There are many ways in which my products use, develop and challenge the codes and conventions of real media products. In order to establish these codes and conventions it was necessary for me and the group to firstly decide on a genre for the film in which our viral campaign will be advertising. Once this was determined such codes and conventions of the genre of the film could be applied to all of the products. The codes and conventions for the genre of the film have been very influential in the developing of the products.
With regards to the trailer much preproduction research went into identifying common codes and conventions of our chosen genre horror. One form of research which the group carried out was using YouTube to view trailers produced for cinematic viewing of popular horror films. The film trailers that we researched include ‘The Crazies’, 'Dawn of the Dead’ and 'The Hills Have Eyes’. All of which have had a large influential effect on the production of our trailer for the film ‘Locked Away’. Other film trailers were reviewed as part of the research process but it was carried out in less detail.
Immediately
the first thing which strikes me as an important convention of all horror films is the camera work. It was noted by me and the group that within many horror films and their trailers there is a considerable amount of close ups used throughout them. Thus as a group we decided that it would be a vital convention to include within our own trailer. The reason for this being that it is the most intimate way of representing the characters emotion. Essentially as a media producer you want the audience to identify with the character because this helps to build a relationship between the audience and what is being represented on the screen making it more realistic. This helps to build the enigma which is what hooks the audience member and acts as an incentive to go and see the film in the cinema. Fundamentally this is the key objective of the media producer as the media is a business and its products need to make money. Within our own trailer as a group we have close ups strategically placed to either incite fear or help build enigma in particularly tense scenes. I was especially pleased with the way in which our trailer builds enigma through the use of close up camerawork.Also with reference to camerawork our research informed us
that the use of hand held camera work was very common and effective if appropriately used. To begin with personally I felt that the use of hand held camerawork would not be appropriate as my final product for the foundation portfolio was mostly filmed using it and I was not satisfied with our end result. However due to the fact that the majority of the group felt that the use of handheld camerawork would be most effective I was willing to try it. As I knew that if the shot did not turn out the way we had expected then both of them would be willing to experiment with me to improve the shot and achieve the effect we were aiming for. Additionally another reason why I was willing to attempt handheld footage was because since the foundation portfolio we have acquired more experience when using cameras and as a result of this our judgement over good and poor footage had improved. Through the use of similar styles of camerawork for our trailer it has resulted in the films genre being easily recognisable to audience members.Here is my final opening sequence for the foundation portfolio
For me it was important to get the correct use of camera shots for the genre as my preliminary exercise during the foundation portfolio challenged many of them and effectively my product was misunderstood by the audience. The same could also be said for my foundation portfolio final piece as I feel we did not use enough of the correct shots and it was less effective than I would have hoped for. With reference to the trailer for my advanced portfolio I feel that with reference to the style of shots and camerawork that indeed our trailer builds enigma in the correct way for the genre horror.
As a group this was the way which we organised the sequecne of shots during the editing process
Another convention of editing in which we have used within our own trailer is the pace of a horror film trailer. It was distinguished that many horror film trailers started off fairly slowly setting the scene and then the pace quickens towards the end where much of the tension and enigma is built. The reason this is done is so that again the audience can build a relationship and identify with the characters. This helps make what is being represented on the screen more realistic to the audience and then when the pace quickens the actions, all the more shocking because they can personally identify with what is being represented. As a group we decided that we would use this method and in order to make this possible during the editing process we filmed each shot a number of times with long freezes with actors in character at the end of each one. This enabled our editor to produce a tightly edited product. This is how we have quickened the pace of the shots towards the end by cutting them so they only appear for a couple of seconds. With a film trailer this is an appropriate method of editing as shot sequences do not need to be in an order which makes sense. To begin with as a group we struggled to get our heads around this concept and it was necessary for us to re film with the objective of getting more footage. All in all though I am pleased with overall sequence of scenes because it makes our product less like an opening sequence and more like a trailer, which was our intension.
