Analysis of previous candidate's trailer

• Epileptic cut – cuts that flash into a new transition

      There are only two uses of this technique in the trailer and they only occur in order to introduce motion graphics. I don't think that this cut has been used to its full potential, and I believe that Campbell and I will use this cut in a number of ways. Possibly to introduce new environments, new characters, and/or make transitions from slow to fast.

·         Story that isn’t the story (characters)
      It is difficult to understand who the characters are and which ones are bad and good. Likewise I cannot identify the roles of each character easily as the amount of screen time is almost equal.

·         Story that is the story (narrative)
      Like the characters, I also find it difficult to understand what the actual plot is. However I can tell that someone is being stalked due to the muse-en-scene = mobile phone, CCTV, and running away from someone/something. This is effectively demonstrated with close-up shots, tracking shots, and the occasional transition.  

·         Soundtrack
      The soundtrack is very effective in this trailer as it starts of at a slow pace and speeds up as the trailer progresses. This is something Campbell and I want to do as it enables extra factors to be introduced, such as additional action, new characters, and a quick montage of short clips. One thing I don't like about this soundtrack however is the way it stops at the end so abruptly. This makes it look obvious that the soundtrack has been synchronised. 

·         Voice-overs
      There are no voice-overs in this trailer. I think that a voice-over should have been used to explain the narrative better and effectively introduce the characters. Although this is the case, Campbell and I will not be using a voice-over due to the context of our trailer, and the features we want to include. 

·         Motion graphics (text: in cinemas etc)
      At the very beginning of the trailer, a logo is briefly shown to show who created the trailer. Towards the end of the trailer, we are shown the title of the film, along with the release date and additional small print. I think that it is vital that Campbell and I use motion graphics in our trailer, as we need to inform the reader about the narrative, the producers, and the release date. 

·         Quick cuts
      In terms of quick cuts, there are almost none in this trailer. The majority of transitions used are either jump cuts or fade in/out. I believe that quick cuts would have added a greater sense of drama to the trailer as horror trailers are not supposed to be slow and smooth. Again, the quick cut will be a technique that Campbell and I will use in our trailer.

Inspirational symbol for Promotional Package

This is an emblem taken from the Call Of Duty game: Modern Warfare 2:

 

The reason I have decided to use this emblem, is because I believe that it clearly represents what our trailer is going to be about. At first look, this icon looks very militaristic and veteran - exactly what we want our trailer to be like. However when looking at the connotations of this emblem, the knife with the skull implies that there is something far more important happening than the usual military operation. In some ways, the skull looks a little like a zombie that has been captured and hung as a trophy. This is all positive, however the Ace of Spades behind the main content suggests that type of situations this particular Task Force get into are not always straight forward. They may have to gamble on decisions and make chances, which could in fact be life threatening. This is what I want the soldiers in the trailer to experience.

Promotional Package for I Am Legend

In our last lesson, we were told to analyse a promotional package, which is apparent to our film genre and storyline. I decided to use I Am Legend because I think that its storyline is very similar to ours, and it follows the same apocalyptic type theme. Below is a link to an analysis of the package.

 

Class discussion on 4 different posters

In todays lesson, we got into groups of three and discussed how different movie posters are effective and why. Likewise we discussed which ones were the least effective and why. We did this by organising the posters into rank order starting from the most effective to the least effective. Below are the posters we analysed and their descriptions:

Final Destination 4 
Our group ranked this at number one as we thought that it was the most eye-catching. This is due to the simplicity of the poster but also the subtle hints towards the film such as "Rest In Pieces", which is a pun to the graphology. The use of photo-editing is also very effective because the colour theme, the glass, and the face all merge into one; just like the events in the film.






The Cabin in the Woods
Our group ranked this at number two because we thought that the imagery on the poster is very unique and interesting. At first look, it is unclear what this poster is trying to portray, but our group identified that the cabin represents the characters and the storyline - very confusing and possibly corrupt. Likewise the background colour is very bright, whereas the cabin is dark. This shows that there are possible secrets that lie within the cabin.

Paranormal Activity
Our group ranked this poster third because of the dark colours and the unique style. Although professional, this poster is not very interesting as the image in the very centre is just a bedroom with not many sinister attributes. There is also a little too much text at the top which makes it look less like a poster and more like a leaflet.

