What I Have Learnt From My Research

The research process was very important within this unit as it helped me understand the importance of certain conventions within horror texts and trailers. This will aid me when making my own final products.

 I started my research analysing three existing horror magazines; this allowed me to gain an understanding of what typical conventions are used within real-life and professional magazines when portraying the horror genre. I decided to analyse one general film magazine with a horror cover and two magazines that were dedicated to the horror genre. This allowed me to see the differences between a mainstream magazine and a niche magazine. The horror magazines were more obviously promoting the genre with the use of black and red for the main colour scheme, they also used a scary image that would attract a particular audience. Whereas the mainstream magazine used a variety of colours and although the image was scary it was not so striking that it would put off customers not interested in the horror genre. The research into magazine covers also helped me with the composition of the magazine and the types of fonts they typically use. For my own magazine I can take inspiration for several magazine I have researched; for example, the close up image on the Empire magazine as it makes it feel like it is invading your personal space. Additionally the use of direct mode of address was used in all three magazines; this is something I will use when making my own magazine as I think it is an element that attracts the audience. 

 In addition to researching and analysing magazine covers, I also done the same for horror posters. This, again, allowed me to see the general conventions of a horror film poster. As I have not made a poster before, I had to pay particular attention to each detail, as to what would attract a particular audience. In all three posters I found that the colour scheme was very similar; using tones of grey, black and red to promote the film; this is something I think I will use in my own poster as they are typical colours associated with the genre. Additionally, all three gave a little hint of what the film could be about. There is also a billing block on all three; this is something I will also include on my own poster as it makes it look professional. 

I also analysed three horror films and trailers to learn the typical narrative structure of the horror genre. Theorist Tzventan Todorov, suggested that narratives follow a three part structure, beginning with equilibrium, then something disrupts this and then finally they reach a solution and equilibrium is restored. This was the case for some horror films, however not all as some were left open for a sequel. Trailers, however, do not typically follow this structure as they are supposed to encourage and persuade the audience to go and watch the full film and therefore they cannot show the solution of the problem, nor the final equilibrium. In addition to this, I learnt about Vladimir Propp's Character Theory. He suggested that every narrative has eight different character types: The villain, the dispatcher, the helper, the hero, the donor, the false hero, the Princess/prize and the Princess' father. These can be seen within some of the horror films and trailers to establish character types and so the audience can identify each of the main character's roles. I found that typically in horror trailers they use the most intense and interesting parts of the film, which would make the audience want to see the fill production. However, certain elements are left out, like particular jump scares and plot twists as they want the audience to see be excited and scared whilst watch thing full film. Additionally, I found that most horror trailers started with a little bit of equilibrium to set the scene, this was brightly coloured to connote 'happiness'; this quickly changed to a darker shot which was when the action started. The action scenes within the trailers were very fast paced, which is something that would make the audience on edge. Alongside this, the music seemed to become more intense and quicker; this reinforced the fast paced action; making it even more frightening for the audience. Additionally, stings were often used within both horror films and trailers to indicate the villain or the hero; this helps the audience follow the narrative of the film. I will use parts of these conventions within my own horror trailer to make it professional and easy to recognise that it is in fact a horror trailer. 

 As well as recent horror films, I done extensive research into the 'history of horror', with how it all started. This helped me see how the genre has progressed over hundreds of years from the early stages of classic literature. It was often thee case that horror movies would reflect what society was scared of at the time, for example, wolves became the classic villain during WW2 as a portrayal of Hitler. This could help me when making my own trailer, when I am thinking about the narrative, as I can try and incorporate anxieties of our society at this current time. In addition to this, there have been many developments on technology which has aided the genre to become what it is known as now. 


 The research of 'Representation of Women' allowed me to learn about the famous theory 'Male Gaze. Coined by feminist and film critic Laura Mulvey (1975), she explained how women are included into film as a visual pleasure for the male audience. In particular, the horror genre used and still uses this frequently as typically males are the primary audience. This is done by the use of camera angles, portraying the women as objects, by using long shots of the full body or shots of parts of the body, for example, just the legs. In addition to this, Jeremy Tunstall explained how women in the media are portrayed as one of four things: martial, sexual, domestic or consumer. This are often found within many horror films as society tends to believe this is how women should be. 
However, certain media is starting move away from this ideology into more present views of women. Another theorist, Carol Clover, suggested that in every horror film there is a 'Final Girl', she is the character that survives at the end of the narrative because she is smart, virginal, sensible and often brunette and masculine- either through the way she dresses or the name, for example 'Sidney' from Scream. Whereas, the girl that is killed first will be sexualised, and immoral (drinking, smoking, having sex), portrayed as stupid and typical blonde and pretty 'dumb blonde' ('Jules' from Cabin in the Woods). All these are often seen in many horror films and have become a typical convention of the genre. However, some horrors are now starting to challenge this and are becoming more progressive. The final girl theory is something I will probably incorporate into my own trailer, however I want to try and challenge the other theories. 


Finally, I done research into film marketing and distribution. For this, I looked at how the film 'The Woman in Black' was marketed and distributed. This was advertised extensively and because the main character played by Daniel Radcliffe (Harry Potter) is very popular amongst the younger generation it was very easy to do this. The marketing campaign was very successful and the film became one of the greatest horrors in Britain in over 20 years. I learnt that the marketing and distribution of a film is crucial to films success and therefore everything has to be planned carefully. For example, the release of the film poster, what magazine covers to feature on and when the trailer is release. Additionally, synergy between all products is important as it is more likely to persuade consumers to watch the full film; thus uniform marketing is very important. Each product need to entice the audience and keep them excited and entertained right up until the release of the film.