FMP: Research -Josh Eastham

Josh Eastham
Year 2 Final Major Project Research
Working Title: C.A.L.L.I

The first questions Introduce the basic topic of my project (Artificial Intelligence) as well as asks people what their gender is. I posted this on a Facebook group for
residents of my village so I would consider this general public audience research rather then specialized.
Whilst these appear to be basic questions they give me a lot of important information. Since my project is a film on the dangers of artificial intelligence I need to
know if that is a topic that scares most people. If so I can use that to my advantage and play on peoples fears in order to successfully get the message of my film
across.
I also wanted to know what the gender was of the person that was answering the survey. I wanted to know this so I could get a better idea of the type of person that
would be interested in my film. This is definitely something I will be investigating further when it comes to doing secondary research of audience demographics as it
will allow me to best tailor the conventions and style of my film to my target audience in order to make it more successful. Interestingly the majority of the people
that answered my survey were Female. This could be due to the fact that more female people are interested in this type of thing then males are. On the other hand it
could also be representative of the type of people that are likely to see this on the Facebook group that I posted it on which could consist of more female members
then male members.

These questions gives me a further information on the type of people that answered my survey such as there favorite film genres and whether they prefer films or TV
series. Interestingly the results this time were that most people preferred comedy films followed up by drama. The lowest rated was historical. For the other
question most people preferred TV series over films. The results for the question about the films surprises me because I would have thought big action blockbuster
films would have been the most popular. Again that may be due to the type of person that answered my survey on the Facebook group. I think If I sent this survey to
a certain type of people that I would get a response that I would expect however that would defeat the point of it being a general public survey. One thing that
doesn’t surprise me is the fact that more people prefer TV shows to Films. Perhaps this statistic would have been different 10 years ago however we are living in the
age of big budget TV epics on platforms like Netflix or Amazon Video. This information is useful as it will allow me to tailor my format and genre of my film to what
appeals to the widest possible audience. Whilst comedy could be difficult to write especially in this subject matter I could use a subtle form of comedy rather than it
being in the face of the viewer. I think I should definitely investigate this more by looking at two products, one a film the other a TV series and compare them. I could
look at their differences there drawbacks and what makes them successful. This could mean that whatever the result is I may end up making a TV miniseries rather
then a short film.

Netflix was definitely the most popular platform for watching TV and films on an based on it’s real life subscription numbers that is not a surprising result. However I
think this highlights the fact that the standard for how we consume media is changing and evolving. 10 years ago the primary result would have been likely to be
Broadcast TV channels but now most people stream things on the internet. One thing I did forget to include is the use of optical media such as DVD or Blue-Ray discs.
Due to this I am considering re submitting this question and waiting to see if there is a change in the results. In the results I have here, broadcast TV is the second
most popular option. Interestingly the third most popular option is illegal movie streaming websites which I think says a lot about about the lack of morality in some
people as well as shows the reason why the movie industry is struggling in some areas. This is potentially something that might be worth looking up later as I could
investigate how this might impact small productions like my own and then link it in with my other research to get a conclusion. I asked the question about peoples
cinema viewing habits not for any particular reason other then the fact that I was Interested. Since this isn’t something that will directly effect the production of my
film. What it may effect though is the response I get from it if it were to be screened in a cinema. This could be indicative of the amount of people that would come to
watch it. This research could be expanded on in terms of demographics as I could ask this question in different locations to different types of people. This could
further give me an idea on were it would be best to screen my film in order to get the largest possible audience.

My motivation for asking these questions were because I wanted to find out what peoples TV viewing habits were and whether they consider morale messages in
them to be important. The results of these questions can directly effect my project as it could determine how prevalent the morale message In my story is. I don't
want it to be too strong so that it puts people of which looking at the answers to question 8 could be a genuine risk. Question 7 was an indirect continuation of
question 6 which asked about peoples cinema going habits. I wanted to know how often people watch fictional TV as the results when compared with the cinema
question results could directly determine whether I decide to produce my project as a TV miniseries or a short film.
These results are something that should definitely be investigated further as I want to attract the widest possible audience in order to get my message across. This
will mean that I have to find the most popular platforms in order to reach this audience. Once I've found these platforms I can either advertise of release my
product on there to achieve these goals.

These questions were specifically about the potential content in my short film. I wanted to know what elements people
valued most. The answers to question 9 tell me that people value having a good plot the most followed by the use of
decent 3 dimensional characters with well written personalities. Now that I know this information I will use this as a
baseline for writing my script making sure it is tailored to these specific aspects of what people value the most in a film/TV
shows. When I asked about whether people would watch something based on the dangers of artificial intelligence the
overwhelming majority said yes which is encouraging. Something that is further encouraging is that 0% of those that
answered said no. 30.43% of people said maybe which is perhaps a good thing as it shows I have a large potential audience
that will be a good challenge to try and convince them to watch.

