Monster Research

When we thought of our film, we decided that our film was going to be based around a monster. I think that it is essential that I research into monsters that have been used in other horror films, as we have not yet decided on what our monster will be, I think that researching all different monsters will help make the decision. We could also make up our own monster, using the information I am going to find. I found that researching monster films was too vague, so I had to be a little bit more specific. As our film trailer is going to be based at night (usual convention of a horror film)  I decided to research monsters who are only seen at night.

There has been a wide variety of films based on monsters. I was looking at some old fashioned monsters, but if anything they were more comical then fearful. Therefore I have decided to look at more modern monsters in films. There have been all different types of monsters and strange creatures ranging from robots to the zombies.

Thinking about our trailer I instantly thought of the monster from the horror film The Grudge. The monster is a women with white skin and black eyes. I think that this monster/creature would look fit in well because our film is based in the snow, this would explain the pale white complection.

This is an image of the monster/creature in the film The Grudge.

Paranormal Activity Research

Paranormal Activity Poster

The main colours of this poster for Paranormal Activity are blue, black, white and red. The red denoted blood, horror and danger. Red is only used on two parts of the poster, the name of the film and a small piece of text at the bottom of the poster. Blue denoted calmness; this is ironic considering the film is about a paranormal experience. Black is used to show mysteriousness, black is a fairly blank colour and can cause confusion with what it actually means. The colour white can show light, innocents and it is seen as a heavenly colour. This shows that using the other colours there will be death, danger, mysterious actions and confusion. All the colours that are used on this poster are usual conventions of what colours you would find on a horror poster. When I was looking at The Fourth Kind poster, which is also about paranormal activities, the colour blue was used, I have noticed the wide use of this colour in a lot of films about aliens, demons and other paranormal creatures. The picture used is in the centre of the poster. This is the main focus as it is the only picture on the poster. The picture is in the settings of a handheld camera or a CCTV camera. This is made obvious by the grainy image and how it is in a blue shade. This is what you would usually assume a CCTV camera would look like. It also has the time at the bottom of the picture; this is another link towards the idea of the picture being used as a CCTV camera image. The image is framed by text and a small white line which acts as a picture frame. This make the picture stand out more, as it has a frame, it also draws attention to the picture, as it gives a small space of a brighter, light colour, otherwise the picture would just blend in with the black background. The layout of the poster is fairly simple, there is a lot of text on the poster, and the image is framed by the text. The text is at the top and bottom of the poster, this gives it a better balance, and it also breaks up the poster. The picture is positioned in the centre of the poster, this helps break up the text and creates a good flow so that the audience isn’t concentrating on too much at once. The usual conventions of the layout is that the small print is at the bottom of the poster, it doesn’t take up too much space and doesn’t attract much attention off any of the other items on the poster. There is also a quote from the horror film review website Bloody-discusting.com, this is at the top of the poster, and this is another convention of a usual layout of a horror film poster. With the quote being at the top of the poster, this will be one of the main focusing points of the poster, humans like to know what other people’s opinions of things are. The tagline is positioned about the name of the film, there is also another tagline used underneath the name of the film. Personally I think that taglines built audiences up to see the film. If the tagline isn’t very good, the worse you think the film will be. The tagline for this film is scary, in a way it warns people not to see the film by yourself, this will make people want to see it more as it is saying ‘’don’t go alone’’. The tagline is in a white font. This makes it effective and as it is a little bit bigger as the other fonts, it makes it stand out a lot more. This is a clear indication that the text is in fact the tagline. The font of the text is all the same throught out the poster. The text looks like the text from a CCTV camera, this links in with the storyline of the film and also the picture on the poster. The USP (unique selling point) of the poster is the picture. I haven’t seen a picture like that on another poster. I think it links in really well with what the film is about and gives the audience a clue to what the film is about as you can see a shadow and the main characters pointing towards it in fear. I really do like this poster, everything links together really well and it tells the story using a picture, title, fonts, tagline and a quote.

Paranormal Activity Film Magazine Cover

I have found it basically impossible to find a film magazine which features Paranormal Activity on the front cover. I have searched all different film magazines including Uncut, Empire, Total Film, Odeon and Movie Club magazine. Hopefully I will be able to use my knowledge on general horror films and the research to help produce my film magazine poster.

Paranormal Activity Trailer

Sound

You can hear the audience of the film talking in the background at the beginning of the trailer. It makes the trailer seem more realistic as it is showing the reactions of the audience throughout the events of the film. There is a lot of talking through the trailer, this helps the audience understand what is going on and what the film is about. There are a lot of loud sound effects like Booms, footsteps, screams, atmospheric sounds, heartbeats, floor board creaking, slamming of doors, flickering sounds and what sounds like a gunshot. All these sound effects make the trailer a horror trailer, without all the sound effects the trailer wouldn’t have the same effect on the audience. There are gasps and screams from the audience, this makes it a lot more scary as it is showing you real reactions from a film. There are also eerie silences throughout the trailer. This makes you expect a loud bang, so it causes tension and suspense throughout the audience.

