SHES HERE Critical Reflection

Hey Blog! 

 Now that I have completed my short film journey, it is time to do an overall reflection on my process. With that, I present to you my CR. 

Introduction

The process of creating my very own short film was difficult, yet exciting. While producing this product, I learned how to collaborate with another to create a piece of art. From that, this art can be something bigger. Something that engages with social groups and challenges conventions, while still creating an overall brand. So, in this essay I will reflect on how exactly I went about this short-film project, as well as what I learned and what I would change. 

Representing Social Groups and Issues

One of the main characters in my short was a young girl with a disability. “Lana” is mute. So, throughout the film she communicates to her babysitter through a notebook and pen. Then, the babysitter often dismisses her as she warns her. This can be around 51 seconds into the short when Lana warns that they must leave. The act of brushing off the young girl demonstrates how non-verbal individuals are often misunderstood. Due to the fact that non-verbal individuals cannot express themselves with vocal emotion, society may brush off their struggles, which is something I truly wanted to demonstrate in this short. 

Although I believe I strongly demonstrated the issue in my actual short film, I believe I did not represent this social group well throughout the other parts of my package. This was because the girl’s muteness was not the key plot of the film, just an attribute to make the issue at hand more complex. Lana’s incapability to quickly warn and communicate with the babysitter put them in much more danger during the short, but I didn't find it necessary to be the key focus of my postcard or website. First, because it spoils one of the surprises in my short. And secondly, because I wanted to make the scariness of the sister the key focus. With that, I still made sure that the back of the postcard was an image of the young girl's notepad while she writes, "she's here"

Overall, I feel as if I effectively described the issues of non-verbal individuals socially. The difficulty they have trying to get others to understand them is unfair, which is why I made sure to do it justice. If I could change anything, I would have added a page on my website just discussing the struggles mute individuals face. This way, I could help educate further, to maybe help assist the issue. 

Branding and the Integration of Production Elements 

    It was important to create a strong brand around the short. So, my partner and I made social media accounts, a website, and a postcard. This was essential so that we could promote the short as well as create an audience for our short. With it being a horror short, we knew the branding had to follow these dark themes. For example, our social media had darker posts and a moody profile picture in order to align with the tone of the short.

    Our postcard was a teaser for the short. We used an image from the film of when the sister scares the characters, as well as when Lana was writing one of her notes. This introduced the audience into the idea of the story line. This card was a powerful tool for promotion as it showed viewers a snippet of what was to come in the short.

    The website was also a strong continuation of our brand. The entire page is dark, with the background being all black. From the dark moody site, we introduced the plot of the short. This allowed us to really entice viewers and draw them in to watch the short. By continuing the dark theme across different platforms, we were able to create a community behind the short. The cohesive brand really helped us market this short.

Engaging with the Audience 

Engagement with the audience is one of the most significant aspects of  creating any sort of product. A product is only successful if it can capture and hold the attention of its intended audience. In my products, I aim to create a meaningful dialogue between the product and the people who interact with it. To do this, I made sure to focus on the visual and sound aspects of my short.

For example, in my short I included the sound of the sister whispering. Not only did this scare the babysitter, it also may have frightened the audience. This helped create a shared experience and emotion between the audience and the characters. This is especially important when creating a horror or thriller product, because the viewers are watching it to get that scared sort of feeling. I also made sure to edit a dark filter over most of the film in order to create that scared feeling that only the audience would see. This creates an effect on the audience that only they would feel, fostering engagement.

Social media also plays a significant role in audience engagement. By utilizing platforms like Instagram or Twitter, I can directly interact with my audience, responding to feedback, hosting discussions, and encouraging people to share their own experiences related to the themes of the product. In this way, the product can create a community of fans who all enjoy the product. From there they can share their own becomes part of a larger conversation, creating a community around shared values and experiences. By fostering this sense of connection, I am able to enhance the product’s emotional impact and ensure that it resonates on a deeper level with the audience.

Research and Its Influence on Product Development 

Before beginning my project, I knew research was essential to ensure that my product conformed to typical trends and expectations, as well as properly representing social issues. Similarly to last year, when I researched conventions throughout different genres of media I realized that there are many trends in film. So, because I was creating a short this year, I decided it was important to look at some actual shorts.

When doing this I realized some key differences between short and full length films. In a short film, it is important to focus on one key storyline, rather than branching out. Due to the fact that you have limited time it is important to stay focused on one key plot, rather than a bunch of minor details. You also do not have as much time to develop different characters and personalities. Because of that, I decided to only have three characters in my short, just because I felt as if it was the best way to create characters that the audience can be invested in.

Due to my prior research last year, I only felt the need to touch up on my horror conventions knowledge. I knew the importance of lighting to this genre, so I made sure to include that when filming and editing. One difficulty that had arose was the fact that I was filming during the day. Because I wanted to short to still be dark and scary, I filmed with my curtains closed and placed a filter over the entire film. This way, I could still abide to that typical genre.

Conclusion

 In conclusion,  I really enjoyed the process and product of this project. I got to represent an issue, as well as create a short that could build a community. Bye considering my audience and purpose, I was able to create a brand identity that engages my audience. Research was an essential role in shaping my products and how everything has come to be. It allowed my products to be relevant and meaningful. In the  end, my goal is to create products that inspire and create a deeper connection with the audience.

Word count: 1284

link to CR: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1djOOtVipVw06Jeuo8a6tvqUlHDW_6NcnkNqpxu5kX94/edit?usp=sharing