The way that the combination of my film poster, the film
magazine and the film trailer work together is important to gauge
how successful my film trailer package appears to the target
audience of teenagers, particularly female teenagers. I am pleased
with the way my poster and magazine work together to advertise the
film in such a way that the readers can clearly distinguish it on
the magazine cover. This was done by the use of the 'Soul Switch'
logo font which I used on both the poster and the magazine to make
it more recognisable to the audience. There are other similarities
which make the film trailer package clear for the audience to
connect together. For example the use of costume on the characters
is consistent throughout; rather than the magazine cover have them
in casual wear, they are in their school uniform. This makes the
characters easy to identify with in all aspects of the package - as
the target teen audience can easily relate to what they are wearing
and know what each character is like through their individual
touches to their uniform.
3.
In addition, the whole package makes the storyline of the film
clear without giving too much away and in turn making the film less
interesting; again through costume. The props on the poster; the
glasses for Erica and the mirror and accessories for Samantha, help
give clues as to their personalities and are also used in the
trailer (to help indicate the 'body swap' more clearly) and on the
magazine cover.
The fonts used, on the magazine and the poster other than the
'Soul Switch' title, are similar to the fonts used to help tell the
story in the trailer. This is as they are all rather simple serif
fonts to make the text clear to read and this again is a connection
between the cross-media package.
However, it is clear that the different types of media products
have differences between each other. Perhaps the most clear
difference is the colours used on the print media; the magazine and
the poster. The poster initially I designed as light purple like
the magazine cover but I changed this as I added additional
elements to it and thought the brighter colour would deter
attention from the poster's information. The magazine I left lilac
as I felt the layout allowed attention to still be focused on the
important areas; like the image and the 'Soul Switch' headline,
without being too drawn to the background colour which would be
counter-productive. Despite this the two similar media products are
still clearly linked (as shown before through the fonts and images)
but some differences were necessary to reach the different
conventions of their media types. For example, the poster caters
only to the film itself, whereas a magazine needs to include other
elements/stories about different films to interest the readers as
much as possible.
4.
The trailer uses a school location which can be linked again to
the images; which originally were on school locations also (see
above images) and this like the costumes gives the target audience
something which they can identify with and relate to and make the
whole package more successful. Laura Mulvey's theory of
representation can also be linked to all three elements of my
cross-media package as throughout Samantha is objectified. The
camera-shots used in the trailer, for example the tilt up her body
when she is first introduced, and her costume on all three products
of the short skirt also makes use of objectification. It is clear
that this provides voyeuristic pleasure for a male audience as the
trailer, poster and magazine do not mention much of a main male
character and so do not suggest a narcissistic pleasure for a male
audience. As a female audience is attracted to the film as they can
relate to the main female characters this helps to also appeal to a
male audience and make the package more appealing to a wider
audience.
5.
All three products also relate to Levi-Strauss' concept of
binary oppositions as the two main characters are completely
different - which makes the storyline more interesting and amusing
to follow. Plus the font colours used in the 'Soul Switch' title
are contrasting in look and connotations; blue and pink. Which are
stereotypically related to the genders and here I used them to
relate to the characters contrasting personalities as one is much
more feminine to the other. This also relates to the 'idealised
norms' which Michel Foucault refers to in his social theory as the
character who possesses the typically female traits is rewarded by
being at the top of the social hierarchy whereas Erica is punished
for not meeting the typical gender specific roles - as is shown in
the trailer. Ultimately I think I effectively carried out enough
links between the different media products so the audience can
easily see the connections, without going too far and breaking the
conventions relevant to each piece of media.
6.
Mostly used mid-shots as we found out from our research were
conventional for the romantic comedy genre of trailers. This allows
the audience to see the emotions/expressions of the characters to
help them to relate to them as well as showing them their costumes
which can also help them to identify with them and allow them to
understand more as to what they are like. This relates to Michel
Foucaults theory of idealised norms as Samantha who fits in with
the typical gender roles is rewarded for being at the top of the
social hierarchy, whereas Erica who relies more on her intelligence
than her looks (which isnt a typical role for a female character)
is punished for being at the bottom of the social scale. This helps
the audience to understand why Erica wants to change and be more
like Samantha so much. As was also in some of the romantic comedy
trailers analysed, we used panning to help identify with some of
the locations; for example as they walk passed Ericas house as she
is watching. This helps the audience to both associate with Erica
(it is from her point of view) and identify with the scene. We used
a voice-over in our trailer as we found in many existing trailers a
voice-over is put in place to give the basic outline of the over
all story. This allows the audience to understand the whole thing a
lot more making it more interesting. Therefore finally making
enough interest to see the film as a whole product. This makes use
of Rick Altmans genre theory as it helps the audience to understand
the story and therefore its genre and in also influences the way
they interpret what is shown.