Light

The film is being recorded on a handheld camera so the lighting is pretty much natural, outside lighting or artificial light from indoor lighting. Night vision is used in reactions shots of the cinema and in the night of the actual film trailer. It also makes it seem much more eerie. Bright light is used in the form of a torch. It concentrates light on only certain areas, so the audience will focus on only where the light is shining. CCTV camera lighting is used; it looks dark and dingy, with a blue/grey tint. this make the audience feel scared as anything in the dark and at night becomes instantly scary.

Mis-En-Scene

Text is used at the beginning of the trailer when you see the shot of the audience waiting to go into the cinema; the text explains what the audience is waiting to see and how they will react to the film. There are a lot of reaction shots; this is mostly of the audience. It makes the trailer seem a lot scarier because you are seeing real people reactions towards the film; it also creates an adrenaline rush, seeing other people’s reactions make you question both the film and how you will react towards the film. TV static is used in between some shots and also in between text transitions. At the end of the trailer it shows where the film is going to be shown. In one of the shots you can see the cinema screen and the heads of all the audience, this makes it seem as though you are in the cinema watching it too.

Editing

The shots are very quick and of a fast pace A lot of close ups and zooming in is used, this is used to show exoression on people faces. Reaction shots are also used, especially in the shots of the audience. The transition of fade to black is used a lot throughout the trailer; this is commonly used through most horror film trailers. The transitions are mostly quick but there is a few slow fades to black is used, this makes you feel although when an images does finally appear it will be bad. This causes tension. Some of the shots are fairly slow, this is only when the audience is being shown something that has happened. There are quoted from different horror film websites, the first quote is from the website that is used on the poster. The quote sticks in your head the more times you see it. Taglines are used too, this makes you built up an emotion towards the film, and this is usually feared. Name of the film is shown on the screen for quite a while, this give the audience time to digest the name of the film, and to think about what the film is going to be about. After the long shot of the title a very brief shot of a girl is shown up, this is in a white and black tint, this is only shown quickly so it looks like a subliminal message. Then it flashes straight to the text of where the film is going to be shown again. 

Deconstruction Of 4 Old Horror Trailers

When I chose the film trailers to deconstruct when I was looking at horror films that have been made in 2010 I chose them carefully. The newer trailers that I chose where A Nightmare on Elm Street, Saw 3D, Piranha 3D and The Last Exorcism. These films are remakes or have trilogies. In this part of my research I am going to look at the older trailers from these films, (The Exorcism of Emily Rose, A Nightmare on Elm Street, Saw 1 and Piranha) after deconstructing these trailers I will they be able to compare the trailers in detail and see how trailers have improved or whether they haven’t.

A Nightmare on Elm Street

At the beginning of the trailer, there are three children playing with a skipping rope, this shot is used in the new Nightmare on Elm Street too. The kids are wearing white, this shows innocence and purity. Freddy Kruger is shadowed for most of the trailer; you don’t see much of his face. This is mysterious and makes the audience want to see what he looks like. It also makes the character well recognised; whenever they see a shadowed figure they will recognise him for Freddy Kruger. The same music is played all the way through the trailer, music usually gets more tense when the trailer starts to get faster, shows the horror parts in the film, but in this trailer because the music stays the same all the way through, you don’t quite know when it’s going to get more tense and scary. Mostly natural lighting is used, this don’t make the trailer look as fake, adds to the realism of the trailer. There is a part in the trailer where a male is about to get killed by Freddy Kruger, the lighting is blue and black and you cant see any detail on their face, you can only see the outlines of them, with only being able to see their outlines, the audience can only know what emotion they are feeling by what they are saying. The text is in red, this shows danger, blood, and horror but also romance. There are both diagetic and non-diagetic sounds, for example screaming and talking is diagetic and the music in the background in non-diagetic.  The voice over that is used in the trailer is deep and scary, this shows the audience what type of film it’s going to be as the voice over being deep and mysterious is a convention that is usually used for horror films. 

The Exorcism of Emily Rose

The lighting is blue and black; this is dark and mysterious, show audience what the type of genre the film is before any shots of film are shown. Gospel music is used, this links in with the idea of an exorcism as they are performed by priests, religious member of society. When the scene changes, a heartbeat goes off, this creates a flow and doesn’t make the transitions from one shot to another seem too fast and unorganised, it also relates with the film so it links in really well. Non-diagetic and Diagetic sounds are used, for example the diagetic sounds are the speech, laughing, screaming and whispering. The non-diagetic sounds are sounds like the heartbeats and the music in the background. A lot of white is used, in the background and when Emily Rose is being exorcised she is wearing white, this shows innocents and purity, also heavenly. The fact that Emily Rose is being exorcised whilst wearing white goes against the fact that she isn’t pure and good as she is being possessed by a demon. Text is used a lot in this trailer, it tells the audience the basic story of what the film is about. Quick shots are used at the beginning of the trailer, they then get slower as the trailer goes on, this isn’t usually what happens in a horror trailer, usually the slower shots are used at the beginning of the trailer to help get the audience into the trailer and help them understand the general storyline of the film before the trailer gets into the horror part of the trailer and starts to get faster. Heartbeat plays over the shots as they change; this makes the trailer flow better. In the trailer, thunder and lightning is used in a shot, this is pathetic fallacy, this is when the weather reflects the mood, for example thunder and lightning when someone’s angry or sunny and bright when someone’s happy. A shot of Emily Rose’s face shows up at the end of the trailer, the background changes from dark to white, this makes her face seem as though its an illusion.  

