Teaser Trailer

Original photos

These are my original images which were used for my ancilary tasks.

How effective is the combination of your main product and ancillary texts?

My Trailer, magazine cover and poster work as a promotional package. They work as a promotional package because my poster teases the audience about the film it gives then a glimpse of what is involved in the film and is advertising the film all over the place my film poster could be put on big billboards, busses, in windows at the cinema, mini posters can be made and also banners and each time someone sees the poster it is being promoted. My poster also show its stars, genre, credits which can appeal to certain audiences. My horror trailer promotes my film because they can be played on the big screen at cinema's before other films are shown and also they can be viewed online for viewers who have an interest in the film. Some trailers are also often have 2,000 copied circulated to cinema and even added to the front of compatibly targeted dvd's. Also by having an official website that is shown on my poster will guild people to the website and online which helps to build awareness of the film. On this website there would also be the trailer, but also maybe stills, production information and maybe behind the scenes footage which will also gain more viewers for the film. This can often lead of the different things such as blogs for the film, and video dairies which make the viewers feel more involved on the film.

Leading on from online is also social media such as facebook and twitter which can spread shared instantly and constantly around the world and can spread virally this would make my poster and trailer to be part of everyones conversations and to be spread around. My poster and trailer can be advertised on TV, in the press, newpapers, magazines, online, outside on billboards in the streets in cinema, dvds. So I think that my trailer and magazine work as a promotional packages because they work of each other if viewers see the poster they may want to look at the trailer if viewers see the trailer they may want to look at the poster and this all gets spread around but always coming back to either one of the them or both.
My poster and trailer share things in common such as the image used for my poster is actual an image taken from the footage in my horror trailer I think that this link the to together very well. I have also used the same font for the movie title on the poster and the magazine cover this is good because audience will recognize this font for this certain film which is awakened I have not used this same font in my horror trailer. My magazine cover that I have created is an example of successful publicity because it reaches my target audience it creates awareness of my film and my image and art work is appealing to the audience it can also been distributed online, in several shops such and in news agents and big supermarkets. A distribution company tries to get publicity using word of mouth which is a personal recommendation from a friend, colleague, relative or trusted online community. They also get publicity by creating posters which appeals to their audience also trailers which are a range of audio-visual content. Distributers also get publicity online and using mobiles, social media and also broadcast and print media such as billboards, cinemas, outdoor panels, TV channels and more.

        

What have you learnt from your audience feedback?

Positive audience feedback that I have recieved from people from my media class are that the opening scenes where good such as the titles also the music at the beginning. More feedback was that the camera work was good at the beginning and there was good jumpy editing and the girl was scary. More positives were how the text fizzes out and they also liked the shot where the camera gets dropped near the end. More positve feedback is the use of jolty titles which is reflected in some of the footage and they liked the use of the old book as a prop. The audience also like the shot of when the girl is pulled down the stairs and the darkness of the trailer and some of the audience liked the tv effect on some of the shots. Some negatives that we got from the audience feedback is that the music clashed and they didnt like the music transition at the end and it wasnt very smooth the also fed back that the music didnt build up much tension. More feedback is that the stabbing scene was too long and that some people werent clear on the narrative. Some of the audience would of like more vioce overs in the trailer and that the ones that where in the trailer were not clear enough. Another point is that the length of inter titles where to long and were to jolty so some of the audiece found them hard to read some also thought that there was to many. One of the viewers thought that the ending did not have enough impact such as the title of the film and also the music at the end.

I have learnt overall from my audience feedback is that the audience found some shots good in the trailer I also found that some of the audience liked the music but some did not showing that some people have a different views of music and they may like different types of horror. I also found out that some of the audience liked how jolty the titles where and some people did not showing that they also have different views and different likings. Overall I learnt that more time could of been spent showing abit more of the narrative and making it more clear to the audience as many viewers did not think that the narrative was clear. I also learnt that many viewers did not like that music and thought that is could of created more tension and could of been alot smoother. Overall I think that the audience feedback has been very helpful in understanding more about making trailer seem more like a horror and has shown the postives and negatives in my horror trailer.

