Task One-In what way does your media product use, develop or challenge form and conventions of real media products?

When initially planning our thriller sequence, we didn't want to conform to the traditional conventions of thrillers. We wanted to develop our own technique and style, which made it individual. However, we realised, like other triller openings, we would have to make things like the titles still very clear and make the sequence, understandable. We also realised to had to conform to the traditional order of the titles.


Having said this, our first title is very conventional in the way that the distribution company is the first title to appear:

However, as you can see from the picture below and above, we created different layers in our sequence, which created a sense of depth, allowing us to be more unconventional in our style, as this is not a common idea in the opening sequences of many films. Our diary entries we all hand written as well, creating a personal feeling which were scaned into the computer, demonstrating a more individual style to our piece. 

 


























The light bulb that we used in this shot also developed a unique looking piece, which carried a message of the film about time changing, from the flickerin effect that it had. Out next title of the production company also followed the conventional form or titles.

The next title that follows the conventions of a title sequence, due to the importance, is the director. Below i have shown how we showed this. Although our title follows conventional forms, we again created layers, and changed the focus making the titles stand out as the main thing on the screan. We also encouporated smoke though the shot, as we didnt want the background image to detract from the main titles. This is also similar with our next title, with the next most important title, the actors.

The next title we embeded after this was the dirctor of photography, who again, is the next conventional important person involved in a film. The picture belows still shows the blurred, disoriantated effect, however after this shot there is a focus pull, which makes the diary extract appear in focus at the same time the voice over is saying it, while the titles go out of focus.

Our next conventional title is the original score. This title shot, even though had no diary extracts, was one of the hardest to make, as the use of after effects is higly advanced. In this shot, we mostly thought about the sound aspect of the clip, creating the right sound effects as the smoke erases the title-even though this can't be seen in the screen shot. This style is more unconventional, as we encouporated something that we had been using from the beginning (the smoke) and used it in a different and interesting way, to move onto the next title.

Our next title, is the screenplay writer. This shot, certainly doesn't uphold traditional conventions. This is because of our choice of shot. The ice cube, is a new and inventive way of evoking our main theme of aging and time passing. With the sped up melting of an ice cube, we were able to create a new and interesting approch to this theme, which achieved the unique style we wanted, without looking amature-ish. It is also clear at this point that we have been working on a colour scheme, changing the colour of each shot, suggesting a change in mood throughout, each colour representing a more disturbing colour as we continued.

This next title is the production design. As you can see we have continued with that same theme of the previous shots with the title, and the blurred diary extracts. By doing this we have been able to bulid up the message and meaning behind the sequence.

The final shot, is of our changing fruit bowl. As you can see we have again changed the colour of the shot, inton black and white, evoking the deteriotation of our main protagonist. Here we have also again drawn in the smoke and the diary extracts, ans as the shot is moving we are further drawing on the idea of insanity, conveyed through a small amout of things, making it an unconventional.

The title however, continues in the conventional theme of the editor being the next most important person.

The next title is the producer.

Once again the diretors name is mentioned at the end to just reinforce the fact that he is the most important person in the making of the film.

Our final shot is our title, following the usual conventions and structure of a normal film opening sequence. However, we have continued using the idea of the smoke, making the title as unclear as possible, while still being legibal.