Post 17: Ancillary Task 2 - Film Reviews Part 1

In order to write a film review, I must first understand the conventions of them, and a few of the ones that go against these and choose what I want to include in my film review. I have looked at two reviews of 'The King's Speech' from two newspaper articles, and noted downsome of their conventions, how I felt when reading them and what I liked and didnt like about these.

I will start off by looking at newapaper articles.

The Independant - http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/reviews/the-kings-speech-tom-hooper-113-mins-12abrthe-next-three-days-paul-haggis-128-mins-12a-2179616.html

Whilst reading this article, I felt that the context of it was very relaxed and friendly, and played on words such as ' sh-sh-shooin', which is miniking the speech impediment from the film. I found that this made me as the audience relax and calm down when reading. This would most likely been read by the majority and average people, by this and the fact that they talked mostly about the story line and the actors. The image on this article caught my eye and this was a unique selling point of the actor Collin Firth. I also realised that this film review wasnt massively long, but infact vastly shorter. I think this was done so that a wider audience would more likely read this as it is small, and was easier to read.

The Guardian - http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2011/jan/06/the-kings-speech-review

Compared to The Independant, this film review contained much more information, such as the stars in the film, the certificate of the film, the runing time and the genre of the film. This came alongside more facts about and around the film. The overall tone of the film was more serious than the Independant, as there was alot more information overall about the film for the reader, however the language they used wasnt too over powering for the reader. This was also detailed, far more than the Independant, as there was ten paragraphs, rather than the three from the Independant. There was some similarities, including the unique selling point in the form of a picture; this was of again Collin Firth, but with this one there was also Helen Bonham Carter.

 Magazines like Sight and Sound do not have a section for short films, but if I choose to include my film review in a magazine like this, I could say that my short film is a special feature article. This is a widely read magazine, and would get me quite alot of audiences of all ages.




I also started looking at magazines and websites.

Total Film Review

Total Film is a magazine, but you can also access this through the internet, and I like this as it widens the audience. With one of the Total film review, they felt like they were more interested about the plot of the film and who was in it, rather than what was good and bad about the film. This also felt light hearted as they used jokes and words from the film; a language that everyone can understand. However they did include the stars in the film, the certificate, the writters and the genre, and also used a picture which again is a unique selling point. This review was also short, but I think this was neccesarry as it is meant the be like a quick read.   http://www.totalfilm.com/reviews/cinema/hall-pass


However, what I liked about this review was because it was over the internet, other people were allowed to comment on what you felt about the film, and with this twist, as a reader you could get more than one point of view on the film and different perspectives.




  Film Guru


Thtough this wedsite, I found a short film review and found it was also friendly, with not too many words used. They also talked about the technical element of the short film, which I hadnt seen in any of the other film reviews, and I liked this. They also included the title, the cast members, the director and a rating of the film. Another element I liked about this short film review was that they writter of the review included his own opinion of the film, which wasnt evident in the other reviews. This also had a short overview of the plot of the short film.

These are the conventions that I noted down about film reviews;




Film reviews Always have;
- A Title
- A bit of the plot
- The Certificate
- The Director's names
- The Writter's names
- The Cast member's names
- A picture of some sort as a unique selling point
- A certain tone of language, either friendly, calm or serious


I think that more people are likely to read a shorter film review as they dont have too much time, and is good for 'on-the-go'. By having these conventions, they are able to acum,ilate the necessary information about the film to then decide weather or not to go and see this film. The pictures also help, as they give the audience a feel of the film and show the main character which more often than not make people want to see the film as they are a really famous actor or actress.


Film reviews Sometimes have;
- Long paragraphs
- Their own opinion
- The running time
- Facts about and around the film
- The genre
- Interaction with the audience (over the internet)


The language used in the review is mostly aimed at a specific age group, friendly and calm would be for young teens to adults, and sufisticated and longer would be aimed more for older ones. The facts could interest both.


