Evaluation- Part Three

Evaluation Question 3
What kind of media institutions might distribute your media product and why?
If we had a completed film, it would most likely not be distributed by large distribution companies and shown in cinema chains such as Odeon or Cineworld because:

• It is a low budget film with a small cast, and would be termed a B- Movie.
• It is an amateur student film made by a team with minimal filming experience, with an unknown cast.
• Film noir is an out- dated genre which has practically disappeared sine the 1960s, and may not be popular with a modern audience.

For these reasons, even a finished film would not achieve a nation-wide release, but may be bought by independent cinemas for short- term release, with a run of days rather than weeks. However, with no guarantee of success beyond a niche audience, even independent cinemas may not buy the film to show.

Other platforms that might distribute the film are festivals and the internet. Film festivals can focus on a certain genre, so a film noir orientated festival would be an appropriate function to screen at. Student film festivals, specifically for the presentation of amateur films made by students, would also give our film a chance to be viewed fairly along other films made with similar resources.

The internet is also a cheap and accessible platform for film distribution, available to the public. The website can be advertised on other, similar sites, and may help the film gain recognition in a select group of the public who are well versed with the internet.

The problem with any distributor is selling the idea to them. As film noir has not been a truly successful genre in decades, it would be difficult in persuading a film company that "The Case" would earn them much money. However, if a distributor is taken on board, then they can assist in the making the production more marketable, creating a high profile advertising campaign, paying to advertise to the public from the streets, on billboards, for example.

"The Case" is produced by "Eyeless Productions," who would specialise in low budget Thrillers and niche genres such as Film Noir, similar to such film companies as Eagle-Lion Films, the small film- making company active in the 1940s and early 50s. It would aim to entertain through the power of its exciting narrative and storylines, rather than through special effects.

Many classic films noir were co-produced by Hollywood companies with skilled directors for low budgets. One company still active today that was involved in these is Universal, which co-produced films such as "The Killers" (Siodmak, 1946). Another company that assisted in Film Noir productions was United Artists.

With a high-profile production company assisting in the co-production of a film, good advertising and organisation of budget become more assured. However, for a student- made film, these resources are harder to come by.

Evaluation- Part Two

Evaluation Question 2
How does your media product represent different social groups?

The representation of social groups is based on the fact that the action could take place in any suburban neighbourhood. Private investigators are not normally considered as being modern film characters, instead being somewhat old fashioned, as is the whole film noir genre. We nevertheless chose to make our protagonist a private eye in keeping with the conventions of film noir, but while being easy for a modern audience to approach and respond to.

Our protagonist is a white male, in his twenties/ thirties, a regular, everyday person, able to blend in. In classic film noir, the hero is always a white male, such as the characters played by Humphrey Bogart, e.g. in "The Big Sleep" (Howard Hawks, 1946). Females are relegated usually to the role of "femme fatale," with their status of "baddie" or "goodie" often questionable. Apart from this, the hero needed to be realistic in the role of private eye and action hero, wielding a gun. A man is better suited to this than a woman. Nevertheless, women often have strong roles in film noir. The youth of the private eye also suggests the possibility of action, shown in the events of the opening sequence.

Our protagonist is also shown to be endearing in his disorganisation, making him approachable in his imperfectness. Examples of this disorganisation include:

• His cluttered desk.


• His dishevelled appearance, sleeves rolled up and tie loosened.


• His unshaven stubble, his unkempt hair.


• His mugs of coffee, a visual indication of his tiredness.


• His paranoia, checking outside and double- locking the door.


• His apparent living alone, showing that he shuns company to concentrate on other matters.

This chaotic existence is representative of the flaws and imperfectness of the ordinary person. His house suggests that he is lower middle class, as many suburban house-owners consider themselves. In other words, our protagonist is representative of the ordinary person, while still being exciting and dangerous, and enigmatic for this reason.

Our Antagonist gives no sign of his everyday vocation, but the audience is shown that he is a skilled killer. We chose to present him as neat and cultured, dressed in a suit and overcoat, contrasting with the private eye's messy attire. This serves to further distance him from the film's protagonist, using Levi-Strauss' theory of binary opposites in narrative to provide conflict. His smart attire suggests that he is middle class, dressing smartly, considering killing a serious business, making him a serious threat to be reckoned with. This smart, cunning persona is what many foreign audiences consider a typical British character, his neat attire: clean shoes, neat suit, smart hat, going a way to the "posh" characterisation that an American audience would consider a quintessentially British person, the type of character popular in America.

We showed that he was no fool by various examples of cautious behaviour, not insulting our audience by making him seem foolish;

• Glancing behind him as he leaves the house.


• Checking his watch.


• Loosening his tie, a nervous gesture, showing that he knows enough to know that he is not safe.

A clever, charismatic villain can often prove extremly popular, and making him appear suave and sterotypically British will appeal to audiences. One example of an actor typecast into the "charismatic villain" role in classic film noir is Dan Duryea, appearing in films such as "Criss Cross" (Robert Siodmak, 1949).

Both of our characters featured in the sequence are white males, of similar ages; in their late twenties/ early thirties. This makes them able to blend in, and be everyday people, while capable of entertaining action. We also, however, made them quite different in their behaviour and features, although both are cautious and a little paranoid, though for good reason. They represent to an extent what sort of people could be lurking behind ordinary citizens' appearances.

