Audience feedback

Once my trailer was created, I made my target audience view it and answer my survey. To make results fair, I used the same people as I did for my research survey. Due to the fact I have set open answered qualitative questions, it is impossible for me to make charts conveying the results.
Question 1: Most people said that they were satisfied how well the trailer conveyed the character. These people said they saw him enough, in different situations and in different moods.
About three of the people said that they saw too much of him, and would of preferred the trailer to give away less about the character.
In contrast to this, one person said that they wanted to see more of him, as they were not completely clear what the film was about.
Judging by the results, most people felt I conveyed the character to them the right amount, by showing them the right amount of shots of him.

Question 2: This question links very well with the previous. The trend of answers was predictably the same as before. Most people said they saw enough of him, and someone said “The amount of shots showing the main character was, in my opinion, a perfect amount”.
The same three people said they saw too much of him and all of them said they wanted to see more of the other characters.
The same person answered with “I thought that the main character wasn't shown enough, and I didn't know exactly what was going on with him”.
Just like before, I will go with the majorities opinion and believe that I have included the right number of shots showing the main character.

3. Everyone surveyed (apart from two) felt that the magazine and poster portrays the film in a very positive way, and one person said “just looking at the poster made me want to see the film”. The two other people who answered the survey said that “the magazine and poster just wasn’t as good as the trailer, and they didn’t make me want to see the film”. The other said very something similar.
However, the majority felt the it does “sell” the film well, and that they “work well with the film”.

4. Everybody surveyed did say they wanted to watch the film. However, many different reasons were given. Some of them were: “the trailer just looks really funny”, “I can relate to certain aspects of the characters situation” and “the main character is the best protagonist I’ve seen, ever”.
I was very pleased with these results, however as the survey is face to face, they might have felt rude to answer more negatively.

5. I left the last question very vague so that I could obtain a broad range of answers. Fifteen of the people said that nothing was to be improved, one even went as far as saying it was “perfect”. However, I had five different answers come back from seven people (I had practically the same answer of that they saw him too much from 3 different people, and somebody left more than one comment) who felt I could have done something differently. These answers were:
I would have liked to of seen more shots of the main character
I would have liked to of seen less of the main character
I wasn’t entirely sure what the story line was about
Not enough was shown about the other characters
The voice over was slightly amateur

Overall I am pretty happy with the way my target audience answered my questions positively. However, as I used primary research, asking face to face questions, some of the people might have felt under pressure to give a satisfying answer, instead of actually telling the truth. Therefore it is arguable that my results are not accurate.

My Finished Trailer

Problems I faced when filming and uploading

This was a typical problem I faced when filming, the actors being put off by each others script and appearance. On one instance it took the cast and me half an hour to film one part, due to the amount of times someone started laghing.T here was no real way to get round this except filming the shot a number of times until we got it perfect.

Another problem I faced when uploading was frames being dropped. The software we used, which was "Pinnacle", cut frames out the shot everytime they were uploaded. The only way to get round this was, again, to film a shot multiple times. As you can see here, only one of the times where Chris says "Give it your best shot" doesn't cut.

Still Image in Trailer

This is the still image I have made on Photoshop. It has the "Rockwell" font I have used for the poster for the film name and the"In Cinemas..." part. Everything else is written in white standard sans serif font. I inserted the "V-man film studios", the certification and what the film contains as this makes the image look much more official. The black background id there because the yellow font stands out well and the black fade fades into it well. As well as this I included the 12A logo.

An experimental shot

Near the end of the trailer where Chris confronts the bullies I decided to capture something a little different to the shotlist and story board.

Instead of him saying "Would one like a piece of me" and then afterwards "give it your best shot" I had a go at seeing what it would be like with him saying "Give it your best shot" first. I didn't feel this is was as funny as the original plan so I stuck to it. (Please ignore the second shot on the video)

Garage door shot

At first when I filmed the garage door scene the quality was not good enough.

As you can see from this clip the shadows of the peoples hands that lift the door up are noticeable, the camera is slightly wonky and the brightness of the sun makes Chris' face hard to see.

I did the shot again and I have uploaded some screen shots of it to show the difference. I would have uploaded the video however the file is not properly working at the moment and not uploading onto this blog.

As you can see there is no shaddows of hands, no lighting defects and no wonky camera position.

How closely am I following my story board and shot list (part 2)

Although I have stuck to most of my storyboard and shot list very closely and followed it in order, I decided to add more shots into the trailer.

This shot is just another mid shot of Chris getting kicked in the groin by Harry. It was filmed in a street near the alleyway. The location for this shot wasn't really that important. I thought that if I film another shot of this happening to Chris then the trailer would have a montage effect.

The same goes for this shot, it is similar to shots I've already used, however, when added into the trailer it will, again, create a montage. This repetition of similar shots shows how often the bullies attack Chris' character.

