Magazine Front Cover Mock Up.

This is a mock up of the film magazine front cover that I am going to make on Photoshop to promote my film trailer. I have used a masthead at the top as that is were they are always placed on magazines and newspapers. The date and a bar-code are always on every magazine so that is why I have included them on my mock up. I have also included pugs and, taglines and an image in the mock up, as a magazine front cover needs them to draw attention to that specific cover.

Venue/Location Lists - To include photographs

We filmed our trailer in multiple places within the same woods in Lydiate. In the woods there were peacocks which made the sound a lot better because there was background noise, the noises of the peacocks also made it quite scary. Also in the woods there was parts of houses from hundreds of years ago which also made it scary and created more atmosphere within the film. There were signs saying 'Danger, falling part of houses'; this also added the fear of danger into the trailer.

Prop Lists - Requirements for each shoot.

I needed certain props for the trailer to make it seem more realistic and professional :-

• A 3 man to tent to make it evident that the group would be camping.
• 2 camping chairs as you would not go camping without chairs as there would be nowhere to sit.
• A lighter to light the campfire to make it seem more like they were camping.
• A knife for the murder of Melissa.
• Fake blood for the killer to wipe off the knife.
• Black gloves.

Costume List - Requirements for each shoot.

Melissa Heague (Stacey) - She wore clothes that a teenager would normally wear to go camping. Leggings, black jacket and black hunter wellies. This is in-keeping with the horror genre as she is not wearing any bright colours.

Philip Wade (Mark) - Phil wore clothes that again a teenager would normally wear to go camping. He wore Nike tracksuit bottoms and a black adiddas hooded top that would keep you warm while camping. Again they are dull colours in-keeping with the horror genre.

George Hart (Jack) - George wore jeans and a hooded top, and blue trainers; again what a teenage boy would wear if they were to be going camping in the cold weather.

John Appleby (Killer) - John wore black clothes so he would not be seen. He always wore black gloves so no finger prints would be left to trace.

Actors List - Who is being used ( Reasons for your choices if possible)

For my film trailer 'The Outsider', I needed to choose actors who would portray a good 'airy' atmosphere within the trailer. They also need to be able to act in a substantial manner to make the trailer look like a professional one. They also have to have the look and wear the right clothes that portray the correct look in the genre of the film.

Stacey is played by Melissa Heague aged 17. I chose Melissa to be the only girl in the trailer as I think she portrays a very good 'damsel in distress' as in the trailer it shows her screaming, hurt and on the floor as the trailer portrays that it could of been her blood which was on the knife that the killer who you don't see was wiping off. 

Mark is played by Philip Wade aged 18. He is both Melissa's and Jacks friend in the film. I chose Phil because in any film you always have to have a 'damsel in distress' which is Melissa and i believe that Phil would portray a good 'hero' and would save her from any trouble she would come in contact with.

Jack is played by George Hart aged 17. I chose George to be in the trailer as I feel like he would create a good atmosphere in the parts in the trailer where there is nothing bad going on as he has a good sense of humour and is very spontaneous which would make the trailer a lot better and more successful. 

Research the Marketing campaign for a movie of the same genre as you have selected for your own product.

The marketing campaign that I am going to focus on is Saw 7. It is the same genre that I have made my movie trailer in.

Saw VII Trailer.

4 Saw VII Posters.

Saw VII Website.

All SAW VII Questioned Answered.

Saw Ride in Thorpe Park

Uses and Gratification Theory - Blumler and Katz

5 reasons why people may engage with the media

1) Escape from reality (film)

2) Relate to others/characters (soap)

3) Entertainment (drama/comedy)

4) Informed and educated (news/documentary)

5) Socialise with others (Facebook/popular series)

Blumler and Katz

Uses and Gratifications Theory is a popular approach to understanding mass communication. The theory places more focus on the consumer, or audience, instead of the actual message itself by asking “what people do with media” rather than “what media does to people” (Katz, 1959) . It assumes that members of the audience are not passive but take an active role in interpreting and integrating media into their own lives. The theory also holds that audiences are responsible for choosing media to meet their needs. The approach suggests that people use the media to fulfill specific gratifications. This theory would then imply that the media compete against other information sources for viewers' gratification.

