magazine mock ups

poster mock up

media poster/mag mock ups

storyboard

this is our storyboard for our trailer 

Rough Cut For Final Peice

Camera and location

As I previously mention for location during our first A.S piece we were restricted as to where we could go and film due to school timing, however this year we are able to go out more and filming different outside locations,We have come across an empty house which belongs to a member of the group which is not only empty but also undergoing refurbishment so parts of the house almost look abandoned which is perfect for what we are filming. Some of the walls have been stripped along with the floors, most of the furniture has been moved so we are left with just a house as a shell at our disposal.Close to the property also there is an area which we found perfect, outdoors it’s an alleyway which has trees standing tall either side and leads into a woodland where anything is possible, as some horrors say, the things you think that you think you would never see and are only in films, we are able to use this location and although during the day there is nothing to fear or worry about, when the sun goes down and the dark hits, who really knows what happens in this woodland, when dark hits is the time we are hoping to film in and around the woodland, hopefully by using this convention we will be able to catch some footage in the woodland that people would expect to see in a trailer of a film.The filming we have done and the rest of the filming we are going to do is being done on a camera that is of a much higher quality than the camera that was used to do the last year A.S piece. The camera we are now using is full HD, shoots higher fps and also allows the use of filters for video/photo. so instead of having to pack our footage with editing from the Mac computers we are able to film in for example black and white, the time we use on things such as editing small parts like this we can use working on other parts of the media course, on the camera when something is filmed with a filter it gives the footage a better effect than if its uploaded and edited which is something we found when we looked at two pieces of footage, one filmed with a filter and one uploaded and then edited.

Theorist and media language

Toderov's media theory was tht every media text is made up in three parts, aturally a beginning, a middle and an end.
The specific words used to describe this theory were, Equilibrium, Disequilibrium, New Equilibrium.
You will find this theory in most meda texts however it is not always in the order, ideas such as flashbacks for instance used in movies are a way to dissemble this theory yet still contain it. 
The pieces we create in media must contain all the camera rules and elements but die to the productions not being very long we thought that by going along with Toderov's theory that we will be giving to much away, although there is not going to be a film of this and this is media studies we are thinking like this to make our production as proffessional as possible. 

Genre theory is all the necessary elements coming together to create that specific genre, a example is for horror, the typical elements are:

• Darkness
• Blood
• Physical Danger
• Supernatural Happenings
• Ghosts
• The Unexpected

Throughout media texts various groups of people are made to be seen as weak, weather they be male/female, intelligent or not. In some cases it may be groups of people to be seen in a certain light.
For instance in The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, the group of holiday makers are the weak group becasue on the other hand you have the people in the middle of Texas who contain the mad chainsaw bearer who attempts to slaughter them all. Unexpectedly the lighthearted female of the tourist group is the only one who manages to escape.
Levi Strausse's theory is that of binary opposites, opposites you will find precisely productions such as The Texas Chainsaw Massacre:

• The Tourists - The Texas people
• The beginning is very innocent and bright - It ends with heavy rainstorms in the dark
• The tourist males portrayed as strong and young - Its the woman who survives
• What a scare and shock the tourists get - How mundane the chainsaw killing is for the Texans

Laura Mulvey is a professor who was educated at St.Hildas college Oxford and now teaches film and media studies in Birbeck, University of London. Her idea was Male Gaze, "media consumed through the eyes of a male." For feminists there are three views to this:

• How men look at women
• How woment look at themselves
• How women look at other women

You will notice this as you watch media productions, for instance in film you will notice the woman/women being objectified in many ways, there are many ways in which this is done.

• Short/tight clothing
• Lustrous facious expressions
• Innocent body language
• Make up

Women are used with these techniques to market products which have nothing to do with them, for instance to in a mens health magazine they will promote a muscle gaining product with a built male, and then you will see a slim bikini model along side giving the impression that if you buy this you will get built and attract good looking women.
Another example of this is in a car magazine, you will have women posing on cars, in cars, around cars, its not like youl get the women when you buy the car however it attracts male eyes, eye candy.

filming

today we filmed at a house mid renovationand got 15 minutes of solid footage 

filming itinerary

during filming we will require our story board camera and tripod
we will begin filming in 2 days

Media Theory And Horror

Audience Research

To make a successful you need to cater to what the audience enjoys to do this you must know what it is that they like and want to see therefore we found it appropriate to to source this information and although it was readily available through the internet in many cases we were unable to obtain the information we wanted for several reasons.

