Evaluation of Student Film

I will be analysing one soap opera trailer produced by media students in the year above in terms of what works and what can be improved on. I will be looking at mise en scene, camera angles, editing and sound.

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Court Road

Strengths

• The over-shoulder shots at the beginning of the trailer are excellent, and give a really clear view of the characters.
• The establishing shot of the church where the couple are getting married works very well, as it relates to camera angles used in soap operas and shows the audience where the events are happening.
• The non-diegetic heartbeat sound effect builds up tension and is very dramatic, suiting the trailer and its story-line really well.
• The low-key lighting creates an ominous atmosphere, which goes hand-in-hand with the story line.
• The trailer successfully demonstrates the first 3 stages of Todorov's Narrative Theory, which shows a good understanding of soap opera trailer conventions.

 Weaknesses

• The font used is difficult to read and is not conventionally used in a soap opera trailer.
• The fade-to-black transition with the messages between frames is also unconventional and is more relative to a horror film trailer.
• The trailer was clearly advertising an event, but the time or date of the episode was missing from the information provided.
• The point-of-view shot used towards the end of the trailer is also unconventional, and is more likely to be used in a horror film trailer.
• The use of semiotics is not significant, meaning the trailer fails to send certain messages to the audience about the events of the soap opera. This makes the trailer harder to understand and less engaging for the viewer.

Improvements

• Instead of using a pan to follow the female protagonist as she leaves the room, leave the camera focused on the male antagonist as it allows the audience to form their own thoughts on what his next actions may be.
• Use a more simple font. The font used is too complicated and difficult to read, and a sans serif font would be much more relative to a soap trailer.
• Avoid using fade to black too much. It's often seen in film trailers, but the continuity used in soap trailers is more simple and more effective.
• Maybe they could have used an over-shoulder shot at the wedding like they did at the beginning of the trailer. This shows a connection between the characters and that they are in the same room, whereas without this camera angle, there is no evidence they are standing in front of each other.
• Show the face of the antagonist more. Facial expressions say a lot about how a character is feeling, and close-ups of character faces are much more conventionally used in soap opera trailers.
• Provide a time and date at the end of the trailer for when this episode will be aired. This allows people who watch the trailer to know when it comes on and can make sure they tune in to watch it.

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Valley Hill

Strengths

• There is a good demonstration of the types of emotions involved with the story line.
• The over-shoulder shots used successfully show a connection between the characters.

Weaknesses

• The locations used within the trailer do not reflect a domestic environment, which is unconventional.
• The fade-to-black transition with the messages between frames is also unconventional and is not associated with soap opera trailers.
• The trailer was clearly advertising an event, but the time or date of the episode was missing from the information provided.
• The use of semiotics is not significant, meaning the trailer fails to send certain messages to the audience about the events of the soap opera. This makes the trailer harder to understand and less engaging for the viewer.
• The natural lighting is not reflective of the events in the trailer.

Improvements

• Film a scene within a house or domestic building to show a greater understanding of soap opera conventions. This type of location would also allow the audience to relate to the trailer more easily.
• Get rid of the messages between the frames. It ruins the continuity of the trailer and takes the focus away from the events in the trailer.
• Provide a time and date at the end of the trailer for when this episode will be aired. This allows people who watch the trailer to know when it comes on and can make sure they tune in to watch it.
• Incorporate the use of connotations to tell the audience about the atmosphere of the soap opera and the role of the characters.
• The events of the trailer are very sinister, and using low-key lighting would create a more tense and engaging trailer as opposed to natural lighting.

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Helen How

Strengths

• The characters of the soap are excellently introduced as the trailer clearly shows the relationships between them and how the interact.
• The soap is clearly situated in a domestic area, which shows a great understanding of soap opera conventions.
• The female protagonist we see is wearing red lipstick and red high heels, which connotes love and romance. This demonstrates that the trailer has successfully included the use of semiotics.
• The non-diegetic music played in the background is up-beat and lively, which reflects the age of the characters and the editing pace of the trailer.
• There is a good range of camera shots, including close-ups, mid-shots and over-shoulder shots, which are commonly associated with soap operas.
• The natural lighting goes hand-in-hand with the relaxed natural of the clip.

Weaknesses

• The white transitions and fade-to-blacks ruin the continuity of the trailer.
• There were lots of long shots used, which made it more difficult to see facial expressions.
• The fact that the entire soap seems to revolve around one character goes against soap opera conventions, as there are normally several main characters and story lines.

Improvements

• The use of more close-ups would be more beneficial than using lots of long shots. Seeing the characters' reactions and facial expressions makes the trailer more engaging and effective for the audience.
• Remove the transitions between the frames. Because the character is constantly walking, continuity should be an important part of this trailer.
• If the trailer is going to revolve around one character, explain why (e.g. new character being introduced to the soap, centre of a story line, etc.).