Evaluative Question 1 - In what ways does your media product use, develop, or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

Our media product is the result of a combination of two horror film sub-genres, teen and supernatural/possessive. The blend itself is a subversion of general horror conventions with there being several teenage characters largely being associated with slasher flicks such as Sorority Row; in true possession films narrative is largely focused around one teen girl among adults, for example, The Exorcism of Emily Rose and the pseudo documentary, The Last Exorcism. Our product challenges the conventional group of characters in a possessive horror this is because of the feedback we received from initial questionnaires regarding the identity of our main demographic; females between the ages of 15 and 18.

The narrative location is briefly outside of the girls’ school and within one of the characters' homes; these are safe places in which a violation would be most frightening. This choice is a fairly typical convention of real media products that we agreed would also be effective in our piece. The home becomes a prison when the spirit takes hold of the girls.

 

A feature frequently used in trailers is the use of a voiceover or, more commonly an abundance of dialogue. We subverted this convention and only used one phrase in our media product, "What do you want?", which is screamed by one character directly into the camera, giving the audience the point of view of the possessed. Dialogue gives the audience more insight into the narrative of the film; we however, felt it more important to concentrate onappropriate mise en scene to give an idea of the narrative and the genre, for example, the ouija board. A non-diegetic soundtrack did much of the work of a voiceover, developing this idea into something more effective. One film that include both of these features is The Craft, a poorly received horror film from the 90s.  

We chose to associate our media piece with film companies Twisted Pictures and Dark Castle. We used their institutional idents to help give an indication of the genre and associate our film with others that have used these institutions. Institutional idents are a traditional feature in film trailers of all genres.

 

Without the code of heavy dialogue it was important to define our characters for audience, and let them stereotype them. By dressing them in school uniforms reminiscent of that of St Trinians it was easy to give the idea of upper-class private school girls, promiscuity and rebellion.

The use of conventionally attractive actors is a broad and common feature of trailers of all genres, only really differing when the narrative of the film is somewhat based on a character's disfigurement or simply that they are monsters. Attractive actors make films appealing towards those of the opposite sex and especially important in a film of this type. We conformed to this convention in order to make the film appealing to men, with women already interested because of they are unable to relate to the characters. An example of this is Sorority Row, a film that could be considered a 'Chick Flick' because of the majority of female characters, despite its genre. Attractive women and sexy clothing e.g. lingerie, make this film also appeal to men.

Teen party clothing such as that in Sorority Row or Night of the Demons reflects the desperate nature of the situation by becoming torn, dirty and often bloodied; this typical aspect didn't play a part in our production. In fact, very little clothing is seen after the turning point of the trailer; the characters continue to wear the same clothing but the low level lighting and frequent extreme close ups does not advertise this There is more than a suggestion however, of the dire and dangerous environment they are in demonstrated by a host of wounds, cuts and bruises display on our characters in the final third of the trailer.

 

Final Girl Theory can often be applied to horror films; these include Halloween, The Ring, The Grudge and Sorority Row. Although usually associated with Slashers, our Possessive/Supernatural Horror trailer was made with the idea  that the most morally 'pure' character would survive to defeat the demon. This is displayed mainly by the use of a weapon and that fact she is set apart from her peers by not 

'pursuing pleasure', for example, smoking and dressing provocatively.

The use of a knife as a weapon by the protagonist demonstrates the important skill of utilising the environment in order to give a better chance of survival. Weapons in horror films are generally
items found around the home in the desperate struggle to protect themselves and the other characters. Examples of this include Laurie in the 1978 film Halloween, in order to defend herself
against the crazed killer. The hint of subversion of this traditional convention is the actual pointlessness and hopelessness of such a weapon against a possessive evil spirit. This weapon is very
unlikely to defeat the evil antagonist and therefore will only provide temporary protection, if that. 

Teaser trailers generate an interest in the audience generally by showing some of the most exciting material of the film. These are fast cut in and often in an order that does not match the true order of the film. This gives little of the narrative away. This technique of creating disequilibrium is jarring to the audience and is a way of pulling them in.  Despite this however, our one minute teaser trailers also features scenes to establish information such as the location and characters, despite being a more of a characteristic of a theatrical trailer. Usually, in this kind of trailer about half of the product is dedicated to the establishment of the initial situation and the rest to confuse and entice the audience with the disruption of the situation, relating closely to Todorov’s Theory. We subverted the convention of disequilibrium so that we might include more of the narrative in our trailer.

