In preparation for the audience feedback lesson I prepared some questions that I wanted my classmates to answer about my short film;
1) Do you think the juxtapostioning of the clips of Matthew and the non diegetic sound of his Leap Pad at the beginning of the film works well?
2) Is the content of my narration clear and interesting? Does it leave you with any unanswered questions?
3) Instead of recording myself talking to the camera as originally planned, I decided to record a narration instead. Do you think some 'video diary' type clips would have been better? Do my emotions and feelings still come across?
4) Did you find the mixture of diegetic sound and narration confusing?
5) Do you think the clips I used of Matthew were varied and interesting? Does it detract your attention from the narration?
6) Do you think the content was effective? Does it fit in with the conventions of short documentaries?
7) Do you have any other suggestions?
After speaking to my media teacher about my poster and reflecting on my choices I decided to make some changes. My teacher suggested that the original photo I had used of Matthew made him look too exposed and vulnerable and may not have been used in a real film poster as his family may not have been happy with that image being released. When I thought about it I agreed; if I really was releasing this film, my parent probably wouldn't have been happy with my choice of image!
Instead, I chose to use a still from the beginning of my short film of Matthew in the car. I liked this image because the consumer could still see Matthew clearly and identify him as the subject of the film, but there was a shadow falling across his face, meaning that he appeared less exposed. I also thought that the fact you could see the outside world through the window fitted in perfectly with my tagline; 'see the world through his eyes.' The fact Matthew's face was cast in a shadow, in contrast to the bright light that can be seen out of the window conveyed the idea that he is isolated in his own world well. It also represents the idea that there is still some mystery surrounding autism as a condition and that hopefully my film will shed some light on the subject. Below is the new version of my poster.
