MEST1 Exam Blog: December 2011

the industry uses varies ways to promote a film, such as magazines covers, interviews and most importantly posters, which is very effective as for example this poster of super is uses, a long shot and has more dark

lighting (enigma codes) to show suspense to the audience, furthermore also we don't see the actors faces by the what we see we know they are children and also "Steven Spielberg tells us it is going to be his typical Si-fi movies, as we see that from the futuristic lighting and also from the tag line "it arrives" where the word "it" signifies it could be alien as we have previously seen in a typical Steven Spielberg movie,the audiences are families as Steven Spielberg films tend to be about children and have super natural elements making the children wanting to see the film meaning parents will have to come therefore making it a family audience.
print media can reach out to many people, however as mostly young people e.g teenagers are more into "lean foward media" meaning a more older generation of a higher economic band would be into print media such as Broadsheets as it is for the A band who are more literate. However this actually doesn't give a chance for the audience to interact however now audiences use the information as they like (gratifications) so they can use this information for how they like for example in print they might use the information for cognitive needs (gaining knowledge and information), to gain more knowledge about the movie.Making it targeted towards the band a-b as they are more of a middle class and tend to be more literate and are into print media. This platform would interact well with E-media as you can have articles online as more people are into "lean forward media" by putting the same article on-line they will be gaining a larger audience. furthermore it could be in decline as people have to pay £1-2 for a magazine to read one article not making it a value for money, as they can go on-line and read the same article for free. Moreover by the poster a more white background would be attracted to the movie due to the characters and also the setting which is USA and how their lifestyle is also a older audience would be attracted to it as "super 8" is a old camera making them identify with it and feel they can relate to the time zone, as they will feel they are "back in their childhood".

Effectiveness
using print media, as posters it can be effective such as this poster has allot of enigma codes which could generate a eagerness in the audience to go and see the trailer and watch the movie itself which could be a representation of could marketing, however other print media such as magazine interviews or newspaper articles could be considered less effective as according to a "press gazzatte" website film magazine sales have dropped by 23.3% showing how less effective it has become furthermore as super 8 is more of a child oriented movie they should be promotion in a more interactive land scape, as also people are becoming more interested in "lean forward media". moreover it is also not cost effective as E-media is free promotion can be done cheaper and the message can be sent to larger audience however it is hard as not allot of people actually read magazines and the institution has to pay for it making it a loss for them as the advertising has not been effective.as the print industry is going into decline.

