Hybrid and Sub genre research

Sub Genre
Genre is defined as "category of artistic, musical or literary compositing characterized by a particular style,  form or content". A sub genre can be any of the above it is a catergory of works that forms a specific class within a larger genre. Some of the sub genres of horror are comedy, supernatural and psychological. The mixture of thse elements create horror films that combines horrific elements with comdeic features,psychological features and the supernatural events.;

Hybrid
The definition of the word Hybrid is

of a mixed character; composed of different elements. A hybrid is something of mixed orgigin or compositing, when two films genres are combined together in order to create a combination of both the films. An example of a horror hybrid is Aliens- a cross between Sci-Fi and Horror.

Mini Brief Evaluation

The Mini brief task, in my opinion, was fairly succesful as we developed many new skills in different media fields which will help in the future to improve my understanding of the different types of media and improve most importantly my coursework piece. The strengths of our mini brief task i believe we had thorough research and planning surrounding the task so we had a solid background of knowledge to work from while completing the task. The storyboard we completed helped enourmously throughout the filming stage as we could use it for the script and the different camera shots that would work to create tension and engage the audience. The research we completed demonstrated that in order to attract and engage your targeted audience then the sequence had to be tense and create an engagement between the antagonist and protagonist characters with the audience. This helped us to agree on the idea of a mother and daughter scene as it extremely relatable to our own lives currently as we grow up and also it allowed us to decide on our targeted audience of 16-18 year olds and parents. Also i believe our filming was also very good in relation to the location and facilities in whihc we had to create our sequence, the filmning clearly represents the antagonist and protagonist characters and creates a sense of tension within the scene.
 However on the other hand i feel a weakness of our group was our editing, as a group we had limited knowledge on the adobe premier production system therefore we found the editing process extremely diffiuclt. Another weakness that is clearly visible in our sequence is the lighting of the location, the scene is meant to be set in the darkness after the antagonist character returns homevery late after a night out with her boyfriend. However as a result of the facilities and time we had to complete the set task we only managed to complete the task during the day which portrays a light scenery.
If i had the oppurtunity to complete this set task again i would refilm the sequence in a darker setting and planned certain facilities in order to convey the representations of a stereotypical teenager and a worried parent. Also i would include more camera shots such as close up shots to reveal the emotions and feelings of the characters in the scene. I feel this would engage the target audience further as it allows to build the connection between the audience and characters which will build the tension and suspense in the sequence. In the future i believe we would have to gather a greater understanding of the editing software to be able to have a good flow of editing and that the sequence is engaging to the audience.

Editing Overview

The editing process can be very challenging in order to make sure our sequence was well structured and equally represented the mini task brief. The task ordered us to be able to use the editing techniques of shot reverse shot and match on action to portray the characters and the events that occurred on screen. In my opinion I believe the editing process is the most difficult, as a group we struggled to structure the sequence to make the clip flow and be engaging to the audience. Also I felt that the sound didn't project well during filming so I therefore added some non diegetic tense themed music to build the suspense of the dialogue and to try and capture our target audience. Overall I feel I have rediscovered many different techniques of the adobe premier editing software which will benefit me going into the coursework task.

Filming Process

The filming process was a difficult procedure as a result of several other factors that contributed to the different micro elements of our mini brief such as Mise en scene, camera angles, lighting and sound. The roles allocated throughout the scene was Izzy and Esme as actors and I contributed as the camera man. Through following the storyboard I was able to follow the three main rules of the 180' angle rule, match on action and shot reverse shot.
Issues
Firstly the lighting in our scene was challenging as our group idea is meant to be based around a nighttime event which would suggest a dark lighting scheme to suggest mystery and tension. However we filmed our scene at half 9 in a bright lighting which doesn't clearly represent the story plot and affects the audiences engagement within the scene.
Secondly the props and costumes available to our characters were limited as we were filming within our school environment therefore essential props such as vodka and a dress was unavailable to use.
Although apart from these small factors the filming process was completed easily and effectively capturing key moments through the different camera angles such as a shot reverse shot. Diegetic sound was also easily captured and the editing procedure can now begin. As a group we aim to edit the footage into a flowing well structured short film including both diegetic and non diegetic sound clearly representing the antagonist and protagonist characters in the scene.

Camera Shots- 180' degree rule, Match on Action, Shot reverse Shot

180' degree angle rule
The rule states that the camera should remain the same side of an imaginary line. The line is drawn perpendicular to the cameras viewpoint in the establishing shot of the scene, the rule enforces continuityof the film. An example of this is in a car chase scene, if the car is travelling from right to left, the next shot must also be shot from the same side, meaning the car has to enter the frame right to left again. This rule should never be broken, as breaking the rule will confuse the audience, especially in scenes of chase, conversation or sport.
Eye Line
Crossing the line when filming over the shoulder shots shifts the persons eye line, meaning that the acttors lines do not match. The two people should always be on the same side of frame in each shot. As a result of breaking the rule it confuses of audience which may result in the audience losing focusesand becoming disorientated.
As a group we have decided to use the 180' degree camera shot because we want to avoid confusion so that the audience can clearly identify both the antagonist and protagonist characters within the scene. This shot will also add tension and suspense to the diologue as the heated confrontation between mother and daughter develops engaging the audience.

