To do list this week

1) Questionnaire Evaluation - explain your findings and how this has influenced your film trailer

2) Title Research of films in your genre then create practise titles and explain what is effective and why

3) Sound Research

4) Online Tutorials to help with the filming and editing

5) Animatic Storyboard

6) Stereotypical props and character types featured in the opening - explain that the antagonist photos featured in the trailer are conventional as the detective often looks at the suspects. The antogonist is a stereotypical representation as he is a convicted criminal, male, middle-aged, serious and intimidating etc.

Thriller Genre History

The first thriller film was produced by Alfred Hitchcock in 1926, it was called The Lodger and was a suspenseful Jack the Ripper story, Hitchcock is considered by many to be the father of the modern psychological thriller film as he has produced so many critically acclaimed thriller films, he was nicknamed "the master of suspense", six of his 15 films in the 20's and 30's were thrillers and almost everything he did afterwards was Thriller, he also produced The Man Who Knew Too Much.

In the 1940's and 50's, Alfred Hitchcock continued producing suspense thrillers such as the Oscar winning film Rebecca which is about a women in danger from her husband. During the 50's the use of technicolour filming techniques became more widely used, Hitchcock began to use it in his films during this time period, he produced Strangers on a Train in 1951 which was about two train passengers who both staged a series of murders trying to outwit each other.

In the 1960's the violence that appeared in thriller films increased rapidly with the release of Peeping Tom, with Carl Boehm as a psychopathic cameraman the film was released prior to Hitchcock's Psycho. After Hitchcock produced the thriller Psycho, which at the time stunned and frightened audiences for its graphic deaths and tension, the film itself is about a loner mother-fixated motel owner who kills the guests at his motel. Spy thrillers also began to appear, films like James Bond were very popular especially during this time because it was the height of the Cold War.

The 70's and 80's had spy films scattered through them and most of the James Bond films were released during these decades. The industry also see's the last Hitchcock film as he died in 1980, he released one of his last films in 1972, it was called Frenzy and it made nearly $12 million. These years also saw rapid increase in the number of slasher films and films tended to be far more violent as the industry began using improved makeup and special effects techniques.

The 90's and films today have seen a wide range of thrillers, there have been several films based on thriller novels, most famously by Stephen King. The 90's was an era of obsession based films with a stalker usually following or becoming obsessed with a certain character an example of this was The talented Mr Ripley. There was however another theme throughout the 90's and this was the hunting down of serial killers, the most famous of which is Silence of the Lambs, which received best-picture in 1991, Seven was another famous thriller of this decade. Since then the thriller genre has started to reuse elements from previous films and add more violence and brutality, an example of this includes The Last House on the Left.

Shot Types in our Film

This is a list of some of the shot types which will be shown in our trailer, we will try to use a range of shots throughout.

Over the shoulder shot- This shot will be used when Chloe is sitting down watching the news report, the over the shoulder shot will show the TV and it will tell the audience that she is watching the report.

Close up- We will use this shot when we are showing the expression on Chloe's face, this will be when she is frightened due to the lights going off.

Extreme close up- This will be shown when the antagonist is in Chloe's house. There will be an extreme close up of his eyes, he will be seen to be very serious and intimidating which will link to his character.

Long shot- We will use a long shot when the antagonist is shown to be following one of his victims, we will also use a long shot when the antagonist is shown to be walking away from the scene with a knife.

Medium shot- This will be used when Thomas is doing the news report. A medium shot is good for us because it helps us show his smart clothing, indicating his reporter job, it also helps show the background, which is important because we are filming live from the scene.

Trailer Billing Card

We have created a billing card to go on the end of our trailer to add to the realism and make it look like a genuine film trailer. We used the layout from the film Seven's billing card to help us design ours and make it look like the real thing.

Diary of Filming

-On the 30th of November we filmed for the first time.

- The weather was good, as there was no rain, this meant we were able to film without any distractions.

- We were not able to film all of the shots

- We have filmed around half of the shots that we need to do

-We are going to look over the shots in the coming days and see if we need to re-film them

- The rest of the shots needed are at a different location

-These shots will be filmed in the coming days

- We feel the quality of the shots are a lot better than last years filming

- The camera quality is very good as we used a GoPro

This is Thomas Cunningham in our film, this is the scene where he is reporting in the news about the new dangerous convicts that has escaped the mental hospital. His costume was very good and he looks like a professional news reporter due to the suit and tie and the trench coat. This scene is the establishing shot of our trailer as it tells the audience what the trailer entails and what the movie will be structured on.

Script

Starts off  near the crime scene, where Tom is reporting the murders.

THOMAS: We are now reporting live from the scene of a murder investigation. We believe that the source of this murder is from the recent outbreaks from the West Park Avenue mental asylum.

PRODUCTION CREDITS

inside Chloes living room while she's watching the news report

THOMAS: We would advise anyone within the area to stay inside until the murderer is caught, the police have informed us that this man has the potential to go on endangering the lives of others.

To the first murder outside under the bridge.

