What is a teaser trailer? (1a)
Introduction
In this task, I briefly go over on what makes a teaser trailer by looking into common themes and characteristics. It will overall benefit our production of a teaser trailer, because we will have a better idea of what to do when it comes to the production stages.
Introduction
In this task, I briefly go over on what makes a teaser trailer by looking into common themes and characteristics. It will overall benefit our production of a teaser trailer, because we will have a better idea of what to do when it comes to the production stages.
What is a teaser trailer from Jack Cooper
Conclusion
From this quick task, I have found out that teaser trailers follow a fairly strict regime, but have to adapt due to the vast amount of differences. It therefore fits nicely with Neale's theory of repitition and differences, and has taught me that we will need to find the right blend of conventional and unique in order to entertain the audience whilst simultaneously keeping them in familiar grounds.
Genre introduction and definition (1b)
Introduction
In this research task, I am going to look into the genres I'm most likely to be focusing on when it comes to our own production for a teaser trailer. It will have obvious benefits for our own work, as it will allow us to have a much more clearer understanding of what is conventional in the genres, and perhaps then what we can make a little bit different in order to stay fresh and appealing.
Conclusion
From this quick task, I have found out that teaser trailers follow a fairly strict regime, but have to adapt due to the vast amount of differences. It therefore fits nicely with Neale's theory of repitition and differences, and has taught me that we will need to find the right blend of conventional and unique in order to entertain the audience whilst simultaneously keeping them in familiar grounds.
Genre introduction and definition (1b)
Introduction
In this research task, I am going to look into the genres I'm most likely to be focusing on when it comes to our own production for a teaser trailer. It will have obvious benefits for our own work, as it will allow us to have a much more clearer understanding of what is conventional in the genres, and perhaps then what we can make a little bit different in order to stay fresh and appealing.
Genre introduction and definition 1b from Jack Cooper
Conclusion
This task has outlined the basics for each genre of our proposed hybrid. With this new knowledge, we will be able to create our teaser trailers in a certain style with a big slab of confidence that we are now following the necessary conventions. It also becomes apparent that there is a distinct overlap between each genre, which suggests that each characteristic of the genre is not strict and can be creatively modified to give your own twist on things. We hope to utilise this to full effect.
Conventions of a teaser trailer (2)
Introduction
This task will be similar to my previous task, though this time I am going to look at the conventions of a teaser trailer themselves. Though the task may differ slightly, it will help me in exactly the same way. By finding out just what makes a teaser trailer, our group will be able to follow the important conventions that make a teaser trailer distinctive and attractive, but at the same time offer a little bit of a twist to make the clip stand out to the crowd.
Conclusion
This task has outlined the basics for each genre of our proposed hybrid. With this new knowledge, we will be able to create our teaser trailers in a certain style with a big slab of confidence that we are now following the necessary conventions. It also becomes apparent that there is a distinct overlap between each genre, which suggests that each characteristic of the genre is not strict and can be creatively modified to give your own twist on things. We hope to utilise this to full effect.
Conventions of a teaser trailer (2)
Introduction
This task will be similar to my previous task, though this time I am going to look at the conventions of a teaser trailer themselves. Though the task may differ slightly, it will help me in exactly the same way. By finding out just what makes a teaser trailer, our group will be able to follow the important conventions that make a teaser trailer distinctive and attractive, but at the same time offer a little bit of a twist to make the clip stand out to the crowd.
Task 2 from Jack Cooper
Conclusion
Conclusion found in presentation.
Teaser Trailer Timeline (3)
Introduction
This task is used to analyse closely two specific teaser trailers from popular movies, and see what their ingredients are. It's important that I choose two successful films, as I believe this will tell me that the teaser trailer played a good role in hyping the audience up for the full feature film itself. The techniques used in the following teaser trailers (especially the editing) will be good insperation for when we come to produce our own teaser trailers.
Conclusion
Conclusion found in presentation.
Textual Analysis of similar texts (4)
Introduction
This task involves analysing several teaser trailers that are of a similar genre to what we propose to make ourselves. By taking apart many aspects of the teaser trailer, it will give us a very clear indication of what to include in our production, from the camera angles to the lighting. Without this research, we may not be conventional enough for our genre, and therefore unintentionally drive the audience away.
Conclusion
Conclusion found in presentation.
Teaser Trailer Timeline (3)
Introduction
This task is used to analyse closely two specific teaser trailers from popular movies, and see what their ingredients are. It's important that I choose two successful films, as I believe this will tell me that the teaser trailer played a good role in hyping the audience up for the full feature film itself. The techniques used in the following teaser trailers (especially the editing) will be good insperation for when we come to produce our own teaser trailers.
