Did I successfully follow my audience feedback?

Before I started filming my trailer I created a survey for my target demographic and from their feedback I made a list of things that the audience wanted to see in my trailer (also shown on a previous post) The list is as follows:

Question 1 -  The audience want to see strong characterisation with a variation of everyday locations and modern humour.
Question 2 - My demographic expect to see 'natural' settings such as a house, a school, a park etc, no location should be outside of the normal.
Question 3 - I need to create a connection between the protagonist and the audience whether this be a personal trait, a personal experience or even just simple characteristics in which my demographic can relate to.
Question 4 - The majority of my trailer should be natural lighting and mainly high-key, although lowkey lighting will be suitable for when the 'drama' element is being portrayed.
Question 5 - I need to create a section of sadness for my protagonist in order to create the 'drama' genre, this could be done by a sudden realisation, something going wrong or even a simple argument.
Question 6 - I should make sure I have plenty of close-up shots, as reaction shots are very important to my demographic for this genre. However two-shots to show relationships and long shots to show body language are also important.
Question 7 - My protagonist should be loveable and relatable and just an all round ordinary person - not rich, not poor, not popular just in the middle. The character should also have good humour and be quite upbeat.
Question 8 - I should start my trailer with a funny build up with a quick description of what the films about. In the middle of my trailer everything should change - something goes wrong, something unexpected happens. At the end of my trailer everything should be restored and the ending should be humorous.
Question 9 - I should use upbeat music in my trailer. A good genre to use would be indie-pop as it is positive and light-hearted which relates to the theme of comedy.
Question 10 - The majority of my demographic said that I should have a voice-over as it would help them to engage more with the protagonist and understand the trailer more.

Did I follow my audiences feedback?

1. I had a strong female protagonist and three 'nerds' who all had very big, but likeable personalities. I used strong characterisation in terms of their mise-en-scene, which reflected their personalities. I used a variety of every day locations including a park, a school and a house. I used modern humour, portrayed through the characters of the 'nerds'.
2.  All my locations were 'normal' - I used a school, a park, a house, a hospital and a river.
3. I started the trailer with a voice-over in order for my audience and protagonist to immediately be able to connect.
4. I used natural lighting in my trailer, I used used high-key lighting for happy and comedic scenes and lowkey lighting for scenes of sadness or fear.
5. I created slight argument between my protagonists and the 'nerds' to create the 'drama' element - my protagonist is seen feeling upset because she feels vulnerable and unsupported.
6. I used many close-up shots to portray reactions of my characters. For example I used a close up shot after my protagonists waters broke so the audience could see her fear of the situations. This allowed my audience to clearly see characters facial expressions and therefore understand their emotions.
7. I made sure my protagonist was a likeable person. I gave her a very 'chilled' style and made sure she was relatable to my demographic. Therefore I made sure she wasn't rich, poor, popular - she was just a ordinary girl - in the middle.
8. I followed this by using Todorov's 5 Step Theory of Equilibrium (as explained in previous posts)
9. I chose mainly acoustic, indie-pop songs to use in my trailer as this genre of music matched my protagonists personality. I used songs that were energetic but 'chill' to suit my comedy-drama genre. When the first credit scene comes down, 'kill the director' starts playing. This is a loud, in-your-face, upbeat song which allows my audience to understand that they're being thrown straight into the climax of the trailer.
10. I used a voice-over in order for my audience to be able to engage more with my protagonist but also so the audience can learn what the situation is from the view of my protagonist.

Did I successfully follow my list of trailer conventions?

Before I created my trailer I created a list of conventions (posted on an early blog post) that I should follow in order to create a high quality, professional-standard comedy-drama trailer. I came up with this list of conventions after analysing three comedy-drama trailers, Juno, School of Rock and Forres Gump. The list is as follows:

1. The narrative should follow Todorov's 5 Step Theory of Equilibrium, however it should not show the final stage as this will leave my audience intrigued enough to watch the whole film.
2. The comedy element should come from a character (mise-en-scene is very important in portraying this.)
3. Use sound-bridges in order to create more layers to the trailer.
4. Use shot-reverse-shots in order to portray how characters react to each other and to explore relationships.
5. Use day-to-day locations in order to make the film seem more 'realistic' and therefore be relatable to the demographic.
6. Use montage editing in order to give the audience a brief overview of the whole film.
7. Use natural lighting, again to make the scenes seem more believable and realistic.
8. Use a soundtrack that matches the tone of the scenes - and therefore emphasises the mood you are trying to portray.

