As film directors and producers, we are aiming to create a short film that is convincing, effective and professional. As a result of this, it has to appeal to the target audience in order for this to be successful.
During the process of producing different storylines, we had to think about suitable age ranges that our film genre/idea will be aimed at. As my partner and I decided to go ahead with our idea, 'Emotional Effects', which will consist of college students, the film will educate and be targeted at both girls and boys aged 15-20+. As the characters in the film will be pupils, this will appeal to spectators of the same age who are also still studying. They are also able to relate to the film, as they attend college everyday and have experienced school life, where as the much younger generation wouldn't have yet.
However, with regards to the more older viewers, their lifestyle may involve parenting, working or going out. Adults can still attend college or they may have relatives/children that do. As a result of this, they may have been through this and advise others on how they dealt with the situation.
We came to a conclusion that the audience's social demographic will be a C/D {working class}, as they may have part time jobs whilst they are a parent/guardian or still in further education. The time period of a short film would also suit this age range due to the fact that they are busy, as they might have work or coursework to do. Therefore, they may not have the time to sit and watch a film that lasts for longer.
Short films are usually shown at a cinema before the main film is about to come on. This venue tends to attract our target audience age range, as they will attend with friends and family.
Some short films are also shown inbetween or after popular programmes, so that the audience will stay tuned, on channels such as 4. Several short films are also screened at Film Festivals.
Within the film industry, a ‘pitch’ is usually created by a director or screenwriter to a producer or studio executive. Once the film idea is presented, they hope for it to be accepted so that a screenplay can be written and produced. A short film lasts for a small duration of time; however, it still expresses a meaning within its concise storyline. This has to be inventive and conventional for it to be triumphant. It should provide the audience with what they expect but also, contain a climax because this would surprise them. Therefore, this would make it interesting and challenging. Once we had decided the genre of the short film, my partner and I started to think of different ideas that would relate to what we had chosen.
Original Idea: "Consequences" - A group of teenagers arrive at a park, along with drink and music. Consequences are learnt when they decide to have their own party. One of their friends seems distant from the rest, as she doesn't want to drink alcohol and be a part of it. As she leaves the park, alone, she is attacked. We thought that the idea was interesting and would have allowed us to use camera shots effectively, such as close ups to create tension.
Second Idea: "Emotional Effects" - We thought of another plot, using some of the ideas from our original one. We wanted to include a climax into our main storyline, so we took the idea of a girl getting attacked and the fact that it was a mystery, and adapted it into a college environment. However, we thought that it would be a good idea to make the attacker one of her friends. We continued to develop our ideas, thinking of ways we could enhance the climax. Our character, Lacey, looks popular as she walks down the corridor which shows her everyday life, with people constantly waving, saying hello and hugging her. All of sudden she is attacked, which creates the questions - why? Is she really the victim or the cause? Is this jealousy? The audience will have to decide for themselves, which leaves a cliffhanger to the short film.
We thought that 'Emotional Effects' would be a good title as it suited the plot. We liked the alliteration, as it would remain in peoples mind because it flows and rolls off the tongue. This creates a connection between the two words. However, we came to a decision to change the title, as it doesn't sound interesting. The vowel 'E' is a soft sound, which therefore wouldn't catch the audiences eye. As a result of this, we had to think of a different idea. We came up with the word 'Twisted', as during the film, we see that the girl's life, including personality and appearance, changes dramatically. It would also represent how people can actually become 'twisted'. Therefore this title can relate to everyone in the film and not just Lacey. The consonant 'T' contains a much more harsher sound, which would grab the audienes attention and relates to the climax, which is the attack. We also liked the fact that it was only one word, which creates a short and sharpness to the title. This links to how quickly Lacey's life has changed.
Through a more simple and compact storyline, we are able to tell the story effectively through:
Camera techniques
Sound: diegetic or non-digetic {soundtrack},voice/language
Mise en scene: costume, setting, props etc
Acting: facial expressions, body language, actions/gestures
A script is also known as a screenplay, which is written specifically for a film. Most famous films consist of a lot of dialogue. However, short films usually have less dialogue and the story is shown and told through the camera angles and non-digetic music {soundtrack}. As a result of this, the script includes stage directions, including camera angles/movement/framing and the actions of the actors/actresses. It states the order of the scenes and where they are filmed, either interior or exterior. During filming, more ideas tend to come to imagination, so even though things may change, the script gives us a base line of what each scene {in order} includes and what the actors/actresses are doing at the particular time e.g. happy facial expressions, bold body language and good posture in comparison to emotionless or depressing facial expressions with an enclosed, contracted body language. This is our script:
During filming, we decided to delete the dialogue because as the film contains music and silence, we felt that this wasn't fitting in with the structure of the film. Due to the fact that this would have been the only piece of dialogue, the audience may think that there was an importance to the line, however, there was no relevance to it. We then decided to include dialogue whilst she is getting attacked, which is relevant because it is natural and the audience can see the girl is pleading for the attacker to stop and this would show a sign of innocence in Lacey. Due to the fact that short films lack in dialogue, added non-diegetic sound {soundtrack} contibutes in creating the atmosphere, mood and tension and gives emphasis to the action and movement on screen. The lyrics usually relate to the plot, in order to highlight the films message. As a result of this, my partner and I had to research music, considering the genre and film storyline, and agree on the piece that we felt expressed the meaning and suited the film the most.
