Empire Magazine Front Cover Analysis

Above is the front cover of an Empire magazine that I have analysed. Empire is one of, if not the largest film magazine company in the world and I believe this is one of the best front covers to have been produced by any movie magazine. Everything about it looks very effective as it follows the codes and conventions of a successful front cover. Because the main image alone is so good, the magazine as a whole will also be, due to it being anchored by the likes of the masthead, sub stories and sub images. I will be looking to create my magazine front cover in a similar way by using parts from this such as its colour scheme and layout as inspiration.

Sinister Movie Trailer Analysis

The trailer opens with the non-digetic sound of a radio broadcast which informs listeners about a family that have been murdered. From this, we are straight away able to identify the genre as being horror. There are various clips being showed whilst the broadcast is playing with the most dominant being an establishing shot of a house at night - this suggests that this was where the family lived before they were murdered. There are fast cuts of a symbol and pictures including a family with a little girl circled and a crime scene. These give the trailer a very eerie atmosphere and make some viewers jump as a static sound is included which is something we will be looking to include in our trailer. The little girl in one of the cuts is circled in red which connotes danger and blood further supporting the trailer of being in the horror genre. Because she is the only one circled, this gives her the feeling of being vulnerable and that someone or something is watching/stalking her.

When the news report stops, we get the text "9 Months later" appear on the screen before having a zoom in establishing shot of the same house earlier on in the trailer - this time in the day with a van and boxes outside suggesting that people are moving in. The little girl saying "I didn't want to move here" further supports this and we get our first introduction of the family with a variety of shots of them such as them having a family meal. The contrast of the house from when the family were murdered and the new family moving in suggests that they are going to follow in their footsteps and also get murdered. The sound effects and music are typical of a horror trailer as they create suspense to make viewers on edge throughout which is very effective.

As the clips of the family are being played, we get a high angle shot of the little girl who said she didn't want to move there which makes her appear as being vulnerable. From this, we are able to identify that she will play a big role in the film due to vulnerable children being a typical horror victim. The shots of the family around the table and the parents in bed connote a happy, innocent family and that nothing can go wrong - which is never the case in horror films. Low key lighting is used throughout the start of the trailer in order to put an emphasis on the isolation of things such as the location of the house and the attic where the man stumbles across a box of tapes. This adds a sense of mystery to the trailer and gives it an eerie feel which is essential in most horror trailers.

As soon as the man stumbles upon the box in the attic, we get the text "From the producer of Paranormal Activity and Insidious" appear on the screen. If the viewer hadn't guessed it already, this gives away the genre of the film as being horror as these two films are two of the most known horror films in the world. We get an over the shoulder shot of the man looking at the tapes in the box in order to give the effect of actually being there with him. It acts as a kind of point of view shot in order for us to see what he sees. The first tape he watches shows a family having fun together before suddenly jumping with a static sound effect to the family being hung from a tree which is very graphic. The man immediately jumps up out of his seat as I'm sure most viewers did too. By now we can tell that the man of the family is the main protagonist in the film as he has been the main source of attention in the majority of clips so far.

The trailer then cuts to the protagonist discussing what he had found with a police officer whilst another video tape is played which shows a car being set on fire with a family trapped inside. Again, another gruesome clip as this conforms to the codes and conventions of a horror film. The sound effect of a scream is synchronised with the car being set on fire in order to add to the shock of the clip. An extreme close up of the protagonist is then used to show the emotion in his face whilst the flames in the video reflect on his glasses. Extreme close ups are used often in horror films as they show what is going on - mainly emotions such as fear and anger to add effect.

By now, we understand that an investigation has started surrounding the tapes and it is pointed out by an expert that the common link in each of the clips is a special symbol relating to a demon known as 'Bagul'. The expert, who is perhaps some sort of psychologist says that the demon consumes the souls of children and this now gives us a clear storyline. The background music gradually starts to build up whilst showing a clip of a young boy climb into a pool. The music comes to a sudden stop and a high pitched sound effect is used once again to make the viewer jump. Inside the pool is a mysterious looking character turning its head almost directly towards the camera suggesting that this is the demon Bagul who has somehow been transformed from the young boy. The text screen of 'Once you see him' then appears which again, tells us the story and puts pieces of the puzzle together. The protagonist identifies something standing in the background of a still image from one of the clips and we get his narration of "I've never been onto anything this big before". He realises that the image looks a lot like his back garden and that it is the demon Bagul standing in the bushes. He then holds the image up to the window and as he takes it away the demon appears to be stood in the exact same position in his garden for a split second. This is a very effective clip and adds to the eerie feel of the trailer as the garden is pitch black meaning the only thing we see is the demon lit up and the music once again suddenly jumps in an attempt to scare the audience.