• Much of what we found was bias information (to help promote movies)

• Was not concentrated enough (very vaugue applied to all types of people)

• Was not up to date (information was several years old) 

To overcome this problem collectively we decided it would be appropriate to create a questioniare which we felt would answer any doubts and provide any other information we required. Carrying out a questionnaire/survey would be much better than internet research as it meant we could eliminate the problems we initially encountered 

• Non Bias as we carry out the survey so we know nothing else is effecting the infomation we obtain

• Can be as concise as we need because we can ask all types of people (Eg. Old/Young + Male/Female)

• Information will be up to date with present time

The questions we asked were:

• How old are you?

• Do you like horror films?

• If you don't why?

• What kind of horror films do you like and why? (gory or supernatural)

• What do you expect to see in a horror film?

• Do you fear the film more if it is based on a true story?

• What time of day do you prefer watching horrors and why?

• Have you ever had to stop watching a horror because its too scary?

• Have you ever had sleepless nights from a horror, if so what was the horror?

• Do you find horrors scarier when there is a child involved?

We decided to ask these questions to a range of people as we want our trailer to be something all people like so by asking all sorts of people we can identify any trends or patterns of things people enjoy and apply them to our own trailer. Throughout the process of our survey we found that when we asked people of an older age our questions they would often say about how in the past they like horrors with..... because of this repeated pattern we decided it would be appropriate to ask another question to our older audience because as they have grown there environments, the people around them and much more will have also changed and that will have also naturally change what you like in terms of entertainment.

The question we asked was: 

• Has your choice since you where younger changed of what you like?

Through the process of asking this additional question we have been able to gather information on things we should not include in our horror if we don't want to sway away older audiences which will ultimately lead to a better more successful trailer.

By using the responses we have received from our interview we will be able to contrast what people like and don't like and apply the information to our trailer. We will also be able to apply other information we have gathered from our interviews which although were not directly answering questions we asked provided us with a great deal of information. we considered this a huge positive and is why we decided to do a video questionnaire rather than a written one which would not have provided us with open ended answers. As well as being beneficial for our trailer the answers we received will also be beneficial when making our magazine cover and promotional poster.

Audience research questions

Currently we are coming up with a questionnaire to go around and ask to various ages throughout our school, because our theory is that the age where you begin to really think of the certain genres you like and have actual reasons for why. The questions we created for the questionnaire begin with general but then get into depth when we find out what kind of horror people like and we ask for reason as to why. the questions where:

• How old are you?
• Do you like horror films?
• If you don't why?
• What kind of horror films do you like and why? (gory or supernatural)
• What do you expect to see in a horror film?
• Do you fear the film more if it is based on a true story?
• What time of day do you prefer watching horrors and why?
• Have you ever had to stop watching a horror because its too scary?
• Have you ever had sleepless nights from a horror, if so what was the horror?
• Do you find horrors scarier when there is a child involved?

The questions we have come up with we feel look at most the different sides of horror and tell us what the audience actually like, what age they are etc, so we can look at the elements, find a possible trend as to what particulars the audience like and add them to our trailer. 
We set out to ask mostly people in our year because as mentioned before this is when you are informed and have seen enough to really make your mind up about what you like. We also planned to ask teachers and generally older aged people who we know, the reason for this was because although our age in A2 is when you properly decide what you like, as you get older things change, people change, situations change, environments change, so there is a large chance that what people like is going to change. A question i am going to add on to the questionnaire for the older interviewees is precisely what I'm looking for:

• Has your choice since you where younger changed of what you like?

Depending on the reply we get we can then contrast the different ages and the different responses, look at reasons perhaps there are so many differences/similarities in taste by age. 
By asking this question we may also be able to draw other strings about what kind of films people like and what they like in later life, do they like horror at a young age and then prefer comedy as they get older, do they settle into family life and prefer action, do they grow and get into horrors at an older age, so many thing can be drawn from one single question, As Roland Barthes says, different perspectives produce different meaning, he described text as "tangled threads" and once the threads where untangled they provide a whole range of potential meaning. 
Rather than handing out questionnaires we have chosen to ask them the questions while filming them, given them a brief couple of minutes before we film so they can see the questions and think to give properly informed answers rather than off the top of their head which wouldn't give us such great feedback to work with.

BBFC (British Board Of Filming Classification)

The BBFC is the board responsible for certifying the age requirement to watch a movie they base the age certification upon many aspects such as the language used and the content shown.

U stands for Universal, although it doesn't say an age but it says it should be viewable for children of the age of 4, however at this age it is not easy to tell what would upset a child so movies of this certificate are kept rather subtle.

