Trailer Production

Logo Production

Logo Research on Prezi

Inter titles

Above are the intertitles I have created which will be featured within the trailer, they contain the traditional aspects of intertitles that one would expect to find in a horror film.


Trailer (Rough Cut)

Poster Production

The production process of my poster began with creating a black background, and positioning text. However, I decided that the font for the title of the movie looked slightly childish to a certain extent and therefore may not convey the themes of the movie appropriately. However, after referring back to my textual analysis blog post, it was evident that the positioning of my text didn't exactly match the forms and conventions of a horror poster.

I decided that by adding a smokey texture it will give the poster an element of mystery and it will potentially make my poster stand out more than a plain black background. I then blended the layer into the original black background and changed the blending mode to hard light.

As mentioned above, I decided to reposition my text to match the forms and conventions of a horror poster. I decided to change my font to a font that looked more clear and professional. Although the font itself does not give the atmosphere of horror, the traditional horror colour palette of white, red and black does. I changed the text on the skyline from "From now on nothing will be the same" to "An experiment, gone wrong..." I decided to change this because the original quote has been used countless times on professional products and it didn't really tease that audience about the film narrative. However, "An experiment, gone wrong" teases the audience slightly more, and at the same time the teaser gives away the film narrative but not enough to spoil the overall film. 

I added the three random actors names above the movie title, as this was again a common convention found in my textual analysis. I also repositioned the "11.11.11" directly to the bottom of the poster, as if it was positioned directly below the title, there would be too much going on.

Literally every single professional mainstream (and indie) will contain a credit block, therefore I have included one on my poster. Therefore I have created one for my poster, I created this by downloading a font "SF Movie" from dafont.com and typing various text which you would expect to see on a credit block such as "Directed by.." "Cinematography by..." and so forth.

 Throughout production, minor alterations were made such as the fact that the word "Wrong" is now red,  the reasoning behind this is because if one buzzword is in a different colour, the audience are likely to be more attracted towards it, thus focusing their attention on it. Additionally, the fact that the colour red is applied on the word wrong also connotes danger and the fate of the characters within the movie, therefore this also lets into the narrative of the film.  Also, the reviews included work in a sense as usps to persuade the audience to see the film, as they are positive views from mainstream companies then it's likely that the audience are therefore more likely to develop the attitude that because "The Times or The Sun said it was good, then it must be good." This factor is more of a psychological technique to encourage the audience to go and see the film. 

Magazine Production

My production began with adding a simple black background on Photoshop.

I then sourced a concrete texture, that will eventually give my magazine background a slight rugged texture.

The concrete texture was then placed above the black layer and the opacity was lowered to 20%. This is so that it is still noticeable that there is a texture but at the same time it does not dominate the black background. 

My next step was to add my mast head, I wanted to use a slightly distorted font as I felt that it would suit the overall theme of the magazine as I have decided that this magazine is going to be a special halloween edition. The reason behind this decision is because the film I am making is due to be released in November, and as this issue would be produced in October, Horror films in a Halloween edition magazine would sell well. 

I then added my puffs and Barcode. The puffs let the audience know that this magazine has value for money and I have tried to include content from films that belong to a variety of genres. This is so that the magazine has something to offer for everyone if they were not interested in the horror genre. 

I then added my main sell line, I have made the title of the film dominate the main sell line by making it red and using a font that the audience can easily associate it with the horror genre. 

The skyline I have added was placed above the masthead so that it would be easily noticeable, furthermore, again I have used a font which conveys horror, giving the overall magazine a sense of continuity. 

I then thought that I could make the masthead fit in with the rest of the horror themes on the magazine by  adding a blood splat across the Masthead. The blood splat was created by downloading a brush online, and changing the blending mode to Hard Light. Changing the blending mode gives it a realistic looking effect. 

More sell lines were added, again to reinforce the fact that the magazine will hold value for money. Again a majority of genres were covered in the sell lines to reinforce the fact that there is something for everyone in this magazine. 