It was also during the editing process that we incorporated our credits. It was through the group’s research into trailers for horror movies that we established that there were certain codes and conventions for the order and their lexical styles. As the screen writer to begin with my initial idea was to have all of the credits at the beginning of the trailer however a group member pointed out to me that very rarely do all of the credits appear at the beginning they are strategically placed throughout the trailer. In agreement with him it was then that I began to consider the strategical placing of our credits. For instance I observed that the name of the film the trailer is advertising goes towards the end of the trailer. With this in mind it occurred that the reason for this would be because they want the audience to remember the title of the film. The objective of the trailer is to sell it to the audience.
Another convention in which we have followed as a group with regards to the credits for the trailer is the colour codes which were dictated to us by the genre of the film. Throughout our credits are black with white text because these colours together make text easy to read at a glance. Furthermore the text which is contained on the screen starts midway down and only contains a few words. The reason for this being that we do not want to bombard the audience with too much information and it should be easy to read within a few seconds. The information which is included in the credits is all specifically selected to target an audience. For example we have included the names of some key actors which would appeal to audience members who see films containing certain actors because they like their previous work. As a group we have followed these conventions with regards to the credits because they are an ideal way of attracting specific audience members.With consideration to mise-en-scene within our trailer for the film ‘Locked Away’ there are again many codes and conventions which we have applied to our product and developed. One thing that we attempted to recreate within our trailer is the use of poor lighting. This is used in horror films and trailers to help build enigma and tension through the idea of pathetic fallacy. However unfortunately we have in some scenes been able to create a representation of poor lighting essentially though it could be considered too dark. Additionally because we were unable to recreate it at all locations this can be considered a continuity error. Moreover we were relying on natural light and because we had to refilm shots on a number of occasions. There is very little we could have done about the difference in lighting.
Here is a photograph of the cast to demonstrateage ranges within the college
Also in relation to mise-en-scene and codes and conventions it is true to say that with regards to actors and their physical appearances we did comply with that convention. The reason for this being that most college students are of the age which is commonly represented within horror films as the victims. This convention was easily achieved by the group as being college students ourselves we had a wide selection of people to ask to perform in our production. Moreover the actors selected were told to wear clothes that they would wear every day. This essentially should enable the audience to draw links with the characters and themselves as being ‘normal’ as they are all part of the same if not similar societal culture; this is one reason for us selecting college students as actors. To add to this the actors used within our film trailer share the same career status as the target audience. This again helps to build a relationship between the audience and what is being represented.
Additionally another convention in which we used and developed within our own trailer is the fact that throughout the trailer we do not reveal the identity of the antagonists. The reason we have done this is because it is a prime way to build enigma amongst the audience. As it is a common trait of human nature that we fear the unknown. Furthermore by not revealing the antagonists face it dehumanises the character which runs alongside the idea that his actions are not that of an average person. All of which helps to build the enigma further within our trailer.
Another code and convention of horror films is the use of
a weapon in order to carry out the action. Society has inbuilt through our culture that weapons automatically indicate trouble and danger. For this reason picturing the knife in certain shots in the trailer have allowed us as media producers to incite this natural fear and therefore build enigma amongst the audience members.This convention that we have used within our trailer especially applies to horror film trailers as it was noted that much of the footage contained in these trailers was acts of random chaos to shock and frighten the audience as they would not be expecting it. One way in which we developed this convention was by having a chair thrown down a flight of stairs in order to break the sequence of scenes up. It is an act of random chaos which the audience members would not be expecting. The reason we have used it is because it helps to break and increase tension and enigma and also produces an emotive response from the audience.