This close up of Chris' face after he has just been kicked in thr groin. I chose to shoot this as I thought this was a good shot to end the montage with, instead of the close up of Glen.

This is a mid shot I thought I'd shoot mainly because the classes reaction to the other shots of him weightlifting was very positive, as they found this funny. Therefore I chose to shot more. The setting is the same as the others, in the living room and the mise en scene involves the soft toys on the sofa.

I already have the shot of Chris on the punchbag, however, for his hardest punch at the end I thought it would be appropriate to edit this in slowmotion as this looks very funny.

I have already got a shot of Chris posing in the mirror, however, I felt another would fit in well, as that way it seperates all the same things like talking and prevents them all be done in order.

For the section of where Chris is working out, I have decided to move around certain clips to vary whats happening on screen al through it. For example, the shot where Glen asks "SO what are you gonna do about those boys?" is followed by a few shots of Chris exercising and then it goes back to him replying.

How closely am I following my story board and shot list

For most of my shots, I have completely stuck to my shot list and story board. There are a few slight difference and a few more shots I've added in.

Shot list description: A long shot from the side showing the two main geek characters (Chris and Glen) getting kicked in the groin at the same time, by the two bullies (Nick and Harry’s characters). Both groups are standing in a line like formation which should give a very humorous point of view for the audience

As you can see, the actual shot is very similar to how I planned it to be.

Another example:

A close up of the back of Chris’ legs with a foot come up and hit his groin. I want to use this shot as it is filmed in a very different position and looked very amusing when I practiced it with the cast.

As you can see, the actual shot is very similar to the story board image and shot list description.

Blocking

Blocking
The first place I have chosen to film is the living room in Chris’ house. The main reasons that influenced my choice were that the lighting can be easily changed, because the windows have thick curtains that block most of the sunlight and there are a range of lights where the brightness can be changed to suit the scene. As well as this, it’s quite an open space so many different angles and camera positions can be chosen. It also has a large mirror which is essential for the shots capturing Chris talking and posing in the mirror. Also suitable mise en scene can be placed around the room due to the fact that it is quite open and has lots of shelves and other storage places. This room will be used to film the shots of Chris exercising and talking to Glen as well as the mirror shots.
The second place I will film is an alleyway in South Woodham Ferrers. This is because it has many different turnings which could potentially be used to film in. As well as this, it will be easier to film in than other alleyways due to the fact that it is not very busy and few people walk through it.
The third place is in Chris’ garage. This is because he has a garage door which is easy to lift and open as well as the fact that he has a punch bag which can be used for the shots involving it.

Shot List and Script

Shot List
The introduction to the character (first scene/few seconds)
1. Starts off from a fade to a mid shot showing the garage door opening up revealing Chris standing there. There will be a slightly low angled shot to make him seem grander and maybe a little bit heroic when the voiceover and music is added to it.
2. A speeded up zoom into his face, a convention used in trailers (however its usually a very fast track, but I am unable to do this as I do not have the equipment to do this successfully).
3. A big close up showing the characters face more. This quick approach to seeing the Chris’ amusing facial expression will give a comical affect as well as quickly introduces the viewer to the character. It also gives them a chance to make their first impression of the character

The scenes of the characters being bullied (this is outside in various alleyways)
4. A fade to a long shot of Chris getting attacked by the bullies from a side angle. This angle and distance gives the viewer a clear view of what’s happening to the character. The sudden change from a brave and heroic appearance to getting hit by bullies creates a humorous juxtaposition.
5. A close up of the back of Chris’ legs with a foot come up and hit his groin. I want to use this shot as it is filmed in a very different position and looked very amusing when I practiced it with the cast
6. A long shot from the side showing the two main geek characters (Chris and Glen) getting kicked in the groin at the same time, by the two bullies (Nick and Harry’s characters). Both groups are standing in a line like formation which should give a very humorous point of view for the audience
7. Then a reaction shot of Chris’ face in a medium close up
8. A point of view shot from a bully showing Glen’s reaction. From a slightly high angled position to make him look smaller and less superior

Scenes of character in dark living room mirror scene
9. A medium close up of Chris talking to himself in the mirror. I plan to have dark lighting in the scene to set a more dramatic mood. I will also have to use a diagonal angle as the mirror will reflect me and the camera if not done so

