Focus Group Feedback

Here are the main findings/conclusions of our audience research. The only details that members had to give us about their identities were their ages and genders, we hoped that this would stop feedback from being biased as we wanted honest opinions.


Question 1:
Please list 5 scenes/shots that you found the most memorable from our trailer.

Answers	Tally
Rape scene	9
Gas mask/table card scene	3
Boy reacting violently scene	7
The hanging scene	9
Doctor argument scene	1
Train scene	4
Patient "Shhhh" scene	1
Knife to man's throat scene	5
Establishing shot	3
Blood in sink	2

We were pleased that the two most harrowing scenes in our opinions had also had an impact on the audience. We weren't surprised by any of the answers as they consisted mostly of shocking content which we expected them to remember, we were glad that the audience remembered and responded to these scenes as they were constructed to provoke a response.


Question 2:
How did the trailer make you feel? Both physically&emotionally?



We were pleased that the trailer seemed to evoke physical/visceral pleasures in our audience. Five members stated that the trailer made them feel as though they were "On the edge of their seats," which was a really successful response as it showed that the trailer was effective in building up suspense and tension.

Question 3:

Please give your interpretation of the plot synopsis, and the genre which you think it represented.



All nine members successfully identified the genre, with 2/3 identifying it as a psychological thriller. Our trailer was designed to have more characteristics of a psychological thriller from the beginning due to the complexity of the code of enigma and the mental illnesses involved, so we were really pleased that it was obvious to our audience.

Individual answers on plot synopsis:

1)      Girl raped, baby given to father to turns him into a patient within the mental asylum, when a doctor arrives and helps the patient.

2)      Mental asylum, patients go off the ropes, causing distress to the owner. The baby was possibly brought up in the asylum?

3)      Based in an asylum, mental patients, and abnormal happenings.

4)      Asylum, story based on the young boy.

5)      Mental institute, patients are abused and everything starts getting out of control, whilst trying to reconnect the mother with her son who is the patient.

6)      A nurse is raped by an unknown individual, who then becomes pregnant. Too ashamed about the whole situation, the child then stays in the mental asylum where he is brought up and becomes mental.

7)      Rape in mental hospital results in a baby being given up and raised as a patient.

8)      Mental institute set in the past.

9)      The nurse was raped and her baby grew up in the mental asylum. The baby was not treated very well and had a mental breakdown.

These responses proved that our trailer did have a clear narrative, telling a story to our audience. However, it did not give too much away as our members still questioned who the "Unknown patient" was, and how far the head of the asylum went with the mistreatment of his patients. The boy's father is never revealed in the trailer and neither is the murderer who washes blood of their hands.

All of our members replied "yes" to whether they would be interested in seeing the full feature film based on our trailer.
We also asked them to give reasons, for which answers included "it was intriguing," and "wanted to see what happens at the end."

Question 5:

Six members replied that it was aimed at over 18's due to adult themes, whilst 3 stated they thought it might be aimed at 15 year- olds due to the fact that the vast majority of films in this genre have 15 certificates.
Question six: 
How well does this trailer compare to real existing film trailers?
Please give reasons.

1)      It is similar to real horror film trailers and is set up well to look like a real trailer.

2)      Well because it grips the audience.

3)      It had a good, gripping atmosphere but the acting could have been better.

4)      I think it sums up to a real existing trailer. The trailer pointed out some of the main features from the film, just like the real trailer. The trailer is also intriguing just like real life trailers.

5)      It had a good atmosphere, thrilling, keeps you on the edge of your seat, interesting, a bit too long but very informative. Good use of music.

6)      I think this trailer is unique compared to others but would fit in with existing trailers. It is a really good trailer including good transitions/soundtrack.

7)      It was very good. Provided the necessary information for the audience to understand the plot but not enough to give away all the details before watching the whole film.

8)      I think it was really good because like professional trailers it built up the suspect well throughout. I think the atmosphere it created was brilliant.

9)      A bit muddled up at times and needed some fuller explanation, however left me wanting to see more which is more than can be said for most current trailers.

These responses showed that the majority of people agreed that it would compare well with real existing film trailers, and pointed out parts of the film trailer which could have been improved. This has helped myself and my group to understand how we could've improved it which will help us in the future, as we were grateful for both criticism and positive comments.

Audience Reactions: Enclosed Trailer 2014

We conducted a focus group of nine students after completing our trailer, to find out some initial reactions. We gave each member a short questionnaire to fill in some of their reactions, we felt this would be effective in case they felt uncomfortable voicing their true opinions, allowing them to write them down instead. We played the trailer twice to try and see if they grasped an understanding of the plot, this video shows their reactions on the first viewing of the video.

Enclosed - Official Trailer (2014)

How did you use media technologies?

What have you learned from your audience feedback?

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

Evaluation Question One

Process continued....

I decided that I need to change the image and effect of the building and gates itself in order to make the background appear scarier. 



I tried changing hues to change its appearance, this for example has a slight hint of a red hue. I liked this but still felt it wasn't strong enough or scary enough to create the unsettling effect which I wanted.




