Fake blood

This is the final recipe i decided on to make my own fake blood during my media product.

Practice Fight sequences

These were a collection of practise fight sequences and i feel that a small selection of these work perfect, and joined with blood and sound effects would be perfect for my media video.

Consent Inquiry

In my media video i felt it necessary to include music over a selection of violent scenes, so i chose to email the record company seeking permission to use their music. The song is called I'm shipping up to Boston by the Dropkick Murphys. The song is very fast paced with the tone of anger so i felt it to be perfect for my own media trailer.

Mental illness

A mental disorder or mental illness is a psychological pattern or anomaly, mainly shown in behaviour, that is generally associated with distress or disability, and which is not considered part of normal development of a person's culture. Mental disorders are generally defined by a combination of how a person feels, acts, thinks or perceives. This may be associated with particular regions or functions of the brain or rest of the nervous system, often in a social context. The recognition and understanding of mental health conditions have changed over time and across cultures and there are still variations in definition, assessment and classification, although standard guideline criteria are widely used. In many cases, there appears to be a continuum between mental health and mental illness, making diagnosis comple. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), over a third of people in most countries report problems at some time in their life which meet criteria for diagnosis of one or more of the common types of mental disorder.

The causes of mental disorders are varied and in some cases unclear, and theories may incorporate findings from a range of fields. Services are based in psychiatric hospitals or in the community, and assessments are carried out by psychiatrists, clinical psychologists and clinical social workers, using various methods but often relying on observation and questioning. Clinical treatments are provided by various mental health professionals. Psychotherapy and psychiatric medication are two major treatment options, as are social interventions, peer support and self-help. In a minority of cases there might be involuntary detention or involuntary treatment, where legislation allows. Stigma and discrimination can add to the suffering and disability associated with mental disorders (or with being diagnosed or judged as having a mental disorder), leading to various social movements attempting to increase understanding and challenge social exclusion. Prevention is now appearing in some mental health strategies.

Red band

I have decided that i will place my movie trailer under the Red band categories the reasons for my choice are because there will be certain aspects included in my trailer which would be only suitable for an older audience, these would include swearing, violence, drugs etc. If i was creating this movie for real i would cut aspects of the red band trailer to make it become green band, making it suitable for all audiences and TV.

Idea For The Story

From taking all of the research into account i have finally decided on my media trailer idea. The genre i placed the product under was an action, physiological, thriller. The basics of the story are as follows; a group of students studying phsycology at university begin an experiment. The experiment consists of; What would happen to the human mind if a person was to loose all their loved ones? Through this experiments which happens to the main character, he has a mental breakdown. However he finds out of a member of the team what has happened, and decides to take revenge. Although this seems like the typical revenge movie, which yes people love but, its nothing they haven't seen before. So i decided i wanted to make mine unique. Ive attempted this in many ways, one of which is of the mental breakdown, and how things are created within his mind and the audience have little idea between truth and reality. Second would be in the way he takes revenge. This will be in the way of killing other family members children, wife's moms, dads, etc. This is unique as when the film begins we will develop a liking and pity for the character but as it continues a hatred will form for the way he carry's out his revenge, however i personally feel that his sadistic personality will also create a liking, like how people love the joker within the batman films. I think this will also have mixed feeling towards the movie as some may feel that he is good throughout, others may feel he became bad, and the rest will feel he was bad through out, Giving a varied viewing experience. Moreover people should gain the realisation that due to his catastrophic event, he isn't himself and its his illness that causes him to do what he does. Finally i wanted to have smilar ideas from the movie 'Shuter Island' and 'The experiment' to confuses the audience from reality and fiction, that his own mind does not know whats real and whats not,  but overall i came to the conclusion that i would call it 'A Life's Experiment'.

Font style

I think it is very important in selecting a font style to appear in my movie trailer. The reason for this is i feel, the font style is a reflection of the genre of the movie. For example take the word verdict at the top, the second one downs implies a sort of horror tone, however the third one down has the appearance of a thriller involving technology. I personally feel the last version of verdict is the best example of a thriller. The word Dangerous also implies an action film from the colours of destruction. The font style of taken 2 clearly highlights the genre of the movie with its thick bold, simplistic lettering, but with the colour of red representing anger. When selecting my own font style i need to take all of these into account and find the most suitable for the style of my own trailer.