The scenes of Chris working out and talking to Glen (all in characters living room)
10. A close up of Chris doing push ups. This captures his funny but struggling face showing that as well as his character cant stand up for himself, he is also physically unfit and not strong. The camera has to tilt upwards to follow his movements
11. A mid shot of Chris doing shoulder presses with small dumbbells. I plan to use a slightly diagonal position for the camera so I don’t capture him straight on. I don’t wish to do this as it does not always look right if the subject is not doing something interesting
12. An over the shoulder shot, from a medium close up position showing Chris play a boxing game on the “Wii”. This point of view allows us to see him moving his arms with the games console and at the same time show the television screen, making it clear what it is that he’s doing
13. A medium close up of Chris still playing the “Wii” from a more frontward position, however from a slight angle. I will be extra careful not to cross the “line of action” as the scene is the same as the previous shot
14. A mid shot of Chris posing with his “muscles” in the mirror. I plan to do this from an angle to make sure the camera is not reflected
15. Another mid shot of Chris punching a boxing bag. The distance of a mid shot allows me to capture both Chris’ movements and facial expressions, as well as the punch bag itself. I will use a slight angle by filming with the punch bag slightly closer to the camera as it fits everything into the shot easier
16. An over the shoulder shot viewing Glen talking to Chris. I will use a slightly high angle shot to capture both of them in the shot, as they are laying down playing chess.
17. Straight after this I will film another over the shoulder shot of Chris talking to Glen, in the same conversation. I will again use a slight high angle to capture everything in the scene
18. After this a mid shot of Chris bicep curling a dumbbell. It is from an angle to capture the mise on scene of the living room. However, I have yet to plan what or where I can put background objects in this scene, so the angle will have to be chosen on the day of filming. The section closes with Chris dropping the dumbbell as its too heavy for him

The scenes of Chris confronting the bullies (all set in an alleyway)
19. From a fade I will then go into a long shot showing Glen being beaten up by the bullies. The long shot captures the bullies from head to toe which is important as they will be kicking Glen whilst he’s on the floor
20. After this I will use a long shot of Chris running round the corner of the alleyway shouting at the bullies to stop. I will use a slightly low angle to suggest he is bigger and braver than before. I hope to film this shot on a sunny day because it will make Chris look darker and less easy to see, which is a typical convention in film when a superhero turns up. The darkness from the alleyway and the brightness behind Chris will help me pull this shot off
21. The camera will go back to the two Bullies reactions of Chris appearing to save his friend, using the same camera position as I did when they were beating Glen’s character up
22. I will then go back to Chris who will say his lines and then start to approach the bullies, still from a low angle
23. Then an over the shoulder shot of Chris walking up to the bullies with them in the background – over his shoulder
24. After this it will fade out to a still image of the films name and viewing details, pause for a few seconds, then cut to a close up of Chris saying his line to the bullies. The camera will be directly on Chris, giving a slight point of view shot from the bully’s perspective, but also as there was no fade from the image, comically makes his face appear on screen in an intimidating way. This last quick shot is a regular convention of trailers and if I get all aspects of this shot right, the trailer can end on a very funny shot


Script and Songs/non diagetic sounds

Shot 1: I will have a voice over of “When a boy gets pushed to far, he becomes a man”. For this I want a serious deep voice speaking, with an American accent. This is used in probably over half the trailers seen from mainstream films. It gives a sense of seriousness and an epic setting. The American accent makes the film sound much more of a bigger project, which again, gives the impression that it will be epic. However, once the viewer has seen Chris’ face as he is revealed, they realise the film is not grand and epic. All the tension built up, all the drama is just a comedic anticlimax. As well as the voice, I will use some dramatic but slow music to help the scene look even more dramatic. This will last all the way into shot 3.

Shot 9: I will have Chris’ character say “I’ve been picked on for too long. Revenge is a dish best served cold”. This very dramatic and dark line sums up his attitude towards the bullies. The dramatic and dark tone is reflected by the dim lighting of the room. The dialogue will be put over the following shots and the actual shot itself of Chris will be cut shorter. The voice going over other shots is a convention that regularly appears in comedy trailers. Similarly to shot 1, the contrast between the seriousness of the music and script, and Chris’ ridiculous character, creates a very humorous effect. As well as the dialogue, I will have the song “Club Foot” by “Kasabian” starting and playing all the way through until the still image just after shot 23. I have picked this song because it has quite an energetic and tough feel to it, plus it has been used in trailers for such action fighting films like “Green Street”. The tune is a well known one and is often associated with someone going through hardship or fighting, for example trailers for wrestling matches have used it or professional boxers for their entrance song. It is a more than appropriate song; however I would not consider it a fighting film cliché when used for a comedy trailer.

Undecided shot/s: I will have the deep voiceover saying “Starring Chris Craske” “And Glen Russling” somewhere during the scenes of Chris working out and talking to Glen. This voiceover obviously tells the audience who is starring in the film. However, the deep voice is used in many action trailers when a famous star such as “Vin Diesel” or “Jason Statham” is well known for their “tough guy” serious characters. Therefore using another action film trailer convention enforces the contrast between seriousness and humour.

