Typography and Titles

Throughout media, written communication is presented in a variety of different ways. This can vary from font style to colour to font size. Choosing the typography with the most appealing aesthetics is extremely important. If the text looks odd &/or out of placed, then this can make the film/video look unprofessional & cheap. As most people will judge something by its appearance, It is important for the typography to look classy and well constructed to leave a lasting first impression. This will help avoid people's prejudgement of the movie/show to be negative.  

Fantasy Genre

Typography can also be used to ascertain particular conventions of a genre that the media is part of. For example, the "Game Of Thrones" titles  follows the aesthetic conventions that are commonly associated with the fantasy genre. The sleek colour scheme also gives it a more "adult" vibe to insinuate that it is intended for an older/maturer audience. The font style is also reminiscent of a regal theme which links with the content of the show which revolves around several royal houses/families competing to take the Iron Throne.

Horror Genre

Similarly, the use of colour for the "Saw" titles also conveys mature themes. However, differences like the smear of red (which contains symbolic references to blood or danger) show that the theme for this movie is horror. The underlining of the word "Saw" looks like it has been slashed against a metal wall which shows a sense of victims becoming trapped & murdered. It is a common symbolic code for horror movies to include 

Titles and Openings

Game Of Thrones
Game of Thrones's Opening takes the audience on a fantasy-inspired journey throughout Westeros's current state during that season. Landmarks & locations known to the audience begin to form & take shape on the virtual map. The Actor's & Actress's names appear in the opening sequence next to a picture of their character's house sigil. For example, Maisie Williams's name is next to a picture of a Wolf because her character: "Arya Stark " is part of House Stark & their Sigil is a Wolf. The colour pallet is quite natural with whites, greens, blue & browns as they are the colour of the landscape - The white is used for snow, green for grass, blue for the ocean & the brown for rock/desert. Subtle tones of gold are used to convey a sense of regal superiority to tie in with the story of "fighting for the crown to rule Westeros." The final scene where the title is shown on the crown along with four house sigils in each corner shows the main contenders (Stark, Targaryen, Lannister & Baratheon) all are in for a chance of winning "The Game of Thrones." The art style of the visuals paired with the epic, well received music hints to the reader that this show will indeed be a unique, fantasy, battle that the audience will encounter twists & turns with unexpected outcomes - hence the intro showing the building of the locations on the map - you have to guess the outcome of what the outcome is going to be of the construction when first watching (Unless you know you already know the geographical aspects of Westeros).  

Company Name Change - Mallard Media

After careful consideration and general feedback from our target audience, we decided to change our production company name which subsequently changed the final outcome of the logo. Our new logo uses the contrasting tones of black & white to create a subtle logo. Black & white also has convention of being classy. Because of this, our new logo has a sense of professionalism to it which further improves its appearance. Also the black & white colour scheme is gender neutral which could appeal to wider audience. "Mallard Media" has an alliteration sound to it so it is more likely to make an impression on new audiences.

Risk Assessment

As part of our  filming process we decided to conduct a "risk assessment" to help with our opening film. Attributes to consider were as followed:

Risk	Consequence	Risk chance	Precautions
Dropping camera while filming	Broken property and inability to film	Low	We will take regular breaks.
Canine interference	Pet dog(s) on set ruins take or post-production sound recording.	High	Ensure the dogs are in another location so they do not provide non-diegetic sound.
Road traffic accidents	Injury	Medium	Take standard road safety precautions when encountering roads.
Falling/tripping	Injury	Low	Be cautious when travelling by foot.
Camera breakage due to wind knocking over tripod	Camera is broken and the product is unable to be filmed.	Medium	Be vigilant of wind and hold onto tripod and camera at all times..

Filming location:

Weather:
Attempt to shoot on a day where there is light but it is cloudy. Use of pathetic fallacy to reflect mood of film.

Careful not fall into lake:
When shooting scenes that require us to approach the lake in Cuckoo's Hollow, do not stand too close to the edge of the brush. Also be sure to not drop the camera in the lake in filming over the bridge or rails.

Neighbourhoods:
Do not make too much noise to disturb people living in the neighbourhood. 

Beware of traffic:
Don't get hit by a car.

Beware of passer-bys:
Could accidentally get them in the footage without consent.

Alchemy scene:
Be careful not to cut self on equipment.
Don't drop glass bottles/jars.
Beware of any spillages.

Locations of Filming

This path will be the ideal location for the opening shots and also a shot to incorporate the urban background. The trees around created a good lighting effect that allowed us to shoot without the light being too bright.

This underpass is covered in graffiti making it good to set up an urban, gritty theme. The lighting had to be natural due to lack of lighting tools so we had to film on a particularly cloudy day so the contrast did not cause confusion.

Davids Lane is a very busy roundabout near an industrial park. This could work well as an establishing or filler shot to reinforce the gloomy feel and tone of the product.

Here at this location in Cuckoo's Hollow nature reserve, will be the concluding part of the opening sequence. It is loosely based on Netflix's The Killing to present influences and further reinforce gloominess.

The house on the left is where our group member Harry lives. He had a garage with good lighting and space for the Alchemy scenes. The garage wasn't regularly visited so there would be no sound contamination. 

Costume and Props

Costumes & Props Costume Costume: Costumes are the distinctive style of dress/outfits which usually adjure to a certain genre or . A costume can be a particular style of clothing worn to portray the wearer as a character or type of character other than their regular persona at a social event such as a masquerade, a fancy dress party or in a theatre performance. Props Props: A property, commonly shortened to prop (plural: props), is an object used on stage or on screen by actors/actresses during a performance or screen production In practical terms, a prop is considered to be anything movable or portable on a stage or a set, distinct from the actors, scenery, costumes and electrical equipment. Consumable food items appearing in the production are also considered properties. Costume ideas for our opening scene: Costume for the Alchemist Keenan Black Cloak Black Trousers Black Shoes White T-shirt Props for the Alchemist Vials Jars Cat Herbs Pestle Mortar Rocks Jewels Skull Bunsen Burners/Fire Water Books

Costume for the Jon (Harry) & Pedro (Kieran) Dark coloured jacket Jeans White v-neck Black boots

Preliminary Video