Saw 1

The lighting is dark, mainly blues and blacks, this is dark, sad and depressing, and this shows that the film is going to be a gruesome horror film. The darker the colours used, the scarier the film is usually found. A heartbeat is used when the shots change, makes the trailer flow more and also creates an atmosphere of panic, as the heartbeats gets quicker, the trailer gets more scary and shocking. There is a shot of a white room, this changes to dark suddenly, and the audience knows that the people within the room are going to get killed; the room being all white is heavenly yet dangerous. Jigsaws voice (main character in the Saw films) is played; this gets the audience familiar with the main character. There doesn’t seem to be much music in the trailer, it just sounds like a montage of all different sounds. This gives the trailer its own unique soundtrack. The text is black, is swipes across the screen there is a grey and black background. Even the text in the trailer is sad and depressing; there is nothing happy or positive. The colours that are used mainly in the trailer are bland colours, white, grey black; these colours create a mood of sadness and fear. There is a small clip of music at the end of the trailer, it’s quite tense and leave the audience wanting more. The audience will question what’s going to happen to the people? The trailer gives enough information for people to understand the basic just of the story but not too much information, so the audience doesn’t know too much. Non-diagetic and diagetic sounds. Diagetic sounds are noises such as talking and screaming, Non-diagetic sounds are sounds such as heartbeats and music.  There’s a shot of an electric clock counting down, this shows that time is running out, also the numbering on the clock is red, and this shows danger and horror. There is a shot of newspaper headlines, they all have the names of the main character, Jigsaw on the newspaper headlines, this also helps the audience familiarise with the main character.

Piranha

The music used in this trailer is scary and tense, its orchestra music but the use of violins makes it sound intimidating than it should sound. The sound of a heartbeat is used, this gets faster as the trailer goes on, this makes the audience know that something bad is about to happen.  The lighting that is used is mostly natural, this makes the trailer seem more realistic and not as fake and made up. The colours that are used are mainly used is red, this denotes horror, gore, danger and warning. At the beginning the characters are doing an advert for the lake, it then goes on to show people having fun and messing around, makes the audience feel happy and excited. The shot then moves to an underwater shot, the shots is blue and the water is murky, this shows that its unclear what is about to happen, People in the lake are in the unknown. Examples of diagetic sounds that were used are sounds such as talking, screaming and shouting. Examples of non-diagetic sounds are the music that is used and the heartbeat. The music creates panic and an atmosphere of fear. There is a little bit of humour, one of the characters says ‘’ ’Sir, their eating the guests’’ Black humour, changes mood from scared and threatened to funny and comical.

In conclusion, I found that older trailers have to same conventions of new trailers, it’s just the quality of the trailers that has improved, I also found that newer trailers are a lot more detailed and imaginative than the trailers that were made a few years ago. 

Comparison Of Old and New Horror Film Trailers

When I picked the trailers that I was going to deconstruct I made sure that the four trailers had or where remakes of a film or that they were part of a trilogy. This will make it easier to compare the film trailers to each other.

A Nightmare on Elm Street

I found that the newer trailer was defiantly more intense and scary than the original Nightmare on Elm Street trailer. There was a part in the second trailer when they used the same shot, but just re-filmed it. It was of three children playing all wearing white. The new trailer has more about the history of Freddy Kruger (the main character) in the trailer, whereas in the first Nightmare on Elm Street trailer there was nothing about his past and why is was haunting people in their dreams. I feel as though the Re-make of a Nightmare on Elm Streets trailer was defiantly better.

The Last Exorcism and the Exorcism of Emily Rose

The last exorcism and the exorcism of Emily Rose are two completely different films, but they are both about the same thing. I found that the trailer for the Exorcism of Emily Rose was different to other horror trailers; the fade to white was definitely something that they didn’t do in The Last Exorcism. The Last Exorcism trailer was scarier compared to the Exorcism of Emily Rose. Everything in the trailer linked back to the storyline, even the music linked in.

Saw 3D and Saw 1

I felt as thought the new saw 3D trailer was very well made. The film is in 3D so the trailer had shots of the audience watching the film and torture items where flying out of the cinema screen. It gave the viewers an idea of what the film is going to be like in 3D, as this is the very first Saw film in 3D. The Saw 1 trailer was also very good; it had all the usual conventions of a horror film.

