Evaluation Activity 1

Malevolent Phantom

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

This initial establishing shot allows the audience to understand where the film is set, the remote setting and woodland area are both indicators of the horror genre, the audience then know that this is a horror film and start to become excited and amerce into the film. The shot shows three girls walking down a path, as the characters become visible it is clear to the audience who the protagonist is - due to the bright clothing which contrasts from both the background and the other characters. The shot is a low angle shot which shows the characters close together, which suggests that they have a close bond. The angle of the shot makes the characters appear to be powerful, this is a key idea we tried to include, the idea that you are safe in numbers however once alone you become exposed to lots of types of danger, is a main part of our film. The long shot was used to show the enormity of the woodlands compared to the three girls, which we thought worked well and showed that they were out of their depth, also because of the large size of the woodlands the audience are continuously worrying about what dangers lurk in the woods for the three girls. The type of day is quite settled however with a hint of gloom which represents the events about to take place, because of filming difficulties we were unable to film in the dark however this type of day still represents the feelings and portray the emotions the characters feeling. The original shot used for this shot has been cut down as we thought it would cause suspense and not bore our viewers.

This shot is a close of the protagonists face, which highlights a sense of fear, this is evident from her facial expressions which show her to be worried. This conforms to the typical genre connotations, as  the audience view her to be naive which could be the consequence of her young age. This shot is in close proximity to the character meaning the audience feel closer with her as they can relate and emphasise with her. This is a key area we used as we want the audience to be able to see a part of themselves in Lucy and therefore be connected with the plot. The way shot is used, gives Lucy full prevalence, which blocks out parts of the background leaving the audience to wonder who is lurking in the woods. This keeps the audience interested in the film as they are concerned about Lucy's welfare and want her to reach her destination safely. The effect of this shot was to show Lucy completely alone with her friends going in the opposite direction, which in turn reveals the pivot point of the opening scene. Many different angles were used to captivate Lucy, all alone and vulnerable to danger. This shot is effective as the audience begin to feel like they are Lucy as the shot cuts to point of view shots then back to the audience looking at Lucy. This allows the audience to place themselves in the characters shoes.

This shot is a medium shot, showing Lucy on the phone, from the shot the audience can tell she is worried about something, the reason is then confirmed as she takes the daunting walk through the woods. One key aspect of this scene is the significance of the coat, the bright colours connote innocence and suggest to the audience she is naive, this could be because of her age. The light colours of the coat contrast with the dull colours of the woodlands this suggests that she doesn't belong there and is not fully aware of the dangers of the woods. This use of 'Mise en Scene' was a huge focus in our film, also the phone also shows her to be safe as she listens to the comforting words other mother however once the calls over the terrifying journey must begin. This angle hides the space behind the character leaving the audiences minds to go wild and wonder if/what is behind her, this keeps the audience interested and engaged with the film. The original idea was to have the phone battery die, so Lucy couldn't contact the outside world however because of practical issues this could not be done, however the scene still works well. The audience may wonder why she didn't call for help once she saw the phantom however, fuelled by adrenaline and fear she was too worried about escaping and therefore didn't think to call for help.

This shot is very effective as it shows the trees looming over Lucy, the audience get a unsettling feeling from this shot. This long shot showing Lucy enter the woods hints to the audience that she wont be returning, this could be because of the poor vision in the woods showing someone is lurking and watching her. Also the tall thin trees create a disturbing image in which the audience focuses on, this makes the audience very cautious of Lucy's actions and want to stop her and inform her of the dangers. We took inspiration for this long shot, used to show Lucy entering the remote, dark, scary woodlands in her bright coat, from the film 'Schindler's List' in which there is the girl in the red dress. She represents something innocent which our character is and this scene could signify the fate of Lucy, as in Schindler's list the girl in the red dress ends up dead. This use of the bright coloured coat hints throughout our film that because of her naivety and lack of knowledge and experience, something bad might happen to her. Although a lot of the setting is on show, the tree line is very blurred causing more suspense and tension as it hint's something (or someone) is preying on our young vulnerable Lucy, who is completely oblivious to the danger and the events about to take place.

