In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms of conventions from real media products?

Frame 1: Our title

The first frame of my analysis is our choice of title, Here I Come, and how this is presented in our trailer. We choose this title because it directly gives an insight into our plot, as most audiences would associate this statement with the children game of hide and seek. In research I found that the topic of children heavily occurs in thriller films, such as in 'Kidnapped' and 'Taken' as they are considered the most vulnerable group in society. Therefore, our title gives an instant indication that the subject of childhood is likely to be involved - something all audiences can relate too, as everyone will have experienced some form of childhood. Here I Come is said in our trailer user the Mother's voice, therefore implying that she is going on a mission to find her daughter, and although this is not explicit from just looking at the title, it causes audiences to question who is saying it and why. The use of the personal pronoun 'I' also causes the audience to desire to know who the 'I' is, generating another point of interest. Here I Come is also a bold declarative statement, which shows no sign of hesitation, symbolising the Mother's determination. The title still leaves some ambiguity and openness, for the audience to create their own interpretations of the meaning.

Our title does challenge the fact that the majority of titles are one or two words, such as 'Se7en', 'Gone Girl' and '1408'. However, we felt that the connotations that would occur, and the threatening effect that is suggested, outweighed the disadvantages of having a longer title. Also, as it is a frequently used statement, we felt it would still be memorable. 

Deciding our font was an important task, as it would be used throughout the whole of our project, creating synergy between the different elements. We chose the 'chiller' font as we felt it perfectly matched the thriller genre, but also matched our plot. The font has a look as if it has been handwritten, again representing how the Mother could have written the statement on her desperate quest to find her daughter. The handwritten-like title also appears in capital letters, emphasising struggle but also perseverance - the Mothers main emotions. The title is placed in white over a black background, which is the stereotypical layout, seen in the Se7en title above, and can be seen in other thriller films such as The Strangers and The Purge. In our trailer, the title appears in segments, with each word having its own inter title page, and then a final page combining the three. We felt this would have more of an impact, as the audience focus on each separate word, being forced to consider the meaning behind it, whilst creating an intimidating effect.

Frame 2: Storyline/plot

Frame 2 is of the suspect/kill board we made, filming as if the Mother had created it. This is one of the main points that audiences will realise the Mother is taking matters into her own hands, despite being previously told by the detective to leave it to the police. It also introduces the idea that there are suspects who need to be questioned, a convention of the thriller narrative. Yet, it many thriller films audiences see the antagonist directly tormenting the victims, therefore ours challenges this idea, as throughout the trailer audiences are unaware who took the child, why they did it, and how they done it. This means that audiences are more likely to sympathise with the mother, as they are in the same situation as her, unlike many real media products that use the concept of dramatic irony. Our trailer conforms with the convention of leaving the trailer on a cliffhanger, as this entices audiences to see the film in cinemas to find out the outcome. We achieved this by showing cuts and rope on an arm - which is ambiguous in whether it is the Mother or Daughters arm, increasing feelings of panic. 

Frame 3: Settings

In filming we visited several different locations to film, all of which are typical settings that a middle-class viewer would recognise. These are our target audience, as this class of people are most likely to visit the cinema in their spare time, with friends and family. We felt that the audience needed to be able to relate to the protagonist Mother in order to empathise with her and the situation. These settings present the Mother and Daughter as common people with 'normal' lives, making the disappearance of the girl even more frightening, as audiences believe that it could happen to anyone. Home settings are used to again portray the Mother as a normal citizen, however in this setting she is drinking alcohol and not sleeping, making audiences uncomfortable as the house is usually a secure and comfortable environment. Many thriller films are set in house settings such as The Strangers and The Purge.

Using a park setting, usually connotative of enjoyment and happy memories, juxtaposes the setting and its connotations with the disappearance of a young child. We manipulated the idea of a park through shooting footage there on a foggy day and then using effects to lower the brightness, again contradicting audiences conventional views of a park. 