• Our poster most obviously conforms to forms and conventions of the genre by featuring the film’s antagonist.
• Rule of thirds that is often used to create effective posters, this poster uses very defined sections. Our product does conform to this but not entirely accurately, giving a jarring effect on the audience.
• The bold whiteness of the face stands out against the background. White is a common colour used in the horror genre, usually coupled with red; this however is not featured.
  Unlike in teen horror posters such as Sorority Row or The Craft, only one girl instead of the whole group of characters is present, suggesting that she has some significance to the plot. This is namely as the embodiment of the antagonistic spirit, appearing decaying and threatening.
• Like the poster of the film Orphan, this poster employs the one iconic portrait.  However, it is to the side, creating a landscape image with the title present on the other side.
• Shadows around the image signify the darkness of the film and also so there are no distractions from the image, this is a convention we conform to because of its effectiveness. An example of this is the film poster of The Number 23. 

Our webpage is very typical of the horror genre and largely conforms to codes and conventions.

· Black background and same iconic image shows the threat and mystery of the events in the film, parallel to that featured on the poster.

· The title text of the page is at top in the centre, clearly standing out against the rest of the information on the page.

· There are share options linking to Facebook, Twitter, MySpace and YouTube, something that has become very common among sites that generate interest with viral campaigns.

· There are links so that more of the page could be explored, as well as large font in order to draw attention and clearly mark the different options.

· There is the option to pre-order the DVD, online shopping in the second function of any film webpage, after promotion. Our film conforms to typical codes around the film generating profit.
· Teaser trailer centre of the page, with the tagline of the film and the release date underneath it.
· Involvement of secondary images on the page such as the planchette that give clues to the genre and the narrative.
· Placement of portrait makes her appear somewhat predatory, and follows the idea of the rule of thirds.
· The main soundtrack has not been included. The site remains silent except for the teaser trailer when played to keep the focus on it. This is one thing that is uncommon among movie websites and a code we have subverted.

Using Wix

When we first started using Wix.com, we found it quite confusing due to the multiple pages and options. For example, selecting a page to start editing was in itself quite daunting as the selection was so vast. However, through experimentation and trial and error, it soon became much easier to work with it. The continued use and development of ideas in this medium gave us a better understanding of layout, as well as the possible effects that could support our genre, such as 'Glow'. As it became easier to work with, we were able to create products quicker and to a more pleasing quality. We also learnt how to incorporate many different formats of information such as text, images and videos.
We enjoyed creating a product that was so interactive, since the other auxiliary tasks that we create can only be looked at as opposed to actually involving the viewer and letting them take control.


-Emily

Final Webpage

The entry page of the website has remained the same as we liked the simplicity of it.

We have kept the black background in order to relate to the black background of the poster, showing the threat and mystery of the events in the film. The title text of the page has remained at the top in the centre, clearly standing out against the rest of the information on the page. The share options are also in the same place. Effects have been added so that when they are hovered over with the mouse they slightly expand and glow red, in the same way as the links that run down the left hand side of the page. These links are in a straight line down the side as they are now clearly organised and the page is much more easily navigated. We made the decision to add more links so that more of the page could be explored, and removed the option to see a plot synopsis as the issue was raised that a synopsis should not be available before the film has been released. The font is quite large in order to draw attention and clearly mark the different options. We have placed the option to pre-order the DVD at the top of the list, making it slightly larger than the other hyperlinks and underlining the text so that it is set apart from them. This is to encourage people to pre-order the DVD of the film in order to maximise revenue from it.


