Research Into Insitutions That Distribute Similar Products

Warner Bros 

https://www.warnerbros.co.uk/

Crime Films they have distributed:

• Gangster Squad 
• The Dark Knight
• Live By Night
• The Accountant
• Sherlock Holmes
• Se7en

The target audience for these films are generally for a mature audience, they are all rated PG 12 or 15. For films such as Se7en and The Dark Knight, the audience that might be attracted will be around their late teens to their early 30s. 

This is a major film distribution company that distributes many of the mainstream films of a whole range of genres and target audiences of all ages. Many of their films are well-known and very successful, starring big-named actors and directors. Given how our film will not feature anyone famous and does not have a high budget, it will be unlikely that Warner Bros would consider distributing our film as they do not appear to take much interest in small- independent low budget productions but rather mid- high budget films.However if they were to show an interest, it would leave a better impression on the audience as they would think that our film will be of the same quality as the high budget blockbuster films.

Lionsgate

https://www.lionsgate.com/
Crime films they have distributed:

• Now You See Me (via subsidary Summit Entertainment)
• Criminal (via subsidary Summit Entertainment)
• American Psycho 

Lionsgate has its own placement in the UK. It has distributed films such as Now You see Me, Criminal and American Psycho. The type of audience Now You See Me stars big named actors such as Jesse Eisenburg and Dave Franco, and might attract is those in their 20-40s. American Psycho and Criminal might attract a slightly older audience as American Psycho features a great amount of violence that will not be appropriate for young audiences and was made 13 years before Now You See Me. Criminal stars Kevin Costner, who was 61 years old at the release of the film, and so an older audience might find the film more relatable. 

As Lionsgate has multiple subsidary companies that distribute a great range of genres of films that are targeted towards audiences of all ages. Their films appear to range from high-low budget both mainstream and independant, therefore it is very possible that they could distribute our low-budget indepandant film. 


Arrow Films 

http://www.arrowfilms.co.uk/
Crime films they have distributed:

• 52 Pick Up
• River

Arrow Films is a lesser-known, UK-based distributor company. They appear to distribute mainly independant horror films and very little crime films. The films they distribute are very little-well known, which I do not think will be very beneficial for our film, especially since they so not specialise in the distibution of crime films. On the other hand, our film is an independant low-budget, it will be likely they would conider distributing it as many of their films are within this category.

The Works Film Distribution

http://www.theworksfilmgroup.com.
Crime films they have distributed:

• Kill Your Darlings
• The Killing of John Lennon
• Havoc

The Works Film Group specialises in the distribution of independant feature and documentary films. Looking at their website, the films that they often distriute are comedies and romances, and that there is a lack of crim films. This could benefit The Works if they were to distribute our film as it will help to fill a gap in their market. As our film is also an independant, it will be likely that The Works will consider distributing our film. However, as it is not well heard of, nor are the films they distribute, there is a chance that our film would not obtain much publicity and it may be thought of low-quality compared to the films that are distributed by major distribution companies.

How will this research affect my ideas?

In order to make our trailer appear more professional, we can incorporate the logo of a distribution company at or near the start of our film trailer, and if that distribution company is a major company then it will make the audience believe that our film is of high-quality, similar to films produced by major studios, rather than a low budget independant. If there was one particular distribution company whom would distribute our film, I believe Lionsgate would be the best choice. As reasons mentioined before, Lionsgate is a well known distributer, is UK based, and has subsidery companies which also distribute mainstream and independent films. If we show their logo in our trailer then our audience will know that this film will be of the same quality of other films they have distributed, such as The Hunger Games and Now You See Me, which are very popular films. Warner Bros appears to distribute only mainstream, high budget films so they will not be likely to consider distibuting our film. Though they dal with independant films only, Arrow is very much horror based, so distribution for our film will likely not benefit them nor us as they are experienced dealing with another market, and The Works distributes films that are barely heard of, therefore this would benefit the reputation of our film as an audience might think that it will not be worth watching if it was not distributed by a major company.

