Nikitah Harvey- Williams

EvaluationWhat were the aims for the artefact? The aim for the Unit F632 artefact was to create 9 key frames and a script that represented a clear narrative of my film, You Got Wrapped. This was focusing on how males are represented in crime films in my textual analysis of The Purge: Anarchy (2014 USA) and Down Terrace (2009 UK). For my creative artefact, I focused on producing the middle sequence of the film showing what has just happened to the main male character Brandon and add suspense as the audience doesnt find out what happens after his phone call. The photos I represented a two minute duration when in action. The main female character, Jordan, offers her support to Brandon, however he shows he is reluctant and abuses his girlfriend. This supports Todorovs theory of equilibrium and destruction.What codes and conventions identified in the textual analysis were used in the artefact? While using the camera, I closely analysed the mise-en-scene and cinematography, specifically identifying the codes and conventions explored in my creative artefact. The identity of most characters in The Purge: Anarchy was represented as dangerous and urban youths. This was seen through their costumes and character positioning. The costumes consisted of hooded jumpers, trainers and tracksuits. The character costumes were not all the same as some of the people taking part in the purge wore masks, hats or jeans; this represented each of the characters personalities. For example my main male character showed the he was dangerous because his costumes were a bloody t-shirt which revealed his tattoos. This tells the audience that Brandon is intimidating as this image is typical for young people. The first scene was set inside a house showing Jordan on the sofa talking to her friend on the phone. The Purge: Anarchy inspired the setting of a young adult on the phone, which was based on young adults and how they live. It was essential that my key frames had all the key moments included telling the story. In order to be able to tell the story, I was given permission to borrow a camera and SD card from the media department and took over 100 pictures and selected the 9 best quality ones to use for my 9 key frames. Following the codes and conventions of The Purge: Anarchy, the denotation of the character positioning of the gang when they are about to cause destruction to the neighbourhood reflects the way Brandon walks in to the house which connotates injury and pain. This revealed that Brandon has just been part of a fight and has been wounded by getting stabbed. The audience can see that he has been stabbed because he was covered in blood. This was similar to Todorovs narrative theory as there was equilibrium, however it also supports Levi Strauss binary oppositions as Brandon is evil and dangerous. The lighting in my film You Got Wrapped and in The Purge: Anarchy are not similar however, they both represent danger and warmth. The lighting in The Purge: Anarchy is dark. Danger is represented by the colour black because of the evening and the clothing. In my film, You Got Wrapped, the lighting in the bathroom is yellow which represents warmth because Brandon is aware of his actions and feels guilty. To develop verisimilitude within the codes and conventions, I was able to do the make- up independently as the make- up was very simple. I made sure the make- up was simple as the audience would still be able to understand the narrative. The costumes also developed verisimilitude because I used paint for the blood to make it look realistic and make the characters look like they were injured. This reflects to an action and crime genre. How were the planning materials used in the construction of the artefact? The planning materials included organising the dates for taking pictures and allowing my characters to get to know each other, so when they started acting they wouldnt be shy. I was confident that their performance on the day would be successful as I chose two characters that have a past relationship and maintain a good friendship, which meant that taking pictures of them would not be a problem. This was an important aspect in my planning because I had a clear thought of my characters and the actors as they had to portray the similar qualities that I could conclude from the textual analysis. The script was also an important part of planning materials because it gave me an idea of the kind of people I would prefer to act for my film. Although I done 9 key frames rather than filming, I still needed to have a script so I knew what I would want my actors to say and how they should position their bodies for that scene. Another part of my planning was the screen test. This helped me chose the characters for my 9 key frames, because I wanted two young looking adults that could represent adolescence, a young male character that appeared to be a criminal by his tattoos, and gold teeth which can be seen when in action. The young female was ideal to play Jordan because she was young and attractive, which would draw the audience to watch the film. How successful was the artefact in achieving the aims? As a result, my opinion of how my creative artefact went in achieving the aims was successful because the narrative was clear and understandable. This was seen through the codes and conventions I focused on, specifically the costumes, which was inspired by the two contemporary films. The representations of males were similar as they are represented as intimidating and aggressive. This also linked to my textual analysis. Word count -966