(long shot of a stranger being followed by the stalker.)

(reverse shot of the other end of the pathway showing murderer walking off and showing the victim laying dead in the background)

TITLES- BASED ON A TRUE STORY

ALEX:  Who is it?  (shouting, while looking at pictures of potential suspects)

(back to Chloe's living room face timing the detective/ boyfriend)

CHLOE:  This stalker person is really creeping me out Matt, when will you be home?

ALEX: I'll be a few hours, you'll be fine, don't worry about it.

CHLOE; What was that?

ALEX: What?

CHLOE: I just heard something

ALEX: Don't be silly, i'll be home soon anyway stop worrying

CHLOE: Okay try and be as quick as...

ALEX: Chloe.... who's that behind you..

she turns around and lights turn off , Chloe screams

MURDERER:  You better hurry home. ( fade to black transition)

TITLES- STALKER

Targets this week for your group

1) Questionnaire Results

2) Script

3) Animatic Storyboard

4) Shot List

5) Mood Board

6) Diary of Filming and Editing

Production Logo

This is the production logo we have designed to add to the beginning of our trailer. The name J-RAT Media Productions comes from a combination of our filming groups names, and we thought it was effective and memorable. 

Institution Research

These are the six major film institutions (The Big Six). Film institutions are very important as they provide the money for films to be made, and without them, no one would ever get enough money to make a decent budget film. These companies also own studios, providing places in which major films can shoot exactly what they want. The only problem with film institutions funding a film is that they like to have complete control over the project, so if you go to them for money your film may not end up being completely how you originally planned. They are all about making money, and this stops film advancing as an art form. However a lot of good films are made by studios and the film business wouldn't be what it is today without these major institutions.

Warner Bros studios was founded in 1903. It was formed by four brothers called the Warner brothers, and was one of the first companies to make movies with dialogue in it. They also famously started the original 'Looney Tunes', as well as many more successful cartoons. Warner Bros have a very wide range of films. They tend to make high budget movies, to make a lot of money, and their films are shown around the world. Their films appeal to a very wide range of audience as they make films from many different genres. Previous Warner Bros films include: 'Harry Potter', 'The Departed', 'The Dark Knight', 'Slumdog Millionaire', 'P.S. I Love You', 'Charlie and the Chocolate Factory', 'Troy', 'Blade Runner', 'The Wrong Man'.

Paramount Studios was founded in 1916 and is one of the oldest film institutions. Steven Spielberg is a major partner with Paramount as he is one of the leading film directors in Hollywood and this is a major contributor to Paramounts success as he has many fans and followers who will watch anything he puts out, making most of his films instant money makers. Paramount are ranked as one of the highest-grossing film studios in the world. As with Warner Bros, they make a very wide range of films which targets many different audiences with each film. Paramount films include: 'Titanic', 'Transformers' 'Indiana Jones', 'Iron Man', 'Forrest Gump', 'War of the Worlds', 'Mission Impossible', 'Shutter Island', 'Paranormal Activity' .

Sony Pictures is another of the film studios in 'the big six'. Although you wouldn't think that Sony would be in the big six it does own Columbia Pictures, which is a much more well known company. Another slightly less well known, but still widely appreciated company that they own is Tristar Pictures. As Sony are primarily associated with gaming and electronics their film side isn't as well known. Despite this, they are still one of the highest grossing companies in the world. Most of their money comes from the fact that they are already such a big company so people have heard of them so will trust in them. They also do a lot of advertising for their films through their other products (such as the PS3 gaming console). Sony Pictures films include: 'Spiderman', 'Men in Black', 'Gladiator', 'The Da Vinci Code', 'Quantum of Solace', 'Hancock', 'The Pursuit of Happyness', 'The Adventures of Tintin, 'The Social Network', 'Bucky Larson: Born to be a Star'.

Walt Disney Pictures is probably the most famous film institution, mainly because most people grow up watching most of their films and TV shows. Disney are famous for their traditional family movies and cartoons but recently have made more action films for example 'Tron' and 'Pirates of the Caribbean' to reach out to a larger target audience by doing something a bit more appealing to teens and adults. They also own a large number of institutions: Touchstone Pictures, Pixar, Marvel, and most recently Lucasfilm. Pixar are seen as one of the best film institutions in the world, as they consistently make excellent films. Their films are enjoyable for both children and their parents, making them a real money maker. Pixar and Marvel both stray from producing a large number of films, opting instead for taking their time with each one and increasing the quality of the films. The quality of the films aren't as high as Marvel , but are more 'fun'. This is what makes for millions of fans as everyone is on edge waiting for them to bring out the next film. Through these companies Disney manages to get a huge amount of money, and it is a big factor in their recent success. Disney films include: 'The Lion King', 'Toy Story 3', 'The Avengers', 'Pirates of the Carribean', 'Beauty and the Beast', 'High School Musical', 'Tangled', 'Thor', 'Finding Nemo', 'Hannah Montana', 'Bambi', 'The Princess and the Frog', 'Alladin', 'A Bug's Life' .

