Film Poster Analysis (Harry Potter)

There is no title for this poster as Harry Potter is a massive worldwide franchise that everyone is familiar with. The tagline at the bottom of the screen is only three words which suggests they want you to remember them. The tagline also includes a date which is very important as when a film has a massive fan base, it is important that they all know the film will come out or else they could loose income.

On the poster there are two of the main characters staring at each other very intensely. This pose shows tension and suggests that they are enemies as they are holding eye contact. A close up of their faces is used so we can see the expressions of hate on their faces more clearly.

Red flares are found at the bottom of the poster which connotes danger and blood.  This could be hinting at the contents of the film and that someone will die.

Star power attracts an audience as Daniel Radcliffe has been playing Harry Potter for his whole life.

The dark background of the poster connotes the dark and scary mood of the film

Mise-en-scene has been used through their faces to show that they are in a battle as they are dirty and covered in mud. This could entice an audience to see the film as they will want to know what has happened to cause a fight,

The wand, in between the two characters, connotes the genre of magic and fantasy. We know that the wand is the most important part of the film as it is in the middle of the poster. It could suggest that the only thing between the two characters is the magic. The wand has massive significance to the poster so it must be a hint to the narrative.

The poster is vague and doesn't give away too much information about the plot or characters which is intriguing for the fans.

Film Magazine Analysis (Suicide Squad)

'Empire' is the largest text on the front cover of this magazine, which tells the reader this is the masthead. The large, bright font will catch an audience’s attention as it stands out against the darker background.

The masthead is obscured by the main image which connotes how popular and well known it is. This is because the main image can cover half the title and the audience will still know what magazine it is.

The main colours of the magazine cover match the key colours associated with The Joker. Fans of the Batman franchise and The Joker will instantly recognise these colours, attracting them to the magazine. Dark green and purple create a creepy atmosphere, connoting that this character is the villain in the film. The colours also set the mood for the film. The brighter green colour is used as an accent which drags the reader's eyes across the cover.

The bold colours will mostly appeal to a younger audience as they are more like to understand the link and appreciate the aesthetic.

The main image on this cover is The Joker, a main character from the feature film- 'Suicide Squad'. The image is a posted mid shot where the character looks directly at the reader. This tells the audience who the magazine is going to be about without having to read the titles.

Jarred Leto is wearing the character's outfit which is a direct synergistic link to the film. He is making purple electricity with a serious expression on his face. This adds context to his crazy character which would make a reader want to find out more about his role.

The main cinema demographic for this magazine is 15- 28. I think this because the feature film has a BBFC certificate of 15. Children younger than 15 are stereotypically less likely to want to read and anyone over 28 would be too busy to read a film magazine.

This magazine cover looks quite empty which could harm their intake and profit if more people look for a magazine that has more information inside. 

Directly under the masthead is a cover line that reads 'Meet the Joker'. The text is written on top of a bright green smudge which links to the colours of the character and suggests that the film is messy. The connotation of this text is chatty which makes the reader feel like The Joker is their friend. This is reinforced by The Joker looking directly at the reader. The audience will feel like they know The Joker on a personal level.

A bold green title at the top promises the reader for a 30-page preview of the Oscars. The text is important as it is at the top. Underneath this gratification, cover-lines give an insight into what can be found inside the magazine, including information and reviews on- Steve Jobs, The Revenant and three more films. This information will entice an audience as they want to know more information than anyone else. The different film titles will also attract lots of different audiences as well as the people attracted to the feature film.

The barcode is quite large and found underneath the masthead. The date and price are located inside the 'M' of the masthead, underneath the cover-lines. this information is in a small front as to not take attention away from the rest of the cover. There is no issue number which is very unhelpful for the reader if they're trying to find this issue online. There is no website address on the cover which will also be unhelpful and could potentially harm their income if readers are unable to research or find more information out about the magazine.

The strapline is the main feature film in white. This helps the text stand out against the main image. Attached to the strapline is 'world’s first' which suggests that the information inside, about the feature film, is exclusive. Also, next to the strapline is a tagline for the film. This will let readers decide for themselves if they will find the film interesting or not.

