Stuart Hall
Dominant reading - Reader fully accepts the preferred reading meaning the audience will read the text the way the author wants them to.
Negotiated reading - The reader partly sees the reading the way the author intended it to be seen, however, they have different views and see things differently in a way which reflects their own position, beliefs and interest.
Oppositional reading - The reader rejects the reading. This means the reader's social position means their beliefs and interests are completely different to the authors.
These readings mean the way an audience reads a text will depend on their beliefs, interests and background. If these are similar to the authors, the audience will read the text how the author intended them to.
Thursday, 30 March 2017
Wednesday, 29 March 2017
If I were to re-create my trailer
If I were to re-create my trailer now, there are a couple of things I may have done differently to both show and challenge conventions and stereotypes.
1. Have the murderer to be a female.
Although the murderer is not seen in the trailer it is clear he is male because he is shown with his food up hiding his identity on the phone but we can hear his voice which is obviously male, this shows the audience the gender of the murderer which is probably not a surprise as most prisoners and crime breakers in thriller films are male. Thinking about it now, I think it would have challenged these stereotypes and given the plot a twist as the audience may not expect a female murderer.
2. In relation to what I said in the first comment, I may have used a female as the falsely accused prisoner which would have also challenged stereotypes and added a twist to the plot. However, if I were to do this I would have changed the detective to a male role so that there is a balance of both female and male character in my trailer so that it appealed to both a male and female audience.
3. Although two of our characters were A level drama students, I think I were to re-create this trailer I would have made sure all of my actors had acting experience, this is because people with acting experience usually make the scene appear how the producer wants it too and makes it dramatic and effective where as sometimes someone who doesn't have acting experience doesn't have the same skills therefore the scenes you are trying to create doesn't appear as effective.
1. Have the murderer to be a female.
Although the murderer is not seen in the trailer it is clear he is male because he is shown with his food up hiding his identity on the phone but we can hear his voice which is obviously male, this shows the audience the gender of the murderer which is probably not a surprise as most prisoners and crime breakers in thriller films are male. Thinking about it now, I think it would have challenged these stereotypes and given the plot a twist as the audience may not expect a female murderer.
2. In relation to what I said in the first comment, I may have used a female as the falsely accused prisoner which would have also challenged stereotypes and added a twist to the plot. However, if I were to do this I would have changed the detective to a male role so that there is a balance of both female and male character in my trailer so that it appealed to both a male and female audience.
3. Although two of our characters were A level drama students, I think I were to re-create this trailer I would have made sure all of my actors had acting experience, this is because people with acting experience usually make the scene appear how the producer wants it too and makes it dramatic and effective where as sometimes someone who doesn't have acting experience doesn't have the same skills therefore the scenes you are trying to create doesn't appear as effective.
About the charaters
The Female detective (Maria Jones)
Maria is from a upper class background, in her 40's with a well paid, professional but also stressful job. Due to her professional and high up position she is seen to be stuck up, big headed and intimidating. Her role in the trailer shows her in competition with the Journalist (Peter Stone). They clash as despite the journalist being young and not as experienced as her, he has detected that she has made an error by imprisoning the wrong man for a case a few years ago, because of this Maria is defensive and is for once in her life frightened that her career and good reputation could be ruined if the journalist decides to tell her secret.Therefore, she finds herself being intimidated by the young journalist but doesn't want to show her emotion and give the journalist any power. This challenges stereotypes as women are usually seen to be emotional and weak where as Maria is shown to have a strong female role.
The Journalist (Peter Stone)
Peter is shown to be from a more working class background who has just entered the journalist industry and is trying to work his way up to be the best. He has been given a case to work on which involves working with a strong female role who is annoyed by Peter's involvement. However, Peter does not seem to appear intimidated by the role of the female detective as he knows he could ruin her career if he wanted to. He is shown to be young, in his early 20's therefore appears inexperienced. He is intelligent yet sneaky which is shown at the end of the trailer when one of the last scenes is the journalist opening a door to a dark room curiously as if he doesn't want to be seen. This leaves the audience on a cliff hanger asking questions about his intentions.
The Prisoner
The prisoner is shown to be from a working class background, who has been falsely imprisoned and charged with a murder he didn't commit. Due to this he is shown to be depressed and feeling helpless. He talks about his family in the trailer when he says "Let me out, I didn't do it, I want to see my family" This shows he is actually very caring and desperate to see him family as he knows his children and wife need him and feels like he is letting them down. He is shown pacing around his prison cell in deep thought and agitated.
