Media Advert - Sang Royal

I have created the perfume Sang Royal, and accompanied it with an advert, which should highlight everything the perfume implies. I am going to take you through how I created it and what different factors I used to make it a completed advert.

I chose to create a perfume advert over a cosmetic advert as I believed that it would give me more freedom to express ideas, as cosmetic adverts tend to be a lot simpler aesthetically.

I believe that my advert would be targeted at esteem seekers as they are acquisitive and materialistic, and aspire to what they see as symbols of success. I am of the opinion that my perfume connotes an air of wealth and glamour, which are two things esteem seekers would relate to as success. I do not believe that my advert would appeal to contended conformers or innovators as the advert is neither too reserved/boring nor eccentric/very different. In terms of personal aspiration, I feel that it would fit well within Aspirers/social climbers as in my opinion it would be a high-fashion product that would help give them a higher image status. I estimate that the audience (who would be female) would appeal to women between the ages of 18 to 40, a 21^st century feminine adult.

The perfume’s name: “Sang Royal” translates from French to “Royal Blood”. This could indicate that perfume is aimed only at those who can afford it, an elite class of women, the perfume’s slogan: “defiantly regal” also indicates this. Women who the advert appeals to would be middle to upper class; the perfume looks expensive and connotes wealth and royalty, which would give buyers a sense of confidence, achievement and glamour. On the other hand, the advert also may well appeal to the lower class woman who wants to inject her life with a bit of glamour, wealth and femininity that she might not have in life. I feel that the advert would be displayed in a magazine such as Vogue or in a rich area, read or viewed by aspirers. I doubt that it would be displayed mainstream magazines like Glamour or Heat, as their readers would not be as interested in an un-safe product that may stand out slightly.

The advert displays a young lady perched on a chaise lounge. She is dressed in red, a colour that implicates romance and love, though it is not a boisterous red, but a darker red which could imply that she is quite reserved in her feelings and attitudes, which could appeal to a higher class, lady. Her appearance shows that she is well groomed and ladylike, which creates an air of glamour around her and would appeal to women wanting a similar feeling and her sitting stance is inoffensive showing that she is reserved as she is facing away. Her eyes are diverted away from the viewers, which indicates mystery and keeps the viewer guessing. Is she waiting or longing for another person, or is she wishing on the stars in the background. This gives the advert a feel of romance, something that may have vanished in our modern society, and something that many women may lust after. The chaise lounge that she is sitting on gives also gives the advert a romantic feel, something that could be related to high class Victorian society. A dark green old fashioned street lamp to her right lights up the area she is in, especially her face, and the style of it resembles an old Parisian street lamp, which once again connotes romance and mystery. The light bulb within the street lamp is red, and this could insinuate a heart, as it is the life of the street lamp. The starry darkness behind the female figure shows a slightly mystical side to the advert, and might interest or appeal to some viewers who also have this side to them. The perfume bottle is a red heart, like the light bulb, and indicates love and romance, the perfume’s name is also related to the heart with the “sang” being the French term for “blood”. The bottle’s top is a crown, which once again symbolises wealth and royalty, also relating to perfume’s name. The font’s colour matches; the red of the woman’s dress, the light bulb and the perfume bottle. It is a deep red and is a classic font with flicks, connoting a slightly Victorian feel, along with supporting the perfume’s glamour and appealing to aspirers.

I created the advert by using Photoshop to edit in images from the internet like the chaise lounge, the street lamp, the perfume bottle and the crown on top. The editing required tools such as the magic wand, lasso, blur and smudge. These helped me to create images that looked like they were meant to be there. I used the burn, dodge and sponge tools to create shades I wanted on all the objects in the advert and also used the lighting tools to project light onto the chaise lounge and the female figure from the street lamp. These are all skills I have developed from experimenting with Photoshop. I took a picture of my sister for the female figure as I believe that she possesses glamorous attributes that contribute to the feel I wanted to achieve. Once again I used all of the tools above to place her in my advert like she was naturally there.

