Evaluation Task 1

 

 

My first frame is the title of our film, D.O.B. This is shown at the end of our trailer. Our title links to our USP of the use of a date to link the characters. This is important as it will further develop the mystery of the trailer. The phrase D.O.B also offers familiarity for our audience due to the fact that everyone has a birthday therefore they will all be able to relate. This will further draw in our demographic as it combines the pleasure of familiarity alongside the mystery presented. Through this juxtaposition our demographic will be encouraged to watch our film. This is a convention of stereotypical psychological thriller such as The Purge, as they have short titles which reveal clues about the film however they do not reveal the whole plot. This further develops the use of the theory of mystery. As our title is revealed from behind a black screen, we have a voiceover of our tagline which is ‘Keep Telling Yourself It’s Only a Date’. This, combined with the fact that the title is revealed from behind a black screen creates fear for our audience as it once again uses the theory of mystery alongside the generic fear of the dark.

My Second frame is a shot of my hand scraping down a glass pane at the abandoned barn. This is shown during our montage in order increase tension. This shot is particularly effective as it adds to the sense of mystery created through the trailer. The audience do not know what is happening the other side of that wall however it offers the connotations of death and danger. It is a dark shot with low key lighting which is conventional of horror thrillers as its taps into the generic fear of the dark, however the light coming through the window offers a beacon of hope as it suggests that escape is possible. This subconsciously keeps the audience engrossed as without hope there is not plot, therefore counter acts the darkness.

The third frame is a mid-shot showing all four main characters. It is close enough for the audience to be able to see the fear on their faces as they realise they are all born on the same day. This fear transfers directly to our audience which is important as a convention for our genre. If the characters were portrayed as happy and excited then they would not create the correct atmosphere for our film and so it is important that the actors had the correct facial expressions. This is linked directly to frame 5 where the characters are seen stood around when Hayley spots the ghost in the background. This is important due to their reactions to spotting the spirit. Only Hayley spots it however her level of fear confuses the other characters further, dragging the demographic into the mystery. Both of these shots are also dull and are based on low key lighting. This, alongside the ghost being a black figure presents the general convention of darkness being used to create fear in horror thriller trailers. Ghostly figures are often shown as dark figures, such as in ‘The Witch’ shadows are often used to represent witches, and the black goat is used to represent Lucifer, the devil.

My fourth frame is a shot of one of my intertitles saying ‘Stranded in the middle of nowhere’. The text itself offers the connotations of danger due to the fact they are stranded in an unknown location. This is stereotypically dangerous as you are unaware of your surroundings and the person attacking you may have more extensive knowledge.  The word ‘stranded’ also suggests danger as if you are stranded you are stuck and unable to get help. This theory is often used in horror thrillers such as Saw, where characters are stranded and trapped within a building set up for them. This scared the audience as they will imagine themselves in this situation, and no one wants to be stranded in unfamiliar territory.

My sixth frame is the institutional information from the end of my trailer. I have included this as, despite it not being directly part of the trailer, it is presented in a stereotypical manner. I have used a dark background, similar to my title screen, to allow myself to further develop my use of the fear of the dark. This links directly to frame 2 through the use of a dark background and light text to offer a beacon of hope. If the entire screen was dark then the audience would feel all four characters were doomed and would most likely die. However, through the use of bright text you receive the connotations that there is still hope. Also, the text is bold and clear to read as it is only shown for a short amount of time. If it was difficult to read the audience would not be able to understand the important information shown to them in this shot. It will also help increase awareness for our film as there are links to our social media sites and website at the bottom of the screen. This will increase hype for our film before it is released.

Frame’s 7 and 8 are from my magazine and film cover and link through my colour scheme. I used the colour red in both titles due to its direct connotations of danger and blood as it fits my genre of horror thriller. This allows for me to create a sense of danger across all three of my media productions linking them all together. The use of red stands out on my black background and draws immediate attention to it. I used a black background in order to have synergy across all thee texts, due to the fact that the title screen in the film and both ancillary tasks all tap into the fear of the dark. By using this fear our demographic will be constantly on edge and will be drawn deeper into the mystery around the characters. If I had varied the colour of the background then my media campaign would become disjointed and would not have the desired effect. Frame 8 also has my tagline on it, which links it to the title screen in the trailer due to the voiceover reading our tagline in this scene. This further develops the synergy and brings the media texts closer together in synchronisation.

My final frame is an establishing shot of the barn in which many of the events take place. This is an important shot as it allows for our audience to get their bearings and become aware of the situation presented to our characters. If we did not introduce them to the location then they would become less involved in the film and would struggle to relate to the characters. The location is shown on a dull day, with it clouded over, as we did not want it to be shown as a positive place to be in. The weather conditions mirror the situation our characters are in, bleak. The barn itself is surrounded by trees which further develop the convention of the characters being stranded and trapped. If the barn was in a large open area then there would be ways of escape however they are in fact trapped. This shot is part of a series of shots of the barn cutting closer and closer. This gives the audience the sensation that they are being dragged into the same situation as the characters, and this is followed by our montage which increases the intensity and engrosses our demographic.