Analysis of Student Films

Strengths:

• The use of simple white font is effective as it does not distract the viewer from the action, also where the font is place allows it to be seen.
• The camera shots, there are a lot of establishing shot this causes the viewer to understand where the scene is set and also allows them to build ideas of what is going to happen. The use of close ups add to the element of mystery this opening is creating.
• Pace, the use of pace when the little girl runs off is effective. As they have slowed this shot down it creates suspense, and causes the viewers to focus on the girl and her facial expression in detail.
• Editing, the thing I liked about this was the odd flickers in the scene. This caused the scene to be distorted, and broke the flow, symbolising the broken flow of of the mans thoughts? (just my interpretation)
• The use of music from the second the opening starts automatically causes the audience to be in a mind set of a tension build up. Even though the music builds slightly it is not obvious, this follows the flow of the scene as it builds but there is no obvious climax. I feel this would cause a viewer to continue to watch the film.

Weaknesses:

• Transition between scenes, there doesn't seem to be a flow between the transitions they are just shots but together. Well I feel it looks as if it is, and they are just switching between shots.

Strengths:

• Quick cuts, this is effective as it gives the audience a glimpses of what to expect, but also disorientates them. This hints to the audience what type of film they are watching.
• Good shots when the man is working on the dolls, the close up while he's working on the dolls, allowing the audience to see what he's doing.
• Editing, the different filter on the quick cuts to the main shots, emphasising that this element of the film is dark.
• Mise-en-scene, even though I feel there was no need for the SpongeBob socks as it distracted the audience from their intentions, the use of costume was thought out to what a father figure would wear.

Weaknesses:

• The titling, this could be improved easily as they have used white text over a white house (change text colour), meaning the viewers are unable to see what it says.
• Casting, the casting could have been better as the character is supposed to be a father figure. The use of costume represents this, however the characters apperence physically does not portray this. This causes the audience to lack belief in the character.   
• Audio, the sound on the dialogue is quite, it's hard to hear what the voice in the background is saying. I also feel the music leads to anti climax, this may have been intended. But for my personal taste , for me it left a gap.
• Lighting, the use of lighting in the garage could have darker, this would have created a dark atmosphere which reflected the characters intensions.
  

Strengths:

• Montage of clips at the start, I feel this is effective as mixed with the music it gives the film a very sinister feel from the moment it starts.
• Company logo, this logo represent the type of film they want to make, it is simple but effective.
• The point of view shot behind the scene mixed with the audio of a waterphone caused the tension to build.

Weaknesses:

• The sudden change in audio, the music at the start is a track added during post production causing the sound to be clear and louder. Whereas the sound after this is coming from the phone causing it to sound quiet and grainy. To avoid this they could have added the track in post production and altered the setting to make it seem as if it was coming from the phone. Also another area of audio is the man in the mask, it is hard to hear what he is saying, again this could have been imported during post production.
• Length of the phone call, this caused the scene to be slow pace, causing the viewer to lose interest. This scene could have been shorter, or numerous camera shot could have been incorporated.
• Transition, there was delays between shots meaning that the characters reaction seemed to be a long time after an event had occurred (e.g. girl hiding and making other girl jump).
• Lighting, the use of the black filter throughout. During in the graveyard scene it was evident that this was filmed during the day, to make this more realistic they should have filmed this during the evening or when their is less natural light, this creates an atmosphere for the audience and helps to build tension.

After watching these videos, looking at the criteria and seeing what mark they got it has helped me to understand what our group needs to incorporate into our opening, and what standard our work is expected to be at.