Magazine Production Progress Report

Thomas Allison 0051

My magazine production kicked off by gathering my chosen photos from pre-production and ideas and putting them on my memory stick ready to use PhotoShop at college. It was at this stage that I realised that the photoshop practice lessons paid off (http://thomasallison0051.blogspot.com/2009/11/photoshop-practice-for-magazine-covers.html). This saved me alot of time as I am now already familiar with the PhotoShop program so I could began to put my ideas together.

I uploaded my photos and fonts and other elements such as the barcode and began to produce my constructed magazine cover. Firstly I had to set the page requirements to the A4 sizes so the picture would fit a proper sized magazine cover without getting pixilated if i had to enlarge it from a smaller page.

The next stage was to upload my background (dark clouds) and set it as my first layer so it is my base for my work so i could start adding my other elements of my diegesis. The magic wand tool was the most usful tool for me when cutting my photos out to stick on my website. However i did encounter a problem when trying to cut out my protagonists hair and so i had to use the manual whilst zoomed in to deal with this.

That was the only problem with photoshop that I had due to the practice I have had. However PhotoShop is a complex program with all the different tools and layers for it was a long process of approximatly 3 lessons. However the final piece looks very successful and protrays EMPIRE magazines professional due to my constructed diegesis.

Target Audience For My Magazine

Thomas Allison 0051

Before Constructing my magazine it is important to identify my target audience and list possible qualities which will aid my promotion of my trailer to get them to buy it.

To begin with my target audience is going to quite like my film trailer audience in the sense that they are the people who will be interested in my trailer and would follow these codes and conventions of my thriller choice.

My target audience is likely to be on average 18 year old males who have finished or are coming to the end of their education. They are most likely to be Atheist or only have a weak belief in religion so they can have an understanding in my thriller and almost believe that these sort of conventions are real. My target audience are also likely to be British as the codes and conventions of my trailer are well recognised in Britian but also because my actors are English and the location we filmed at is also English.

The hobbies and interests of my chosen audience are likely to be Empire Film subscribers, regular cinema visitors and love the thriller genre; so their favourite films are likely to be Saw 5 and The Grudge. They are also likely to own X-Boxs and play games like Hallo or Call Of Duty. If they drive they are likely to listen to Absolute Radio and their main gossip at college would be on the topic of Triller or film. These people are also likely to be up to date with fashion and the latest gossips within film, they will know about celebrities and will likely have a favorite football team.

Each of these micro-elements help me to make decisions on what to include on my magazine to effectively attract my target audience. For example to include a review about Saw 5 would help as they would want to read into this as their favorite type of film is Thrillers. My target audience will relate to my magazine cover by the recognisable logo "Empire" and the main article of my protagonist.

They will should already be able to identify with it as they may have seen the trailer, website or even heard the radio advertisment. The codes and coventions of my magazine will help my audience identify with it such as the dark grey background using colour codes of a thriller showing its genre (thriller). All these key elements add up to the diegesis of my magazine with similar traits to the audience to get them to buy it promoting my film trailer; for example the protagonist is on the front cover at the age of 19 he relates to my target audience so they will relate to him.

UK Legal Frameworks For Magazines

Thomas Allison 0051

Before beginning to plan my magazine or even research into other types of magazines my main focus was to research into the UK legal framework for magazines which was put forward by CAP. The main rules that may interfere with me creating a magazine are:

• ‘Marketing communications must conform with the Code. Primary responsibility for observing the Code falls on marketers...’.
• ‘All marketing communications should be legal, decent, honest and truthful.’
• ‘All marketing communications should be prepared with a sense of responsibility to consumers and to society.’
• No marketing communication should mislead, or be likely to mislead, by inaccuracy, ambiguity, exaggeration, omission or otherwise.
• Marketers should not exploit the credulity, lack of knowledge or inexperience of consumers.
• Marketing communications should contain nothing that condones or is likely to provoke violence or anti-social behaviour.
• No marketing communication should cause fear or distress without good reason. Marketers should not use shocking claims or images merely to attract attention.
• Marketing communications should contain nothing that is likely to cause serious or widespread offence. Particular care should be taken to avoid causing offence on the grounds of race, religion, sex, sexual orientation or disability. Compliance with the Code will be judged on the context, medium, audience, product and prevailing standards of decency.
• Marketing communications may be distasteful without necessarily conflicting with 5.1 above. Marketers are urged to consider public sensitivities before using potentially offensive material.
• ‘Publishers announcing reader promotions on the front page or cover should ensure that consumers know whether they will be expected to buy subsequent editions of the publication. Major conditions that might reasonably influence consumers significantly in their decision to buy the publication should appear on the front page or cover.’
• ‘A recommended retail price (RRP), or similar, used as a basis of comparison should be genuine; it should not differ significantly from the price at which the product is generally sold.’

I must consider all the above, this involves being decent and truthful showing no offence. I must also take responsibility for my actions and my consumers. My magazine is a movie magazine front cover and will show no racism or sexual activity or any offence of any kind. The last 2 bullet points refer to magazine front covers especially which is what I am focusing on and therefore I must obey and not exceed the rules. The first bullet points refers to add ons and collectable items within magazines which must be expressed on the front page however this does not refer to me as this magazine is a one off and only refers to my film. The second bullet point refers to the price which must be displayed on the front. I must consider this when constructing my magazine.

