Flat Plans

In order to find the best layout for my poster and double page spread, I thought it necessary to design some flat plans so I could decide on the layouts to go for. 

Of the three flat plans I created for my double page spread, I've chosen the latter image because I find this design busy, but not too busy, and original in its presentation of information, for example the caption in a blood splatter. It is also the perfect mix of image and text, with enough text to make the article interesting, but also with enough images to bring the colour and the interesting visuals to the article as a whole. The previous two lack this harmony, with the first having too few images, and the second having far too much text. 

Of the three poster designs, I prefer the last one because it has the explosion of the subject's mind. This is similar to the first flat plan, which has a mushroom cloud, symbolising the explosion, but I think the one of the latter image is much more controlled and easier to be more experimental with, making it more a symbolism of mental illness than of war. The second image features the antagonist of the film, however my audience feedback told me that I should feature the protagonist, and the use of the antagonist would mean restrictions in the design as it would have to have likeness to the film. 

 These flat plans have allowed me to very easily visualise different design ideas I have, and I will endeavour to create a digital version of my favourites for my final products. 

Draft Review Article

As my double page magazine review is a promotional product for my film, writing a positive article discussing mostly the pros of the film is going to make the reader of the article want to watch my film, No Escape. Therefore I wrote a draft version before putting it straight on to my double page spread: 

     For a debut short Brit film, this horror-thriller hybrid is not the worst Blair Witch inspired film we’ve ever seen.  Original, unexpected, and with real ghost orbs, the psychological short is still one of the most popular, and constantly surprising, genres for first time film makers.

     What really makes this film is the acting. I don’t know where they got these kids from, but they seem to really bring the characters to life. Franklin (played by Blaine Gosling) is a 16 year-old boy who has been diagnosed with paranoid-type schizophrenia, with vivid hallucinations both auditory and visually that ruin a night documentary making with his best friend, Sam (Jordan Overal). Franklin is consistently aware of his mental illness, yet not being consumed by it. When it comes to the [spoiler alert!] climatic fight scene, he revolts, and the camerawork captures the emotion he’s showing perfectly.

     Now, I know what you’re thinking. “Oh, it’s just another film where a kid sees and hears things that are not there and tries to make a film about it, blah blah, we’ve seen it all before,” but no. You’ve not seen this yet. Yes, the filming plot is just a plot device to let the real action happening, and it is quite clichéd, but when the action parts from this, the narrative takes a turn for the better.

     The main setting for the film is an abandoned asylum, filmed at the dark, historic attraction of Bodmin Jail, Cornwall, and this realistic location gives the whole film a sense of reality. Not only this, but the bustling café scene and the use of a Super 8 camera in the pond scene, though slightly irrelevant to the plot, allows diverse mise-en-scéne to really add to the build up of the narrative. Not only this, but the SFX make up looks real enough to have been done by a Hollywood professional!

     The short ends with a scene so unexpected that I had to take a step back; this a plot twist you don’t want to miss. Despite its evidently amateur appearance in places, this really isn’t a bad first shot at making a short film, especially when made by some A Level kids. Take five minutes of your time to watch and appreciate this film, you won’t regret it.

On review of this article, I think that this is the best article I could have written, being humourous and informative, and therefore this is the version I am going to use for my final product. 

Poster and Double Page Spread Audience Research

Before starting the creation of my poster and double page spread, I created another survey so that I could make my ancillaries most appealing to the target audience. I put forth four questions, two relating to the colour palettes, and two relating to the images. 

Black and white were chosen the most, closely followed by blue, yellow, and orange, and therefore those are the five colours I will use to create my poster. The black of the costume of the main character could work here, against a blue and white background, and incorporating yellow and orange will be interesting.

Unanimously, black, white and red were the all chosen by everyone that took the survey, which is quite typical for horror review pages, therefore this will be simple to do, and using black as the background colour will work really well here. 

Three images deemed popular, which is a result I agree with, especially when having a large main image on one page. 

The final question was about the content of the image: who/what should it be of? The unanimous decision received if that the image should be of the protagonist of the film. This follows conventions well and will be an exciting way to use imagery to connote the psychological theme in the film.