Film Trailer Conventions

There are many codes and conventions to consider for a trailer of any genre; below they are listed:
 

• Any genre of trailer is constructed so that it shows the most appealing aspects of the film.  
• The trailer disregards the conventional narrative order of the film in order not to give to much of the plot away.
• The trailer often takes the layout of, opening, build-up, problems and events.
• The title of the film is usually at the very end or near to it followed by the release date. The reason for this is so it is memorable to the viewer after the footage.
• Powerful voice-over that draws our attention to the key points of the film.
• Music overlaping footage in order to help the viewer have an idea on the genre, style and plot of the film.
• On screen text which could possibly give over information such as which stars are in the film, or other information such as director/producers, tagline, title and release date.
• The names of the main stars are put on screen early on in the trailer. This is important because it lets the viewer know who they can expect to see in the film. Auidences will often see a film purely for the actor or actress so it is vital it is highlighted to them early on to keep there attention.

Conventions of Film Magazines

In order for a magazine which will need to create to look professional and realistic there are many codes and conventions to make a magazine.

Masthead - the masthead is the title block for the magazine which is usually the most eye catching convention, and this text is better than any other on the magazine.

Pugs - This is usually placed at the top or bottom right or left hand corner of the page where the logo, and date, bar code and price are placed.

Second lead - a preview of inside articles or picture of what is in the magazines issue.

Splash - is the main story on the front pages paired with an image. For example 100 top thriller films paired with screen roll of images of thriller films.

Strapline - Subheading under or above the title.

Tag - words or phrases used to intise the reader in.

Caption - Text under image to explain

Kicker - this is the text designed to stand out from the rest on the page by use of different sized fonts and sizes.

Lure - can be used when marketing as its usually words or phrases that make the read buy the magazine to read.

Main Image - this is the main attraction to the magazine, and takes up a large porportion of the page. In some cases it over laps the title although this is only when the magazine is very recognised.

Left side third - shows sine brief content of the magazine.

Banner - mini notifications that reads may be interested in.

 

King Kong Total Film Issue is effective due to a number of reasons. Firstly all the colours work so well together and especially the splash of yellow to highlight key interests for the read; yet the smaller white font is still bright which then makes the readers attention move onto that text after.

The layout out is very clear and simplistic so that readers do not feel overwhelmed by information. The layout is clear so that key information can be pulled as it is in bolder and bigger sized writing.

The image is able to over lap the title slightly and the reason for this is the actors are well known as well is the magazine. The masthead can still be read when though it is slightly covered. When creating our own magazine I personally think it would be useful to use total film or another well known magazine brand so that our image can over lap the title which will allow more room for the image.

 

 

Story Board

 

The animatic story board was based on 'Demise' which was our orginal idea for how our trailer would unfold.

When creating the protype of the thriller trailer, we were very aware that it would just be for guidance as more ideas could be tried when out filming. As a group we felt more adventurous when using different camera angles; when producing the story board a few of the transisitions were demostrated.

 

The benefits of a story board were that it planned out inital ideas which would then be put into a sequence to show how the trailer would be presented when complete. When creating the story board we looked at thriller trailers to see the sequence in which they had footage, titles, voice overs, logos, etc. in order to keep to conventions.

 

The disadvantage of a story board is that it could hinder futhure development if we soley use the story board created at the begining. However as a group we feel confident with the equipment and technology so are willing to be more creative and try out new ideas as a group.

 

The technology used to create the story board was final cut express. This year we feel we are more advanced when using final cut express as our knowledge has developed since last year which is a strong bonus for us as a group. An example of this is the transistions used within the story board as this year we as a group we capable of adding the transistions into the story board; whereas last year they were just stated.

 

Diagoloue and a sound track was put over the story board in order to show where there would be intense and calm sections of the trailer. This is another area which we are more advanced in, as last year our story board was purely images.

 

 

Location

The location of the trailer was vital in order to create the right tone of the film. As the genre decided upon was thriller we wanted a location which was in a wooded area which gave the impression it was away from a town and away from where people would be.

