Evaluation Question 2 : How effective is the combination of your

main product and ancillary task?

By Tia-Reisa Apaloo-Clarke

The Brief of our assignment

• The main objective of our assignment was to create a 5 minute film.

• Alongside this we then had to complete our ancillary tasks. This consisted of a film poster and film review. These were used to promote our film.

What was the objective of our ancillary task?

• The main goal of our ancillary tasks were to promote our film on text and visual platforms.

• One of the main goals of my ancillary task was for the final product to be of a high quality and well presented. This way it would intrigue my target audience and hopefully get them to want to watch it; due to my poster being interesting and because of good recommendations from my review.

How did my poster relate the drama genre?

In my poster I opted for black, white and red to be the focus colours in my poster. As red is a primary colours it can be combined or placed next to a range of different colours and looks visually pleasing. I mainly used black as it creates a sense of mystery and foreshadows that bad things are likely to happen, intriguing the audience to want to watch it .

The title is in white, on a black background in order for it to stand out and look visually appeasing to the audience. I chose to put the tagline in red to connote blood showing death, this is a contrast as red can often portray Love. Real life themes are often the basis of drama films.

I decided to use a font which was plain and clear but also bold. I wanted it to look professional and clean but still easy to read, which was reinforced through the writing being white. Replicating many real drama film posters.

A convection on all film posters. Is to have actors names or at least the main two actors names. I chose to have all four of my actors on my poster as there isn't many actors within the short film. I also chose to have their names on the right hand side instead of the middle or at the top like many other film posters as I felt it suited better on the right and made it look more professional.

How did my poster relate to the drama genre?

The main picture in my poster is a picture of a suit, this is the costume worn by the sales man. This connotes someone in a suit will be in our film, it also creates realism and a sense of the unknown as the audience are unaware who the suit belongs to. The use of realistic costume is a good way to conform to the drama genre.

The tag line on the poster gives away to the audience that there is some sort of twist or hint and that the film is not clear cut and it is likely that something unexpected will happen, this connotes that the narrative contains some sort of twist.

I also put the BBFC certification on my poster and placed it in the bottom right corner as this is a convention of film posters and can be seen easily by the audience.

I decided to put in cinemas, because this is also another convection.

Font choices for my poster

The other font I used was Vincent regular I decided to use this for my poster as it was clear and easy to read. The title is also bold in some areas of the poster in order to highlight key information such as release dates and title.

I chose not to conform to the typical font ‘Universal accreditation’ for credits on film posters, as I wanted to try something different I felt that American .. Blends well with my poster.

Logos and websites

• While researching current film posters, I found that mostly at the bottom of posters there is usually a web address of the production company, that the audience can often visit and learn more about the film and the making of the production. I decided to include our production company's web address ‘Siwale Films’ so viewers could do exactly as stated above. As digital technology is increasing, web address’ are important as it allows people to find out information on films via new media, instead of ‘old’ media such as newspapers.

• The use of social networking sites allows for viewers to find out more information on our film, because of this I added a Facebook logo and our address to our poster, which is often a typical convention on film posters. Social networking sites are a very popular way to promote films as they are used by thousands of people everyday. By creating a profile on these networks it allows us to promote our film to a mass audience.

Font choices for my film review

I used a font that was simple but professional for audiences to read.

I decided to use the same title I used in my poster for my film review, so they could match. I also used the same colour template. Red, white and black. I think although simplistic it looks neat and professional and both my film review and poster tie in with each other.

Images used within my film review and poster

I decided to use both protagonists in my shot for my film review rather than one as it highlights that one of the men seen in the picture is the guy on my film poster, however the audience still don’t know which one, so it still has a sense of mystery. I used this picture as it was one of my favorites, There's so many enigmas creating within just one frame and I think its intriguing for the audience to see a very small frame from the film. Enticing them to want to watch it.

I Chose for the main picture in my film poster to be of a suit, as it represents the characters and the idea of film very well. Both men are in suits so the film poster doesn’t let the audience see whether the suit is of the hit man or Richard, creating mystery, as the audience doesn’t know who the suit belongs to. I also chose a black suit for the characters and for my film poster, as it connotes mystery. It also represents death, which is a potential theme in our film.

How did my film review explore the final product?

I chose to keep the layout of my review simple but clear in order for my film review to be effective and easy to follow. The tagline ‘Nothing is as it seems’ gives away to the audience that the plot isn't as easy going as it seems and that there must be some kind of a twist. I particularly like this tagline and chose to use it as it gives away some information without giving out any major parts of the plot. Which will intrigue audiences to want to watch the film to find out what the twist is. I selected red, white and black for my colour scheme as it entwined with my film poster and also the storyline of the film. Red represents the love Vanessa and Mr Jones had for each other and black represents the potential death and hatred she now has for him. Another convection for a film review that I decided to follow was having a large bold font in the middle or side of a review highlighting some of the films best features. I chose to make “Amazing cast and interesting narrative, this film is definitely a must see” in bold as an interesting narrative is very important in films and if other people are saying it’s good it may make you want to watch the film more. I found this convection through researching other film reviews from magazines such as Empire. I thought it was important to highlight that the film was only 5 minute’s long, as it would entice readers to want to watch it being that its only 5 minutes. Although short at the same time it is very enjoyable which is why it’s awarded 4 stars.

Colour scheme and background

• I chose to mainly use the colour black as it connotations link to our narrative of The Hit and how characters are portrayed.

• I chose to use a black background as black is associated with power, professionalism, death, evil and mystery, these are all connotations of my short film. The main picture of a suit is also in black as black is a mystery colour associated with fear and the unknown. The audience are unaware who the suit belongs to and what it has to do with ‘The Hit’ intriguing them to want to watch it to see this mystery unravel.

• Black can often denote strength and authority which is exactly what the hit man in the film has. He is prepared to kill someone, black also symbolises death which is a main theme within our film.

• Black can also be seen as formal, prestigious and elegant (shown through the use of black tie) the window salesman is a professional.

• I chose to use red as my second basis colour as it’s the colour of fire and blood, its associated with danger, determination, strength and desire, these representations occur within each character, they all are determined to do something whether it be to sell something or kill. It highlights to the audience there is danger within our short film and that something big will happen.

Summary

• Overall I feel the combination of my poster and film review were very effective, both tasks entwined with each other and served its purpose for the promotion of my film.