'Route' report

'Route’ report


My task was to create a poster and DVD cover for a new teen thriller movie. The promotional materials I am creating are aimed at teenagers aged 15-18, and in order to produce a successful project that meets the conventions of a typical thriller movie I had to thoroughly research the features. Successful examples of this genre that I based my research on were ‘Ex Machina’ (2015) and ‘Christine’ (1983).


My target audience was teenagers aged 15-19. This audience would fit into the demographic category of ‘E’, as this age range is dominantly unemployed. The thriller genre would fit them perfectly as typically thriller films are watched at night and this demographic category would not be working so the genre would appeal to them. Issues are also highlighted in my plot such as road safety which this target audience can relate too meaning they will appeal more to the film. As well as this, thriller films are not seen to be educational or to have a moral to them meaning an older audience would not be as inclined to watch this genre. The certificate will be a 15 to allow for the type of content which appeals to them and that they are familiar with which is mild language. This certificate also meant that my plot did not have to be as basic as it would have had to be if the certificate were lower, so the more intricate my plot could be, meant the more appealing it would be.

 To research and collate a bowl of ideas to help me explore the classic conventions of the thriller genre, I created a pinterest account and pinned various thriller DVD’s on there so I could compare and begin to notice the frequent features, I also looked on Google at numerous covers and collated them in a PowerPoint. The main pointers that I was able to draw out about the thriller genre were that the dominant colour palette is red, black, white and grey. The lighting is dark and shadowy which creates a sense of enigma and mystery, which is another typical convention, and to incorporate this convention into my pre production storyboard I took photos in dimmed lighting to create tension as the audience are unsure what is lurking in the darkness. The typography is mainly bold and audacious and in terms of cinematography, the shots that are regularly used are close ups, mid shots and action shots so i ensured that in my pre production I used a variety of all of these shots, in particular the close up shot, which allows the audience to empathise with the character because the emotions on their faces are shown more clearly.  The mode of address is mostly direct however this is not always the case as, for example in ‘Ex Machina’ the eye vision is direct but the body language is indirect, highlighting another typical convention of a thriller, which is the use of direct eyesight, and I included this in my story board, and then on my final front cover because it creates a personal relationship between the character and the audience. In terms of the stereotypical conventions of the mode of material I was creating, when researching the features of a poster, the title of the film was bold and strong on most examples, star ratings and comments from companies are included, if a star vehicle is in the film, their name would frequently be printed quite large along the top of the poster, and the release date is printed on the bottom of the poster. Another feature that is present in this genre is the ability to create an atmosphere of mystery and enigma, the audience need to be left guessing what will happen in this story, and this is primarily done through the content of the cover. I used a slogan “The destination is in his hands” which evokes a sense of enigma because the audience want to know who ‘he’ is. In other DVD’s in the genre, this is done by having a figure lurking in the background, or by using foreshadowing.  In terms of the DVD cover, my main points of research were on the layout of the cover and including the right information. I had to ensure that I included the BBFC information, and other content such as the running time, the subtitles and the production companies.

In terms of creating my final product, I was satisfied with the production process and very happy with my final product. I created a checklist of the conventions which I ticked off when I had included them, which allowed me to be successful in meeting the features.

A strength in my production was that I successfully represented my protagonist in my material in the way that is conventional, this being woman are dominantly vulnerable and helpless in thriller movies, the poster for the film ‘The Hole’ creates the representation of defenceless and weak woman and I was able to effectively do this by using firstly only female characters in my material, but on the cover my protagonist is very clearly fearful showing her vulnerability, and this allows my target audience to connect to the material because they can empathise and feel sorry for this girl. In terms of atmosphere, the poster for the film “Ex Machina”, a sense of the unknown is created, a sense of enigma was created in my material because the use of the dark and dimmed lighting, with minimal colour creates darkness which is mysterious, also a thriller is extraordinary things happening to ordinary people, so in the image of ‘Kelly’ looking petrified, enigma is created because the audience don’t know why she looks like this. Comparing my piece to other thriller posters, typically the main image would be a close up of the protagonist with direct eye vision however my poster does not follow this convention. I think in a way, this actually creates more appeal to the audience because not a lot can be drawn from the initial cover so they have to watch to find out more.

Weaknesses in my production were mostly the typography, and trying to find one that looked right but also that conveyed the mystery and enigma. ‘Ex Machina’ had an effective typography because it reflected what the film is about, being a robotic/technology. So I also wanted to be able to convey meaning through my typography, something which many thriller posters do aswell. Another weakness compared to this particular thriller poster is that the use of the direct eye sight into the audience creates tension automatically, however in my poster, tension isn’t created as much through the image but through the content, it is created all the same, but typically it is conveyed through the image.

When my final piece was evaluated by my target audience, the feedback I received was as follows. My poster used the typical colour palette of a thriller poster, and the typography and layout was appropriate. The use of the direct mode of address was good because it created tension and empathy however conventionally, the main image on the poster would be a human, however mine was a photo of a Satnav, I did include an image of a human on my cover however it was not as large as the conventional thriller posters and DVD covers.  Overall, I think my final material was created successfully, as it met the conventions of the thriller genre and the content needed to allow the material to be realistic, was all included.

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