Now I know the legal requirements I can now begin researching and begin to construct my magazine.

Evaluation Of My Constructed Magazine

Now my construction is complete it is time to begin the evaluation process of my product. To begin with starting at the top of the page with the main title “Empire” I replicated the title used by the official Empire Magazine company to ensure my target audience understand what I am representing. This title is located central at the top of the page at the same size as the example magazines I have used in my research to ensure that my target audience recognise the style of magazine helping give it shelf impact. My title should be the first recognisable image on my constructed magazine cover to give away its genre and purpose. The title was created using the same codes and conventions; this includes using the colour red, and the size and font used. The next aspect of my magazine was the price, date and issue. Throughout my research these elements were presented in the smallest font on the page in the dip of the “M”, I did this to follow the codes and conventions of the Empire magazines but also so my target audience know where to find it in its regular place, the font size is small so that the audience may not notice it as it is the least important element on my magazine page. I want the price to be the last thing they look at; they need to firstly be attracted by my other aspects such as the title and images.

As I mentioned in my research Empire tend to use a dull dark background with no particular meaning or location to help the main image stand out. I decided to follow this rule within the Empire magazine by using a background of grey and black clouds which I took during the filming day. This will allow me to create the same effect as the Empire magazines I have researched.

My main image on the page is of the main protagonist Shawn (Actor: Ben). During the pre-production stage of my magazine construction I had narrowed down my ideas to some suitable ideas taken from different angles. I had a shot of him from the side, a shot zoomed out, and a shot zoomed in. However following media codes and conventions I chose a shot which made Ben look dominant and which would take a large proportion of the page up to catch the audience’s attention. This shot shows his dominance by looking up at him however also close up with his head towards the top of the page so his eyes are near the title which will make the audience want to look at his face and then the title helping promote my magazine and film. From research I have also noticed that some of the main images used on Empire Magazines over lap the title “Empire” slightly to give it effect and show the importance of the main image. I decided to follow this convention and so I made my image over lap the title slightly.

The next element I included on my page was the barcode which initially helped my magazine diegesis making it look like a magazine but also because magazines must have a barcode to sell the item in a shop. From research the magazines all had bar codes but predominantly they were featured at the bottom right of magazine so this is where I located mine.

Within one of my examples of Empire magazine in research but also generally in a lot of their magazines they have the tag line “THE WORLD’S BIGGEST MOVIE MAGAZINE” located in a familiar position under the title in a smaller font to the left. I have decided to include this in my magazine because it will help promote my magazine to help sell it so more people will buy it and read about the main article (my trailer). Also included on all the magazines I researched was the website address located under the title in a smaller font to the right of magazine. This is useful to include on a magazine as it unlocks a whole new media industry (the internet) and allows my target audience to access my articles and information online.

The articles on my magazine front cover are the next elements which need evaluating. They follow the codes and conventions of the articles which I have researched from previous Empire magazines. They are coloured black and white alternatively firstly to determine when a new article starts and secondly so they do not stand out to much.

The main focus essentially must lie with the title and main image. These two elements are the key that must grab the attention of my target audience. This is also why I have followed the codes and conventions from my research of not allowing the articles to overlap the main image. It is very important they do not take the attention off the image. My articles are all made up but are like the real articles from Empire magazines which are short, exciting and seem interesting for example “George Lucas The New Idea”.

Overall my codes and conventions focus on Empire magazine and I believe my magazine is a successful construction allowing my target audience to recognise this well known company and hopefully the diegesis that I have created would fool my audience into thinking it is an official copy.

Magazine Pre Production Progress Report

Thomas Allison 0051

My Magazine Pre Production went fairly well and there were not many problems with designing my magazine. To begin with Research was found to be interesting and the comparison of different film magazine companies and the magazines within the companies used fairly similar methods to attract their target audiences. These included using the same Titles and methods of presenting their pictures. From the research i then determined my chosen magazine company to represent, I chose Empire as they focus more main stream and I have taken more of a interest in their magazines rather than Sight and Sound After research was completed and when I had more of an understanding about the magazine media industry I began to plan ideas drawing sketches and analysing my ideas. The next stage came when filming the trailer. I took as many photos as possible to enable me to chose from a large range to either be the background or main image on my magazine. I narrowed my options down and then began to write about them stating why they were usable or effective in attracting my target audience. My chosen Ideas were the grey clouds in the sky following Empires codes and Conventions and my main image was the protagonist (Ben) posing a dominant stance with his eyes facing towards the top to get the audiences attention near to the main logo. After I had gathered my main images and backgrounds (which includes possible fonts, barcode, Main title and price) it was time to use PhotoShop to begin the construction of my magazine.

