Email to college counciler asking permission to interview and film

This is an email we sent to a counciler in college asking for his permission to interview and film him.

Lapse short film evaluation audio

First meeting plans of ideas

Cant read cant write documentary audio

Music video evaluation (Beyonce- If I Were A Boy) audio

Typing sound

I really really like the idea of being able to hear the person typing as text comes up on the screen. What i think would be a really good idea is if in the documentary, we maybe begin or end with the definition for binge drinking and have the none diegetic sound of the typing, and that being all that the audience can hear for the first few minutes.

Britain's Youngest Boozers mindmap

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Documentary- Britain's Youngest Boozers.

This is the documentary that I chose to evaluate as I thought the aim was similar to the aim of my documentary which is to highlight how bad binge drinking among teenagers in Britain actually is.

Ideas found online for documentary

When I was looking online I came across this clip from a fashion show, although it isn't an example of a documentary and there are very little comparisions to the documentary were looking at making, but it shocked me, i didn't expect it, and i think we need to try to make sure we think outside the box and keep the audience interested by making sure it's not a documentary they would have seen a thousand times before.

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Ideas for binge drinking- documentary

I think the facts and figures in this is really good. I particularly like how realistic it is and think this is the sort of look we should aim for. It made me realise as well, when were shooting on the field and it's a bit dark, we will have to think about lighting and how we will be able to see what we've produced, this could be a problem and so I think we will have to. As we are targeting females, I think the pregnancy test is a good idea because it shows the lasting effects that binge drinking has.

Video highlighting effects of binge drinking on females

This advert has the same target audience as we do for our project, this is young female girls. It is effective because the audience can relate to a time when they perhaps were in that state or have seen others like it. It is also a national advertisement by the Government which is what we have planned our distribution to be. The documentary instead being shown in secondary schools/colleges.

Plan of ideas

This is a rough plan of our ideas when we were brainstorming. It shows our basic ideas which we will then later develop further.

Music video evaluation (Beyonce- If I Were A Boy)

The main reason that I chose to evaluate If I were A Boy by Beyonce Knowles is because it defies some of the stereotypical roles of men and women in the video. The target audience of this song is wide; it’s aimed at females, predominately those who are fans of her previous music, I also believe that it attempts to reach out to men who take their partner for granted. Beyonce steps into a stereotypical male role in this song and video, she is trying to emphasise some of their actions and the consequences of them.
The first shot in the music video is a medium close up of the female and then it cuts straight to the male character, this is so the audience can see the expressions on their faces, the narratives in this particular shot are very important as the female says ‘Intimacy’ whereas the male says ‘Honesty’, in society, we stereotype it to be the female who is more honest and trustworthy so already there is a play on this. After the short introduction, then the music begins. As Beyonce is walking down the stairs, pull focus is used in order to capture the audiences’ attention on just her and not on the surroundings (this is also seen when the roles are reversed and it is the male character walking down the stairs), it then immediately cuts to a wide two shot, this enables us to see both the characters, a medium shot is then used whilst the male sits down and the female character remains standing this is so that it appears as if she is over powering the male character and is the more dominant personality in their relationship. The props used here are those typical of ones in a kitchen at breakfast, for example crockery, clock, cups and a table and chairs this is to keep in line with the verisimilitude and the diegesis that it is morning (also as this scene is taking place the lyrics say ‘I role out of bed in the morning’ which further helps create the image it is breakfast time). A shot reserve shot is used to show both characters and how they are feeling, even though there is no dialogue we can clearly see there thoughts. Once again as Beyonce walks out of the door pull focus is used so as all the attention is on her and what she is doing, it is then cut and we then see a medium close up of her as she is walking out of the house. It then cuts to a long distance shot and then the camera peds down as it pans so we have a full image of her getting in the car, the car and the other male character.
Stereotypes are very much defied in the majority of this video, for example it is the male character who is making Beyonce her breakfast, Beyonce plays the role of a policewoman, we would generally associate this to be a male occupation. In the video, Beyonce and her male co-worker are using guns, Beyonce then helps her male co-worker to have a better aim. This prop being used is important as it shows a strong side to the female and that she is not weak and vulnerable like women are often stereotyped to be. During this scene, the camera focuses on Beyonce using medium close up, it then pans around so we see the male colleague, quickly followed by an extreme close up of Beyonce’s face showing her expressions and that she has no fear. Laura Mulvey (1975) argued that women are often only there to be looked at by males, this is often known as the ‘male gaze’ and is present in the video when Beyonce is undressing and is just in her bra and jeans with the male character looking at her, and then again when she arrests a citizen, a low angel shot is used to show the male is a powerful character and also what he is looking at. The lighting used is black and white, this is effective in that it creates drama and tension whilst looking simple and classy.
3:50 minutes into the video, the roles reverse and it is the male who is in fact the police officer flirting with a colleague. The stereotypical male and female roles are seen clearly as it is the female character making the male character his breakfast. Representation and costumes is very important here for example Beyonce now has her hair down whereas before it was all scrapped back, this is showing a more feminine and softer side to her. Beyonce is wearing a black suit; the suit and colour both connotate power and importance, however the white shirt connotates innocence and purity unlike the male character’s costume which is dark coloured, stereotypically the police uniform is a very masculine and very important and the police badges further enhance this. Also in this scene in comparison with the first scene, slow motion has been slightly used whereas in the first scene it hadn’t, I believe this is done so as an audience we focus more and empathise more with the female character as it is females who this is predominately targeting.
The characters tone of voice is essential in understanding how the characters feel, when it is the Beyonce who has been flirting with her co-worker, the male speaks slower, with a soft tone of voice, he uses rhetorical questions, Beyonce then responds with questions and a some what sarcastic tone. When the characters switch roles, it is the male who’s tone is arrogant, his voice is raised and he is laughing, no response from Beyonce is needed as the extreme close up shot of Beyonce’s face allows us to see her emotions. A transition of fade out is used this enables us to remember her emotions and empathise with her as the next shot begins. It is then that the audience understand how the video and the lyrics are in sync with each other and what message the song is giving through the video.

