Results For My Magazine Front Cover

After gathering my results for my magazine front cover, I decided to do a bar chart for each of my questions. How I am going to lay this out is by writing the questions and underneath, there will be a pie chart.

1) Where would you expect the name of the magazine to be?

2) Who would you expect to be on the magazine cover?

3) What would you expect the colours to be like?

4) Would you expect to see a large amount of text?

5) What would you expect the cover lines to be referencing?

6) What kind of font would you expect to be used on the front cover of a mainstream magazine?

Questionnaire For My Magazine Cover

In order to make myself be confident in creating my magazine front cover, to help me, I have done research on what audiences's expectations of mainstream magazines are. I've decided to make a questionnaire, looking in terms of layout, design and content. I would also want to persuade the audience to buy the magazine. I have came up with several questions which I thought would give me in depth into the expectations of the audience.

Here are the questions:

1) Where would you expect the name of the magazine to be?

• Top of the page 
• Middle of the page 
• Bottom of the page

2) Who would you expect to be on the magazine cover?

• A director 
• A mainstream Hollywood actor
• A character from an upcoming Hollywood film

3) What would you expect the colours to be like?

• Muted 
• Bright and colour 
• Pastel colours

4) Would you expect to see a large amount of text?

• Yes
• No
• Not sure

5) What would you expect the cover lines to be referencing? (can pick more than one)

• Big budget films
• Well known actors
• Indie films
• Directors
• Producers

6) What kind of font would you expect to be used on the front cover of a mainstream magazine?

• Rounded and soft
• Bold and square

Results For my Questionnaire Poster

After gathering my results for my questionnaire, I decided to do a pie chart for each of my questions. How I am going to lay this out is by writing the questions and underneath, there will be a pie chart.

1) What do you except the main image in my poster to be?

2) What do you expect the colour scheme to be?

3)  If there is another setting behind the characters, what would you expect it to be?

4) What would you expect the certificate of the horror film to be?

5) What font case would you expect the poster to have?

6) What season would you expect the film to be released?

7) Would you expect the names to be on the poster?

8) Would you expect to see tag lines to indicate the story line or the indication of genre?

9) Would you expect to see reviews on the poster?

10) Would you expect the font to indicate to the audience what genre of film it is?

Questionnaire For My Poster

Having gathered lots of secondary research for when it is coming to create my poster, I thought it would be useful to do some primary research to find out what audiences would expect to find on a poster for a film from the horror genre.


1) What do you except the main image in my poster to be?

• An individual male?
• An individual female?
• A serial killer?  
• The officers arguing? 
• All three characters?
• No people?

2) What do you expect the colour scheme to be?

• Dark and muted? 
• Soft pastel? 
• Bright and colourful?

3) If there is another setting behind the characters, what would you expect it to be?

• An urban location? 
• An outside location (a forrest or beach)?
• A domestic location (a house)?
• A work place location (an office)?

4) What would you expect the certificate of the horror film to be?

• PG 
• 12A 
• 15
• 18

5) What font case would you expect the poster to have?

• Upper case?
• Lower case?

6) What season would you expect the film to be released?

• Autumn?
• Winter? 
• Spring?
• Summer?

7) Would you expect the names to be on the poster?

• Yes?
• No?
• Don't know?

8) Would you expect to see tag lines to indicate the story line or the indication of genre?

• Yes?
• No?
• Don't know?

9) Would you expect to see reviews on the poster?

• Yes?
• No?
• Don't know?

10) Would you expect the font to indicate to the audience what genre of film it is?

• Yes?
• No?
• Don't know?

My Film Certficate

I have decided to give my film the certificate 15. I decided this was appropriate as I believe the audience for my film can range from the age of 15 to young adults.

In comparison to this, I think this would be a suitable certificate because mainly horror films have more higher age ratings and my film will only contain a rare amount of strong language, and violent. Therefore this will allow a wider range of audience.

Certificates

I am going to look at different certificates for my teaser trailer. With doing this, it will help me decide what age rating my film will be appropriate for. Here is a list of horror films with the suitable age ratings.

• Poltergeist (15)
• A Christmas Horror story (15)
• Hush (15)
• The Women In Black (12A)
• Underworld Awakening (18)
• Piranha 3DD (18)
• The ABC's Of Death (18)
• Resident Evil: Retribution (15)
• Frankenweenie (PG)
• Priest (12A)
• Mother's Day (18)
• Cooties (15)

I have done research into two certificates on the BBFC website to see if 12A or 15 is more appropriate for my film.

