Class Presentation of Ideas

What did we discuss/present?

During the class presentation, we talked about our initial ideas and how we wanted to try a different genre, basic plot and storyline, target audience, our analysis of film posters and magazines and what we learnt and how we used them to create a conventional and successful poster/magazine that would tell our audience the genre of our film. We also talked about our plans for the trailer itself and how we would achieve it and in particular how to apply make up to make the bruises and scarring look real. We did this by researching YouTube videos to see how you can apply effective and realistic make up, as well as domestic violence posters, to give us an idea of how we would lay out our film poster.

Our group also discussed where we would get a wedding dress and that we had to think of a church to film the walking down the aisle. In our opinion, various quick cuts from one setting to another would add a great deal of mystery as you would only see the main character in the story, not the husband or neighbour.

Analysing examples of total film magazines really seemed to help us, because when it came to creating our own film magazine, we knew the elements of a professional film magazine. We used Total Film rather than Empire because Empire was a film a magazine that appeared much more masculine and of course, we wanted a film publisher that would suit our audience and genre.



The two posters we analysed really seemed to relate to the issues we wanted to present. As a group we recognised that both were actually thrillers, however we also understood that there were elements that with both posters that we could use and in particular, a clear, centred image of a vulnerable woman.

Teaser Trailer Plans - Camera Shots and Audio

• A woman looking in a bathroom mirror doing her make up - perhaps a close up
• Continous quick cuts to a wedding dress slowly trailing up a church aisle - start a voiceover of recorded wedding vowels ( in a random order as the trailer progresses)
• A close up of various parts of the woman's face - eyes, lips and cheek.
• A close up of her full face (showing her crying - ideally staring straight at the camera
  

Class Feedback

We were asked what we what do so that we didn’t offend in our teaser trailer and that we should consider the possibility that if it is a violent film presenting domestic abuse, wouldn’t younger people and children watching the trailer be forced to watch elements of violence? In answer to the question, I used the teaser trailer of Paranormal Activity 2 that has been advertised recently as an example of showing an audience that the genre is important in establishing whether or not it is suitable for a younger audience. In the Paranormal Activity 2 trailer, a person is thrown towards the camera at the end, which could of course be a piece of footage that could frighten or offend, and yet, the trailer is still broadcast during adverts. My group and I strongly believed that by showing our film as a one of a dramatic social realist genre, it would be obvious to a viewer that it is therefore a film for a more mature audience and if there was offence caused, the viewer would know not to make the effort to see the film at the cinema. Despite this, we still decided to take the comment on board, and consequently reassured the class that there would be no violence in the trailer, only graphic content concerning injuries and scarring.

Drama Film Research

After looking at particular thrillers, my group and I decided to look at some films that were actually under the drama genre that present social realist elememts and issues. The 2000 film Love, Honour and Obey was one of the films that caught our attention during the research process, mainly because the title was actually very similar to one of our potential slogans, depsite it not being a film that was solely linked to marriage or domestic violence. In the clip above, the true reality of the 'gangster world' is shown and as a result, makes this particular film an ideal example of a gritty British social realist film, that deals with issues of violence. However, this specific film is also a certificate eighteen and our group had to remember that the strong use of language and violence is not something which we wanted to portray in our own piece.

Trainspotting is also a film that deals with social issues and is therefore a film that is labelled under the category of a drama genre. In this trailer, we see Ewan McGregor speaking to the camera whilst laying on a railway track. When I looked at this particualr trailer, I thought that it was similar to our own planned trailer, in the sense of presenting unusual things. In our trailer, we plan to intergrate the normal with the abnormal, by displaying clips of everyday activities, with shots of a bride walking up an aisle.

Target Audience Research

Who would most likely watch our film?

After some discussion, we decided that our target audience would mainly be women in their 30’s, because of the simple fact that a majority of women in the 30’s tend to be married, or in long term relationships, and could therefore relate to the situation and plot presented. However, the group still felt that we would most probably need to complete further research and produce a questionnaire for people of that gender and age group in order to confirm that they would definitely have an interest in that type of film and to also see what elements of a film would most appeal to them.

What certificate rating should we give?

When analysing our research, we discovered that our film would probably be classed as a Certificate 15 as we only planned to present scenes with mild violence and language. Our discovery was made by the courtesy of the BBFC. (The British Board of Film Classification)

Language

There may be frequent use of strong language (for example, ‘fuck’). The strongest terms (for example, ‘cunt’) may be acceptable if justified by the context. Aggressive or repeated use of the strongest language is unlikely to be acceptable.

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.

This information is also given at http://www.bbfc.co.uk/classification/guidelines/15-2

Institution Research - Who would market and distribute our film?

FILM4 Productions as it is a typical drama based distributer, producing films such as The Lovely Bones and East is East but we also wanted to co produce with an American company as it would have a much bigger distribution. We decided to co-produce FILM4 with Warner Bros .Pictures, as it was also the company that co-produced with FILM4 in making the famous drama film, Slumdog Millionaire, a film that is well-known for winning ten Academy Awards, seven BAFTA Awards and four Golden Globes.

Features of a Film Magazine

A Masthead – The Masthead is the name of the magazine publisher and is usually found at the top of the magazine page, presented in big bold font.

A Central Image – This is the main picture on the front of the magazine and is always of the character, not the actor. As explained, the image is placed at the centre of the magazine, normally take up the majority of the front cover.