Moving image

another good example of moving images could be interviews, award appearances and trailers/TV spots. TV spots can be effective as they can be shown in between the most views TV programs e.g In america, american idol however it also needs to be in between the most appropriate as you would not show super 8 trailer during the adverts of Jersey shore as for the content and the timing. the super 8 trailer was shown in-between a family program as it needs to target its audience however TV spots are good, as for this one it lasts about 31 seconds and contains allot of quick jump cuts showing 2-3 second of a scene as we have the
alien coming out of the train however we don't see the alien which creates enigma codes and a excitement within the audience to watch this movie, furthermore it also contains images of the army and the children, and allot of futuristic lighting mixed with dark lighting, where the army gives the idea of Binary opposition of humans VS aliens, telling us it is a typical Si-Fi speilberg movie, gaining its target audience, moreover we see the children and the father which helps the audience identify with their character as the parents will relate to the father and the children to the children from the movie, ,making them wanting to watch the movie as they feel they can "relate" to the target audience. it is different to print as Print just shows one image and audiences have to gather information from that one image however moving image shows you different images and gives you a clearer idea of the movie giving the audience more excitement.
Moving image can relate to many audiences however it depends where it is shown such as it is shown on the internet more teenagers will be attracted to it however if you show it on a channel that is targeted at a specific audience then that audience will be attracted. For example a cartoon tv show on CBBC will attrat children. so it depends however moving image crosses over with other platforms such as YouTube which is a website for videos(moving image) but is online (E-media) , futhermore it can lead to interacivity as if the video is on their offical youtube page then the offical adminstrators can reply to the comments that are left on the trailer. moreover depending where you show the trailer could lead to which audiences are attracted such as showing the trailer on Mtv would attract a more lower economic band as more younger audiences such as students who come in the E band will be attracted to the channel,not reaching its target audience as the audience is mostly Families. Audiences can participate as they can make their own trailer the upload it showing interaction between audiences and the movie, making them more intrested in the movie as they feel invovled, making them remember the movie better showing a good way of promoting. Again this will cross over well with E-media as they can put this trailer on you tube and other websites where mostly audiences gain information about a movie, making it more effective and gaining a wide range of audience. From the trailer more of family's would be the audiences due to the characters E.g father, son etc. also parents will be able to identify with the camera "super 8" making them feel back into their childhood due to the time-zone. more of a american audience will be able to identify with the movie due to the setting and also the racial background being all white furthermore also they can relate with the "american army" and the whole norms of the place.
Effectiveness
Tv in general has been in decline as most of the programs are now available online people are now watching Tv less. as according to BARB in general a person now watches a amount of 29 hours where as in Jan 2010 the average was 31 hours showing a reduction of 2 hours sounding it may not be much but in general that is a about 2 hour programs and 4 half hour programs shows 1 hours of advertising not being effected showing how people now are watching t.v less, and watching more on-line. as also marketing in television is very expensive such as 30 second slot in U.S.A x factor is about $500,000 shows how expensive it is to get Tv spot in a well known show as by putting it in-between mostly watched programs is very expensive. also viewers of awards have dropped as according to Wikipedia MTV awards 2010 lost about 1 million viewers showing how also marketing in Awards is also slowly becoming less effective as people are also watching awards less. However interviews in a well known chat show is effective such as Letterman which gains 1-2 million viewers showing how effective it can be as people will gain more knowledge about the movie and the marketing and will be attracted to go and watch the movie.

E-media

There are many ways for super 8 to promote itself in e-media such as Youtube, social network, itunes and official websites etc.. however a good example good be Super 8 social networking sites, where they are available on Facebook and Twitter. on this page on Facebook there is many information about the stars, movie, the new dvd and access to videos, where as on the twitter page there are tweets about the movie and stars. where the Facebook page has around 500,000 likes on twitter there are about 16,000 followers reflecting a big fan base on the internet. E-media is a very good platform as here audiences have a place to express their feelings in various ways, making the audience feel part of the promotion making it more memorable to them E-media will be more appealing to the "E" band which consists of students etc.. as students and young teenagers tend to be more "tech friendly", and more active on social networks where more promotions of movies take place

Effectiveness
e-media is very effective especially in the past 10 years as how technology has changed. it is very effective as now people are more into "lean foward media" as according to a on-line article on nielsen.com where they say about 3 hours average does a teenager use the internet. reflecting how big of platform it is, also it is cheaper as with one click the message can be sent to thousands of people such as a status on the super 8 facebook page can be seen instantly by 500,000 people, also it gives a chance of interactivity as on twitter the actors have a official account where the audience can tweet them and they can tweet back reflecting interactivity as before media institutions used to say informations and then people used to accept it however now people question it, also audiences can now go on their official website and check information, watch trailers and also make their own trailer again shows a sign of interactivity. furthermore now technology is converging such as the iPhone where super 8 made a app on the iPhone where you can record videos with the effect of a super 8 camera again widening its marketing strategy and audience as it was in the top 10 free app s which gives different people to try it out. Also it gives a chance for audiences and fans to feel part of the marketing as there are many fan sites and fan trailers and reviews.