The USP of this magazine is that the audience is promised to meet The Joker. The reader is also promised information on five other films as well as a preview of the Oscars. Gratifications are what makes magazines popular and unique. Attention is gained by the popular and well know title as well as the star power used on the front cover.

I think that this magazine cover would be unsuccessful at attracting an audience as the cover looks quite empty which suggests it lacks information. I think that the cover could make the films sound more exciting by using capital letters for the strapline and cover lines. Only two exclamation marks are used on the cover. Exclamation marks are used to excite the audience and exaggerate the contents of their magazine. The magazine does have an issue number or website address on its cover which may cause a loss of income from other platforms.

AS Film Poster (Gossip!)

This poster is an advertisement for the film teen-angst opening I made for AS.

I have used the same font from the title of my film to create a link between these two formats. I decided to change the title by taking away the lipstick exclamation mark and the lipstick marks to keep the poster simple and clean. I have used a similar font for the tagline and used a lighter shade to draw attention to the text. This also makes it stand out from the other text. The 'gossip!' in the tagline is in italics to link to the title.

The tagline also includes a release date. The release date in summer will attract an audience as most people will be out of school and have lots of free time to go to the cinema. The gratification of this poster promises to give you lots of gossip and drama.

I have used variations of pinks for the text to attract a young female audience as young girls are stereotypically associated with pink. This colour also reinforces the teen-angst genre.

Below the title, I have included the names of the actresses on the poster. This will attract a primarily female audience as they will see that the characters are like them and they will be able to relate to their issues.

The billing block is a small font as it is the least important information on the page. It includes the actor’s names, directors, production and distribution company. Underneath the billing-block is the production company 'arrow productions' logo and the 'filmstyle co' logo.

The main image is of the main characters in the film. They are wearing the same outfits as they wear in the beginning of the film to create synergistic links between the film and the poster. I have doodled over the top of the characters making Jenna's character an angel and Bryony's a devil. This is a hint to the context and narrative of the film. The white doodles also add to the teen-angst genre as doodling can be associated with kids in school. Kids are also stereotypically represented as careless as they vandalise everything.

Their poses and facial expressions also link to the narrative as Jenna is an innocent, happy friend but Bryony is selfish and stubborn.

On the right-hand side of the poster, I have made a rating by the Daily Mail. This will attract an audience to see the film as this shows that is has a good rating and is worth watching.

Film Poster Remake (Ferris Bueller)

Original.                                                                                            Remake.

I struggled to match the fonts and the layout of the small print as I couldn't read what was in between the actor’s names.

Red and white are the key colours used in this poster. Red has connotations of danger and lover and white has connotations of innocence and purity. The fonts used are impact and lilyUPC. Impact makes the title stand out massively in contrast to the plain white background. The main image a close-up of the main character. The image is placed in the centre of the poster and all the text is centred above and below the image. This is done so that the poster is satisfying to look at, everything is inline. In the main image, a young man is represented as being laid back. We know this because of his pose. The character is looking directly into the camera which makes it feel like he is engaging with the audience.

The red and white colours connote that this film has elements of love and comedy. I know that red and white is often used as a rom-com convention as it is used on lots of posters for this genre.

The tagline is supposed to be humorous. The word struggle is used to describe someone relaxing which are two opposing words.

The are no critics or reviews on the poster which could suggest that film didn't do so well or that this is just a poster promoting the film before it came out. The information and billing block is at the bottom of the poster in small print. This information is not important as the title or image, therefore, it goes that the bottom as to not take too much attention away from the other information. the billing block contains director, producer, actors and distribution company.

The is no date on the poster or an age certificate which implies the film is old and has already been released.

I think this poster is good because it is simple and keeps the focus obvious. This might not interest some audiences as they might be or interested in colourful and exciting posters.

Film Poster Analysis (Fight Club)

Fight Club

The main colours that are used in this poster are black and green. The black has connotations of dark and scary as well as creating a mysterious, ominous atmosphere. This conveys the genre of the film successfully as the film is very dark and frightening. Green often is used as a symbol of evil or greed and jealousy. This comes from the saying 'green with envy'. This is very clever as in the film Edward Norton's character is extremely envious of Brad's character. A pink accent in the right corner is a hint to the narrative of the film but also conveys connotations of love between characters.

