Due to the fact that my make-up has not arrived, I will not be filming on Wednesday as planned. Whether the delay in the delivery of my make-up is due to the weather or not, I'm finding it annoying that I'm having to delay filming for this.
Therefore, filming will begin on Friday 3rd December.
I will be filming:
Frame 34 (on storyboards as frame 31) - A MS of a door with Zombie hands trying to break through. This will be done on one of the college doors because they have glass panels so you can see some of the zombie too.
Frame 43 (on storyboards as frame 39) - A MCU of a zombie coming through a door. The same doors will be used.
Frame 37,38,39 which will be filmed in the upstairs of either the College OAK building or ASH toilets.
Possibly Frame 52, if we can find a dark enough room.
Tuesday, 30 November 2010
Sunday, 28 November 2010
Film Trailer Analysis 2
28 Days Later (2:05 minutes/Danny Boyle/2002)
28 Days Later is an older film than the tourist, being released in 2002. The trailer opens with a black screen and the words ‘On the first day’, and then some short quick-edited scenes, a warning sound and the words ‘EXPOSURE’. This is then followed by some more quick-edited scenes of a woman’s face then back to the black screen and the words ‘Day 3 INFECTION’. This continues and we see ‘Day 8 EPIDEMIC’ , the sound of a TV out of tune, ‘Day 15 EVACUATION’ , deep sounding emergency sirens, ‘Day 20 DEVASTATION’, the sound of smashing and cries, then lastly ‘28 days later…’
What the creator of the trailer is obviously trying to do is establish and get across to the audience what has happened, in a quick and quite scary manner. The font is often referred to as ‘destroyed’ which reflects the state of the country and humanity. The short clips from the film leave the audience wondering what on Earth has happened. This is common in trailers, as they give little away to audience so they see the film to find out more. The last words ‘28 days later…’ then establishes when the film is set and now 28 days have elapsed, the story begins.
Now we see a man after he opens the blinds. This connotates him waking up and seeing the destruction for the first time. This is the first character up close that we have seen an therefore we assume he is the protagonist. The next shots of the protagonist are wide or long shots giving him a sense of vulnerability and loneliness just like in MONSTERS with the couple. Plus, the trailer includes high angled shots which reinforces the idea of vulnerability. The protagonist is also seen along side iconographic things which represent London: red London buses, Houses of Parliament and Big Ben. This helps the audience identify where he is, without the trailer needing to say so. Plus, these busy places are now deserted, and this makes the audience wonder why.
After this there are an abundance of close-ups of the protagonists and other characters, mainly to show fear, panic and confusion. The edit is jumpy, montage and appears very random, which adds to the confusion.
A common feature of trailers is to use past achievements from the director or producer to advertise the film. In this trailer, we see non-diegetic text showing the successful films that Danny Boyle has created flashing on the screen. People will recognise these films, which hopefully they will have enjoyed, and want to see this film consequently.
The next shots are slightly longer than before, perhaps now for the audience to see the gore, which is plentiful. Again, the majority of the shots have no clear narrative and the random editing makes it confusing. Now we can hear a voice-overs of several different people, one who says ‘there’s something in the blood’. These short voice-overs give some information on what has happened.
Towards the end of the trailer, a small logo can be seen gradually getting larger with random inserts of chaos in between. The music An Ascent by Brian Eno, different to the rock music earlier heard to create a sense of sadness, to actually make the audience consider the incredible human cost of the tragedy. Then, suddenly, a zombie is seen through the window in a shot and charges forward. This is unexpected and could scare the audience, which is then followed by the credits information and the trailer ends.
The whole trailer is jumpy, edgy and gory. However, this isn’t off-putting, it actually grabs the audiences attention. The red writing and black backgrounds are typical of horror films so the audience can easily identify the genre. Just like with Monsters and The Tourist, it gives just enough information about the film away, without telling the audience too much, but also making it look appealing.
28 Days Later is an older film than the tourist, being released in 2002. The trailer opens with a black screen and the words ‘On the first day’, and then some short quick-edited scenes, a warning sound and the words ‘EXPOSURE’. This is then followed by some more quick-edited scenes of a woman’s face then back to the black screen and the words ‘Day 3 INFECTION’. This continues and we see ‘Day 8 EPIDEMIC’ , the sound of a TV out of tune, ‘Day 15 EVACUATION’ , deep sounding emergency sirens, ‘Day 20 DEVASTATION’, the sound of smashing and cries, then lastly ‘28 days later…’
What the creator of the trailer is obviously trying to do is establish and get across to the audience what has happened, in a quick and quite scary manner. The font is often referred to as ‘destroyed’ which reflects the state of the country and humanity. The short clips from the film leave the audience wondering what on Earth has happened. This is common in trailers, as they give little away to audience so they see the film to find out more. The last words ‘28 days later…’ then establishes when the film is set and now 28 days have elapsed, the story begins.
Now we see a man after he opens the blinds. This connotates him waking up and seeing the destruction for the first time. This is the first character up close that we have seen an therefore we assume he is the protagonist. The next shots of the protagonist are wide or long shots giving him a sense of vulnerability and loneliness just like in MONSTERS with the couple. Plus, the trailer includes high angled shots which reinforces the idea of vulnerability. The protagonist is also seen along side iconographic things which represent London: red London buses, Houses of Parliament and Big Ben. This helps the audience identify where he is, without the trailer needing to say so. Plus, these busy places are now deserted, and this makes the audience wonder why.
After this there are an abundance of close-ups of the protagonists and other characters, mainly to show fear, panic and confusion. The edit is jumpy, montage and appears very random, which adds to the confusion.
A common feature of trailers is to use past achievements from the director or producer to advertise the film. In this trailer, we see non-diegetic text showing the successful films that Danny Boyle has created flashing on the screen. People will recognise these films, which hopefully they will have enjoyed, and want to see this film consequently.
The next shots are slightly longer than before, perhaps now for the audience to see the gore, which is plentiful. Again, the majority of the shots have no clear narrative and the random editing makes it confusing. Now we can hear a voice-overs of several different people, one who says ‘there’s something in the blood’. These short voice-overs give some information on what has happened.
Towards the end of the trailer, a small logo can be seen gradually getting larger with random inserts of chaos in between. The music An Ascent by Brian Eno, different to the rock music earlier heard to create a sense of sadness, to actually make the audience consider the incredible human cost of the tragedy. Then, suddenly, a zombie is seen through the window in a shot and charges forward. This is unexpected and could scare the audience, which is then followed by the credits information and the trailer ends.
