Film Ratings

12

Suitable for 12 years and over. No-one younger than 12 may see a ‘12A’ film in a cinema unless accompanied by an adult.

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.

15

This would be the most suitable rating for our film as there are common references to violence, but this is not the focus of the film.

18

Typography

I have been looking at different posters to see which typography is best suited for our Akeldama. I have been looking at exiting posters for similar themed films to see how they have continued the theme in the typography and have tried using similar fonts to them.

The writing on the poster for The experiment' is based on army stencilling. 'Death Race' uses a font more based on that found in racing video games but still has be worn away to resemble an old stencilled sign. 

 This is a solid stencilled font. 

The bottom font it more directly based on army stencilling.

This is also a solid font that we were first considering, as it looks gritty and distorted. However, this is more suitable for a horror/sci-fi genre rather than a thriller, therefore, we are not going to be using this font.

Tagline research

This is the poster for Death Race (2008) and underneath the title is shown the Tagline 'Get ready for a killer ride'. This is a pun on the idea of the film being a race in which everyone want to be the last one alive. The film is an action film and this tagline relates well as it shows that this is a film based entirely around racing cars as already shown in the images and hinted at by the title. 

Gamer (2009) had the tagline 'Who's playing you?'. This relates well to the idea of the film as the main characters are fighting for control of there own bodies. It is a twist on the idea of someone 'playing you' as in being used or lied to as well the use of 'being played' in terms of someone hiding who they really are form you. The use of a question makes the viewer think longer about the poster and therefore the film. 

'Everyone has a breaking point' was the tagline for the 2010 film 'The experiment'. The idea of having a 'breaking point' relates to the idea of 'a mental breakdown', breaking out of being trapped and the idea that people are going to fight as they have reached their 'breaking point'. This tagline relates really well to the idea of the film but does tell us that the experiment is going to break down and so reveals the main part of the film a little. 

The film 'The bay' from 2012 used the tagline 'Panic feeds on fear'. This is a very unnerving tagline and relates very well to its horror genre. The image shows some sort of animal living inside a persons throat and so we can assume that the tagline is referring to the parasites feeding on the humans in the film as well as the fear people have of the parasites feeding the panic and chaos. The use of the word 'feeds' is used because, even though there is no mention of any parasites in the tagline or title, we immediately make the assumption that something is going to be eating the characters and shows that it is a horror film. 

'Hunt to kill' (2010) had the tagline 'survival of the baddest'. Although this is not necessarily a particularly clever or witty tagline it give the viewer a good idea of the genre and general plot of the film. The tagline here serves its purpose in that it shows us this is going to be a slightly 'over the top' action movie probably with some cheesy lines. 

Research for the website

For the website there are some conventions of thriller/action movies to abide by. I looked at a series of websites to see what the conventions would be, below I have shown the main features commonly used in film website, which should help us with our website design.

Typical conventions found:

• Social networking links such as: Twitter, Facebook, Flickr. Which are the most prevalent three I have found.
• Background images linked to the film poster and trailer e.g. pictures (usually close ups or medium shots of the main protagonists or antagonist), or a picture of an iconic scene taken from the film.
• Trailer automatically plays on the opening of the website home page
• Links to a store, shop or gallery page
• Twitter feeds, or a way for fans to interact with the site. Usually run along the side or at the top of the home page
• Critics reviews quoted on the home page
• Tag line of the film
• Animation related to both the genre and individual film
• Any iconic symbols from the film will be displayed on the website i.e. The Hunger Games emblem is an animation on the film's website, and likewise on the SAW website the jigsaw puppet is featured as both are identifiable symbols of the films.
  
  
  
  

RAMBO WEBSITE:

There are critic reviews, to the right side of the home page, for example the one above mentions Silvester Stallone's well known reputation "STALLONE PROVES ONCE AGAIN WHY HE IS A LEGEMD!" This is a commonly found feature on websites, as using a famous actors name, makes a film appeal to the already excisting fan base of the actor/actors. The use of having good critics review, also gives the audience confidence in the film, and suggests that they are going to enjoy viewing it.

There are links to different pages, offering a store, gallery, and ways for fans to download the film trailer, by givng freebies like this it again increases the fan base and promotes the film to a range of people.