Conclusion
Conclusion found in presentation.
Textual Analysis of similar texts (4)
Introduction
This task involves analysing several teaser trailers that are of a similar genre to what we propose to make ourselves. By taking apart many aspects of the teaser trailer, it will give us a very clear indication of what to include in our production, from the camera angles to the lighting. Without this research, we may not be conventional enough for our genre, and therefore unintentionally drive the audience away.
Conclusion
This task has given me a deeper insight on what ingredients production companies use to create an effective and convincing advertisement for their products. It has, along with task three, also shown me the key points of a movie to include in a teaser trailer, but also what not to include to create the crucial nail-biting cliff-hanger for the audience. Now that I have done this task, I feel a lot more confident in what to include in our final cut for the teaser trailer.
Genre Conventions of a Teaser Trailer (5)
Introduction
Introduction found in presentation
Conclusion
Conclusion found in presentation
Narrative Theories (6b)
Introduction
Researching the narrative theorists when it comes to movies in general will be a vastly important task in enhancing our production when we come to do it. By applying them to teaser trailers I have previously looked at, I will gain a good understanding of what theory appropriately fits where, and therefore end up with something conventional and recognisable with the audience.
Introduction
Researching the narrative theorists when it comes to movies in general will be a vastly important task in enhancing our production when we come to do it. By applying them to teaser trailers I have previously looked at, I will gain a good understanding of what theory appropriately fits where, and therefore end up with something conventional and recognisable with the audience.
Narrative theories from Jack Cooper
Conclusion
Through this task, I have found that the theories included make up a very strong backbone of just what actually makes up a teaser trailer. Without these theories in the right places, a teaser trailer simply wouldn't be as enjoyable as it could be, or it would be too unrecognisable to be conventional in some way, and therefore runs the risk of failing.
Narrative Structures (6a)
Introduction
In this task, I shall be exploring all the different types of narrative structures that films can offer. More importantly though, I shall be giving examples of where these structures are used; the genres of these films will then be compared to the genre we intend to utilise, and will therefore give us a clear idea of what narrative structures to use. Using knowledge gained from previous tasks, I shall also be commenting on whether it would be appropriate to use certain structures in teaser trailers, and why.
Conclusion
Through this task, I have found that the theories included make up a very strong backbone of just what actually makes up a teaser trailer. Without these theories in the right places, a teaser trailer simply wouldn't be as enjoyable as it could be, or it would be too unrecognisable to be conventional in some way, and therefore runs the risk of failing.
Narrative Structures (6a)
Introduction
In this task, I shall be exploring all the different types of narrative structures that films can offer. More importantly though, I shall be giving examples of where these structures are used; the genres of these films will then be compared to the genre we intend to utilise, and will therefore give us a clear idea of what narrative structures to use. Using knowledge gained from previous tasks, I shall also be commenting on whether it would be appropriate to use certain structures in teaser trailers, and why.
Conclusion
This task has given me concise knowledge of what structures to use, and which to avoid. For example, I want to avoid using closed-structure narratives, as this wouldn't leave a cliff-hanger for the audience, and would therefore create no suspense or urgency for the audience to discover more and watch the main feature film. This task has given us a better understanding of what structure to use for our teaser trailer.
Film Industry Market Research (10)
Introduction
Introduction found in presentation.
Film Industry Market Research (10)
Introduction
Introduction found in presentation.
Conclusion
Conclusion found in presentation.
Film Studio Research (9)
Introduction
In this research task, I shall be taking a look at the production companies that produce movies that will be similar to our proposed teaser trailer. I will then be seeing if our proposed production for a teaser trailer will be fitting in with the ethos of these production companies.
A conglomerate production company is a large production company who tend to own other institutions in a horizontal and vertical integration style. They tend to be in charge of all aspects of the film industry life cycle. An example would be Disney.
An independent production company is a company with a much lower budget than the conglomerates. They tend to produce more niche content with a lower budget, and are often not in ownership of other companies. An example would be Calamity Films.
Columbia
Columbia is a conglomerate film production company, and one of the 'Big Six' production companies in the world. They focus mainly on producing mainstream blockbuster films that aim to entertain a wide range of audiences. Columbia - owned by Sony Pictures - doesn't give an ethos or aim on their website, but one can safely assume that they aim to appeal to the widest range of audiences as possible.
