Evaluation

Our main media is a main theatrical film trailer, which is supported by a film poster and a film magazine cover. This year proved to be a lot more difficult and demanding compared to AS, even when working in a team with Lizzie McLaughlin and Iain Guy, we pulled together to be more creative and ambitious in producing these media texts. We couldn't have done this without our research and use of influences.

The first two prompts:

The trailer tends to follow forms and conventions rather than challenge them, as we thought it was the best way to communicate the narrative for an entertaining and persuasive effect on the audience in order to fulfill its purpose while targeting the demographic. Following conventions is important for a Hollywood company when representing certain genres such as our own, teen-apocalypse, which is a developed thriller sub-genre. 

We ensured the inclusion of our production logo, a green rating card, the film title, release date and the institution details as these are all generic features of a film trailer that seem small but are very important in both providing vital information to the audience, but also seem a lot more professional and clean cut like any real media text such as our influences. 

   The rating card always comes first in a trailer, hence why we put it first, this tells the audience that what they about to see was taken very seriously in terms of A2 media coursework. 
   Also at the beginning was our own production logo, Eden Pictures, we developed the design and presentation for the trailer in order to fit with conventions. By flashing up with the non-diegetic sound of a thunder clap, it aims to strike the viewer in the reflection of the films genre- that is apocalyptic, as the weather connotes things like climate change and also emotions. 

   The other features were used at the end of the trailer, this information is most important to the demographic who was convinced to see the film, by the trailer. The film title slowly appears from the darkness due to the use of a visual effect, matching the end of the soundtrack, this stands out more the audience because it was presented more thoughtfully, like most other film trailers. Then the release date and institution details follow this, which was paired with links to viral marketing as that is also conventional in today's technologically advanced world. These generally reflect our influences and other media texts we've seen over the years. 

   We didn't include film review because we didn't want to pack the trailer with too much hype as we felt other conventions will secure that, and we wanted to include reviews on the other ancillary texts instead.

We used generic trailer conventions such as copy, dialogue and some voice over, as these directly explained the narrative through language which can be easier to understand. Most trailers use copy to match certain montage video to recap the audiences understanding. For example 'FRIENDS BECOME ENEMIES' was influence by Tomorrow When the War Began, helping show the character and plot development and link to disruption. Sometimes they are used to convey key themes in the plot; which is what we done towards the end 'FEAR' and 'TRUST' as these evoke ideas and understanding. We were inspired to use this idea because of the road trailer- it follows a similar approach in reflecting how life is. We did this by adding text which was simple enough, but we did ensure using different larger fonts with shadows to imply importance. Hollywood productions tend to include cast names on copy, however, we felt it was best to challenge this because the cast is not made up of A-list celebrities and it would break up the flow too much by overusing this communication technique. 

    Our use of dialogue helped to add depth to the characters by linguistically portraying them as well as visually, for example, Haden’s line 'find them!' shows he is demanding, therefore powerful which aimed to fulfill his antagonistic role. Whereas, Eve was scripted 'Can we?' as the question shows doubt and therefore reflects her as weak, this helped show the need to overcome obstacles which is conventional of both characters and narrative. Character dialogue was emphasised throughout, despite the lack of realism in language, it tied in with the Hollywood style of film to create another world, much like the language in both The Road and The Hunger Games.

   We used voice over once 'with the adults gone, everything was different' which functioned as a character narration. This actually challenged the typical Hollywood convention to have a deep male voice over to pragmatically reinforce action, instead we used Lizzie (Eve) as it aimed to develop a connection between the audience and her point of view as it's important the audience quickly identify the main cast/protagonists on a personal level, while her feminine voice sounds more emotive and makes it easier for the viewers to sympathise with her. 

Further trailer conventions such the use of music combined with montage editing/camera movement to increase pace were developed in order to not only create a dramatic and intense effect, but to also comply with Hollywood conventions. We used orchestral music for a hyperbolised effect, making the trailer more exciting and dramatic which maintains the viewer’s interest. This matched the movement of the camerawork for an immersive feel, as we learnt from our AS project that stills used in dramatic scenes like chases do not go well for an overall impact on the audience relationship with the screen. This was reassured by our editing as we aimed to have the music correspond with the visuals because this reflects real media texts that are professionally edited for an impact on the audience’s perception of how good the trailer is. Pace is conventionally used within the action/thriller genres; we used music with montage editing to increase the pace. The montage editing formed a non-linear structure which covers another typical convention of some trailers. We developed our use of music by including three different soundtracks which meant the pace changed frequently just like TWTWB, however it generally built up to reach the climax, like our influences. We developed the structure convention by having two climatic points in the trailer, these were the 'find them' scene and the end battle and they were conveyed as climatic due to our sound editing. Some shots exaggerated high and low key lighting also to support the hyperbolic effect, as the contrast in light and dark functions to reiterate conflict. 

