A2 MEDIA

A2 UNIT G324ADVANCED PORTFOLIO IN MEDIA

RESEARCH AND PLANNING

Candidate Name

Candidate Number

Centre Name

Centre Number

Georgina Eleftheriou

4055

The Leigh Academy

61101

YOUR ASSESSMENT MATERIALS 

Copy and paste these e-stickers onto your work when instructed to do so by your teacher.

Film trailer conventionsThe forms and conventions of a film trailer are the

typical elements you will find in any film trailer design.

Disclaimer titleGeneric statement

used in the industry at start of the trailer

Producer and distributor titles

Film producer and distribution logos

CharactersFictitious people played by actors

who are in the film

CameraworkWays in which a

camera is used for film (angles shots movements etc)

VoiceoverNon-diegetic sound

to narrate the trailer/film. Scripted

lines

Release dateThe date of when the

film will be released is displayed

Fast paced EditingCam shots/cuts

continuously changing after a few seconds,

keeps energy up

Parallel Mood musicMusic track that

creates atmosphere as narrative unfolds

Film and Actor titlesFilms name and actor

names that are displayed in trailer

Why might this shot be used?This is a close up shot focusing on the characters face to capture his expression. The director and editor may have decided to choose this type of shot due to the fact that trailers are only 2 minutes long so they need to create as much of an impact as they can. Thus, using a close up shot that shows character emotion in detail will have a bigger impact on the audience rather than using a long shot where the face isn’t as easy to see. Seeing character emotion will draw the audience in and make them feel connected with the character as it feels like they are in their ‘space’ due to the fairly tight framing.

Why might this shot be used?This is an establishing shot that focuses on the main character. This shot may have been used within the trailer due to the fact that, it emphasises how small the character is and shows perspective as you can still see the gun that is blurred in the background. This shot also gives clues to the audience that this character may be small yet is still very powerful. The lead room in this shot also helps with showing the audience how small the character actually is.

Why might this shot be used?This is a close up shot that focuses on the characters costume that appears to be a mask. This shot may have been used within the trailer due to the fact that, it shows detail of the costume to the audience. Also, it may intensify things as the framing is tight and the characters eyes can be seen within the frame (which are making contact with the audience). This will have an impact on the audience as it will look as though the character is looking directly at them giving them an emotional connection.

Why might this shot be used?This here is a medium shot that focuses on the body language of the character. This has an impact on the audience as the body language shown helps understand how the character is feeling.

Analysing film poster by conventionsThe composition of the Cast names have been placed nearer a less important part of the image which will make them easy to be spotted. They have been placed further the top of the page where less is going on such as part of the sky and the top of some buildings (the background of the image). Adding on to that, the top of the image is much lighter than than the rest of the page thus making it a sensible idea to place the cast names further to the top to ensure they're visible. Cast names are a way of persuading the audience to see the film as it gives them the opportunity to spot out any star names that may appeal to them.

A billing block is a legality of a cinematic poster which purpose is to give recognition, identify the institutions, directors producers and so on. This element of the poster is not aimed at the audience but more for the people in the film industry themselves. The billing block for this cinematic poster has been placed below the title. The font is fairly faint as it isn’t a feature that needs to attract the audience. This is effective as it doesn’t create an off putting look for the poster as a whole.

The title within this film poster is the largest piece of text to be displayed as it tells the audience the name of the film. It is very bold and metallic which matches the marvel theme and stands out from the rest of the other text displayed. This is important as it is the most key information about the film and needs to be remembered by the audience. The composition of the title has been placed nearer the least important part of the characters (their feet) in order for the image to work. This is important as the image is a key element of a film poster as that is most likely to attract the audience the most however, the film title is still very apparent.The protagonist and main character of the film has been placed closest to the front of the image while other protagonists are seen further behind the main character (some closer than others). This can indicate to the audience who will been seen more during the film and who plays a bigger role of importance. Furthermore, the composition of the light (which is placed in the main characters palm) drags the audience to look at the centre of the page. Therefore, this confirms to the audience that the character closest to the front is a main one who plays a vital role. It could also hint that he has power and control in the film as this is most likely where the designer wants to audience to look at first. More on to the other protagonists, some are at a higher level than others. For example, the women is much lower than the male character behind her who is standing tall. This could indicate that the men have some sort of dominance within the film or it could portray them to be the stronger or even braver superheroes.

