The Great Tide'. This hour long production features the migration of over 1 billion sardines along the coast of Africa and their struggles as they face the largest gathering of predators on Earth.

Narrated by the great Sir David Attenborough, this is a timeless piece that I have watched over and over again with a never diminishing enthusiasm.

The program centers around the plight of a shoal of sardines as it travels along the East coast of Africa, gradually, they join up with other shoals and become a vast school of over 1 billion fish. All this food is bound to attract attention... so much attention that it becomes arguably the largest gathering of predators in any one place.

The fish face an army of innumerable Sharks, Dolphins, Gannets and Seals. These predators all come together for a beautiful yet macabre under water massacre, Sharks and Dolphins attack from below, Gannets from the air and Seals from the shore prevent any chance of escape. The final few scenes almost resemble a sci-fi movie with the Gannets plunging into the sea at break neck speeds and Sharks writhing in and out of Dolphin squadrons. Filmed from planes, boats and divers, the action can be exquisitely viewed from all angles.

This program features some of the greatest filming and editing of any production on television.



It is this program that is the main reason for me choosing my A2 project, the dramatic sound tracks combined with the amazing camera work make a visually stunning masterpiece that is a true testament to the abilities of the BBC.

I highly recommend this program and the entire series to all and will continue to review documentaries of this genre in the future.

A2, Summary of project and progress

OK, well...over half of the allotted time has elapsed and now we are on the 'home straight' as far as the project is concerned. To mark this and to give a re-cap as to what is going on I am preparing a Powerpoint presentation detailing exactly how the project is going and evaluating current progress.

It is still in the making but should be uploaded to this blog by Thursday, closely followed by this months edition of 'The Pipeline'.

The presentaion will include:

• A summary of my chosen brief;
• Current filming progress;
• Current locations;
• Research into similar products;
• What I am aiming to achieve;
• Half way point evaluation;

I am hoping I wil be able to include the trailers from which I have taken my inspiration but that all depends upon the school computers at the time.

Thats all for now...up next (Within 30 mins), another film review.

A2, Post 12, Filming update

Hello and welcome back, hope you had a good Chrimbo etc... anyway...back to the good stuff:

In my last post I explained that my camera was not holding it's power after extensive charging, this problem has now been fixed and filming has resumed!

Since fixing the camera (A simple change of battery was all that was required), I have managed to film in a variety of locations including Blenhiem Palace, Foxfield Country Park and Oxford Aquatics Pet Outlet.

In addition, I have discovered that the camera on my new phone is capable of HD footage, once I have figured out a way to re-format the files for mac I will be able to raise the standard of all previous filming.