Below is the links to the website that I did my researching on:

BBFC 12A &12

BBFC 15

12A & 12 rated certificate

Films classified 12A and video works classified 12 contain material that is not generally suitable for children aged under 12. No one younger than 12 may see a 12A film in a cinema unless accompanied by an adult. Adults planning to take a child under 12 to view a 12A film should consider whether the film is suitable for that child. 

There may be moderate language for a 12 rated film. Strong language may be permitted, depending on the manner in which it is used, who is using the language. There is moderate sex references that are permitted and sexual violence may only discreet. 

15 rated certificate

This means the rating is only for people who are 15 years old and above. 

There may be strong language. Very strong language may be permitted, depending on the manner in which it is used, who is using the language. There are no constraints on nudity in a non-sexual or educational context. There may be nudity in a sexual context but usually without strong detail. The strongest gory images are unlikely to be acceptable. Strong sadistic violence is also unlikely to be acceptable. There may be detailed verbal references to sexual violence but the depiction of sexual violence must be discreet.

Billing Analysis

I am going to be looking at three billings/credits from the films “Scary Movie 5", “The Conjuring 2" and “The Women In Black" so that I know how horror billings are structured so that when making my movie poster it will look undisputed.

After looking at these film poster billings, I have noticed that they all include the same information mostly in the same order. The information included are:

• Name of director
• Name of the main actors
• The production company or companies at the bottom of the billing
• The names of the other  crew members which took part in the making of the film, including who the music is by, the editor of the film and production designer.
• Director's name

The order may be different in different billings but at now I will know what needs to be mentioned in my billing.

My Billing

After researching existing crew who have worked within the horror genre itself, I knew what names to include in the billing and I knew what order they should be in.

Potential Crew For My Billing

I am going to use existing crew who have worked within the horror genre before because that will help make my marketing campaign seem even more logical. I used the website IMDB to research different kinds of people, for example, Editors, Producers and Casting Directors, to find some who had previously worked on many horror films. Films are most commonly marketed on the basis on the stars who appear in the films and therefore appear.

• Producer: Tobe Hooper. He produced films such as 'The Texas Chain Saw Massacre' and 'Poltergeist'.

• Director: Alexandre Aja. He directed films such as 'Piranha 3D' and 'The Hills Have Eyes'.

• Screenplay: Leigh Whannell . He transcript horror films such as 'Saw' and 'Insidious'.

• Music: Wendy Carlos. She did the music for the horror film such as the 'The Shining'.

• Writer: George A. Romero. He wrote films such as 'Land Of The Dead' and 'Night Of The Living Dead.

• Costume Designer: Sue Blane. She is best known for her costume designs for both The Rocky Horror Show and The Rocky Horror Picture Show. She made costumes for films such as 'The Draughtsman's Contract'.

• Casting Director: Terri Taylor. She was a casting director for films such as 'Ouija: Origin of Evil' and 'The Purge: Election Year'

Potential Horror Production Companies

After analysing teaser trailers, I need to now think of production companies which would be useful for my film. What I realise is that all production companies have their company at the beginning of trailer. Therefore, my production company has to be the same. This must also happen when creating my film poster because this will go at the bottom. I have looked at different Horror films and done a list of companies who could potentially distribute and produce my film.

1) Ghost House Pictures

Ghost House Pictures is an American horror movie production company that was founded in 2002 by Robert Tapert and Sam Raimi. They made films such as The Grudge (2004), Drag Me To Hell (2009), The Possession (2012) and Evil Dead (2013).

2) Dimension Films

This is an American film production company owned by The Weinstein Company. They distribute higher-budget releases than its parent company, Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures. They made films such as Scream 4 (2011), Scary Movie 5 (2013) and Halloween 2 (2009).

3) Platinum Dunes

This is an American production company created in November 2001 by filmmakers Michael Bay, Brad Fuller, and Andrew Form. The company specialises in horror films, particularly remakes. Some films which are done by this production company are Friday the 13th (2009), The Purge (2013) and The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning (2006).

4) Blumhouse Productions

This is an American film and television production company, founded by Jason Blum. Blumhouse produces low-budget horror movies, such as the Paranormal Activity (2009) and Insidious (2011).

5) Hammer Film Productions

Hammer Film Productions is a British film production company based in London. It was founded in 1934. The company is best known for a series of Gothic "Hammer Horror" films made from the mid-1950s until the 1970s.  They made film such as The Dark Road / There Is No Escape (1948), The Black Widow (1951) and The Woman in Black: Angel of Death (2014).