                                                                               

How did you use new media technologies in the construction and research, planning and evaluation stages?

In this project I have used alot of different technology, technology that I have used are Flickr to analyse images such as magazines, film posters and even my own work. I have used Final Cut Pro to edit and create my horror trailer which I found was good and created the desired effects that I wanted I found it easy to use when everything was going good but our group did have a lot of problems with seeing our trailer in real time as it was the first time of using HD cam corders the down side of this is that every time we moved anything on our timeline we had to stop to render for over 10 minutes which was causing a time struggle for our group and we was finding it stressful to use as we was wasting so much time! But after struggling for some time our problems were finally resolved and was able to add the finishing touches no problem to our horror trailer and was then easy to use this was also the first time I had used Final Cut Pro and I would defiantly use this technology again. I also used a mac pc to create my horror trailer as it has Final cut pro on it i think that using a mac was great as the screens are big which is great if you are working in a group and the screens are very clear and easy to read.

I have used YouTube to help do research before creating my horror trailer by watching several horror trailers and getting ideas on what is involved in a horror trailer. I have also used Photoshop to create my magazine cover and poster I have learnt alot more about using photoshop and can now create something with much more ease. I have used a video camera to record all of my horror trailer in this project which was easy use very light and compact so it was easy to get around and create the shoots that we wanted to achieve. I have used a camera to takes pictures for my magazine cover and poster and I have also used garage band to experiment making music. I have used survey money to create an online survey for people to do to carry out audience research about horror films and I also posted this survey on facebook for people to carry out the online survey I think that this is great way to get different people involved and to get more feedback to help make a good final product. I use blogger to post all of my media work onto this is were everyone can see my work and I can easily access my work. I think blogger is a great way to show your work on because it is easy to work with and people can comment on certain post and leave feedback this is a great way to improve on work. Also by using blogger there is no lost work because everything is all in one place and is very organised. I would most definetly use the technology I used in this project again as they have been very useful and I have found  had not to much trouble using them I think that they are a great way to create work and also have fun creating work at the same time.

 

Click on this image to open it onto flickr.

In what ways does your media product use, develop, or challenge forms of conventions of real media products?

Please click on the images to read my Flickr analysis of this set of stills from my trailer, compared to stills from real trailers.

Click on images to open them onto Flickr.

Conventions of teaser trailers are that they are not very long, they also do not give much away about the film so that it teases the audience in wanting to watch the film and also the pace starts slow and speeds up nearer to the end. I have used teaser trailers conventions in my trailer such as not giving much away about the film also that it is rather short being only 1 minute 32 seconds long. Our horror trailer also is slow paced at the beginning and get faster paced nearer the end. Other horror conventions that have been used are something returning in the past such as we used a diary in an attic to awaken a secret from the past. We also used a lot of hand held camera work in our trailer so that the audience sees through the eyes of the victims. We have edited pace in the middle and end of our trailer to create suspense. Also jumpy cuts from long shots to close ups and medium shots to create a feeling of jumpiness and that something may about to happen and keeping the audience hooked. Also another convention that has been used is sounds such as sudden boom to create jumpiness and tension also fast past music to keep up with the shots in the trailer and also creepy low pitch music to create suspense and tension. Iconography has been used Low key lighting has been used to create darkness and also the colours black and red to connote danger, darkness, blood and evil. Also weapons such as a knife and also blood.

finished magazine cover and poster

Magazine cover analyses

Click on the magazine covers to see the analyses on flickr.

Horror poster analyses

Click on the film posters to see the analyses on flickr.

These are our groups story boards for a horror trialer. we done about 30 shots in total and the name for our horror trialer is The Hanging. we used 5 storybords in total but we have not kept to all our shots on the story board some have changed and more have been added to our horror trialer.

