Audience in Little White Lies

 Audience In Little White Lies

The Little White Liars magazine is targetted towards both males and females between the ages of 25 and 36. Our target audience is also very similar to this target audience, being a psychological horror.

The font used for the titles in the Little White Lies magazine articles is Century Gothic, this font is one of the aspects that make me believe that the articles/reviews in this magazine are targetted towards 25-36 year olds as it is a very plain and professional font. The font used in the main body of the articles is 'Aparajita'; this is another very plain and professional font which has the same positive and professional, but artistic, connotations that Century Gothic. There is a third font used in the review which is Microsoft Yahei, however, this is only used for the word 'REVIEWS' down the side, as a page lable for what is happening. When stating the directors, the actors, and the release date aparajita has also been used.

The main body of the article is very simply laid out, with three columns of text, one of which having the number based reviews for individual elements at the bottom, keeping everything very formal and well formatted. This creates a professional look which is attractive to this 26-36 year old audience.

The content of the article consists of mature language, and not just following the mature themes of the film. Although the article is quite casually worded, addressing the reader in an informal manner, it the rest of the article still gives it an overall professional atmosphere, making it stil appropriate for the target audience.

There are three factors that they review/rate a film on in this article: Anticipation, Enjoyment, and In Retrospect. These three elements are likely to be interesting to the 25-36 year old audience.

Snatch is a UK independent Guy Ritchie Film which was released almost 17 years ago, Unscrupulous boxing promoters, violent bookmakers, a Russian gangster, incompetent amateur robbers, and supposedly Jewish jewellers fight to track down a priceless stolen diamond. So without hesitation lets get started. 
The First thing I noticed is the Hazardous sign next to the title, I suppose the sign could be interpreted as danger which would go very well with the whole plot and how dangerous the diamond is for all characters in the story. 
There is a way we can tell the story is to do with diamonds. Cockney slang is used in a phrase underneath the title, "stealin' stones and breakin' bones" stones rhymes with bones so the use in this phrase makes it flow nicely but it also links perfectly with the plot of Snatch as stones means diamonds and breaking bones means hurting people which is basically the synopsis of the film.
'Snatch' is all in lower case which is unique in titles making it noticeable and eye catching to the public but it also seems quite laid back which in a way suits the film. Snatch is cockney for stole therefore links with the film very well and I also like the fact its connected to the hazardous sign as if its implying 'steal this diamond at your own risk' its a nice touch. 
Now lets move onto the people on this poster. They cover the majority of the Poster itself and have a nice dark red tint over them which can be a representation of blood, violence and anger. Their facial expressions are all scrunched up and looking menacing and 'hard'. They all have modern day jackets or coats on allowing you to realise its set during the modern day. I would also like to mention how they have identification above them, this and the plain white background creates the effect that they're criminals being identified in a police line up.
There is a nice quote from The Sun saying "movie of the year" this is very important for sales as the sun is a popular newspaper in Britain and this type of reference on the film will be very beneficial for Snatch.
Several aspects of mise-en-scene tell us about the characters personality and time period. The costumes on the characters tell us its set in the modern day and suits with long coats combined with the facial expressions looking fearce and hard is a clear indication that these are gangsters. If we join this with the title and quote beneath the title we know that these are british gangsters further helping us understand the origin of this movie.    
When you link everything together the genre of the film starts to become clear, yes its a form of thriller but the title and the sign are slightly comedic, also the quote "stealin' stones and breakin' bones"  is almost humorous if you think about it, but thats not an error, thats intended, the film is exactly that, an action packed thriller with a lot of very funny aspects, making it a very good and enjoyable film. 

Stardust is a UK independent Matthew Vaughn film which was released in two thousand and seven almost ten years ago. 
Its very hard to write about the synopsis of Stardust without writing half a page due to the load of things going on but its basically about a fallen star which turns out to be a person and a man who falls in love with her whilst those who want to kill her or take something from her pursue them. There is a lot going on in this poster so without further ado lets dive in. 

