One of the most important factors binding the whole campaign together is the genre. I have taken common codes from my chosen genre, horror, such as the use of darkness to represent the fear within each of my products. The radio advertisement employs a similar technique, with tense music indicative of looming fear. There are other mise-en-scene links, such as characters and locations, which also play an important role in the attraction of a target audience. Research, both this year and last year, has helped inform my decision to use certain aspects to represent my genre, with the structuring of the film particularly influenced by film trailers.
These common links, between each product, are also created so that if a person finds out about one of the products, they can instantly obtain access to each of the other three products, which may then further entice the person into seeing the actual film. The reason behind this, is the extra information available to the person, such as character back stories on the front page of the website, amongst other things. Research has also informed the length of the film trailer and the sizes of the magazine and website. This is critical as I am attempting to emulate a real life product and the more accurate the diegesis, the more likely the audience member will purchase the product.
In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?
Due to the size of the campaign, it has meant extensive research into previously mentioned topics of things like genre, so that an accurate account of each product can be produced. It has also meant that efficiency between each of my group members has had to be high, so that we could complete these tasks. I have drawn on many of the codes and conventions from my previous film, produced in the AS year, and then thought about what went well and what didn’t. This gave me some insight into what needed to be completed for this year, the A2 campaign, as well as limiting possible mistakes.
The production of the film in the AS year has also meant that I have a better understanding of which codes and conventions match well with a genre, and from this I could experiment with certain ideas during the production of the film trailer this year. Subverting an idea, rather than going with the norm, can sometimes lead to audience member feeling surprised, and in turn, creates a deeper degree of enigmatic content, which that audience member will then want to find out. I have employed such techniques, referring to the larger amounts of medium shots within my trailer, than you would find in most trailers of the same genre. In particular, the scene where the characters are at the table, with a long duration, is not typical of the genre. However, I have moulded this around quick shots, which portray the danger these characters may then face. This leads to an enigma which is answered, but only to a small extent, which is the aim of the trailer.
The links between each product for this campaign is vital, as mentioned in the first couple of paragraphs. However, the reason for this is that it builds up a certain music score, sound or image, which is then directly linked to the actual film. This reinforces the perpetuation of the advertising campaign, both virally, and by word of mouth, due to the link which is drawn to the film. Research has shown that slow and dark music is a technique used to help build tension, within an audience member. When my group members and I were discussing this issue, we decided that music alongside the antagonist would make the best link, not only because it is a good way to control the emotions of an audience member, but because it can then be used across all four products. This will further aid the perpetuation of the campaign.
My group was told that due to particular circumstances, we had to create our own music. This was later changed, but too late to change our own music. I created some music, and between the other group members, we decided which would be most suited to the radio advertisement, as well as what would suit certain areas of our film. Listening to the soundtracks of the researched trailers, I felt that the most simplistic would equate to the most tense and dramatic. I also thought that over complicating the sound may actually take the audience member’s attention away from the imagery within the trailer and the information being presented via the radio advertisement.
Over the A2 year, I have analysed many magazines, for the purposes of the exam questions. However, this analysis has also benefited the coursework, and has meant that knowing what to include and what not to include on the front cover is vital, and to target the right audience, the correct codes will need to be used. Genre also exists, to some extent, within magazines and is reinforced by the information and images added to the front covers. The information and images also work parallel to the codes and conventions being represented in the film trailer. This is one of the main reason I have used a dark background on my magazine front cover, as a reader of a magazine such as Empire may relate to the codes I am reproducing on my front cover.
Although understanding what was needed to create a diegetic representation of the front cover of a film magazine, getting to know the programme was much harder as I have had no previous experience using it. This has meant that a lot of time has been devoted to understanding certain tools and the reasons they are used when creating the front cover. Little details can sometimes have a massive effect.