Our first suggestion was 'She's So Lovely' by a band called 'Scouting for Girls'. The song is upbeat, which will create a happy atmosphere and represent the main character's happy emotion whilst she is with her friends, during the time the music is playing. However, after further thought, we decided that the other lyrics woudn't suit the plot, as the main singer is singing about a girl and our film isn't based on 'love'.
We then listened to another song called 'Unlikely Hero' by a band called 'The Hoosiers'. We liked this song as it contains the lyrics, "I like everybody, but not everybody likes me". We thought that the first part, "I like everybody", would link well to what is being shown on screen. The main character, Lacey, likes everyone, as the viewers are able to see her hugging and waving at her friends and students in the corridor. However, "but not everybody likes me" creates a contrast, as the extras look as though they do really like her because they hug her and wave back. This would have made the audience question why this is, which therefore suggests something is going to happen, as the lyric doesn't link. This would make them want to continue watching, in order to see who doesn't like her. May be someone betrays her? This would have represented that somone dislikes her, which therefore that 'somebody' out of 'everybody'. The rhythm is also upbeat which we also liked, with regards to representing atmosphere, mood and emotion. However, with more thought, this had a similar issue to 'She's so lovely', as we realised, when studying the whole songs lyrics, that the man is also singing about 'love', which would suggest something that isn't shown, as our film doesn't have a 'love' theme and doesn't show the effects and emotions of love that this song potrays.
We then found a song called "Problem Girl" by Rob Thomas. The lyrics creates a contrast as the song is about someone who is being bullied. The audience can clearly see that Lacey isn't the 'problem girl', as the viewers can see she is a polite person greeting everyone. We felt that this related well with the ending, as the storyline twists around because they see another side to Lacey. Lacey or the attacker could be at fault, so the song can link to both characters. This song isn't too fast and isn't too slow which represents both personalities of the character. it's quite upbeat to show she feels happy, however, it's not fully fast, which symbols something is going to happen. Therefore, we decided to use this as our soundtrack because it emphasises and links well to the plot and the characters involved.
The storyboard has to be arranged efficiently so that we are able to visualize how the short film will look. This allows us to be organised and have a general idea about what the scene will contain and what camera movements/angles/frames will involved. Therefore, my partner and I worked together and drew a sequence of pictures in a particular shot e.g. 'close up', medium shot', 'long shot' etc, angle e.g point-of- view etc and movement e.g. Tracking {dollying}, Pan or Hand-held camera etc which we felt would create the right effect and will make it interesting for the viewers. We wrote down the 'edit' in between each scene, as all the techniques such as the different continuous cuts and shots that we have decided to use should naturally flow from one to another, making them not noticeable to the audience. In order to do this, we will use 'Continuity Editing', which makes the work of the editor invisible as possible. On the editing system, we will develop editing skills and find different effects that we could add to what we have filmed. This would make it look more interesting and effective and also emphasise the meaning of the film, which will have an impact on the audience.
A storyboard also allows us to plan the timing specifically, as we can arrange the amount of scenes the film will include and estimate how long each one will last. This is so that the short film doesn't run over the maximum time that we are allowed.
This is the storyboard my partner and I produced once we had our storyline in mind:
Before creating our storyboard, we parcipated in a practice task which gave us the opportunity to learn more about using the camera and we were able t screen test different angles and how diegetic sound is picked up. We were able to experience filming, which will make us feel more confident when filming the main short film project. We were able to how a simple storyline can be told through the effect of camera angles. We began with a point of view shot, showing a smart dressed boy walking towards the camera, which would be a person. The effect of the shot is so that the audience feel like they can see through the eyes of someone else, however, they first of all can't see who this is in the sequence. It then cuts to a medium shot of the boy slightly pushing past the a young girl's shoulder. We were also able to think about mise en scene, as we filmed the sequence in a corridor and used a prop, such as a folder, which shows and represents that they are students. The camera is then focused on a folder that has been dropped on the floor, caused by the slight push against her shoulder. You first see her hands picking up the folder, as the camera follows her standing back up. The viewer can then see the boy helping her. The 180 degree rule is used, as the boy apologises to her and she assures him that it is ok. Characters within the same scene should always have the same left/right relationship to each other. We were able to experience filming shots that we have learnt about and analysed. The sequence ends with another point of view shot, which is structural to the beginning. The girl continues to walk and she stares back to find him staring at her. This can suggest that they like each other. Several camera techniques can be used within a shot sequence to make it more interesting for the audience and emphasise certain things e.g. when camera focuses on the folder - did the boy do this on purpose as an excuse to talk to her? emphasises they are students. Is there something in the folder? - This would make the audience want to continue watching to see what happens.
