Notes about Texting and Driving

Teenage years are supposed to be the best time In my life, because all I have to worry about Is me. Why should I care about the next person? Who can I hurt by sending out this text? My girls and I are Just fooling around and having some fun and I'm Just texting some boy teasing my friend In the back. It will only take a second to send this text and then I'm right back to being focused on the road. What can happen In a second? Nothing! Until I look up and It's too late.

I wish I had a second more.Now I'm heading head-first Into another vehicle and thereS nothing I can do about It but scream. My life and other people's lives are on the line and all because I just wanted to play around. Was sending out this text to a boy that important? Texting and driving is such a serious issue as we see in a public service announcement directed by Peter Watkins-Hughes and produced by Tred films called "Cow" and teenage girls need to realize that while they are behind that wheel they are responsible not only for their lives but other people's lives as well.This video is irected specifically towards teenage girls, seventeen to nineteen, and an unusually strong emphasis on character development in "Cow' helps teenage girls feel a connection of camaraderie to Cassie, Jules and Em by connecting the similarities in personality and life-issues.

At the start of the public service announcement there are a lot of techniques being used to help "Cow" achieve its goal in targeting teenagers. Two techniques used in Cassie's dream are foreshadowing and character development.The target audience can feel suspense and curiosity with foreshadowing and liberated, carefree and fellowship with the character development. In the dream when Cassie is coming out the house to get in the car her parents don't really pay any attention to her. They lust give Cassie a quick wave and go back into their conversation they were having, not showing any interest in Cassie. This could mean there is some disconnect between Cassie and her parents, therefore foreshadowing why Cassie acts the way she does later on.

Once Cassie gets In the car, water starts coming out of the vents and begins flooding the vehicle. As Cassie Is trying to stop the water coming out the vents with her hands, she's also screaming for help at the same time. This scene fills he target audience up with suspense because they know something terrible Is going to happen later with Cassie and also It gives the audience curiosity, wondering what will happen to Cassie. Also Cassie trying to answer the rlnglng cell phone while drowning foreshadows that a cell phone will play a major part later on.

Next Cassie wakes up from the dream because of the phone ringing and it's Em that is on the other line. By the use of character development we find out some details in the next scene about Cassie and Em. When Cassie picks up the phone after waking up from the dream she tells Em, "It's early. Its not even breakfast time yet" (Watkins- Hughes). As the audience sees the clock by Cassie's bed it says 12:57 P. M and like a typical teenager, Cassie likes to go to sleep and wake up late.

Also Cassie has to be at work at 2:00 P. M and still has not gotten out of bed showing that she is lazy and a procrastinator. During the conversation between Cassie and Em, Em is wearing a devil's headband, showing that she might be the bad apple out of the group of friends. Also she is very outspoken, pushy and aggressive when she tells Cassie, "If you want to be on the tour, you better get your fast ass up you know. Because Jack Ends is going bonkers" (Watkins-Hughes).After Cassie hangs up the phone she goes right back to sleep and doesn't wake up until 2:30 P.

M. As Cassie is rushing for work the audience can see her in the bathroom popping a pimple and as it is ready to burst the scene switches to mayo being squirted onto a potato chip sandwich. Cassie is Just like typical teenagers, who Just eats anything, worries about her face and doesn't care about healthiness. Next the audience sees Em inside a gas station buying alcohol as Cassie and Jules wait in the car.

Em gets back in the car and takes the first drink and turns and asks Cassie, "Want some Cass? (Watkins-Hughes).Cassie says, "No, no guys I'm driving" (Watkins-Hughes) and by this the audience learns that she is aware that drinking is dangerous while driving. Although Cassie thinks drinking and driving is dangerous, though, she's not aware how unsafe texting and driving is. According to Stephanie Hanes in "Texting While Driving Is as Dangerous as Drunk Driving", texting and driving is as dangerous if not more dangerous than being intoxicated. Just because Cassie didn't want to take that drink there are other risky actions that could lead to the same result as drinking and driving would lead to.Studies have showed, "A driver on a phone had the same reaction speed as someone legally intoxicated, that those talking on a phone behind the wheel are four times as likely to crash, that texting while driving is even more dangerous" (Hanes).

Watkins- Hughes is trying to make the same point that teens see drinking and driving as a bad idea, but don't realize texting and driving is even worse. Next the audience sees Cassie, Em and Jules riding around in a parking lot having fun and checking for boys. Em is aggressive in her approach towards the guy while they are riding around, more so because she has alcohol in her system.After they leave the parking lot and are driving around police attempt to pull their car over. Cassie tells Em, "Hide your booze" (Watkins-Hughes), knowing that if they get pulled over with alcohol they could get in trouble and Cassie doesn't realize if she gets caught texting and driving the penalty could be Just as harsh if not tougher for texting and driving. In "Teen Gets Jail Time For Texting-while-Driving Death", Stephanie Mlot tells us that texting and driving can result and Jail time Just like drinking and driving.

