Wednesday, 21 September 2011
Narrative Structure of a Film Trailer.
What is the common narrative structure of a trailer?
- Most trailers normally start with establishing the setting and introducing the characters. This gives the audience an idea about what the film is going to be about.
- Then a series of disruptions/ dilemmas are shown, which the characters have to try to overcome.
- We then see the characters trying to overcome these problems, but a resolution is not shown in the trailer.
How does the narrative structure differ from Todorov's structure?
- Todorov (a theorist) suggested that conventional narratives are structured in five stages:
1. A state of equilibrium of the outset.
2. A disruption of the equilibrium by some action.
3. A recognition that there has been a disruption.
4. An attempt to repair the disruption.
5. A reinstatement of the equilibrium.
- The difference between the two are that a trailer doesn't include a main feature of Todorov's structure; 'a reinstatement of the equilibrium'. If this was included, there would be little point in watching the film, as the viewer would already know the ending.
How does the structure of a trailer help to sell it to an audience?
- A trailer tells the audience the genre, target audience and some of the story line. This attracts the target audience it is aimed at, as by watching, the viewer will be able to tell whether the film is suitable for them.
- Secondly, as the narrative structure doesn't include 'a reinstatement of the equilibrium', this may make the audience eager to know the resolution to some of the obstacles shown in the trailer.
Analyse ONE trailer using Todorov's Theory.
PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 3 TRAILER
Paranormal Activity 3 follows Todorov's theory, but as it is a trailer as said above, it doesn't include the fifth stage.
- The trailer starts with a state of equilibrium of the outset, with the date being shown; September 3rd 1988. This tells the audience the film is set in the past, and for people who have seen the other two Paranormal Activity films before this, will give them a clue already as to what the story is based on.
- We then see a disruption of the equilibrium by some action with the filming going fuzzy, hinting to the viewer something isn't right.
- A recognition that there has been a disruption is when a woman appears to be dragged across her bedroom floor, but this seems to be set in the past.
- We see an attempt to repair the disruption when you hear the woman say 'what ever happened to us when we were little Katie', and flash backs are shown. This shows them trying to repair the disruption between the characters.
- As I said above, a reinstatement of the equilibrium isn't included in trailers, as this leaves suspense as to how the characters solve some of disruptions shown, leaving the audience in suspense.
- Most trailers normally start with establishing the setting and introducing the characters. This gives the audience an idea about what the film is going to be about.
- Then a series of disruptions/ dilemmas are shown, which the characters have to try to overcome.
- We then see the characters trying to overcome these problems, but a resolution is not shown in the trailer.
How does the narrative structure differ from Todorov's structure?
- Todorov (a theorist) suggested that conventional narratives are structured in five stages:
1. A state of equilibrium of the outset.
2. A disruption of the equilibrium by some action.
3. A recognition that there has been a disruption.
4. An attempt to repair the disruption.
5. A reinstatement of the equilibrium.
- The difference between the two are that a trailer doesn't include a main feature of Todorov's structure; 'a reinstatement of the equilibrium'. If this was included, there would be little point in watching the film, as the viewer would already know the ending.
How does the structure of a trailer help to sell it to an audience?
- A trailer tells the audience the genre, target audience and some of the story line. This attracts the target audience it is aimed at, as by watching, the viewer will be able to tell whether the film is suitable for them.
- Secondly, as the narrative structure doesn't include 'a reinstatement of the equilibrium', this may make the audience eager to know the resolution to some of the obstacles shown in the trailer.
Analyse ONE trailer using Todorov's Theory.
PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 3 TRAILER
Paranormal Activity 3 follows Todorov's theory, but as it is a trailer as said above, it doesn't include the fifth stage.
- The trailer starts with a state of equilibrium of the outset, with the date being shown; September 3rd 1988. This tells the audience the film is set in the past, and for people who have seen the other two Paranormal Activity films before this, will give them a clue already as to what the story is based on.
- We then see a disruption of the equilibrium by some action with the filming going fuzzy, hinting to the viewer something isn't right.
- A recognition that there has been a disruption is when a woman appears to be dragged across her bedroom floor, but this seems to be set in the past.
- We see an attempt to repair the disruption when you hear the woman say 'what ever happened to us when we were little Katie', and flash backs are shown. This shows them trying to repair the disruption between the characters.
