How I created my magazine cover

Magazine cover flat plans

Typeface research for magazine cover

Magazine main image experiment

Magazine cover ideas

Names for movie: I have started to plan for my magazine cover by thinking about possible names. I first came up with ‘Love Film’ however this is already a company and I did not want to copyright the name. I then thought of ‘Premiere’ however again this name has already been used for a film magazine. Throughout the names I thought of most of them have already been used or they just weren’t appropriate for a film magazine. I then thought of ‘Media Works’ which I thought was a good name and it had not been used before, I also  think that this title combined with a good font is going to stick into my audiences mind.

Colour scheme: After researching existing film magazines I now know the importance colour plays as different colour schemes reflect different genres, for instance yellow signifies happiness which would be a comedy whereas red signifies blood which would be a horror. I have also taken into account my primary research which shows me that my key demographic would want grey, red and black as the main colours. I will also be adding white into my publication as it would contrast well my background and is used often in film magazines as a common font colour. My primary research also advised me to keep the colour scheme the same as my poster and therefore I have already analysed and researched in depth about what the colours represent and can use them straight away.

Coverline ideas: ‘Holly Middleton makes her return’, as Holly is the main character in my horror film ‘Withheld’, my key demographic would be interested in this line as they would want to know about where and what she has been doing before.  

‘Top ten tips from Matt Damon’, as Matt Damon is a famous, successful and widely known actor, this line would appeal to a wide range of people and therefore attract them to see what he thinks are the best tips. Furthermore as my target audience are young adults, some of them may be interested in drama and acting and therefore this would interest them as they would want to see tips from a successful actor.

‘Top 10 film reviews of the week’, this would make the audience curious as they would want to see what films have been given what ratings.

‘Massive preview special’, this encourages the audience to read the magazine as everyone loves to see a preview of something before it is released.

‘Withheld the most anticipated film of the year’, this tagline along with my main image will promote my film, for people who have not seen my movie it will alert them and encourage them to go see it through the use of stealth advertising. For my movie’s fans it will encourage them to buy the magazine to know more about the film. This is going to be my main tagline and therefore I will be making the word ‘Withheld’ bold and in an eroded styled font to stand out. This is a common convention in many of the film magazines I have researched and will appeal to my target audience.

Skyline ideas: ‘the only film guide you’ll ever need’, I think this would be an effective skyline to have as it will help my film magazine to keep up with its competitors as it directly tells the audience this is the ONLY guide they will need. Furthermore the use of ‘you’ll’ instead of ‘you will’ will also help to draw In my audience as Its in slang which is what young adults generally use and are accustomed to seeing. 

Magazine cover analysis

Magazine cover moodboard

I created a moodboard of existing magazine covers so that I could see and compare the conventions of each one; furthermore this gives me a better understanding of a film magazine. This will also help me to decide what to include in my own film magazine and therefore help me to create a more versatile one. 

Introduction to magazine cover

Now that I have created a horror poster I am not going to be giving my full attention to making a magazine cover. I will start by researching the conventions of a film magazine cover while all the time thinking about what my primary research has told me and how I can make my own cover unique so that more people would buy it. I will then start to plan and make the cover. I need to make sure that the magazine cover links to my poster and trailer as this would make my whole promotional package much stronger altogether.

Final horror poster

Alternative poster ideas

Although I have successfully finished my horror poster and feel as if it is an accurate representation of my film and what my target audience are looking for, I have experimented with many effects to see if they can make my poster better. I used different software such as 'Corel Paintshop Pro X4' and 'Serif PhotoPlus Essentials' instead of the typical Photoshop however my original poster was far better and therefore I will be leaving it the same, here are some of the alternative posters: 

Creating my horror poster

Poster flat plans

Typeface research for poster

Colour scheme for poster

Poster main image experiments

Poster Ideas

I think that having a strong main image will portray my film better to my key demographic due to the fact that my target audience like to have things with less text in them. Therefore I have decided to have a strong striking image on the front and have no taglines; the only text on my poster will be the date of when the film is released and the credits. The image will give the audience a sense of how the film will be. This will give the audience all the information they need while still keeping everything else about the film enigmatic which will then allure the audience to find out information themselves. This coincides with my viral campaign as the first place they will usually search is on Facebook and therefore my 'Like' page will come up giving them all the information they need. Furthermore many horror posters have a large image and less text, therefore by following the same conventions I know my poster will be professional and successful. 