Did I follow this list?

1. I followed Todorov's 5 step theory of equilibrium - which is followed in many real media trailers. I briefly showed the first step of 'the state of equilibrium' when I show the protagonist walking down a hallway and there is a close up shot of her stomach with no bump. However this is only very quick as straight after the 'disruption stage' starts as she picks up the pregnancy test. Here I challenged convention by making the first stage so quick, it almost wasn't there, however I did this in order to throw my audience straight into the climax  of the trailer and allow them to engage with my protagonist straight away. The third stage of 'recognition' begins when the audience see my protagonist talk to her parents about her pregnancy - as she is seen facing her consequences. The fourth stage of 'repairing the damage' is hinted when the 'nerds' ask her to prom and when they help her as she goes into labour - because this starts portraying to audiences that she is going to be alright. The fifth and final stage of 'a new equilibrium' is not shown in my trailer. This is conventional of trailers as it means not too much information about the film is given away and leaves the audience intrigued enough to watch the full movie.
2.  I portrayed the elements of comedy through certain characters and their mise-en-scenes. I created three stereo-typical 'nerd' characters to use as my comedy elements. I dressed them in three different over-exaggerated, stereotypical nerds styles, to maximize the humour of their scenes.
3. I used multiple sound bridges throughout my trailer. I carried through from scenes over to different scenes which related to what the character in the previous scene is talking about. For example the line of dialogue by the dad which reads "you've got to find people, who love you for exactly who you are" carries on from the scene with the protagonist and her day and the speech goes on top a montage of shots of the 'nerds' making Nessa smile. 
4. I used many shot-reverse-shots in my trailer. A specific example of a shot-reverse shot that I used is when my protagonist is having a conversation with her parents about what to do in her situation. I used a shot-reverse-shot here as it allows the audience to see how my characters react with one-another and explore their relationship. 
5. The locations of my trailer are conventions of comedy-drama films as they are normal, day to day locations, such as a school, a park and a house.
6. At the end of the trailer there is montage editing. The shorter shots allow the audience to have a brief overall picture of the film itself and sums up a lot of the trailer. I personally used the montage editing to portray all my protagonists positive moments throughout the film as my montage followed shots of my protagonist feeling down, so I used it as a contrast.
7. I used natural lighting in all of my scenes to create more realistic situations - I varied the time of day in which I filmed when I wanted to change the lighting type to portray different tones.
8. I change the music in the trailer to match the tone of the scenes. For example, when the first credit scene comes down, 'kill the director' starts playing. This loud, in-your-face, upbeat songs allows the audience to understand that they're being thrown straight into the climax of the trailer.

Tools Used When Creating My Poster

Tools Used When Creating My Front Cover

Poster Layers

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Magazine Layers

Choice of Magazine Mise-en-Scene

Originally I was using this picture for my feature article photograph of my magazine:

I'd chosen this jumper to convey that she is young and a student but also that she is quite laid back and not a typical 'girly girl.' However due to the thickness of the jumper and the bagginess of it she didn't look pregnant enough - the bump just didn't stand out.

Therefore I went and looked back at my previous research - Juno.

I looked at the mise-en-scene of her character - as she is very similar to my protagonist. I noticed that the stripes in her top emphasised her bump more and that she also uses her hands to push her hips out and therefore stick the bump out more. I therefore took these ideas and held a new photo shoot. The photo I finally chose was:

Photoshoots for Magazine

Photoshoot for Poster

Setting Up Equipment For A Photoshoot

Mise-en-Scene of the Parents

As I was unable to get adult actors to play the characters of the parents, I had to cast teenage actors. This meant that I had to ensure that I paid close attention to their mine-en-scene, to make sure their characters would still be realistic.

