Evaluation: 5.)How did you attract/address your audience?

I attracted/addressed my audience by doing questionnaires throughout making the opening sequence because I did questionnaires on what they wanted to see in a horror film. I tried to engage the audience throughout by doing questionnaires and asking for feedback at each stage of production, this made it easier to make sure that it was the right genre and angles for the target audience to enjoy.
I used a lot of ways to look at my audience with questionnaires, interviews etc. Firstly I conducted a questionnaire on what horror films my target audience like, and what they like to see in them. I asked them if the opening sequence needs to include the antagonist most of my feedback suggested that people don’t like to see them as it takes an element of mystery away however as my film changes roles from the beginning to the end, I thought it would be appropriate to see the antagonist because it would help the audience see what is going to happen later on. I also asked why they like to watch them so it would help me figure out what I needed to include in mine which would attract my audience. Some of the films which people said where there favourite ones, I analysed the opening sequences to these to see what type of things they include, that I could possibly include in my product to attract the similar audience. I put the results into graphs and pie charts using excel, this made it easier to see what people liked the most and what they want to see.
Furthermore I used characterisation to attract my audience. I chose characters of the age which my target audience, this would make it easier for the viewers to relate to the characters and using locations which people would usually see they can see it in their own lives.
I also go feedback on my first and second draft to help me develop it too what the people would have wanted. I asked for feedback on my first draft to see what the target audience liked about my product, this would help me see if I needed to make any changes to improve it to what they would like. From my first draft to my final product I have made a lot of changes as I had to go out and film some more and edit it. If I hadn’t got feedback from people about my opening sequence then it may have not attracted my target audience. I tried to engage the audience with the choice of characters and costume which I put them in. the feedback in which I got from my second draft helped me establish the genre as my opening sequence didn’t show how the actual film would start so they said that I should start the beginning of the film to show how the rest of the film would continue on. I did a questionnaire at the beginning of the research to find out what type of horror they already watch and what they expect to happen, when I did this and when I did the new drafts I took this into consideration and the age which I wanted my film to be aged at, to make sure that I got the correct audience.
The video at the top was the final feedback I got from my opening sequence, this is exactly what I wanted to the response to be as they all understood that it was horror and matched the specific audience which I wanted. All the people which we asked said they would continue watching the film which means that we made a good enough storyline to follow and that it is suitable for males and females of the correct age.

Final opening sequence : Remember

This is after we got rid of the parts which looked messy or repeated itself.

Third Draft

Second draft

Fisrt draft for opening sequence

Selected music

this is the song which we will use in our opening sequence, we emailed the producers to be able to use it. i am using this because it talks about secrets which is what my opening sequence is about. fall out boy – my songs know what you did in the dark

Questionaire

These are the results from the questionaire i did.

Opening Sequence Analysis (The Conjuring)

