EVALUATION THREE: How alike is your film poster and magazines are your ancillary texts?

MAGAZINE: 
Creating our magazine was a tricky process, as we wanted it to appear as realistic as possible. We didn't have any software's that speciallised in making magazines, so this meant that we had to essentially create a magazine structure all from scratch. his is a photograph of our magazine front cover. We took a lot of inspiration from the international film magazine- 'EMPIRE', as it had a lot of conventions that we feel fitted well to our magazine. For example, having a bold title and subtext on the sides of the poster. The cover presents the clown in the centre of the page, creating a dominating composition against the background of the image. We decided to use a long shot of the clown for the front cover of our magazine. This was because it helped to demonstrate to the audience the clowns body language, in which the clown is holding the prop of a balloon and stood as if its frozen in a particular frame. This gives the illusion of dehumanisation, as it appears like the clown is paranormal due to its posture, which successfully conforms to the conventions of a horror protagonist. We used the prop of a balloon on the cover, as we feel that this is a stereotypical convention that clowns have attached to them- usually to give out to young children to entertain them. We felt that this would be a successful idea to bring into the magazine. The MES of the costume can be considered here, with the colour of the clothing. The clown is wearing an all black outfit, which is a stereotypical convention of a protagonist from a horror film, as it almost blocks our any reconciliation of their identity. In the film industry, protagonists are usually not identified until the end, so the blocking out of their identity cements the idea of mystery, an aspect that is very common in horror films, because of the 'fear of the unknown'. In addition, the colour black connotes ideas of power and death, which are other aspects that are predominant in horror films. 

We used a bold title at the top, centre of the page. This makes the title appear dominating, and gives the poster an authoritative composition. Film magazine covers, usually have the title of the magazine in this location, as it helps to make it easy to locate on a magazine shelf. Makers want audiences to buy their magazine, so why not make it bold and eccentric? We decided to name our poster 'Diverse' Diverse means "showing a great deal of variety; very different."- Google Definitions. So this seemed like a good name to call our magazine cover, as it adds our own twist and individuality to the magazine. The font we chose was bold and had extended lines on the curves of the letters, adding an archaic and old fashioned feel to the writing, which contrasts with the historical conventions connected to the clown of being seen as symbol of entertainment. At the bottom of the page, we incorporated the title of our film 'Joke's On You'. This is an important convention to include, as film makers want the title of the film to be spread and talked about, especially on huge platforms such as social media, whereby fan accounts and hashtags get the word spreading. This helps to get the film grossing, the more people talking about it, the more people will want to see the film/watch the trailer. Therefore, we decided to make the font big, and the same font that is at the end of our trailer. The font is almost child-like and has a fun twist on it, which helps to play on the idea of the clown being a symbol for children. Again, we used the letter 'O' in the word 'Joke's' to be replaced with a balloon as we feel that this is a fun twist to add, as it helps to add the idea of the clown back into the poster. We also included a bar code on the bottom right hand corner of the magazine. All magazines have a bar code, and we wanted our magazine to look as realistic and professional as possible. We didn't want it to be too recognisable, as we feel that it is not that significant and important to have on the page.  The colour scheme on the poster is monochromatic. We feel that this added strong, tonal contrasts to the poster that would help to differentiate it, if it were on a shelf with other magazines. Furthermore, the idea of 'black against white' could be seen in a metaphorical sense as 'good vs evil' which is the predominant aspect that is demonstrated in horror films. We included subtext o the sides of our magazine as this is a convention that is used on posters to add extra information of what is inside the magazine. For example, we used subtext reading 'The recent remake of the 1990 hit' which is an effective way to invite audiences as this points and implies at Stephen King's 'IT' which was very successful in the film industry, therefore making audiences want to watch our film. 

