Secondary Research For this section I have looked at John Edward, who is a well-known psychic medium, to see how

he does his job, as well as how his television shows are laid out, to further expand my knowledge as to how I could make my video as different and as innovative as possible. I have also looked at programmes within the same interest field to see what I can take from them and put into my own video. John Edward John Edward is a New York based medium, he has been helping people connect with deceased loved ones for thirty years, and has made many TV appearances on programmes such as Oprah and Dr Phil. From 1999 to 2004, Edward hosted a programme named Crossing Over with John Edward, in which he would demonstrate his profession by giving readings to the audience members. This would commonly take the form of him picking up on a spirit, and then directing the details to the person he was drawn to, or whoever picked up on the most similarities within what he was saying. This information is not passed onto him prior to filming, which further enhances the gravity of programmes like this. The programme often employs the use of a split screen, so that audiences at home see an interview which was given after the reading with the audience member, to give further insight into the things Edward picks up on and the experiences they had during it. I quite like the idea of using a split screen, so I need to think about how I can implement this in my own video. Edward also adds in voice overs during the split screen segments, which gives audiences as home further insights as well as inspirational messages. In this image to the left, we see a screenshot from Edwards new programme, Evolve with John Edward. I wanted to draw particular attention to the fact that he seems to be stood in a studio with a Chroma key in the background, which I can tell by the outline surrounding him. I quite like the concept, as well as the way he presents the piece, as using a screen in the background as well as speaking directly to the camera gives the audience more information than perhaps just speaking straight to camera. I could use this idea in my piece, by having my client stood in a similar way to him, but with other information on the screen such as information about what she does, and contact details. This will, as Ive mentioned before, give a bit more information, but will also give the audience a variety of things

to look at, so they dont become bored with the video. I could also use this as a platform before I go into all the animated text I wish to use, as another way to break the video up. Here we see the split screen feature in action, I think this is effective for what he does because its interesting for the audience at home to see the reactions of his clients, which also subtly tells the audience that he is picking up on things which he couldnt have known without them either telling him or from some sort of ability. I think if I were to use this in my video, I wouldnt use it in the same way. Instead, I would probably show different shots of my client at work, whether this is doing a card reading or life coaching someone. This will give the audience the chance to see how she works as well as what happens when she does a reading for example. This is another extract from the same video, which depicts a man with his nervous system exposed, this only flashes up for half a second before it cuts back to Edward giving a reading. I dont think I would want to use this same effect in my video, mainly due to the fact that I have seen this technique on a lot of other shows and feel it would be too generic to put into mine, considering I am trying to show how my client is different from everyone else out there. Most Haunted Most Haunted is a paranormal programme, in which host Yvette Fielding, medium Derek Acorah and their team of paranormal investigators explore buildings which are said to be haunted by a variety of different spirits. The way this series is shot is very typical of most paranormal documentaries, with nearly all of the ghost hunts taking place after nightfall, which means that night vision is used. This creates a spooky atmosphere, which isnt something my client really wants to convey,

instead, she wants to show the audience that spirits arent as scary as programmes like this make them out to be. The opening music for MH is also keeps with the spooky feel. It uses a lot of synthesised tones as well as singing in the background which gives a forbidding feeling to the piece, even in the opening credits, the scene is very much the same as when the ghost walks begin- all in night vision, but this time with superimposing across some of the footage, which keeps with the ghostly feel this programme constantly conveys. A lot of the time, the crew will break off from each other and explore the building with steady cams, this is interesting as this follows a common convention in horror movies- where the cast will split up and try to find whatever it is that might have made a noise, or is haunting a place. Most Haunted, however, always sees the crew return safely. This does however create tension for the audience as most of them will pick up on the idea of exploring a spooky place alone, and therefore will be further drawn into the programme. After looking at the different effects and equipment Most Haunted use, I dont think Ill be using any of these ideas for my final video, as I dont want to make mediumship and clairvoyance seem like a scary thing to experience. I would like to make it something that the audience would enjoy watching, as well as being able to see how my client is different from other mediums and clairvoyants out there. Looking at these two examples, I think I will be using more of the techniques used my John Edward rather than on Most Haunted, due to the fact that I will probably have my client presenting the video, so use of split screen and Chroma key would work very well in order to create a brilliant impact through the video.