Poster analysis

Poster moodboard

I compiled a few posters with a theme that is similar to what I wanted to get across. Many of the posters have some sort of red in them; this is conventional and stereotypical as it represents blood and danger; however I am going to be challenging conventions in my own poster by having minimal red. Furthermore most of the posters are dark and gloomy which represent evil, this is another typical convention of horror posters.

Introduction to horror poster

Now that I have successfully completed and edited the horror trailer, I will now be concentrating on creating a horror poster as part of my promotional package. I will start by researching existing posters to see the conventions and how my own poster can use and develop on them while all the time thinking about what my primary research has showed me. Once I have gathered enough research I will begin planning and then constructing my horror poster. 

Primary research

Unused footage

Final trailer

Production Stills

Although I was the primary camera man, we decided to allow all members of our group have a turn at recording. Here are our production stills which show us recording the first scene of our trailer; you can also see us discussing the best way to record. This is also known as 'behind the scenes' as it literally shows us what is happening while we are recording. 

Intertitle research and ideas

  

My own viral campaign

Final music for trailer

This is the final soundtrack for our trailer, although we researched some horror soundtracks before, we later decided that we wanted a soundtrack that creates more anticipation and therefore found this online. It is exactly what we wanted and therefore we added it into the trailer while editing. 

Photoshoot

To ensure that my publications come out exactly how I want them to I have organised a photoshoot and I will be choosing images for my magazine front cover and poster. 

Trailer music ideas

The main requirement we had for music was that it had to be royalty free so we do not breech copyright law, we decided we wanted non-diegetic eerie music which would cause anticipation within the audience, I researched various websites however I found the best horror music to be on the social networking platform known as ‘YouTube’, here are some of our ideas: 

Production Paperwork

Production Paperwork on Prezi

Production/ Institutional logo

I typed into Google images ‘Scary Eye’ as this was my first idea for a production/ institutional logo. I found two images that I like, the first one was an eye and a skull in it, I sketched it on paper to plan how I would manipulate it as If I did not edit the image I would be breeching copyright law. I liked the final result however decided to experiment with the other picture I liked to come up with an alternative. I manipulated the other image in many ways before I liked the final edit, I discussed it with my group and we decided to go with the alternative instead as it looks more vivid and portrays our horror theme better to our target audience, furthermore as I am within the age range of our target audience i know that I would prefer the image to look gruesome which will stick into my mind and thus help me remember the logo. 

Production logo from Cassum Latif on Vimeo.

Character analysis

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Narrative Structure

Planning our narrative is important as it will give us a good grasp on what we want in our trailer and how we can convey this to our key demographic. Narrative structure is a key aspect to a good trailer, as Bordwell & Thompson say ‘Narrative is defined as a chain of events in a cause-effect relationship occurring in time’ this was in the 1980’s which show that narrative structure has been around for a long time.

An important part of the narrative structure is the diegesis which is the internal world created by the storyline which the characters in the film encounter, in order to show this I will be using establish shots in every new scene.

The plot and storyline must be run through before we film, this is so that when we film we know exactly what we are doing thus allowing us to complete filming in a timely fashion. As we are creating a trailer the scenes will be in non-chronological order which is conventional and sets the tone of the trailer portraying that it is enigmatic.

