CCR
Interviewer: I am here today with Sophia to discuss her film that recently came out. Can you please describe it for everyone?
Sophia: Ah yes...so the film is called Gunshot. It is a thriller that is about two students who find missing bodies in an abandoned building near their high school. However, they end up sucking themselves in while trying to find their friends.
Interviewer: That seems very interesting. I am looking forward to watching it!
Sophia: Thank you!
Interviewer: So, I have a couple of questions I would love to ask about the making of the film and what you think will come out of it. Do you think that will be alright?
Sophia: Of course.
Interviewer: First question is “How does your product use or challenge conventions and does it represent social groups or issues?”
Sophia: That’s a very interesting question! Just like any other thriller film, my film's opening scene is conventional, primarily showing the horror and thriller genre. I didn’t really challenge any conventions per se. By making a thriller film many distinct aspects need to be taken into consideration, making it different from other genres. This includes soundtrack, mise-en-scene, and the several types of cuts made, as these things impact the entirety of the film. There are many kinds of common conventions used when it comes to mise-en-scene. For example, the setting took place in an abandoned building where no help could be found anywhere near the characters, forcing them to rely on themselves. Also, the type of costumes used was quite common in this type of genre. They were all dark, especially the one the villain was wearing. It is found that the villains in these types of stories are usually wearing masks to conceal their identity, and that is exactly what the actor had on as she was wearing a plague doctors mask. Another frequently used convention in thriller/horror is when the lighting gets a lot darker when the characters are in danger or close to death. This is shown in my opening sequence when they walk in the abandoned building, discovering the bodies. This lighting shows that they are in great danger as the villain is close behind them. Along with lighting the soundtrack plays a very important role in making the audience feel tension throughout the film. For example, in the beginning while the protagonist was getting chased a heart beating sound effect was used to make the audience more nervous. With all these examples, I believe that my film does follow the conventions of a thriller movie. If I had to give an example of it challenging conventions, I would go back to the lighting and soundtrack. This is because the lighting in the beginning of the film was pretty bright for a thriller/horror movie. Also, one of the soundtracks that were used was upbeat as I thought it would contrast well with the dark opening scene. Other than that, I think it followed conventions very well. Since it is a thriller opening scene, it didn’t really have a social issue that was present in the film, however if you look deep into the actors and everything else one could be gender misrepresentation. If you pay attention to who is in the credits everyone is a woman. This includes the writers, actors, editor, producers. Women are not only the protagonist but also the antagonist. Usually in these types of films the antagonist is a man. My film shows that women can do anything in thriller films than just being afraid and dying in the end.
Interviewer: Wow, that is a very good explanation, I couldn’t have said it any better myself! So, for the next question “How does your product engage with the audiences and how would it be distributed as a real media text?”
Sophia: So, since the film is a thriller, it would be for certain audiences of a few age groups. I would advise that children under the age of 13 get parental permission or guidance before watching this film. This is due to the violence and harsh storyline that is depicted. Otherwise, I think the film is more suited for teens or young adults. It is great for people who love watching thrillers with a storyline full of suspense. So that the audience could enjoy the film I could propose it to distribution companies. I would love to go with Dimension films which is known to release more of the darker kind of movies like horror, thriller, sci-fi, and action. They have very popular movies released like Scream and Pirahna. But as this is my first movie and not a well-known production company, I doubt they would distribute my film. I would probably release it through YouTube or Netflix. This would seem more plausible in my opinion, and many different audiences could still watch it as these apps and sites are still very popular.
Interviewer: Well, then I look forward to watching it through YouTube. I’m also really curious about how you think your production skills developed through this project.