Universal Pictures is another major film institution. They have large theme parks around America which help promote their business, helping them make more money. Universal, like many other film institutions, make a large range of film genres to target a large market of people. They are another company that go hand in hand with Warner Bros and Paramount as they are all in it more for the money than for the art form of making films itself. However they don't disappoint bringing out big budget films that have been highly successful and have made many films that are seen to be classics for example 'E.T' and 'Jaws'. Universal films include: 'Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy', 'E.T', 'Bourne Identity', 'Despicable Me', 'Back to the Future', 'A Beautiful Mind', 'American Graffiti', 'Love Actually', 'Bruce Almighty', 'Jaws', 'American Gangster', 'Mamma Mia!', 'Jurassic Park', 'King Kong', 'Meet the Fockers', 'The Mummy'.

20th Century Fox is another very large film institution well known across the world. 20th Century Fox was one of the film institutions that started a little later compared to the other big companies. This institution is owned by a news corporation which also own the Fox television channel which helps in making them a lot of money. The TV channel has pumped out many shows that the world has loved for many years. They sometimes even make films from the TV shows they play on their channel for example 'The Simpsons Movie'. 20th Century Fox tend to make very high budget films and like many other institutions, make films for a wide range of genres. Many people criticize them and say that the company is nothing more then a logo where as other institutions have more to show for, like Universal with a theme park and Sony with its electronics. However 20th Century Fox are still a widely well known institution. Famous 20th Century Fox films include: 'Avatar', 'Star Wars', 'Independence Day', 'Home Alone', 'X-Men', 'The Simpsons Movie', 'Ice Age', 'I, Robot', 'Marley and Me', 'Taken', 'Minority Report', 'Prometheus', 'Die Hard', 'Speed', 'Alien', 'Eragon', 'True Lies', 'Titanic', 'Moulin Rouge!', 'Road to Perdition', 'Night at the Museum', 'Austrailia'.

Finally, Lionsgate Entertainment was originally formed in 1998, it is based in California where it is able to produce different types of media products from movies to TV dramas to music, Lionsgate is the most commercially successful mini major film and television distribution company in North America and the seventh most profitable movie studio, with total income estimated at around $2 billion. Although not part of "The Big Six," Lionsgate is still a widely known and successful company. Lionsgate are known for producing highly successful film franchises such as The Hunger Games series, as well as this they have also produced several successful horror films such as Cabin in the Woods, The Possession, Sinister ,Texas Chainsaw 3D, and the SAW series.

It seems that many of the large film institutions  that started right at the beginning of film making are the most successful production companies in recent times. This makes sense as they have had the most time to evolve and grow to what they are now, giving the audience the best possible films they can make for us to enjoy.

Mood Board

This is our mood board, this represents what ideas we have for the trailer, as shown we plan to have a kind of Scream inspired film now, we have brought this in as we can easily access the locations we need, the story revolves around the escape of a convicted murder from a prison. The prisoner uses a mask to conceal there identity, which will add mystery and suspense to the trailer as we can't relate to the antagonist and this makes him appear inhuman and almost like a machine.

On the board we also have the weapon of choice our murder will be using, as we have researched we have seen that each antagonist in a slasher film has had different weapon of choice like in Texas Chainsaw Massacre the main weapon is a chainsaw, or in Halloween Mike Myers uses a kitchen knife more often than not, in our trailer the antagonist will use a meat cleaver to kill his victims.

 Our character types are also shown on screen as we see, their will still be a group of people being hunted, and the primary character in the film will be a film, this goes against what the audience would expect from a female character as we are often given a male protagonist as they appear strong and physically able to beat the antagonist.

Title and Font Research

This is the idea we have for our title research. The red font colour is common in horror films as it indicates to the audience violence is likely in the film, as the colour connotes blood and danger, which is what the audience would be expecting from a horror film. The text and font is bold and clear, which allows the title to stand out clearly against the background. The black, stormy background suggests to the audience the film takes place at night perhaps and it also has connotations of early horror films as they often used storms to represent danger and horror.

Horror Conventions & Research

The conventions of horror films are: murders, female with sex appeal, 'jumpy scenes' and creepy music. In a horror film the intention of the film is to scare the audience.  To scare the audience the main theme of horror films are peoples worst nightmare. So for example a serial killer, a scary clown or a ghost. Also tension is created by creepy music. The music is usually very slow paced. The camera shots in horror movies are mostly long shots and close ups. Close ups are used to show the facial expressions of the characters, most of the time the close ups are on the character that is being attacked. This is because it enables the audience can see and even feel their fear. Long shots are used to show the whole setting, sometimes long shots shows things creeping up behind someone, this creates tension. When the audience can see something or someone creeping up behind a person in a long shot it creates dramatic irony.

In almost all horror films there is a teenage girl being killed. The girl is seen to be the damsel in distress. Also she is seen to be fragile and helpless. The girl always seems to be alone in a place far away from anything. This makes the girl vulnerable as she is far from civilisation and therefore, help.