Shot 16: Glen’s character will ask Chris “So what are you gonna do those boys?”
Shot 17: Chris’ character will reply coldly “I’m gonna get those boys”

Shot 22: Chris will say “Halt! Leave my friend alone!” The halt is the sort of language someone as geeky and pathetic as the character would say when trying to be intimidating. It is also a word that nobody really uses in modern day speech, which shows his inexperience of being in a confronting position.

Shot 23: As he is walking towards the bullies I will have him shout “Would one like a piece of me?” Again, using the word “one” to refer to someone you’re speaking to is something that is very rare in modern day speech. This again shows his inexperience. As well this, the actual line “would one like a piece of me” is a well-worn clichéd phrase, and shows the character does not, again, know how to be confrontational.

Shot 24: He will aggressively say “Give it your best shot”. This is challenging but at the same time no where near as threatening as the character would intend it to be.

Story Board (part 3)

17. This shot shows Glen being beaten onto the floor by the bullies. It is in the same alleyway we see earlier shots of

18. This is Chris running round the corner of the alleyway. The natural light from outside the alleyway should darken Chris as he will be filmed from inside the alley. I will do a long shot with a slight low angle to make him look more heroic.

19. This shot just shows the bullies shocked looks as they spot Chris. It is a long shot to show Glen on the floor as well as the bullies.

20. A mid shot to show him shouting "Halt". His hand is raised in a stop signal. The light will still be causing a shadow over Chris and the low angle will still be on him.

21. An over the shoulder shot of Chris approaching the bullies. He will be saying "Would one like a piece of me". It is an over the shoulder shot howver as he moves towards the bullies the camera wont move with him, therefor it will turn into a mid shot.

22. A close up of Chris saying "Give it your best shot" with a challenging expression on his face.

Story Board (part 2)

9. This shows a mid shot of Chris doing shoulder pressing with really small dumbbells. Other mise en scene I will use will be soft toys which I will place somewhere. I think this would be appropriate as soft toys have many different connotations to dumbbells, and shows the viewer the character is trying to be someone he isn't.

10. This shows an over the shoulder shot, from a medium close up of Chris playing the wii. The mise en scene I intend to use is an actual wii, a tv screen and maybe a soft toy placed above the television.

11. This shows a medium close up of Chris playing the wii.

12. This mid shot is of him posing in the mirror trying to flex his muscles. To make this shot as comical and stay true to the character, Chris will have to be as relaxed as he can and not tense any of his muscles, making them appear smaller and hardly there.

13. This mid shot shows Chris punching the boxing bag.

14. This shows an over the shoulder shot viewing Glen talking to Chris. He says "So what are you gonna do about those boys?" I will include a chess board for some "nerdy" mise en scene. The fact that they are playing chess casually has many geeky connotations with younger crowds, who are the target audience.

15. I then have an over the shoulder shot of Chris coldy replying "Im gonna get those boys"

16. This mid shot shows Chris bicep curling a small dumbbell. I will include some soft toys in the background just like I will with the shot of him shoulder pressing dumbbells. At the end of the shot he will drop it to close the section of the trailer where he is working out.

Story Board (part 1)

1. This is a shot of the garage door slowly opening up revealing Chris standing there. The shot is a mid shot from a slighlty low angle to make him seem bigger and more masculine. The voice over of "When a boy gets pushed too far, he becomes a man" is used as well as the one tone dramatic music. I will have two people pulling up the door who are out of shot, as the door is not electric. The mise en scene in the garage will just be "junk" and a "punch bag", typical objects that would be found in many garages.

2. Then a zoom into a big close up of his face. This will give a clear view of his face for the first time and show how humourous he will appear.

3. A long shot of Chris being hit in an alleyway. I will place a dustbin in the shot to emphasise the fact that they are in an alleyway. This will only be a brief shot.

4. A close up of the back of Chris’ legs with a foot come up and hit his groin. This again will only be a brief shot to give a montage effect.

5. This picture shows the shot of the two nerds being kicked in the groin at exactly the same time by the two bullies. As well as the humourous view point we see it from, it also shows how pathetic and helpless they are by letting bullies kick them whilst they are lined up.

6. This shows a big close up of the two reactions of the geeks to this. The shot of Glen is in a point of view shot from the bullies.

7. It then goes to Chris' living room. This is Chris talking into the mirror "I've been picked on for too long. Revenge is a dish best served cold." The dark lighting of the room will reflect his dark and revengefull mood. I do not intend to worry too much about mise en scene as the the shot is a medium close up and does not go on for very long. Therefore the viewer would not have enough time to see any of it, especially in a dark room. As this shot starts the agressive song "Club Foot" by Kasabian starts.