Super 8 media platforms

E-mediaYoutube-
trailers
teasers
interviews
reviews

website-
“scariest thing I ever saw”

social network-
Facebook
twitter

Moving image
TV spot
mtv movie awards
film shows
chart shows
trailers

Print media reviews
articles
news
interviews
posters

http://www.empireonline.com/reviews/review.asp?FID=136812 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1dJVotqVDok
http://twitter.com/#!/super8movie
http://www.facebook.com/Super8Movie
http://www.scariestthingieversaw.com/

moving image analysis

extract from 500 days of summer

Extract from 500 days of summer

This scene is of the main protagonist to dancing to the song you make my dreams come true-Hall and Oates. This part of the movie there is only use of non-diegetic sound which is the song, showing that this is a dream scene as he is imagining himself doing all this and to give a effect of it they used only non-diegetic sound to give it a unnatural feel. Furthermore there are a lot of Mid-shots and long shots used to give it more natural effect and also to show the dancing and the dancers at the back showing a big environment of happiness. The lighting is filter lighting as the lighting is very bright and gives us the natural day feeling. Furthermore the costume is very casual like the image. Also it is bright and happy to give us the feeling how someone would feel like when they are in love, to show they like to dance and sing. Showing it’s a romantic movie, from the lighting and the dancing, music and camera movements.

Friday 2 December 2011

11 images

Image 1- back lighting, it is low key lighting as the back lighting gives it a silhouette effect creating a shadow giving the sense of mystery and enigma codes. Also the shadow is reflecting on one side of the face reflecting to sides to her. This gives the idea of her being a femme fatale as she is holding a cigarette giving the sense of danger; also her hair is tied back giving us a fiercer sense.

Image 2- it is top lighting, it is low key lighting. The light on her face really reflects her expression and looks like she is looking above as she is looking towards heaven and she is coming out of the darkness (evil). It also makes her look more glamorous.

Image 3- back lighting, low key lighting. The back lighting creates a silhouette on him giving a sense of mystery. And power as he is standing in front of the sky showing he owns it. Furthermore the crown on his head gives us the sense of power and the two horns on it can give us the sense of the “devil”,

Image 4-top lighting, low key lighting, the top lighting gives a more glamorous showing like heaven light is falling on him showing he is good, the low key lighting however gives the sense of a dark and mysterious feeling, the low angel show gives the sense of him having authority.

Image 5- back lighting, low key lighting, and the back lighting gives the shadow showing a sense of mystery and also the use key light gives us a clear view of her expression showing the sense of danger, and the low key lighting shows us the environment of danger and mystery foreshadowing something bad.

Image 6- back light, and high key/low key. The blinds blurs out the back light giving a shadow effect showing the sense of mystery telling us what they are doing is bad and is secret. The low key lighting again gives the same effect of “secret”.

Image 7-back lighting, low key lighting. The back lighting gives the shadow effect showing they are walking away from the light meaning they are walking away from “good”. The low key lighting again gives enigma codes hiding their faces showing a sense of “no identify”.

Image 8- back lighting, low key lighting gives the sense of mystery, danger but there is also filter lights giving the sense of glamour and we can see her expressions , which is a scared expression showing the sense of danger where we get that effect from the low key lighting.

Image 9- high key lighting, top light. As she is praying the high key lighting gives a sense of happiness and a heavenly feeling, and also the top lighting shining again gives the sense of gods light and low angel shot gives the sense she has power.

Image 10- low key lighting and back lighting. The low key lighting shows a sense of darkness, evil and danger as we can see someone with a knife giving us the idea of death and the low key gives the effect and the back lighting gives the shadow effect giving the sense of mystery.

Image 11- low key lighting and back lighting. Gives the sense of mystery telling us this is a secret affair, furthermore the gun in his hand gives us an foreshadow of death and danger so the lighting prepares us for the environment.