- As I said above, a reinstatement of the equilibrium isn't included in trailers, as this leaves suspense as to how the characters solve some of disruptions shown, leaving the audience in suspense.
Sunday, 18 September 2011
Uses and Gratification Theory.
SURVEILLANCE - This is based on the idea that people feel better once they know what is going on in the w#orld around them.
For instance, the film trailer above: 'Black Power Mixtape' is a documentary showing the lives of Black people in an African-American community in 1967 - 1975. This shows the viewer what Black people went through, and tells the story of 'Black Power'. This makes people feel at ease showing what happened back then, and how it has now changed drastically.
PERSONAL IDENTITY - Personal Identity is when the audience is able to compare their life to the life of a characters. They may find similarities in themselves with a character, and watching them overcome problems may even help themselves. Also, they may feel above certain people by watching them, helping them gain more confident in themselves.
The film trailer above; 'Kidulthood' shows the lives of a group of 'youths'. Their everyday lives include; drugs, alcohol, sex and violence. For people watching this (especially teenagers), they may be able to relate to some of the characters in some of the situations, or even feel above them and gaining more confidence.
DIVERSION - The Diversion need describes what's commonly termed as escapism. This means watching a film to forget about the problems in your life, or making them seem better. For instance, watching a tragic ending to a film and thinking 'well at least my life isn't that bad'.
For instance, the film trailer above: 'Black Power Mixtape' is a documentary showing the lives of Black people in an African-American community in 1967 - 1975. This shows the viewer what Black people went through, and tells the story of 'Black Power'. This makes people feel at ease showing what happened back then, and how it has now changed drastically.
PERSONAL IDENTITY - Personal Identity is when the audience is able to compare their life to the life of a characters. They may find similarities in themselves with a character, and watching them overcome problems may even help themselves. Also, they may feel above certain people by watching them, helping them gain more confident in themselves.
The film trailer above; 'Kidulthood' shows the lives of a group of 'youths'. Their everyday lives include; drugs, alcohol, sex and violence. For people watching this (especially teenagers), they may be able to relate to some of the characters in some of the situations, or even feel above them and gaining more confidence.
DIVERSION - The Diversion need describes what's commonly termed as escapism. This means watching a film to forget about the problems in your life, or making them seem better. For instance, watching a tragic ending to a film and thinking 'well at least my life isn't that bad'.
Codes and Conventions of a Film Trailer
- A VOICE OVER - This could be a narrator, voicing over some of the pictures shown in the trailer, but they tend to not give too much information away, as it is only a trailer.
- FOOTAGE - Selected footage from the film will be shown, this doesn't have to be in chronological order. This will give the audience an idea of the genre, the plot and the age group/gender it is aimed at.
- TITLES - may reveal something about the film. They may also be relevant to the footage being shown.
- OPENING - there is always an opening which establishes setting and introduces the character/s.
- EVENTS - a series of events are shown where people try to overcome obstacles and solve problems.
Thursday, 15 September 2011
Functions of a film trailer.
Trailers are key to advertise a film and get the audience to go and see/purchase it. They are able to portray the genre and target audience instantly in order to attract the correct demographic audience.
They have many functions. These include:
- To Advertise and persuade the audience to buy/watch the film, this could be through certain celebrities which will could attract a certain audience. For example, someone like Zac Efron would appeal more to teenage girls.
- Appeal to the target age group, which could be made obvious by sexual scenes and swearing.
- Cinema release date, giving the viewer a date to which they will be able to go and watch it.
- Give a brief outline of the story/genre, so the viewer can be clear as to whether or not it is suitable for them.
- Inform the audience of the main cast members, director and film company.
- Advertise a website which the audience can look further into the film if desired.
The Brief - Film Marketing.
- A teaser trailer - requires the planning and production of a teaser trailer. This requires a digital camera and working as part of a team.
- A film magazine front cover - using Adobe Photoshop.
- A film poster advertising the film.
- An electronic evaluation of the production portfolio - this will take form of a blog. We will be required to evaluate our work electronically.
Wednesday, 14 September 2011
A2 Media Studies.
In A2 media studies, we are going to be doing the following:
- Making a horror film trailer in groups.
- Make a poster for our horror film
- Make a magazine cover for our horror film
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