6) Universal Pictures

Universal Pictures are an American film studio, owned by Comcast. This is one of Hollywood's "Big Six" film studios. Its production studios are at 100 Universal City Plaza Drive in Universal City, California. Universal Studios is a member of the Motion Picture Association of America. Horror Films they have done are The Mummy's Hand (1940), Horror Island (1941) and Black Friday (2004).

7) Twisted Pictures

This is an American independent production company, mainly creating films of the horror genre. The company has also taken part in the making of the video games for Saw and Saw 2. Its founders are also part of Evolution Entertainment, another film production company which was founded in 1998. Overall, they have made films such as SAW (2004), The tortured (2010) and Catch Hell (2014).

8) Paramount Pictures

This is an American independent production company, mainly creating films of the horror genre. The company has also taken part in the making of the video games for Saw and Saw 2. Its founders are also part of Evolution Entertainment, another film production company which was founded in 1998. Overall, they have made films such as SAW (2004), The tortured (2010) and Catch Hell (2014).

Horror Trailer Analysis Conclusion

After looking and analysing at some horror trailers I have discovered the following conventions that I want to include in my trailer to make it be similar and be representable. 

• The music is usually sinister
• The trailer will include the location 
• There will be many main characters and sometimes show them at separate sides of the frame or even in separate shots at the beginning of the trailer and then gradually get closer together to help each other as the trailer progresses. 
• The characters will be happy but then suddenly be afraid.
• There is often a shot showing a recording of them recording the ghosts.
• Impact sounds or a change in music could be used to highlight the obstacle.
• It is often hinted that the characters eventually don't overcome the obstacle.
• Many emotions occurring and people dying.
• No names of the main casts are shown at the end of the trailer.

Horror Trailer Analysis 3

Below is the trailer for the film 'Texas Chainsaw 3D':

• The trailer begins with the music being calming.
• Immediately the male and female protagonists are shown as one putting her clothes back on in the van and then shows the rest of the the group.
• The obstacle is then made clear that they are going to a place they never been too.
• At this point the music is still the same with someone singing a song all the way until they arrive at a remote location.
• Extreme long shot of them entering the house.
• One of the female protagonists wonders around the house and this is shown as a close up shot.
• The music suddenly stops and then there is a loud sound of a chainsaw.
• The music instantly becomes dull.
• There is a fast fade out on an scene then rapidly moves to next scene. This creates suspense and makes the audience not see clearly due to fast pace shots.
• A montage of shots showing them escaping from the person with a chainsaw.
• The trailer ends with one of the main characters stapped near the chainsaw.

Horror Trailer Analysis 2

Below is the trailer for the film 'Paranormal Activity: The Ghost Dimension':

• The trailer begins with the mother speaking to her daughter and she is recording it through a video recorder.
• Unlike Dark Skies, the beginning scene has an aerial view of the whole road, however here it only shows inside the house and a two person shot.
• This gives the audience a hint noticing that something will change to the girl. Therefore, goes straight into the genre of horror.
• After this, they show the 2 protagonists recording every moment and suddenly creep out that the video from ages ago is hearing them. This creates an obstacle to overcome later on.
• Scenes showing them trying to leave the house. This therefore shows that they both have a close bond with each other.
• While there are different characters being seen, there are many hand held shots used through out the film seeing what they encounter. 
• At the end of trailer they show that the girl opened a path through a wall while talking to herself. This implies madness and a disturbing event.

Horror Trailer Analysis 1

Below is a teaser trailer for the movie 'Dark Skies', which came out in 2013:

• At the beginning of the trailer, it introduces the female lead and immediately establishes aspects of what she is doing.
• The purpose of this is to set up something mysterious that is going to happen- one of the obstacles that needs to be defeated. 

                                                 

• Many sound effects including birds bashing window and background noise which builds up tension.
• Scenes where both the female and male protagonist are scared.

• At the beginning, an aerial shot is used. This makes the audience locate where something bad will happen. This is followed by a close up shot of a boy.

• The music suddenly goes quite then there is a loud alarm sound, which makes the family scared.
• After this the alarm stops, there is an diminuendo sound gradually coming to an crescendo.

• There is a two shot of the children being happy.
• Then the scene fades out slowly, do create tension and suspense.

• His voiceover shows that he is worried and concerned for his neighbour.
• There is an extreme long shot of the male protagonist.