Taglines – This is a slogan that coincides with the magazine. When looking at the Total Film Magazine below, a good example of a tagline would be ‘The Ultimate Movie Magazine.’ This attracts the audience, making them believe that the product is of a good quality and unlike any other film magazine.

Coverlines - Other films are also advertised on the cover, as well as exclusive interviews with directors and actors. A good example of a coverline on the magazine below would be ‘grab your golden ticket! Johnny Depp is Willy Wonka!’ By giving the audience a sneaky peek of what is inside, the magazine publishers are able to successfully tease and entice potential buyers.

Advertising – Advertising is extremely important with film magazines, because an audience is always going to ask ‘what’s in it for me?’ As a result, advertising free posters gives the audience the impression that their purchase is valued and also gives them an idea of what to expect from the next issue.

Colour Schemes – When it comes to the colour scheme of a film magazine, it is essential that the colours are bold and eye catching. They are normally themed colours that suit the film that is advertised on the front and on the front cover of the magazine below, the colours of red, purple and gold successfully represent the wonderful world of Willy Wonka and attract the potential buyer.

Planning our Teaser Trailer

What idea did we have for the genre?

We wanted to have a film that dealt with social realism and social issues like domestic violence and therefore researched films that presented such themes.

· Sleeping with the Enemy is a 1991 psychological thriller film starring Julia Roberts, who plays a woman who escapes from her abusive, obsessive husband, played by Patrick Bergin. Very similar to our previous AS piece which was a thriller and as a result, we decided that we wanted something much different.

· Nil By Mouth is also a perfect example of a ‘drama film’ as it presents issues of drugs and violence, whilst also exploring family relationships and the strain that living in a 'run-down' area can have.

What's a drama film?

“A drama film is a film genre that depends mostly on in-depth development of realistic characters dealing with emotional themes. Dramatic themes such as alcoholism, drug addiction, racial prejudice, religious intolerance, poverty, crime and corruption put the characters in conflict with themselves, others, society and even natural phenomena.”

Our film could also be classed as the sub-genre of a Melodrama which is actually classed as a “sub-type of drama films that uses plots that appeal to the heightened emotions of the audience. Melodramatic plots often deal with "crises of human emotion, failed romance or friendship, strained familial situations, tragedy, illness, or emotional and physical hardship.”

A Modern Day Film dealing with domestic abuse - Enough directed by Michael Apted

Plot

Enough is a 2002 American thriller film starring Jennifer Lopez as Slim, a young waitress who one day meets the man of her dreams, Mitch in the diner where she works. A few years later, they have a young daughter, Gracie and it is revealed that her "perfect" husband is cheating on her and becomes abusive towards her.

Despite the fact that this film is a thriller, there is still much that my group and I can learn from this particular plot and the issues that are explored in the movie such as abuse, struggle and social relationships.These specific issues would also therefore make our film a ‘drama’ or ‘melodrama’genre, because it would be extremely emotional.

Features of a Movie Poster - A Short Analysis

After looking at this particular poster, I definitely thing that my group and I would be able to present the genre of our film effectively. It seems to me that in order to create a poster for a drama genre, you need to make the poster quite dramatic as well, so that the target audience understands and has a vague idea of what the film is about and what sort of things they expect to happen. In my opinion, this was probably aimed more at a thriller genre, however, I still believe that the various elements of the poster still apply to that of a drama genre.

Features of a Teaser Trailer

A Sense of Mystery

With a teaser trailer, the film is advertised without giving too much away and because of this, it usually means there is footage shown that isn’t necessarily in the actual film. You can often find that teaser trailers are full of quick cuts so that in theory, the trailer is only giving the audience hints and therefore serves its purpose of teasing and intriguing the target audience. Teaser Trailers can also be made before the film is actually finished and a good example would be the teaser trailer for The Da Vinci Code, as it was released before a single frame of the movie had been shot.

The Length

You normally expect a teaser trailer to be around 30-60 seconds long and because it is so short, it successfully grabs the full attention of the audience. They are also usually shown long before the film comes out and these teaser trailers therefore complete their job of ‘teasing’ the audience and adding hype to an upcoming release. A Teaser trailer like The Dark Knight is just under a minute long.

Vague Release Dates

The date of the film release is not always specific and this is again because the director’s aim is to leave the audience on edge. Instead of a date like ‘the 18^th of November,’ the teaser trailer will just say ‘November’ or ‘Coming Soon’ which follows shortly after the appearance of the title of the film which means that the two important bits of information in the trailer are the lasting thoughts in the audience’s minds and will therefore most likely remain in the audience’s minds until the film is shown.

Teaser Poster Research

The teaser trailer for Cloverfield was first publicly shown attached to the film Transformers, and therefore allowed them to attract their target audience because Transformers in particular was a film that was of a similar action genre. At this point, nothing about the film was known, and the one-and-a-half-minute teaser did not include the movie title; only the producer's name, J. J. Abrams and a release date, 1.18.08, were shown.



The trail of water suggests that the monster in the film is lurking and making his way toward the city and the missing head of the Statue of Liberty suggests destruction and shows it is set in New York. The dark blue stormy sky is enhanced to show that trouble is brewing and the smoke and fumes suggests disaster and action. The fact that only the date is given will make the audience want to type it into the internet in order to discover what is so poignant about the specific date, therefore turning what could potentially be a passive audience into an active audience.