The use of emotive music and sound is a very valuable way in which media producers build enigma amongst the audience. As a group we decided that we to would recreate this process of building enigma in our own trailer. Fundamentally with consideration to sound this is another convention which we have used within our own product that was influenced by already existing media texts. Much effort has been put in by the group to produce a soundtrack which we have used as our emotive music. All of the music featured on our trailer is original and developed by a member of our group who experimented with tracks and presented them to the group who then decided on what would be most appropriate. The same can
be said for the sound effects featured on our trailer. Each one was developed in the sound studio by the group. The reason why we decided to use music to build tension in our trailer is because we want our trailer to be interesting for the audience to watch as well as listen to. On a cinematic screen it would be amongst other trailers for other films and we wanted ours to stand out. As a group we did not feel that the use of silence would provide a similar effect as there is very little speech and some audience members may not interoperate our trailer correctly.Finally a common convention of trailers in general is the use of a voiceover to narrate information for the audience. As a group we decided to incorporate a voice over into our own trailer. The reason for this being that it broadens our audiences as it would allow for somebody with impaired vision to enjoy our trailer as well. Furthermore audience members can filter what they want to see and by including the use of a voiceover it almost forces the audience to absorb the information.
It was imperative that our trailer included codes and conventions of the genre horror as it is through these that the audience recognise what is being represented to them. It is through codes and conventions that audience members establish whether or not they enjoy that particular genre of film. They essentially are what make a film successful and this is a primary aim of media text producers.
With consideration to my radio advertisement for the film ‘Locked Away’ many of the codes and conventions of sounds for the trailer can be applied to the sound conventions of the radio advertisement. However there are different legal restrictions in place for radio advertisements and these too form the basis for some of the codes and conventions.
This is certainly true for the use of sound effects. A legal requirement for a radio advertisement which applies especially to radio advertisements for horror films is that the uses of sudden loud sounds are prohibited. Often in horror film trailers there is use of sudden loud noises, these are used to provoke an emotional response from the audience. For our radio advertisement we would have to make any use of sound gradual.
One convention in which the group decided to use was the use of emotive music to build enigma. It does this through the use of minor notes which enable the audience to identify with the genre. The music featured on our radio advertisement is the same as the sound track for our trailer and this draws links to our film trailer. The reason that we decided to use emotive music is because music is easily gradually introduced to a media text. This allowed us to use sound without breaking any advertising regulations. Secondly the use of emotive music is a common convention of the genre horror. On the other hand with consideration to sound and the genre horror another code and convention is the use of silence. As a group we decided that the use of silence on a radio advertisement would not be appropriate to advertise the film ‘Locked Away’ because within the actual trailer music is used and to then use silence might confuse the audience and they might not be able to draw the connection between the two products.Furthermore another convention of radio in which we have used is the use of a voice over to provide the information about the film such as the date of release and title. The reason behind this being that people are more likely to remember certain information if they have been exposed to it a number of times. In essence as a group we have used the radio advertisement not only to advertise the film but all of the products produced for our viral campaigns. We have done this by including catch phrases from reviews by popular film magazines about the film ‘Locked Away’ and mentioning the website as a way to find out more about the film. The reason for this being that our task for the advanced portfolio was to produce a viral campaign and viral campaign products complement each other.
Additionally another convention of the radio which we have used on our radio advertisement is the fact that our certification for the film is featured at the very end of the product. The reason for this being that it is a key piece of information however due to the genre of the film audience members should already be able to establish that it will be an age restricted product. Also it was noted by the group that it is normally in a different voice from that of the voice over. In an attempt to recreate a product close to a real life product we decided to use a female voice to announce this.
When considering the codes and conventions of my magazine cover it would appear that they were governed firstly like all of the products I have created by the genre of the film and secondly by the conventions of the magazine itself. Through much research I decided that the best magazine brand to promote my film would be ‘Sight and Sound’ who have many conventions of their own which they follow as it helps establish the magazines brand. As a result of this it was necessary to incorporate the conventions of the genre in an appropriate style which fits in with the conventions of the brand of ‘Sight and Sound’.
One convention that I have used which is governed by the codes and conventions of the layout of ‘Sight and Sound’ is the fact that my photograph used to promote the film ‘Locked Away’ should not overlap the title or brand of the magazine. The reason for this being that the British Film Institute has built themselves a respected brand which is recognised for its title and it demonstrates the brands importance. Additionally it is noted that the title is always in the top left of the magazine. The reason for this being that western society reads from left to right and the power structures of the page are based upon this principle. It is due to this fact that I have tried to place my titles for my magazine cover in roughly the same position and this too could be considered a convention of ‘Sight and Sound’ which I have used.