The target audience for horror films are young people aged 16-30 Many teenagers will want to watch a horror film as they will feel as if they can relate to the film. Teenagers are used most of the time in horror films. Also young people will want watch horrors as they will want to see blood and gore, which is shown a lot in horror films. The colours used in horror films are usually black and red. This is because stereo typically these colours connote evil and death. Teens would would be the target audience because they usually want to have adrenaline rushes and they also want to have the shock factor. Older people will not be the target audience as they will feel that horror films are boring and unrealistic as they would of seen many before.

Certificate Research

The British Board of film Classification or BBFC is the organisation responsible for the censoring of all films and DVD’s. They currently use a certificating system from U to 18 this is an easy way of telling people what films are suitable for who and allows parents a reference as to what films there children can view.



This is the first Certification, U. This stands for Universal which means that the film is suitable for all ages and there is nothing unsuitable for children. Examples of these kind of films are Turbo and The Smurfs 2.

All ages are admitted, but does contain violent scenes and can contain moderate violence and mild language and drug reference. An example of these kind of films are Wreck-it-Ralph.

The 12A certificate was introduced in 2002 to replace the 12 rating in cinema's only, films under this  category are considered unsuitable for viewing by young children and under age children must be accompanied by a adult over the age of 18. Films under this category can contain soft drug references some strong language and moderate violence, the films can also contain sex references. Examples of this certificate include RED 2 and Pacific Rim.

The 12 certificate is for DVD use only as no child under 12 can rent or buy this film.

The 15 certificate are for 15 years and older, so nobody under 15 can view or rent/buy the film. The film can contain hard drugs, frequent strong language, strong sex references and  limited sexual violence. Examples of this film are The Heat and Cloverfield.

This film category can only be viewed by 18's and over. It contains no limitations on what language can be used hard drugs fully allowed,  explicit sex references along with detailed sexual activity are also allowed. Very strong and gory violence is permitted. Examples of this kind of film include Django Unchained and Texas Chainsaw Massacre.

Our trailer is likely to be rated an 18, as we plan to produce a horror film, this means we will be including blood and gore, this could be extreme, as well as this it will likely contain features that are simply not suitable for a lower rating.

Introducing the Actors

We have cast Thomas Cunningham to play one of the male protagonists in our film. Thomas is an experienced drama student and has previous acting experience, working on 2013 student film The Case in one of the lead roles. He fits the role of a teenage victim perfectly and will hopefully add a lot of realism to our film.

We have also cast Chloe Young in the female protagonist role. It was important to us to cast someone who the audience could sympathise with and want to see survive the film, rather than another character who is simply there to add to the blood and gore quota. We feel that Chloe can achieve this effect on our audience and it also helps that she has previous experience with acting and helping to produce a short film with other media students from previous years.

Another casting decision we've made is for the murderer in our film. Alex Morgan, another member of our media group, will act out the role. We thought it important to cast a male actor as our antagonist as this conforms to the stereotype of the horror genre of men creating more of a threat than women. Alex has previous acting experience in the same student film as Thomas Cunningham, The Case.

Camera

This is the camera we are planning on using, it is a Gopro Hero 3 black edition, from this camera we plan to make a point of view style film, the camera itself provides high quality HD video, which is perfect for us as we need that level of detail in the film, as our tests shots will show it provides very good quality sound as well as giving the impression of a found footage film. The camera is also waterproof, which has inspired some of the scenes we are planning, we can also attach the camera to a stand or a helmet for added first person view and to get different camera perspectives. We can also use the wide angle lense we have on ours and this will help us fit a lot more footage and people into each shot. The camera also provides a low light mode as well as this the camera has a red light situated on the front of the camera which could provide very interesting effects when utilised in the dark, which is when we plan to have our film based.

Film Ideas

In our film trailer we are planning to make a film similar to make a horror film, the film is going to be shot from a POV view with one of our character investigating an abandoned building, the trailer is going to be based on paranormal activity and Grave encounters, as both these films use Point of View shots, when we are filming the trailer it is likely we will have the main character holding the camera, this allows the audience to view the film from our main protagonists viewpoint, the camera we use will be crucial to having this trailer we are planning to be successful, which is why we will be using the GoPro, the view provided to us by this camera will add realism and will also make the audience more scared as they won't see any scares coming.

We have currently 2-3 location ideas although this is subject to change, our main idea is to use an old abandoned mental hospital in Epsom called West Park hospital, we want to use this because it would be the perfect backdrop for a horror movie, as its an abandoned location with plenty of real history and it also provides a tense atmosphere, the only problem we have with this location is that it has been cleared out and it is also under threat from demolition. Our second option is an old school which we want to use, this also provides us with some tense atmosphere and it also gives us much more free reign as we would have the entire school to ourselves, however the school is the furthest of all our options. Our third option is to use our current school, however this is our last option and we don't want to use this as our location however but if we have to we will.

