Poster analysis

There are 3 main types of film poster, all of which are made and viewed differently.
The first one is:
The teaser poster.

A teaser poster is very basic in terms of design and idea, but when launched it can be extremely powerful in gaining an excited audience. It may only decide to show the main character in some sort of action, and the name of the film, however it wont give away any dates, or where it will be distributed.
It's solely for getting the audience before the film has been launched.

The second is:
The theatrical poster.
A theatrical poster is more information related than a teaser poster, so it will tell the audience who the director's/ producer's are, more actor and actress names. It will also most likely show where it's going to be distributed. This is so people know when and where to go, and can base the idea of if they will enjoy it by the actors, or directors.

The third one is:
The character poster.

A character poster shows only one thing. One or two characters. It will have the main good, or the main evil character in most cases, and show them standing upright and strong, or in the darkness to represent different elements of the character. A character poster is used to promote individual aspects of the film, instead of the whole thing. 

Representation

My short film is a psychological thriller and therefore my character needs to fit the conventions of a thriller film.
For example my actor is male, as male characters are portrayed as stronger in both mind and body.
In films such as:
Man on a Ledge.
Limitless.
Looper.
All of the main characters are male.

Location shots

Here are the location shots I took so I can have an idea of where exactly I would like to film. 

This picture is of a field in Mousehold woods, it's very big and close to a street, which would mean I could do the first couple of scenes all in this same area.
The downside is that the street is quite busy, and therefore would interrupt with my film concept.

This field is in Heathgate. Again it's large, and quite close to a street, however it's more of a hill so the first scene will seem unusual from the viewing angle.

The location above is Sloughbottom Park, near Anglia square. I'll probably choose this one as it's close to a very quiet street, so the transition between scene's will be continuous.
The only downside is that the field is small and I may get houses and such in the background.

This is a backstreet, which is a good place to film the second and so on scene's, as there won't be many people around at pretty much any time. This will allow easy filming.

This is another backstreet, which will be good as there won't be many people around. However it's behind a school, so there might be a lot of background noise during different times. 

The shot above is of a backstreet that leads out onto a main road. This may be good, because hardly any car's park there, however the noise and car's driving past will ruin the scenes.

This road has a lot of car's parked, however very few people walk down it so it may be good for a running shot, or perhaps the second or so scenes. 

This is the backstreet that leads out from Sloughbottom park. Again this will probably be the location I use as there are very few car's parked, and there will be minimal distractions from people and background noise. 

This is the bench of which I may use to do the conversation scene. I may need to find a new one however, as there will be cars constantly driving past which will ruin the shot.

This will most likely be the car park I use for the final scene, as there are stairs that I can shoot the running shots up, and a great view from the top. 

Depending on the background noise, car's and people etc I may have to change my locations.
However, as of now these will be the ones I will definitely use.

Shot Types

My short film with have a range of different shot types. Going from the basic close-up, medium and long shots to point of view shots and shot reverse shots.

The shot reverse shot will be used to emphasize the conversation scene, giving each character the spotlight when they speak.

The point of view shots be mainly be used as transitions between other shots, so that the film flows better as a whole.

As for the other basic shots, they are used to give a little action throughout the film. For example, close ups to add atmosphere and eeriness, long-shots to give the film some depth, and medium shots to just keep the film running. 

OTS/ End Credits

For the opening title sequence, I have a couple different ideas.
I could go with a moving back ground as the title shows. For example, a wide shot pan of the field I decide to film on, or just a wide shot pan of a desolate street. 
This would give a bit of action to play whilst the Title shows, so it isn't boring for the audience.

I could just do a black screen with the title showing, zooming in or possibly a different effect and then fading to the first scene. This may be boring, but it's easier to do and doesn't require any extra filming. However this is very standard and won't look as visually pleasing. Also in my opinion it will stand out for the wrong reasons and look odd at the start of the film. 

Another option would be the extend the first scene to allow enough time for the Title to show before the main action starts. This could be a good idea, however the first scene may drag on a bit longer than wanted and would mean the audience would get bored. 
Also, being as the first scene already has a part of which Brian's name pops up, if the title popped up about a minute before, it would seem weird and would take away the effect desired. For example, the audience may think Brian is the name of the actor, as a pose to the characters name. 

I think my best option is to do the moving background as it shows action, and ties in well with the rest of the film without giving the wrong effect or idea. For example if I do a wide shot pan of the field, I can then almost directly link it with the first scene and give a sense of flow. 

For the end credits I also have a couple of ideas.
I could go with the standard black scrolling background that shows the actors/ actresses names, along with sound effect website links, director, producer etc, and have a music piece playing. Maybe a heart beat that fades out to a heartbeat monitor beep that's constant signifying death. 

Another idea is a cut to a long shot of Brian (1)'s body laying on the floor after jumping off the roof, and having the standard credits showing either around the body, or scrolling to the side. 
I like this idea a lot better than the first one, as it looks better and will round off the film well. 
Also, I really like the sound of the heart beat fading out the a constant beep of the heart beat monitor. 

