SESSIOM

MOVIESTORM SESSION 1

Today we are using a new program called "MOVIESTORM," a filming program with roots similar to "The Sims" where you control the characters movement, emotions, gestures etc. I have been paired with Jamie Hyman, and for today we shall try to decide what sort of film we are going to do. Personally, I'd like to do a George A. Romero zombie film, but I do need to work on film sets as well. Overall, if we do come up with an idea, i'll stick with it.

Thursday 31st 2011

SESSION 1: Uploading MovieStorm project so far, but it's taking a while because its all mashed up together. Going to wait for it all to upload then transfer it to Final Cut.

Snatch End Credits

To end our Action Thriller end sequences, we were asked to create a Snatch effect sequence.

Here are three examples of the original Snatch intro. The sequence would pan out with a series of events that goes through each of the films main characters, where they are doing something (Looking at a diamond, playing cards etc.) The scene would then freeze, and change into a still image edited outside of actual filming. The still would have its Threshold changed to make the characters color change to black and white, add the name and a symbol.

To recreate this in Final Cut, we had to take stills from our film. Originally we were meant to do our own stills, but for this I did Tom’s still and vice versa. But for the tutorial, I changed my still with some previous experience, namely using the Threshold.

By simply adding text where the black was at it’s most, I created an effect similar to The Godfather.

After uploading the image to Flickr, I decided to do Toms still, as there was an effect that I wanted to try, to enhance the still to make it more interesting.

The first stage was finding the still, and then we uploaded it into Photoshop. By changing the filters, we made it black and white like in our film. Afterwards, it was a matter of using the Lasso tool to cut Tom out of the still, then changing the background to another color.

Afterwards, I thought the scene seemed a little bit… Bland. I remember doing a special effect for my intro, where part of my logo moves. I decided to try this with the ending credits, albeit with a gun. My first attempt was with a shotgun, namely a MOSS-500. After uploading the images to Photoshop, I edited the Threshold to make it black and white.

Whilst doing this, I also removed the pump so I could edit it in Final Cut. By adding a motion key frame into the sequence, I moved the pump, thus adding the special effect.

L2 GROUP 1: ROULETTE END SEQUENCE - FINAL from cmdiploma on Vimeo.

SESSION 20-21

L2 GROUP 1: ROULETTE END SEQUENCE - STAGE 1 from cmdiploma on Vimeo.

Above is the finished film ROULETTE. We uploaded this only yesterday on Monday, but today we have received feedback for the film. Most of it was positive, though several people have commented on how we did the spinning camera scene, suggesting we redo this to make it more smooth, and several different camera angles have been suggested by Steve to be redone to make it more effective.

PRODUCTION TIMELINE

Our film planning began several weeks ago, when we had to decide on what the plot must be, or “Genre.” After watching a famous scene out of the 1970 film, “The Deer Hunter,” which involves a game called Russian roulette. After we all agreed to this, we built up from that point from an original idea for an assassination attempt in a park, but due to restrictions (Including being unable find an Mini-14 replica) we used the idea of roulette to replace this idea. After we decided our idea, it then came down to deciding character roles, Tom as the antagonist, Jamie and I as protagonists.

STORYBOARD AND PLOT

We based most of plot around that of the deer hunter; only it is set in modern times instead of Vietnam. We begin the film with two hostages in what appears to be a storage room, giving the sense that the two were kidnapped. After a small bit of dialogue, the antagonist or villain climbs a set of stairs to where the two victims are held captive, and after laying a gun on the table, one of the victims reveal that the gun is for roulette, which startles his fellow. After threatening him with another gun, he forces the both of them to play. After several blank shots, one of the captives finally cracks under the pressure, refusing to continue. In the heat of the moment, the remaining victim assures him that the next chamber is empty, despite not knowing what will happen next. The man accepts this, points the gun at his head and fires. The next chamber does in fact have a bullet, and he shoots himself in the head, and then dies. Whilst in grief, the villain then reveals that he was going to kill the both of them anyway. Enraged, the remaining victim retaliates, stealing the gun off the villain and hitting him in the head, taking the gun from his dead captive in the process. The villain recovers and follows his prey down a set of stairs. Whilst he is looking for him, the survivor appears from behind him and raises his gun to the mans head as the screen blanks to white, leaving the death anonymous.