My advert does appear differently to what I planned, and I believe if I were to do it again there are several areas of the final product that I would change. This would allow more connotations to be made. In my plan, the female figure is supporting herself on the chaise lounge, which implies that she can be an independent woman if need be, which may attract women who do not rely on a men to support them. Also, another change that I would have made is the clothing the young lady is dressed in. I would have preferred her to be dressed in a Victorian-esque dress, as this could have related to the style of the street lamp, the font used, the era of the chaise lounge and the royal aspect.

Questionnaire - Expectations of a Thriller Film

ANSWERS

Q1. Name a thriller film you have seen in the last year

Thrillers that those asked seemed to mention included – Hitman, Mission Impossible, The Strangers, Blade Runner, Psycho, Face Off, Flight Plan, and Phonebooth.

Q2. What attracted you to this film out of the following?

My findings inform me that 8 of the 15 people I asked were attracted to this film due to the people who act within it. Prior to this I would have initially believed that props involved would be the pulling factor of the film.

Q.3. What factors do you believe make a thriller memorable?

This question’s answers have not surprised me, as personally I agree with the majority. A sequence or shot of a certain part of a Thriller can sometimes never be forgotten, e.g The Shower Scene in Psycho, a powerful example of a very memorable scene; it is over 30 years old, yet still we refer to it complexity today.

Q4. Which sub-genre of thriller do you prefer?

My findings suggest that Crime thrillers are the most popular; this is probably to be expected due to the fascination with this culture. Medical thriller’s rated the lowest; perhaps this is due to the fact that they are quite rare to come by, a virtually untouched area of thrillers perhaps.

Q5. Where would you preferably view a thriller?

The atmosphere of a dark cinema, with a large screen seems to have drawn people into viewing thrillers at the cinema with 10 out of 15 people most likely to watch them there. DVD’s are a firm second best, with some people choosing to watch the thriller in the comfort of their own home, however the experience may not be as heightened as it would be on the big screen. The Internet is not considered, with 0 people choosing this option.

Q5. Are you more likely to view a thriller if it is made in the UK?

73% of people seem not to care whether a thriller is made in the UK or not. This is probably due to the fact that UK thrillers are usually small, independent films that do not break through to mainstream cinemas such as Odeon or Vue, instead staying in small independent cinemas for example: Cinema City.

Audience Survey - Film Viewing Over Summer

QUESTIONNAIRE:

ANSWERS:

What films have you seen over July/August?

It seems that the most popular film this summer was Batman, with five people out of fifteen watching this over the summer. Mamma Mia, the summer’s blockbuster was not so high in this survey, perhaps because the majority of people I asked were in the younger generation? Mamma Mia perhaps appealing to the older generation.

Where did you see these films?

By my results it seems that the cinema is still the overruling medium, with 66% of the people I asked still flocking to the big screen for the latest blockbusters or independent films. I was surprised at the lack of internet viewers, perhaps people really do feel guilty about internet piracy – or they are just dishonest. I believe my questionnaire should have had a DVD column as many people did not think to write this in the ‘Other’ column.

How did you find out about these films?

Once again, surprisingly, the internet is ousted by posters and magazines proving that the written medium is still a strong force in advertising and that the internet is not the sole contributor. Television is on an equal par, also alerting the same number of people as posters and magazines.

What nationality were the films?

The amount of UK films, as filled out by the participants of the questionnaire is surprising, as you would believe the USA to be the main distributor of films, especially those shown in mainstream cinemas such as Odeon and Vue.

This is England - Research

Directed by Shane Medows, who has previously directed independent award winning films such as: Dead Man’s Shoes, Northern Soul, The Stairwell and Somers Town. This Is England is a 2006 English independent film, a drama illustrating 1980’s Britain. The skinhead culture is prominent within the film, and this perhaps makes the film appealing to the generation who experienced this time. Arguably the film also appeals to the younger generation of today, as the culture parrallels to the one of today with similar cliques. The film was a huge success for British independent films winning the Alexander Korda Award for Best British Film at the 2007 British Academy Film Awards. It also won the Best Film category at the 2006 British Independent Film Awards, with Thomas Turgoose, the lead role, winning the Most Promising Newcomer award. The film was distributed in different ways. The film was not exhibited in mainstream cinemas such as The Odeon, Vue or UCI, but in small independent cinemas such as ‘Cinema City’ in Norwich. I believe this gained the film more respect than if it was shown internationally and perhaps gave the film an air of mystery around such a talked about film. Recently the film has been distributed on Channel 4’s Film Four, allowing it to be available to a wider audience.