Evaluating my Coursework (Progress Reports)

Thomas Allison 0051

Main Evaluation

General
Link to Challenging Aspects Of My As Coursework
Link to Creative Development through Digital Technology
Link to Creative Development
Link to Creative Development Part 2
Link to Programs Used

Film
Link to Pre Production Part 1
Link to Pre Production Part 2
Link to Pre Production Part 3
Link to Production
Link to Sound Recording
Link to Editing

Magazine
Link to Pre Production
Link to Production

Website
Link to Pre Production
Link to Production

Radio
Link to Pre Production
Link to Production
Link to Editing

Advertising Industry Codes Of Practice For Radio

Thomas Allison 0051
Rowan Smith 0121
Samantha Grant 0081

In the same way that we needed to consider the Advertising Industry Codes of Practice for our trailer, we also need to consider these for our radio advert.
Reactions to different adverts can be vastly different , and so each station has to take into account different adverts, and make responsible judgements to make sure all the sensitive areas have been considered when choosing which adverts to broadcast. Research shows that a significant number of listeners, such as under 16 year olds, will be listening at certain times, for example in the mornings or school holidays. We will need to take all of the regulations into consideration when creating our radio advert.
With reference to ‘Good taste, decency and offence to public feeling’ on the BCAP Radio Advertising Code, we will need to consider:
a) offensive and profane language must be avoided;

b) salacious, violent or indecent themes, or sexual innuendo or stereotyping likely to cause serious or general offence, should be avoided;

c) the handling of films, plays, music tracks or websites with salacious, violent or sexual themes and/or titles requires careful consideration. Audio clips should portray the product’s true nature but clips containing bad language, sexual innuendo and/or gratuitous violence should normally be avoided;

In order to abide by these rules, we will make sure that any dialogue we use from our film will be suitable, for example no swearing, and we will choose scenes that do not include violence or sexual innuendo.

‘Advertising must not harm listeners nor exploit, either personally or financially, their vulnerability. No advertising is acceptable from those who practise or advocate illegal or harmful, or potentially harmful behaviour. No advertisement may encourage or condone behaviour which is harmful or prejudicial to health and safety. This does not preclude responsible advertisements for products and services which, used to excess or abused, could endanger health or safety.’ This is another rule that we will need to observe when creating our radio advert. In order to do this, any content we will use from our film will not include violence or behaviour that jeopardises health and safety.

‘Advertisements must not exploit the superstitious and must not, without justifiable reason, play on fear. A ‘justifiable reason’, for example, would be where the aim of the advertisement was to influence listeners to take action to improve safety or welfare. An impression of a person under threat from fire or a car accident could be acceptable, for example, if their function was to persuade listeners respectively to fit smoke alarms in their homes or to wear seat belts.’ Although the genre of our film is a thriller, in order to not play on fear, we will make sure we don’t use any scenes that portray this within our radio advert.

‘Advertisements must not include sounds likely to create a safety hazard. Distracting or potentially alarming sound effects such as sirens, horns, screeching tyres, vehicle collisions and the like must be treated cautiously; they may be dangerous to those listening, especially whilst driving. In particular, they should avoid being featured at the start of advertisements, before listeners are clear about what they are listening to.’ This rule is particularly important for us to consider when we create the radio advert for our film. Because the radio advert will be listened to when people are in their cars, we have to consider the fact that any sudden noises or screaming etc could affect the health and safety of listeners. In order to abide by this, we will aim to avoid using any noises such as this, but any noises we do use will not be at the beginning of our advert, and will be slightly muted in order to make them quieter.

Texual Analysis "Tell No One"

Thomas Allison 0051
Rowan Smith 0121
Samantha Grant 0081

This is an analysis of the radio advert for ‘Tell No One’ (Guillaume Canet, 2006). There are a number of codes and conventions directly related to the radio advertisements for films which I will analyse in this case study. This film is a thriller that was originally based on a novel and the advert runs for 30 seconds which matches the brief for our advert. Being a radio advertisement it is pre-recorded and therefore editing has clearly occurred. Acoustic treatment is evident as the recordings are of high quality which is one of the main codes for pre-recorded radio such as an advertisement unlike live-links on the radio which often lowers the quality of the acoustics in order to raise the verisimilitude of the piece.

There is a mixture of diegetic sound (DS) and non-diegetic (NDS) sound within the trailer with the NDS running as the main sound and the DS as a sort of undertone. Some of the main features within a film’s radio advert which are clearly referenced here are the film’s title, the date of release (in this case it is already in cinemas), the age classification of the film, the mode of release (e.g. cinema, DVD etc.) and occasionally the director’s name is used though not in this case.

These details are then usually mixed in with the DS which consists of audio clips usually from the film’s trailer. Using clips from the trailer shows consistency across the campaign which means the audience will be able to link the different forms of the campaign they may have been exposed to and are thus more likely to remember the film.

The codes and conventions of a thriller also must be analysed with regards to the advert. Though there are no visual cues for the audience to draw meaning from such as dark colour schemes and the non-verbal communication (NVC) of the actors, plenty of meaning can be drawn from sound. The tone of the announcer’s voice for example is noticeably deeper in a thriller radio advert than most other genres. This seriousness is essential for allowing the idea of fear to be developed throughout the advert. The DS used is really just a mix of a few screams and shouts from the film. This serves two main purposes, the first being to instill a state of fear within the audience as is part of the thriller codes. Second it is used to enhance the announcer’s dialogue. In the first half of the advert the announcer is saying the film’s tagline “8 years ago, Alex’s wife was murdered…today she e-mailed him”. A woman’s scream was played just after the announcer said ‘Alex’s wife was murdered’ this helps create extra visualization for the audience and is used because there are no visual cues.

