Preparation - possible font types for 'The Hunted'

As i think planning is a very important aspect i have decided to look for several different font types for 'THE HUNTED' the title of the horror film. As i want to be using a font which will be unique as it will be representing the horror genre, i have decided to use the website http://www.dafont.com/ as it has thousands of useful and usable fonts which i may come to use.

Examples which i may use:

This is a font i may possibly use for my final piece, when first looking at the font better known as 'Blood Crow' it almost looks like it is crooked perhaps to represent the genre in which is associated with.


This font immediately establishes the genre 'horror', it appears to have blood dripping from the letters which i think adds a spooky and mysterious element which would work very well with the synopsis of my film trailer. I think this font would work very well with the plot/storyline of my trailer and would create an ambigous element for my film front cover magazine and perhaps my film poster.

This font is known as 'Kreepy Krawly' as it displays a creepy element, the letters start off as fairly large however thins out at the bottom of the letter creating a tangled overlapping effect possibly representing the genre.

This font could be viewed as slightly gory as it looks like the lettering has been splattered over the page, and could therefore suggest possible sequences of events occuring in the film.

When first looking at this font known as 'A Lolita Scorned' it reminded me of old stereotypical horror, however as there is droplets of blood featured above and below the letters this possibly could represent possible scenes or killings involved in the film.

As this font is very thin compared to the other fonts in which i have analysed, it could be seen as a subtle element and perhaps create a sense of ambigousity as it is not revealing or giving away too much.

Music!

As music is an extremely important aspect in a film trailer, i chose several music albums which I thought would fit with the genre of the trailer.
Examples In which I chose were:
Moby-Play
Horror film themes-with tracks from the likes of Halloween, Frankenstein and Hellraiser.
Music from the movies-which features well known music featured in many popular films.
I also used music from the album 'sigur ross' a swedish band who's music is often played in advertisements, television programmes and films.
However, I decided to just use one track throughout the film trailer as i think using several would ruin the effect as i want it to immediately sound creepy and mysterious, I will be adding sound effects such as a bang and a wailing scream at the end of the trailer to add an element of ambiguousity.
The track which I have decided to use is better known as 'A Nightmare On Elm Street'-Main Themes,the reason as to why I have decided to use this track is because it has an element of mystery and appears very dramatic as it has loud beats which could reflect the genre of horror and the synopsis of the film trailer.

Keeping organised!

To help me keep organised and upto date in the process of making my film trailer and the other anxcillary texts i have recorded events and updates in my silver book which will also help me writing my evaluation.

It could almost be seen as a diary as i have written and recorded ideas and changes which have occured in the process.

Health and safety precautions

As the forest scenes are the only areas in which the public could interfere this was the only area in which we had to be careful when and where to shoot.
As Cropton Park is very popular with dog walkers, we had to make sure that we were not interfering with the public by choosing a sensible and appropriate area to film. There are also walkways in the woodland area of the park therefore we had to be aware at all times if we were in the way of walkers and make sure we did not capture any members of the public in our filming.

Drafts of ideas for posters

The poster in which i am going to create will be given away for free with the film magazine, therefore the poster will be either A2 or A3 format as it will feature over one or two pages.
By gathering information from existing posters i have decided to feature the headline 'The Hunted' at the bottom of the poster, my reasons for this is that i think it gives off a subtle effect to the poster almost like at the end of a trailer when the title of the film is revealed. The main image in the draft establishes the main area of the film, which is the creepy forest in which Ellie walks through. For my final poster I would want the trees and woodland area to be featured, my reasons for this being that forests can be viewed as being stereotypical therefore making it a generic convention it also gives off a scary vibe! As the stalker is not revealed in the trailer (which makes it ambigous for the audience) I would like to add a twist by including the hand of the follower, this immediately projects to the audience that the storyline to the film will feature a stalker. The camera will also act as the stalker, as it appears as if the picture is the immediate point of view of the strange follower.
The quotes which are pictured on the image show class and strong positive opinions about the film giving the audience positive feedback, the effect of this being the public trust successful newspapers therefore their opinion helps with the progression and success of the film. The quotations used are simple and perhaps stereotypical phrases, to project the information across to the audience. Underneath the headline 'The Hunted' I have included five rating stars to reveal and add an extra element of quality and proffessionalism to the poster.