Aaron Deveau, 18, was found guilty on charges of vehicular homicide, texting while driving, and negligent peration of a motor vehicle" and he was sentenced to two and a half years behind bars. With the deaths and injuries that Cassie causes because of texting and driving, she might also have to do some Jail time. The target audience's attention has been mostly on the three teenage girls from the start of the video, setting the scene for the crash, by keeping them attentive with the teen-like qualities of Cassie and her friends.Teenagers see their free spirit, innocent, and not-a-worry-in-the-world attitude, therefore giving them the same effect. As a result the target audience can identify with Cassie, Em and Jules, feeling a onnection to them, and they will pay more attention to the crash scene to come and why the crash happens.

As Cassie is sending a text, "James my mate fancies u x" (Watkins-Hughes) , and is holding the phone in her right hand up to her face, teenagers can tell by her body language that she is focused on only sending that text.Cassie might think she is in control but in all actuality she's not. Her eyes look almost closed and by that the target audience can tell she is not looking at the road but down onto the text she is sending. According to an article "Texting Fails Road Tests", reaction time slows down while texting and driving. Therefore, when Cassie looks up during her texting she has no time to react to her heading straight into another vehicle because when she looks up she is already seconds from heading into the other vehicle.Research from Australia has found that typical non-texting teens take their eyes off the road 10% of the time-to check road signs, change the radio, or Just look around-but when teens are texting while driving that lack of road focus Jumps to 40%.

A spokesperson for the National Safety Council notes not only is that a huge increase in the amount a time a driver's eyes are off the road, but a 140% increase in ane violations, where drivers weave across lanes because they are not paying attention" ( "Texting Fails Road Tests").As we see Cassie might think she's in control and can both text and drive but statistics show that because her focus is on sending that text, not the road that she can't possibly be in control. Therefore lack of focus on responsibilities and worrying about boys are putting Cassie, Em and Jules in a bad predicament and these are traits teenage girls display all the time. The person Cassie is texting James about is Jules who is in the back seat and Jules' body language and ords show that she is upset about this text.Jules rolls her eyes and tells the other girls, "Please stop" and "It's not even funny now' (Watkins-Hughes), while the front passenger Em who is an instigator is cheering Cassie on to send the text. Em is also saying, "woo" (Watkins-Hughes) and is laughing and smiling as Cassie is sending the text.

Also the camera is focused on the girls and nothing else for the first section of the video to show that teenage girls are in their own world and, Just like the audience, don't know what else is going on outside the car. This is important because eenagers tend to think they are the only ones relevant and that nobody else is important.Texting a boy, playing around with friends, and a free-spirited without a care in the world are things teenage girls can identify with. As they witness these characteristics the target audience is able to relate to Cassie, Em and Jules and therefore pay more attention to the details as the crash scene is being set up. Teenage girls tend to get scared easier then boys and with the death, blood, sound effect, and gruesomeness of the impact this scene is meant to put fear and shock in teenage girls by using the technique of CGI.

According to "The Making Of British Text and Drive Car Crash PSA - Special Effects Breakdown", Zipline Creative production used a green screen in order to make the special effects work. They shot a scene in front of a green screen, then removed it and added the motion background, fake window, blood, glass shattering and cell phone with the CGI computer program ("The Making Of"). Hopefully this technique will make teenagers more attentive to the video and the consequence of texting. Right before the first impact the target audience can see the instant fear on Cassie's and Em's faces when they realize that hey are about to crash.As the first impact happens the blood shoots right out of Cassie's head and onto the window.

Also during the crash scene Cassie's air bag comes out, she hits her head on it as her neck snaps forward, and she then hits the side of her head on the driver's side window as her neck snaps to the side. Since Jules does not have her seat belt on, she is tossed to the front and then tossed to the back where she hits the back of her head on the rear window. After that she is tossed to the side and she hits the back of her head which is the cause of her death.This shot is possible with the help of CGI.

They shot Jules with a green screen background and had her motioning her body like she was in a real accident. They then take the shot to the computer program where the green screen is digitally removed. Then the window is added and they speed the motion of Jules' body up where it looks like she has been in a real accident. Now Em who has no airbag on her side and as the first impact of the accident takes place, her neck is snapped forward and she hits her head on the dashboard.