Final film trailer

Final poster

Final magazine

Evaluation 4

Evaluation 3

What have you learnt from your audience feedback?

Throughout the process of creating my coursework, I have ensured that I have carried out multiple audience feedback questionnaires to gain the opinions of the target audience. Doing this has given me a genuine insight as to what I could do to improve my products so that they would successfully appeal to the demographic we were aiming the film trailer at. It was important that we used the target audience as the participants to make sure that the feedback we are receiving relates directly to the needs of the potential recipients of the film trailer and ancillary products.
The first piece of audience feed back that myself and my partner carried out was our initial pitch of 3 ideas to the class; we presented our ideas to our media class, and carried out a class discussion on how we could develop these ideas, or if there were any that they didn't feel would work. Here is some of the feedback that we received from this presentation:

• The majority of the audience ruled out the second idea that we had, which was based on a conventional romance narrative with two best friends falling in love; they felt that this was too generic and didn't allow us to explore more complicated and unique ideas.
• There was an equal split between the first and second idea, although we gained lots of ideas that eventually will help us to decide which one we want to choose.
• The audience who received our third pitch said that this idea was interesting as it follows an unconventional narrative that doesn't include stereotypical romance features.
• They did however question how we would be able to show our technical ability through the editing as it could be very difficult to show the violence in the film; this could be solved by using match on action edits to show different activities merging into one.

We used this feedback to help us develop the third narrative idea, using this their suggestions to create a narrative that we felt would be effective in appealing to the target audience. We did this as we agreed with the comments about it subverting the conventional romance genre and so it would help us to develop our skills on seeing how far we would be able to push boundaries while continuing to make the genre recognisable. 

As it transpires, this narrative didn't work out; after we began to edit we discovered that the actors found it very difficult to portray the romantic relationship on screen, and this was confirmed by a second set of audience feedback; we had a meeting with our media teachers and we discussed if we would be able to work with what we had produced, or if we need to begin the process again. As a group, we came to the conclusion that the footage was too basic and minimalistic to use in an A grade film trailer, and comments from the teachers said how it was extremely linear, and didn't follow a trailer conventions. Because of this we had create a new narrative idea, that eventually became a thriller rather than a romance; when planning our new idea we gained suggestions from various members of our class, who helped us develop the narrative into what it is now. This wasn't formal audience feedback as it was often passing comments that helped us, however it was continuous in assisting us during the planning and production stages of creation. 

Having produced the first draft of our film trailer, we carried out an audience feedback survey using Survey Monkey so that we could send it to people via the internet for convenience. We sent it to both males and females of the age of our target audience to effectively represent the target audience we had decided on, both primary (females) and secondary (males).

A previous blog post explains the results in more detail, but one of the most important things we learnt from carrying this out was that 90% of people felt that there were elements that conformed, but it didn't efficiently follow the genre. This was a huge piece of feedback that encourage us to re-edit the film trailer and carry out further days of shooting in order to produce some shots that met the convention of thriller. While we hadn't fully finished the trailer at this stage, we weren't planning to add extra footage to further conform to the genre until this was mentioned; the proportion of participants that selected this on the questionnaire raised it as the biggest issue that we faced, and it was rectified once we began to re-edit. 

Following this, a second draft was published and another audience feedback survey created. We asked the same participants as we used in the first survey as they would be able to see the improvements we had made and assess whether this was enough or not. From this survey, also analysed in a previous blog post, 100% of participants agreed with that the trailer had improved; this question was left open to allow subjective comments to be made based on what they think about the second draft. Many said that the biggest improvement on the first draft was the inclusion of a voiceover throughout the beginning; we felt that some of the narrative needed an extra layer to help the audience understand the concept we are trying to explain, and the has been successful in doing so.  A further improvement to made that was pointed out to us was that the outdoor shots that were included in a montage didn't reflect the genre; comments were made that they were too bright to portray tension or suspense, so this was something that we changed as a result. 

These questionnaires have given us insightful opinions that have provided suggestions for us to improve on; there are elements that we would have never considered had we not gained any audience feedback.

The below results are from the final survey we asked a target group once we had completed the main film trailer product. The results have been analysed and explained. There are also 4 questions that were asked to the same group with egads to the film poster and the magazine cover - these haven't been analysed, however I also used a second method of feedback that will be discussed after:

Audience feedback - Main product results
Create bar charts

Naturally, the production of my ancillary products took much less time than the main product due to the nature of the products I was creating. I made the decision to gain extensive audience feedback once I had completed both products as I felt confident in my abilities to create a poster and magazine that followed the stereotypical conventions.
Once completed, I made the decision to use social media as a way of getting in contact with the target audience for some feedback on the products I had created; I felt that this was an effective way of getting feedback as the internet is such prevalent media platform in today's society, therefore it would be more time efficient and easy to use. I used Twitter as my way of contacting people that I knew, who were within the target audience age bracket to provide me with bot strengths and weaknesses of the poster and magazine. I send a direct message to each person with an image of each ancillary with the attached message:
"hi, for my media coursework I need some feed back on some products that I have made! If you can, would you be able to give me you thoughts (both positive and negative) on the following products!"
The reposes I received gave me both constructive criticisms as well as positives, all of which have given me an insight as to how I could improve the ancillaries given the chance. Many said that the colour scheme of the poster was good at representing the genre, while the magazine had effectively represented the target audience.