We decided to go ahead with our second idea, 'Emotional Effects'. We came to decision that we wouldn't be able to include everything in detail as we would have wanted to in 'Consequences', due to the short amount of filming time we have {5 minutes}. We also thought that the location would be difficult, as we would have had to shoot after school hours because we wouldn't be able to travel there during our lesson, film and manage to get back for our next lesson on time. This might not have been appropriate for selected extras, as this problem will occur for them also. Filming after school in this particular location also wouldn't give us much time because it starts to get dark and therefore our lighting wouldn't follow our plan and idea to use this as a representation of emotion, mood and atmosphere. My partner and I had to discuss and decide as a team who would be the main actresses of our film - 'The Girl, Lacey' and The Attacker'. Using other people and not ourseleves would have allowed us to concentrate on directing and working behind the camera. However, due to the fact that we want to film scenes during media lessons so that we use the time effectively and to our advantage, we felt that it would be more difficult if we were to have chosen to other girls as our main characters because they may not be available on the arranged filming days or they might have lessons at the time my partner and I are ready to film. Therefore, we came to a conclusion that it would be more appropriate and easier for us to play the roles, as we can discuss between ourselves and organise filming days without having to ask anyone if they can make it. If they wouldn't have been able to on the day, my partner and I would have to continually change our whole shooting shedule, which will prevent us from progressing with our filming. Also, as my partner and I have written and produced the storyline, we will be able to act out what we both imagined the characters would be. We will both take it in equal turns to use the camera, as the majority of scenes doesn't involve both of us being in it. We plan to have several point-of-view shots for example so i will film the parts when i am not seen on camera. The project is both our responsibilies so as a result of this, we will be dedicated, commited and work to the best of our ability in order for us to gain the successful outcome that we aim and hope to achieve.
We have asked a selection of people and they have agreed to participate, so we will inform them the days the scenes that involves extras will be being filmed. If the majority of them, for any circumstance can't make the arranged days, we will try and possibly film the scenes that just include my partner and I or due to the fact that selected extras can be played by anyone, another option would be to ask whoever is available at the times we have arranged.
As our plot is about college students, we automatically decided that we would be filming within a school. The pictures below show one of our main sets where our filming will be taking place. They clearly show the difference between the lighting:
In the first image, this will be where the main character will be seen with her friends. In contrast, the second image shows where the attack will take place.
Before filming, we also had to think about costume. The extras would need to look casual but smart at the same time, due to the fact that they are at college. This would also be the case for the main actress. We decided to have bright and neutral coloured clothes when she is happy and dark coloured clothes when she isn't, in order to create a contrast between the two personalities/emotions of the one individual. The ending scene also takes place in her bedroom, creating a structural contrast. The character's attitude has totally changed from the beginning.
In order for us to be well organised and remain on task by keepng a record of our filming process, we created a 'Shooting schedule', which shows the shooting plan for days and times of the week. This prevents confusion, as it shows the venue for the scene that we will be filming on the particular day, the time that we have arranged and which/how many actors/actresses we need on set. We can arrange everything that we need to beforehand e.g. location, props, costume {make sure the actor{s}/actress{es} look the exact same and the set e.g. the layout {if arranged to} as they did in the previous scene because we would have to film the scene again, which could create problems if the actor/actress can't make it. This would also prevent us from moving on by filming scenes that still haven't yet been filmed. e.g. make sure they have their hair, make-up etc the same and if they were wearing any particular jewelry}. As i am the main actress, i will make sure that i am fully organised and prepared so that we can film the scene on the day that we have intentionally planned. I will take note of what i am wearing and the props i will have e.g. bag-phone, write it down and report back to the shooting schedule so i will know what day i will have to wear the same outfit and use the same props again. We will also have to take lighting into consideration e.g. if the lights are on in the corridor/her bedroom or if it's light/dark outside.
We visited, http://www.youtube.com/ to watch a variety of short films, in order to give us ideas and more of an insight into how they look.