THG inspired us to challenge the use of a tripod, as handheld shots added a sense of realism that pulls the viewer closer. THG also influenced us to use close ups for tighter framing as that emotionally involves the viewer  and shows claustrophobia/small area which suggests the idea of a microcosm- evident in both THG and LOTF. Hollywood companies have access to advanced camera equipment like cranes and dollies, and because we didn't we thought it was best to use what we had for effect. We tried to follow Hollywood conventions by making our own dolly with a jacket on a desk for a smooth and stable movement. TR inspired us to use establishing shots, as mise en scene is crucial in conveying the abstract narrative- the mass effect and emptiness. The locations can represent the characters, such as the beach and forest are natural places that reflect conflict of the mind- whether its the overgrowth in the trees, like in THG or LOTF that's associated with the  monster and darkness, or the beaches crashing waves and moody sky which represents the conflicting emotions, and challenges  LOTF because it's a holy place in the book (at first).  

As conventional of a trailer/narrative, we followed Roland Barthes narrative codes. The hermeneutic code is introduced by the disappearance of the adults, the importance of the folder and the feud between the groups, as these are not explained fully in order to raise questions in the audience that demand explanation as people don't like 'loose ends' in a story, there is a need for closure- and the only way is to see the film when it's released. This coheres with our thriller sub-genre as it's generic to have a restricted narration in order to add the enigmatic effect, causing the viewer to be curious. In thought of the generic narrative structure, we adopted Tzvetan Todorov’s theory of narrative so that the story was clear and familiar to audience member’s as it’s generic of mainstream cinema . However, we didn’t use the first and last stages as it was straight to the point and thought-provoking to exclude context and resolution.

   The Proairetic code is brought to the narrative through the conflict between the two groups, as the violent 'actions' create suspense and provoke the audience think what might occur next and how will it be solved. This is effective in the cliff hanger at the end of the trailer, which was strongly inspired by THG.

   Some of these codes were only possible due to our conventional casting and character roles, the most common of all within Hollywood production is the protagonist and the antagonist, also known as the hero and the villain, suggested by Vladimir Propp's theory of narrative. This introduces basic binary opposites of good vs. evil, hence the conflict in the narrative which is also evident in our influences. It's especially addressed in Lord of the Flies in connection with the bible which is thought-provoking. However, in our trailer we depicted the story in an unconventional manner because the good seems to be losing against the bad, which is highlighted in the end scene/shot when Michael is slammed to the group by the patriarchal antagonist, Haden. There is also a stronger focus on the bad group, as if they define the good and cause all plotlines, bringing attention to their actions throughout, in fact there seems to be a lack of focus on Michael, the supposed male protagonist which is unconventional. In TWTWB, good rises up to the challenge, while in THG, the cliff-hanger leaves the audience with no action of good vs. bad which is only more of a reason to see it. Whereas in TR, there is a lot of fear and desperation to outrun the evil, however, we choose to have a confrontation, that could possibly take a LOTF route (since evil almost wins until the adults come to rescue them)- but we didn't plan this far, we just think that our film is more of a franchise narrative that exists over a number of movies, just like THG. 

Here is our final trailer:

In terms of our ancillary tasks we followed many conventions to achieve a professional appearance like real media texts. 