Parent 1 = The Mum

Clothing
I gave my actress 'typical mum-like outfits. These are usually clothes that are quite baggy yet formal and quite often knitted items. Outfit 1 (on the left) was a shirt and cardigan which is her working clothes, and Outfit 2 (on the right) was a long grey roll-neck jumper which would be her social clothes.

Makeup
I gave my actress very naturalistic make-up as she plays the character of a working mum - who wouldn't have much time for fashion and beauty. I created this look by using minimal make-up (foundation, eyebrow pencil and mascara only) and applying them lightly.

Hair
I left her hair down and natural in order to again portray the 'working mum' look.

Body Language
When she is stood up straight with her arms folded it highlights her authority as a parent - shown after Nessa has misbehaved and returned home late. However when Nessa is upset and confiding in her parent, her body language is a lot more open with no barriers between her and her daughter.



Parent 2 = The Dad

Clothing
As a working dad I gave him a smart look - as the majority of men work in suits. For Outfit 1 I gave my actor a shirt and tie to wear - as if he's come home from work and has just taken off his blazer to relax. For Outfit 2 I gave him a black shirt for a more casual, yet still, smart look - as a more social outfit choice.

Hair
I gelled my actors hair into a quiff to again emphasise the smart look of a working dad.

Body Language
The close bond between Nessa and her dad seen throughout the trailer is portrayed by his body language towards her. Although her mum can be strict with her - her dad tries to see things from her point of view and support her - therefore he always has open body language towards Nessa, and makes clear and direct eye-contact with her when they are communicating.

Reasons for Lowkey and Highkey Lighting

I used low-key and high-key lighting in order to reflect the moods of my protagonist and the situations in the trailer. For example, for positive situations I used high-key lighting to emphasise her joy, whereas in bad or uncertain situations I used lowkey lighting to portray her fear.

A Specific Example of where I used high-key lighting:

I used high-key lighting in the field scene where my protagonist is dressed up in medieval clothing 'flighting' with the boys. This is because it emphasises her happiness of the situation - she is feeling positive and is supported by the people around her.

I also used high-key lighting for the hospital waiting room scene, not to reflect my protagonists mood however, but to highlight the comedy of scene.

A Specific Example where I used low-key lighting:

I used low-key lighting during the 'prom scene' where my protagonists waters break. I used low-key lighting here as it portrayed her fear of the situation ahead - the future from now is unknown and going to be different to anything she's experienced before.

The Use of Slow and Fast Motion

I used effects such as 'slow' and 'fast' motion in my trailer to again add to the pace of the piece but also to mark moments and emphasise the genre of comedy. For example I used slow motion to mark the moment when my protagonists waters broke. This allowed the audience time to take in what had happened as they see the water fall and her slowly look up in fear. I then used a mixture of fast and slow motion when the 'nerds' are pushing her round the hospital in a wheelchair to create pace and highlight moments of comedy. For example I use slow motion in close-up shots of my protagonists face as she's heavy breathing, but fast motion in tracking shots of them running to give a 'slapstick comedy-chase' vibe to the trailer and to emphasise the panic of the situation.

Differentiation in Clip Lengths/Pace of Trailer

Through my research I disocvered the importance of pace in a trailer in order to make it intriguing to an audience. I followed the conventions of comedy drama trailers by starting off with a slow pace, with long clips lengths and a steady voice-over. This allowed time for the audience to learn the situation and storyline and learn who the characters are. Towards the end of the trailer the clip lengths got shorter which created a faster pace of the trailer. This montage editing allowed the audience to get a brief overview of the film, without too much detail being given away.

Use of Fonts within the Trailer

Fonts Used:

Title Font - pointy
Credit Fonts - budidaya

Why I used them:

I used these fonts in my trailer as they added to the 'cartoon effect' that was originally given by my use of transition sounds in the trailer. This cartoon effect links to my genre of comedy-drama. I used the font 'pointy' in all three products as it created a brand identity and synergy through all three products.

Choice of Music

Songs Used:

Hotel Yorba - White Stripes

Anyone Else But You - The Mouldy Peaches

She Moves in her own Way - The Kooks

Kill the Director - The Wombats

Why I used them:

I chose mainly acoustic, indie-pop songs to use in my trailer as this genre of music matched my protagonists personality. I also used intertextuality by hanging some of the band posters of the artists used in my trailer in the bedroom of my protagonist.