The first thing I see is the women in the top right corner, she has the facial expression of a mysterious and sexy women whilst staring seductively at the viewer. This is a perfect example of sex appeal or as I like to call it eye candy. 
Although many would argue saying this is bad publicity and representing women in a sexual way is wrong you can't say it isn't effective.
Lets move more central where we begin to see the two main characters, the reason how I know they are the main characters is simply because they are central of the poster which is stereotypical of many posters, also I've seen the film. Another way you can tell they are the main characters is through the fading sun in the background. It acts as a spotlight highlighting the two characters whilst the other characters are circled in shade. 
The sun is also a star which links nicely with the title 'Stardust' and the sun is fading which is a foreshadow to the film itself and what begins to happen to the star. 
The costumes are unusual, they don't look like the type of outfits people in any of the historic ages would wear especially Ricky Gervais' costume concluding the audience into thinking this must be an alternative world or reality. 
The lighting on the poster of the sun and the darkness around it is as if the light is consuming the two main characters, this along with the gold stardust title below and sparkle indicates a romantic film. We are not done there, sword props, pirate ship in far left (which we will get too) and fantasy characters makes this a romantic fantasy.
Facial expressions and body language are different on each character with the main protagonist in the middle turning his head whilst facing the girl in the middle shows hes protecting her along with the pirate looking fierce etc...
Now its time to talk about sales and a sneaky input on the poster which would increase sales.
These will be the use of Ricky Gervais in the poster and the size of Robert De Nero's picture. 
Ricky Gervais is only in Stardust for around five minutes, its a hilarious scene but does it change the story? Does it impact another character significantly? The answer to both those questions are no therefore he doesn't really deserve a spot on the poster. Those who haven't seen the film yet don't know this and using Ricky Gervais on the poster is very good for publicity as he's very popular. 
Robert De Nero deserves a place on the poster as he has a big role in this but he should swap places with Mark Strong as Mark's character had more screen time and was quite important yet he is on the far right of the poster looking rather small. 
Robert De Niro is an iconic actor who is known for his roles in films like 'Good Fellas', 'Heat' and 'The GodFather' so being in a romantic fantasy is a very alternative role for him attracting not only his personal fans but those curious to see him in this type of film this will bring in a lot of revenue and is very smart of the poster publishers. I must say he is brilliant in Stardust. 
Stardust also has a little quote below the title saying "this summer a star falls. The chase begins" which is exactly what the film is about.   

In conclusion stardust has a detailed and good poster with some good techniques to make the poster shine as much as the film intended too and I must admit the film is an underrated gem and a must watch.   

  

Poster Analysis - Jacob Knowles

Short Film Poster Analysis

Notes On Blindness Poster Analysis:

Audience: The audience that this poster targetted is more likely to be an older audience of an age between 18-35. This is because the film present a fairly mature theme that is most likely to be well understood by people within this age range. The poster also has a certain amount of depth to it which is most likely to be understood by people within this age range.

Narrative: This poster is giving a certain amount of narrative to whoever observes it. We can see that this man is blind, as described by his face being shrouded in darkness and his glasses combined with the title of the film. We are also told through this poster that this is the main character of the film.

Genre: The moody tones that the poster sets indicates a 'slice of life'/drama genre of film, these are also the genres that apply to the film. The simple font is also indicative of a modern day drama.

The layout of this film poster is very simplistic, with the majority of the poster being taken up by an image of the main character. This is very typical of short film posters, with the title and informative text being small and the imagery being prominent. The billing block is featured in the footer of the poster, unfortunately, I cannot make out the companies in this billing block ad cannot find an image with greater clarity. The directors are listed under the title in smaller text but with the same font. An award/feature from the sundance film festival is also featured at the top of the poster.

The title uses a very thin typeface which remains consistant with the simplicity presented by the rest of the poster. The title is also positioned towards the top of the poster just under the awards (of which there is only one), the award is very small taking up little room at the top of the poster. The title is also very small in proportion to the rest of the poster, however it is still very readable. The font is very simple and smart, keeping theme with the rest of the poster.

The main image in this poster is a medium shot of the main character's upper body with his face shrouded in darkness. I think that having his face covered in darkness is to indicate and emphasize the fact the character is blind. This image of  the character is on a blue tiled background which shows a heavy contrast between him and his surroundings, further emphasizing what was indicated earlier.

There are no taglines, reviews, certifications, websites or wider cultural references featured in this poster, I believe that this is done in order to maintain the simple theme that the poster presents. There is a credit block just under the title, stating that who created the film. There is an evident relationship between the main text and the main imagery, the font fits very well with the theme of the poster. The font has a small spacing and a medium size.

The presentation of the directors names is immediately underneath the title, this means that the viewer's eyes will automatically skip to this after reading the film title. I think that it is well positioned because of this, it is included because the directors are recognizable and therefore it is effectively advertising the film.

The Imitation Game Poster Analysis:

Representation: The first major element of representation featured in this poster is a representation of class. We can see the main character, played by Benedict Cumberbatch, in a suit; this represents a high-class status and also is indicative that the character is a businessman through his costume. His hair is also neat and his skin unblemished, which is another representation of class present in this poster.