Thriller trailer analysis

Thriller Trailers on Prezi

Genre for my own media video

Through my countless research, of audience tastes and the concepts of individual genres i ultimately decided to place my trailer under the two genres of an action, thriller. I also studied deeper into audience trends, so i could have a brief idea into what my own target audience would be. Overall i decided to base my target audience between 18-40, and although this seems to be a big age gap between 18 and 40 my research has proved that these age groups would be ideal. Now I have my genre i now need to have a detail description of a thriller and action movie:

Thriller:

 The aim for thrillers is to keep the audience alert and on the edge of their seats. The protagonist in these films is set against a problem, an escape, a mission, or a mystery. No matter what sub-genre a thriller film falls into, it will emphasise the danger that the protagonist faces. The tension combined with the main problem is built on throughout the film and leads to a stressful climax. Hiding highly important information from the audience, and fight and Chase scenes are common methods in all of the thriller sub genres, although each sub genre has its own unique characteristics and methods.

A thriller provides the sudden rush of emotions, excitement, sense of suspense and exhilaration that drive the narrative, sometimes subtly with peaks and lulls, sometimes at a constant, breakneck pace thrills. In this genre, the aim is to deliver a story with sustained tension, surprise, and a constant sense of impending doom. It keeps the audience cliff-hanging at the "edge of their seats" as the plot builds towards a climax. Thrillers tend to be fast-moving, psychological and threatening, mysterious and at times involve larger-scale villainy such as espionage, terrorism and conspiracy.

James Patterson who is a major anthologist said "...Thrillers provide such a rich literary feast. There are all kinds. The legal thriller, spy thriller, action-adventure thriller, medical thriller, police thriller, romantic thriller, historical thriller, political thriller, religious thriller, high-tech thriller, military thriller. The list goes on and on, with new variations constantly being invented. In fact, this openness to expansion is one of the genre's most enduring characteristics. But what gives the variety of thrillers a common ground is the intensity of emotions they create, particularly those of apprehension and exhilaration, of excitement and breathlessness, all designed to generate that all-important thrill. By definition, if a thriller doesn't thrill, it's not doing its job." Also writer Vladimir Nabokov, in his lectures at Cornell University, said: "In an Anglo-Saxon thriller, the villain is generally punished, and the strong silent man generally wins the weak babbling girl, but there is no governmental law in Western countries to ban a story that does not comply with a fond tradition, so that we always hope that the wicked but romantic fellow will escape scot-free and the good but dull chap will be finally snubbed by the moody heroine."

Action:

Action film is a film genre where one or more heroes is put into a load of challenges that require physical feats, extended fights and frenetic chases. They tend to feature a resourceful character struggling against incredible odds, which may involve life-threatening situations, an evil villain, and/or being pursued, with victory achieved at the end after difficult physical efforts and violence. Story and character development are generally secondary to explosions, fist fights, gunplay and car chases.

While action films have normally been a reliable source of revenue for movie studios,  few action films garner critical praise, mainly because of their repetitive heroes or villains. Nevertheless, Hollywood has been making more action films than ever, in part because advancements in CGI have made it cheaper and easier to create action sequences and other visual effects that required professional stunt crews and dangerous staging in the past. However, audience reactions to action films containing significant amounts of CGI have been mixed, and films where computer animation is not believable are often met with criticism.

While action has long been an element of films, the "action film" genre began to develop in the 1970s. The genre is closely linked with the thriller and adventure film genres, and it may sometimes have elements of spy fiction and espionage.

Overall:
Through these in depth descriptions and examples i am now able to understand both genres more deeply, and have the knowlede into what i should include in my own media product.

Genre specific

Media gene on Prezi

Results

The results of this questionnaire was very interesting, and allowed me to finalise my decision on the genre of what my trailer would be. I also gained the realisation of target audience trends, enabling me to understand what is needed to be put in my trailer for it to be a good one.

Please specify you age?-This was my first question, i used this so i would be able to get a broad view from all ages. These were my results:

Although my results were mainly centred around that of the younger generation (10-20), i still was able to have a large amount of answers from others age ranges, making my study deeper. Also i was now able to know what age range to aim my media product at.

Please specify your gender?- This was the second question i asked as i wanted the study to be as equal as possible. These were my results:

And as you can see through my results, i almost have an equal amount of boys taking this questionnaire to girls. This allowed my study to become more equal, and see if preferences between women and men are any different. Also i was now able to know what gender to aim my media product at.  

