Evaluation 1: In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real products?

Title of film

The Title of the film was one of the first things we done, it took longer than expected because we were looking for a one worded title that was catchy, so as a group we brainstormed ideas. We then discovered that we wanted to do a gangster thriller. The titles started rolling out, then “Affiliation” was mentioned and it just sounded perfect. Affiliation means “To adopt or accept as a member, subordinate associate, or branch”. Realising the title helped speed up the process of the story line.

Setting/Location

Our setting and location uses two different places the first of which was a footpath leading to an opening of a field where the fight took place in the film, this location was great because it gave many different areas to film from and still stay in the same setting. Another plus from this location was that it was just around the corner from the school, this made filming a lot easier and accessible because we could film in our free periods. The second location was one of our houses for the knife scene at the end of the intro; the way in which the house is laid out enabled us to adapt the story easily to fit in with house, so when we edited it was easy to be continuous.

Props and costume

The props used in the finished product were different from the props we originally chose because we soon realised that the clothing that we wanted was out of budget and hard to obtain. So after this we decided that we would keep the props simple by just asking the extra’s and actors to follow a dress code of smart shoes, smart trousers and smart plain shirt with a darker tie. This dress code was chosen because we wanted the gang to look the part and for the audience to know that they are a gang without even thinking. The other props used were a pair of glasses and watches. The glasses were used just to add a bit of an edge on the gang members. The watches were used in the very beginning of the intro to show the viewers that there was a meeting between two of the characters happening at a specific time. A knife was also used in the intro with a prop like this we was cautious for hazards because a knife is a dangerous object.

Camera work and editing

Title an

To make the editing process as smooth and easy as possible we planned the shot we wanted to take and we decided that it would be best if when filming we ran the shot longer than we had to, this would enable us to merge clips together more seamlessly. There were a few hiccups with the editing process to begin with but we soon found the problem and corrected it. Once the problem was rectified the editing process flew by.

d Fonts

Choosing the font was a pretty simple task we knew what style of font we was after. We wanted something similar to the font used in the title as we thought that it fitted the gangster genre perfectly. We kept the way in which the titles entered and exited the frame simple to give a cleaner finish. When the actor’s names appeared on frame we placed them in the lower left corner to maintain the clean look, as well as to direct the attention of the audience towards the character in frame.

Story and how opening is set up

In the opening scenes we show two characters in a way that tells the audience that they will be important characters within the story to come. The sound used are there to present a mysterious and ominous feeling, letting the viewer’s know that the tension is always building. We show the inferior character in a way that is quite obvious; he is shown on his own without any support from friends.  

Genre and how the opening suggests it

The genre is gangster thriller; we wanted the audience to realise as soon as possible to prevent any confusion. We showed the genre through the costume and story line, the group of men all dressed in shirts and ties we thought were easily recognisable as a gang. Presenting it as a thriller was also pretty simple because there is mystery throughout the intro and there is a twist as well.

How character is introduced

The first two characters are introduced at the same time by crosscutting, this shows the audience that they are linked and will be involved in the film. The gang are presented in a clear way that prevails them as a gang, the leader in the circle of gang members in framed in a couple of the shots to avoid confusion on which the main gangster is. We also made the victim look scruffy to show that he is not a part of a gang or group and give him a more stranded look and feel.

To make the editing process as smooth and easy as possible we planned the shot we wanted to take and we decided that it would be best if when filming we ran the shot longer than we had to, this would enable us to merge clips together more seamlessly. There were a few hiccups with the editing process to begin with but we soon found the problem and corrected it. Once the problem was rectified the editing process flew by.