When thinking of my ancillary product for my movie poster i have already spoke very heavily about the kind of design i wanted and what magazine has inspired me to help create my own.
As you can see when i did some basic drafts for what my poster could potentially look like. I very much liked how the hostiles poster was designed. The poster was basically split into two parts and giving of two different colours and so two different effects for the poster. It seems to separate the two main characters of the film. I thought i could connect this design to my own to my own plot and design. I thought i could use the design to separate the protagonist and antagonist to show that these two characters are different to each other and are clearly at odds with each other. Also at the two characters used will of course be the main protagonist and main antagonist and i wanted to showcase this by putting them on the poster. This can clearly be shown be the plague doctor character being on the right hand side giving it that creepy side to the poster. The main setting of the poster will have the lickies castle as for my plot the lickies castle is something that is featured prominently featured in my trailer so i thought it would be quite a cool addition to have as it has that scary cool look.
So for a first draft this poster is something that i already really like and looks really cool and effective. I think if i were to follow something along these lines i think it would really help the feel and overall design of my trailer. This particular design i believe would also be very effective because of its design, colour and images.
As you can from the very basic sketch i have included most if not all of the main features of a movie poster, i have the movie title situated at the bottom of the page, the main image, the tagline, and the cast. So ovbisouly i will need to add the credits at the bottom of the page and some indication of a release date.
So to finish i think this is a really good starting point for the direction of the look of my poster and is defiantly something that i will look at trying to improve and actually implement for the finished look of my poster. As of course this is my first draft for my magazine and so it could change and i will be looking into different designs for how my poster could look.
Although i have recently looked into a taken poster i really liked this poster that the director sent out and so i wanted to take the time to analyse this poster as well.
One thing that really stood out to me with this poster was again its use of colour, as the movies genre is a thriller it is only suitable that the main colour theme running throughout would be a darker colour such as black to signify the main theme of mystery, suspense but also a feeling of death and horror. These manage to all perfectly come together to make for a really simple but also enthralling poster that can tell the audience so much about the film just by its use of colour. Another colour is also used and that only other colour is red, now as i already know red can be used to signify violence and danger the use of the black and red in the poster come together really well to represent what the movie is all about.
What i very liked about this poster is how they only use the colour red for the important information such as the title and the main actors name. This is really effective as it makes these two pieces of information stand out more. For example people know that Liam Neeson is synonymous with movies such as these so automatically it will straight away attract an audience into looking into and watching the movie. The name of the title is also in red. This is done for a simple reason, the name of the film is basically the item that markets the film and is the thing that audiences will remember so in turn it needs to stand out so that audiences can see and remember it.
Carrying on with the title, i touched upon it in the previous blog poster about another taken poster but i like how very simple the the name is. The poster manages to sum up the film with one word making easier to market and also remember for audiences.
The main image on this poster is very similar to the other taken poster that i looked at it only has a singular image of the main character who is holding a gun and is placed to look as though he is in the shadows. Within the poster the clearest image that is shown is the part where the gun is included, this is clearly an indication to audiences that there will be violence in the movie and maybe is even a focal point of the movie if the tagline of the movie is anything to go by. I also very much like how in this particular poster Liam Neeson is again shown to be in the shadows and we can't see all of him or even all of his face. This gives off a really cool effect to the audience as it shrouds the main actor and his character in mystery and so we don't know much about him other than the fact someone has been taken from him and he is willing to do what ever it takes to get them back. This creates more excitement for the movie as we as an audience do not no much about what is happening and so we want to know more and more about the film.
Another thing in which the poster does that i particularly liked was its tagline takes up the whole page, this is very different from most posters as most use a small and straight to the point tagline but this tagline ensures that audiences will have to properly look at the poster to know what it is about. It also allows the poster to stand out more and be unique.
So overall very much like the previous taken poster i did like this one and i believed that it was very effective and so is something that i will be looking back upon for ideas for my own ancillary product.
As well as creating a film poster for the trailer that we are creating we are also tasked with the creation of a film magazine that promotes our movie. Because of this it of course important i take a look into magazines so that i get an idea into what to include in my own.
