Final Submission

Instagram link: Instagram

Extra Instagram vid: 

Link to trailer #1: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1QJBRKG6mibmetFutjx47yp2ZNCEaUxWv/view?usp=drive_link

Link to trailer #2: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1tzZw0JnMDjbo-0_hTym0B7z8INo2sesX/view?usp=drive_link

Link to poster #1: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1J8I38gjQmAldok8KriCw8Y--B__plDnS/view?usp=drive_link

Link to poster #2: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1VVXF2JbO-Fx6YIfvpU4iUtjLHsvgHP8C/view?usp=drive_link

Link to poster #3: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1xAKa5R8e0Q2VmdgPQfLs-_lhRtyz2t3I/view?usp=drive_link

Critical Reflection

My film trailers for One Moment showcase the idea of never taking anything for granted, because in any moment, anything can happen. The trailers follow Summer, a senior in high school who struggles with severe anxiety and also struggles with making friends due to her scrambling mind. The other main character in my trailers is Alex who is also a senior in high school, but instead, he is outgoing, has a ton of friends, and overall, just has the most perfect life... well, that is, until everything changes. 

Since I chose to do the film promo package, I had to create two trailers that basically illustrate an entire plotline for a film. Because of this, when coming up with my idea, I had to make an entire plotline from beginning to end. At the of my hypothetical film, Alex ends up passing away from cancer, and him and Summer's entire relationship has a purpose, which is to allow Summer to understand that instead of spending time worrying about what other people think, it's more important to do things that you love, like for example, Alex helps Summer find a passion for photography, specifically in nature. In the beginning of the "film," she sees it as just a hobby and nothing more.

Originally when coming up with my idea for this project, I wanted to do something completely different. Even down to deciding which promotion package I wanted to do. At first, I chose to do the music video, and then I changed it to the short film. Of course, I ultimately decided to pursue the film promo package. When beginning my research, I looked into things like, romantic comedies and animations, obviously two very different things. I had probably changed my idea five times before finally deciding on what I actually ended up going with. 

After finally deciding on my plot for One Moment, my research began. I knew that in order to portray someone with severe anxiety, I would have to do some research so that in the end, no one is offended, and so that it is represented accurately. I researched anxiety in general, as well as specifically in teens. I used multiple sources where I learned that anxiety is very common among teenagers because adolescence is a time when people experience social expectations, academic pressure, and identity development. School environments are known to increase anxiety because of pressure to succeed socially and academically. I also did my research on not only psychological symptoms, but also physical symptoms. I then used that research to portray Summer's character. For example, in a lot of articles, fidgeting with your fingers and tapping your foot is a common trait that people with anxiety have. So, when filming, I got some footage of me doing those things. 

I also researched other movie posters under the coming-of-age genre to get an idea of what I wanted to create for my thumbnails. I specifically researched the posters for The Perks of Being a Wallflower, and Eighth Grade. I really liked how for the The Perks of Being a Wallflower poster, there were multiple characters in it because you often don't see that in coming-of-age film posters. I also liked how the background of it popped, so I decided to do that with one of my thumbnails. In the poster that illustrates Summer on the swing, the wall behind her is supposed to represent the wall that she has built up towards others, and the blue sky is supposed to represent her overall emotions of sadness and loneliness. This helps engage with my audience by having a direct meaning that correlates to the film trailers.

The last major thing that I took time to research was social media pages, specifically Instagram. I noticed that for a lot of coming-of-age films, the Instagram that promoted it often posted content like behind the scenes reels/photos, cast photos, and release date announcements. I posted all of those things on my Instagram page, and I think it matched well with the coming-of-age genre. I also saw that specifically for the film, To All the Boys I've Loved Before there was a specific hashtag that they put in the caption of every post, so I decided to do the same thing. I typed out "#onemomentceo" for every caption of every post. 

I would say that overall, my Instagram page helped engage with my audience by illustrating a specific theme/brand, as well as by having a consistent posting schedule. The brand that was illustrated throughout my entire Instagram page was very lively and consistently used details like cameras and film which represents Summer's found passion for photography, and the colors blue and green, which is supposed to represent not only very nature colors, but also the blue represents Summer's sadness. I would say that the trailer, the Instagram page, and all three thumbnails have a very similar "theme" and overall branding, which was my goal.

