Thursday 16 December 2010

Evaluation question 4.

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



Research.

When researching horror trailers, I used the internet for the majority of it. This is because I was able to look up different horror trailers, posters, magazines and the conventions they all showed. This would then help me to learn what conventions I would need to include in my product, and whether I would challenge any of these conventions.
I first of all researched into the characters in horror films; I found that the protagonist killer was usually someone with a deformity, a mask, a monster or average looking person. I researched this by using ‘Google’, and looking at the images that appeared when typing in ‘killers from horror films’. Along with these I also researched into the music that was used in horror trailers, and I done this by using ‘YouTube’
. From this I learnt that the music used usually began off slow and got faster as the shots got quicker and shorter, this was to create suspense and tension.

We then had to apply the conventions we had researched, in a quick plan of a trailer called ‘Bloodshed High’. We made sure that we highlighted our unique selling point, challenging teenage stereotypes. We chose what roles our main characters would play and what actors we would sue for these roles. We had to choose a soundtrack to go onto our trailer, and we chose Linkin Park because the song began off slow and begins to get really fast, due to it being of the rock genre. We chose who the director of our film would be, and made sure it was someone who was known for making films in the horror genre. Also making sure that our title would feature at the end of the trailer, since this is a main convention of all horror trailers. We were filmed in class, whilst we talked about our plan for the

I researched into synopses of horror films on ‘http://www.imdb.com/’. I learnt that they all show the storyline, protagonist, and antagonist and stock characters. This led me to know that a synopsis would have to be written up for my own trailer.

I also researched a number or horror film posters, figuring out the conventions they all used and what I would have to use in my own product. I looked into the settings and props that are used generally in horror films, finding that they were usually the same. The setting being in a deserted area, or small town and props being knifes or some sort of murder weapon. I then looked into magazine front covers, which promoted horror films. I focused on the images used, the fonts and subheadings. For all of this research into these different areas I used ‘Google’.



Here is the first concept that we came up with for our trailer:


Our first plan for the trailer didn't work well, so we decided to make a completely new concept for our trailer which is below:

Over all I product turned out to be very successful in what we wanted to achieve. Although there were many difficulties along the way. This is because we did not plan our filming, lighting or characters well enough. But this helped us to get a much better and more planned trailer. When first filming our trailer we didn't consider the lighting, which was too dark meaning that the shots were not visible enough. Also we left our choosing of characters quite late, meaning that it was hard to get everyone together at the same time in the same place for enough amount of time for us to film.

Our products created a lot of synergy, we made the products consistent so that they worked together well. The products would not be successful if they did not work off of each-other, they all help to promote the product and gain a target audience.

Also when first editing the shots on iMovie, I didn't fully know how to use all applications on it; but soon learnt and felt very confident whilst using it.

Slide-share was very easy to use, since all you have to do is make a slideshow and then upload it onto slideshare,

I had difficulty using Prezi, since it was quite complicated and I did not know how to join each of the images together, like is shown in the introduction.

I also found it very easy to upload our products onto YouTube and Facebook, since I use this websites for my own personal leisure. But I found it hard to find a lot of people who were willing to comment on our products, to give us audience feedback.

Wednesday 15 December 2010

Evaluation question 3.

What have you learned from your audience feedback?

We gained our audience feedback by making sure we recieved it from our target audience. This meant males and females, from 15-40 and of all ethnicites. Our audience feedback helped us to learn what we could do to our product to make it better and what we could do better the next time doing a task like this. We learnt wether our product was suitable and liked by our target audience, which then let us know that our product was succesfull.
We done a video recording of one of our fellow classmates, to find out what they thought of our trailer. From this we gained very enthusiastic answers, we were given very positive feedback. This person fitted our target audience profile, so the feedback we gained from this helped us to know that our product is suitable and will be viewed by them.

The video below shows the interview between me and the subject:



The presentation shows the different forms in which we gained our target audience. I showed this through screen-grabs of the face-book and you-tube page that advertises our product and the comments we received on our products:
Target audience
View more presentations from Lowri11.
The comments we received from out target audience helped to develop our product and make us aware of what improvements we had to make to our products. Also it helped with our research into what types of technologies our target audience use and how they respond to these types of products being used on social networking sites and uploading sites.

Evaluation question 2.

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

Our film publicity campaing is very effective, and we have thought very carefully about how to promote and distribute our product so that is is viewed and is accessible by our target audience.

