The document discusses how the student followed genre conventions in creating a film trailer, poster, and magazine cover for a horror film project. For each media product, the student analyzed existing examples to understand typical forms and styles. The trailer included elements like title/release date, transitions, music, and voiceover that aligned with horror trailer conventions. Some elements were made more creative, like using flashbacks instead of a chronological structure. The poster and magazine cover also adhered to common designs but challenged some norms, like using landscape format for the poster. Overall, the student aimed to create media that would be recognizable while also adding some unique touches.

1. To begin with, the products which I produced (film
trailer, film poster and magazine front cover) generally
all followed the generic forms and conventions of real
media products. This is because I conducted
a sufficient and thorough amount of primary and
secondary research into forms and conventions of
similar media products. I made sure to analyse
a minimum of three products for each the trailer,
magazine cover and poster to ensure I maximized my
background knowledge and what characteristics are
necessary before creating my own. Doing so gave me a
clear understanding of what to include in each of my
products. Additionally all my products were based on
the horror genre which also narrowed down my
research.

2. My trailer mainly conforms to the codes and
conventions of existing horror trailers. However some
of these conventions were also challenged in order to
produce my trailer from a more creative approach to
match the narrative. Some general forms and
conventions of a film trailer are: film title and release
date, edits such as transitions, SFX, non-diegetic and
diegetic music, overlay text and voiceovers. To address
these similarities or any changes I will compare my
trailer to The Unborn trailer as the real media product.

3. Structure of the trailer
My product Existing product
At the start of The Unborn trailer we are immediately introduced to the
main character through a close up shot, followed by an insight to the
characters life. Similarly, in my trailer I also used a close up shot at the
start to introduce my character followed by an insight to her life as well
as establishing her surroundings. Although The Unborn trailer is structured
in a typical chronological order making the narrative easier to
understand I chose to challenge this in my trailer by starting with a flash
forward. I used a selection of short clips in a jump cut sequence to
establish her confused state along with a voiceover to anchor. This was
to add some excitement to the trailer.

4. Lighting and Colour
My product Existing product
Lighting is a crucial part in any horror film trailer to establish mood and
setting. In both The Unborn and my own product high key lighting is used
when there is no disruption only equilibrium. However Like in The Unborn
trailer I used low key lighting to anchor the text, suggesting something
bad is going to happen. Audiences are able to identify the horror genre
of the film through encoding. Stereotypically scenes consisting actions of
horror tend to be set at night and in low-key lighting to set a dark and
mysterious mood of mise-en-scene giving the impression of dark
shadows. Usually used in the presence of ‘evil’ or an evil villain to
highlight the horror theme throughout the trailer.

5. Sound including any
dialogue used
My product Existing product
• Voiceover narration
• Non-diegetic audio
• Sound FX to enhance the
viewing of the trailer as a
whole
• Non-diegetic audio is
played throughout to set
the mood and pace of the
trailer
• Sound EffectsMusic is a key feature in any film trailer, this is because the ability of sound is
used to entice the audience and keep them engaged. Similarly in both my
product and existing product, non-diegetic music is used throughout the
trailer to set the pace, genre and atmosphere of the film. In addition the
use of Sound FX are used in The Unborn trailer to cause tension and
discomfort between the audience. I followed these codes and conventions
by including sound FX in some parts of the trailer to add to the horror genre
of the trailer and to create a more eerie atmosphere. Voiceovers are used
to anchor/narrate the text in my film trailer by introducing the main
character. Also the whispered voiceovers throughout the trailer are used to
suggest a hidden identity which plays on the audiences fear of the
unknown.

6. Legal/organisational
issues
My product Existing product
Any film being released in the UK is awarded an age certification by the
BBFC (British Board of Film Classification) A green screen preview is
usually shown at the beginning of a film trailer to notify viewers of the
appropriate audience allowed to view this film. Again I followed these
codes and conventions by using the R rated certificate at the start of my
film trailer to ensure the correct audience consumption. In the existing
product which I analysed also had a screen preview at the start of the
trailer.

