J A M I E W H I T B R E A D

SECONDARY RESEARCH

MAIN TASK: FILM TRAILER

• Mark Ramey in issue September 2010 of Media Magazine, said that it is crucial to know the typical conventions of the genre, as this will make the trailer be received better by an audience as they can identify the trailer as the certain genre easier.

• For instance, the typical conventions of a horror trailer include high and low key contrast lighting, canted camera angles, extreme close ups and jump cuts. Ramey says that the rules are like a recipe to making the perfect film.

(Low key lighting) (Canted Angle Shot) (Extreme Close Up)

BARTHES’ ENIGMA CODE

• Barthes’ Enigma Code (1964) is a theory which suggests that the audience is drawn in through the use of mystery, because they are likely to question what they have just seen, and the answer will only lie in the film. This makes it likely that the audience will go to see the film. For example, in the trailer of the film of ‘The Blair Witch Project’, the opening scene tells the audience that three student filmmakers disappeared in the woods and were never seen again. This makes the viewers curious as they will want to know what has happened to the students and why they disappeared.

• We are planning to use Barthes’ Enigma Code by leaving some information out of our trailer. For instance, we are planning to use a doll for our trailer, and we will not give away the background of the doll in the trailer.

TODOROV’S NARRATIVE STRUCTURE

• Todorov’s Narrative Structure (1969) is a theory which suggests that films all start off with an equilibrium, and then have a disruption, followed again by the balanced equilibrium. Trailers do not always follow this structure, because most trailers only show the best scenes without trying to give too much of the film away, and will usually end with the disruption which intrigues the viewers to see the film.

• We will apply Todorov’s Narrative Structure to our trailer, which will start off balanced and end unbalanced, which will also make viewers curious to see the film.

• An example of Todorov’s Narrative Structure could be the trailer of ‘The Possession’. In the beginning of the trailer, everything is very calm, which gives the trailer a balanced look to it, but as the trailer progresses towards the end, after the character receives a certain box, it starts to become tense and unbalanced.

INFLUENCES - POSTER

• After looking at this, we have gained ideas and advice on what we can do to make our three different media products.

• Firstly, we are planning on typical horror conventions such as extreme close ups, canted angles, and low-key lighting as this will allow audiences to identify the film as part of the horror genre which will make them feel scared or uncomfortable while watching the film.

• After looking at Barthes’ Enigma Code, we have realised how important the creation of mystery is to make the trailer stand out. We will do this by not giving away too much information surrounding the key points of our trailer.

• To create mystery, our trailer will follow a non chronological structure where the pace will build up to create tension when the equilibrium will not be revealed unless the whole film is watched.

ANCILLARY TASK: FILM POSTER

• An article on ‘www.webdesignerdepot.com’, written by Mathew Carpenter, states that there are 7 elements to create a great movie poster. • Step 1: Attention - Use a striking image which will

gain attention from an audience, such as a character, as this will gain attention and allow insight into the plot of the film. For example, this Hangover poster has a light, gradient background and a large image which makes it stand out.

• Step 2: Iconography - Tell the audience the themes contained within the film with the image, but without telling them with words.

• Step 3: Interest - Make the viewer interested by placing them in the middle of a scene which can only be explained by seeing what comes before or after.

http://www.webdesignerdepot.com/2011/02/7-elements-of-a-great-movie-poster-design/

• Step 4: Appeal - Make the film appeal to all suitable audiences, to both fans and non-fans alike, by using elements that will stand out more to certain fans, such as the choice of names or the actors used.

• Step 5: Style - The film poster should have a unique style that matches that of the film’s overall genre, as this will help the audience to identify the genre. It is also important to ensure that the style used is apparent over all products, because this makes them more recognisable. For instance, we can see this with the posters used for the Harry Potter series. The first poster is somewhat bright, which reflects the uplifting, warm-hearted style of the film. However, in the later film posters, the posters start to turn gloomy and darker to reflect the ominous themes of the film.

• Step 6: Lasting Appeal – The poster needs to be something that can later be reused to achieve it’s maximum potential. For example, the image needs to be something that can be remembered and reused easily. For instance, the poster can be resized and reused for a DVD cover, which will make the DVD recognisable.

• Step 7: Recognisabilty – A film poster should have something unique that makes it different and recognisable against other posters. For instance, The Godfather series are recognisable by the dark background, the bold, white title and the dark, shadowed image of the protagonist. This theme is followed throughout the Godfather 1, 2 and 3, which makes all of the films recognisable.

HOW TO READ A FILM POSTER

Tim Brownlee of Media Magazine says that all of the words and images have a denotative meaning. The denotation of a word or image is what you are seeing. Everything used on a poster can be read into further and have a deeper meaning, such as the setting, colours, actors, clothing, and etc. An example could be how blue is often used to represent sadness and to make things seem cold.In the film poster that we will create alongside our trailer, we are planning to use colours such as grey, as they can connote a chilling, paranormal atmosphere which is suited to the horror genre. The choice of actor we will use are also intended to represent our target audience, which is young adults, because of their age, costume and status.

