Narrative Theories

 Tim O'Sullivan believed that all media texts produce a narrative. He believed that to make a narrative, a story and a plot both had to be present in the text. Story+Plot = Narrative. He believed that the story is made up of what is inferred (what happens),  the plot is what is presented by the text (how we are shown what happens) and that these added with non-diegetic material produced a narrative. The diegesis of a text is the fictional world where the narrative occurs.
Tim believed that narratives offer a set of ideas of us as a society, and how we are represented. This is why we find narratives interesting. Tim also argued that the narrative had to have a degree of verisimilitude (how real/true the story is). 

Tzvetan Todorov's theory of equilibrium can be used to back up the statement: "Linearity of cause and effect within an overall trajectory of enigma resolution." His theory for narrative structure explains how a narrative starts with a state of equilibrium, where the protagonist and antagonist are in their own diegesis and everything is in balance. The "enigma" occurs in the next stage of the narrative, which Tzvetan labels as a state of disruption. This disruption is often where the meeting of the protagonist and antagonist occurs. This then leads to the next stage which is the quest. This is the main [art of the narrative where the protagonist tries to overcome the obstacle which is the disruption. This overcoming then leads to the final stage of the theory, which is where a state of re-equilibrium is found as the diegesis and protagonist are back to the normal balance.

Claude Levi Strauss  came up with the theory of binary oppositions. He claimed that within a narrative, either the protagonists or the protagonist and antagonist are binary opposites. Examples of these oppositions are good V's evil, black V's white, rich V's poor etc. This opposition helps to fuel the narrative and give the audience a clear indication of which characters are fighting for which cause.

Introduction to Genre

A genre is a category which helps the audience to identify a product based on common elements and conventions. This has become popular over the past 30 years with the rise of TV and home entertainment meaning that films became available outside of the cinema with inventions such as the VCR, meaning that people could rent and watch films. The new generation are now the most media literate generation there has ever been. As they have grown up surrounded by media texts, they can identify genres very easily, and link conventions to a genre.

Steve Neil came up with a theory for genre. He argued that "Genres are not 'systems' they are a process of systematization." This means that genres evolve over time, they are dynamic and as people push the conventions of a genre, it changes and becomes more popular, eventually becoming a common and recognizable element of the genre.
Steve says that a genre can be identified through -

• costume
• setting
• props
• weapons
• transport
• narrative     

Following Steve's outline you can easily identify a genre and apply it to most films. However, following this method shows that films which may be regarded as a certain genre by most people, is not recognized by Steve. For example, according to Steve Neil comedy would not be a genre as this outline cannot be applied to it. In addition to these, a genre can also be recognized through

• mise-en-scene
• narrative types
• character types
• production studios
• editing styles

Films have to change in order to keep the audience interested, but they still have to keep recognizable conventions so that the audience can still identify with the text. This means that genres can change slowly over time but are still recognizable, and can be compared to films of the same genre from the past.  

Conventions Research

There are many key conventions of film trailers which make them effective to the audience. These are used in the majority of film trailers, and I will try to utilise these in my trailer. The most common conventions are :

• Voiceovers explaining the basic story and giving information
• A clip of each of the stars to pull in the audience
• Subtitles or words on the screen giving information about the setting or story
• Clips of conversation between characters to outline the story
• A range of camera angles used to make the trailer more exciting
• Action builds with the increasing pace of the film
• Music creates an atmosphere giving an idea of the genre
• The film title appears at the end of the trailer after all the action
• A montage is often used to highlight the most important or dramatic parts of the film  

Structural Conventions

A film trailer is often structured around the most exciting parts of the film without giving away too much of the plot. These clips will be chosen in order to attract the widest possible audience, with a basic narrative structure. This structure will most commonly be as follows:

• Opening - A few clips to establish the setting and mood of the film, and introduce the main character(s).
• Build up - A development of the characters, giving more information about them and the place they are set in. 
• Problem - A dilemma is presented where the characters are faced with an obstacle to overcome. There may be one problem or a few, depending on the genre.
• Events - A series of events are shown of the characters struggle to overcome these obstacles and solve problems. The pace of the film builds and is usually left on a small cliffhanger in order to attract the audience into seeing the full film.   

Successful A2 Film Trailer Example

This film trailer got an A* as it is a very successful film trailer. It uses many good qualities such as continuity editing and a good range of clips. It makes the genre and plot of the story clear to the audience, without giving too much of the plot away. The reason it was so successful is because it has a good structure and achieves it's purpose. Firstly the sound in conventional and matches the pace of the trailer. When the text comes up it fits to the music, which is very conventional and something that I want to achieve in my trailer.