Target Audience Interviews: Georgia Brown
1. Does the idea of highly advanced artificial intelligence scare you? Make you nervous? Explain why?
No as long as they can keep a check on them and they can’t go too far themselves.
2. Do you think humans are becoming too reliant on technology? Is it having a negative impact on us as a society?
Yes I think that a lot of people would struggle with daily tasks if we didn’t have cars and phones unlike before when we didn’t need
them. If a day comes when we don’t have them people will struggle.
3. Do you like science fiction films? If so, what is it about that genre you like?
Yes as long as it isn’t too confusing and is interesting. Marvel etc
4. What is your favorite science fiction film or TV show of all time? If you’re not into that genre what could be done to make it
more appealing to you?
Marvel
5. Do you prefer character-driven drama? Or drama that is driven by plot and genre elements?
Character driven cos you become more invested in the character and film

Target Audience Interviews and Survey Summary
The fact that only one person answered my target audience interview questions is extremely frustrating as it doesn't really give me much of a broad scope of
answers to work with. However the feedback I got from my survey was much better and will help me a lot in the coming production. One big thing I needed to
know is would my concept work? Since I needed to know this the first question I asked was Does A.I. Scare you? Fortunately the majority of people answered Yes
to this question. This was good because if the majority had said No then I would certainly have to rethink my concept as it all hinges on the fear of A.I. and the
dangers it presents. The second question was designed to give me an idea of the gender of my audience. I wanted to know whether they were predominantly
Male of Female so that I could tailor certain elements of my production like character genders to the majority of my audience in order to increase its appeal and
potential viewing figures. Knowing what genre of film peoples favorites are is also an important factor as It gives me an idea of the main genre I should work in
and what elements from other genres I should bring in.
The questions that ask about how often people go to the cinema and how much people watch TV are not that important to my overall production however I was
interested to find out this information. Questions 8 to 10 were arguably the most important questions that I asked. The reason I say this is because question 8
asks about how people feel about having a morale message in a film. I am really glad I got such a positive response from this question as the whole point of me
making this film is so that it includes a morale to the story. That morale being that Artificial Intelligence is dangerous and that we should be careful with it.
Question 9 asks about what elements people consider to be the most important of a TV show/film. The most important element that people considered was by
far The Plot. This information was extremely useful to me when I was writing the script as I needed to know what things in my film I should focus more on then
others. Finally Question 10 reveals the basic concept of my plot and asks people if they would find it interesting. Fortunately the majority of people said yes with
the others who answered saying maybe. This is an overwhelmingly positive response since no one said "no" and gives me a lot of hope that I can pull those
people from the maybe category into the Yes category.
Overall I have found this survey extremely useful as it has given me a lot of important information on things like certain elements, styles, characteristics and
genre's that I should focus on in order to make a really good product that does what I intend it to as well as getting a positive reaction from my audience as well
as hopefully pulling in new people that wouldn't normally watch this sort of thing. Given the nature of my production and its entire purpose, making sure that my
film reaches as many people as it possibly can is very important. That way if my film does this then its message will also reach people and I will have truly made a
difference which is what I set out to do in the first place and what many other film directors and artists set out to do when creating something new.

Audience Secondary Research –Popular Platforms Article from Screen Rant on how Netflix Is Now More Popular Then
Broadcast Cable TV.
"A recent survey reveals that more people watch Netflix for television than broadcast, cable, Hulu and YouTube. It's official: Netflix
has completely changed how people watch TV. When Netflix was founded in 1997, it focused exclusively on DVD rentals by mail, shaking up an
industry that was already beginning to falter with the rise of the Internet.
When Netflix began its streaming service in 2007, allowing consumers to watch movies and television shows online, everything began to
change. This continued with the emergence of smart TVs and devices such as Roku, Chromecast and Apple TV, that allow consumers to watch
Netflix on their big screen sets. Fast forward to today when Netflix also has a lot of its own original content, including award-winning series and
original movies. This study conducted a survey of 2,500 U.S. adults who answered questions about which platforms they use most often to view
video content on TV. Netflix came in at the top, with 27 percent of those surveyed choosing the streaming subscription service platform. In
comparison, YouTube only came in at 17 percent, with basic cable at 12.6 percent and broadcast TV at a measly 7.5 percent. Hulu came in next
to last at 7.6 percent."(4)
Different higher profile distribution platforms is something I am looking at through a theoretical standpoint however the
platform I will end up using has some real world impacts on my production. Since this is a college project the final distribution
platform is going to be YouTube however if this was a professional production I would have to pitch my idea to a distribution
company such as a broadcast TV network or a streaming service. This is important as the type of distribution platform can
directly affect the format of my production. For YouTube a short film of 5-10 minuets in length would suffice.
Theoretically If this was a professional piece ordered by for example Netflix, the format would better as a serialized TV miniseries
of several episodes in length rather than a short film. This would allow for greater exposition, character development and an
exploration of the world the characters live in. However if this were to be done successfully than the source material would
require extensive re writes in order to make sure that the pacing and plot suit this new format.