This poster is another idea in which I have come up with which I may use when creating my final poster. The main image on the poster features a large tree which exists in the forest this establishes the main location and possibly what the film is going to include. Ellie (the main character) is displayed with her face looking anxiously around the tree appearing physically frightened and timidly behind the tree appearing as if someone is watching her, which is the effect I am after as the film is based around a stalker. I have also included quotations from popular and well known magazines/newspapers therefore increasing the films popularity and success. The title of the film 'THE HUNTED' is displayed in capital letters as the headline of the poster therefore to reflect importance and grasp the readers attention. The date in which the film is going to be released is also featured beneath the headline so that the reader knows when to expect the release of the film, it will also let the public be alerted as listen out for the exact release date of the film. However when coming to make my final product I may publish an exact date to make the poster appear more precise.

Conventions of Horror film Posters

When analysing existing film posters I noticed that one of the key generic conventions featured in Horror film posters are that the main characters/character is featured on the poster, therefore projecting to the audience that they are the the main focus in the film and that the storyline will be based around them. The way in which the main characters are posing can be viewed as being very important in representing the genre of the poster, as it has come to my attention that on horror posters the characters are displayed in a very serious and perhaps mysterious way to deliberately represent the genre, this also gives off an ambigous tone to the public, therefore creating them to feel intrigued in the film. In many horror posters the characters are featured wearing normal, everyday clothes to create a naturalistic affect and verisimilitude therefore this has helped me in planning for my own horror film poster. In some cases the image is seen within the film, better known as still shots. An advantage of using these is that it immediately tells the audience that this location perhaps will be involved in the film frequently and possibly one of the most exciting parts in the film.

The title of the film beign the headline on the poster is also seen as very important in the success of the film itself, therefore apart from the main image this is the focus of the poster. In the three existing posters in which I have analysed I noticed that the title was featured underneath the main image, therefore not drawing attention away from the main image however creating a subtle effect. The colouring of the title's of horror films are usually in red or black, these two colours often have connatations being danger and importance.
Another convention of horror film posters is the use of featuring quotes from successful and well known magazines and newspapers with their opionions and ratings of the film, this can make the public trust the newspaper/magazine with its positive reviews and feedback, the low-budget however extremely successful hit horror film 'Paranormal Activity' used several quotes about the film, this can be seen as perhaps helping the film progress and draw in the audience it needs.
Another component which is often used is including famous actors who have starred in several hit films, this projects to the audience that the film is therefore good quality as it has hired in very talented actors and actresses.

At the bottom of the poster a website is presented so that the reader can access exclusive and extend the research and information about the film. Individuals involved in the making and processing of the film are displayed in a smaller font and text as they have the right to be featured! Further aspects which are frequently included are logos or aspects which have affected the film an example being the 'Restricted' logo which shows to the audience that this film is not suitable for under 18s, projecting that this film is possibly very frightening!