8. A close up of Chris doing push ups. It is still in the living room but more lit up.

Casting

Casting
The main character that is being bullied: Chris Craske
I have chosen Chris mainly because he has an excellent sense of humour which would go well with the part he plays. As well as this, he has a foolish personality and is often considered a “class clown”. Due to this, I feel he wouldn’t have any issues playing a character as ridiculous as this character.
The bullied friend: Glen Russling
I have only chosen Glen to play this part because of his appearance. He has long ginger hair which can be styled into a typical nerdish fashion (as many geeks have been portrayed with long ginger hair), which obviously suits his part. I have not really chosen him for anything else as he is only used in a few shots.
The first bully: Nick Craske
I have chosen Nick because he is Chris’ brother and therefore the chances of him being available to film on the same day as Chris are quite high. He doesn’t really have an intimidating appearance however he can be dressed up as a typical teenage hoodlum, e.g tracksuits, baseball caps and hoodies.
The second Bully: Harry Eldsworth
I have chosen Harry because of his large and intimidating appearance. If someone was describing a typical high school bully that appears in children’s cartoons or t.v shows, the description wouldn’t be far off Harry’s appearance.

Finished Poster

Here is the finished poster. I have added in a smoke image behind the main subject (Chris) to connotate his “revenge” and “temper” is rising like a fire, or is scorching, just like the metaphorical fire inside him. I simply copied and pasted this image from google images.

Film Poster stage 4

Here I have inserted the image of Chris by cutting it out of the original photo using a lassoo and paint brush tool. These tools enabled me to cut his head out effecively with the option of painting over any odd pixels using the paint brush tool. The poster shows the character with a challenging facial expression which has the connotations of him in a “winning” mind state. The grin on his face enforces this.

Film Poster stage 3

I have now added the films tagline revenge is a dish best served cold" in plain white capitals font to stand out from the black. The line is from my script and is a very important line in my opinion to the films plot. I also included the detials of when the film would be out in bolder font, obviously to show the viewer when they can view the film. As well as this I inserted a red line at the bottom of the page to seperate the black from the very dark green that is below it. This colour is to help the bottom text stand out more and make the posters bottom half look less boring.

Film Poster stage 2

I experimented with the position of the text in the poster and came to the conclusion that it looked better positioned to the right. I think this is because the text isnt big enought to be in the centre without wasting space on either side, therefore moving it to one side solves this problem.

Film Poster stage 1

To begin with creating my film poster I opened a blank page onto photoshop and decided on having the canvas size as slighlty smaller than A3. I created a black background and then inserted the titlle cleverlast in the writing style of rockwell bold, the same as the magazine. As well as this I put the actors names in white bold sans serif font above the title and the film details in times new roman below it. As well as this originally had the main actor Chris Craske's name as the most left name, however this didnt look right to me so I chose to have the two Craskes next to each other in the middle.

Film poster photo shoot

For the poster I have planned to show a close up of Chris' face lookin slightly aggressive and therefore capturing the humourous, and almost oxymoron of a "nerd" who looks like he's ready to fight someone. I took them in Chris' house, one because his lights enabled me to set a dim lighting tone, and create almost a shadwon effect on his face, and two, it was easier for him to sort his appearance out at his own house. Here are the photos I took.

This bottom photo was the one I ended up using. Mainly because, unlike my others, its very sharp (not blurry), not at a stange camera angle and the flash of the camera is not really reflected off of his glasses. All of the other pictures have these problems.

Secondary Task - Film Poster

As well as a magazine, I have to produce a film poster showing my movie. I would ideally like a poster which shows a close up of my character, with the image giving a clear impression of who he is and many connotations of what the film could be about.

My Film Plan

I have decided to make a trailer following a bullied nerd who finds himself being pushed too far and decides to fight back. The trailer shows him training with punchbags and weights to be more tougher and able to retaliate to the bullies.
The characters are:
The main character who is bullied
His friend (who is also a bullied geek)
The two bullies.
All the characters will be unamed as I feel their names won't be important in the trailer.

Magazine Front Cover (final stage)

This is my finished magazine front cover. I changed the brick wall to a much darker tone to blend in with the top black box and look more harsher and tougher.

Magazine Front Cover (stage six)

I have now added back my smaller images. As well as that I added white boxe around the famous movie character pictures to make them look more like photos taken, which gives quite a good effect. For the background of the feature article photograph I added a brick wall to make the setting appear more tougher and make it look like it was in a garage like setting, along with the punchbag. I added a transparent white box around the movie strip to seperate the plugs from the main photo subtely.

Magazine Front Cover (stage five)

As you can see, I have now uploaded the picture of Chris after cutting the background of the room the picture was taken in. Some images are gone, only because they were being changed at the time I saved this progress picture. I have put a black box at the top of the page to bring out the title more, and with this I had to change the "greatest film characters" to a white font for the reader to be able to see it. As well as adding the feature article photograph, I have added a "Cl" in rockwell font to the "Everlast" to make "cleverlast". I had to select the colour of the actual writing on the punch bag then choose it for my text. Once this was done I had to resize it to fit with it.

