Magazine cover research

To get ideas for our magazine cover we evaluated an already existing cover. We chose to analyse this Total Film magazine cover of The Dark Night as we want our cover to be similar and have the same effect. The first thing the reader notices with this cover is that it is very dark. Black is the main colour giving the cover a sinister and mysterious feel to it. Also the colour black can be used to represent Batman as he is well known for his all black outfit.

Christian Bale who plays Batman is stood in the centre of the page with nothing surrounding him this draws the readers attention to the main character. He is wearing the icon

ic all black batman suit which represents the well known superhero so the readers will know straight away what the main theme of the magazine is. The Batman suit itself has many connotation of a bat, for example the two spikes on the mask are like bats ears. The suit also makes Batman look muscular and strong and who is not afraid. Also the posture of the actor has connotations of someone who is tough and in control.

The only text on the cover is on a bold font and also in black and reads 'Rough justice, the dark night wages war on terror'. The effect of having no other writing on the cover draws in the reader to the main theme of the magazine and also implies that The Dark Night is going to be a big film as the Total Film magazine feels it is necessary to dedicate a whole magazine just to that one film.

His body language also suggests that he is powerfull and in control as he is stood square on with wide stance and no facial expression.

Anamatic and changes

After handing out questionnaires and looking into the results, we decided to change our plot of sightly to make it more appealing to our target audience. our original idea proved not fast paced and exciting enough as feed back from our questionnaire suggested that we should change the pace of our narrative to make it more exhilarating. although most elements of our narrative remained the same (characters, location etc.) we did make some alterations such as some of the angles and shot lengths used in order to meet the audiences response. We also changed the location which we used in our anamatic as people said that they thought the woodland location used allowed to much visibility and didn't help build suspense. for our final idea we chose a denser part of the forest which looked much darker and sinister than our original location.

Here is a link to our anamatic:

 http://www.slideshare.net/rosiea2media/animatic-7357990

Story board



 This is our original story board for our movie trailor. After starting to film we realised that we needed to change some of our shots because we either didn't have the resources needed to do them or decided that a different shot would have been better. We then produced another story board which included the changes we made to the original. This will be shown in a later post.

Film Classification

The British Board of Film Classification (BBFC), originally British Board of Film Censors, is a non-governmental organisation, funded by the film industry and responsible for the national classification of films within the UK. It has a statutory requirement to classify videos, DVD's and some video games under the Video Recordings act 2010

Symbol	Name	Definition/Notes
	Universal	All ages admitted, there is nothing unsuitable for children. Films under this category should not upset children under 4. Example: Ferngully, The Incredibles
	Parental Guidance	All ages admitted, but certain scenes may be unsuitable for children under 8. Example: The Simpsons Movie
	12A	Cinema only. Introduced in 2002. Films under this category are considered to be unsuitable for very young people. Those aged under 12 years are only admitted if accompanied by an adult, aged at least 18 years, at all times during the motion picture. However, it is generally not recommended that children under 12 years should watch the film. Films under this category can contain mature themes, discrimination, soft drugs, commonly used milder swear words, and moderate violence/sex references. Example: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Pirates of the Caribbean, Yes Man
	12	Home media only since 2002. 12A-rated films are usually given a 12 certificate for the VHS/DVD version unless extra material has been added which makes it need a higher rating. Nobody younger than 12 can rent or buy a 12-rated VHS, DVD, Blu-ray Disc, UMD or game.
	15	Only those over 15 years are admitted. Nobody younger than 15 can rent or buy a 15-rated VHS, DVD, Blu-ray Disc, UMD or game, or watch a film in the cinema with this rating. Films under this category can contain adult themes, hard drugs, commonly used swear words, moderate-strong violence/sex references, and mild non-detailed sex activity. Example: Black Christmas
	18	Only adults are admitted. Nobody younger than 18 can rent or buy an 18-rated VHS, DVD, Blu-ray Disc, UMD or game, or watch a film in the cinema with this rating. Films under this category do not have limitation on the bad language that is used. Hard drugs are generally allowed, and strong violence/sex references along with non-detailed sex activity is also allowed. Example: Hostel, Saw III
	Restricted 18	Only adults are admitted, and can only be shown at licensed cinemas or sold at sex shops. This rating does not exist for video games yet. Films under this category has material which the BBFC does not allow for it's "18" rating but is considered acceptable by law. Thus the violence and sex activity will be stronger in R18-rated VHSes, DVDs and films than those which are rated "18". Example: Deep Throat