SESSION 18-19

We have finished our film today, Jamie was able to upload the final piece of soundtrack, so now we just have to wait for the viewing.

SESSION 16-17

Today was pretty much the same as yesterday. Editing the audio bugs out of the footage, ad waiting for the soundtrack.

SESSION 14-15

We were able to finish off our film today. We just need the soundtrack from Jamie then its finished.

SESSION 12-13

Today we were able to make a final draft of our film. The only things left to do is to add the soundtrack, SFX and a review from Steve. And lets not forget the report. Hooray! (Sarcasticlly.)

SESSION 10-11

I was able to make sequence out of the shots we had available, but we need to convert some of our other shots to be compatible with the Mac. Creating the film in FinalCut took most of the 1 1/2 hour sessions.

SESSION 8-9

Today was mainly catchup. I was able to complete my blog posts, and Tom did some further editing on the shots. In session 9 we hope to finish off the shots from yesterday.

SESSION 9

We were able to successfully retake our shots, making a very effective blood effect. Tom was also able to take his MOA shot which we hope to use in the future. The only thing left to do now is edit it all in FinalCut to make a film.

SESSION 6-7

Picking up from where we left off, me and Tom were able to complete our draft. Whilst we were doing this, Jamie worked on the films soundtrack. After Steve reviewed the footage, he made several suggestions about some of our film shots, namely on adding a new shot where the camera would be at the POV of the gun. We decided to do this during session 6 due to lack of time.

SESSION 7

During session 7, we attempted to try a new effect involving a washing liquid bottle and lot of red paint. Steve had suggested we do this to show Jamie's "Brains getting blown out." Due to constrictions however, we had to leave it until tomorrows session. We were able to, however, get the POV shots completed, along with some retakes due to previous shots breaking the 180 degree rule.

SESSION 4-5

After session 3, we picked up from where we left off, being able to film the rest of the end film sequence.

SESSION 5

During session 5, we had been able to film all of our clips during session 4, so we were able to upload the images to Final Cut (I did this at lunch to help save some time.) Tom and I arranged the clips onto Final Cut after we named each one (Shot 1, Shot 2 etc.)

SESSION 2-3

SESSION 1

During session 1 we filled out an equipment sheet for the following;

1 Film Camera

1 Stills Camera

1 Tripod

Whilst our equipment was being prepared, we made one last prop check.

SESSION 2

After session 1, I changed into my suit while Tom and Jamie prepared the location for filming. Steve was with us because we were not allowed to be in the cleaners room without permission. We were able to film almost half of the film in roughly an hour 1/2.

SESSION 1

Today we decided on what roles each of us shall be taking;

-Director: Shared

-Camera: Shared

-Editor: Mainly Craig

-Soundtrack: Jamie

We also ran a final check on our storyboard and props.

Craig: Suit and gun

Tom: Leather Jacket and gun

Jamie: Superdry Jacket

Steve: Squirt bottle

Our final location is the cleaners room above reception.

Health and Safety

Today, my group shall be filming our action thriller end sequence. However, as the location we are filming in contains several hazards, such as bleach, equipment etc. Most of this is in a separate storage area however, and should not interfere with actual filming. Low light is another problem, so we must be careful not to leave equipment lying around. The area is also used for storage, namely chairs, tables and desks. Most of this is stacked around the walls, leaving a risk of toppling over.

A dolly uses wheels, and in low light conditions, it may be a serious threat to health if someone slips.

Saatchi Gallery - Ximena Garrido - The Followers

This is my contact sheet for The Saatchi Gallery exhibit, The Followers.



The Saatchi Gallery

The gallery was opened in 1985, constructed in a disused paint factory on St John's Wood, by Charles Saatchi.The first exhibition was held in October 1985, with most of the works displayed by Donald Judd, Brice Marden and Cy Twombly. These exhibits were followed by more in December to July in 1986. In 1987, the nearby caretakers flat was demolished to make room for the "Serra" exhibit.

Film Poster

The three film posters I have picked generally have some form of action or suspense implied into it, something I hope to include in my film.

My first poster is from the film "The Matrix", written and directed by Larry and Andy Wachowski.

PEOPLE

The characters on the poster are as follows;

· Keanu Reeves as Neo, the main protagonist of the film, known for his previous work in filming.

· Laurence Fishburne as Morpheus, one of the main antagonists of the film, known for his early acting in the soap “One life to live.”