The first short film that i viewed was called 'Strangers'. I particularly liked how the music built up tension. This is the effect that i liked for our short film - for the music to relate to the film and emphasise the plot/ what is happening on the screen. The use of close ups on the characters eyes create a mysterious atmosphere and as the audience, i wanted to continue watching, even though there is no dialogue. This film proved to me that a short film doesn't have to contain a lot of dialogue to tell the story. This can be told through the media technology such as certain camera angles/movement and the aims of the director such as choice of sound, lighting, mise en scene. I specifically liked the symmetrical shot at the end, as the men have helped each other get off the train so the shot represents the fact that they are equal. The train track is in the centre which shows that this is the cause of the situation.
When watching this short film, i really liked how a topic that isn't catching for an audience, such as a picnic, is made interesting through different shots and effects. This made me realise that for a short film, you only need a compact storyline, which can me made interesting and successful by the media language and technology. I liked how every item such as food, drink and cigarette was focused on with a close up, as this created tension because we didn't know what was going to happen. Not only does it create tension, it also creates questions for the audience, making us want to continue watching because we want to know what is going to happen e.g. is he going to find something? The coke can was the cause but what i particularly liked was the fact that this wasn't made obvious, as we were keeping a close eye on all objects he had, wondering which one is going to be the complication or climax to the film due to the camera shots deliberately used to make us do this. I really liked the shot when we were made to feel we were inside the picnic basket. In contrast, we were also made to feel like we were in the hole. This is a comparison, as we kind of know what a picnic basket contains, however, we was unaware what was down the hole. It made me feel as though i wanted to climb up, just to see what was down there. When the main actor realised what was going on, the chosen music was very effective as it became fast and louder, creating further tension. We were able to feel how the actor feels, as it creates a sense of panic. The quick cuts to his arm on the other side of the grass and him also created fear and tension due to the fact that he couldn't release his arm, he didn't know what to do and what was going on. Earlier on in the film, long shots were used. Within a long shot, you can see the surroundings and setting. As a result of this, we could see that there was no one else around, no one to help. The ending is effective as there was a contrast because it slowed down. It leaves the audience wondering what has happened to the boy.
Film posters have many conventions, in order to make it eye catching for the audience so that the film is advertised effectively.
Main Image - Creative ideas, including mise en scene. This should symbolize and tell the story through a still image.
Main Text {Title and Tagline}. The title should be eye-catching which will grab the audience's attention and be a representative to the whole film - use of alliteration, triple emphasis, single words, puns, contrast. The title is the main aspect that sells the film. Taglines can use a rhetorical question, which create an unanswered question, so as a result of this, people would want to go and see the film so that it is revealed.
Other Text {Credits, Review and Website}
Functional Information {release date}
Logo and Age Certificate
We analysed and looked carefully at popular film posters to assure that we understood everything that they should include, so that when we produce our own, it will look professional. During the process of designing our film poster, we will include the main conventions by thinking of creative ideas, so that it attracts and appeals to our target audience and advertises the film well. We viewed other students film posters that they have designed, looking at what was functional and symbolic. I analysed how the posters advertise the film in an effective way in order for it to be convincing and also, what is being represented through their chosen text {language and font} and mise en scene within the image. Looking at a poster, the audience should be able to gain an initial idea of what the film is about.
Films are advertised in or outside venues or in places that normally attract the particular age range and gender that the film is aimed at. For example, as our target audience is 15-20+, cinemas, school's/colleges, internet such as Facebook and Myspace are good examples of venues and places where our particular target audience would see the poster.
My partner and I both thought of individual ideas for the poster for our film. This would give us more of a choice and we can then discuss which one is better or combine our ideas together in order to gain other ideas. Film posters should be able to tell, advertise and symbolize the short film's storyline, genre and message. Therefore, we had to think about how we could show this effectively through a still image.
One idea was that the image would show the main character staring at her own reflection, dressed in her usual neutral light/bright colours, with an upright, straight posture, reflecting that she is happy with her life and proud of who she is. However, her actual reflection in the mirror would show how the attack has effected her, however the audience wouldn't know who or what has caused this dramatic change. This would be totally opposite to the other image, as she will be wearing dark clothes, her face would be hidden and she woould have a reserved body language. The image creates questions and the audience would want to watch the film to find out the meaning behind the two different images of the same girl.
The second idea was a close up of the main characters face, with a hand placed on one side of the face. This shows that someone is grabbing her. The hand gives the audiece a hint of what is going to happen, which will make them question who's hand is it? why is this person grabbing the main girl featured in the image? Also, another suggested idea was to place an eye on the hand, which would could represent that someone is watching her, but why? is it revenge? is it jealousy? is there a reason? This will therefore make people want to come and see the film, which is the reason to a film poster. We came up with the suggestion that the girl would be smiling, which creates a contrast as someone wouldn't be happy if they were being grabbed by another. However, it represents the two sides of the character - happy/confident - but the story behind the hand is going to make effect her emotions. The hand is covering half of her face but not all of it, yet.