The clips below show QueensDown Warren and the surrounding areas which were looked at and assessed to see the suitability for filming.

 

 

Other areas considered were:

London

Riverside Country Park

Horrid Hill

Private Land

 

The reasons for discarding these ideas were down to volume of people in the city, and unwanted noise in the other parks as it caters for children and dog walkers.

 

QueensDown Warren was decided upon as it was a very quite area which meant there would be very little unwanted noise such as other people and cars. This area had a variety of landscapes ranging from grassy areas to areas which were very muddy with hills and over growing trees. This was a benefit to us as we could have a variety of shoots with limited wood land or over growing woodland if needed.

 

Movie Production Logo

A production company is required for any film whether it be a hollywood film or a small indepedant.
The company used needs to tie in with the film, e.g. Disney and Pixar.
For our AS film we used Lionsgate as it fitted in with the thriller genre and then used Cameo Productions which is a company we as a group designed. Other pointers we picked up from the previous year was that it is extremely rare that two major companies work together on the same film. It is often that there will be a main company such as Warner Bros that will work with a smaller company such as River Roads.

Taking into consideration that the production company needs to be fitting with the genre and a main production company is supported by a smaller production company we as a group brainstormed potentional companies that we could use with our trailer.

 

This a only some of the options open to us as a group, and when shortlisting we all liked 'Optimum Releasing'. This production company were used for the film Edan Lake which like ours is a thriller. However when looking further into this production company it became clear that the label itself was too small for us just to use Optimum Releasing as we are going to be requiring extensive advertising in the form of posters and magazines.

Very early on we ruled out Pixar and DreamWorks as they were support for films which were either animatied, family based or covered ratings which were certificate 12 or lower.

 

The companies decided on were Columbia and River Road and the reasons are stated below:

• Columbia Pictures Industries is an American film production and distribution studio.  
• Columbia Pictures is one of the leading film studios in the world, a member of the so-called big seven.
• Columbia as well as producing are invloved in the distrubition which is a postive for our group given the fact we will need to extensively advertise.
• Columbia has produced films such as; Skyfall, Zero Dark Thirty, 21 Jump Street, Salt and The tourist. This shows this company can work with a large variety of genres.
• RiverRoad Entertainment has worked with a wide range of genres such as; Broke Back Mountain, Into the Wild, Chicago 10 and  The Runaways. This is a positive for our group as it shows they are sucessful with a divise range of genres.
• The look of the River Road Entertainment is back and white and is of a lake around an open area which is fitting with the setting of our trailer.
  

 

 

 

 

 

Conventions of Film Posters

The main conventions of a film poster are:

• Eye catching and captivating
• focal picutre which is intriguing
• Large title which is easy to read and a main focus
• Attracts a specific target audience
• Usually a famous actor/s to help sell the film
• Release date or coming soon
• Directors displayed
• Production company displayed
• Clearly defines genre
• Reviews or Ratings
• Caption in the form of a slogan, statement or rhethorical question
• Billing block

From first glace it is clear to see the genre of the film due to the image in back ground combined with the text in the foreground. This is a convention for a film poster for the audience to be able to see the genre by looking at the poster.

The use of limited colours throughout the poster is effective as it is not over whelming to look at yet the pop of orange for the flames and the red under the title makes the poster stand out. The combination of flames and the red are effective because of what people associate them with.  The colour red resembles that of danger, fear and blood. Because of the colour it helps the audience to understand the genre of the film. The flames are associated with danger, fear and death; this confirms the genre of the film.

All of the main actresses are positioned in the centre of the poster and the way they are all so close together implies to the audience there is a special bond/ friendship amongst the women. So in the film all there stories or situations are interlinked it is them against the rest.

Many conventions can be seen in the poster such as the billing block, title and release date which is important to give the viewer important and extra information.

I believe this film poster is effective due to the images and the title being in the centre making the viewer have a focus where they can see all the important and eye catching parts in one go. The use of colour is my favourite part because the simplicity of colour is what makes the poster most effective as red, orange, black and white are very striking colours individual so combining them all together works really well.