 POSTER:
Our film poster I feel was the mot fun to create and play around with. Although there are stereotypical conventions that should be followed in order to create a successful poster, we felt that w could experiment a lot with with different software's and platforms in order to create an enticing trailer. Our main inspiration for our trailer was from the clown horror 'INSANE' directed by, Massimiliano Cerchi in 2016. Similarly, both of our trailers were based on the same sub-genre
- a clown horror- therefore we were able to pick up similar techniques to make our poster as 
scary and eerie as possible.The film poster is very similar to the trailer in a way. In the sense that, the film poster and the trailer need to give the audience an idea to what the film is about, without giving too much away. We want to engage our audience and entice them into the idea of the clown, but at the same time, not release too much information so that the plot and basic narrative of the film is given away. 

Regarding the graphology, of the poster, the general layout is effective and adheres to the horror film conventions. Firstly, the composition of the poster is effective. The most recognisable feature to notice is how only half of the clown face is present on the screen. This is a clever way to entice the audience into the film. This is because only being able to see half of a figures generates emotions and connotations of mystery and the unknown- features that are witnessed in horror films. This is included on the poster, as the audience may question as to why only half of the face is shown. The title of the film is placed in the centre, middle part of the poster. This is the strongest part of the poster, as the audience are going to be naturally drawn to the middle and the largest part of the poster. This is an idea that we will feature in our poster, as we feel that this convention is strong and a successful way to create a climax as well as involve our audience. 

Secondly, the colour scheme used. The three colours used here are black, red and white. The white and the black completely juxtapose each other, creating strong, tonal contrasts on the page that help to fixate the audience. The majority of the poster is black, excluding the left hand side. The colour black connotes aspects such as: Power, death, mystery and murder, all of which are negative connotations that would be expected to be featured in a horror film/trailer. Furthermore, the colour black helps to create anticipation and a climax. This is because the colour black restricts many things from being seen, therefore creating an ominous and creepy atmosphere. The colour of the clown is white, with black markings on the mouth, nose and eyes. This is because the colouring of the poster has been changed to a monochromatic theme. This is effective, as it creates strong contrasts and tones that help to engage the audience, due to the boldness of the colours.  The last colour shown on the screen is red, which is used for the title and some of the small prints such as the actors names, and the production company. The colour red connotes danger and blood, again, aspects that would stereo typically be expected in a horror film. In addition, the colour red is bright and strong, the complete opposite to the other colours used on the poster so it helps to bring the composition of them forwards. This is an important factor, especially when considering the title as this is the main focus point in the screen. We have learnt to use this on our poster when we create ours, as is helps to make the audience aware of what the film is about.  The other parts that are shown in red is the word 'FILMZ' and the surnames of the actors/actresses featured in the film. This is effective, as a lot of the time, the surname is the most recognisable part of the actor. If a successful actor is featured in a film, then it helps the film to have a USP, which helps grossing film profits in the box office. 

The placement of the title is also an important factor to conisder. We wanted to play on the idea of weirdness and unfamilarality, as clowns are seen to be odd and creepy. Therefore, we decided to place the title of our film on the side of the poster. This is effective, because to be able to read the title, the audience would have to tilt their head, much like what the clown is doing in the trailer and in the magazine cover. This could further suggest that the audience are the clown, and that the audience are part of all the production. 

EVALUATION TWO: How does your use of sound compare with trailers similar to your genre?

Sound is a dominating aspect in the film industry, and it essentially pulls the whole film together, can you imagine an intense murder scene without any screams, soundtrack or effects? Sound adds drama, effect and emphasise, which when producing a horror trailer, is imperative to grip and entice our audience. In our trailer we included diegetic and non diegetic sound, as well as a soundtrack and effects. All these contributed together to create our film. The Folley process is a method whereby everyday objects are used to make sound effects. A common example is snapping a carrot in half and replacing that sound with a bone breaking. In our production, we did not use the 'Folley Process' as it would have been too long to create the exact sound effects that we wanted, instead, it was a lot easier to find the required effects on software's such as Youtube. 