Magazine Front Cover (stage four)

I have added more pictures from google images onto the page. Firstly I added the bar code at the bottom to make it look more authentic. I then added the movie frames into the film reel, I thought this was quite a clever and appropriate thing to do for a film magazine. Above this I have "Films of the month". I did this in a blue and black shadowed font of times new roman. I experimented with different fonts but liked this one the most. Below it I have the film names in a blue bold rockwell font. I chose the films because they are out in the cinema at the moment, therefore might be on a films of the month section. At the top I chose to have "50 greatest film characters" along with pictures of famous well known actors in such roles as the "taxi driver".

Survey

To find out what my target audience look for in a comedy film I asked 22 12 to 18 years olds to answer my survey.




The survey was:





1. Do you prefer a comedy film that is character lead or story lead?

2. Do you expect to see more action in a trailer or more of an indication of the story?

3. Would you like to see a romantic interest in the film?

4. What genre of music would you like to see in the trailer?
Pop/Chart / Rock / Hip Hip/RnB / Dance / Classic / Other(please state)

5. How serious and realistic do you want the films story to be?

6. How serious and realistic do you want the characters goal to be?

7. What kind of goals would they be?

8. What sort of personality would you want the main character to have?

9. What is your favorite comedy film?

10. What film title do you prefer from the following?

Cleverlast The Transformation The Clever One

11. How would a trailer get you interested in a film? (Can tick more than one box)

Gives away a small amount the plot of the film
Contains a high amount of action
Contains your favorite actors and stars from the film
The film company or well known director who made the film
Instantaneous gratification (e.g a horror movie makes you jump)
The music used
Other (please specify)

12. Do you find the dialogue in a trailer funnier than the physical happenings, such as someone getting kicked in the groin?

13. Does the setting of a film influence the films you would view? If so how positively or negatively. If not why do you feel its not important?

14. When you watch a comedy film what sorts of characteristics would you like to see in the main characters personality?









My results were:









1. Exactly 50 percent for both answers. This shows that the trailer can either focus on the character or story.







2. A majority of people actually said they would rather see action. Indicating that physical comedy is more important in advertising a film than shwoing its plot







3. Again the majority answered no indicating that romance is not an important role in a comedy film, judging from my audience sample.







4. Everyone that answered said that they would like pop/chart. This shows that the audience has more mainstream tastes, suggesting my trailer should follow mainstream comedy conventions







5 and 6. Everybody except one person stated they would like the goals to have hardly any seriousness at all. As well as this, everybody said that they would prefer the story to also have less seriousness, showing that in order for my film to be a success, I need to have a daft plotline.

7. This rquestion had many differernt answers. These were ideas such as finding a lost person/people,

Magazine Front Cover (stage three)

I have added the magazine details below the masthead. The price is in a red box, with a shadow effect. The white text inside it is Tahoma. The film4u.com is also in tahoma bold. I chose this font because its quite simple and easy to read. At the bottom of the page I added in a grey box with a "plus" then a selection of actors names. The "plus" has been given an outer glow, only because I thought it looked more interesting and makes the word stand out. The box itself has a shadow effect around it.

Magazine Images

For my magazine I captured two images, both set in Chris' garage involving him and the punch bag.

This is the first image I took. It invloves Chris punching the boxing bag. The picture shows the name "Everlast" which can easily be changed to "Cleverlast" using photoshop. His facial expression shows him smiling in quite a proud way and suggests that he is proud of himself for being tough and training with the punch bag.

This is the second image I took. I shows a proud Chris standing in front of the punching bag. I prefer it because unlike the first picture, he is the main object of the shot, being the biggest and appearing in the middle. The position of the "Everlast" logo will allow me to add a "Cl" to make it cleverlast.

Magazine Front Cover (stage two)

Instead of having the masthead right at the top I chose to move it down slightly. Mainly so I could put something in at the very top.

Magazine Front Cover (stage one)

As you can see, I have put the masthead in big bold red text. Apart from this nothing else has been done. I downloaded the actual text from the internet as the photoshop fonts didn't appeal to me for the masthead. The page size I have used for the front cover is 28.5 cm by 23.5 cm. This is a similar size to existing magazines, and a similar size to an A4 paper sheet. Therefore, it is similar to competitors and easily printable.

Secondary Task - Magazine Front Cover

As well as a trailer, we have been given the task of making a magazine front cover which shows our film. I want to achieve a cover which helps the reader see what my main character looks like. When we dressed Chris up as him, he looked very humourous. Therefore I want a picture that sums up the characters personality just by his appearance. By doing this the reader might have some sort of idea of what th film is about, and want to read more about it.