Drafts of film magazine front covers

This is a possible layout in which I will apply to my final magazine front cover. The masthead of the magazine "ACT!ION" is featured at the top of the front cover, with help of analyising existing texts I came to realise that all of the magazine front covers analysed featured the masthead being the name of the magazine at the top of the front cover, therefore I have applied these ideas to the draft i have created. The masthead "ACT!ON" will be featured in a large font as this is the name of the magazine and is an important component when advertising to fellow fans of films. The image shown will be the main image of the front cover, this I have also taken from analysis of existing texts. In my opinion I like having the main image being the background of the front cover as this focuses the readers eyes straight to the image and therefore to the film. The main image shown is the main character displayed in the film (Ellie) she is shown glancing behind a tree in the dark and gloomy forests in which she takes a shortcut home through, my reasons for placing Ellie in this pose would be because it adds an element of creepyness and mysteriousness! With only seeing half of Ellie it keeps the audience guessing as to what she is hiding from, the use of including the tree establishes the location in which most of the trailer will be set, this also helps the public understand the plot. If I used this image as my final image I would feature 'Ellie' in a piece of clothing in which is featured in the trailer to keep up with the continuity.
The phrase 'Free poster inside' can be viewed as being a screamer (attracting and drawing the reader into purchasing the magazine) this therefore can be linked with my other anxcillary text which is the film poster, as i think this is a creative aspect as you often see magazines giving away posters on upcoming popular films, it is also a good advertising and marketing technique. The title of the film 'The Hunted' is placed underneath the free poster representing the headline which almost acts as an intro for the brand new hit film to be introduced! The headline 'The Hunted' will be stressed in a large font so that as much attention is drawn to it as it is the main focus of the page, it will also be placed next to the main character Ellie's face to create an ambigous element for the readers. Underneath 'The Hunted' I have gathered together exciting aspects as to which would draw in readers into wanting to read the film magazine, for example I have used the word 'Exclusive' which makes the reader feel priviliged! I deliberately used the word 'catched' almost as a pun to the storyline as it is about a stalker catching up with it's victim! Included also on the front cover are several smaller images which will be made to look like they are screen shots of behind the scenes or from the trailer, so that the reader knows what they are expecting to read and view. In magazines there are always competitions and prizes to give away, this can be seen as being a modern day contemporary feature. Consequence to this I have added a giveaway prize to the Bafta Awards as this gives a realistic aspect to the magazine and gives it a sense of quality by including 'The Baftas'. At the bottom of the front page I have added a small advertising strip which is another feature involved in the magazine, also by analysising other existing and contemporary magazine front covers I have discovered that many of these do this, also being another possible advertising technique. Therefore again I may apply this attribute to my final product.

The main image on this front cover is fairly similar to the main image featured in the first draft, as it features a tree in the woodland area with 'Ellie' the main character stood next to it. However, 'Ellie' will be posed in a different way with her head turned around looking shocked and alarmed as if she has come face to face with her stalker! This immediately projects to the reader the genre of the film and also perhaps the plot and storyline as the camera shot acts as the stalker itself, which is the effect in which I am after if I choose to use this draft for my final production piece.


The masthead of the magazine 'ACT!ION' is again displayed at the top in a large font, however I have added an advertising strip so that I could add text for example 'Review of top 100 films of the decade' this is an interesting aspect of the magazine which would definately draw in film lovers. Again the headline of the film 'The Hunted' is placed next to the main image to show the link and connection between the two, it also adds mystery and suspense. The sub-headline in which I have featured underneath the headline 'ACT!ION meets the victim...' keeps the film alive and adds a realistic perspective for the audience. Included are pictures of behind the scenes images taken from the trailer to show the reader that this is pure exclusiveness! Featured at the bottom of the magazine front cover is another strip like at the top however advertising 'behind the scenes at the new Harry Potter film' this could be seen as adding an element of Postmodernism by using intertextual referencing of current films to this day.






This is the third draft I created, this layout very much differs from the other two. The main image featured is a close-up of 'Ellie' with her hand over mouth in shock, this could again establish to the audience that there will be a vast amount of shock in this film and could perhaps represent a specific part in the film were 'Ellie' faces a large amount of distress! If I used this draft for my final production I would again keep up with the continuity by featuring the main character in clothing which is used in the trailer, perhaps were 'Ellie' is confronted by her follower! The name of the film magazine "ACT!ON" is displayed just under halfway down the page, I experimented when doing this and have realised that having the name of the magazine this low down on the page could perhaps confuse the reader when looking at the front cover of the magazine as the title of the film 'The Hunted' is featured higher up than 'ACT!ON' therefore this could be easily confused. Underneath 'ACT!ON' there is a prize included again to offer opportunities for the reader which is vital and can also help the reader engage and possibly included. I have used a language device in the form of repition such as ' Exlusive, exclusive and...exclusive!' this stresses the exclusivness of the magazine to the readers. Again at the bottom of the front cover there is a strip including other interesting aspects of the film magazine and in a smaller font other hit films such as 'Paranormal Activity' again this can be associated with Postmodernism and the world in which we live in today.