 At the beginning of our trailer where are titles are presented on the screen, we used a sound effect of a loud, thud sound. This immediatley sets the scene, especially, as the first shot shown is an establishing, panning shot of a house, which makes the audience initiall;y think that the house is not reflected as a positive or optimistic place. This already conforms to a horror film, as houses are usually the main factor that is haunted. For example, in Paranormal Activity and The Woman In Black. The thud sound then faded out, and we hear a clock ticking really quickly. This suggests to the audience that something is about to happen. A clock ticking can connote to the idea of a countdown, such as a bomb, or before something is going to end. This builds up a climax or as Tovorodo's states, 'Starting the equilibrium'. As the screen then fades into our first shot, all the sound effects are cut out, and the audience are left to hear diegetic music from a radio being played. The type of music we chose was jazz, as this is seen as joyful and relaxing music,firstly this directly juxtaposes with the eerie thud sound, and secondly, makes the house seem ordinary and relatable as many houses have background music playing. So if jazz music is joyful, why include it in a horror film? Modern day horror films play on the idea of positive things being turned evil and being perceived as a negative thing. For example in the Chucky franchise, a child's doll becomes possessed, and in the woman in black, child's toys such as, a rocking horse and a jack in the box move and play music on their own- suggesting that there is a paranormal nature to the film. Linking back to sound in horror films, in Insidious, there is positive music being played called 'Tip toe through the tulips' which creates mystery and tension as positive music is being played whilst a demon is in the house. In our trailer, we linked this idea to the clown. At the end of our trailer, where the last record player scene is shown with the end titles, we included circus clown music. This links to the trailer, as the antagonist is the clown in the film, but also is an effective way to end the trailer as it creates confusion to the audience of how the film just fades out with circus music. This is an effective way to get the audience to go and see the film as, they will want to know what happens next. Leaving a trailer on a cliff hanger is very effective way to make the audience go and see your film. 

The soundtrack in our production fades in just before half way. The soundtrack was a hard thing to get right, as he had to get it to suit the clown horror genre. We found a non-copyrighted soundtrack of chimey music. The chimey music already shows a direct link to the clown, as it sounds like music that would be played at a circus-where clowns are usually associated to be. At the end of the soundtrack, there is a young girls voice saying 'follow me!' This plays on the idea of children in our trailer. In some horror films children are used to create a creepy atmosphere. For example, in 'The Orphan' and 'The Ring'. Children are associated with being innocent and vulnerable, which when possessed, they are the stark opposite. This links to the idea of binary oppositions, through 'good and evil' which helps to create a daunting atmosphere. Our soundtrack can link to our inspiration film 'IT', directed by Stephen King. This film opens with a fast paced chiming noise. The music gradually gets louder and increases in tempo, which helps to create a dramatic climax.

We used the sound effect of a violin being played at a high pitch. A violin is seen as a classical instrument, similar to the jazz music played at the beginning of the film. The pitch at which the violin is played is almost unbearable to hear, as it's almost like it's screaching. This conforms to a horror film, as weird, unbearable sounds can connote to the unknown and create an ominous, paranormal atmosphere. The violin sound, is presented when the full image of the clown is displayed for the first time, which makes the audience immediately realise that the clown is a negative thing. We also used a sound effect of a hear beating rapidly and quickly. This gave the effect that someone was in a frantic rush or scared (as your heart rate rises when you feel fear). However, when we placed the heartbeat sound into the trailer, we wanted it to be as dramatic and tense as possible. Therefore, we cut out all other sounds and just had the heart beat playing. This is mainly shown when the girls are running away, and trying to get away in the car. This is effective, as it suggests that the girls are in a rush/trying to get away which means their heart rates would be rising. 

EVALUATION ONE: Have you subverted or conformed to stereotypes typical of your genre?

For our trailer, our chosen genre was horror. Horror films are rated to be the third most watched films in the world, with action and adventure first, followed by comedy second. Through numerous research we were able to find and learn about specific conventions and stereotypes relating to the four key areas of, MES, Sound, Editing and Camera to what makes a successful horror trailer. Some examples included, quick and fast paced editing so that the audience are left feeling confused and puzzled, which generates the emotion of mystery, which keeps the audience engaged and fixated. Dark clothing to be worn by the antagonist to emphasise a hidden identity, which further adds mystery  to entice our audience. We used binary oppositions in our trailer between 'good' and 'evil' between the hugely  terrifying clown and the three innocent,vulnerable girls. This is a stereotypical convention used in horror films to help set the scene.