Audience Identification Secondary Research
To start of I wanted to find out were in the world my potential audience is located. Since YouGov profiles LITE website is no longer active I found out I could use google trends instead to get
information.
It will be extremely difficult to gear it to both audience markets however I will try. It seems that on top of the general trade war between the U.S and china, there is a lot of bad blood between
tech companies on the east and tech companies in the west hemisphere's of the globe regardless of country. In 2018 China introduced an import ban on iPhones after granting
Telecomunications company Qualcomm an induction against Apple. This is interesting since both Apple and Qualcomm are American Companies. "Qualcomm claims that Apple violates two of
its patents in the iPhone 6S, iPhone 6S Plus, iPhone 7, iPhone 7 Plus, iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus and iPhone X". Qualcomm then said in a further statement that "If Apple is violating the orders,
Qualcomm will seek enforcement of the orders through enforcement tribunals that are part of the Chinese court system," Qualcomm later enforced this ban in Germany as well as China. In
response to this Apple said that "Qualcomm's effort to ban our products is another desperate move by a company whose illegal practices are under investigation by regulators around the
world." (1)
It is unkown If this is directly related to the U.S. China trade war. Interestingly though a few days after President Trump and his Chinease counterpart President Xi agreed on a 90 day
truce Canada announced that it is holding for extradition to the US the chief financial officer of Huawei, China's biggest telecommunications company. Acording to an affidavid of a Canadian
law enforcement official she faces "serious charges of fraud involving millions of dollars". (2)
Unsurprisingly the highest number of google searches for Artificial Intelligence by
region is in China. This is likely to do with the fact that China is becoming a global
leader in technological research and development. This is both reflected in todays
politics and media such as the current trade war between the US and China. I think
this is something I have to be weary about.
If I gear my project too much towards the Chinese market then I believe I would fall
into the trap of limiting my audience when in fact I want the message in my project to
reach wide variety of people. By gearing it too much towards the Chinese market it
could be seen by U.S viewers as being against them and as a result they may decide
not to watch it. Whilst China is becoming a global leader with companies such
as Xiaomi,Huawei and Baidu, the United States is also a global leader with companies
like Apple, Google, Facebook and Amazon so it would be important that they would
want to watch it as well.
Since this project is only a small production it is unlikely to be effected by international politics however if I'm trying to attract a wide audience it is something that I should be aware of. I don't
want to risk alienating people because that will decrease my potential audience. This research can definitely link into my product research as I can look at how to tailor specific elements of my
production based on the results of my market research.

Audience Secondary Research
I need to think realistically about this though, I think that due to the fact that the majority of my audience will be reached
through YouTube on my channel which is unknown, I need to look at the best format to do this. Personally I think that is through
the use of a short film that isn't too long in length and has good pacing throughout. The reason I believe this because these days
humans have a short attention span and you in order to attract and hold an audience you need to interest them within the first
5 seconds. This is especially true when people are browsing through YouTube as they are often looking for short video's to keep
them entertained rather than something that is long winded. If they were looking at that then it is likely they would be browsing
another platform such as Netflix or iTunes to find something more substantial to watch.
For this reason the optimal length for a short film would likely be around five minutes in length and this is something that I tried
to stick to when I produced my last short film for my year one FMP. Unfortunately I struggled to successfully tell the full story
and realize my full vision for the project if I was keeping it down to five minutes in length. Due to this I decided to produce two
versions, a cut down version that was five minutes in length and a directors cut which was 7 minutes in length.
Another factor to producing something for YouTube is the limitations YouTube itself sometimes imposes upon creators. I will
have to make sure that my video conforms to the terms and conditions of YouTube and therefore as a result it cannot be too
graphic. I will have to make sure that I don't use any copyrighted music or any music that sounds similar to copyrighted tracks.
The reason I have to be so specific on this is because YouTube has a notoriously bad autonomous copyright and license
detection system that sometimes flags video's for containing music or content that Is the property of someone else when it in
fact doesn't. This has sometimes led to users being flagged which could threaten their channel with either demonetization or
termination. Whilst I do not have to worry about demonetization as my YouTube account is not set up for ad revenue I do need
to be careful that my video doesn't end up getting blocked in some countries or removed.

Audience Research Summary
The first questions were about the basic concept of my video, artificial intelligence. I wanted to ask people whether
artificial intelligence scared them since that fear is my primary motivation for wanting to make this project. Whilst many
people agreed that AI scares them a large number of people stated that it doesn't. I believe in the long run this could be a
drawback to this project as if there are a lot of people that don’t share that fear then they are unlikely to be interested in
this film. This means I may have to introduce other elements into my production in order to incite the emotion of fear in
the audience. This could also be extremly challenging as I don't want to just start using classic horror tropes such as jump
scares to create fear as this is not what this project is about. I want to be able to subtly create the emotion of fear through
the subtext and implications of the drama.
Interestingly most people said that they preffered films over television series. Unfortunatly the more I think about this
project (and how the script may turn out) I am not sure that television would be the best format for this project due to
issues of pacing. Another factor that lead me to this decisions is the fact that this isn't a feature length production meaning
that it would feel broken up and disjointed if it was done in several parts rather than one continues video.
I also asked about different people's TV viewing habits such as preffered platforms as well as their opinions on different
TV/Film aspects such as favorite genres. This was done to give me an idea on peoples thoughts and opinions on some of
the ideas I have had for this project as well so I could anticipate their reactions.
If I were to summarize my audience research survey I would say that It has been extremely helpful in helping me develop
my early ideas for my project and that with the results from it I can begin to work to certain standards and conventions
which will help me maximize my potential audience.