The slideshow below shows the consistency throughout our products, how we have promoted and distributed our products and our unique selling point:

We have used new media technologies to distribute our product, which is through the internet. From the internet our audience are able to view our trailer and our viral marketing campaigns towards it such as the poster and the magazine. We have used synergy through social networking sites and video uplaod sites, here people are able to view the trailer and make comments on it. They are also able to find out when the film will be out so that they are able to view it at cinemas. By using the internet our product is converged globally.

Our film will be promoted by our poster being printed on the sides of buses. Since this is a very popular mode of transport, especially used by our target audience. Our magazine will be distributed in stores that sell films such HMV and superstores such as sainsburys. Also within small local shops, which are used by all members of the public and so that our product is easily accessible. Our posters and magazines could also be shown and sold at music events that play music that is similar to the horror genre, such as rock and punk music; which stereotypically would like films in the horror genre.

Convergence is used throughout our product, since our products our advertised through the internet; such as social networking sites, in shops and venues, on radio and on television.

Tuesday 7 December 2010

Evaluation Questions 1.

In what ways does your media products use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?
At the beginning of our task I researched into trailers to gain an understanding of how to make an effective product. Through the research I found many similar conventions throughout the trailers, which helped me understand what my product must consist of.
We realised that the trailer must consist of parts of the storyline, to give the audience some idea on what the film will be about and to give away the genre of the film. We knew that the trailer must not show the film exactly, and to leave the audience with some suspense and questioning.

Our trailer makes it obvious who the killer in the film is, which is only clear in some trailers. Many trailers that I viewed liked to keep the knowledge of who the killer is a secret from the audience. We saw this as in ways challenging the well known conventions of trailers. Also all the main stock characters are shown, to give the audience an understanding and insight to all of the characters.
















The slideshow below explores the forms and conventions of horror trailers:Lowri question 1
View more presentations from Lowri11.

The slideshow below show how we used these conventions within our product:
View more presentations from Lowri11.

Here is a video of me and Louisa going through our trailer with a talk over of the conventions used within the trailer:

I Will Sin, Trailer


The making of the trailer took a generous amount of time to do; with many different stages of editing.

To begin the making of the trailer I had to put the shots in the order i wished them to be in and which ones were best out of the range that we had. Then with these shots I had to edit them to make the trailer fit 1minute and 30seconds and edit the parts out of the clips that were unnecesarry. I wanted our trailer to fit the conventions of horror trailers, so I made sure that The beginning started of quite slow and giving a background to the story. This included showing the main character and stock characters, and also giving some depth into what type of characters they are. I wanted to show that the main

character Beth was a nerd, with no friends, who didn't fit in and was bullied by fellow classmates. I also wanted to show that the stock characters were three male, cool kid, bullies. Towards the middle of the trailer the shots begin to get a lot shorter and faster, to also fit the conventions of horror trailers. This is to create suspense and show parts of the film that are improtant, but do not give too much away and leave the audience questioning.

A green sceen, with approval that the trailer is made for the appropriate audiences was put at the start of the trailer. This is because it fits the conventions of trailers, also being followed by the production details. Which were chosen from a range that I made on Photoshop in a few different fonts:

I chose the name 'Bloodshed Productions' for the production company because it added to the horror genre. And the font was also chosen because it related to the genre of horror. I then put the name of the film 'I WILL SIN' at the end of the trailer, because is one of the conventions of trailers. The reason for the title being shown at the end of the trailer is so that it stays in the audience's mind and answers the question the ask throughout watching the trailer ot 'What is this called?' which is then followed by the details of actors/actresses, production, producers, etc. and then by 'Coming Soon' so that the audience know that the film will be released on a later date.

Once all editing was done to the clips in the trailer, which included certain transitions, speed of the shot, etc, I then chose music to go over the trailer. I chose a music track called 'The Relapse', which i made sure was not copyrighted. The music fits well with the trailer because it starts of slow to set up the story and then speeds up as shots get quicker to create tension. I also added certain sound effects to area's, such as heartbeats and pounding to highlight certain parts and create suspense.