To add to this another convention that I have used which was influenced by the codes and conventions of ‘Sight and Sound’ is the type of background I have used. It was noted by me that although fairly plain backgrounds were used they were not normally of a block colour. This is why I decided to use the gradient tool on Photoshop to have the colour fading. As this added some texture to the background and made it more aesthetically pleasing.
With focus still on the background, the colour was not informed through conventions of ‘Sight and Sound’ but by the film it is promptings genre. Effectively the mise-en-scene codes and conventions of the films genre horror have a large influence over the aesthetics of the cover. The c
olours most readily associated with horror films are black, red and other dark colours. For this reason I decided to make the background black in order to fulfil a dark colour scheme. Fundamentally this will enable the audience to establish the genre of the film without having to read the magazine.When compared to issues of ‘Empire’ it becomes apparent that ‘Sight and Sound’ use considerable fewer headings on their front covers. I have used this convention on my own product to help pursue the idea that my magazine cover is a real product. Another code and convention of ‘Sight and Sound’ which occurs on a wide range of editions is the use of the sub heading ‘plus’ to instigate a list of features. This is one way in which they are able to keep the number of separate sub headings at a minimum. I have included this on my magazine cover to help make by product look more realistic.
Unlike ‘Empire’, ‘Sight and Sound’ use a variety of serif and non serif fonts and as a result of this I have been able to use fonts that are most suited to the genre. Therefore it can be said that in relation to the fonts used on the magazine cover I have been able to follow the conventions of the genre horror.
Although the positioning and lexical style are both governed by the style of ‘Sight and Sound’ with regards to headings the colour of them is influenced by the genre of the film which it is promoting as well. It is due to the fact that my background is black that I have alternated between the use of the colour red and white. The reason for this being that they can be associated with the genre horror as a common convention and therefore I felt them to be most appropriate.
Moreover another convention of ‘Sight and Sound’ relates to the photograph
used on the front cover. All of my research into my case study materials suggested that the photographs were taken of the actors on set in character. For this reason I have chosen a photograph where all of the actors are on set and in character. To add to this the photograph has quite obviously been posed for which would appear to be a convention of the photographs used by ‘Sight and Sound’ on their front covers. Again I have used this convention in order to make my product look more realistic to audience members.Through the use of all the conventions governed by ‘Sight and Sound’ it has enabled me to produce a realistic representation of a magazine cover produced for the film magazine ‘Sight and Sound’. To add to this essentially any convention governed by the genre has informed the aesthetics of the magazine cover and formed the basis of conventions identifying the genre of the film it is promoting.
Finally when considering the codes and convention that I have used when designing my website aesthetically it can be said to have been influenced by the films genre. Similar to magazines websites have their own set of conventions to follow and they to have had an influence on the design of my website.
One convention of the genre horror that I have incorporated onto my own website is the use of a black and red colour scheme. These are common colour conventions of the genre horror. The reason I have included these colour into the colour scheme is so that audience members will instantly identify with the genre of the film that the website is promoting. Furthermore by using a similar colour scheme to that of my magazine draws links between the products as a viral campaign.
Again with regards to using conventions form the genre horror I have chosen to use a picture and have it central in black and white. The reason for this being that it desexualises the image and fu
rthermore it makes the picture less of a dominant feature on the page. The reason for this being that I want the audience to be drawn towards the title of the film and the links about it.A convention of websites in general which I have used on my website is the use individual links that navigate the user away from the home page in order to obtain extra information about the film. Additionally I have also included links to social networking sites that allow the audience to follow the progression of the film from production, distribution and exhibition. The reason I have included such links is because social networking sites are forums for the target audience to express a collective identity and discuss my film. They provide a valuable source of feedback.