By this stage, the demon is clearly identified as the killer and the little girl of the family is at danger from him. As the protagonist is trying to find information from the clips, he has a photo of Bagul on his computer screen with the words “Bagul lives in the images themselves, and they are gateways into our world” playing over it. As he looks away from the screen and closes his eyes which suggests he is stressed and scared, the demon turns its head towards him with a drum beat and another high pitched sound effect to build suspense and continue to make viewers on edge when watching.

The trailer then goes on to show clips of the children acting very strange such as the girl walking around at night time and the boy crawling out of a box screaming as if to suggest they have been possessed and targeted by the demon. These are edited with smooth cuts to make the trailer flow efficiently. A clip of the man setting fire to the box of tapes is then shown before having a close up of them burning to show what it was. It then shows the family fleeing the house with the voice over "Get the kids, pack the car, we have to leave here now". 

A close up of the projector tape rolling is then shown and the trailer is edited to make it look as if it is one of the tapes itself. We have the digetic sound of the tape rolling and clicking with different, short, sharp clips being shown in-between each click. The process of this gradually speeds up and the clicking becomes louder and faster in order to build suspense again. This would be classed as the 'action-part' of the trailer as this is where it gets interesting. As the fast clips come to an end and the music stops suddenly, we are shown a point of view shot of the protagonist as he looks into the attic where he finds a group of what look to be dead children telling him to be quiet. There is a projector screen behind them with an image of Bagul on and he slowly moves off of the screen and appears right in front of the camera with a loud sound effect which again - makes the viewer jump. The title of the film is then shown and the 'Coming soon' screen starts to burn through as the sound effect of the projector tape stops - this suggests the tape has been burnt and is very effective and original.

The trailer conforms to the codes and conventions of a horror film as it continuously builds up suspense with a very eerie and unnerving atmosphere. Extreme close ups are used a number of times in order to highlight things that viewers wouldn't be able to pick up on otherwise such as certain emotions. Establishing shots were used to show the isolation of the location of the house - very large and quiet. The point of view shot, especially at the end of the trailer when Bagul jumps out at the camera is used very effectively as this allows viewers to feel what it is like to be in the characters position. Overall, I believe it is one of the best horror film trailers made and was very successful in its aim of enticing people to go and see the film. 

Saw Trailer Analysis

After watching the Saw trailer several times, I have clearly been able to distinguish the fact that the movie is of the horror genre. I have been able to identify this through the trailers use of camera shots, editing, sound and mise en scene. I would guess that the movie will have been rated 18+ as by the looks of it, it includes a lot of content related to crime such as drug use, murder and violence. The trailer has been able to tell me that the film certainly isn’t for the feint of hearted.

The first thing we see in the trailer is a man walking round a house taking photos. This is hard to see as the lighting is very low in order to create tension and suspense which is exactly what it does. At the same time, it is very effective as the camera has a flash which lights up the room every time a photo is taken. This allows the viewer to identify where the man is, however we have no clue as to why he is there. The flash helps us to see that the house is quite messy and perhaps abandoned due to the use of a bike, dishes and clothes left around. Whilst this scene is happening, there are a variety of shot types used. Most notably the over the shoulder and point of view shots. This gives the viewer the feeling that they are actually there with the man taking photos which is a very effective technique as there is a very eerie atmosphere to the scene which will make the viewer on-edge. Sounds effects also help with the atmosphere of this scene with spooky digetic sounds such as floorboards creaking, a strange voice laughing in the background and the camera shot noise. This gives us the feeling that someone or something else is in the house with the man and he asks ‘Who’s there!?’ The scene then closes with something jumping towards the camera with a huge sound effect which sets the trailer up perfectly with a very on-edge and uneasy atmosphere.

An ident is then used to show the production company’s logos whilst being in synch with sound effects. One of the companies is called ‘Twisted Pictures’ which straight away suggests that they are involved with the horror genre. The logo also helps us identify this as it includes a nail, barbed wire and very sharp font.