The release date tells the public when the film will be able to be viewed at the cinema which then creates an audience. The release date has been placed inside the billing block and has larger bolder text than the billing block also. This ensures that the release date stands out against the faint text surrounding it meaning the audience will spot it.

The costumes that the characters are wearing suggests the genre of the film to the audience (action, adventure, Sci-Fi). This is because costumes involve amour or they’re some kind of suit. Further more the main characters costume produces some kind of light which hint that Science Fiction is part of this film. This gives the film a target audience. Most characters are also holding some kind of prop (mainly weapons). For example two characters featured on the poster are holding guns, while another has a bow and arrow whereas one character has a prop of protection (a shield). This creates excitement for the audience as a range of interesting props have been used within the image. Another factor of mise-en-scene that is shown within this cinematic poster is the type of poses and body language the characters display. This is important as it creates vibes towards the audience. The body language that is shown is all very fierce looking and intense which can attract the audience. The characters are all striking a different pose which adds interest to the poster and can also show the characters personality such as brave, masculine or tough. Their facial expressions can also show their characters as some look angrier than others and some have more intense/focused expressions on their face. The fact that none of the characters are giving eye contact to the audience could actually catch the audiences’ eye as they may want to know what the characters are looking at. Furthermore, it can show the audience that a lot is going on and that this film is going to be action packed.

Moving on to the background of this poster, there is an explosion with fire to be seen as well as some sort of flying transport that is falling through the sky. The bright orange and yellow tones against the flat tones of blue ensure that the audience is drawn in to look in to the background. These little pieces of havoc that have been put in the background can excite the audience as it gives them an expectation of the film.

Analysing film poster by conventions

This cinematic poster only features one cast name which suggests to the audience that this film mainly consists of this actor and that they’re the main character. It is this character who drives the story forward and he is the main attraction thus the designer may have thought it was only necessary for the one cast name to be displayed. The composition of the cast name has been placed above the title. This is an effective area to place the cast name as the title is an important piece of text on a film poster. By placing the cast name above it this ensures that the audience will see it immediately after reading the title which is a large piece of text so it likely to be noticed quickly.

The title ‘127 HOURS’ is the largest piece of text to be displayed and is very bold. The designer may have done this as this piece of text is the name of the film so it is vital that the audience notice it. The composition of the title is directly under the main attraction of this film poster (the big rock) therefore, it is likely that it will be natural for the audience to look down after they see the rock. Furthermore, where the title has been placed it looks more effective and stands out as the dark tone of the text is against a lighter background.

The tagline which is underneath the title adds a dramatic vibe as it reads ‘every second counts’. As the title gives away, time places a key role in this film so the tagline emphasises the importance of it. The composition of the tagline has been placed right below the title which adds more of a dramatic and tense feel as the audience should naturally read the title then the tagline straight after. This should excite the audience and attract them further.The narrative element within this cinematic poster is the rock which is composed in the centre of the page. It is against an area with high key lighting which works well as the rock has low key lighting creating a dark shadow. This gives the illusion that the rock is somewhat ‘evil’ or the ‘enemy’ within this film. Adding on to that it attracts the audience to that part of the poster first because one, it is in the centre and two, it is quite striking to look at (due to the effective lighting). Furthermore, the low key lighting of the landscape creates a dramatic effect as the shadows appear to make nature look daunting and scary which again, can tell the audience that nature is the enemy and what you could call the ‘villain’ within the film. The high key lighting also gives a silhouette of the main character who is above the rock which adds to the mise-en-scene that is shown (the body language of the character). He is looking down whilst trying to support himself with an outstretched leg. This could indicate to the audience that he is trying to be careful of the rock hence why he is looking at it. This adds to the narrative element as it proposes the idea that the main character is against the rock and creates the idea that he is battling with nature. His pose could also show that he is struggling which adds to the narrative element further as this film is about one huge struggle this man faces.As for the angle of this image (low), it creates an artistic effect to show how vast the landscape is and how small the character is in comparison.