We sketched out how we imagined what our ideas would look like. Once we completed this, we discussed how and where the main conventions would be placed on the image, assuring that the main things should stand out in an equal way e.g. the title and the image. When we design the poster on publisher, we will try different things, as we don't want anything overlaping or looking over crowded.
With regards to font, we thought carefully about how and in which ways we could use 'design thinking', so that it links well to the title. We had the idea of a broken effect effect, to represent how the characters have been effected. We want a font that would show a contrast -light for happiness and dark for unhappiness, as this is what the character experience within the film.
Aswell as including the main conventions, that i have closely analysed, the mise en scene of the main, still image is very important. In relation to our film genre and storyline, my partner and i thought about and discussed different ideas for our poster. Most film posters include the main character{s} of the film within the main image. The audience should be able to sense the mood and atmosphere of the movie through the image they see e.g the characters facial expressions, props or things that are placed in a certain way. The analysis of a film poster can help us gain ideas and an understandment by closely looking at how the amount of thought and design that has gone into the poster can be effective and a good representative of the film it is advertising. Advertisment is very important in the film world, as this is the main factor of attracting the target audience so that they come and view the movie, which will make it successful. Within 'the silence of the lambs' film poster, the image clearly shows the audience the facial expression of a women that looks slightly apprehensive, especially within her eye expression, which is deliberately made to be focused on as it is a 'close up' that only shows facial features. The pale face and bright lighting can symbolize innocence however in contrast to the dark background, this can also represent death and evilness. The tint of red in her eyes can also be a representative of danger. Another obvious main focus is the butterfly that has been placed over her mouth. Within the butterfly is a skull, which if the audience look closely, they will be able to see that this has been made up by womens bodies. This creates a contrast, as butterflies are beautiful. A still image can show a film's genre and the audience can gather ideas of what the film is about. I get the sense that the women is being stopped from speaking by something evil. This creates an eerie silent feel.
When taking the main image, we had to think about the setting. We wanted to use ambient but high-key lighting so that the happy side of her face looks bright but realistic and natural at the same time. Artificial lighting wouldn't create the same effect. We had to think about the position of the hand, making sure the sad/depressed half facial expression is slightly darker, which will be created by the hand's shadow. This will show a natural contrast between the two emotions. We thought about how the fingers should be placed, either stretched out or clasped. We decided that clasped fingers would show that the person is being grabbed and would represent an act of violence. We also had to think about background. We wanted a dark, plain background, as this would be symbolic to the type of world she feels she is within, dark and lonely.
Another example is the recently released film 'Black Swan'. This caught my eye as the image creates such a contrast with the fact that she is a ballet dancer. Ballet consists of soft and light movements which people wouldn't think of if they looked at the main image featured on the poster. I thought that this was very effective so i decided to analyse it, which always helps to develop analysis skills. The character's eyes appear red in the picture, which symbolizes evilness and danger that she is facing or feeling. This poster is also similar to 'the silence of the lambs' poster, as the lighting around the females face is very bright. The title and the tiara on her head informs the audience that she is a ballet dancer. As a result of this, the lighting can represent her innocence but dark side at the same time, as the redness within her eyes and dark make up contrasts with this. It could also possibly be symbolic to a spotlight on stage.
Once we had an idea about which fonts we would like to use during the designing process, we had to explore and search for the one that was similar to what we have sketched and which one would link with our title well.
We searched through http://www.dafont.com/, as the site contains a variety of different and creative fonts. It also allows us to see a preview, by typing in our title and seeing what it looks like in the chosen font.
After thoroughly researching, we found a font that we thought would most appropriate, as it is bold and clear so it is eye catching for the audience. It also links well to our title 'Twisted', as it has a broken and faded effect. We particularly liked 'Capture it 2', as the cracks in the writing created by the much darker outline creeping into the white font represents how Lacey and the attacker have been effected, emotionally and physically. The light coloured font represents how happy they both were. This is similar to how Lacey dresses in the film - light coloured clothes whilst she is happy on contrast with dark coloured clothes when she isn't. Lacey is becoming more depressed, as her life/personality has changed and she is slowly sinking deeper into a shell over time and fading into the background.
We made sure we took several pictures so that we had a variety to choose from incase the photo that we actually sketched during the planning process didn't work when we started to make our poster, due to the fact that text sometimes isn't as clear on certain images as it would be on others. Also, some pictures may come out blurred when uploaded to a more larger size and can sometimes be pixallated. We were able to experiment with other images to see what they look like and which one suits best.
We took pictures of our original idea that we had sketched to see if it worked. We felt that the first image was too dark to we turned on the light and took a second image. However, they both looked blurry and we felt that the image idea didn't seem convincing.