The main images consist of the two main characters. Norton's character is a smaller scale as Tyler Durden's face takes up the whole right side of the poster and his hand takes up the space above Norton. This could be because Brad Pitt is a lot more famous than Edward Norton or this could be an indication of the plot of the film. Alternatively, as Brad Pitt is very well known, they may have used his face on a bigger scale as star power to grab the audience’s attention. This layout leaves the Narrators character in between Brad's arm and face. The character is lit up in a green light which connotes his envy and is a direct link to the film.

The credits and tagline are all in an orange original font called 'fight this'. The font fits the genre of the film as it is edgy and unique. The actor’s names are in the top right corner which doesn't take anything away from the images but it does stand out. The director's name is in pink and it stands out in between the actor’s names.

'Fight Club' is written on the soap which is intriguing to an audience who haven't seen or heard anything about the storyline. The writing on the soap also adds a comedic undertone as soap isn't closely related to fighting in any way. I believe that this will intrigue an audience to go and see the film as I think they will want to know why the soap is important to the film.

The tagline at the bottom reads 'mischief, mayhem, soap'. This also has comedic values as the first two words are strong words that have connotations of bad behaviour and fighting and then 'soap' has no place next to these words even though it is a key feature of the film. This text adds humour but also mystery for people who don't understand. All the comedic elements help convey the comedy parts of the genre.

The characters are represented as confident and strong men by their facial expressions. Tyler's expression is very serious, this suggests he is the stronger, more confident character out of the two. Norton's character looks smugger as if he is the brains behind the plans.

Star power will help sell the film as Brad Pitts face is this largest image. Audiences will see Brad's face and be excited to go and see his new film.

The gratification of the tagline is that we are promised to see mischief and mayhem from the characters, these words are powerful yet very vague which means the audience will have to go and find out what they mean by this.

The information in the billing block doesn't seem that important as it is in very small print. It includes all the actor’s names and the producer and distribution logos.

There is no information about release dates which could cause the film to do badly at the box office if no one knows when the film is released.

I think that the poster is good and doesn't reveal too much about the plot of the film

I don't think the poster is offensive in anyway but I don't think it is exactly exciting If you haven't seen the film.

Magazine Cover Research (Iron Man)

TTotal Film is the biggest font on the page. This tells us that this is the masthead. This catches people's attention and it suggests that the magazine is important.

White capital letters, in sans serif font, stands out against the variations of blue in the background.

The masthead of the magazine is obscured by the main image. This connotes that the magazine is so popular and well known that even with a picture covering half the title, the fans know what to look for. This also suggests that quite a lot of the audience for this magazine have subscriptions to the magazine. This means that if the magazine is delivered to them every month, they won’t need to go and look for the title. The title includes the word 'film' which will help the reader know what genre the magazine will be.

The main colours of the magazine are blue and gold. The blue in the background adds context to the main image as it looks like it is a cloudy night sky. The blue colours also connote a mysterious and cool mood which conveys the genre of the feature film. The blues in the background and the blue lights in Iron Man's suit also connote that the film has elements of sci-fi. The gold that is used for cover lines around the page is taken from the gold in the main image. This technique means that your eyes travel across the cover looking for the gold. The colours will mostly appeal to a younger audience as they are attracted to bold colours.

The biggest focus on the page is the main character from the feature film, Iron Man. The image of the main character is a posed, mid shot which is the largest image on the page. This tells the audience who the main focus of the magazine is without reading the titles. The character is posing, looking directly towards the audience which engages us and feels like direct communication. The Avengers character is wearing their suit which is a direct synergistic link to the film.

The iconography of the Iron Man suit will attract anyone who is interested in Marvel as is very well known. Iron Man is played by Robert Downey Jr. He is very well known in the film industry which means lots of people will be attracted to the magazine.

The main cinema demographic for this magazine is 15- 28. I think this because the feature film has a BBFC certificate of 12 but stereotypically, children younger than 15 are less likely to want to read.

An image of two men, behind the scenes of the magazine, is found in the top right corner. This pug is placed at the top of the page, above the masthead, as that is where the reader will look first; It should grab the reader’s attention and promise content inside that you can’t find anywhere else. In this issue, the audience is told that this magazine was edited by guests: Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant and we are promised to be shown their covers for the issue.