I Will Sin, Magazine front cover


I Will Sin, Poster

As i edited the trailer which took a generous amount of time, Louisa made the poster for our film trailer. Along with a talk over it for the evaluation of it.

http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Flouisaswithenbankhorror.blogspot.com%2F2010%2F11%2Fi-will-sin-poster.html&h=838bdkbBJU6ILBINr-rJ-fiKq6A

Synopsis

Beth Summers (Nica DeWilde) is a shy and lonely girl who lives her life in books and longs to feel accepted. She is constantly bullied at school by most pupils especially by three boys, Dan Woods (Jack Dalziel), Mike Jones (Alex Perez) and Jake Lanes (Daniel Rodiguez). Beth finally gets invited to what she thinks is the best party of her life in the heath. Beth finally feels that she has began to make friends and be accpeted. However, once she arrives to the heath confusion begins to hit. Out of nowhere Beth gets violently attacked by the three bullies at her school and can't understand why they're treating her in this way. She is tied to a tree and left to suffer. Beth finaly escapes and sets out for her revenge.She will feel no remorse and will sin to succeed for her own sanity. She goes onto follow each of the boys home individually and kill them all in different ways.

Wednesday 1 December 2010

Shotlist and script.

In class while I was editing the trailer, i wrote down the shots and the script while watching over the trailer. I then gave these notes to Louisa who is in my group and she then put them onto a powerpoint which she then put onto slideshare. Which is shown on the link below:
http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Flouisaswithenbankhorror.blogspot.com%2F2010%2F11%2Fshot-list-and-script.html&h=838bd2LvpNKlvsAv297bn-7ldXg

Props and Characters.

Health and Safety assesment

Here is a link to the risk and health assessment.
http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Flouisaswithenbankhorror.blogspot.com%2F2010%2F11%2Frisk-assessment-research.html&h=838bdEM4e792MkPSnSsDijxX4Ow

Target Audience profile.




To gain information on what our target audience like to see in a horror trailer, poster and magazine front cover, we made a facebook group. On this group we uploaded our first edit of trialer, our poster and magazine front cover so that our target audience are able to comment on them and tell us what they think. From the information we get from them we will know what to change and what to keep.
http://www.facebook.com/#!/home.php?sk=group_178653425494185&ap=1

Age.

When deciding on the age restrictions for our film, we had to consider what content it would contain and what audience it would be appropriate for.18 Suitable only for adults. Nobody younger than 18 may see an '18' film in a cinema. No one younger than 18 may rent or buy an '18' rated video.
We found that our film fitted into the over 18 age boundary, this is because our film involves swearing, violence and death.

This was our first stage of working out our target audience.

Spit on your grave.


The film 'I Spit On Your Grave' gaves us many ideas for our trailer, we liked the concept of this film because it is different and challenges many horror films.
We took the idea of using a female as the main character, who is the protaginist and antagonist.
Since the femle main character start of as the victim and then turns into the killer, which puts a twist to your usual horror film.
The difference with out concept is, is that it is about a teenage girl who gets bullied at school and is not exepted by the other students. She is then suprisingly invited to a aprty in the heath, but is tricked and beaten up and tied to a tree. She then goes for revenge on the three boys who beat her up, she goes on to kill them all.

Wednesday 17 November 2010

I will sin, storyboard.

Our first idea of the trailer 'Final Deadline', didn't go to plan. We found that we had many problems along the way, one of the main ones being the footage. Once we had filmed the footage and then viewed it once it was uploaded on to the computer, we saw that the image was too dark and we did not focus on our lighting enough. 
We had to plan to film our footage again, but it was too late notice to tell the actors that we needed them so soon. We had to find a new set of characters, so our group met up with  another group from our class over the weekend. 

Monday 8 November 2010

Flickr slideshow.

Here is a slideshow of our flickr photostream, where we have uploaded images which helped us to explore and develop themes and settings for our trailer.

Sunday 7 November 2010

Shotlist.

Shot 1: Mid-shot of teacher, slightly from a low angle.

Shot 2: Clip of production. 'A production by Twisted Pictures'

Shot 3: Close up of Jessica. To have insight of characters and make a first impression.

Shot 4: Long shot of building.

Shot 5: Close up of Dan.

Shot 6: Long shot of male and female running, chracters unknown to audience.

Shot 7: Close up of Josephine.

Shot 8: Long shot of character who is blacked out and not seen.

Shot 9: Mid shot of the back of Dan and slight view of Josephines face.

Shot 10: Long shot of Jacob sitting on floor in building.

Shot 11: Over head, mid shot of Jacob being dragged along floor.

Shot 12: Sentence 'DYING TO MEET IT...'

