Critical Evaluation- Question 1

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

Collectively, the use of the Sony HDV1000 and Final Cut Express allowed us to ensure that we followed the conventions of continuity within our film, during the shooting and editing processes. One of most important rules we followed was the 180 degree rule, to ensure the audience understood the positioning of our characters.

Although it can be effective to break this rule in certain genres, such as horror to create the idea of disorientation, we felt it was more appropriate to abide by it, as our narrative didn't require it.

We also obeyed other conventions of continuity, such as the correct way to display a passage of time.

Examples  from our film:

Fade to Black:                                                                                                               Cross Dissolve:

In one instance in our film we used text to display how many years had passed since the previous shot, to represent the passage of time. This is fairly common when editing narratives that take place over long periods of time, which can be seen in “Love Actually.” We believe that this has smoothed the transition between the time periods and therefore the audience are not left wondering who this girl is.

Our film:

Love Actually: 

Likewise, we were also able to use Final Cut Express to ensure a sound continuity. In most films, the use of non-diegetic and diegetic sound is continued throughout by using sound bridges and audio transitions. This is something we developed upon within our film, for instance, when Lucy shouts up to Leah, the audio of Lucy’s dialogue is carried over onto the shot of Leah. We believe that this was an effective example of using and developing editing techniques within our own film.

We were not able to obtain complete continuity throughout our film. When we shot our final scene we did not take a close up of Sarah revealing the stolen items. Because we felt it was crucial to have a close up of the reveal, we decided to reverse the shot of Leah covering it up. Because of this, the money and jewellery are not in identical places in the Long and Medium close up reveals. This is a minor error that was unavoidable during editing, if we would have had enough time, we would have corrected this decision and ensured continuity of the prop positions. 

One way we challenged continuity conventions, was by using flashbacks. In films similar to ours such as “Just My Luck,” there is usually a linear narrative. However, we wanted to break this convention of continuity in order to convey certain events. We created a non-linear narrative, in order to use flashbacks to explain events instead of chronologically. Although we did not follow typical conventions in relation to continuity, we challenged them in a way that effectively told the narrative as we wished. It allowed us the opportunity to reintroduce past events that affected the plot, by using an unconventional narrative technique. 

Our film:

At first, we decided our film personified the paradigm of Drama. For instance, our film involves real issues such a girl stealing from her friend, everyday misfortune and relationships breaking down. The clearest example is the build-up of tension, as Sarah experiences lots of misfortune until the pinnacle moment where she realises that Leah stole from her and the penny is lucky. 


Similar elements can be found in other films such as “Titanic,” in which Rose experiences events that change her outlook on life, up to and including the ship sinking. 

However, as we began filming we realised our film actually belonged in the Fantasy-Drama genre, as we incorporated themes such as good vs. evil, and unexplainable, magical phenomena. The clearest example is our integration of luck into our plot and theme. 



Just My Luck:

This reflects the genre we were working within as other films also use similar themes and events. For instance, “Just My Luck” also focuses on the impact of luck and misfortune on their characters, which makes up the narrative. We believe our film represents both genres as it possesses believability in an imaginative way.









We believe our film gratifies our audience through entertainment purposes, which according to Richard Dyer's theory of entertainment and utopia, is when a film provides an audience with something they haven't got or want. He suggested that a film can provide an audience with a utopian solution, for example if an audience is tired it can provide them with energy, if they are bored it can provide them with intensity, if they are poor it can provide them with abundance, if they lack understanding it can provide them with transparency and if they are lonely it can provide them with community. His intensity solution is present in our film as experiences various lows: she breaks her phone, loses Kandi and falls out with her mum and highs: she finds Kandi and her phone is miraculously fixed. By following this utopian solution our film would cure the potential boredom of our audience, as they experience Sarah's emotions throughout, and the events keep them intrigued. We also attempted to entertain our audience by using a flashback at the end of our film to piece together all the events that had taken place so that the audience would understand what has occurred. This is another low that Sarah and the audience experience together which further adds to the intensity of our film, as the audience wants to see what happens next, and as a result is no longer bored. 

We also attempted to gratify our audience (females 10+) by offering escapism within our narrative. We hoped that our film would provide the audience with an opportunity to relieve themselves of everyday stresses in which they are taken to a utopian alternative that allows them to get lost in the narrative due to its unrealistic nature (lucky penny), but also keep them entertained due to its believability (Sarah's character). This further highlights that our film fulfils Dyer's theory as the audience are watching the film to cure the boredom of their everyday lives as it allows them to escape to their own utopian world. 

I believe we have successfully pleased our audience, as from our feedback it is clear that our film cures their boredom and provides them escapism into a world where someone's life can be improved by the luck of a penny- something our audience would wish they had. 

Although we have obtained a level of originality within our film, we were clearly influenced by other films within the Fantasy and Drama genres, such as “My Sister’s Keeper,” and “Just My Luck.” After watching “My Sister’s Keeper” we applied their use of flashback to our own.  We wanted to merge our initial flashback and opening credits to conserve time within our film. “My Sister’s Keeper” was a version of how we wanted to achieve ours and therefore were heavily influenced by it. 

Our flashback/Title sequence:

My Sister's Keeper flashback/Title sequence:

“Just My Luck,” had a bigger impact on our narrative. Ashley embodies luck, whereas Jake personifies misfortune. We applied this to our own film, in which we decided to have Sarah embody both, as an inner conflict, in which the penny induces. Sarah encounters our own twist on bad luck that both Jake and Ashley encounter in “Just My Luck,” showing its influence. 

Our film:

Misfortune:

Luck:

Just My Luck:

Ashley (Good Luck) + Jake (Misfortune) 

Although we were influenced in some aspects of our film, not all decisions were inspired by similar films. Rather than realising that she doesn't need the luck, Sarah realises that she doesn't need her best friend. She keeps her luck, unlike Ashley and Jake who pass their luck onto his little sister, Katy.

Our film:

Just My Luck: