Photographs for my Poster.

As I have decided to just feature an image of the mask on its own (see previous post), I have took several photographs on a dark background. I have experimented with the light and different angles to see what makes the photograph more effective.













I decided to use the image above because the angle used it not a direct downwards shot; the angle slightly tilts up towards the mask. However I decided to manipulate my photograph in Photoshop to make the background completely black because the font will stand out better. I also wanted a simple but effective poster and I feel that a black background will help achieve this. Here is my photo after it has been manipulated.



I have also re created the font that is used on my trailer to ensure that the title is in the same font throughout all three texts, it is the logo for my film therefore it is important it is always the same and so that it creates a tangible link. I created it on Adobe Photoshop CS3. It is difficult to see the shadow I created on it because it is on a white background; the shadow is only visible when on a dark background.

Drafts for my poster.

Below are three drafts I have created for my film poster. It is important to draw some drafts before creating my final product so I can see what conventions should be placed where and have a rough idea of which layout is the most effective.

1)

2)

3)

I have decided to create draft number two. After looking at existing horror posters I have noticed that a simple but effective picture is always used. I feel that by having a poster of just the mask will create suspense and make audiences want to find out who wears the mask. Masks are conventional to horror films and are recognised by audiences that anyone in a horror film wearing a mask is the “bad guy”. Masks hide people’s identities and this is what scares audiences about them. Therefore I want to create a mystery behind the mask, to scare audiences more and keep them in suspense, which is a convention of horror. I think it is essential for the mask to feature throughout all three texts because it is iconic to the film. I will place the mask on a plain back background so that it stands out as much as possible.

To create a tangible link throughout all three texts I must make sure that the name of the film is in the same font that is used on my trailer. This will be the logo of the film. I created my trailer on Adobe Premiere Pro 1.5 therefore I must re create the font on Adobe Photoshop so that it is the same throughout all three texts. The title of my film must be the largest font on the page so that it stands out. Conventionally the title of the film is placed at the top or the bottom of the page so that it does not disrupt the image. I have decided I will place my film title at the bottom of my page underneath my image. I will also make sure that it is central.

Film posters rely on visuals to portray the genre and give audiences some clue as to the narrative if they have not already seen the trailer. The image on its own will not give away many clues about the narrative; therefore I must use a tagline to help represent the film. Taglines are a convention of a poster and become associated with the film. They are usually short and no longer than one sentence long. The shorter and snappier they are the more likely audiences are to remember them and therefore associate it with them film. Several taglines I have thought of for my poster are:

You can run, but you can’t hide!

He is always watching.

Lock your doors.

Don’t look out the window.

Watch your back.

Don’t walk alone.

I have decided to use the first tagline “You can run, but you can’t hide!” because I feel that it gives away the most clues about the narrative; however it does not give away too much. Audiences will associate the mask to be the “thing” you can’t hide from. It is also catchy and not too long. I will place my tagline at the top of the page so that it is noticeable and will stand out; however I will make sure that the font isn’t as large as that used for the title.

I will also create some credits to be featured at the bottom of my poster; this is another convention of film posters. I will place them at the very bottom of the page, underneath the title of the film. The font used for the credits is always faint and does not stand out as much as the rest of the text on the page. The writing is always very small so that it is not clear what it says without looking closely. I will also place the logos of the production companies that produced my film in the two bottom corners of the poster next to the credits.

Conventions of film magazine covers.

I have noticed several conventions in film magazine front covers that I must include when creating my magazine front cover to insure that it represents the industry. The conventions are audience expectations and therefore must be included so that my magazine is a success. The magazine front cover has to promote my film, in order to do this I must make sure it correctly represents my film but also make sure it includes magazine conventions so that the magazine will reflect the industry. If my magazine successfully reflects the industry then consumerism will be higher, therefore promoting my film to a larger audience. The main conventions used in a film magazine front covers are:

• A masthead. The name of the magazine is always placed at the very top of the magazine and is in a large and bold font. It is the biggest font on the page because it is iconic to the magazine therefore must stand out for audiences to see. The masthead always remains the same, however the colour may vary throughout issues. Sometimes part of the masthead is covered up by the image, this is usually done by successful magazines because it shows that audiences know what the magazine is despite part of the name being covered.

• Main headline. This will be a headline about whichever film is being featured on the front cover. It is normally placed over the image and is in large font, however not as large as the masthead.

• Strapline. This is placed underneath the headline and gives audiences some indication as to what the article that is featured includes.

• Sub-headings. Subheadings are plugs as to what other features are going to appear within the magazine. Some magazine may only include one subheading or perhaps none. However most magazines include two or three, and sometimes place pictures with these subheadings.

• Feature photograph. There is always one main image used and this is conventionally an image of the main character/s of the film. The actor or actress that usually appears on the front cover is well known and easily recognised by audiences. They will also represent the film, they will be in a costume that also represents the film rather than casual wear. The actor and costume is an audience expectation as this is convention signifies what genre the film is.

