By Jamie Gibbins

IN WHAT WAYS DOES YOUR MEDIA PRODUCT USE, DEVELOP OR CHALLENGE

FORMS AND CONVENTIONS OF REAL MEDIA PRODUCTS?

THE OPENING TITLESWhen we planned our main task we thought a lot about the opening titles because we knew that if they are good enough it will engage the audience right from the start, we thought a lot about incorporating them into the background and making them interact with the environment so we used this technique for a couple of the titles. For the others we had a point of view shot from the detective looking down the camera and taking pictures, when the pictures were in still frame the name of the actor would come up next to it. We got the inspiration for our opening titles from the two films; Donnie Brasco and Taxi driver.

Taxi Driver Opening Title

Donnie Brasco opening title

PLOT

Set in the 90’s New york City, Gambino is based on the downfall of the Gambino crime family when one of their members, Sammy Gravano, decided to cooperate with the FBI.

The films follows commissioner Goodman as he works with the mole, Gravano, to gather evidence against Gambino. All’s going well until Gravano goes missing and Gambino starts targeting not only Goodman, but the people closest to him as well.

AIMS TO THE AUDIENCEA film that has been rated 15 means that the content isn't deemed suitable for under 15’s by the country’s film governing body. We believe that our media thriller film has the rating of 15, this is suitable because our film has elements of violence, no sexual scenes or things of a sexual nature and no bad language.

Our thriller film would mainly appeal to males aged 15 to 30 due to the fact that it has certain elements of violence and it keeps the audience on the edge of their seats throughout. The people who will watch this would already have a strong interest in thriller films because it is quite similar to most other FBI/gang films yet it is still very unique and extravagant.

HOW DO YOU WANT THE AUDIENCE TO FEEL?

When people are watching our media thriller film we would like people to be on the edge of their eat not knowing what was going to come next, they would feel tense and always kept in suspense of the next crucial event in the storyline that was going to come next. Thrillers are meant to keep people on suspense and anticipation of what is going to come next, an example of this is Donnie Brasco. We used this as guidance and inspiration because it is a very well known film and it it well known for keeping the audience in suspense and creating tension. We knew that it was very important to keep the audience engaged and to keep them wanting more so we made sure our editing, sound, mise en scene and camera angles were all very good quality.

FEEDBACK FROM GROUPSGroup 1

What went well?

Conventions- setting, actors and props. Good colour difference from black and white to colour. Camera angles from the car, good panning and nice transitions from low to wide.

Things to improve on?

Improve title/credits and compare them to other thrillers. Delay title of film to come in with the music drop at the end.

Group 2

What went well?

Setting was very good and original. Music fitted in well and it was good. Costumes were very well suited to the plot and they all matched each other.

Things to improve on?

Stability of camera in the car scene. Audio of car sounds rough (just before the credit ‘Directed by James Marsh’)

FEEDBACK FROM GROUPSGroup 3

What went well?

High quality footage. Music enhanced the mood, made it feel like it was a thriller. Credits are well embedded into the background and the clip itself.

Things to improve on?

Make it less like a trailer, make the ‘Gambino” title more important. End shot is poor quality in comparison to the rest.

Group 4

What went well?

Overall filming was very good. Very original idea. Good mise en scene.

Things to improve on?

Title shouldnt be at the end (trailer like), put it in-between journey and exchange. Last shot is good but the quality is bad.