The layout has changed in that the teaser trailer has been moved into the centre of the page, with the tagline of the film and the release date underneath it. This makes the viewer more likely to watch the trailer as it is the centre of attention on the page, instead of being put to the side in the other layout. This acts to broaden our audience by encouraging more people to watch the trailer and hopefully become interested by what they see. The tagline underneath emphasises what the trailer shows, while the release date reminds the viewer of the possibility of seeing the film. We have moved the symbol from the side into the lower centre, behind the text. This looks much more aesthetically pleasing as it is is straight and frames the text. We decided that we would keep the symbol instead of removing it because we liked the involvement of secondary images on the page and thought that this relates well to the supernatural and ideas of the occult. We moved the main image of the girl to the side. The image is still quite large so that it remains clear that it is important, but we think that it works better framing the other information instead of vice versa. Although we liked the threatening positioning in the centre of the page, we think that this placement makes her appear somewhat predatory, so it remains equally effective. This layout also follows the idea of the rule of thirds, as we have separated the page into vertical thirds which aids its clarity and appeal.


We made the decision not to include a soundtrack of music on the page, as we wanted it to remain silent except for the teaser trailer when played. This is to keep the focus of the viewer on the trailer, and maintain an eerie silence when it is not playing. We hope that this will emphasise the effectiveness of the trailer in order to make it seem more interesting. We are very pleased with our new layout, and prefer it to the original one.


-Post and final webpage by Emily




Also see... Webpage Feedback and Webpage Development

Webpage Feedback

We posted the webpage on Facebook in order to get feedback, but issues were raised by a few people that they felt the layout was too scattered and confusing. We decided to keep the colour scheme and general elements but re-order the main page in order to make it easier to understand and navigate. We had liked the slightly scattered nature of the hyperlinks and images in order to reflect the havoc of the film, but in order to follow our audience's suggestions we made it simpler.


-Emily




Also see... Final Webpage and Webpage Development

Webpage Development

This is the first page of our webpage. We used the font 'OptimusPrincePS', because it looks similar to the font used on our poster and teaser trailer. The font is simple but looks somewhat gothic with slight serifs that makes the text appear more old fashioned. The font is white with red shadowing across it, connoting smudges of blood. Both pieces of text have effects to make them slightly glow red, again suggesting the supernatural nature of the film. The Enter Site link also has an effect so that it slightly expands when hovered over with a mouse, making the site more interactive and inviting. When clicked, the Enter Site button takes the viewer to the next main webpage.

This is the developed main webpage. We used the same font for all text. The title is the largest text, and it is white with an effect that makes it glow red with a slight reflection underneath it. The rest of the text on the page is white, so that the title stands out. The symbol in the bottom left of the page has been edited to make it slightly blurred and grey, and we are pleased with the way this looks against the background and coupled with the white text. The slight blurring of the symbol also links with the blurred effect on the face and ties into the mysterious element of the film.


-Post and first draft webpage by Emily




Also see... Webpage Feedback and Final Webpage

Initial Webpage Design Development

This is the initial plan for our webpage, as posted earlier.

We decided to develop the plan further, creating new webpage images.

This is the entry page we decided to include, as we found in our webpage deconstructions that it was common for some form of loading screen or entry page to introduce the webpage. We do not want it to be too complex, so will have a black background with red and white text in the centre. This follows the colour scheme of many of the films we have examined, as red is often a key on the page. The Enter Site link will be slightly animated with a flash to draw attention to it and show the supernatural element to the film we are advertising. By introducing this Enter Site hyperlink on the first page we will no longer need it on the main page as we had originally intended. There will also be options in the corner to share the webpage on various social networking sites, linking to the strong online presence of our target audience and gaining free advertising as the webpage is shown on other websites. This would broaden our audience.

This is the main page plan. It has the same black background and includes the same ability to share the webpage in the same position at the bottom of the page. Other webpages include a main image, often using the same or similar image on the film poster. The image is also often the main character or being of the film, so we are going to use the edited image of a girl being possessed by the antagonistic being with ouija board lettering covering her face. This is the same image we have used for the poster. We have decided to place the image in the centre of the page so that it is the main focus, and the girl appears more threatening. The layout is quite similar to the initial plan, with the hyperlinks and trailer surrounding the main image. We have decided that the three hyperlinks in the bottom left hand corner will be laid out on each point of the symbol that is in the centre of the ouija board prop we used. This is to tie into the gothic supernatural genre and make the layout more themed.


-Post and webpage design by Emily