Piranha and Piranha 3D

The first Piranha film trailer was made in 1978. The older trailer didn’t show too much detail on the actual piranha, and when you do see a piranha I didn’t find it scary, I found it quite funny. It looked really unrealistic and fake. I think that the new paranha is scarier and has more of the usual conventions of a horror film, for example the colour scheme of red. The camera shots, the wide use of close ups to show the expressions on people face, I also felt as thought there were more shots of the piranhas so it made it clear that the film was about piranhas taking over a lake. The piranhas also look more realistic and less fake as the ones that were shown in the original piranha film!

Overall I found that the newer film trailers are more realistic, the older trailers definitely set an example of how the new trailers where going to look. I think that without technology getting better film trailers wouldn’t improve. I also think that the technology is one of the most important things when it comes to making a good horror film trailer. 

Usual Conventions Of Horror Trailer

I have noticed how different film trailers can be when watching them in the cinema and at home. The trailers are exactly the same but there is always something different about watching at horror film at home rather than at the cinema. The usual conventions of a horror trailer, I personally think that trailers where made to watch in the cinema, it’s dark and loud and you don’t get distracted because its just a large screen and some seats, where at home you can easily get distracted and pay no attention to what is going on, on the TV. From the horror trailers that I have watched both at home and in the cinema, I have noticed that there are similarities. One of the similarities that I have noticed is the music in the background of the trailer, the music is usually rock or metal music, this creates a atmosphere when the film on the trailer isn’t creating one. Another similarity I have noticed was the colour schemes. When I was watching trailers I noticed that the colours on screen are misty yellows and greys, a lot of blues and blacks are used. This is like a subliminal message to the audience that this film will be a horror, even before anything in the trailer happens. Other conventions that I have noticed whilst watching horror film trailers are that the shots of the trailer are always fast paced; this makes the audience feel tense and create the atmosphere of terror within the audience.  Whilst I was watching some of the horror trailers that had come out recently I had noticed that there was always a part in the trailer where the screen went blank and the voice over would play, this is because it makes people concentrate on what the voice is saying, without getting distracted by clips of film that are being played in the background. This is also a good way of scaring the audience, after the blank screen; there is sometimes a jumpy piece of film that is shown, scaring the audience. Personally, the more scared I am of the trailer, the more I will talk about it to other people and I will go and see it. The people who make the trailers want their trailers to be different and to stick in people memories so that more and more people will watch the film. I thought it would be a good idea to watch a film trailer without the music going on. I thought that it would help me pick out some of the conventions that are shown on screen without getting sidetracked but the sound effects, vis versa, The film trailer that I watched without the music was The Crazies. I have seen this film and thought that it was horrible, it really was scary, but when I watched the trailer without the music, it didn’t look scary or anything, this made me realise that without the music, films and their trailers really wouldn’t be scary at all! The music is always an important part of the trailers and the music and sound effects must be chosen carefully to ensure that it is as real as it looks.

In conclusion, horror films are basically the same, the music is mostly the same genre and the techniques that are used are usually the same too, the only thing that isn’t the same in a horror trailer is the plot of the film, but this can also be very similar. 

Deconstruction Of 2010 Horror Trailer

A Nightmare on Elm Street

The colour scheme for the Nightmare on Elm Street trailer is blue/grey this denotes sadness and darkness, this sets how the audience will feel and will give people a clue about what type of movie it is. Horror trailers colour schemes are mostly dark and depressing. Children are singing in the background of the trailer, this type of sound effect is called non-diagetic. Children in horror films always make the film/trailer scarier. The edits are very fast, this creates tension and suspense. The colour scheme starts to change from blue and greys to red; this denotes blood, pain, death. The scenes in the trailer change as the beat of the music changes, this creates a flow to the trailer and it also creates tension throughout the audience. There is a shot of three children playing with a skipping rope, they are all wearing white clothes, and this shows the innocents of children, purity. The character Freddy Kruger played by Jackie Earle Haley, is mostly shadowed, this is mysterious. Another character says ‘’he’s burnt’’ this gives the audience a clue of who it is if they haven’t seen the first make of the film. The screen of the trailer goes black at one point, in the background there is screaming and shouting, this makes the audience feel uneasy and scared. Also the film is about a man who kills people in their sleep, this is in the dark, so this part of the trailer is linked in to the film, its not just there because it looks good. The shots are really quick and short, this creates panic and can make the audience feel scared. The trailer had the directors name, the date it comes out and then a quote from the film ‘’don’t sleep again’’ this also gives another clue to what the film is about. The diagetic sound in the trailed consists of loud breathing, this creates panic. There is both diagetic and non diagetic sounds, this makes the trailer seem more real. There Is also a shot which shows the name of the street ‘’Elm Street’’ , this is another clue to the audience that this is the trailer for A Nightmare On Elm Street.