The last convention which I have used has been influenced from real life media texts and therefore I feel it is a mixture of conventions from websites in general and that of the genre of the film. The convention that I have included is the use of credits at the bottom of the page. The reason this is included is because it is another attempt to attract an audience. As some audience members will go and see a film because of who it was produced by or acting in it because they have enjoyed their previous works.
Out of all of the task I have been required to complete creating the webpage has been the most challenging because essentially the genre informs the conventions for aesthetics and websites in general inform the convention of content. Yet essentially there are no rules about what not to do and there is a large degree of creativity involved when designing a website.
As a whole I am very pleased with the products I have produced for my viral campaign for the film ‘Locked Away’. I feel that because I have paid specific attention to the codes and conventions for each individual product that I have been able to produce a well organised and recognisable brand for the film ‘Locked Away’. Much of the synergistic relationships have been built using codes and convention s of the genre horror. The reason for this being that the trailer is the focal point of the viral campaign to advertise the film.
The first way in which I have been able to do this was by determining a play on words in relation to the synopsis to form the title of the film. From this as a group for our products that contained audio, we were able to link them through the sound effects of clattering keys. As this sparks connotations of the idea of being lock in. This audio track is featured on both our trailer and radio advertisement for the film ‘Locked Away’. The reason in which we developed this was because we were fully aware from the start that not all of our products would be able to be visually linked. To further our synergistic relationship between our products that contained audio we also developed a soundtrack which would act as the enigma building music within our trailer and radio advertisement.
Independently as well I felt that in order to link our radio advertisement with the rest of the campaign was important. So essentially I developed a script for it which mentioned both the possible magazine brands which members of the group were l
ikely to use and a communal website address.In relation to a synergistic relationship built between the visual texts this was much more simply achieved. The reason for this being that the genre of a film being promoted predominately acts as the main influence with regards to anything aesthetically. All colour schemes and fonts can be seen to have influences in the films genre being promoted. For instance the colour scheme on both of my print texts this being my magazine cover and webpage all relate back to common association with horror films. As the colour red is the colour of blood and much blood is
indicated to be split in our trailer and the colour black promotes this idea of evil and darkness. All of which are conventions for horror films. By using the same if not similar colour schemes allows an audience member to identify the films genre and then the film ‘Locked Away’. Additionally by using a similar colour scheme on my products creates continuity which further creates a synergistic relationship.Another way in which a synergistic relationship has been built for my visual texts is simply the title of the film occurring on each one. Working in the same way is this idea that I have used a catch phrase from the voice over script ‘someone must pay’. Audience members will associate that catch phrase with my trailer for the film ‘Locked Away’ and fundamentally be drawn to go and see it at the cinema.
As a media producer I am aware that my products will come under criticism which should be taken as constructive. Since completing my viral campaign I have had some audience feed back and much of it has been positive however there are improvements that could be made to my products. The audience feed back which I received suggested that my magazine cover was not abstract enough to be that of a ‘Sight and Sound’ edition. They further went on to say that in their opinion they would not expect ‘Sight and Sound’ to promote such a film and felt that ‘Empire’ would have been a more suited brand for my campaign. As ‘Sight and Sound’ review films with more social realist approaches. Taking what they have said into consideration I would say that this comment is fair however I feel that with regards to the codes and conventions which I have used do not make the magazine cover look out of place from my other products for my viral campaign.
Generally speaking most of the people who passed judgement over my products as a whole viral campaign said that there was a clear synergistic relationship between them all and that they were able to establish the fact that they were all designed to promote the film ‘Locked Away’ as it was mentioned and visible on all the products. Additionally they stated that the colour scheme allowed them to identify with the genre of the film as the colours were commonly associated with the genre horror within society. Furthermore someone commented that I did not make the fact that the film was a certificate 15 clear enough on my auxiliary products.
Audience feed back is a valuable tool for media producers as it allows for them to receive first hand experiences of their products and they are able to indentify whether the product fulfilled the objectives it set out to do.