British cinema January – September

Successful films

- Adulthood
- Angus, Thongs and Perfect Snogging
- The Cottage
- The Duchess


Adulthood

Released – 20th June 2008
Director – Noel Clarke
Cast – Noel Clarke, Scarlett Johnson, Jacob Anderson
Distributed by – Pathe Pictures International
Success – Opening weekend grossed £1,203,319
Reviews – Criticised for lack of plot


Angus, Thongs and Perfect Snogging

Released – 25th July 2008
Director – Gurinder Chadha
Cast – Georgia Groome, Alan Davies
Distributed by – Paramount Pictures, Nickelodeon Movies
Success – Has grossed over £4.7million
Reviews – Gained many good reviews


The Cottage

Released – 14th March 2008
Director – Paul Andrew Williams
Cast – Andy Serkis, Jenifer Ellison, Georgia Groome
Distributed by – Pathe Pictures
Success – Grossed £39 million worldwide
Reviews – Mixed reception


The Duchess

Released – 5th September 2008
Director – Saul Dibb
Cast – Keira Knightley, Hayley Atwell, Ralph Fiennes
Distributed by – Pathe Pictures
Success – Grossed $2,500,000
Reviews – Critics were harsh, yet viewers seemed to have a positive response

Thriller Film Case Study - Psycho

Institutional Information

• Psycho (1960)



• Directed by Alfred Hitchcock



• Date of release: 16th June 1960



• Country made: USA



• Awards: Nominated for four Academy Awards, Janet Leigh - Golden Globe winner for performance



• Genre: Thriller

Audience Response

External Reviews

The Film initially received a mixed response from critics when first released;

'A blot on an honourable career, plainly a gimmick movie'

'Widely regarded as Hitchcock's best film, "Psycho" is certainly his most imitated and perhaps his most influential. Ostensibly a Grand Guignol thriller with Freudian undertones, it's a perfectly realised, visually rich, and chilling look at masculinity and schizophrenia that had more than a hand in redefining the role of the spectator in terms of mainstream cinema, most notably perhaps in the famous shower sequence which re-explored the nature of cinematic voyeurism.
As effective as it is as a genre piece, the proceedings are of course shot through with Hitchcock¹s sly, mordant and slightly sadistic humour which revels in the consequences of the oedipally induced madness and the sardonic irony of much of the dialogue ("Mother's not herself today"). For all its playfulness however, it's still gripping and irrevocably gruesome fare played to perfection by a top notch cast, chief amongst them a suitably jumpy Perkins in a career defining role. An audacious treasure trove of riches'.

- BBC Films Review by David Wood

However, the public seemed to have a different opinion and the film was successful because of them.

User Ratings

Out of 110,000 votes, Psycho has received an 8.7/10 rating on the Internet Movie Database.

Men and women seem to both have enjoyed the film thoroughly, with positive reviews from both genders.

How the director utilises the generic codes and conventions of the thriller film

The Shower Scene

This is perhaps the most famous scene of the entire thriller, where the main character (and also criminal) Marion Crane, takes a shower in the sleazy motel room she has just rented for a night.

The mise-en-scene uses a camera lens with deep focus, this allows the audience to see everything around the subject. There are many close ups to show Marion washing herself and also of the shower head spurting out water (perhaps relating to how she could be bleeding in the same way later on). The camera moves around her showing different angles of the subject, this allows us to see what surroundings she is in, with only the semi-transparent shower curtain in view. This adds to the generic thriller theme of confined spaces. The lighting of this part of the scene is ambient and the director uses very bright lights as it makes everything visible and perhaps more scary. The sound within the scene is diegetic as all that can be heard is the sound of the water running from the shower head. The music however, is non-diegetic and is made up of the classic thriller music, which has made the film so memorable. It builds up, getting louder and more dramatic as it leads to the inevitable murder of Marion by the Psycho Vince Vaughn.
The Director uses all of these methods to create a generic thriller sequence.

