Audience Research; The Survey (Open Questions)

One of the questions which was in our audience research survey was an open answer question. As we had 42 respondents, a lot of different ideas and views came up as the result. Therefore the answers below are the ones which came up most frequently;

What 3 things do you associate with the British Drama sub-genre of Social Realism?

• Tough characters
• City location
• Gritty storyline/location
• Division between classes
• Crime and Violence
• Normal, every day characters
• Gangs and gang culture
• Accents
• Depressing but relatable to storyline

Also in the question "In a social realism film based on homelessness, which genre of music do you associate with this?" we gave an answer option of 'other'. Here are the results of those who chose this option;

The overall consensus we got from this result is that our audience expects our music to be melancholic but relevant to the time and location of the teaser trailer. As a further part of our research I will look into the songs which one of our respondents has suggested to see if they are suitable or inspire other ideas.

Research Plan, 11th-15th October

This is the second research plan we are using to structure our research and keep each team member up to date with their progress and contribution to the group.

Below is the research plan for the week commencing 11th October 2010;

Audience Research; The Survey (closed questions)

As a group we conducted a survey in order to obtain research about our possible audience. We handed it to 42 people of all different ages and sexes however the vast majority of our respondents were females aged 16 to 18. We used the website SurveyPirate as our main method of data collection.

Ages

Gender

As our respondents are one particular gender and age this may create biased results. Therefore we shall do some further research into a wider range of of people.

Then we moved on to ask our corespondents about the British drama genre;

What Type of British Drama do You Prefer ?

Which of These would You like to see more in the Cinema?

From these results it can be seen that comedies are most wanted to be seen more of in the cinema. However we discussed at an earlier date that we would not like to do a comedy as it would be difficult to do so we have decided to focus on one of the second preferences; Social realism.

Then more specifically at the social realism and social realistic films;

Social realist films usually focus on a current issue in society, which of these would interest you the most?

As a result of this we have chosen to focus on the issue of homelessness. Although the most popular option is the poverty we can incorporate this within our teaser trailer as our narrative may be about becoming homeless because of the recession



In a social realism film based on homelessness, which genre of music do you associate with this?

Taking our results into consideration we shall be focusing on the Indie and grime music genres for music in our teaser trailer. This will be meeting our audience's expectations as well as looking into creating quite a modern soundtrack to our coursework because the two most popular choices can be considered as 21st century music.

Do you feel one word titled films or longer phrases are more effective?

We are going to meet our audience's needs and make sure our title is either a single word of a short phrase

As a result of conducting this research we have found out about our audience's main need and expectations. We will now use this research to create and develop ideas for our teaser trailer.

Initial Name Ideas; Considering Branding

We have begun to discuss name ideas for our film so that we are able to set up various networking accounts and work on the branding for our teaser trailer. Below are some ideas that we came up with as a group. These were mainly based on wording that came to mind when we discussed the main theme of our film, homelessness.

We will continue to work on these names as we consider tag lines for our film and receive further audience research feedback which we will carry out, mainly in the form of polls. However, these are a good basis for us as a team to think about. We will be carrying out a poll to see which name people like most. Therefore we know we are meeting the criteria that the audience wants.

Location Scouting; Comparison of Locations

Whilst looking at various locations for a place to film our teaser trailers, we found two possible locations where we could film the shot of our protagonist sleeping in a doorway. In order to pick which one to use, we weighed up the pros and cons of each location;

Bat & Ball

Pros; if shot at night the lighting from surrounding shops could be used to illuminate the doorway, a wider doorway means bigger space for us to work with, so the protagonist could actually lay down in the larger area, doorway never used therefore filming would not be disrupted, stairs could also be incorporated in the shot.

Cons; location right by a main road so traffic may disrupt filming, location seems quite clean and tame, the door looks old fashioned and rustic which does not depict a city location, location on a fairly busy pathway therefore pedestrians may disrupt filming

Tonbridge

Pros; The graffiti sprayed on the door creates perfect the mise en scene as it is has connotations of London or another city location, the ripped sign and rusty door gives the location a grimey feel, location is in a back alley therefore traffic and pedestrians would not disrupt filming.

Cons; limited lighting around the location therefore would have to supply our own, scaffolding in front of doorway so limited space to place the camera, doorway may be on private property, location below a local night club therefore may have sound interference.



Both of these location would be suitable for the shot as they fit the requirements. However we feel that we should feel the shot in Tonbridge because the added graffiti and industrial look would create greater mise en scene and compliment the teaser trailer's location as a whole.

Location Scouting; Continued

Another town which we decided to location scout was Bat & Ball. Here are some possible locations we found around the area;

Bat & Ball

Shots of run down or abandoned shops could be Incorporated in our mise en scene to enhance the rough life our protagonist has to live in. The graffiti also adds to the city feel of the London location. We could have shots of our protagonist sitting outside this location begging or sleeping rough.

The use of a shot of our protagonist running down an alley could be used in our teaser trailer to represent the character running away from her troubled life or running away from someone or something. We could use this alley way as it's in a discrete location so members of the public or other noises won't interrupt the filming. I particularly like the wired fence on one side as it gives a prison like feel showing how our protagonist is trapped from normality. However there is a lot of greenery in the area which takes away the city look of the location but we could just film without the trees in the shot to solves this problem.

Our teaser trailer could have a shot of our protagonist using one of these wooden platforms as something to sleep on or to interact with. We could also use them in the background of our shots to show that the area our protagonist is currently in is abandoned or derelict.

