1. Q1. IN WHAT WAYS DOES YOUR
MEDIA PRODUCT USE,
DEVELOP OR CHALLENGE
FORMS & CONVENTIONS OF
REAL MEDIA PRODUCTS?

2. SETTING/LOCATION
I used many shots overlooking developed city areas and establishing shots
showing built-up buildings in the background. The reason for this is because I
wanted the audience to grasp the idea that my film is set in a suburban/city area
and by showing shots where my character is overlooking a city view from a
distance it shows how the setting of my film is literally on the outskirts of the busy
city of London. The reason I wanted to create this image is to enforce the street
racer concept as this is something which would be unusual to see in a country or
rural area. I also found that most action films tend to be filmed in city areas such
as ‘Fast and Furious Tokyo Drift’ but I still wanted to illustrate the theme of
isolation which surrounded my character which is why I wanted to represent the
setting in such a way.

3. SETTING/LOCATION

4. COSTUME/PROPS
Obviously the key costume in my film is the characters race attire which she develops and this is a pair of
black skinny jeans, a black roll neck top and a harlequin printed pink jacket. I thought this look was effective
as the outfit overall was very bland and plain with a pinch of flare and confidence striking out in the outlandish
but quirky jacket as I wanted this to demonstrate the character wearing it. Also, I thought this outfit looked
fairly professional and individual for the character wearing it and gave a subtle female hint which links in with
the plot. A significant prop used throughout is the car which is a black Mini, this car is traditional and has been
around since 1959 and street racing supposedly got popular around the 1960’s so I thought this was a vehicle
which would fit. Also, I wanted the car to be seen as a first car and therefore I think the Mini is realistic and
appropriate to use. The use of the colour which is black is firstly to match the race outfit of the protagonist, but
secondly because black is symbolically seen as being mysterious and the colour itself reflects no light in any
part of the visible spectrum. This is why it can often be associated with emptiness and loneliness which
mirrors the protagonist female’s feelings. The helmet is also significant as it reflects upon the tragic storyline
and keeps in touch with many key themes such as safety and protection which is something the mother is
particular about.

5. COSTUME/PROPS

6. EDITING
My trailers cuts gradually become more choppy and sharper throughout the trailer and this is
to seem fast paced, build suspense and reflect the action genre of the film. I sorted them into
the particular sequence I did so that firstly, they would conform to the sound and music used
and secondly, so that they could tell a vague story. I made sure that the trailer contrasted from
the beginning to the end by beginning slower and distant to resemble the characters
personality as well as build up to a climax which is the end of the trailer where the shots get
more fast paced and more intense to show the protagonist’s life and emotions and her
blossoming confidence.

7. PLACING OF TITLES
In order to make my film seem professional and suitable to my genre I watched lots of other
action film trailers and just trailers in general. I found that the release date was often placed at
the very end of the trailer which is why I done the same for mine. I also found that some release
dates were placed in the middle but I felt that it would be more significant if placed at the end and
would enable the audience to remember the date if it was the last thing they saw. Before the
release date or along with the release date, I saw the actual film name and so I imitated this as I
thought this was effective and again would be a significant thing which would be remembered
last. I failed to find a trailer where the production company was placed last and so I decided that
it would be best to place this first and stick to the typical conventions to seem fitting. Toward the
beginning of the trailer I accredited the actors by placing their names and throughout I placed
relevant titles to the film itself to subtly explain key features of the plot.

8. PLACING OF TITLES

9. GENRE – HOW THE
TRAILER SUGGESTS IT
The trailer suggests the action genre through the use of costume, props, location, editing and
many features which I have already spoken about. For example, the use of the car and speed
which is a typical piece used in many action films as cars are iconic due to the links with
speed, danger and adrenaline. The editing which I have spoken about foretells the genre
through the fast paced shots and build up. The location is urban and so is bound to be
surrounded by drama, hustle and bustle of the city and action unlike what is expected from
rural areas. Many other features demonstrate the action genre however I have already
explained them and don’t want to be repeating myself.

10. GENRE – HOW THE
TRAILER SUGGESTS IT

11. INTRODUCTION OF
CHARACTERS
In most cases, the protagonist is the first character to be revealed. It may be a gradual
process of fairy immediate, but this is something I thought was essential when creating a
trailer. This is because the main focus of the plot is going to be this character throughout and
so it is imperative that the audience are presented with this character first. I then introduced
the mother as I needed some background behind the story and so thought this would be
suitable. However, nearer the end I introduce the actors along with a brief clip of the character
after as I found this didn’t need to be an enigma code for the audience but instead fairly
straightforward.

12. INTRODUCTION OF
CHARACTERS

13. SPECIAL & AFTER EFFECTS
I was fortunate enough to have access to Adobe After Effects, the only issue however was, I wasn’t very
confident with using this and so it took some time teaching myself the basics of this complex software. I
wanted to combine this into my film though seeing as I had spent so much time attempting to learn it, it
seemed a waste not to incorporate it somehow. Firstly, I began playing around with my production logo and the
appearance of this at the beginning of my trailer. I spent ages producing different ones and eventually came to
my senses and realised that less was more and to keep it simple looked much more professional. I originally
spent ages trying to create a turning wheel on a car that using the software, would eventually be moving. This
wasn’t happening for me and didn’t look very effective anyway, so once I had tried a dozen times and achieved
the outcome I wasn’t pleased with, I opted for simpler options and watched other trailers. After watching other
trailers it was obvious that these were all much more basic and that this looked better so I scrapped the idea of
having an image and stuck to text which glowed through every letter and then the whole text and then
enlarged and faded out of the screen. I also created my own lens flare on an establishing shot by imported the
clip, applied the lens flare effect, adjusted the opacity and the brightness.

14. SPECIAL & AFTER EFFECTS