Still Shots

Here we learnt about different angles with a still digital camera (unflattering as the pictures may be).

• Long Shot
• Extra Long Shot
• Eye Level
• Birds Eye
• Canted
  

Single Shot Filming

Having recently looked at this type of filming I have decided to explore it further and post this blog about what I find.

Single shot filming does not feature scene cuts, it is a continuous rolling scene where the camera follows an actor or subject and uses varieties of angles, shot distances and focuses to achieve a flowing section of film. Single shot scenes can be extremely aesthetically pleasing as many appear busy, with the changing of locations and characters within them, one example of this type of single shot scene is in the Club scene in the 1990 Martin Scorsese film, Goodfellas. If a single shot sequence is accomplished successfully it can tell a story in one shot and it demonstrates; impressive technical skills, imagination, style and a sense of real time - adding immediacy and impact to whatever it is included in. To achieve all of these aspects the scene must be choreographed to perfection to avoid hazards and unwanted action. The camera must be kept still to allow the flowing feel to continue throughout (this is a challenge that armature film makers will be sure to encounter, as they will obviously not possess the same technology and equipment).

Atonement - 2007

Directed by Joe Wright


This remarkable and aesthetically moving 5 minute single shot sequence is from the Dunkirk beach scene. It represents the aftermath of the battle of Dunkirk in World War 2. The camera follows main character Robbie Turner (James McAvoy) through the disasterous battlefield. The scene displays complete hoplessness with drunken soldiers stumbling around the surroundings of the beach as they believe that there is no hope in securing the area from the germans. Soldiers can be seen shooting horses and demobilizing army trucks so the germans cannot use them once they invade. The music and footage together provoke emotion in everyone who watches it and who did not experience the actual event. The single shot filming creates a flowing effect and allows the whole scene to be depicted as a continuous event. I believe that director Joe Wright succeeds in everything this scene intends to show, nothing short of amazing.

Advertisment Analysis

Chanel - Coco Mademoiselle

The advert for 'Coco Mademoiselle' perfume by Chanel suggests that by buying the product you will feel glamorous and feminine, leading to a build up of confidence. The advertisement spreads over a double page, so your eyes cannot just roll over it. It demands the female reader's attention, as this is the gender the advert should appeal to.

The glamorous side of the advert is lead by Keira Knightley, a successful young, attractive actress. She appears on the page looking flawless; with maintained hair and glossed lips, showing the audience what a glamorous woman should look like. She wears pearls around her neck, connoting wealth and possessions and her intimate stare engages the audience, drawing them into the advert. Keira's stance shows her sitting on her knees and leaning slightly in to the camera, she supports herself by her left arm, suggesting that although she may appear quite vulnerable, she can support herself. The audience may relate to this. The lighting of the scene also gives it a glamorous feel. It is dim and reflective, in circular shapes (theatre show spotlights) creating large shadows and an air of mystery around the female figure. These shades are used to develop the seduction by focusing on certain areas of her body like her left shoulder, and tops of the legs. The areas left in the dark are left to the viewers imagination and so pose a slightly seductive edge on the advert.

The advert is obviously aimed at women as it includes a very feminine young lady and a perfume bottle in a pale pink colour. The perfume's name is in a quite rushed and scrawled font. however it reminds me further of a glamorous, theatre theme in Paris circa 1920. This theme also ties in with the two props; a bowler hat and a shirt - show business? Perhaps she is waiting for a man to return to her or maybe she has recently rid herself of this male figure.

Confidence is prominent withing the advertisement. Keira Knightley's lack of clothing shows she is confident about her body and is not afraid to show it. This could appeal to potential buyers of the product as they might feel this could do the same for them. The young lady is however not entirely indecent as she is covering herself (in particular areas) with the props. Another show of confidence is the brands logo: Chanel. It is displayed in a bold font, showing the audience the brand is proud of it's product and so should the owner be.