Strategies for Unlocking Knowledge Management in Microsoft 365 in the Copilot...
Evaluation Question 1
1. In what ways does your media product use, develop
or challenge forms and conventions of real media
products?
Jordan Reynolds
Evaluation Question 1
2. Introduction
Introduction
The most efficient way of answering this
question is to look at my final products, to
compare them to real products and discuss how
it either challenges, develops or uses the
conventions.
3. My Poster
When creating my poster I knew I wanted
something that represented my short film. The
poster needed to be well composed and
technically crafted as I have decided to make it
from a singular image rather than bringing over
images creating layer masks and blending
although I am capable of doing this it is not in
my visual interest.
4. Notes Vexatious Poster
Looking at this image it is easy to see that this is a
gangster film because of the conventions derived from the
genre. Costume is black suits and trench coats associated
with the gangster look. The character in the foreground is
holding a gun again reinforcing this idea. The darkness of
the poster is also a convention of this genre of posters.
This piece was edited in Photoshop however it is a
singular image so what skills have gone into this?
A majority of the technical skills were executed during the
taking of this photo. The poster contains the two main
characters the first is in focus in the foreground cleaning a
gun. The second is in the mid-ground not in focus, the
change in focus of the two is because of the use of a
shallow depth of field. The image uses leading eye to lead
the viewer from the man in the foreground to the man in
the mid-ground, this has ben achieved through the
composition and the use of lighting.
5. Notes Vexatious Poster
For the poster I wanted Notes who is in the mid-ground to
be mysterious and add make the viewer think who is that.
This is created by the fact he is not in focus and the
shadow that is formed by the lighting. I wanted to give it a
classic noir feel to it. The vignette makes the audiences
eyes focus on the subject matter and blends the image
with the typography and other texts that are common
conventions of most posters.
The rest of the poster is constructed using typical codes
that make a poster, Title, Credit Block, Starring and Tag
Line. Overall I was very pleased with the outcome because
it conveyed my visionary and also represented the short
film for what it is.
6. Notes Vexatious Poster Comparison
This is a comparison between my poster and a couple I looked at during my research stages. As you can see
they are all different and in different ways my poster both conforms and challenges the conventions. The
positioning of the texts is the first noticeable difference. Most gangster films are different from another and
there's only so much I can compare mine to real products however it fits in as its own individual poster
different to the rest yet familiar nevertheless.
7. Notes Vexatious Short
All along this project I have always stated that the screenplay was the
most important factor in the making of this short. When making a
short or any film, every single element that goes into making it is
important to its success however if the screenplay/script is not good,
proper audiences will not enjoy it. I am making this as a cult film
essentially my narrative structure doesn’t comply with a theorists
structure. Notes is a post modern film. I wanted to break some
boundaries and make this unpredictable. The main challenge was the
dialogue. To myself it was very important that the characters were
conveyed in such a way it made the audience want to know more
about them. Connecting with the audience was again another strong
point of my film with a combination of violence suspense, humour and
witty conversation, I wanted them to be captivated and to think. The
screenplay, casting, performance and style was the most important
part of the short.
8. Notes Vexatious Short: How to
Improve
More time, the key factor is time. What made this project so hard was
because I was working on my own and securing location, props and the cast
on a day I could bring all of them together on was very difficult. I did a lot of
networking for this short. The first was location which was shot at an airfield
and a old WW2 RAF building I called the warehouse I would have to comply
with the days that were available for shooting. The second was Props which
again through my connections was allowed to use props for free, all very
generous for letting me use them. The last is the cast, the only member of the
cast from my 6 form was the hostage played by Tom Price the other two
(STARRING ACTORS) lived far and have there own life's to run. With all that in
mind its about getting all of them together on one day which I managed for
two days (delayed by two weeks because one of them couldn’t make it) which
I can not thank them enough because everyone is doing this for free. Its there
time they are giving to me which I am very thankful for. It’s the coming
together of all parties on one day which is where the problem lies because in
order to improve the quality I would need more filming days. Setting that
aside I want to look at areas of improvement in my film that are visual and
audio related.
9. Notes Vexatious Short: How to
Improve
• Camera Movement: I would of liked to have just neatened up a few
scenes so it ran smoother. This would be achieved by looking at
existing shots and just doing another take.
• Audio: This was an nightmare for me because were at an airfield
one of the days had planes flying in and out which didn’t help with
the end quality. The second problem was an internal problem with
the mic and the camera which couldn’t be helped however would
have been much better without it.
• Quality/Lighting: Inside the quality was effected because of light
and gives a slight grain effect not as crisp as it should be. To avoid
this again I would use lighting and also I have installed Magic
Lanturn which offers setting to help eliminate this problem. I have
also since shooting brought a better lens. Unfortunately quality also
come from the technology as well.