The conjuring (2013, James wan) is a horror film. In the opening scene it opens with just the voices speaking then there’s a click which could signify that they are recording them speaking. When the clicking happens it zooms out from a close up of a doll head, the speaking which is played over this image is describing some paranormal activity this would immediately make you feel like it was a horror getting the genre over quickly. This also helps the viewer try think what the rest of the film is going to be about. The woman describes that the doll was moving, as there is no other sound playing at the time and it is just showing the doll you would pay more attention to what she’s saying and linking it to the doll when you don’t know if it is then doll. The camera angle is mainly along the 180 degree rule, as the people talking about what’s happening are on one side or facing the other people, when the shot gets closer to their faces they are talking about something that had happened in the past that would make the viewer feel more intense about what could happen. The camera then cuts back to the doll and slowly zooms in again when they explain that they invited her in, because the doll is old and creepy it would make you think of horror because she’s scary anyway. This then cuts to a flashback scene of when the doll just appeared in the house, the scene within a scene shows that they are entering a house however your attention should be on them rather than the house. The lighting throughout the opening sequence is fairly light as it is almost interview type however when there is a flashback it is dark to add suspense. The low angle they have on the woman’s face as she opens the door shows her expression and makes you feel scared because she is. It is also mainly silent during this flashback this would add suspense as she walks into a room which has writing all over the walls. Music then gets more dramatic as it shows faces being scribbled out of pictures and the crayon moving across the floor. The lighting adds to the dramatic scene because it flashes as she is looking at each item this could make the viewer pay more attention to what she is seeing rather than other things in the room. The costume which the people are wearing would suggest that it is set in the past because the clothes are not clothes which you see now, also the doll would suggest that it is old as she is made out of wood. It then cuts to then in bed when they hear loud banging on the door; it is then silent as they walk up to the door and silent whilst it all happens. This would build the tension they then find the note and loud banging comes from inside the house this would make the viewer jump which could suggest that it’ll happen throughout the film. It then goes back to the original scene where they are describing what is happening. We then see the person in which they are talking to and they tell them that it isn’t what they think it is and explain how to get rid of it etc. There is more light shining onto them and they know what they are doing this would immediately think to the viewer that they are going to be a hero of somesort.as this ends it has edited in to show that it was a clip of what has happened in the past this would show that the actual film has started and links to what you’ve just seen.as the setting is mainly in this woman’s house showing what the doll has done it could suggest that the film would be in the same place or somewhere similar. As the interview type thing is also being taken place here it would suggest that the film may be in the same place. From this scene it would suggest that the rest of the film is about the doll which is being shown throughout the whole clip, however the real film is about the investigators rather than the doll. The investigators are shown as heroic as they saved this family from being possessed by the object etc., this would make you feel like they will play a big part of the film however the other people which are explaining what has happened could have a small part as they have already told us what has happened.

Opening Sequence Analysis (Sinister)

Sinister (2012, Scott Derrickson), is a horror film. In the opening scene of sinister the camera is placed in one position of the screen, they use the tree to separate the screen into the people which are being killed and the saw which is cutting the branch. Because there isn’t a person on the right side of the tree it shows that it is a horror because the saw is still moving without someone being there which would suggest it’s a spirit or something. Also because there is a family being hung on the left it could suggest that every family member in the house is going to die. The shot is a wide shot, this would establish the setting of the film, the scene is also in the golden ratio as the ground takes up about 1/3 of the screen and the sky 2/3. The film itself is about a family and the dad looks into the murders which happened in the house, he finds old tapes of the people who lived there. the opening sequence links to this because it is in the style like it has been filmed on a tape, you can see this as either side of the image has the tape reel; this would also show that it is set in the past because newer cameras aren’t filmed on tape. The sound which is in the opening sequence is the noise of the tape playing, as if someone is watching the tape rather than us seeing what is happening as it happens. This links to the film as the dad watches the tapes on how they all die. Because there is no other sound when this is playing it makes you pay more attention or worry that something else is going to happen, although you can clearly see that they are going to die. They edited in the saw moving by itself because they can’t do this, this is to show that it is a horror film, this links back to the title of the film as the people being hung due to the saw. It also shows that the killer is unknown because you can’t see them, because there is no one cutting the tree you also wonder who has recorded the film as the killer can’t be in two places. The costume which they put on the people also shows that the video which was taken was a long time ago as the clothes are not what people wear now. Because of the outfits you can establish which one of each of the people is male and the children, this shows that it is a family being killed and then the first scene which the film shows is of a family of four, this makes the viewer wonder if this family are going to die. The lighting in the opening sequence is all using natural daylight; this could be to show that it is set in the past because they didn’t have any other light. Also the lighting would also suggest that it is set in the early morning, the way that the trees etc. hide most of the light except the light which is on the main people which shows that this is what you’re supposed to be looking at. Because you can see that it is a Family being killed it would make you think that it is either going to be the story of how they got killed or a new family being killed. You can also see that it is a family of four with two females. The setting would suggest that it is in the garden because the grass and bushes etc. are all tamed and cut. Because you can see that it is a garden you wonder what is happening inside the house or what has happened to make something want to kill them. All these things help to show that it is a horror because the death isn’t a peaceful one and its committed by someone else however because there is no person cutting the tree it shows that the killer is unknown. From the opening sequence it would suggest that the story line would possibly be about the murder of this family.; if the viewer continues watching the film they may find out who the killer is and why he did it. In the actual film the man looks into all the murderers that have happened when the people moved away from the house which they live in, the man also tries to look into the murderers. The opening scene establishes that this is what the film will be about.