The Survivor
The female survivor is shown as young, innocent and traumatised. She doesn't have much to say during the trailer and when asked questions she is shown staring blankly not answering the detectives. However, when she does speak she has a one line dramatic piece of dialogue which intensifies the scene. Her lines are "They're all dead" "Help" and "I don't think I can live without my family any longer" the fact she doesn't say much and chooses to remain silent when being questioned shows how traumatised and in shock she is. She has just witnessed the murders of her whole family in front of her and now feels like she has nothing left. She holds the key information in this trailer as she saw the murderer herself but it is proving difficult for the detectives to find out this key information and makes their job more difficult.
Maria is from a upper class background, in her 40's with a well paid, professional but also stressful job. Due to her professional and high up position she is seen to be stuck up, big headed and intimidating. Her role in the trailer shows her in competition with the Journalist (Peter Stone). They clash as despite the journalist being young and not as experienced as her, he has detected that she has made an error by imprisoning the wrong man for a case a few years ago, because of this Maria is defensive and is for once in her life frightened that her career and good reputation could be ruined if the journalist decides to tell her secret.Therefore, she finds herself being intimidated by the young journalist but doesn't want to show her emotion and give the journalist any power. This challenges stereotypes as women are usually seen to be emotional and weak where as Maria is shown to have a strong female role.
The Journalist (Peter Stone)
Peter is shown to be from a more working class background who has just entered the journalist industry and is trying to work his way up to be the best. He has been given a case to work on which involves working with a strong female role who is annoyed by Peter's involvement. However, Peter does not seem to appear intimidated by the role of the female detective as he knows he could ruin her career if he wanted to. He is shown to be young, in his early 20's therefore appears inexperienced. He is intelligent yet sneaky which is shown at the end of the trailer when one of the last scenes is the journalist opening a door to a dark room curiously as if he doesn't want to be seen. This leaves the audience on a cliff hanger asking questions about his intentions.
The Prisoner
The prisoner is shown to be from a working class background, who has been falsely imprisoned and charged with a murder he didn't commit. Due to this he is shown to be depressed and feeling helpless. He talks about his family in the trailer when he says "Let me out, I didn't do it, I want to see my family" This shows he is actually very caring and desperate to see him family as he knows his children and wife need him and feels like he is letting them down. He is shown pacing around his prison cell in deep thought and agitated.
The Survivor
The female survivor is shown as young, innocent and traumatised. She doesn't have much to say during the trailer and when asked questions she is shown staring blankly not answering the detectives. However, when she does speak she has a one line dramatic piece of dialogue which intensifies the scene. Her lines are "They're all dead" "Help" and "I don't think I can live without my family any longer" the fact she doesn't say much and chooses to remain silent when being questioned shows how traumatised and in shock she is. She has just witnessed the murders of her whole family in front of her and now feels like she has nothing left. She holds the key information in this trailer as she saw the murderer herself but it is proving difficult for the detectives to find out this key information and makes their job more difficult.