· Carrie-Anne Moss as Trinity, the final main antagonist of the film, known for her works such as “Lethal Tender.”

· Joe Pantoliano as Cypher, as one of the secondary antagonists of the film, known for his work in “The Goonies.”

DESIGN

The design of the poster depicts the characters standing in what appears to be an alleyway. Each one is dressed in combat clothes, each armed with guns, e.g. Neo is armed with an M16, and Trinity is armed with Glock 17 etc. It means that they are preparing for a firefight. This shows that the film will involve combat. The background also has what seems to be numbers, or more accurately code trickling down. This is a reference to the importance of computers and the Matrix itself. The tagline also states “The fight for the future begins.” This tells the reader that the film is set in the future, yet still leaves the question of why they are using old weapons.

COLOR

Most of the color shown on the poster is a light sort of purple, which helps to show the characters dark clothing. Most of the clothing is dark, making it seem dark and ominous.

My second film poster is from the film “The Deer Hunter”, co-written and directed by Michael Cimino.

PEOPLE

There is only one person in the poster, Michael (Played by Robert De Niro) who is pointing a revolver (an M1917) at his head, playing the lethal game of Russian roulette.

DESIGN

Most of the design of the poster is basic, having only three colors, black, white and red. The effect is a silhouette of the person, showing him shrouded in shadows. The gun is also visible, showing that there is danger. The red of the bandanna could also show what happens if you lose in roulette. It also gives some insight as to what the film is about, bandanas being used greatly during the war due to heat and weather or where conditions were unsuitable for helmets. The revolver also offers some in sight; the M1917 was used extensively throughout the Vietnam War.

COLOR

Most of the color is bland, having only black, white and red. It may show that men who have been scarred in service of the war, making them silhouettes of who they once were. The red also shows what happens if you lose a game of Russian roulette; a bloody mess.

My third and final film poster is from the film “Quantum of Solace”, directed by Marc Forster.

PEOPLE

Similarly to “The Deer Hunter”, “Quantum of Solace” only has one character, Daniel Craig as James Bond, a fictional agent of MI6 and the newest Bond in the series.

DESIGN

The poster shows Bond walking in what seems to be the desert, in the classic suit attire that has become recurrent throughout the series. He is also holding an H&K UMP45.acp submachine gun with stock and silencer, a weapon manufactured in Germany. This however is not very revealing, as the most common weapon used throughout the entire James Bond series is a Walther PP, a weapon also manufactured throughout Germany and Bonds primary sidearm. The use of the desert however does offer some insight as to where the films is set. The title is also depicted to have the classic 007 written into it, the same effect was used in the previous film “Casino Royale.”

COLOR

Most of the color is grey and white, helping to emphasize the location. It also helps to clearly show Bond in the suit as he walks through the desert.

Storyboards

Before the production of the actual film, we need to make storyboards, rough sketches of scenes of the film we wish to create. The scenes in yellow are key scenes, areas which need most attention as they play a vital role in the film.

The first few scenes are namely establishing shots, showing the main characters and the reason why they are there.

The second part of the storyboard shows that the men are being held captive by a mercenary, whom is now forcing them to play Russian Roulette.

After several blank shots, one of the captives is starting to lose his nerve. In an attempt to calm him, his fellow assures him that the next round is a blank. However, the next round is in fact a bullet, and the ma n is shot dead, leaving the survivor with guilt. As a twist ending, the mercenary then reveals that he intended to kill the survivor anyway.

The survivor tries to combat the mercenary, managing to steal his gun and land a blow. But the merc manages to recover, forcing the survivor to run. Using a second pistol, the mercenary gives chase, but loses him. Finding a door open, he walks into a dark room. A gun appears from the shadows, and as the mercenary turns to fire the screen turns to black. A shot is then heard, leaving the death unanimous.

Action Thriller Mood Board

Most of my images on the Mood Board are in reference to the deadly game of Russian Roulette, in which a single round is placed in a revolver. The cylinder is spun, the participant places the muzzle against their head and pulls the trigger. Other images include the roulette wheel and alcohol,. I picked these pictures as gambling can sometimes be done when a human is at its weakest, for instance in a drunken state. The blood money picture was added as any money gained in a game of Russian Roulette is gained when blood is spilled. Some of the other pictures include shadowy figures holding guns or lurking in shadows. I added these pictures as sometimes the game is played by those who have no background, who lurk in shadows until they are needed. I also added this in reference to how I want my film sequence to go, to have action and suspense.