Another of the most important aspects of an advert for a film in any media form is that it creates an enigma. It give away enough of the film’s narrative to capture the audience’s interest, but not so much that it gives away the plot. In the ‘Tell No One’ advert the audience only has the tagline and screams/shouts to work from. The tagline is clearly where the enigma is created as it seems to say that Alex’s wife has come back from the dead. If the advert was successful this should have got the audience wondering how this is possible and gotten them to go and watch the film to find out.

Links For Radio Advertisment Coursework

Link to Initial Ideas Blast For Radio Advertisement
Link to Research Into Radio Advertisments
Link to Research Into Advertising Agency Codes Of Practice
Link to Evaluation of My Radio Advertisment
Link to Radio Advertisment Script

Research Into 3 Detailed Thriller Case Studies

Thomas Allison 0051

My previous research is on 5 random film trailers that I conducted towards the beginning of my coursework progress. I am now going to focus on 3 Thriller Film Websites.

(Case study 1) Saw 6 (http://www.saw6film.com/main.html)

To begin with this website is a thriller representing the film Saw 5 to the internet population. The idea with film websites is to help advertise and promote the film using widgets, trailers and some awesome designs to help attract the target audience. Firstly the background as expected is a dark dull layout, the main colour connotations displayed are black and gray which I associate with evil and death. The actual website background is a dark room with a flickering light and a vent with smoke coming out of it. This helps give the website a gloomy effect reflecting the codes and conventions of the Thriller genre. In the centre of the background is a door which is slightly wedged open with some type of light creeping through it onto the screen. This almost acts as a temptation for the target audience, trying to get them to watch the film to see what is behind the door. At the top of the page is a menu listed from left to right on a thriller designed grey menus background acting like a banner. This displays features of the film such as “downloads”, “gallery”, and “video”. This widgets/links help the film to be promoted and advertised to the target audience viewing the website to enable them to want to watch the film. The logo of “SAW” which is recognisable to all throughout all 5 of the films is presented in the centre of the page above the door with the words “Now Playing” underneath once again to help promote the film. This and the logo are coloured white to help contrast from the black and grey background to help it stand out as it is very important to be recognised. Towards the bottom of the page is various links also to help promote the film like “You can find us on....” and there are links to Facebook and Twitter. There are also links to games and websites linked to this film. One difference about this film from others is that the credits are not displayed in small fonts along the bottom of the page.

(Case Study 2) Hostel 2 (http://www.hostel2.com/)

To begin with Hostel 2’s website is different from the previous one I looked at in the sense of structure it is more basic. The background is a smudged grey effect, making the website seem gloomy and miserable adding to the diegesis of a Thriller. That is all the background consists of. The main image on the page is of a man’s face pulling a smug grin with the light positioned so he has shadow effects running across him. Also on the page are comments left by well known companies complimenting the film, for example “Marc Savlov”. This is a new feature which I have not noticed on a film website before. The next feature about this website is the video screen centred in the page with the guy just above it. This allows the most important feature of the website to be viewed almost straight away without the need to find it or avoid it. The trailer is available to be viewed to attract the audience to want to watch the film

(Case Study 3) The Dark Knight (http://thedarkknight.warnerbros.com/dvdsite/)

I have previously looked at this website but I am going to look at it in more detail due to its genre thriller, which I need to focus on for my website. To begin with without look at anything in particular I notice as soon as I go on the sight the colour codes which are black and dark grey giving it a dull effect showing signs of mystery and death. This follows the codes and conventions of a thriller as I already knew what type of film it was. The background is of dark clouds just like my magazine cover. The dark clouds are surrounding by sky scrapers peering over the screen making us as the audience look up as if something is going to fall down on us. The main logo of “Batman” is displayed centrally towards the bottom on the Menu. No name is needed as the Batman logo is instantly recognisable. This website also has animation effects such as the flashing arrows which states “one time limited event inside” which can be used to attract the target audience to use the websites facilities. To the left of the image is the image of Batman on Blu-ray and DVD which displays that the film has been released from cinema and that the target audience are able to buy it. The Menu displays familiar links from the other websites such as “Gallery, Videos, Cast and Crew” all used to help promote the film. Towards the bottom of the page in small font closed in together are the credits about the Production Company and cast. This is a common trait on a mainstream film website. Also presented next to the credits is the icons of the companies which helped to produce the film such as Warner Bros.

Test Photographs Of Our Actors

Thomas Allison 0051
Rowan Smith 0121
Samantha Grant 0081

We chose Ben to be the male protagonist within our trailer because we know he is is also reliable due to the fact that we know him, and that we can all easily contact him. We will also be able to negotiate with him so that he is available for filming when we need him, as well as Becca. In terms of the way he looks, we chose him because he is tall, and looks dominant, as though he will be able to take the lead within our trailer. This fits with the male character within our campaign because we want to show that he is more dominant than the female protagonist, emphasising this with the fact that the female protagonist gets kidnapped by the antagonist. In the same way as Becca, Ben is also the same age as the audience we want to target, which will help to attract them to our campaign.