The House at the End of the Street

Finally, we ranked this poster in 4th position. This is because the main character doesn't even look like she should be part of the film, due to her neutral facial expression and lack of horror. The house behind her also has light above it which is surprising as it is usually the house that is dark, and the surrounding environment that is light. We didn't think that this poster was eye-catching at all and it doesn't make the audience want to see the film.

Successful Opening

Trailer analysis - Woman in Black

·         Sound

Soundtrack used throughout the trailer to create a horror atmospheric feel

       Non-Diagetic sounds used when scene  

·         Shot sizes

Lots of establishing shots used to set the scene

Shot reverse shot used when people are speaking

Close-up of the main characters face so we can identify quickly

·         Camera movement

Very still camera movements with not many tracking shots

·         Ident/titles

Momentum Pictures Ident at the beginning to show who produced the film

Titles are also used to explain the story

·         Transitions

Lots of fade shots are used to change scene and location

Soft transitions with ‘bass sounds’ for a bit of suspense

Trailer analysis - Silent House

·         Sound

Non-Diagetic sound of a camera at the beginning creates the sense of a stalker  

Voice over fits in with the idents and sound of the camera

·         Shot sizes

Lots of mid shots used to show character interaction

·         Camera movement

Very still camera movements with not many tracking shots

Lack of actual footage creates an interest for the film

·         Ident/titles

Green certificate at the very beginning stays on for five seconds

Date is displayed to set the scene and show irony

Idents fit in with the theme of the film

·         Transitions

Flash from the camera is used to change the scene

Fairly quick transitions to show the storyline

Transitions match the voice over

Trailer analysis - Cabin in the Woods

·         Sound

Soundtrack used to create equilibrium and show everything is normal

Dialogue used at very beginning to show interaction and relationship between characters

·         Shot sizes

Lots of mid shots used to show character interaction

Overhead shot to show there they are travelling to

·         Camera movement

Lots of pan shots top show environment

Lots of tracking shots to follow the characters

·         Ident/titles

Green certificate at the very beginning stays on for five seconds

Titles that fit in with the theme of the film

There is also a sound effect when the ident changes

·         Transitions

Fade to black transitions are used to show a passing of time

Horror trailer week-by-week action plan

In order to maintain effective organisation, Campbell and I have created this week by week action plan for the creation of our horror film trailer. Although there may still be aspects to add to the plan, it gives us a good understanding of what we need to do each week. Likewise this will ensure that we don't "fall back" at any stage thus allowing extra time in-case something goes wrong later on in the plan. Here is an image of the week-by-week plan:

Target audience for Film Trailer - detailed description

Campbell and I, now have a clear image of who our target audience is going to be. This is because I have conducted a number of different aspects which have provided us with a clear understanding of our consumers. The questionnaire, film trailer pitch and a number of other feedback devices have now enabled me to come up with the following description of our intended target audience:

AGE
15-40 apx

GENDER
Male
Female

INTERESTS
The genre Horror - Due to the trailer being in the genre of Horror
Action scenes - The trailer will include a number of fights etc. which is why this must be an appeal factor
Sleepless nights - Escapism is an important feature of our film which is why we want it to impact the audience after they see the trailer
Technology - It is likely that that we will use technology such as iPads and other devices
Military - The two main characters are military people which could pull people who are interested in the military
Zombies - Again, the genre is horror however zombies are very mainstream which could secure popularity for the trailer
End of the World - People like this idea as it created drama and tension
I Am Legend - A film which we aspire to as it is similar to our idea

Tom Simpson’s Blog analysis

In this lesson, I looked at an example blog that was created by an A2 student named Tom Simpson. His film trailer was extremely impressive, however the blog was fairly poor and only included a small number of posts. Below is my short analysis and explanation of what I thought of the blog:

What is good?

·         Each post includes a lot of information about the topic being discussed.

·         Research is in depth and there are a lot of examples which have been used.

·         Includes all aspects which are required for the course.

What could have been improved?

·         Could have been more posts about the editing as there was only one post.

·         A wider range of multimedia devices could have been used.

·         Very small number of posts which are not broken up. Difficult to read.

Level = C quality Blog