We conformed and subverted to the stereotypes of a horror in our trailer.

Sound was a key area of where conventional expectations were met and conformed to. Adding sound was the final step to making our trailer, so we had ensure that all the footage and editing was complete before pasting in any sound, as this would jumble up our timeline and move everything around. Sound in horror films is a primary element to what makes the audience feel scared. Without sound, the audience would not feel as on edge or tense, so it was imperative that we one, had appropriate music and two, was fitted into the correct area. We used a mixture of diegetic and non-diegetic sound to make our trailer seem as realistic as possible. In the opening to our trailer, there is an eerie thud sound, as our institutions are introduced. This thud conforms to a horror trailer, it sets the mood that this is not a positive or optimistic location. Films such as Sinister, The conjuring and Insidious all feature this particular sound effect, which are all successful, box office hits under the horror title. The opening, establishing shot opens with diegetic sound of a radio playing jazz music. Initially, this would be seen to subvert to a horror trailer, as jazz is seen to be joyful and happy music, and horror films are the stark opposite of that. However, modern day horror films play on the idea of ordinary things, to make audience feel enticed as things almost seem 'too normal' before what Todorov's would call a 'disruption of the equilibrium', whereby an action causes a dip in the trailer, changing the initial narrative of the film. We also used sound effects in our trailer, which also conformed to the stereotypes of a horror film. We used a heartbeat sound towards the end of the trailer, to build up tension. Building tension towards the end is an effective way to make the audience go and see the film. The heart beat connotes to the idea that someone is feeling anxious, the heartbeat is fairly quick which accentuates the idea that someone is feeling scared- a common attribute and emotion that is expressed in horror films. Films such as 'IT' and ' The Shining' have used the heartbeat sound effect, which were also very successful horror films.

Costume also displayed a key attribute in our trailer. As we did a clown horror, we had to almost subvert and steer away from the typical soul destroying and blood thirsty demons hunting and possessing innocent people, but rather, look at a clown and how we can get the clown to be perceived as 'scary'. We took a lot of inspiration from the 1986 classic, 'IT' by Stephen King. This displayed a clown in a full on clown outfit, however we subverted from this idea, primarily because it was expensive to buy the full outfit and was too hard finding a place to buy it. Therefore, we had to come up with a way in which we could still make a clown look like a clown and be terrifying. We brought  mask from a store, which was slightly over sized, which conformed to a horror as it almost showed the idea of dehumanization, and also had stereotypical conventions of a clown appearance, such as, a red nose, white skin and extended smile. We then dressed our antagonist in black clothing, as this connotes to power, mystery and darkness which all conform to a horror film. The girls were dressed in simplistic clothing, such as jeans and t.shirts, basic clothing that teenage girls would wear. The effect of this meant that the girls appeared relatable and vulnerable, which helped to prey on the personas of the three girls, displaying them as innocent and helpless, which also conforms to horror films of having a innocent girl, such The Orphan and Would you Rather.

Editing was a way where we could play around and experiment to create tension and fear for our audience. We used a non additive dissolve numerous times in the trailer, to add a creepy and paranormal atmosphere. This can be displayed in the scene with the clown on the swing. As the swing is swinging back and forth, we faded in a non additive dissolve to merge two clips over the top of one and other.  This conformed to a horror film as the effect made the clown appear like it could be in two places at once, something that is not considered 'normal' in the human world, suggesting a paranormal and scary vibe being created. We used fast paced editing towards the end of the trailer, which conforms to a horror film as fast editing generates confusion, so this not only makes our audience want to see our film so they can discover what will happen, but also creates tension and fear of when the fast building of editing is going to end.

There were aspects in our trailer that were subverted to, and this came down to a particular location used in the trailer. We used a park as a scene where the clown is displayed swinging on a swing slowly, and then cutting to a scene where the clown is no longer shown. This created the paranormal vibe that we waned, but the general location of the park i feel subverts to a horror film. Parks are primarily made as an entertainment factor for young kids to run around, have fun and enjoy themselves, so why include this in a horror trailer? We figured that because clowns are historically associated with children, as they were seen to tell jokes and give balloons out to them, we wanted to put the clown in a location where children would go. We almost put two and two together, and put completely juxtaposing things together to create an uneasy atmosphere. Although a park subverts to a horror film, we made it work seeing a we were filming at night and there was nobody else in the shot.