The whole trailer is jumpy, edgy and gory. However, this isn’t off-putting, it actually grabs the audiences attention. The red writing and black backgrounds are typical of horror films so the audience can easily identify the genre. Just like with Monsters and The Tourist, it gives just enough information about the film away, without telling the audience too much, but also making it look appealing.
Friday, 26 November 2010
Changes to storyboard
I've decided that there are two things wrong with my planned trailer after viewing the animatic.
Firstly, it is far too long. The shots at the beginning after about a minute long, and I do not want this to be a short film and more importantly, bore my audience.
Therefore these will be shorted as much as possible, perhaps up to 25 seconds.
Secondly, the first shots are all of the same woman, doing the same thing. It is neither scary or entertaining. I have decided to insert some short shots of what she is talking about. One of these a close-up of a tied down hand trying to break free with rage. This should break the sequence up and make it scarier!
New storyboards 5-8. Every numbered storyboard after 8 will now be n+4, were n is the original number.
Firstly, it is far too long. The shots at the beginning after about a minute long, and I do not want this to be a short film and more importantly, bore my audience.
Therefore these will be shorted as much as possible, perhaps up to 25 seconds.
Secondly, the first shots are all of the same woman, doing the same thing. It is neither scary or entertaining. I have decided to insert some short shots of what she is talking about. One of these a close-up of a tied down hand trying to break free with rage. This should break the sequence up and make it scarier!
New storyboards 5-8. Every numbered storyboard after 8 will now be n+4, were n is the original number.
Animatic of Trailer
The basic run-through of the trailer. It is far too long, mainly due to the length of each shot which is quite unrealistic and will be shorter when it comes to editing. This animatic has given me the chance to see for myself just how long it really will be.
Wednesday, 24 November 2010
2nd Draft of Film Poster
Final finished Poster as if on a real bus stop.This time I've added a scratched effect, and lightened the credits at the bottom because they are not meant to stand out as much as the main title, so now the title of the film should hopefully stand out more.
First draft (smaller image at bottom)
Poster Analysis 1
Angels and Demons : Poster 1
The Angels and Demons poster is very attractive, simple and gives the audience the right amount of information without overloading the poster.
This is achieved by a dominating main image of the protagonist, Robert Langdon played by Tom Hanks. Tom Hanks is a very recognisable star and the creators of the poster are hoping to attract people because he is the star of the film. They want you to notice Tom Hanks and want to see the film because you are fan of his work, no matter what the film is actually about. For those who do not know who the main star is, underneath the poster clearly states ‘Tom Hanks as Robert Langdon’. It’s rarer nowadays to see posters actually tell you who the star is playing, but don’t forget, the Da Vinci Code and Angels and Demons are huge bestselling books, so the poster is also hoping that you recognise the character’s name and want to see the film because of the book.
The main image usually takes up the majority of the poster, and the Angels and Demons poster is no different; The picture of Tom Hanks dominates the poster with old relic statues of an Angel and a Demon on each side. It appears that Robert Langdon is stuck in the middle of a good and bad conflict, the Angel representing Good and the Demon, Bad. Notice also that Robert Langdon has a faint angelic glow behind his head. This could possibly signify that he is a good character, or perhaps he’s the hero of the film. Or alternatively, the Angel and Demon to each side of Robert Langdon could symbolise his personal conflict between Good and Evil, like when a character has a small Angel and Devil on their shoulder as they both try to convince the character to do a particular action. It’s classic Good verses Evil.
Behind the Angel, Demon and Robert Langdon there is sky that looks much like a storm. This could mean that ‘a storm is coming’ which often means conflict is approaching. Also, there are red hot sparks across the poster. Sparks are created from the collision of metal or other materials and this could connotate the collision and clash of these two good and bad sides. The audience are left to wonder: what is this conflict? Will good triumph over evil? The only way they can find out is by seeing the film, which is exactly the poster’s purpose.
Many posters have a tagline at the top, but this poster doesn’t. Now, taglines are used to create a memorable catch phrase but the Angels and Demons poster uses the line ‘From the author of the Da Vinci Code’. The Da Vinci Code has a huge fan base and many readers so this will attract that audience.
One of the most important components of a film poster is the film’s name. The Angels and Demons poster presents the title in the lower third of the poster. It’s a white, basic serifs font with a stand-out ‘&’ in red. Red connotates danger and blood, and because it’s situated in the middle of the two words, it emphasises the conflict in the poster with the blood and danger being in the middle of the clash. The two words, ‘Angels’ and ‘Demons’ being each fighting side. However, ‘Demons’ is in bold which could signify that the stronger force are the Demons, the evil side. Is there anyway Good can prevail? The poster wants you to see the film to find out.
The release date of the film is slightly different to most posters because it doesn’t give a year or even a day but just the month ‘MAY’. This is quite powerful and demanding. This is the only text apart from the ‘&’ that is red on the whole of the poster. This could symbolise that the danger and bloodshed will happen in this month or that this month is when the danger begins.
The least attractive part of poster is grey, dull and not made to stand out. This is because it provides no real advertising material, but just information that has to included on the poster.
In all, the poster has cleverly created this conflict between Good and Evil without having to say ‘there is a conflict between Good and Evil…’. The main star has been used to draw in the audiences attention and the makers of the poster have used every possible means to make it attractive the most people. I particularly like this poster because of it’s simplicity and how powerful it appears; Robert Langdon has an expression of determination that is intriguing and I would certainly like to know who wins in the battle of Good verses Evil.
Tuesday, 23 November 2010
The Zombie Make-up
For my trailer I want zombies. I also want these to appear real.
Unfortunately, proper zombie prosthetics can cost in the region of £2000, which of course I do not have. Fake blood and face paint looks amateur, so I've done some research on good quality, cheap zombie make-up.
Here is a video which I will be basing the make-up on:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7dW0A4rnnYk
The effect will look diseased and a little more realistic than the flat 2d effect often created with just face paint and blood. The cost is minimal at only £15, and this can be applied to several people, providing they aren't allergic to latex. There are many good tutorials out there, however some use regular glue which is quite harmful and therefore replacing the glue for liquid latex is the better option.
Good tutorial using glue:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DuMt-N0bnww&feature=related
Requirements: Liquid Latex. Face paint (Red, black and cream), Toilet Paper, Brushes and Eyeshadows. Mosturiser is good too for easy peel of the mask.
