Chosen Brief

Our Initial chosen brief
Initially after looking through the set of briefs the one that stood out at Emily and I was the film trailer option, I think this was because it would involve a lot of imagination and we both have a love for film, as soon as we decided on this option we Drew together a mind map of out initial ideas and thoughts;


We then went on to look at what a teaser trailer is so we have a clear idea of what it is exactly we are creating we got this web definition from www.dictionary.com, i have copied and pasted the definition into my blog.
Teaser Trailer - A short trailer that is generally released many months before a movie is actually released, to give a brief peek at what the movie will be like, and to build audience anticipation. Teaser trailers are usually much shorter than the final trailer, which reveals more of the storyline of the film. See also trailer.
As you can see the point of a trailer is to give the audience a sneak peak at the movies a couple of months before the film is released, this is in order to get the audience excited about the film and therefore when the film is released in cinemas a large of amount of people go and watch it. A good movie trailer will leave the audience wanting to see more of the film or on a cliff hanger for example only revealing half of the story line.

Mind map of brief




Idea
The idea that stood out to Emily and I the most was a heartbreaking story of a young girl who had suffered from meningitis in the past, we was going to base the film on the story of her sister and how it felt to lose a sister and a best friend. This idea came from her younger sister who had suffered from meningitis in the past although she has recovered from this we would be able to take real life emotion from how Emily felt when her sister was suffering and in the vital hours when it was a matter of life and death. Due to this experience Emily had also written a English coursework piece on this almost tragic event of her life in year 10, we could therefore expand the story and base our trailer on the story revealing the main part of the story but not the most important part of weather she survives or not and how the family copes.
We started to research similar films and their trailers so that we could get ideas and generate our own ideas from this of how we go about filming the various scenes that would be involved and how we would go about editing them together to get the emotional response but also the "WOW" factor so that we would produce a dramatic cliffhanger on the trailer that would make the audience want to go and seethe film at the cinema. We noticed that a film similar to our idea had just been released called “My sisters Keeper” that is based on a novel by Jodie Picoult. The novel tells the tale of a young girl who sues her parents for medical emancipation when she discovers that she was produced to save the life of her older sister suffering from leukemia, it tells the story of the reason why she sues her parent and the heartbreaking story of how the family cope with these tragic events;

Synopsis of film
“Anna Fitzgerald was definitely not a mistake. She was especially designed from her parents’ genes to provide a match for her elder sister Kate's rare blood type. Kate has Leukaemia, and when Anna was young she donated bone marrow to help with the treatment. Soon however, it was more marrow, blood, stem cells and now, when she is thirteen her parents want her kidney.
The story jumps straight into the action where Anna begins to fight against her parent’s control, and adamantly against giving Kate her kidney she convinces a lawyer to take her case against her parents - she is suing them for the rights to her own body.
The plot follows Anna's family's struggle, not only within the legal system but the emotional trials they all must now face; her parents struggle to understand Anna's motives, as Anna seems also to do at times. At thirteen years old Anna rebels against her parents in one of the most heart wrenching ways possible for both parties, and in particular her alienation of her mother causes all sorts of difficulties within the family. A well-rounded story, more emphasis is placed on the family side of Anna's battle with the underlying influence of Jesse, the girls' older brother who has been slightly neglected, and perhaps due to the strain of having two frequently hospitalised sisters has become delinquent and isolated.

Interestingly, Kate does not seem to voice much opinion about Anna's choice to deny her sister a life-saving organ, which adds to the intrigue of the legal battle. Anna's relationship with her lawyer is at times one-sided, as she begins to increasingly rely upon him, and he gets frustrated as he begins to feel like a babysitter. He does however recognize the influence of her controlling mother, and puts her under the care of a legal guardian, which naturally strains family relationships further.
Anna's case finally reaches the court, but her battle is far from over. More emotional manipulation and typical insecurities follow, as she stands up for herself in a world of adults. "

Our Thoughts

After analyzing the film and its trailer me and Emily both found that our idea of a girl suffering from meningitis and how this effects the family very similar to the story told in this particular film that has only recently been released. We also thought that although we had our own ideas of how we would want the trailer to look and the shots and frames we would want it to include, it would be hard to make it original when comparing it to this film.We also decided that the amount of filming for a good film trailer would increase the work load and as it is about a girl suffering from meningitis to make the story look true we would need access to a hospital to film some scenes in a hospital and other various location, also maybe an ambulance in order to get the high quality trailer we would want to produce and in order to get the impact, firstly we knew it would be hard to film in a hospital as it is secure and place where ill people go for peace and to recover from various illnesses. Secondly it would involve including many people in the trailer to see the effects on the family and how it affected them trying to get many people in certain locations at the same time could be difficult. We therefore have decided that we have not chosen the right brief for us.

What is media? Generic Features

What is media? Web definitions
• In communication, media (singular medium) are the storage and transmission tools used to store and deliver information or data. It is often referred to as synonymous with mass media or news media, but may refer to a single medium used to communicate any data for any purpose.
• In the arts, media (plural of medium) are the materials and techniques used by an artist to produce a work
• Mass media is a term used to denote a section of the media specifically designed to reach a very large audience such as the population of a nation ...

By looking at these we can see that media is used by us every day as within a day we all communicate with others using different tools other than talking. TV and newspapers have a major role when it comes to communicating us information this is the way we find out what is happening within the society we live in. Many television stations every day broadcast news programs during prime times for example early morning when people are getting ready for work, school etc and then again at noon, 6`o clock and 10`o clock when people may be arriving home from work. There are then special channels that are just dedicated to bringing us news from around the world and the area we live in. all these options mean that everyone with a TV has a chance of being broadcast news and information form around the world. Those people who may not have a TV due to personal beliefs for example may receive the communication of this data through newspapers which again millions of copies are sold and published every day bringing us the latest news. We have national newspapers that mostly are published daily and then local newspapers that are normally weekly these all are communicating data across a wide population of people within our society. These are also examples of mass media as they are made to appeal to a large population. Adverts are also a massively used medium that communicate us information weather it be on factual news, new products or programs. Adverts however normally have a target audience and although are an example of mass media as they are being made to broadcast nationally to a specific audience, for example when new make up products come out they are made to fit the needs of women. However adverts can also just be media rather than massively, for example an advert in your local corner shop advertising a bike for sale would not be an example of mass media.