Target Audience

The target audience my film is aimed at would be 12 to 16 year olds. The young audience is because the film trailer I will make is a mainstream comedy, and very tame. Therefore, like many typical comedies, a younger target market of teenagers are most likely to be persuaded to see the film from watching the trailer. To conclude this, I will set my film certificate as 12A.
The classification guidelines for 12A from the actual BBFC website are :
Theme: Mature themes are acceptable, but their treament must be suitable for young teenagers.
Language: The use of strong language (eg 'f***') must be infrequent. Racist abuse is also of particular concern.
Nudity: Nudity is allowed, but in a sexual context it must be brief and discreet.
Sex: Sexual activity may be implied. Sex references may reflect what is likely to be familiar to most adolescents but should not go beyond what is suitable for them.
Violence: Violence must not dwell on detail. There should be no emphasis on injuries or blood. Sexual violence may only be implied or briefly and discreetly indicated.
Imitable techniques: Dangerous techniques (eg combat, hanging, suicide and self-harming) should not dwell on imitable detail or appear pain or harm free. Easily accessible weapons should not be glamorised.
Horror: Sustained moderate threat and menace are permitted. Occasional gory moments only.
Drugs: Any misuse of drugs must be infrequent and should not be glamorised or instructional.
Discrimination: The film or DVD as a whole must not approve of language or behavior that would offend a person’s religion, colour, gender, sexuality or disability. Aggressive use of this type of language and behavior is unacceptable unless clearly not approved of.
Judging by my plan, the film deals with younger, more school like themes, as well the fact that it does not even slightly push the boudaries of the guidelines, therefore 12A is the certification I will choose. I could probably get away eith choosing a PG, however, the target audience would probably want to see a 12A film more, due to the nature of young teenagers .

Film Magazines

I have inserted the front pages of two well known film magazines, EMPIRE and TOTAL FILM. As you can see by these film magazines, they are all of a similar layout, and follow similar conventions. For example, they will all base their layout and colourm scheme around the featured film, all have included plugs as well as the main feature article photograph and all with the exceptioon of the total film page have the main image overlapping the masthead. Showing that they are already well known, established and recognised magazines.

Film Posters

sThis film poster is for the film Norbit. The poster is quite simple as it is a picture of the two main characters, a question relevant to the film, the films star and the film title on a white background. This is all the viewer needs to know about the film. Also, as both the main characters are played by Eddie Murphy, his name is shown twice at the top of the poster, to give a humorous effect. The question “Have you ever made a really big mistake” and the facial expressions of the two characters already gives an idea of what the film is about.

This poster is for the film Hot Fuzz. It involves both main characters, in an unknown rural background, with a phrase at the top and the film title and stars at the bottom. The poster involves lots of mise en scene as characters are in police uniform, with sunglasses whilst holding a gun. This along with the facial expression creates a serious look to them. However, the phrase “They are going to bust your arse” gives a much less serious impression and creates a big contrast.

Trailer Conventions

Sounds
Almost every comedy trailer will use a form of sound, whether its diagetic, such as a character speaking, which basically would be there in the setting, or non diagetic, like music that’s been added in. The music used would match the speed, setting or tone of the film, for example an action film would use a fast paced song where as a historic drama might use classical music.
Diagetic Sounds
Diagetic sounds are really important for making physical comedy funny. Sound effects such as a hitting sound are added in to humorous moments where something has happened physically. For example a character getting kicked in the groin. These sound effects are used as a main part of physical comedy. The sound might be emphasised in the trailer more than the film as it plays a much more important part to the trailer. Most of the physical happenings featured in a comedy trailer are not that relevant to the films plot. However a trailer is used to sell a film and to most audiences of a comedy film, something like a man getting hit in the face with a ball, can make the film appeal more to the audience. The other main diagetic sound is the characters speaking, or the script. This can play a key part in advertising the film as it can give away the films plot, give the viewer an impression of the main character and add humour if the script is funny enough.
Non Diagetic Sounds
Non diagetic sounds are used much more thoroughly in comedy trailers. This would mainly include music, and voices from narrators and characters who aren’t currently on screen. A main concept of many trailers is to include serious or dramatic music at the start of the trailer to create juxtaposition from this music and the silliness of the actual film. After the serious music stops, there tends to be mainly diagetic sound until another song comes on. This song is usually a much less serious song which most probably would have been in the music charts at some point. Some trailers might even just include the instrumental of the song. As well as the serious music at the start there is sometimes a narrator with a deep voice. This can humorously fool the viewer into thinking the film isn’t comedy for a brief amount of time. Another effect used in most trailers is to show a quick shot of a character saying part of the script and then showing other scenes from the film whilst the character is still talking. This is usually used to give away the plot from the characters perspective whilst at the same time showing as much of the film to the viewer as possible.