From this feedback, I have learnt that many of the participants were able to follow the narrative of the film using the conventions of the poster form, as it allowed them to identify the fact that it was a film poster, and further figure out the genre using the codes I had used. They mentioned that the reflection that was put into the camera lens created a sense of ambiguity and mysteriousness; the ideal emotions provoked by the producer to the audience as they are close codes go the thriller genre. This set of audience feedback also highlighted to me that the magazine was my weakest ancillary product, as there are barely any hints of the genre to the audience, so prior knowledge would be required to understand the context behind the main cover line and article featuring the protagonist. I have also learned that despite being able to follow and meet the conventions of the magazine form, the representation of the film and genre needs to be stronger, with a darker image for example to help connote sincerity and seriousness, as the image was too bright to be able to do that. Some of the responses received are shown below:





Teacher feedback was an extremely important part of the production process; regularly, they would sit down with myself and my partner and watch the film trailer, giving us feedback on what went well and what we could do to improve; as we had difficulty with our original narrative, this was vital in helping us to make the decision to rewrite the narrative and move onto a different genre. Without this audience feedback, we would have been unable to create the film trailer to the standard that we have, as it was through their idea and suggestions that assisted us in developing the narrative to become what it is now. The teachers also left comments in a file that was created, where every blog post was recorded and comments given on how we could improve or what we needed to change. Comments included analysing the footage we had taken, and questioning whether we had repeated too many of the same type of shots; this inspired us to re-film some scenes to ensure we had gained the highest quality footage as possible. The teacher feedback also bought issues to our attention such as the use of sound - if this had been done in the most effective way in order to hook the audience in and maintain their attention on the trailer; upon reflection, we felt we needed more tension and suspense within the audio, and so encouraged us to locate further music that could be inserted to produce a sound that would build in tension and relay this feeling to the audience.

Evaluation 2

Evaluation 1

In what way does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

Forms and conventions are elements within a product that make it recognisable to an audience as a specific product or genre. Psychological thriller contains many conventions that are included in films to indicate to the audience the genre of the film; these include visual elements such as low key lighting, which is used to address the tension within a scene and can be used to represent a character's inner darkness, as well as quick camera cuts to help build panic in a scene and enstill the emotions a character is feeling into the audience. There are also hidden elements that are located within a psychological thriller that provide the narrative so commonly associated with the genre; these often are shown in binary opposites like good vs evil, that form the basis of the narrative. As well as creating a film trailer, I also produced a poster and magazine cover, both of which have their own conventions of form.



Film trailer conventions include:

• Cast and production company details
• Film title
• Release date
• Short in length
• Sounds appropriate to the genre portrayed
• Slow pace amounting to a fast paced montage

Film poster conventions include:

• Film title
• Credits
• Main image
• A hook/tagline
• Release date

Film magazine cover conventions include:

• Masthead
• Anchorage text
• Cover lines
• Star burst
• Barcode
• Issue date
• Price
• Sky line
• Main image

Throughout the A2 coursework process, I have attempted to both conform and subvert from the conventions of each of the forms, to ensure that make the products recognisable to the form but equally to challenge existing stereotypes to push boundaries and expand on what already exists. 

In the below presentation I have evaluated how I have either used, developed or challenged thriller forms and conventions in my own three media products.

Ancillary: final poster

Ancillary: additional processes

A further element that I had planned for was to include two production company logos. As this was being produced in the UK, I research British based production companies and located two suitable logos that would be positioned next the billing board at the bottom. Originally, I had planned to put one on top of the other to the left of the billing board, but in order to create a sense of symmetry, I made the decision to locate them equally one either side. In line with the top line, it helped to visually balance the poster. The companies I chose were Film4 and Working Title productions, and I downloaded each of the r logos and opened them in Photoshop. I used the magnetic lasso tool to select the text and design of the logo, excluding any white background, and pasted them onto the background, which filled in the blank spaces. The use of film production logos helps the audience to identify who was involved in the film, and also helps to promote the company to become recognisable for their work. 

One of many conventional features of film poster is to have a review of the film given by a recognisable company or brand. The review given is normally very good, as it showcases that a reputable brand enjoyed the production, and so will encourage a wider demographic to watch it. I used a similar process to the production logos, where I selected the parts of an image I had downloaded, and pasted it onto the main image. I located into the area I wanted, which was between the actors names, and quoted the source it came from. The five star review was from Glamour, a well known magazine; the positivity a high review can have will encourage further viewing of the film when released.

Overall, I stuck to the plan that I had made as it provided me with a strong framework to work from, but it also gave me the flexibility to adjust certain aspects so that it would aesthetically look better when the poster is released. Elements such as positioning of the review changed, as it visually flowed better putting it between the actors' names. Similarly, I originally had planned to run the forename and surname next to each other, but putting one on top of the other created more symmetry, and balanced the weight of the text a the top of the poster.

Ancillary: poster typography creation

Before I added any text, I realised that I would have to create a darker background to overlay the text on because the focal image was still slightly too light to use a white text. Because of this, I used the gradient tool, where I was able to drag the gradient from the bottom of the poster, where it would be completely black, to around one third up; this created a faded gradient using a block colour, so the opacity began to fade the further the gradient went up the poster. Not only did this allow me to use white as the font colour, but the fade into black also leaves connotations of tension and darkness, meaning the audience are left in suspense, wanting to know more about the narrative. My decision in using white for the colour font against a black background occurred for two reasons: white is a bright colour and would work well with the contrast of the black, which would draw attention to the title of the poster and inform the target audience; I also wanted to show the representation of a binary opposite, a theory by Levi-Strauss that reflects conflict within the narrative - in this case, it would be good vs evil. 

 I used multiple font styles on the film poster, as I didn't want everything to be uniformly similar as this would make the text relatively boring to read and detract the audiences attention from the poster. I had multiple different fonts that I had shortlisted for the titles, and I used audience feedback to influence my final decision. Out of the three fonts I used, Caviar Dreams was the most popular, so I used this for both the title and the release date that was located just beneath it. This was a sans serif font, and so was bold enough to stand out against the dark background; to make it fit the purpose it needed to, I centred the text and located it just under the lens of the camera as that way it would ensure that the audiences' eye was drawn to the reflection in the lens followed by the title of the film. I enlarged the size and spaced out the letters, widening the gap between them to make the title have more of an impact on the viewer. I also selected the title to be in bold, to give extra thickness of the lines, exaggerating the contrast between light and dark.

