Character profile #1 (preliminary planning)

Questionnaire results analysis

I collected the results from the questionnaire and put them all into pie charts and tables, so i could simply visualise them properly. A few of the questions have more entries than others, due to the questions being answered more than once by some participants.

I found out that in terms of genre, my target audience prefers comedy. This is convenient, as i have already chosen to do a comedy video as my main task. This means i can get practice on the genre by using different techniques used exclusively in comedy films, i have analysed a few comedy movie openings throughout my blog in order to get an idea what techniques and theories i can apply to get good results.
I also found out that the preferences of characters isn't very specific, and could have gone either way depending on the participants mood, it was a draw between 3 types of characters which consist of heroes, comedic and bad boy. I will try to incorporate these somewhere in my preliminary task, but if i don't use these types, it won't be the end of the world.
The time for a film to be set was quite a one sided question, as half of the people in the questionnaire voted for present day, this is where i will set my preliminary narrative, but in terms of my main task i'm still unsure.
Finally, for the scenario i found out that a funny interaction came out on top with the most votes, this corresponds to the audiences' favourite genre which is also somewhat convenient, although a hybrid of genres could have been fun and interesting to approach.

Questionnaire results tables

Textual analysis (21 jump street)

I have looked at multiple film openings in order to research how professional movie developers use different techniques to create certain effects. I would like to create a comedy piece, so I have researched using comedy movie openings. I will be looking at a large amount of things in the scene including things like the use of mise en scene, the representation of characters and even sound.


The clip begins with the iconic trademarks of the different companies that contributed to the creation of the film, though these have been somewhat integrated within the scene, as the song played throughout is continuous during all of the film logos and the actual movie scene. This makes for a very smooth transition from the sort of "behind the scenes" aspect of the film, to the actual scene. The song is also very fitting for the movie, the rap is modern and popular which will attract a lot of people in general while also linking with the appearance of one of the initial characters.


As soon as the scene begins, the audience is given ideas on who the film is going to be focused on, we are given an "over the shoulder" camera angle on a character. This introduces a somewhat personal effect that connects this audience with a character,  I think this is used to simply show us that this is the main character, as it is just a few moments into the scene. Typography is also introduced around this time, and this is used very subjectively in the scene. The text is bold, intimidating but most importantly it is flashing red and blue. The connotations of this are based around the police and police cars more specifically,

The use of mise en scene throughout the clip is very cluttered and full of people, this is a somewhat iconic decision in  a high school scenario as it makes the characters seem small and insignificant. The non important characters are wearing bland colours to make them blend into the background, whereas Jonah Hill and the "pretty girl" are wearing bright vibrant colours to stand out and show them as somewhat significant. During this scene, the music is rising in pitch and general intensity, insinuating it is leading up to a climax, probably some form of action sequence or confrontation. It also represents the feelings of Jonah Hills character, as there is a faint non diagetic heart beat in the background, representing his nervous feelings.

We are then introduced to another main character, this is represented by the use of costume. The letterman jacket instantly connotes a "jock" style character, which is emphasised by his dialogue and general personality. This is an iconic setup for characters, the jock and the nerd which makes for an interesting confrontation, this is where the main characters are established and some of the story.

The opening also corresponds the Barthes' semiotics theory, as there are multiple things that support it. The conversation between Jonah and the girl in itself is an action code, as we are given the impression something important is going to happen throughout that sequence. The very end of the scene with both characters sat on benches is also a Barthes code, I believe it is a symbolic code, symbolising them as equals, this juxtaposes with the previous scene as it showed the jock character as superior to the nerd. This is where he basis of the film is established, polar opposites in high school are put in the same boat, and become an odd couple of friends. The camera angle is a long shot, which I believe represents them being small and vulnerable in the world now they've left high school. 

Preliminary exercise questionnaire

I have created a questionnaire for my preliminary exercise in order to find out what people most enjoy in films, i have asked about genre, settings and scenarios which will all lead to my preliminary film.

Media action plan

https://prezi.com/l5shqezmowjx/media-action-plan/

Blog research table

I researched previous AS students' blogs in order to find out what exactly they researched, and how they presented that research depending on the piece of work.

Preliminary task mind map