• Three main colours. I have noticed that all magazine covers stick to three conventional colours. The colours used on the front cover depend on genre of the film because the colours reflect it. For example a magazine cover featuring a horror film would use dark colours because darkness is a convention of horror. The colour red might also be used because this represents danger and blood. White also represents the horror genre because it reflects the unknown and the mystery.

• Other conventions included are, barcode, price, magazine website, date and issue number. All of these are expectations of the audience and help make the magazine reflect the industry because they are expected.

Textual analysis of existing film magazine covers.

The purpose of film magazines is to promote and inform audiences of upcoming films. The magazines usually review these films to let audiences know if a film is worth going to see or not. Articles on directors, producers and many other aspects of films are also included in film magazines. The magazines are primarily there for entertainment and to inform audiences of new films. I have looked at and analysed several different film magazine front covers to help me create my own.

Entertainment Weekly



Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine and is published by Time, which is a division of Time Warner. The first issue was published in 1990 and circulates an average of 1.7 million copies per week. The magazine is aimed at a more-general audience than other American film magazines, such as The Hollywood Reporter, which is aimed at industry insiders.

The main focal point of the front cover is the image, a medium close up of Johnny Depp as his character Sweeney Todd. This issue of Entertainment Weekly is featuring this film therefore it was important to get an image of the main character on the front so that audiences recognise what film is being featured straight away. Johnny Depp is a successful actor so therefore having him of the front cover makes the magazine seem very successful hence being able to get actors such as Johnny Depp to feature.

The masthead is positioned at the very top of the page and is in large block font in a light blue, which stands out against the grey background. The word “weekly” is incorporated into the word “Entertainment”, this is an icon for the magazine as this is how the masthead has always been presented, however is sometimes in a different coloured font.

The main article of this issue is the “early Oscar contenders”, one of whom is Johnny Depp, hence him being the main image. The headline “Johnny Depp” is in bold white font, which stands out amongst the dark image of Depp and is positioned over the image, in the bottom third of the cover. There are other names of other possible Oscar contenders, these too are in white font, however, it is much smaller. Even though the font is smaller it still stands out because of the colour contrast against the background. “Johnny Depp” is in larger font suggesting that the main focus of the article will be on him and his film Sweeney Todd.

Another conventional feature of the magazine is a plug; this gives the audience an insight into what other articles will be in the magazine. Plugs are conventionally positioned down the side of magazine, with headlines smaller than the main headline. However, the plug on this issue has very large font, the same size as the main headline. “Holiday Movie Preview” is large white font and stands out against the dark background. The number “39” stands out more than the headline because, unlike the rest of the text, the font is light blue. The rest of the headlines are in white apart from this and the masthead. The colour red is also used; it makes the smaller text stand out against the dark background. There are only three main colours used on the front cover, these are blue, white and red. The white and blue represent the cold and harsh character of Sweeney Todd and the red represents blood and danger.


Empire



This front cover is from Empire magazine, which is a British film magazine and was first published in 1989 by Emap. The magazine has a target audience of males and females, ABC, film and cinema fans. The monthly magazine is the biggest selling film magazine in Britain.

Part of the masthead is covered up by the main image; this shows that the magazine is successful as publishers feel confident that audiences will recognise the magazine, despite part of the masthead being hidden. The masthead is in large capital letters, this is so that it stands out as much as possible. The colour red is used to represent danger. This front cover is a lot busier than the previous front cover from Entertainment Weekly that I looked at. There are conventions however that are similar on both covers. Both the mastheads are the largest text on the page and are placed at the top of the magazine.

The main image on this front cover features Heath Ledger staring as The Joker from “The Dark Knight”, his last film. Heath Ledger is a renowned actor; again this shows the magazines success. The image used is a long shot. The image represents Heath’s character to be very intimidating and reflect his character in the film. The costume used is how The Joker appears in the film; he wears bright clothes and has the iconic face paint on. He is sat with his head tilted down and his eyes are looking directly at the camera, his pose and posture add a creepy and eerie characteristic, making audiences feel threatened. Behind him is a metal gate, these could be jail bars representing his dangerous character.

The main headline “Meet The Joker” has a graffiti/comic book style font. This represents the film “The Dark Knight” because Batman was originally a comic strip. All of the front cover has a feel of a comic book, with lots of different colours and fonts. There is a strap line underneath the main headline saying “He’s a cold-blooded, mass-murdering clown”, this font looks like someone has carved it with a knife. This creates a sense of danger and edge. Above the masthead is a strapline, “The Dark Knight World Exclusive!” this gives audiences a taste of what is to appear in the magazine and links with the main headline and image. It also makes the magazine sound more distinguished and exclusive because it says “World Exclusive”. In between the strapline is the Batman logo, this has become an icon and will be easily recognised.

Down the right-hand side are some plugs for other features that are appearing in the magazine. These will pursued audiences to buy the magazine and read the articles inside. They do not disrupt the main image or stop it from being the main focal point of the magazine. The font used for these plugs is smaller than the font used for the main headline. The three main colours used are red, green and purple. The purple and green font matches the clothes that The Joker is wearing. The bright colours represent the comic strip and grab the audiences’ attention. The red used on the masthead represents danger and blood. White is also used for smaller font so that it stands up against the dark background but down not stand out as much as the more important text such as the main headline. Other conventions are also included on the front over, such as the magazine’s website, the issue number, date and price. A barcode is also included in the left-hand corner or the cover.