We have taken into account the narrative range; we could use a restricted narrative which only offers minimal information about the narrative or an unrestricted narrative which a lot of information is showed, for instance news programs. The obvious choice is restricted narration as we are creating a horror trailer, however as we are trying to challenge some of the typical conventions in a horror trailer we are going to let more of the narrative in horror trailers that is usually shown, this will encourage the audience to go see the full film and as our key demographic are teenagers they will appreciate more information.

As part of narrative depth we can have either a subjective character identification which is where the audience is given insight all the characters alternatively we can use objective character identification where the audience is given insight into a characters fantasies, dreams and a unique point of view from them. After careful consideration I have decided to use objective character identification as I think it will draw on the audience’s emotion and thus will make the trailer better. The way I can portray this in the trailer is by camera angles and camera shots such as point of view and close up to see the characters emotion.

There are two types of narrative structure we could follow these are: Modular Narratives in Contemporary Cinema by Allan Cameron and Tzvetan Todorov’s Theory of Narrative:

Cameron has identified four different types of modular narrative:

• Anachronic
• Forking Paths
• Episodic
• Split Screens

Tzvetan Todorov’s Theory of Narrative, Todorov suggested that conventional narratives are structured in five stages:

• A state of equilibrium at the outset.
• A disruption of the equilibrium by some action.
• A recognition that there has been a disruption.
• A attempt to repair the disruption.
• A reinstatement of the equilibrium.

After discussing with the group and getting everyone’s feedback we have decided to go with the second structure as we think it is more familiar to use as this is used in many mainstream films that our target audience are also used to.

This is how Tzveran Todorov’s theory will relate to our own trailer:

As we are trying to challenge some conventions we have chosen not to see a setting straight away but rather just start the storyline by seeing some characters, thus drawing the audience in. The disruption of the equilibrium is when we show the phone ringing on a withheld number and then see the stalker right after; this will create anticipation within the audience. The recognition is where our protagonist realises that something is not right and therefore tries to get away thus attempting to repair the disruption, at the end of the trailer however a reinstatement of the equilibrium will not be restored.

This is how Tzveran Todorov’s theory applies to other horror trailers:

The Devil Inside- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OyT7xMPurgw: The location is not revealed at the beginning of the trailer instead there is a disruption of the equilibrium straight away which is generally unconventional in trailers. The recognition of a disruption is when a character that is being possessed is moved to a mental hospital. The recognition is when the protagonist tried to learn more about exorcism to try and help her mother which creates tension as this is a family bond and makes the audience feel more sympathetic for the protagonist. The attempt to repair the disruption is when the protagonist’s mother gets exorcised by a priest, however this does not work and the character gets progressively worse as the music gets louder and louder which creates anticipation within the audience, the reinstatement of the equilibrium.

Title ideas

Below are our ideas for the name of our trailer, I created a collage of the possible ideas using Wordle as I thought it is a clear way to present our ideas. We analysed many names, for example the name ‘Blocked’ gives the immediate image of a sewage pipe that is blocked in the users mind so therefore we did not use this name. The name ‘Unknown’ and ‘The Unknown’ are already taken and as we did not want to copyright anyone else’s name we did not use this. I thought that the best name was ‘Withheld’ as it is enigmatic and gives a good indication of what our film is going to be about, in the end we decided to go with ‘Withheld’.

Mood Boards

These are mood boards I created which is what I would like to convey in my own horror trailer. From analysing other horror trailers it is apperent that the main colours used are red, black and shades of grey. This is because they represent blood, danger, power, evil and enigma, this is conventional and I would like to use this in my own trailer as this is something that the target audience can see and recognise immediately. I also think that red and black contrast well against eachother and I would like to maintain this colour scheme throughout my three final products. Many images have been distored using mise en scene and photo editing software, this is critical for horror images and horror films, it allows the audience to immediately recognise what kind of genre this film is and I am similarly going to be following this convention. 
Most locations are set in forests, parks or other dark locations as this portrays enigma and brings the feeling of anticipation within the audience as we generally associate negative and horrific thoughts about these type of areas. Most of the images tend to be low angles and this is because it makes the subject of the image more powerful and dominating. 

