Check Lists NOT FINISHED

In order for Fern and I to stay on track we had constant checklists carried out to see what stage we were at in our project. Our teacher had done this, which positively impacted our products simply because we were able to make sure that we hadn't wasted time on things, and ensured that all things got completed. 

This was the first checklist that was carried out. Evidently, Fern and I hadn't completed a lot by this time simply because we were just introducing ourself to the tasks that we had to complete. At this time we had only carried out preparation and hadn't actually created anything, this wasn't a weakness to our project purely because at this time it wasn't our task to have had everything completed. This stage that we were at was when Fern and I begun to make our crucial decisions, therefore it was significant that we had centred our time on doing this, to ensure that all of our decisions were made accurately.

This was our second check list. Evidently, at this time we had made a lot more progression compared to the first checklist that was carried out. A lot of decisions that we had previously made in the first check list had now been blogged meaning we had completed this section of the research and preparation. The majority of planning we had done at this time had been blogged, therefore this positively impacted upon our timing simply because it showed that individually and together Fern and I weren't falling behind. From this checklist we were able to highlight upon the areas which we have begun but need to be finished, for instance; 'Research and plan poster and magazine' Fern had nearly finished this at this time,whereas I hadn't blogged this section at all , because of this I was able to pick up that this needed doing instantly, 

The Promotional Package

Promotional packages are what A-list movies rely upon- it builds on the advertisement which then leads the target audience to watch the film. The Magazine cover, poster and trailer are all the products which create this ‘promotional package’ the more advertisement that is exposed, the more income the film will gain, ultimately suggesting it is a successful movie. Promotional packages can be shown through different presentations for instance; trailers can be shown on the television, on the cinema before the film starts and on the internet. These are all sources which an audience can access therefore it is difficult for an audience to disregard any form of advertisement. It was significant when planning our promotional package that we had ensured there was a link between all three products, if the poster was completely different compared to the trailer and the magazine cover for instance, and then it would be considered as ineffective and wouldn’t be a complete promotional package.

Our intentions for our promotional package was to enable an audience to feel suspense by the narrative that we are exposing, we wanted to guarantee that our target audience would instantly understand what category of genre our film would fit into. We were keen to automatically represent the disruptive and struggles the protagonist experiences throughout the film, and this would be the reason for why we had published her on both the magazine cover and film poster, and obviously was one of the main characters within the actual trailer.

Film Poster

Magazine Cover

Film Trailer 
NEED TO BE INSERTED HERE

Making of the Billing Block

The image above doesn’t represent our final billing-block. We had used Photoshop to create this, however the step that we have reached now means it would be extremely difficult to continue with using this programme, therefore we shall transfer this work onto Power point, although this may seem like the easier option, this programme allows Fern and I to make vast changes instead of coming across a lot of faults until we reach a finalized product of a ‘billing block’ Fern and I had created this billing block by downloading a specific layout from the internet, once this was downloaded we had then used Photoshop to add in all of the text that was needed, the process of doing this was extremely simple yet it had taken patience when positioning all of the text in the accurate places.

The final billing block I had made the smaller text within the text to fit underneath one another, like the of Rock Of Ages billing block.

I had used the internet to explore different billing blocks, and had found that they all look similarly alike; nevertheless I had opted for replicating the billing block of the Rock of Ages purely because I felt this template looked capable to reconstruct, it had given me the expectations of what a billing block should look like therefore I was sure that it was ‘honest’

At this stage the only thing that I needed to change was where it had said ‘Title of the film’ the reason for this was simply because Fern and I hadn’t decided what we was going to name our film, nevertheless through the progression that we have made since then we have decided on the film title ‘Caged’. Therefore from this we were able to alter this part of the billing block and then add the title of the film.

I felt that Fern and I producing a billing block was a successful feature to add to our film trailer and film poster, it provides the audience with a sense of professionalism, allowing them to take note of all the individuals that were involved to create this film i.e. the director. It undeniably benefited our products as it showed that we considered all of the significant factors that these products should present.