Tuesday, 28 March 2017
Timeline of my trailer
0:00 - Audience information, who the following trailer/film is appropriate for
0:03 - Siberian Studios logo
0:05 - Two shot of female detectives at a table
0:07 - Over the shoulder shot of survivor looking blankly
0:08 - Establishing shot of murderer with his hood up walking through a house corridor
0:10 - Extreme close up of the survivors face as a tear rolls down her cheek
0:12 - Two shot of the female detectives at the table interviewing the survivor
0:13 - Long shot of the survivor running through a field
0:14 - Close up of the survivor looking down emotionally
0:13 - Close up of one of the female detectives face as she is speaking to the survivor
0:18 - Medium close up shown of the survivor banging on glass windows
0:20 - Extreme close up of the survivors eyes to show emotion
0:22 - Two shot of the female detectives
0:24 - Black screen "They're all dead" - Dialogue by survivor
0:27 - "On February 20th" in white text on a black background
0:30 - Crime scene tape
0:31 - Covered over body
0:32 - Covered over body
0:33 - Covered over body
0:34 - Covered over body
0:35 - Close up of a house
0:36 - Close up of half a clock
0:37 - Close up of the journalist holding a camera to his face and slowly taking it away from his face
0:39 - "A case from the past" in white text on a black background
0:40 - Two shot of the journalist and female detective facing the journalist
0:45 - Newspaper report of the family murder
0:46 - Two shot of the journalist and detective, facing the detective
0:48 - "Has come back to haunt them" in white text on a black background
0:50 - Prisoner shown pacing round his cell
0:52 - Journalist is shown analysing the reports on the injuries to the dead bodies
0:55 - Close up of the body reports
0:56 - Close up of the journalist piecing information together on a whiteboard
0:57 - Extreme close up of a picture of the family shown on the whiteboard
0:58 - Prisoner shown in his cell through a small square window on the door
0:59 - Side view of the journalist sticking information on the whiteboard
1:02 - Extreme close up of the information and pictures shown on the whiteboard
1:08 - Two shot of the journalist and detective sitting at a table piecing together evidence
1:10 - Close up of the survivor from the side looking blankly as a tear rolls down her face
1:13 - Journalist shown standing at the side of a country road looking frustrated
1:15 - Journalist shown through trees looking around for extra information
1:18 - Journalist's feet shown walking through a field with a torch in his hand
1:20 - "From the creators of "mutation" and "too late" in white text and a black background
1:25 - Sped up clip of the prisoner pacing around his cell desperate to get out
1:29 - Shot of the sky and trees as the camera is spinning
1:31 - Clock shown ticking
1:33 - Close up of the survivor
1:35 - Close up of the journalist on the phone getting angry
1:39 - Headlights on a car shown as the car spins out of control
1:41 - Close up of the prisoner behind the cell bars shown getting angry and shouting
1:44 - Journalist shown getting frustrated and shouting down the phone
1:46 - Journalist shown creeping into a room in the house
1:49 - Clip of the clock ticking
1:50 - Journalist shown tearing paper off the whiteboard in frustration
1:56 - Side view of a figure wearing a dark hoodie and holding a phone to their ear
1:59 - Clip of the clock ticking
2:01 - Establishing shot of a house as it zooms in
2:02 - Journalist is shown running at a fast pace
2:02 - Clip shown from inside the car as it drives along the road
2:03 - "Jo Caress" in white text on a black background
2:04 - Close up of the prisoner behind bars shouting aggressively
2:06 - "Oliver Wyatt" in white text on a black background
2:07 - Journalist shown looking serious as he stands in a forest looking around him
2:09 - Establishing shot of the survivor running towards the house
2:10 - Close up of the clock ticking
2:11 - Journalist shown running through the forest from a low angle
2:12 - Journalist shown shaking a mirror on the wall as he looks into it gritting his teeth
2:14 - Journalist shown slamming his hands on the steering wheel of a car in frustration
2:15 - A door opening as a close up of half of the journalists face appears from behind it
2:19 - Film title "Contradiction" shown in red text on a black background
2:22 - A girl shown tied up as someone approaches her with a baseball bat
2:24 - "Coming soon" in white text on a black background
2:28 - Credits shown in white text on a black background
0:03 - Siberian Studios logo
0:05 - Two shot of female detectives at a table
0:07 - Over the shoulder shot of survivor looking blankly
0:08 - Establishing shot of murderer with his hood up walking through a house corridor
0:10 - Extreme close up of the survivors face as a tear rolls down her cheek
0:12 - Two shot of the female detectives at the table interviewing the survivor
0:13 - Long shot of the survivor running through a field
0:14 - Close up of the survivor looking down emotionally
0:13 - Close up of one of the female detectives face as she is speaking to the survivor
0:18 - Medium close up shown of the survivor banging on glass windows
0:20 - Extreme close up of the survivors eyes to show emotion
0:22 - Two shot of the female detectives
0:24 - Black screen "They're all dead" - Dialogue by survivor
0:27 - "On February 20th" in white text on a black background
0:30 - Crime scene tape
0:31 - Covered over body
0:32 - Covered over body
0:33 - Covered over body
0:34 - Covered over body
0:35 - Close up of a house
0:36 - Close up of half a clock