Garage Band

In Garageband I made a piece of soundtrack for my short film. I decided to use bass namely for most of the piece, with drums to go in the background. This task was one of the more difficult ones in the long run; I like to listen to music but I'm not that good at composing it. One of my main ideas for using bass was from the song "Little Green Bag," by George Baker.

RUN FORREST RUN

Match on Action

Match on Action is a term used in filming when the editor cuts a shot whilst there is something going on, for instance; if someone is in the process of opening a door. They can open the door whilst the camera is in a over shoulder shot, then the scene can be cut, then continued instead in a establishing shot, giving the feeling that the whole process happened in a single motion.

Print: Alex Rider

The Alex Rider series is a set of spy novels written by Anthony Horowitz. Revolving around the life of the reluctant spy Alex Rider, recruited by MI6 after the death of his uncle, as he is forced to undergo several life threatening missions and exploits.

The first book in the series, Stormbreaker, is the foundation of the Alex Rider novels, being something like a prologue to the next seven books. It depicts Alex as a 14 year old orphan, his mother and father dead due to a plane crash. After his uncle, Ian Rider, is murdered in unforseen circumstances, Alex is recruited by the fictional MI6 in order to infiltrate a computer company. In the book, Alex uses several different gadgets, some ingenious to and some house hold objects, in order to evade and infiltrate the company.

Whilst the first book was merely the prologue, and despite leaving several questions unanswered, it was extremely successful, namely in the younger generation. Most reveiws included the term "Its James Bond as a teenager."

Anthony Horrowitz had written several other novels before the Alex Rider series. He is also known to have written the scripts for the Midsummer Murder series for ITV. But in novels, he has written over 50 books, his most popular titles are The Diamond Brothers, and The Power of Five. Most, if not all, of the books published by Anthony have been distributed by Walker Books.

Other products include the game based on Stormbreaker, graphic novels and a book explaining the gadgets throughout the series. The game itself was given poor reviews by IGN and ONM, stating the game "Just isn't good."

Audio Visual: The Green Mile

The Green Mile is a American dram film, based on the novel by Stephen King, and directed by Frank Darabont. The two main characters, Tom Hanks as Paul Edgecomb and Michael Clarke Duncan as John Coffey, are put through a series of events whilst John is on deathrow, known as the "Green mile."

The film itself was released on December 10th 1999 in cinemas all over the country, being distributed by Warner Bros and Universal Pictures respectively. A teaser trailer was released shortly before the films release. The budget for the film was $6,000,000, the gross revenue being $286,801,388. The film won over 10 awards over a period of two years, and reveiws from major critics such as Rotten Tomatoes were positive. The target audience is for those whom like tearjerker films, or those who have seen previous works by Tom Hanks.

Frank Darabont, the director of the film, had only produced one previous film before the Green Mile, The Shawshank Redemption. the recurrence with Frank is that all of his films hadbeen based off of works by Stephen King, his most recent film being The Mist. He had also written several scripts for horror films, such as The Fly 2, The Blob, Nightmare on Elm street, and Frankenstien.

Electronic Media Product: Bioshock series

"Bioshock"is a series of FPS Role playing video games, namely for XBOX 360 or PS3. The first two games, labelled Bioshock and Bioshock 2 respectively, revolve around the events of the fictional underwater city of Rapture as it devolves in civil war and chaos.

The first Bioshock was released on August 21st 2007 by 2K and Irrational games. The first trailer was released on August 12 2007, 9 days before the games actual release. It is a teaser trailer that shows the protagonist fighting against one of the in-game enemy's, a Big Daddy. It also shows some of the in-game features, such as Plasmids and weapons.

The game follows the silent protagonist, Jack, as he makes his way through Rapture after surviving a plane crash. The game itself has mechanics that make it differ from other FPS, for instance; Ammo conservation, observation of surroundings, and most interesting of all, morality. One of the key in-game physics of Bioshock test the players morality of whether to save or harvest ADAM (In game currency) from the Little Sisters.

The sequel, Bioshock 2, was released on February 9 2010. Taking game 10 years after first game, it follows the protagonist Subject Delta as he fights through Rapture to reunite with his Little Sister, Eleanor Lamb. Using most of the gameplay mechanics from the first game, more features were added into the sequel, such as new enemy's, the most prominent being the Big Sister, the option to adopt a Little Sister to yield more ADAM, and different location, plus a whole new story line going into how Rapture was destroyed in the first place.

