Edited 24/03/17: Q7. Looking back to your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in progression from it to the full product?

   For our preliminary task, we worked in small groups to film a character walking, opening a door and passing through the doorway, then having a conversation with another character. This was a shorter task than our final project which was to make the opening to a thriller film. Our preliminary task was also simpler because we did not have much consideration for establishing elements such as character, mood and genre, which are vital for producing a professional-looking film opening. However, it was a valuable opportunity to practice several important skills and techniques which we would need to be successful in our final project.

   For example, we practiced several methods of planning to help us in pre-production. One method which we used was making a storyboard of essential shots; this was valuable both in our preliminary task and our final project because it helped us to visualise the progression of our narrative and remember to include a variety of shot types, especially shot types which would create effect (such as close-ups to draw attention to key props). Another form of planning which we used in our preliminary task was a floorplan which enabled us to see the paths which our characters would follow, therefore we could see the line of action in our films and know how to avoid breaking the 180 degree rule. However, our pre-production was much more thorough for our final product - we did detailed research about the thriller genre and analysed other films from the genre to see how they successfully created an atmosphere whilst establishing plot, character, location and theme so that we could gain inspiration and find methods which we could adapt to include in our own product.

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   Our preliminary task also helped us in our later production because we were able to familiarise ourselves with our school's equipment which we would use again later. We practiced using the digital cameras, gaining an understanding of their functions so that it was easier to use them efficiently when filming our thriller film opening. We also learnt how to adjust the tripods to change their height and change the angle of the camera, enabling us to achieve different angles to create effects in our film; in our preliminary task we used a high angle to present the protagonist as vulnerable (see figure 1), whereas in our thriller opening we used a low angle to present the antagonist as threatening (see figure 2).

   Another advantage of the task was that it gave us a chance to improve our teamwork skills. I worked with the same people in my preliminary task as I did for my final project, so we had already gained some insight into each others strengths to know how to distribute the work more successfully.

   We also benefited from our preliminary task when it came to editing our thriller film opening during post-production. We used Premiere Pro for editing both projects and our preliminary task let us practice using the software - for example, we learnt how to cut our footage by making in/out points and how to add transitions (such as dip to black). We used both of these skills when editing our final product, but for our thriller film opening we expanded our skills by also adding additional audio (including emphasised sound effects and background music) and adding titles/credits.

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   Overall, our preliminary task also gave us an opportunity to learn from our mistakes throughout the process of making it so that we could avoid them in our final product and achieve a higher quality. For example, we had some continuity errors in our preliminary task so we were more careful in our thriller film opening to avoid this. We also did not include a great enough range of shots so we tried to improve this in our final product too. Additionally, one of the shots in our preliminary task was accidentally shaky because we did not use a tripod to film it, which looked unprofessional; in our preliminary task we rectified this by always using a tripod when shooting. On the other hand, we could also learn from the strengths of our preliminary task and attempt to replicate them in our final task. For example, we used some similar shots in both products including a close-up of main characters' (the protagonist in our preliminary task - see figure 3 - and the antagonist in our final task - see figure 4) shoes as they walked to convey their movement, a technique which we had seen in other films (such as 'Kill Bill', figure 5).

   Overall, I believe that my skills and knowledge as a filmmaker have improved significantly through both projects. I have a better understanding of the importance of thorough planning for a film and know how to use some planning methods. Additionally, I have gained some production experience through working in a small team, improving teamwork skills as well as becoming more comfortable with using a video camera. Furthermore, I had not used video editing software before my preliminary task, but I am now confident with basic editing techniques. As well as practical skills, I have gained some historical knowledge about the thriller genre and its influences through our study of film noir at the beginning of our course.