This medium shot shows the malevolent phantom watching Lucy from a distance, with the non diegetic music and this shot, the scene successfully portrays a sense of vulnerability of Lucy. This medium shot is an over the shoulder shot, not shying away from prevalence of Lucy who is the main character, this is very important as we want our audience to relate to Lucy and emphasise with her, and always be with her every step of the way. However prevalence is shared in this shot showing how the phantom is following Lucy and she is completely unaware of this, also the way the shot is used shows Lucy to very small compared to the frightening malevolent phantom. This is the first shot we as an audience feel like we are close with the phantom which creates a sense of uneasiness, from this we can see his inhumane draw towards Lucy which is rather scary and sadistic. The malevolent Phantom is rarely seen as we wanted to keep his identity unknown to create suspense, therefore the shots we do show have to have a lasting impact on the audience. This shot successfully achieves that as the audience have now confirmed their suspicions that Lucy is not completely alone, this is a huge plot point as the Malevolent Phantom has been introduced as the audience want to know more about this mysterious being which keeps the audience hooked  

This shot shows our protagonist looking very worried and alarmed, this is because of mysterious sounds in which she keeps seeing. The use of the close up shot allows the background to be hidden which adds to the suspense and tension as the audience neither the character knows whats behind Lucy. The close up shot emphasises how scared Lucy is through the use of her shocked but worried facial expressions, this cause the audience to engage with the film and fear the possible outcomes of this situation. Once again because of the close proximity, as an audience we are engaged with the character and feel apart of everything they do as we place ourselves in their shoes. Through the use of diegetic leaves rustling and branches crackling this sets a ominous tone for the audience and alarms Lucy to stop in her tracks and see what is behind her. This is a classic use of non diegetic music as the sound creeps higher and higher until it is revealed no one is there. This then leads on to our next shot as Lucy turns background and has her first encounter with the Malevolent Phantom.

This medium shot shows Lucy and the very frightening Malevolent Phantom, this is the point in the scene that the fear becomes real and she starts to realise that something bad is going to happen. From this encounter she can assume the malevolent phantom has been following her through the woods, which is a scary thought. Lucy, our protagonist has most prevalence in this shot however it is shared with the malevolent phantom which works well as the phantom is close making the audience worry about Lucy and whether or not she will escape. The colours of both character contrast very well as Lucy connotes innocence and youth where as the dark coulours of the malevolent phantom, connotes danger; because sinister aspect of this shot, foreshadows future events. These two colours work really well in this scene and highlights both the characters for different reasons, for example the bright colours of Lucy's coat makes her stand out where as the dark colours of the malevolent phantom allows him to blend into the scenery. This is the moment where Lucy meets the malevolent phantom and runs for her life, desperately trying to get to safety. Through the use of non diegetic music this moment excites the audience and keeps them on the edge of their seat. This thrilling moment ends in Lucy thinking she had got away and stumbles to her knees, she thought she was safe, she thought she had got away... (but you know what thought did)

After the fast paced exciting chase scene the audience think Lucy is safe however once the Malevolent Phantom appears they are confronted with the reality and fate of Lucy, where it seems death is imminent and there is no hope for the young girl. This conforms to the genre cliche of where in horror films the antagonist always appears at the last second leaving the fate of the unfortunate and helpless victim doomed. This medium shot shows Lucy struggling to get to her feet, however we are back to that cliche 'HE'S BEHIND YOU'. The audience at this point would be shouting at the screen as they are completely engaged with whats happening. As a group we though this shot worked well however we did plan to include a high shot to emphasise her helpless nature and vulnerability ,however because of timing and the practical issues of this we decided to not do it. That is not say that we are not proud of this shot as we feel it is very important in terms of the audience finding out Lucy's fate and watch it unfold knowing they cant help her. This sets a melancholy tone to the scene as there is nothing the audience can do. This shot was initially longer however we thought the scene dragged and could bore viewers therefore we changed this and cut it down to an appropriate time which we felt effectively worked.

This final shot, is the the shot in which as a group we are very proud of as it captures the mood of the scene and we feel all the features from the pond to the trees captivate this disturbing and dangerous land in which the malevolent phantom hunts. In this shot, Lucy was supposed to be dragged of screen, however we thought it was too long and as soon as the malevolent phantom grabs her the screen cuts to a black screen. We felt this was effective as the audience does not know completely what happens to Lucy and only has to use their imagination to fill in the blanks. This long shot shows a lot of the background and the two characters, the significant moment of when Lucy is violently dragged away by the Phantom concluding our opening scene. This end scene makes the audience wonder why the Malevolent Phantom has chosen Lucy, it makes them question whether she is as innocent as she seems, which is a major plot line for the film.