Other settings such as train tracks, and electricity poles were used, as they are known for being dangerous areas, suiting the crime-thriller genre. However, these settings are also used as a juxtaposition with the park - which was once safe but is now a dangerous area. Settings linking directly to the crime-thriller genre are seen, such as police stations and detective offices. These are seen in most crime films, such as Gone Girl and The Girl on the Train. 

Frame 4: Props and Costume

For frame 4 I have used a close up of some of our main props - alcohol and tablets. I chose this shot as it challenges the conventions of a typical protagonist, as they are not often involved with alcohol etc, however we felt it would be a perfect way of highlighting the Mums desperation - but also irresponsibility - a factor that prominently recurs throughout the plot/trailer. However, these props are often involved in crime, the news, and are known as dangerous substances, therefore fits the crime thriller genre.

In our trailer there is a close up shot of the mother drinking alcohol, wearing the pink coat which is seen is every shot. This character wears a pink coat, not only because it is a stereotypical outfit, but also because pink connotes femininity, and is also a symbol of love - depicting the love for her daughter. We also felt the coat would be recognisable and a memorable element we could use across our trailer, poster and magazine cover, showing synergy. In Before I go to Sleep, a real media product, the main character - Christine - wears a pink dress in times of weakness. However, we want to challenge this, by making a stereotypical female colour, showing vulnerability, and making the pink coat a sign of strength and power. 

Frame 5: Camera and Editing

Before filming our trailer we carefully planned all of our camera shots, movements and angles, as in real media products there is a typically large variety, making it more intriguing for audiences. Frame 5 showing our main character sitting at the interrogation table, with spotlight lighting, however not on her face. A high angle shot is used here, to emphasise her isolation and her own feelings of helplessness, which is a conventional method used when presenting the victim of a crime. We also used many P.O.V shots, from unclear characters, again disorientating the audiences, a method seen in many thriller such as in The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. P.O.V shots again let the audience relate directly to the trailer and the Mother fear, as they feel as part of the trailer. Close ups and extreme close ups are used in the trailer, such as of the Mothers hands to show her impatience and planning, and also the injuries at the end in attempt to leave the audience frightened and in suspense. Fast-paced editing is used throughout the trailer, with it building towards the end. This is very conventional of real media products, as trailers often build to a climax, but then emphasises this climax by slowing down the pace of editing and music. Our editing was also put in time with the increasing music pace, as this is nearly always used in trailers. This technique is seen in the Gone Girl trailer, showing how our product uses conventions of real media products. Our trailer is also edited in non-chronological order, a stereotypical convention of the structure of trailers in general.

Frame 6: Introducing characters

Throughout our trailer, only three characters are introduced, one of which could be considered the main character. This already challenges the conventions of real media products, as more characters are typically involved in the narrative. We didn't want many characters in our trailer, as we felt they would distract from the plot - and the relationship between the Mum and Daughter. The lack of character introduction also meant that we could focus on developing the Mums character, with viewers feeling involved in her personal mission.

In Here I Come we decided to introduce the Mother and Daughter's loving and strong relationship, with this frame being the very first seen in our trailer. This allowed us to juxtapose their love, with the horror of the child going missing. Giggle sound effects and dialogue between the two is used over this shot, showing their close bond, and the enjoyment of each others company. There are several shots after this displaying the Mother and Daughter together in the park - a relatable scenario for the majority of audiences. 

The antagonist is never introduced in our trailer, leaving the audience in anticipation, which is somewhat conventional, as antagonists true identities are rarely presented - hidden through the use of masks, hoodies etc. This is especially conventional of crime-thrillers as the aim of the narrative is to eventually track down the criminal. An example of a real media product that uses this is Se7en, in which the antagonist isn't introduced until near the end of the film. 

We introduced our detective in low-key lighting, using an over-the-shoulder shot from midway through an interview with the Mother. He wears a suit, and glasses, emphasising his important and professional occupation - and importance within the narrative. We wanted him to also be a likeable character as he would track and support the Mothers journey, therefore presented his sympathy by making him avoid eye contact with the Mother in the interview.