This A2 trailer is of the same genre as my own, and so I can get most of the inspiration from this. This trailer achieved a grade A and met it's aims well. It had a good explanation of the back story which acted as a set up for the trailer. They used conventional characters such as young girls as ghosts which is a very common convention. The use of music is good and the editing to make the colours darker really crates a scary ambience. This would be a good technique to use in my video.    

This last trailer got the lower grade of the 3, grade B. Although this is still good I think that it was not as successful as the other trailers as elements such as the sound and camera angles were not as competent. For example there are some parts where the music just stops or the camera is shaky, making it look less professional. This would be something to avoid in my trailer in order to achieve a higher grade.

Audience Profile

Here is my audience profile. Here I can put together and see what my target audience is like, what existing products appeal to them and what is popular with the age group.

My target audience is young people as people aged from 15-18 and 19-24 make up the majority of horror film audiences. Although the genre is popular with both genres, it is less popular with females. I aim to challenge this and make a film that will appeal to both genders.

This mood board shows some of the popular items that people in my age group would buy or use. I can see from this that my audience use a lot of social media and web 2.0. This provides a great platform for me to show my trailers and get them to the target audience. It also means that the audience can stay connected to my product and get updates and news, creating hype leading up to the release of the film. My target audience also attend the cinema frequently and visit DVD stores, meaning that it would be very effective for me to reach the target audience through theatrical trailers shown in the cinema and posters put up in DVD stores.      

Horror Genre, Conventions and Audience Research

Film Trailer Research

I began my project by researching the definition and purpose of film trailers in order to understand how they work and what I will need to achieve in order to make my trailer successful.

The definition of a film trailer is "A short promotional film for a forthcoming feature film. By showing significant and exciting moments with fast cutting, dramatic music and an intense commentary. It aims to create a need and desire in the audience to see the film."

A film trailer has to do many things in a very short time in order to promote the film well. These include:

• making the film seem exciting and interesting
• raising the expectations of the film for the audience
• promoting the stars of the film
• making the genre of the film obvious
• generating interest in the characters
• outlining the story/plot without giving too much away
• highlighting the main action and dramatic scenes
• showcasing the USP of the film
• highlighting members of the production team such as directors

Plan

Brief
Genre research
History of the genre
Audience demographic and psycho-graphic profile
Codes and conventions
Narrative theories
Deconstruction of media texts
Production Plan
Script and synopsis
Storyboard
Animatic
Location report
Test Shots
Casting
Costumes
Health and safety assessment
Prop list and final locations
Shoot first draft
Edit first draft
Codes and conventions of ancillary texts
Plan ancillary texts
Draft ancillary texts
Final edit of film trailers
Evaluation

Mark Scheme (Planning)

Marks out of a total of 20
Minimal 0-7 Basic 8-11 Proficient 12-15 Excellent 16-20

• research into similar products and potential target audience
• organisation of actors, locations, costumes and props
• shortlists, layouts drafting, scripting and storyboarding
• time management
• presentation of the research and planning
• use of digital technology and ICT presentation
• communication skills

Each area is marked as Minimal/basic/proficient/excellent 

A2 Coursework Project Brief

For my A2 coursework I have decided to chose the following brief:

 A promotion package for a new film, to include a teaser trailer, together with two of the following three options:

•a website homepage for the film;

•a film magazine front cover, featuring the film;

•a poster for the film. 

I will be completing the two options of a film magazine front cover and a poster for the film.

The genre of my film will be a hybrid of horror/action. I will create 3 trailers, one which is 2 minutes long, one which is 30 seconds long and one which is 15 seconds long. 

Different Music Videos

Brief - Select 5 different music videos of different genres.

1. Health - "Tears"
I liked this video because it is very unique and adds a story to the music playing.
The video is quite graphic which goes with the heavy style of the music, however this may cause some people to feel uncomfortable and only appeal to a niche audience.

2.Storm Queen - "Look right through"
This video is good as it is full of quirky and interesting scenes that keep the audience entertained throughout the duration of the song. It follows a lose story-line but in other places is completely random and does not go particularly well with the music.

3. Toro Y Moi - "So many details"

This video is good as it follows a basic plot which changes locations in order to get a wide variety of shots and keep the audience entertained.

4. Bring me the horizon - "Can you feel my heart"
I like the video as it goes well with the lyrics and the style of the music.

Eminem - "Without Me"

I like this video as it is funny and upbeat to match the song. It follows a basic plot with some extra scenes for extra humor.