Initial idea for a horror movie

In the year 1990 a teenage girl called isabelle who had been abused by her dad one day had enough and turned on her dad and killed him. Isabelle then went down to her nearest graveyard and hung herself from one of the trees and thats where her ghost still remains. 20 years later in the year 2011 there was a group of 3 friends one of the girls lived in the house where it had all happened all 3 girls where in the front room making jokes and daring each other when they come across isabelle's dairy it then release her spirit and she then sets out to hurt them while reading though they come across apart about a a graveyard then the girls dare each other to go in. Not knowing that the had woken isabelle's spirit they go in where isabelle torments them the teenagers escape from the graveyard and head back to the house and isabelle follows will they escape from isabelle's spirit... and what will happen to them next....

My idea for a horror movie

Four friends driving through the woods, 2 couples boyfriend and girlfriend on the way to a big party/meet up in the woods. When driving along the way one girl starts to feel strange almost creeped out as she starts to notice stuff outside such as shadows and figures she tell the rest of the people in the car but they take no notice thinking that she is just messing around. They finally get to their destination where there is a fire burning drinks on the floor and bags but no one to be seen. They leave the site and try and look for others when they notice a light come on and follow thinking that it is the rest of their friends. The come across an old run down warehouse where they enter not knowing the horrors that are waiting inside. The door slams behind them where they are then left to fight for their lives from the horrors within who will survive..... 

Essay

Carol Clover, in men,women and chainsaws argues that horrors representation of gender is very interesting because it frequently offers its core target audience of young males an identification with a female character, unlike any other mainstream genre. To what extent do you think horrors representation of gender challenges dominant representation?

Horrors representation of gender challenges dominant representation because of typical representation issues such as stereotypes males are shown in the media to be dominant, strong, active, independent, intellectual and authoritative while females are shown submissive, passive, have a focus on beauty, sexuality and emotionality and are defined through relationships with men. Research that has been made has found that representation of women in the media emphasized women's domestic, sexual, consumer and marital activities to the exclusion of all else. Media also has less to say about the male role and that on screen men outnumber women two to one which then make visibility an issue many groups of women are not seen in the media such as older women and black women. Some images portrayed in the media has changed to some extent as now males and females now occur approximately equally as primary characters in prime time tv adverts but then females are still shown to be at home more than males also males to have an occupation more then females.

The male gaze is also put across in media a lot as many theorists have suggested that much commercial cinema puts the spectator in the position of an appraising heterosexual male by using technical camera strategies which present women as objects to be looked at and men as subjects. The audience is put in to the eyes of a male who is usually the main protagonist techniques used to in creating the male gaze are use of CU, POV and reaction shots of the male. Also use of long shots, tilts up the body fragmentation of the body parts such as just seeing the legs often used to encourage the audience to look at the female as an object. Many argue that mainstream film is part of the sexist regime of viewing which denies women subjectivity and encourages culture to view women as objects for male pleasure. The male gaze is a sadistic, voyeuristic way of controlling women.

Carol Clover in men women and chainsaws says that through out most of the film the main girl is the victim of monstrous people but at the near end of the film she turns the tables she then herself becomes a kind of monstrous hero which she likes to call the female victim hero the final girl. She also says that the final girl looks like an adolescent boy and does not have as much male gaze put upon. Also that the possibility that male viewers are quite prepared  to identify not just with the screen females. Research that Clover has taken out has shown that young males are the target audience of horror films and boys are the unmistakable target audience of horror fanzines.