Unfortunately, proper zombie prosthetics can cost in the region of £2000, which of course I do not have. Fake blood and face paint looks amateur, so I've done some research on good quality, cheap zombie make-up.
Here is a video which I will be basing the make-up on:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7dW0A4rnnYk
The effect will look diseased and a little more realistic than the flat 2d effect often created with just face paint and blood. The cost is minimal at only £15, and this can be applied to several people, providing they aren't allergic to latex. There are many good tutorials out there, however some use regular glue which is quite harmful and therefore replacing the glue for liquid latex is the better option.
Good tutorial using glue:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DuMt-N0bnww&feature=related
Requirements: Liquid Latex. Face paint (Red, black and cream), Toilet Paper, Brushes and Eyeshadows. Mosturiser is good too for easy peel of the mask.
Conventions of Zombie and Horror Films
Horror films are supposed to make the audience experience emotions of fear, horror, panic, disgust and implore our hidden fears, all while entertaining us.
A very well known convention of horror films is that not much happens during the day, but at night, terrifying things can happen. Or sometimes it just has to be dark for the horror to commence, like in a cave (The descent/ Neil Marshall/2005) or dark room. The dark often scares us, and filmmakers have been using this to make their films more frightening since the beginning of the horror genre.
Horror films are usually set in places which connotate being isolated, like a ghost town or haunted mansion. Being set in the ’middle of nowhere’ or places that have been deserted provide a sense of being cut off from help and vulnerability. Plus, when something is empty, like a whole town for example, it is generally a good indication that something isn’t right.
Not only is it empty places that are used often, but locations with an eerie past. Haunted houses are a perfect example because usually something supernaturally evil has been left behind that will cause a disruption to the new inhabitants. It could also be an asylum, graveyard or even ship like in the film Ghost Ship (Steve Beck/2002). Anything that is dark, dingy, deserted or even just dismal, is a good location for a horror film.
Black and red are iconic and used very often in Horror Films. Red of course connotating danger and black connotating darkness and evil. More iconography includes animals such as black cats which are associated with witches and bad fortune. Bats usually connotate that a certain place hasn’t been inhabited for a long period of time and the phobia of spiders is common among the everyday public, they are often used to ‘creep’ the audience. Blood is extremely common in horror films, obviously from the amount of violence and injury, so much so, that it is unusual to not see blood or guts in a horror film. Blood is also very disgusting and ’not for the faint hearted’ which is what horror films are trying to achieve.
Hand held camerawork is used much in horror films to disorientate the audience. Take Clover field (Matt Reeves/2008), it uses hand held camerawork throughout and the whole film appears realistic but also very unsettling. The Blair Witch Project (Daniel Myrick and Eduardo Sanchez/1999) and [REC] (Jaume Balaguero and Paco Plaza/2007) have also adopted this hand held style. Perhaps not conventional yet, but the full-film-hand-held style is becoming more popular.
Conventionally, the protagonist is the victim and we usually follow this victim as he or she tries to escape from some terror. The antagonist is generally the monster or serial killer who will often have a trademark (Freddie and Jason). Other common characters include the police officer that doesn’t believe the protagonist, the stereotypical ‘skimpy’ damsel in distress that is not only stupid, but good looking and usually requires saving from some terrible curse, monster or hostage situation.
The narrative usually involves the protagonist moving to a new house, or moving to a new location that will eventually turn out to be the disruption. This could be moving to a house which is haunted or going on a trip that requires a journey through a graveyard, and the dead returning. What usually happens next is that the protagonist is chased by some monster, serial killer or psychopath or they find their companions are killed and the battle for survival commences. The outcome commonly includes the protagonist defeating the monster, escaping and maybe even resuming his or her romance with their loved one. It’s the classic good verses evil narrative, with good prevailing over evil.
However twists are common in horror films. Perhaps when, at the end of the film, you think everyone is safe it turns out to be anything but. A good example is The Cottage (Paul Andrew Williams/2008) were after a desperate struggle to escape a crazed farmer, the protagonist flees into a basement were we all assume he’ll be safe… until the room is revealed and with it more crazed monsters.
Non-diegetic sound is common in horror films to add suspense and make moments appear more sinister. Scary or creepy music is commonly added just before something terrible happens to build tension.
A common theme among horror films are to include or be based upon scary folklore or a terrifying mythical being. Take the Vampire, a fictional creature that has been used for decades in horror films and is still used often today. Due to it’s overuse, we now know plenty about the vampire, and films don’t have spend a lot of time explaining the mythology behind them.
The zombie is another well known creepy creature that has been used for time now. Often the result of the dead returning or biochemicals gone wrong, Zombies are notable for their lack of brains and their hunger to eat ours. Again, just like with the vampire, we easily recognise the zombie because of it’s constant use in television and film.
Zombie films are also known as post-apocalyptic films or doomsday films. These films involve humanity being completely wiped out or only a handful of survivors remaining. The film then usually follows these survivors as they try to escape from the zombies that now see them as consumable (Shaun of the Dead/2004/Edgar Wright). In other films, the zombies just wish to kill or infect the survivors like in 28 Days Later (Danny Boyle/2002). Zombies generally look ragged, pale and bloody. As they are the ‘resurrected dead’, they are often missing limbs and walk slowly with a limp.
In all, horror films rely heavily on monsters, creatures, stereotypes and clichés to make their films frightening, but also to make it easier for the audience to understand. Some of these conventions have been used since the dawn of the horror genre a hundred years ago: dark rooms, empty places, creepy children, sinister music and references to religion. As an audience, we’re finding that the horror genre is always in need of constant re-invention in order to keep us coming back and jumping in our seats.
A very well known convention of horror films is that not much happens during the day, but at night, terrifying things can happen. Or sometimes it just has to be dark for the horror to commence, like in a cave (The descent/ Neil Marshall/2005) or dark room. The dark often scares us, and filmmakers have been using this to make their films more frightening since the beginning of the horror genre.
Horror films are usually set in places which connotate being isolated, like a ghost town or haunted mansion. Being set in the ’middle of nowhere’ or places that have been deserted provide a sense of being cut off from help and vulnerability. Plus, when something is empty, like a whole town for example, it is generally a good indication that something isn’t right.
Not only is it empty places that are used often, but locations with an eerie past. Haunted houses are a perfect example because usually something supernaturally evil has been left behind that will cause a disruption to the new inhabitants. It could also be an asylum, graveyard or even ship like in the film Ghost Ship (Steve Beck/2002). Anything that is dark, dingy, deserted or even just dismal, is a good location for a horror film.