Ideas Update & Inspirations

The Idea:

My other group member, Georgina Gilbey, and I and a long online discussion in order to finalise the ideas we have for the narrative of the film, its characters, and the film's title. Here is what we decided upon:

The Plot:

The idea for the trailer is fairly the same as before. The plot of the film is that there is a serial killer who is posing as a member of Anonymous in order to lure in their targets. The targets in this case is a group of drug addicts. We do not plan for there to be a distinct antagonist, and leave it so that it is the audience's decision who they side with. I also want to make it ambiguous why the hacker is targeting this group as I believe that it will help to create a stronger enigma to help intrigue the audience into wanting to watch the film.

Film Title Potential Names:

• Overkill                       -1
• Pandemonium            -1
• Illicit Obsession          -5
• Adverse Pursuit          -1
• Adverse Addictions     -1

So far we have come with these five names for our film title. 'Overkill' is a combination of the words 'overdose' and 'kill', so the title itself refers to both the drug users and the serial killer. 'Pandemonium' means an 'uproar' or disruption. It relates to the narrative of the film, and it also sounds dramatic and intense, which we liked about it.  the definition of 'Illicit' is an illegal activity, such as taking drugs or killing people, and of course 'obsession' means that you are addicted to it, so this can apply to both sides of the conflict in the story. 'Adverse' has a meaning of being harmful, which can connect to the fact that drugs are not healthy, and that our serial killer has a tendency to harm others. We came up with two titles with this word, the first is Adverse Pursuit, which can relate to the fact that the serial killer is on a pursuit to harm the drug users. Adverse Addictions is catchy because of the alliteration so we thought it would stick inside people minds as it is repetitive and it also has the meaning that the addictions that people have are harmful, which can relate to both the serial killer and druggies. 

It is unlikely that we will use the name 'Overkill' as it sounds like it would belong to an action video game, and Adverse Pursuit sounds as if it belongs to an action-orientated film. Pandemonium is a word that is not used very often, so those who are unfamiliar with the word will not know the meaning of it to understand the underline message. We also asked nine people which title they thought would best suit a crime film and which appealed to them the most, in which 5/9 favoured Illicit Obsession, and so this is highly likely to be used as the film's final title.

Characters: 

Anon - The serial killer/hacker posing as an Anonymous member.

As the audience will not need to know this characters name in the trailer, in order to keep the enigma, we decided that that character will simple be named 'Anon as it is an abbreviated version of the word anonymous, as well as the organisation name. It is also a gender neutral name as we haven't decided upon the gender of the character. Given how they will be wearing a mask and how their voice will be altered to sound like an Anonymous member, the gender is not important. 

The Druggies:

• James
• Louise
• Eve
• Daisy
• Alice
• George

At this moment in time, we have not confirmed what actors will star in our trailer so the character names are subject to change. Given how our film is targeted towards primarily a male audience, we feel that there will be a lack of availability of m,ale actors to be able to appeal to a male audience. A number of actors will likely be female, and will only be featured in the trailer for a number of seconds or act as extras. We will use the lack of male actors to our advantage, and possibly suggest that our serial killer is targeting specifically females, and that one of the male druggies has a suspicion as to what is going on, which therefore can add more enigmas to our trailer to further the intrigue of our audience. 

Other Characters: 
Connor - A potential investigator who will have a suspicion of the events going on, and will question why the drug users are being targeted. 

Film Trailer Inspirations

Poster and Magazine Cover Inspirations:

Moodboard:

Below is a moodboard I created to help me show my vision for the trailer, collecting images from pinterest. It has also helped me gain better ideas of costumes, shot types, lighting and other visual ideas that I can use in the final product.

Synergistic Marketing Research

Synergy from tbriers

Magazines & Audience Appeal

In this double page spread for Skyfall, the most dominant feature is the main image, which takes up almost the entirety of the two pages. As this is likely the first two pages of an article that takes up about 4-6 pages in a magazine, there is not a lot of text shown. The purpose of this page would be to attract the audience and draw them in so that they continue reading the remainder of the article. The first thing that draws your eye is the image of Daniel Craig dressed as the character James Bond. This would take up the entirety of one page. The words 'something old something new' draw your attention away from bond and onto the second page to help draw you into the article. The text for the 'something old..' and the introductory paragraph is written in a bold, italic font that is different from the rest of the article text. This helps to draw attention as it is large and eye-catching. The text is written in back, which stands out against the low saturated, pale background. 