(above) There is rambo inspired animation on the home page, which loads several different times showing animation and graphics linked with scenes from the film, for example it uses the colour scheme, khaki colours and scratch marks connoting the idea of army and survival, which are main themes of the film. If possible, our website design could possibly do a lower tech version of this type of animation.

SAVAGES WEBSITE:

The trailer beings automatically on entering the website as is conventional for film websites. It is positioned in the middle of the home page, making it prominent and attention grabbing to the audience (above). A feature we will replicate on our own website.

The title of the film is bold, and prominently placed on the top of the sites home page, as well as the directors name just above the title, as well as the release date of the film and other film information. The typography used for all three is the same using continuity to give the site a more professional look (above).

In the top right corner of the home page there are links embedded to social networking sites, and also to You Tube, where fans can post videos and other links to the trailer. These are important features used on most websites, as film creators want to encourage fan interaction with the site, as this boosts the fan base populous and fan loyalty. We will definitely include social networking links on our film website.

Photoshop practice

I have never really used Photoshop and so I thought it would be a good idea to practice layering images and looking at what I could do before we make the typography for the film and before we start making the poster. Below is a test of how to layer two basic images. 

I layered the image of the zombie below over the image of a university lobby. This is the sort of thing we will be doing in the poster I think so its a good thing to practice. 

I layered the image over and then used the eraser tool to remove the background of the field and blend the image in. It was really simple so I think it will be good to use on the poster.

Website layout research

Conventions of typical film websites

• Videos - we can inbed our finalised teaser trailer onto the website which would give the audience easier access to it while finding out what the film is all about in one video.
• Photo gallery - we will take multiple-angled photos whilst filming to input into the photo gallery section on our website.
• Info about the film -example, how much it is, what it’s about etc. - the 'about' section would be shown in a tab on the home page also, for easy access for the users.
• Promotion of the DVD etc. - we must state when the film would be released in selected cinemas etc.
• Distributional Links - to facebook, twitter pages. This would show that our film info would be very distributional to grab a greater potential popularity.
• Menu - to provide easy access and navigation throughout the website.

(menu from 'Fermats Room' website)

• Text - The font must be suitable and easily readable for all ages but directly aimed at our target audience of males and females 18-30.
• Title - This is essential to allow the viewers to know exactly what film's website they are looking at. It relates back to our typography in that it must be memorable and stand out for the viewer to remember and focus on it in the future.
• Theme - Includes colour schemes and the genres conventions. It must relate to our film and include dark colours such as greys, browns and blacks and also bright but dangerous colours such as red, yellow and orange (to signal fire and destruction).
• Sound - We can include sound in the background to build up tension amongst the website. This would make our film seem more professional and eye-catching. It would draw the viewer in by using the sensory system of sound aswell as the use of eyes to view the website.
• Easy to navigate - This is essential so that the viewer does not get easily confused throughout the website and knows exactly where to find what they are looking for.
• Don’t have to scroll down the page - This would be great because all the information that the viewer needs would be on the homepage in one sight, so that the viewer can monouver their eyes around the webpage without the effort of scrolling and looking for more info. This would be the first piece of info and data the viewer would see, therefore, would be best to have the most important information directly in eyes level as it would make a better impression for the viewer to find out more about the film.

Location Research- finding the right location

One of the most important issues we are facing is finding a location we want for the film trailer, and one that we are allowed to film at, we have all been researching a lot into this as it is a key element and we can't film until we find a location.

Location scouting-

When location scouting we were looking for sites which we would be able to get too fairly easily, ideally looking for places within or around London. This location is positioned in West London, making it ideal for filming as it still within the Capital. This was a vital aspect when considering filming the trailer as we may need to re-shoot several times, to get footage we wanted to use so this location was appealing.

•  The grade II listed building is large and the outside has been not that well maintained, meaning some of the paint has peeled away, giving the idea that the house has not been cared for or has been deserted.

•  Because of its large size it has a grand feel to it, and our group were considering using it in an opening scene to show an idea of wealth and power.

•  The building is painted white, allowing us to play on connotations of innocence, purity- which are idea typically played on in the thriller/horror genre.

•  The building is surrounded by large grounds which give it an air of isolation, and there are old dead trees surrounding the house- which give it an eerie, creepy atmosphere.