Black and red are iconic and used very often in Horror Films. Red of course connotating danger and black connotating darkness and evil. More iconography includes animals such as black cats which are associated with witches and bad fortune. Bats usually connotate that a certain place hasn’t been inhabited for a long period of time and the phobia of spiders is common among the everyday public, they are often used to ‘creep’ the audience. Blood is extremely common in horror films, obviously from the amount of violence and injury, so much so, that it is unusual to not see blood or guts in a horror film. Blood is also very disgusting and ’not for the faint hearted’ which is what horror films are trying to achieve.
Hand held camerawork is used much in horror films to disorientate the audience. Take Clover field (Matt Reeves/2008), it uses hand held camerawork throughout and the whole film appears realistic but also very unsettling. The Blair Witch Project (Daniel Myrick and Eduardo Sanchez/1999) and [REC] (Jaume Balaguero and Paco Plaza/2007) have also adopted this hand held style. Perhaps not conventional yet, but the full-film-hand-held style is becoming more popular.
Conventionally, the protagonist is the victim and we usually follow this victim as he or she tries to escape from some terror. The antagonist is generally the monster or serial killer who will often have a trademark (Freddie and Jason). Other common characters include the police officer that doesn’t believe the protagonist, the stereotypical ‘skimpy’ damsel in distress that is not only stupid, but good looking and usually requires saving from some terrible curse, monster or hostage situation.
The narrative usually involves the protagonist moving to a new house, or moving to a new location that will eventually turn out to be the disruption. This could be moving to a house which is haunted or going on a trip that requires a journey through a graveyard, and the dead returning. What usually happens next is that the protagonist is chased by some monster, serial killer or psychopath or they find their companions are killed and the battle for survival commences. The outcome commonly includes the protagonist defeating the monster, escaping and maybe even resuming his or her romance with their loved one. It’s the classic good verses evil narrative, with good prevailing over evil.
However twists are common in horror films. Perhaps when, at the end of the film, you think everyone is safe it turns out to be anything but. A good example is The Cottage (Paul Andrew Williams/2008) were after a desperate struggle to escape a crazed farmer, the protagonist flees into a basement were we all assume he’ll be safe… until the room is revealed and with it more crazed monsters.
Non-diegetic sound is common in horror films to add suspense and make moments appear more sinister. Scary or creepy music is commonly added just before something terrible happens to build tension.
A common theme among horror films are to include or be based upon scary folklore or a terrifying mythical being. Take the Vampire, a fictional creature that has been used for decades in horror films and is still used often today. Due to it’s overuse, we now know plenty about the vampire, and films don’t have spend a lot of time explaining the mythology behind them.
The zombie is another well known creepy creature that has been used for time now. Often the result of the dead returning or biochemicals gone wrong, Zombies are notable for their lack of brains and their hunger to eat ours. Again, just like with the vampire, we easily recognise the zombie because of it’s constant use in television and film.
Zombie films are also known as post-apocalyptic films or doomsday films. These films involve humanity being completely wiped out or only a handful of survivors remaining. The film then usually follows these survivors as they try to escape from the zombies that now see them as consumable (Shaun of the Dead/2004/Edgar Wright). In other films, the zombies just wish to kill or infect the survivors like in 28 Days Later (Danny Boyle/2002). Zombies generally look ragged, pale and bloody. As they are the ‘resurrected dead’, they are often missing limbs and walk slowly with a limp.
In all, horror films rely heavily on monsters, creatures, stereotypes and clichés to make their films frightening, but also to make it easier for the audience to understand. Some of these conventions have been used since the dawn of the horror genre a hundred years ago: dark rooms, empty places, creepy children, sinister music and references to religion. As an audience, we’re finding that the horror genre is always in need of constant re-invention in order to keep us coming back and jumping in our seats.
Target Audience Survey
Results so far:
Firstly, do you watch Horror Films?
5/8 YES
2/8 SOMETIMES
1/8 NOT VERY OFTEN
0/8 RARELY
0/8 NEVER
Percentage 62.5% yes, 25% sometimes, 12.5% not very often.
What age are you?
0/8 Under 15
7/8 16-20
0/8 21-28
1/8 29-40
0/8 41+
Percentage 87.5% 16-20, 12.5% 29-40
Do you think Horror Films and their trailers are targeted to your age group?
8/8 YES
0/8 NO
Percentage 100% yes. Majority asked so far are 16-20, so Horror Films are targeted at 16-20.
If you answered no, can you explain why you think Horror Films are not suited to your age group?
Nobody answered no.
What do YOU think is the target age group of Horror Films?
Under 15
0
16-19
8
20-23
7
24-27
3
28-31
2
32-40
0
41-50
0
51+
0
Total 20. Percentage : 16-19 40%, 20-23, 35%, 24-27 15%, 28-31 10%
What is your gender?
2/8 Male
6/8 Female
Percentage: 25% Male, 75% Female
What gender do you think Horror Films are targeted at?
1/8 Male
2/8 Female
5/8 Both Equally
Percentage: 12.5% Male, 25% Female 62.5%
Do you think that your religion, if you have one, influences what types of films you watch?
2/8 Yes
1/8 No
5/8 I have no religion.
Percentage: 25% Yes, 12.5% No, 62.5% I have no religion.
What do you think is the correct target audience for a zombie film?
Under 15
1
16-19
8
20-23
4
24-27
1
28-31
1
32-40
0
41-50
0
51+
0
Under 15 7%, 16-19 53%, 20-23 27%, 24-27 7%, 28-31 7%.
Do you think that men prefer zombie films more than women?
7/8 Yes
0/8 No
1/8 I think it’s about even
Yes 87.5%, I think it's about even 12.5%.
Do you like zombie films?
7/8 Yes
0/8 No
1/8 I've never watched one
Yes 87.5%, I've never watched one 12.5%.
The mainstream audience is around 16-25 years old. Do you think a zombie film is suited to this age group?
8/8 Yes
0/8 No
100% Yes.
Reasons for saying yes:
It suits teenage mentality. The minimum age for seeing a horror film is usually 15 so the younger audience enjoy watching horror films more as it is seen as right of passage. View it as a novelty as you can see them at 15. Zombie films are spoofs, which are funny. If they are gory I think a younger audience prefer them than over 30’s. Because we are most likely to laugh and enjoy it. Because they’re awesome. Crossover audiences wouldn’t be as interested. Mainstream find more appealing.