Magazines can be more beneficial for film fans if they want to find out information about a new film as posters and trailers cannot tell you everything. Film trailers are left to be enigmatic, so we are left asking questions that we will want answered, but the only way to do so is to see the film, and sometimes the plot of the film is not fully conveyed in a trailer, so a viewer may be left feeling confused. With a poster, although it is a good way to advertise a film, it is very hard to convey the narrative or plot of the film since it is only a still image, so it does deliver a good amount of information. If the poster showed all of the information for the audience, it would include a lot of text that many people will not find captivating to read. With a magazine, you can read articles about the film that vary between interviews from directors or stars, to reviews. An audience can gain information about the film from the perspective of the directors and stars, such as why the characters are portrayed in certain why, what image they had for the film and the intended impact on the audience should be. .The magazine can also explain more in depth as to what the plot of the film is, whilst avoiding spoilers for those who have not had the chance to see it. These articles can be written in more of an informal and friendly tone that will make the magazine feel more personal to the reader

However not everyone buys magazines and some people prefer getting information visually through trailers or posters rather than having to read about it. With trailers, audiences will be able to see the full extent of the action in the film, which could be a film's selling point. They would also get first hand experience at seeing certain actors in their roles, something a poster or magazine cannot offer to the audience. If an audience watches a film purely for it's action scenes or an actor or director, then a trailer would appeal more to this type of audience.  A poster would be better suited towards a person who is stationary and has the time to stop and look, such as those who are waiting at a bus stop. Those who are driving would be more concentrated on the road and other drivers to be able to stop and look at a poster.  Trailers and posters appeal to a general audience, whereas film articles apply to more of a specific, perhaps niche audience, as those with a strong interest in films will be more likely to buy a film magazine. Magazines can be read at any time of the day, any day, and can be read at the viewer's own pace, or resumed when they have the time.

To summarise, a magazine can offer much more information for an audience about  a film they might be interested in seeing. It will make the audience feel like the film is more personal to them since they will have the background information with them should the watch or purchase the film. A trailer is more appealing to an audience who want to find out about the film, but want to watch it with only a vague idea what it is about so that their expectations are not raised too high, or if they are interested in the visuals or cinematography of the film. A poster will appeal most to those who like to gather information visually and perhaps speculate what the film is about based on what they see in there poster. 

Magazine Textual Analysis

Magazine Textual Analysis from tbriers

Film Posters: Layout and Composition

When creating a poster for a film, you have to take into consideration the composition and layout of in order to make sure your audience sees everything on the poster by guiding their eye. Common forms of composition include using the 'rule of thirds', where the page is split up into 9 equally sized sections, and where the lines meet at a '+' shape, is where the eye-line and focal points may be. A 'Z' shape is another composition technique used. This may be done where they're is text at the top and bottom of the poster, with a large image in the middle. A third composition technique is the triangle '∆' shape. This is where you get drawn from the bottom to a singular focal point at the top of the page. Posters can include only one of the composition types, or can contain multiple. The following are examples of how film posters use layout and composition: 

Z,  ∆ & O Composition, Two-Person Close-up, Describing Background.

For this poster for the film Avatar, the composition layouts used are the ∆ type and the Z type. The 'Z' is formed as you are first brought to look at the text at the top of the poster, which you read from left to right. You then move your sight downwards to the film title, but this would mean you will look across the main image in order to see this. You would then read the title from left to right, therefore forming the 'Z' shape. The ∆ shape is created as the two faces on the main image are placed fairly in the middle at the top of the poster, and there is a distinct different in terms of tone of the two faces, making the lighter face of the human stand out more. The curvature of his face almost forms a diagonal line towards the top or bottom of the poster, depending on how you look at it. The bottom of the main image in the poster is a lot more spaced out and is right above the film title, which creates the wide base of the triangle shape. This poster also slightly features the 'O' composition as the curvature of the planet in the background takes your eyes i a circular motion from the top of the alien's head, towards the bottom of the poster where you can see the banshee, and then towards the floating rock. As this poster features a close up of two characters who are placed very close to each other, we can assume that theses are the main characters and will be or will grow to have a close chemistry or romantic interest. This also has a vague describing background as it shows that they are not on earth but an entirely different world.


