Details of Storyboard

Over the summer for my work I analysed the first minute of this song:



I chose this song because of the use of black and white and the story it tells, although it also follows the narrative structure. The first minute of the song is abstract, however, it is a direct link to the start name of the song.

The first minute of the song contains a consistent view of the artist, showing different views of her face, and also showing the audience who is singing. This is very conventional for a music video, this music video also uses minimal people in it, making i much easier to make.

Forms And Conventions/Basic Theories

BASIC FORMS AND CONVENTIONS OF A FILM TRAILER
Narration: establish a general feeling/mood/sense of subject rather than a meaning
The narration need to be very quick to the point for the audiences of which they attract, they need to begin to 'stick in the head' in order to produce a word of mouth chain, which in itself is said to be the best (and cheapest) form of marketing.

Music: tempo often drives the editing
This non-diegetic music in the background can drive the speed of the editing, if the sounds speed up, the pace of the editing will speed up, flashing the words on screen faster and faster.

Genre: might be reflected in types of mise-en-scene, themes, performance, camera and editing styles

Camerawork: has an impact on the audiences emotional response with the film trailer, they may begin in a romantic to have attachments to the characters, for example Titanic, however, in Mama, they may feel a sense of wanting to know more about the characters.

Editing: the most common form is fast-cut montage, rendering many of the images impossible to grasp on first viewing, so ensuring multiple viewing. Often enhancing the editing are digital effects, which play with the original images to offer different kinds of pleasure for the audience.

Intertextuality: not all audiences will spot a reference, which would not significantly detract from their pleasure in the text itself, but greater pleasure might be derived by those who recognise the reference. It also increases the audience’s engagement with, and attentiveness to the product.

Exhibitionism: The apparently more powerful independent female artists of recent years have added to the complexity of the politics of looking and gender/cultural debates, by being at once sexually provocative and apparently in control of, and inviting, a sexualised gaze.

Codes and Conventions of Film Trailer (expectations)

Conventions of a Film Trailer (particularly horror)

Mise-en-sceneSetting - For a horror film, the typical locations may be enclosed situations where it is difficult to escape from, this may be in a house, cabin or a forest that is haunted. The way in which the movie works is to keep all of the characters isolated from any locals, making sure there are no interruptions through-out the events, but also making sure that noone comes looking for them. (Blair Witch Project). 

Props

Weapons are often shown to the spectator through close up shots through the eyes of the character. The weapon will have been spotted by the individual and it will tend to be a knife, gun or saw, to indicate that there is going to be danger and violence coming up. Along with this we expect hurt and pain.

The mobile phone is also usually a prop, it may be the characters last chance for help, we may see it falls out of the pocket and fall into water or break in front of them, making them seem to have no escape..

Costume, Hair and Makeup

The costume worn by the character is often a signal to what is going to happen, if for example the characters are wearing old fashioned clothing, we know that this is a back story for some wizardry that occurred that is going to haunt the future. However, this is not always the case, it can be used to indicate the year that is being represented. 

The make-up can be used to help with telling the characters apart, using Proppian theory, he states that there will always be a hero and a villain. In the case of Saw (2003), we have jigsaw, a little clown on a screen, but this clown is wearing heavy makeup that differ it from any other character in the film.

SoundDiegetic sound- An example of this within horror would be a victim screaming, the sound of a door opening or the sound of a gun shot. Trailers have to be suitable for all ages, the trailer cannot show disturbing/violent scenes and can't be over the top - causing too much fright. It would give too much away. Therefore they have to rely on sound and effects to make these elements evident e.g hearing a scream without seeing the attack. The use of character interaction (dialogue) will help the narrative along and will help the audience to understand the events within the trailer. Using this within a trailer helps show the narrative of the film and helps create suspense, tension and enigmas.

Non diegetic sound

The non-diegetic sounds are those that cannot be seen within the sequence that is being watched, therefore it has being added in the post-production process. This is used heavily in horror film trailer, they may use diegetic sounds like heavy breathing, but they may also add sounds that reach crescendo, making the scene seem much scarier than it is in reality. The reason this is done is to add tension to the scene. An example of thiswould be the trailer for Mama, the use of both non-diegetic sounds and diegetic sounds lead us to the conclusion it is horror, however, without the sounds instructing/leading us to know how to feel, we may not come to the same conclusion through visual imagery.

Sound Bridge- The same music or sound that links two scenes together, to make the action scene interrupted. This would be use in the middle of the trailer as it will be revealing the action within the film, it helps to keep the continuity within the film by carrying on with the same source of sound.

Voice-over

A voice over is generally used in a theatrical trailer, but is sometimes used in a teaser trailer with the actors voice used over a sequence of shots. This is shown within trailers for films such as Twilight, Thirty Days Of Night and I am Legend. The purpose of a voice-over is to help the audience understand the visual and the narrative of the film throughout the trailer.

Cinematography: 

Establishing shot

This is used at the beginning of the trailer to set the scene and to show equilibrium. Normally you will see this shot juxta-posed against the weapon of choice and the villain, or the two victims.

Close up

This type of shot shows the detail of a subjects face. It's used within horror trailers to show the fear and emotion of the victims and making the audience to feel their pain. It can be also used to show the face of the villain, or an extreme close up may be used to show just a section of their face for example their eyes. This will create an enigma as the audience wont be sure what the villain fully looks like.

Mid shots

Are used to show the action within the film (when equilibrium has been disrupted) allows the audience to see the character and the setting at the same time, this is used within horror . A mid shot can also be used to show the villain, usually in horror films it will show a dark outline of the villain's figure if the identity is not to be revealed.

