Brief

Hello, my name is Magdalena Ploch and I am in my second year of studying A-level Media Studies.
A part of our coursework for this year was to create a range products for a promotion of a horror film like a trailer, a poster and a magazine front cover. The first step in our project was to construct questionnaire based surveys on a website called Questionpro in order to find out what the target audiences enjoy to see in horror/slasher films. The questionnaire was distributed through popular social websites like Facebook and Twitter so the guarantee of a lot of response to the questionnaire was high. As well as that, we also had to conduct qualitative research based on our magazine and poster templates. The questionnaires were only a small part of our pre-production research. We also had to analyse existing horror film trailers and research the history of horror which included creating a presentation about German expressionism and Film Noir. When all the research aspects were completed it was time for the group work and creating the actual trailer for our slasher film. However, before we could go out on set much preparation had to be done and this included creating the synopsis, casting actors, making call sheets, location scouting and many more. When all that was done we shot our scenes and edited them together to make the final piece.
When all of the tasks were completed, we then had to move on to answering four questions based on our project.

Qualititative Audience Research

 

Quantitative Audience Research

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Codes and Conventions Presentation

 

Rough Drafts of Magazine and Poster designs

 

Before designing the templates for the magazine cover and the poster I first designed some rough drafts on paper just to get an idea of what the pages can look like. These are the first ideas of the pages which I could then work from when designing further templates and eventually the real poster and the magazine front cover.

 

Existing Media Research- Trailer Analysis

Textual analysis of the film trailer ‘Dead man’s shoes’
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fFi6FrAV9SE

Many horror film trailers share the same codes and conventions to portray a sense of genre as many of these films share the same storylines. Although Dead Man’s Shoes can be seen as a non-conventional slasher film it still consists of the same concepts other slasher films include. Although in this case, we see the film from the point of view of the monster.

 As any other trailer, it begins with the logo of the distribution company. The start of trailers often also includes other logos like the production companies etc.

The show of the logos is being followed by the non-diegetic melody which is quite slow at first and within this context sets the scene. This relates to Todorov’s equilibrium form. This slow music and the establishing shot at the beginning of the trailer which shows the tree tops lets us in on what is going on in the scene. The establishing shot then blends in to the shot that shows the action and we see the characters for the first time. The character Richard is on the road, this can represent the long journey ahead of him or the fact that he already was on a big journey and he’s returning home. His brother is on the road with him but they’re not walking together which can represent that they’re, in fact, on different paths at this point in their lives. The mise-en-scene is a visual metaphor for their lives.

The army sack and the clothes also let us know about what sort of a character he is. He’s represented quite clearly as veteran and the fact that he’s not wearing the uniform confirms that he’s no longer in the army.

The landscape in this scene is quite desolate as well and the grey clouds indicate a storm coming. This is actually a typical landscape for a horror film as it looks quiet and lonely. But at this point in the trailer it doesn’t feel that way as the two characters are together so the landscape doesn’t feel so frightening.

We then move on to seeing the main characters walking through the woods, the slopes represent Richards’s entrapment on his path. There’s also shadows everywhere which represents the horror genre. The music, however, is still quite mellow which indicate this is the character’s home- it’s natural. It can also represent Richards’ character. It’s like the calm before the storm.

The captions at this point illustrate aspects of the narrative which is not usual for horror films but it informs us of bits that are needed to understand the narrative. It also lets us know of the strong bond between the two brothers. This is also clear in the flashbacks which illustrate how protective Richard is of his brother and gives us an idea of their love for each other. This allows the audience time to identify with Richard, create a relationship with him and emphasise with the situation he is in knowing his brother has been abused by the bullies. This is a key aspect of the film as it is Richard that’s the “monster” in the film but through showing his and his brothers story the audience can understand his actions. At this point, there’s no horror yet.

