Red Dead Retribution: Planning of the Teaser Trailer

Here's a two part video we created, showing how we planned out creating our Red Dead Retribution teaser trailer.

Part 1

Part 2

Red Dead Retribution Magazine Front Cover

Red Dead Retribution Magazine Front Cover Analysis

The title of the magazine is called “WATCH” we decided to name the magazine this as it was simple, easy to remember and catchy. We also decided on the title “WATCH” as it sells the idea the reviews in the magazine are so detailed and graphic it’s as if the reader has just watched the film. The name also sums up the real reason why people watch films. The name of the film targets the audience because it a simple name which could have many meaning to different people as the magazine is called watch it gives the impression that what ever film is in the magazine is a must watch.

The font that was used in the front cover was times new roman we used this font as we felt that it looked vintage then we edited the font adding borders, inner shadows, inner glow, and a different colour this was so that is went along with the along with the conventions of horror and the actual film we got the idea of personalizing the font of the title with the film form magazine covers such as Film and Empire where the have special edition front cover pages.

The main image in the front cover is the main character in the film. We placed the image in the middle of the magazine cover as the attention will continuously be on the main image we also did this so that the audience would straight away notice it is a special edition magazine cover. The image is represents our film “Red Dead Retribution” as the character is one of the more memorable figures in the film so when reader see the front cover they automatically know it’s about our film. The image also gives the audience a feel of what type of film it is and what they would expect to see.

The background of our magazine cover is a picture of a dark corridor   this is used because the film takes place in a college. We also chose this background as we felt it was personal to the main image as it relates to the character and it also gives the viewer insight as to what type of character he is. We got the idea to do this from our research on the magazine front cavers as most magazine front covers have background  that relate to the film that they are reviewing.  While making the front cover we tried to make the corridor look dark and eerie as it links well with the conventions of a horror movie. We also used the background as we felt that this that the attention would be focused on the character as the character really stands out from the back ground and does not at all blend in. the use of offers was used as a marketing strategy as the target audience would be more inclined to want to buy our magazine if they new they would get something free out of it. We got this idea from the film magazine “EMPIRE” as in every issue they are always give away some thing for free.

In the front cover we use quite a few captions we used these caption as it shows that what other reviews where in the magazine as  magazine is not just about the our film it has other reviews having captions also gave it a professional feel to it as most magazines have captions showing what other reviews they have. The captions have different fonts and sizes as it shows verity and it does not all look the same it also appeals to the target audience as it highlights the different reviews that are on offer.

The slogan which we came up with is “WATCH: Hollywood’s Finest” this implied that all the film reviews featured in this magazines are the best  as Hollywood is the best known for its movies and actors which shows that not only are the film that are featured in the magazines the best but the reviews themselves our the best.

Research: Magazine Analysis of Sight and Sound

Main image:  Like all magazines, ‘Sight & sound’ has a large image that takes up most of the front cover in order to attract the audience. This image is a chainsaw which represents one of the biggest horror films of all time ‘the Texas Chainsaw Massacre’. This image also fits with the selling line ‘the return of real horror’. The selling line can also influence people to watch the film if they haven’t to see what a ‘real’ horror film is like. The red paint which represents blood is used in the front cover because blood is one of the main conventions in a horror film and also in The Texas Chainsaw Massacre’.  By having a white background, the blood is more recognizable towards the audience which can attract the audience from far off. This is a connotation to a typical convention of a horror film.  ‘Sight & Sound’ is known to be an influential magazine and by saying that ‘The Texas Chainsaw Massacre’ is a real horror will promote the film even more and help to endorse it. 

Masthead:  The masthead font for ‘Sight & Sound’ is in bold and big writing which stands out to the viewers. The colours used are very effective but yet simple and help make it easy to read.  The masthead is one of the main aspects of  a magazine so it needs to be bold in order for there target audience to recognize the title. This font size for 'Sight & Sound' is bold enough to be recognized by its target audience and other readers, on the other hand it is not creative and distinctive than other film magazines such as "Empire". As the Masthead lacks creativity, this can decrease the number of reader they receive than Empire and therefore lower there sales.  However, because "sight & sound" is aimed at the older, mature readers than having the masthead like this will be suitable for there specific target audience. 

Selling line: ‘The return of real horror’ – This is telling the reader that when you read the article, they will gain a greater understand about the film and the history of American cinema, especially there horror films. This will make the readers eager to want to read this magazine, especially if there are horror fans, because the selling line doesn’t say what ‘real’ horror film is returning which keeps the reader in suspense. With the font size, they gain emphasis on the word "Horror" which notifies the reader that the concept of the magazine is about horror films. They decide to keep the font and the font colour the same so that it doesn't get confusing in the eyes of the reader and keep it organize and sophisticated as the target audience is aimed at old and mature readers.  

Cover lines:  At the bottom of the ‘sight & sound’ magazine front, there are cover lines at the bottom written in the same colour as the blood and one cover line written in the same colour as the main title. Instead of filling the front cover with different types of colours, which usually attract readers, they decided to keep the colour to a minimal which makes the magazine more sophisticated and classy. The cover lines is there in order to encourage the reader to purchase this magazine and read it, so the magazine will want to write exclusive and exciting cover lines in order to attract the readers. Sight and Sound wrote three cover lines which should be enough as too much cover lines would spoil the surprise of the reader because they would already know what to expect inside the magazine. 

Barcode: The magazine is priced at £3.25 which is cheaper than there competitors such as ‘Empire’. Since ‘sight & sound‘ is not as popular as there competitors, it is smart to make there magazine price lower then there competitors so that the readers that don't have enough disposable income will be more interested to purchase ‘sight and sound’ rather than 'Empire'. The barcode is one of the least important thing in the magazine, hence the reason why it is small and to the side of the magazine. When pricing the magazine, they had think about the target audience and whether they can be able to afford the magazine weekly. As there target audience is aimed at the older generation, they set the magazine at a cheap price because they will most likely have a lower disposable income because they may be on there pension or retired.