The close positioning of the houses with the run down looking garages in front makes this shot look quite urban. This is supported by the grey and brown shades of the buildings and metal staircases. This location would be good to use for a shot of our protagonist running because it is a large open area with an industrial background.

We thought this location could be effective because of the size of the space as well as the run down look of the location. However it would probably would not be best to film in as it is on Private property as well as being by a very busy road with traffic lights. This may lead to the traffic disrupting our filming or being told to leave the sight.

Overall the Bat & Ball location would be good to film at because some areas of it appear quite industrial and city looking. We could definitely use it for many of our running shots because it is quite away from the busy public. However many of the places we took pictures of are private property so we would have to seek permission before hand.

Promotional Package; The Website

As a part of our research I deconstructed the website for the 2006 British Drama film London to Brighton.

The Front Page

This is the first page the audience sees when entering the London to Brighton website. The main feature of the page is to promote the release of the film on DVD so that the audience is encouraged to buy it. Also through the use of imagery it shows that there is homogeny between the webpage and the DVD cover as they use the same images, typography and layout. The only options on the front page is to enter the website or to go to Play.com (where the DVD can be purchased) which limits the audiences options and encourages them to interact more with the film and it's promotional package. The use of a red and white colour scheme suggests that it is a very English film because of the similarity to red and white English flag. This supports the films genre of British drama

The Navigation Page

The navigation page uses the same "London to Brighton" typography and positioning as the main page to create a sense of branding.The layout of the page seems to resemble a newspaper which portrays a very British feel to the website. There is constant mention of the awards the film has either won or been nominated for which is used to impress the audience. It also shows that it is a good film considering it has won awards and therefore a wider audience will be interested. The website is user friendly because it is easy to navigate around. This is done through hovering over one of the images with the mouse and the title of the page you are about to click on appears in a gold colour to stand out. The page also has a mini music player at the top which plays music relevant to the time and location of the film. With this playing in the background it sets the mood of the film, for the audience.

By deconstructing this British drama film website we can consider it as a source of inspiration for our own coursework. I particularly liked the use of the music player because it added an extra dimension to the website. This because instead of just visually attracting the audience they are being attracted through audio as well. I also liked the constant mention of reviews and awards which the film has won. I feel we should try and mention our own reviews on our website to make the film seem a lot more real rather than a A2 piece of coursework.

Location Scouting

Today we went location scouting in order to find a effective but suitable place to film our teaser trailer. We looked at the backstreets Tonbridge high street and here are some images of the possible locations that could be used;

Tonbridge

A large open area with benches could be used for for many different shots because of the space. However may not include the trees in these shots because it gives the location a rural feel which is not usually found in cities.




A bench outside Sainsburys could be used for a shot of the protagonist sleeping rough or sitting and staring into space.

A shot of the protagonist running down this alley way could be used to represent her running away from the problem shes faces in her life. The rubbish on the floor and the run down buildings gives the mise en scene a grimey feel which is effective when trying to portray the rough conditions our protagonist is forced to live in. We could also use the small cupboard on the left as somewhere for her to live.

We took this shot because the close positioning of all the buildings makes the area seem quite industrial and built up just like the typical conception of London. The over growing plants and aged wooden fences also makes the area seem quite run down which we could use to our advantage to create an establishing shot of the backstreets of London.

This shot of the back alleys of Tonbridge appear gritty and unclean which could be used to emphasise the poor quality of life our protagonist will have to live in. We could use the large bins for the shot where our protagonist finds a blanket in one of them. The location is also in a convenient place away form traffic and the public therefore our filming won't be disrupted.

Many of these location which we scouted in Tonbridge could be used within our own teaser trailer. Although our trailer is meant to be set in London, we could use this location as it has no indication that it is Tonbridge. Also filming in Tonbridge would be more convenient for our media group as it is closer to home.

Full Promotional Package Analysis; Requiem for a Dream

Requiem for a dream "depicts different forms of addiction leading to the characters’ imprisonment in a world of delusion and reckless desperation that is subsequently overtaken and devastated by reality." The genre is quick confusing, yet it is most definitely a gritty psychological drama that reflects the true harshness of life and the devastating problems people can encounter.

Poster analysis;

Having deconstructed the poster, it would appear that a key aspect of which makes this appealing is the originality and contrast between the three separate thirds. The three thirds appear to have no connection and this helps it to stand out and be more memorable. However, this could easily be really clever or go very wrong. So therefore, it must be an important thing to consider when designing the layout of our promotional poster.

Website Analysis;

The requiem for a dream website is definitely unique and at times very confusing. However, it is brilliantly creative. There is not a homepage, as such, for the website but a series of part-interactive flash images. Below are a few examples;





This is just a small selection of the number of interactive pages that come onto the screen when looking at the website. It appears to have no clear anchorage but everything is relevant to the film. It would only be understood by someone that had previously seen the film. It leaves a viewer that has not seen the film before very confused and bewildered. It does not play the trailer or give any clear information about the film. Although this is very effective and creative, it may leave the viewers bewildered and confused which is not what we wish to portray to the audience. So this may not be a viable option for our promotional package but there may be some aspects of the website we wish to consider such as the interactive options.

Trailer Analysis;

The use of fast jump cut editing creates a sense of tension and builds up the emotion for the audience from the beginning. As it is a theatrical trailer, it does give away a lot in regards to the narrative, the viewer can already tell that it will not end happily for the characters. The trailer begins at a slow pace, speeds up and then slows down again. Phrases are repeated from the beginning again at the ending, reflecting the cycle that goes on throughout the film.