Something that instantly jumped out to me from this magazine was its use of imagery. The sole image of the magazines front cover was that of the films main character. The shot used is clearly an extreme long shot. This shot is really effective because it manages to give off a really creepy vibe that makes the reader feel uncomfortable because of the direct address that is used because it makes it seem as though that the character it looking straight at the audience.
Additionally another thing that i liked about the image in this poster was that half of the characters face is covered in darkness. This is really effective as it gives off the idea that this person is very mysterious and that the audience do not really know a-lot about him and so the movie is also surrounded in mystery creating more buzz and curiosity in the movie.
Additionally, something that stuck out to me in this poster was the main characters eye. The characters eye is coloured in red and i really like how this is done and why it is done. The red insinuates that this person is most defiantly evil and almost makes him seem to be a devil or even satin like allowing the audience to see just how evil this person may be. The colour red, also has various connotations of violence and danger and blood giving the audience a hint into what this character could be up to in the movie.
I also liked how the red in the eye links to the colour of the masthead and all the main titles around the magazine creating a feeling of connection making seem to all tie together and have the same evil feeling.
Main cover line is something that is also very effective, the font used is very simple but its size allows it to stand out more. What i like even more is that it is clearly a quote from the main character and states "whats cooking", this is clearly a reference to the fact the main character is a cannibal so it becomes more sinister which in turn makes the image of the magazine even more sinister when it shows the character looking at the audience.
I also very much like how the cover lines of the magazine all seem to connect together with the main story, for example the "are you a psycho" and the "catering for cannibals" this allows the magazine to all link together and create a more sinister and creepy magazine. It also makes the magazine seem more suitable and synergised as it would look more weird if the main cover line was about a horror/thriller and then all the cover lines covered comedy movies for example.
So looking at this magazine i really liked how overall it was designed and how they made the cover lines suit the overall theme of the magazine. I also very much liked the main image and how effective but also very simple it was.
Using the social media site snapchat i decided to ask my target audience what they thought of the black and white filter that i added to one of the scenes in my trailer.
The feedback was as followed:
As you can see from the feedback the target audience very much liked the idea of having the scenes filtered in black and white which made me relieved as it meant my thoughts were paying off and were actually liked.
Some of the comments stated aspects that i thought such as "mysterious" and it being "unique and standing out" while others said that it went with the genre and that "it puts emphasis on the storyline".
So overall i am very happy with the comments received from my target audience as it means that what i have done is good and is also effective.
As i showed in a previous blog post in one of the scenes of my trailer i have added a filter to one of the scenes.
The clip above shows the filter on the video in effect in the trailer. I added this filter for a couple of reasons:
For starters i thought that by adding the colour effect that the scene would be improved somewhat and would make the scene stand out more and make the scene unique. By adding the filter i also thought that it would add a sense of mystery and intrigue. Furthermore by adding the colour effect i tried to convey the feeling that hope was fading and when these antagonists appear then the movie gets dark and more creepy. Also i wanted to suggest that the antagonists are the epitome of darkness and when they are there there is no light and hope as they work in the shadows as the title of the film suggests.
Secondly i got the idea to add the filter from another horror film trailer for insidious. As you can see from the image on the left in the trailer there features a scene where the characters are filtered in the black and white filter which is exactly like mine. In the insidious trailer the filter adds a lot more creepiness to the scene as well as mystery and this is what i tried to add and convey in my trailer with the scene that is filtered in black and white.
From here i am going to get some feedback from my target audience to see if the scene works as a whole and if the added filter works with out and see what they think
In my trailer i included a scene that in an earlier blog post i said i wanted to include a particular camera angle and editing technique. The shot i wanted to try and achieve was this:
By creating a similar scene in my own trailer i thought that it would create something memorable and unique about the trailer and also something that was very creepy.
Above is the finished product and i am very happy with the result and how it is executed. Within the trailer i believe the scene works really well as it stands out from all of the other scenes in the trailer because of its look and feel and also its filter effect.
To me it makes the trailer much more creepy and works especially well with the music in the trailer.
Now that my first draft for my trailer has been handed in i thought that this would give me a good opportunity to take a look back at some trailers for the appropriate genre of mine so that i can further my knowledge and understanding of trailers and also see for myself what i could potentially do better when it comes to perfecting my own trailer.