Things I will include in my review
- The Title. This is because the audience will need to know what the film is called.
- The Genre. Including the genre will help the audiemce to make quick decisions about weather or not they would like to see the short film. This will also help draw in the audience who specifically like the genre.
- Some of the plot. By including only some of the plot this will wet their appatite and make them want to see the film and find out more. This will also help to keep the review shorter for people to read 'on-the-go'.
- The Certificate. The certificate will again narrow down the audience that will want, or even be able to see the film.
- The running time. This will help people to see if they want to watch the fillm.
- The names of the - Director.
                             - Actors.
                             - Camera men.
                             - Lighting men.
                             - Production Designer. The names of these roles wont neccesarily make the audience want to go and see the film, but they need to be recognised for the jobs they have done; this also shows that even though it is a short film, alot of work and preperation ha gone into this.
- A picture - I feel that a picture is necessary as this can lure people in out of curiosity, and can give a clue about the film.
- An opinion - Having an opinion in the review will help to show the audience that they actually liked the film, and didnt write it for the sake of it, and their opinion may help them make the decision weather or not to see the film.
- A rating - Even though a rating of the film may not be the reason why a person will or will not see a film, but this may help them either way to make a decision. This could also show the quality of the film, as it is only a short film it will need all the help it needs.
- Both relaxed and friendly language as well as serious - The language can either make people want to carry on reading or make them put it down, and if I have a mixture of both, this will increase my chances of having the biggest audience that I can get to see my short film.


I have many choices and desitions to make about the placement I will use for my short film, such as would I prefer it to be in a magazine, in a newspaper or on the internet. They all have their advantages however I feel more inclined to have my film review over the internet. Most of society is technological and most homes have access to the internet, and this will deffinately give me the largest chance of a wide audience. The other advantage of this is that people can share what they like on websites like facebook, twitter and blogger.
  
As my film is more aimed at this age, I think this will have a bigger effect; they would all have this in common. However older ones have access to this too, so I will not be limiting my audience to a specific age range. I have taken into acount that only a certain age will read newspapers and a certain group will read short film reviews quickly, and this would reduce the number of possible audiences.


As I have also seen in some film review websites, it allows the reader to comment underneath the review, and I feel this is an advantage as the audience will always have a constant flow of opinions and many ideas about the film. This way, the reader will gain a wider knowlegde from this than any newspaper or magazine. For these reasons, I will have my film review in the style of Film Guru.

Post 16: Ancillary Task 1 - Postcards Part 1

I will first of all analyse the conventions of British film Posters and one american film poster, and later on look at conventions of a postcard, as this will make my understanding of both improve, and help me to see the difference. I can also go against these conventions and use them to make my postcard the best it can.

This is one example of a British film poster. As you can see there are a few numbers arounf the image, and I will talk about these aspects.

Number 1 and number 2

Here you can clearly see the main actors' names, and this is because they are unique selling points. This is where an aspect on the front is more likely to make someone watch the film because of that aspect. These actors is an aspect that would appeal to many different people, and is likely to make people watch the film because of this. Hugh Grant is a British actor, where as Andie Macdowell is an american actress so from this, audiemces from both Britain and America will likely to watch this film. The names of the actors help when advertising a film as it is one of the first things an audience sees when looking at the

Number 3

This is the background of the image, and this guves the audiences an idea about where the film is set. Here you can see Big Ben, and signifies London. This not only gives the audiences information about where it is set, but can also give them an idea about the genre or the time period. The background images help to give a feel about the image, and these can sweud people into watching them; British viewers will have a connection to it and American actors may admire this landmark.

Number 4 and 5

Here is an image of the main cctors in the filkm, and from this you can work out what type of film this is, and they work as a unique selling point. Hugh Grant is a big actor in Britian and will attrqact a british audience and the other woman is american and would attract the audience from America. The way they are holding each other suggest a romance film, and the audience will see this.

Number 6

Number 6 is the title of the film, and this is very important as it is needed to show the audsience what the title is. As this is in red, and as well as the romance like feel of the images, this firther suggests to the audience what the genre of the film is about. There is also a little picture of a heart and a split in it and this also shows the genre of the film

Number 7

Here is a tag line of the film. This creates a small interest of the film and makes them want to watch the film. This also generates curiosity in the audience to make them want to see the film.