We decided to give our film a 15 classification. We decided this would be best because it would allow a wider audience than if we were to make it an 18. With a 15 classification it allows us to include mild violence and horror scenes which is what we need to include in our trailer to create the effect we want.

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Media audience theories

  Media audience theories

Hypodermic syringe theory suggests that mass media has a direct, immediate and powerful effect on their audiences. It has a simple effect on audiences in that it ‘injects’ messages into them which the audience is a passive recipient. This usually affects younger audience (for example children under 13) as they are generally more gullible and perceptive to these messages. For example a child may play a video game or watch a film and believe that the things which happen in it are real and can be done. However this theory is largely rejected today.

The cultivation theory is that after being exposed to similar types of messages within the media audiences form views over long time periods. This often leads to stereotyped opinions within society due to repetition of them within the media. For example always watching the same broadcasts  or reading the same newspapers may alter someone’s views  and lead to their opinions being stereotyped due to what they read/watch/hear on a regular basis.

The longer more shocking and violent images are exposed to an audience, the less sensitive they become in real life. This is called Desensitization. An example would be that if someone had watched a great number of war films or played video games based on war/army, then they will be less sensitive that someone who perhaps hasn’t towards real life war scenarios. In general adults are less sensitive than children towards things like violence or sex as they have been exposed to it through media for a longer period of time.

The copycat theory is based on how individuals act after what has been showed on screen or in other media. Audiences or individuals may try to re-enact parts of films or games of be influenced to do things they have seen. The obvious example for this theory is children who play violent video games at a young age (when gullible) are then influenced to do violent things as they believe that it is ok to do so in real life.

The uses and gratifications theory contrasts with other theories and suggest that the public interpreted the media to suit us. Instead of being sitting targets for the world of media our reactions and views influence the media for ways we like. For example the public make spoofs and parodies

Two step flow is where individuals who pay close attention to the mass media and the messages which it gives, they then pass their own interpretations as well as the actual media content.

Trailer research

To get ideas for our trailer we looked at a few other trailers with a similar genre to ours. We analysed them and got ideas such as camera angles, music, pace of the trailer, location and shot order. The trailer which inspired us most was Severance.

This was because it had a similar plot as our idea and the trailer gave us lots of ideas for different camera angles we could use to get the best effect. For example there is a close up shot of someones leg being trapped in a bear trap. We decided that shots like this would be good to show some of the scary/jumpy shots in our trailer as it focuses on what is happening to make sure that the audience are aware of it and react to it. Severance also includes lots of fast pace shots which make the trailer more dramatic and shows the audience lots of  short, snappy shots without giving too much away. We have also decided to set our trailer at a fast, dramatic pace with lots of short clips to hopefully create a similar effect as Severance. Location was another aspect which we had to consider. Severance is set mainly in a forest, we decided ours would be too as the forest provides a mysterious place which gives the audience a sense of being lost.

Some other trailers we looked at included Hills have eyes, Blair witch project, paranormal activity and piranha 3D.

Story Idea

1. 4 teens go to an illegal rave
2. Go to take a short cut down a track
3. Crash into tree in woods
4. Try to find help but get lost in wood
5. Two of them get killed by traps layed out in the woods
6. Find a hut with a light and think they have found help so goes inside
7. Its dark, no ones there and its filled with knifes
8. When they go in the door slams trapping the girl inside
9. Hear screaming as they try to get her out
10. One survives and runs away to safety