Shot 13: Mid shot of black bag over characters head.

Shot 14: Title 'FINAL DEADLINE'

Shot 15: 'Out Summer 2011'

Scripting.

Shot 1=
Teacher: "For your final grade, in groups your making a horror trailer".
Speaks from the front of a classroom to students.

Shot 3=
Jessica: "I know this building".
Speaks to group.

Shot 5=
Dan: " Ive heard about that place..."
Speaks to group.

Shot 6=
Dan: "... people have died there".
Voice over clip of people running.


Shot 7=
Josephine: "Sounds like fun".
Speaks to group.

Shot 9=
Jacob: "Let's go then".
Speaks to group.

Shot 10=
Josephine: Screams.
As hand with blood is spread against a window on a door.

Shot 11=
Josephine: "What was that?"

Shot 13=
Jacob: Screams.
Get's dragged along the floor.

StoreyBoard.

To be uploaded.

Scream, Horror Concepts.

Our film concept has many similarities to that of the film 'Scream'. The obvious connection is that they are both teen horror films. They both include the well known, stereotypical college kids; the jock, the popular girl, the nerd and the wonderer.

The link below shows the concepts of a horror movie, the rules that producers either stick to or challenge. This is randy's rules from the film 'Scream':
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X-q-AWD_8AY

Wednesday 3 November 2010

Student action planning:

Me and my group sat down together and made an action plan for what needs to be done on our blogs and what planning needs to be finished.
We set to have are filming of the trailer done by the weekend alongside all the planning. We also plan to have all unblogged work onto blogs.
We have set ourselves days for when these tasks will take place and be finished.
We need to stick to our action plan in order to meet deadlines and to work well as a group.

Our student action plan includes:
  • To plan setting, props and characters, have photo evidence and to be blogged. Alongside planning and drawing our storyboard.
  • To upload video about concepts that has already been filmed, but not blogged.
  • To go to viewings at the cinema, watching films in the horror genre. Take picture evidence and evaluate experience and ideas gained from this.
  • To video record questionnaire, asking target audience.
  • To film trailer over the weekend.

Marking the advanced Portfolio


In lesson today I assessed my blog, looking at the process of research and planning. I had to give my self a grade on the different criteria' that should be included in my blog. I explained how this was evidenced, how it was blogged and my action plan to complete my work. I found that there were parts of the criteria which i had not completed, but are planned to be finished by the weekend.
I see myself at a level 3 and i know that i could be at level 4 with more hard work and determination. My aim to get to a level 4 is to complete all area's that are unfinished in the blog and always look back on my research when planning.

Thursday 21 October 2010

Film Trailer Title.


The title for our film trailer is 'Final Deadline'.

The reason we chose this as our title is because it has two meanings to it.
One meaning is literally a final deadline for the students to hand in their media assignment. The title will relate to its target audience who will be teenagers, from the age 15 up.

The second meaning is the word 'Dead' being used within the title, since the majority of students are killed off by a fellow student. This also speaks to its target audience, who will be people who like horror films.

In our research we found that lots of Slasher/Horror movies related to a specific time on the calendar. Such as, Halloween, Friday the 13th, Black Christmas, Valentine's Massacre. Moreover, further research into the texts showed that these dates relate back to an event that causes the killer to be out for revenge. For example, Halloween is the exact time Michael Myers the 'psychotic killer' , gets insititutionalise and comes back 'for a mindless rampage'.

Wednesday 20 October 2010

Synopsis

Synopsis for 'Final Deadline':

Four media students in their final year of sixth form, have to make a film production for media. The grade they receive from this production determines whether they go to university or not. The filming of the production is taken place in an abandoned mental institute.

The only person taking the project seriously, is grade 'A' student Jessica Woods.
She is a wonderer and goes to explore the mental institute to finish the project on her own.
Whilst Jessica is exploring, the 'Jock' of the group Dan Moorse decides to play tricks on his girlfriend Josephine Khemet, the popular girl.
The last of the four; Jacob Roper gives up on the media project and sits in one of the rooms in the institute, drinking a beer and smoking a cigarette.

All the characters slowly begin to get killed by one of their fellow possessed students. This killer has been possessed the lost souls of the mental patients. Jessica (the killer) returns to school with the footage of her fellow students deaths to receive her 'A' grade.



From our research on film synopsis's, we found that they must all include a antagonist, protagonist and stock characters. It also includes the plot of the film, showing the beginning, middle and ending. It is basically a short summary of who the characters starring in the film are and what the film will be about.