The Last Exorcism

There is gospel non-diagetic sound in the background of the trailer. This links in with the idea of exorcisms, this also creates an atmosphere as gospel music, religious horror films can be very scary. The colour scheme is very dark, depressing, this then changes to red when the demon appears from the girl, and this shows death, danger, and blood. The use of a handheld camera makes the trailer seem more realistic and believable. The shots are very quick, this creates tension. There is a lot of diagetic sound for example, dialogue), breaking bones, snapping, heavy breathing, guns, screaming. At the beginning and the end of the trailer the shots are distorted, this makes it seem as thought the audience is actually there, it looks as thought the camera is in a dream like state. The colours that are mainly used is red, this denotes death, blood and danger but also love.  There is a tutting noise before the girl speaks, when she is turned into a demon. This is an indication of when something Is going to happen. The music is eerie, it creates a fearful atmosphere. There is a lot of dialogue throughout the trailer, all this text tells people the basic story of the film and leaves the audience wanting more.

Saw 3D

There is a sound of a clock ticking, this shows that time is running out. As the film is in 3D, there is shots of the audience with items jumping out at them, this shows the audience reactions and will make people feel uneasy and scared, This technique was also done in the Paranormal Activity trailer. There are quick shots this creates tention. There is a bkue colour scheme, this shows sadness, the end of an era of Saw films, and also sadness for the charators as you know that something bad is going to happen. There is dialogue, within the dialogue traps that have been used in the previous Saw films has been incorporated, this acts as a reminder of what has happened in the Saw films and what the main character, Jigsaw has accomplished. The music is not loud, its mostly just played in the background, the diagetic sounds are mostly heard, this is sounds like talking, screaming ect. The voice over in the trailer is eerie and scary, this will scare the audience. The shots are fast paced, and quick,this will create tension.

Piranaha 3D

The shots are very quick, this creates tension. The music (non-diagetic) has a strong beat, sounds like a heartbeat. The colours that are used are red, this is used in the dialogue, this denotes death and danger. The music changes from happy and fun to scary and tence, this is juxtaposition. There are shots of the lake, this is where the story is based around, the shots will help the audience familurise themselves with the settings of the film. There is a blue colour scheme, this is also the colour of the lake, this denotes sadness and depression. In the trailer ther is a part where the screen goes black, this breaks the trailer up, but unlike the Nightmare on Elm Street trailer, it has nothing to do with the film and doesn’t link in with the story of the film. In the trailer, there are shots of people dancing, having fun, this then changes to shots of people rushing away from the lake and being trapped in boats, this is also juxtaposition. Girl gets bitten, goes quite, screams sounds like she is gargling, links in with the idea of the sea/lake. The dialougue/text that is used has a white and red colour, this looks like blood floating around in water, this links in with the lake idea.

In conclusion I have noticed that that in horror trailers, the music, colour schemes and sounds both diagetic and non diagetic. This has become obvious as in all of the trailers I have looked at that are horror trailers, they all have a colour scheme, music and sound that really does create the whole idea that it is going to be a horror film. When editing and making my film trailer I will definitely concentrate on these points.

Horror Film Classification

  Horror Film Classification

Children are vulnerable to violence and horror in films; this is proven by the theories and research that has been done. Examples of the theories that I have researched are theories such as the Hypodermic needle, this theory is about how people watch or read media texts and believe every part of the message they are told. The audience, who believe everything that is shown to them is consumed like a drug, goes straight to their brain and this is a effect of brainwashing, if the hyperaemic needle is believed by the audiences, they are passive, meaning that they believe everything they see. This applies to children, for example if they watched a horror film they may see something violent or scary happening and they will believe that what s happening is real as they are too young to understand that what is really going on is fake. Another theory that I have studied is the two step flow theory, this is when people who write the reviews for films or TV are read by audiences. The person who writes the review will decide weather a film is worth watching, they will then simplify the content of the film and tell the audiences what they think about the film or show. This helps passive people decide weather they should watch a film or not. Opinion leaders are active except for deciding which opinion leaders to believe. This doesn’t apply to young children but is another example of how easily influenced people can be.

Most horror films are classified between the two age categories 15 and 18. This is because 15+ year olds can decide themselves weather a film is too scary to see. Another reason why films are classified as 15’s or 18’s because the viewers who will watch the horror film will know that what is going on isn’t real and that is it put on. Horror films that are classified as 15’s will have different contents to horror films that are classified as an 18.

What makes  horror films classified as a 15?

• ·         Frequent use of strong language, including the strongest terms.
• ·         Violence is allowed, but may not dwell on the pain that has been inflicted.
• ·         Detailed infliction of pain is unacceptable.

What makes horror films classified as an 18?

• ·         Any detailed portrayal of violence or dangerous acts which is likely to promote the activity. This includes also instructive detail of illegal drug use.

What Genre I Am Hoping To Look At

After researching all the different genres, I have come to the decision that I would like to do a horror film trailer. Throughout my time being a media student I have looked always looked at romantic comedies, and in GCSE I made a horror film DVD cover, I really enjoyed doing this so hopefully I really enjoy creating the Trailer, Poster and Magazine Cover. 

Classification Of Film

I decided to look at film classification because I would have to decide what age certificate my trailer would be.

U:  U stands for Universal. .  The storyline should be easy to follow, and the film should be fine for a child to watch alone, without the aid of a parent. People who classify films find it hard to decide what will upset a child and what will not. Films that are classified as a U are usually happy with no horror or violence.  Films that have recently been classified a U by the BBFC (British Board of Film Classification) are Peppa Pig and Bristo.