Target audience

My intended target audience is young adults, this is because I feel like this group of people are usually more horror fans than any other age group, furthermore many successful horror films are aimed at teenagers, for example the ‘Scream’ franchise and the ‘Final Destination’ franchise. Additionally as I am also a young adult I feel as if I could portray my work well to my audience demographic.

We can instantly tell who a horror film is aged at by the classification it has, for instance a 15 film is ages at teenagers aged 15 and above whereas a film aged PG is only suitable for someone with parental guidance. The classification I have chosen to go for is 15 as this will give me a wider target audience than 18. There are certain guidelines that I must follow and; these guidelines have been set up by the British Board of Films Classification. These are there rules which can be found here: http://www.bbfc.co.uk/classification/guidelines/15-2/ 

Suitable only for 15 years and over: No one younger than 15 may see a ‘15’ film in a cinema. No one younger than 15 may rent or buy a ‘15’ rated video work.

Discrimination: The work as a whole must not endorse discriminatory language or behaviour.

Drugs: Drug taking may be shown but the film as a whole must not promote or encourage drug misuse. The misuse of easily accessible and highly dangerous substances (for example, aerosols or solvents) is unlikely to be acceptable.

Horror: Strong threat and menace are permitted unless sadistic or sexualised.

Imitable behaviour: Dangerous behaviour (for example, hanging, suicide and self-harming) should not dwell on detail which could be copied. Easily accessible weapons should not be glamorised.

Language: There may be frequent use of strong language (for example, ‘f**k’). The strongest terms (for example, ‘c**t’) may be acceptable if justified by the context. Aggressive or repeated use of the strongest language is unlikely to be acceptable.

Nudity: Nudity may be allowed in a sexual context but without strong detail. There are no constraints on nudity in a non-sexual or educational context.

Sex: Sexual activity may be portrayed without strong detail. There may be strong verbal references to sexual behaviour, but the strongest references are unlikely to be acceptable unless justified by context. Works whose primary purpose is sexual arousal or stimulation are unlikely to be acceptable.

Theme: No theme is prohibited, provided the treatment is appropriate for 15 year olds.

Violence: Violence may be strong but should not dwell on the infliction of pain or injury. The strongest gory images are unlikely to be acceptable. Strong sadistic or sexualised violence is also unlikely to be acceptable. There may be detailed verbal references to sexual violence but any portrayal of sexual violence must be discreet and have a strong contextual justification.

Through my studies I understand that the media can be a vast a powerful thing, therefore I will not glamorise anything that a 15 year old should not know. I have taken all of these into account and will make sure that I follow these closely; to attract my target audience I am going to use some sexual attraction through my characters makeup and costume however I will make sure it is in accordance with the guidelines. I think that using a sight sex appeal is a good way to draw my audience as teenagers will be excited and thus will go and watch the film. 

Updated animatic

Updated storyboard

We felt as if our original idea was going to be far too difficult to make and we would not be able create it to a good standard therefore we have changed our idea and think that this reflects the horror genre better. This is our new storyboard: 

Animatic

Typically most animatics do not have music in them, therefore I challenged conventions by having eerie music which is similar to the type I will be having in my trailer, this also represents the theme and genre well. 

Storyboard

Possible Locations

As a group we discussed many different locations, we wanted the area to be dark and secluded which is a typical convention in horror films, however as we wanted to challenge conventions as well we decided to use the park as this is a local place where the audience would not expect something to happen.

Coursework Feedback

My target grade is D and at the start of the year I was only just meeting my target, however I have improved and developed my work so that at the moment I am currently getting A/B, this is an huge improvement and is above my target grade. To show my understanding further I am going to follow the feedback my subject teachers have given me and this will help me to further my knowledge. The colour yellow represents me working toward my target grade and the colour green shows that I am on or exceeding my target grade. 

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