Setting:
We have researched abandoned buildings, to find a location for the filming of our trailer. We look into abandoned mental institutions, since the type of location is right for the plot of our trailer.
We found an abandoned mental institute in Surrey, which is shown in the link below.
Abandoned mental hospital:

On this site it show many images of what the mental intitution looks on both the outside and inside. It matches the type of setting we are looking for, so we have to see if we can have permission to enter the institute and if we are, then we will use this as our location for filming and photography.




Friday 15 October 2010

Horror film Magazine front covers



The image on the front cover is of a woman covered in blood and with her lower jaw ripped off. This picture is very graphic and horrifying. This shows that it is advertising a film of the horror genre. It uses a mid-shot to give a full shown image of the woman.
The title is called 'Scars' which also has connotations to horror, it makes us think of the harm done to someone and the scars they are left with. The font is worn away, it looks as though it has been left to waste away like a dead corpse or an old grave stone. The colour of the font is white, to make the word stand out, but is outlined in red to combine with the blood and death.
The colours used throughout the front cover are white and red, which symbloise ghosts, blood, death and gore.

Wednesday 13 October 2010

Horror Film Concepts:

Our group individually chose different concepts that are included in horror films and researched them. These concepts include props, locations/setting, mise en scene, characters/costumes, plot-lines/summary/narratives and themes/motifs/ideology.


Props:

In 'A nightmare on elm street' the protagonist; who is the killer is called freddie krueger and uses a murder weapon of clawed hands. The claws are not attached to him, but are worn on gloves.The claws look like razor sharp knifes and the gloves look like they would be used in a garden.



In the film 'Scream' the murder weapon is a sharp knife. This exact knife is the signature weapon for all the scream films. The protagonist (killer) is always seen with this knife, or it is found at the crime scene.




In the film 'Texas chain-saw massacre' the murder weapon is a chain-saw. The title of the film is based upon the weapon used by the protagonist (killer). The weapon of chain-saw is very much associated with this film.









Location/Setting:



The setting for 'hostel 2' is a dungeon type room. It looks very dim and dirty, with blood stains over the floors and walls.

The only thing in the room is a chair with straps on to tie people down onto it. It seems to have a very creepy atmosphere and looks like an area where murders would take place.





The film 'The Strangers' is set in a deserted location, surrounded by forest. There is only the one house that the victims live in. It is set at night time, which adds to the horror effect. Having the film set in a deserted location creates fear, because it shows that there is no one around for help.






Monday 11 October 2010

Analysis of Horror Film Posters


The poster contains the title of the film, which is ’30 days of night’. The title is written in red, which is usually associated with death, blood and passion. The font looks like fingernails have scraped it, giving an intense, horrific atmosphere.
We are told when the film is going to be out in cinemas, which is in October. This is significant because Halloween is in October, so it adds to the film being of horror genre.

The image is of a man screaming, his body is shadowed, so that only the emotion on his face is shown. The man is screaming as if he is in great pain, this indicates that he might be getting attacked.
The main colours of the poster are black and red. These colours are associated with death, night, blood and fear. This meaning that the film might consist of these themes.






The title is written like you would see witchcraft written. This could be a link to the title being ‘The Blair witch project’. The letters are very spaced out from each other, representing isolation, which links to the image of the woods.There is then a short paragraph on what the film is going to be about, the word ‘disappeared’ makes the audience curious and adds to the effect of horror.

The image is of a wood, this gives an insight into where the film will be set, and also it is written in the small paragraph. The image looks like a negative Polaroid, which adds to the found footage. This makes the tree’s stand out and look ghostly and have a spirit feel to them. The colours black and white remind us of death.







The title that we can see on the poster is quite small but effective since it merges with the gruesome image. The title ‘Saw’ is in a white colour to make it stand out since it’s quite small. The font of the title looks as though they are the man’s teeth; this makes the title very effective.

In the poster we as the audience only see the image of a man’s mouth wide open and a bit of the bottom half of his face. Like many horror posters they try not to show a lot on the poster so that the audience are more intrigued (as this poster does).In the image it is very obvious to an audience that the man is in pain, we can tell this because most of his teeth have been pulled out and there is a hook in his mouth.Even though we can’t see most of his face we know that this character on the poster is being tortured. Like most of ‘Saw’s’ posters they always show someone being tortured so if a ‘Saw’ fan you can tell what is going on in the poster without giving away too much of the plot of the film. The tag line ‘ Opening wide this Halloween’ is very humorous and relates well to the image.