Market Research
• Competition & Existing Products

Existing Product Research: 2001 A Space Odyssey
(1968) "Open the Pod bay doors, HAL"
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One of the main reasons I am looking at this iconic Stanley Kubrick film is because both 2001 and my film feature the theme of artificial intelligence "gone
wrong". The reason I use quotation marks here is because in the film 2001 the computer HAL-9000 doesn't really malfunction it just does what it is designed to
which happens to have unfortunate consequences for the crew of the mission.
A user on the forum site Stack Exchange had this to say about the topic of HAL's malfunction from the perspective of the "in universe" lore of the film, "Dr.
Chandra, Hal's Creator, he was told to lie to Dave and Frank by people who find it very easy to lie (the govt.), but Hal literally didn't know how to.
It's a direct violation of his primary programming, the accurate processing of information, and in being made to lie, it made him unstable. I believe the in-
universe term is an H. Mobius Loop, but in practical terms Hal became a paranoid schizophrenic. He was trapped between a rock and a hard place. On the one
hand, his hardwired programming to be accurate and not make any mistakes, on the other, his orders to lie to Dave and Frank. Hal, being a computer, couldn't
take a third option, he literally had no choice but to try and obey both sets of instructions, but logically he could not, so it just aggravated the underlying
problem even more."(5)
This idea that the computer wasn't behaving out of malice or being "Evil" is something I want to incorporate into my film. I think that when I
think about it that is one of the primary reasons that A.I scares me. The fact that computers can only function within the parameters of what
they have been programmed to do regardless of If they endanger human life or not. This lack of human emotions and illogical reasoning is
probably one of the biggest dangers of artificial intelligence.
I will be taking inspiration from this idea. In my film, the computer takes the form of a sentient piece of software called C.A.L.L.I which is
designed to improve peoples daily lives and motivate them to achieve their goals. Unfortunately she cannot differentiate between the human
emotion of anger and sarcasm, this leads to her forcing the protagonist down a course of action that will lead to their downfall. Another
simmilair but perhaps less clear aspect to this film and mine are the fact that mine contains the theme of humans being physically augmented by
technology in the sense that it has become a part of their biology. This is comparable to 2001 were the humans (the crew on the spaceship
Discovery) are also augmented by technology in the less physical sense that they require it to stay alive in space.

Market Existing Product Research: The Outer Limits Title Sequence 1960s & 1990s Version
Whilst these are only title sequences of existing products themselves I want to look at them as there own thing. My reasoning for this because the title sequences have a very dystopian and
twisted feel George Orwellian theme to them even though the content of the show is more science fiction. This Orwellian theme is something I would like to take inspiration from in my
project as my project is a film that is set in a dystopian future.
One element of these titles that I really like is the "Control Voice" that narrates "There is nothing wrong with your Television, do not attempt to adjust the picture". When this show was new
in the 60s when television was a relatively new thing this would have done a good job of spooking the audience as they won't have experienced anything like that before. It makes you feel
like you are being addressed directly and it reminds the viewer that what they are viewing is being dictated by the broadcaster. This seems like a normal thing however the control voice just
gives it a darker edge. This is particularly true for the 90s version as the voice is much more aggressive along with the music and visuals being more disturbing. Because the title sequence
plays on the fact that your TV is being controlled I don't think a title sequence like this would work on a modern program particularly if it was on a streaming service as then the viewer is in
control rather than the broadcaster.
The 90s Intro is undoubtably the best of the two. The imagery does a good job of making you feel uncomfortable as It is very psychedelic and unnatural. One of the most striking images is
the iconic house with roots image. The photo is from the album This House Is Not For Sale and was taken by Jerry Uelsmann. Data Analysist Melissa Green analyzed the image on her
website. She stated that; "the house seems to either be growing out of the tree, as an already broken-down dwelling, with glass broken and missing paint, or, as I like to see it, nature
reclaiming what was one hers". "For me, the deep roots at the bottom of the house also reflect the strong roots of a family that once lived there. The family may have moved on, but the
house still remembers, even as it is being subsumed once again into nature itself."(3)
I have to disagree with this interpretation. For me the image has a much more sinister impression. I'm not sure why, it may be due to the fact that my exposure to this image was through the
Outer Limits Title Sequence which is designed to make you feel uncomfortable. It also may be due to my previous interpratations of similar imagery. For me the image is much more sinister
in nature. The house alone looks cold and evil, with the roots it gives me the idea of a sinister entity growing out of the house and spreading around. It is difficult to determine thr true
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"There is nothing wrong with your television set. Do not attempt to adjust the picture. We are
controlling transmission. If we wish to make it louder, we will bring up the volume. If we wish to
make it softer, we will tune it to a whisper.
We will control the horizontal. We will control the vertical. We can roll the image, make it flutter. We
can change the focus to a soft blur, or sharpen it to crystal clarity.
For the next hour, sit quietly, and we will control all that you see and hear. We repeat: there is
nothing wrong with your television set. You are about to participate in a great adventure.
You are about to experience the awe and mystery which reaches from the inner mind to... The Outer
Limits."
-Control Voice, Outer Limits Titles