Following this, I located a second font that I used consecutively for the billing board, website address and the star actors names. The continuity between the first text at the top of the poster, and the last text at the bottom creates an almost boarder around the sides of the document, closing the information that is within the top and bottom sets of text within the poster. I didn't get feedback on the font for this as I felt it wasn't as crucial as the title and the font would be relatively small, so attention wouldn't be drawn directly to these pieces of text. Steelfish is the font that was used, and I thought that the way it was streamlined would work well with the billing board as conventionally, these are very long and thin fonts that require a lot of focus to competently read.

Ancillary: image creation process

I opened a new project in Adobe Photoshop 2015, which is the software that I decided to use; I chose this because I felt that it had the large variety of tools that I would require to carry out extensive editing.

The above image is the picture chosen to use from the selection that I took in the photoshoot we held a week prior to this creation. I had asked a number of people present when I began this process to look though the pictures I had taken, and to select the one that they thought was the best; out of the 5 people asked, 4 agreed that this had the best quality. I agree with them and I felt that this image was the best as it correctly focuses on the lens of the camera, which is the idea I was going for as inside the lens I am going to superimpose an image of the figure that the female sees in the photos. It is also the figure that is used at the end of the trailer, and so will link well between the poster and the trailer. 

I had taken the image with a white background so that I would easily be able to select the main image using the lasso tool and transfer it onto a different background. I wanted the background to be similar to the scenes in the trailer where the female protagonist is taking pictures in the park, so I used an image I had taken on the outdoor shoot and remove the figure from it.

 Having used the lasso tool to select the main image of the female, as shown above,  I then selected the image that I wanted to transfer it to. I decided that I didn't need any audience feedback to decide this because this was only going to be the background, and so would be the focus of the poster. I removed the image of the figure using the rectangle tool, and left the gap white; I did this because I knew that the main image would be large enough to cover this space and so it wouldn't require editing to cover it over. I created a new layer in the project file and copy pasted the image of the female on to the background. It did create the desired effect, however it was very obvious that the image was pasted, so I used the blur tool to blend the outlines of the female into the back layer slightly so that they weren't so harsh; this made it look more natural.

In order to project the image of a figure on the lens of the camera, I had to cut the figure from the same image used on the background using the elliptical tool, and pasted in onto a new layer that bought the circle to the front of all the images. I then placed this image over the top of the lens, and ensured that it fit the same size to make it look realistic. I lowered the opacity of the circular image so that the internal elements of the lens were still visible, as I wanted this to be a reflection not a solid fill. 

 I don't have an image for the next part, but the contrast between the background layer and the focal image was significant, so I altered the brightness and contrast of the background layer to remove some of the warm colours to ensure that the main image was the focal point of the poster and attention was directed towards this rather than the background, which is fairly insignificant. This introduced more grey/dull colour tones, reaching the effect I wanted. 

I don't have evidence of the final image that was used, but it will be shown in combination with the text in the next post that will explain the typography process and how this was achieved. 

Ancillary: film poster template

 

Having completed my research on multiple film posters, I have created a template to help me create the poster ancillary product. During my research, I focused on the stereotypical conventions that are present in most film posters as this is what I would use to base the template I was designing on.
In my design, I have remained fairly conventional by having a main image that covers the majority of the poster; this will draw the audiences attention to the poster as it will be bold enough to gain someone's attention. I have also decided to feature the star system at the top of the poster, as this is something that is very common in both the mood boards I have created as well as the analysis I have completed.

The billing board is located at the very bottom of the poster, again following the conventional feature of film posters, as this contains the information that doesn't interest the audience, and so it needs to be the last thing that they read. I made the decision to include a website address, which isn't a common convention for posters; this will help to widen the demographic and appeal to a younger generation through the use of cross media convergence.
I haven't included the release date on the plan above, but this will be located just under the title; I would like this to be bold and to stand out, so I am going to use a sans serif font in white, as this will contrast with the dark background.

Ancillary product research: poster analysis (3)

Film information 

The Back-up Plan is a romantic comedy film that stars Jennifer Lopez and Alex O'Loughlin and it was released May 2010. The rom-com was directed by Alan Poul and produced by CBS Films and Escape Artists; with a budget of $35,000,000, the film made a gross profit of $37,481,242 by 16/07/10. The film is based around a woman, who conceives twins through artificial insemination, only to meet the man of her dreams on the very same day. It runs for 104 minutes. 

Image

The main image of this poster is a mid shot of two people, a male and female, in the foreground of the poster - we can assume that these are the main characters in the film as they are the only two people present on the main image; this is indicated by the pose they are standing in on the front cover, they are at the same level and are not standing behind each other or in front of each other and this suggests they both hold equal importance within the film. The female is looking directly at the camera, creating direct address to the audience to engage them and allow them to form a relationship with the character, it also shows her independence as she isn't engaging with the male; the male is looking towards the female, and as this is a romantic comedy, it may signify that he is looking  at her lovingly - this feeling is not replicated as the female is looking away. This could represent that the feelings aren't equal between the two characters. The stance that the male has taken in the image suggests that he is confident, although this can be contradicted as folded arm often connote someone is trying to protect themselves by creating a barrier.

This poster uses the rule of thirds to break up the main image, as the two characters are located on the furthest left and furthest right, with the title in the middle. It draws the audiences eye across the page so that they came into contact with tall of the information that is provided. The use of the rule of thirds in this scenario  reflects that there may be some divide in the relationship, as they aren't stood close which is a stereotypical convention of romance films. The majority of the text is acting as a wall between the two characters representing an issue in their relationship. 

