4. How did you use media technologies in the construction and research, planning and evaluation stages?

It is somewhat ironic that I chose to answer the question about my usage of media technologies by typing out my answer. I choose to do this, however, for a basic reason; from an outside perspective, it is easier to analyse techniques that it would be with the use of them. With this method, I, and indeed the person reading this, get a retrospective viewpoint on the technologies, not having to navigate using said technologies, as this can get a little challenging

Research:

On a hardware level, I used two primary examples of media technologies. For most of the research into tasks, and presenting this research, I used computers. However, in order to get inspiration for the Documentary which I wanted to make, I used a television to view through typical examples. In order to present these, I used a variety of different websites. I used websites like Prezi, Padlet, and Google Slides. I use these as I believe they add a certain degree of quality to my coursework, despite being straightforward to use. In order to put my ideas together, I decided to use Bubbl.us in order to lay out a mind map. I am happy with how I branch out of my comfort zone in order to use it, however I am not a fan of the way it is presented. Within my research stage, my use of media technologies could best be described as ‘safe’; I utilised my detailed knowledge of these media technologies in order to make my points look professional, however I didn’t branch out too much.

Planning:

In contrast, within the planning stage I used a greater range of technologies, and I chose these based upon my strengths. For example, I storyboarded by hand, took pictures of each sheet with my Phone Camera (OnePlus 3T), and uploaded this to my blog. In contrast, though, we have my animatic. It could accurately be described as something of a hybrid between different media technologies. The images are based upon my storyboard images, however as they can get somewhat hard to see, I decided to recreate them on Storyboard That. As I wasn’t able to access the Voice Actors at the time, and my voice doesn’t take well to narration, I used a Text To Speech Program to get the audio, and I combined these on the editing software which I have at home, Cyberlink PowerDirector. This helps support the skill I have towards using Media Technologies, with my ability to combine these showing that I used media technologies well. However, I also found that experimenting to this degree doesn’t always benefit me, and that I need to focus on areas which I am strong in rather that use new technologies for important sections. The area which I learned this in was through my use of Prezi Next to present my Pitch. It look more impressive than typical Prezi, but I found that it was rather more difficult to upload it to my blog, due to the ‘Free-nium’ nature of the site. Even if I used a greater range of Technologies at this stage than I did previously, it is also obvious that, at least for the most part, instead of experimenting with different forms of presenting, I chose to be simple and conservative, as I needed to make my plans clear. This is seen through my simple use of uploading screenshots of my Location Recce etc. I showed that I can experiment with media technologies, however generally I gave a fairly conservative use of Media Technologies at this stage.

Production/ Post Production:

It is within this area that my use of Media Technologies became much more interesting. On the shooting days, I was recording on two cameras; The main piece of production (Bewilderment Junction) was recorded on my DSLR, a Nikon D3300, meanwhile a secondary production (BTS of Bewilderment Junction) was filmed concurrently on my Phone, aforementioned to be a Oneplus 3T. With both, I accessed Stock Music from Kevin Macleod. I decided to edit them in different programs; Bewilderment Junction was edited in Final Cut Pro on the iMacs which the school have, as I needed that to look professional. The simplistic nature of my BTS mean that while editing started concurrently with Bewilderment Junction, I was able to edit that fairly quickly. Indeed, it is Bewilderment Junction that shows my usage of media technologies the best. As I had recorded on a windy day, next to busy roads, a lot of the audio sounded of poor quality. However, for many reasons it was impossible to re-film these segments, so I decided to utilise media technologies in order to fix the issues with the production. I decided to use a Mic, and Audacity, and while watching my rough cut to get the talking speed correct, Elena Painstakingly re-recorded all of her dialogue. After I accessed all of this, I then went back to Final Cut Pro, and painstakingly placed the audio exactly where it had to be. Throughout this process, I used google slides to set up a production diary, so it was clear what improvement I made at every stage. As such, at the Production stage, I made good use of media technologies in order to improve my final product.

Ancillarys

My use of media technologies in this area is a story of trial and error. In order to present my ideas about what I would do, I attempt to use another new method to present my ideas for these with emaze. However, I learned that, when publishing it, some computers didn’t show the images, so I had to create a slideshare alongside it. In order to make the actual Ancillaries, however, I relied on two different programs. For my newspaper advertisement, I used Paint.net, after attempting with other methods such as GIMP 2. I learned about the power of the program, and while I admittingly struggled with learning how to best use the technology, I learned a fair deal. With the Double Page Spread, I initially tried to utilise Paint.net again, however I ended up using LibreOffice Draw, essentially an Open Source alternative to Microsoft Publisher, as the subtle nature fit my Double Page Spread better. As such, media technologies were used here in a trial and error way, something which differs from each of my other areas.

Evaluation

I decided to take inspiration from each segment when deciding how to use media technologies within this stage. I used Prezi, Google Slides, Text to Speech/Cyberlink PowerDirector, and Typing for the questions, in that order. As such, there are benefits and flaws to each of my questions, with the first two looking professional, however playing it somewhat safe, and 3 being unique, however needed a transcript anyway due to the flaws that are inherent to text to speech. I believe, however, that I used Media Technologies well in this area, as the areas in which I had issues I always had a way to counteract it.