A billing block has been placed down the bottom of the page where the lighting is much darker. This is a much less important part of cinematic poster. It just gives recognition of the directors, producers and so on. This is not a part of the poster that should attract the audience to watch the film which is why they are commonly placed in a less important area which tends to be at the bottom. Also, the low key lighting and dark colouring is not a concern as the audience do not need to look at this convention as it is just a legality of this industry.

Some text has been placed further at the top of the poster which isn’t an actual film poster convention however, it can still attract the audience. This is because, the adjective ‘triumphant’ has been used which can intrigue the audience. Furthermore, this piece of information states that this film is a true story which can make the audience want to see the film more as it has realism to it creating an emotional attachment.

Analysing film poster by conventions One of the most striking conventions within this cinematic poster is the title of the film. It is the largest piece of text, is the width of the poster, is bold and in the colour red. All of these things contribute to making the title highly noticeable and more importantly ensuring that the audience won’t forget what the film is called. Also, the chosen colour of the title (red) works well against the monochrome background making the title pop. The red also indicates that this film involves danger and risk. Other pieces of text that feature on this poster (such as the cast names and the tagline) are also in red which could show that they are important pieces of text on the poster. More about the colours used, the black and white combined with the red also represent danger. The lack of colour makes the poster look more intense because even though only 3 colours have been used they all work well together and create vibrancy. For example, the black behind the red makes the red stand out more whereas, the black text stands out over the white background. Going in to more detail about the cast names, Tom Hardy’s name has been placed on the poster twice. This shows the audience that he plays both of the main characters which will attract his fans as well as a larger target audience as he is a well known actor.As for the tagline in more detail, it is placed on the left hand side down the bottom of the poster. It is quite small considering it is a tagline as they’re usually larger because they’re important catchy pieces of text that attract the audience. However, as mentioned before, the tagline is red making it stand out even though the sizing of the words is small.Moving on, the iconography of this poster conveys violence due to the acting style of the main characters. The characters have screwed up facial expressions and are frowning causing them to look very serious. As well as that some mise-en-scene also suggests violence is included in this film as a prop is being held. The two separate images of the characters have been merged together in post production giving the illusion that both of them are holding the gun. Thus, this shows the audience both characters are violent giving them some narrative element. It also gives some narrative element due to the fact that, it shows that they are ‘one’ as they are twins and that they are a team.This cinematic poster doesn’t actually have a release date. It simply says ‘coming soon’. This should intrigue the audience as it creates anticipation for them.An American certification has been placed on the right hand side down the bottom of poster.

Analysing film poster by genre – teen drama

This masthead within this cinematic poster has been placed just below the main image. The font that has been used is conventional as it has a fun style to it which is important as it hints that this film is for a younger/teen audience. The words of the title also indicate the narrative as words such as ‘snogging’ and ‘thongs’ have been used. These words tells the audience that this film is going to involve teenage dramas (which is the genre of the film). Most teen drama based films have titles that give away the genre or have a narrative element to it. Another example would be the teen drama film ‘Wild child’. The title gives away the fact that the film is for a teenage audience and also gives a narrative element (as the film is about a teenager who is wild). One last thing about the masthead is that the colour of the text is bold and stands out against the white background. This is conventional of teen drama film posters as vibrant colours attract younger audiences’ more. Moving on, the main image has been placed in the center of the page.