7. Production company
My product Existing product
Just like in The Unborn trailer I added the production company’s logo
about 20 seconds into the trailer. Trailers generally present the
production company in the first half of the trailer. This is to inform
audiences of who made the film as well as setting audience
expectations. Being informed of the films production company is
significant. If the production company has high brand image it
automatically has positive values to represent the company suggesting
Audiences who are familiar with the company may be more likely to
watch the advertised film if they know or have liked previous films
produced by this company.

8. Editing
My product Existing product
• Fade-to-black/white and
blur transitions
• Jump-cuts
• Video filters (special effects
• Fade-to-black transitions
• Jump-cuts
• Special Effects
Fast paced editing and use of jump cuts are popular conventions of
horror film trailers. Normally used at times of disequilibrium to add tension
between the audience keeping them engaged. These aspects were
seen near the end of The Unborn trailer to pick the pace up keeping
audiences on their toes. Although I also used them near the end I
decided to challenge these conventions by using these edits at the start
of the trailer. This was to create the ‘flash forward’ effect into Charli’s life.
Additionally horror trailers tend to stick to fade-to-black transitions to
adhere to the horror genre. I also used a fade to white transition at the
start of the trailer to establish equilibrium and good state of time within
the trailer.

9. Main Protagonist
My product Existing product
Although my film is targeted towards all ethnicities, for the ‘desired’ look
of the main protagonist I followed the conventions of real media
products. In all the horror film trailers I analysed: The Conjuring, The
Broken and The Unborn all the female protagonists shared similar
characteristics. Such as; Caucasian, dark hair/eyes, attractive, petite
and vulnerable looking. All these characteristics could be simply for the
use of the male gaze as well as being an easy target as the damsel in
distress for the horror film.

10. Film title
My product Existing Product
Having the film title in the trailer is crucial as that is what’s being
advertised(the film!). Usually the film titles are presented at the end or
near the end of the trailer, this is so audiences can easily recall the
name of the film as it’s the last thing they would have seen. Based on
my initial research when creating my film name all the horror film
trailers which I analysed all had film titles that began with ‘The’ and
second word described the entire film in one word. This is how I began
to find ideas for my film title resulting with ‘The Tormented’.

11. Release date
My product Existing product
The release date is essential in informing audiences when the film will be
out publically to watch. Following the generic forms and conventions of
a trailer I placed the release date at the end of the trailer, however I did
not give a specific date. I decided ‘coming soon’ was a way of enticing
the audience leading them into more research about the film if they
really wanted to watch it. Additionally I added the website URL’s under
the title for both the production company and the film itself. Showing
audiences they are able to access more information on these websites
increasing audience interaction.

12. Length of trailer
The conventional length of a trailer is about 2-3
minutes long. Therefore its very important to establish
the main points of the film within the trailer as well as
gaining the audiences interest. From all the trailers I
analysed The Conjuring is 2:29s, The Broken is 2:28, and
The Unborn is 2:30s None of which exceed the
conventional trailer length. I made sure to follow these
conventions by cutting out bad shots from my trailer
which brought the length down to 2:28s.

13. My poster conforms to the forms and conventions of
existing film posters. Film posters are another form of
film promotion. Posters need to be iconic for audiences
to recognise and identify the genre of the film being
promoted. Some general forms and conventions of a
film poster are: high image to text ratio, film title,
actors, release date, taglines and credits.

14. The three film posters which I analysed all had a portrait orientation. Although
it is not completely unconventional, I decided to challenge this by producing a
landscape poster for my film. This way I was able to fit two characters in the
image, positioning them correctly within the frame.
Existing product
My product

15. Main Image
The main image is the first thing audiences or passer-
by’s see, therefore needs to be eye-catching,
appealing to the eye and informative. Like existing
horror film posters I tried to portray what the film is
about through the image. However unlike the posters I
analysed I decided to have a grey scale image. As
the colour black connotes fear, danger and the
unknown whereas white connotes purity, fragility and
vulnerability. I thought the combination of the two
colours to form a grey-ish image would connote all
these characteristics.