The theorists say that a media user seeks out a media source that best fulfils the needs of the user. Uses and gratifications assume that the user has alternate choices to satisfy their need.

Blumler seems to envision a marriage between cultural studies and the Uses and Gratifications approach, but he is not clear on what terms. Instead of asking "What are your reasons for watching this programme?." Blumler would ask "What about it do you find true to life?" or "What picture of the world does it seem to convey?" (Blumler, 1979).

Judith Butlers Queer Theory

GENDER VS SEX


Gender + Sex= normal
Nature Vs Nuture

Judith Butler is Professor of Comparative Literature and Rhetoric at the University of California, Berkeley, and is well known as a theorist of power, gender, sexuality and identity.

Butler argues that if a gender act is performed and witnessed often enough it becomes the norm. "The notion that there might a "truth" of sex, as Foucault ironically terms it, is produced precisely through the regulatory practices that generate coherent identities through the matrix of coherent gender norms. The heterosexualization of desire requires and institutes the production of discrete and asymmetrical oppositions between "feminine" and "masculine," where these are understood as expressive attributes of "male" and "female."

the call for gender trouble has obvious media implications, since the mass media is the primary means for alternative images to be disseminated. The media is therefore the site upon which this semiotic war (a war of symbols, of how things are represented) would take place.

There are certain perceptions for certain sexuality's, a good example is the children's cartoon programme of Scooby Doo and the conventions of image that the characters give off.

Fred. Velma. Scooby. Shaggy. Daphne.

1) As you can see with Fred, he has been dressed to appear macho and his posture looks like he is strong and masculine. He looks like he is meant to represent the 'typical' heterosexual figure. His clothing looks stylish with a scarf and the colour blue is normally meant to represent male. 
2) Shaggy compared to Fred looks like he doesn't really care about his style and the way he is percieved. His stance also looks like he's not masucline and doesn't represent a 'typical' macho male figure.
3) Velma has short hair and looks like a tomboy, even though she is wearing a skirt, her characters doesn't give off a feminine personality. Her appearance is very different to Daphne's who gives off a typical feminine persona.
4) Daphne is wearing purple which is a colour normally aimed at females. Her pose looks like shes quite self-obsessed compared to Velma. Her long hair is also another typical factor of a feminine female as to which Velma is the opposite of.

Vladimir Propp theory

1. 8 character roles, spheres or action. (Character and action being inseparable)
2. 31 functions, always highly predictable such as villain being punished at end of story
3. The characters normally consist of a villain, heroine, sidekick, doner, princess, father (rewards the hero), the dispatcher who sends the hero on their way, the false hero (usually good looking and a false coward)

Characters

1. The villain (struggles against the hero)
2. The donor (prepares the hero or gives the hero some magical object)
3. The (magical) helper (helps the hero in the quest)
4. The princess (person the hero marries, often sought for during the narrative)
5. Her father
6. The dispatcher (character who makes the lack known and sends the hero off)
7. The hero or victim/seeker hero, reacts to the donor, weds the princess

Propp’s theory of narrative seems to be based in a male orientated environment (due to his theory actually reflecting early folk tales) and as such critics often dismiss the theory with regard to film. However, it may still be applied because the function (rather than the gender) of characters is the basis of the theory. E.g. the hero could be a woman; the reward could be a man.

Critics argue that Propp’s strict order of characters and events is restrictive. We should rather apply the functions and events randomly as we meet new narratives. E.g. the hero may kill the villain earlier than Propp expects. Changing the traditional format will change the whole way the text is received.

Some critics claim there are many more character types than Propp suggests and we should feel free to identify them. E.g. the stooge in a sci-fi film, who is usually nameless and usually killed early on to suggest the power of the alien force, is a typical modern character type.