After showing my product so far, I received some feedback as to how I could improve. I altered my "2012" sell line so that it stands out more, with the 2012 in a different colour and different font. I also edited the spacing as before it appeared to be too far apart. Also, another notable difference is that I changed the blending mode on my concrete background. I discovered that if I changed the mode to "hard light" and the opacity to 100% it stands out more and creates an atmosphere of horror which reflects upon the main sell line. 

Additional sell lines were added, again which cover a variety of genres so that the magazine has something to offer for everyone. Each sell line contains a teaser in order to intrigue the audience and hopefully encourage them to purchase the magazine. 

Photoshoot - Magazine/Poster

 This image will be featured on my poster, It will be manipulated  into black and white and possibly gradients or filters such as Hard light will be added too. The photo will need to be manipulated to look dark as possible, in order to convey feelings of horror. The location choice reflects isolation and loneliness that the antagonist feels throughout the film and invites the audience to empathise with her. 

This photo will be featured on my magazine cover. I've challenged the rules and expectations of how a model should be presented on a magazine by not using direct eye line match with the rule of thirds. This is because the antagonist on this film does not connect with people personally and the image encourages the audience too feel suspicious towards her, and arouse curiosity leaving them longing to find out more about her. 

Magazine/Poster Mock Ups

In order to create a potential background for my poster, I have looked at various photoshop tutorials to make a horror background have attempted to replicate them.
Blood Stain Effect Tutorial

My attempt at making a blood stained background.

Overall, I think that this "Blood Stained effect" would look good on a film poster. However, the blood effect colour may make the text difficult to read depending upon which font or colour text I use. Therefore, My next aim would be to experiment with fonts and colours in order to see if the poster would look professional and convincing. Also, if I was to redo this background, i may try and use more white colour as in some sections I feel that there is too much dark red meaning that it doesn't particularly look like blood running down a wall.

I feel that this second attempt works better than the first as the red does not dominate the background as much, however I still don't know for sure if this will be a suitable background for my poster depending on how text and images will look on it. 

Darkened Room Tutorial

After following the trailer here is another mock up of a potential poster background. Overall I like the effect and I think it conveys the horror genre well. However I think that the background would work better as a "teaser poster" as I think it has an intriguing effect on the audience, leaving them wanting to find out what the film is going to be about.

Zombie manipulation Tutorial

Here is a very rough mock up of how I think I want my magazine to look. I've decided that since the trailer I aim to make is a horror trailer, I am making the magazine a special halloween edition magazine, to coincide with release of the film on 11.11.11 I particularly like the blood splat effect I have created on the mast head, I think however, I need to add more sell lines, maybe make the barcode a little smaller and obviously include an image of one of my actors when they are available.

Update: New Proposal of Ideas

After reflecting back upon my primary audience research I feel as though the original ideas for my trailer were not thought out properly and do not live up to their expectations.

I am still going to create a horror film, called "No Mercy" which reflects upon real life situations, it is going to feature people who the target audience can relate to, and the main antagonist is going to be a "rejected girl" who is seeking out revenge on those who have hurt her in the past, and as rejection takes over her actions become worse and anyone who gets in her path is no longer safe.

Also this plot for my film is a lot more feasible to work with, as it doesn't involve sourcing "supernatural costumes" that may not appear as convincing.

Reccees - Trailer, Poster, Magazine

Prior to filming my trailer, I visited the potential locations to decide upon the suitability of the location for shooting, presented below are my findings in video format and written format.

Marske Grove

Housing Estate

Whessoe Road




Bridge

House

Animatic

How might my products offer something new and how might they reach a wider audience?

As my trailer is going to use the traditional forms and conventions of a horror film; I need to ensure that my film has something new to offer and is memorable. In order to make my film memorable, I have used a catchy title: "No Mercy" and the release date "11.11.11" is also memorable and catchy. In terms of what my trailer may have to offer that's new, I think that my film has a different kind of antagonist that has never really been seen before. Although I have referred to my antagonists as zombies, they still have a human resemblance and also in a sense appear to be quite attractive.