The visibility from the three horror films that have been looked at challenges gender and dominant representation because in the film Halloween  1978 there is approximately equal number of male and females which not reflect on 1992 research but in The Shining 1982 and Eden Lake 2008 men outnumber women which backs up the 1992 research even all the way into 2008. Roles in Halloween such as Linda, Annie, and Judith are shown as sex objects through the male gaze and Laurie and Annie are shown as domestic by babysitting Laurie is also the main protagonist the final girl which does not really challenge the representation. The gaze from Halloween are shown from the male gaze Annie in her underwear in the laundry room and linda naked in bed but the main protagonist Laurie is never objectified and becomes the subject the movie progresses which backs up Carol Clover. The narrative in this film has a final girl she has male features weak but surving and overcomes the monster this narrative punishes women for transgressing rules as women's deaths are 60% and men 40%.

The roles by females in the film The Shining are of Wendy who is familiar and domestic but become the main protagonist and also takes over jacks jobs which challenges the dominant representation of the male. The women in the bath is sexualized and the secretary and  a domestic role which does not challenge the representation of gender. The women in the bathtub is objectified in the male gaze but is the undermined by transformation which I think challenges the representations. The narrative in the film is wendy as the main protagonist and death count is equal which doesn't seem to punish women for transgression which is showing progress in media and is challenging the representations.

The roles in the film Eden Lake are Jenny who is a teacher and domestic, the waitress who is domestic, Paige who has a passive role in the gang and the mother who are familiar I dont think that this challenges the representations. The gang in this film look at Jenny as a sex object but their gaze in undermined in the next shots where Jenny covers herself up and the narrative in this film is that women are not punished more then men. I think that this film does challenge gender representation and dominant representation a lot more in this film then the other two which where made earlier on.

I think to some extent horrors representation of gender challenges dominant representation more then it used to because of the way that the film Eden Lake does not portray women in a male gaze and the men in the film are not more dominant as more men die then women in the film. Also in the film The Shining when the women from the bathtub is being put in the male gaze and sexualized but it is then taken away from them when she transforms. And also in the film the shining how Jack becomes weak and wendy take over his jobs which would normally be the other way round. But in the early film Halloween representation is not challenged as much as more women die but most of them are sexualized in the male gaze and die because of transgression but the final girl survives that does not challenge representation as much as the later films.

Film distribution

The role of the distributors connect films with the audiences because they have a challenge to bring each film to market by:

• Identifying the audience
• considering why they would go see it
• estimating the revenue potential across all formats of release
• developing plans and partnerships to build awareness of and interest in the film
• aiming to convert as much interest as possible into cinema visits
• persuading exhibitors to play the film

Its is important for film distributors to connect their film with the audience because now more then ever consumers call the shots, deciding for themselves what information or content to receive or reject, access or delete. The role of the distributer is to identify and deliver the largest possible audience for a film and is team effort to be able to do this creative, commercial and professional skill are need in the all branches of the film business. The distributers have to share and discuss their release plans with film makers, producers, cinema exhibitors and a host a external partners and suppliers. The distributers obtain the films they release from a third party sale agent, a continuous flow of new content, a studio or production company or a single title acquired at any stage before, during or after production. The distributers have to think a lot when acquiring a new film they will look for things such as distinguishing features, local product its marketability and how it can be promoted to its audience and also its playability. The distributers sign a formal contrast specifying the rights they hold in respect for the title which include the right to be released in the UK.


The most important decisions the distributer has to make is when and how to release a film to give it the best chance. Distributers always take a risk as audiences taste are unpredictable and nobody can be sure what will make a hit market research is carried out to help the distributers and to focus on their target audience and to get and understanding. They also have to be aware of competition when releasing a new film and they must budget the release of their film.


Film marketing and publicity is also is also part of the distributer such as word of mouth, posters, trailers, online and mobiles, social media, broadcast and print media and also promotional partnerships to generate displays for the film in places where conventional advertising cannot reach and then licensing films to exhibitors. 