The trailer then goes into a rhythm of short, fast paced cuts and edits of scenes from the film in order to show a lot of the action that happens. Again, sound is used effectively as it is often synchronised with cuts and scenes from the film itself. We can identify that the anti-protagonist or main villain in the film is known as 'Jigsaw' through the use of newspaper articles about him as well as a dialogue voice over quoting 'The jigsaw killer'. There are various shots of different characters in the trailer who could be Jigsaw. This is done to entice the viewer to see the film so they can find out who it is and what he looks like. This is a very effective technique as they are not giving anything away or spoiling the film for the viewer. It will make them want to view the film even more.

Sound is used effectively again by having a voice over of 'Jigsaw' who seems a very intelligent man as he knows a lot about the victims including their names and their background. The voice sounds very husky-like, as though it has been edited so that Jigsaw's identity is not given away. Even if it hasn't, the voice still sounds very effective and mysterious which is a better option than using just a normal voice.

The cinematography is another aspect to the trailer that has been used effectively with the use of close up and extreme close up camera shots of people's faces. This has been done to show their facial expressions so that the viewer can see things such as whether they are angry or scared. There are also different words used to break up the clips which are synchronised with the sound. They are very emotive words that describe Jigsaw in a bad way to show how evil and how much of a psychopath he is. The words are 'Madman, Voyeur, Psychopath and Prophet' which are very effective as again, they help to build the suspense and tension of the trailer. The trailer then ends with Jigsaw saying 'Live or die. Make your choice'. This is a great way to end the trailer as it acts like a cliff-hanger which will make the viewer want to find out what happens. Do they live? Or do they die?

The saw trailer conforms to the codes and conventions of a typical horror trailer by using production information such as the Twisted Pictures and Lions-gate idents in order to lure viewers into thinking they will like this film as it has been made by the same companies of other successful films that tend to be in the same genre. Text is used to add to the suspense of the trailer and give viewers an insight to the story-line of the film - this is common in all trailers, not just horror. The code and convention of lighting, especially low key lighting is used as this highlights the genre of being horror. Low key lighting is used often in the saw trailer as it sets the mood effectively by making it very eerie. This is most effective at the start of the trailer when the man is taking photos in a pitch black house. The camera he is using lights up the room every time a shot is taken and makes it look very effective. 

Questionnaire Results

As part of my research and planning for this project, I have created a movie/movie trailer questionnaire that I have asked various people to fill out which would allow me to gather important information and key opinions on movie trailers. I can now use the research collected by the questionnaire for my benefit when creating my movie trailer. My responses ranged from 15-18 year olds, to people over the age of 31. I have presented my results in the bar graphs and pie charts shown below as this is a much more appealing and easier way to interpret the results.

The first two questions that i asked were basic closed questions that allowed me to identify the gender and ages of my respondents. As you can see, the majority of respondents were of the male gender with 14 men filling out the questionnaire for me. There were only 9 females, however this still gives me a range of people to help me when producing my final product. The most common age range of people who answered my questionnaire was 15-18 year olds as this received 19 votes. The only other age ranges that appeared were 19-22 and 31+ with both of them receiving 2 votes. I used the third question of "Do the majority of film trailers persuade you to go and see the movie?" in order to find out just how successful and essential film trailers are when it comes to persuading viewers to go and see the film. More than half of the people answered yes they do with sometimes and no being a little less. This has shown me that in order to make people want to go and see my film, i will need to ensure that it is successful in appealing to viewers. The next question asked "Where do you usually watch film trailers?" so that i know where to promote mine, whether this may be on social networking sites or on television. The most common place where film trailers are viewed by my respondents is on YouTube. Therefore, when i have finished my trailer, i will make sure that it is uploaded to YouTube as this is where it will gain the most publicity and stand the best chance of gaining an audience. Television and social networking sites such as Facebook/Twitter will also be effective places to screen my trailer as they also received a number of votes. I also wanted to find out what the most popular film genre was amongst the people who filled in my questionnaire as this is a helpful piece of information. Comedy was the most popular with horror not being too far behind it. Although horror weren't the most popular choice, i still feel that it is one of the biggest genres and can be a success and favourite amongst viewers if the film is effective. The final question was asked so that i can see what aspects of a trailer are most appealing and important to viewers. I will make sure that i include the answers that received the most votes which were plot, cast and good clips in my trailer in order to stand a better chance of it being effective and appealing to viewers.

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Film trailer questionnaire

I have created a questionnaire for research that will help me throughout the course of creating my film trailer. I would appreciate it if you would take the time to fill it in:

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/15PYKr6O3d8CcyeuH2Db0O6SQaZCgdqq-_BS1bhgdjXk/viewform

History of Trailers

Film trailers have been around for as early as the 1930's, with notable trailers including Snow White and Gone with the wind. Over time, every aspect of trailers have improved massively, especially the editing and cinematography.