Although I am required to produce a teaser trailer, a magazine cover and promotional posters. These are not the only methods in which a film will be advertised. In order to reach a wider audience, a film can now be advertised using cross media platforms.

One way in which a film may now be advertised is through the use of social networking sites such as FaceBook, Twitter and MySpace. A wider audience can be reached through social networking websites in the following ways: It's likely that a fan page will be set up on FaceBook, this can then be promoted on the advertisement section on FaceBook where it can reach an audience who have previously joined fan pages of similar films or mentioned similar films on their statuses. Furthermore, films are advertised using Applications such as games or an App which may edit their profile picture. For example, if I was to advertise my product on Facebook, I could consider creating an app that could turn peoples profile pictures into zombies and so forth. A film can also be advertised on Twitter by using a promoted HashTag in which it will be placed on the top of the trending topics list for people to see. For instance if my film would be promoted on Twitter, a HashTag such as "NOMERCY111111" may be used. Furthermore, a promoted profile of the film may be created which would appear in the user's "Who To Follow" list, particularly if they are already following people in the film industry.

Furthermore, the film may be advertised on YouTube where the trailer may be displayed on the homepage which will link the user to the specific YouTube Channel. Additionally, the film can be advertised through Apps on iPhones and the Android Market, such as LoveFilm, CineWorld, Vue and Odeon apps, in which the Apps often contain trailers, a synopsis of the film and in some cases videos of interviews with the actors.

Reflection upon watching previous students trailer's

In order to gain inspiration for my final products, we were shown previous students trailer's. I feel that watching these trailers has helped influence my final products significantly. If anything the horror trailers have shown me what not to do.

For instance, one of the trailers which was a horror trailer was shot in broad daylight this gave a really unconvincing atmosphere of the film. Furthermore, during the climax of the trailer, the trailer had an incredibly slow editing pace which again conveyed that the trailer did not belong to the horror genre and i felt as though it did not have a unique selling point. Additionally, I appreciate the fact that it's very difficult to source good actors to star in the trailer, however the actors appeared to be uncomfortable filming, therefore I need to ensure that the actors that I source are comfortable with starring in a trailer.

However, some of the trailers did influence me in showing how I can make my trailer look professional. For instance one horror trailer I watched used had used the traditional forms on conventions which i found during my research in planning. There was a fast editing pace during the climax of the trailer, and the locations appropriately conveyed the horror genre in an accurate way. Furthermore the soundtrack they used sounded very professional and worked well in unison with the increase in editing pace of approximately 0.5 seconds.

Overall, watching these trailers has helped increase my confidence for when I go and shoot the trailer for myself, as I have never had any hands on experience with a video camera before, as I did print production for my Foundation Portfolio, and watching the trailers has immensely benefited me as it has shown me what I should do in order to create a trailer that will award me with a high grade, and what I should not do that could create overall flaws in my trailer.

Sound Research

The use of sound within a trailer is equally as important as cinematography editing and mise-en-scene, the use of sound can convey the overall atmosphere of the film and can make a trailer appear convincing. Furthermore the audience can identify what genre the film trailer belongs to by listening to the sound and soundtrack used. Therefore, in order to make my trailer appear to be a convincing horror trailer i need to ensure that the sound and soundtrack I will use will represent the horror genre appropriately. Therefore this blog post is going to focus on the sounds and soundtrack that is used within professional products and what sounds and soundtrack I am going to source from copyright free sources.

Research Into Professional Soundtracks:

Presented below are various pieces of music performed by professional artists and trailers which has sounds that will influence my final product.

