For our task we created a promotional package for our film as a whole including the trailer and following this two further forms of advertisements - a poster and the front cover of a magazine.
A promotional package enables a clear link to be set between the different types of medias used to advertise. By involving different types of media to help promote the film meant that there would be multiple ways of targeting our audience. We created the three types of advertisement using different types of software. There are certain links that are used to promote the film further and allow an audience to recognise what they see frequently and understand it's the same film. For example, films like Harry Potter use the same font for the title in the film, the trailer, the magazine articles, websites, posters and DVDs released etc to establish a name for itself and to allow it to be an easily recognisable thing for people to see.
We created the poster and magazine using different elements, firstly by doing a photoshoot and also selecting still images from our trailer to create a really effective means of advertising alongside allowing a strong link to be set inbetween the different types of adverstising.
We had to create a story board for our pre-production to allow us to see a more physical version of what we were trying to achieve from our actual production. However, when it came to the actual production it appeared that we hadn’t in fact really followed the storyboard as much as we could have. Sometimes we had deleted full scenes and other times we moved the order of scenes to make it more effective. Not only this, but we found that we could be more creative when we didn’t have a strict structure to stick to. We came up with better, shorter ideas of different clips to put into it.
Our ancillary tasks were created afterwards which therefore meant we could involve some of the things we learnt during filming and the clips we took during filming. They were really creative as we took the typical conventions of a poster and magazine and also adapted on these and took them even further.
We thought we were most creative when it came to actually filming the clips. This was because we didn’t exactly stick to the plan we had created and the ideas we came up with while we were actually filming were a lot more creative as we used the surroundings and the locations we were at the create the new ideas. We incorporated a lot of reflections which we didn’t think to put in in the planning stage which helped aid the horror genre as it was really eerie.
We followed typical conventions that appeared in both the production and editing. We knew we followed conventions because the audience understood the product and this was due to the general conventions we had put in place and retained. This was true as the conventions we copied for our trailer wouldn’t be ones that you’d find in other genres like a rom com or a comedy film. The choice of location and other elements like the make-up we used for our antagonist and the overall idea we used all contributes to create the genre of a horror.
Within the editing stage we used fast paced editing split up with slower, longer edits that allow something to build up and scare the audience when they least expect it. The music used was also eerie which allowed the whole feel of the trailer appear to fit the genre. Some of the scenes were in an isolated location, for example the alleyway scene which shows her lack of support and people around her. Not only this, but this scene was filmed with a hand-held shot which makes it appear more real as though you are the person chasing her. This is reinforced with the fact that Rosie also looks close to the centre of the camera as if she is running away from you. The editing enabled us to add things like loud bangs which contribute also to the whole feel of the production being a horror.
The outcomes we were aiming for were to be able to indicate that the genre is a horror and also to encourage the audience to go and see the film. These aims were achieved in a number of different ways. Firstly, the range of shot choices achieved this with the use of reflections of our antagonist – firstly in a puddle and also in a mirror. Not only this but the hand-held shots and the frequent crescendos that make the audience jump. The general mise-en-scene was all dull colours. It doesn’t show any sign of the weather outside being bright or sunny, which means that the pathetic fallacy matches the intended purpose and overall feel of the horror genre. The only colours that are shown are in Rosie’s clothing where she wears some bright colours in her ‘safe’ places. She does this when she is teaching and also when she is with her boyfriend – George. This could indicate that when her clothing becomes more and more dull that she is getting more and more crowded and brought down by this person haunting her.
The auxiliary tasks and the actual trailer all support
eachother in the sense that we use the same type of font and the same images
spread across them all. We did complete a photo-shoot for the posters and the
magazine as there were no images of Rosie that we thought captured exactly how
she felt within the trailer. This meant that we set up a different photo-shoot
to get appropriate photos and create the most effective auxiliary tasks we
could do.
However, the image of our antagonist – Layla, was taken from
the production as we thought this was a significant image that people will
remember from the trailer. He face is slightly covered and she looks
threatening. Here we thought this grabbed the general essence of the antagonist
which therefore meant we didn’t need to hold a photo-shoot in order to grab
this image.
Overall, the combination of three was very effective as they
all help promote each-other. By having the central image of Rosie in the poster
and the magazine makes them relate to each-other and for people to
automatically associate them with one another. Each aspect of the three has had
a lot of time and effort put into it and they all relate to each-other with their content and general visual layout.
