Film Magazine Masthead Ideas

I have come up with two potential masthead ideas for my film magazine. Because my genre of film is a sci-fi/horror I made sure to make it clear in the name so it wouldn't confuse my targeted audience in anyway. I decided it will revolve around science fiction mainly because it will be easier to incorporate horror as a sub-genre than vise versa.

Sci-Finatic
This has a clever pun to it and should attract the science fiction lovers because the term finatic is coined from the word: fanatic. This implies that the magazine targets people who are especially obsessed with the genre of Sci-Fi.

SFM - Sci-Fi Film Monthly
This one gets right to the point and makes it obvious as to what my genre will be. It should attract the target audience in terms clearly showing that the magazine will consist of things centering solely around science fiction films.

Planning Schedule

A planning schedule of what needs to be done by what time. There might be changes if things don't go to plan however.

Planning Schedule! from Natashamhunter95

The Pitch

The Makeup

Here is a first attempt at zombie make up I have tested out for my antagonist and I think this will be perfect for when I shoot the trailer. I have tried to only show the early transition of a zombie, for his full transformation won't be shown in the trailer. The purple colour seems to create the added effect I need to present to the audience that this is only a transition of a zombie. Also, I've made this skin on is face veiny, as this is a technique other horror films in the past have used to show the beginnings of a zombie.

The Costume

The costume for my film is an interesting thing to think about as it will be centered around an apocalyptic event. I have to take into consideration the location and the plot of the film, and so in my case, the clothes of the characters will be quite simplistic and modern stereotype.

As it will show mainly be one day the characters will be wearing the same clothes for the majority of the trailer. My four protagonists will be teenage boys. Their characters will be based 

off of the stereotypes for boys living in London and so hoodies, trainers, jeans etc. Also the colours will be quite bland to represent the lesser thought teenage boys put into fashion. Clothing will be bloody and messy once the apocalypse has happened, and so there will a handful of scenes where this is included. Here are some examples of the types of costume to be expecting:

                                                   
                                                       

As for my antagonist, I have decided to use ripped clothing as a result from the apocalypse. It will be one of the first living Zombies, and so costume will represent the transformation into that.

Ideas for the Soundtrack

The soundtrack for the film trailer is something that is usually overlooked as being important though can help in terms of attracting the audience. The type of music used in a film trailer has to be conventional to the genre of film or else this could leave the audience confused. I have a few ideas in mind for the soundtrack already and have a range of ideas as to what they should be used for.

Using the website Freesound.org I was able to find a range of sound effects that would be fit just right with my sci/fi horror trailer. I found this small 'Epic Ending' Sound effect that I think could be potentially perfect for the climax of the trailer.



I also found this beat that can be used to introduced the disequilibrium of the trailer. I feel it makes sense to use as the dubstep beat of the track will probably do well to capture the interest of my audience. (Because dupstep is becoming increasingly popular amongst the age range of 15-25 aka my target audience.)




This song by the band Enter Shakari is also something I am strongly considering. It may also be quite fitting when nearing the climax of the trailer, as the pace of it will match well with certain clips. (The Instrumental Version)

The Location

For the location I have made sure to particularly look out for specific areas that would be perfect for the post apocalyptic event. This is essential for trailer, as most of it will consist of the disequilibrium aka said apocalyptic event. As of so far, I have found the area of Haygate near Elephant & Castle (In London) to be a suitable for my filming shoots.

Here are some pictures I took of a of the few roads located near Haygate. You can see that because they're secluded, it will give off the perfect illusion of a post apocalyptic event in which no human life is around. This wide area of space can be put to great use for running shots and long shots from afar.

                           

                      

I also took a picture of a rundown estate. This will once again serve great for a location spot, as it will represent the chaos and the mess the apocalypse has left in its wake. This is aided by the broken windows I managed to spot, and the doors being taken off of their hinges. Also, the fact that no one is living here once again helps re-enforce the illusion of no humans being present.

Transcript Delevopment

My first development of what the trailer will consist of.

A Risk Assessment

When making a film, there are many risks that can prevent your success rate and it can also depend on the genre of film as well. In this risk assessment I have analysed a few of these risks and ways to prevent them.

A Storyboard For The Trailer

In this storyboard I have included some of the shots that i will be using in my official movie trailer.

I have also made sure to include the seconds they will be shown for as I want certain things to be remembered most by my target audience.