The font of the title ‘The Last Exorcism’ is quite gothic this relates to the time that the film is set and creates a spooky atmosphere to the poster. The colour of the font is black which contrasts with the bright off white background. The use of the bright background creates shadows from the image of the girl on the wall, this makes the poster more effectively scary and informs the audience of the genre of the film.


The image of the girl on the wall is very haunting and the position of her body makes her look unnatural or un-human; the positioning of her body is quite spider like. Since the image of the girl is in the corner of the wall it could be said that the photographer decided to position it this way so that it would look as if the girl is ready to pounce out of the picture. This makes the image more thrilling and makes it a must see.


The look of the film poster is important in telling the audience the genre. They use many conventions, which make the horror genre recognisable. All horror posters use capital letters for their titles, adding to the intensity. They use dramatic colours, such as red, white and black. The image’s used are usually quite horrific and show the setting, characters or props.

These elements help to promote the genre of the film, they let audiences know what the film is called, gives hints to what it is about and tells us when it will be out in cinemas.

The film poster markets the film effectively; it lets the audience know the main aspects of the film.

Wednesday 29 September 2010

Synopsis:
It is a summary of a screenplay which it includes main characters, stock characters and a plot. These three key conventions of a film can give an insight into the genre of the film and what it will be about.
A synopsis can be very important in the selling of the film and wether it should be shown or not.

Here is the link to 'A nightmare on elm street':
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1179056/

While at the Springwood Diner with his girlfriend, Kris Fowles (Katie Cassidy), Dean Russell (Kellan Lutz) falls asleep at the table and meets a man covered in burn scars, wearing a red and green sweater and a clawed glove on his hand. The burned man cuts Dean's throat in the dream, but in reality it appears that Dean is cutting his own throat as friend and waitress Nancy Holbrook (Rooney Mara) looks on with Kris. At Dean's funeral, Kris sees a photograph of her and Dean as children, but cannot recall ever knowing Dean before high school. Kris begins to dream about the burned man herself and refuses to go to sleep for fear that she will die in her dreams. Jesse Braun (Thomas Dekker), Kris's ex-boyfriend, shows up at her house to keep her company while she sleeps, but Kris meets the burned man in her dreams and is murdered. Covered in blood, Jesse runs to Nancy's house to try to explain what happened and he learns that Nancy has been having dreams about the same man; that man's name is Freddy (Jackie Earle Haley).Jesse is apprehended by the police under suspicion of murdering Kris, and is killed by Freddy when he falls asleep in his jail cell. With her friends dying, Nancy begins to question what everyone's connection is to each other, given that none of them can remember each other before their teenage years. Eventually, Nancy and her friend Quentin Smith (Kyle Gallner) discover that all of them, including more children, attended the same preschool together. Nancy's mother Gwen (Connie Britton) reluctantly tells Nancy and Quentin that there was a gardener at the preschool, Fred Krueger, who hurt Nancy and the rest of the kids. Gwen explains that Nancy was his favorite, and came home one day telling her mom about Freddy's "magic cave" and the things that happened down there. Gwen claims Krueger skipped town before he was arrested . Nancy does not believe her and attempts to track down the remaining kids from the school. Nancy eventually discovers that all of the other kids have been killed, most of them in their sleep. Meanwhile, Quentin tries to accept that everything is nothing more than repressed memories, but he falls asleep during swim practice and witnesses what really happened to Krueger. Quentin sees everyone's parents hunt down Krueger, and then burn him alive. Quentin and Nancy confront Quentin's father, Alan Smith (Clancy Brown), about the reality they murdered Krueger with no actual evidence that he had committed any crime. Nancy and Quentin, who both begin sporadically dreaming while they are awake as a result of insomnia, decide to go to the preschool and learn what they can about Krueger.On the way, Nancy falls asleep and is attacked by Freddy, but when Quentin wakes her up they discover she has pulled a piece of Freddy's sweater out of the dreamworld and into reality. Quentin takes Nancy to the hospital for cuts on her arm; there, he steals some adrenaline and a syringe to help them stay awake. Nancy and Quentin leave the hospital and eventually make it to the preschool. Quentin uncovers Krueger's "magic cave" and the evidence that proves Krueger was physically and sexually abusing all of the children. Nancy decides the only way to end this is to pull Krueger out of their dreams and kill him in reality. Quentin tries to stay awake long enough to pull Nancy out of her dream when she has Freddy, but he falls asleep and is attacked. Krueger then goes after Nancy, and explains that he intentionally left her for last so she would stay awake long enough that when she finally fell asleep, she would no longer be able to wake back up. While Nancy struggles with Freddy, Quentin wakes and uses the adrenaline to bring Nancy up and pull Freddy into reality. With Krueger distracted by Quentin, Nancy uses a broken paper cutter blade to cut Freddy's gloved hand off, and then slice his throat. Afterward, Nancy torches the secret room, with Krueger's body left inside, while she and Quentin leave. Nancy and her mother return home from the hospital, with Nancy being told she should get some sleep. Krueger suddenly appears in a mirror's reflection and kills Nancy's mother before pulling her body through the mirror while Nancy screams.

