Week 12: New Project: 30 Second Television Advertisement. Television Advert Analysis

We have now moved onto a new worksheet which helps us with our research into Television Adverts, we have been asked to analyse different Television Adverts and to analyse them were have to write down the Structure of the Advert, Techniques used in the Advert and the Characteristics of the Advert. I have analysed different adverts and some of these include the Diet Coke Advert, Kellogg's Corn Flakes, 3 Internet and Pepsi Gold, all of these have structure, technique and characteristics within them. I am now in the process of collecting all of the research from the analysis and put this into a written document which explains the different structures, techniques and characteristics for the different Adverts.
Some of the structures for the TV Adverts include features such as Realist and Anti-Realist Narrative, Documentary, Stand Alone and Series and Humorous. Some of the Techniques include: Hidden and Overt Messages, Emotional Responses or association and Celebrity Endorsement. All of these features are important in creating a Television Advert for a purpose and the advert has to stand out for the product to be promoted correctly.
I am now writing my conclusion to my findings from today's lesson and I will highlight the most important structure features and techniques and compare some of the adverts to each other.

Week 11: Responding to Feedback Completed

I have now completed my responding to feedback stage and the points which I needed to improve on within my work was:

• Refer to Preparing Work for Submission Guidelines to organise my folder
• Edit my images within my DVD Menu Pages so the main image stands out.
• Refer to media books to edit my Proposal
• An ongoing target is to use more media within my Blog

I have responded to the first bullet point and read the guidelines for submission and I have created a Title Page with all the correct information on so this project will be able to identified with the correct information. I have also created a Contents Page which shows the progress of my DVD Menu in order and shows the page numbers of where the different documents can be found within the project. The bibliography for the project is also included in the project, so I have created this bibliography with all the correct references from research and images which I have used throughout the project.
I have also responded to the second bullet point of editing the images within my DVD Menu, as by editing the images the character and the images stand out from the background and makes the DVD Menu look more professional, as by editing the images and the background this is also showing more skill, as I am using different techniques within Photoshop.
I have also responded to the third bullet point and I have edited my Proposal, I have added in my Unique Selling Point for my DVD Menu and I have explained why this is different from other Drama DVD Menus. The ongoing target to respond to is to add more media into my blog, items such as YouTube videos which may relate to areas which I am covering and can show some evidence of what resources I have been using within this project.
Overall, I happy with my DVD Menu and I have linked all of my pages and I have also included audio and animation, I have also learnt a lot about DVD Menus through this project, through researching into different DVD Menus and researching and presenting how I would create my own DVD Menu.

Week 11: Completion of DVD Menu In Encore

I have now completed my DVD Menu in Encore and from my feedback I have made changes to my DVD Menu psd's and therefore I have made the changes from my feedback and I have imported the edited DVD Menu pages into Encore. I did encounter one problem within Encore today, as my animation did not turn out how I wished it to be within my Main Menu, therefore I have now created another page which will appear a few seconds before my main menu. This page features an introduction sequence of my Title for the Menu fading in and out and I have then included my animation of handbags falling either side of the title, by creating this new animation I am still using the idea of the handbags falling and the concept of this shows through this page. Below shows an image of my animation, fading out



Animation From My DVD Menu Which
Will Appear Before the Main Menu





















I have also added my audio to the main menu and this plays on a loop on the main menu and when the main menu appears this music will always be played.
I have now link my pages together and they link in the correct places, I am now starting to think about my Evaluation on the DVD Menu Project and I will be using the guidelines on Chichester Online to help me with the Evaluation. I will also be completing my other feedback targets, of using the production guidelines on Chichester Online to organise my folder for submission, by doing this my folder will be organised and ready for submission, I therefore need to create a title page, a contents page and a bibliography.
Overall, I am happy with my DVD Menu and I am happy I have overcome my problem with the animation and I have found a solution to this problem.