The barcode and publication company are small in the corner so that they don't take attention away from the main image.

The strapline is the main feature film in gold capitals to match Iron Mans helmet. This colour and font reinforce the genre of the film as they are sharp and cool.

Exclamation marks are used in the cover lines to excite the audience and exaggerate the contents.

The USP of this magazine is that the audience is promised to be shown two British comedians covers for the magazine. The reader is also promised information on Marvel films and The Dark Knight. Gratifications are what makes magazines popular and unique. Attention is gained by the popular and well know title as well as the star power used on the front cover.

Their website address can be found just above the title so readers can access more information. This is aimed at a younger, contemporary audience as they are more likely to use technology. The issue number, date of release and price is found just about the website address. This information is all in a small font as it isn't very important in relation to the rest of the page.

This cover is good as it effectively communicates to the audience the genre of film and what will be in the magazine.  

AS Film Magazine Cover (Gossip!)

Magazine cover for AS teen-angst opening.

The masthead- 'Watch', is the biggest font on the page. To make the title I used, the font, impact and edited some of the letters to make the font original and unique for my magazine. I chose a word that is linked to film as to let my audience know what genre this magazine is. The white capital letters create a big contrast against the background meaning it stands out and shows its importance. As my magazine is unknown I have kept the main image behind the text as to not obscure the title. This is because unless there was a big audience for my magazine, no one would know what to look for.

The background of the main image is a plain, solid colour which could suggest that they are at a school. The girl on the left is wearing a school jumper which reinforces this idea. 

I have tried to create my magazine cover to look as close to a real cover as possible. I have done this by using headings for my cover lines and using exciting words to attract an audience to the content. I have used a 'girly' pink colour for the main headings and strapline to reinforce my genre of teen-angst. Teen girls are stereotypically associated with the colour pink. This also creates synergistic links to my AS film as this colour was used for titles and credits. Exclamation marks are used in the cover lines to excite the audience and exaggerate the contents.

The main image is the focal point of the magazine. The image shows the main characters from our film. The girls are wearing the same outfits from the opening of our film which creates contexts and synergy between the formats.

The image is a casual mid-longshot. I directed the actors to not pose, but still, have an expression that conveys their character in the film. this is because I wanted to show both the happy and dramatic sides of the film. I think that having the actor look directly at the camera connotes a serious, intimidating mood which wouldn't conform to the teen-angst conventions.

The iconography of a school jumper and smart-casual clothes connotes that the characters are at school. This representation of the characters will help convey the genre of the film to an audience. I think that this magazine will appeal to a female audience because of the use of colour and the contents. However, I think that the gratifications of interviews with directors will attract a male audience as they are stereotypically more interested in the making of films than women.

I think that the main cinema demographic for this magazine is 12-28. I think this because the main feature film of the magazine has a BBFC certificate of 12 although children under 15 are stereotypically represented as not wanting to read.

Pugs can be found at the bottom, left corner of the page. The pugs show three images of what will be included in the magazine. I have used stills from two other film openings from my class and an image of one of my peers to show visuals of what is promised to be inside. Pugs are where an image from the inside of the magazine is shown to tell the audience what can be expected. This catches a reader’s eye as and promises more information than you can find anywhere else.

The barcode and publication company are small in the bottom, right corner. I made my own publication company logo in Photoshop and included it next to the barcode. The issue number, date and price is found under the masthead with the website address. All this information is small on the cover as it is not very important in relation to the rest of the cover. The website address can be found just below the title so readers can access more information. This is aimed at a younger, contemporary audience as they are more likely to use technology.

The USP of this magazine is that the audience is promised an insight into the meaning behind a cryptic film 'affliction', behind the scenes and an interview with a new director. Gratifications are what makes magazines popular and unique. I think that this magazine cover attracts attention by the bright colours used on the cover.

This cover is good as it effectively communicates to the audience the genre of film and what will be in the magazine. If I was to remake this magazine cover I would maybe use less pink as I think that this would attract more women than men.  I would have used a background that connotes a school setting more obviously.