Narrative: The narrative in this poster is mainly shown through the slogan which is spread across the page, 'BEHIND EVERY CODE IS AN ENIGMA'. This slogan is based around Alan Turing: Enigma Code, a book by Andrew Hodges. This slogan expresses the initial narrative of the film, showing that it will be related to the enigma code, or more specifically the Andrew Hodges book which it's based on.

Audience: The audience that the poster is targetting is an older audience composed of people between the ages of 18 and 35. This is because it is for a mystery based drama which is likely to be best understood and enjoyed by people within this age range.

This poster's layout is very clever, there is an image of Benedict Cumberbatch in the background, while the foreground consists of many circles each one containing a letter for the slogan, and some being empty. The title, actors, and billing block are all at the bottom of the poster.

The title is positioned at the bottom of the poster as mentioned earlier, it is in the same simple, easy to read font as the slogan and all other text on the poster. The title 'The Imitation Game' has a double meaning, the original meaning as presented by Turing was that the imitation game was a means of investigating whether or not machines might one day be able to think. The actual film presents the main character imitating his colleagues in order to gain their respect and make them like him.

The tagline in the poster is "BEHIND EVERY CODE IS AN ENIGMA". This slogan is in reference to the Andrew Hodges book: Alan Turing: The Enigma. This quote will allow anybody who has read the book to recognise what the film is about, however, it also shows people that haven't read the book that it's related to the enigma code.

Above the title are the names of the two main actors; Benedict Cumberbatch and Keira Knightly, showing these two reputable actors are in the film in the poster is likely to encourage people to go and watch the film as they already know these people.

The spacing of the font is large throughout this poster. This gives an effect which makes the text look like it may have been printed with a typewriter, setting a possible time period or setting for the film which is consistant with the imagery on the rest of the poster.

There is no certification, credit block or reviews contained on this poster. I think this is because the poster would have looked too cluttered with them and it is not necessary information.

Operator Poster Analysis:

Media Language: In this poster we see a close up shot of the main character in the film. It is a side on shot with dark lighting and highlights on the front of the main character's face. This makes the scene very intense. The character's costume consists of a headset that an emergency phone operator would normally use, the look of urgency in the character's facial expression is also indicative of this.

Genre: The intense nature of the colours and expressions in this poster indicates that it's a drama film. The name of the film, 'Operator' further indicates this as the term operator generally refers to telephone operators for emergency services.

Narrative: The narrative of this poster suggests that the film is about an emergency services telephone operator and their response to calls.

This poster primarily has the title on the bottom right side of the poster, with the left and top sides of the poster containing awards from many different film festivals and film awards. This includes very reputable film associations such as BAFTA and BFI. There is also a list of actors and directors at the bottom of the poster.

The title is in a thin simple font, white with heavy spacing and a slight feathered glow. This creates dramatic effect and is effective in emphasizing the mood of the poster. The title positioning is very different to usual as it is at the bottom right of the page, this is likely to make space for awards and suchlike around the edges of the poster.

The Credit block of the this poster shows the names of a few actors and directors, the film has some big names such as Kate Dickie which will have encouraged people to see the film since it has well known names.

Subconscious Password Poster Analysis:

Narrative: This poster gives the viewer a small amount of narrative relating to the film. It shows and represents the inner subconscious of the main character as a person inside of his head. There is also french on the poster which suggests there are elements of french culture and a french setting in the film.

Audience: The audience for this film is likely to be between the ages of 18 and 35 as it tackles more mature themes and discusses the deeper meaning of the subconscious and other hard to understand topics.

Representation: One of the main features of representation in this poster is the costume of the main character and how it represents a middle class man. The suit and glasses are indicative of someone working an office job, both of which are present here. His scruffy haircut and beard are also indicative of this.

The layout of the poster is dominated by the primary image, filling most of the space. A large amount of space is also taken up by the title which is positioned at the central bottom of the poster. Underneath the title is the credits box and the billing box. In the top right corner there is an award that the film has won.

The title is in a big top style circus font, with a red and yellow colour scheme and text covered in bulbs. This style of font is also heavily present in stereotypical representations of game-shows, of which this film features. The position of the title heavily emphasizes the image that's present above it, making both the image and the title the collective main focus of the poster.

Underneath the title there is both a credit box and a billing box. The credit box lists actors, producers, the director, and the animators. The billing box lists contributors to the film. There is also an award in the top right corner of the poster. 