Week 11: Introduction to Assignment 2: Television Advertisement

Today we were introduced to our second assignment and this assignment is to create a 30 second Television Advertisement for a certain brand. In order to get to the stage of filming a Television Advertisement in groups, we have been asked to complete research exercises which will help me in understanding the different research methods within the media industry. I have started the fist worksheet and the research which is included within this worksheet is to understand the four main types of research, these being, Primary, Secondary, Quantitative and Qualitative Research. Also within this worksheet I have been introduced to the Dewey Decimal System, this is a system is a library which holds many different books and is organised by subject, this system has ten main categories and other categories come off of these ten, this is a well known way of storing books within certain categories and within a big 'library'. I have been introduced to the meaning of this system for the first time today, but I have used it in the past for looking for books and within the library I have used this when the number is labelled relating to the book itself, this therefore makes it easier to find the book.
Through this first worksheet I will also be undertaking my own research, including Primary, Secondary, Quantitative and Qualitative Research, this will be in the form of Interviews and Questionnaires and the Secondary Research is able to back up my Primary research by using quotes within my explanations. I will also be researching how the media industry uses research to gain Viewing, Listening and Readership Figures and how they use this research.
Overall, I am looking forward to carrying out my own research and to present this research and explain how research is important within the media industry.

Week 10: Reflection On My Progress So Far

Over the past 10 weeks I have learnt a lot of new skills some of these include:

• Skills within Photoshop: I have learnt a lot of new skills within Photoshop and having used this programme in the past I knew the basics of using the tools within Photoshop. Some of these skills include, setting up a correct canvas, for example, when I made my Movie Poster we were shown how to set up the correct canvas and the correct resolution (which is 100/150). I have learnt how to use many different tools to edit images, I have learnt how from one effect you can transform an image by using the 'Filter' tool button, you have a wide range of options to transform and edit the image.
• Animation: I have learnt how to create an animation within Photoshop and I am therefore in the process of putting the animation which I have created into my DVD Menu Page.
• Encore: I have learnt how to use a new programme, Encore, I have learnt a lot of new skills as I had never used this programme in the past and from learning these skills I have been able to import my DVD Menus into Encore and practice linking them together. I have also learnt how Photoshop and Encore link and work together, as the codecs within the layers need to be correct for Encore to recognise the layers and sends an instruction to Encore for this to them work and become a feature within Encore.
• I have also learnt a lot of new skills within the Research (theory) side to this project, I have learnt the correct ways of research and I have learnt that research is very important when creating a product, as there are many different aspects which need to be researched to help create the end product.

Overall, I have learnt a lot of new skills over the past 10 weeks and therefore I will be able to use these skills within the future and within the future projects.

Week 10: Responding to Feedback and Progress

On Wednesday I was given feedback on my progress so far within the course and my targets which I wrote down to improve on within this project were:

• Viewing the Production Guidelines within Chichester Online to organise my folder.
• Using Media Books to gain an insight into the factors within the media and to help me in understanding the Unique Selling Point of my DVD Menu which will be included in my Proposal, this way I am able to explain why my DVD Menu is original and unique.
• Use more media within my Blog, media such as Youtube Videos, related to media and these could include for example Photoshop Tutorials, as this would then link into what I have been learning and the skills which I may have gained by using tutorials on the Internet.

For the points given above I am in the process of responding to them and I have set deadlines for myself and by next Wednesday the two first bullet points will be completed and the third bullet point of using more media within my blog will be ongoing.

I was given feedback on my DVD Menu so far and I have responded to the feedback which was given to me and this feedback included that I need to represent my DVD Menu so the Genre is clearly shown. Also the background images within my DVD Menu needed to be less, as they were taking the attention away from the main image. I have responded to this feedback and I have been able to edit my DVD Menu Pages and the ways in which I have edited these pages is by using an effect on the background, which takes the image away a bit and therefore the attention is now focused on the images within the DVD Menu Page. I have also changed the font which is featured on the DVD Menu, the reason why I changed the font is because I believed that as I had changed the background image slightly the font which I have now chosen shows an original side and unique side to the DVD Menu and now strongly suggests the genre of Drama.

This image below is one of my DVD Menu Pages and this is one of the pages which I edited in response to feedback, I believe that this image now relates and represents the genre of Drama, I haven't changed the images which I have used on this page but I have edited the background so that it is a bit more neutral and lighter and therefore the image stands out from the back clearer.
The text: I have changed the text on this page and this is the text which is used throughout many of the other pages, this text I feel blends in well with the DVD Menu Page and also the Genre as this text shows the originality of the genre and the DVD Menu itself.