The next scene shows Paddy sitting against a grey, cracked wall which is not a very domestic situation, it’s as if the house has been deprived of any domestic family aspects and we can establish that the cracks on the wall around his head represent his insanity, the wall is a psychological backdrop for his mind. Although the location of the lonely house in the middle of nowhere can relate to horror films, there’s nothing indicating this is one yet.

At the point of the word ‘Vengeance’ appears the atmosphere of the trailer changes beginning with the change of the music from quite mellow to a screeching noise which is typical of horror films. The quiet and peaceful atmosphere is shattered. The music is key to indicate that the calm has stopped and the horror has begun.

The uses of black and white to differentiate flashbacks from the narrative appear again showing the extreme bullying of Richards brother and the laughing of the group in the next scene illustrates where that group fits in with the narrative, letting us know they’re not good characters. The flash transition between the flashbacks and next shots is paired up with a loud noise to emphasise the horror genre and the captions, dialogue and music give us a sense of the narrative. The flashback, again, helps us emphasise with Richard.

As we see the monster for the first time, we know its Richards but he is represented in a typical horror film way as a typical slasher monster as he is wearing a mask to cover up his face which is what is conventional for monsters in horror films. The red flash paired up with his appearance foreshadows violence and murder and at this point the horror of the film begins.

With the main characters appearance as the monster the pace of the trailer increases and the montage sequence begins which is conventional for horror films.  This is emphasised by the short snippets of shots and the increase of frequency of the red flashes. At the point it is noticeable that Richard is the binary opposite of himself being both the baddie and goodie. He’s a protagonist and we emphasise with him. The man he’s talking to in the next scene is clearly the antagonist and this can be seen through the way he looks as he is dressed all in black.

Towards the end of the trailer we see many advertisement techniques in the form of start ratings, which are very important for independent movies as they draw audiences to the film and the film festival nominations captions which can be seen as a badge of quality. This section builds an audience for the film.  The director’s name is also put in the trailer for the audience as people know him and therefore identify with his films, which is a big selling point of the film.

The end card including the production companies, website, actors, director etc. allows the audience to see that the trailer is finished.

Textual analysis of the film trailer "Halloween"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h7aHJR5lzE8&safe=active

Sound

The first thing you instantly notice about the ‘Halloween’ trailer is the non-diegetic high pitched noise in the background which is continuous throughout the trailer and has been placed there in order to create tension and to convey the sense of the horror genre. It is repetitive and incessant as it continues throughout, giving the audience a sense of entrapment, the repetitiveness makes it seem like there is no way to escape it. As well that, it directs the audience and their emotions and feeling and orchestrating the way they are supposed to be feeling at that point while watching the trailer. In this case the audience are expected to feel suspense and fear i.e. horror. The high pitch sound effect usually re-appears whenever the killer is about to attack, it is used as a musical motif to indicate action taking place.

 

The next significant thing we hear is the voiceover, which is quite conventional of movie trailers as it conveys a sense of narrative and informs the audience of the event that lead to the part of the story the trailer is showing as well as giving an idea of what the film is about an what the audience can expect from it. Voiceovers are usually used to create a dark atmosphere which is why they are often used in horror film trailers. They work alongside the dialogue to illustrate aspects of the narrative that the audience might not have understood without the voiceover. Through this the audience can create a connection with the film and an interest in watching it.

However, as well as non-diegetic sounds we hear diegetic sounds as well and these are in the form of the screams, the creaking doors and heavy footsteps, all of which are used to create even more tension.

All these sounds, whether diegetic or not, work alongside each other to convey a sense of the narrative and the genre and help to build up tension and excitement within the audience.

Camera

The hand held camera lets the audience feel as if they are a part of the film therefore being a part of the narrative as they see the action through the eyes of the character being portrayed in the particular scene. In the ‘Halloween’ trailer this is used to show the point of view of the killer. This can often make the audience feel uneasy as they are ultimately forced to picture themselves as the killer in the film which cannot make them feel at ease as it’s uncomfortable to the audiences to think of themselves as the killer. An example of this in ‘Halloween’ trailer is when Lorrie runs to the door and is followed by the killer. That shot is portrayed from the point of view of the killer. The ‘shaky camera’ technique is often used to convey a sense of reality and instability a well as nervousness. It makes the audience feel as if they are watching a documentary and that makes the film seem more real.