0:37 - Close up of the journalist holding a camera to his face and slowly taking it away from his face
0:39 - "A case from the past" in white text on a black background
0:40 - Two shot of the journalist and female detective facing the journalist
0:45 - Newspaper report of the family murder
0:46 - Two shot of the journalist and detective, facing the detective
0:48 - "Has come back to haunt them" in white text on a black background
0:50 - Prisoner shown pacing round his cell
0:52 - Journalist is shown analysing the reports on the injuries to the dead bodies
0:55 - Close up of the body reports
0:56 - Close up of the journalist piecing information together on a whiteboard
0:57 - Extreme close up of a picture of the family shown on the whiteboard
0:58 - Prisoner shown in his cell through a small square window on the door
0:59 - Side view of the journalist sticking information on the whiteboard
1:02 - Extreme close up of the information and pictures shown on the whiteboard
1:08 - Two shot of the journalist and detective sitting at a table piecing together evidence
1:10 - Close up of the survivor from the side looking blankly as a tear rolls down her face
1:13 - Journalist shown standing at the side of a country road looking frustrated
1:15 - Journalist shown through trees looking around for extra information
1:18 - Journalist's feet shown walking through a field with a torch in his hand
1:20 - "From the creators of "mutation" and "too late" in white text and a black background
1:25 - Sped up clip of the prisoner pacing around his cell desperate to get out
1:29 - Shot of the sky and trees as the camera is spinning
1:31 - Clock shown ticking
1:33 - Close up of the survivor
1:35 - Close up of the journalist on the phone getting angry
1:39 - Headlights on a car shown as the car spins out of control
1:41 - Close up of the prisoner behind the cell bars shown getting angry and shouting
1:44 - Journalist shown getting frustrated and shouting down the phone
1:46 - Journalist shown creeping into a room in the house
1:49 - Clip of the clock ticking
1:50 - Journalist shown tearing paper off the whiteboard in frustration
1:56 - Side view of a figure wearing a dark hoodie and holding a phone to their ear
1:59 - Clip of the clock ticking
2:01 - Establishing shot of a house as it zooms in
2:02 - Journalist is shown running at a fast pace
2:02 - Clip shown from inside the car as it drives along the road
2:03 - "Jo Caress" in white text on a black background
2:04 - Close up of the prisoner behind bars shouting aggressively
2:06 - "Oliver Wyatt" in white text on a black background
2:07 - Journalist shown looking serious as he stands in a forest looking around him
2:09 - Establishing shot of the survivor running towards the house
2:10 - Close up of the clock ticking
2:11 - Journalist shown running through the forest from a low angle
2:12 - Journalist shown shaking a mirror on the wall as he looks into it gritting his teeth
2:14 - Journalist shown slamming his hands on the steering wheel of a car in frustration
2:15 - A door opening as a close up of half of the journalists face appears from behind it
2:19 - Film title "Contradiction" shown in red text on a black background
2:22 - A girl shown tied up as someone approaches her with a baseball bat
2:24 - "Coming soon" in white text on a black background
2:28 - Credits shown in white text on a black background
Friday, 24 March 2017
What I think went well with my film trailer
When watching my thriller film trailer I definitely feel happy with the final outcome and proud of the progress made.
Comparing my work last year (A horror film opening) and my thriller trailer I can identify a huge improvement. The things that I feel have gone well in my thriller trailer is the variety of different shots, the development of editing skills (fade to black, fade to white), being able to slow down or speed up particular shots and the pace of the trailer makes the trailer appear dramatic and doesn't reveal too much making it more exciting for the audience to watch the film and find out what happens. All of these make an effective trailer and makde the audience want to watch the film and find out more.
Comparing my work last year (A horror film opening) and my thriller trailer I can identify a huge improvement. The things that I feel have gone well in my thriller trailer is the variety of different shots, the development of editing skills (fade to black, fade to white), being able to slow down or speed up particular shots and the pace of the trailer makes the trailer appear dramatic and doesn't reveal too much making it more exciting for the audience to watch the film and find out what happens. All of these make an effective trailer and makde the audience want to watch the film and find out more.
About my film trailer (The general plot)
The plot of my film trailer is about a series of family murders. The trailer starts by showing two female detectives interviewing a young girl who's entire family had been murdered and she was the only survivor. However, the detectives soon realise that the case they were dealing with had been identical to another murder investigation they were working on a couple of years back. The detective then starts to realise that maybe she had imprisoned the wrong man but doesn't want to admit to her mistakes as she wants to keep up her good reputation. However, this is soon challenged by the male journalist who notices she has perhaps imprisoned the wrong man and tries to work alongside her, but the female detective feels in competition with the journalist due to his understanding of her failure and therefore behaves very stuck up and defensive. As the case continues so does the intensity and drama.