PURPLE LAKE PRODUCTIONS BRINGS YOU: OUR FINAL TRAILER

PURPLE LAKE PRODUCTIONS BRINGS YOU: OUR POSTER

Analysis of our Magazine Cover

This is a photograph of our magazine front cover. We took a lot of inspiration from the international film magazine- 'EMPIRE', as it had a lot of conventions that we feel fitted well to our magazine. For example, having a bold title and subtext on the sides of the poster. The cover presents the clown in the centre of the page, creating a dominating composition against the background of the image. We decided to use a long shot of the clown for the front cover of our magazine. This was because it helped to demonstrate to the audience the clowns body language, in which the clown is holding the prop of a balloon and stood as if its frozen in a particular frame. This gives the illusion of dehumanisation, as it appears like the clown is paranormal due to its posture, which successfully conforms to the conventions of a horror protagonist. We used the prop of a balloon on the cover, as we feel that this is a stereotypical convention that clowns have attached to them- usually to give out to young children to entertain them. We felt that this would be a successful idea to bring into the magazine. The MES of the costume can be considered here, with the colour of the clothing. The clown is wearing an all black outfit, which is a stereotypical convention of a protagonist from a horror film, as it almost blocks our any reconciliation of their identity. In the film industry, protagonists are usually not identified until the end, so the blocking out of their identity cements the idea of mystery, an aspect that is very common in horror films, because of the 'fear of the unknown'. In addition, the colour black connotes ideas of power and death, which are other aspects that are predominant in horror films. 

We used a bold title at the top, centre of the page. This makes the title appear dominating, and gives the poster an authoritative composition. Film magazine covers, usually have the title of the magazine in this location, as it helps to make it easy to locate on a magazine shelf. Makers want audiences to buy their magazine, so why not make it bold and eccentric? We decided to name our poster 'Diverse' Diverse means "showing a great deal of variety; very different."- Google Definitions. So this seemed like a good name to call our magazine cover, as it adds our own twist and individuality to the magazine. The font we chose was bold and had extended lines on the curves of the letters, adding an archaic and old fashioned feel to the writing, which contrasts with the historical conventions connected to the clown of being seen as symbol of entertainment. At the bottom of the page, we incorporated the title of our film 'Joke's On You'. This is an important convention to include, as film makers want the title of the film to be spread and talked about, especially on huge platforms such as social media, whereby fan accounts and hashtags get the word spreading. This helps to get the film grossing, the more people talking about it, the more people will want to see the film/watch the trailer. Therefore, we decided to make the font big, and the same font that is at the end of our trailer. The font is almost child-like and has a fun twist on it, which helps to play on the idea of the clown being a symbol for children. Again, we used the letter 'O' in the word 'Joke's' to be replaced with a balloon as we feel that this is a fun twist to add, as it helps to add the idea of the clown back into the poster. We also included a bar code on the bottom right hand corner of the magazine. All magazines have a bar code, and we wanted our magazine to look as realistic and professional as possible. We didn't want it to be too recognisable, as we feel that it is not that significant and important to have on the page.  The colour scheme on the poster is monochromatic. We feel that this added strong, tonal contrasts to the poster that would help to differentiate it, if it were on a shelf with other magazines. Furthermore, the idea of 'black against white' could be seen in a metaphorical sense as 'good vs evil' which is the predominant aspect that is demonstrated in horror films. We included subtext o the sides of our magazine as this is a convention that is used on posters to add extra information of what is inside the magazine. For example, we used subtext reading 'The recent remake of the 1990 hit' which is an effective way to invite audiences as this points and implies at Stephen King's 'IT' which was very successful in the film industry, therefore making audiences want to watch our film. 

PURPLE LAKE PRODUCTIONS BRINGS YOU: Our Magazine