Editing

Montage editing is used in trailers as the events are not shown in chronological order. It is a convention of film trailers to use montage editing as the trailer is constructed to convey a sense of narrative and genre without giving away the complete storyline of the film, therefore montage editing is used. The directors never want to give away the whole narrative as that would not create suspense and a want to find out more and will discourage the audiences from watching the movie is the storyline is obvious. This has been done in ‘Halloween’ as all we really know form the trailer is that it is taking place on Halloween night and that something happened fifteen years ago on the same night, and that it is likely to happen again, done by the same person.

As the series of montage editing increases and the shots get shorter, making the pace faster, it builds up tension. It is done so that the audience are left at the edge of their seats at the end of watching the trailer.

Mise en Scene

As well as creating a fearful and tense atmosphere, a convention of the trailer is to introduce all the main characters to the audience. This happens in ‘Halloween’ as in the space of two minutes we are introduced the main girl Lorrie, which is portrayed as the final girl and her group of friends when they are show walking back from school. They are represented in ways that the audience can identify which one is the sexually active friend as she is smoking and wearing skimpier clothing and which one is the virginal character, the girl clutching her books wearing old fashioned clothing and who is generally plain etc. We also see the young killer so we identify with who he is and we are introduced to the benefactor, who in this case is Mike Mayers’ doctor.

 

Of course, like in all trailers, it is finished with a cliff hanger leaving the audience wanting to find out more and see who survived, which they have to wait for until the movie hits the big screen. It is conventional of movie trailers to always leave the audience wanting more

 

Textual analysis of the film trailer 'The Shining'

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=piQFD4gz9l8

 

‘The Shining’ is a psychological horror released in 1980. It was directed by Stanley Kubrick and was based on the original novel by Steven King. This film trailer is not very typical of most horror film trailers as it doesn’t use the same codes and conventions a typical trailer usually has. A great part of the trailer is the use of the famous director and actors starring in the film to attract audiences as the credit like titles roll on screen for the majority of the trailer. Stanley Kubrick, being a respected and well known director, allowed the codes and conventions of typical horror film trailers to be broken as he knew his name would be enough to attract a wide audience. It also breaks the convention of an end card being at the end of a film trailer as this unusual end card is place right at the beginning in a totally different format. The suspense and strangeness of it also adds the wow factor and captivates the audience’s attention.

The only shot we see is the one of a typical hotel lobby with two red lifts. Because it is shot at a low angle it can convey a feeling of vulnerability but the home like furniture and layout create a somewhat safe atmosphere. The unsettling thing about the whole trailer s the non-diegetic noise that starts off quite low and increases in volume as the trailer goes on. It has a sort of supernatural feel to it which is appropriate seeing as the film is about supernatural powers and ghosts that possess the main characters. As the volume of the noises increase, the tension rises and the comfortable homelike surrounding is soon forgotten. The music is probably the only main convention of a horror film that has been used in this trailer to convey a sense of genre.

The red lifts are the main focus of the scene, alongside the empty corridor which creates a feeling of loneliness and isolation and create a sense of unease and anticipation of what is about to come next. When the blood starts pouring through the walls in a wave, the equilibrium is broken. As the room fills with blood, the audience are made to feel uneasy but still not quite knowing what caused the blood and the whole situation in general, they are kept in the dark to create more suspense. As the blood washes away from the camera the audience are left watching the lobby furniture just floating around, and the lobby totally demolished which is unsettling. The non-diegetic music continues playing, adding to the unease.

This trailer really challenges typical codes and conventions of trailers by barely using any that are typically used. However, it still manages to effectively convey a sense of genre by using the unsettling music and the blood bath.