THE ROCK OF AGES BILLING BLOCK- INSPIRATION

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Sound, Camera movement/angles, Location, Lighting and Editing

Sound- A thriller film uses non-digetic sound in order to create mystery, suspense and tension (all feelings which are likely to be released for this particular genre) It is a sound bridge which creates a certain atmosphere, which evidently gives away the category the film genre fits into. Fern and I will ensure that we include a great deal of non-digetic sound to create a dramatic yet luring ambience.  We shall do this by using Garage Band- which is a programme that provides a selection of different sound 

effects.

Camera movement and angles-

Throughout my exploration of thriller film trailers I had particularly focused on observing the use of camera movement and angles that were included. Not only was this useful for the making of Fern and I’s production, but it was interesting to highlight upon the angles/movements which were effective and was able to build tension. Before Fern and I had decided to do a thriller film, we had also studied different genres to widen out knowledge, from doing this I had realised how depending on the genre the camera movement/angles differ.  For instance; a romantic film would be expected to have a series of close up’s to see the emotions of characters faces whereas an action film would be known for a series of establishing shots simply because it enhances the importance of the location that they are set in e.g. in the film Taken, it is significant to understand the location they are in.

A thriller film however would be associated with movement consisting of mainly; panning and tracking. These shots are frequently used because it makes an audience feel involved with the film, almost as though it is their own body tracking the ‘anonymous figure for example. The use of tracking and panning builds anticipation, simply because it is that desire to reach the end of the shot- if the camera is panning up on a figure of someone an audience are keen to just see the final shot which supposedly would be the face of the individual. Obviously, thriller films include all types of shots/movements especially when the footage is more concise and alerting, nevertheless I had found these two techniques extremely frequent.  A common angle that is used is low angles. This is often used to emphasise on those in power, those who are inferior of the person that is higher up to them, and those that have more control. These are commonly used simply because it makes the film seem more powerful, it builds on the ‘terrifying’ aspects that the film contains, and makes an audience feel scared about what will follow this shot. When studying the film Lovely Bones I had realised that low shots were frequently used when the mysterious features were occurring- this would enable an audience to get a brief clue of what the antagonist looked like but the audience aren’t able to build an entire interpretation, as their whole identity isn’t being revealed. Close up shots are often used to show the expressions of the characters face, it may show how terrified the protagonist is for example, and how they are striving to escape. As well as these- long shots and mid shots are often used which again follow the thriller conventions.

Location- Thriller films are known to be set in a dismal location, as it builds on the darkness the overall narrative contains. It would seem odd if the location was set in a location which would give the impression of utopia simply because that wouldn’t be appropriate for the genre. The location in a thriller genre is crucial, it sets the scene allowing the audience to understand the key parts of the footage they need to take note of as it may be a clue for later occurrences of the narrative, for example- we have gathered footage of Annabelle the little girl in the park with her father, yet as the trailer progresses we realise she has been abducted, suggesting that the day she was in the park was the day she was abducted- ultimately reinforcing the idea of how vital the location is. The location of a thriller film is often very mysterious. The location is often associated with forests, woods etc, an area which suggests isolation- which as a result leads to how in thriller film it is difficult for the protagonist to escape the isolated area they are endured in.

Lighting- The lighting of a film again is an important feature; it makes the genre and narrative more clearly to the human eye. Dim lighting and darkness is frequently used in thriller films as it suggests that something bad is soon to occur, it is purposely done in order to make the characters in the film frightened but also the audience, as it creates anxiety, therefore it is used effectively and cleverly as the producing of the film is developing feelings that they want an audience to feel. Darkness is something which many individuals are frightened of, and I feel the media has created this association with darkness leading to scary experiences. I have researched upon the lighting that is often used in thriller films and this is what I had found-

High key lighting- many sources of light are used. It is usually used in order to capture one main feature in a high contrast over the whole scene, so it emphasises on the focal point, making it the element that commands the most attention. High key lighting is used to develop shadows, which obviously again are something that is expected to be seen in a thriller film.

Low Key lighting- Tends to give a high contrast on where one part of the light directs the lighting as part of the scene, evidently making it unbalanced and one sided to the audience’s eyes.