Analysing film magazine cover by conventionsThe masthead displayed on this film magazine is partially hidden by the main image. However, this doesn’t matter as this company is well established in the film magazine industry so it is common for some big film magazines to do this. Like most covers, this masthead is large and the width of the page. This just ensures that a statement is made. The deep red that has been chosen helps to make the masthead stand out further. Moving on, this film magazine cover has developed a convention as the skyline and slogan have been combined as one. Slogans are catchy phrases that should get the readers attention whereas, a skyline is information based on the content of the magazine. The text is acting as a slogan as it reads ‘The dark knight returns’ and as a skyline as this text is telling the readers about what is inside. Furthermore, skylines are usually at the top of the page.The cover lines of this front cover is another convention that has been developed. This is because they have been placed at a certain angle that makes the text look like it is coming out the page. This may have been done in order to hint to the audience the type of genre that the main film featured in this magazine is. The main cover line which reads ‘inception’ is the main attraction within this film magazine therefore, the designer may have put a twist on the cover lines in order to make the genre of the film and the appearance of the cover match. The angled cover lines make the main image more striking and bold and, the background image gives the illusion that there is an explosion going on. Consequently, this hints to the readers that the main attraction (inception) is an action packed film.More about the main image, this convention has been developed but some things about it are still conventional. For example, the composition of the image is in the center of the frame which is very convectional of a film magazine cover. This is because, this ensures the readers will spot the main attraction rapidly. The colours that have been chosen for the main image (or rather lack of colour) are conventional as the dark tones tie in with the main article of this magazine which is an action based film. The prop used (which is a gun), the stern facial expression and the stiff, intense pose that the character is portraying, all reinforce the genre of this film. It is conventional for film magazine companies to do this as what ever the genre of their main article is, they usually keep a similar genre style for the front cover.On the more unconventional side, the type of shot that has been used (medium long shot) for the main image is not as common. Generally medium or medium close up shots are used but with this cover a medium long shot may have been necessary. This is because the prop needs to be seen as it helps the readers gather what type of film the main article is.More on the main cover line, this has been kept convectional as it is related to the main image. It is very rare for the main image and the main cover line not to be linked together. Furthermore, it is a large vibrant piece of text (which is conventional) that has been positioned in the middle of the page because the photograph allows it due to the face being higher up. This composition shown is just one variation of how a typical magazine cover may choose to have their main cover line as it can depend on the shot type of the main image. The anchorage text is involved within the main article and has been placed around above and underneath the main cover line which is no surprise as they link together.

Analysing magazine cover by genre

Analysing of film trailer by conventions - Paranoia

One conventional thing about film trailers are voice overs. They act as a sound bridge and are added to the trailer post production. They are scripted lines which help move the narrative forward as the trailer plays.

Disclaimer titles are a convention of film trailers. They are a generic statement used in the industry. These titles are used at the beginning of a trailer.

This screenshot displays some camerawork. This technique is called ‘over the shoulder’. It is a very useful technique to use as it shows the conversation going back and forth. Both characters are in the shot and shows how they react to what is being said through their facial expressions.

Here is another form of a title slide yet this one holds a different purpose. This kind of title slide is used in film trailers often in order to tease the audience. They are placed between two shots and are usually some sort of slogan or they hold a powerful message.

Analysing of film trailer by conventions - Paranoia

One way of editing is by using a dissolve through black technique. The purpose of this is to show the most important parts of a scene in a quick way by increasing the passing of time. So, one scene is shown then it dissolves until a black screen is shown, for that to then change to another scene all in a very short space of time.

A close up shot is popular to use for film trailers as it captures the characters emotions and expressions by being up close. It can create a certain type of atmosphere. For example, within this trailer and by this type of shot being used, an intense kind of atmosphere is made for the audience. We can feel that as the camera is up close allowing us to see the details.

Characters are shown throughout film trailers. Usually, only the characters that play the bigger, more important roles will get introduced as the narrative is set.

Analysing of film trailer by conventions - Paranoia

Analysing film trailer analysis by genre Juno- (teen drama)

This screenshot displays a close up shot of one of the characters within this film. Therefore we can see her emotion in depth through being able to see her facial expressions by the camera being up close. This follows the conventions of a teen drama film as they are based on dramatic and emotional events. Especially because it is a teen drama also, things are likely to be dramatised further.