Existing Product Research: Wargames (1983)
Wargames is a 1983 science fiction film directed by John Badham. The film plays on the fear and paranoi of
the cold war that was prevelant throughout much of the 1980s. It follows a boy called David Lightman who
acidently hacks into a NORAD automated supercomputer called WOPR which is designed to run war
simulations and automatically execute a nuclear strike against the Soviet Union as well as learn overtime. He
acidently triggers a simulation called Global ThermoNuclear War which simulates a soviet nuclear attack.
Unfortunatly it can not differentiate between simulations and reality and it causes NATO to prepare a
nuclear attack in "retaliation" for what they believe is a real attack coming.
Again like 2001 A Space Odyssey this film has the theme of a computer not being able to differenciate
between two different things. In this film it is between a simulation and reality and the results will have
disasterouse consequences for humanity. Arguably the stakes are higher in this film compared to 2001 as in
2001 the consequences are death for the ships crew however in Wargames the consequences are death to
all of the human race. Whilst it is interesting to compare the two films it is not all together a fair
comparison. I say this because 2001 has the much wider plot of the strange monolith and has deeper
themes such as human evolution. The artificial intelligence aspect is more of a side plot. This contrasts with
Wargames when the A.I of WOPR is a core plot element.
Another reason why I am looking at this film is because I believe it says a lot about humans becoming too reliant on technology. This theme is
more relavent even now in 2019 than it was in 1983. In the context of the film the US government has become reliant on a computer to
defend against a Soviet Nuclear attack. This was back in the early days of computers when they were no were near as secure as they are now.
However this over reliance on computers is nearly their undoing especially when the system goes wrong. This another thing I would like to
warn against in my film that the reliance on computers could be humanitys undoing. These fears were expressed around the melenium with
the Y2K bug. Ultimatly of course this worry turned out to be negligable but as I previously stated 19 years on from the melenium and we are
becoming more and more reliant on computers. In my opinion we are past the point of no return meaning that if we lost computers and our
advanced technology it would be disastrous as so much of society's infrastructure now relies on it.

Market Research, Serialized TV VS Film Comparison
I think one of the most interesting and important things to take note of in this day and age is the importance of serialized film and TV and look
at how the market is changing as well as how this could have an effect on my production. This article from Digital Trends written by Eric
Buchman talks about this.
"Thanks to a number of factors, including new technologies, the difference between TV shows and movies is quickly eroding. Take Marvel’s most
recent string of films — you know, the ones starring Iron Man, the X-Men, Captain America and all their pals. They might have a revolving slate
of title characters, but each film contributes to an overall narrative that flows from film to film. As President of Marvel Films, Kevin Feige
functions a lot like a TV showrunner does, except the individual episodes of his show each cost more than $150 million to produce. There’s also
another, more concrete way in which the film industry is becoming more like TV: The growth of video-on-demand as a legitimate method of
mainstream distribution. That’s how I watched Snowpiercer and They Came Together – both excellent films with little to no theatrical release –
this past summer.
Adam Sandler’s multi-picture deal with Netflix is another way in which movies once destined for your local multiplex are going to wind up on
your HDTV first. While the film industry embraces a more TV-like experience, the TV industry has been going for a more cinema-like one. As
movies are taking more time to let characters develop over the course of several films, TV is trimming the fat and making things happen
faster."(6)
This idea that due to serialization and overarching stories, episodic TV has become outdated and that TV has become more cinematic in nature
is something I have definatly noticed. A more modern example of this would be the TV series Stranger Things in which each episode essentially
feels like a mini film. This may be due to cinematic styles of film making making their way into main stream TV however numourous other
programs have started to use this format in recent years. This is something that I think is really good as the plot for many works of fiction won't
fit into a movies and vice versa. This is usually what causes a program or a film to be unsucesful as it would better fit a different format. This also
reflect changing tastes in how people consume fictional media due to the advancement of technologies. A perfect example of this would be the
TV show Star Trek Discovery as controversial as that show is amongst Star Trek fans I find its serialized plot nature more suitable for a modern
audience compared to the episodic nature of the old Star Trek TV shows.

