How effective is the combination of

your main product and ancillary

tasks?

Kayleigh Rogers

Information

• For my course work my group and me had to create a film trailer as you can see to the left, along with two ancillary tasks, which consisted if a film poster and a magazine cover for the film. Our genre was a sub-genre known as psychological horror, so I did some research on sub-genres and presented this is the format of a Prezi. Then we had to research into all the different conventions associated with this genre in order for it to appeal to the appropriate audience. So I had previously researched codes and conventions of a psychological horror in order to make sure that my media products consist of the appropriate aspects you would often consider with this genre.

Firstly I wanted to include phallic symbols within my magazine, poster and trailer due to this being a key convention of a psychological horror. So the main prop used within our trailer was a knife, so I ensured that this was included within my ancillary tasks. This is effect because the fact that the exact same knife is used throughout suggests that its campaign like and they are linked. For example in ‘Leatherface’ in Texas chainsaw massacre which is the trailer I did an analysis on can been seen on the left where he is always associated with his chainsaw. The knife also suggests a sinister side to the trailer. Within the trailer you see Elliot being attack with a knife, the poster and magazine have two shots on the antagonist holding a knife to the protagonists face. This adds enigma because we don’t know who will lose their

For our trailer our characters where many different attires (costumes) throughout to represent past time and to represent different events such as work, dressing gown, and day to day clothing. However on the magazine and the poster, costume isn’t very visible as I fade the images so I could overlap them on the dominant main image. However the characters costume in the poster is slightly visible as the protagonist (Maddie) is wearing a black top which gives of the connotations of mystery and death, these are typical conventions that you would expect to see in a psychological horror. Again in the magazine you can only see aspect of her black top. This gives them that automatic link as the same costume is used within both my ancillary task; the magazine and the poster. Costume was important as we wanted it to connote typical conventions of a psychological horror such as; death, blood, and violence. This is effective because the connotations of black fit with the conventions of a psychological horror.

For my colour I used three main colours on my ancillary tasks; these were black, red and white. This is because red had the connotations of blood and violence, white suggests purity, which is remaining within some of the characters, and then we had black, which connotes death and mystery. Within my poster I used black and white images, this was so I could create shadowing. This was effective as both the magazine and poster contain shadowing, which suggests that the darkness is taking the light. As the majority of my image is consumed by darkness, which suggests there is no hope. This then mirror the narrative of our trailer because Maddie is constantly under attack, we are hinted that something bad as previously happened when she has been taking medication, something not good. This hints at the darkness consuming her, the cult constantly come back, nothing is going right for her, which suggests it’s easy for her to turn to the darkness. However the white suggest purity in my ancillary tasks it suggest there is hope and again it does this in the trailer. As the first costume the protagonist wears is a shirt that is black and white, this hints at the possibility her fate hangs in the balance, she can go either way. The fact that white and black are equally distributed suggests that she can save herself or go to the dark side. This is effective because black and white is represented throughout the trailer and then they are evenly

For our fonts one main theme I have kept to it being bold, this is effective as it stands out whether you’re close to it or far away from it. Its eye catching which makes it more prominent for you to want to watch it or look at the poster and buy the magazine as it looks intriguing and catches the eye. Our font had to be effective for it to appeal to our audience so it had to be picked carefully, so for my poster I picked a distorted text, this was effective as it connects it with the trailer as the protagonists thoughts are distorted through her medication, or a cult sending her insane. Then for my magazine I used a dripping blood font for my magazine as this fit with the make I had done throughout the trailer. I had put special effects make up on the actor to fit in with the conventions of a psychological horror. Plus I used dripping blood when a knife is approaching Elliot, so this joins the link between the pair. This is effective because they blood hint at blood with is a convention of a psychological horror and they subtly link to each other like a campaign would.

• Finally the characters are key for the ancillary tasks and the film

trailer. So I ensured that my masked antagonists were included

within the poster, magazine and the film trailer. This was

effective as is it obviously that although they use different

images they are all linking together. The characters on the

poster, magazine and in the trailer all recognizable as they

continually appear on the different synergy platforms;

magazine, poster and the trailer. This is effective because this

make the target audience associate them together, so again

they make a campaign.