The trailer I have created for the British independent Slasher film 'Knife Camera Action' is a standard, formulaic, non-linear trailer. Philosopher Roland Barthes' enigma code is set up within the trailer as a mystery is set up and propels the narrative forward. There is no resolution within the trailer as this would be giving away the ending to the film but there is a climax similar to the format of a film in which there is a montage sequence with fast paced music and quick editing to increase tension. This is a characteristic noticeable in all film trailers.
Similar to Barthes' sequential action code which depicts the events taking place in the narrative - the who, where, when of the story, philosopher Tzvetan Todorov's classic narrative is evident within my trailer. Even though the trailer is non-linear we still see an equilibrium, disruption and recognition. Some films may include various shots of the repair or new equilibrium sector out of context but I chose not to do this as felt it might give away too much of the story and instead chose to keep the ending a complete mystery and surprise for the audience.
I chose to follow some of scholar Vladimir Propp's character and functions and other common conventions of Slasher films in the plot and shots used in my trailer. There are a typical group of teenagers just like in 'Halloween' or 'Nightmare in Elmstreet'. By using these concepts I am following the dominant ideologies that almost all Slasher film adhere to. The final girl is called Charlie (a unisex name) and is not presented as an overtly feminine character. She is given a close up at the start of the trailer so that the audience know she is an important character who is going to feature prominently in the rest of the trailer and subsequently film. The killer is male like almost all Slasher films and is seen in one shot wiping a knife clean of blood. Knives are common Slasher elements and they represent a phallic imagery as at some point in the film the villain will likely thrust his knife into a (female) and symbolically rape her. In all Slasher films (like my own) the final girl and killer are an example of anthropologist Claude Levi-Strauss' binary opposites which in this case is essentially good vs. evil. I chose to subvert the stereotype of having a brunette final girl and a blonde sexually promiscuous character. I came to this decision as I felt it made sense after challenging Roland Barthes' semantic code (as I will later describe) it made sense to dispute another ideology. But as this might seem confusing to the audience I had to make sure it was explicit that the darker haired girl (Sophie) fulfilled the sexually promiscuous role. There was one shot in particular in which Sophie is busy chattering on the phone and so mistakenly spills some milk. This makes her seem ditsy and inane. There is also a typical jock character within the teenage group. He is the pinnacle of masculinity and attempts to 'save the day' and be the bravest all to no avail. We have included some shots of this character in the trailer and through the use of dialogue have made it clear that he will be portraying the jock. Henry (the jock) says to Charlie 'Stay away from him (Michael), he's dodgy.' Henry here seems protective of Charlie as he is telling her what to do making himself out to be the hero when in fact we know that according to Professor Carol J. Clover it is always the final girl who will defeat the villain and come out victorious. The final character used in our trailer is the benefactor. Not all Slasher films use a benefactor but in films like 'Star Wars' and 'Harry Potter' the benefactor will provide the protagonist with a magical gift. However, 'Knife Camera Action' is not a supernatural Slasher meaning that this aspect has to be warped slightly in order to fit in with the narrative. The benefactor is the first character whose suspicions about Michael being a danger are somewhat confirmed. Within the trailer he reads a dark essay written by Michael detailing how he wants to kill his next victim (Sophie). In the actual film the teacher would discuss these suspicions with the group of teenagers and so give them the gift of knowledge rather than a physical contribution.
Similar to the psychological thriller 'Dead Man's Shoes' I have subverted the semantic code by using most of the footage shot from Michael's camera. This makes the audience uncomfortable and feel almost complicit in his actions. Given the use of Michael's point of view the enigma code throughout the whole film shifts slightly as instead of asking 'Who is the killer?' we' are asking 'How will they be defeated?' and 'Who will survive?'. This is what propels the narrative forward and keeps the audience's attention.
The evolution of films has been so vast that Slasher films that most films now produced are cyclical products of past films created. 'Knife Camera Action' is a self-referential post modern text as in the voiceover we have the killer talking to the audience about equilibriums and the codes of conventions of Slasher films. My film is almost a hybrid of the Slasher 'Scream' and the 1960 film 'Peeping Tom' in that the killer is obsessed with horror films and captures his victim's murders on camera like psychopath Mark Lewis from 'Peeping Tom'. We have a similar enigma code to semantic and enigma code to 'Peeping Tom' given the audience's awareness as to the identity of the murderer and the film's viewpoint. One major 'easter egg' I chose to use for the hardcore horror fans was to use the name Michael for our killer as this is the name of 'Peeping Tom's director.