   The poster covers basic conventions to fulfill the purpose to inform, such as the release date, film title, institution details on the main poster, and key cast on the teaser posters. We challenged the use of a tagline on the main poster because we didn't want to over pack it as we were following a symmetrical style, which fulfills another appealing convention. But we did include one on the teasers right in the very centre 'with the adults gone, everything was different' which provokes thoughts and communicates the plotline, while also complimenting the trailer as that is the only use of voice over dialogue within the trailer. The main poster compliments the trailer through generic features like the main image and theme, as it relates to the battle scene which is likely to be the most memorable scene because it's a cliff hanger. They compliment one another through the theme of conflict and opposition, strengthening the idea of group rivalry, yet also differently portraying the power struggle because they appear equally matched whereas the trailer shows the protagonists as weak against the antagonists. Links to viral marketing, (modern conventions) are explored in both texts, using social media icons and a pretend website to create the idea that TIME can be reached online for more information, which targets the teen demographic and showing them that the film is aware of it's audiences and therefore will provide appealing content. In my opinion, the  combination of the trailer and posters is effective as they compliment each other on key information both visually and linguistically, increasing the effectiveness of distribution in the audiences mind, causing them to be more informed, entertained and interested.

The magazine cover includes codes and conventions that appear on the very popular film magazines, Empire and Total Film, our main influences. 

   We used puffs, sell lines, a skyline and a strapline with inset images to showcase relevant and current information that a wide film fan demographic would appreciate. We developed the style of the puff's so that they looked more interesting. The red circle sticker-like puff is typical of magazines, and we added an extra ring inside it to attract more attention, while the plus sign puff was inspired by our influences, clearly showing the extra content to make the reader aware of how packed the magazine is and therefore worth buying. 

   Our use of sell lines are located on the left side of the cover, and we specifically referenced films of different genres, such as romantic comedy (The Other Woman) to thriller (Divergent) to show that the magazine has a wide range of content for all specific audiences. This is supported by the strapline, which also includes relevant film events such as the Oscars and the infamous Oscars selfie. We also included more primary images by using a shot from Parallel, our AS production, to tie in with past Eden work. We said things like 'interview', 'first look' and 'behind the scenes' to appear well rounded with information. This text follows the cultural code which is generic of magazines, by keeping up with what's new and current, the audience can find out all about the latest news related to film. Another example of this is the interview with Jenifer Lawrence and Meryl Streep as they have currently been compared in the media as 'J-law is the new Meryl Streep' targeting the demographic further. 

   The skyline includes the convention of free content e.g. 'Free MockingJay Poster' as this functions as a USP for the magazine and ties in further with the Cultural code suggested by Barthes. In copying our influences, we added an image of the poster as it shows the audience what they get, gaining their trust and convincing them to buy a copy. 

   Our masthead was crafted to reflect inspiration and the film genre, as the font is very much like the Odeon font. It is bold and stands out like TF and Emp. magazines, which can pragmatically attract a male orientated audience due to the boldness which is associated with males. The capitals help show that the magazine is serious and packed with information, while the 'BOX' is placed on it's side in replicating a TF style. We cut around the main image so Haden could slightly overlap the masthead as this is very conventional of mainstream magazines, highlighting how we don't rely on the brand for sales and that's it's very established, like real media texts. The colour scheme of orange, green and red is shown, these are warm and cold colours which aim to stand out against the main image and compliment it. The overall composition is full of text as it's conventional in real media texts to do this in order to pass on as much information as possible and get the reader to buy a copy. 

   We finally added a barcode, date, price and issue no. as these are often found in small print on magazines. They don't look too important because they aren't conspicuous for reasons, but without these the magazine wouldn't have that real effect. 

The magazine cover combined with the trailer may not appear very effective due to magazine conventions, but they support one another well. The mise en scene in the main image reflects a dirty and cold world due to the low key light/green colour, complimenting the diegesis created in the trailer as there is often low key lighting used. The location in which this shot takes place isn't really clear but it's the corridor from one of the establishing shots, so therefore they are similar in that way. Direct address is used by the main cast of Time which is different to both other texts (especially the poster), however still compliments them offering a range so that the demographic isn't given the same idea in a text. This convention develops a relationship between the viewer and the cast as it targets the viewer more directly and personally. It also functions to invite the demographic to pick up a copy and buy it, meaning it sells both the film and magazine. The fact the main cast is on the front cover compliments the trailer by clearly highlighting the main cast, as the main poster didn't as much. The tight framing links to some of the shots we used in the trailer, yet the group shot challenges the trailer in the sense that good and bad characters are together, however, our influences follow this which means we are more like a real media text, as group shots are generic of front cover feature with many characters. It compliments the trailer in the way that a group shot is used to communicate the significance of groups within the narrative. The anchorage text "The most relevant film of the Decade" compliments the poster more as reviews are featured on it, but is effective in how the magazine views the film because the audience will trust that review more because it's a front cover feature, however, the use of journalese is conventional of magazines because they need to sell. The other text 'Betrayal! Survival! Destruction!' compliments the trailers use of copy by developing the portrayal of the plot even further. The first letters of each word was highlighted to attract attention. Finally, the main anchorage text/feature film title 'TIME' is plastered across the front in a white bold font on a slight canted angle. This compliments the trailer because the film title are evident on both texts, working together to become culturally recognised. However, they are different font's which might lack in effectiveness. In my opinion, they are fairly effective together considering it's just a magazine cover.