Jennifer Lopez is holding a pair of baby shoes behind her back, which links with the tagline that suggests that she wants to have a baby 'Have a baby.' However she is hiding them behind her back, which connotes that she is a keeping a secret from the male character, potentially something to do with pregnancy. 

Mise en scene

The colour combination that is used in this party is whit, black and pink all of which are very recognisable and stereotypical colours of the romance genre; particularly the pink as this creates the idea of romance and so will immediately form the genre for the audience which will determine their interest in the film. Pink is also associated with femininity, which would suggest to the audience that the film focuses more around the female than the male. The white background adds emphasis to the rest of the text and images that are present. The subtle use of grey for the credits at the bottom of the poster means that they don't detract attention away from the main image which delivers the most important information about the film. 

The female character is wearing a tight dress with her make up and hair done, while the male is wearing jeans and a t-shirt, which is very casual. This contrast in what they are wearing represents the different lifestyles that the both lead, but it also suggests that the characters follow gender stereotypes e.g women being viewed as sex symbols as she is wearing a figure hugging dress. 

The only prop that is used in the main image is the pair of baby shoes that Jennifer Lopez is hiding behind her back, which signifies that the film focuses on the relationship rather than materialistic objects. 

Lighting

This poster uses high key lighting on the two characters, as this creates a natural feel to the image which relates to the romance genre. There aren't any shadows present in the picture so doesn't reflect any elements of darkness or tension. The bright light featured in the poster is also present in the white background behind the main image; the white is a very light colour and allows the focus image to be the centre of attention, making those colours stand out. 

There is a slight decrease in high key lighting at the bottom of the poster where the white darkens a little - this may represent foreshadowing of a negative event in the relationship. 

Typography 

The typography of the majority of text is written in sans serif font and the text alternates between black and pink; both stereotypical colours from the schema of the romance genre. This font crates a bold text, making it stand out on the poster. The location of the title down the centre of the page represents a barrier between the two characters, and therefore shows the importance of the title; this also forces the audience to read the surrounding information around the title. The black and pink connote masculine and feminine colours which represents the two main characters in the film, also reflecting the genre of the film. The clean look of the typography used can also be seen as being quite strong and stable, something that may be a reflection of the male protagonist in the film.

At the top of the poster the cast system includes the name of an A-list celebrity, Jennifer Lopez, which is written in a capitalised black san serif font; the central location of the name encourages the audience to read the information, and the inclusion of this name may widen the demographic because fans of previous films Jennifer Lopez has starred in will be encouraged to watch this film. 

Tagline 

The tagline used in The Back-up Plan is 'Fall in love*. Get married. Have a baby. *not necessarily in that order'. The have a baby and get married are switched over with a sketched pink arrow. Traditionally tag lines are located above or below the title, and this tagline is located above the title conforming to the conventions of film posters. The tagline is used to make the audience ask questions about the film, and in this case the tagline has been used in a comical way that reflects the genre of the film; it gives the audience a clue into the narrative of the film and suggests that the stereotypical order of love as written in the tagline isn't followed in this situation. The sketched arrows are in pink, so would suggest that it is the female who is changing the 'order of love'.

How does this relate to the film narrative?

The films narrative is based around a woman, who conceives twins through artificial insemination, only to meet the man of her dreams on the very same day. This poster relates to the narrative of the film because it features the two main characters as the main image; the male is the woman who gets pregnant and the male is the person she meets having just conceived her twins. The tagline reflects this narrative with the sketched arrows showing a change in the 'original plan'. The audience can assume that the location of the title, shown vertically in the centre of the poster, is the representation of a barrier between the two characters, signifying a problem in the relationship, potentially the pregnancy. The high key lighting represents the rom com genre as it presents a light hearted tone to the film.  

Ancillary product research: poster analysis (2)

Film information 

The Girl on the Train is a drama thriller film, it was produced in 2016 and was directed by Tate Taylor; the film was based on the book written by Paula Hawkins. The film was produced by Dreamworks, and starred Emily Blunt and Rebecca Ferguson, and made a gross profit of $75,311,445.

Image

The main image of this poster shows a female looking out of a window; we can assume that this is the window of a train because of the title of the movie, though this isn't certain. Due to the title 'The girl on the train', the fact that there is a female looking out of what we assume is a train window, it signifies that tis is the main character mentioned in the title; as a result it suggests that she is heavily involved in the narrative of the film. This is also evident because the face of the woman is located in the first third of the poster, meaning that the audiences eye is immediately drawn to her - signifying her significance.
The body language displayed by the female is negative and reflects a look of concern or fear; this is a stereotypical emotion that thriller films aim to achieve from the audience, and so by portraying this in a character, it allows the audience to form a connection with them and share these emotions.
There is a reflection in the window of the train of a house, and this could be a significant element of the narrative as it is prominent and clear for the audience to see; with the image in the poster being quite minimal, the addition of this reflection would suggest that it is a significant part if the film, particularly because the female's gaze is directed at this reflection. The absence of a secondary image or background would suggest that Emily Blunt is the main focal point of the film.

Mise en scene

The colours used in this poster are mainly monochromic as it contains shades of black and white; this basic and simple colour scheme creates a contrast between the two connotations of the colours - while white reflects purity and innocence, black can have connotations of mystery and darkness, meaning that the audience can struggle to pinpoint the tone of the narrative. The face of the female character is the only light colour present on the poster, which stands out against the dark background; this can draw the audience's gaze to the character which may represent her importance in the film. The audience are unable to view what the female character is wearing, which would suggest that the status or class of the character isn't important in the film.
The poster appears to show rain on the window of the trains, and this is an example of pathetic fallacy; where the weather represents the tone or emotions within the film. As a result its signify that the tone of the film is sinister or sad, giving the audience an insight as to the genre and narrative of the film.