Representation in our film

There are many types of representation and stereotypes in Horror films, this is a guide to some of the typical stereotypes that can be expected to be seen in Horror films such as Halloween:

The Female Victim-

The female victim are often portrayed as being vulnerable and in need of protection, by the films protagonist or hero, this kind of representation began in the early days of horror as the main character was often heroic and almost always male. The victim isusually young, blonde and attractive, which helps to appeal to a wider male audience. However this character is often seen as having an annoying and stupid personality, They are often the one character the audience wants to be killed. They are usually never killed first but are normally saved until one of the last victims, they will normally die in the most graphic way possible. The director will often use this character to help build suspense in the audience, as she will often be on edge and very easily scared by loud noices, this would make the audience far more jumpy.

Non-Believer-

There will also often be a character in horror films who is portrayed as cocky and overconfident, they will often try and convince others in the film that there is no antagonist and that they are overreacting. This character can be either sex but is often portrayed as a male. The characters cockiness is usually the thing that gets the character killed off, there death is oftenly near the beginning. The audience will normally be reassured by their calm attitude and belief that there is nothing wrong, however when they are eventually killed this calm attitude disappears and the other characters often become panicked and this can lead to other deaths.

Hero-

Almost always a male character they are often seen as strong and very masculine, they rarely show enough emotion given the situation, and are often either the only one to survive or the last character to survive. There is an increasing trend in which this steretype is being protrayed by a female lead instead of male character, this can broaden the audience and attract females and males, as females could be attracted by the strong female lead as well as the strong male lead.

Hysterical Character-

This kind of character is often female. They are normally the character who doesn't want to investigate anything suspicous, she is normally the most likely character to be left behind in a situation. This would normally lead to her to eihter being killed first or left till last. Her emotional outbursts would help build suspense in the audience and it could also build hysteria in the audience making them more jumpy and frightened.

Evil Character-

Evil characters are varied and can range from serial killers to demonic possession. If the antagonist is a human they often wear masks, so we can't identify them and it also leaves mystery as we don't know what they look like under the mask, they will also never expose their emotions which means as the audience we can never connect with them. As human's they don't react normally to injuries, and they can often reanimate after the protagonist thinks he's dead, this hints to the audience that there is something unnatural. The unnatural creatures such as Demons are known to play on the fears of the audience and films that contain these monsters in them are often the scariest because they take place in places normally associated with safety such as homes, but they also make the most innocnet looking things the victims worst nightmare. This character is strikes fear in the audience everytime they appear on screen and they are also what builds the most tension.

Practice Shots

This video shows some practice shots we have taken, we think these shots were very effective and we plan to use several of these shots in our film. The first shot of the zooming in we think can act as maybe a jump scare, as someone could hide behind the door and pop out into view of the camera, this would jump the audience and at night there would be a torch adding to the tension as the camera approached the door. The second shot was a practice to see how effective the GoPro was in the dark, the door slamming shows how quickly the camera can transition between light and dark and it also provides us with a light we can use. The third shot is one of the most effective shots, this because the sheet we were using to make this effect made it appear no one was behind the sheet and it is also obscuring the area behind the sheet making it perfect for the antagonist to hide behind and in the dark it could be very effective to use as a jump scare, as seen at the 20-23 second mark. The final shot we can see using in our trailer as one of the characters run into a closet or cupboard, the idea would be the lights would turn off and then come back on and maybe books would have fallen off the shelf or there would be a character appearing behind the camera.

Location Research

This is one of our location ideas, it is an abandoned house in Leatherhead, which makes it easy to get to as its only a 5-10 minute walk from our school. It is also an abandoned so we won't be disturbing anyone. However this location is boarded up and we don't want to risk anything illegal. We did visit the house to see what it was like but in the end

we decided not to use it because of the law.

This was another idea for a location, this is west park hospital in Epsom, it is located just down the road from Epsom train station, it has the benefit for being perfect for our horror story as it used to be a mental hospital. However this location has recently been demolished and no longer has as many features as it use to have, this makes it unusable for our film ideas, along with this problem it would have also been illegal again to trespass although we could have probably emailed the relevant people to request use of the site.

For our location we came to the decision to use 40 foot recreation ground in Leatherhead as one of our location, this provides us with several ideas such as a chase scene. Another location we are going to use the house pictured, the film will be based on a murderer on the loose and he finds and murders a group of friends in this house, these are likely to be our final locations as we feel they would be most appropriate to the film.

Questionnaire

These are the questions we hope to ask our audience, there responses will help us get a better understanding about the genre and what people expect from horror movies. As well as this it will give us an idea about who goes to see horror films as we recognise our target should be young adults, however this Questionnaire could bring some surprise results.

1.What is your age and gender?

2. What would be your preferred location for a Horror film?

- A house

- A park

- A Forest

- A school

3.Would you prefer the Antagonist to be a person or a ghost that cannot be seen?

4.What would you expect the Protagonist in the film to be like?

5.What would you expect the Antagonist in the film to be like?