EROL'S RESEARCH

Short film name: Tune for Two

  Name of director: Gunnar Jarvstad

• The scene opens with a black frame which morphs to become a blurred outline of the protagonist's legs being dragged through white snow. This short film begins from the viewpoint of this character - created by the use of a  POV shot. The fact he is being dragged suggests that he has been unconscious, and therefore that whoever is dragging him is the culprit responsible.  Consequently, the audience is aware that the character may be in danger. 
• The diegetic sound of a heart beat heavily, pounding in darkness, is accompanied by a high pitched ringing sound - created by a Foley artist. The strong, heavy heart beat is in contrast with the diegetic sound of the high pitched ringing, which can be associated with the confusion associated with coming around after losing consciousness. When this sound is pieced together with the quick blinking of the character, it becomes apparent to the audience that the character has fallen out of consciousness and the ringing sound represents him waking up. Also this high pitched sound is screechy to listen to which would most likely cause the audience to cringe.

• This element of enigma leave the audience in suspense concering the welfare of this character. It makes the audience question why they are seeing a pair of legs being dragged through the snow. This would raise questions about how the protagonist ended up in this situation, and the intentions of the characte who is dragging him.
• After this, the high pitch sound fades out. However, the sound of the strong heartbeat continues while the frame fades to black, leaving the audience in suspense, for about 5 seconds. In this short frame of darkness the audience have time to think about the enigma which has been created. Another point is that the ringing sound stops, which may be because he is fully awake and has regained consciousness. Alternatively, the frame may fall into darkness - and the high pitch sound may stop - to suggest that the subject has fallen into an unconscious state again.

• This POV shot above shows a large, dark clothed male digging a hole with a spade. Although a spade is not a typical piece of iconography, digging a hole is commonly associated with burying people - which helps the audience to build a picture in their mind of what might happen to the character getting dragged  through the snow.
• Despite the fact that the audience are still viewing what is happening in the eye of the character, it is still clear what is going on. The fact this has been shot in a POV will help the audience feel more involved in what is happening, meaning that they are likely to feel sympathy towards the character being buried.

• The high pitch ringing sound continues with a faint sound of the digging in the background. When these two sounds are combined with the blurriness of the characters view it suggest to the audience that this character is perhaps falling in and out of a conscious state. The idea of this character being in this condition most likely means he is injured to the point where he cannot keep himself  awake - suggesting a severe state of  injury. This point is backed up when the character passes out again, indicated by the screen fading into darkness to show his fading vision.

As the character is revealed it is obvious to see that his face is bloody and his eyes are closed which suggests he is scared of what might happen to him. He is still partially unconscious and has been forced to wake up - this is conveyed by his tired looks and indicators that he is in pain.

•  This shot above shows the man being dragged through the snow in a close up. The fact it is close up shows the audience how the character has realised what type of danger he is in as it conveys his deep emotion. He is standing before his own grave with a bloody nose and a mysterious dark figure pointing a gun at his head. The audience are likely to feel that there is no way out for this man and he is facing his death.
• This extreme long shot below shows both the characters in the frame. One character standing tall, the other with his face covered in blood is kneeling down looking into his own grave. The setting is shown nicely in this shot, which appears to be a cold country. This type of climate holds a reputation for a lack of survival and life. Perhaps the cold, harsh conditions around him suggest his cold fate to the audience. Another point to make would be that this type of setting is most likely in the middle of nowhere, with no one for miles - this shows how little how this character has.

• These three shots above demonstrate how the emotion of the protagonist gets the better of him. In the long shot (second picture) it is clear that this character is in distress, however in the close up the audience are fully aware that this character has probably lost hope which is shown in his despairing emotion. As well as this, his injuries are more obvious here too (dried up blood and a purple bruising suggest he was beaten up) which helps to add the level of sympathy they feel for him.

This picture above shows the antagonist clenching his jaw with a stern look on his face. This type of facial expression is typical of negative characters, showing anger and possibly hatred.

Although this character is meant to be a typical antagonist, it appears that after the protagonist begins to cry he looks up to the sky and takes a deep breath. Perhaps this is a sign that he may be struggling or feeling bad about what he is about to do.

A close up of the gun is shown while he takes a deep breath. This deep breath could be to symbolise how he does not really want to kill him but perhaps he has to. The tightening clench of his hand on the gun paired with the squeaky sound of leather gloves reinforces the fact that he is going to kill him despite any bad feelings or doubt in his mind.

• The protagonist then begins to sing hesitantly. His eyes are looking into the sky for hope, although his face still appears scared.