The poster is of one of the main characters who is the victim within the film and this is shown through her body language, and positioning. The actress has high key lighting around her and is in a clear view to the audience whereas the perpetrator are just dark figures to highlight to the audience there type of character within the film. This shows the contrast of all the characters.

The poster also sets the scene of the film: wooded area, which then also highlights the genre as a thriller because of the dark setting, surroundings and positioning of the characters.

The title ‘ Eden Lake’ is very effective because of the size and colour of the font. The colour red is very bright standing out from the image which makes it memorable and the colour resembles that of danger, fear and blood. Because of the colour it helps the audience to understand the genre of the film.

The tagline is effective as it leaves the reader dangling until they see the film. The tagline , ‘THEY WANTED TO GET AWAY FROM IT ALL INSTEAD THEY FOUND....’  leaves the reader in suspense and even begin to make up there own scenario of the possible outcomes.

The review and star rating is important as it highlights to the audience to reassure them just how good the film is from a professionals perspective.

 

To conclude I very much like this poster as it is intriguing to those watching because of the striking and thought provoking contrast images. In addition I feel the use of space is used well with all text positioned towards the edges so that is does not distract from the image.

 

Examples of other film posters which I think are effective:

 

 

Inspiration from Quarantine

When researching trailers which have the genre of thriller we came across Quarantine which subsquently matched the ending we wanted for our trailer where the victim gets dragged into the darkness of the woods.

When watching the Quaratine trailer it gave us a thrill and resulted in the whole group wanting to watch the film as the end shoot of the girl getting dragged was exciting and done what a thriller is meant to do: have you on the edge of your seat.
The effectiveness of this ending was clear as it made us jump because of the high pitched screen and intense nature of the shot. The clip of the woman being dragged gave the audience the emotion of fear as the setting was dark.
This shoot demonstrates the emtional trama in which someone who is normal like the audience is going through and how when in this situation fear takes over.
  





 

Thriller Analysis

 

This question was used in order to help us understand what age range the majority of those answering were coming from. 22/30 were in the age range of 15>18, 5 were in the age range of 18>21 and only 3/30 were 21<. This shows the majority of those answering were 15>18 which is in our target audience. All questions answered will relate to this 15>18 so it is benefical we consider and possible follow there prefence in order to gain the biggest audience possible.

 

This question was simply used in order to find out which gender would be the majority, however 50% of those asked were male. This shows that all questions answered would be a an even combination of male and female.

 

Responses to, 'What is it about thrillers that you enjoy watching?'

·         Intense

·         On the edge of your seat

·         Like to be placed in their shoes

·         Always unexpected

·         Makes you think

From the results itis clear to see we as a group need key elements in our trailer. The trailer we will need moments of intensity, in order to put the audience on the edge of their seat whilst feeling emotion towards the victim and combine this with twists and expected events in order to make the audience want to see the film after viewing the trailer.

 
Responses to, 'What stereotypically do you expect to see in a thriller?'

·         Dark setting

·         Victim and perpetrator

·         Twists

·         Calm and hectic moments

The responses show key conventions which we will need to be incorporate in our trailer in order for the audience to feel satisfied.
 
Responses to, 'What is your favourite thriller film?'

·         Eden Lake

·         Last house on the left

·         Wrong turn

·         Hide and Seek

·         Sorority Row

 

 All the thrillers listed all have one main thing in common and this that they have famous actors in to help promote the film. This is where it may become more difficult for us as we wont be using an actors which are widely known.This thrillers do differ from one another as Sorority Row, Last House, and wrong turn just focus on the victim whereas Edan Lake and Hide and Seek follow the perpertrator as well.

One thing all the thrillers have in common is all of them combine the country with a built up area to show constrast. This is something for us as a group to consider as it could mean we are using binary opposites and catering for the audience who prefer the city or country.

 

This shows the majority of those asked go to the cinema with friends similar in age. Those asked ranged from 15-21 ao highlights that the people to view our film would be of a similar age to those questioned.
In addition from this we may well want to base our film on friendship and the bond that friends have as it will relate to the groups of people who are our audience.