TIPS FOR MAKING A MOVIE POSTER

• Understand the Film – Make sure that you understand the full story when creating the poster, because this will make others have an idea of the story which can help to make them judge whether they will want to see it or not.

• Pick the right font – Although there are many different types of font styles, only a select few will be good enough for the poster. Make sure that the font is vivid, clean, and readable for effected and clear communication.

• Avoid Clutter – White space will help to keep your poster design clean and a lot more organized and will alow more people to focus their attention on the important details.

http://unifiedmanufacturing.com/blog/5-tips-making-movie-posters/

INTERTEXTUAL REFERENCES

• In Media Magazine, Tom Brownlee talks about Intertexual References. This is where a product takes a verbal or visual reference from another product.

• In our film poster, we had the idea for an intertextual reference, which was to use similar text that the poster of ‘The Woman in Black’ uses, because we think that the ghost-like look is what we are aiming to create.

• We are also inspired by the foggy background which hides the ghostly face, and we would perhaps like to use this as another reference.

INFLUENCE - POSTER

• When we were researching advice for creating a film poster, we found that the Mathew Carpenter’s article ‘7 Elements to Creating a Film Poster’ was the most useful.

• We understand the importance of the image in the film poster, as this will entice the audience while still telling them a story without words.

• An idea we have thought of was to use toys in our film poster as this will be striking to the viewer as people are usually used. Toys are also associated with children and innocence so it will be somewhat shocking to the viewers. The image would help to communicate the story without having to use any text.

• We are also hoping to make our film poster seem somewhat simple and use some white space, as this will allow the poster to appear organized while still making the audience focus on certain parts of the poster.

• Conventions of film posters generally include a striking image, the film title, the release date of the film, and actors or company names which we will try to include to make our trailer seem realistic.

MAGAZINES

• An article written on ‘magazinepublisher.com’ gives us ‘design tips for a great magazine’. • User a Great Cover Photo – A magazine will

only have one chance to try and make a first impression, which makes the image vital to do this. A photo can be recognisable and stand out by showing action or relating to the target audience. Bright or unusual colours and unusual camera angles will also make the magazine stand out to the consumer.

For Example, Empire Magazine’s which shows The Joker uses bright, fluorescent colours which makes the text stand out.

Use a Great Masthead – The Masthead is the magazine’s logo. This means that it needs to be eye catching and the first thing that the consumer notices. All magazines will be fighting for the attention of the consumer, therefore a masthead that is designed well will entice the reader to read that magazine instead of another.

Careful Font Usage – The font that isused can also have a big impact on the overall look of the magazine. Using too many fonts can make the magazine cover look tacky and be visually confusing for the reader. This means that a maximum of three fonts should be used on a magazine at one time, and only fonts from the same font family should be used.

In an article online, Tina Zennand of ‘Underworld Magazines’ tells us how to design a great magazine cover with ‘simply irresistible tips’.Offer Something Extra - Give something out alongside that the consumers cannot receive in other ways, such as a free poster, a free gift, or special offers (such as money off). Show Some Energy – Make the pictures look exciting by making them different or unique. Also give the cover a compelling heading, and try to make the consumers what the magazine actually contains without using too many words.

http://www.underworldmagazines.com/how-to-design-a-great-magazine-cover-simply-irresistible-tips/

SUCCESSFUL MAGAZINE COVERS

Rebecca Loveridge (2011) says that there is a recipe that magazines follow in order to achieve success.• A Powerful Story and Compelling Image –The article that is featured on the front cover needs to be compelling as this is what consumers initally look at, and this is what will draw in readers. • Benefits for the Reader – The reader should be benefited with exclusive offers that will not be able to be found anywhere else, such as exclusive interviews and articles.• Spark Curiosity – Have one main coverline that is exciting and will make the consumers want to see it, but only to a limit of coverlines so that the cover does not become overcrowded.• Keep It Simple –Loveridge says that keeping it simple is most important, as a strong image on a white background will make it stand out, but also tell a story.

INFLUENCE - MAGAZINE

• When looking at secondary research for magazine covers, one mutual thing that we have noticed is that almost all of the articles we looked at told us to add something extra that will benefit the consumer.

• To apply this to our magazine cover, we have planned to feature our film as an exclusive interview or a review that will be unique to our particular magazine, which will benefit the consumer because they will not have heard or seen this about our film before.

• The masthead that we use will be big and stand out as it is the logo, and can influence whether someone picks up the magazine or no, as it needs to make the magazine stand out from a distance. Also, this needs to stand out to try and convey to the audience what the magazine is about.

• The photo will stand out, which is an important element which is going to make the consumer feel attracted to read it. We will make the camera angles used seem unusual to make our picture seem unique and stand out.