Total Film



Total Film is Britain’s second-best selling film magazine. It is published by Future Publishing and was launched in 1997. The magazine is published every four weeks.

Total Film’s iconic masthead is similar to that of Entertainment Weekly, because one of the words is incorporated into the other. The word “Film” is in large, white, capitalised font so that it stands out and is the largest font on the page making sure it is the most noticeable. The word “Total” is in a smaller font and is incorporated into the word “Film”; it is the same colour as the background so that it looks like it has been cut out. The word film is larger to put more emphasis on it, because the noun represents the genre of the magazine. Just like the Empire magazine front cover, the masthead is partly covered by the main image.

This issue features the new Sherlock Holmes film. The main image is like the one on the front of the Entertainment Weekly cover, it is a medium shot of Robert Downey Jr. as his character Sherlock Holmes. The image is very simple and doesn’t include any bright colours. As the previous front covers I have looked at, a well know actor has been featured. Robert Downey Jr. is an accomplished actor therefore creates a successful image of the magazine and he will be recognised by audiences.

The main headline lies over the top of the image; “Sherlock Holmes” is in large font in blue and white. The colour scheme of the cover represents the genre and character of Sherlock Holmes. Blue and white represents cool and calmness which is one of the characteristics of Sherlock; it also represents mystery which is an element of the film. The straplines above and below the main headline also reflect the theme of mystery, “All the elements are coming together” and “On set! Cracking the case of the world’s greatest detective”. They also give audiences a clue as to what articles on Sherlock Holmes are going to be included in the magazine. Above the main headline is a box containing the words “World Exclusive”, this is used to make the magazine seem more unique and to make the audience more excited and enticed to buy the issue.

Above the masthead there is a skyline that gives indication as to other top stories and articles that are going to featured in the magazine. The words “10 coolest movies” is in bolder text than the rest of the strapline, this is so these words grab the audiences’ attention to entice them to buy it. The word “coolest” also fits in with the colour scheme and genre. Three small pictures are placed along the top in the skyline to show three of the 10 movies mentioned. This is designed to grab audiences’ attention and make them want to find out what the other movies are.

Down the left and right-hand side of the cover there are plugs to give the audience an insight of further articles and features in the magazine. The same font is used that is used throughout the magazine, in the same blue and white colour scheme. The films mentioned in the side headings are all well known and will be recognised by audiences. They are from a variety of genres, therefore attracting a wider audience. Other conventions that appear on the magazine are a barcode, date, issue number, price and website.

Conventions of film posters.

After analysing and deconstructing several different horror posters I have noticed several conventions. I think it is important that I include these conventions as they are expected. By using these conventions within my poster it will help represent the genre of my trailer. It is important that my poster has a tangible link with my trailer and magazine. I am creating a promotional pack, therefore a clear link must be seen and all three texts much represent the same genre. Some of the conventions that I noticed on horror film posters are:

• An effective but simple picture. Usually featuring the main character, in the case of horror, the murderer or “bad guy” is normally the image used. This is so that it represents the horror genre, scaring audiences and making them want to go and watch it. The image is always large and covers the majority of the page; this is because it is the main focal point of the poster.

• Two or three main colours are used. The colours used for horror are usually dark colours to represent the genre. Colours such as black and greys are used as backgrounds to represent darkness. The font is usually in red or white so that it stands out against the darker background. The colour used depends on what the narrative of the film is about, for example if a film featured a lot of blood and gore the colour red would be used to represent the blood and danger. If a film was about ghosts or the unknown, the colour white might be used to represent this.

• Simple font. I have noticed that the fonts used on all horror posters I have looked at have been simple and clear to read, it has never been fancy or over the top. This is so that the font and text does not take the attention away from the main focal point, which is the image.

• Large title. The name of the film is always the largest text on the page so that it stands out the most. It is very important the title stands out because the poster is advertising this film and trying to persuade audiences to go and watch it. Therefore the title must be in large font so that it is easily seen by audiences. It is usually placed towards the bottom or the top of the poster, it is rare for the title to be placed in the middle because then it would cover the image. I must make sure that my title is in the same font that I used for my trailer so that there is a link. The title will become the logo for my film therefore making it essential it remains the same throughout.

• A tagline. It is difficult to give audiences an idea about the narrative of the film through a poster. A simple image and title does not always give much information, therefore a tagline is used. They are normally short and catchy, and are used to promote the film and give the audience a clue about the narrative. Taglines normally become an icon of the film because if it is catchy the audience will remember it and associate it with the film.

• Credits. These are usually placed at the very bottom of the poster underneath the title of the film. They include the names of people that have worked on the film such as directors, producers, etc. Names of the actors will be in larger text if they are well known as this will help promote the film. Sometimes logos of the production companies that have released the film are also included with these credits. The credits are always in a faint font so they do not stand out as much as the rest of the font on the page.