Analyse the ways Spielberg uses the camera to create meaning in the film ‘jaws’

At the beginning of the scene it uses an establishing shot it shows the setting of a beach and the boy coming out of the water it suggests safety because nothing is happing. When we see the boy walking away it shows clearly the three lifeguard posts which are empty, they are kept in focus as he walks. This is a tracking shot, because all the lifeguard posts are empty it gives a sense of fear so it could be building up to something. It then goes to a long shot of the beach however in the foreground there is a close up of the sheriff, the long shot shows the people that are happy, they are all brightly coloured etc. in contrast to this the sheriff which is in the foreground is in dark colours (navy/black) this shows that he is separated from the other people, he also has more clothes on which shows he is different. They use the close up on his face to show his emotions and how he’s concerned about the beach and just stares out into it.
It then goes to an extreme long/wide shot which shows the open sea with one person floating in the middle this is done to make the person look vulnerable in size compared to the sea, this also uses the rule of thirds as in the foreground it shows some on the sand and in background it shows the sky. In this part it also shows that the sea is calm so the viewer doesn’t need to worry as nothing is happening, this state of equilibrium is then ruined when the dog goes into the water as he splashes and makes a lot of noise. This then goes to a long shot with only one person in the scene shows he is vulnerable to whatever might happen. The man is looking into the sea and every time someone walks past (vertical wipe) it zooms into his face more, this intensifies the scene and shows the emotion on the man’s face; he looks tired which would suggest that he’s been there a long time. The people walking past would also block his view of the sea so he can’t see what’s happening, making the viewer think something might happen. It then goes to a shallow depth of field where the background isn’t in view and the person is in focus this makes you look at him and his expression this makes you think something’s happen. This then goes to a point of view shot of the man looking out to what we presume is the sea, it then cuts to section of sea which is supposedly what the man is looking at.
After this it goes to an over the shoulder shot which shows that he is trying to look at whilst keeping the person who is talking to him in view, we then get a point of view shot to the viewer can see what the man was trying to look at, this shot also shows that he is not paying attention to the man because he isn’t in full focus and we don’t really hear what he is saying. The cuts between the two scenes then start to speed up this builds up attention. The shot that is shown next is in the long shot you see all the children getting up and in the foreground it is him looking out into the sea, the wife then comes over and says it will be fine however the children have disturbed the calmness of the sea. Two shot is then shown to show the conversation between the two people, then an over the shoulder shot however because the man is in the centre of the screen it would suggest that he wants the viewers to pay attention to him rather than the children playing in the sea which is also in the shot. The sheriff then has an intimate moment with his wife, due to this the radio becomes louder and plays a song to match (diegetic) this would also calm the viewer down to think that nothing is going to happen because he’s relaxed.
All the children are splashing and the cuts between each shot are fast this would build up the tension also because the children are screaming it would make you think something is going to happen. It also shows a child on the beach singing a children’s song so he’s safe to show the naivety of it all. It then cuts to a man looking for his dog the sea is empty to make it look bigger the man is also isolated from everyone else. It then cuts to a piece of wood which we say earlier the dog playing with. This would then suggest that something’s taken the dog which makes the viewer feel like more will happen. We then get the point of view of the shark with non-diegetic music so every time the person hears this they would associate it with the shark. The music speeds up as the shark is about to attack as we see it getting closer to the child’s leg. It then goes to a contrezoom to give a sense of unease as all the children are screaming and we see one child get bitten. They then use symbolism/iconography of the float that the child was using because it just shows the remains of it and there is all blood around the float which would suggest that the child’s dead because the float is dead, it is representing the child. The float is also yellow to show the contrast between it and the blood.