Documentary evaluation (Can't read can't write)

I think the target audience of this documentary is people who can’t read, the aim of the documentary is to make them feel that they aren’t alone and show them they can change this, it also highlights to others how terrifying and emotional it is for those who can’t read or write.
The enigma in this documentary is a group of adults can’t read or write and a teacher wants to change this and bring about a positive outcome. The equilibrium is that a group of adults cant read or write, the disruption is the obstacles they face like lack of confidence or trust in the teacher, and the resolution and new equilibrium is them finding the confidence and gradually learning to read and write.
The setting of this documentary is in the characters home, this is so as to keep in line with the verisimilitude and help make the documentary feel more realistic. It also shows the audience what kind of people they are, for example the props seen show that they are from working class backgrounds, the pram in the background shows they have children or grand children, the flowers on the table and show that they like their houses to look nice as does the cleaning products. It all helps to show the audience what type of people the documentary is about, average, working class people which is who the documentary is targeting and therefore also creates the dietetic effect and show the audience that the documentary is real and true. Also, by using high key lighting it makes the scenes appear natural and realistic which is needed in a documentary in order for people to believe it. The costumes that the characters are also wearing is incredibly important, the director would have most probably asked them to wear casual clothes such as a pale pink t-shirt and jeans as this appears feminine but relaxed and is in fitting with the type of class they are from.
The documentary begins with a voice over of one of the pupils, and an insert shot of some text, this is done so that from the very beginning, the audience understand what the documentary is about. A female has been deliberately chosen to speak so that we can hear her emotion and her vulnerability in her voice. The people the documentary is based on are from Essex, they were specifically chosen because it is thought stereotypically, that people from Essex are not intelligent, and so when people first see the documentary, the people fit with the regular connotations and stereotypes, but as the documentary unravels, the audience connect with the characters and their emotions, and I believe it is this change in opinions and stereotypes which makes the documentary interesting. It then cuts to a close up of the females face which allows us to see her emotions. In order to make the documentary feel real, the female is not looking at the camera, so it appears as if she is just talking to a friend. It then cuts back to the text so it further emphasises what it is she is talking about. It then cuts to show another female with her grandchildren, this helps play on our emotions as she is elderly, and all she wants to do is read bed time stories to her grand children. When the female character is in the kitchen, deciding on what to buy from the shop, there is an insert shot of the shopping list, and then a medium two shot of both the female and her daughter, and then as she comes to terms with the fact she doesn’t understand the list, the camera zooms in so we get to see her emotions and how she is feeling.
When I began looking at the editing of this documentary, I saw that it wasn’t very smooth, the majority of transitions is cuts which has been used in an attempt to make the editing less noticeable, however there is a lack of more complex editing such as action matches or special effects, I believe this is because they aren’t needed in documentaries and adding them would not be in keeping with the verisimilitude. Also, the production team would have had a low budget, and would have wanted to stick to the aim which is to make people understand about adults in Britain who can’t read or write, which the documentary effectively does. The documentary is none continuous as it goes from scene to scene, and incorporates long shots that are more than a few seconds long, this is because more short shorts increase tension, but tension is not required in this documentary, it needs to focus on the characters long enough so that the audience feel as if they are building a relationship with them and are on the journey with them so they can relate to them and feel the emotions they do.

