Richard Dyer states that entertainment texts offer audiences a ‘Utopia’ or perfect idea that they can access through media consumption. This ‘Utopia’ is in contrast to the imperfections and difficulties audiences face in their own lives and offers a perfect alternate dimension. Evidence of the "Utopian Solution Theory" can be seen in the popular film series of the "Hunger Games" as the audience are positioned to see Katniss Everdeen try overcome great odds and succeed in winning the tournament-while protecting her loved one, allowing the audience to take pleasure from her triumph.
Sunday, 29 March 2015
Audience Theories (The Enigma Theory)
Media theorist Roland Barthes devised a theory of the enigma code, in which he claimed that the purpose of the author of a media text is to keep the audience guessing through establishing enigmas for the audience to work out. These are conventionally revealed in the final scene of the film. This is a useful tool for a trailer, as establishing enigma codes makes the audience want to find out the answers to the enigmas and go and see the film.
This theory related to our horror trailer as we include many enigma codes which allow the audience to keep guessing as to what is happening during our film. For example, the audience will be wondering why the victim is being followed, and why the victim is being dragged through the woods. These influence the audience to continue watching the film in order to find out the answers.
This theory related to our horror trailer as we include many enigma codes which allow the audience to keep guessing as to what is happening during our film. For example, the audience will be wondering why the victim is being followed, and why the victim is being dragged through the woods. These influence the audience to continue watching the film in order to find out the answers.
Audience Theories (Todrov's Theory)
Todorov's theory states that a film and a trailer can be broken down into five sections. These sections are an equilibrium at the start, a disruption of that equilibrium, a recognition of the disruption, an attempt to repair the disruption and the final stage of where the equilibrium is restored.
Here narrative is not seen as a linear structure but a circular one. The narrative is driven by attempts to restore the equilibrium. However, the equilibrium attained at the end of the story is not identical to the initial equilibrium. Todorov argues that narrative involves a transformation. The characters or the situations are transformed through the progress of the disruption. The disruption itself usually takes place outside the normal social framework, outside the ‘normal’ social events.
Here narrative is not seen as a linear structure but a circular one. The narrative is driven by attempts to restore the equilibrium. However, the equilibrium attained at the end of the story is not identical to the initial equilibrium. Todorov argues that narrative involves a transformation. The characters or the situations are transformed through the progress of the disruption. The disruption itself usually takes place outside the normal social framework, outside the ‘normal’ social events.
For example:
- A murder happens and people are terrified.
- Someone vanishes and the characters have to solve the mystery.
- The character start to work out the pattern and track down the murderer.
- The characters try to catch the murderer by setting up traps and attempt to get the police involved.
- The antagonist is caught or killed and the characters live the rest of their lives, well the ones that remain.
Enigma Codes
Enigma codes pose questions to the audience which will then be answered later in the film. Examples of enigma codes are 'Who is that?', 'Where are they going?' etc. Enigma codes are an important aspect of any film as it enables the audience to become intrigued about the film and influence them to continue watching the film.
In our trailer we have used various enigma codes to entice the audience. For example the audience will be asking 'Who is that?' when they are shown an over the shoulder shot of a suspicious figure following the victim. This means that the killers identity is an enigma as the audience will want to find out who the killer is by watching the film. This leads on to the next question 'Why is the victim being followed?' and 'Where is the victim going?'. These questions are all questions the audience wants answered and the only way to get these answers is to continue watching the film. Other enigma codes we used were 'What has happened to them?'. This is when the audience are shown a long shot of the victim being dragged through the woods. The audience cannot be sure what has exactly happened to them but will be intrigued to find out which, again, will make them want to continue watching our film. These enigma codes have all been recognisable in our trailer. During our audience feedback a strength of our film was that our mixed storyline made the audience question what is happening which enticed them to continue watching.
