After that simple task of identifying conventions we had to find three supernatural/paranormal horror film posters and do a detailed analysis of them. I have chosen to look at Final Destination (2000), The Unborn (2009) and A Nightmare on Elm Street (2010 Remake).
Friday, 28 September 2012
Poster Conventions
Once we created our own film posters we needed to understand the conventions of film posters. From our posters they're kind of basic or simply a teaser poster. Some of us haven't included the film title, stars/cast, still from film, billing block, endorsements, release date or the tag line. During the lessons we looked at the conventions of a film poster, any genre but since we're looking at horror films, I decided to find horror film posters instead. The task was simply to identify the convention.
Thursday, 27 September 2012
Film Posters 'Photoshop'
Here is a very simple poster I created on Photoshop. A close up photograph was taken of of Media teacher. We then imported the photo to the computer and opened it up on Photoshop. I had photoshop in the previous year so I was ver familiar to the various tools available to us. I then seach different textures such a 'grunge textures' on Google which gave the the texture on the photograph, with a bit of brightness and contrast the final product looks like this.
'Diary of a Wimpy Kid'
We had were given a task to create our own version of a trailer for the movie 'Diary of a Wimpy Kid' (2010). We used the Teacher Trailer software where would create and mess around with various clips from the official trailer.
Trailer Treatment
My next job was to complete a trailer treatment, which was basically to analyse the parts of the trailer we produced for the 'Bloodshed High' Brief.
Below I gave I inserted a podcast of the trailer treatment I did.
'Bloodshed High' Brief
Our class was given the task to create our own trailer for a small made up film 'Bloodshed High'. We were split into groups of three and each person would have a section which would they would produce their own stroyboard for the 'Bloodshed High' brief. I was responsible for the Problem part of the trailer. I designed my story board and this is how it looked like in the end.
Diegetic/Non-Diegetic Sound in Horror Trailers
A crucial section we need to cover in order to produce successful horror trailers is the diegetic or non-diegetic sound in horror trailer. The sound in films helps create an atmosphere for the audience and to make scenes in films seem more realistic, especially in horror films. In the lesson we had to identify the diegetic and non-diegetic sound from a clip. At the end we were told the sound from 'House at the End of the Street' (2012). This is what I identified in this clip:
NON-DIEGETIC:
Harsh. screeching sound
Music in time with tempo, pace and rhythm of the cuts
Heartbeat-like, thumping sound
Out of tune music- dissonant- pads- constant droning noise- drone
Coventional sound effects of smashing, slashing, slicing sounds suggest murder weapons
Calm, quite moments then transitions to loud, intense music
Rewinding effect
Dissonant, unstable, harsh and unpleasant music
So many different non-diegetic sounds were playing in this 2 minute clip that it will be hard to identify after one viewing. The non-diegetic sounds intensify the trailer making it more heart pounding, stressful and adrenaline rushing which is what a conventional horror trailer is suppose to do. Once you experience this type of adrenaline you want to go see the film.
DIEGETIC:
First line: 'Oh My God'
Shattered glass
Clock ticking
Creaking doors, slamming, knocking, ringing door bells
Screaming and shouting
Protagonist being dragged
Exaggerated thunder, stormy sound weather
Creaking floorboards
Whispering voices
Burning
Re-appearing metallic sounds of blades
Paranormal sounds
Last line: 'I think this place is really good for us'
NON-DIEGETIC:
Harsh. screeching sound
Music in time with tempo, pace and rhythm of the cuts
Heartbeat-like, thumping sound
Out of tune music- dissonant- pads- constant droning noise- drone
Coventional sound effects of smashing, slashing, slicing sounds suggest murder weapons
Calm, quite moments then transitions to loud, intense music
Rewinding effect
Dissonant, unstable, harsh and unpleasant music
So many different non-diegetic sounds were playing in this 2 minute clip that it will be hard to identify after one viewing. The non-diegetic sounds intensify the trailer making it more heart pounding, stressful and adrenaline rushing which is what a conventional horror trailer is suppose to do. Once you experience this type of adrenaline you want to go see the film.
DIEGETIC:
First line: 'Oh My God'
Shattered glass
Clock ticking
Creaking doors, slamming, knocking, ringing door bells
Screaming and shouting
Protagonist being dragged
Exaggerated thunder, stormy sound weather
Creaking floorboards
Whispering voices
Burning
Re-appearing metallic sounds of blades
Paranormal sounds
Last line: 'I think this place is really good for us'
What makes a good? What are the feautures of a trailer?
What are the features of a trailer?
People normally say that trailers are a small version of the actuall film itself. But trailers are not 'mini-films'. They are a genre in their own right and have their own set of recognisable convenctions.
Trailers are designed to capture our attention and hold it for a short space of time. The information given to us is just enough to raise out curiosity but not enough to spoil the sotry f the film. A film trialer is like doing a jigsaw puzzle - we're given some information as to the plot and character and our task as the audience is to fill in the space in the time avalaible by watching the film. The sound in a trailer is very important too. The music in paticular is very important because it can swiftly manipulate our emotions an atmosphere. Voice-overs are conventionally used as a feature of advertising and it used to summerise the story, also emphasie credit information where appropriate such as film release etc.
A good trailer will aim to the following:
- Tease audience
- Bring/ drawback audience
- Give a insight to what may happen in the film
- Raise curiosity
- Include music
- Apply recognisable conventions but vary
- Title
When we see this logo below:
We suddenly get an expectation about what the film is going to be based on. The audience expectation of:
- Animation
- Family
- Children
- Fairy Tale
- Fantasy
Analysing a Trailer
Film trailers are a form of advertising. Trailers are structured to include the best bits of a film to encourage as many people as possible to see the film at the cinema.
For a trailer to run properly it has to include the following features:
- Genre
- Narritive (Representation)
- Unique Selling Point
- Target Audience
- Music
- Shot types/ Camera Angles
- Pace
- Dialogue
- Voiceover
- Special effects
- Credits and intertitles
Recognising Film Trailer Structures
We started looking and breaking down the genre conventions and structer of a film trailer. I looked at the new Bond film 'Sky Fall' (2012) and I analysed the structural conventions. A structural convenction of a trailer begins with the Opening, which establishes the setting and introduces the character. We then have the Build Up, any relationship established, the film world is realised. Next come the Problem, the complications introduced and obstacles to overcome and finally the Events, the character tries to overcome the obstacles and solve problems.
Below I have added a picture of the work sheet I completed by analysing the James Bond 'Sky Fall' trailer.
Wednesday, 26 September 2012
Preliminary Task - Music Video
This is the end result of my perm music video - the 'We Will Rock You'. I am personally happy with it because it was our first attempt at making a music video. The process of producing this was aggravating because there's so many aspects we had to consider. As well as mastering the basics on Adobe: Premier Elements for editing. In the end, this was a beneficial task because we learnt the codes and conventions of a music video, as well as filming, planning and editing. Although I'll will not be creating a music video for A2. The skills I've learnt will not go to waste.
http://youtu.be/c6o5NcDFgEw
Tuesday, 25 September 2012
Introduction
My name is Joana Freitas, and I am a current A2 Media student @ Acland Burghley. I was previously in the Media class at La Sainte Union, but this year I have changed to Acland Burghley. For our coursework in AS, we had to create out own music magazine which consisted of front page, contents page and a double page spread article. This year at A2, we have the chance to develope our Media skills and produce our very own horror trailer.
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