The actual trailers themselves represent how some people that experience life with anxiety may feel when put in social settings. I illustrated this in the beginning of trailer #2 when it shows Summer's constant tapping of her foot and all the overwhelming noises overlapping each other. I honestly really like how that scene turned out and it may be one of my favorites! The trailers for One Moment also represent the idea that in any given moment, anything can happen (which I discussed earlier). This is illustrated when the trailers switch from showing Summer by herself and being lonely, to having a strong relationship with Alex where she is constantly smiling, laughing, and overall enjoying her life.

 With help from some of my classmates, I decided to include a flatline noise for the ending of both of my trailers because I thought that it was a good way to engage the audience and have them wonder "Why is that there?" "Does this mean someone dies?" "Uh oh... is it, Alex?" The whole idea of a trailer is to make the audience want to see your actual film. It ties them in. So, in my opinion, adding that little key detail at the end was a great way to do just that!

Final reflective comments

The time has come...

When starting my portfolio project, I genuinely had no idea what I wanted to do. Not even just the genre of my film trailers but also if I even wanted to do the film promo package. I knew I wanted to produce something that I would be proud of and I think it's safe to say that I achieved that!! I am so happy that I was able to create something that I will hopefully be able to look back on and be proud of. Besides having some friends help out with the filming process, I pretty much did this project all on my own which I have never done before so I feel great!! 

I just can't believe that my A level portfolio project is complete... wow.

I'd say that the main thing I have learned throughout this process was to never give up. As cheesy as it sounds, I found myself constantly reminding myself that just because something doesn't go the way I had hoped, it doesn't mean that my entire project is a failure, and I should just give up. I think that I was constantly telling myself that I didn't have as much experience with producing content as others had, and that is SOOO bad. Thankfully, I was able to get over that and actually LOCK IN and honestly, I am so proud of myself, which is the best feeling!

Making posts

 
Now that we have finished the print component, it's time to lock in with the social media page!! I have been so focused on the trailers and thumbnails that the Instagram hasn't crossed my mind... whoops!

I have already made my Instagram account, but I have not made really any posts sooo it's time to get that started... (Ohh also, I was finally able to change the name of my account so now it is "onemomentceo"!!!

I do already have the little "One Moment" banner thing that I mentioned in one of my previous blog posts, but I need to have between 25 and 30. I decided that I wanted to make a post for each of the two main characters, Summer and Alex. To make all of my posts, I am using Canva and then posting them on Instagram.

First, I began by placing an image of a camera on my page because I thought that it matched with Summer's interest of photography! Then, I typed out "Charlee Oshins as Summer," in the font FB WallW. After that, I placed a photo of myself in the camera, as well as a landscape photo that I took when filming in the background, and boom that's it! I then just did the same thing but for Dito.

Here is how the posts look on my page!

More filming!

 Hi blog! Sooo we had a few days off from school, so I took that time to get more footage for my trailers!! We filmed the footage where Summer goes up to Alex, and his friends (*click here to see the storyboard*), as well as some more footage for my other trailer.

I would say that we were successful in getting the footage that I was hoping for and I'm pretty happy!

These are the people that helped me film:

Their names in order from left to right are:

 Natalie, Dito (his actual name is Gerardo, but he goes by Dito), Alana, and Ayden.

I will say that this day, I was stressing quite a bit because the people who had originally told me they would help out with filming, backed out the day of and I honestly did not think that I was going to be able to film anymore. Thankfully, my friend Natalie said yes to helping out and even though it was supposed to be a bigger friend group that is sitting together in this scene, I think that it all worked out.

I did ultimately decide not to pursue any animation for Summer's thoughts like I had originally envisioned, because I do not have any prior experience with it and I did not want my first time to be such an important project. Instead, we filmed this scene where the 3 characters are sitting down basically saying what Summer's fears they would say. They are making fun of her, tearing her down, and overall, just being very rude. I wanted this scene to feel different than the other scenes, so I had the actors break the fourth wall and I honestly like how it looks! When editing, I am going to also add some sort of filter or effect that allows the audience to understand that this scene isn't real and it's just Summer's thoughts.

Take #1

This was the first attempt which I honestly like more, the only thing is... unfortunately my sister who was the one recording accidently pressed record to late so the first few words that Dito said are cut off.

Take #2

This one I like a little less but if I can't find a way to fix the other one then I might just go with this one.  There is a tonnnn more footage from this day, but I don't want to show all of it right now so that I can keep it a surprise!! :D

My other trailer is going to be formatted more as an overview of the entire "movie" while the one I was talking about before is almost a teaser to a specific scene but with the length of a normal trailer. In the trailer that is an overview, I am going to use the shots/scenes I got from when we filmed at the beach + on the kayak, some shots that I got when we went to a bowling alley (which I have not yet mentioned so I will add some photos below), as well as some more shots!!