PG:  PG stands for parental guidance.  This means that a child will be able to watch this film but a parent will have to watch the film with the child as some parts of the film may be upsetting for the child to watch. Films that have recently been classified a PG by the BBFC are films such as Brides of Desire and Bang.

12: This category is for children aged 12 and over. The film can have mild violence, but only mild violence.  Films aged 12 that have recently been passed as a 12 by the BBFC are films such as Tomorrow When War Began and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (part 1).

12A: This category was made when parents who went to watch Spiderman with their children (most of them where under the age of 12) were turned down. Parents were very angry as all the merchandise for the film was aimed at younger children. The BBFC reconsidered the classification of the film and came up with the idea of having a new category which meant children 12 and older could go and watch it in the cinema without an adult and children under the age of 12 can also watch the film with an adult. This category was named 12A. 12A is only allowed in cinemas. A film that was classified 12A in the cinemas will be automatically changed to 12 when the film comes out on DVD. Films that have recently been passed as a 12A by the BBFC are films such as Morning Glory and The Way Back.

15: Films classed a 15 can only be watched by adults aged 15 and over. No one younger than 15 can watch a film in the cinema as some of the material that is within the film could be of a threat to those younger than 15. Films aged 15 can have horror, mild gore and mild sex and sex references.  Films that have recently been passed as an age certificate 15 are films such as The Mechanic and Love and Other Drugs.

18:  No one younger than 18 can watch a film aged 18 in the cinemas. Films aged 18 are usually very violent and contain strong horror, gore, sex references and sex. Films that have recently been passed as an 18 are films such as Saw 3D and London Boulevard.

R18: This category is especially for films that contain sex and strong fetish material involving adults. These films can only be shown to adults and purchased from a special licensed shop.

Film Poster Magazine

Film Poster Research

Horror- The Forth Kind

The main colours in the poster are blue/green and white. This links in with the alien theme of the film. Whenever you think of aliens, the colours that come into mind are greens and blues. The main figure in the poster is the body of the person. The picture of the body is right in the centre of the poster; this makes the picture main focus. Also the light is shining right onto the body. The body is also being lifted up by the light, when you usually think of alien abductions you think of the light from a spaceship lifting things up. This also gives it away that the film is about alien abductions. By the imagery on the poster, I think that this film is aged around a 15, the picture is very realistic and could be too scary for an age group any younger than 15. There isn’t much detail on this poster, the less detail there is the more you will concentrate on the one main image, which is the body being lifted up. The tagline, which is placed up on the window, the tagline confirms what the film is about. The information on the poster seems as though it is in a hierarchy. The tagline is the first form of text on the poster, the tagline tells people what the film is about, then there is the title of the film, this is towards the bottom of the poster, making it seem less important, but the title is in a large font so it makes it stand out. Underneath the title, it says that the film is based on real case studies; this attracts people to the film, as its supposedly real life and something abnormal has happened to someone. At the bottom of the poster there is all the usual information about who stars in the film and who the director is. I like this films poster, I think that it’s different. I like the way the colours fit in with the genre of the film.

Romantic Comedy- Valentines Day

 The main colours in this poster are pink, blue and black. Pink is usually seen as a girls colour, also the colour of romance, and blue is usually seen as a boys colour, it can show sadness but also magic and calmness. The names of the actors and actresses are also in the colours of what sex they are, this links in with the romance, boy likes girl theme. The main picture is of all the actors and actresses in the film, around all the pictures there is a heart, this shows the audience that the film is about romance. I think that the poster shows that this film is aimed for girls/women. The heart that is framing around the entire picture is a first clue of who the film is aimed at. There is a USP (unique selling point) in this poster; I think the picture of all the famous starts that are in the film is the USP. People will see the cast of the entire cast of the film, not just one or two stars. The bigger the famous cast the more unique it is as the chances of there being a famous cast like that again. There is a short tagline; this is in white, just above the title of the film. The tagline says that the director has also directed Pretty Women; this gives the audience a clue that the film will most definitely be a romantic comedy. The font of the tagline and title is neat and bold. It’s the only main white colour on the poster, this makes it stand out a lot more. The poster looks as thought it’s been set out in the format of a Valentines Day card, this links in with what the film is about. I think the marketing campaign of the poster is the picture of the cast, as I said before there won’t be a cast like this again. I like this poster; it goes with the genre of the film, which is always important. I like the way they have used the heart around the pictures o the cast, it’s another clue to what’s going to happen in the film and what it’s about. By looking at this poster I would go and watch the film because of the way the poster is lay out. It looks like a Valentines Day card, very romantic.