Market Research, Serialized TV VS Film Comparison
I think this is all due to the fact that when Star Trek originally aired in the 1960s this was a time before home media and you could only watch
what was being broadcast at the time. Repeats were rare and so television had to be episodic in nature so that people would engage with it on
a weekly bases because there wasn't an option to go back and watch the previous episode. Nowadays with the advent of streaming platforms
such as netflix TV series can be more serialised as the viewer has the option to go back and watch previous episodes that they have missed.
Having this option keeps the audience interested and minimizes people that are getting confused at the plot.
Interestingly on the flip side, Doctor Who was also first broadcast in the 60s in a serialised nature. Mostly the classic series of Doctor Who
consisted of four part serialised episodes each one 25 minutes in length broadcast weekly. Some of the earlier episodes had serials that were as
long as 6 or maybe even 12 parts long. This means that the show has not aged well as this has lead to episodes having terrible pacing issues that
make it difficult to watch for a modern audience. This may be partly due to a low budget or due to the fact that the BBC had not yet mastered
fast paced TV storytelling. It could also be due to the preferencial differences of British and American audiences. When Doctor Who returned in
2005 it had a new format with a higher budget. It was episodic in nature with each episode being 45 minutes in length with an occasional two
parter serial. It's pacing issues were also fixed. Whilst serialized TV is coming back into fashion this still means that the new Doctor Who is far
more suitable for modern audiences and indeed it has now seen wide spread success abroad perticularly in America.
By this point I have already established that the best format for my project would be as a short film on YouTube. However this information links
back into my audience research into potential distrabution platforms. I have found through doing research into both these different things that
If I were to change the format of my project than that would directly effect the distribution platform that it would be suited for. For example I I
decided that I wanted my project to be a miniseries that would be serialised in nature than it would be best fit for a streaming service like
Netflix. If I wanted to keep the "world" and the lore that my project was set in but instead I wanted it to be episodic than it would be best fit for
broadcast TV. Again this market research links back to my audience research and what I previously stated about the distribution platform
directly effecting the format of my production. I think I have found this research extremly valuable when it comes to understanding the
conventions and techniques of a contempary dramatic work of fiction. I will now be able to use and apply this knowledge to not only this
production but to future projects that I may be involved it that may end up going out on a different, perhaps higher profile distribution platform
such as Netflix or Prime Video.

Production Research & Techniques

Specific Techniques
Since my project is set in a world were the main character is augmented by technology I want it to have a certain visual style to
it that reflects this elements. This may be something like POV camera shots with digital HUD like elements to show the
character interacting with this technology. I may use these shots and video overlay things such as advertisements. This would
be done to show an evolution into how intrusive adverts that we have today on our smartphones could manifest themselves in
the future. One thing I would like to do is to have a color filter to represent this. I visualize this as being a cool blue color which
in my mind represents the invisible blue light that comes of modern displays and supposedly interferes with our circadian
rhythms. This is similar to what was done in The Matrix were they used a green color tint for the scenes set inside The Matrix
which was to represent the green text that early computer monitors used to display when the film came out.
I would also like the film to have a certain sleekness to it that represents technology, one idea I had was to use a Steadicam
gimbal throughout as this would allow me to film freehand but without any shakiness. It is my hope that this smoothness
combined with a cinematic 2:35:1 aspect ration will make the film feel sleek and polished. Another Idea I had was to use my
phone and film at 4K 60FPS which I believe would look really stunning, unfortunately this means the footage would have to all
be done free hand as I don’t have a phone compatible gimbal or tripod. I do have a compatible fish eye lens which may be
good for some scenes. I may still end up utilizing this idea in some areas on my project so I can show too different emotional or
mental states with two distinct visual styles. I think for practicality reasons and for quality reasons in some areas I am more
likely to end up using the cannon C100 along with a tripod or Steadicam to film the majority of my film.
For the POV shots I could use a Go Pro with a head mount however I don't own either of those things so I would have to
source somebody that would be willing to either let me borrow or become a part of the project in order that I could use it.