I believe that the music used within this piece would represent a horror film well, as it creates the stereotypical atmosphere that would be expected within a trailer. Furthermore the vocals combined with the music give a feeling of terror in particular the echo effect used at the beginning. If i was to use a similar piece of music in my trailer I would have to replicate the music on garageband or a keyboard and source a singer. However it would be a challenge for me to source a singer as I do not know any professional singers, therefore I would consider only using the instrumental.



After searching horror music on YouTube I discovered this piece which I think would represent my trailer well, it contains the stereotypical sounds of a horror score such as the sustained droning sounds which help to build up tension and sounds of screaming and so forth. I think that this soundtrack could be replicated easily, however If I was to use this score, I would not wish to use it in its entirety. Mainly the introduction has inspired me the most. Furthermore, the creator of this track has said that it can be used as long as I ask permission and give credit.





I also discovered this piece of music on YouTube which I believe would represent my trailer well, it begins with the sustained droning notes which I wish to use during the introduction of my trailer. Furthermore, what I particularly like about this piece of music more than the pieces of music presented above is that this music begins to increase in tempo and crescendo which would represent the "Turning point" of my trailer, where the antagonist begins searching for and attacking the protagonists. This piece of music has influenced me as I now wish to use a similar soundtrack to this that has an increase in tempo and crescendo. However, this music is copyrighted, therefore I would have to replicate this track via GarageBand or source a similar copyright free soundtrack.


Research Into Sound used in Trailers:
The trailer uses sounds such as the heightened diegetic sound of a heart beating to represent suspense. At the beginning of the trailer, a piano can be heard which appears to be using flat notes to create a feeling of discomfort. When the antagonist is shown attacking the protagonist, sudden sounds that represent an explosion can be heard. This is another factor that I wish to replicate within my trailer. As more intense scenes of the trailer are shown the music begins to increase in tempo with more instruments being gradually added into it. This is very similar to the "butterflies" soundtrack I researched earlier. This therefore suggests that this soundtrack is very common within the horror genre.


Again, the trailer uses heightened diegetic sounds of a heartbeat. In terms of the score, the score is very similar, yet different to the score used in Let Me In. The score used consists of industrial drum beats which gradually builds into an orchestral score to create an atmosphere of intensity fear and suspense. 
The trailer for orphan begins with a score that puts the audience into a false sense of security by convincing them that this film does not belong to the horror genre. As the trailer progresses and more of the forms and conventions of the film is displayed, the stereotypical aspects of a horror score can be heard, such as the increase in tempo and more instruments that give a feeling of intensity is evident. Again, heightened diegetic sounds of a heartbeat can be heard as well as screaming. Unlike the other trailers I have researched this trailer however, does use a lot of dialogue frequently. 


Research into sound effects:
As well as researching the score, I need to source copyright free sound effects such as the heightened diegetic sound of a heartbeat, footsteps, screaming and so forth.


Heartbeat:
Various online websites provide the heightened diegetic sound of a heartbeat which i was intending to use. The sounds are copyright free too, therefore I can use them in my film trailer where appropriate.
Heartbeat effects


Screaming:
Again, various websites provide copyright free sounds of screaming, below are the sounds which I may intend to use. However, I feel that the screaming effects are not overall convincing and may therefore make my trailer appear to be "cheesy".
Scream Effects


Doors: 
Whilst browsing various websites, I discovered sound effects which I had not considered using before such as sound effects of creaking doors
Door Effects


Update:
I discovered a very good website related to horror music, all of the music pieces are Royalty Free and can therefore be used in my trailer.
Royalty Free Horror Music
The music featured within my trailer are: Quinn's Song The Dance Begins and The House of Leaves.

Storyboard

Here is my first draft of my storyboard, it outlines shots dialogue and sound that I wish to consider using in my trailer, as my ideas progress I may need to add more sections into my storyboard.

Flatplans

Above is a flatplan for the front cover of the magazine. The magazine that I have decided to create belongs to a mainstream magazine. Therefore I have used the common forms and conventions such as "Behind the Scenes" competitions, extra content and so forth. This reinforces the fact that the magazine has value for money. Also I am going to use a three colour palette rule of black white and red, this is to tie in with the themes and conventions of the model featured for the film on the front cover. Therefore, the audience will then know that this is a horror film. 

