Planning my Film Poster For your controlled assessment, you are going to be designing a film poster for a thriller. First you must plan your poster. The planning counts towards the final mark so make sure you put a lot of thought and effort into this stage. Activity 1: Concept Briefly come up with an overview of the plot for your own thriller. It could be a crime thriller, psychological thriller, supernatural thriller, political thriller or a conspiracy thriller. This only needs to be a short paragraph (like a blurb on the back of a DVD) or 4-6 bullet points. Activity 2: Title Come up with 4-6 possible titles for your own thriller. Write these down and then choose one. Next to your chosen title, say why it is your final decision. Activity 3: Tag line Next, come up with 4-6 possible tag lines for your thriller. Write these down (no need to open a new document or even a new page/slide, just keep going) and then choose one. Next to your chosen tag line, explain why it is your final decision. Activity 4: Fonts Now choose the font for your title and the font for your tag line. Try out 3 or 4 for each and then make a final decision. Activity 5: Age certificate Is your film going to be a U, PG, 12, 15 or 18? Decide and briefly explain why. Activity 6: Review Quotes Obviously your film is going to be hugely successful... Write down two or three quotes from reviews that you can put on your poster. Which publications do you want reviewing your poster, e.g. Empire or Heat? Explain why. Activity 7: Actor’s names Who are going to be the stars of your film? If you are a small film company on a low budget, you might be giving some unknown actors their break... In which case, make up their names. However, you might be working for a big company and have a massive budget and the choice of Hollywood’s finest. If so, research which studios might be associated with this genre and which actors often appear in this type of film. Activity 8: Images Film posters tend to be one big image – or two blended together. Find 5-10 images which could inspire you and create an image board. Draw a sketch of the photograph that you would like to take for your film poster. Activity 9: Layout Find 4-6 thriller posters that already exist and make a list of the layout conventions. Sketch 2/3 layout ideas for your own poster, choose one and explain why.

EXAMPLE OF PLANNING PLEASE NOTE THAT THIS IS FOR AN ACTION FILM – BUT YOU ARE PLANNING FOR A THRILLER.

Planning my Film Poster Activity 1: Concept  A bomb in a hospital  Will go off if one of the patients in the hospital dies – no one is allowed in or out of the hospital  Dual tension – male, retired police officer (Hank Miller) with dark past is in the hospital and goes on mission to diffuse the bomb – meanwhile a female hospital chief (Kate Meridian) is working overdrive to keep all the patients alive  Bomb is planted by villain who was put in jail by the retired police officer Activity 2: Title Prognosis Heart Rate Life Support Heavy Duty Lifeline – assonance of the ‘i’ sounds tense, have to say it quickly – reflects the fast pace of action genre, can imagine it on a poster next to the heart rate monitor, connotes constant threat Activity 3: Tag line Visiting hours are over – shares the theme of the film, a common used expression which takes on a new meaning within the context of the film He’d given up... But he won’t give in You thought you were in safe hands Serious health risk Activity 4: Fonts LIFELINE Visiting hours are over Visiting hours are OVER VISITING HOURS ARE OVER For the title I have chosen the third font as its boldness makes it look masculine appealing to a male audience and the slant suggests urgency which is appropriate for the action genre. I have chosen to use all capitals to imply that this film will include heavy duty action! The tag line will be written in the first font. It is heavy looking without being too intrusive. Its simplicity matches the dry tone of the language used.

Planning my Film Poster Activity 5: Age certificate 15 – most action films are 15, potentially adult theme, to fit in with the conventions of the genre there will be occasional strong language to reflect the gravity of the situation the characters are in, as well as some stronger violence Activity 6: Review Quotes Empire – always get exclusive covers of big blockbusters, mainstream success, a respected publication – “Jaw-dropping stunts and mind-blowing explosions!” The Sun – broadens the audience even more so – “Sends heart rates searing” Activity 7: Actor’s names Bruce Willis Kiefer Sutherland Keanu Reeves Naomi Watts Jennifer Aniston Julia Roberts Why I chose these actors - Fit the stereotype, the right age and image, both are currently popular – Sutherland is in 24 and Watts is currently starring in The Impossible – she has also been the ‘damsel in distress’ in King Kong. I think my idea for an action film would suit a studio like Giant Films and distributed by 20 th Century Fox, similar to the latest Die Hard movie. It would need a big budget.

Activity 8: Image Ideas

Activity 9: Layouts