Mood board

This is a mood board I produced of a range of romantic genre films' posters. There are several elements that I like from all these posters. The composition of the photo used is a key factor as it is one of the main aspects, along with the title of the film that the audience will first notice. One of the first things I noticed about all of these posters is the pictures of the characters and how they all represent the romantic genre as nearly all of them show the characters in some kind of embrace or staring at each other lovingly. I think this wrks well and it means that the audience can tell immediately as to the genre of the film, but I also think that the other covers such as '27 Dresses' and '500 days of Summer' also work really well as you can still tell the genre but it is a different take for the poster, which I think is unique and a creative idea.

Film posters

These are two film posters from the film 500 days of summer. Both of these film posters particularly appealed to me as I especially like the use of several photos within the poster, with several layers and compositions. This is an effect and style I like and I think could also work well within my own work.

The top photo is particularly effective as it is almost like there are several photos that could form a poster, put onto a top that the character is wearing to make another final poster. The pictures used within the top poster are all still shots from the trailer and the film itself which I find interesting.

The simplicity of the posters is another factor I like as I don't think that the poster needs to be really busy. Although the bottom poster does have a lot of photos layered on top of each other, making it look very busy, there is something simple and subtle about it which works well.

The top poster uses just one of the main characters although it then has several photos within the poster with both the characters which is something that I could produce for my own work. However the poster underneath has several photos of just the girl layered over the top, with just the man in the bottom left corner, suggesting that he is thinking about the girl, which could mean that the poster is holding a 'hidden message' about the film that gives the audience a clue to the trailer and the film.

This is the poster from the film The Notebook, another film within the genre of Romantic. The cover has the typical connotations of a romantic genre through the use of the two characters passionately hugging and kissing in the rain.

The use of the soft and subtle colours also make the poster have a nice and calm feel about it, compared to the fact that it is raining. However the rain is an icon within romantic films of either sadness to evoke emotions or an icon of kissing in within the rain, usually after the two characters have had a problem and solved it with the kiss. The blues and whites within the poster illustrates a calm feel about the people and the white gives of the connotations that there is a purity about them and also the film.

The font of the poster is another element I like and I think it looks idyllic and goes well with the genre of the film. The font looks simple but bold and stands out well considering the photo is so dominant. The colour of the font however is fairly bold and dramatic which could give the viewer insight into what the film is about. Personally I think that the black works well as it stands out, however I feel that it doesn't give off the connotations that it is a romantic genre with a happy typical 'love' story.

 

The Holiday is a well known film that is from the romantic genre. This film poster illustrates the genre well through the use of the iconic actors, the image and also the font of the writing. There are two images, both consisting of a man and woman in each, both having either one or both the characters starring at one or the other, lovingly. The fact that the characters are starring at each other in this way and the fact that there are four people altogether, suggests to the viewer that they are in someway linked to each other, which if an element I like about this poster.

The colour within the poster is fairly simple and the characters seem to be in everyday clothes. However there does appear to be a filter that has given the image a slight sepia colour to it which warms the image down, making the colours less bold and harsh, especially within their faces. The colour of the writing of the title, is very deep colour, which I think personally draws sightly away from the warmer feel from the rest of the poster and the image. The font is very simplistic which is ideal as he rest of the poster appears to be busier in comparison.

This is the film poster from Remember Me, which is a Romantic Drama film that I feel has been represented very well. Firstly the main photograph immediately draws attention to the viewer as it shows iconography of a romantic genre by the use of the close and happy embrace from the two characters. They both look happy and it lokks idyllic which contrasts to the colours used within the poster.There is a lot of black and white  within the poster which suggests that there are connotations of it being unhappy and sad, which suggests that there could be a problem or unhappiness presented within the filmandtrailer. This however would still be a typical convention of a romantic genre film as there are often problemms that occur to jolt the happiness and bring more drama to the narrative.

Alternatively, there is the red colour used within the title of the film,which brings a softer but also a harsh feel to theposter. The colour of red both represents two completely different ideas, one of which is love and passion whereas the other connotation is danger and being more dramaic and fiery. I like the use of the poster being inblack and white with just one bold colour used as I think it draws attention to the film name and also the image used. The black and white idea is something which I think I would like to experiment with as I think it does work very effectively and is quite dramatic and noticeable.

Ideas for my Teaser Trailer

So far I have decided on three ideas for my teaser trailer which I think  they could all work well. Below I have listed the three ideas I have so far come up with and I will then think about the ease, the pros and cons of producing the ideas for my teaser trailer. I want my idea to be strong and outline within them the conventions of my chosen genre of romantic. A teaser trailer usually lasts around a minute to a minute and a half and this is a factor that I will need to consider and look into when choosing my final idea.

Idea 1: A women has kept her diary for 5 years now, writing in it everyday. She gets the choice to go back to any single day from her diary to relive and to possibly change anything that could benefit her life now. She has the day to decide which day she wants to relive. She chooses the day when she was out visiting her favourite place in the country, a day when she got all her thoughts together, alone and started her diary. She realises that this day was the day she left her one and only true love and realises that when she gets back to reality she needs to find him again to resolve the problems they had both left behind.