Inside

• The idea of wealth and power is juxtaposed when you look inside of the building, as the inside is unfurnished and predominately empty, we could use this to demonstrate that there has been some sort of financial crisis which has led to people leaving.

• There is however still a sense of grandre as the place is impressively large inside, however the inside is darkly lit, and relies only on natural sunlight, making the place slightly creepy, ideal for a thriller film location.
• There is a huge chandelier still hanging in a old dining hall, which suggests an earlier time of wealth and also again reiterates the idea of abandonment.

• Another characteristic feature of the house, is the staircase which would enable us to play around with levels, and angles i.e. it is a good landing space for a high angle or birds eye shot, as (shown in the below picture)

• Underneath the house: is a large cellar.
• This would provide a good shooting location, for a scene showing people hiding. 
• Or if we want to explore the idea of people living in captivity or being held against their will, we could exploit the connotations of entrapment that are commonly associated with basements or underground spaces.
• The lighting in the cellars is entirely artificial- allowing for the possibility to completely control and filter the type of light we think would be most effective for our film and allowing us to experiment with using different lighting intensity levels.

• The location offers a number of out houses
• The benefit of having the outhouses is; they look quite rural and rustic so connote simple living, this means they contrast to the Grander of the rest of the outdoor space. So we could use them too possibly to demonstrate class, or social boundaries.

•  It also has a lake- traditionally used in films either to represent danger (conventionally within thrillers lake’s are where unstable protagonists are found drown and thus create an enigma or they are used to show luxury and indulgence.

Character Representation: Hunger Games

 

Katniss Everdeen - Clever, Parental figure

• For Katniss’ (the main protagonist in the film) representation, I have chosen ‘clever’ and a ‘parental figure’.
• In the film, Katniss is clever and cunning as she knows the way to survive throughout the games using water, shelter (hiding places) and warmth.
• She is portrayed as quiet, independent and fierce. This adds to the sense of cunningness and slyness that is needed to be able to claim victory in the games.
• Katniss also acts as a sister figure towards Rue (the youngest, timid character) as she says ‘reminds her of her sister’.
• She looks after Rue throughout the games, partnering up to make a team. This shows that she still has feelings and does not like the whole idea of the games and being forced to kill others.

Peeta Mellark – Wimp, peaceful and clever

• For Peeta’s representation in the film, I have chosen ‘wimp’ and ‘peaceful’ as the sub-categories.
• In the film, Peeta is a charismatic character, which helps him during the games. He is also seen as caring, which means that he doesn’t want to kill, and would just run away and hide, and also have feelings for the main protagonist, Katniss, thus, being a ‘wimp’ and a ‘coward’ and ‘peaceful’ for not contributing to the games and the cameras filming him for entertainment. 
• Although, Peeta is a smart character who uses his limited skills in art to help camouflage him to hide and survive throughout the games. 

    Rue – Wimp, peaceful and clever

• Rue’s representation in the film is similar to Peeta’s. Although, she is much younger than Peeta, she is very timid, shy and wary of others and her surroundings.
• She uses her limited skills of tree-jumping carefully and easily throughout the games and to hide from her opponents.  
• I have used the word ‘wimp’ to describe her as she hides away in the trees and just waits whilst her competitors fight to the death, which in a way, is clever itself. 
• She is also peaceful in the fact that she is not worried or scared, but just shuts herself away from her surroundings and what’s happening around her. 

     Clove - Sadistic

• For Cloves representation in the film, I have chosen ‘sadistic’. This is because, in the film, she has her eyes set on killing, and loves the idea of the Hunger Games. She loves to be centre of attention and even says ‘Let’s put on a good show for the cameras’, whilst torturing and trying to kill one of the other opponents in the games.
• Clove is described as arrogant and strong. She is skilled with weaponry, mainly knives. This gives her a sense of dangerous and non-trustworthy personality. She is known not to miss her target. 

Production Companies

I have researched different production companies which are relevant and suitable to our film genre of a thriller.

 Hammer Films productions

• Hammer films is a British film production company which produces horror, thriller, and science fiction genres.
• Produced thriller films such as ‘Straight on Till Morning’.
• Even though this production company produces some thriller films, its main genre market is horror, which may influence us in our final decision as we are looking for production companies which are relative to most thriller genre films.