Scene timing

Due to lighting throughout the day, I will need to shoot at a specific time.
Early in the morning would be perfect for the surroundings as there would be near to no one around. As well as the fact it will be light, but not too light.
The difficulties at shooting early in the morning is availability of actors. They might be busy due to school/college.

Midday is good for lighting, however if the sun is highly visible it may give too much light and make the action in film hard to see. A benefit would be that actors may be available and one of the only times I can film, but still be in enough light to see.
A difficulty of filming midday is that people may be around, and therefore give me a hard time when filming. I'll have to film in little chunks whilst waiting for people to walk past etc.

Filming at night is extremely bad for lighting, as it gets dark very quickly and will mean the film will have low visibility. A good thing is that actors would probably be most available at this time however there will also be a lot of people around coming home from work, or going out.

I will probably be filming midday, as it gives me the best chance at combing availability of actors and lighting. Once I choose my actors, I will see when they can film and choose a perfect time.

Area/ locations/ Lighting

For my short film, I need a large field, a street that doesn't have many car's, a street with a bench, and a tall/ accessible building (Possibly a car park).

I'm in conflict with two ideas. I can either try to find most of these area's close together to allow almost constant filming. Going from the field, straight out onto a street and then up a car park. 
Or I could just choose specific locations, and just move between each. Going from a field, then moving location to a place that may be a while away and filming there. 
I have a feeling, it will be better for continuity to choose area's close together, and potentially modify the film to allow the setting to be right. However some of the locations I want may be far away, so for a better looking film in terms of set it may be better just to choose locations and edit it to give continuity. 

Also timing of shot's will need to be almost perfect, as lighting is essential. If I film one shot early in the morning, and film the shot that will go earlier in the film later in the day the lighting will be wrong and completely throw away continuity. 
I want the film to be pretty light, as it will give a better look. Also there is a larger chance there will be less people around. 
However this will give difficulties in terms of getting actors. 
I could possibly film midday, as it will still be very light but there will be a lot of the public walking around, making it impossible for me to film 'the last man on earth'. 

For the tall building of which Brian runs up the stairs and jumps off the edge, I most probably will use Anglia square car park. This is because it's easily accessible, and can give a good view from the top.
There are a couple of fields that I could use, for example Catton Park may be good as it is large and some area's are empty for long periods of time. 
Another field would be one in Mousehold as again they might be empty for a while, and because they are smaller than Catton Park it could give an easier transaction to the street shot. 
For the street shot I could use a street directly off the field, however these may be highly populated giving extreme difficulty to film a desolate area. I may need to find a back street, or an industrial location as both of these will be almost empty of people. 

If I want to film almost continuously, I could use Slough-bottom park, as it's close to Anglia square. This means, I can come off Slough-bottom park, onto the backstreet that leads towards Anglia square, then across the ground level car park and up the multi story car park. Also, there is a seating area between the backstreet and the ground level car park so that's almost all of the scenes covered. 
However, the backstreet may not have any cars at all, therefore I won't be able to get the 'Over the roof of the car scene'. 
Other than that, I think this may be my best chance at continuity between all of the scenes, and depending on the time most of the area's might be empty. Midday is when most people are at school, therefore the park will probably be empty, and many people will be at work so the backstreet and seating area may also be empty. 

My Target Audience Profile

My target audience will be aged above the PG classification as my film will not containe swearing, blood, drugs or sexual refferences, however I will be aiming it at an audience aged around 12-20. This is because I believe it will be interesting enough to keep them inrigued by not too longwinded it becomes boring to watch.
The demographics of the audience I would like would be around lower class, school educated teenagers as that's who will mainly see my film through social networking and internet based advertising. The stereotypical inernet user in todays modern society are mainly teenagers, therefore they are the main audience for my film.
Also, as it will be advertised on the internet, it wont neccesarily be for high income people as the internet is provided in most households.

Due to the fact it will be a light hearted pyschological thriller it will be aimed at slightly intelligent people as it will need some viewer interaction and require a little intelligence to figure out whats happening before it is spelt out.



The style I might want to be like is Shane Meadows film: This is England. It feels very realistic when viewing, no special effects. It gives a certain feeling throughout the realism in filming.

Film:How should my audience respond?

I would like my audience to:

• Be confused.
• Draw their own conclusions as to whats happening.
• Be shocked at the outcome.
• Be intrigued.
• Not be bored.

The reactions I want from the audience will be mainly shocked as to whats happening.

Summary of plot narrative: (Version 1)
The world is completely desolate. Only one boy is left, on his own. Well, left with his bestfriend who just happens to have the same name...

They wander around the vast, unpopulated streets looking for anything left to do.. However one of them goes missing.

How will the other keep sane without his bestfriend..?

The answer is... he doesn't.

Psychological thriller, bestfriends wander around streets, one goes missing, the other looks for him, goes insane, the other comes back and explains.