Our idea would slot in with their conglomerate style of wanting to appeal to as many people as possible, because our proposed teaser trailer has traces of personal identity, in which the audience will not feel alienated from the film, and could therefore relate.
Lionsgate
Lionsgate is an American-Canadian production company that is best known to be a mini-major. They describe themselves as having a 'diversified presence' in the film industry, which suggests that they produce more niche films than the conglomerates would. An example of this would be Kick-Ass, which is a film that is more violent than what the conglomerates would perhaps dare to achieve, since it tends to drive away a lot of the younger audience.
Our idea could fit in with the ethos of Lionsgate, because we have a proposal that is arguably more left-field than what the conglomerates would dare to take on, but includes enough mainstream attractions for it to still be a widely distributed film, which would therefore fit in with the ideology of a mini-major production company.
Calamity Films
Calamity Films is a British independent production company, which rose to fame with the film 'Pride'. Though the website does not list what the company is all about or their ethos, it's clear to see that the production company focuses on producing more niche media texts, as a conglomerate or even a mini-major would not be daring enough to introduce a film based entirely around gay pride, since there are still countries out there that are very intolerant to the subject.
Our idea could potentially fit in with the production of a independent film production company, because our teaser trailer would be very low budget due to the limitations we face financially. Similarly, by going to an independent production company such as Calamity Films, we would have almost total creative control without having to worry about the mainstream audience. This means we can truly highlight the fantasy aspect of our production.
Film Life Cycle
The process of producing a film has a recognised four stages. They are:
Film production: The casting and the filming of the media text itself, as well as editing
Film distribution: The media texts are shared via marketing, and are sent out to various cinemas and shops
Film exhibition: The media text is shown to the audience
Film marketing: Keep advertising the film for as long as possible to keep up interest
Our proposed teaser trailer would fit in with the with the marketing stage of the process, since the idea of our trailer is to hype people up for our upcoming film, and get enough people interested to ensure a successful distribution and exhibition.
Conclusion
This task has shown me that there are several options available to us, depending on which kind of production company we would choose to go for. I have learnt that an independent company would give us a lot more of a creative leeway, but less of a budget, whereas a conglomerate company would want to tailor our idea in order for it to appeal to the mainstream audience. Nonetheless, I have discovered that it is possible to produce our teaser trailer with any three kinds of production company.
Regulation (8)
Introduction
Introduction found in presentation
Film Studio Research (9)
Introduction
In this research task, I shall be taking a look at the production companies that produce movies that will be similar to our proposed teaser trailer. I will then be seeing if our proposed production for a teaser trailer will be fitting in with the ethos of these production companies.
A conglomerate production company is a large production company who tend to own other institutions in a horizontal and vertical integration style. They tend to be in charge of all aspects of the film industry life cycle. An example would be Disney.
An independent production company is a company with a much lower budget than the conglomerates. They tend to produce more niche content with a lower budget, and are often not in ownership of other companies. An example would be Calamity Films.
Columbia
Our idea would slot in with their conglomerate style of wanting to appeal to as many people as possible, because our proposed teaser trailer has traces of personal identity, in which the audience will not feel alienated from the film, and could therefore relate.
Lionsgate
Lionsgate is an American-Canadian production company that is best known to be a mini-major. They describe themselves as having a 'diversified presence' in the film industry, which suggests that they produce more niche films than the conglomerates would. An example of this would be Kick-Ass, which is a film that is more violent than what the conglomerates would perhaps dare to achieve, since it tends to drive away a lot of the younger audience.
Our idea could fit in with the ethos of Lionsgate, because we have a proposal that is arguably more left-field than what the conglomerates would dare to take on, but includes enough mainstream attractions for it to still be a widely distributed film, which would therefore fit in with the ideology of a mini-major production company.
Calamity Films
Calamity Films is a British independent production company, which rose to fame with the film 'Pride'. Though the website does not list what the company is all about or their ethos, it's clear to see that the production company focuses on producing more niche media texts, as a conglomerate or even a mini-major would not be daring enough to introduce a film based entirely around gay pride, since there are still countries out there that are very intolerant to the subject.Our idea could potentially fit in with the production of a independent film production company, because our teaser trailer would be very low budget due to the limitations we face financially. Similarly, by going to an independent production company such as Calamity Films, we would have almost total creative control without having to worry about the mainstream audience. This means we can truly highlight the fantasy aspect of our production.