As each text aims to distribute the film, we explored further by creating social media accounts to represent Time online:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/timemovieuk

Twitter: https://twitter.com/TimeMovieUK

























This helped promote our film through posting behind the scenes photos, teaser posters and character posters. This began to gain some attention from people who thought it was a real film and someone who offered us to use their studio, which is positive responses. Since I have not yet posted the character posters that were made for the social network accounts, here they are; complete with generic conventions and running dark theme:

What have you learnt from your audience feedback?
We had three focus groups which represent 44 film/media student at AS level and GCSE. We have paired some of the data collected into overall pie charts, but some we decided to keep in charts due to the many different responses to more open questions. Here are some screen shots of the date during tally analysis:

Here are the results to each question and an analysis. 

What was the genre of the film?

This gained a wide variation of responses probably because our genre can be hard to achieve without certain technology, and I suppose the narrative can have elements of each genre (except horror) depending on how it's viewed. Almost half of the results were Thriller which was good because it's like the conglomerate genre of the teen-apocalyptic genre (and of course this is a new kind of genre in mainstream cinema so it wouldn't be specifically recognised). We studied the thriller genre at AS which will have influenced our style and ideas, which might explain the results. 

Was the title clear?

This result highlights a major problem with the trailer because it's vital the audience know what the film is called so they can go see it (even thought If it was me I would research cinema websites). One variable was that during the first showing, someone walked at the point the title appeared so everyone was distracted from this. Another variable was learning the title from the poster. Few people even recognised the abstract way of showing the release date, as the name 'they will fall'. It came to our attention that the title may need to be on screen for longer too, so we improved this by leaving the text on for longer and slowly revealing the title from the darkness to match the length of onscreen time more evenly.

What age rating would you expect this film to have?

Receiving 70% for a 15 wasn't what the group were looking for or expecting for the age rating because we aimed to gain a wide audience like any Hollywood production. As a narrative and trailer, I feel that it's not really explicit but then I think about certain lines such as 'watch them die' and imagery of violence which can understandably influence the view of age suitability because it's very harsh for a trailer. Perhaps this comes down the proairetic code and power of the trailer, and because we have watched it so many times/it's our creation, we will be really desensitised by it, and therefore have very different opinions to other audience members experiencing the full dramatic trailer. We kept our age rating of a 12A because we should fight for what we want if we think it's suitable against the BBFC's standards. 

Is it clear who the lead characters are?

The majority identified the lead cast, while just over a quarter had issues recognising character roles. However, we think this is a positive result considering the range of cast and similar character function between the two groups, it might have confused other audience members. Also it's our first trailer so we are developing how to portray certain characters, and now that we've made the trailer we've thought of things we could have done better to fulfill this. 

Would this trailer persuade you to see this film at the cinema?

This is a very positive result that shows us that we have targeted and appealed to the audience and therefore fulfilled the purpose of the trailer. With only 9% percent who weren't satisfied is a good and expected result as we know not everyone would like the film, but I think we anticipated more to not feel persuaded, so its positive results all around. The high percentage of people who would, can create further distribution online and through word of mouth/social lives. 

I think this result can be explained by Roland Barthes cultural code, as it's used through our genre. As a teen apocalypse (thriller sub genre) that shares elements of narrative with The Hunger Games, The Road, Tomorrow when the War began and can be seen as a modern reinterpretation of Lord of the Flies; all stories that critically comments on the nature of man and society (how the world works). These narratives are popular at the moment (THG for example) due to our knowledge of threats to the world like climate change or politics- ideas that stand out today in a time of peace and prosperity, therefore are made use of for films because we haven't experienced such things. Our film celebrates the need for adults for civilisation whereas others following this code may communicate the need to look after the planet or have political awareness. 