The first thing that is shown to the audience is the image of the company that is distributing the film. This simple but also important feature just tells the audience who has distributed the movie and may also attract the audience to the film if they have seen a movie by Orion pictures before. However what really attracted me to this part of the trailer was the close ups of one of the main characters Hannibal. Why i really liked this close up is how it is presented. First of all the music that accompanies the shot is very harrowing and disturbing and makes it even more intense. Secondly i also very much liked how they used to shot to interrupt the Orion pictures highlighting how this character may be deranged. Thirdly the shots instantly present this character as being dangerous without having to mention his name or whatever he may of done.
This shot above is something i also thought was very effective. The audience is given a POV shot which puts the audience in the eyes of the character. We see the shot of her walking down the dark corridor but what i really liked about this shot was the camera was shaky and seemed unbalanced suggesting that the character is a little worried and so should the audience and also suggesting that this place is dark and dangerous but the people inside these cells are unbalanced and deranged.
The first piece of dialogue we hear in the trailer is "do you spook easily starling". I really liked this way of opening the trailer and thought it was very effective because although it very much sets the scene for the rest of movie implying to the audience that the movie may show some scenes that will scare them and that this movie is indeed a horror movie but it also seems to invite the audience into the trailer as if the character is also talking to them asking the audience if they are scared easily which would attract and also creep the audience out as they'd be guessing what could happen in the trailer leaving them guessing.
Coming in at 14 seconds the trailer includes some diegetic narration which states " he keeps them alive for three days then he shoots them, skins them and then dumps them". I really liked this inclusion into the trailer as it gives the audience some backstory and also gives the audience the vital information for the plot and motives of some of the characters in the film while also acting as a way to scare the audience as the crimes that are taking place within the film are disturbing and are not in the norm when it comes to crime films.
Editing with this trailer is something that i thought was very effective. In the beginning of the trailer the editing is very slow and methodical making for a disturbing and unsettling feeling as the audience are constantly expecting something to happen but yet it doesn't making them unsettled and weary for the rest of the trailer. Furthermore when the trailer is reaching its climax stages editing becomes quite fast paced this is also to scare and put the audience on edge as they won't be able to see what is happening properly in every scene and are left guessing but also suggests that anything could happen in the next scene.
This is also a shot that i found very effective. The shot is very unique and stands out within the trailer because of what it can mean. It shows how Hannibal is seemingly a mastermind and has now made it into the detectives head. This shot i also believe is done to show that Hannibal is antagonist and he has clearly done some bad things and should not be trusted. However i like how his face is fuzzy and not that clear seemingly to suggest his motives are not that clear.
This is also another shot that i liked from the trailer. Hannibal is looking straight at the camera and so within the narrative it seems as though he is looking directly at the audience creating a sense of unease and mystery around him. The constant cuts to Hannibals face is really effective and something that i really liked as it adds to the mastermind feel to him to once his in your mind you can't escape him.
The soundtrack in the trailer is your standard stereotypical soundtrack for a thriller/horror movie as its used to toy and also add to horror and creepiness of the trailer and i believe with this trailer the soundtrack is very effective. It is able to add to the mystery and scariness of the movie all in one managing to constantly leave the audience in suspense and fear.
Overall i really liked this trailer and how it was made. Now that my first draft has been handed in i really think that this is a trailer in which i will look back upon for guidance and help when looking into the codes and conventions for the thriller/horror genre as this trailer manages to do this perfectly being able to thrill but also scare the audience.
The week before half term our class handed in the first draft of our product whether this be a trailer, music video or a regional magazine. This was a chance for our class to see where we were and see where we needed to go.
When handing in my own trailer i was then fully and properly able to see what my trailer looked like. When watching the trailer back i was able to see various different aspects of the trailer that i knew needed changing or improving. By taking the time to do this i felt that when the time came to getting feedback from our teacher i would be able to see where we both agree and so then i could see if i was on the right tracks which would help me even more if i felt the same as my teacher as to where my trailer should and would go from here.