I used songs that were energetic but 'chill' to suit my comedy-drama genre.

I made sure I used songs that matched the message of my trailer. For example, 'She moves in her own way' portrays how my protagonist is her own person, she's different and unique, and she does what she wants.

'Kill the Director' is a song that makes a  statement about generic 'rom-coms' so by using this song it suggests this isn't just a generic film - its something fresh and different - challenging the accepted norm.

The songs all match the music taste of my demographic, who would be into modern, slightly indie, music.

I change the music in the trailer to match the tone of the scenes. For example, when the first credit scene comes down, 'kill the director' starts playing. This loud, in-your-face, upbeat song allows the audience to understand that they're being thrown straight into the climax of the trailer.
'Anyone Else But You' - starts playing when the protagonists waters break and clips of her being supported by the people around her are shown - to portray she couldn't get through this situation with anyone else but them.

I also added sound effects in transitions to give the trailer a slight comic book effect which goes well with my comedy drama genre.

Why I Chose To Use a Filter

Scene: Hospital Waiting Room

Filter: Glow

Why?
I added a filter in response to my audience feedback from my demographic survey. My demographic suggested that my trailer should be predominantly high-key lighting - especially in moments in which comedy occurs - as brightness conveys positive emotions - such as laughter which is associated with comedy. Therefore I added this filter as it brightened up this scene - which is where a lot of the comedy in my trailer happens.

Comedy Magazine and Poster Demographic Survey

Locations

1. S Block Social Area:

This was used for the 'Locker Scene' where Nessa confronted the 'Nerds' about not supporting her. I had to pay attention to the mise-en-scene when filming this. As it is a school canteen and social area I knew it had to look used and school-like (as in real life I was filming after school after it had been cleaned and tidied.) Therefore I laid some litter on tables and the floor to look more realistic and relatable to a modern day school. I also go some people to sit round a few of the tables to create more of an atmosphere.

2. Compass Gardens:

 Due to this being a real park I didn't have to worry about editing the mise-en-scene as much as the atmosphere and view was already naturally provided, providing that I filmed at the peak times for a park. I filmed on a Saturday afternoon as I knew that would be popular for parents to visit with children and the park would look more active and full of life and therefore more realistic.

3. School Field:

4. Bedroom 1:

I decorated this room to match my protagonists characteristics, as it is her bedroom in my trailer. Her character is quite laid back, casual and not very girly. I portrayed this through her bedroom through the gender-neutral colours. I also placed a lot of poster of indie-rock bands which I believe correspond with her characteristics and fashion sense.

5. Bedroom 2:

This room was chosen to match the personality of Nessa's best friend Lily. Her characteristics contrast that of Nessa's. She's very girly and like a 'typical teenager' in the way that she speaks using "typical teenage" language like 'omg'. Therefore I chose her a room with conveys these aspects of her personality. There is a colour scheme of pink and purple which are conventional 'girly' colours and the whole room follows a flower pattern which portrays delicacy and femininity, again relating to her characteristics.

6. Kitchen:

Choosing the right kitchen to use in these scenes was very important because this gives an immediate first impression on Nessa's family and highlights their social class and income. I put flowers out (behind the parents) to give a welcoming and friendly atmosphere for the family home. I also put out 'generic' kitchen items such as washing up liquid to make the location look used and realistic.

7. Living Room:

This was important to consider as it had to match the social class and family feel that was portrayed through the kitchen location. I chose a living room that looked 'classy but cosy' as it shows that Nessa's family are quite well off but also a loving family.


8. Medical Room:

For the pregnancy scan scene I used part of my schools medical room as it had a hospital-like bed. However I then had to decorate it with things such as illness-related posters and first-aid boxes to make it look like a realistic hospital room.

9. River:

I had to take into consideration time of day when filming scenes down by the river as I relied on natural daylight and also the tide of the river.Therefore I looked at the tide-timetable before scheduling my shooting session.

Other locations I used include corridors, gardens and a driveway.

(doctors posters were put up here to make this corridor look like a doctors surgery waiting room.)