Film Name Ideas and The Plot Overview

My film is going to be revolving around the sub genre sic-fi/horror in an apocalyptic event. So that would mean the name of the film needs to have a good relation to genre. This aspect is important, as it's what the target audience will most likely notice first about the magazine, and if it isn't up to scratch then this maybe be off putting, causing people to not even bother to check out the film further. So far I have come up with these possible names:

1)The Survivors
2)Survive
3)Abandoned
4)The Last 4
5)The London Apocalypse
6)2016 
7)The Humans and IT
8)Take it Down
9)Silent London
10)Empty Borough

At the moment, I'm leaning towards number 2 and number 4. Number 2 because it gives off an impression very easily as to what the film might be about to the audience, and to this specific audience, they may find themselves attracted to what this might imply in terms of a sci-fi/horror. I have also highly considered number 4 because if coupled with the movie poster it will make it obvious to the audience that this is an apocalyptic type of film. Also, it has a very appropriate ring to it, as it make sense if you coin it into relations of what happens in the plot.

Moving on to the plot, here is the general plot idea I have for my film:

"It's 2016 in London, and four teenagers find themselves to be the last survivors of an apocalyptic event. Everyone in the area has vanished, and it looks like they will have to find a way to get back their friends and family - or in other terms the human race. However, this won't be easy once they also find out that they must find a way to also survive against what must be the first flesh eating zombie. Will they be able to survive such an event? Or will they all be taken down one by one..."

I feel this is an appropriate type of plot for the type of genre I am trying to convey to my target audience. It has specific conventions of a sci-fi/horror film that they would be expecting to see and as many film plots shouldn't, it doesn't give away the ending.

High Concept Films

The type of film I am trying to portray through my trailer is a high concept. This is when a film asks the question 'What if this supposed circumstance were to happen in an average person's life.' Since I am doing a Sci-Fi/Horror trailer and my theme is an apocalyptic event, my obvious question to explore would be "What if there were to be an apocalyptic event?"

From research and investigation, I have found a few requirements that have to be met in order to make a successful High Concept Film overall.

-An original and unique idea: This would mean that the idea for the film should have some originality to it. Even though my idea can be said to be a traditional one, it has been tweaked so that is has it's own twist. In my case, the general apocalyptic aftermath won't be like what is usually seen in other hit films.

-The idea appeals to chosen audience: It's no good if my idea doesn't appeal to my audience, this means that I have to make sure that it is accepted by my targeted audience through my promotion of the film. As well as the trailer, I have to think carefully about how I present my film poster and magazine too.

Brainstorming Ideas

Film Name Ideas: A Survey and It's Response

In order to gain help in finding out what name for my film will appeal to my target audience the best, I did some first hand research by sending out a survey with the five title names that I have narrowed down from the previous ten (After careful consideration in all aspects, I believe these 5 are the best)

-Survival!
-The Last 
-The London Apocalypse
-Silent London
-Empty Borough

Here is the survey that I sent out.

I made sure to send it to people in the age ranges of 15-25 and so sent it out to students in year 10-13 as well as a few adults.

The feedback I got was very helpful. This chart analysis shows the final result:

As you can see from above, people either voted for 'Empty Borough' or 'The Last 4'. This is interesting to note because not a single person went for any of the other suggest title names which implies that these are definitely most likely to catch a person's eye or perk of someone's interest. Overall however, it was Empty Borough that got the most votes and so I will take this into huge consideration; because potentially, this is the name that would most likely attract my target audience.

Audience Theories

Now that I have a target audience I am aiming to please, I have also looked in further and considered theories that revolve around general audiences. This should help me in understanding how other film makers attract their audiences.

The Hypodermic Needle Theory - this theory suggests that the media sees us as passive audience, and so they try to inject messages that they want into our minds. This is where things such as stereotypes and conventions are applied, as the media want us to see things a certain way. Relating to my target audience, I would say this is one of the reasons as to why the rating to a typical film in my chose genre is a 15 or an 18. Because, the age range of 15-25 is so easily influenced by the media these days they wouldn't really question why certain things are portrayed. (Like an active audience).

Uses & Gratifications Theory - This theory states things that are completely opposite to the theory above. Instead of passive, the audience is active and uses the media text to its advantage. The audience uses media texts to gratify they needs, e.g escapism, to fit in, comparing lifestyles etc. I could use this to my advantage, as I can make sure all the pieces in my production will attract my audience in all these areas. After seeing the trailer they may want find a way to fit in with others by talking about and getting the word spread about the film. They may also want to use it as a way to escape reality, and so will pay the extra money to see the film in the cinemas.

The Target Audience