Comedy- Bruno

The main colours on this poster are blue, white, yellow, green and red. These colours are bright, happy and lively, this links in with the genre of the film, which is comedy. The main figure in this poster is the image of Sasha Baron Cohen. He is right in the middle of the poster, making the image main focus, also what he is wearing makes him stand out, and the way he is posing, it shows that his character may be very camp. The background of the poster is of a flower field, this looks happy and camp. He is alone in the field, I think it shows that he is one of his own, unique and original. By looking at this poster, I think that this film will be ages at a 15/18. I think this because of the picture, plus films starring Cohen can be quite rude and inappropriate for younger children to watch.  The tagline is towards the bottom of the poster, it’s done so that it looks as though someone with a strong German accent is saying it. Also there is an innuendo in the tagline. This gives it away that the film may be rude because of the innuendo and it may be set in a foreign country because of the style of writing the tagline has been written in. I do like this poster, I like the bright colours. I also like how daring it is, because of the picture and the innuendo.

Animation- Wall.e

 The main colours in this poster are blue, white, purple, brown and red. The blue, white and purple match with the theme of the film, as it’s an animation about robots and space. The picture is of Wall.e looking up at the stars. This links in with what the film is about, it also gives away that the film will have some romance in it. Looking up at the stars is seen as romantic. The fact that the main character is sitting on a rubbish heap also tells the audience a bit about what the film is going to be about. There are objects that are used in the film that the main character Wall.e is well known for, for example the lunch box, this is familiarising the audience with the main character and showing abit of his personality thought the poster.  The text on this poster is white; this makes it stand out from the blue background. The tagline is right at the top of the poster. The tagline tells the story in a few short sentences without giving too much away. The name of the film is in a large font and is towards the bottom of the poster. The title being so large makes the title of the film the second thing you look at on the poster. The first being the picture of Wall.e. The name of the film also has red in it, this makes it stand out, this is also a logo that is used a lot throughout the film, so it familiarises the audience with the characters and the film. The Disney logo is also put on the poster, this is important as children will instantly be attracted to it because of the famous logo. Children love Disney films and the logo being out on the poster could make a difference of whether someone sees it or not. At the bottom of the poster, it says ‘’from the creators of finding nemo’’. This is also important as if you liked finding nemo, you would most probably like this film. This would also attract children to looking at the poster. I think that the image of a robot looking up at the stars would also attract the eye of younger viewers because children like attractive pictures, the colours are interesting and I think that a wide range of young male children would of wanted to see this film because of the poster, because of the picture of a robot and the image of the stars. I like this poster, I like the colours that have been used and the way its set out. I think that the layout of the poster is different and I like the way the tagline has been put into a storyline format by being split up into different sentences.

Action- Iron Man 

The main colours in this poster are blue, red, gold, white and black.  The red in the poster is the brightest colour; this shows that there must be a lot of action in this film as red is seen as a violent and dangerous colour. Gold is the second most noticeable colour, this is only just twice on the poster, and it’s used on the names of the film and on the mask of iron man. This will help the audience familiarise with the character and who iron man is without actually seeing the film. The rest of the poster is blues and blacks; this just makes the faces of the characters stand out, especially those who are in bright colours. The four characters placed of the side of the poster are wearing blue, this is so they blend in with the background, and they don’t want too much focus to be on the characters that are less important. The font style of the iron man title is bold and strong, it also looks metal like. The fact that the colour of the title is the same as the mask of the main character will make a strong link between who the iron man is. The rest of the text is in white, this also stands out against the dark background, but because of the font size is so small it doesn’t take the shine out of the title of the film. The picture is the main focus of the poster, there isn’t just one but five images of characters who are starring in the film. This seems as thought all the characters are important in the film and also that the more famous faces that are put on the poster, the more likely fans of those characters would go and watch the film. There is a hierarchy between the characters, on the left is ‘’iron man’’ the most important character of the film, then the images of the characters go down in the importance hierarchy, the less important characters are placed towards the bottom of the poster. Overall I do like this poster but I don’t like the way that there more than one image of a character, I think that too much is going on and with just one picture it would look better.