Conclusions drawn from Survey:
Mainstream audience are more likely to watch Horror and Zombie movies simply because they enjoy horror more and because they are now allowed to watch them. The mainstream audience are also the age group that watches the most films, and this is reflected in the survey.
My target audience will be the mainstream.
Monday, 22 November 2010
Film 'Horror' Trailer Analysis 1
See the trailer here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V_-gL3U1T5Y
MONSTERS
Monsters is a ‘doomsday’ film yet to be released in the UK. This is the second trailer, also known as the restricted trailer as it will only be shown in cinema screens where the minimum age will be fifteen. Therefore, more ‘gory’ material and horror can be shown.
The trailer opens with a dark shot establishing shot of an industrial site, cuts to another shot of this site and then to a dusk purple sky. Suddenly there is the appearance of some sort of aircraft, followed by a orange glow and the sound of a mechanical crash. This is then followed by non-diegetic text ‘It’s been six years since they arrived’. The text is a very modern, sans-serif font that is often used in sci-fi films. This text helps the audience identify the genre and also offers ’punchy’ narrative information.
Next there is a short hand held shot of a helicopter hovering over the crash site. We assume that ’they’ arrived from this crash site. Then we see a man on the back of a motorcycle, and because he is the first person the trailer has ‘focused’ on, we assume that he is the protagonist. After this we see a series of short shots based on the rescue efforts. These shots are made to look like snaps from a camera, which we see the protagonist holding later.
Now we see more non-diegetic text with the words ‘They are no longer Aliens’. The trailer now changes, the sound becoming louder and the sound of cries can be heard. The audience is shown night-vision shots of some army men panicking, and the camera shakes to add to the distressed effect. More shaky shots of army personnel are shown, and little understanding can be made; are they firing at the no-longer aliens? There is a non-diegetic ’camera malfunction’ effect and the screen goes black. This gives the impression that something is destroying the camera, and this is incredibly cool and scary.
Again we see non-diegetic text, in the same font theme as before with the words ’They’re residents’. Now we see more short shots but the non-digetic addition of a man’s voice, which we later see to be the protagonist. He’s asking about getting home, and this provides the audience with a narrative as to what our protagonist is actually doing. Especially as this is re-inforced with non-diegetic saying ‘on the journey home’. Now we see the protagonist and another woman a they journey to various places, each with something sinister happening. In one shot there is a burnt out helicopter strewn across the road. This is make the audience wonder ‘what has happened?’, because events such as helicopter crashes are a rarity but also very tragic. More shots follow of a girl with a gas mask on, which evokes the emotion of pity. Another shot shows the couple looking a large map with an area entitled ‘infection zone’. All of these things tell the audience that something sinister, evil and terrible has happened.
As the trailer continues, I noticed that most of the shots including the couple are either wide or long shots, giving them a sense of vulnerability and loneliness. They are wandering alone in the ‘infected zone’ and consequently don gas masks. The music becomes more powerful, lighter and the sound often used around discovery and awe. Then, it abruptly ends with the blowing out of the candles. This connotating that something bad has happened, that the light - the good - has gone away.
Now the music is like the snare often seen in horror film trailers as they build to a climax. We again see non-diegetic text but this time offering good quotes from critics about the film. Good quotes mean better reputation, and therefore are useful in advertising the film.
The editing now gradually speeds up and the sound jumps t every edit which gives the trailer a scary but climatic feel. Then this ends and another quote is presented on screen. Now the protagonist is seen looking at a monster, which is concealed by the darkness obviously to give little away. The darkness being conventional of this genre too.
The trailer ends by revealing the name ‘MONSTERS’ and the information on who wrote it, directed it, created the soundtrack and so forth. We expect to see these things along with a film website (which is shown last) and a release date. However this film doesn’t have one yet and displays the ‘coming soon’ text. This works just as well, because the audience may be more tempted to look at the website for future information on the release date.
The trailer is typical of horror doomsday. It shows the vulnerability of the survivors while also showing just enough so the audience can understand the narrative and basic plot. The shots are dark, and the music is sinister to give the trailer a creepy and scary feel. Overall, I think it’s sophisticated, frightening and it certainly makes me want to find out more.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V_-gL3U1T5Y
MONSTERS
Monsters is a ‘doomsday’ film yet to be released in the UK. This is the second trailer, also known as the restricted trailer as it will only be shown in cinema screens where the minimum age will be fifteen. Therefore, more ‘gory’ material and horror can be shown.
The trailer opens with a dark shot establishing shot of an industrial site, cuts to another shot of this site and then to a dusk purple sky. Suddenly there is the appearance of some sort of aircraft, followed by a orange glow and the sound of a mechanical crash. This is then followed by non-diegetic text ‘It’s been six years since they arrived’. The text is a very modern, sans-serif font that is often used in sci-fi films. This text helps the audience identify the genre and also offers ’punchy’ narrative information.
Next there is a short hand held shot of a helicopter hovering over the crash site. We assume that ’they’ arrived from this crash site. Then we see a man on the back of a motorcycle, and because he is the first person the trailer has ‘focused’ on, we assume that he is the protagonist. After this we see a series of short shots based on the rescue efforts. These shots are made to look like snaps from a camera, which we see the protagonist holding later.
Now we see more non-diegetic text with the words ‘They are no longer Aliens’. The trailer now changes, the sound becoming louder and the sound of cries can be heard. The audience is shown night-vision shots of some army men panicking, and the camera shakes to add to the distressed effect. More shaky shots of army personnel are shown, and little understanding can be made; are they firing at the no-longer aliens? There is a non-diegetic ’camera malfunction’ effect and the screen goes black. This gives the impression that something is destroying the camera, and this is incredibly cool and scary.
Again we see non-diegetic text, in the same font theme as before with the words ’They’re residents’. Now we see more short shots but the non-digetic addition of a man’s voice, which we later see to be the protagonist. He’s asking about getting home, and this provides the audience with a narrative as to what our protagonist is actually doing. Especially as this is re-inforced with non-diegetic saying ‘on the journey home’. Now we see the protagonist and another woman a they journey to various places, each with something sinister happening. In one shot there is a burnt out helicopter strewn across the road. This is make the audience wonder ‘what has happened?’, because events such as helicopter crashes are a rarity but also very tragic. More shots follow of a girl with a gas mask on, which evokes the emotion of pity. Another shot shows the couple looking a large map with an area entitled ‘infection zone’. All of these things tell the audience that something sinister, evil and terrible has happened.