16. Title
Existing product
My product
The title is a generic convention of a film poster. It is one of the main focal
points overall to inform audiences what is being advertised. The title generally
tends to have a distinctive font, this is for audiences to remember it as an iconic
feature especially when wanting to find out more about the film. On posters
film titles have no conventional placing. It Is placed where it is in proportion to
the rest of the poster and other text. The title is also the largest text on the page
to ensure its bold and eye-catching for audiences to see.

17. Actors/Actresses
My product
Generally the names of actors are presented
on film posters when actors are well known
celebrities. This is a way of attracting
audiences if they like or already know the
actor in the cast of the film. From my
researched I gathered that actors are usually
presented at the top or bottom of the page or
sometimes in a random arrangement if the
genre can achieve this. However in the three
posters I analysed only one (The Broken)
actually presented the actresses name which
was placed at the bottom of the poster above
the title. I decided to place my actors in the
middle of the poster underneath the title to
create another focal point of the poster.

18. Taglines
My product
Existing product
Taglines are used to help promote the product
being advertised in this case the film. Taglines are
usually a few words or short sentence directed to
the audience or to emphasize what the film’s about.
For example in The Unborn ‘It wants to be born
now’. ‘Are you ready to face your fears?’ Is a
rhetorical question which I used as the tagline on
my poster. The use of personal pronouns is to direct
the question to audiences and encourages them to
find out the unknown answer by watching the film.

19. Date and Credits
My product
Existing product
I followed the generic codes and conventions of a
film poster by adding the release date and credits
at the bottom of my poster. Credits are usually
presented in very small but legible font with the
production company’s logo at either side and
sometimes the rating certificate. The font colour I
chose blends into the poster so it doesn’t draw
audiences away from the main focal point of the
poster. Additionally I added a website to
encourage audiences to increase audience
interaction with the film for the use of finding out
more information about the film.

20. My magazine cover conforms to the forms and
conventions of existing film magazines by following the
generic house style. Film magazines are another form of
film promotion. The front cover is very important when
trying to attract customers. To ensure my magazine
cover was conventional I previously analysed
professional existing products (Total film, Empire,
Entertainment) to gather research. In the end I decided
to closely follow the generic conventions of the
magazine ‘Empire’ for my own product. Some general
forms and conventions of a film magazine front cover
are: main image, masthead, buzz words, banner,
barcode, date and issue number.

21. Following the conventions
Masthead is presented in
the conventional Empire
font in the largest font size
and top third of the page.
Existing product My product
Price, date and issue number
Conventional tagline
Barcode
Main image
Buzz words –
“Exclusive”
Banner/Skyline
Main cover line
Cover lines
Here is a short comparison between one of Empire’s existing magazine covers and my
own mimicked product. It is evident that based on my research and analysis I have
followed the generic codes and conventions of a typical Empire magazine front cover.
However I decided to challenge a few of these conventions.

22. Conventions I challenged
Existing product
My product
The buzz word ‘exclusive’ I used as a
unique selling point for my magazine.
As existing readers of the magazine
who know it is exclusive will feel the
need to buy this edition as one similar
to it probably wont be issued again.
When first producing my magazine
front cover I had planned to place the
‘exclusive’ line underneath the main
cover line. However It didn’t work
well as it was unreadable. After asking
a few peers I decided to place it under
the masthead where the font was
more bold.

23. Unique selling point
(USP)
Most magazines use a USP to attract a mass
audience and to potential consumers. I used a puff
(a convention used in order to grab the audiences
attention) this is to establish that the magazine is
unique compared to any other. Also as they are
able to ‘WIN!’ this is a great way to draw in
audiences as they feel they are gaining more when
purchasing the magazine.