In our trailer we have used various enigma codes to entice the audience. For example the audience will be asking 'Who is that?' when they are shown an over the shoulder shot of a suspicious figure following the victim. This means that the killers identity is an enigma as the audience will want to find out who the killer is by watching the film. This leads on to the next question 'Why is the victim being followed?' and 'Where is the victim going?'. These questions are all questions the audience wants answered and the only way to get these answers is to continue watching the film. Other enigma codes we used were 'What has happened to them?'. This is when the audience are shown a long shot of the victim being dragged through the woods. The audience cannot be sure what has exactly happened to them but will be intrigued to find out which, again, will make them want to continue watching our film. These enigma codes have all been recognisable in our trailer. During our audience feedback a strength of our film was that our mixed storyline made the audience question what is happening which enticed them to continue watching.
Monday, 23 March 2015
Evaluation Activity 1
Screenshot 1 which shows the title of our film "The Disturbed" which is shown in the film trailer, poster and magazine.as you can see the title of our film "the disturbed" has a blood splattered pattern on the title which connotes to the audience that the film will be a horror.another connotation within mise-en-scene is the slashing effect through the main title of the film suggesting to the audience that the film will conform to traditional stereotypes of horrors by using a sharp murder weapon to inflict pain on an individual, this is against a black background meaning that it has a more effective appeal towards audiences as it stands out and has a sinister effect towards horror films.this title also appears in our film poster and magazine meaning that the audience will instantly recognise the brand of "the disturbed".
Screenshot 2 shows an image of Ryan's character ( the psychopathic killer) dragging Cory's character (innocent civilian) which conforms to the traditional stereotypes of horror genre trailers as it is tightly linked with death/murder from the disposal of bodies.we imposed the effect of body disposal by using a low angle camera shot to enlarge Ryan's character and to connote the effect of power to the audience.The use of this low camera angle tracking shot is highlighted even further by the fact that the setting is in a conspicuous woods in which none will find the two of them.
Screenshot 3 shows an image of Rachel's character (the Innocent girl) making a cup of tea in her cornered kitchen suggesting to the audience that because she is making one solitary drink and the camera use of a mid shot behind the girl within an enclosed space surrounding her might connote to the audience she is trapped, Rachel is probably on her own in a house allowing any attack from intruders to be possible.this aspect of mise-en-scene through solitary vulnerability is very easy to create and common in horror film genres which is one of the main reasons why we chose to create a horror production.
Screenshot 4 shows the audience Cory's character (the Innocent man) being some what stalked through a window by using the camera compositions of a high imposing angle in a close up range suggesting to the audience he is most probably being stalked through his own window in the comfort of his own house; Cory's facial expressions and lack of awareness towards the camera also conforms to the idea of being stalked which is very common in horror genre films.The last aspect of mise-en-scene that could be overlooked by the audience is the fact the camera is tilted on its side which if targeted to the right audience can be seen as a psychopathic killer moving his head to the side in an evil sinister way suggesting to the audience that he has killed and will kill again on this new target leaving the effect of sympathy and worry towards Cory's character.
Screenshot 5 which shows the audience Ryan's character (psychopathic killer) seeming to stalk Cory's character even further by following him down the road at a suspicious distance from which wed expect Cory's house in the last seen (window scene):Ryan's character's clothes also confirm this as he is wearing a dark conspicuous hoodie coat suggesting to the audience that he wants to keep a low profile and that the audience can link in the stalking of prey towards Cory and the killer as its confirmed in various scenes of the horror trailer.However our trailer does actually subverts the traditional stereotype of horror genres by playing the clips in order of what they happened which could have been improved in the editing process of our film trailer.
Screenshot 6 allows the audience to look at the main setting of our film/film trailer which is a suburban house with a caravan outside which might represent to the audience that it is a family home instead of a house for an individual.the horror aspect of this shot comes from the sinister light glow at night which will give the audience the effect of inevitable negative actions towards the people within that house.
Screenshot 7 shows Rachel opening a door to what appears to be no one however in the background it shows Ryan's character (the psychopathic killer) standing vigorously towards the path of Rachel's character (Innocent girl) thus confirming to the audience that there is an apparent killer in the trailer that has been killing off all of the characters.this shot used a mid shot to enhance the difference in size between Rachel and Ryan to give the audience the effect of supremacy which is very common in horror genre trailers because of the quick cut that can be used (which we used towards the end of our trailer) before the main antagonist can reach the protagonist thus leaving the audience on a cliff hanger and wanting them to see the trailer.