6. What is you favourite sub-genre within Horror?

- Blood and gore

- Ghosts

- Thriller

- Psychological

7. What is your favourite horror film? and why?

8. Would you prefer the Antagonist to be realistic or to be a character that is sub-normal?

9. Would you prefer if the Horror film is based on things that actually occur? e.g. stalking murder etc

10. Do Horror films containing blood and gore appeal to you?

11. What would you expect to see in a horror trailer?

Costume Ideas

In our film idea we have 4 main characters, 3 "victims" and a murderer who is hunting them. The murderers costume will be most important as it needs to convey the evil nature of our antagonist in order to unsettle the audience and make him a credible threat. It would not make sense to have our murderer dressed in a hoodie and jeans and wearing trainers as a murderer must be psychopathic and therefore would not dress casually. Therefore the costume needs to convey to the audience the idea of the murderer being crazy and therefore be abnormal. We are already planning to have our murderer in some form of mask which will help to put across the idea of his lunacy and make him a credible threat. For the rest of his costume, we thought about him wearing black, muddy, worn-out work boots to as these would be conventional footwear for a killer to use. An example would be the character Zep from the original Saw film. 

The rest of the killers costume would ideally be mostly black, which has the practical benefits of making them harder to identify in shots which we can use to our advantage in teasing the character to the audience in our trailer without fully revealing him. Black trousers, a black jacket and black gloves with the mask would make our killer look creepy and reveal almost nothing about him to the audience, further helping to make the character intriguing and terrifying.

For our victims, costume-work will be easier to decide on as there is a broader range of acceptable outfit. It is conventional for the victims in horror films to be relatable for the audience, making it easier to put yourself in their shoes and therefore making the scenario more frightening. This is why most of the time teenagers are the victims in these films as teenagers are the main target market for the horror genre. Our 3 victims will also be teenagers and will dress accordingly in t-shirts, hoodies and trainers. Ideally, most of the victims costumes will consist of bright colours like white in order to contrast with the darkness of the villain and to make them seem more vulnerable in a dark environment as they stand out more. Each costume should also be tailored to reflect each characters personality, helping to make them more identifiable to the audience. A good example is from the costume-work in The Cabin in The Woods, which can be seen below. You have the "jock" character wearing an American football jacket to show he is the strong, sporty and typically stupid one in the film. Then you also have the contrasting choice of costume for each of the female-characters, with the blonde woman wearing a short skirt and the ginger woman wearing jeans, making the audience sympathise more with the ginger woman as she seems more respectable and less promiscuous than the blonde woman.

                       

We have also had an idea for a fake news report to feature in our trailer, with a news reporter setting the scene to the audience. If we end up going along with the news report idea, we would likely have our news reporter in a smart suit and tie to add to the realism, as this is typically what you'd expect to see in a real life news report.

Prop Research

The most commonly used props in a horror movie seem to be masks and weapon-focused. A hockey mask or some form of face-covering is stereotypical of the genre, adding to the fear the antagonist instills to the audience as their identity is hidden, raising enigmas. Famous examples include Mike Myers from the Halloween film franchise and Hannibal Lecter.

               
The mask is an effective prop for this genre as part of every horror is the build-up to the antagonists reveal, showing them gradually to the audience to create suspense and tension. With the use of the mask the suspense of the film is not deflated as soon as the villain is revealed to the audience, as there are still questions raised surrounding the man behind the mask, what he really looks like and why he is after the protagonists rather than showing the full picture straight away. This is why we are thinking of using some form of face-covering in our trailer, as this will allow us to show off our villain without giving to much away and still giving the audience
questions.

Another key area for props in this genre is weapon-focused, normally what the antagonist uses to hunt down the protagonists. The most commonly used are knives (like Mike Myers, above), chainsaws (The Texas Chainsaw Massacre) and machetes (Friday the 13th), all weapons that would create a lot of blood and gore. This makes the antagonist a more credible threat and plays on audience fears of stabbing and obviously, dying.

Magazine Cover Analysis #2

This is a cover for film magazine Empire, which is a limited edition cover promoting the James Bond film, Skyfall. The cover itself is simplistic, drained of most colour and showing an image of James Bond in a smart suit, holding a gun. The cover acts as a pure character cover, that's main aim is to introduce the character to the audience and does this by giving Bond prominence in the poster, taking up most of the available space.  The image of Bond works to give the audience a clear idea of the characters personal traits. For example, the costume-work is used to show the sophisticated nature of the character, looking smart and perfectly clean whilst finding himself in a dangerous situation, which is highlighted by the prop of the gun which connotes action and violence (informing the audience of the genre). 

However, the character is also displayed as a dark and moody person, which is represented to the reader by the complete lack of colour surrounding the character as well as the lighting used, with half of his face in the shadows. This also carries connotations linking with the characters occupation (therefore giving audiences a better idea of the films plot), as being a spy would mean working in the shadows and remaining unseen all the time. The only colour that is used in the cover is reserved for the title of the magazine and a small print telling the reader that this is a limited edition cover, which are both shown in a gold colour, from which the reader can infer the character is used to the finer things in life with the colour of gold connoting wealth and riches.