Film Life Cycle
The process of producing a film has a recognised four stages. They are:
Film production: The casting and the filming of the media text itself, as well as editing
Film distribution: The media texts are shared via marketing, and are sent out to various cinemas and shops
Film exhibition: The media text is shown to the audience
Film marketing: Keep advertising the film for as long as possible to keep up interest
Our proposed teaser trailer would fit in with the with the marketing stage of the process, since the idea of our trailer is to hype people up for our upcoming film, and get enough people interested to ensure a successful distribution and exhibition.
Conclusion
This task has shown me that there are several options available to us, depending on which kind of production company we would choose to go for. I have learnt that an independent company would give us a lot more of a creative leeway, but less of a budget, whereas a conglomerate company would want to tailor our idea in order for it to appeal to the mainstream audience. Nonetheless, I have discovered that it is possible to produce our teaser trailer with any three kinds of production company.
Regulation (8)
Introduction
Introduction found in presentation
Regulation from fingu
Conclusion
Conclusion found in presentation
Film Commissioning/Funding Research (11)
Introduction
Introduction found in presentation
Introduction
This is a vital task in which we propose some questions to a focus group regarding our production ideas for the teaser trailer, and also to find out more about their personal habits of media consumption. If this task is completed in a successful and sophisticated manner, then it will enable us to get a very clear idea on what our audience expects from our production, and therefore what we should do to appeal to them.
Conclusion
To sum things up, I found out that our target audience of younger individuals of a mixed gender dominantly preferred the Internet as their preference for how they consume media. It tells us that we should focus on showcasing our production online more than anywhere else in order to create the biggest response from who we are targeting. Additionally, we also found that the group generally really liked our idea for how it's unique and distinctive, but could be improved by completing "the arc" of the story (which is referring to Todorov's theory of equilibriums), and to also include a side story of the main character's family, and how they are directly affected by the bad deeds of the main character. We will take this information on board, and ensure that we will end up with a much more focused and enjoyable teaser trailer for our target audience.
Audience Theories (13b)
Introduction
This task will help me get a better grasp of the people who consume media. It is important for me to know my audience well, as they are the people who determine whether my product would fail or succeed. This task will point out the different kinds of audiences - specifically the ones that could have a negative impact on our reception - and will therefore allow me to find a solution to ensure the best success possible.
Conclusion
Conclusion found in presentation
Film Commissioning/Funding Research (11)
Introduction
Introduction found in presentation
Conclusion
Conclusion found in presentation
Audience Wants and Needs (research) (13)
Introduction
This is a vital task in which we propose some questions to a focus group regarding our production ideas for the teaser trailer, and also to find out more about their personal habits of media consumption. If this task is completed in a successful and sophisticated manner, then it will enable us to get a very clear idea on what our audience expects from our production, and therefore what we should do to appeal to them.
Conclusion
To sum things up, I found out that our target audience of younger individuals of a mixed gender dominantly preferred the Internet as their preference for how they consume media. It tells us that we should focus on showcasing our production online more than anywhere else in order to create the biggest response from who we are targeting. Additionally, we also found that the group generally really liked our idea for how it's unique and distinctive, but could be improved by completing "the arc" of the story (which is referring to Todorov's theory of equilibriums), and to also include a side story of the main character's family, and how they are directly affected by the bad deeds of the main character. We will take this information on board, and ensure that we will end up with a much more focused and enjoyable teaser trailer for our target audience.
Audience Theories (13b)
Introduction
This task will help me get a better grasp of the people who consume media. It is important for me to know my audience well, as they are the people who determine whether my product would fail or succeed. This task will point out the different kinds of audiences - specifically the ones that could have a negative impact on our reception - and will therefore allow me to find a solution to ensure the best success possible.
Conclusion
This task has pointed out the different kinds of audience to me, and has allowed me to work out how to please as many people as possible, especially those that have an opposed style of media consumption. I now know the most efficient way to retain an audience, and have a greater understanding of a passive and active audience.
Target Audience Profile (12)
Introduction
This task will allow me to gather what our group believes to be our target audience. The audience is a very important aspect to consider for our teaser trailer production, because they literally decide whether our media text will be successful or not. Whilst critics can have their say on the production, the audience will decide whether it succeeds or not with their views. An audience profile is a document that goes over all the important main aspects of our target audience. It will allow us to have a clear vision on who we are aiming towards, and therefore have a better chance of producing a stronger product.