Other posters that feature a close up of two characters can suggest something different however, depending on the genre of the film and how close they are positioned together. If they are placed facing each other and far apart we can assume they're enemies, if they're placed back to back and looking away from each other then we can assume they are brothers in arms or a different side to the same person. The proximity, facial expression and eye direction are key to defining the chemistry or relationship between characters in a poster. 
Other examples of close ups:

Z & Rule of Thirds Composition, Group with Describing Background.

The Poster for Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children follows a similar composition to the Avatar one. The 'Z' shape is created in the same way with the text at the top and bottom of the poster, and the '∆' shape is created by having wide space on the main image and the film title at the bottom of the poster, and you are also brought back up towards the centred text at the top. Unlike the Avatar poster, this one uses the 'rule of thirds' technique. The character  in centre is placed within the middle sections of the rule of thirds grid, with her eyes approximately just above eye level. In the top left section there is a floating girl, in the top middle section we can see an old building, the top right is taken up by a tree, the mid left features a pair of twins and a young girl holding up a rock, in the middle right there is a young woman casting a flame and an invisible boy.  Another young by is placed on the 1st vertical line and is only just below the eye level line, which suggests he is only slightly below authority or importance to the woman in the centre. The distance and positioning of the characters helps to tell us who are the main characters and how important they are to the plot. This is also an example of a group with a describing background. There is an old building which we can assume to be the 'home' for the 'peculiar children'. The house seems to have its own grounds, away from any other civilisation. The 'peculiar children' are suggested through the fact that all features supernatural abilities, and as they are all within the grounds of the house, we can assume that they live there. 


Like with the two-person close-up, the relationships in groups can be stermined by the way the characters are posing or interacting with each other in the poster.If they are standing away, have their back turned, or are facing each other from a distance from the protagonist, then they can be assumed to be an antagonist. If they are facing each other and are close to each other then they will be comrades, if one has their hand wrapped around another person in an embracing or protective manner, then we can assume that they have a romantic interest in each other. Seeing the characters from a distance allows us to see more of what they look like and their relationship to other characters and the world they live in.



Describing backgrounds are used to help tell the audience the type of world that the characters live in, or to hint what the conflict might be. Without having a background, we can assume that the characters live in our normal world of Earth, and that they live normal lives. Plain backgrounds are more commonly used with romance or comedy films since we are more focused on the characters rather than the world.

Groups with decribing backgrounds:
In the below examples we can see that Captain America: The Winter Solider is about Captain America fighting off invading other-world forces along with Black Widow and Nick Fury, and that the characters in the distance will play an antagonistic role. In Crimson Peak we can tell that this film will take place inside an old gothic mansion during a time period within the past. In Oz: The Great and Powerful, we can see that this does not take place on earth, but a different fantasy world, and that given how Oz's costume looks different to the other character's, we can assume he is foreign to this world. 

Groups without backgrounds:
In these examples the posters only have 1-2 colour backgrounds to them. As I mentioned before, this is to make the characters the main focus as the films take place in an everyday setting so the poster does not need to establish a setting. In order to suggest the genre of the film, they rely on the typography and costumes of the characters. For Smart People, we can tell that the film will be academic-related given how the characters look like stereotypical students/ professors. In The Sapphires poster we can tell it is about soul singers as again, they are dressed like the typical soul singer. The poster for Enemy is also an example of using the perspective/vanishing point compositon as it draws the audience's eye into the side of the poster .

One-Person Posters
Long Distance:
Like the group posters with both describing and non-describing backgrounds, the long distance shots of a singular character helps us to identify who is the protagonist, or in some cases antagonist, for the film. . When showing the character by themself without a background, such as in 17 Again, we can assume that this is the main character for either a romance and/or comedy film which is set in a normal, everyday setting. When it shows the background it helps to tell the audience what relationship the characters have with the setting that they are in In the case of Pandemic, it could suggest that the character is a lone survivor in an apocalypse, or is one of the few survivors left, judging by the overgrown plantation in the foreground and destroyed city in the background. In Snow White and the Huntsman, the poster shows us Snow White who is grasping a knife. The enviroment around her is fantastical in both a horrific and beautiful way. This suggests that Snow White is not safe in this world she lives in.