Specific Techniques
Colour Tones
“At least 50% of the sci-fi look is created in post — more specifically, in the color suite. Once again, there isn’t a single approach that’s going to work for all sci-fi films, but there are some
general principles that seem to work in the majority of films in this genre. One of which is the use of cooler tones.
Many sci-fi films take place in unsettling environments, or in some cases, even dystopian societies. Warm color palettes are generally going to lead your audience to feel more comfortable,
which can be counter intuitive to the genre in many respects. Cool blues, purples, and cyan tones will go a long way in creating an unsettling feeling for your viewers — and don’t forget to
add a touch of desaturation too.”
Avoiding Film Emulation
“I am normally a huge advocate of film emulation. In fact, I use some form of it on nearly every project I create. With that said, sci-fi films are one of the few instances where I feel film
emulation can actually work against the better interests of the project.
Science fiction often calls for a sterile and clinical look, and film emulation will typically push footage in the very opposite direction. In fact, film emulation is really all about muting colors,
softening digital harshness, and generally taking the edge off of footage — which isn’t always the best choice for sci-fi. Many of the best sci-fi films have, in fact, even been shot digitally and
taken advantage of the ultra clean, hyper sharp look that certain digital cinema cameras can deliver.” (7)
I talked about colour tones a bit in the previous slide. This was mainly to do with conceptualising how the world might look to someone that has been digitally enhanced and why it looks
like that. This time I am looking at how the rest of the film might look in terms of standard footage. I want to look at how Sci-Fi films typically use colour grading to achieve a certain look
and feel and why they do that. This extract from an article on premiumbeat.com explains the basics of why colour grading of a certain type is key to achieving a “Sci-Fi” look and feel.
I looked up the author of this article so that I could check whether it was from a reputable source or not. It was written by a man called Noam Kroll a filmmaker
based in LA. He also runs a production company with an impressive portfolio. Since he is experienced in the industry it is clear that his advice is something I should
take into account when I produce my film. One thing he suggests is the use of desaturation and cool blue tones. Whilst this is similar to how I will edit the go pro
footage I believe I can tweak it slightly perhaps making it less pronounced so that there is a clear difference between my Go Pro POV footage and the footage shot
on the C100.
My use of the C100 a digital camera is related to something Kroll also talks about. I agree with his statement that Sci-Fi films benefit from a clean and sterile look
and I intend to replicate this look in my film. Whilst I don’t have access to film and will be filming digital anyway one of the reasons I’d prefer to film with the C100
and not the standard DSLR Cannon 600D cameras the college has is because the C100 is capable of giving me that higher quality sleeker look. One thing I’d like to
do is attempt filming in 60fps which would help achieve this. Sometimes the 600D cameras don’t perform very well in low light situations and that can create a lot
of noise on screen that often looks similar to film footage.

Specific Techniques
Shot Types
One of the main reasons I wanted to be behind the camera for this project was because I wanted to experiment and play close attention to different shot types and try and utilize them in
my film in order to give it a more professional cinematic look. This is something I haven't been able to pay attention to before as I have usually been in front of the camera rather then
behind it. For example one thing I would like to try taking advantage of is The Rule Of Thirds. This is the idea that an “image should be imagined as divided into nine equal parts by two
equally spaced horizontal lines and two equally spaced vertical lines, and that important compositional elements should be placed along these lines or their intersections.” (8)
Users of this technique claim that by having the main focus of you shot of centre in this way it can create a more tense, energetic and interesting shot then it would be if the subject
was simply in the centre of the shot.
Examples of the Rule Of Thirds used in films
I would also like to utilize over the shoulder type shot in the first scene of my film.
This will be done to create an intimate feeling between the audience and the
character and will also allow the audience to view close up a letter that the
character is reading. It is very important to this shot that the audience can read
what is on the letter as it is my way of providing subtle exposition without making
it too obvious. Later on in the film during the climax scene I will be combining both
an over the shoulder shot and a full shot. This scene will be shot down a long
corridor and is designed to emphasize a threat in the distance. It is my intention to
create a feeling of unease and tension with this shot as it is meant to show the
characters almost trapped in a dangerous situation with nowhere to go.
As I previously stated a big element of this film will be point of view shots from the main character. My intention with these shots
is to visually show his augmentation in the form of a heads up display accompanied by an A.I Voice that can interact with the
character. My main inspiration for this comes from the Iron Man Film were we see Tony Stark testing out his Iron Man armour. In
this scene we get a POV shot from inside the helmet were a HUD is used to provide Stark with necessary information. We also see
him talking to his A.I that can interact with him.
Screenshots from the Iron Man 2008 film that show the
Heads Up Display element that was my main
inspiration:
In order to Accomplish these shots I have come to the conclusion that I will need to use a Go Pro along with a head mount. This
will require immense organisation as I will have to film the scene twice. Once with the C100 for the standard shots. Then again
with the actor wearing the Go Pro for the HUD shots. I will have to careful to avoid continuity mistakes when doing this making
sure that my actors are stood in the correct positions each time as well as making sure there movements and dialogue also line up
with previously shot footage. I will also have to be aware of my environment so I can make sure that nothing changes in between
shots such as cars or people that might be going past. Finally I will have to make sure that crew members cannot be seen in the Go
Pro shots meaning we will have to be careful to stand out of sight. In my problem solving I will have to work out how we are going
to accomplish this.