My own personal thoughts for improvement:
Because of various aspects such as weather delays and availability my trailer was incomplete. Although only missing 3 scenes overall these scenes are important to the trailer and are obviously important if i want to complete the trailer and of course do good. So it is imperative that before the final hand in i make sure these three scenes are completed which they will be as they already planned.
Although when first editing i thought it was okay and at a suitable standard watching it back it became clear that some of the editing in the trailer needed tidying up so that the trailer runs smoothly and effectively to make it seem more professional and tidy.
Perhaps depending on what my teacher says the first shot (the establishing shot) could be redone as when i looked back it was a little shaky and so probably could be better done.
My trailer however did have some positives, i had recored the start most parts of the middle and an end giving it a narrative that could still be followed even though it was not completely finished. Another thing i believe my trailer excelled well in was the sound part and i think this really helped my trailer come across as more effective.
However i will not know what i actually need to do until i speak to my teacher next lesson and then when i get this feedback i will be able to go and improve my trailer based on what my teacher thinks.
One thing that made this poster very appealing to me was that of its colour scheme. The colour scheme of the poster is very stereotypical of the thriller genre. The main colour which is black represents the mystery of the movie surrounding the movie and the poster with suspense and intrigue. The main text on the poster is coloured in red which also links with the theme of thriller as it links to the idea of blood, violence and danger. These two colours perfectly sum up the main themes of the thriller and straight up tell the audience what they can expect from the movie and also what genre it is. This is something that i really liked about the poster as perfectly manages to sum up what the movie will be about.
The poster also does something very different. The poster includes quite a lot of text. This is something that is very different from the norm of your stereotypical poster. Normally a poster will not include much text to try and make it simple and more effective. However this poster completely breaks the norm featuring a lot of text. This allows the poster to stand out from many of the other posters out on the market. The text in the middle of the page is clearly a quote from the movie which adds further intrigue into the poster as audiences would want to know who that is being said about and what the context is about the quote. As well as the quote from the movie the poster also includes a tagline at the top of the poster which states "They've taken his daughter, now he's taking them down". This allows the audience to get an insight into the movie and let them have some idea of what the movie is about and also what is going to happen in the movie. This generates more buzz and interest in the movie making the audience want to know more about the movie.
Another thing i also very much liked about this poster was the very title of the movie, The title is featured at the bottom of the poster and is situated somewhere where it is very easily noticeable and can be easily seen by the audience. Another thing that i liked about the title of the movie was that it is very simple. The name of the film is just one word and the word that they have chosen to use is the word 'taken'. This title is very simplistic and very simple and easily tells the audience what to expect from the from the film as clearly the title sums up the films plot which is exactly what the title of the movie is meant to do.
The main image of the poster is something i very much liked about this poster. It features just one singular image yet manages to perfectly sum up the events of not just the movie but also the sum some of the character motives and what he is about. The character is holding a gun which supports the idea of violence and action happening in the movie. Another thing i like about the image is how it is positioned on the poster. The character is positioned to look like he is in a action shot and is about to shoot something making the poster look more authentic and more intriguing. The character also is shot so that it seems he is also fading into the shadows making more intrigue around the character as it makes more suspense and mystery as it seems to suggest that there are things about him that we do not know.
The poster also includes a little collage of images to the left and right of the main image. These little images show little parts of the movie that can add intrigue to the movie because it shows some of the movies most dramatic moments adding to the suspense of it all and make the poster seem more interesting.
Overall i really liked this poster, it seems to many different things that make it more unique and also things that is very stereotypical for a poster. It all makes up for a really effective and nice poster that executes all the needs of a poster.
To get the feedback i used the social media app instagram.
As well as the feedback i get from my teacher regarding the state and progress of my first draft i thought that it would be a good idea to send the first draft to the target audience as these would be the people that would watch the movie if it were to be released so it would be a good idea to see where they thought there were good aspects and also aspects which needed to be improved.
Overall i am really relieved with the feedback from my target audience as it seemed that they enjoyed the trailer as a whole. The positives from the feedback also put me at ease knowing that i was on the right track with my trailer and had some good areas with it including the sound and the editing and the story as a whole. However as you can see there was some feedback for how i could improve the trailer some i knew myself like finishing the trailer as a whole and some that i didn't know and so in turn helped me out a whole. The improvements were as followed:
Shorten the studio canal scene as it seems to just fill up the time and just leaves the audience waiting for it to end.