  Locations are normally shown in poster and magazines covers to give the audience information about the film and to draw them in to want to see it, sometimes making the location one of the most prominent parts of the cover if it is one of the films main USP's. In this cover though it is the lack of information provided that would make the audience more intrigued. Instead the designer of the cover has opted for a plain white background in order to make the character stand out more. However, it is probably safe to assume that the audience of this magazine would be familiar with the Bond franchise and therefore more likely they would be familiar with the stereotypes of the typical Bond film, including the use of exotic locations. Here, none of the information regarding where the film is set is given, which would make audiences want to see the film even more. 

Magazine Cover Analysis #1

This is a  cover from Empire magazine that shows a still from The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey. The image they have used is of one of the main dwarf characters, Thorin. The image itself works to make the character seem powerful, with it being taken from a slightly lower perspective than the characters height in order to make the audience "look up" to the character. The costume also emphasises this trait as the fur coat he is wearing makes him look bigger and more masculine, which are stereotypical traits of the archetypal action hero. There is also a lot of metal armour that the character is wearing, which also puts danger and war in the audiences mind and gives the character questions the audience will want the answer to.

 The layout of the cover is also interesting as the image comes before the magazine in that the name of the magazine is behind the characters head, making the film seem more important than the magazine itself, making audiences want to buy in order to see what makes this film so special. The falling snow that surrounds the character is made prominent to the reader as it suggests a cold atmosphere to the film, giving the audience a greater idea as to what the film will be like. This also gives the film stronger connections to the fantasy genre as opposed to the action genre, which audiences could be forgiven for misinterpreting as the films genre given the image of war and fighting that the armour would give across. This also helps in drawing in the key target audience of fantasy genre fans, particularly those unfamiliar with the Lord of the Rings franchise or those that simply do not know that this film serves as a prequel to that series.

 The font used for the film title is bold and typed in white in order to make it stand out. The boldness of the font has connotations of confidence and simplicity, as if the name itself should entice readers without the need for any extra editing to draw the readers attention. This gives the film an air of grandiose importance. To give the target audience extra incentive to buy the magazine "the ultimate issue" is written in bold capital letters which gives the audience the impression that there is something special about this particular issue which should make them want to buy it, even if they are not regular purchasers of the magazine.

In Bruges Poster Analysis

This is a poster for 2008 dark comedy In Bruges, starring Colin Farrell and Ralph Fiennes. The poster shows the 3 main characters looking at the camera holing guns and ice creams. This lets the audience know the film is a mixture of action and comedy with the juxtaposition of the guns danger and the ice creams light-heartedness. There is also a swan in the background which adds to this effect of light-hearted almost over-the-top comedy.

The costume-work consists of dark clothing for all 3 characters reflecting the mood of the film. It can also be inferred from the way the main character is wrapping his arms around himself and by the big jackets they are all wearing that the film is set in a cold location, which the film has highlighted by naming Bruges in the title of the film (along with "It's in Belgium" written underneath). It also looks like there is light snow on the ground in the poster, reinforcing this to the audience. They may have chosen to do this because it is one of the films main USP's, with most other action films conventionally set in warm exotic locations. This is also shown by the city buildings in the background which also work to give the audience an idea of what Bruges is like.

The title itself is written in large pink text and placed in the middle of the poster, which works to make the title stand out to the audience and stand out from the rest of the poster. The tagline for the film is "shoot first, sightsee later," which further combines the elements of action and comedy to make it clear to the audience what the films genre is. This tagline is written in a white text and placed in front of the main characters black coat in order to make this stand out as well, showing its importance. The 3 main actors names are also shown and made to stand out in the top left hand corner of the poster by separating it from the rest of the text. This would have been done to make audiences aware of who is starring in the film as they are big name actors who the filmmakers will want to show off in order to draw in audiences.

The Bourne Supremacy Poster Analysis

This is a poster for the 2004 action spy sequel The Bourne Supremacy,starring Matt Damon. The poster shows the lead character aiming with a sniper rifle with an exotic location shown behind him. The main purpose of this poster is to show off the actor to the audience, with Matt Damon being a big name in the action film genre with many fans, so simply showing him to be a part of the film will get a lot of people on board and wanting to see the film. This is why this is emphasised with "Matt Damon is Jason Bourne" written above the title, which also lets people know the main character. 

The second main part of this poster would be the sniper rifle being held by the main character as the appearance of a weapon is an obvious link to the action genre, therefore uninformed audience members know what to expect from the film. The gun also makes the main character seem more powerful and a bigger threat, making the audience want to see what violence he gets involved in in the film. This also raises questions as to who he is pointing the gun at and for people who are unfamiliar with the franchise, whether he is protagonist or antagonist. 

The tagline of the film is written in large writing at the top of the poster and made to stand out. "They should have left him alone," makes the audience question who "they" are as well as letting them know they can expect the character to be involved in conflict with other people, letting them know more of the films plot. The exotic location shown behind the character seems to show a European location such as Germany or Italy, which subverts the usual stereotype of mainstream action films being set in America. The poster works to make this obvious to the audience as the unusual location also acts as the films USP.

