Project Brief

For my advanced production project I have decided to do the following:

2. A promotion package for a new film, to include a trailer, together with the following options: 

• a film magazine front cover, featuring the film;

• a poster for the film.

Final Products

Evaluation Question 1

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

Evaluation Question 2

How effective is the combination of your main product and ancillary?

Evaluation Question 3

What have you learned from your audience feedback?

Evaluation Question 4

How did you use new media technologies in the construction and research, planning and evaluating stages?

Development of the Magazine

I created a masthead in the same font as the film title in my poster and trailer. I used a red colour as this was requested on my demographic survey monkey and also it has mysterious, dangerous connotations. It is written in block capitals to make it stand out and also to follow the conventions of existing magazines. 



The puff is used to boost the status of the magazine; this helps with promotion and enticing a wider audience of readers. I used the same font for continuity purposes, as this creates a strong house style. The black shade fits in with the colour scheme requested by my demographic.



The cover line I used was the name of my film, as it is the main thing I am aiming to promote on the magazine cover. I used the same font as I did throughout my other products, in order to create continuity and brand synergy. I selected a central position as it is eye-catching and will therefore make the cover lines a prominent feature on the page.


This plug is flush left in order to follow conventions. It uses a variety of colours and thicknesses in order to make the magazine interesting and engaging. It uses the same type of font as the rest of the cover though, as this creates a strong house style. 





I followed the same steps to create the plug that is flush right. I used a variety of boldness again for the same reasons. 








I added an additional plug underneath the cover line to help with the promotion of the film. I used the same colour scheme as the rest of the cover to create a strong house style.







I decided to change the colour scheme of my magazine cover as despite my demographic requesting this colour, I felt the blue colour fit in with the house style better. I feel the green blue colour has a more clinical feel and helps to connote the mystery genre. It also matches the colour of my poster background, therefore achieving better synergy.

I added some effects to some of the text on the page in order to create a more detailed, professional look. The 3D look makes the magazine more engaging and unique. I added the bevel and emboss effect to these words as they create a 3D finish and are a higher quality.

I added a background of a picture of clouds as the grey scale has connotations of mystery and eeriness. I also blurred the picture using the blur tool to create a slightly softer look and it made the writing more visible. I had to edit the colours of some of the plugs and cover lines to make them easier to read and so they stand out and are eye-catching.


I added an extra plug down the side, flush left, to reduce the amount of negative space. This makes the magazine more conventional and also more engaging and interesting. I put one word on each line to create plenty of space in the middle for the feature article photograph.



I inserted the image that I decided to use by selecting File and then using the place embedded option. Then, I cut around the image using the magnetic lasso tool, this allowed the background to be visible. I positioned the image so it was roughly in the middle of the page, so it fits in with the structure of the plugs on the rest of the magazine. I placed the layer in front of the masthead in order to follow conventions. I then used the blur tool to soften the edges slightly to create a more seamless edge, as the magnetic lasso tool created a very harsh edge. I also cropped out her necklace as it was positioned in the wrong way and looked too informal for the look I was trying to achieve.

I repositioned some of the plugs to fill up more negative space and to make the magazine look more proportional. I also added a section at the bottom to fill up more negative space. To do this I inserted a rectangle and matched the colour of it with the part of the background, I then added text to the rectangle which fits in with colour scheme and therefore creates a house style.

Taking the Magazine Pictures

I decided to shoot the feature article photograph using studio lighting to create a more professional image. I used one studio light to light the background and one to light the cover stars face. I used a tripod to ensure the image was at the correct angle. I selected a white background as my cover star was wearing a black top and this would make it easier to cut out in post-production. 

These are the first photos I took, which were fairly low-key lit in order to achieve the mysterious house style. However, I felt they were slightly too dark and it was difficult to connect with the cover star. 

I then put the flash on to lighten the images and altered her body language to create a more mysterious feel, as an alternative way to convey the genre. I felt these images were a lot more successful as they seemed more professional and better quality.

 

This is the final image I selected as I felt the ambiguous body language successfully portrayed the mystery genre, as her eye contact could be interpreted as welcoming and friendly, but also as threatening and intimidating. Her reserved body language helped to victimise her as she seems vulnerable and afraid, but again has a polysemic meaning as she also seems bold and powerful.

Development of the Poster

I decided to cut out the image, so I could position it at the bottom of the poster. This means I can add more images to the top of the poster, and make it more complex. To do this I used a mixture of the magnetic lasso tool and the eraser tool, this allowed me to cut out the intricate shapes. 

 I imported a background with a gradient as it has dark colours to connote mystery and fear. I placed it behind the main image by dragging the layer to underneath in the bottom right hand corner of the screen. I also lowered the opacity slightly to create a slightly softer effect. 

I added text with the potential film title 'the abduction'. I decided to make the word 'the' smaller and place it directly above the main word, as this is a convention I have noticed in lots of recent, existing posters. The font seems fairly simplistic which means it is easily readable, as I feel the white colour contrasts well with the background and is very bold and powerful.

I added an inner shadow to the text to make it slightly easier to read and also to create a 3D effect and therefore give it more prominence.

Using the same font and technique, I added a tag line to the top of the page and also the actresses' names to the bottom. These also have inner shadows to make them slightly clearer and to ensure they stand out.

I duplicated the gradient layer and cropped it to cover the bottom of the image so the names can be seen more clearly. I used the eraser tool and the blur tool to soften the edges and to create a more subtle gradient.

I added a picture of my protagonists eyes and I cut them down to remove the edges, using the magnetic lasso tool and softened the remaining edges using the blur tool. I moved the layer to behind the background, and the low opacity of it means that the eyes are slightly visible through it, this creates an eerie, mysterious feel.

I added some credits to the bottom of the page in order to follow the conventions of existing posters. These included names of some of the actors in the film, as well as the production company, producers name and name of the film. I varied the font sizes in the credits as this is conventional and makes the main words stand out more.

I added a paramount logo to the bottom of the poster to make it seem official and more realistic. I also added a '15 certificate' logo for brand identity and to make the poster more accessible.

Editing the Poster Image

I took a variety of pictures as options for my poster image. I used a burst, sport mode as this allowed me to make it look like they were walking. I made them stand very close together in order to immediately convey the close bond between them to my audience. I purposely ensured they were not making eye-contact with the camera in order to achieve a posed-candid shot. The mise-en-scene of the photos shows that they are in a woods which connotes danger and mystery, therefore successfully portraying my genre. The scared/worried facial expressions used by my actors help to convey the sense of fear and danger, along with their reserved, timid body language.

I selected the image that I believed was the most effective and imported it into photoshop. I used a 21cmx28cm sized canvas, as this is a conventional poster size. I selected 'free transform' and enlarged the picture to convey the entire page.

I altered the brightness and contrast on the image to create a more shadowy feel in order to convey the mysteriousness and eeriness of the narrative. I also made some parts brighter in order to make the image clearer and more eye-catching.

By adding a slightly blue/green tint, I enhanced the green colour in the background to make the poster more vibrant. Additionally, the blue colour seems very clinical and has connotations of loneliness and sadness, which is also a key part of the narrative.