Lighting

The film poster for 'The Girl on The Train' uses mainly low key lighting surrounding the main image of the woman looking out of the train window. The use of low key lighting in the poster reflects the tone of the films and suggests that there is a sinister or mysterious element to the film. Shadows on the face of the woman are created using downward facing lighting, and is a representation of something dark (as used in foreshadowing), foreboding, or evil; again suggesting the tone of the narrative. The only element of high key/ brighter lighting is in presence of the female's face against the glass of the window; the colour is the brightest on the poster.

Typography 

The typography of the poster is all in a Sans Serif font, including the title and the tagline; the colour of the texts alternate between an aqua blue and pure white. The typography is a stereotypical font used in most genres of film and it allows clear and legible style that the audience can read. Although the font does provide harsh, clean-cut lines that may reflect the feelings within the narrative. The title of the film is located just below the central point in the poster, and covers the majority of the width of the poster; the length of the title encourages the audience to read the text above and below the title. By stating that the film is based on a best-selling book, it will appeal to a wider target audience as those who also enjoyed the book will be attracted to watch the film. There are elements of text that are a blue colour, and while this can connote happiness and calmness, in American culture blue has evolved as symbol of depression; giving a potential hint as to the tone of the film.

Tagline 

The tagline of 'The girl on the Train' is 'What did she see?' and by using a rhetorical question as the tagline it draws the audience in because the question element of the line will engage their attention and encourage them to think about an answer. Intriguing the audience will mean that they are likely to want to find out the answer to the question and therefore will be drawn to watch the film. The tagline relates to the main image of the poster as it refers to 'she' which the audience can assume is referring to Emily Blunt; and the concerned expression she displays may link to something that she has seen.

How does this relate to the film narrative?

The Girl on the Train follows a divorcee when she becomes entangled in a missing persons investigation that promises to send shockwaves throughout her life. In relation to the literate meaning of the title, the image on the poster does relate as it shows a woman looking out of a train window, however it doesn't hint at any of the elements of the narrative such as the missing persons investigation. However, the tagline does hint slightly at the narrative as it signifies that the girl saw something while on the train that was of importance. The choice of colour scheme reflects a negative tone of the narrative, and the minimalistic features on the basic image give very little away in relation to the narrative.

Ancillary product research: poster analysis (1)

Film information

Safe Haven is a romantic thriller film produced in 2013 by Relativity Media and Temple Hill Entertainment. The film was directed by Lasse Hallström,  the director of Dear John, also a romance film. Safe Haven achieved a gross profit of $71,346,930 as of March 2013, and features the actors Josh Duhamel and Julianne Hough - both well renowned in the performing arts sector.

Image

The main image used in the poster is of a couple embracing each other leaning in to kiss. This positioning and the proxemics of the two characters represents an emotional connection that the two have between them, as well as the fact that they are holding each other so close; this signifies that they are comfortable with one another. This personal body language that is presented in the picture reflects the intimacy they have within their relationship, something that is often seen in romance films and is a key conventions that represents the film as the genre that it is. The way that they are holding onto each other not only connotes their desire to be together, but may also suggest that they are afraid of letting go of each other; this may be relocate in the tagline used about finding someone, suggesting that they are scared to lose one another having just met. The main image is located on a beach, a place that is associated with calmness and tranquility; both qualities that are commonly represented in on screen romantic relationships. 

The way that both characters have their eyes shut in this image would suggest that they are lost in the emotion that they are feeling - the feeling of emotion in romance films is a stereotypical element of the audience pleasure theory, and by including this on the poster for the film it will appeal to the target audience before they have even seen the film. 

Mise en scene

The colour scheme throughout the film poster follows a very neutral palette; the use of earthy and simplistic colours create a calmness and relaxing feel when looking at the poster. This may have been done to represent the emotions that are felt in the two main protagonists relationship. A light blue is a recurring colour on the poster, and it is often associated with depth and stability; symbolising  trust and loyalty - socio-emotional elements in a romantic relationship. The earthy tones within the poster reflects the nature of the relationship, providing an insight into a down-to-earth partnership that represents real life situations. The hues of golden light shone onto both protagonists, presumably coming from the sun, has connotations of passion, love and courage - this colour equally signifies happiness and joyfulness which represents the nature of the relationship and portrays the film as being a positive and upbeat watch for the target audience. 

Both characters are wearing shirts in the main image, an item of clothing that can be associated as being quite masculine as well as casual. The use of simple and casual clothing can reflect the complexity/simplicity of the relationship; elaborate clothing can suggest that a relationship is superficial and unrealistic. 

Lighting 

The film poster for 'Safe Haven' uses primarily high key lighting surrounding the main image of the couple embracing on the beach. The use of high key lighting in this situation reflects a theme of happiness and signifies to the audience that the film is going to be upbeat. Golden light surrounds the couple which represents magic within the relationship, a stereotypical convention of successful relationships; the light portrays both characters in an angelic scenario which will allow the audience to assume that they are a happy couple and that there are not problems within the relationship. However this is contrasted in the low key lighting in the 4 corners of the poster. Each corner has a darkened effect which gradients into the lighter colours that are present in the centre of the poster; the use of the darker light may signify that there is a disruption in the film, and could suggest that this is in relation to the relationship that is being represented in the poster. 

