EVALUATION QUESTION 5

HOW DID YOU ATTRACT/ADDRESS YOUR TARGET AUDIENCE?

We developed the idea of Binary Opposites through metaphoric representations
throughout the film. Flashbacks made the sequence mentally enlarged in the
sense that it was given depth through the idea of a long running backstory. This
allowed us to make the world of which we were filming in bigger to allow the
audience to feel more immersed within the story. The linear narrative makes the
film easy to understand and watch as there is no confusion through time
however, we did use flashbacks of which were clearly separated from the current
time shots of which therefore made the opening more engaging. Considering
narrative hooks a major one was set upon my character concerning his motives
for what he is doing, this puts the audience in a position of doubt and
contemplation as they are left to figure out exactly what motivated him. We
could have used cross cutting/parallel editing throughout in order to make it
seem as if more events were happening at the same time, therefore giving the
sequence additional edge, but instead we slowed it down and focused mainly
on the interrogation making the scene more intimate with the audience.
The opening scene initially sets the mood of the film to be suspenseful and
gloomy, with this, fear accompanies the interrogation
sequence in the sense that the audience fears for the
character played by Joe. As well as this, the sequence
overall comes across as too complete in the sense that
all the events happen too easily and there doesnt seem
like anything can happen after the fact even through
the final sequence with Connors character. This therefore gives the audience a
moment to consider if everything is going to go as planned or if there is going to
be a major plot twist/narrative hook of which will make the rest of the film far
more engaging.
As mentioned in previous blog posts evaluating the film, the mise-en-scene
metaphorically brings attention to the characters personalities - making them
more intriguing. With the characters being portrayed as and being played as
people the same age as our target demographic, it is easy to say that this is a
major element of engagement due to the relatability. As well as this, the
characters are a small group in society of which metaphorically represent
problems in the real world, this may not exactly be an element of production, but
it allows more audiences to enjoy and engage with our film as they can also
relate to the bigger picture. Regarding intertextual references, ours are very
subtle, yet the audience could draw similarity to the other films/shows that have
inspired our product to accumulate more theories of what will happen. An
example of this is the general gang idea from West Side Story of which would
attract an older audience, yet give light and attention to the ongoing issue in
society of unforced violence due to disagreement.
The camerawork was a good way to build up suspense and tension to engage the
audience. We mainly in this sequence uses close up shots (examples being joes
face and the ECU of his eyes) to draw full attention to the emotion of the
character. As well as this, we used certain levelled shots such as mid shots to put
the audience on the same level as Joes character, the same goes for Connors
character as they are the Protagonists in the film. However, by displaying my
character through low angle shots gives him dominance over not only the other
characters in the film, but the audience too, we see
this during the punch at the end of the interrogation of
which is extremely engaging in the sense that the
audience feels inferior and
endangered by the
antagonising figure. Editing
was also a key component in
making the film more engaging for the audience.
Without pace in editing, we couldnt have built up
excitement and intensity an example of this is where
we used a montage in the flashback of which explored the mind of Joes
character, which added to the element of fear, making the shot more engaging.
In the sequence where Connors character is on the phone to my character, the
tracking shots/unstable camerawork adds to the intensity also, which is good as
the interrogation sequence and phone conversation are two different aspects
therefore, we had to try to maintain the level of interest and engagement. The
score isnt a huge factor of intensity but it does add to the overall mood of the
film, regarding that it is white noise so it couldnt have had too much effect on
the actual story yet it did bring another element of eeriness.
The audience, as mentioned previously, is positioned in the shoes of Joes
character and Connors character, dominated by the character played by me.
With this, the audience can support the protagonist/s and feel how they are
feeling in this powerless situation. As well as this, hatred can be built up towards
my character of which instantly establishes him as the antagonist. This, as I have
briefly mentioned before, allows the audience to easily understand the film and
be more engaged with it due to this. Furthermore, with the audience being
placed in the shoes of the protagonist/s, they can interoperate for themselves
what will happen next, especially in this sequence where they are lacking the
power they need.