Claude Levi-Strauss Theory

Claude Levi-Strauss argued that meaning in narratives is based upon binary oppositions (conflicts). He was less interested in the arrangement (syntagmatic)  of the narrative (order) and more in the deeper meaning (paradigmatic) of the themes.

Binary oppositions 

Man VS Woman

Good VS Evil

Earth VS Space

Science VS Nature

Roland Barthes Theory

Narrative works with 5 codes:

1. The action or proairetic
2. The enigma or hermeneutic
3. The semic
4. The symbolic
5. The cultural or referential

The enigma code is the most famous as we use this to make guesses as to know how the narrative will finish, therefore providing pleasure for the audience.

The Hermeneutic code

Part of the story that's not fully explained. They exist as enigmas or questions that the audience wishes to be resolved. A detective story is a narrative that operates by the hermeneutic code. A criminal act is shown and the remained of the narrative is devoted to answering questions raised by the initial event. 

In order to maintain interest, the final truth is not revealed until the end and some devices are used to conceal it-

1. The snare: A deliberate avoidance of the truth- A tease or an implication that sends the audience down a wrong path.
2. Partial answers: Revealing some of the final truths- This is actually used to create suspense.
3. Equivocation: A mixture of truth or snare- Usually further muddying the water.
4. Jamming: Suggesting that the problem may be unsolvable.

Proairetic Code

The proairetic code- actions that imply further action/reaction. E.g. a character has an argument and the readers wonder what the resolution or outcome of this argument will be. This creates suspense/ tension as the audience wonder what the outcome will be and make guesses.

Detailed Analysis of Batman:The Dark Knight Total Film Magazine Cover.

Total Film Magazine Front Cover

Detailed analysis of Harry Potter and the Deathy Hallows magazine front cover.

Harry Potter Magazine FrontCover

Detailed analysis of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows movie trailer.

Harry Potter & the Deathly Hallows Part 1

The first trailer that I have chosen to analyse is Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1. The use of edits and sounds within the trailer has made it very effective and builds great suspense in the trailer which makes it evident what the film is going to be like. The start of the trailer with the usual Warner Brothers (harry potter style) ident. The way it has been edited makes it evident that it is for the Harry Potter trailer. There is no dialogue until 40 seconds into the trailer. The first person you see is Voldermort who says 'Harry Potter, the boy who lived'; there is no dialogue once he says this, although after he says it the music starts to appear starting low then going higher. The music then stops after Voldermort says 'come to die' which makes a dramatic effect as Harry closes his eyes in fear just as he says this and when the music stops. After this the trailer consists of short 1 or 2 second clips while dramatic music is playing in the background, using people that have been in all of the films and also people who have not been in the films. Through out the trailer they use the transition of 'fade to black' whether it be a short transition or a a long one they use it confidently. They also use words within the trailer saying 'THE FINALE OF THE WORLD PHENOMENON' this creates effect as it draws attention to the fact that it is the last movie so will definitely be the best. It also says 'the motion picture of this generation' which will make people who have not watched it before as it must be good if  it is 'the' motion picture of this generation. The music stops and shows a side shot of Voldermort holding Harry from the face which will create great suspense for the audience. Voldermort says "why do you live?" then Harry says "because I have something worth living for". The music starts again and shows short clips of other parts of the film again. Within the small clips there is a shot of Voldermort holding his wand up to the sky then it fades to black for not even a second and it is Dumbledore in the same stance, this creates a dramatic effect as constant viewers of Harry Potter will realise they are both the greatest wizards. The music suddenly stops again and you can see a duel between Harry and Voldermort, the sound of the sparks between the wands is very loud which also makes it more dramatic to the audience. Also as this is happening Voldermort says "only I can live forever". The trailer then finishes and shows the Harry Potter logo which is darker than any of the other films. 

Detailed analysis of The Uninvited film poster.

The Uninvited

Detailed analysis of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows film poster.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows