Research on ancillary task -Minoo

My ancillary task researchResearch on magazine cover and film poster

Minoo MirzaeiSilver screen entertainment

Film Poster codes and conventions

There are several aspects of movie posters which follow the same codes and conventions:

•Writing language•Typography•Camera angle and shots•Colour schemes

Writing language in romantic genre movie posters

•Usually they have short headings and titles to make the poster easier to understand and the focus is mostly on the image and body of the protagonist

•In almost every romantic –drama movie posters the name of the two main lovers is written in a different font comparing to other characters and it is placed at the tope of the poster

•other actors names are running along the top of the page, which is a way of trying to entice people to watch the film as if they like one of these actors they may want to see them perform

•The production company logo and the names of other crews of this movie and also the link to the movie website is written in a smaller size font at the bottom

Typography in romantic genre movie posters

•The text underneath the title gives a brief information that the movie is based on a book. It is smaller than the rest as this information may entice people who have enjoyed the other films to watch it, but is not the most important part of this particular film. same colour is used for this subheading as it is used in the word ‘now’ which makes it linked the title and the bright blue makes it to stand out from the rest of the poster.

•Usually there is a colour change in the title or subheading which makes the word or phrase purposely to stand out from the rest of the sentence . For example in this poster the word ‘now’ has been written in light blue which one of the main colour scheme of this poster as this movie is all about the limited time that the girl has to find her lover.Also the size of the title is big and it is usually bold to makes it easier to read

•Most of the romantic movie has a slogan either at the top or bottom of the poster written in a different style and colour font and giving clue or a hint about the storyline of the movie which encourage the audience to go and watch the movie in order to find out the meaning behind the slogan

Camera angle and shots in romantic genre movie posters

•Usually in every romantic movie poster there is a use of two person shot , in order to express the story and also symbolising the love between the two protagonists.

•The shot is usually taken from one of the scenes in the movie where there is a chemistry or emotions between the two characters.

•Usually there is a use of close up angle in the poster in order to show action which is taking place between the two main characters in more detail and also as we can see in this poster often the focus is on the male character , for example in this poster we can see more of the body language of the male character compare to the female character and typically the male character is the one who supports the girl in the shot either by hugging her or holding her hand.

Colour schemes in romantic genre movie posters

•The colour scheme usually links with the colour used in the title and subheadings.For example the colour scheme in this poster is red and orange which perfectly match colour of the title of the movie .

•The use of colour red in this poster signifies love and passion which the audience expect to see in a romantic movie .

•Also the use of different props in this case flowers indicate love and romance and establish a romantic genre

•The fact that the female character is wearing the colour white and the male is wearing a black t-shirt hints , they are opposites , which could relate to the romantic saying that opposites attract.

Movie magazine cover codes and conventions

There are several aspects of magazine cover which follow the same codes and conventions:

•Camera angle and shots•Colour schemes and typography•Writing language

Camera angle and shots in a film magazine cover

•There is a use of medium shot to show the main character of the movie , for example in this case the image of Kristen Stewart , the protagonist of the movie Twilight , is placed in the middle of the front cover by the use of medium shot to establish her body language and attract the audience and her fans to read the magazine

•Usually the actor / actress looks directly to the camera and her / his picture is either from when they were in the movie with their props or its just a glamorous picture either taken in the movie premier or in the studio

•The stars of the movie’s image generally used as a focal point

•Image on the front cover usually target a certain audience in this case teen female are the targeted audience

Colour schemes and typography in a film magazine cover

•The mast head is clearly displayed using a different colour from the background and different size and style for example in this magazine front cover the white colour perfectly stands out from the dark blue background and its big and bold style makes it easier to be seen and become more eye catching

•The colour scheme in this front cover is yellow and white and colour of the movie character costume contrast with the colour scheme which helps the image to stand out and attract the audience

•Only three/ four colours maximum are used on the front cover to maintain the simplicity of the magazine

•Graphics and colours are interchangeable, depending on the featured film. For example the movie featured on this magazine cover is a fantasy and the use of dark blue makes the character mysterious and the place which the movie took place exotic and strange

•Font size, shape and colour are used creatively to suggest different ideas

Writing language in a film magazine cover

•The names of actors, actresses and famous directors are featured on the front to draw in all kinds of different target audiences

•The name of the featured film is always the second largest piece of text, after the mast head, which is on the front cover of the magazine and it also uses the similar colour to mast head

•The few sell lines that are actually featured on the front cover of a film magazine indicate the information that the audience will be able to find inside.

•Along the top of the front cover, additional information that could determine that the audience will buy this magazine is featured. E.g. free posters, entry into competitions and so on. This technique attracts more number of audience to buy the magazine

•Writing the word ‘mind –blowing ‘in red makes the word to stand out and also this word has been repeated again in the subheading which attracts the target audience immediately