Sophia: Throughout the course of this year, I think that I stumbled across a lot of challenging things throughout the Media Studies class. However, I believe that it was a great learning experience. At the beginning of the year, I basically did not know anything about the production process. I was a god-awful editor, and I was not great at filming. Throughout each assignment I went through it did get a lot easier though. This is because as I learned about different camera angles and shots, it got easier to film each one of them and memorize it. I learned what and how to film things such as pan shots, over-the-shoulder shots, wide shots, close ups, and many more. This class gave me the opportunity to better my filming skills and know that there isn't just one stance in taking a video. Specifically, through this last project I learned so much about shooting a film as I had to include many more shots in this one than any other project I did. I also learned that although the whole process gets easier as you learn more about it, it also does get very difficult as you have to keep adding on to what you know. This last project had so much more to it than the other 2. I learned that you have to research a lot about the background to even understand what you need to expect when filming a thriller. It is a lot more than what it seems on the screen. Lastly, I learned a lot from my partner that worked on this film with me. This includes editing. Remember I told you I was an awful editor well that is an understatement. She taught me so many things as I went through this process of editing. I learned how to cut clips, speed them up and slow them down. Also, how to add in sound effects, which I think was the most fun I had during this process. It was interesting to see how it all fit together just with some little noises here and there. My hard work throughout this entire year is integrated into this video. I hope that this does not result in nothing because it did take a lot for me to get to this point.
Interviewer: I know that your hard work will pay off in the end with all the amazing things you learned. So, this is my last question, “How did you integrate technologies into this project?”
Sophia: Technology was a crucial factor of this entire project from start to finish. To even know what type of genre I was going to do I had to use the search engine Google. I went through many different genres like Sci-fi, action, horror, and comedy until I finally chose thriller. Google helped me learn about the different conventions of a Thriller film and this aided in the planning process. To move on to the filming, I used an iPhone 13 to film all the scenes as I did not have a professional camera that could be utilized. Nevertheless, I do think it still turned out to be good quality. Also, one of the props in the film was a car which was present in most of it as a good amount of the acting was done in there. This includes when the protagonists arrived at the abandoned house, and when Aja left Sophia as she drove off in the car to save herself. Lastly technology was used the most during the editing process. The editing was done on the software app iMovie. This is my personal favorite one to use as it was really easy to put together all the videos on this. To put the entire sequence together, this was a very important part. Many sound effects were needed to make the film seem more realistic too. This included sound effects like heartbeats, footsteps, the car reversing, running, and many more. Overall, technology was a very crucial part in this opening sequence as it would not even be possible or existent without it.
Interviewer: I did not realize how important technology is until you just laid it out for me. Thank you for reminding me and thank you for joining me today to talk about your new project that recently came out! It was a great learning experience.
Sophia: Thank you for having me!
Sophia: Ah yes...so the film is called Gunshot. It is a thriller that is about two students who find missing bodies in an abandoned building near their high school. However, they end up sucking themselves in while trying to find their friends.
Interviewer: That seems very interesting. I am looking forward to watching it!
Sophia: Thank you!
Interviewer: So, I have a couple of questions I would love to ask about the making of the film and what you think will come out of it. Do you think that will be alright?
Sophia: Of course.
Interviewer: First question is “How does your product use or challenge conventions and does it represent social groups or issues?”
Sophia: That’s a very interesting question! Just like any other thriller film, my film's opening scene is conventional, primarily showing the horror and thriller genre. I didn’t really challenge any conventions per se. By making a thriller film many distinct aspects need to be taken into consideration, making it different from other genres. This includes soundtrack, mise-en-scene, and the several types of cuts made, as these things impact the entirety of the film. There are many kinds of common conventions used when it comes to mise-en-scene. For example, the setting took place in an abandoned building where no help could be found anywhere near the characters, forcing them to rely on themselves. Also, the type of costumes used was quite common in this type of genre. They were all dark, especially the one the villain was wearing. It is found that the villains in these types of stories are usually wearing masks to conceal their identity, and that is exactly what the actor had on as she was wearing a plague doctors mask. Another frequently used convention in thriller/horror is when the lighting gets a lot darker when the characters are in danger or close to death. This is shown in my opening sequence when they walk in the abandoned building, discovering the bodies. This lighting shows that they are in great danger as the villain is close behind them. Along with lighting the soundtrack plays a very important role in making the audience feel tension throughout the film. For example, in the beginning while the protagonist was getting chased a heart beating sound effect was used to make the audience more nervous. With all these examples, I believe that my film does follow the conventions of a thriller movie. If I had to give an example of it challenging conventions, I would go back to the lighting and soundtrack. This is because the lighting in the beginning of the film was pretty bright for a thriller/horror movie. Also, one of the soundtracks that were used was upbeat as I thought it would contrast well with the dark opening scene. Other than that, I think it followed conventions very well. Since it is a thriller opening scene, it didn’t really have a social issue that was present in the film, however if you look deep into the actors and everything else one could be gender misrepresentation. If you pay attention to who is in the credits everyone is a woman. This includes the writers, actors, editor, producers. Women are not only the protagonist but also the antagonist. Usually in these types of films the antagonist is a man. My film shows that women can do anything in thriller films than just being afraid and dying in the end.