I went on to look at various mediums and pick out there generic features so I have a good understanding of different media tools before picking my brief, I ensured Ilooked at a range of mediums butalso for eachone watched a few examples in order to get generic features that seem tobepresent in all... The different mediums I looked at were;
• Movie trailers
• Documentaries
• Music videos
• Adverts
• Soap opera trailers
• Web designs

Generic features of movie trailers
• Always short; approx 1.20 minutes
• Lots of actions, characters, locations
• Don’t reveal whole story but introduce basic premise; E.g.) Spoilt American tear away is sent to eccentric British boarding school which she hates initially but then finds out she loves it.
• Voice overs
• Loud sound effects
• Background music
• Names of prominent cast members
• Quotes from reviews in writing across a black screen
• Begins with names of production and studio name
• Completes title and then the release date of film
• Begins with slightly longer extract of film without any music and the pace speeds up or slows down depending on the genre of music of cutting begins along with music
• Extracts are rarely in chronological order, but in a way which introduces premise, main themes and highlights (funny, sad, sfx etc)
• Music builds up to a climax which occurs just before the title release date
• Fade shots (My sisters keeper) to suggest a passing terms
• Changes in light tone
• Close ups to focus on something that is going to be integral to the plot.

Generic features of documentaries
• Voice over
• Fast pace cross cutting
• Fade
• Cut always of people being interviewed
• Talking heads; experts, eye witnesses, younger generation, range of ages
• Focus on specific, interesting details
• Clear past and present through colour and lighting
• Use of sound; older clips/images – older music
• Lots of information and facts
• Establishing shots

Generic features of music videos
• Fast paced cuts and edits; lots of different locations and costumes
• Use of lighting; Ciara video; dark lighting and white clothing; makes contrast and you can see her clearly – sense of mystery
• Video often
• Tells a story; Thriller video there is an acting scene that then goes into the music – short movie – linked to the previous acting scenario; adds interest and involvement
• Lots of close ups and shots of the same thing; people from different angles
• Neon flashing lights – impression of movements, action and fast pace; mysterious undertone; hard to see exactly what’s happening
• Light, bright videos create a happy, positive, fun tone
• Energetic
• Cuts match the rhythm of the music OR match the pace of the music, e.g.) slower fades and slower songs, quick straight cuts for faster songs etc
• Cuts from the band playing back to the story again
• Lots of cultural references
• Close ups of hands/mouths playing instruments/singing
• Similar to films they have establishing shots, close ups to how emotions
• Extreme angles to emphasize emotions, create atmosphere, e.g.) extreme low angle shots to make subjects look big and impressive, or the opposite to make them look venerable.
• They suit particular genre of the music; e.g.) aggressive themes/imaginary for rock music, club themes/image for dance music etc
• Tendency to use handheld camera rather than those on tripods or pedestals
• Huge variety of budgets depending on wealth of band or image they wish to present, e.g.) grunge band may be filmed in black and white, playing in moldy basement when in fact they are all multi millionaires
• Generally innovative use of cameras and effects.

Generic features of adverts
• Like music videos, use range of angles and cuts
• Usually have a music soundtrack
• Close up of product and emotional reaction to product
• Sometimes focuses on brand – building rather than product
• Always have a slogan that they go back to
• Focus on the sense to create appetite
• Use catchy jingles
• Use attractive models/images to sell things ( the brain remembers such things easily)
• Tend to stick to one location
• Use humor and irony (the brain also finds it easy to remember funny things)
• Generally try to be innovative
• Almost always finish with the brand name or slogan
• Like to use brand or similar company colors
• The action/themes/images don’t always have a strong connection to the product but are memorable
• Sometimes use `ordinary` people to help audience relate to them
• Use innuendo and double meanings; implied meaning
• Celebrities to raise a high profile
• Use a `visual slogan` ; Asda adverts – for example an action that is associated with company/product

Generic features of soap opera trailer
• Common relating themes of horror and tragedy – generally nice about to be destroyed by something nasty/ something going wrong (emotionally contrasting plot lines)
• Lots of action, fast paced
• Melodramatic (often exaggerated domestic settings)
• Specific characters- focus on heroes, villains and victims
• Cliffhanger endings
• Lots of short scenes or specific characters speaking
• Hints of revelations of murky pasts
• Dramatic soundtrack; voice over/echo effects/ends with title of soap and schedule info
• Ends with theme tune of the soap
• More hysterical emotion
• Lighting tends to be dark/flashes/short cuts to emphasis the tragic emotions
• Repetition of schedule information
• Use of soft focus to emphasis romantic scenes
• Use of black and white to signify dreams or flashbacks

Generic features of web designs
• Prominent image
• Same colors and tones
• Different languages available
• Advertisements
• Postings – comments from fans
• Flash images – moving images
• Simple layout
• Bands – use imagery and color schemes which are associated with the bands image
• Bands – lots of links to whatever the target audience might be interested in – new photos, upcoming shows, downloads
• Adverts for related products and services
• Bands – prominence given to image of band and/or bands logo
• Soaps – prominence given to flash player window in which you can play back missed episodes
• Soaps - the channel logo is prominent at the top with quite a plain, simple layouts, use associated fonts and logos.