We then came up with the idea of taking two images, one not smiling/one smiling, so that we could crop half of each one to put together to create a half not smiling and half smiling face. This would relate well with our plot, as it represents the two emotions/personality of Lacey. However, although we took the two images in the same place, the lighting in the first image looked natural however in the second, the lighting didn't. Although our plan was to show dark in the sad facial expression and light in the happy facial expression, we needed them both to look the same so we could put them together to create a two emotion face. We felt that the lighting in the second image looked too atificial. Also, when we made both images larger on the computer, we noticed that the distance wasn't the same. This effected us making the two emotion face, as we wouldn't be able to join the two halves together because they are different sizes.
We took another image, but placed the hand in another place, which can still represent what happens to her during the film. We originally thought that we could use half of this picture for the unhappy face. However, the lighting was still an issue. As a result of this, we took another smiling photo, placing a pink handle on her shoulder which would relate well to the fact that she is happy in that half of the photo. Unfortunately, this didn't work due to lighting. We thought that the images wasn't connecting well together and it still didn't seem realistic or convincing.
We particularly liked the strong, unhappy and serious facial expression in the image with the hand on her throat. The image looks clear so that the viewers can see the facial expression. We also felt that this represented the film well. It also looks interesting, as people would wonder who's hand it is. Also, it's not a screaming facial expression, which people would do if someone was to grab them. This would therefore make the audience wonder why this is? We chose this facial expression because the it represents the way she is feeling. However, we didn't want to give the audience too much information, as they would know she gets attacked. This is leaving questions open - is she really the victim? what actually happens? is she the one out to get revenge? is she regretting an action? could it possibly be imagination?
When looking at the image, we still liked the idea of half of her face being covered, as this would represent that the happiness is disappearing and the depression and sadness is coming her way, like how the film shows. We went on Fireworks and used a 'blur' tool, in order to create low-key lighting special effect, such as a dark shadow. This would create effect as it represents her feelings and how she has been effected. Lacey becomes a recluse and the darkness creeping across her face emphasises that she is slowly changing and becoming more and more upset and depressed. As the audience don't know this information, it could also be interpreted as her shadow which suggests that she is shadowing herself, or it could represent the person's shadow who's hand is on her throat. Is the person following her?
When we tried this, we were very pleased with the outcome. The still image supports the plot and we felt that this looked unique, creative and very effective.
The designing process of the short film poster was the collective responsibility of my partner and I. We both contributed in the making of the poster that would advertise our short film effectively, in order to attract our target audience.
We had to create and design our own logo to feature on our poster. We decided to incorporate a scene board, as they are used to 'cut' scenes, which relates well to what we have been working on. We thought of 'Snap' as it is an onomatopoeia for the noise it makes when pushing the bar down in-between the cuts of scenes. We then used alliteration and thought of 'Studios', which links well and is recognised in the film world.
We placed the title, tagline and the main actresses names on the image. We were able to test certain positioning of text and other main conventions such as age certificate and logo. Normally, titles would be placed in the centre. However, we decided to place this towards the right hand side which is a unique place to position it. We did this in relation to the title. This can create an awkwardness, suggesting that something is going to happen, hence the name of the film. We placed the main actresses within the dark blur, which are also positioned in a curve shape around the face. This has the same effect as the title.
We then placed other main conventions onto the image, making sure everything is able to be seen clearly. We changed the font to a more cinema style, so that it looked more realistic. We then thought about colours which would connect to the image and the film plot - The light pale coloured pink is placed near the girl's lips, which are the same colour as the font. The release date is very important, as we would want our viewers to know exactly when they can come and see our film that we are advertising. This stands out against the dark background. We also decided to put 'Youtube' in green, as this matches her eyeliner and would also stand out and not get mixed up with the comment. We used black, white and grey as our main colours. The white symbols the happiness she felt. The black symbols how she feels after she is attacked. However, as grey is in-between black and white, we thought that this would symbol the twist at the end of the film, when the audience will think, was she really the innocent one? As this is left unanswered, the audience will have their own opinions. This is our second draft:
We decided to make the font smaller, as we felt that it looked quite bold and over crowded. Due to the fact that the main image featured on the poster should be an effective representative to the film's plot so that the audience are drawn to it, the importantance of the picture standing out and being the attracted focus in vital. We cut the comment made by Youtube, as we thought that it was too long and it was taking too much space. The 'sudden' one word is more effective, as it informs the audience that it only takes a one word comment to sum up how 'superb' it is. We also moved the release date to the bottom, so that it doesn't take the effect away from the image. We also thought that the comment should be from the magazine that the film's review is featured in, as the poster and review would then link well together. We decided to keep the quote near to the top and the release date still at the end because we needed the pink font near to her lips to match her lipstick and the green font to match her eyeliner. If we would have decided to move the quote to the bottom and the release date to the top, we would have swapped the colours so that it was the same as Lacey's make-up. The colour system is very important because too many colours in different places can cause it to look unclear and it can also create confusion, which wouldn't appeal to the audience. We also decided to place the age certificate and logo together, making them smaller and moving them further down the poster. This is so that when the audience automatically looks to see if they can go and see the movie, they will also see the production company which should gain a recognition. We then had more space, so we moved the website address to the bottom right, so that the title has it's own individual space to stand out, as this is the most important piece of text on the page.