Typography

The typography of the poster is all in a Sans Serif font and the colours used in the text are light blue and white. The use of this particular font is slightly unconventional in a romance film because Sans Serif has a blunt and business-like feel to it when and audience looks at it, and this doesn't effect the genre of the film; stereotypically Serif is used as this has a slightly more romantic feel to it as it is more dainty and whimsical. The clean look of the typography used can also be seen as being quite strong and stable, something that may be a reflection of the male protagonist in the film. As the title of the film is 'Safe Haven', the strong feeling to the typography may be a reflection of the title of the film. The colour white that is used as the colour for the majority of the text connotes innocence and purity, which may be a representation of the storyline of the film as well as the personality of the female lead character. Light blue is used in the title of the film has connotations of trust and loyalty, both of which are key elements to a successful relationship; therefore the use of the colour may signify the type of relationship the two main characters have. 

Tagline

The tagline used in 'Safe Haven' is 'You know it when you find it'; the meaning behind this quote is represented in the main image. This is because the connotations f the tagline suggest that she has found the person she loves, and she knew she had when she first met him; the proxemics in the main image and the way both characters are holding onto each other would signify that she has 'found it' and that she doesn't want to let go. 

How does this relate to the film narrative?

The narrative of this film follows a young woman with a mysterious past lands in Southport, North Carolina where her bond with a widower forces her to confront the dark secret that haunts her.

The film poster relates to the film narrative in some respects because the main shows the woman with the man we can assume is the widower, and it shows that she has formed a bond and relationship with him. The use of a couple as the main image that the eye is drawn to does reflect the genre of the film.  However there are only very subtle hints that the woman has a dark and mysterious past, and this is though the low key lighting used in the corners of the poster. The darkness suggests something more sinister but there is no relation to the fact that the woman has a dark past.

Ancillary product research: moodboard

In order to understand more about the stereotypical conventions of posters, I have created a moodboard that features film posters form the romance genre. I have also included posters from the horror genre because although our film is primarily romance, there are significant elements of violence and abuse. As a result my film poster won't be entirely focused on the romantic aspects of the narrative and will also feature some of the violent parts of the film.

Ancillary product research: Poster

As part of the type of product we have decided to create (film trailer), we have to create two ancillary products that run alongside the film trailer:

What is an ancillary product?

Something that is subordinate or accessory to something else; in the context of film, an ancillary product is something that would accompany a film in it's promotion in order to help it become well known and recognisable. From the three options I was given in the specification, I have decided to carry out the film magazine front cover that features the film and a poster for the film, as I feel that these will be the most effective methods of advertising the film we are creating.

What does a film poster do?
The primary purpose of a film poster is to inform the target audience and to advertise a forthcoming film release; this will generate an excitement around the release, meaning that there is more chance that the film will be successful in box office and the opening weekend. Film posters contain important information such as release date, actors and suitability with reference to age (BBFC certification.) Film posters merge illustrations, lettering, colouring and a clever layout to create a 'movie-at-a-glance' image to entice an audience into seeing the film. They focus on visual elements such as, powerful photographs and graphics to make posters attention grabbing and something the audience would want to see. These visual elements can also give the audience an insight into the themes and genre that will be portrayed throughout the film. The images and film name are often striking in order to gain the attention of the public; it has to be memorable so that the audience remember the film and pay to view it.

What are the stereotypical conventions of a film poster?

• A film poster conventionally features the main characters involved in the film, which allows the audience to build a connection with them before they have even watched the film. This is done through them being included in the main image as well as in the list of actors included on the poster. By having an A-list actor in the film, it will appeal to a wider target audience as there may be people who specifically enjoy films that star a certain actor. 
• The image used on a film poster often determines the opinion that. person will have on the film;  the image is one of the biggest representations of the film, and the appropriateness to the film will reflect the genre and theme of the film it is advertising. Conventionally, the main image includes the main protagonists, with a potential antagonist in the background - this foreshadows the narrative of the film and will provide an insight for the audience as to what the film is about.
• The title of the film is almost always included in a film poster, as this informs the audience the name of the production so that they can ember for the future release of the film. Conventionally, film titles are bold so that they stand out on the poster. 
• Institutional information is normally present on a film poster, conventionally located in small print at the bottom of the document. They include the companies who produced and distributed the film (this helps to advertise the companies and to associated them with the success of a film). 
• One of the main reasons for a film poster is to inform the audience about the release date of the film, so this is key convention that most film posters include. A date/month is used in bold to stand out from the rest of the information so that the audience remember the release date. 
• Taglines are used in film posters to emphasise a specific theme or point in the narrative to the audience, and is often a 'slogan' that is memorable for the audience. 

Film posters are positioned in places that will reach the most people possible in order to widen the target audience set by the film. They are not only produced as physical copies visible from a particular place or object, but the film posters are also distributed digitally as adverts or features of a website; this ensures that as many people receive the information as possible. An example of one of the most popular places in the UK where films and other products are advertised is the London Underground. Countless billboards and posters line the walls of the Underground, which holds up to 4.8 million passenger journeys per day. This means that the demographic is vastly widened which will overall improve the consumption of the film. 

The poster of 'Dead pool', which was produced in February 2016, was shown on numerous billboards globally, and it featured the tagline, title and release date of the film. These are the key points of information that are important to inform the audience about, as the relate to when the film is available for viewing as well as the title of the film, so they know what it is that they will be watching. The tagline is written in large font, which will stand out against the main image of the protagonist (this can be assumed). 

'The Dark Knight Rises' (produced in 2012) used an entire block of flats to paste their film poster on to in order to promote their film. This includes the titles of the film, and the release date - this is similar to Deadpool, where the key pieces of information are used so that the audience are able to remember what is featured on the film poster. The way in which film posters are displayed and distributed will also reflect the budget that has gone into making the film, and conventionally the bigger the budget to more elaborate the techniques of heritage marketing are.

Poster composition?