We chose to use Becca as the actress for our trailer because a member of our group has experienced working with her for their AS Coursework Portfolio. From working with her previously, we know that she is reliable, and will be able to adapt to the times we need to film and record for both our film trailer and radio advert. She is also a very good speaker, which is good for our campaign because we intend to use a voice over for our trailer, and also plan to use her voice for our radio advert. As well as this, we also think that she fits the part of our female protagonist, in terms of the way she looks, because we want her to look casual. As well as this, Becca also fits with our chosen audience due to her age, and also because she is a student. This also directly links to the female protagonist within our campaign.

audience

Chosen Ideas For My Magazine Construction

Thomas Allison 0051

From the basis of my own experience and the research I have conducted I have concluded which of my ideas to use for my magazine front cover.
My magazine representation

From my research I have chosen to represent “Empire”, this is due to personal interest however also because our film is focused on a mainstream audience which is essentially what Empire tends to focus on. I also like the codes and conventions used in Empire such as the catchy logo which appears on every issue and the same idea of a chosen film to be used as main imagery and the important article relating to it.

My Chosen Background

My chosen background may seem simple and there may seem to not be a lot going but after deciding to focus on Empire I have noticed a reoccurring pattern which is simply to use backgrounds which do not take the interest away from the main image. Empire tend to use a lot of dull patterns and smoky effects depending on the films codes and conventions. This is shown in my research for Empire Magazine. So I took onboard this idea and took a picture of the sky outside Weymouth College, this image of dark clouds show the codes and conventions of thriller by giving the emotion of danger and evil but also not taking the attention of the protagonist away.

My Chosen Main Picture

My chosen main imagery is of the protagonist. I decided this after researching into Empire Magazines; I concluded that Empires images consist of the main protagonist from which ever film they are focusing on. For example the Harry Potter 6 Empire edition had Harry Potter as the main image. So I have chosen this photo as it is of our main protagonist who has to attempt to uncover the mystery of the antagonist and find his female partner who he was doing the documentary with. This image shows his importance within the film and trailer as the camera is looking up at him, these codes and conventions also reveal that he is going to play a big part within my constructed magazine (most likely an interview) as he is used to grab my target audiences attention along with the recognised title/logo.

Choice Of Main Imagery For My Magazine

Thomas Allison 0051

My first choice of photo was taken during the filming stage of the trailer. I have decided to base my magazine on the main protagonist within my film which is the male so most of my photo choices will reflect him. The reason behind this photo is that he takes up a lot of the space showing his importance to the trailer. Also I have take the photos so the camera is angled looking up at him showing his importance and dominance as the main protagonist. Following the codes and conventions of the magazine industry this also shows that the magazine relates to him and the trailer (from research into “Empire” and “Sight and Sound”).
My second choice is similar to the first however more of my protagonist actor is shown including the camera which is an essential prop to give away the narrative of the film (documentary). More of my actors face is shown in this due to the light levels being more revealing which may benefit my magazine. Furthermore this image allows me to reveal more of my background as it does not take as much space as the previous photo choice.
My final choice of photo which I have narrowed down is a side view of the protagonist; this idea was experimental as none of my research showed this type of pose however I thought it would be a good idea to try it out. This photo also gives me room to reveal my background and leave plenty of room for articles without overlapping the main image to much.

Choice Of Backgrounds For My Magazine

Thomas Allison 0051

My first background was taken outside the main entrance of the college, the combination of the dark clouds in the sky with the trees and building help to would help to give me a good suitable diegesis for my theme on the magazine cover. It would fit well with the codes and conventions for my thriller genre.

This is my second option for a background. On the filming day it was dull and cloudy and looked like it was about to rain which really suited our genre. From research into Empire magazines and Sight and Sound I noticed on the majority of magazines the backgrounds consisted of gloomy smoky backgrounds with dull colours. So this photo really would suit my background for my Empire Magazine. This was taken outside the main building looking directly up at the sky.

This shot was taken in the courtyard after shooting the courtyard scene. This is a good option for me as it reveals a film location which we have used. Looking up at the building is a good option however it does not reveal any codes and conventions of the thriller genre so it may not be applicable to my choice/magazine.

My next choice which I have thought about is of the library where a couple of our shots took place. This photo may work with the codes and conventions making it darker.

Strengths and Weaknesses of my Magazine Skills

Thomas Allison 0051

Strengths
+Used a camera before
+Had practice sessions on Photo Shop within lessons
+Own experience on Photo Shop in my own time
+Created a magazine cover before at GCSE level
+Taken plenty of photos before
+My research has helped inform me on photos and magazine styles
+Good equipment available for producing my magazine cover
+Good detailed research

Weaknesses
-Never produced a professional magazine cover before
-No hard knowledge into magazine covers
-Only basic skills using Photo Shop
-Not a magazine reader
-Not had a lot of practice
-Not entirely sure what attracts an audience
-Not a lot of free time for experimenting

Research into Sight And Sound Magazines

Thomas Allison 0051

Sight and Sound is my second magazine research. It is a British magazine released monthly just like my other research material “Empire Magazines”. It is published by the British Film Institute and the first publication was in 1932. Its current Editor is Nick James, the magazine focuses on small scale realises as well as mainstream. It reviews film realises each month and features a cast and crew information list for each film.