500 days of summer image

image analysis of a scene from 500 days of summer

500 days of summer is a mixture of drama, comedy and romance. The image is of the couple in a park. The mise-en-scene, of the image that is the costume of the actors are very casual, suggesting a very natural look feeling it’s a very casual day, this helps the audience relate to the characters as they have a casual normal look. furthermore the lighting of the image is more of a high-key lighting( more filler lights) to suggest the hot summer bright day, also there might be more use of the natural light from the outside to again bring out the more natural theme. moreover the actors are giving a in direct mode of address showing there are not connecting with the audience as the hero is looking at the actress showing a sense he is deeply in love as he can't look at anything else and the actress is looking at something else showing a contrast as she isn’t looking at him not giving the same romantic feelings. Next the makeup is very natural and neutral to give the natural day-to-day look not making it look extra. Lastly the props are of a picnic mat showing there are on a picnic giving us the romantic date feeling and there are books on their laps showing that the actors are intelligent which means audiences from the A1-B might relate to them as to their clothing looks very classy and the books showing the sense of intelligence however they might not be able to relate with the park atmosphere as the high bands might go to fancy restaurant for a date. Also couples will like this image as it gives the romantic scene and very natural day feeling as it’s in the park people are running around in the background, giving us a typical American park feeling also young couples will be able to identify as the actors are also young and new actors. And according to demographics American audiences might be able to relate to the audience as to the location, clothing style etc.

super 8 film review

Super 8 review

Age rating: 12A
time : 1 hour 51 minutes
Director: J.J Abrams
Cast: Joe Lamb, Joel Courtney, Jack Lamb, Elle Fanning, Amanda Michalka, Kyle Chandler, Riley Griffinths
Release date 5/08/2011

1970 set up with kids running around with a camera recording a movie who suddenly view something unexpected, what could it be? That’s right it’s your typical bad and ugly looking alien. However this isn’t like you’re every other Si-fi movie; it is a Spielberg Si-fi movie.
After creating his own brand of “Si-fi movies” and many successful years of directing/writing great movies such as E.t and Close encounters of the Third King, Steven Spielberg this time decided to take a back seat in the creative aspect and let director J.J Abrams captain the creative end.
The 2 time Emmy award winning director of Lost finally decided to try his hand in Si-fi movies.
And what better way to start then with paying homage to the classic Si-fi Spielberg movies.
The Si-fi thriller, Super 8 has the correct elements in it for it to be a perfect Homage to Spielberg. Set in the late 70’s, Super 8 Follows a group of school friends who are secretly making a zombie movie for the local film festival, but they accidently capture footage of a major train crash while shooting at the station late one night, later something from the wrecked train escapes causing havoc and destruction and pretty much later you have the army and everyone running around town trying to capture what escapes. Which later the plot goes all “E.T” on us.
Referring to its title the old film format used by enthusiastic home movie creators in the late 70’s, this nostalgic movie gives us the memories of Spielberg’s great hits. Just like Spielberg’s critically/commercially acclaimed movies like the Goonies or Gremlins, Super 8 has that tale of the youth and friendship; not only do the children have the great Sci-fi adventure to solve but they also have a lot of emotional issues everything from death of parent to young love.
The main reason Super 8 has this emotional attachment with the audience is because of their child cast. The three protagonists that stand the most is Riley Griffinths (Charlie) the crazy and excited director of the home movie, we then have Joel Courtney (Joe) the make-up genius in the gang who has his cop father and mothers death to deal with. And finally Elle fanning the school beauty that has her own domestic troubles. This young child cast helps the audience to connect with the film more as we can somehow understand what they are going through it also helps the film to stay grounded even when the plot occasionally shows a slight view of cheesiness.
Credits also to Michael Giacchino for presenting such dramatic and heart-warming background music. The non-diegetic music gives you the correct feeling for each scene as for an emotional scene you can feel the piano playing in the background showing us the emotion oozing out of the scene. Or when the something is going to happen we can hear the silence and a sudden boom to make us jump out of our seats to give us the feeling of the scene.
it’s a good old fashioned entertainer giving us the nostalgic feeling of a Spielberg movie. The nifty special effects and gimmicks sometimes do get the better of the slow moving plot. I’m going with 3/5 for super 8 don’t miss it if you are a fan of a good old Spielberg movie, and make sure to stay till end there is a clever surprise!