Conclusion
Now that we have gathered a clear idea on what our target audience is going to be, we now need to move on to apply the data to real life. We are going to apply what we came up with to make some questions for a proposed focus group, to find out precisely what our audiences' wants and needs are. Thanks to this task, I now know that I need to find a focus group that is aged between 15-30, from the UK, and a mixed gender.
Techniques I Like (14)
A particular technique that I have recently discovered thanks to one of my working team members in which I see to be professional and enjoyable is the dolly zoom. To sum up, this is a technique where the camera operator has to glide backwards with the camera whilst simultaneously zooming in. If done correctly, the subject the camera is focusing on (usually a person in the middle of the frame) should maintain on how close he/she appears to the camera, but the background will significantly change by zooming in. It can also be reversed so that you glide forwards with the camera whilst zooming out; this makes the background zoom out whilst keeping the subject constant in size. It's a very effective method for connoting an epiphany for the character to the audience, or to show metaphorically that their world is collapsing all around them.
A famous example of this shot was used in Jaws where the chief police officer Martin Brody experienced first hand one of his citizens being attacked by a shark. In previous attacks, he had only heard about the attacks, so to see one in real life would've rocked his world as the protector of the community. A dolly zoom effectively conveyed to the audience that the event was a heart-sinking moment for Martin, and how it dawned on him that he now had to do something to prevent attacks in the future (in this case, closing the beaches). I really like it being used in this particular case, because I feel that no other shot would've been quite so effective at showing the audience Martin's emotions.
Target Audience Profile (12)
Introduction
This task will allow me to gather what our group believes to be our target audience. The audience is a very important aspect to consider for our teaser trailer production, because they literally decide whether our media text will be successful or not. Whilst critics can have their say on the production, the audience will decide whether it succeeds or not with their views. An audience profile is a document that goes over all the important main aspects of our target audience. It will allow us to have a clear vision on who we are aiming towards, and therefore have a better chance of producing a stronger product.
Conclusion
Now that we have gathered a clear idea on what our target audience is going to be, we now need to move on to apply the data to real life. We are going to apply what we came up with to make some questions for a proposed focus group, to find out precisely what our audiences' wants and needs are. Thanks to this task, I now know that I need to find a focus group that is aged between 15-30, from the UK, and a mixed gender.
Techniques I Like (14)
A particular technique that I have recently discovered thanks to one of my working team members in which I see to be professional and enjoyable is the dolly zoom. To sum up, this is a technique where the camera operator has to glide backwards with the camera whilst simultaneously zooming in. If done correctly, the subject the camera is focusing on (usually a person in the middle of the frame) should maintain on how close he/she appears to the camera, but the background will significantly change by zooming in. It can also be reversed so that you glide forwards with the camera whilst zooming out; this makes the background zoom out whilst keeping the subject constant in size. It's a very effective method for connoting an epiphany for the character to the audience, or to show metaphorically that their world is collapsing all around them.
A famous example of this shot was used in Jaws where the chief police officer Martin Brody experienced first hand one of his citizens being attacked by a shark. In previous attacks, he had only heard about the attacks, so to see one in real life would've rocked his world as the protector of the community. A dolly zoom effectively conveyed to the audience that the event was a heart-sinking moment for Martin, and how it dawned on him that he now had to do something to prevent attacks in the future (in this case, closing the beaches). I really like it being used in this particular case, because I feel that no other shot would've been quite so effective at showing the audience Martin's emotions.
Though this is a very technical shot that will only truly work out if you have professional equipment, I did have an attempt at doing it myself. Before I did go on with my attempt, I proceeded to watch this tutorial video:
I found this tutorial particularly helpful, because it gives you useful tips on how to complete a dolly zoom without dolly wheels - equipment I am not in possession of. By using tips from the video, I went ahead and created my own example with my camera and tripod.
As you can see, my attempt was not a great one. Although the fact that the camera had optical image stabilisation and I had a very stable tripod, I was still unable to get a truly steady shot. I found it particularly difficult to match the speed of my panning backwards with the speed of my camera's zoom. My camera only had two zoom speeds, depending how hard you pull the trigger, which makes things a lot more difficult than a linear zoom. However, I believe that it could be much improved if I used dolly wheels (which I do thankfully have access to), and a camera that gives a more linear zoom speed increase.
I do not want to use this technique if it cannot be done properly, but I do wish to have it included if I can polish my technique. If it were to be included, I reckon it would look good for a moment where the antagonist gives out his evil plan to the protagonist. A dolly zoom would be appropriate to show the audience the protagonist's reaction to this, and how they realise their world is about to be shaken by an evil figure.
No comments:
Post a Comment