My first case study focuses on the April 2009 edition of Sight and Sound. The main title “Sight and Sound” is presented in a professional font towards the top left of the magazine cover. This is accompanied by a yellow background to help make the black colour of the title stand out. The barcode is found at the top right of the magazine along with the date and the price. This is also got a yellow background to help it stand out following the colour theme of the magazine. The price is in the smallest font on the page just like Empire, so the target audience look for the price last and get hooked by the main content on the front cover. A similarity to Empire Magazine is that they both contain a main theme on the front cover. However Empire looked at a mainstream film, Sight and Sound don’t always do this, for example on this edition its main film focuses on lighting. The main image is of a set for a film with some lights and the stage crew setting them up, their faces are darkened out by the smoke and dull effect. This takes up the entire page and background of the magazine. Just like Empire the main article on the page is in the biggest font which relates to the main film (lighting). There are various other articles relating to films.

My second case study is of the August 2009 edition of Sight and Sound. Once again as with the Empire magazines and the previous case study there is a common theme this is shown by the background and main image. This main image focuses on Public Enemies, unlike the previous magazine this focuses on a mainstream film. Johnny Depp the main actor within this film is positioned in the centre of the magazine posing one of his scenes during the film. The Title Sight and Sound is the same as before with the same background making it recognisable a similar feature to the Empire magazines. The main article once again relates to the main theme and it is presented in the biggest font. The other articles are in a smaller font and are presented further down the page.

Overall Sight and Sound has many similar features to Empire in what it does to attract its target audience. However they are two completely different magazines with different ambitions to who they attract. I must consider these ideas and complications when producing my magazine.

Empire Magazine Research

Thomas Allison 0051

My first piece of research is about Empire Magazine. Empire is a British film magazine which started in 1989. It is the biggest selling film magazine in Britain. I have decided to research into this magazine because it a British based magazine which I have focused on within my media lessons. Its main rivals are Total Film which seems to be no competition as Empire outsells them every time. Empire essentially focuses on mainstream films which are well known which may be an answer to why they are more popular compared to the likes of Sight and Sound who focus on more independent films.

The first Empire Magazine which I will be looking at is the Harry Potter 6 August 2008 edition. To begin with the Title/Logo of Empire is always the in the same style of lettering which is used to make it recognisable to the magazines target audience. This style is block thin block capitals with sharp edges; this is especially shown on the “M”. Another common trait which I have noticed upon the magazines I will be looking at is where the date and price is found. Within the slope of the “M” it is printed centrally with the Date first then the price. When looking at these Empire magazines the date and price are also printed in an extremely small font and for a lot of people to read glasses would be needed. This is because Empire wants their consumers to look at the price last and be attracted to the magazine by its other features first. Also within this Harry Potter Magazine is a little slogan which is common with all magazines, it says “The World’s Biggest Movie Magazine”. This is important to show on the cover of their magazines as it states how popular and important they are to a lot of film fans in the world; If I was to pick it up and read this slogan I would feel impressed and want to be a part of this magazine and therefore buy it. This slogan is presented just under the magazine title in a smaller font but in the same colour. Underneath the letter “E” of the title is the website. This enables consumers to gain more information about Empire and enjoy other widgets such as videos, blogs, and even subscribe to more magazines; this is presented in the same size font as the slogan. On all Empire magazines there is a main theme which takes up the entire background of each Empire Magazine, usually relating the main article within the magazine or a newly released film. On my first case study (Harry Potter) Harry Potter himself is the main picture. The picture of him is his chest upwards, he is standing slightly to the right at an angle. His facial expressions are serious and he looks very scruffy, he has broken glasses and blood coming down the side of his face. This shows the codes and conventions of the film, promoting the film to the target audience. Within this magazine Harry’s head goes behind the title, however this is not the same in all cases. The background is a dark gray background with like a foggy smoky affect as if something is hiding behind him creating an enigma to attract the audience to want to read the article or watch the film. The articles around Harry on the front cover of this Empire magazine advertise what is within the magazine and why the target audience will want to buy it. This picture and the articles combined with the recognisable title and slogan all act as micro elements creating a macro element creating the diegesis of the magazine giving it shelf impact. The main article which is in block capitals and in a larger font to the rest relates to the main image and focus of this magazine which is the Harry Potter stating “Massive Preview Special” which is a big factor which help sell this magazine. Other articles include “Films You need to know about” with a smaller image relating to other new films such as James Bond and Wolverine.