Working on the start scene and the narration to make it more professional and complete.
So as well as the feedback that i receive from my teacher the feedback from my audience really helped me out alot as they gave me an insight into my trailer from my own target audience.
As well as creating a trailer for a movie and a movie poster for the trailer we are also tasked with creating a film magazine promoting the movie that we have created. So to help me with this process in this blog post i will be looking into the total film magazine which promotes the movie shutter island.
One of the main things that stuck out to me was the actual shot of the magazine. The shot used is a long shot allowing the reader. This type of shot is very useful and effective as it allows the reader to see all of the characters body therefore having a proper insight into the mindset of the character. It may also allow the reader to get an insight into the films plot. The gun also indicates there will be violence on this movie.
Another aspect of the poster that i really like is its use of the inclusion of the fog. Its inclusion creates a eerie and mysterious feel for the movie making it look and seem more creepy. The colour of the magazine is mainly dark with black and dark blue colours being used furthering the films identity as a thriller but also allowing the magazines text to stick out more to the audience. The darker colours used on the magazine also highlights the darker themes of the movie letting the audience know what to expect in terms of it won't be a fun light hearted movie but instead a very serious and mysterious movie that is not for the faint hearted.
The main image of the magazine (the character and the lighthouse) block the masthead which simply signifies the fact that these aspects of the magazine are very important to the plot and marketing of the movie. By the magazine doing this it also means that the magazine is well known and does not need the full masthead to be seen for it to be known by the audience. The magazine has also done something very effective in which i like. The magazine includes articles on avatar, transformers and iron man. This is done so that people who may not be interested in the main topic of the magazine have alternatives that will still make them interested in the purchasing of the magazine.
The typography on the magazine is very effective as it manages to tie in with the whole theme of the magazine. The main text and background of the text look like its blood smeared adding to that whole violent and mysterious tone of the film that the magazine is promoting. The main actor and the director is also included on the poster highlighting their importance and significance at being able to attract an audience. The magazine also features a dicaprio exclusive which makes the magazine seem more special as it means that no other magazine has what this magazine has.
So i believe that this magazine is a really good magazine. One thing that sticks out to me is its colour scheme and use of the fog. Just by using these very simple things the magazine already tells the audience so much about the magazine and makes it look so effective. Because of all the reasons stated below this magazine is one that i will look back on for inspiration.
To ensure that my knowledge of the ancillary product is well and that i know what to do when it comes to making my own. In this blog post i will be looking at the poster for the movie the 'grudge'.
What i very much like about this poster was its simplicity. The colour uses just one primary colour and one sole image. This is really effective to me as it makes it stand out and seem more effective.
The title of the movie is in the centre of the page and so is the focal point of the poster and is the thing that all of the audience will see. The colour of the text being red is also something that i find very effective. Because it is red it connotes the feeling of violence and horror and blood that can make the audience feel uneasy and show the fact that is a horror.
The dark background can show and highlight the main feature of the horror being fear and scary. The main image of this poster is a extreme close up of the antagonist of the film. Most of the face is covered by hair and the only real detail about the character is the eyes. This creates an enigma around the character and a sense of mystery and suspense. What I like about this has been designed is that you can only see the eye of the character. I like the effect that this gives as it now makes the poster seem as though the 'grudge' is looking directly at them which may make the audience seem uneasy and restless.
The tagline in this poster is very effective and is something I really like for myself going forward as it is very simplistic yet effective in what it has to do. The tagline mentions "it". This creates a sense of curiosity as it leaves the audience wanting to know who it is. Another aspect of the poster that I like is the juxtaposition of colours used. Although not obvious the maker of the poster has used a full dark background which allows part of the main image to stand out even more and have more of a creepy effect on the audience due to its bright pale skin.
So when going forward I think some of the aspects of this poster will defiantly inspire me when creating my own poster. Things such as the colour use of the poster has stuck out to me because of its simple use it has created a really effective and scary image for the poster that the movie can promote. Another thing that I really liked about this poster was its tagline. For my own poster I want to create something that is very short and sweet for example. Something that can scare the audience with just a few words and this is something that this poster does expertly and so is something I will come back to looking at for my own ancillary product.