Special Features Menu




















Below shows one of my two Scene Selection Pages and I have chosen to create a similar style background effect within this menu page and I have used the same effect and this therefore lets the images within the menu stand out and the images are clearer.
The Text: This is the same text which is used on the other Menu Pages, such as the Special Features Menu, this shows the fluidity throughout the DVD Menu and shows how this DVD Menu is 'one', so therefore the pages are linked by the features such as the style of font.

Scene Selection Page 2

Also through the feedback which I was given I have reconsidered the Animation which I am using in my DVD Menu, I am now having one main animation within the Main Menu and this will be Handbags falling on a loop of about 3 times and this therefore shows the theme of fashion and also emphasises the theme and narrative of the DVD Menu. Therefore I now need to import my response to feedback DVD Menu Pages into Encore and add the animation to them, and as the codes are all correct within the Photoshop Images of the DVD Menu Pages I can easily import the new pages into Encore and link the pages together for the DVD Menu to work correctly.



Audio Setup Menu



This image below shows my Main Menu, I have kept the same features within this menu but I have changed the opacity of the background image, as before to me the menu was too bright and as I have increased the opacity the menu is not as bright and still reflects and shows the genre of Drama. I have also included the main animation within this Main Menu and this is handbags falling on a loop of 3 and then piling at the bottom of the menu and this will be seen when you are firstly on the Main Menu page, this links in with the theme of fashion and adds a nice effect to the main menu and therefore people can get an idea of what the film (DVD Menu) is about.

I now need to link the DVD Menu Pages together within Encore and add the animation to the main menu.



Main Menu

 


 

Overall, through my Feedback I believe that I have responded to the feedback in editing my DVD Menu Pages to help make them suggest the genre of  Drama stronger and I am now happy with the new menu pages, I will also continue to respond to the other points mentioned at the top of this post.

Week 10: DVD Menu Linked and Completed Within Encore

 I have now linked my DVD Menu Pages within Encore, I have therefore completed my DVD Menu. I have linked all of my 6 DVD Menu pages together and I have put in all the links from each page off of the main menu to link directly back to the Main Menu. I have included the highlights rollovers over the text within all the pages of my DVD Menu.
I also solved the problem which I had on Friday, which was that the codecs e.g. (+) were not functioning within Encore and I was able to correct this within Photoshop and once they were correct the DVD Menu came together within Encore, there is still one feature within the DVD Menu which I am not sure how to activate, and that is the animation on top of each page, therefore I will research into this and how I can get it to work within Encore. Overall, I am very happy with my DVD Menu and it is how I imagined it to be and links in with my original designs.

Below are some screenshots of my DVD Menu in Encore:





Screenshot of the main menu in Encore




Screenshot of Scene Selection Page 1 in Encore




Screenshot of Scene Selection Page 2 in Encore




Screenshot of Encore With the Flowchart for the Links for the Menus



Week 9: DVD Menus Imported Into Encore

I have imported all of my DVD Menu Pages into Encore today and I have therefore started to get an idea of how my DVD Menu pages look. I imported the DVD Menus to Encore and using the skills which I had learnt I created a new project and then imported all my DVD Menus into Encore. Although, as this is one of my first times in using Encore and the codecs within Photoshop, I did encounter a slight problem as the codecs surrounding the images and highlighted rollovers within some of the Menus were not working properly as the images within one of my Scene Selection Menus. I do now know what I did within Photoshop which was that the codecs relating to certain pictures were incorrect and Encore was unable to recognise the image so therefore I am now in the process of correcting the codecs within Photoshop and therefore they should then work within Photoshop and I should then be able to link my DVD Menus together.

Week 9: Mood Board Including My Own Images

I have now finished creating my DVD Menu Pages and therefore I have create a new mood board which represents my images. Through this mood board it shows some of my images and links in with the DVD Menu itself, this mood board links in because I have used a background of material which links in with the genre of drama and also is the background which I have used within the Main Menu Page on my final DVD Menu. These are the features which I have explained and included in my DVD Menu Mood Board:

• Images: I have explained the reasons why I have taken these pacific images and how they relate to the DVD Menu Genre of Drama. One of the reasons which I explained was that I chose the images as they suggest a 'down to earth' approach to a film/DVD Menu and therefore this highlights the key elements and features of what a Drama DVD Menu actually is.
• Colour Scheme: Although I did not specifically explain the colour scheme on the mood board the colours are well presented and the colours of green and blue show clearly within the mood board and from the images themselves represent the colour scheme of the DVD Menu, this is shown through the clothes and setting within the images.
• Textures: I have explained the reason in why I have chosen a particular texture to be represented within my DVD Menu and I chose a fabric texture as this relates both to the theme of fashion and the genre of Drama. The texture used within the Mood Board is the same texture which is used on my DVD Main Menu.
• Font: I have represented the fonts which I associate with the genre of Drama, as these fonts are tall and bold and suggest the genre of Drama. I have presented the main Font which I used as my DVD Menu's Title Font and this will be what the DVD Menu is known for and is recognised by the font itself. This font is the font which is shown at the top of the mood board, the other font which is featured within the DVD Menu Mood Board is a font which was a possible font, as I found this font through research and I thought that this font would also work with my DVD Menu.

Overall, by creating a mood board with my own images allows me to explain fully and present visually my DVD Menu and all the elements which are included within the DVD Menu.

Below shows an image of my mood board

Moodbaord With My Own Images


 

Week 9: DVD Menu Pages Completed

I have now completed all my DVD Menu pages and I have added the animation to each of the pages and I have labelled all of the layers into the correct codecs to be imported into Encore. Through creating the DVD Menu Pages I have learnt a lot of new skills through using Photoshop and Encore, so when I am able to import my DVD Menu Pages into Encore I will be able to use my skills which I have learnt within Encore to link my DVD Menu Pages together.

I have create my DVD Menu Pages by linking all of my research and skills, as through my research into my genre of Drama I was able to research the fonts, images, colours and textures which are associated with Drama and I have incorporated them into my DVD Menu. Therefore in looking back at my research and the features which I have used within the DVD Menu all together the features and elements work well together and to me the DVD Menu does reflect the genre of Drama. The images which I have used throughout the DVD Menu show the drama genre as from my previous research into existing DVD Menus I have used these are the types of images which have been used and I have incorporated existing features within my own DVD Menu, and have made them original, therefore this shows the originality of my DVD Menu and shows the genre of Drama.

Therefore through all my research I have been able to create my DVD Menus within Photoshop and I have used all my skills from Photoshop to create a DVD Menu.

Below are images of all of my six DVD Menu Pages:



Main Menu DVD Page



Scene Selection Menu Page 1



Scene Selection Menu Page 2

 







Special Features Menu



Subtitles Menu







Audio Setup Menu

 

Week 9: DVD Menu: Photoshop Images and Animation

I have nearly completed my PSD's within Photoshop for my DVD Menu, these will be the pages which I will import into Encore and create the links throughout the DVD Menu for the menu to come together and work. I am happy with my DVD Menu pages and I believe that all these menus link well together and to me suggest the genre of Drama, the DVD Menu Pages which are completed include:

• Main Menu
• Scene Selection Pages 1 and 2
• Special Features
• Audio Setup
• Subtitles

I am happy with the progress which I have made on these different menus and I am now ready to put all the PSD's into Encore and link them together and I am looking forward to seeing the final DVD Menu within Encore with the links put into place.
I have also used animation within my DVD Menu pages and today I created the animation of a rotating Handbag, I originally decided to have a rotating shoe as this linked in with the theme of the DVD Menu although I did try rotating a shoe but the rotation did not link in very well to the rest of the menus. Therefore I have created the same rotating handbag on all of the Menus and this handbag is similar to the rollover button which I am using throughout the DVD Menus.

Overall, I am happy with my DVD Menu pages and I am happy with the rotation which is being placed in the corner of every menu, (except the main menu) and this will be continually rotating on the menus.

Week 8: Update of DVD Menu Within Photoshop

I have put my images into Photoshop and I have started to create my final DVD Menu, I have used the features which I have shown through my research and ideas, including the font, images and textures. Through this week I have created a mood board which represents my DVD Menu and shows the textures and fonts which I would take forward to use within the DVD Menu, I have also represented other existing products which I have researched and I believe relates to both my genre and theme of the DVD Menu.