My second case study I am using to compare to the first magazine to see if there are any patterns that continue on throughout the magazines. This case study is a more recent than the other, Wolverine January 2009 edition. To begin with likewise with the first case study I looked at this Empire magazine has a main theme. The theme within this magazine is Wolverine the newest release of January 2009. This is a common occurrence with Empire magazines as I mentioned above due to them focusing on mainstream media. The main image within this is Wolverine himself, the main character, is positioned centrally in the page posing with his claws, this will help grab the attention of potential consumers and attempt to try and get them to buy it. The Title “Empire” is in the same font in the same size, with the same colour as the other magazine positioned in the same position at the top of the page. This is a recognisable logo which will help sell the magazine due to familiarity. The only difference with the title this time is that the main protagonist overlaps the title so you can see the letter “P”. The background of the magazine is of a wasteland landscape with the majority of it being gloomy clouds. This aspect allows the colours to show the codes and conventions of a thriller. However it also makes Wolverine look dominant as if the camera was looking up to him. Like with my first case study there are many article headlines surrounding the picture. Another common theme as before is that the biggest article in the largest Font relates to the main theme of Wolverine. All these articles seem to be used to tempt the target audience in to read and buy the magazine. Other common essentials on this magazine include the barcode and once again the date and price are in the same sized font in the same place as before; in the gap of the letter “M” of Empire.

My third and final case study for magazine research into Empire looks at January 2010 edition. To begin with once again there is a main theme to the magazine which is Iron Man 2. As with the other 2 case studies this magazine company is looking at big budgeted mainstream media. The main image is of Iron Man pulling a pose with his head slightly tilted, making him look angry and powerful. As with the magazine above the Empire Title is overlapped by the main image. The Title “Empire” is in the same font but is in a lightening blue colour with electricity extracting to and from it. This title is still recognisable and stands out on the dark gloomy smoke effect background. Once again the Date and price are in a small sized font in the gap of the letter “M” and the barcode is presented in the bottom right corner as with the other magazines. The difference from this magazine compared to the other magazines is the presentation of articles. There are far less articles on this magazine and it is presented neater. The same main article relating the magazine theme is there in the largest font. But fewer articles are shown on the front page. On this magazine there is a strip of pictures running along the bottom centre of the magazine showing other new mainstream films which are also coming out.

Overall there are a lot of reoccurring themes with Empire magazines which would seem to make it recognisable to their target audience and give it shelf selling impact. I have learned a lot from these magazines and I have many new ideas for my own idea which I will relate to.

Strengths and Weaknesses of my Website Skills

Thomas Allison 0051

Strengths
+Use Websites in my everyday life
+Using blogger for my coursework
+In my own time I visit film websites when planning on going to the cinema
+I own a website
+Plenty of research into different websites
+Used software before
+Previously designed a website (not for a film)
+Good media equipment available for producing my website

Weaknesses
-Never produced a website for a film before
-Unlike magazine covers there are not a lot of reoccurring themes due to the films being unique
-Not had a lot of practice at making a website
-Not a lot of free time for experimenting and practicing
-Only obtained basic skills

Progress Report - Editing

Thomas Allison 0051

Editing has begun and and so far it has been a slighty slow start due to the new use of technology, using Adobe Premier. This is the first time I have used Adobe Premier and it is important I learn to use it fast as I have to complete my role as the Editor within the group. Last year during AS I was also the editor and so my editing skills are experienced and I have had some new ideas that would work well using my skills to the best of my ability. Also last year we used Windows Movie Maker. Movie Maker was an easier more basic editing software however this year is more advanced. To begin with we connected the camera to the computer using a USB connection and began to capture the shots individual so we could eliminate the ones we did not want afterwards. This took 1 lesson and was quite time consuming as it was important to get this right for the visual experience of the trailer. During the next two lessons and currently within a couple of hours of my free time me and my group have been ordering the shots and cutting them down to the right size making sure the continuity was there and effective. After cutting down the shots the next stage was to add title screens and effects such as fading, static white noise. This was an advantage of using a more advanced software (Premier) as it had more effects such as the white noise and more advanced fades with pin point starts, finishing and speed. A problem last year was attempting to get a smaller size font for the title screens to obtain a professional outlook, due to Movie Maker being less advanced the font sizes were limited and so we were stuck for ideas however the new software this year has allowed us to do it and it fits our diegisis. Up to date now we are sorting out the sound matching our recorded script to the shots, cutting them down and ordering. So far everything is going good. Me and my group still need to create some music to go over the trailer to make it seem more tense like a thriller. One problem we are experiencing is the final shot of Becca (female protagonist)is not framed right and the dialogue is very quiet and does not match the overvoice so we are having to film again.

Website Coursework Links

Link to choice of Images
Link to Evaluation of my Website
Link to Evaluating my Website Building Skills
Link to Research into 5 different Film Websites
Link to Research into 3 Detailed Thriller Film Websites
Link to Websites using Web.20 Design

Magazine Coursework Links

Thomas Allison 0051

Link to Research into UK Legal Frameworks

Link to Analysis of my target audience
Link to Research into Empire Magazines
Link to Research into Sight And Sound Magazines
Link to Strengths and Weaknesses of my Magazine skills
Link to PhotoShop Practive
Link to Choice of Backgrounds
Link to Choice of Main Imagery
Link to Chosen Ideas For My Magazine Cover
Link to Evaluation of My Constructed Magazine

Link to Production Print Screens

Production

Thomas Allison 0051
Me setting up the camera during production.