There are many things which I have learnt by taking my audience feed back into consideration. This includes the fact that it is important to include the certification of the film on my auxiliary products as otherwise it can be misconstrued that I am as a media producer with holding important information. Another thing which I have learnt form my audience feed back is the idea that many people have certain expectations of products and if your product does not meet these then it is unlikely you will be able to attract them as an audience. This is with specific reference to the comment about my magazine cover. To add to this my audience feed back has reinforced my knowledge that the use of codes and conventions is an important part when producing media texts as it is them that help the audience to identify what is being represented.
Throughout this entire process of completing my advanced portfolio I have used a number of media technologies. Starting right at the beginning essentially all of my research which I have carried out has only been possible through the use of web 2.0. as initially
we spent much time researching teaser trailers for films of a similar genre and analysing them. YouTube has played a large part in this as not only does it exhibit the trailers it also has a forum for comments from audience members. This helped me to complete my advanced portfolio as it allowed me to obtain an insight into our potential target audiences preferences through there interaction in online reviews and comments as well as codes and conventions for my chosen genre horror.Although for my magazine research some was carried out by examining real copies of the magazines much of my analysis came from viewing front covers of magazine from the internet. As well as accessing the home page sites of the magazines. In this way general use of the internet has enabled me to complete my advanced portfolio. With regards to general use of the internet and research into developing and planning my products such information as the regulations and legislation in terms of advertisement would have taken a lot longer to have found out about and therefore use of the internet has decreased the time in which I have been able to complete my advanced portfolio in.
With regards to research into websites the use of media technology has made the process e
ntirely possible. Without the internet we would have no websites to examine and analyse. As a result of this it has aided me greatly in completing my advanced portfolio tasks.When it comes to producing my products for my viral campaign the use of media technology has been vital and I have made us of it in many ways. In terms of the trailer firstly digital camera technology has made the process quicker and less costly as well as more efficient as it has allowed us to take many shots of the same scene, so that during the editing process we were able to choose which shot we as a group thought were best. Also on a digital camera there is a screen in which you are able to view what you have recorded. Allowing you to preview your work to see whether you like it or not. This is useful to use as it stops you deleting scenes you want. To add to this digital cameras are fairly light and portable meaning that as a group we were not restricted to where we could film and on many occasions the group were very thankful for this. There is also a function on the digital camera which allows the cameraman to delete any scene in which they do not want. Meaning that the memory
on the film or camera is not wasted by unwanted scenes.During the editing process again media technology plays a vital part as ‘Adobe Premiere’ is a new software which makes the editing process more efficient and effective. ‘Adobe Premiere’ has facilities which allow you to include special effects and has the ability to edit sound on the footage. This has enabled me to put together a well edited trailer from random clips of footage.
Additionally when creating my website and magazine cover the use of media technologies has been imperative as well as these tasks have required me to use the software ‘Photoshop’ which allows you to edit photographs taken on digital cameras (another form of technology which has aided my completion of the tasks) on a basis of layers which effectively are what magazine covers and websites are developed from. All of this has helped me to complete my advanced portfolio to the best of my ability through enabling me to use software which did not exist before hand.
Finally another major way in which media technologies have enabled me to complete my advanced portfolio is by providing me with a place in which I can exhibit my products. Websites
such as blogger have provided me with an electronically way to submit my advanced portfolio and applications such as Google documents a place to store my work electronically. This has been very helpful as everything can be stored and organised in one place. Without it completing my advanced portfolio would not be resourceful as it would require a lot of paper and ink to produce paper copies. Fundamentally back to YouTube again it has provided me with a place to exhibit my trailer and other products in order for them to be viewed by the public.Through my use of media technologies it has allowed me to produce products that represent my true ability without being costly or using up valuable resources. As well as allowing me to attempt things which I had not done before such as creating a webpage, a magazine cover and radio advertisement.
In conclusion I feel that the products that I have produced all fulfil their purpose within my viral campaign for the film ‘Locked Away’. All use appropriate codes and conventions for the genre horror and follow the conventions of their real life case study materials. The products compliment each other as a campaign but hold together as individual media texts. The synergistic relationship built between the products forms a strong basis for a successful viral campaign.
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