The rule of thirds is used in visual arts such as photography, art and design that divides an image into nine equal sections- two equally spaced horizontal lines and two equally spaced vertical lines. The subject of the image or compositional elements should be placed within these intersections or along the line. It is believed that following the rule of thirds is more effective in creating energy and interest to an image and placing the subject/s of the image within the nine sections than just typically centering the subject.

Ancillary: final magazine

Ancillary: additional processes

A further process that I had included in my magazine template was the tagline at the top of the cover;  this is a vital convention as I am following a pre existing house style, and this tagline is present in all issues of the magazine. I began by creating a rectangular shape and moving it to ensure it fit correctly above the masthead and adhered to the bleed line boundary; I then selected the right shade of pink to ensure that it followed the house style, and inserted the text. I made the decision to not search for a specialist font on dafont.com, and instead use a pre-existing one already on the system. 

Following that, I added the small conventional details that most magazines include on the front cover; I placed a barcode that I had downloaded into the bottom right hand corner of the magazine, as this was one of the only spaces available but I also didn't want to attract attention to it as it is fairly insignificant in comparison to the head cover line. Alongside the barcode I located the price of the magazine, as this is present in informing the audience about the cost of the product. 

Ancillary: magazine typography

As the masthead is going to be the biggest text feature on the cover, I made this my priority when looking for fonts. I used the same website as with the poster, dafont.com as it has an extensive list of fonts, both serif and sans serif that I could compare and pick the most effective. As I was following an already existing house style, I had to try and find the closest possible match to the masthead on the original 'Style' masthead. The font that matched this the closest was 'Couture', a sans serif font with bold lettering. I also used this font to write the issue number and website address to ensure continuity for the reader when viewing the cover.

For the remaining typography, I decided that each cover line was going to have three different fonts; one for the exclamation, such as 'exclusive', one for the name of the featuring actor, and one for the mini synopsis of the article. I followed this throughout the cover to ensure that each cover line was matching in typography. The following fonts on the left are the ones that were included in this.

The top line 'Exclusive' is written in the font 'Savoye LET', a serif font that connotes a feminine tone that will appeal to the target audience of the product, as this is a film magazine for women.
The second line down is 'Birch std', another serif that is bold and relatively thin; by using this font, the boldness of each letter draws the audience' eye to the text, encouraging them to read what is on the page. Also, by making all the names of featuring actors the same font, it allows the audience to identify the actors present in this issue of the magazine, and so can immediately tell whether the magazine will appeal to them or not. The final line of text is 'Futura', a sans serif font that has bold, but subtle bordering to each letter. This softer font differentiates the names of the actors with the small synopsis of the article.

For the main cover line, I wanted to break the large text by having varying fonts, as this encourages the audience to take the time to read the different words as they will have to adjust in order to switch between fonts. The alliteration used in the cover line helps to gain the attention of the reader, and also proves as a method of ensuring that the audience remembers the magazine cover. The serif font used on the central word follows the same convention as those used on the smaller cover lines; it portrays a feminine tone that stereotypically will appeal to the target audience of women.

The headings of each cover line has been written in a dusky pink colour that creates a contrast between the grey of the background; not only does this hook the reader's attention, but pink is also a colour that stereotypically represents women as it is associated as being a feminine colour, therefore appealing to the target audience

Ancillary: magazine image creation process

When I took pictures for my film poster, I also carried out a photoshoot for the magazine cover against a white wall that was located in the art gallery we filmed in. I took multiple images, but in some Nicole had posed in a way that wouldn't be appropriate for a magazine cover due to the tone I wanted to portray; the unusable images we of Nicole looking very sinister, and as the feature article is an interview, I felt I should represent her as a person rather than the character she played. I began the image creation by opening the picture up in Adobe Photoshop CC 2015. I created a second background layer, and used the quick selection tool to remove the white background from the image; once this was done I zoomed in very closely to the image and used the eraser tool with 100% opacity to remove any remanence of the white background by erasing the colour pixel by pixel. 

Once this was done, I made the decision to have the magazine background a grey colour because this would create synergystic links with the title slates that are in the film trailer, and the audience would be able to associate the two products. I tried using a plain grey background, but I didn't feel that this provided depth in the image to make it realistic, so I attempted to use the gradient tool and have the grey move from light to dark in a vertical sequence. This worked well and created the effect that I wanted.  

Once this was completed, I altered the brightness, contrast and colour saturation of the image of Nicole; this is because the image was taken with too much exposure and so the colour of her skin had become unnatural. Once this had been altered, the image was more in sync with the background, and the image looked more genuine and realistic. After this was done, I exported the file and saved the image a JPEG, in order to open it correctly in Indesign.

Ancillary: magazine template

In a similar fashion to my poster, I have created a magazine cover template to help me create the ancillary product; during my ancillary research, I ensured that I had knowledge on the codes and conventions of film magazines so that I could include these in my product. I am using an already existing house style from an exclusive film magazine that is aimed towards a female audience, as I felt that creating an ancillary that is aimed towards the target audience of the film would target the chosen demographic and further hook them into watching the film, through exclusively targeted adverts. Following the existing house style and a convention of many film magazines, I developed the product to adhere to the rule of three; this has been split into 3 vertical sections, the left, centre and right to draw the audiences eye across the screen and ensure that they are exposed to as much of the information as possible. Stereotypical of almost all magazines, I have place the mast head at the top of the magazine cover to be written in large typography; this becomes one of the first things that the audience sees and advertises the magazine company, leaving the audience to make the association between the company name and the contents of the magazine.

The main image will cover the entirety of the page, with the focal point being the figure of Nicole; this will cover the central third of the magazine an be one of the main attractions that the audience see when looking at the cover. Surrounding the main image, the left and right thirds will contain the cover lines of featuring stories within the magazine to entice the audience to buy the product in order to access the internal articles. I have made the decision to include the website address of the magazine internet site, as in today's society a vast amount of the general population are tech savvy, and so it will help to product to reach a wider demographic.