As the trailer continues, I noticed that most of the shots including the couple are either wide or long shots, giving them a sense of vulnerability and loneliness. They are wandering alone in the ‘infected zone’ and consequently don gas masks. The music becomes more powerful, lighter and the sound often used around discovery and awe. Then, it abruptly ends with the blowing out of the candles. This connotating that something bad has happened, that the light - the good - has gone away.
Now the music is like the snare often seen in horror film trailers as they build to a climax. We again see non-diegetic text but this time offering good quotes from critics about the film. Good quotes mean better reputation, and therefore are useful in advertising the film.
The editing now gradually speeds up and the sound jumps t every edit which gives the trailer a scary but climatic feel. Then this ends and another quote is presented on screen. Now the protagonist is seen looking at a monster, which is concealed by the darkness obviously to give little away. The darkness being conventional of this genre too.
The trailer ends by revealing the name ‘MONSTERS’ and the information on who wrote it, directed it, created the soundtrack and so forth. We expect to see these things along with a film website (which is shown last) and a release date. However this film doesn’t have one yet and displays the ‘coming soon’ text. This works just as well, because the audience may be more tempted to look at the website for future information on the release date.
The trailer is typical of horror doomsday. It shows the vulnerability of the survivors while also showing just enough so the audience can understand the narrative and basic plot. The shots are dark, and the music is sinister to give the trailer a creepy and scary feel. Overall, I think it’s sophisticated, frightening and it certainly makes me want to find out more.
Sunday, 21 November 2010
Film Poster History
Movie Poster’s researchA brief history.
It is said that the first movie posters date back to 1890. However, posters didn’t become popular till the 1920’s when artists were hired to make the posters look more spectacular. Plus, actors and actresses were becoming ‘stars’ in this era, and the bigger the star, the bigger their name on the poster.
In the 1930’s during the depression in America, movie posters apparently lost some of their artistic merit because film posters had to be generate more cheaply. This continued into the war period too, but on the other hand, war films became more popular.
Back in the 1940’s, when films were shown in a cinema after each other, the day before a film was to be released in a particular city, the cinema would receive the posters. Some cinemas may have ordered more posters for a bigger display. However, fans of the collectable items wouldn’t be able to get their hands on them easily because the posters were passed onto the next cinema. This is why older posters dating back to this time are extremely collectable.
In the 50’s, the television was born. Now film posters had to be better to help fight against the new competitor. This included large colour photographs of the main stars and big ‘stock lettering’.
The sixties and seventies saw films like Star Wars, which are still collectable today. The style was painted and often showing the main characters. The Star Wars posters are a good example of this; the Empire strikes back has a collection of characters and appears hand painted.
Posters are more common today than in 1920’s and are expected to accompany a film and it’s advertising. It’s not uncommon to have several posters for the same film, like with Harry Potter, which will have an individual poster for each main character. Posters are now computerised too, and don't rely on painters.
Lately, posters seem to be going through a ‘simple’ phase were the poster has very little on it, but the bear essentials. The posters look sophisticated but clear to understand. A good example of this is the Let Me In poster which is just of a girl curled up in the middle of the poster. Of course, the idea behind this was to make the girl look innocent and vulnerable.
But what do all posters have?
A main image. This is usually the protagonist, or something that can sum the film up in one image. The Ghostbusters poster is of a cartoon ghost trapped inside of a no-entry sign. This connotates no ghosts allowed, which is theme of Ghostbusters.
The title of the film is essential. The people who look at the poster need to know what film it belongs to!
As the poster is to provide information about the film, the date of release is shown, and information on the director, writer, casting, music and the stars in the film. The distribution company and production company’s logos are also visible.
The other objective of the poster is to advertise. This can be achieved through the names of the major film stars being displayed, good quotes and ratings from critics and awards it’s won and nominated. Sometimes, the name of the director or writer who is relatively famous is also shown as a means of advertising the film.
Taglines are used to sell them film and create a memorable phrase that will sum up the film to reinforce the audiences memory it. ‘Who ya gonna call?” is a classic example of a tagline that is memorable and effective.
Posters sometimes display the certificate. This is often small and out of the way.
Tuesday, 16 November 2010
Monday, 15 November 2010
A history of Film Trailers
It is believed that the first film trailer to be shown was in November 1913 in America, but other sources show that the first ever trailer was released in 1912 at Rye Beach, New York. This ‘trailer’ showed the protagonist being thrown into the lion’s den and the words “Does she escape the lion's pit? See next week's thrilling chapter!" were shown after. The film being promoted in 1913 was The Pleasure Seekers and was created as a ‘short promotional film’ by Nils Granlund, who was working for a theatre chain at the time. The first trailer in 1912 appears to advertise a serial, which would mean that it is not in fact a film trailer, but just a trailer and the first ever film trailer was indeed shown in America in 1913.
Theatre companies and film production companies saw the value of trailers and in 1916 Paramount became the first studio to release them. In 1919, Paramount set up a company devoted to producing trailers for their upcoming films. Other film studios didn’t follow suit immediately, and this resulted in other companies not controlled by film production companies to set up their own businesses. They could not obtain early footage of the film but made attractive slides to advertise the film instead.
As studios began to buy theatre chains and released more blockbuster films, three men from New York created the National Screen Service which would create trailers for the major studios. This worked for both sides; The studios didn’t have the time or staff to create trailers. The studios then granted early access to their films so the trailers could contain real film footage.
For decades the National Screen Service was the major company in distributing film trailers. A typical 1950’s trailer would have the best key scenes, a booming loud voice over the top and large non-diegetic text to accompany it. Unlike with trailers around in the 1920’s, these trailers would have some form of narrative.
In 1962, Andrew Kuehn a former member of NSS left and began working for MGM. He say’s that in the 1950’s and 1960’s people were just ‘bragging’ about the big stars and using ‘phoney--baloney adjectives’ to get the audiences attention. Kuehn also began to experiment and this quote perfectly describes his distaste and thoughts on how trailers needed to be changed: "One of the things I definitely stopped doing was using the first names of stars. Under National Screen Service in Hollywood, they would say, 'Well, Rock and Doris are back together again, and guess who's along for the ride? Tony!' My theory was, if you were dealing with a really big star, you didn't have to bill them until the very end. What I did was try to get the audience used to the star as the character, started telling the story of the film and didn't mention the star's name until the cast runout at the very end."
Kuehn was not the only one who wanted change. Other studios detached from the NSS to look for independent trailer makers in order to obtain something more sophisticated and less generic.
In the sixties, the New Hollywood wave brought in trailers that contained montage or quick-editing. Stanley Kubrick was apparently a trend setter when he released trailers for 2001: A Space Odyessy and Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb.
