Evaluation- Question One

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

The genre that I had chosen for my opening sequence was horror, meaning beforehand I was researching the general codes of conventions of a film in this category. In other media products, I found many conventions, which were split into different sections such as location or costume. For location, this was usually somewhere 'eerie' and mysterious, such as an abandoned house or a forest, or even a mental asylum. From this, I decided to set my opening sequence in a forest next to an abandoned house, in which footage from the house I incorporated into my credits by using a variety of establishing shots with camera movement. The location of a forest can connote mystery and link to the fear of the unknown; and with the right colour correction, this effect can be amplified further to be put across to my target audience. This links to another convention, colour, in which most horror films use dark lighting and dull colours varying from blue, black and grey. This effect can be seen especially in the set location in which the horror is taking place, and in scenes where the protagonist(s) faces conflict with a supernatural being, that is usually the antagonist.

The second part to the codes and conventions of horror is costume, which varies depending on character and the time in which the film is set, but in each film I found that there is a theme to the costumes. For example, with the conjuring, it is set in the past, meaning the theme is around the 1960s to late 1970s style. Furthermore, the style of the clothes is very simple and most of the time does not consist of bright colours. I learnt that the costumes an communicate with the audience, as it can tell them what type of person this character is, as well as the time that the film is set in, and the colours can even contribute to creating a certain mood or atmosphere. With my opening sequence, because it is set in the present, I felt it was easier to create my costumes. However, I decided to use bright colours like blue and yellow instead of dull and simple ones. The effect being, so that the characters stand out against the forest background rather then blending in with the greens and browns. I would say that this is different to some media texts, especially using a bright yellow raincoat, as in most films dark colours are worn to add to the eerie and dark atmosphere that the creators intend to make. Bright colours however can be found in some horror films, such as IT, in which the child is seen wearing yellow raincoat, which could be because he is a young child, and can connote innocence. 

Another part of the codes and conventions of a horror is the sound and music that is used. This is a vital aspect to the film, as it creates an audio 'experience' in which is added to the film to have a joint effect on the audience. What I found with other media texts within the genre of horror is that they rely heavily on this aspect to create an effect for the audience. For example, music is used a lot, including string instruments to create tension among the audience, especially at moments that are meant to frighten them. I made sure to use this effect with my opening sequence, using an eerie soundtrack in the credits to introduce the film and set the atmosphere and mood of it, as well as sound effects such as drones to create suspense, and thuds to scare the audience whenever something sudden occurred.

The final code and convention includes the characters, in which there are seven types according to Propp's theory; with the main two being the hero and villain. My hero is a strong female lead, which challenges the conventions of a horror and across most films from other genres, as the hero is usually a strong male character, with the female being either the princess or a helper. However in some new films, especially dystopian ones such as The Hunger Games and Divergent, a strong female lead is featured, and is shown to attract a female following as they view these characters as 'role models'. I decided to use this in my opening sequence as I wanted to go against the conventions of a horror  made the character of 'Alice', the strong lead for my opening sequence, and her friend, 'Jamie'. I feel that by using a heroine instead, I will attract a different mixture of audience, whom will vary as horror can appeal to men and the female lead can appeal to women, in particular teenagers as the character will relate to them more.
The character of Jamie plays the role of the helper in my opening sequence, and acts as a sidekick for the hero,which can be seen in the Conjuring, as the hero has a wife whom helps him,but she can also be seen as a joint hero with her husband. In most films the helper is also seen as female, and joins the hero on the quest, which is reflected in my opening sequence, as Jamie joins Alice in venturing into the forest and finding the antagonist to see if they are real or not, which eventually leads to the disruption of the film, according to Todorov.
With the case of the villain, I found that in a horror, the convention of a villain is usually that they have a supernatural element, whether it be that there are a demon or an ordinary person that has been possessed, in which there is an even bigger antagonist behind this. This convention is reflection  in my work however not my final piece, as the villain could not be clearly seen by the audience, as I wanted to have this feature of mystery within my story and the sequence. The character I've created is the Child Keeper, whom is a demon, so there is supernatural aspect to him, and wants to stop the hero in there quest and defeat them, which is found in multiple media texts, as it links in with binary oppositions such as good vs evil, in which the hero and villain are always trying to stop each other throughout the narrative.
To summarise, I have varied my opening sequence to both match and go against the typical conventions of a horror film and media texts in general, to create a certain effect and mood, and to attract a variety of audiences, including a niche audience, for example those who like films with female leads.