Screenshot 8 is a very easy and plain but powerful effect showing the caption "Based on the true story" which was used because of the power the sentence can bring to the audience by saying that the sinister events there watching in the trailer actually are in fact true and could happen to them creating an ambiance about the film that most horror films include to bring in a wider audience to watch the film that happened to various people in real life.another aspect of this shot is that we used plain white text on a dark background to once again give the audience the effect of dark horror sinister ism.
Screenshot 9 is the last shot i will evaluate in respects to audience which shows Connors character (cocky boyfriend boy) walking up the stairs of what we assume is the main setting which was mentioned earlier in the trailer analysis.The emotion Connors character is showing appears to be worry which will denote to the audience that he is worried about Rachel's character being in danger as its the house she appeared to live in earlier in the trailer with the killer behind her conforming to most horror genre films of the Innocent character being killed.The costume worn also is quite out landish which might be a reason why the audience targets the boy as an antagonist which the audience collaborate together to want something bad to happen to him.
Friday, 13 March 2015
Evaluation Activity 3
From the audience feedback we were able to understand the strengths and weaknesses of our trailer. From the feedback we identified that our strengths were how we effectively used non- diegetic music to create tension and the use of the black screen with 'Based on a true story' written across it was successful as it also created tension for the audience. Also our shot types were successful. The over-the shoulder shot we used caused the audience to question why the victim is being followed and it encouraged them to continue watching the trailer in order to find out why he is being followed. Also, the close up of the murder weapon was seen as a strength of our film as it emphasises the size of the weapon which could be seen as more lethal to the audience. Another strength of our film was the way we used fast paced shots. This kept the audience enticed to our film and encouraged them to continue watching. The other close up we used was of the victims hand hitting the door at the very last scene. This was seen as effective as the audience will want to know what has happened to the victim and whether she is likely to survive or not. We also successfully used high- angle shots to show our victims are vulnerable and weak. This allowed the audience to understand that they don't have much power and are most likely to be targeted by the killer. These are all conventions of horror films which means our film can be relateable to successful horror films. Our mise-en-scene was also effective, especially the use of clothing. We adhered to the typical conventions of what a killer would wear- dark clothing to hide their identity. By adhering to this it meant the audience was able to recognise that our film genre is horror and therefore may make our trailer more scary for the audience. Also our story line was seen as quite mixed. This meant that the audience were seen small sections of the films which concerned different characters. This meant the audience would be wondering whats happening to each of them and if they are all linked to one another.
However, the weaknesses of our trailer were that we didn't differentiate the transitions we used between shots. This perhaps meant that the audience weren't as enticed to our trailer as we didn't offer anything different which could create tension. Another weakness of our production is that it was hard to understand how each of the characters were linked. This may make it hard for the audience to watch as they will be trying to work out what relevance each character has to one another. So to improve this we could have included a scene of all our characters together with some dialogue which gives the audience a bit of background information as to how they are all linked.
Tuesday, 3 March 2015
Evaluation Of Our Film
Our trailer starts with a screen with a dark wood-like background. Over the top of this is writing that says 'Based on a true story'. We decided not to use a plain black background because using the wood like background gives the audience the impression it is a wooden building of some sort. This links in with our horror genre as abandoned houses are a typical convention of that genre. It also may make our target audience more interested in the film because it is dynamic and gives off a scary atmosphere right from the start. The text over the top is also relevant to our film genre. As it says its based on a true story it makes the audience feel on edge as what they are about to watch could possibly happen to them. Also,as the writing is white it allows it to stand out against the dark background. This means that the audience will be focused on this.
The next shot is a mid to long shot of one of the victims sitting down inside their house. In this moving shot we can see part of the window. This suggests to the audience that the camera is in fact someone peering through the window at the victim. This creates suspense for the audience as they will be concerned as to why this character is being secretly looked at. This then allows the audience to establish which characters are the victims and which characters are the villains. Also, this shot is at a slightly high angle. This gives the effect that the character is being looked down on, also suggesting him to be the victim. It portrays him as vulnerable and weak. Not only this, but the fact that this character is completely unaware he is being watched also portrays him as vulnerable and an easy target.
