Research/Audience: A brief summary of Audience Theories and which ones apply to my Short Film

Planning- Shot list for Shoot No.3

Planning: Further thoughts about my target audience

Although I aim to appeal to both the youth and middle aged upwards, my obvious main target audience for the film would be:

Middle Aged

Men and Women

A consumer of cult/short films

An artistic interest in modern culture (artwork, film, theatre)

Students studying film and, Young (between 16-25) independent filmmakers

As I stated previously I'd love my film to appeal to most (if not all ages), but it is important to have a strong target audience, since short films are so rarely distributed in the same way that mainstream features are, having a target audience will enable me to appeal to them specifically during my marketing process.

Planning- My Short Film Trailer (experiment)

Using iMovie I have created a trailer for my short film to help gage the picture as a whole. Making the trailer also helped me with the pacing of the film and what else needs to added to it.

It was a good experiment, and has helped me continue on the journey to creating my film.

Research

"People have forgotten how to tell a story. Stories don’t have a middle or an end any more. They usually have a beginning that never stops beginning."
 

Steven Spielberg

Research/Planning - What I learnt from the examiners report and what I need to do to my blog

I have read the examiners report and have come to some conclusions about what they are looking for in a successful blog.

"Best practice from centres showed accurate assessment and thoughtful presentation of their candidates’ work, so that moderators could see easily the journeys made and understand the outcomes in context."

•  In order to show the journey made, I must make more frequent posts in my blog in order to show "evidence of this journey".
• All research and planning MUST be blogged.  
• Presenting my blogs in a variety of ways is also crucial: Prezi, Sliderocket and VoiceNotes are good websites to use.
• I must show detailed analysis in my blog posts, really getting to grips with the codes and conventions of short films.
• Show a wide range of research and extremely in depth planning.

Planning: My First Shoot

My First shoot was of my character cleaning the stage, stuck in his everyday job. It went quite well, however in some shots the tripod can be scene. I have made a low resolution video of these clips, so I know which ones to re-shoot. I must be very careful when re-shooting for continuity reasons.

Product: My Mood Board for my Short Film

Planning- Opening Storyboard Animation

 A brief storyboard animation for the opening of my short film.

 I have experimented with different camera angles, an appropriate piece of music which could act as the soundtrack as well as the idea of soundscapes to tell the story of his flashbacks and thus the reason for the fall of his career.

Audience: What I have concluded about my Focus Group

In my focus group a variety of different people with  different interests have been included.

However it seems that one important factor has an enormous affect regarding their consumption of short films.

AGE

The older members of my focus group regularly consume short films however both younger members of the focus group watch none.

Why is this?

Perhaps the youth can't relate to the messages conveyed by short films. Or perhaps short film directors are concerned that making films angled towards all ages would be risky.

I believe that taking this risk will pay off. My story not only realises the fears of the youth for when they grow up, but also represents the monotonous life that many of the older generations have.

My Short Film Will Speak to Generations.

Audience: Focus Group

Suzie Maynard

Age: 17
Subjects taken: English Language, Media and Sociology
Hobbies/Interest: Gym, Swimming and Tanning
Desired Job: Event Management Executive
Favourite Genre of Film: Romantic Comedy
Favourite Film: Finding Nemo
Do you watch Short Films? No
How many short films do you watch a month? N/A


Harrison Payne



Age: 17
Subjects taken:  Graphic Design, Media, Art
Hobbies/Interest: Driving, Drawing and Watching Films
Desired Job: Graphic Designer
Favourite Genre of Film: Thriller
Favourite Film: SE7EN
Do you watch Short Films? No
How many short films do you watch a month? N/A


Victoria Casson
Age:34
Subjects took: English Literature, History, Politics and Sociology
Job: Media Teacher
Favourite Genre of Film: Drama
Favourite Film: Withnail and I
Do you watch Short Films? Yes
How many times short films do you watch a month? 4


 Nick Beecham
 Age: 48
Subjects took: Mathematics, Physics
Job: Solicitor
Favourite Genre of Film: Comedy
Favourite Film: Annie Hall
Do you watch Short Films: Yes
How many short films do you watch a month? 6

Research: Inspiration

Directors can take inspiration from anything. This song my the Smith's has been just one of the things that has influenced the story to of my short film. It is very personal, emotional and relatable. All thins that I'd like my film to end up being.

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Research: What do filmmakers have in common?

What do filmmakers have in common? Passion, Focus, Commitment and Resiliency and Talent?
 (Jacques Thelemaque, Withoutabox) 



I have a strong passion for this film, not only does the subject matter speak to a wide audience, it voices many peoples fear. The fear of having a drive for life that was once there, taken away, the fear of unfulfilled dreams and most of all the fear of being unable to do anything about it. This is a story which must be told, to provide a voice to those with the same issue or fear.

The focus of this film as stated previously is very clear, however to keep focus I must make sure to tell this characters story without getting carried away with spectacular aesthetics or obscure ideas. Of course part of the beauty of short films is to unleash creative passion but each idea must be focused and centred around the character, I must make sure not to get carried away with plot devices.

Even when the task at hand seems difficult it is vital that I stay committed to the film and the work at hand, even if re shoots are required, being satisfied with the final result is not enough, I must have obtained the goals that I set out to achieve.

Director Quentin Tarantino shows passion, focus, commitment, resiliency and talent. His devotion to film is un matched.