Film Magazine Cover Research

Action- The Dark Knight 

This is an example of the front cover of Empire magazine. The magazine is a British film magazine and is published every month. Empire is one of the biggest selling magazines in Britain and has a new film on the cover of each edition. On this cover is The Dark Knight. The picture on the cover is of the joker. I can tell that he is the joker firstly by the make-up, the white skin, black eyes and exaggerated red mouth are one of the give always to who the character is. Also the actor playing the character of the joker is a give away, Heath Ledger plays the joker. This is a give away as fans of the movie will know which famous movie stars are starring in the film and who is playing who. The picture is of Heath Ledger’s full face, but the readers will concentrate on his eyes as they are fully shown and they are looking straight out of the picture. There isn’t really a background to the picture; this is because it’s a close up shot of the characters face. The usual conventions of a film magazine are the name of the magazine at the top of the page, the name of the film that the character on the main cover is from, a tagline, Date, Price, Barcode, Information about what other films are going to be written about in the magazine. The title is right at the top of the magazine cover, as I have mentioned before this is a usual convention of a magazine, the title being at the top of the cover gives away which magazine it is and also attracts attention. The font is bold and black, this makes it stand out, also there is a green glow on each of the letters, this makes the title fit in with the film that the magazine is mainly based on this month. The name of the film is shown underneath the name of the magazine; this keeps a flow of what order readers are going to look at on the cover. The name of the film is done in the font that is shown on the films posters and in the same colour scheme. This makes the name of the film recognizable. The tagline is placed underneath the name of the film, this is in green, and this keeps the cover to the main colour scheme, which fits in with the film. The date of release and the price of the magazine don’t take up a lot of space and is put at the top of the cover, between the M in the magazine name. The price of date of release isn’t very important, this is a reason why it isn’t shown clearly and in a larger font. The barcode is put at the bottom right hand corner of the magazine, this is usually where magazine barcodes are found, with the barcode at the corner of the cover, and it doesn’t take up a lot of needed space and doesn’t take any focus of the more important details of the cover. There is also information about what else is going to be put in this issue, this information is write simply, so it doesn’t take up a lot of space and is done in the colour scheme to match the rest of the cover. The colour of the text to do with the film is found in black and green, but the colour of the text that is associated with what is going to be found in the magazine is white and green. I like the picture on the cover of this magazine, the layout around the picture is also good, but I think that the font of the text could fit in with the film more if it was changed to something more dramatic. I do like the colour scheme of the cover and how it matches the whole way through the cover and how it fits in with the film that the main focus is going to be on this month.

Action/Adventure- Pirates Of The Caribbean

On the cover of this Empire magazine is the Pirates of The Caribbean star Johnny Depp who plays Captain Jack Sparrow in the Pirate films. The cover is matching to the genre of the film, its bright, adventurous. The picture is of Johnny Depp’s character, Captain Jack Sparrow,  takes up most of the space on the cover, and is positioned in the center of the magazine. The background is of the sea, this links in with the set of the film. As it’s a pirate movie! The main colours of this issue are red, white, yellow, black and blue. The blue is only found in the background of the cover, and the rest of the colours are found on the text. The name of the magazine is found at the top of the cover, this is a usually convention of a magazine as its easy to spot what magazine it is. The colour of the magazine name is red, and the font is bold. This makes the name of the magazine stand out, even though a part of the picture is covering some of the letters. The rest of the font is in yellow, black and white. The text is positioned around the picture, this doesn’t make the text either hide behind or get in the way of the picture, Especially around the face of the character, the face of the person is how many people will recognize who it is and what film will be reviewed and written about in this issue. The main font used on this cover is bold, there is a different font used for a few sentences, but this helps break up the text and gives it a better flow. The barcode for the magazine is situated at the bottom right hand corner of the cover, this is where the barcode is usually found for most magazines and especially on the Empire film magazine covers. I have also noticed a usual convention for Empire magazines covers, on a few of the covers on the bottom left hand corner, there is a small paragraph of text and what looks like a cross, this divides the text from the rest of the magazine cover. This has also been used on other Empire magazines. There is also an exclusive, this is shown in the black circle just underneath the name of the magazine, and the small black circle will attract attention because the rest of the magazine cover is bright and colourful. The text within the circle talks about the fact that there is a Pirate of the Caribbean special and an onset exclusive; this will attract people to buy the magazine. I like this cover, I like the brightness and how adventurous the colours are, a lot of film front covers can be done is dark and dingy colours, but they bright reds and yellows are a nice change from greens and black. I also like the picture used on the cover, it shows Johnny Depp’s character perfectly and a lot of hard work has definitely gone into the front cover.

Adventure/Family- Narnia

On the cover of this Empire magazine is the lion from the film Narnia. The colour scheme for the cover is gold, blue, red and white. The gold and blue links in with the film, as the gold is the colour of the lion, and gold is also royal, this links in with the storyline of the film. On the picture is the lion, one of the main characters in the film Narnia. He is also one of the most recognizable characters, using any of the other characters of the film on the cover might make it unclear about what film Empire has a big story on this month. There is snow in the background of the picture, this links in with the fact that the majority of the film is in the snow. The picture of the lion looks like a dreamy, innocent and nostalgic picture. You can only see the lions face, this is the main focus of the cover. It makes people concentrate on the face of the lion. The snow and the background make the picture look nostalgic and innocent. The picture also looks like a wanted sign, the cliché close up face shot, the large bold font at the top. This could link in with the films storyline. The snowy background links in with the time the magazine came out. The magazine date is for December. The picture of the lion is not the only picture on the cover. The two other images on the cover are smaller and not as noticeable, they are also placed underneath the main image of the lion so that the main image is more noticeable. The font colour is brown/gold, red and white. The red fits in with the storyline of the film, Narnia. The white font stands out but I found it hard to read what the font said in brown under the Potter headline. The usual conventions of a film magazine cover is the name of the magazine at the top of the cover, a main image, text surrounding the image, a tagline, website of the magazine, issue number and date of issues and the barcode. I like this cover; it looks magical and fits in with the theme/storyline of the film. The only thing I don’t like about the magazine cover is the brown/gold font colour. I can hardly see what one of the sentences says; it would look better and more noticeable if it was in black or a darker brown.