Feedback from critical friends:

• Establishes an enigma.

How does the world end? A good question, however it's not needed to know how the world ends.

People spotted that the world ends, this is good as it shows they are interested.

Clarify style. (Post apocalyptic drama)

Summary of plot narrative: (Version 2)
In an unpopulated, desolate land, a 17 year old boy named Brian is left alone with his best friend Brian.
As they wander around the empty streets looking for something to do, Brian 2 mysteriously disappears.
This causes Brian 1 to be left on his own and slowly go insane, however upon the return of Brian 2 bearing unusual news, Brian 1 understands the actual meaning to be insane as he suffers from multiple personality disorder.
The screen then fades away as sounds get louder.

What does cinema do for me

When I, as a consumer and an impressionable socialite, going to the cinema often for me is based around the advertisements for the film.
If when viewing the advert, it breaks the imagination boundaries, or looks exhilarating as a concept I will be more inclined to go see it than an advert that looks tedious or too packed. Often when film advertisements show all action no story, it's showing every bit of action in the film therefore when I actually see it I've already seen all the exciting bits.
Also, if the film looks like it will confuse the audience, or requires a lot of thought to made sense of the story-line I will watch it so I can draw my own conclusion as to the way it's supposed to be.

Recent films such as Dredd or Total Recall had adverts which previewed both action and story, therefore giving me enough information to be interested in the film, and enough action for me to think it's going to be an exciting cinema experience rather than bore me.
Also, both of these recent films are remakes of the older films. This again interested me as I wanted to see how they differed and which I would prefer. As a post modernist, I preferred the newer versions as they had new technology and different techniques (For example - Dredd played around with slow motion shots that also changed the shot style. When in the slow motion clips it had sparkling air and seemed more shiny and refined. The rest of the film was dark and gloomy.) 
I like to leave the cinema, thinking about how the different techniques, or confusing story-line made for a great cinema experience. I like to know that having seen the advert, it brought me to the right film rather than showing me something that looks decent enough, and then being a let down after paying to see it.

Audience theory

Demographics - Categorizing audiences.
-Age
-Class
-Ethnicity
-Gender
-Religion
-Earnings
-Education

A = Earnings of around 100k +
B = Earning 50/60k +
(B, C1, C2) = Graduates, mainly earning 35k +, Employed with careers such as doctors.
(C2, D) = Training for jobs, school level education, Jobs like plumbers or bricklayers.
E = NEET (Not in education, employment or training) Students, Retired, Unemployed.

Most audiences are based on wealth and employment, or education.
This in turn benefits the industry who aim to target specific audiences following these categorisations.
Following these allows the industry to:
Figure out product placement.
Analyse market promotion.
Create focus groups.
And base the idea on a target.

Each audience breaks down into either:
A traditionalist: These know what they like, and won't break the boundaries.
Hedonists: These will take risks in watching things.
Post modernist: Looking out for new techniques, for example new remakes of older films.

Genre's

http://prezi.com/pfpyuzxrsbof/short-film-genre-horror/

This link goes to a prezi about horror as a genre, and what an audience expects from one. Also, how to apply some aspects to the short film I will produce.

The short film I will produce will be borderline thriller. Although it will not scare, it will hopefully interest and shock the audience. I may use a certain soundtrack to add an eery atmosphere, which in turn will add to the expectations of a thriller.

Short film examples

http://www.shortoftheweek.com/2012/04/27/lovely-monster/
The link above goes to a short film called Lovely Monster.
It's a short horror documentary styled film, that explains the life of twenty year old Sophia. She has a rare problem in which she has become a monster.
I enjoy it as it plays with the emotion fear throughout, allowing the audience to create their own examples of what the monster may be.
In a way, it links in with my idea of which the person is suffering from an illness that has a big impact on their life.
In this case, it's the monster, and in mine it is another person made up in the mind of the protagonist.

http://www.shortoftheweek.com/2011/09/05/brutal-relax-2/
This link is to a short film called Brutal Relax.
It's about Senor Olivares, who is told to go on vacation and stay calm. On his vacation however, sea creatures arrive to rip everybody on the beach to shreds.
When his music player stops, Olivares becomes angry, and releases it by brutally attacking the sea creatures.
This one doesn't particularly tie in with my idea, but I enjoy it as it's a comedy horror with a lot of gore. It's brilliantly edited, although seemingly obvious.

http://player.vimeo.com/video/17358994?autoplay=1

http://www.shortoftheweek.com/2008/02/17/genesis-antipode/

Short film genre

A short film is any film not considered to be a full length feature film. However most modern shorts range from around 2 minutes to 20 minutes at the maximum.
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences's definition is: "An original motion picture with a running time less than 40 minutes, including all end credits."
Short films are mainly made by independent film makers with a small budget, or no budget at all.

Pixar produce short films to accompany their feature films, therefore they are mainstream commercial distribution as appose to local events or festivals.