Evaluation Activity 1

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

1)     The font we have used for our opening title is American Typewriter, we have used this font to highlight the military feel of the opening and we believe that this conforms to the genre, as typewriting is normally associated with war and the military. For example, the font used in Atonement is typewriting and this also reflects on the genre conventions as it creates a harsh and regimented atmosphere

2)     An upward panning shot is used to introduce our main character. The first thing that the audience sees is their feet. We used this shot to create an atmosphere of mystery; the main character could be anyone, emphasising the fact that anyone could be affected by the consequences of war. We believe that the silence of Tim enhances the mystery of his character, which is very similar to protagonists in other films of similar genres, such as Dead Man’s Shoes and Full Metal Jacket, who are introduced as secretive. The reserved introduction to our main character therefore conforms to genre conventions. 

3)     The close-up, panning shot, which focuses on the picture, establishes the family aspect of the film. The drained colour and grainy quality highlights the tension between the relationships. A key feature in social realism is conflict between characters and the shots of family photos throughout the opening hint to the audience that the film will focus on the relationships and how they are affected and changed by war. A similar concept is used in films such as Private Peaceful and American Sniper. 

4)     This close-up shot of Tim’s trousers focuses on his military uniform, allowing the audience to understand that he is a soldier. The shot also highlights the gaffatape, which is being used to repair his uniform, representing him as rough and resourceful. This representation of character also conforms to film openings of a similar genre, with characters such as Anthony in Jarhead and Eversmann from Black Hawk Down.

5)  The setting used for our film opening is very rural, shown in this shot.  The overgrown and harsh surroundings emphasise the roughness of Tim's character, and his internal struggle.  The colour of the location is very earthy and dark, further highlighting the lack of colour and brightness of Tim's character.  Harsh settings are commonly used in film to reflect the mood and atmosphere of the plot, and we feel that our opening therefore conforms to convention once again.

6)  An extreme close-up of Tim's eyes is used to enhance the intensity of the opening.  The closeness teases the audience, as so far Tim's intentions are unclear, and the extreme close-up could lead the audience to think that they're about to uncover the mystery.  Instead the Extreme close-up is contrasted with a wide shot and an extreme long-shot, creating an anti-climax for the for the audience, playing with their emotions.  This subverts the typical genre conventions of social realism, as situations are often established quite early on in this genre,such as Submarine.

7)  A long, POV shot of Tim looking at the house could challenge conventions of Social Realism.  The dark, contrasting shade of the trees and sky, combined with the shaky camera and heavy breathing could conform to a genre such as horror.  However, the themes and mood of the film is more associated with Social Realism.  This shot provides the idea of mystery, and the inevitability of something bad happening, which builds on the genre which focuses on conflict, a key aspect of Social Realism.

8)  Special effects are often not used in typical Social Realisms, as the aim is more focused on real issues and authenticity.  Therefore, we have only incorporated basic effects into our opening as we wanted the audience to focus on the issue the characters are facing.  We used slow motion to build on the key moment of the opening, and linger on the tension between the characters.

9)    The title of our film was inspired by the poem Now I Lay Me Down To Sleep, an 18^th century prayer which contains the lines ‘If I should die before I wake, I pray the Lord my soul to take’. We chose it to reflect the uncertainty that soldiers face in war and also reflects the non-linear chronology of our film as the scepticism of the opening is rectified when he shoots the gun. This structure challenges Social Realism conventions as they are normally chronological and have a clear plot.