What is your favourite movie Genre?- I chose to ask this question so i would have the capability to understand what would be the best Genre to go for when creating my own movie trailer. These were my results:

As you can see from the results the three most popular genres are action, thriller and comedy. And with all the other genres having only a small percentage of the votes. This allowed me to come to the conclusion of which genre i would like to enter my own media trailer. So overall i chose to do a action, thriller.

The following two questions i chose to ask was to state their favourite movie and also the reasons being to why this was their favourite movie. This piece of research helped me greatly as i now had the knowledge of what to include in my own media product, to attract the target audience i desire. The answers were interesting, as many of the movies that were chosen mainly fell into the genre of thriller or action, or at least acting as a subtext. Moreover when i cross referenced this with the first question the majority of people of the younger generation voted a movie while fell into the genre of action thriller while, the older generation chose more drama based movies. When i then continued to look at the next question many relevant examples arisen, for me to include in my own video. For instance many people enjoyed there movie because of "the atmosphere it created, being jumpy, tense and intriguing", also people felt that "curiosity" in a film helps draw an audience member closer to the film. This highlights the theory from Steve Neale, who states "that pleasure is derived from repetition and difference" which in basic terms means that if a director portrays there genre, similar but made in a totally different way, this may attract a larger audience. A good example of this would be the movie silver linings playbook, the reason being is although its a romantic comedy, it goes against the status qua of the genre. The reason being is the romantic couple both have mental disorders, and this is unseen in many romantic comedy's, especially how this movie has more of a serious tone compared to other romantic movies. Actors also played a great part in reasons for why people would choose there favourite movie.  

 Do you feel trailers are the best form of advertisement for a movie?-This was the next question i chose to ask as i want to see if people actually felt trailers was the best form of movie advertisement, and from my results you can clearly see that many people do. These were the results:

Please state what you feel makes a good movie trailer?- I then asked this question so i was able to understand what i should include in my movie trailer, to make it of better quality. The main answer i was receiving was "makes me want to watch the movie", as this is the main aim of a trailer i will attempt to do this. Other answers i received was, "tension building", "hooking", "show the best parts of the movie, so it will advertise the film on a higher scale" and "good use of music". Through these answers i picked out the most relevant and useful examples and decided to use them within my trailer.  

I Finally asked what they feel makes a good thriller, i chose to ask this as i decided my genre would become and action thriller, so through this question i was able to know what people are looking for. Many of the answers were "mystery", "Tension building", "hooking", "good use of music", "suspense", "twists" and "makes you think". Through these i now have the capability to understand the basic needs within a Thriller, and also helps me to decide what i should place within my own trailer.

Questionnaire

This was the questionnaire i decided upon so i was able to have a more in-depth look at the consumption of the media product of film and also have a greater understanding on peoples views on trailers.

In depth study of Trailers

Trailers on Prezi

Movie Company Logo

A production logo, vanity card, vanity plate, or vanity logo is a logo used by movie studios and television production companies to brand what they produce. Production logos are mainly seen at the start of a theatrical movie or video game (an "opening logo"), or at the end of a television program or TV movie. Many production logos have become famous over the years, such as the 20th Century Fox's searchlights, Paramount Pictures mountain, and MGM's Leo the Lion. Unlike logos for most other media, production logos can take advantage of motion and synchronized sound, and almost always do.

Red Band and Green Band

Rating cards appear at the head of trailers in the United States which indicate how closely the trailer adheres to the MPAA's standards. A green band is an all-green screen at the beginning of the trailer. Until April 2009, these cards indicated that they had been approved for "all audiences" and often included the movie's MPAA rating. This shows that the trailer follows to the standards for motion picture advertising outlined by the MPAA, which include limitations on foul language and violent, sexual, or otherwise obnoxious imagery. In April 2009, the MPAA began to permit the green band language to say that a trailer had been approved for "appropriate" audiences, meaning that the material would be appropriate for audiences in theaters, based on the content of the film they had come to see. Trailers that do not abide to these guidelines may be issued a red band, which indicates approval for only "restricted" or "mature" audiences. These trailers may only be shown before R-rated, NC-17-rated, or unrated movies (only films that are released in theaters rated R and not in theaters rated PG-13). These trailers may include nudity, profanity or other material deemed inappropriate for children.

Trailer four Savages

This was the final trailer in which I did a deep in depth study of was Savages, the new action thriller, directed by Oliver Stone, who also directed platoon.