An important example is the font. If I had used a different font to represent the “Empire” logo, some readers may not have recognised the magazine. Another crucial misconception is the fact that the size of an “Empire” magazine is thought to be the standard A4 size; however, it is slightly bigger. To combat this issue, I measured the exact size of a copy of “Empire”, and put these details into Photoshop, where I was in the process of creating the front cover. The reason these sizes are so important, is that if finalised, the magazine would have white space, which will again, lead to a reader dismiss the magazine due to lack of quality.
The website also relies on certain measurements, as I intend to accurately reproduce a website front page. The website, just like the other three products, incorporates dark colours to represent the ongoing fear. From my own research, I concluded that the darker of the two pictures I decided to use would be most suited to the website. The reason being is that it provides a stronger enigma to their location and also relates to general plot within the whole campaign – the fact that they are “Locked Away” within the school.
How effective is the combination of your main product and ancillary texts?
Each of my products will work in a synergistic manner to represent the whole campaign and its aims. This will naturally lead to a more widespread advertisement of the film trailer than using just the trailer on its own. The reason is that this campaign is meant to be virally distributed, more so than paper based, which also leads to the potential of a bigger audience, due to the way web 2 perpetuates information at an incredible speed. There is also a higher chance of coming across one of these ancillary texts by chance, which is directly linked to the fact that there is 4 times the amount of products in existence.
As mentioned before, the ancillary texts also help to provide background information which would be non-existent if only a trailer was produced. This is an effective technique as the audience member may be more inclined to go and see the film if more information is available to represent the genre and accessories to the main text.
The A2 year has also provided a more diverse knowledge of existing texts. Creating texts from varying mediums, particularly the print based products, has shown that similar codes and conventions need to exist in order for an advertising campaign to be linked via genre. During the production of these texts, a large number of unfamiliar programmes were used. This has also led to a deeper understanding of what certain programmes aim to produce and the wide variety of tools used to create these products.
This has been an effective mechanism, as using these different programmes has meant an advertising campaign which is more rounded and detailed. This, in turn, will lead to the attraction of a bigger audience, directly affected by the higher quality of the products being presented to them. The whole advertising campaign is a more complete and accurate representation of a media product, in contrast to the AS production. From research, it can be seen that advertising campaigns, containing promotions, alongside the trailer, are an effective way to target an audience.
What have you learned from your audience feedback?
Although not much audience feedback has been collected, I have asked many people their thoughts on the four products I have created since they were completed. This technique helps to aid the production by giving me information which I may not have seen the first time around in the creation of each text. Standing at an objective viewpoint leads to such discoveries and is always beneficial. The feedback which has been given has also meant that I have been able to improve my products. An example of this improvement is reinforced by the fact that I have had to film three times to obtain the shots needed for the trailer.
This feedback has not just been instant, it has developed over a period beginning from the pre production through to this evaluation. This input, most of the time, has not actively been seeked out and relects the audience’s true opinion. Another aid in this feedback has been the close proximity of the people in my group. We have been drawing on the same codes and conventions to represent our ideas, which has meant that I have been able to ask for their advice on a couple of issues.
How did you use media technologies in the construction and research, planning and evaluation stages?
Media technologies have helped advance the construction of each of my four products, however, in different ways. Due to the diverse range of texts for this task, the A2 year, it has also meant a vast range of programmes to help edit and produce them. I have oultined the use of these programmes and the aim in using them here. These programmes have meant that a more accurate production took place, particularly the film trailer, as this was the most important task for me. Although I had not used many of the programmes previously, the aim was to familiarise myself so that I could represent my ideas correctly. The process of familiarising myself can be seen, most obviously, in the way my magazine front cover has developed.
Media technologies have not just been present in the creation of texts, but it has also been used to portray ideas and evaluations through the use of web 2. “Blogger” and “Google Documents” have been key in logging thoughts and representing ideas adequately. This is reinforced by the progression of blog updates and documents being added. This has also led to the perpetuation of my advertising campaign, through popular websites such as Youtube. This reinforces the aim of the campaign directly, as advertising to the biggest audience possible is key in attracting the biggest possible audience.
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