Overall

I had some issues with media technologies, which still continue to show now. It is fairly often that works embedded in blogger by me seem to go missing, leading to me having to re-embed them. Despite this, I believe that overall, I made good use of Media Technologies throughout the course of my A2 Coursework. If I had more time, all I would do is work even more on the trial and error of those technologies which I hadn’t used before, however, I am very happy with my use of Media technologies throughout the course, as I always ensured that they were a focal point.

3. What have you learned from your audience feedback?

Audience feedback was a very important part of my production, and, either through offhand comments from friends, or feedback to improve from my teacher, it ended up contributing a substantial amount to my end product, with many improvements between my rough cut and my final cut coming as a response to feedback.

My target audience was different than most, as instead of playing it safe and targeting ages 16-20, like plenty of my contemporaries, I targeted around 18+. More specifically, I targeted those within BC1C2, which would be people within the middle class. More specifically, I focused on those with a University education, however I also wished to target somewhat lower, as my short film does include some slang and crude humour which would appeal to a larger audience.

This target audience had the initially unforeseen benefit of putting both of my teachers within my target audience, and it was this feedback which benefited me the most. For example, it was due to this feedback that I realised the audio needed significant work. Originally, I neglected to use a mic, and this meant that everytime Elena was next to the road, or in the wind, it became harder to understand her. Thanks to this feedback, I knew it was a significant issue, and paid detailed attention to the role of sound within the final piece, notably by making Elena re-record all her dialogue, dubbing in the voice later on, which required close attention, yet ended up making the final piece as professional as it was.

Thanks to feedback, I also learned about the importance of using good quality pictures within montages. In my rough cut, during the montages I merely found examples of pictures that would work thematically. With the feedback, I learned that ensuring the pictures are high enough resolution would really add a degree of professionalism to the final product, as following my finding and inserting better images, my final piece does maintain a further professional demeanor.

Feedback also allowed me to create multiple versions. After my rough cut, I got feedback stating that the copious amount of swearing I included within my script was somewhat of a risk to include in my final cut, as examiners may take offense to it. However, I believed that the swearing was somewhat necessary in order to fit my basis. I ended up creating two versions, in order to see which would be funnier or work better. Most feedback I’ve gotten however states that the censored version is funnier. I am happy I have two versions, however, as that makes the final product more believable as an actual piece broadcast on TV.

I also learned that I need to be more through in my rewatching. While showing someone within my audience my Rough cut, it was mentioned to me that within the scene where Elena is introducing Letchworth as the next Focal point, camera equipment is within frame. I managed to crop it out of my final cut, however this being pointed out meant that I’ve learned it best to let some other people watch through a rough cut, in order to see if there are any problems anyone noticed.

To conclude, I learned a great degree from audience feedback, with a great degree of professionalism within my final product only being there as a result of me following the feedback. I must state that I am very happy with how well I followed this aspect.

I decided I would tackle this question a different way to that which I usually do. Instead of playing it safe with one method, I decided that because my voice doesn't lend well to voice over I would use a text to speech editor, then I thought it would be best to edit it with the points I am making, meaning I ended up using Cyberlink PowerDirector to create this. There are clear flaws, such as the text to speech software misprouncing some words said, hence including the transcription in bold, however I believe that, aside from that hiccup, this was an interesting and honestly fun way of getting the question across, so I am broadly happy with this question.

2. How effective is the combination of your main product and ancillary texts?

I decided to be fairly simple with this question, as I wished to get my message across, without it getting muddled. As such, I decided to use Google Slides, as that works regardless of what computer it is viewed on. I would have done it on Emaze, however that has proved to have mixed success. Within the powerpoint, I address how well my ancillary tasks work with my main product, and address the fact I believe that they work well together. I mentioned in passing that I believe that my lack of experience with image editing software impacted them, however Question 4 is about this, hence my reasoning for chosing not to elaborate further. Overall, I believe I answered the question well.

1. In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

For my first Evaluation Question, I decided to use Prezi to look at how my media production used Conventions of real media texts. My use of Prezi comes down to the fact I have plenty of experience in using it, and therefore can make good use of it. I address how I mainly developed on these conventions, however there is also a clear use of them in order to make my extract believable as a real media text, with a clear challenge of convention in order to make my product unique as it's own media text. I also included pictures in order to give context to the points I state within my conventions, which adds detail to what I am stating. In general though, this question has shown that I, no matter how subtly, have addressed the conventions in all three ways, showing my media product to be strong

Ancillary Tasks New Version

These are my new versions for the newspaper and DPS ancillarys. I took advice on how to improve my original taks, and I believe that these align much more closely to the brief. I will continue to ask if any improvements can be made, however, as I wish to make my tasks look the best they can. I based the DPS off one from a listings magazine, seen by the small section at the top, and my Newspaper advertisment fits the size of a Newspaper better, as shown by the example I made.

Editing Update- 25th Jan 2018

Here is perhaps one of my final production updates- establishes that I have finished editing my coursework, and states what work I have to do on my other sections of coursework. This helps keep those viewing my blog up to date on my editing, and the fact I've got my film uploaded.

Bewilderment Junction Final Cut

This is the final cut of my media project. I decided, under recommendation of my teacher, to upload 2 different versions. I added music throughout in order to link more to the source material, and added footsteps in order to link it more. I am reasonably happy with the material, I do like how it sounds now, and it fits the way I wanted it to be when I first made it.