Ancillary product research: Magazine analysis (3)

Magazine information 

Total Film is a UK-based film magazine published 13 times a year by Future Publishing. It was first published in 1997, and offers cinema, DVD and Blu-ray news, reviews and features; stereotypical features of a film based magazine. Total Film provides a range of features, from spotlight interviews with actors and directors, to making of and on-set pieces for new and future releases. Each issue always includes the Total Film Interview, which is a six-page in-depth chat with an actor or director, along with a critique of their body of work. The focus of the in depth interview is normally reflected as the main image on the front cover of the magazine. Total Film also publish their issues digitally, with interactive elements to engage the target audience.

Main image

The main image of this magazine is a mid shot of the character Iron Man from the film 'Iron Man 2'. Iron man is a well known superhero that comes from a popular franchise of Iron Man films and is a creation by Marvel Comics; an American comic book company. By including the character on the front cover of the magazine, Total Film are using him to attract a wider target audience, as fans of previous films will be attracted to the large recognisable image on the cover. Iron Man is commonly associated with playing the role of the protagonist in and films or magazine stories, and this role is represented in the front cover of the magazine; Iron Man is seen with his left hand out facing towards the audience, with what looks like a strong power being released from his palm. The light that is released from his hand is significant as it represents the fantasy of superheroes that is present in the film and will inform the audience about the genre of the film. 

The action of having his hand out connotes that he is trying to stop something from happening, or stop a person from doing something; this is a stereotypical role that superheroes (where they prevent danger) and so this also reflects the genre and role of the main character. The light coming from the eyes of Iron man is directed at the audience, which uses direct mode of address to attract the attention of the audience, and encouraging the audience to purchase the magazine; the light also reinforces the power behind the character, reinforcing the personality of the featured character. 

The stance that the character has taken represents strength and power, stereotypical features of the superhero that are shown in other products of the franchise; this body language that is displayed suggests that the character is defending, again representing the role of the character. 

The lighting used on the front cover shows a combination of high key and low key lighting, with the high key lighting most predominant on the top half of the cover, highlighting the top part of the torso of the character; this ensures that the characters face, the identity of the superhero, has attention drawn to it allowing it to be recognisable for the audience. Towards the lower third of the cover the lighting becomes darker and creates shadows; this is effective in portraying the element of the film that involves an antagonist and the darkness represents the dark and negative sections of the antagonist. 

The mid shot shows the costume that Iron Man is wearing, and it is the conventional superhero costumes that he wears in both the marvel comics and the previous Iron Man films. It conveys the identity of the character in a way that is recognisable to the audience, making it more engaging and will therefore encourage the audience to purchase the magazine. 

Colour scheme

The focal image is the inspiration for the colour scheme of the rest of the magazine cover; the costume worn by Iron Man acts as the base colour for the cover, and corresponding colours are included to tie int with the theme of the film. This is a stereotypical convention of most magazine covers, as they often base the colour palette of the cover on the film they are featuring to ensure that the theme of the film is reflected in the colours used in order to appeal to the target audience. The dark blue used in the background of the cover is a good base colour that allows the item overlaid to stand out and attract the most attention. The colour gradient of the blue gradually get darker from top to bottom, and has slight effects to make it look like the character is standing in an almost space like atmosphere; this may provide some insight as to the narrative of the film. The costume worm by the character is predominantly red, the only item of this colour included on the front cover; this allows the character to stand out from other features on the cover, often a main aim for the producers as they are trying to advertise an exclusive feature of an upcoming film. Red generally has strong connotations of danger and blood, both conventions of the action thriller genre, and therefore reflects the genre to the audience. White is also a recurring colour on the magazine, used for both the masthead and flashes of light, portrayed as being 'power' from the character; white has connotations of positivity and is associated with innocence and goodness - this may reflect the qualities of the protagonist and reflect and element of the genre. 

Text features

There are quite a lot of textual elements to this magazine front cover that help to explain the features that are inside the magazine. The majority of the font on the cover is a simple sans serif style that effectively delivers the message it is trying to convey. The size of the typography differs depending on the importance of the message, for example the introduction of the featuring film 'Iron Man 2' is large font as it wants to draw attention to it. 

Established, well known names have been used to draw attention to the content of the magazine, with mentions of 'Pattinson', which helps to widen the demographic of the magazines as fans of that particular celebrity may be drawn to buy the magazine and read the feature. Equally, well established names have been given an unconventional twist that will attract the target audience, for example 'The Dork Knight' takes an already known film title and uses the word 'dork' to change a masculine and physically strong word to a something that alters the intended feeling behind the title. Popular names such as 'Marvel' are used to allow the audience to associate themselves with the original creator of the character. 

The world 'more' and 'plus' suggest to the audience that there is a lot of content in the magazine, with feature that are exclusive to Total Film. 

Masthead

The masthead is one of the main features of a magazine cover as it informs the audience on the title of the magazine, creating a brand that is memorable for people to recognise. The word 'Total' is located inside the 'f' of 'film', and it uses the route of the eye by placing 'total' at the from on 'film' meaning the the audience will read the masthead as 'Total Film' instead of the other way round. The masthead is partially covered by the head of the main character in the focal image, which signifies the importance of this character in the film they are featuring. The magazine locates the masthead at the top of the page, just below the promotional banner; locating at the top of the page is a conventional feature of magazines as it is the first thing that the audience sees when looking at the cover. However the masthead doesn't have a tagline, which is very unconventional of magazines. Generally the colour of the masthead is white, as it is on other Total Film magazine covers, however is hasn't been changed as it relates to the colour scheme used on the cover, and the brightness of the white will draw attention to the cover.