This was my eventual outcome, which I was much more pleased with. I added some different black and white effects, as well as a "smoke" and "grunge" effect. I added a vague hint of blue smoke to distort the colours , which made the centre of the image a lot more striking. The other smoke effects then created a stormy/cloudy image in the sky which enhanced the overall theme of it being set in Winter and looking offputting. The key reason for the focus on the gates looking so intimidating lies with the concept of the film and its title of "Enclosed." In order to link in, the building needed to resemble a place where any viewer would dread being trapped in.

Filming Process

Throughout our filming we have adapted and added a number of shots since our initial sotryboarding.
  

We have remained consistent with the portrayal of the rape scene, sensitively handling it so that not too much is showed to the audience. It still remains implied, and we have changed some camera angles to make it appear as though Cecilia is being watched from the start. By filming from behind a screen we created a half-exposure shot to make it look as though the attacker is hiding somewhere, peeking through to watch her before the attack. This created tension effectively, as did the slow shot of her preparing her nurses tray with equipment , which made it more sudden and shocking when she was grabbed , and everything fell to the floor. The audience watches her from the attackers viewpoint as she walks down the corridor and enters the room making it more eerie and tense.
The rape scene has been filmed so as to show only below the legs which move, giving a clear implication but not showing anything explicit, there is also a sound effect of heavy breathing used to further the implication.
We added an improvised shot of a butterfly slowing moving along the window pane to contrast something beautiful and innocent with the attack which is happening at the time.

After this, we shot a scene of Cecilia sat on the floor distressed, she says the lines "Lord Jesus, please forgive me of my sins." This clearly presents the religious emphasism of the establishment, as her immediate reaction is to prey. It is also saddening as she clearly feels that she has committed a sin, or what has happened will be percieved a sin, even though it is not her fault.

We kept to the main idea of the interview scenes with Sean, however we did cut down dialogue as we felt that there was too much , and in the end it wasn't necessary as long as we presented that he didn't know who his parents were. We were futher able to emphasise this by the creation of a legal document showing that Sean's father was unknown, but that Cecilia was known to be his mother. Through this sequence we added the train station scene so that the audience could make the link that Cecilia was his mother, being sent to a nunnery by the head of the asylum. We used a doll to show her handing the baby over and then the transition of a train to show she had gone.

Some of our improvised scenes were created as we were able to find useful props which we previously did not know we'd be able to have access to. For example, we have used a dummy figure of a man dressed in old clothes. His body was realistic and so we have used careful shots to display him as a patient. We used a wheelchair to show him being wheeled down the corridor by a nurse, and a montage shot of another patient getting angry at him, throwing all the playing cards off table at him angrily. We also used him as one of Sean's victims, hanging from a rope in the sheds which looked abandoned and eerie.

We used a lot of canted angles in order to represent distortion, particularly when filming the head of the asylum, as this distortion is mirrored in his personality. We hoped that this would help the audience identify his evil nature early on.
We do however see parts of him being more human, for example looking stressed and stroking the photo of his family.
We have portrayed him overall as very sinister however, with the use of facial expressions and dialogue.

Age Rating Research

For my film trailer I started researching age ratings that would be appropriate for it, as most horror films have age ratings of "15" and "18" due to violent content I knew that my own trailer would fall into one of these categories. I went onto the BBFC website to source information on what would define a 15 and what would bring the age rating upto an 18.

I found that:

What might I see in a 15 rated film or video?

Any of the following:

• strong violence
• frequent strong language (e.g. 'f***').
• portrayals of sexual activity
• strong verbal references to sex
• sexual nudity
• brief scenes of sexual violence or verbal references to sexual violence
• discriminatory language or behaviour
• drug taking

How much strong language is allowed in a 15?

There could potentially be a great deal. At 15 there is no upper limit on the number of uses of strong language (e.g. ‘f***’).
Occasionally there may be uses of the strongest terms (e.g. 'c***'), depending on the manner in which they are used, who is using the language, its frequency and any special contextual justification. However, continued or aggressive use will not normally be passed 15.

What about discriminatory or offensive terms?

There may be racist, homophobic or other discriminatory language, and the work could explore themes relating to this.
However, at 15 the work as a whole must not endorse discriminatory language or behaviour.

How much sex and nudity is allowed at 15?

At 15 sexual activity can be portrayed, but usually without strong detail. Some sex scenes can be quite long at this category.
Though nudity may be allowed in a sexual context there will usually be no strong detail. There are no constraints on nudity in a non-sexual or educational context.
There can be strong references to sex and sexual behaviour, but especially strong or crude references are unlikely to be acceptable unless justified by context.

Sex and sex references are treated the same irrespective of sexuality.

What about sexual violence?

There may be detailed verbal references to sexual violence (for example descriptions of rape or sexual assault in a courtroom scene or in victim testimony) but any portrayal depiction of sexual violence must be discreet and justified by context.

In an 18 Film....

Are there any limits on what sort of theme a work can have at 18?

No theme is prohibited at 18. Adults are free to choose their own entertainment provided the material is not illegal or potentially harmful, so it is possible some themes tackled at 18 may be offensive even to some adult viewers.

What sort of issues might I find in an 18 film or video?