We researched target audiences, as they are our main priority. We wanted to could gain more of an insight into which age group/gender reads certain film magazines. During the process of analysing reviews, I noticed that each one, which was from a different magazine, had different design and lanaguage conventions. As a result of this, researching will help us choose the correct suited magazine to feature our review in, as we would know the type of film genre that the magazine would contain, which would then relate to the type of target audience. We want to select a magazine that appeals to 15-20+, male and female. The review would have to be interesting by containing equal images and text, as the older target audience would like to read about the film, where as the younger generation would prefer to view photos as well as reading the plot of our short film.
FHM magazine isn't a film based magazine and mostly focuses on cars, women and gadgets. As a result of this, the readers may lack interest in film. According to http://www.bauermedia.co.uk/Brands/FHM/ , the magazine is targeted at men aged 18-35. The gender that the magazine is targeted at would be the reason as to why we wouldn't feature our review within FHM, however, during research, i discovered the readers are usually university-educated. Our short film is mainly aimed at college students and parents of the pupils that attend college, not university. This would therefore not be a suitable magazine for our short film, as our target audience would definately not see the review if it was to be in FHM.
The readers of 'Empire' vote for the nominated films featured in the magazine, to win awards at the event, 'Empire Awards'. The 'Empire Awards' have or have previously held a 'short film competition', which is what our film is. We thought that this could be the correct magazine to feature our review in, as it is popular because it's known for being the biggest selling British film magazine. The research has helped us find a magazine that attracts a wide variety.
We looked at and analysed language and design conventions of different magazine reviews, in order to give us more of an insight into the way they look and the type of language used.
When analysing a review within 'Empire' magazine, i noticed that it included quite a large image from the film, which has been clearly separated from the text. I think that the review has a 60/40 text/image ratio. It contains a main title, trivia box, pull quote, verdict box and a star rating. The structure is very clear, as things are easy to find because main headings and text are in bold so that they stand out and the audiences attention are drawn to it. The language conventions include similies, puns, adjectives, rhetorical questions and comic language, which isn't really formal. The target audience have the decision to read the text, or go straight to the part that they find most interesting to read. This can be aimed at both men and women, as the magazine contains many films that both like.
In comparison, the review within 'FHM' is a lot more image based, including several clip images from the film. With regards to layout, the target audience would be directed to the pictures first. It contains main conventions such as the title and headings but it also includes puffs {speech bubbles} and captions. The language conventions that are used are quotes, triple emphasis, short sentances and informal language such as slang words. I think that this review is more design based, as there isn't a lot of text and the short text used is very to the point. The readers would want to see images from the film, rather than read about it. This is mostly aimed at men, as the magazine features women and action films.
We then looked at another review within the magazine 'Sight and Sound'. This was very different to the other two, as it contains a lot of writing and a very small image. It has a very clear, structured layout, as everything is separated into columns and bold headings are used to do this. The reader can easily find what they would like to read about. The language is very formal, including similies, media terminology and it is very analytical. The target audience can be aimed at both men and women. I think that they would be slightly older, as they would want to thoroughly read everything about and involved with the film.
We have written a first draft of text that we will improve and develop so that it sounds like a professional and convincing review. We considered design and language conventions, mostly being inspired by the way the reviews are written and presented in 'Empire magazine', as this is the magazine we chose to feature our review in.
This is our first draft of text that we created:
RELEASED: 20th May 2011 CERTIFICATE 15 DIRECTOR Hayley Hyde CAST Hayley Hyde, Sally Huddleston RUNNING TIME 5 mins PLOT Innocent Lacey {Hayley Hyde} is very happy with her life and has lots of friends. But one day takes a turn when the laughter becomes a disaster. Lacey soon realises that life isn’t as straightforward as what it seems. It is sometimes a little twisted.
Most reviews state the release date and age certificate in order for the audience to know if they are the right age to view it and if they are, to inform them when it will be available to watch. Other information is running time, the director, the actors starring in the film and, the plot, which this gives the audience a general idea of what the film is about before they read critics.