Characters
The main character/characters are often portrayed as “losers” or “idiots” being the hero/protagonist. The antagonist of the film might also be an idiot who is not very intimidating, a contrast to other film genres such as horror where the antagonist is very scary and intimidating. However, for a comedic effect, the trailer might have tense and scary music if he or she is shown. Which acts in the same way the dramatic music does. In some cases the characters might be played by the same actor, for example many of Eddie Murphy’s films like the “Norbit” and “The Nutty Proffessor”. The actor must play many different types of characters for this to be funny though as the diverse range of characters is a key comedy element.

Mise en Scene and Locations
This depends on the type of comedy film it is. If it is a setting based film, for example a film set in a well known city, then many shots will involve the city. However, in films such as “Dodgeball”, the actual location is not included.
The mise en scene can also be different as some films that are character based might have funny clothes on the character to stand out. However, other subgenres of comedy films might not focus on the clothing of characters as much. Most mise en scene will help covey what sort of setting the film has been shot in. For example, the typical comedy character protagonist are usually lazy "slobs". Therefore their house might be shown with litter in it or beer bottles and junk food in the fridge.

Plot
Most main stream comedies have a very similar plot. Most plots are based on a boy that has a girlfriend, which he loses and then goes through a lot to get her back, and finally does. Examples of this could include Run Fatboy Run. Another similar plot featured in many comedies is that the main characters want to do or get something and end up going through a ridiculous amount of hardship to do so. Examples of this could include Dodgeball and Harold and Kumar. These two plot types are foundations of a comedy films story which are used in many different ways throughout main stream films of the genre.

Lighting
Lighting can be an important tool in a trailer when conveying what sort of film it is. For example, a horror movie has a very dark tone in most cases, therefore dark lighting would be used. However, something like a romantic comedy, which is very light hearted would use much more bright lighting. Comedy trailers would typically use bright lighting unless they are showing something like a messy house, where the tone would still be lighthearted. Black comedy fims, however, would most probably use more darker shots to suggest a much darker tone.

Existing Comedy Films

For my research I will focus on five comedy trailers and posters to help me find out what conventions to look for.

1. Norbit
This film stars Eddie Murphy playing two main characters, Norbit and his obese, dominating wife, Rasputia (who he is very unhappy with). The film relies on many elements of the three subgenres I am focusing on. The character comedy is throughoout the film (as both main characters are quite humourous, along with other characters featured), especially as many parts are played by Eddie Murphy. This gives a very funy effect as the viewer knows this and can see the variation between each character. The physical comedy elements are throughout the trailer as there are many quick shots of mainly Norbit getting hurt or embarressed by Rasputia. For example a montage of clips where she jumps and squashes Norbit on a bed is used. The repetion emphasis the humour of the situation by showing it happens to him all the time. Many of these clips also tie in with cringe comedy.

The trailer shows the quiick overview of the films plot line revolving around the main character "Norbit". Many comedy devices are used, for example montages of physical comedy e.g him being lept on by his massively large wife Rasputia. Many shots go into each other from the use of a swipe effect, which gives the trailer a sense of speed. The trailer performs very well at characterizing Norbit. The viewer gets a very clear view of the main characters personailty, background and situation just by watching the first half of the trailer. I hope to achieve this too in my trailer.

The genre of comedy.

The definitions for comedy:

“Wikipedia”
Comedy as a popular meaning is any humorous discourse generally intended to amuse, especially in television, film, and stand-up comedy.

“Dictionary”
A dramatic work that is light and often humorous or satirical in tone and that usually contains a happy resolution of the thematic conflict.

The three subgenres of comedy I will be focusing on are character comedy, physical comedy and cringe comedy. These three are seen in most mainstream comedy movies. Other subgenres of comedy include black comedy, where dark themes such as war or death are featured throughout the film and blue comedy, where sexual themes are explored in a humourous way.
Each subgenre can also be marketed at a particular audience, for example, Romantic Comedy would be advertised towards a more female demographic. Whereas, a Black Comedy would be more likely to attract an adult audience due to the dark natured themes included in the film.

Here are the definitions of my three main subgenres:

Character comedy: Comedy based on stereotypes, archetypes and other humorous characters. Films such as Ali G in da House and Hot Fuzz can come under this subgenre.

Physical comedy: Comedy driven by physical occurrences and slapstick. Mr Bean and Dodgeball are good examples of physical comedy.

Cringe comedy: Comedy based on embarrassment, coming from inappropriate actions or words. Meet the Fockers is a prime example of this subgenre due to the cringe worthy plotline and occurrences.

Original Brief

For my media studies coursework I have chosen to make a teaser trailer as I feel I can be more successful than a in making a 5 minute film. I want to achieve a good comedy trailer which sells the film to an audience. I plan to research conventions of comedy trailers, make a trailer as well as a magazine front cover and a poster, meanwhile uploading my progress onto this blog.