Editing- The editing of a film is the most significant job. It allows the footage to flow, demonstrating high quality effects and transitions.  The cuts in thriller films are often extremely quick, these snaps of sharp scenes allow the suspense to build up, ultimately justifying the importance of the scenes and the seriousness of what has just occurred. The fast cuts are often used in a trailer film as it gives the audience a brief overview of the narrative of the film without revealing too much, this mean an audience will be enticed and feel as though they want to watch the film- which reinforces the idea that the trailer was successful and enticing. Cross dissolves and fades between each scene commonly occur, in takes one scene into another in a way which flow/blends as opposed to there being a huge gap between each other.

The making of the magazine cover

This is an almost finished version of the magazine cover that Fern and I have produced. It is evident that already we have included typical conventions that all magazine covers display. We had used a ‘Total Film’ magazine cover as a template; however we have incorporated many of our own ideas as well as the given suggestions.  We decided to replicate some of the elements of an existing ‘Total Film’ magazine cover simply because knowing it has been published and has been successful means it illustrates professionalism, which is an aspect Fern and I are hoping to achieve from doing this task.

Obviously everything that Fern and I have included so far on the magazine cover is all of our own works. We have used Photoshop in order to do this as it provides us with all the techniques needed, and fortunately Fern and I are both extremely advanced with this programme therefore doing this task hasn’t seemed to be a trouble.

When creating this magazine cover Fern and I had decided to use the colours black, white, red and grey- all of these colours give the suggestion of a thriller genre as they symbolize darkness and danger- ultimately reflecting how Fern and I have stuck to following the typical conventions. We felt that the white especially was effective against the black background as it was bold and clear, meaning an audience would easily be able to read the text provided.  The white included in this magazine cover could symbolize the theme of innocence which is existing in the film ‘Caged’ the red could reflect the danger that occurs throughout the film, and the black could exhibit the darkness, suspense and disruptiveness the film contains. Evidently, all of these symbolic suggestions are negative- this has worked well simply because a thriller genre isn’t supposed to be happy, as it highlights upon the struggles and determination of striving to overcome something.

We had copied the layout of a Total Film magazine cover not only because it was ideal but it was how all magazine covers are produced. If Fern and I had subverted the conventions completely, for instance playing the ‘TOTAL FILM’ at the bottom of the page it wouldn’t be successful... it would look extremely odd and an audience wouldn’t be enticed by what they’d be observing (purely because they would feel it wasn’t high quality or professional)

The only thing that needs to be added to this magazine cover now is the image, which obviously be placed in the centre of the page. Once Fern and I have finalized our magazine cover we will then gain feedback to then make adaptations, this will help us to realise what elements of the magazine cover are successful and what could possibly be holding us down from achieving a good product. Already, I can notice things which could possibly be changed for example-  the text underneath the font ‘TOP 100’ is positioned in an unconventional way, there is a huge gap between that and the left side of the entire cover, which appears rather odd and out placed, therefore I will definitely take this into consideration and hope that this can be improved .

Fashion

The clothing that the characters in our trailer are wearing is a significant element, as it builds up a representation. Evidently, the trailer includes three characters, the main antagonist (the man) an innocent young teenage girl, and a little girl at the age of three. All three of these constructs demonstrate different representations naturally, and an audience will perceive them in different ways.

To build on the ‘creepy’ atmosphere we were hoping to achieve in our film trailer we had ensured that the clothing the antagonist was wearing gave the suggestion of being a ‘dark’ character. This would help the audience understand the narrative of the film more, and give them a brief representation of what the ‘bad’ person should be expected to be like. Due to our trailer being non-linear Fern and I had featured this character from both the past and the present.  I had explored the fashion of those who lived in the 90’s simply because this would have been the era when Jason had Annabelle as a young child, therefore it was crucial to get an understanding of the representation of those who lived during this time. I had come to conclusion whilst studying the fashion of this era that men often wore converses, baggy shirts and denim jeans, this is a rather simple outfit to replicate for our character Jason, and therefore this part of organisation hadn’t required a lot of work for Fern and I. We had opted for Jason to be wearing denim jeans, converses and a black coat- although this may seem as though it is a rather challenging outfit for during this time as it doesn’t fit what men wore exactly, Fern and I have picked up on particular elements and ensured that this were evident through the use of his outfit.  I felt that the change in outfit of Jason from the present and the past is extremely crucial, it makes an audience realise the changes of time but also the change in Jason as a person simply because his little girl was abducted therefore it would only be expected that his identification would deteriorate. Fern and I had attempted to make the outfit slightly different when filming Jason in the ‘Future’ by trying to make him look more rough and manly, we felt this would give the impression that he is a troubled character and therefore doesn’t take pride in his appearance, ultimately reflecting him as a character being disruptive.