INTRODUCING Hayley Hyde and Sally Huddleston - both involved in the whole creative process as well as starring in their own ‘Twisted’ film. Their creation gives an insight into the lives of college students, as they dig deep into emotions and contrasts to give viewers a unique perspective of life. The new actresses on the scene unmask these memorable first characters with whom anyone can relate. The drastic change in character shows how one event can ‘twist’ a person’s entire being, both inside and out. In an interview, the girls were asked, “What were you trying to show to people through your film?” They responded with saying that “the film is about showing how the smallest little thing like an argument can have a huge effect on someone and what they might do because some people ignore it as they don’t understand how bad it can get”.
This paragraph gives the audience further information about the directors/actors. It gives them more of an insight into the film structure but at the same time, not giving much information away, which keeps the audience wanting to know what will happen. We thought that it would be different to add an interview, as this isn't a convention. Our short film could have an impact on the audience, making them feel a little uncomfortable at times, e.g. the lack of sound within the short film. Having an interview isn't usual, common or known to be in a review and therefore we thought that this could possible give a similar feeling to the review, like how the film does.
VERDICT A creative and inspiring piece, these up and coming teens have already left their mark in the industry with an insight to the complex life of a teen in school and a subject that many people have experienced, bullying. But the ‘twist’ is who is the one that is responsible for everything that happens? In fact, who is the problem here? ****
A verdict sums up the film and is from one person's opinion. For our film, there could be a variety of opinions. Therefore, the audience would want to give their own verdict now one person has already, in order to see if they would agree or disagree.
However, due to further research on target audience of Empire magazine, we decided to change the magazine that our review will appear in. As a result of this, we needed to adapt our text to the language conventions of a new selected magazine. We also decided to delete the interview, as we felt that it wasn't working. It isn't a convention of a review and people wouldn't have seen the film yet so they may not have understood the reason as to why we decided to add this in. We felt that it wasn't flowing because it didn't suit the style. As a result of this, we needed to redraft the text, by taking the information said in the interview and may be putting it into an opinion/comment/general written opinion from the magazine. We also wanted to talk more about the sound and explain the film further, so this would sell it, encouraging people to want to watch it. However, we had to make sure that too much information wasn't given away. We added alliteration, especially in association with the actresses such as "Happy Hayley". We thought that this would sound more interesting to read, as a lot of youngsters don't like reading a lot. Also, this is easy to remember, making this stay within their head. Therefore, the target audience would talk about the new film to friends and family. We adapted the text we had, also adding adjectives and several rhetorical questions which would link to the film because 'Twisted' opens many questions for the audience.
We watched our film back and looked at different images we could take screenshots of to feature in our review. This is a very important decision, as they would need to be effective and interesting because they are the first preview photo/s that our audience will see before the film is released.
We decided to choose an image from the attack scene, as it is the main climax of the short film. We liked this image, as it shows a good facial expression that connects to the situation. However, we thought it was too blurry and a little too dark.
We liked this image but it had the same issue as the first one we selected because it seemed a little blurry and unclear.
This image looked a lot clearer and also lighter, however, it still has the dark effect that emphasises danger and what is happening. We liked the way the light corridor can be seen in the background, as it creates a contrast with the darkness - she has left her old, happy life/personality behind and is entering a new, dark and painful life. The corridor is also at an angle, which suggests it has been turned upside down. We decided to use this image, however we thought it would be a good idea to include a picture of the attacker, as the review mainly talks about the two new actresses.
We liked this image, as the viewers are able to see the 'hatred' look within the attackers eyes. The close up could represent how close she is to attacking Lacey.
However, we then came up with the idea to include an image from the short mimed flashback scene of Lacey arguing with the attacker before Lacey was attacked by her. We thought that this would be interesting, as it creates a contrast showing Lacey as the victim, in comparison to her not looking so innocent, as she is the one that is grabbing the attacker, first, in this image. As a result of this, we decided to include the two images in the review, creating a split, contrasting main image.
When analysing conventions of magazine reviews, we looked at the design layout so we were able to see how they are presented. After choosing 'Empire' magazine, we concentrated more on the conventions of this magazine, as we have learned and discovered that review layouts are not the same within different magazines. Conventionally, we placed the 'split scene' images at the top of the page. 'Empire' contains one image at the top of the page, however, when choosing and looking at images from our short film,we decided to use two, as it shows a contrast, just like how the film does. We placed the magazine title at the top, left hand corner, as this would be the way that the page is turned within the magazine, so the readers will automatically look in this direction, as this is where their eyes will travel.
However, with regards to the more older viewers, their lifestyle may involve parenting, working or going out. Adults can still attend college or they may have relatives/children that do. As a result of this, they may have been through this and advise others on how they dealt with the situation.