This is a screenshot displaying some text during the trailer. This follows the conventions of a teen drama film due to the bold yellow tone that has been used. This expresses that this film is for young people. Adding on to that, the sentence that has been used further enforces that this films genre is a teen drama as this sentence is stirring and brings excitement to the audience.

This is a two shot motion which shows conversation between two characters. The blocking of the actors places them in to different parts of the shot. On one side of the frame the actress has been positioned closer to the camera and is slightly out of focus. As for the other actor they have been placed in a medium shot at a slightly higher angle so that he is looking down on her. This is typical of a teen genre based film as the adults normally have more power.

Within this trailer the audience get a glimpse of a locations that appears in the film which is a high school. This type of location provides a number of typical narratives to develop such as relationships or any struggles that may occur at school like bullying. This location used is conventional for a teen drama based film as it gives an idea of how old the character may be and also creates an environment.

Analysing film trailer analysis by genre – Juno (Teen Drama)

These screenshots here show an example of fast paced editing. A screen wipe transition has been used within this trailer which is conventional of a teen drama. This is because it adds pace and keeps the energy up. The rapid transition also makes things look more dramatic which is key when it comes to this type of genre.

The dialogue that is used within this trailer contains humorous and informal language. By using this kind of dialogue within the trailer portrays a teenager in a realistic way therefore, it is conventional of a teen drama to have realistic scripting.

Flashing transitions have been used to quicken the pace of the trailer and make something that could be boring (which would be getting dressed in this case) a bit more exciting. The flashes will engage the audience as it is all very fast moving and bright.

Film trailer analysis – Juno (Teen Drama)

The type of parallel mood music that has been added into the trailer post production (non-diegetic sound) is upbeat and optimistic (particularly the music at the end of the trailer). This shows to the audience that the outcome of the film is positive and that the problems that present themselves in this film get solved. This is conventional of a teen drama based film as there is typically a solution to the problem (which is the drama part of the film) and hints that there is a happy ending. Especially because this is a teen drama film, happy endings are much more likely and conventional of this film genre as the audience will be younger. Also, the fact that the music used is upbeat keeps the energy risen just like the fast paced editing does. So, the parallel mood music is key as the track used creates an atmosphere as the narrative unfolds.

From start to finish high key lighting has been used in this trailer. This is something to consider as the kind of lighting contrasts and colours used all set the mood of a film. Therefore, it is conventional to use high key lighting and bright colours for a teen drama (as shown in this trailer) because, it keeps the mood cheery and youthful.

Analysing film trailer analysis by genre – Juno (Teen Drama)

The props displayed in these screenshots are items that express the characters age. For example, one character is holding a burger phone whilst both screenshots show each of the characters bedrooms in the background. Although they are out of focus you can see props including a guitar and posters of bands and singers stuck to the walls. Having props like these are only things that teenagers would own so it makes them conventional as it distinguishes the trailers genre. By using props like these also makes the film trailer look more realistic as it is showing what a typical teenagers room would look like.

Using film trailer conventions

LightingTypical horror conventions are used within this trailer when it comes to lighting as low key lighting is used and everything is very dark and gloomy. This is typical of a horror trailer to set the mood as frightening and emphasises the type of genre this film is.

Parallel mood music

CharactersThe characters in this trailer are typical of a horror trailer. This is because the victims are shown to always be fearful and screaming which is what you’d expect to see. As for main character they tend to have deeper voices and a hidden face during a trailer to keep the fear and curiosity of the audience who are watching

EditingVery quick cuts which is typical of a horror trailer as it creates the atmosphere and makes the trailer more intense.

Camera workSome shots within the trailer are close up showing the fear and emotion on the characters face. You would expect to see this within a horror trailer due to the fact that it’s supposed to convey to the audience that this film is frightening. As for the movement of camera for some scenes it is faster than others. Faster cam movement is typical as it makes things scarier and gives the audience an adrenaline rush whereas the slower camera movements are typical as it builds up tension and intensifies things for the audience