Bond Poster Analysis #2

This is the poster for 1995 James Bond film Golden-eye, starring Pierce Brosnan. The poster shows Bond pointing a gun towards the audience, with 2 women either side of him in revealing dresses. There is also a shot of Bond running away from an explosion with helicopters and jets behind him.

The poster lets the audience know straight away that it is a Bond film by having the 007 logo in a large gold font right in the centre of the poster. This lets the audience know straight away exactly what genre the film is and what franchise it belongs to. The gold colour used for the logo also links with the title. Bond is made to look like a typical action hero by the gun he is holding as well as the cold expression on his face. The 2 women are used to connote sex and romance which are clear stereotypes of any action film but are also specifically showing the audience who the "Bond girls" are for this entry in the franchise.

The title of the film is also made prominent on the poster so the audience knows what the film is called and is also a very interesting name that will have the audience wondering what it means. The part of the poster that shows Bond running away from the explosion also works to entice audience members into seeing the film as the explosion lets the audience know to expect large action set-pieces from this film, drawing in fans of that genre. The helicopters and planes are also stereotypical parts of chase scenes in action films so the audience knows to expect a chase scene in this film.

The Next 3 Days Poster Analysis

This is a poster for the 2010 thriller The Next Three Days starring Russell Crowe and Elizabeth Banks. The poster shows the main character looking contemplative with a still from the film shown inside his head. The character is shown in grey with not a lot of colour featuring on the poster, giving the audience the impression that the film will have a dark moody atmosphere which conforms with the archetypal thriller film. This also helps the release date stand out as the colour of the text is red, making sure the audience notices this important piece of information. The other key pieces of text that are made to stand out is the title and the films lead actor, both standing out by the size of the font used and both being made noticeable in order to entice the audience into seeing the film.

Russell Crowe is a well-known highly rated actor that would make fans of his want to see the film which is why the poster wants to make his name stand out in order to show off the films lead actor. The title is also important to make stand out as it raises enigmas for the audience. People will want to know why the film has been called The Next Three Days, what needs to happen in the next three days? The poster also features a tagline of "what if you had 72 hours to save everything you live for?," which also asks questions of the audience and lets them know a little more about the films plot in order to draw them in.

The still from the film that is used shows a man (presumably the lead character) and a woman running down an empty train platform with a bag. This serves to let the audience know the film has action in it and will help to make more audience members want to see the film if they enjoy action films. It also raises more questions for the audience as they will want to see the film to know who or what these people are running from. The bag the man is holding is also an interesting prop that also raises questions as to its contents as if you are running away from someone/something you would only be carrying absolute essentials or something of importance. Therefore the audience will want to know what is in the bag.

The last key piece of information the audience can infer from the poster is that the film is set in America, like most mainstream films nowadays. This can be read from the train station the man and woman are running through with the train clearly part of the American subway rather than a UK or European train. Most films with a big budget are set in America as they can afford to film there and this also carries an air of importance to the film that you would not get if it were set in a smaller country such as France (although Pour Elle, the film The Next 3 Days was based off of, was set in France) or England.

Bond Poster Analysis #1

This is a poster for 2012 Bond film Skyfall. The poster shows James Bond leaning against an old-fashioned car, gun in hand, looking forlorn against a London backdrop. The costume-work in the poster is used to show the audience Bonds smart and sophisticated character with him wearing a suit and tie. This also reflects attire you would expect to see someone wearing for an everyday office job, which juxtaposes with the reality of the protagonists occupation of a secret service agent. The audience can infer from this that James Bond sees his job as ordinary, which reinforces the idea of him being brave as his job is far from ordinary and involves him being in danger constantly.

The gun Bond is holding serves to let the audience know the genre of the film is action, as without this the poster could be misconstrued as a drama what with the black and white being used and the character of the poster looking deep in thought. The gun is an easy way of informing the audience of the films action genre as a gun carries associations of violence, death and war which are all conventions of the action genre. The old-fashioned car Bond is leaning against could be used to remind the audience of classic Bond films, and let the audience know that this film will link to the those as this film was released during the 50th anniversary of the start of the franchise. However, it could also feature to further expand the audiences idea of the characters personal taste and class, with an interest in classic cars connoting experience and sophistication.

The houses of parliament that serve as a backdrop for the poster serves to let the audience know the setting of the film is London as this is a very famous landmark. It is important for a film such as this to let the audience know of the London setting as it serves as the films main USP, an action film set in London which subverts the stereotypes of action films normally being set in America or exotic locations in the world. The title of the film is shown by the prominence given to the word Skyfall, with it being the text closest to the centre of the poster. The name itself also serves to create an enigma as the name Skyfall gives little away about the film, which could make people want to see the film in order to find out the meaning behind its title. The 007 logo underneath the title contrasts with the rest of the poster as it is the only part of the poster to feature colour, with the gold writing drawing the audiences eye to let them know this film is a Bond film.

AS Media Blog

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