• The picture above shows the confusion on the antagonist's face. Although the antagonist is about to shoot this man in the head, he joins in with the song. The two men start to hum together as if they are good friends, which is an unexpected plot development. This part of the sequence would likely make the audience feel confused, as well as delivering some relief from the negative emotions which have been building against the antagonist because it makes him appear like a normal human who also has feelings. 

• This sudden change of emotion can be seen on the protagonist's face as he is seen to be smiling while he sings along. However relieved he looks he still continues to have fear on his face, and also continues to look towards the sky as if he is hoping for a miracle. 

• Another long shot of these two characters mirrors the same shot from the start, but the mood is a lot happier; both above and below images demonstrate this. The audience are likely to feel surprised by the sudden change of events, and also to feel more positive emotions towards the antagonist - especially after he lowers his gun. It is also possible to see a smile on the antagonist's face.

• After the singing comes to a stop there is silence as if the pair are waiting for something to happen. The antagonist waits nervously looking side to side - a sign of being anxious. Despite the shared moment of friendship between the two, the antagonist then shoots the man in the head before the protagonist can turn around and look at him. This suggest that he wanted to get it over and done with before the character could look him in the eyes. This is another sign that the antagonist may have been forced to shoot him. The short film ends in a long shot of the antagonist burying the man. The loud sound of the gunshot makes this scene spine chilling and has this would have a deeper impact on the audience, especially due to the fact they shared a small moment of friendship together. 
• This moment of friendship they had is likely to make the audience feel even worse about him shooting the vulnerable male. Something which would also raise high emotions to the audience would be the fact that they both look happy towards the end, even more so for the protagonist because he believes that the other man might not actually shoot him.

• This extreme longshot above shows the reality of this cold and lonely landscape, which brings the audience to realise that although the two men shared a song together in a small moment of friendship, the reality is that the protagonist was always going to be shot in the end. The ending of this sequence plays the original version of the song that the two men were attempting to sing; this song is upbeat and happy - unlike the death of this man.  This non diegetic soundtrack contrasts the situation which makes the short film seem at times comical.  

Erol's short film research

Name of short film: Wake

Director: Lin Oeding

This short film has many attributes from the genre of action. The two main characters, a woman and a man (probably married) are trying to carry something in but in the way of them are several armed antagonists. There are many parts of this short film which suggest that this genre action packed. The opening shot is of the female protagonist inside, what looks like, a church. The tall pillars, low key lighting and arched roof are a good indicator that the setting is a church. 

The prop of a orange jump suit indicates to the audience that this character has been in prison. This conveys to the audience that he has committed crime - something which is commonly associated with action films. The two share a moment together although the police officer shouts to them that they are not to touch one another. The police officer is monitoring this man as he may have been given some partial supervision realise time. The chains around his arms suggest that he could be a dangerous character, although it is most an agreement that he would only be allowed out of prison with chains around his arms under the supervision of an officer. 

The dramatic music in the background adds to the stereotype of an action film. It makes the scene sound more tense and it builds up the suspense as if something is about to happen. When this fast paced sound track is added with a man walking fastly towards them it makes it appear as if something is about to happen. The pair watch over towards the man making his way directly to them, they seem suspicious and the camera is focused on him - he also appears to be getting quicker with everyone step.

7 shots happen in the space of about 15 seconds. This s a quick succession of shots in a short period of time which is very common in action packed films, as it does not give the audience time to think about each shot. This technique helps to create a high level of suspense.

The female character is quick to react and ducks down to the floor. Although the male character is not as quick to react.

This picture shows the man they were watching firing a gun at them. He is completely in the center of the frame (extreme long shot) 

This male protagonist was too late to react and ends up getting shot in the shoulder as a result of this. The gun is a prop which is heavily used in action films. As well as blood (shown in the picture above) 

The male protagonist falls to the floor and leans against the wall where he gives the female character something. It is not shown but it is important to the plot; this helps to move the plot forward. As she continues to run down the stairs a antagonist appears and tries to shoot her. As a result of this she jumps on him, which ultimately bring him to the floor. A fast paced fight scene between the female and the male antagonists breaks out. Something which is commonly seen in action films, as well as this several antagonists appear from all different directions as if what she is carrying is highly important. The heroine uses the man as a a human shield to protect her (uses people as hostages is commonly seen in action films too) against another antagonist shooting at her. 

In movies where there is a high amount of action it is common for characters, especially antagonists to wear black clothing; a leather jacket, a shirt or even a full suit can be used to give a professional and sharp impression. The picture above shows both characters wearing dark clothing which supports the idea that this is an action genre.