Audience Research

Must be completed as part of your research and planning.

Think about who your target audience will be, create;

Mood boards

Audience profiles

Photos, etc

Film your audience responding to your questionnaire.

A good link to use is http:www.surveymonkey.com you can create a free sample for your questionnaire.

The Sandman

Use the video which is available to view on youtube as an inspiration for creative and new approaches to editing.
The Sandman is a 1991 stop-motion animation film, animated and directed by Paul Berry and nominated for an “Oscar” for Best Animated Short Film in 1992. The storyline is inspired by the E.T.A. Hoffmann's version of the European legend of The Sandman.

Research and Planning

Preparing for September;

Think carefully about casting for your practical, remember you don't have to be in front of the camera, but consider who is. Is your best mate really the right choice for your film?

Developing your Film Treatment

Create character boards - What part will they play in moving the narrative forward, are they a key factor or just a support for the plot?

A mood board of your genre and also your film itself, think about representing it in 10 photographs, what mood/style are you trying to create?

• A mind map of your initial thoughts and ideas and how you first started the creative process.

Storyboards are an integral part of research and planning and must be contain details of; shot types and timings, sound effects, dialogue, any information that would allow someone to pick up and start filming just from this one document. Take a photograph of it and upload to your blog, remember everything must be blogged and updated at least twice weekly.

Location ideas can all be photographed and uploaded, make careful choices about your locations, cosider carefully the time of day you want to film and don't forget continuity!

Step one - Research and Planning

Some of you learnt some very valuable lessons last year when it came to the research and planning stage, please don't underestimate just how important it is.
Once you have decided on your group and thought about the genre, the hard work can begin!
Genre - Do some research into similar products and texts. Textual analysis and an exploration into the codes and conventions of the genre are essential.
Create a mood board which represents the genre you are working in. This very simple but effective one was created by Kirsty, Sophie and Lawrie last year. Be creative with your ideas and remember this is A2, so think outside the box!

A2 Practical Briefs

You should have a good idea by now of who you will be working with and maybe the genre and the brief you want to work in.
Remember the briefs for A2 are;
Short film in its entirety (max 5 mins) - This also includes creating a film poster and a film magazine review page.
OR
A teaser trailer of your chosen genre (not horror as you worked in that last year) approx 60 seconds long - Also to include a film poster and a film magazine front cover advertising your film.

Think carefully about who you want to work with, REMEMBER it is a long time to be working with someone if you have very different ideas of what you want to achieve!