Snow White - 1937
In 1937, the first Snow White trailer was released, and as you can imagine, is very different to film trailers today. They used a technique of a narrator reading good reviews from newspapers in the hope of advertising the film in order to persuade viewers to go and see the film themselves. The most notable thing that I picked up on, was that there were no clips from the film itself used in the trailer. They didn't have any moving images, just paintings and Walt Disney talking the viewers through the dwarves in the film, which at that time, was the best they could do. Also, the text used in the trailer is of a very large size which fills up the majority of the screen making it look very unprofessional. Looking at the trailer now, it is very poor, however when it was released it would have been one of the best at that time.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ncMKymAOy1I

Gone with the wind - 1939
Two years after the Snow White trailer was released, Gone with the wind produced a similar trailer. The trailer itself is literally a person turning the pages of a book, that's it. Before turning the pages, they ensure that enough time has been left for the viewer to read the large old fashion styled text on the pages which explains the film and its actors/actresses. The music used throughout is a kind of evil stereo-phonical sound to build suspense.

The second trailer that I watched is more advanced than the first as this actually includes clips from the film as well as a narrator talking over. They both include similar soundtracks that now sound very out-dated as well as text covering the frame. In this trailer, the title of the film is repeated a number of times by the narrator as well as being displayed on the screen several times.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wUA5jB2MPCc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OFu-jemU-bA

Casablanca - 1942
As the years went on, more and more trailers started to use lengthy clips from the film in order to give the viewer an idea on the storyline. If it appealed to them, then they would go and see the film which meant that the trailer had been effective in its aim of advertising the film to viewers. In the Casablanca trailer, it is all black and white. There is no sign of colour what so ever which makes it less appealing to viewers. There are a number of transitions used for making the clips flow including wipes and swirls. Again, there is a narrator with a stereophonic soundtrack playing in the background, and the title of the film is displayed and said by the narrator numerous times.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EJvlGh_FgcI

Cinderella - 1950
By now, film trailers had started to get put together effectively and an improvement had been made. In the Cinderella trailer, there are various scenes from the film used in an attempt to entice viewers and persuade them to go and see the film. Large text and a narrator/voice over was still being used, however sound effects and music brightened it up and made it more appealing to viewers.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CUxAlnYP5aU

Psycho and Dr Strangelove - 1960s
Probably two of the most famous film trailers of all time were produced in the 1960s with Psycho and Dr Strangelove. Both trailers were black white with the Psycho trailer being a six minute long introduction/walk-through of the film by its creator Alfred Hitchcock and Dr Strangelove being a one minute montage of very fast jump cuts and edits. Both very bizarre in their own way, yet both successful in promoting the two films as they are now two of the most famous films of all time.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ps8H3rg5GfM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1gXY3kuDvSU

Forrest Gump - 1994
As the years went on, film trailers had improved massively with things such as music, colour and edits and were now effective in appealing to a large audience. The forrest gump trailer had been well put together with smooth edits of clips from the film and the viewer could identify a clear storyline. The trailer captures emotion well and advertises the film perfectly.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YNh9Es8Ut6U

Walking Tall - 2004
During the 2000s, film trailers reached their peak. The Walking Tall trailer included everything a great trailer could ask for - edits, synchronisation, background music, audio and clips from the film, narration and text. It advertised the film very effectively and was well synchronised making it look very professional. Its duration was just over two minutes which is now the most common length for a film trailer. We can tell that the trailer is effective as the viewer is able to identify a clear story-line due to it following Todorovs Narrative well by including each stage of the theory - Equilibrium, Disruption, Recognition of disruption, Attempt to repair and Reinstatement of equilibrium.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X67H5J9ZMds

Warrior - 2011
The Warrior trailer does a great job in advertising the film as it includes a number of different emotions. It is very powerful and allows the viewer to identify what genre the film is - action/sport due to the clips used. The soundtrack changes tone throughout to match the feeling that is being given off. For example, it is very slow and quiet during emotional scenes such as at the start, however when the trailer kicks in and the action scenes start happening, it has a fast pace. Overall, I really enjoyed the trailer and thought it was very effective as it made me go and see the film.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kY7HcUACs58

In conclusion, the history of film trailers has changed dramatically as the years have went by. I feel that trailers are still improving and that they continue to be a huge part in the marketing campaign of films. Without an effective film trailer, the movie stands very little chance of becoming a success.