One of the next shots we see is an over-the-shoulder long shot. We are looking over the shoulder of a hooded figure and further down the path we see the character we have already established as the victim. During this 3 second shot we can see that the hooded figure is walking with his head down as if he is trying not to be noticed. This will lead the audience to believe that this character is the villain. Also, in many horror films, such as Friday The 13th and Scream, the villains identity is hidden. Due to the fact that in our film the villain's identity is also hidden, the audience could conclude that this hooded figure we see is in fact the villain. This could represent our villain as sinister as he is unknown to the victims. As the villain is wearing dark clothing they are conforming to the typical stereotypes of horror film villains wearing dark, concealing clothing. This is effective as it will leave the audience with suspense as they will not be able to see the identity of the villain.
The next shot is a long shot of a house. This allows the audience to clearly see one of the locations of the film. As the shot shows its dark outside it could perhaps lead the audience to believe this house is associated with something threatening due to the fact that most horror films connect their murderers to a dark night- to represent something sinister happening. The next shot is an over the shoulder shot of a girl making a cup of tea. This links in with the previous shot as the audience may conclude that the house they were just shown is in fact the house the girl is making the cup of tea in now. Also as the character is just making a cup of tea it could lead the audience to believe she is the victim and she looks innocent, which is the typical stereotype of victims in horror films.
The shot we see next is a long shot of two of the characters and a third character approaching them. The character that was approaching them is the character we saw in the first shot- the one being followed. This could then make the audience now understand that these three characters are all the victims as there is a high chance the character following him at the beginning has followed him to the location he is at now. The location is fairly isolated so it would seem to the audience that they are easy targets because if someone was to attack them, there wouldn't be anyone else around. This puts them in a vulnerable position to the villain.
This then links in with the next shot as we see one of the victims walking alone through an isolated wooded area. He is walking quite fast which suggests he is frightened of something or someone. Also, he shouts out to his friends which could lead the audience to believe that something has happened to his friends. It could also maybe suggest that he is the main target as he was the one who was followed at the beginning of the trailer and hes now the one who has ended up alone in the woods. The shot is a high angle shot. This is typical of horror films as it portrays the character as weak and vulnerable which makes him an easy target. This makes the audience certain that he is the main victim who is most likely to be killed by the villain.
The next shot is a blank screen like the one right at the beginning of the trailer saying 'Of the Surrey Hills killings'. This obviously suggests that murderers do actually take place which leads the audience to confirm their belief that the victims are in fact targets for the murderer.
The next shot actually shows the victim being dragged along the floor by his killer. The victims body looks lifeless however there is no sign of blood. This could lead the audience to question whether he is actually dead or whether he has been briefly knocked out. This could intrigue them as to how he ended up like this and what has happened to his friend. This therefore would push them into wanting to watch the film so their questions can be answered. These aspects are conforming to the usual representations portrayed in a horror trailer as lots of different scenes are shown that do not provide the audience with an answer. Also, the killer is not wearing the typical clothing a killer would wear. He is only wearing a short coat with the hood over his head. This does not completely hide his identity. This could suggest that he had not planned this murder. It could either be a random killing or the murderer just wanted to do it as quickly as possible. These, again, are questions that the audience would want answered.
However, the clothing of what the killer is wearing in this part of the trailer is different from what we see him wearing in one of the last scenes. In the last scenes he is wearing a long black coat which covers his entire body and his hood is pulled up over his face. From this, we cannot tell who he is which conforms to the usual stereotype of a villains identity being hidden. As the killer is seen wearing two different outfits it could confuse the audience as they will not know what the killer is doing and whether these murderers are actually planned. These are all aspects of our trailer which will make the audience want to watch the full film.