When it comes to bad language in a U certified film, the extent is words like "damn" and "hell", words such as "bloody" and "bugger" may be used but this is right at the very extent of what can be used.

With regards to sexual content in U certified films, there may be scenes instigating something sexual, e.g. making love is going to come next but they won’t necessarily show it, just the leading scenes up to it, scenes like this are widely used in all films, the effect where the audience knows what is going to happen, or the scene after they know what has happened.

Horror and violence scenes will be used briefly in U certified movies, there will be small fight scenes or scenes where characters are placed in danger, however solutions will be imminent and the audience will be reassured.

Unless there is a clear educational message, or anti idea then drugs/illegal drugs are not normally used in U certified movies.

U certified films can cover most themes and keep the tone throughout the films subtle and reassuring. Friendship, loyalty, honesty and respect are largely used and this is to help with the tone of the film, U certified films are designed not to have too much of an influence on children's emotions.

PG stands for Parental Guidance, as you may know or guessed this is the next level up of certificate for films, a PG film is suitable for general viewing however with parental guidance, films with this certificate should not affect children aged eight or above, however when watching this film with a younger audience parents should consider it may affect them.

Not all PG films are made with children in mind however, for instance documentaries which are certified PG, documentaries could reveal truths and have disturbing images, and largely they are suitable for general audiences however.

Themes as you go up in age become more adult, for instance the themes in PG certified films may include, bullying and things like anti-social behaviour will not be condoned, and if children are seen to be drinking and smoking then it will be presented as being bad and wrong, similar as if drugs are shown in a PG certified film then they will be presented as harmful.

Bad language is something you will see more of in PG films, however only words such as "shit" and "son of a bitch," if the bad language is more vicious then there is chance it will be passed up to the next category.

There will be more sexual references in PG films, the only time the movie will be moved up to the certificate above is if they believe the child is going to be able to recognise and understand it, otherwise the film will be left with a PG certificate.

Violence will not be a main part of a PG film, although there may be some, there won’t be detailed scenes of horror and violence, there may be blood, how it came about will not be clear or highlighted.

Drugs involvement will be labelled with a clear message that this is bad, wrong and harmful, the only time you will see drugs. Pg certified films are all in all for every ones viewing.

The 12A and 12 certified films, 12A means that children under the age of 12 may watch the movie however they must be accompanied by an adult, if you are over the age of 12 then you can view the movie without adult company.

The language in both these certificates becomes stronger, the words stated before will still remain but words such as "fuck" "bitch" and "twat", even thought the language may get stronger, the use of bad language is going to be less frequent, unless strongly condemned racial and homophobic terms will not be used in 12A or 12 certified films, and if the use of them is frequent and not shown as wrong/bad then the certificate will be pushed up.

Sex may be portrayed in both these certificates however it would be very discreet, the type of things that would not go beyond young teen minds, strong sexual preference is unlike to be accepted into this category and with regards to nudity, it may remain in this category as long as it’s discreet.

the limit to violence n this certificate is increased yet not by so much, the odd scene of some gore and blood is feasible, however nothing in detail is allowed, for instance seeing an injury, crime scene with blood, these are the small references which are allowed.

The horror in this category has definitely increased, physical and psychological danger is allowed, for instance things like hanging and other means of death may be shown as long as they do not frequent or very sustained. Weapons are used in 12A and 12 films however the type of weapons that aren't hard to get a hold of should not be advertised/glamorised in the films for obvious reasons. Reference to drugs and drug use should not be frequent and should not be instructive and the idea that they are bad and wrong should still remain.

When it comes to the certificate of 15, its where cinemas, movie rental places and games stores begin to get much more strict, the rating of a game should not be underestimated due to the fact that it is a game, the rating remains the same and the content is going to be pretty much the same as it would in a 15 rated film, the rating has nothing to do with how hard the game is etc.

Here is a list of some of the things you may find in a 15 rated film:

· Strong violence

· Frequent strong language (e.g. 'f***').

· Portrayals of sexual activity

· Strong verbal references to sex

· Sexual nudity

· Brief scenes of sexual violence or verbal references to sexual violence

· Discriminatory language or behaviour

· Drug taking

Language can get much stronger, words such as "C***" may be used which you would not get in any of the underneath categories, everything is pushed to higher level at 15 rated which is why companies may be seen as much more strict when it comes to selling a game or letting someone into the cinema.

The use of drugs may be more frequently shown but still must be labelled with the same message that they are bad, things such as aerosols and solvents which are also drugs are not allowed to be advertised/glamorised due to the reason they are easy to get a hold of, similar idea behind weapons being used in 12A and 12 rated films.