The target audience for this game is 16-18, as not only does it contain blood, gore,violence etc, but it also contains content that may be disturbing for younger players.

http://www.2kgames.com/#/

http://irrationalgames.com/

Audio: Bob Crosby

Bob Crosby, brother of the better known Bing Crosby, was an American Dixieland (Jazz) bandleader during the 1930's to the late 1960's.

Born in 1913, and the youngest of seven children, Bob's first stages in his singing career began in 1933, when he was one of the several to star in Anson Weeks "Luck strike magic carpet" radio program, and later on going into works with the Dorsey Brothers in 1934-5. His first real breakthrough came in late 1935, where he formed a band from former members of Ben Pollacks group. With this, he made recordings with the Clark Randall orchestra, led by Gill Rodin. With the revival of jazz during the 1940's, Bob Crosby spent 18 months in the US Marines during WW2, touring alongside various bands of the Pacific. During this, he had his show played on the air by NBC and CBS, and during 1947 to 1953 he was aired by "Club Fifteen." In-between 1952-3, he replaced Phil Harris as the band player on the "Jack Benny show," boosting his popularity as he was frequently seen with Benny, until the show was retired in 1955. In-spite of this, Bob and his band, whom had come to be known as the Bob-Cats, had frequent reunions in-between the 1950's to the 1960's. During the 1960's, two former members of the "Bob Crosby Orcherstra," Bob Haggart and Jack Lawson formed a band in order to keep dixieland jazz known, which also used several of Bob's techniques, which made it the worlds greatest jazz band (Though the two founders kept the original Lawson Haggart Jazz band as their title." Bob later died in the 1990's, due to unforeseen issues of cancer.

In-spite of his death in the 1990's, Bob's work is still known throughout several films and, most recently, the video game Fallout 3 which features three of his pieces, one of which was recorded before he died.

180 Degree Rule

The 180 degree rule is a term used for filming. An imaginary line is placed down the center of two characters, and the camera is not allowed to cross this line, or else it would make the film confusing for a viewer. If the camera goes over the 180 degrees, it is known as a reverse angle.

Target Audience Member

My character is a 16 year old boy called Sam. He likes to listen to old rock, Elvis, The Doors etc, in places such as Star bucks when he is socializing with his friends. Generally he eats Dominoes or McDonalds when his parents are out. One of his hobbies are watching films at the cinema, namely ones including Tom Hanks. His favorite kinds of games are the Half Life series, and Bioshock. He also reads newspapers such as The Daily Mail for updates on important events, he also does this on BBC but he also likes the Simpsons.

Horror Stills Report

Horror Stills Report

Genre

· Western

· Musical

· Science Fiction

· Romantic

· Comedy

· Horror

· Thriller

· Gangster

· Animation

Genre is a term used to categorize a film into a certain type. It takes the elements of the film and places it into said category, e.g. Blood, gore and victims generally fall into horror categories. The audience uses it so that they get a brief idea of what they are about to watch, and also what they may not want to watch. A film producer can use pre existing methods for a certain genre to make his or her film more impacting on the audience. The conventions in a film genre are generally well know via the category, e.g. a Western is presumed to have cowboys and standoffs, and a horror is presumed to have victims and masked murderers, blood gore etc.

The Task

The task we were instructed to do was to take a total of 10 shots of different perspective and angle. These photos are known as stills, and the 10 angles are as follows;

· Establishing shot

· Close up

· Extreme close up

· Mid shot

· Canted angle

· Long shot

· POV (Point Of View)

· Over the shoulder

· High angle

· Low angle

Our first idea as a group was a basic setting; Man walks into elevator, gets attacked by zombie. The idea itself was appealing at the time, so we focused on the camera shots. The storyboard itself was done on post it notes in case we needed to change shots around. One of our particular shots was from the perspective of a CCTV surveillance camera, which was used for the cantered shot. Our ideas changed in the means of location and characters, only two people were used in the stills; Tom and myself. We all added images off of Google to compensate for this, I used zombies from Half Life 2 as there were not many other images available at the time, but even though they were computer generated, they worked extremely well In the stills. As for the location, out first set up was the elevator in the reception area, but this was unfeasible at the least due to people constantly going through the place. Our luck changed however when we were given permission to use the G block elevator.