List up to three things you would change about this trailer:
We chose to present this data in bar-charts rather than pie-charts due to the many different answers, it's easier to read.

Our first focus group presented different ideas to change but the highest scoring was nothing which was very positive. Other answers suggested that the sound and pace needed to change but contextually this could be due to where people sat as the volume was overpowering in loud closer to the speaker since we included dramatic music- but we weren't going to change that because we aimed for that style.

The mode answer was 'acting' which couldn't be helped at all without re-shooting the entire trailer. The same goes for 'cinematography', 'editing' and the rest because these are all things that can't be changed. We realise that it just comes down to opinion, and not everyone can like everything- its normal to dislike things.

The third focus group brought in more answer, and patterns began forming in certain answers- aspects of the trailer that can't be changed. 'The action', like most answers, is a very vague response yet is the mode answer. We think that some people just aren't too keen on the genre because these were conventionally used to represent the genre and narrative.









We only tried to improve the sound in terms of how clear and loud the dialogue was as both the ambient sound in the shot and soundtrack sometimes overpowered it. This occurred most in exterior scenes like the campfire. And it's worth recognising that 'nothing' was evident on two of the surveys.In reflection, I feel that we should not have provided examples in brackets next to the question as that may have influenced the answer even if they didn't strongly believe it.


List up to three things you liked about this trailer:

The mode answer, have a score of 12 was our soundtrack, contrary to our past question responses, this showed us that it was recognised and appreciated. The same goes for cinematography that gained 8 mentions. Most other film conventions were liked too, which showed the difference of opinion.

We were glad to see that people liked the camerwork and editing, because we always try to get them to work together for a maximised effect. But more significant than this was the appreciation for 'acting' which wasn't expected, although it did gain 4 like the previous chart.

The soundtrack was most popular again with 11, telling us that it was a more valid opinion on our use of sound, therefore we knew to keep it how it was. We were glad to see that the characters, conventional use of copy and our production logo were noticed as likeable parts of the trailer, despite only gaining one vote each, it was good. Other parts of the trailer were liked again, and we were happy with 'locations' appeared on two surveys.






But again, we should not have included examples because that might lower the validity if it truly influenced people. In reflection, we learnt to appreciate our work a little bit more, knowing that people were satisfied with different part of the trailer.


Are you given a good idea of the films narrative?

It looks like a positive result, but realistically it's not because real media texts like trailers are a lot more effective in communicating the narrative. But 79% is still quite good considering it's our fist attempt at producing a trailer. This could correlate with the data from whether people would go see the film. I feel that we lacked communication of the full idea since we didn't follow each of Todorov's narrative stages, however, that was done so that we could follow the Hermenuetic code for an enigmatic effect. Or perhaps some people weren't paying full attention.

Does this trailer compliment the poster?

A good 67% said yes. We only provided the mock draft Iain made because we had not yet produced our own, so that is a variable that might have affected the results. Another variable is that this only represent the first focus group because we had issues providing posters for the other two. This gave us a sense of how well the poster compliments the trailer and it's kind of a positive result considering we showed the mock version- we felt confident in going ahead with this design for a better result in the future. 

What star rating out of 5 would you give this trailer?

This is a great result as it represents ratings from 3 to 5, three quarters of which stands for 4, 4 1/2, and 5 stars which in this light is very good. From this result, we thought that we were quite successful in our main task because our demographic liked it, and shown by other data, would feel persuaded to go see it.

Here is some audience feedback evidence:

How did you use media technologies in the research, planning, construction and evaluation stages?

During our research and planning stages, we firstly used the internet for Google searches on different theories, conventions and different distribution methods, and I used Google images to find all my poster and magazine for pictorial research to be used as examples and analysed. I used Youtube to view our trailer influences and for further understanding I watched the full movies on Netflix or from my DVD collection. These were exemplified on this blog (blogger- another google platform that links to Youtube so that videos are easily added). We used Blogger last year and found it to be really helpful in presenting work, so we stayed with it. To create short blog videos, we simply used Windows movie maker because they didn't require high quality editing to present clips, therefore it was useful to us. Furthermore, This year we used the online storage/sharing application, Onedrive (and an app on my phone), for our blogs. On this we shared Iain's account to add all our photos and videos that might be useful to each others blogs. This was really good to use because it increased communication between us and organisation for our blogs. Here is a screenshot from Onedrive:

Throughout planning and construction, we used the social media site Facebook to uphold the communication between us, and the other cast members. We created a groupchat that we could all talk in when arranging filming times which was helpful because as college students, everyone is normally busy so it was important to make plans in advance. It was more useful than texting because it included everyone which meant we could make compromises to agree on a suitable date and time. We needed this because of our multiple shoots/cast, unlike AS which was filmed in one day with only us and Lizzie's cousin- showing the development of our production skills. Here's an old screen shot of a conversation:

In production we used the same generic equipment as last year, which was a Sony HD HandyCam and a tripod. The camcorder was good because it's easy to handle and transport whereas the tripod is hard to transport and can be limiting in our genre because it lacks a sense of action. From my other experiences I have found that a tripod is most useful and conventional within the film noir genre because it's clean cut and still. I have gained a lot of experience with the HandyCam from producing this trailer and other work, and I feel ready to move onto more advanced equipment in university. We utilised a number of bridge cameras for the documentation of some shoots and photographs for the posters and magazine. We used these cameras: a Fujifilm finepix S3400, which allowed us to the use the continuous shot feature for the theatrical poster; a Sony Cybershot DSC-HX300 and a Nikon Coolpix  520 for the magazine images. These were all helpful due to the high quality, range and abundance (as photography is a hobby and mine and Iain's) so we didn't need to worry about not having or borrowing one. In reflection, the lack of advanced film equipment such as a boom mic and dolly, encouraged us to be more creative and resourceful of what we did have; an example would be using an iPhone to record the dubbing of dialogue as it was quick and simple. Iain connected his phone to the computer and transferred the file without issues. 

In post-production, we developed and widened our use of technology; putting our skills to the task and also gaining skills in certain software. Firstly we moved from a PC to a MAC and to the updated Premiere Elements 11 (from 9), which was helpful to me in learning how to use a MAC with the command keys etc, because I will be using one in university. This year from producing different films alone and with the Eden group, I have became very familiar with the Premiere editing software, and so I have developed my skills greatly from start to finish of a production. We used a number of memory sticks and a portable hard drive to store our production work on as a back up for the files on the MAC, and the old PC; this came to be useful later one when making the small blog videos. We tried to be organised with our files on the computers but this became a take due to our many shoots and video files that were sometimes unnamed and difficult to source; so we realised the need to stricter organisation in our future projects. 
   The ancillary task's meant using a small range of software. The poster used Photoshop which briefly developed my initial understand of how to use it and apply basic edits with the S curve. Then we used Serif Photo plus for the final edit and then Serif Draw plus adding of the conventions,  which was easy to use compared to Photoshop. Some of the conventions such as the stereoscopy and Dolby Digital icons were obtained from the internet and imported, then we used colour-manipulation to achieve the white colour-fill. 
   The magazine cover also used smart phone photo editing applications (as did the mock up posters) such VSCOcam, but mainly Google Snapseed for the final photo edit of front cover main image. We did try out the more professional software, however, Iain and I knew that the moody and dirty'grunge' edit was the effect we were aiming for and so we utilised our skills in that area. This also had it's negative outcomes due to the lowering of the quality, which told us that we need to develop our skills in Photoshop next time (as photo plus didn't help in this case). And finally we added all the magazine conventions on Draw plus, which I felt was useful because it brought back skills that I learnt at GCSE but forgot about because AS didn't require any distribution products. 

Finally, for the evaluation we produced this using generic film equipment and the same editing software:

Unscripted Interview/Commentary:
We were inspired by the unscripted interviews available online and Youtube that promote a film and keep film fans interested. Here's one from one of our influences, The Hunger Games: Catching Fire

We set up this on the 26th of February, in our college hall as it had the blue curtains to create a similar sense of place like in the influence above. A huge problem was the sound of the heaters, we tried to turn them off but we couldn't- I wish we done it another time to avoid this.  Further problems came from publishing as the quality is suddenly extremely and clips have vanished! So it's not very good now,  but here is our interview, made for the evaluation:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=zdeYEAXvJpY

This year has developed and refined my skills and has made our group closer. The audience feedback has shown us it was worth all the hard work and made us feel more confident about exhibiting work. The visual arts will no doubt always be a part of my life in the future and online, from making films with Iain and Lizzie in the summer, to uploading pictures to Instagram... 

Thank you for taking the time to read my blog, I know it's never ending.