Part 1. The IndustryMOVIE MAGAZINES

A British Film Magazine, Empire had it’s fi rst issue published in July 1989 and is currently the biggest selling fi lm magazine in the United Kingdom.

Empire is also published in the United States, Australia, Turkey, Russia and Portugal, reaching a circulation of around 145,117 and is released monthly.

They host an annual “Empire Awards” ceremony where readers vote for winners of awards such as Best Thriller and Best Actor.

Regular Features include reviews, previews, fi lm news, “at home” for DVDs and Blu-ray, Top 10 lists, Celebrity Mastermind where celebrities are asked trivial questions on fi lms they have worked on and a spine quote on every issue.

EMPIRE MAGAZINE

Also UK based, Total Film is published every 4 weeks totalling in 13 magazines a year and was launched in 1997.

They off er cinema, DVD and Blu-ray news, features and reviews. Their regular features also include spotlight interviews with actors and directors, “making of”, and the Total Film review, a six-page interview with an actor or director along with a critique of their work.

Their circulation as of June 2013 was 60,912, but their presence online is very strong with a website, app and various social media platforms, which draws in a large audience.

TOTAL FILM MAGAZINE

Premiere Magazine is a New York City based fi rm which is not published in magazine form anymore, but still available online. Their original parent company Premiére is still active however in France.

Ten issues were published every year which sold in the USA, Canada, Britain, France and Australia among other places between 1987 and 2007.

The Regular features of the magazine are “Letter Box” which are letters/e-mails from fans, “First Look” a brief look into fi lms still in production and “Ask Glenn”, questions posed to renowned fi lm critic Glenn Kenny.

Annually, they also included “The Power List” of Hollywood’s most powerful people, “Women in Hollywood” of Hollywood’s most prominent women and coverage of the Academy Awards.

PREMIERE MAGAZINE

A British monthly fi lm magazine, Sight and Sound is published by the British Film Institute (BFI) reaching a circulation of 22,616.. Founded in 1932, The magazine reviews all fi lm releases each month, including those with a limited release, as opposed to most fi lm magazines which concentrate on those fi lms with a general release.

Every decade, Sight & Sound asks an international group of fi lm professionals to vote for their greatest fi lm of all time which is viewed as the most respected “Greatest Ever Film” polls.

The magazine's American counterpart is the Film Comment, a journal published by the Film Society of Lincoln Centre in New York City.

SIGHT AND SOUND MAGAZINE

Part 2.Codes andConventions

MOVIE MAGAZINES

Even though they may come in diff erent styles and lay outs, movie magazines always have the same components featured on the front cover that are essential:

A Masthead Main Story/Main Image Cover lines Colour scheme (House Style) And possibly banners/runners featured along

the bottom or the top of the magazine cover

WHAT IS ON A MOVIE MAGAZINE COVER?

Usually located at the top of the magazine so it is seen when piled on a shop display and immediately visible to the consumer through use of larger text, the masthead is another word for the title of the magazine.

In more well known and established movie magazines, the main image may be placed in front of the magazine’s masthead and it isn’t entirely on show, and this is because the brand itself is recognisable so there is no need to have the full masthead on display.

MASTHEAD

Movie magazines can choose to either present their main image of an actor either in character or as themselves, but the former is the most utilised strategy and in my opinion proves to be the most eff ective.

The main image will correlate with the main story featured in the issue (the title is usually a pun or a catchy, attention grabbing phrase), and the backgrounds vary from images from the fi lm or being totally removed. Shots taken vary largely, but the most common are close ups, mid shots and long shots.

MAIN STORY/MAIN IMAGE

These are the other stories and segments featured within the magazine, and are written in a smaller font in comparison to the masthead and main story, but are still of the same style in order to maintain a professional and polished look.

The title of the segment however is usually more noticeable and prominent, with the details written below in a simpler font. These two are usually catchy or puns, to draw the audience in more through the clever quips and light hearted remarks.

COVER-LINES

Each magazine follows a colour scheme, or the correct media term is house style. This is a set of colours they follow in each issue for example Empire always uses red, white and black. These colours are designed to be the most visually eff ective to grab attention of audiences.

Occasionally, magazines may change their colour schemes to suit a big movie they are covering, for example Empire incorporated lime green into their colour screen when covering The Dark Knight and steel grey with Man of Steel.

COLOUR SCHEME/HOUSE STYLE

Placed at either the top or bottom of the magazine cover, these usually advertise special or one off stories, lists or awards ceremony coverage.

Sometimes, they are just general comments or lines to boost the issue’s profi le such as “Movie’s Biggest Year Ever” or “Our Most Action Packed Issue Ever!”. This is to entice the viewer into picking up the “best ever” issue of the magazine and read there “action packed” coverage.

BANNERS/RUNNERS