The clothing of the little girl wasn’t significant; obviously she would automatically be fitting the role of an ‘innocent’ little girl by wearing clothing which is ‘baby like’. We hadn’t designed a specific outfit for the little girl yet we had ensured that over the clothing that she would be wearing, that she would also be wearing the heart necklace, as this is a chief features which helps an audience understand the narrative more.

The teenage girl that features in our film trailer (who is Fern) is dressed in an ‘un-provocative ’ way, Fern and I had purposely done this in order to show how her innocence got the better of her, due to being dressed in a way which would show no indication of exaggeration, it highlighted upon her naive characteristic she entailed. Fern and I had decided that we wouldn’t dress her in clothing which was bright with vibrant colours, simply because we felt this would give a ‘happy’ outlook, which is something Fern and I didn’t want to achieve- purely because our genre was a thriller, therefore the conventions would be completely challenged if we had done this.  

Movie Production Logo's

A significant feature in a trailer is the production logo, this is typical convention which is included in most trailers for instance; Lionsgate, for this reason Fern and I was eager to research upon what particular logo we would include in our own production.  The production logo is a huge indication of the genre of the film; this would help an audience understand what the genre is of the film. From my AS project I was aware that certain production logos were accompanied with certain genres, Fern and I’s AS project presented Paramount Vantage, which is a typical logo to be seen on thriller films. This year we felt it would be ideal to use a movie production logo which was different from Paramount Vantage simply because it would identify how we have researched upon different productions, for this reason we had opted for New Line Cinema.

Evidently there are many production logos to choose from, nevertheless Fern and I had to narrow it down to fit in with our genre that our trailer was. Whilst studying other thriller genre films I had taken into account the production logo that the films were accompanied by. I had studied specifically films which were thriller such as; The Conjuring, Final destination, Night Mare On Elm Street etc, I had begun to realise that this was an extremely popular movie production logo, and therefore felt it would be appropriate for Fern and I’s production trailer. Due to being in such well known films, it gives the indication that it is a successful movie production logo, meaning that if Fern and I incorporate it within our film trailer it will give a sense of professionalism. 

Roles

Fern and I were working together in order to create our film trailer, film poster and film magazine cover, because of this we both took on different roles in order to ensure that we both had some contribution but also so that we stayed on task and wasn’t distracted. Being in a team had benefited both Fern and I as we could deliver our opinions to one another, exchange feedback from each other and overall develop our skills and abilities throughout the progression. All of these products would have a large work load, therefore it seemed the correct decision to set roles individually and together, in order for us to fulfil the expectations we have set for our finalized products. Once Fern and I had completed the making of all three products we had realised that deciding to work together was the right choice, we had also co-operated with one another, and were always there to help each other with tasks that one may have struggled of.

Due to taking English as an A LEVEL subject I was aware of what a successful script consists of, this skill of mine had definitely excelled whilst Fern and I were planning the narrative of our trailer as I was able to contribute many ideas, and list why I felt they would significantly have an impact on an audience. Effectively, I was able to embark upon this task without having struggles throughout. From reviewing back our narrative I felt that the role that I had taken of producing the script had worked, I had ensured that the story line matched the thriller genre, and was able to lure an audience in.  Once Fern and I had decided on our overall ‘synopsis’ of the film, we had then worked together to decide on which scenes we would include in our non linear trailer.

Photoshop is a programme that both Fern and I are advanced with simply because we both use it on an everyday basis (because we both take Photography as an A LEVEL subject) this had undeniably become useful when creating the film poster, film magazine and billing block, simply because instantly we were able to use the techniques without having to adjust our working zones. Having experienced the tools that Photoshop provides, Fern and I were able to generate high quality images to fit well on our magazine, poster and a billing block.  I feel that Photoshop allows an individual to enhance an image without reconstructing it completely, we had used this software to overlay images, make specific parts of the photograph more emphasised and overall making it have that sense of professionalism which it didn’t have before.