Production and Construction

Shooting was simple in some areas but more complicated in others. The establishing shot for instance was the easiest shot to do as it was a simple matter of having a man walk towards an elevator, and the area was relatively open, but the cantered shot was extremely difficult on my account, as we had to put a chair into an elevator to get the elevated position. But the shot itself paid off in the long run by my standards. By taking several blank shots we were able to edit in Photoshop and add effects such as dismemberment, blood and zombies. By using the lasso tool I cut off some of the limbs of the victim and placed them elsewhere, then I used some custom-made blood spatter brushes to add the after effect. I also changed the layer to multiply to make it seem more realistic. Whilst in Photoshop I also added an image onto one layer, then another image onto another layer to create a sort of overlapping effect instead of having to use the eraser tool. And as for the soundtrack, I picked each piece to have a sort of build up effect to make the audience believe that something shall happen.

Reflection and Evaluation

On the whole I believe my short to be good overall, minus having some plot holes. But what I would prefer to do differently next time would be to have a change in location, as the elevator scene was something I jumped into too quickly. But aside from all of this I have learned several different techniques in Photoshop, such as how to add certain effects, plus how to make a shot film on Final Cut.

Find Your Tribe

www.findyourtribe.co.uk This site allows you to complete an interactive quiz asks you questions about tastes on Music, Fashion, Lifestyle, Brands and Media Preferences. At the end of the quiz it places you in your tribe, these include;

1. Trendies
2. Hipster
3. Craft kids
4. Clubbers 1
5. PC World
6. Techies
7. Townies 2
8. Rahs 1
9. Chaus 1
10. Street Rats
11. Boy Racers
12. Sports Junkies 1
13. Blingers 1
14. Bhangram Muffins
15. Trackies
16. DIYers 1
17. Get Paid Crew
18. Smart Urban
19. Indie Kids 1
20. Skaters 1
21. Mosters
22. Grungers
23. Emos
24. Goths
25. Scene Kids 1
26. Indie Scenestars

(No I did not make these up!"

"You are a Townie! Your job might be a bit boring but it brings home the bacon and helps you save up for those two weeks away to Spain. Your weekends are set in stone – trip to the shops in town, buy yourself something nice, head to the All Bar One with friends, have a laff, maybe go for a club, as long as there’s none of the indie weirdo music. Keep it straight, you say."

The outcome of my quiz was "Townie," this does sum me up in a nutshell (Minus the six pints) as I generally do save money and I'm not a fan of goth music.

Making a Logo

The most recent (and perhaps most arduous) task in CRaM was to design and make a logo. The most obvious problem at first was what would my logo be. At first my idea was to have an engravement on a bullet coming out of a gun (a .45 or a .357 series.) This deemed to be too difficult however, the problem being that getting the animation for the actual sequence, that and the engravement would be too small to read. So I decided to think more intricately, but my true idea came from steve, whom suggested instead on making the engravement on the bullet, why not have it on the gun itself. The idea stuck, so I looked into Google images, focusing mainly on the M1911 series.

Eventually I found an image, so I edited it in Photoshop. Then came another problem, I could not use an image straight off the web due to copyright issues. But I could edit the image with an effect called threshold, which changed the images color to black and white, allowing for certain areas to be darker correspondingly. After a quick bit of editing the image was ready, and I added some text on the handle using a text box, also I changed the angle slightly.

Advertising Product: Team Fortress 2: Meet the Team

The game "Team Fortress 2" is an FPS Action Multiplayer video game created by Valve. It is a sequel (Or prequel according to the games in-game date) to TF Classic. It was released on October 10 2007 as part of "The Orange Box", containing HL2, HL2ep1, HL2ep2, and Portal.

TF2 used an unique advertising campaign, after releasing the games first trailer the TF2 Team at Valve released 7 videos onto the web, entitled "Meet the Team". Each video gave a description about the in-game classes and abilities, beginning with "Meet the Heavy", each new video being released with each class update.

TF2 was created by Valve, an American gaming corporation who also made other popular titles, such as Counter Strike, L4D, Half Life, HL2, and Portal.

The target audience for TF2 is based around 12-16, as the game itself only has mild blood/gore references, and also because it is less serious line from other games, such as MW2 and L4D.

http://teamfortress.com/

http://www.valvesoftware.com/