Evaluation- Part One

Evaluation Question 1
In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?
For our film opening to belong to the chosen genre, film noir, it had to recognisably follow some of the conventions of that genre. Researching film noir, we find recognisable characters appearing in many films of the 1940s and 50s, such as:

• A flawed or morally questionable hero.
• A "femme fatale" to seduce the lead.
• A charismatic villain.

The opening to "The Case" introduces two characters, an antagonist and the protagonist. The antagonist follows the familiar character path: a highly skilled assassin, suave and well dressed, quick and careful in his work. We made our protagonist a private eye, familiar to film noir fans as the typical job of many of the genre's heroes in the 1940s. Strong visual suggestions are made throughout about this character's possible flaws; his obsessive working on the case, his half- consciously sipping at tea, his possession of a gun.

The lighting and Mise-en-Scene of the film was also deliberately reminiscent of film noir, with the low- key lighting serving to invoke tension as well as being another familiar convention of film noir. The dark, with the threat of some danger lurking in the shadows, also brings an element of the Thriller genre to the film.

Film noir has a very familiar and specific style to mark it out from other films, but we did challenge some aspects to introduce a new approach for our film. Films noir are generally set in large American cities, with the classic Mise-en- Scene usually involving rainy street corners. "The Case" opens to our hero being attacked in his own home, a normal, suburban house. This challenges film noir and introduces an element of being attacked in supposed safety, heightening the tension.

The opening starts the whole film with a disruption of the calm and safety of the private eye's normal life. The sequence then shifts from following the protagonist to following his assailant, until he is in turn attacked, presumably by the protagonist. This is resolution of a kind, but the equilibrium of the situation has in no way been restored; the hero is not safe, he can be struck at by mysterious serial killers, and he takes the law into his own hands. This begins enigmas that the audience wish to see answered, beginning their interest in the rest of the film.

Narratve techniques used in the opening sequence include:

• Real time: as evidenced by the almost constant linear movement of the characters, e.g. the killer's journey though the garden. We originally planned to use fades to give the scene in the protagonist's office a montage feel, but decided to use cuts instead, to give the sequence faster pace, as a result, the sequence appears to take place in real time, apart from the:
• Flashback: Used to show that the assailant is the serial killer the private eye is investigating, highlighting the danger of the situation, linking a shot of a rose with a note saying that the rose is a calling card used by the killer.
• We also used a point of view shot of the killer as he approaches the hero, creating an immediate sense of danger and tension as the audience knows that the protagonist is in danger, but he does not. This shows that the audience is meant to support the protagonist, as he becomes a victim of a violent attack from a villain.

Some of the typical features of any opening sequence are:

1. Introducing the characters.
2. Establishing the setting.
3. Introducing/ Suggesting at the key themes of the movie.
4. Inclusion of the credits/ titles.
5. Displaying the Mise-en-Scene used throughout the rest of the film.

Our opening worked to introduce the characters, setting and genre of the entire film. The sequence was planned to begin with an establishing shot of the house, but this was then dropped, the final opening shot being of the inside of the house, which still serves to establish the suburban setting. The opening of "Touch of Evil," (Welles, 1958) is from film noir's classic era, and establishes the setting through sweeping views of the streets, following various characters as they travel to their destination. "The Case" uses something similar, with the assassin escaping through the suburban garden and alleyway.

The opening sets the style for the rest of the film, with its low key blue lighting setting a sombre tone, while the fast pace promises much action later in the film. The soundtrack, downloaded from freeplaymusic.com, was chosen for its energetic pace while still being haunting and tense, similar to Thriller films which use music to create tension, drawing the audience in. The lack of dialogue means that the audience has to focus on the visuals to follow the story, which emphasises the visual film noir style. The music also changes as the focus shifts from the protagonist to the antagonist. The matches on action, e.g. when the killer opens the gate, and the shot- reverse- shot when he is escaping down the alleyway all contribute to the sense of pace and urgency in his actions, as do other visual things such as the glancing at his watch.

Establishing shots such as the killer's slow march toward the doorway, and the crane shotof the private eye's desk serve to show their characters and introduce what kind of people they are. Conflict is created between the two by the messy chaos of the protagonist's life and the neat, clinical order of the killer's work. This highlights the difference between them, making them binary opposites.

The use of credits is unobtrusive, as they appear at the side of the image, allowing the main focus to be on the imagery of the film rather than the titles. The titles were originally in a more exciting font, reminiscent of horror films, but this was changed to something that wouldn't detract from what was going on in the sequence. The main title is saved for the end, coming in with a gunshot, for maximum effect. Many films save their main title for either at a dramatic point in the film or when their theme music reaches a crescendo, e.g. "Back to the Future" (Zemeckis, 1985).

The opening sequence serves to introduce the characters, setting, themes, and most importantly, as a lure for the audience into watching the rest of the film, which has to live up the expectations set by the opening.

Completion?

Is this it? Is this the finish? Well, no. But it could be the finish of the editing process. IT MIGHT JUST BE! Gosh. So, with positive feedback from our peers, final tweakings done, and all problems as pointed out by the teachers have been addressed, how do I feel?
Well, relieved. With four of us in the group, there didn't seem to be a whole lot for all of us to do at the same time, considering the other groups all numbered three. Being split up for the editing sessions in our study periods (poor Matt) worked a lot better, but we couldn't make group decisions. But still, we finished before everyone else, and that could be down to the extra group member. Anyway, I'm happy it's over, I'm joyful at the result, I just wish I could have made as great a contribution as some of the others. But I have been doing most of the blogging recently on the group blog, so that's something. That's my niche.