Progress Report - Part 5 (Actors Overvoice recordings)

Thomas Allison 0051

During one of our lessons we spent about half of it preparing for one of our actors Becca to perform a voice over. This involved using the sound recording equipment in a professional set up within our Media centre at college to record her voice saving the clips to the computer. To begin with Becca (actor)was given the script we created to practice. This was important to help the seriousness and codes and conventions of our production. The words had to be said with a sad and serious tone, with a slow tempo. This brief lasted 10 minutes, we stated that she must leave a 2 second gap between each line in order for me (the editor) to cut them out and match them to our trailer. One problem we experience at this time was unwanted noice coming through the microphone and projecting into our clips. This was resolved by balancing out the frequencies and experimenting with sound levels. We recorded approximatly 5 recordings of the script to make sure we get it right and have no need to do it again. Overall this went really well, it did not take much time and my media experienced has expanded as I have never participated in this before.

Progress Report - Part 4 (Filming)

Thomas Allison 0051

We have now entered the production filming stage of the trailer. Everything was in order and times were set, We met at our arranged time of 3.30pm ready to film our first day of shots. We followed our planned schedule which all went according to plan and infact we had more time than needed which is good. We used this time to take more shots and take photos for our other coursework productions. A problem at this stage of the coursework was lighting levels, this especially showed during the filming of the final stages of the storyboard when the protagonist was to run to the end of the corridor, fall over and run towards the camera (POV of antagonist). We were sensible and took 3 shots of each scene with each storyboard so we could choose the best one, this is part of my experience as from the AS coursework in some cases i failed to take more than one shot and ended up with some poor quality shots. Due to our floorplans that we have already drawn up of each location we were able to set up our equipment easily and know where the dangers were and powerpoints. On the first day we ended up filming for approximatly 4-5 hours. We took plently of time and took plenty of shots to ensure we have enough to not need to film again. At the end of each day (Thurs + Fri) we sat in the canteen to playback the footage we had captured. Each time everything seemed fine and suitable for what we needed. We made sure non of the shots were of poor equality and remained still when needed to be. Another important factor was to stick to the media rules (which we did, this included 180 degree rule and rule of thirds). Overall the filming stage of our production went really well and we had no major problems.

Progress Report - Part 3 (End of Pre-production)

Thomas Allison 0051

Our pre-production is now complete and we are now ready and able to film. We have hired out the equipment and bought a tape listing it to make sure and double check we have everything we need. We have organised times and set a plan for the locations we need so the states can open the rooms for us. To enable nothing goes wrong we have visited the rooms and completed detailed floor plans stating any doors, hazards, lights or PowerPoints. This will help us see any dangers and make sure we have room for the camera and where the actors will be running. One problem as occurred with actors and rooms. Firstly 2 of our actors had pulled out on us and we had to make some last minute changes but thankfully we planned to have some backups. As I write this blog this is the day before our filming and one of our actors has made plans that will occur after filming and so we have had to change the times for when we film her role to fit her schedule. Thankfully the other actor is flexible and can work around our new times. Our other problem involves lighting levels and college opening times. We need the college to be fairly dark and quite in order for our trailer to have the right effect for our diegesis. We have had a few concerns about getting permission at the times we need the college but all seems to be sorted and arranged now. Our props are gathered and We have briefed our actors so the next stage is filming.

Progress Report - Part 2 ( Pre-Production)

Thomas Allison 0051

Now my group and I were into the main depth of the pre-production designing our trailer for our film with the main aspect at mind which was to tempt our target audience to watch our film. With all this in mind we were working to our filming dates (11th and 12th of March 2010). Our pre- production work included detailed scripting and storyboarding. The scripting was fairly difficult to decide as it is to be used over the top of the trailer as an over-voice to act almost as an explanation for the shots within the trailer, genre and the type of film which is documentary. The storyboarding was carefully constructed allowing a variety of shots to show our experience and knowledge within this area but also allowing plenty of time for the construction of the sequence of shots to allow the audience to enjoy and get hooked by the trailer to watch our film which is the essential function of it. A problem at this stage of production was trying to fit the trailer around the plot; however due to the insight of trailers of this thriller genre I was able to draft a storyboard begin to work the duration of shot and diagetic and non diagetic sounds. Most of the ideas within the trailer came from mine experiences and my group’s experiences however a lot of our choices were down to questioning its professionalism and impact on the designed diegesis. Our idea follows a continuity type theme which is helped by the over voice of the female protagonist, this idea was encouraged by the research into Inglorious Bastards (2009). The Voice Over script was very important to get right as it impacted the storyboard a lot helping give it curiosity and emotion eventually building up tension alongside the chosen non diagetic sound of a keyboard tone which plays through the majority of the trailer. Overall due to our past experience and knowledge this pre-production was not so bad. After completing the storyboarding and scripting we moved on to more detail into the characters and their functions and what they would be doing during this production. Each of us did a character synopsis for the characters involved. We decided that it would be effective to not show the antagonist to create an enigma and leave the audience to wonder who or what the antagonist is and convince them to want to find out by watching our film. Overall at this stage of the pre-production all is going to plan, my group and I are preparing the final elements of the pre-production leading to the filming.