Match on Action
Match on action is an editing technique for continuity editing in which one shot cuts to another shot portraying the action of the subject in the first shot. This creates the impression of a sense of continuity, the action carrying through creates a 'visual bridge' which attracts the audiences attention away from slight cutting or continuity issues.
 We are using match on action in our sequence becuase it fits our scene perfectly to allow the flow of the antagonist character Izzy coming in from her night out locking the door and advancing into the kitchen to be confronted with her mother. This shot will hopefully engage the audience and be very appealing to all viewers while watching our sequence.

Shot Reverse Shot
Shot reverse shot is used in diologue to identify characters eye contact to create and add suspense within a scene. Shot reverse shot often ties in with the 180' rule to retain continuity by not distorting the audiences sense of location of the characters in the shot.
The shot reverse will help to reveal the characters emotions in the scene to develop suspense and portray the emotion to the audience.

Story board

Storyboard of the scene 

Dialogue between the two main characters Izzy and Esme

The script

The Script
(Isabelle stumbles into kitchen with her heels in her hand and leans on work surface for support as she is struggling to stand on her own feet. Here we have a match on action shot to exaggerate Isabelle’s drunken state. She goes to the sink and pours out a glass of water where only then does she look up and see her mum sitting on the dining room chair. We have a shot reverse shot to reveal the reactions between the two.)

Mother: (looks at watch) What time do you call this?

Isabelle: looks in shock (goes to speak) I…

Mother: Save the excuses I know you’ve been out drinking again with your new irresponsible boyfriend. Why do you keep doing this Isabelle? You’ve got your whole life ahead of you and you’re throwing it away for some stupid relationship that isn’t even going to last!

Isabelle: How dare you say we’re not gonna last! I love him - why can’t you accept that?! If you’re not gonna support our relationship then I guess I’ll just go live with him!

 

 

 

Media Brief Planning

Narrative Planning
Character plot
As a group we decided to create a family scene where a young rebellious teenage daughter continues to ignore her mothers instructions and creates an argument with her mother after coming home drunk again.
The young teenage character is played by Izzy
The character is best described as blonde rebellious teenage who continues to fight against her mothers instructions and neglects her education in order to be in a relationship with a hopeless older boy. Props used in this scene by Izzy is a bottle of Vodka and high heels, typical of a young female returning from a night out. The costume used is going to be a black dress, fairly short to represent the characters rebellious actions portraying the natural stereotype of young girls in this current generation. Also the colour black also symbolizes mystery and danger which further represents the fact that the pairs relationship is on egde as a result of the characters behavior.
The mother is played by Esme
Esme role is to act the mother of the teenage daughter expresses her worries regarding izzy's future and her behavior which fuels an argument between the two characters. Esme demands izzy's respect as the teenager continues to go against her mothers orders and further tries to bring her daughter back to earth after being taken away in her love affair with an older boy. Esme costume will be a dressing gown and slippers often worn by a female parent upon waiting for their daughter to arrive home from a night out, this costume is used also to represent the natural stereotype of a worried mother. Their are no props needed in this scene for this character.

Research tasks

The Horror Genre
Horror movies strive to elicit the emotions of fear, horror and terror from viewers, the most recognised plots of the horror genre is those focusing around the themes of death, the supernatural or mental illness. Most horror films centralise a main antagonist, also known as the villian, an example of this is in the series of films called 'Scream' The horror genre is recognised through iconography which immediately attracts the audience to the themes of scary settings and gory violence the anagram D.I.S.T.I.N.C.T clearly portrays the macro elements necessary:-
Don't
Ignore
Setting
Technical
Iconography
Narrative
Characterisation
Themes

Setting
Small communities or isolated places in urban environments create the greatest mystery for the targeted audience, the scene and settings set's the tension and suspense which engage the target audience. Also dark streets and narrow alleyways, Large cities or run down ghost towns also connote the suspense feeling of isolation. The most common locations seen in films is settings with a 'dark history' like abandoned houses, hotels and asylums.
Iconography

Welcome Post

Good Afternoon,

I'm Jake Brocklebank, I am currently sitting my media as level and unfortunately only managed a B at Gcse level as a result of a poor final piece of coursework. I find media extremely interesting, how it controls the way information and images are portrayed in the modern world. Without media the world would not have developed as quickly and efficiently than it has, i believe it contributes to massively to globalisation. The AS media course sounds very appealing at the opportunity of being able to create an opening sequence for a Horror movie as well as learning the different terminology and business side in the written exam. I look forward to develop my skills in the different fields from the micro elements such as Editing and Camera shots to the written work of analysing an unseen text. In the future I hope to pursue a career in a media industry linking with sports such as sports journalist or presenter.