Audience feedback (focus group): For the focus group, I showed it to a group of people, of all ages. As my target audience was between 18-30, so I needed to make sure that my focus group is close to the target audiences age to really know if it would appeal to my target audience.
Focus group 1:
Focus group 2: 15 yr old
Questions: What did you think of the soap opera? Would you watch this? Do you think people of all ages (old and young) would watch and enjoy this? Did the sound sound ok? Was it clear? Was the camera shots ok? Did the storyline make sense? Does the soap opera look professional? Can you see this soap opera continue as a series?
Feedback I have received from the questionnaire and my response t From the focus group they stated that they liked the idea and storyline of the drama, however they didn't think it was portrayed well enough and that they wouldn't personally watch it as the topic wouldn't really interest them. I think considering that they are my target audience I would need to maybe pick a topic that would interest them and execute it professionally. However, they said that the sound and camera shots were done well and really added to the atmosphere and feel of the drama, which is good considering I did spend some time really focusing on those aspects. My response to the feedback is that I think I could've gone back and directed my actors a bit more to make the drama a bit more exciting than it was. Ways to improve my final piece One thing I think needs improving is the storyline, I think I could've improved it a bit more and made it a bit more interesting as the audience said that the storyline was a bit predictable and at times, a bit boring. I think based on this feedback I would need to improve and develop the storyline even more so it didn't become predictable and boring.
Another thing I think needs improving is the the length of the final piece.I think the length of the piece dragged on a bit, as at times the focus group did look a bit bored; it didn't engage them. I think the length of the drama was too long so I could've edited it a bit shorter or made sure I had interesting footage to include in it.
Areas I think I should personally improve it On the feedback given, I feel the script wasn't written well enough as what the characters were saying didn't really make sense to the scene. The script was written well enough to convey what the storyline is about, however it wasn't written well enough that it didn't really engage the audience.
I think I would need to improve on how I directed my actors as some of the acting and dialogue didn't really convey what their characters were supposed to be feeling, for example with the voice over the actor was just reading and she wasn't really conveying the emotions I wanted from them. I think I should've directed them a bit better so their acting could've really stood out.
Key strengths during the making of the production During the process of making my production, I think these are my key strengths
Planning: I think I planned everything out really well as the crew and actors knew what they needed to do and when they should come on set. Because I gave everyone the pre-production documents beforehand, it helped everyone become organised and filming didn't really take as much as it could have if I didn't plan well.
Directing crew: With the crew, they all knew what I wanted from them and what they should be doing as I feel like I have directed them well enough. Because I directed them quite well, I didn't really need to a lot of retakes of scenes as I got everything I wanted the first time.
Editing: I edited the VT well as it really created the affect I wanted the audience to have, which is I wanted them to feel like if they were as drunk as well with the character Emma. I think the VT ended up well as I think it really stood out and engaged the audience into watching it.
Key weaknesses during the making of the production Pre production:I think one of my biggest weakness during pre production was the fact that I didn't really fully developed my storyline and script and made sure it flowed really well. I just assumed everything will flow well without really thinking about it and without blocking out the scenes in my head. I think if I were to do this again I would make sure the script and storyline flowed well enough for it to be filmed. I think I should've at least one rough script reading and making the appropriate changes before I started filming.
Production: One thing I struggled with a lot was directing my actors on how I wanted them to act. I kind of just briefly explained what was going on in the scene and how their character were feeling. I think next time, I will have to explain fully the characters background stories and their personality traits so the actors can bond and be fully into character. I think I will also need to be very clear with what I want and expect from the actors so they don't need to second guess every move they are going to make.
Performanced during the project I think I performed well enough to produce a good student film. I organised and planned well enough that on the day of filming so there wasn't much stress. All may actors and crew where on time and knew what they were doing thanks to my pre production documents and the set and props were done before filming so I didn't really need to stress much about that. I think I could've developed my storyline, character background and camera shots to really get a better finished product however I am satisfied with what has come out and what I have done. Things I could develop in my own personal skill set Script writing: I could develop more on script writing and improve a writing out dialogue and how scenes should be laid out, so the actors can be fully immersed in their role.
Directing actors: I can work on directing the actors a bit better so I can get what I want. I need to make sure I direct them fully and deeply on what is going on in the scene and how their emotions should be as well as how they should move, instead of hoping they will know without me telling them.
Vision mixing: I can develop more on vision mixing and cutting in between shots so the overall shots look good together and flow well.
Set building: I can work on building a realistic and impressive set, so the audience wouldn't be able to tell that the set was built in a studio.
In reference to other questions, what personal development would I need to go through to address the points above? I mentioned a lot that the script wasn't written well enough, this is because from the focus group they mentioned that the dialogue dragged on for a while and that the amount of dialogue they were saying wasn't really that necessary. To ensure that this doesn't happen again, I am going to have multiple drafts of the script and keep on improving on it so the dialogue and storyline was moving in a good pace and maybe have a read through of the script and make appropriate changes.
Another thing that I mentioned was the fact that my actors acting wasn't good enough or didn't match well with the script and storyline. In the focus group they mentioned that in some parts the actor was just reading their lines or that their actions didn't match their dialogue. This is partly my fault as I didn't direct my actors well enough, to improve on this I will have some rehearsals before filming so I can explain to the actors what they should be doing, saying and feeling.