The next shot is a mid to long shot of one of the victims sitting down inside their house. In this moving shot we can see part of the window. This suggests to the audience that the camera is in fact someone peering through the window at the victim. This creates suspense for the audience as they will be concerned as to why this character is being secretly looked at. This then allows the audience to establish which characters are the victims and which characters are the villains. Also, this shot is at a slightly high angle. This gives the effect that the character is being looked down on, also suggesting him to be the victim. It portrays him as vulnerable and weak. Not only this, but the fact that this character is completely unaware he is being watched also portrays him as vulnerable and an easy target.
One of the next shots we see is an over-the-shoulder long shot. We are looking over the shoulder of a hooded figure and further down the path we see the character we have already established as the victim. During this 3 second shot we can see that the hooded figure is walking with his head down as if he is trying not to be noticed. This will lead the audience to believe that this character is the villain. Also, in many horror films, such as Friday The 13th and Scream, the villains identity is hidden. Due to the fact that in our film the villain's identity is also hidden, the audience could conclude that this hooded figure we see is in fact the villain. This could represent our villain as sinister as he is unknown to the victims. As the villain is wearing dark clothing they are conforming to the typical stereotypes of horror film villains wearing dark, concealing clothing. This is effective as it will leave the audience with suspense as they will not be able to see the identity of the villain.
The next shot is a long shot of a house. This allows the audience to clearly see one of the locations of the film. As the shot shows its dark outside it could perhaps lead the audience to believe this house is associated with something threatening due to the fact that most horror films connect their murderers to a dark night- to represent something sinister happening. The next shot is an over the shoulder shot of a girl making a cup of tea. This links in with the previous shot as the audience may conclude that the house they were just shown is in fact the house the girl is making the cup of tea in now. Also as the character is just making a cup of tea it could lead the audience to believe she is the victim and she looks innocent, which is the typical stereotype of victims in horror films.
The shot we see next is a long shot of two of the characters and a third character approaching them. The character that was approaching them is the character we saw in the first shot- the one being followed. This could then make the audience now understand that these three characters are all the victims as there is a high chance the character following him at the beginning has followed him to the location he is at now. The location is fairly isolated so it would seem to the audience that they are easy targets because if someone was to attack them, there wouldn't be anyone else around. This puts them in a vulnerable position to the villain.
This then links in with the next shot as we see one of the victims walking alone through an isolated wooded area. He is walking quite fast which suggests he is frightened of something or someone. Also, he shouts out to his friends which could lead the audience to believe that something has happened to his friends. It could also maybe suggest that he is the main target as he was the one who was followed at the beginning of the trailer and hes now the one who has ended up alone in the woods. The shot is a high angle shot. This is typical of horror films as it portrays the character as weak and vulnerable which makes him an easy target. This makes the audience certain that he is the main victim who is most likely to be killed by the villain.
The next shot is a blank screen like the one right at the beginning of the trailer saying 'Of the Surrey Hills killings'. This obviously suggests that murderers do actually take place which leads the audience to confirm their belief that the victims are in fact targets for the murderer.
The next shot actually shows the victim being dragged along the floor by his killer. The victims body looks lifeless however there is no sign of blood. This could lead the audience to question whether he is actually dead or whether he has been briefly knocked out. This could intrigue them as to how he ended up like this and what has happened to his friend. This therefore would push them into wanting to watch the film so their questions can be answered. These aspects are conforming to the usual representations portrayed in a horror trailer as lots of different scenes are shown that do not provide the audience with an answer. Also, the killer is not wearing the typical clothing a killer would wear. He is only wearing a short coat with the hood over his head. This does not completely hide his identity. This could suggest that he had not planned this murder. It could either be a random killing or the murderer just wanted to do it as quickly as possible. These, again, are questions that the audience would want answered.
However, the clothing of what the killer is wearing in this part of the trailer is different from what we see him wearing in one of the last scenes. In the last scenes he is wearing a long black coat which covers his entire body and his hood is pulled up over his face. From this, we cannot tell who he is which conforms to the usual stereotype of a villains identity being hidden. As the killer is seen wearing two different outfits it could confuse the audience as they will not know what the killer is doing and whether these murderers are actually planned. These are all aspects of our trailer which will make the audience want to watch the full film.
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