Posters (thumbnails)

 Ok... soooo it's time to start the print component! I'm actually most excited for this portion of the project because it seems the most fun to me!!

I have decided that my production is going to be a streaming release so it would be released on streaming services like Netflix, Hulu, and HBO Max. 

Some factors of movie posters that are streaming released are:

• Multiple thumbnails
• Title (same font + color)
• Little to no production credits

I also have decided that I want to have both horizontal and vertical thumbnails. The reason for this is because when on a streaming service, both vertical and horizontal thumbnails are shown. For example, when you are scrolling on Netflix, vertical thumbnails are shown, but as soon as you actually click on a movie, a horizontal one is shown! Here is a visual of what I’m talking about:

Here are the posters that I made on Canva!!

So, for this poster, I wanted it to have that romance aspect of my film portrayed. I really liked this picture that we took when filming so I think that it works out great! I also like how I am holding the camera in it since Summer's photography development is a big portion of the film. I ultimately decided to get with that font because all the other fonts I tried out looked a little tackey... I also thought that it was important to have at least one poster out in nature!!

This poster actually has a deeper meaning than just a thumbnail! The wall in this photo is supposed to represent the wall that Summer has built up, and the blue sky is supposed to represent Summer as a whole and her sadness + loneliness. I made sure to repeat the same font so that the posters stay consistent. I am not sure if the black font for "moment" is too much of a difference from the first poster but the white font blends too much with the white in the wall.

Like I mentioned, I used Canva to create my posters. I am very familiar with Canva because I have used it plenty of times in the past. The font that I used is called "FB WallW" and I think that it looks pretty good with the rest of the poster! I also put a filter called, "Latte" on both of the photos, but I lowered the intensity of it to about a quarter of the way. Overall, I'm happy with how the thumbnails turned out!!

This is another one I made:

The scribbles are supposed to represent all the chaos that is constantly happening in Summer’s mind.

CCR research

 Hi blog! Today, I am going to be researching/planning for my A level CCR! If there is anything I remember from last year's CCR, was that it is very important to give myself enough time to complete it so that I am not stressing last minute. As we all know, I suck at managing my time and that is 100% the thing I struggled with the most on my AS level portfolio project. I am definitely going to try and do better this year and that all begins with the planning!

Here is an image of the instructions we were given:    

So, for last year's CCR, we had to make to creative videos that overall cover the four questions we were given that regard our project. This year, we are told to write an essay of around 1000 words that reflects our work that we produce. Once again, our reflection is guided by four questions:

• How do your products represent social groups or issues?

• How do the elements of your production work together to create a sense of ‘branding’?

• How do your products engage with the audience?

• How did your research inform your products and the way they use or challenge conventions?

So, let's break down each question so that when the time comes, it is much easier to answer the questions within my essay!!

1.) How do your products represent social groups or issues?

For this question, the main focus is to illustrate the specific examples of representation that is portrayed in the piece of media that we produce. My project heavily represents mental health, specifically anxiety disorder through the character, Summer. In my CCR, I will focus on how her behavior reflects real experience of anxiety in teens. I will also discuss how my piece introduces the issue of a serious illness through Alex's diagnosis of brain cancer, and how this adds emotional depth to the production. I plan to reference specific scenes like for example, Summer's constant fidgeting with her fingers in social settings, as well as tapping her pen on the desk.

2.) How do the elements of your production work together to create a sense of ‘branding’?

The main focus for this question is to explain how I created a consistent sense of branding for both of my trailers by using a similar narrative, genre elements, and visuals. Genre and the target audience for my piece is also a large factor for this question so I will make sure to discuss that.

3.) How do your products engage with the audience?

For this question, I will make sure to start off by giving a thorough description of my target audience. I can then explain how my trailers are designed to engage the audience through emotional storytelling, relatable themes, and cliffhangers that make the audience want to actually watch the film. For example, I will hint at Alex's illness without actually giving away that he dies.

4.) How did your research inform your products and the way they use or challenge conventions?

Here, I will need to explain how my research helped me produce media that accurately represents the convention I was aiming to illustrate. For example, my research into anxiety informed the way I portrayed Summer's character, ensuring that her behavior is realistic and accurate.