Number 8

This is all the information about who created the film and who helped within the film, the production names and other production details about the film. This then shows the audience about the making of it, and if they recognise the names and have liked that name or production company, then they are more likely to watch the film.

 

As I want to make my film postcard as real as I can, I have to study existing postcards, and understand the conventions they have, as this will help mine to look as real as it can. After looking at many postcards, I have noted down those conventions. These will help me to understand the layout and help me in the future. I can also go against some of the conventions to make mine stand out from the others.  The image above is the basic layout of a postcard, and the image and title ect will go on the blank space on the bottom half and the other information goes at the top.





On the front
- An Image - This picture will give the audience extra information about the film, and can also help show the genre too. This can draw them in, and can make them curious to see the film. Some choose to have less of an image to make them not know too much, and want to see it, where as some like to show many aspects of the film to make them want to see it; bearing in mind this is a short film, and will need to catch their attention as quick as possible.  
- The Title - The title may not always have anything to do with the film, however by including the title it will stick in the audience's mind more. This may also attract the audience by an unusual name.
- The size (half an A4 sheet) - Postcards have to be this size, as the name suggests; this is also a good size to advertise within a small budget.
- A tagline - A tagline helps attract the audience to watch the film, and will give a clue as to some of the film and sometimes the genre.  

On the back
- The layout of a postcard - As shown on the image above, the technical details and a few other pieces go on the back. Not all the audiences will read this, but some may and this shows that the film was made seriously and who made it.
- The production name and logo - This is to show the viewer who has helped create the film, and as it is only a short film, this is essential to help get their name known.
- The names of actors - These are again needed to show the audience who has acted in the film as they are trying to sell themselves through the short film.
- A synopsis - This also helps generate curiosity in the person reading the postcard and tells them what the film is about.
- A rating of the film - This is purly to help the audience see how well it was rated as other would have had to watch the film to rate it, and people like other opinions.
- An email address or telephone number- As mentioned before, this information is used to get in contact if someone likes what they have created, they need contact information from them.

Short films do not have the bidget to advertise films like they do with a larger bidget. Film producers are able to create adverts on the television on many channels, at different times and even in different countries. They are also able to make adverts on the radio, as well as posters in town centres, busses and other public places. This is where film posters come in handy, as these can be created within their bidget.

This on the other hand csn prove to be difficult to use for marketing their film as they are limited to places where they can distribute their postcards. This also means they wont be able to globelise their film, as they will only be able to leave them in places they can get to and place. But they are small enough to make more copies and place them in more places they want.

Using the postcard idea means that the film makers will be able to advertise them in places they want, and know will get an audiemce. For example, if the short film was science fiction, they could leave them in science fiction shops or in a library in that scetion, or the safest option is in a cinema as the people already there like films, and these will catch their interest.

Post 14: Pre-production Documentation

Script

This is my script, and this was the first document I produced for my short film, as this was my inital idea and from this document we can create all the rest of the documents to help with our filming. This will also help to keep all of our other documents to stay the same and as we keep referencing back to this, it will all stay the same. This was not the first draft, however as it took a few redrafts to make it make sence. This was discussed in a previous post. This is also helpful when our actors learn the script, and they will understand the plot of the story and their lines.

Technical Recce's

These technical recces were created by Sohail, and they will help us to plan where to place the cameras for when we film our production and this will help us to save time and energy. When we film, we will take these along with us on the set and this will help us to be organised.

Shot List

This shot list was created by liam and this was made from the script and these are the individual shots that will be in our film. This will also help us when we create the storyboard and will make it easier to read and make.

Risk Assesment

With this risk assesment which I completed, this helps us to make sure that we have all the risks in our mind for when we film so that we do not injure anyone on set or any of the equipment.

With this shooting it will help us to keep organised with our time and make sure we use our time wisely. Also, we have rearanged some of the shots so that it is easier to film, and wont waste time when filming.

Post 13: Advanced Production Skills Workshop 3