One convention that a lot of Slasher films use is mise en scene. By having Charlie walk past a church she is portrayed as an innocent, pure character. She is also presented to us in a classroom setting and shown packing away her books in class making her seem studious and intelligent. Sophie (the sexually promiscuous character) is shot running or hiding informing the audience that she is a character constantly in danger and in need of saving. We used a classroom setting again to make clear that the benefactor was a teacher, we also had him sitting at a desk.
Apart from Michael's point of view and camera shots the editing was standard and mostly for what you would expect from a trailer. We use matched action to create a seamless effect and various examples of continuity editing to create a sense of realism for the audience and make our trailer seem professional. We use long shots and close ups of the characters as well as medium shots so the audience has a clear understanding of the mise en scene. We use a montage sequence towards the end of the trailer to create tension and show short, intense shots of what to expect within the film. There are some action filled shots during the montage sequence to allow an element of excitement. We use footage of Sophie being dragged and strangled, Charlie being chased and use other characters running and looking behind them. The montage sequence reaches a climax as we have the final shot of our trailer. It is a shot of the killer, Michael viciously stabbing into something on the ground but the camera is positioned so that we cannot identify who he is attacking. As a lot of trailers and horror films have a lot of scenes shot in the dark (which we included) we decided to add a caption on some of Michael's recorded shots that said 'NIGHT VISION'. This added a certain fear factor as the audience well knows everything (especially terror) is significantly amplified at night.
The music we use throughout the trailer accompanies the editing well. A lot of trailers have some soft, calm music at the start but we decided to use a series of sounds that are almost uncomfortable but still at a slow tempo. The sounds still convey that the start of the trailer is the equilibrium but they do not carry any noticeable melody. As cameras and recording are featured prominently in 'Knife Camera Action' we had the conventional 'This Winter' crackle on the screen reminiscent of when the television has bad signal. We also included some white noise to go together with this. The words 'Knife Camera Action' are presented in this way too. The music gets faster as the montage sequence begins and becomes darker and louder. As the trailer reaches the climax shot the music gets to an almost unbearable level and with Michael's stabbing motion the music seizes and instead there are three sharp thudding sounds to accompany Michael's gestures. The other sounds included in our trailer is the use of a voiceover. Rather than just using a mere anonymous narrator we decided to used the killer's voice as his identity is not unknown throughout the film because of the shift in semantic code. At the start Michael says, 'Every equilibrium has to be disturbed. But how it's disturbed is up to me. I'm the director and death is on my script.' It is clear from these words that Michael knows a lot about films and also that he has violent intentions due to this talk of death. At the end we have Michael's voice again saying, 'The codes and conventions of a Slasher film dictate that one has to die, one has to try and fight back and one has to survive. But I don't play by the rules.' Again we understood Michael has an interest in Slasher films and that it might even border on the obsessive. His grim talk of death indicated that he is the villain.
Other conventions that had to be included were the opening card, distribution logo and end card. The opening card and Film 4 distribution shot start the whole trailer and it is over these that we included the line from Peeping Tom where villain Mark asks the rhetorical question 'Do you know what the most frightening thing in the world is? It's fear'. The end card is also important as it contains the names of the principal cast and crew as well as a website name promoting synergy and ensuring that the marketing for the film has a multi-platform approach.
'Knife Camera Action's trailer is one that more challenges than uses conventions. We flip the semantic code and shift the enigma code as well as twist stereotypes and expectations. Overall, I believe my group and I created a professional trailer with a coherent plot and interesting narrative by using characters, representations and various conventions coded according to our own desires to make the trailer successfully.