Fern had decided to create the film magazine cover whilst I took on the role of creating the film poster; this had allowed us to get things done quickly, nevertheless, although we had allocated ourselves with these roles, continually through the making of both these products Fern and I helped each other by exchanging and receiving feedback as well as making minor alterations to both products. I felt that this had worked well; we hadn’t wasted time in this part of the project as we were able to produce both these products in a short period of time.

Due to Fern volunteering to be the main actress in our film trailer this had automatically given me the role of filming. I had to ensure that I gathered a range of different shots and angles in order to make our film trailer engaging and luring (which obviously was an element we needed especially highlight upon, especially as we were doing a thriller.) I had realised, once I reviewed back the material that I had gained that there was several shots which weren't in the frame accurately, or were blurry, because of this I had ensured that I had not incorporated these in our film trailer. Fortunately, I had taken several of the same shots multiple times; this had meant I was able to select the shot which appeared best quality. I had made sure that whilst I was filming that I had included all of the needed elements of Mise-En-Scene, I feel that I had successfully done this especially when I had focused a camera shot on the ‘heart necklace’ which is assumed to be key to Jason ( the male character) to finding his daughter. Filming the trailer was a crucial role and was also extremely pressuring, I felt that I was successful in some areas but also had felt that several shots could be improved in order to make them look more professional for instance; one of the shots that I had taken of the character ‘Jason’ tying Ferns legs/feet together could had a better frame, unfortunately this shot didn't particularly emphasise on how quickly his hands were moving in order to tie her feet together, therefore this would definitely be a disadvantage to our film trailer. At times Fern had also contributed with the filming when she wasn’t needed to act, for instance the shots of the little girl and her father in the park was a shared workload as we had both gathered this material taking turns on who had captured particular parts.  Due to some of the shots that Fern and I had gathered wasn’t to the best quality we could have got them we had decided to re-shoot a few of these, nevertheless due to timing running out we weren’t able to address all of these problems that we had made.

The editing was also a significant part of our trailer. Fern had automatically took on this role simply because she was more faster at making alterations and applying the changes we wanted to make, although I am capable of using imovie, Fern taking control of the imac computer that we was working on was definitely a wise choice- she was able to effectively apply successful changes to our trailer without struggling. Nevertheless, I had edited minor parts of our film trailer for instance; adding in fast cuts near the closing of our trailer, I had decided to add these in simply because I felt it would built suspense and anticipation, which evidently are feelings/moods that Fern and I want an audience to feel. Whilst Fern was making the significant changes to our trailer I had voiced my opinion throughout, I had told her which parts I felt were successful and which parts didn't look engaging which then she would address automatically. I feel that Fern had done an excellent job of this, and although I had only made minor physical input to this role, I feel as though I had made up for it when organising the music on garage band, as well as always volunteering to be the one who would do the sound effects; for instance; screaming into the voice recorder, effectively these effects had increased the excitement in our trailer as it had built up more anxiety.

Overall, I feel that to a wide extent Fern and I have worked well together. We have produced three products in which all have shared contribution with roles, although there are some changes that could of  been  made (but because of time being an issue we were unable to tackle these issues) I feel that with the material that Fern and I had collected we have made solutions to allow us to get enhance this material to the best we can.

Sequential Story board for our trailer

Fern and I had produced a story board in order to use it as a template when gathering all the footage we needed. Having a story board is useful as it allows you to recognise if you have forgotten to include any scenes etc within your finalized trailer. Both Fern and I had contributed with the making of this- I had done all of the sketches, and then Fern had filmed then whilst I was moving each one. After we had collected our footage, together had imported the material onto the computers and had then edited it so that all of the scenes we had produced were in the correct order and the showed the linear sequence for what the narrative would entail. 

Constructing a story board hadn't necessarily improved our editing or filming skills as we were already aware of how to use both the camera and final cut express due to using them both at AS. However, it had improved our creativity and organisation skills. It was a piece of research that Fern and I were always able to return to, to see if there was any gaps which may be missing.
Producing this hadn't taken a long time as we had only sketched the images, but it was immensely helpful, we are still currently returning back to the story board due to still being in the process of creating our film trailer. It is evident when reviewing back our story board that already we have adapted scenes in our unfinished film trailer, and have also added in new footage, yet it is still an extremely helpful source to remind us what scenes undeniably need to be included.