In this blog post i will be looking into the poster for the movie the last exorcism. By doing this I can greater understanding of the typical conventions of a movie poster so that when i create my own i will know what to include and what some of the good things are to include.
One thing that stuck out to me on this poster was its use of colour. The colours in the poster seem to be desaturated and plain with the poster as a whole using dull and boring colours such as grey for example. This is a stray from the typical uses of colour in horror poster as normally a horror poster would include very strong and impactful colours like black or red. However these colours are very effective as they can highlight death, horror and the feeling or being pulled away from things that a good.
Another aspect of the poster is the tagline. Situated just above the name of the film so that the audience can see the tagline. I really liked the tagline in this poster "if you believe in God you must believe in the devil". This is a really effective tagline as it plays on religious stereotypes that can bring more fear to a film as religious things can be very close to peoples hearts so to play on them or even make them question what they believe can be even more effective and for a poster to do this just with two lines is something I really like because it offers the audience something mysterious and adds suspense to the poster and the film as the audience are left guessing what can happen next. One thing that I noticed about this poster was that it left it out the usual credits at the bottom. I found this effective as for me it gave it a sense of the poster being real and that the events of the movie are infact real so the audience wont need to know about the cast because of it being real. The text of the main title of the film is situated near the bottom of the page in bold black grunge writing making the poster seem more creepy and offering a more effective poster. The last word in the film is already enough to offer many connotations of the horror genre as exorcism already tells the audience what they can expect from the movie and know that inside the movie there is going to be some scary scenes.
The poster consists of one main image. The image show a single girl in old clothes distorted in a creepy manner. The image of the poster links to its title as it is clear that the girl is possessed and will need an exorcism. The way that the girl is positioned makes the poster even more gripping as it looks and feels unique and instantly grabs the viewers attention to see what is going on.
One of the very first things that the audience is brought to in the poster is of course the main image of the ghost mask which is situated right in the middle of the poster which ensures that the audience will see the image no matter what and will be attracted to it. What makes this poster so effective is its use of juxtaposition for the colours. The black background allows the white image to stand out perfectly and look more unique and impactful. The black in the poster is very much your typical horror colour as it connotes those dark and fearful connotations that includes death for example. Another thing that I find very effective about the image is how the mask very coolly and slickly transitions from a mask into a knife at the bottom which can imply to the audience that there is going to be some violence in this movie.
The black in this poster also manages to do another job and is something that is does very well. The black seems to represent the mystery and the unknown within the movie and does not allow the audience to guess anything so they will not know what to expect.
The film title is also included at the bottom of the page and uses two different colours to represent this. The use of the colour white is obvious to make it stand out from the rest of the black page behind it and uses the colour red which may indicate to the audience that this is a horror movie as the colour red has connotations of blood and violence. The fact that the letter 'A' has been replaced with the number 4 indicates to the audience that this is the fourth movie of the franchise so fans will be excited to see another one and also they will know what to expect. This would therefore explain as to why there is a lack of information on the poster as people already know what the film is about and what normally goes on so they do not need to be flashy and display everything because fans know what to expect.
What I liked so much about this poster was its simplicity and how it conveyed the genre of horror without doing much at all. It did all of its work just by using one colour and one image and did it really well so this is something I will come back to looking at when making my ancillary product.
As you can see when i did some basic drafts for what my poster could potentially look like. I very much liked how the hostiles poster was designed. The poster was basically split into two parts and giving of two different colours and so two different effects for the poster. It seems to separate the two main characters of the film. I thought i could connect this design to my own to my own plot and design. I thought i could use the design to separate the protagonist and antagonist to show that these two characters are different to each other and are clearly at odds with each other. Also at the two characters used will of course be the main protagonist and main antagonist and i wanted to showcase this by putting them on the poster. This can clearly be shown be the plague doctor character being on the right hand side giving it that creepy side to the poster. The main setting of the poster will have the lickies castle as for my plot the lickies castle is something that is featured prominently featured in my trailer so i thought it would be quite a cool addition to have as it has that scary cool look.