The trailer displaying quick editing, montage and non-diegetic large text. (The trailer can be seen here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1gXY3kuDvSU)
Alfred Hitchcock started a different approach; creating material that wasn’t in the film specifically for the trailer. An example of this could be Rope were the couple are seen together before the film is set, enjoying time together. This sometimes still happens today, a more recent example being Terminator: Judgement Day.
The National Screen Service fizzled out with ‘their retired not being replaced’ and being ‘reduced to just a distributor’. In 1969 Kuehn set up his own business called Kaleidoscope films with a man named Don Davis. Unlike with the production of trailers in the past, Kaleidoscope would hire everyone needed to create the trailer, rather than the studio hiring them.
In the 70’s studios backed the idea of television trailers after the success with Billy Jack and Jaws. Jaws took in almost 70 million dollars and from that point on, studios were more willing to part with a lot of money for television advertising when they realised the impact that television trailers had on the blockbuster films.
Music then became an important factor in film trailers. With the first ever music video (Video Killed the Radio Star) being released and the creation of MTV, music and television began to have a bigger impact on audiences.
The traditional, old trailer was abandoned to make way for trailers that left an impact. Those that left an impact would make a viewer wish to see the film much more. Amusingly, everyone’s idea of a trailer with high impact was to have blaring loud music. The music became so loud that the MPAA (Motion Picture Association of America) put a limit on the volume.
As better software developed it no longer mattered much about the style of trailer just the trailer that would reach the most people and bring the most people in. The internet has opened new doors and now there are multiple trailers for one film like television trailers and teaser trailers. However some things haven’t changed: Trailers still rely on the big star or big stars to attract audiences and music still plays a huge impact in setting the mood or adding to the excitement in an action film trailer.
Theatre companies and film production companies saw the value of trailers and in 1916 Paramount became the first studio to release them. In 1919, Paramount set up a company devoted to producing trailers for their upcoming films. Other film studios didn’t follow suit immediately, and this resulted in other companies not controlled by film production companies to set up their own businesses. They could not obtain early footage of the film but made attractive slides to advertise the film instead.
As studios began to buy theatre chains and released more blockbuster films, three men from New York created the National Screen Service which would create trailers for the major studios. This worked for both sides; The studios didn’t have the time or staff to create trailers. The studios then granted early access to their films so the trailers could contain real film footage.
For decades the National Screen Service was the major company in distributing film trailers. A typical 1950’s trailer would have the best key scenes, a booming loud voice over the top and large non-diegetic text to accompany it. Unlike with trailers around in the 1920’s, these trailers would have some form of narrative.
In 1962, Andrew Kuehn a former member of NSS left and began working for MGM. He say’s that in the 1950’s and 1960’s people were just ‘bragging’ about the big stars and using ‘phoney--baloney adjectives’ to get the audiences attention. Kuehn also began to experiment and this quote perfectly describes his distaste and thoughts on how trailers needed to be changed: "One of the things I definitely stopped doing was using the first names of stars. Under National Screen Service in Hollywood, they would say, 'Well, Rock and Doris are back together again, and guess who's along for the ride? Tony!' My theory was, if you were dealing with a really big star, you didn't have to bill them until the very end. What I did was try to get the audience used to the star as the character, started telling the story of the film and didn't mention the star's name until the cast runout at the very end."
Kuehn was not the only one who wanted change. Other studios detached from the NSS to look for independent trailer makers in order to obtain something more sophisticated and less generic.
In the sixties, the New Hollywood wave brought in trailers that contained montage or quick-editing. Stanley Kubrick was apparently a trend setter when he released trailers for 2001: A Space Odyessy and Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb.
The trailer displaying quick editing, montage and non-diegetic large text. (The trailer can be seen here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1gXY3kuDvSU)
Alfred Hitchcock started a different approach; creating material that wasn’t in the film specifically for the trailer. An example of this could be Rope were the couple are seen together before the film is set, enjoying time together. This sometimes still happens today, a more recent example being Terminator: Judgement Day.
The National Screen Service fizzled out with ‘their retired not being replaced’ and being ‘reduced to just a distributor’. In 1969 Kuehn set up his own business called Kaleidoscope films with a man named Don Davis. Unlike with the production of trailers in the past, Kaleidoscope would hire everyone needed to create the trailer, rather than the studio hiring them.
In the 70’s studios backed the idea of television trailers after the success with Billy Jack and Jaws. Jaws took in almost 70 million dollars and from that point on, studios were more willing to part with a lot of money for television advertising when they realised the impact that television trailers had on the blockbuster films.
Music then became an important factor in film trailers. With the first ever music video (Video Killed the Radio Star) being released and the creation of MTV, music and television began to have a bigger impact on audiences.
The traditional, old trailer was abandoned to make way for trailers that left an impact. Those that left an impact would make a viewer wish to see the film much more. Amusingly, everyone’s idea of a trailer with high impact was to have blaring loud music. The music became so loud that the MPAA (Motion Picture Association of America) put a limit on the volume.
As better software developed it no longer mattered much about the style of trailer just the trailer that would reach the most people and bring the most people in. The internet has opened new doors and now there are multiple trailers for one film like television trailers and teaser trailers. However some things haven’t changed: Trailers still rely on the big star or big stars to attract audiences and music still plays a huge impact in setting the mood or adding to the excitement in an action film trailer.
Stages of creation (Film Poster)
From top to bottom: The finished version, first photo manipulation of hand, the second version with the majority of the blue now removed, and the final hand version cleaned up.I decided on a saturated colour scheme similar to The Last Exorcism poster (see last picture). The red I didn't want to stand out too brightly, but add a sense of gore to poster.
The tagline I wanted small too, which seems to be the 'latest' fashion in movie posters.
The font used on the bottom is named SteelTongs and can be found here:
http://www.dafont.com/font.php?file=steeltongs&page=1&nb_ppp_old=10&text=abc&nb_ppp=10&psize=m&classt=alpha
The font for 'the end' is called Living Hell and can be found here:
http://www.dafont.com/living-hell.font?text=THE+END&psize=l
Pictures taken for Film Poster 2
After attempting to manipulate these photos without success, I gave up on the idea of the hands coming through the door. When cut out and placed onto the final poster, it lacked in 'scariness' and sophistication.
Pictures taken for Film Poster 1
Mostly look all similar, but after much deliberate, I chose the last one because it doesn't have so many creases in the paper. Therefore making it easier for me to manipulate.