Stock Characters

Main character (Killer)
Plot

From this Synopsis of 'A nightmare on elm street' we find out the killer is a man called Fred Krueger who worked as a gardener at a pre-school, is covered in burns, due to a group of childrens parents burning him and wears a red and green sweater and a clawed glove on his hand. He was killed for sexualy abusing the children in a school.
He kills all the children from the school now as they are adults, in their sleep.
A woman called Nancy and a man called Quentin set out to try and bring Krueger out of their dreams and kill him again. They succeed in doing so, but then at the end Krueger is then again seen in the reflection of a mirror
.

Monday 27 September 2010

Applying Conventions of Trailers





Applying Conventions of Trailers:

BloodShed High :
In order to apply with the recognizable conventions of trailers in groups, we came up with ideas about how to market and promote a new film Bloodshed High. To
do this task we came to together in small groups to discuss what we felt the most important aspects
of film trailers are. We came up with this list:





  • Our trailer includes a unique selling point, this is something that makes our trailer different from all other horror trailers. The unique selling point lays in the plot of the movie. The main character who is a young boy, who has moved from london to america is bullied and these bullies all end up being killed. The predicted killer is the young boy, although the twist of the story is that the popular cheerleader is the killer who is only looking out for the boy. This challenges your basic teen-horror film, since the popular characters are never the killers.





  • The main character who is the young boy who is being bullied, is played by A
    sa Butterfield who is a young british actor. He fits the role of this character w
    ell since he has a very innocent, and timid look about him.





  • The popular girl who is the killer, is going to be play by Dekota Fanning
    .This is because she is a very well known young actress, who has s
    tarred in many scarey and mysterious films. She also has a 'girl next door' look to her.








  • The trailer starts of with the production that it is made by, which will be 'Twisted Pictures'. This is because twisted pictures is well known for making horror films, such as 'Saw'.




  • It will then go onto an establishing shot of the school where the school is set 'Bloodshed High'. This is to set the scene for the audience and the setting is introduced. This also shows the audience who the target audience of the film will be, since teenagers between 15 and 18 are more likely to watch a film about a high school.




    The speed at the beginning of the trailer will be quite slow, and then gradually get faster with rapid shots. Thoughout these shots a soundtrack will be playing, which is going to be by 'Linkin Park' because it is heavy metal, so it will be very fast and loud to act to the effect of the trailer and create tension.




    Within the rapid shots Asa Butterfields name will appear, then followed by Dekota Fanning's name, so that the audience is fimilar with who the characters in the film are going to be.

    Jason Bennett will be the director of the film, who has also made such horror films as 'Bury Me'. This also gives an insight to what the genre of the film will be to the audience. This will be shown towards the end of the trailer, also to ingage audiences who liked his precious films to watch this film.


    The trailer will end with the film title, this is so that the question the audience have been asking thoughout the trailer is answered. Also it's so that it is rememberable and audiences can see what the film they want to see is called. This will then be followed with the words 'Coming Soon', to make the audience anxious and excited to find out when the film will be out in cinemas.


    Here is a copy of the presentation we gave to the class showcasing these ideas:



Tuesday 21 September 2010






Characters






Character's
in horror movie's can range from general people to monsters. But character's that are simliar to human's, but have a slight abnormality to them make them seem realistic but at the same time terrifying.
Masks can also be very scarey, since there is much tension on the unknown.
knowing who the killer is, is one of the main questions the viewers ask.