7.
The Mise-en-scene of our trailer consisted of a secondary
school setting. We used classrooms, a dining hall and corridors
within the building. This is similar to existing Romantic Comedy
trailer such as Freaky Friday as this is setting in a school also.
The costumes we used were school uniform which complied with our
location choice and would appeal to chosen target audience as they
can relate to the types of characters shown. We chose to use casual
clothing in the scenes of Ericas home (the geek) as this would
represent what teenagers at the time would wear. Ericas overall
costume shows her in a smart uniform (e.g. tie done up and glasses)
or in a check shirt and other items which dont match. This refers
to her character as a geek. This can be compared with our choice of
costume for Samantha (the popular girl) as she is dressed
oppositely in fashionable clothes and a scruffier uniform to show
her status within school clearly. The costume can be compared to
existing film Wild Child as this is set in England also. As is said
by Levi-Strauss idea of Narrative theory of binary oppositions as
the contrast between the two characters costumes and their
personalities is so vast and also represents their opposition in
their social standing (one is at the top and popular whereas Erica
is at the bottom).
8.
The use of costume also follows Laura Mulveys theory of the
representation of women, coupled with the camerawork (the tilt up
Samanthas body when she is first introduced) as it makes use of
objectification. This relates to the way the Plastics are filmed in
Mean Girls as they walk along provides voyeuristic pleasure for an
assumed male audience; Male Gaze. The narrative behind our trailer
also relates to the target audience and the research we conducted
as all those we analysed show the main characters experiencing some
sort of change. In a Cinderella Story, the main female character
changes from a tomboy to a girlie girl and in Mean Girls, the main
female character goes from the new girl to a popular girl. Although
our change is more physically obvious, the end of the trailer shows
how they change after they switch back. This would be something
which particularly relates to our target audience of female teens
who can identify with the problems our two main characters
face.
9.
The music used is generally up-beat which makes the trailer
fast moving and exciting. However, the music we used also helps the
audience to relate to what emotions the characters are
experiencing; for example when Erica is upset that no one has
turned up to her birthday party slow music is used this music then
increasing in tempo when she makes the wish to mark the start of
the change. For the fight scene we used a more rocky-style music to
relate to the aggression the characters feel. To create a link from
the end of the fight scene and the end of the trailer (the insert
of the holding hands) we used the same soundtrack to make the
trailer be more connected.
By putting the scene of Tom (Geek) and Samantha after the film
title we are also following convention as the trailers we analysed
all contained a funny clip at the end of them. This is because it
makes it more memorable and appeals to the target audience as
romantic comedies essentially need funny light-hearted
elements.
The length of the trailer is typically longer than the
conventional romantic comedy film trailer. However, not by too
much, this is as we didnt want the trailer to exceed the
conventional two and half minutes as it would be too long for the
audience to take in. Despite this, our trailer is slightly longer
as it gave us more chance to put across the storyline and would
make the audience understand the storyline more clearly and
therefore increase its appeal.
10.
The editing used was overall conventional as it was typically
fast paced which would keep the audience interested through its
upbeat style. We also used shot-reverse-shot for conversations
which is conventional as it makes it clear to the audience who is
talking and show reactions/expressions; which helps them to relate
to the characters. In addition, at the end we used an insert to
highlight the connection between the two characters who are so
different in personality and would emphasis its comedic value.
We used titles across the screen to help tell the story which
would help audiences to understand what it is about. The colours
used were red as this relates to the romantic side of the genre;
connoting love and passion, we used a white font purely to make the
text clear to read. Sound was used to draw attention to some
elements of the trailer. For example to emphasise the screams, the
music was stopped to make it more dramatic. This makes the change
obvious and shows their shock. This is evident in the Shes the Man
trailer where the sound also stops to emphasis certain parts; as is
the case when Viola is speaking to Duke and trying to come across
as more manly which is comical for the audience and therefore makes
it more appealing.
11.
As with the trailers we looked at we included the names of the
main actors in the background as this is something which may
increase interest in the film, if it is someone they recognise and
like. They were positioned in places which made them clear to read
and clear as to who they were naming when there are mid shots of
the two characters screaming. Another editing technique we used was
slow-motion; which we also saw used in the trailers we looked at in
our research (Shes the Man). This helps the readers to identify
with Erica as it emphasises the longing to be more like Samantha.
