Main evaluation question 1

In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products? 

While writing the script, I brainstormed a number of different shots that I could possibly use. These included over the shoulder shots, extreme close shots, medium shots, POV shots and dramatic establishing shots. In the end I only used a few of these, like the over the shoulder shot and the extreme close shot. This was a decision I made based upon the actual script itself, and the best way to convey the speech within the medium of the film. The shot's I did use were typical conventions of movies in general, for example the over the shoulder shot being used for dramatic effect during the interrogation scene.

The times at which music is used in the movie opening are times where the audience are meant to feel tense and on edge, due to the action unfolding on screen. This is another convention of films.

However, there are some aspects of the opening that challenge typical movie conventions. For example the fact that the face of one of the two central characters within the opening clip is never revealed. This is not usually something that would be done in movies, even in horror and thriller movies specifically. This is because the aim of a film opening is often to establish characters and/or plot, and so not revealing the features of a certain character may confuse certain audience members. However I feel this adds to the mysterious effect of the media.
(As seen below, the protagonist wears the hooded jacket throughout, which adds to the mysterious effect of the opening.) 

Another convention I challenged was a typical thriller movie convention, which is to start the opening scene off as pleasant and seemingly normal, before descending into violence. My film opening does not do this, and immediately starts with a very dark tone, telling the audience who "Edward Stevens," is and how he murdered a father and son 40 years ago. I decided to do this as I only had a time frame of two minutes for my film opening, and I wanted to make the opening as dark as possible. I had a lot of information to give for the plot, and so there was no time to make the opening "positive." I feel this is effective however, and is a good way of immediately gripping my target audience.