Specific Techniques
Audio and dialogue Recording
Shaun Of The Dead Pholey Edit I did in year one:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X-H5IcG2ac4
Pholey Techniques
One of the most important elements of my film is the A.I. that talks to my main character on screen. Since this character has no physical presence on screen it is going to be difficult for both
my voice actress and my on screen character to make the dialogue convincing. This is something I will talk about in more detail in my problem solving document. For now the focus is on
how I will create a convincing synthetic computer voice from the raw audio recording whilst still maintaining a futuristic realism to the voice. First of the voice must be a female one since
the character of the A.I, C.A.L.L.I has always been female since I conceived it. One of the reasons for this is because I derived the anagram C.A.L.L.I (which stands for Computerised Algorithm
for Life Logistics Interface) from the girls name Cally. (Or Callie which is how it’s pronounced) The second reason is because It will add a nice contrast to the rest of the cast which is male. My
final reason is that I think a female voice will add a certain smooth futuristic feel to it especially once the correct vocal flanger effects have been applied to make it sound synthetic. For my
FMP in year one I also had to record some audio dialogue. I had to use my own equipment for this and annoyingly since I don’t own a pop filter there was some saliva noise present. This
time if I can’t use a pop filter I will use the techniques shown in this article to remove the noise digitally.
https://www.homebrewaudio.com/remove-saliva-noises-voice-recordings/
One thing I may consider doing it using Pholey techniques to add sound to some of my scenes instead of using
the audio from the raw footage. Reasons why I might want to do this are because of things like wind noise,
people talking in the background, echo as well as being able to create a more crisper and clearer sound for my
film. We have practiced doing this before. We had a task in year one were we were presented with an clip from
Shaun of The Dead which had been muted. We then had to get audio recorders then record and edit in our
own sound effects. This proved to be more complicated then I originally thought as getting the footage to
match up perfectly with the audio turned out to be very difficult. However once we accomplished this the final
product actually turned out to be very good.
I think if I have the time and resources to pull something like this off in my film then I will do as in my opinion it
will significantly improve it. In previous projects I’ve fallen into the trap of focusing more on the visuals then I
have the sound. This is something that I would like to change as it would be a natural step up in my production
skills and the overall quality of the finished product that I have come to expect from myself each time I do a
new project. Admittedly there will be some sound effects that I won’t be able to source naturally due to the
specialised nature of them. Those effects will have to be sourced online.

Production Requirements
In order for my production to run successfully I must outline certain production requirements that are essential to my film. I must then work out what problems
will arise as a result of these requirements and how to solve them. In the table below I have listed the 5 most important of these requirements.
A cast of at least 4
people for my essential
characters.
Cannon C100
Camcorder and related
equipment.
This will be the main
camera that I will use.
GoPro action camera
and head mount for the
POV shots in my film.
A method of creating or
sourcing HUD type
graphics on screen to
represent the A.I
C.A.L.L.I.
A proper schedule for
the production to
adhere to and for my
actors to work with.
A script that my actors
can learn their lines
from so that when it
comes to shooting, the
dialogue sounds
natural.
A high spec computer
capable of running the
Adobe Creative Suite
for editing. This can
either be a College Mac
or my own PC.
Studio access so that I can record dialogue audio in a room
with good acoustics.
I need to pay attention to what my actors are wearing on
different days so that continuity can be maintained.
The things I have listed here I will expand on further in my problem solving document coming up with methods and solutions to these problems should I need
them. I will prioritise this list as in my opinion these are all crucial items that I need to be concerned about as they all relate to the success of my production. In
terms of secondary issue’s I plan on talking about my intended shot types in more detail, why I want to use these shots and the problems I may encounter. This
will then link further on into my shot list development. I remember stating in a previous document that I want each shot to have a meaning and be there for a
reason. I intend on making sure that this happens and I will talk about the final meaning of each shot in my evaluation.
I think through the use of research into these different production techniques I have learnt a lot about how I should go about producing this film. I feel that if I can
imitate how professionals do it as well as pulling all the skills together that I have learned over the two years of this course I will be able to produce a worthy final
project.
Summary and linking to problem solving

Bibliography
• (1) David Goldman. (December 2018). China bans sale of most iPhone models after granting Qualcomm an injunction against
Apple. Available: https://edition.cnn.com/2018/12/10/tech/china-iphone-ban/index.html. Last accessed 30th January 2019.
(2) Julia Horowitz. (December 2018). How Huawei's CFO ended up in a Canadian jail cell. Available:
https://edition.cnn.com/2018/12/11/business/huawei-cfo-arrest-details/index.html. Last accessed 30th January 2019.
(3)Melissa Green. (2012). Artist Analysis – Jerry Uelsmann. Available: https://melissamgreen.wordpress.com/2012/01/30/artist-analysis-jerry-
uelsmann/. Last accessed 18-2-2019.
(4) ROBIN BURKS . (2018). Netflix Is More Popular Than Broadcast, Cable & More In TV Viewing. Available: https://screenrant.com/netflix-
popular-broadcast-cable-tv-viewing/. Last accessed 23-02-2019.
(5)Brendan O. (2017). What caused HAL 9000 to go mad?. Available: https://scifi.stackexchange.com/questions/8250/what-caused-hal-9000-
to-go-mad. Last accessed 23-02-2019.
(6)Eric Buchman. (2014). TV and movies are melting into the same thing, and tech is stirring the pot. Available:
https://www.digitaltrends.com/home-theater/tv-and-movies-are-blurring-together-into-one-medium/. Last accessed 23-02-2019.
(7)Noam Kroll. (2015). 5 Ways to Nail the Sci-Fi Look. Available: https://www.premiumbeat.com/blog/5-ways-to-nail-the-sci-fi-look/. Last
accessed 18-4-2019.
(8) Bryan F. Peterson (2003). Learning to See Creatively: Design, Color & Composition in Photography. Unkown: Amphoto
Books. All Pages.

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