Although, I have not included this in my flatplan I do intend to have my models head cover the masthead, as I have found that this tends to show that a magazine is professional and has confidence in covering the masthead, whilst the target audience still know what title the magazine is.

Banners Puffs, additional sell lines will also be used to reinforce the idea that the consumer is getting value for their money.



Here is a flatplan I have created for my Poster. As there is no image displayed... The image i wish to include is a location shot such as a woods or forest to convey themes of isolation and loneliness. I aim to use a three colour pallette of black white and red, as these are common colours used in the horror genre, I plan to desaturate the main image to black and white too. I will also have a credit block which will include links to social networking sites as this seems to be a common occurance in posters today. 

Revised Proposal of Ideas

Following my pitch, I have created a revised proposal of ideas which discuss the ideas of my trailer in depth.

Title Ideas: No Mercy, The Unforgiving, Rejection

Plot Ideas: 
Set in modern day England, in a hard hitting town,a girl who has been left isolated all her life is seeking out revenge.

She starts by seeking those who have hurt her in the past, killing them,showing No Mercy.

The deaths of teenagers suddenly becomes highly mysterious and the town are now wary of a killer, she then meets her last encounter, a boy who she once trusted who had hurt her badly.. she then tries to seek revenge but something changes, the boy tries to save her and they eventually form a bond..

however what happens next is left out in the open..
Poster Ideas:

I really want to convey the theme of isolation and loneliness, and the poster is going to represent this by the poster looking as though it is the antagonist looking on into the wilderness. Through photomanipulation this will create visual cues that the poster belongs the the horror genre, and the use of sell lines will inform the audience what the plot is about.

Magazine 

The magazine is going to be a mainstream magazine, thus covering a wide variety of genres.. The time that my magazine will be published is in October in order to promote a "halloween special" thus the magazine will be promoting a wider variety of horror films.

Pitch Feedback and Reflection

After pitching my ideas to individuals who fall within my target audience category i received the following feedback

[image tba]

Following my pitch, my target audience said that I have researched current film trailers, film posters and film magazines well.

In order to improve, I need to think of a storyline for my trailer, which i already thought was a flaw in my idea development section. Having a clear thought process of a storyline for my entire film will benefit my overall trailer as if  I am unsure of my storyline I will be more likely to film shots which are unappealing, and there will be a chance that my trailer will not come across as professional meaning that there will be a further chance that the trailer will not appeal to the target audience. Furthermore, I should consider what soundtrack I'm going to use in my trailer and how I'm going to source it as it must be copyright free.

Although there generally wasn't any feedback about my magazine ideas, I have decided that if I have sufficient time, I will create two different magazine front covers, one of the antagonist and one of the protagonist. This is inspired through my research into empire magazine, who often create various covers for certain films, to encourage the consumer to purchase both magazines.

Proposal of Ideas

Genre: Horror, mainly inspired by the Scream series

Plot/Narrative Ideas: A town is faced with the threat of a zombie/mutant invasion

Character Ideas:

The trailer will include stereotypical protagonists, such as the dumb blonde, the vulnerable female and the slightly geeky male. They will be aged between 17-21 as my primary audience research indicated that they would prefer to see a horror film with characters of an age similar to them.

In terms of my protagonist ideas, I have been inspired by the costume of the nurses from Silent Hill. As my primary audience research indicated that they would like to see zombies and mutants in a horror film but also antagonists that look relatively human, I believe that the silent hill nurses fall under this category.

Location Ideas: 

Trailer: 
Shots which first introduce the protagonists accompanied with a voice-over which also works as part of the narratives. When the antagonists are introduced the editing pace will increase and will mainly consist of shots of the antagonists threatening the protagonists. Heightened diegetic sounds will be used such as a heightened sound of a heartbeat.