        Columbia Productions

• This major film production company (one of the Big-Six) is very well known and would therefore make a good impression for our film trailer.
• This company co-produced with EON Productions which is best known for producing James Bond films which are action/thriller films. This would be relative to our film and its genre and would therefore, be ideal to use.
• This company produced ‘Salt’, ‘Skyfall’ and ‘Men In Black’, which are well-known thriller films so this would be good to use for our film, as it is relatable to the thriller genre.

        Revolver

• Produced many different genres of films, including the thriller/horror films ‘The Silent Scream’ and ‘The Limits of Control’.
• It is a well-known label that we could use effectively in the start of our film trailer.
• The company operates partly in London which means that it would be great to use as it is set in Britain. 

Deconstruction - the woman in black teaser trailer

Mise en scene

• ·      The opening of the trailer shows old Victorian toys in an abandoned house. The lighting is dim and is unnerving for the audience as we cannot really see what the situation is - we are immediately shown that this is a trailer for a horror film. The trailer is unnerving rather than gory however so we can assume it is going to be a supernatural or psychological horror film (from the rest of the trailer we can gather it is a mix of both).
• ·       The use of children in the trailer is a new stereotype of horror films - usual conventions of childhood is innocence and purity but horror films, such as the woman in black, use the unnerving image of a child who acts as an adult to unsettle audiences. 
• ·      The lighting is used very well to add to the Edwardian mise en scene to create the horror genre atmosphere. Grey filtered natural lighting is used when outside to give a sense of being in a desolate place - the place is big but there is very little there. 
• ·      The dark candle lighting inside the house is used to create a sense of the unknown- there is a constant enigma of what is in the house as we can see very little of the location- the dim lighting and the dark tailored clothes of our hero mean that in some shots we can see very little apart from his pale face. 

Sound

• ·      There is very little sound with only the diegetic chiming of the old ‘musical monkey’ toy and the little girl talking non-diegetic voice-over; this creates the atmosphere for the audience and subsequently makes the audience easier to ‘make jump’ as we are having to focus very closely on the trailer to hear. 
• ·      The rhyme used in the trailer is specifically written for the film - it creates the illusion that this is a real folk story that the villagers made songs of warning about; this is also shown through the use of the scratched photographs showing the ghost in the window such as you might see on a real documentary.
• ·      The little girl’s voice is unnerving for the audience to hear a child talking about such a scary concept and the mature tone of the little girl’s voice is most unsettling because it subverts the media representations of children being ignorant to such horrors.

Editing

• ·      The chiming of the child’s toy also is used really well to align with the cuts between the clips of the film- with each chime the screen goes black and then shows a very short clip of the quicker, I assume later parts, of the film without revealing the plot. 
• ·      The panning shots are used well at the beginning of the trailer in contrast to the quick jump cuts later to create dis-equilibrium - the audience is given a sense of how the film will be in terms of how it will be based mainly around the anticipation of a ‘jump’. 
• ·      The final, slower shot of the man looking out the window uses very little editing to create tension and anticipation for the ‘jump’ - after seeing the rest of the trailer we know this is a horror film and so the audience anticipates something happening. The woman appearing behind the man makes the audience unsettled and intrigued by the film as we cannot gather from the trailer what the real plot is. 
• ·      The typography is linked very well the rest of the trailer. It is designed to look like someone/something has scratched into the glass. It is in a very old fashioned text to indicate this is a costume horror. It is similar to the font used on when the man finds the message ‘you could have saved him’ on the wall in blood and is shown at the window we immediately before saw him looking out of to show the audience that this is the main location of this film. 

  

Camera angles

• ·      The eye-line shots create the sense we are actually in the situation with the hero of the film. This is appropriate for this genre particularly because most horror films aim to make the audience feel in the same situation as the victim - e.g. we do not see something until they do. This is directly linked to identifying the intended audience as viewers can clearly see this is going to be a classic psychological ghost story and will entice fans of this genre.
• ·      Low and high camera angles are used throughout to give the sense that the character is being watched – these create an unsettled atmosphere as the camera angle implies that the character is not alone.