The age of the actors also would appeal to the audience as they
relate to their characters and the age of our target audience.
12.
Research + Planning To look at existing media products;
trailers for the Romantic Comedy genre, we used YouTube. Which was
a fast way to access the information we would need to make our
trailer relevant to the conventions and in turn more successful.
This meant that we could view each trailer quickly and be able to
make notes on areas that we would like to follow - i.e. the
conventions like the use of fast-paced editing and mainly mid-shots
in the trailers.To get an idea for the locations and costumes as
well as images for the magazine and poster, we used a digital
camera to capture pictures of the two main characters in costume
and in the right locations. This enabled us to also think about
where we would like to film our actual trailer and therefore make
filming more time-efficient and the sets more relevant.
13.
Development of the Products Perhaps the main use of media
technology in the actual production of our trailer was the use of a
Mac to edit our footage and a digital HD camera to create it. The
use of this camera made our footage high quality and therefore made
it seem more realistic to the audience - and wouldn't interfere
with the storyline. The Mac was something new to me as I hadn't
used one before but felt that we managed to pick up the necessary
techniques pretty fast and enable us to cut the clips down to the
appropriate size and delete any unwanted elements. The iMovie
program also allowed us to add in additional effects - such as the
slow-motion as Erica blows out the candles to emphasise her longing
and the text across the screen to help outline the story. The use
of the make also made us be able to alter the order of the clips
easily to make the film more effective for example we altered the
way the clips are shown when Erica and Samantha walk in so that the
shots of the feet are side-by-side in order to emphasise the
contrast between the two characters clearly. The Mac also made the
use of the voice-over much easier to capture as it had features
which could record it straight over the film.The program we used to
create our posters and magazines was Microsoft Publisher as it is
best suited to what we need - as we could easily adapt the
layout/fonts/colours to make our products more successful as we
could easily cater to the results of our questionnaire and the
conventions found out from our research.
14.
After making our trailer we want to make sure our audience
feels we have hit our target properly. To check this we carried out
a questionnaire for our target audience and recorded the results,
this would help us to measure how successful we were in capturing
the romantic comedy film genre. Including with a copy of the
questions asked is a copy of one of the completed questionnaires in
a picture format.
Questionnaire 1. Which gender are you? Male Female 2. How old
are you? 13 15 16 19 3. Our trailer was made for the Romantic
Comedy genre.Would you be able to tell the genre of the film from
the contents of the trailer ? Yes No 4. Do you think the music was
suitable for the genre and related to the contents of the trailer?
Yes No 15.
5. Do you think the length of the trailer was the same as
existing
Romantic Comedy trailers and was therefore conventional?
Yes
No
6. Do you think the voice-over was suitable to the
trailer?
Yes
No
7. Did you think the costume of the actors was appropriate to
the genre?
Yes
No
8. Do you feel the various locations used were suitable?
Yes
No
9. Did the trailer look as if it was aimed at males and
females?
Yes
No
10. Do you feel the trailer would appeal to your age range
and
would you be encouraged to go and see the film if it came
out?
Yes
No
11. Do you think the name of the film is appropriate to the
contents of the trailer?
Yes
No
16.
11. Do you think the name of the film is appropriate to the
contents of the trailer? Yes No 12. Do you think the credits and
dates were necessary and should
be placed at the end of the trailer? Yes No 13. Do you feel the
actors names were put in the right place within
the trailer and were necessary? Yes No 14. Do you think the
storyline was conventional to existing Romantic Comedy trailers?
Yes No 15. Was the storyline easy to follow? Yes No 16. Do you feel
you were shown just the right amount about the film? There was too
little given away It was just right There was too much given away
17. Do you think the edited red screens within the trailer were
suitable
and helped you understand the storyline better? Yes No 18.
Finally, is there anything you feel should be changed or improved
in the trailer? (please state below)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
17. 18.
*To get audience feedback for our trailer we made a
questionnaire to ask whether our product did as we intended it to,
create interest, and get across the genre and narrative. * We asked
20 people, 10 boys and 10 girls. 10 of the people asked were in the
age range of 13-15 and the other 10 people were in the age range of
16-19. * When asked if you would be able to tell what the genre was
from the trailer 17 out of 20 people said they would be able to.
This shows that our narrative was clear enough to convey our story
and genre easily. * When asked was the music suitable 15 out 20
people agreed that it was. This shows that our music fitted in with
the genre and trailer reasonably well and that our audience could
relate the music to the story.
19.