Similarly to the other trailers, this trailer uses many of the same methods when looking at camera angles to  highlight the importance of certain aspects of the trailer. For instance the trailer uses a Long shot which brings to attention the surroundings, so the audience will have a better understanding of the whereabouts of the movie setting. Many close ups are also used throughout this trailer, most of which show the characters throughout this film, i personally feel this is used to encourage there target audience to come and watch this movie as famous actors like Benicio Del Toro, (star of the blockbuster Usual suspects) Aaron Taylor-Johnson (star of Kick Ass) and finally Salma Hayek (star in Desperado) star in this movie, and with their fan base people will watch this movie. A mixture of long-shots, close-ups, mid-shots and tracking shots are used throughout this trailer to enforce it genre, for example, most of the trailer consists of many scenes or acts of violence, going from shoot-outs to stabbings, all leading to what target audience this trailer would be aimed at. As a whole the main use for all of the camera angles during this trailer are used to give a deeper perspective into the film, ie characters, setting, violence etc, I also through these camera angle this trailer is very successful in encouraging their target audience to watch this movie.

When looking at the editing in depth I could see many similarities with the other trailers. For example this trailer is full of many fast paced transitions, which would be used to give a brief blurb of this movie, ie the main points of the storyline. This is used highly to show which target audience this trailer would be aimed at and furthermore attract that audience to go and watch this movie. More so this trailer stared in black and white, and taking into context what the character is saying i feel this is used to represent death. As this black and white section end, within the space of around 3 seconds a mixture of many shots are played backwards, although they hard to make out, i feel this represents a recap of someones memory of what has already occurred. For a vast majority of this movie trailer, a voice over is used, i feel this is used so the audience have a more in depth knowledge of the troubles the characters have involved themselves in. The lettering used is of a very simplistic nature, also the colour of red, maybe representing bloodshed or anger. Also when watching the trailer i could see he attempted to do this movie in a very Quentin Tarantino style, which is where humour and very colourful surrounding or objects are used with a very dark storyline, a sort of oxymoron way of directing.

The sound used through out the trailer has a mixture of both Diagetic and Non- diagetic, for instance the sound of the waves was diagetic and the music was Non- diagetic. Also through this trailer the music used highlights the style of the movie. For instance there is a light hearted song played over such a dark storyline, which then moves on to tension building music. This also shows to the target audience what they would expect from this movie, as these show that this movie is and action thriller. At one point a mask is removed from one of the characters, on removal a non diagetic sound of a tiger raw appears, i personally feel that this is used to show authority and power within this character.

The mise-en-scene is also very representational of the type of movie this is, i feel this is used to enhance the style of this movie for instance the guns, masks and clothes all show the violence and authority of this movie, and they also show the surroundings, as they highlight the hot tropical country. All these are used to show the audience this what type of movie they will watch.

Trailer three Despicable me 2

The next movie trailer I decided to study was Despicable me 2, however this is a different for of trailer, as its a teaser trailer. This form of trailer has a totally different concept all together as these trailer show very little of the movie, in the hope to entice there target audience to watch the movie out of curiosity.

The camera angle throughout this whole trailer is one continuous long shot which shows both animated characters. The editing consists of simplistic lettering and also the creation of the animated characters. The sound starts with non-diagetic piece of music to build tension, then when both characters are on screen, diagetic sound of a cow bell is used. Also there is a unique speech used through these characters known as the minions. The mise-en-scene is also just the simple work clothing of the minions and the cow bell.

This trailer is interesting as it is assumed that this clip would not be included in the film, but used as a short skit which is humorous, suggesting the film would produce the same sort of laughs. I personally feel that this is a much more inventive way of advertising a movie, and a different attempt at appealing to there target audience. As the whole trailer consists on extremely simple methods, but does a great job at advertising the movie.  

Trailer Two Seeking a friend for the end of the world

Seeking a friend for the end of the world, was the second trailer that I had a in depth study of. More so this movie is of a completely different genre to Killer Joe, so I wanted to study if the whole concept of a trailer changes due to the style of movie.

The camera angles throughout this movie trailer, are mainly used to highlight different objects or people. For example the trailer starts with a close-up of a radio, as the characters within the car are listening to that radio. The camera angles also emphasise the main theme of the whole story. As the radio broadcast, states how the world is coming to an end, in three weeks. This continues for almost the whole of the trailer, as mid-shots are used to show the upset of the characters, in a humerus way. Long-shots of the ongoing riots due to the recent news, and a mixture of close-ups, mid-shots and long-shots highlighting how people would live there life if the world was coming to an end. There are also many shot reverse shots used to display how the two characters are communicating to one another. Over all almost all the camera angles are used to enhance the main themes of the movie and also to show what the world would come to if something of this nature occurred.