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Short film evaluation (Lapse)

I have chosen to evaluate the short film Lapse as it has unexpected twists and turns and keeps the audience interested throughout. Lapse is a stereotypical of a horror film. The most important setting for a horror film is isolation which this film clearly portrays as Rose is often left wandering around by herself in the lonely corridors. Claud Levi Strauss talked of the theory of binary opposites, for example young vs. old, Lapse (in my opinion) shows an excellent example of this as the cleaner Rose is fighting with the young security guard and doctor in order to get them to believe she is telling the truth. Todorov (1977) invented the theory of narrative structure, meaning that all films have a equilibriums (beginning), disruption (middle) and resolution and new equilibrium (the end), Lapse conveys with this theory as in the equilibrium Rose is working at the hospital, the disruption is that she tries to help the elderly lady, which then backfires on her because she is left locked in the building, and then she isn’t believed when she tells workers of her identity, and the resolution and new equilibrium is that Rose is then interrogated and taken in as a patient. The enigma in this film is Rose trying to make the security guard and doctor believe her that she is not an actual patient at the hospital. The target audience is a variety of ages, however it is most probably aimed at 20-35 year olds, the mode of address has been used as it is only available on the internet and stereotypically it’s a younger generation who uses the internet, by it being available on the internet however can be seen as an advantage as it allows a wider audience to access it. Mise en scene has been used in order to create the setting and also so that when the audience sees a particular character they immediately associate what their role is in the film, for example Rose is an older character and so her costume is therefore ‘comfortable’ meaning she is in a light brown jumper with a blue jacket, she isn’t too concerned with what she is wearing as she is working she just wants to be comfortable. Her hair is a mousey brown/ grey colour, this is showing her age but showing she is younger than Liz. The elderly lady (Liz) is wearing a pale cream nightgown and blue dressing gown, these colours have been used to try and create the image of Liz being vulnerable and frail. She also has white hair which helps to show us her age, most people would tend to trust someone of her age and vulnerability and I believe that is where the director cleverly lures both Rose and the audience into believing she is a good character. The security guard is wearing all black, this is because black connotates strength and power, the smart white shirt and black trousers and tie help portray him as a figure of importance. He is purposely taller than Rose so it makes her look weaker in comparison to him. The doctor is in a smart purple shirt and black trousers, the purple shows that she is feminine and has a more softer character than the security guard. She speaks with a soft, rather patronising tone as she believes Rose is a patient at the hospital and therefore believes her to be mentally unstable.
The film begins with the main character (Rose) humming a song, it then jumps straight into an establishing shot of the corridor the set the scene and establish where the film is taking place. The establishing shot is held for a few seconds, and then the audience sees who was humming in the introduction as the character walks onto the scene. A close up shot is then used to draw the audiences attention to the security badge around the characters neck, it emphasises the importance of this one object. The shot pans out so we get to see fully the main character as she opens the door and then jumps to a medium close up of her in the room, an insert shot of the security badge is then used, this is deliberately done to highlight the importance of the object. The camera then cuts to being outside the door, panning in as though someone is looking at the character, this adds intensity, it then cuts into the room a medium close up of the characters back (her back being turned adds vulnerability), as she turns round we immediately get a medium close up of Liz (the elderly lady) which adds tension and is done in order to make both the main character and audience jump and grab their attention. An extreme close up shot of a hospital wrist band is then used to help the reader further understand the setting and what is about to talk place. The desperation on Liz’s face is incredibly important because it is this that makes Rose sympathise with her and help her, this is why an elderly character has been used because stereotypically we trust them more and believe them to be innocent, if it was a 18 year old male the audience would not necessarily believe the storyline. The majority of the camera shots as Rose is walking around are medium shots but it is taken from the back so as to create the feeling that she is being followed or watched. When the doctor is trying to make Rose understand she isn’t a cleaner, close up shots are used so the audience can see Rose and the doctors emotions. It is also used to show the anger on the security guards face when Rose hits him, it then cuts to a long shot where we can see the security guard hurting Rose. A large proportion of the shots are two shots and medium shots, this allows us to see the characters and who they are talking too. Continuity editing is used in the film as it continues with the same piece of storyline. The most common editing in this film is cutaways and shot reverse shot structures, these help to juxtaposition two different images, but by placing them next to each other the audience can understand the relevance. Ellipsis is used after the doctor has inserted a needle into Rose because we don’t need to see them lifting her and putting her in a bed as it is not relevant, so the ellipsis cuts out time and allows the audience to only see what is important. Due to the film being made on a small budget, no special effects have been used or were needed, the film relies heavily on the mise-en-scene such as the costumes and props in order to create the desired effect.
The lighting is an essential part in any film as it helps the audience to understand what type of mood the film is, for example in Lapse, it is continuously dull and dark with colours like grey being used regularly, this is done so as to add an eerie feeling and further add to the feeling of isolation.
The music is very important in the film from the very beginning when Rose is humming to herself, this is showing she is rather content, she believes she is alone, further on the film she hums when she is waiting for help unlocking the door, once again she isn’t too concerned about what is happening and doesn’t believe there is a problem. Diegetic sound is used throughout the film, meaning that the sound comes from within the narrative and both the characters and audience can hear it. All of the characters accents are Australian which leads us to believe the film is set in Australia, although we never actually see outside of the hospital. As in all films, the dialect is incredibly important as it is this that does the exposition. No field specific lexis is used in the film, this is purposely done because it is not needed, the doctor doesn’t use any complicated terms because she believes she is speaking to a patient and so therefore has a slightly patronizing tone. The film ends in silence. This is so as to further emphasise what has just happened and to keep the audience on tender hooks.