*20 people felt that the voice over was suitable. This is
probably because a voice over is a key convention of a romantic
comedy trailer. Therefore we added it and all of our audience felt
it was appropriate. All 20 people also felt that the trailer was
conventional in its length. *Only one person disagreed that the
costume we used in the trailer wasnt appropriate. Again all 20
people felt the location of the trailer was appropriate. We set
most of our trailer in a school setting. We did this as its aimed
at teenagers and they would be able to relate most to this setting.
* When asked if they felt it was aimed at both males and females
only 14 people agreed with this. The reason behind this is probably
that the overall genre of the film is stereotypically aimed at
females rather than males.
* Again all 20 of the people felt that the trailer was aimed at
their age group. This is good as it means if it was to go to cinema
the whole film will appeal to the group we wanted it to.
20.
* All of the 20 people we asked said our films title was
appropriate. We chose to use this title as we followed the titles
of other Romantic Comedies such as Freaky Friday. This is a catchy
title and we wanted to make ours catchy too so we chose Soul Switch
which follows a similar storyline to Freaky Friday and has an
alliterated title. Therefore, due the audiences feedback, we found
that our chosen title worked well with our film and they could
obviously see why we chose Soul Switch as the name of our
film.
* All of the 20 people we asked said our credits and dates were
necessary and were placed correctly. This shows we have followed
conventions from existing trailers as the audience know where they
should be placed, making our trailer more professional and
realistic. 18 out of the 20 people we asked said the actors names
were put in the right place and were necessary. This shows that the
majority thought they were essential to a trailer and needed to be
used in order for an audience to know whos in the film before they
chose to watch it, as this might influence them more. It also shows
we clearly thought out where we were going to put the names so they
would look best on our trailer.
21.
* 16 out of 20 of the people we asked said our storyline was
conventional to existing Romantic Comedy trailers. This means that
the storyline would appeal to our age group and that we researched
the correct trailers in the first place to get our ideas. This also
shows that the audience would be able to tell which genre the
trailer was for straight away as the storyline was so clear.
* 19 out of the 20 people we asked said our storyline was easy
to follow. This again shows that it would appeal to our audience as
they would be engaged in what was going on to be able to understand
it. Also, they would be able to tell which genre the trailer was
for clearly. It means our editing, sound, camerawork and
mise-en-scene were all suitable in order for our audience to be
able to understand it.
22.
* 14 out of the 20 people we asked said they thought they were
shown just the right amount about the story to our film. This shows
we used just the right amount of footage and followed the length of
other Romantic Comedy trailers correctly in order to not give too
much away. This also shows that the audience we left wondering what
was going to happen in the film, a key feature to any existing and
successful trailer. A small amount of people said they thought they
were either shown too much or too little but this was a small
minority and did not effect the overall view. * All of the people
we asked said our edited red screens were suitable and helped them
gain a better understanding of what was going on. We got this idea
from existing Romantic Comedy trailers and we ourselves found this
helped us understand. Together with voice over, the audience
clearly found our editing successful and thought they were an
essential part to a trailer.
23.
* We received no negative comments for this question from our
audience. An example, of one of the comments we received (as shown
in the example of a completed questionnaire) was: no, it was of
professional quality and clear to understand. This proves our
trailer to be realistic and conventional overall and that it
appealed to our audience as wed hoped.
NOTE: The rest of the result graphs can be seen also on the blog
in a separate post. 24.
An institution which might have produced our product is Time
Warner, this is because:
They have already produced similar films which relate to the
romantic comedygenre; such as A Cinderella Story, which has several
parallels with our film. For example the storyline of both films
involves the main female character under-going a transformation;
even if our transformation is more obvious physically and both
films portray how the characters personalities affect their social
standing in the hierarchy .
Time Warner might also be interested in our product as they
make use of cross-media promotion, being a media conglomerate. This
means their different companies within their conglomerate would
allow them to create the film and the print media to advertise it
all within the one company making all the profits go in one place.
Time Warner is made up of its subsidiaries which relate to film,
print and internet media an effective form of synergy which makes
promoting products effective.
25.
There are other similarities between existing Time Warner
products and our product which makes it more likely that they would
produce our package:
The poster for A Cinderella Story uses a similar colour scheme,
to my poster for Soul Switch, the simplicity of the white is used
to make the text clear and the colours blue and pink connote the
transformation of the character from tomboy to girly girl as is
relevant to Soul Switch too.
The style of the trailer also relates to how we edited and
filmed our trailer, the fast-paced editing, the school setting etc
as was discovered in our research analysing existing products.