10. Notes Vexatious Short: Looking at
existing products
In terms of costume it conforms with convention and other existing products
that’s a given. Straight to the point, this short is most recognisably been
inspired by Quentin Tarantino. I want to pay homage to the genius that is
Tarantino. As a Director and Writer I admire him because his films are
executed brilliantly, there's so much to go into but his style and his innovation
in knowledge of past styles, bringing them together to create something new
is something I have been inspired by. Quentin has created his own genre, he
has a very particular style that can be identified with his style. What I took
from his style and developed is how he writes. Conversation between two
characters should create the illusion of realism, relate, interest and make the
audience think. I used a similar situation from his film Reservoir Dogs. My film
revolves around a hostage situation, my main reasons for this is because from
my research into shots I found that they tend to be set at one main location
and defiantly the most successful ones did this and I felt the hostage scenario
was the best way in which to keep the characters there.
11. This scene from Notes
Vexatious, where Notes
walks around the hostage
was from my blocking
however if you think what
scene this is similar to I
would say from Star Wars A
New Hope (1977) when
Han Solo talks to Jabba .
This was not antenatal but
merely a comparison of
when this has been used,
when shooting it brought a
smile to my face because it
reminded me of this
particular scene.
12. Costume had to be again
conventional because its
such an iconic part of
gangster films(Pulp Fiction
1994). There tends to be
two main characters as
well. Master and
apprentice is again a idea I
enjoy, the relationship
between two different
people going through the
same journey as one
another, is always
fascinating to watch. (Star
Wars Phantom Menace
1999)
15. Notes
Notes character is very similar to what you may see in a Spaghetti Westerns. I love developing
great characters. I believe that characters in gangster films should be cool (excuse my loose
description) and what characters are cooler than Django (Django 1966) and Blondie (The Good,
the Bad and the Ugly) Taking conventions from other genres and applying them into another is
a good way of developing genre. I wanted Notes to be this character that had a presence about
him, this element of mystery. Bringing qualities from characters from Spaghetti Westerns was
an obvious choice. Notice that Notes hand gun is a revolver which is iconic to the western
genre, this is just a little detail I made sure was in my short.
16. The Third Man 1949
Example of Film Noir The Third Man that is a 1949 mystery thriller
British classic. On the right is the character Harry Lime (Orson
Welles) This helps to reinforce this idea of character they all have
similarities however bring something new to film
17. Vincent
I knew when creating and casting that Vincent had to have this
certain look. Vincent is the rough experienced partner of Notes. He
is the rogue and the guy that gets it done. I found what I believe to
be the perfect actor that could portray this character properly.
Stephen Howard plays Vincent, my reasons for selecting him was
his acting abilities and this look. He is sort of the Big Chris ,Vinnie
Jones character (Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels) Stephen has
never really acted before which I took advantage of. I wanted his
character to be realistic and the way his lines where delivered had
to feel genuine avoiding any cheesiness or any indication that its
not believable. Stephen can act and acts very well. He defiantly
brought the character of Vincent to life.
18. Post Modernism
Postmodernist film attempts to subvert the
mainstream conventions of narrative structure,
characterization and destroys (or, at least, toys
with) the audience's suspension of disbelief.
Typically, such films also break down the cultural
divide between high and low art and often
upend typical portrayals of gender, race, class,
genre, and time with the goal of creating
something different from traditional narrative
expression.
19. How does Notes Vexatious fit into Post
Modernism?
(Post Modernism challenges real media products which is why I feel it necessary to
talk about it)
Notes Vexatious fits into Post Modernism very subtlety. I haven't pushed the boat out
totally because I needed the audience to have that sense of familiarity also to
recognise the genre. Notes Vexatious fits into this post modernism, first because of
the characters. English professional gangsters is not common in film, there are a
handful that dabble in it however that mobster gangster feel you have in films set in
America haven't been properly transferred to an British setting. The next is the
character of Notes. I have always wanted to follow a young character in this dark
world. Taking the posh boy and putting him into a criminal situations was a cool idea
which I haven't seen successfully done before. I also wanted Notes to have that
spaghetti western protagonist feel to him, this sense of coolness and mystery which
comes through in both the short and poster ( also notice Notes gun is a chamber hand
gun which is iconic of western and spaghetti western films) The narrative structure
also was to link with the title of Notes Vexatious focusing on the vexatious part. I
wanted to cause a annoyance in the short by slowly revealing information on the
purpose and also make the characters turn and do something unsuspected.
I challenge real media products in terms of story and narrative to break out of the
mainstream and create something enjoyable and different with familiarity
20. Conclusion
In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge
forms and conventions of real media products?
I feel like I have both challenged developed and kept conventions of
real media products. Certain conventions are hard to stay away from
firstly because conventions are there because they are relatable to the
genre. Crime Drama or Gangster/Mobster films are a well established
genre with both historical and fictional history. It has to be
recognisable to the audience which is why costume is very
conventional and the situation in terms of a hostage scenario. Where I
have developed is mainly with the screenplay and script. Dialogue
between characters has developed from a Tarantino style of writing.
Where I have challenged conventions is the characters and setting. If
my short was to be a feature film it would have been able to give me
more time to explore, develop and push Notes Vexatious further. I feel
like Notes has a good mix which is both recognisable and innovative