Audience Research

We carried out our Audience research by creating a questionnaire and also by creating an online survey. we found out by carrying out our audience research that mainly 15-18 year olds took part in our research and that 85% of them were female and 15% male, we also found out that 82% of them like horror films. we also found out that most people that took part also prefer horror films to be set at night which is good because our horror movie trailer is mainly set in the dark. Most people also prefer gore in horror films so that is another point we can take in consideration whilst filming. 40% of people prefer horror films to be about something being hidden then being uncovered, 36% of people like horror films to be about someone being driven mad and 24% of people like horror films to be about something bad returning from that past. Most people prefer horror trailers not to show the identity of the killer. The setting that people preferred to be displayed in a horror film are 36% abandoned house, 29% house, 24% forest, 11% graveyard. 70% of people prefer paranormal horror films and 30% of people prefer 'torture porn' like Saw. People watch horror films with friends of mixed sex 28%, friends of same sex 26%, on own 20%, with family 16%, partners 10%.

Horror Movie Trailers

Paranormal Activity 2

This horror movies trailer fits in with our ideas for our own horror movie trailer because of the camera work used such as hand held and is very distorted. It also fits in with our ideas because of the paranormal behavior. Also because of the dark most things happen in the dark and are very jumpy and unexpected. I think this trailer is good but it doesn't give much away and kinda makes you want to give up watching after a while because most of the activity is at the beginning and just leaves you hanging on till the end.

Grave Encounters

This horror movie trailer fits in with our ideas for our own horror movie trailer because of the camera work used such as hand held also how the movies is set up as a documentary and because where it is set up in and old mental hospital out of peoples way. It also fits in with our ideas of our horror movie trailer because it is about ghosts and paranormal activity. There is moving furniture which we may like to try and put into our trailer. I like this horror movie trailer because of the way it keeps you wanting to watch till the end and is packed with things going on at all times.

Atrocious 

This horror trailer fits in with our idead for our own horror movie trailer because of the camera work used such as handheld camera work. It also fits in with our trailer ideas because it is paranormal such as ghosts and spirits also some sections are at night time and in the dark which also is a main idea for our horror trailer. There is also alot of movement and runnig about in this trailer which i like a lot because it creates suspence. I think that this horror trailer is good because there is alot going on but it still doesnt give to much away about the film I also like how how they  do a rewind effect nd show different clips.

Narrative Theory

We applied the theories and ideas of 4 narrative theorists to the 1980 film The Shining. Vladimir Propp identified Various set of character and actions there are a maximum of 8 Character roles. The character roles are not seperate since one character can occupy a number of roles and or 'spheres of action' and one role may be played by a number of different characters.

The character roles are: Also the character roles in the shining:
1. The villian - Jack/Ghost
2. The hero - Danny and Wendy
3. The donor - cook and Danny
4. The helper - cook and Tony
5. The princess (the sought for person) - Danny and Wendy
6. Her Father
7. The dispatcher - Jack
8. The false hero
Propp also outlined a list of thirty-one functions organised in broader narrative groups indicating thier place in the development of the plot. The Narrative groups are Preparation, complication, transference, struggle, return and recognition. In The Shining we only recognized some functiong from preparation, complication, transference and the struggle in the plot. This theory did help iin identifying a clear plot in this film.

Tzetan Todorov

Tzetan Todorov was a bulgarian structuralist linguist publishing influential work on narrative from the 1960's onwards. Todorov suggests that stories begin with an equilibrium or status qou where any potentially opposing forces are in balance which is then disrupted by some event, setting in chain a series of events. The "classic hollywood" or "classic realist" is based on Todorov's ideas. The equilibrium at the start of The Shining is when Jack and his family move into the hotel for the winter for jack to work then a disequilibrium occurs when jacks starts to go crazy and showing signs that he is becoming voilent, which in then solved by Wendy and Danny who fight jack off. Danny then ends up tricking Jack who then gets lost in the maze creating a new equilibrium Danny and Wendy get away leaving Jack to die in the maze.