Interviewer: Wow, that is a very good explanation, I couldn’t have said it any better myself! So, for the next question “How does your product engage with the audiences and how would it be distributed as a real media text?”
Sophia: So, since the film is a thriller, it would be for certain audiences of a few age groups. I would advise that children under the age of 13 get parental permission or guidance before watching this film. This is due to the violence and harsh storyline that is depicted. Otherwise, I think the film is more suited for teens or young adults. It is great for people who love watching thrillers with a storyline full of suspense. So that the audience could enjoy the film I could propose it to distribution companies. I would love to go with Dimension films which is known to release more of the darker kind of movies like horror, thriller, sci-fi, and action. They have very popular movies released like Scream and Pirahna. But as this is my first movie and not a well-known production company, I doubt they would distribute my film. I would probably release it through YouTube or Netflix. This would seem more plausible in my opinion, and many different audiences could still watch it as these apps and sites are still very popular.
Interviewer: Well, then I look forward to watching it through YouTube. I’m also really curious about how you think your production skills developed through this project.
Sophia: Throughout the course of this year, I think that I stumbled across a lot of challenging things throughout the Media Studies class. However, I believe that it was a great learning experience. At the beginning of the year, I basically did not know anything about the production process. I was a god-awful editor, and I was not great at filming. Throughout each assignment I went through it did get a lot easier though. This is because as I learned about different camera angles and shots, it got easier to film each one of them and memorize it. I learned what and how to film things such as pan shots, over-the-shoulder shots, wide shots, close ups, and many more. This class gave me the opportunity to better my filming skills and know that there isn't just one stance in taking a video. Specifically, through this last project I learned so much about shooting a film as I had to include many more shots in this one than any other project I did. I also learned that although the whole process gets easier as you learn more about it, it also does get very difficult as you have to keep adding on to what you know. This last project had so much more to it than the other 2. I learned that you have to research a lot about the background to even understand what you need to expect when filming a thriller. It is a lot more than what it seems on the screen. Lastly, I learned a lot from my partner that worked on this film with me. This includes editing. Remember I told you I was an awful editor well that is an understatement. She taught me so many things as I went through this process of editing. I learned how to cut clips, speed them up and slow them down. Also, how to add in sound effects, which I think was the most fun I had during this process. It was interesting to see how it all fit together just with some little noises here and there. My hard work throughout this entire year is integrated into this video. I hope that this does not result in nothing because it did take a lot for me to get to this point.
Interviewer: I know that your hard work will pay off in the end with all the amazing things you learned. So, this is my last question, “How did you integrate technologies into this project?”
Sophia: Technology was a crucial factor of this entire project from start to finish. To even know what type of genre I was going to do I had to use the search engine Google. I went through many different genres like Sci-fi, action, horror, and comedy until I finally chose thriller. Google helped me learn about the different conventions of a Thriller film and this aided in the planning process. To move on to the filming, I used an iPhone 13 to film all the scenes as I did not have a professional camera that could be utilized. Nevertheless, I do think it still turned out to be good quality. Also, one of the props in the film was a car which was present in most of it as a good amount of the acting was done in there. This includes when the protagonists arrived at the abandoned house, and when Aja left Sophia as she drove off in the car to save herself. Lastly technology was used the most during the editing process. The editing was done on the software app iMovie. This is my personal favorite one to use as it was really easy to put together all the videos on this. To put the entire sequence together, this was a very important part. Many sound effects were needed to make the film seem more realistic too. This included sound effects like heartbeats, footsteps, the car reversing, running, and many more. Overall, technology was a very crucial part in this opening sequence as it would not even be possible or existent without it.
Interviewer: I did not realize how important technology is until you just laid it out for me. Thank you for reminding me and thank you for joining me today to talk about your new project that recently came out! It was a great learning experience.
Sophia: Thank you for having me!
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