Draft of Film Posters
I have chosen to use the 2nd idea mainly because the first idea's images were quite poor. Plus, I think the simplicity of the second is more fitting with today's posters.
ICT draft of chosen idea. I think the black and red main text will look modern with the red bringing in the sense of blood.
Tuesday, 9 November 2010
Film Trailer Analysis
In order to create a film trailer, I think it would be very wise to research and discover the conventions of a film trailer.
Firstly, I am to look at a recent trailer that is not horror/zombie. Hopefully this will tell me what all trailers contain and their conventions, and not just those suited to my genre.
Trailer ONE
The Tourist (2:21 minutes/Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck)
The tourist is a film yet to be released and a drama thriller film.
From the trailer I can clearly identify two main stars Johnny Depp and Angelina Jolie. This of course is one of the purposes of the trailer; the recognisable stars are to bring in your attention and make you want to see the film based upon your like for that star. For those who do not recognise the stars, the trailer shows us with the aid of diegetic text which is of the same colour theme and font of the film title, tying the names in with the film. The whole focus of the trailer is on these two stars and shows little of anything else.
The layout of the trailer appears to be in two main parts. The first part appears to have a narrative and begins to tell a tale about how a man and woman meet on a train. It’s classic love-story beginning ‘boy meets girl‘ with the voice-over (from Johnny Depp) even telling us ‘it all started when I met a woman on a train‘. Little is revealed as they talk about the possibility of two people watching them, and then more diegetic text - again with the same colour theme - displaying ‘this December’ which of course tells the audience when the film will be released.
We now see an establishing shot of Venice, and our female character (Angelina Jolie) mysteriously ‘bumping into’ our protagonist (Johnny Depp) and this leads to them kissing on the balcony. However, someone takes their picture and a man is seen giving the order ‘get him’.
The second part of the trailer consists of fast paced editing in the more action based part of the film. It is accompanied by a rock song Map of the Problematique by Muse and the editing is also in time to the beat. This fast paced editing creates a climax which is followed by the name of the film, The Tourist, and a few more short sequences no more than a few seconds long to get the audience excited.
The credits of the film are then displayed and the official website. There isn’t a rating, but where there should be one reads ‘This is film is not yet rated’ and advises to visit www.filmratings.com if you can’t possibly wait for another trailer to be released in order to find the rating.
As with most trailers, information such as the directors name and the production company aren’t visible to the end when the audience find a large amount of text, which includes information about who created the music and who was responsible for the casting displayed. This is shown for only a few seconds which is not long enough for it all to be absorbed. Obviously this is for official purposes and displayed for so little time so that it doesn’t overload the audience.
The trailer in all gives little away. In order to give the audience some understanding of the plot, certain sequences have no music and a longer length so valuable information can be clearly absorbed. Take one bit where Johnny Depp is on the phone asking for help because ‘people are trying to break down the door’. This sequence is cut later but the dialogue can still be heard over the other edits because of it’s value. There is no voice-over which are common in trailers but Johnny Depp’s voice can be heard a few times throughout the trailer to help the audience understand the narrative better.
The trailer doesn’t rely on awards it’s won (most likely because it’s won none yet) and neither does it rely on the fame of it’s director or producer. It seems that it heavily relies on it’s stars, a catchy song and a powerful fast-paced trailer to grab audiences attention and get them to attend ,what appears in my opinion, a dull-sounding film.
Firstly, I am to look at a recent trailer that is not horror/zombie. Hopefully this will tell me what all trailers contain and their conventions, and not just those suited to my genre.
Trailer ONE
The Tourist (2:21 minutes/Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck)
The tourist is a film yet to be released and a drama thriller film.
From the trailer I can clearly identify two main stars Johnny Depp and Angelina Jolie. This of course is one of the purposes of the trailer; the recognisable stars are to bring in your attention and make you want to see the film based upon your like for that star. For those who do not recognise the stars, the trailer shows us with the aid of diegetic text which is of the same colour theme and font of the film title, tying the names in with the film. The whole focus of the trailer is on these two stars and shows little of anything else.
The layout of the trailer appears to be in two main parts. The first part appears to have a narrative and begins to tell a tale about how a man and woman meet on a train. It’s classic love-story beginning ‘boy meets girl‘ with the voice-over (from Johnny Depp) even telling us ‘it all started when I met a woman on a train‘. Little is revealed as they talk about the possibility of two people watching them, and then more diegetic text - again with the same colour theme - displaying ‘this December’ which of course tells the audience when the film will be released.
We now see an establishing shot of Venice, and our female character (Angelina Jolie) mysteriously ‘bumping into’ our protagonist (Johnny Depp) and this leads to them kissing on the balcony. However, someone takes their picture and a man is seen giving the order ‘get him’.
The second part of the trailer consists of fast paced editing in the more action based part of the film. It is accompanied by a rock song Map of the Problematique by Muse and the editing is also in time to the beat. This fast paced editing creates a climax which is followed by the name of the film, The Tourist, and a few more short sequences no more than a few seconds long to get the audience excited.
The credits of the film are then displayed and the official website. There isn’t a rating, but where there should be one reads ‘This is film is not yet rated’ and advises to visit www.filmratings.com if you can’t possibly wait for another trailer to be released in order to find the rating.
As with most trailers, information such as the directors name and the production company aren’t visible to the end when the audience find a large amount of text, which includes information about who created the music and who was responsible for the casting displayed. This is shown for only a few seconds which is not long enough for it all to be absorbed. Obviously this is for official purposes and displayed for so little time so that it doesn’t overload the audience.
The trailer in all gives little away. In order to give the audience some understanding of the plot, certain sequences have no music and a longer length so valuable information can be clearly absorbed. Take one bit where Johnny Depp is on the phone asking for help because ‘people are trying to break down the door’. This sequence is cut later but the dialogue can still be heard over the other edits because of it’s value. There is no voice-over which are common in trailers but Johnny Depp’s voice can be heard a few times throughout the trailer to help the audience understand the narrative better.
The trailer doesn’t rely on awards it’s won (most likely because it’s won none yet) and neither does it rely on the fame of it’s director or producer. It seems that it heavily relies on it’s stars, a catchy song and a powerful fast-paced trailer to grab audiences attention and get them to attend ,what appears in my opinion, a dull-sounding film.
Friday, 5 November 2010
The Brief
My task is to create a film trailer.
I will also create two ancillary texts. A film homepage and a film poster.
I will also create two ancillary texts. A film homepage and a film poster.
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