When looking at the editing, this trailers consists of a lot of fast paced transitions, to show the main just of the movie a lot faster. The lettering used to display, the title, actors etc, is very simplistic lettering with a background of clouds. Overall this trailer consists of very little editing, but are used for the same purpose, to advertise the movie.

The sound switches from both diagetic to non-diagetic, for instance the sound of the radio broadcast is diagetic, but the joyful piece of music in the background is non-diagetic. This type of tone in the background emphasises the comedic tone of this movie. The sound throughout this trailer is also used in a very creative manner, as when a line which has some comedic value comes up, all the sound goes silent to enhance the humour.

The mise-en-scene throughout this trailer is there to show how the world would change with news of such a catastrophe was to occur. For example how the clothing, changes completely, y the women wearing all the clothes she has never wore, or the male character wearing a gas mask. The mixture of random fireworks, surfboards are all used to show how the world in know something out of the ordinary.

When comparing this trailer to Killer Joe there are different methods used, for example the sound within both trailers are completely different, as this trailer highlights a humerus tone where as Killer Joe had a tension building value with the movie being a thriller. Although when looking at the main context of a movie trailer, which is to advertise and encourage people to watch this movie there are may similarities. Overall although there are some differences, over all both are near enough the same for the main purpose of a movie trailer.

Trailer one Killer Joe

The first trailer I chose to look at was Killer Joe, a new, upcoming film from the producers of The Exorcist, throughout the trailer I began to have an in-depth analysis of the camera angles, mise-en-scene, sound and editing.

A mixture of many shots are used throughout this trailer, all used for many different reasons. One of the main features which is used throughout almost all trailers is to give a brief showing of the characters involved, the genre and also to give an outline of the story. For example, there are many mid-shots and also long-shots, to give an overview of all the characters involved in this film. More so if the actor is a famous star it may sell the movie more, for instance 'Killer Joe' stars Matthew McConaughey, who is an extremely famous actor, so showing him in the trailer may entice people to watch this movie. Long shots are also used to show the violence which would occur in this movie, and the close ups also show the violence from the bruising of one of the male characters faces, also of the weaponry. The final Mid shot used at the end showing only Killer Joe also has a sadistic tone, showing that this film is in the genre thriller/horror. All of these shots used all have the same intention to persuade you to watch this movie and give a brief outline of the film.

The editing is full of fast paced transitions going from shot to shot, this is used in my personal opinion to show what the whole movie is about, in a short period of time. Also, it has the effect of building tension in this trailer as the shots are changing, they are changing like a heartbeat, and gives the audience a sense of curiosity. The letters used to show, actors, critics opinions and producers, are like bright letters which may appear on the front of a casino, but these ones are of a dark nature suggesting the morbid tone of the movie. There are also small editing used to highlight the movie more for instance the lightening bolts flashing on the screen and the sound of gunshots.

The sound used in this trailer has a mixture of both diegetic and non-diegetic effects. As the music in the background builds tension but also the enhanced sound of the lighter also builds tension so both forms are used for the same objective. Also as the trailer continues, tension building music is played continuosly, but there are several different forms of music used. This may be used to hold the audiences  attention, and also show different stages within the movie. Another thing used within in this trailer is the sound from previous shots continues in the next shot, For example the character would be speaking a transition would take place but his voice would then become a voice over for the next shot. Silence is also used in a big way so the audience will focus all there attention on what is shown in front of them.

Finally the mise-en-scene is mainly used, so the audience will form a view on the character on screen. One of the main characters 'Joe' is seen to be wearing a leather jacket and gloves, carrying a gun and also a badge. All of these highlight his authority from him being a police officer. Where s the other characters have very low quality clothing and also it is suggested from the trailer they live in a caravan. These suggest poverty working class characters in this movie.  

Overall many of these methods used throughout this movie trailer are all used to persuade people to watch this movie and also to give a brief overview of the plot.

My Media Task

For my Media task I chose to do a promotion package for a new film, to include a teaser trailer, together with a poster for a film and a film magazine front cover, featuring the film. I chose this task as I feel that this would be the best task to suit my personality and would complete this task to the best of my ability.