Preliminary task analysis

Preliminary task analysis

For our preliminary task we needed to create a 1 minute video of some kind of meeting. This need to include the conventions of a thriller and needed to build some kind of tension for the audience.

Camera work:

In our production, we used a wide range of camera shots to make the attitude of the piece more effective. We wanted to show each of the characters as a different status of power. For example, we used over the shoulder shots when looking at the two detectives. This made the detectives appear to be more important in the scene and made them seem more dominating. This use of camera work also helped to show the mysterious view of the villainous character. This helped us to build tension within the scene as it created an unsettling view towards the character.

We also used close ups to show the expressions of a character in more detail and to show an object important to the scene. The most obvious close up was the shot of the villain’s eyes whilst the detectives are talking to him. This close up showed the uneasy attitude of the character shows that the character is unaffected by what is going on. This may suggest that the character is likely to do something irrational during the course of the scene. This was our way of building tension. Another close up we used was the shot of the door handle. This shot helps to make it clear to the audience that the scene is set in an isolated location. This suggests to the audience that the plot is too dangerous to be in a public setting. This was another effective way of building tension.

Lighting:

The lighting we used in our production was important in creating a tense atmosphere. Throughout the scene we tried to use dark lighting within the room. We wanted the room to be dark when it was just the villain sitting alone, but the lights to come up when the two detectives enter. This shows a clear contrast of good and evil between each of the characters. By doing this, the audience know who the villain is and who the ‘hero’s’ in the scene are. Throughout the scene, the outside edges of the room were always darker than the characters area. We wanted to make it seem like not only are they in an isolated area, they are also alone when inside the room.

Costume:

The use of costume was also important in creating an effective preliminary video. Each of the characters in the video had different costumes to show their significance in the scene and helps to show the clear contrast between good and bad. The villain in the scene (Vincent Murphy) is wearing what is meant to be some sort of straight jacket. To create this effect we just used a normal black jacket that was worn backwards by the actor. This made it seem like some kind of restraint and made it more obvious that this particular character was a criminal of some kind. The straight jacket made the atmosphere of the scene more thrilling as it shows the danger of the villain. This may also suggest that the character may cause trouble later in the scene. This keeps the audience on the edge of their seats.

The other two characters involved in the video were the two detectives (James Girard and Joe Dickinson). These characters were wearing the classic attire of a detective. They are both wearing smart trousers with a shirt and tie. This use of costumes showed the audience that these two characters are the sophisticated and well to do heroes of the video. The costumes used throughout the video are used to show the contrast between good and evil. This makes he thrilling nature of the scene more affective towards its audience.

Overall we think that we were successful in our preliminary task. We showed the video to the other members of our class and collected feedback to find out what was good and bad about it. We found out from the feedback that our use of camera shots was the most effective. We found that we had a large range of camera shots that helped to make the video more effective within the thriller genre.

If we were to remake our video we would improve on the location. We felt that with more time we could find a more isolated and effective location to film our scene. This would help to make our video better.