Total Film Collage

I had created this college of 'Total Film' magazine covers in order to show some of the research that I have gathered whilst exploring this particular company. These magazine covers, cover different genres varying from Action, Adventure, Thriller, Romantic comedy etc. I felt it was crucial to gather a variety of different genres in order to see if they were any changes of the magazine depending on the genre that is being presented. From studying these examples that I had selected, it had become evident that each magazine cover portrays the same conventions as each other, therefore the use of consistency is definitely visible.
This branded magazine cover has many common elements which different magazine covers show, yet because I am focusing on this magazine cover specifically, I will use this as a guide for when Fern and I are producing our own. It is interesting to see the common conventions that each of them share as it signifies what is vital to include, and what may be not as important.
There were several elements which stood out the most, which I felt all of these magazine covers shared, these are as follows;

• Strap line at the top of the covers
• Bar-code
• Tag lines
• Advertisements of other films as well as the main film which is being advertised
• A model who is composed in the centre of the page, who are presented in front of the 'Total Film' label, providing they don't cover most of the title.
• A background which doesn't have a 'busy' design, which evidently allows the main subject (being the centre photograph) to command full attention from the audience

All of these magazine covers are extremely engaging, they provide the human eye with an indication of what genre the film is and what the narrative may entail. The magazine cover includes clear and understanding text, as well as bold blocked colours which wouldn't be considered as dull. They address the magazine cover with a well known actress/actor so that an audience will be lured in instantly, as that actress/actor could possibly be the target audience idol (therefore is an influential figure)

Empire and Total Film

Fern and I had to discuss what film company we would use to promote our Magazine cover to advertise our film. We had carried out research in order to see what companies are mainly used for a thriller genre, and what appears to be the most successful in popularity and income. After carrying out the exploration through the internet we had narrowed our choices down to two companies; Empire and Total film. We had realised that both of these companies are extremely big in the media, therefore felt if we had used one of these for our magazine cover it would provide our finalized product to be professional.

Both Fern and I did discuss whether we should create our own company name for our magazine cover, originally we felt intrigued and excited by this opportunity as it would highlight both of our creativity skills. Nevertheless as we began to voice our ideas and opinions we had struggled to decide on a name which would appeal to our target audience, attract our target audience, match the narrative and genre that we have focused on and lastly whether it verbally and visually was professional. We were also convinced that if we had created our own company name it wouldn't be as stereotypical compared to if we selected one which already existed, we wanted to ensure that we weren't going to make any significant errors within our production therefore felt selecting a company name which already existed was undeniably the better choice.

Fern and I had felt that if we had chosen a company name which already existed, we would be able to use it as a guide for when replicating it on our own magazine cover. It wouldn't be as difficult to decide on the font style and the size if we had used a company name as we would be working from a template.A disadvantage that Fern and I had considered if we had chosen to use a company name was that if we subvert the conventions of using this particular title, it would be more evident to an audience that we have changed the typical conventions- which could then suggest that we have accidentally made these errors as opposed to being aware that we was subverting the conventions. 

It was difficult to decide on which company name was more appealing out of the two simply because they both explicit aspects which are prone to attract an audience. Both of the magazine covers centre on a film that is being advertised. Both of the company names are bold and are composed at the top of the magazine cover which appears to be a crucial convention with all magazine covers. I believe, the magazine on the right which is ' Total Film' company is more engaging, I feel that the font on this magazine is more bold compared to the magazine which is 'Empire' . Being more bold seems to be more effective as it suggests more power and excitement from an audience's perception. Both of these companies are represented very similarly, yet I feel for the thriller genre that Fern and I want to achieve 'Total Film' seems more ideal purely because it is more of a sharp shape- suggesting that the thriller film we will be producing centres sharp footage, which is likely to make an audience feel involved. I had admired that the 'Total Film' logo is presented so that the 'Total' is composed in the font of the 'Film' and is extremely small in comparison to the word 'Film', I feel this gives the indication that the magazine cover is specifically advertising films as opposed to anything else.

I am aware that when producing our magazine cover it may be difficult to get an accurate and exact version of this, however I feel if we are patient and ensure that the steps we take are exact, then the final outcome should be successful.