18 works are for adults and can contain strong issues such as:

• very strong violence
• frequent strong language (e.g. 'f***') and / or very strong language (e.g. ‘c***’)
• strong portrayals of sexual activity
• scenes of sexual violence
• strong horror
• strong blood and gore
• real sex (in some circumstances)
• discriminatory language and behaviour

How much strong language can there be in an 18?

There is no limit on the number of uses of strong (e.g. 'f***') or even very strong language (e.g. ‘c***’) which can be passed at 18. Uses could be aggressive, directed, frequent or accompanied by strong violence.

What about discriminatory terms?

There may be racist, homophobic or other discriminatory language at 18, and the work could explore themes relating to discrimination.
Though a work as a whole must not be in breach of any relevant legislation, it is possible for discriminatory language or themes to be the main focus of the work, and for main characters to engage in discriminatory behaviour.

How much sex and nudity is allowed at 18?

There can be strong and detailed portrayals of sex at 18, including full nudity. There are no constraints on nudity in a non-sexual or educational context.
Very strong, crude and explicit sex references are permitted at 18.
An 18 film or video might also contain depictions of real sex, as long as the film or video is not a sex work.

Can there be strong violence?

Yes, at 18 violence can be strong and be portrayed with strong detail. There may even be dwelling on the infliction of pain or injury, or scenes of strong sadistic or sexual violence.
The strongest gory images are permitted at this category

After reading these guidelines I have concluded that the full film feature overall would have to be classified as an 18 production, due to the rape scene and the strong portrayal of violence (eg. someone hanging.) However as the trailer only presents the implication of rape without nudity, only showing the legs of the characters, and does not show any strong gore/contain bad language, it is more accessible by a wider audience.

Poster Version 2

After some extra editing I finally managed get my second poster image to fit my template the way I wanted:



In this I have changed my billing block to white to make it more readable and clear, and have edited my tagline font to make it stand out more. I have also enlarged my title and exaggerated the size of the first and end letters.


The above is my preferred draft as I feel that the image is better and blends better with the background, the scratching effect also makes it have a flickered / distorted effect, almost as though on a television screen.

Feedback

I gained the following feedback on the first draft of my film poster: 

Classmates liked the font and style of my title text, and the stroke effect in deeper red colouring. They felt that it was reflective of a horror film title branding and mirrored real life textual examples. They also liked the tagline and its connotations, my group members were especially able to understand its underlying meaning. I was happy however that the rest of my classmates were also able to work out the meaning behind it and connect it with Cecilia's character.
They also liked the conventional style of the billing block font and the social networking logos etc, but suggested I could perhaps have some additional logos such as production company or picture house name.

Some class members suggested that the poster was not striking enough as a horror poster, in that the image did not visually scare them , or wouldn't if they were only able to have a short moment to glimpse at it. I agreed that something extra was needed in order to create a more effective response. I had shown them the poster for "the devil inside" during my presentation as one of my poster inspirations, due to the similarity of the nun in the image. 


The nun in this poster is clearly unsettling due to the effect in the eyes and the scratched effect on the image , complimented by the red colouring on the right hand side of the poster which adds to the horror style. I thought about maybe applying some of these ideas to my own poster to enhance the visual response to the nun.

Classmates also suggested that I try adding an image of Sean (the boy) behind the asylum gates in order to make him look like a ghost locked behind bars. I liked this idea but my only concern was whether the image of the boy would fit properly behind the gate and whether I could get it to look realistic enough using photoshop.

Final Poster Versions

This second version uses the suggestions given by my teacher and classmates. I personally however feel that the fist version is more effective, will clearer use of editing and photo quality.

Final Magazine Cover

Here my magazine cover features conventional items, such as:
-barcode
-issue number&date
-additional images
-film related coverlines
-masthead
-bold main story
-2 "splash" features

Drafting Magzine

Without additional images, or a barcode to add authenticity....




                                         
With additional images&barcode, but still needing some re-arrangement and editing.

Edited photos for magazine

I edited the photographs of Harri to improve their appearance. I constructed them using a theatrical sceen background which was a physical piece of set at the drama centre. I felt that the wallpaper design on it fitted in with the theme and style of the asylum; being set in the past. I wrote, "RUN" onto his hand as if it is a warning to readers, or anyone entering the asylum. The word is written on his hand, which was positioned into a "stop" pose, to further give the impression of a warning. I edited the photo to make the edges darker, so that coverlines would be easier to add and stand out more. By raising the contrast why the shadow was also emphasised creating a better overall visual effect. 

In this second photo I made the contrast even higher and added saturation to bring out the colours more. In this I added a rain effect,as well as smoke to add to the horror effect, it also made his cheekbones more prominent which highlighted his scared/shocked expression. 

                                    

I then created a photo collage to add to my magazine cover, using an effect which created borders, making them appear like polaroid pictures. I wanted to do this as a neat method for adding additional pictures, which wouldn't obstruct my main image. I used edited photos which  had horror themes, such as the asylum gates and someone being dragged down the corridor. On the image of Meg being dragged, I Edited using a 3D and blood effect to change the appearance, as it looked to plain alone.