Close Up:
By viewing a character from a close-up shot, we are able to identify the character's face better, and see their faciel expressions and emotions from a better perspective. The drawback to having a close-up of a characters fae for the poster is that it can be difficult to get an idea of the plot for the film, however the following examples still manage to give a hint about what the film's story is. For Scream and Annabelle we can tell these are horror films as scream shows a close-up of a female who looks scared of something, as the viewer we do not know what she is scared of. For Annabelle the doll purpously is make to look haunting and even has blood dripping from the eye, showing common iconography for the genre. The viewer will be able to determine that this will be the antagonist in the film and that the doll will potentially be a murderer as suggested by the blood. In The Martian poster we can get a vague idea of the setting he is in because of the reflection on his round helmet, which shows a rocky, barren land. The text over Matt Damon's face says 'Bring him home', which tells us the film will be based around a rescue mission.

Is it important to follow or break conventions?
The image on the right is a very typical layout for a film poster. Most of the time the film title is near to the bottom of the page with the credits underneath. When following this template you can clearly get across the right information needed and it will have the right type of composition to draw an audience's eye across it. However in order to make the film come across as unique, I think it is important to make the poster for the film unique as well. Not only will it make it look more creative, but it will make the poster look more rememberable, which will keep the idea of of the film inside the viewer's heads. I like the idea of having a describing background in my poster, as it will give an idea as to what the setting is for the film, however I wouldn't have the characters typically grouped together or having their back turned to the viewer as I find this to be an overused approach. I would like to incorporate perspective into my poster, like the Enemy poster as I haven't seen many posters to use this type of compositon and I think it is a clever way to draw your audience in. The idea of having a close-up of the anonymous mask for the main image has crossed my mind, but I believe it would not give much of a hint to the audience as to what the story is about. I think it is also clever when a film poster incorporates it's text, such a the film title, into the main image, like they have done in this poster for the film Fury (Left).

I found this video on Youtube explaining how a lot of film posters use the same composition and layout, also covering common poses such as having the protagonist alone in the poster with their back turned to the audience, or how in rom-com posters the female of the couple is pulling on a tie or scarf to show that she is in charge. Another thing covered is how action films these days often use the teal and orange colour scheme for the background as they are complimentary colours and stand out.

Film Posters: Teaser VS Theatrical

Teaser posters are made early on in the marketing campaign. The posters are often simplified, usually showing just a logo or iconic image such as a person's head or a significant object or symbol.  They often hint a month or year when it is to be released, and sometimes add a tagline that suggests the narrative of the film.  Theatrical posters are released closer to the release date and contain more details such as directors, actors, and a more specific release date, the poster will also have a more detailed main image and background. 

BFG: 

Teaser: 

The teaser poster for the BFG is very basic in design. It does not feature a specific release date,only stating that it is to be released in July. It does not have any names of actors or directors as this is  supposed to be a surprise for a later release. The main image shows a young girl, Sophie, standing by the friendly giant's feet.We are deliberately not shown the giant's face in this poster to again, leave it as a surprise for a later date as the giant has been made out of CGI in this film, and fans of the original cartoon or the Roald Dahl book will want to know how similar the giant's face will look to previous versions. This poster also does not show the company name, but does give a hint as to who it is made by as it says 'From the human beans that created ET and the author of "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" and "Matilda"'.

Theatrical:

For the theatrical release of the poster there is a significant amount of more details given about the film. We can now see the giant's face, he is also the main focus of the poster, whereas Sophie was the main focus in the teaser poster. A specific release date has been given as July 1st, which has been written in a fairly large font in yellow at the bottom of the poster in order to make it stand out against the rest of the text. The company name 'Disney' has been placed above the film title to ensure audiences who is creating this film and that it is appropriate for young audiences. On the theatrical poster, we can see the credits listed at the bottom of the poster, in which this poster tells us the producer and director, Steven Spielberg, director of photography, assistant producers and directors etc. Other company names are listed at the very bottom, as well as information saying that this film will be in 3D and Real 3D. The 'From the human beans that created...' has been copied onto this poster, so those who had not seen this information on the teaser poster can see it now, and if they liked the works of Roald Dahl or the creators of ET then they will likely want to see this film. This poster also has a tagline, unlike the teaser. This tagline will be rememberable and catchy, and will be sure to make the audience remember the film. Considering how this theatrical poster will be released closer to the release date, it would be more important to release all of these details now rather than on the teaser poster as most of this information would likely have been forgotten by the time the film is released, therefore it is better to create the teaser poster with a lack of information and build up intrigue over time.