Frame 7: Special Effects

We used various distorting special effects to highlight and represent the abnormal event that has occurred. The frame I used to demonstrate this is when we used a slight low-angle close up of playground equipment, first in normal colour, but then inverting the colour of the footage. This was to symbolise the sudden change of mood in our trailer, from normal to twisted and frightening. Similar effects were used, such as flashes of white over the printer shot, and a short period of reversed footage of the train. I think this challenges real media products, as I did not see this in any of my research, however we decided to use it to disorientate and confuse audiences, and in feedback we found that this was effective.

We also used subtle transitions such as fade to black, especially prominent at the end of our trailer, as in research into real media products I found this was a main device used to smoothly transition from one shot to another. 

When the news report voiceover is played, we used inter titles and sound effects to create a typewriter effect. As Premiere Pro did not have the option to make the text appear gradually, I had to create separate title for each word, and edit them in time with the speech. Although this was time consuming, we felt this was an effective way to transition between the 'equilibrium' and 'disequilibrium' stage of our trailer, and also clarify/reinforce that the daughter is missing.

Frame 8: Magazine Cover

For frame 8 I used a screenshot of the bottom right section of my magazine, as I feel this section most complies with the typical conventions of a magazine cover. It includes a small image of another media product - Delirium - which is also a thriller, with a close up of the star actor as the image. It shows a section of our title, shown in the same font as in our trailer and poster. This shows synergy between the products, which is conventional of real media products. The title of the film is larger than all other text, except from the magazine name. It also includes the barcode, price and issue number, all necessary for the front of a magazine cover. Colour used a typical of the thriller genre, with black red and white being prominent on my cover, intriguing audiences who are fans of other thriller, horror and crime films. I researched many other magazine films when creating mine, such as Empire and Total Film, taking specific elements as inspiration. I aimed to make my magazine cover look as realistic as possible, using different sizes and types of font, images and a puff. On my magazine I used cover lines promoting both our own film, and other films of a similar genre. My main photo is of the young girl on the floor, using a high angle shot. When taking the photo I asked the girl to not use direct mode of address by looking in the camera, as it creates ambiguity, and makes her look weak and vulnerable, using the teddy as a comfort. The young girl will be a likeable character that audiences will hope will be safe, therefore using her on my magazine cover will interest audiences in reading the contents, due to her star power. Using Adobe Photoshop I had to edit the contrast and shadow levels, as on the day of shooting it was quite sunny. The darker image effect is conventional of the thriller genre.

Frame 9: Film Poster

For my film poster, I used a screenshot from the central bottom section of my poster. I believe the photo I have used conforms with the conventions of real film posters, using a face-on mid shot of one character, and long shot of the other. When taking this photo I wanted to forefront the Mother, then have the daughter in the background and use photoshop to blur the view of the girl - symbolising how she is missing. To emphasise the two characters I placed the rest of the photo into black and white, creating a low-key frightening look. I wanted Alissa - the Mother - to show a direct mode of address, to show her determination, and also engage with the viewer. It is set in a forest/park like setting, a recurring location in our trailer, allowing audiences to make links. However, my poster does challenge the fact that there is normally only a mid/long shot of one main character. My justification for this is that the use of composition gives an intriguing insight into the plot, making viewers question why a child is in the background of the photo, and out of the frontal characters view.

Researching other film posters, such as the 'Homecoming' poster to the right, made me decide to include the date of release in the bottom of the poster, as this is seriously important in wanted audiences to go to watch the film. 

My poster also fits the conventions of real media products by including a star rating, and quotes from institutions giving their reviews on the film. This is seen in the poster for Insidious. I wanted to include adjectives linked to the thriller genre, such as 'terrifying' as this would help appeal to the target audience. I felt the use of yellow acted as a suitable contrast to the faded background, creating a point of interest when first seeing the poster.