The second media product I created was a film poster to accompany 'Knife Camera Action'. The main image details Michael holding a knife to the final girls throat. Positioned in front of them and obscuring them slightly is a camera set up on a tripod with the image of Michael and Charlie and the knife on the screen. I felt this made for a powerful image and as the film's whole premise is centred around cameras and the element of recording it made sense to have something representative of that within the poster; The title of the film itself accompanies the image well. Even though within the film the killer is identifiable I chose to have his face unidentifiable within the trailer to keep some sense of mystery until the audience actually go and see the film. The position of Michael's hand as he holds the knife is located so that it is almost like he is holding the camera signifying the fact that Michael is in total control of everything and of probably all the events to occur within the film. The use of a knife in the image helps to successfully convey to the audience that this is a horror film and more specifically a Slasher.
My group and I chose this typography as we felt that some of the letters had sharp points reminiscent of a blade. Also the 'O' looked like a target or the lines on a camera when it is being used to record. So just by fitting a red dot into the centre again I had successfully incorporated the recording element of 'Knife Camera Action' promoting the brand identity. The black letters shadowing the white ones make the writing pop off the page giving my poster the illusion of depth. The shadows also portray a sinister, eerie tone whilst having the white in front of the black signifies that in the end good will always triumph and come first.
The colours used here are conventional as far as Slasher films are concerned. The use of the binary opposites white and black represent the good (final girl) vs. evil (villain) and the red of course symbolises blood, carnage and violence.
The tagline 'Smile For the Camera' was written in red as well and the use of the word 'camera' accompanies the image of the camera as well as the film title. A lot of films use taglines as they provide a menacing hint at what to expect from the full film.
Other aspects of the poster that had to be included were the names of the principal cast and crew. If a particularly famous actor featured in the film their name would be emboldened so that people who recognise their names and like their work would be more convinced to come and view 'Knife Camera Action'. However, as my film is a low budget, British independent film there were no big stars and so no names that could be used to entice the audience. The age rating has been put on as well as the BFI logo and various film festival logos so people can understand what stature this film is of and what sort of critics it attracts. The use of a website promotes synergy and provides a multi-platform approach for the whole brand.
The construction of my magazine front cover was slightly easier than my poster as here my focus group were very clear on what they liked and disliked and 'Fangoria' already has a decided layout that it is widely recognised for. This cover is generally conventional of 'Fangoria' magazines and successfully portrays the brand identity through use of main image, masthead, colours etc.
The 'Fangoria' masthead has a strong mode of address. It is always written in a red and black typography that has a certain slick style to it and is easy to read enticing the audience to pick up this issue. Even the word itself is indicative to the fact that this magazine is specifically made to cover horror films as two words can be discerned from within the name: 'fan' and 'gore' alluding to the type of people who would possibly buy this issue i.e. horror fanatics.
The general colour scheme of 'Fangoria's magazines is red, yellow and black. The red has obvious connotations of bloodshed, danger and violence whilst the black is a symbol for death, evil and mystery. The use of yellow could be deemed an unusual choice as it does not really represent anything clearly within the horror franchise. However, the yellow makes the whole colour choice seem almost cheap and tacky which is reminiscent of the infamous video nasty era where films such as the 'Evil Dead' whose film poser used similar colours were deemed as having the ability to deprave and corrupt any who watched them. Any readers who are able to make this connection would gain a sense of satisfaction at understanding this reference.
The main image is not completely conventional of 'Fangoria' as they normally use a still from a film instead of a posed photo which I have chosen to do. The first reason for this was because my film subverts conventions (the semantic code) and so it made sense to do something slightly different from the norm in terms of the magazine text. Secondly, this is the same image used on my film poster but it is unobstructed by the camera (which is the case of the film poster). By using the same image I felt that it would help the audience make a link between the two texts even if they were just glancing at either of them. The use of a knife in the main image reinforces that 'Knife Camera Action' is a horror film as knives are iconic symbols of Slasher films.
The three supplementary images are presented within the film reel positioned on the left hand side of the page and could generally considered as film stills drawing the magazine back into a more conventional design. Almost all magazines use supplementary images to show the audience what else they can expect from the magazine in case the main image is not enticing enough. The feature stories help to do this also. The images themselves have a sufficient amount of blood and gore to portray the brand identity and mode of address.
Overall, the magazine is quite conventional in its placement of the barcode, use of supplementary images. It is clear in its mode of address and the design is eye catching as well as informative.
All three of my media products created manage to use and challenge real existing products conventions to form a coherent brand and texts that are clearly representative of the Slasher genre.