Claude Levi-Strauss

Claude Levi-Strauss looked at narrative structure in terms of binary oppositions. Binary oppositions are sets of opposite values which reveal the structure of media texts. He was not so interested in looking at the order in which events were arranged in the plot instead he looked for deeper arrangements of themes. Some binary oppositions which are created by the narrative are earth/space, Good/evil, humans/aliens, past/present, normal/strange, known/unkown. I think some binary opposition shown in The Shining are good/evil, past/present, normal/strange, known/unknown.

Bordwell and Thompson

Bordwell and Thompson defined narrative as "a chain of events in a cause-effect relationship, occurring in time and space". For them, a narrative typically begins with one situations, a serias of changes occurs according to a pattern of cause and effect, finally a new situation arises that brings the end of the narrative. Narrative shapes material in terms of space and time, cause and effect take place in time three distinstions of time within a film are

• Screen duration: the time the film takes to show
• plot duration: the length of time the plot covers
• story duration: the length of time the story covers

In the film The Shinning the screen duration is about 1 hour and 30 mins the plot duration is about 60+ years and the story duration is 6 months.

"The Return of the repressed"

Freuds concept that "The return of the repressed" is to explain the existence of neurotic. The is an unconscious thought/feeling would constantly press for access to the executive fictions of the mind in order to be discharged. The Ego would be on constant alert to prevent the direct expression of the forbidden idea but the idea would find a disguise and surface as a symptom. Freuds concept might be useful for understanding horror because it relates to one of the myths of horror which is Dr Jeckll and hyde - The secret madness within the mind which many horror films have been based upon and Freuds concept kind of captures this because in horrors the villain has a secret madness or difficult emotions such as anger or hatred in their head of things that have happened in there life or things that changed which they cannot hide or resolve and end up turning mad and doing horrible stuff. Also because of these things anger/hatred or wanting to hurt people start to be revealed by the villian doing certain stuff such as follow the victim and the people the victim knows till the thought/feeling would not go and would end up in the villain hurting/killing a victim. This concept is also useful for understanding horror because most horrors are about what is going on in the villains mind and why the villann is doing such things.

Dont Be Afraid Of The Dark - Horror Trailer

This is a horror film trailer for Dont Be Afraid Of The Dark. There are several genre conventions in this trailer such as settings they are in a isolated place also it is a massive house with many levels as shown in this trailer there are several rooms such as the basment, bedrooms and hallways this horror seems to be about demons and the dark most of the activity that happens in the house is at night time and out of hours. Technicals codes that are in this trailer that shows that it is a horror film are several close ups and cuts to close ups which the editing pace has been increased to create a feeling a jumpiness, also depth of frame where the girl is in the bath and is unaware of the monsters around her. The are also extreme close ups through out this trailer also there is sound in this trailer such as whispering and you do not know where it is coming from or who is saying it which gives an creepy atmosphere. Iconography which shows that this is a horror is that the lighting is low key and also comes in from unexpected angles most of the film is very dark and dull also non naturalistic and artificial lighting is used such as lamps and torches this horror is based around the dark and night which is a main piece of iconography in the horror genre. Objects and weapons seen are sharp tools such as a hammer, chissel and a large pin which are bladed and sharp also in this trailer there is a painting on the wall which shows that it is supernatural and gives a clue to what is in the house and the story behind it. There is moving furniture such as doors closing on there own books moving also curtains and tools moving on there own. The narrative structure of this horror is that it is an event that has happened in the past and is returning also there is innocent and evil in this horror and a sinister atmosphere it also makes us aware of the existence of the opposite to innocent as dolls are used and the girl child which is the main person in this film. Character types in this horror trailer seem so be a family mum, dad and their daughter who is the main victim in this horror also monsters with a hidden secret such as the demons in this trailer trick the girl into saying they are her friends by whispering things to her but really they want to kill her. The theme in this horror is natural vs unnatural as the monster in this film are demons and are unnatural who are fighting against the human family also good vs evil the demons are evil and the family are good. I also think that this horror connects to the theme of dracula which is 'what lies on the other side of death' as the demons represent death.