The results show that 18/30 of people prefered a thriller to be set in the country. However there is 12/30 which prefered the city and because the percentage isnt very small it should not be ignored. When making our trailer we should considered having the majority set in the country but still have parts in a built up place in order to cater for everyones requirements.

 

                                           

The results show that 24/30 of people prefered a thriller to be realistic. However there is 6/30 which prefered the thriller to be unrealistic. The way forward after anayslising the results is that we should go for a realistic story in order to make the audience relate which links into the results from a previous question where the audience like to be placed in their shoes. Also to have an unrealistic story would invlove programes such as Special Effects which we as a group do not have the advanced skills to use it well. 

 

The results from this question showed that 17/30 would prefer the thriller to be set at night, and 13/30 would prefer the day. As the results are not too far apart it would be best to combine both. If we decide the thriller is set at night we will need to think very carefully about the lighting because although we would want it dark it is still vital there is enough lighting so that the audience can fulling see what is going on in every shot. In addition having the thriller set at night makes the film scary and more intense which is the effect we are going for.

The results from this question show that 21/30 prefered to see the story from the victims perspective, and 9/30 prefered to see the story from the perpetrators perspective. By analysing the results and knowning that it is important to take into consideration what the target audinence prefer, it would be best to follow the story through the victims perspective as this is what the majority want to see in a thriller.

Schedule

 

Time tables with scedules were created from the months of Decemeber through to February in order to show individuals time which was avalible for filming. We also needed to consider when the boys shown in the film were avalible and when there camera were free as other students are able to book them out.

The dates highlighted in green show the dates which we are all availible to film and the red shows the dates of which we can not make. 

Total Film vs Empire Mood Board

Analysis of questionaire

The age of participants were vital to our research in order to find out what age groups liked which genres and reasons for the enjoyment of the films. By knowing the ages of people which selected answers we could being to find out our target audience.

 

The question refered to the attraction of the film with options of poster, plot, actor or other. 50% of people asked said the main attraction to the film was the actors or actresses. This shows that people are intised into watching the film for this reason rather than the plot or advertsing which comes with the film.

 

The genre preference question was the most important to our group as we needed to find out some direction in the responses to show what genre that people prefer. The pie chart gives options of Action, Adventure, Rom-com, Comedy and Thriller. 33% of those asked chose Thriller as there preference of genre; so as a group we decided to go down the route of a thriller in order to please the largest target market.

 

This question showed that 50% visited IMDb and only 23% visited the actual film site. This highlights to us as a group that we will need to have all film infomation linked with IMDb in order for it to be seen by a mass group.

From this question it shows that 25% prefer to watch a film which offers a film certificate of 15. The second highest was at 22% with a prefered film rating of 12. By basing our film on the highest rating would mean our trailer would be suitable for those of 15 and over meaning there will be a set criteria of footage which is able to be shown such as drug use etc.

 

This question was used in order to help us as a group find out whether people of our taget market go to the cinema with friends or family. The reason for asking this question was to see whether to base our film on a group of friends or about a family so that the audience can relate to each character.

80% responese to going with friends to the cinema; so as a group we decided the film will be based on a group of friends so all our target market can relate to aspects of the film. 

Thriller Questionaire

Thriller Survey

We are carrying out a questionaire as part of our market research in order to have a clear understanding of what people in your age range prefer. Please take the time to fill in the questionaire below.

1) How old are you?

15>18 18>21 21<

2) What gender are you?

Male Female

3) What is it about thrillers that you enjoy watching?

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4) What stereotypically do you expect to see in a thriller?

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5) What is your favourite thriller film?

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6) Who do you typically go to the cinema with?

Friend(s) of similar age Friend(s) of an older age

Parent

7) Do you prefer thrillers set in the country or city?

Country City

8) Do you prefer thrillers to be realistic or unrealistic?

Realistic Unrealistic

9) Do you prefer thrillers to be set during the day or of a night time?

Day Night

10) Do you prefer to be following the victim or perpetrators story throughout the film?

Victim Perpetrator

Thank you for your time in filling out the questionaire