18 rated films are the highest rating a film can be given, with films rated at 18 all of the things in the previous descriptions which could not be used for whatever reason, you are likely to find in a film with and 18 certificate. A game rated 18 is the same as a film rated 18; they are going to contain the same content or very similar content.

Here is a list of some of the things an 18 certificate contains:

· Very strong violence

· Frequent strong language (e.g. 'f***') and/or very strong language (e.g. ‘c***’)

· Strong portrayals of sexual activity

· Scenes of sexual violence

· Strong horror

· Strong blood and gore

· Discriminatory language and behaviour

One thing however is that drug use may be frequently shown however there must still be clear indication not to misuse/take drugs. You may think that because something is rated an 18 that it will be full on filth and bad however even at 18 there are limits and levels.

The messages which lie behind film, all the things that could make someone cause harm to them, infest ideas about harm to society through violence all have to be thought about when rating a film, some films may never be seen or used in certain areas because of reasons that have been mentioned.

Elements and structure of horror

There are many elements which are used throughout horror, however there are some which are included in every horror and the story/movie wouldnt quite be a horror if they weren't. 
The four main elements are:

• Isolation
• Desolation
• Lost Cause
• Redemption

Isolation is the complete separation from others, one dictionary definition stated the complete separation from others to prevent the spread of contagious or infectious diseases, this is the definition of the word quarantine. You can immediately tell the technique of isolation has been used in the movie Quarantine as its part of the definition of the title. However with isolation, it doesn't have to be an individual alone, it can be a group of people cut off from all others as is Quarantine, also in The Cabin In The Woods, a group of people cut off from everyone and everything.

The main shot used in this film is P.O.V, and the only real light inside the quarantined building is that of the camera which isn't allot, although they re in a group the building is very large and in the dark, who knows what to expect, what you are going to come across, the idea of isolation is simple, however put together with all the other necessary elements it provides a very effective scare. 

Desolation is when something is very barren, has little or no life around it, for example the desert of the arctic, it also mean deserted/abandoned. Yet another very simple idea, for example the house in The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, in the whole scene , you see nothing apart from fields and one quite large house, in this movie in a short space of time you can clearly see where both the ideas of isolation and desolate/desolation come together, they are isolated as in there somewhere in Texas, cars broken down, far from any real help, in an unfamiliar area, then they approach a desolate house in which they hope to find some sort of help and meet a chainsaw murderer instead. 












Lost cause is someone or a hope that can no longer be salvaged, the films i am now going to refer to is very similar to the film Quarantine, its a film set in Spain, a seriously scary horror about an apartment block which is infected with a demonic illness which is contagious by bite, only throughout the film you find this out, the reason i use this film to describe lost cause is because, in this film to cure the infection they must find a test tube which contains a sample of blood, once they have found that sample in the film, they come under attack and the sample of blood is lost along with all hope.

Redemption is saving yourself or the actions of being saved from something bad/evil. The example i am going to give is from the film, Hostell number 2, an organisation who kidnap people on request for the rich who require them for sick fantasies such as human bloodbaths. In part 2, a girl is being cleaned up in one of the dungeons where the fantasies take place however whilst being taunted and tied up the anger and rage inside her forces her forward into the mans face where she bites his nose off grabs the key and manages to unlock herself. after all the build up of what happens to the kidnapped people and knowing whats going to happen to her, her redemption is breaking free whilst extremely close to torture followed by death.

Textual Analysis Of A Horror Trailer

The saw 6 teaser trailer includes most of the key conventions for move trailers. It is easy to find out what genre the movie is as all the saw movies have devoted fans that keep watching the sequel. The movie trailer begins with a blank screen and sound of thunder and a siren with screeches. This is a typical use in most movie trailers as it creates an edge of the seat impact on the audience willing to see what happens next. The next scene is a scene which all saw films begins with a man/women being tortured in some way. This trailer genre is horror but not a supernatural horror, it is more like a thriller where people are getting punished for being bad. The sounds used in the film trailer is of the victims creaming and shouting. At the end of the trailer the name of the movie pops up just after something horrible has occurred, this is the most dramatic bit of the trailer as you see something bad is about to happen but miss it as the trailer ends.

This technique is what we would like to have in our trailer as it creates a big impact on whether the movie is worth watching.

The mise en scene is based upon one room with extremely dangerous machines able to take a life of a person. There is one television screen which all films in the sequence have. On the screen there is the antagonist which pops up and tells the victims why they are in the situation.