Sound

Soundtracks for horror films often start of slow and calm, and then begin to get more fast and loud to create tension. Music that sounds like nursery rhymes is sometimes used, which usely means their is an evil child or something happened to the killer when they were a child. Or sometimes the music is almost electonic, giving an unreal atmosphere. The music can often sound like a clock ticking or a heart beating, which builds up great tension.

Sunday 19 September 2010

Preliminary task: The Meeting

From this task
This blog is going show the planning and making of.......(name of film)
It will include a preliminary task, all planning and reasearch, a trailer, a poster and a magazine front cover for the new movie of....
The purpose of this work is to highten and demonstrate my skill's within different parts of media. My ability to plan and construct media products will be shown, also my knowledge and understanding in my evaluation of my work and lastly my ability to undertake, apply and present appropriate research.
This blog will consist of images, audio, video and links to online resources.

Friday 10 September 2010

Analysing a Trailer




Case 39
  • The film title is shown at the end of the trailer, this is so that the viewer knows what the film is about and then if interested the name is told to be remembered and the movie can be viewed. This is very often used to build tension throughout the trailer and then give the audience a dramatic and much waited ending to the trailer.
  • The trailer tells us the main character who is Renee Zellweger near to the end of the trailer. The reason why we are told who is starring in the film is a selling point, if people like the person who is starring in the film then they are more likely to go and watch it.

  • The pace at the start of the trailer is slow, this is so that the story can begin to unravel. Then the shot's begin to get a lot shorter by the middle of the trailer and there is lots of flashing shots.

  • The beat of the music at the beginning of the trailer, is almost like a clock ticking, giving the indication that their is a certain amount of time for something to happen. Then a slow subtle piano is played, giving a calm atmosphere. Then sounds from within the movie such as dialogue is heard, until a fast beat is heard which builds up tension.

  • At the beginning of the trailer the speed is very slow and the storey is slowly unraveling. Then is begins to speed up and the shots become very short and quick, to in some way disorientate the viewer and leave them asking questions.
  • At the very end of the trailer we are shown the name of the film and that it is coming soon.




  • A film trailer is more effective then the film poster in making you want to see the film. This is because more is given away in the trailer into what the genre is and what the film will be about, unlike the poster which can sometimes not give an insight to the film much.

  • This trailer would be shown at the cinema before films who have an audience over the age of 18, since the film is aimed at people over that age. Also would be shown before horror films, because it will mean that the audience like horror films. It would be shown late at night on tv for adult viewers. Also would be shown inbetween and horror/ investigation type programmes.

Thursday 9 September 2010

Film Posters:

Salt


The font is in white, which connects with the word salt; this would not appeal to young audiences, so this shows that it is for an older target audience. The font type looks like very computerised, it looks like the type of font used on databases; this giving the impression that the film could be about some sort of investigation.

The image is a close up of a woman's face. Her facial expression is very serious, but also seductive; this indicating that the film is for adults, maybe men. The only indication this image gives is that this woman is most likely to be the main character in the film. Not much is given away by the image or the text on this poster.


Grown Up's



The font used for this film title has a 3D effect, making the words stand out. The words look very cartoon like, giving the impression of a kids film. The writing is blue, meaning that the film could be stereotyped for males.


The image is of five men going down a water slide, all looking as if they are having a good time. Since all actors pictured usually play comedian like roles, gives an indication that the film will be a comedy. Also the picture is ironic to the title, since it is called grown ups yet the men are doing childish activities.


Blood Diamond

The font used for this film title is very plain and blunt, giving the impression that the film could be about a serious issue. The font being white is ironic, due to the words used in the title 'Blood' which gives the image of the colour red. All letters of the title are in capitals, making it stand out and seem very apparent to the viewer, also giving great emphasise to the words.

The image on the poster has a sepia colour, giving the impression that the film is about something that happened in that past, due to the old style of image colour. The two males facial expressions are very stirn, also adding to the feeling of seriousness. Also aeroplanes and smoke is pictured in the background showing that their is some sort of attack against the men.

What is more important images or words?
Altogether this research shows that the both text and image need to work together to make a film poster effective. It shouldn't give the storey away, leaving some mystery and the viewer with questions. Although it should show what genre and target audience the film is for. IN my research I have found that associations with words and their meanings is important to speack to its target market. However, I believe the visual language is as important to create anticipation and excitement for its intended audience.