Synergy

Throughout the marketing process of Harry Potter 7, there where many ongoing themes which appeared throughout these Trailers, Magazines and Posters. One of the main ones was the tagline "It All Ends." which is used to signify the end of a global phenomenon. The general theme is along the lines of a massive battle about to be taking place which is shown throughout all 3 types of media.

Another similarity that is show in this marketing campaign for Harry Potter 7 is that all the posters are screen captures from the actual trailers. This shows synergy between both the posters and film trailer, making viewers relate between these two mediums and overall increasing the awareness of this franchise, and film.

Film Magazine Analysis

In this Film Magazine, there are many features which stand out for this Harry Potter special magazine. First of all, the masthead is glowing red which suits together with the background to create a more action/war-like feel in this magazine. This is also backed up further by the use of flashing lightening, and him wielding a sword which could mean that it is all coming to an end (this also shows that HP is the hero - through Propp's narrative). The text used on the left hand side is a serif style font and uses rhetorical questions to draw in the reader. 

The main stand out text though is 'Harry Potter 7' which is what the reader automatically sees first considering it is the largest thing on the page. Harry Potter is standing in front of this text to symbolize the importance of what is Harry Potter, in both the franchise and the actual character. A strapline is used at the top of the magazine normally to advertise give-aways and competitions, but in this issue a free guide to movies to act as an incentive to buy the magazine. Here of course there are general features of magazines such as barcodes and puffs to entice the reader furthermore.

I would say this magazine was pretty effective as it has many different features such as almost celebrating the fact that this 'phenomenon' is coming to an end, using an attractive blend of font colours, styles and the general layout of the magazine (it doesn't seem over-cluttered in any way.)



In this Film Magazine, it shares some similarities with the previous magazine. This includes the main subject being in front of the masthead to symbolize importance and an active presence considering he is in the middle of the shot. The red san-serif font contrasts very well with the blueish grey background. The black slanted font at the side creates a sort of '3D' style which connects with the film really well, as well as it drawing the reader in even more.

The clothes that Leonardo DiCaprio wears and the gun he is holding however does not appear to make him the villain as this is influenced by the lighting over his face and suit (the reader will also be interested in where he is looking, as it is off-camera). Once again like the previous magazine it uses a selection of tag-lines, strap-line and pugs to intice the reader into purchasing the magazine

In conclusion this magazine advertises the film very well through the use of lighting, and the contrast of the blue and red colour scheme which is very effective. Like the previous magazine the main text 'Inception' stands out the most with the surrounding text drawing in people to read their magazine.

Codes & Conventions of Film Trailers

Film trailers are a type of film production that shows the story (but not exactly telling it in the sequence) of a film in a brief advertisement. Pre-modern trailers were normally very slowly edited with informative text - and less focused on the actual storyline - but nowadays they are include vast arrays of sounds, images and footage from the film that they are trying to sell to viewers. Here is a list of some of the main conventions there are in film trailers:

• Shots in a film trailer will never be shown in a linear pattern and are never in the order that they are in the film. This is so that not too much of the story has been given away and so it doesn't spoil the ending.
• Distribution and Film company logos will be always shown at the beginning/end of a film trailer.
• The names of famous actors, actresses, directors and producers usually will appear either at the beginning/end of the trailer.
• Trailers cannot exceed the 2-minute mark once every year, otherwise they are generally 1-1:30 minutes long as television commercials.
• Music is used in trailers to justify the genre of that particular film, so for example if it was an ambient bass-heavy/atmospheric type of soundtrack, you would know that it would most likely be a trailer for a horror movie.

Film Trailer Terminology

Voice-Over - This helps set the scene for a particular trailer or give information about the release date of the film. It can also help the viewer understand the premise of the trailer and is therefore extremely useful.

Music - This is of paramount importance when it comes to film trailers. This sets the trailer with a type of atmosphere depending on the genre of the film. Types of music used can be:

• Songs by where the company making the trailer has to acquire rights to use this that could be expensive.
• A piece could be composed which makes it more suited and personalized towards the film trailer.

Billing Block - A billing block is the small text used normally at the start or end of trailers which lists the important roles and people who did this particular role.

Cast Run - This is a list of actors/actresses that are shown in the trailer to increase the awareness (and potential sales) of the film, if they have big name actors, actresses, directors or producers.

Studio Production Logos - These are the logos of the companies who made/distributed the film, which are generally shown at the end of the trailer.

Video Resolution  - The resolution of the trailer is normally in the same format as the actual film (either 35mm reels or digital format.) Now because of ever-increasing Internet speeds, film trailers are now released in 1080p resolution on video sharing sites.

Sound Mix - Modern trailers now use the Dolby Digital sound format, and scenes that are of importance in a trailer try to make use of this format through using effects and other means to make full use of the sound technology.

Marketing Campaign Research

Considering I am creating a Film Trailer with the genre of Horror/Thriller, I will be researching various advertisements campaigns which will influence the outcome of the final product that I will be creating.



The 'Missing Persons' Poster used in the campaign.



The film I will be researching is the very successful 'The Blair Witch Project'. This film grossed almost $200 million which means it is one of the most successful horror movies ever produced considering having a lowly budget of $60,000. What made this movie so successful was sorely down to the marketting campaign. This featured things such as Missing Person Posters and a website. This 'ground-breaking' campaign suggested that the film and it's events where real.

After grossing $1,000,000 on it's first boz office weekend, the studio pushed for further exposion to the public with these already-successful posters. The final budget for the film is suggested to be between $500,000-$750,000.

This was before the time of Social Networking, so the main reason for it also being extremely successful was due to word-of-mouth. This combined with the effect of making it look like a real event made this film have one of the most ingenius marketting campaigns ever produced in film.

A screenshot of the website for the film.



Research Update

*Summary of your A2 coursework brief DONE
*Trailer terminology including definition UNFINISHED
*Codes and conventions of trailers (Using technical vocab) NOT DONE
*History of trailers - this must include examples DONE
*Detailed analysis of 2 trailers (one set and the other in the same genre as you select for your own product) DONE
*Detailed analysis of 2 film magazine covers - How effective are they and why? (Choices as explained above) DONE
*Detailed analysis of at least 2 movie posters. Comment on techniques used - students should try to include a comparison of posters from the set movie. DONE
*Explanation of the synergy between trailer/cover/poster - how this has been maintained throughout the marketing process. UNFINISHED
*Research the marketing campaign for a movie of the same genre as you have selected for your own product. NOT DONE