Long shots

Are used to show the setting, very similar to an establishing shot, it allows the audience to see all the surroundings in the scene as well as the characters. In horror it could show a building on fire or possibly a murder, so the audience are not clear on who the killer is. The long shot can also be seen in TV to indicate horror, TV Series which border on horror by using crime such as CSI would use a long shot to make sure the spectator is aware of the crime through the camera, however, the villain is never clear until the end. 

Point Of View shot

This makes the audience feel the fear and tension within the scene (it gives them an adrenaline rush). The shot is used when the victim is running away or hiding from the villain. Usually this will be done through the handheld camera, making it wobbly but feeling like we are seeing through the eyes of another. 

Tracking

This camera movement allows the audience to follow the action within the trailer, and allows them to keep up with the pace of the characters and movement within the scene (for example the character running). This movement can make the audience feel they are apart of the action and will make them feel the physical effects that the character is feeling (scared, adrenaline rush) It will make the scene more effective and seem realistic in the eyes of the audience.

High Angle

This is when the camera is position high up and is tilting down on the subject, making the character look vulnerable to the audience. This is popular within the horror genre as it makes the victim powerless against the villain.

Low Angle

This is placed below the subject titling upwards so that the character looks dominant and powerful, this generally towards the villain before the attempt to repair the disruption.

Canted angle 

This is the tilting of the camera and is used for dramatic effect to create a sense of disorientation, intoxication, madness etc. This can be shown within horror such as the Saw series.

Pan

This is when the camera moves left to right, or right to left following a subject. This is used in horror movies when a suspicious character comes into play, the camera follows the character to emphasize on his part in the movie. Moreover it is used in chase scenes to follow the victim as he is trying to get away.

Dutch Tilt

This is a shot used by which the subject or object being filmed is tilted to an angle. This shot is often used in horror films to represent disorientation and confusion. A tilted shot type such as a dutch tilt often connotates confusion or panic.

Horror genre in depth

The first of the horror films were produced during the late 19th century, and based mostly around the gothic literature wrote centuries earlier by authors such as Mary Shelley. When Mary Shelley first wrote Frankenstein it was considered a romantic novel, however, the movie showed 'the monster' to be both horrific and gothic. Beginning the popular monster and zombie film 'craze'. 

The definitions of Horror are a feeling of fear, shock or disgust. This definition has being transformed into a genre which makes a spectator produce all of these emotions at once when watching a particular scene, this film may be one such as 'saw', a film very famous for producing a shocking reaction.

Their plots frequently involve themes of death, the supernatural or mental illness. Many horror movies also include a central villain. There are lots of different forms of media that will use the genre. Books and comics were the original forms of media that had created the horror genre, while the horror television programmes and movies are a lot more recent. In the modern day, most people would prefer to watch a movie or television with a horror genre then read a book.

A horror film conventionally known for scaring the audience and creating suspense throughout. Diagetic and Non-diagetic sounds can create the thrilling suspense. In the early years of the genre, the films had no sound, but due to technology the modern films have much better ways in which they can scare the audience with sound.Camera angles and techniques have been able to increase over the decades, which creates a more wide variety ways in which to film. For Example, The Blair Witch Project (1999) The entire movie is filmed through a hand-held camera, to add to the feel of this being a true story. The filming through the hand-held camera adds to the scariness of the film, especially at night when it is hard to tell what is going on, and you must rely on sound to let you know what is happening.

The start of the horror genre in film started in the late 1980s. These were short silent films that were created by film pioneers such as Georges Melies. The first noted horror film was called Le Manoir du diable (The House of the Devil) . In the early 1920s, the horror genre had grew and started to create feature length films. Such as Nosferatu (1922), The Monster (1925) and Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde (1920). 

During the 1930s – 1940s The horror genre had become a lot more popular. This was due to American film producers, the genre had become popular. The Gothic horror genre was still dominant with films like Dracula (1931) and also The Invisible Man(1933) this film blended science fiction with Gothic horror.As the technology had advanced in the 1950s-1960s, the tones horror had moved from gothic to a more late-century tone of films. The horror had split into two sub-genres: the horror-of-Armageddon and the horror-of-the-demonic. Science fiction was quite popular in the 1950s, for example: The Incredible Shrinking Man.  In the late 50s and early 60s, a British company called Hammer Films Production became an international name. The films were know for being rather gory and have been thought to be one of the main focus for the modern horror genre. Hammer Films Production made films such as the well known Dracula (1958)

In the 1960s, supernatural themes became more popular with films like The innocent (1961) and The Haunting (1963). The Armageddon theme of horror was also popular with films like The Birds (1963) and one of the most influential zombie horror films of all time, Night Of The Living Dead (1968). The theme of occult and evil children became popular in the 70s with films such as The Exorcist (1973) and The Omen (1976). Also the slasher film sub- genre had emerged with films like Halloween (1978) and Friday the 13th (1980).

In the 2000, psychological horror films were created. Films such as, The Grudge (2004) The Ring (2002) and The Others (2001). The zombie genre had become a major return in the 00s with films like 28 Days Later (2002) and, Land of the Dead (2005). By that time, The horror genre had developed sub genres such as nudity, torture and sadism. These are some examples of this sub-genre of film: Hostel (2005), Saw (2004).

(Sources taken from Wikipedia)

Brief

The brief i've chosen from that I will do in September is "A promotion package for a new film, to include a teaser trailer, together with two of the following three options:

• a film magazine front cover, featuring the film
• a website homepage for the film
• a poster for the film

My reasons for choosing a film trailer are to enhance my skills in the media, I feel that the film trailer would stretch and challenge my abilities as I already study film.