The unique selling point (USP) of my trailer
The USP of my trailer is that there is a balance between female and male roles. The roles the female characters play are roles usually played by male characters in thriller films. This makes my trailer stand out because it appeals to both a male and female audience. It means that instead of seeing thriller trailers with the same plot, and the characters being played by the stereotypical genders, my trailer challenges these. In my survey I created before producing my trailer, one of my questions asked if females should play lead roles and challenge the stereotypes. 5/5 surveys came back ticking the box that female SHOULD play the lead roles therefore this made my trailer stand out.
Thursday, 23 March 2017
Research survey
Are you male or
female?
Male
Female
What age are you?
Under 12 
12-1819-25
26-32
33-3940-5050+
Did the last movie
trailer you watched make you want to see the movie? If so, what Movie was this?
……………………………………………………………………………………………………
In your opinion, what
is the most important factor when you watch a thriller movie?
The plotThe film pace
If it’s based on a real eventThe actors
The soundtrack
Do you
think that the character roles in thrillers are too generic? E.g – A male
playing the lead roles in most thriller movies.
Yes No
Above shows a survey I created in order to get an idea of what my audience wants to see in my trailer. This helped me gather information and know what I need to include in my trailer in order to be effective. Below shows some of the responses from my survey.
From this information I am able to identify in which areas I need to focus on perhaps more than others. The surveys are all almost identical which makes it easier for me to identify the area of development I need to work on and what conventions I need to stick to and what conventions I may challenge.
In the first picture, the survey shows the person is female, aged between 19-25 and the film trailer from Insidious (2010) made them want to watch the film. When I watched this trailer I was able to identify that the trailer started slowly, showing a family in their home. The dark/dimmed lighting shown 0:44 into the trailer is effective as it sets the dull, mysterious mood. At 1:20 into the trailer the pace starts to build as voiceovers and face paced editing is used. The trailer also uses a lot of fades to black and flashes which adds to the drama. In this survey the person couldn't decide what was more important out of the film pace and the plot of the film which is represented in the trailer. This shows me that the pace of my trailer needs to be fast paced, not showing too much for too long so that the audience is intrigued to watch it. Also the plot needs to be exciting and interesting and perhaps slightly different to other thriller films. The last question on the survey was answered by all four people "Yes" this tells me that I need to include a variety of rolls in my trailer and perhaps challenge stereotypes.
In the second survey, the person answered "The girl on the train" to which trailer made them want to watch the film. After having watched the trailer I can see that like other thriller trailers I have watched, it has a slow beginning, showing an extreme close up of a women's face followed by an establishing shot of a house on its own. 1:40 minutes into the trailer the pace starts to get faster, at this point the lighting has got darker and intense, dramatic dialogue is used "I'm not the girl I used to be" in my trailer I will use dialogue and voiceovers to create this very dramatic eerie effect.
The third survey shows the person was intrigued by "World War Z 2" trailer. Having looked at this I can see the trailer although doesn't have a very fast pace, uses other editing skills. One of these is 0:58 seconds in there is a truck shown driving at a fast pace away from trouble, at this point the editor as slowed down the shot where the truck is in the air and then slowly hits the ground. This is effective because it shows the audience closely and in detail of the pace, and recklessness of how the driver is driving. The trailer shows an attacked city where smoke is still present and cars, houses and buildings have been destroyed. The lighting is dimmed in order to create a mysterious effect. The trailer uses a lot of slow motion throughout the trailer.
The last Survey shows the person was excited by the "Split" trailer, this trailer starts off slow, showing a man staring at some young girls. 0:20 seconds in the pace starts to pick up as the man is sat in a car with the girls as they realise he is not who he thought he was, at this point he turns around and sprays the girls in the face making them pass out. Throughout the trailer the lighting is dimmed in order to create an unknown effect. The pace really starts to get faster 1:40 into the trailer showing the very frightened girl trying to escape from the man. What I think is effective in this trailer is that the pace builds and then all of a sudden everything goes quiet, then an important and dramatic dialogue/voiceover is heard and the pace then picks up again. This is something I will be trying to se in my trailer as I think it is really effective in the way it draws the audience's attention.
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