Within Photoshop I have been able to create the menus for my DVD Menu, I have used all my original images and have placed them into Photoshop and started to create my DVD Menu. Through creating the templates I believe the menus all link together well and to me the menus are starting to look like a DVD Menu, as I have used all the codes and conventions which I have gathered from my research.  I have used all my new skills and research to create this DVD Menu, new skills in Photoshop have helped a lot and I feel a lot more confident in using Photoshop in a more advanced manner and I am able to edit photos and create an effect with the photos which I have taken myself. I have also learnt how to use existing objects to create an effect, within my DVD Menu I wanted to use frames around the images on the main menu and on the Scene Selection Menus, and I used a mirror which I believed would link in nicely to the genre of the DVD Menu, and this is a rustic style mirror and I was able to capture an image of this and edit it within Photoshop to change the colour of the image and create the frame for the images to be placed inside.

Below are some screenshots of my DVD Menu pages within Photoshop.




Screenshot of Scene Selection Page 1

Screenshot of Scene Selection Page 2

Overall I am very happy with the progress I have made in starting to create the PSD's for my DVD Menu and I am looking forward to placing them into Encore for the whole DVD Menu to come together and work.

Week 8: DVD Menu Mood Board Completed

I have completed my mood board which is annotated and represents all the aspects of my DVD Menu, this includes the main features which I have gathered research about and from looking into the DVD Menus, which are the existing products and I have represented all these features and the features which I have shown which I wish to use within my DVD Menu are:

• The font: I have shown the font which I want to use within the DVD Menu which I am creating and have explained about similar products such as famous movies which are Drama movies and I have adapted my font title for the DVD Menu from various fonts such as movie fonts. I have then presented my font within the Mood Board and this shows how it can relate to these existing titles and show the boldness of the title. I have also shown other titles which to me suggested Drama and shows how my ideas have been developed from my research through the mood board itself.
• Textures: I have represented the textures which I associate with Drama and I have also taken into account the theme which I have continued from my first exercise of my Movie Poster and the theme for the poster was Fashion. I have used examples of textures such as fabrics such as silk or velvet as these are the textures which I associate with Drama and Fashion and these suggest 'drama'. I have explained that I am using textures such as fabrics within my DVD Menu and I have also shown some examples of fabrics which I have incorporated the titles into the image through Photoshop, therefore this gives an idea of how the title and images can link together.
• Colour Scheme: I have presented my colour scheme of green and blue by a 'colour wheel' which also represents the theme through using images which are fashion related and these include fashion accessories and clothes. I have placed these images around an image which represents similar fonts and the colour scheme is shown through this image which presents writing as the font is green and blue.
• Images: Frames: The frames which I will be using throughout the DVD Menu are frames which are in antique style and show the effect of 'Drama' and emphasises this by including these frames and keeping the same frame throughout the menus shows the continuous and helps link the DVD Menus together. The frames will be featured on the Main Menu and the Scene Selection pages, with the images placed inside the frames.

Below shows an image of my mood board and shows the most important features for the DVD Menu.

DVD Menu Mood Board Annotated

 

Week 8: Photos Completed for My DVD Menu

Throughout half term I have completed and generated my images which I am going to use within my own DVD Menu. I have thought about the images in advance and I had thought about the theme and genre of my DVD Menu to influence the images which would feature within my Menus, this included the theme of Fashion and a True Story, Drama. The images which were generated were mainly images of the main character as then the audience are able to get to know the main character and as this is a True Story, Drama, DVD menus which are similar in theme and genre are also similar in the type of images which are shown within the DVD menu are mainly the main character.
Some of these images included:

• A winter scene in the woods and surrounding scenery such as fields, which with the costumes and the winter scene represents the theme of fashion and also the theme of the True Story.
• Images of the main character, close up images, and these various images will be featured on each menu.
• Images with the main character with fashion related accessories and clothes, as therefore this lets the audience know about the theme and genre of the DVD Menu.

Most of the images which I have taken for the DVD Menu feature the main character, the reason why I chose to feature the main character within most of the images is because from my research into existing Drama DVD Menus such as The Devil Wears Prada the images used within menus such as Scene Selection feature the main character, as this is who the film is about and this shows through these images which are used. I used the main character as I believe that the DVD Menu theme and genre show through by presenting the main character and as the DVD Menu reflects a true story this lets the audience get to know who is in the film and clearly highlights the main character and what she may be like within the film. As this DVD Menu would be based around a true story within existing products they present the character in this way as you are able to get to know the character through these images from the film itself.

Below are some of my images which I have taken.

I have also started to edit my images and place them into templates within Photoshop in the template for the DVD Menu and the menu itself has started to look like a DVD Menu and the pages look similar to each other and work well with each other.