Idea 2: A couple has been together for 3 and a half years and things were going well, until the boyfriend chose to go away to University whilst the girl is left behind at home. She decides that everyday whilst he is gone, she is going to start a diary/ write letters of her days; what she's done, her thoughts and her feelings. The first couple of months go well until she hears and sees rumors that her boyfriend has cheated. The girl decides to end their relationship but she continues to write in her diary. After a further 3 months of the boyfriend being away, he comes home to sort out their troubles, and the girl gives the guy her diary to read. He realises what he had done to her and how much he had hurt her and attempts to put things right again; taking things slowly for the next few weeks, gaining their trust for each other again and living every minute of every day together.

Idea 3: A group of friends go away together on holiday, celebrating the end of school and exams. There are obvious connections between certain members of the groups. Whilst they're away they all seem to separate into couples. The trailer would focus on one of the main couples, who have once before been in a relationship last year, although it hadn't lasted. They spend the whole of the trip together, on the beach, looking around the city/ town, going on walks and out for dinner together. They enjoy their time together while they can as they realise that things will be different and harder when they get back home. They get home and it is apparent straight away that their relationship will be hard due to both parents being unhappy. They resolve this problem by deciding together that they will meet in secret without anyway finding out.

5 Top Romantic genre films

Its kind of a Funny story is another trailer I find interesting through its originality of the concept of the film. I like the concept as I know that a lot of romantic genre films can be quite repetitive with their concepts, but I find this one completely original from the fact that the setting is set in a hospital and the concept allows them to 'break free' from their troubles and the fact that they are in a hospital. I like how the soundtrack and music used is fairly fast tempo, which I think could be a representation of how they feel their life is moving; at a fast pace. The use of a quicker tempo soundtrack also works well within this film as I think it connects to their target audience, who I think would be teens. The soundtrack is also original as not many romantic films would use such a fast pace track.

There is also an effect they have used where they have made some of the scenes look like its from a cartoon, mainly towards the end. This is an element which I find really interesting as it also gives the connotations of it being for 'teens' as well and how they go through the same situations with love.

The fact that the trailer shows that there is a light hearted element to the films is another factor that appeals, as the situation that the characters are in seems to be much more serious. I like the factor of having a slight comical feel within some of the scenes, as it breaks it up from all the seriousness of the film.

It also uses the typical convention for a romantic genre of the stock characters and iconography. The stock characters used are the friends of the main characters, which form little 'groups.' There are several elements that make up the iconography. The first is the use of the main character played by Emma Roberts, who is an icon of the romantic genre. Other iconography comes from the use of the romantic themes such as supportive family, location and their kiss.

5 Top Romantic genre films

This is the trailer for The Notebook which I really like. I like the use of the soundtrack, shots used and the concept of the film. I think that the target audience for this film would be mainly girls and teens as it is a romantic genre. The setting and the use of shots used also relate to the genre and it all has a 'nice' and 'soft' feel about it. I also like how some of the setting and shots are also quite simple and could be something that I would be able to achieve fairly easily. The use of the voiceover is another factor of the trailer that I particularly like as it gives insight into the concept and has an affect on the viewer that makes them really believe what is being said.

5 Top Romantic genre films

This is the 500 days of summer trailer, which is one of my favourite trailers; it has the typical conventions for its genre, the concept of the film is an interesting aspect, the shots and setting are interesting, but also simple and overall it is a really interesting trailer which grabs the viewers attention. I like the originality of the trailer; the use of the shots where it goes into a 'sketch' drawing instead of what looks like footage. The originality also comes from how they have used the lighting in certain scenes; its quite dark so you only get a slight light upon that scene or on the persons face, which I think makes the atmosphere feel more romantic.

Conventionally a teaser trailer usually last from around 45seconds to a minute, however this teaser trailer lasts around 1 and a half minutes which breaks the conventions of a typical teaser trailer. The trailer also uses several transitions, with the main two being a dip to colour dissolve and a fade in fade out dissolve, which I personally think works really ell as they last at least a couple of seconds and aren't sudden which flows with the music and the speed of the clips, allowing the audience to feel the romantic element of the trailer.

Within the teaser trailer there are several scenes from the movie included which suggests that there is a lot of progression from day to day and that the 'love story' that is happening moves at a fairly rapid pace. It sticks to the typical codes and conventions of a trailer by showing several scenes from within the movie, which means that it will appeal to their target audience by showing as much as they can from within the movie.

5 Top Romantic genre films

This is a trailer I have found for the film Before Sunset, which is a simple but effective trailer which I like. Because it is not a big Hollywood Mainstream film, it hasn't had the same amount of money put into the production, distribution and marketing, which means that the film is much simpler and it hasn't got all the big actors and actresses, big cities and locations and some of the effects and editing isn't at the same standard as some of the other trailer I have found. 

5 Top Romantic genre films

This is the trailer for the film 'The Last Song.' This films shows the typical conventions of a romantic genre film. I have selected this film as although it is a Hollywood mainstream film, which would have had a lot of money put into the production and distribution, it shows all the typical conventions for its genre and has elements within it which I like. 

I like some of the simpler shots within the trailer, such as some of the mid shots and two shots, which illustrate the genre well. I also like the softer music that is used to portray the genre of the film.

Conventions of Romantic genre

There are several typical conventions of the Romantic genre which I have listed below:
-Woman are usually more dominant
-Usually a happy ending, but not a 'Happy ever after' fairytale ending
-A boy meets girl and they fall in love is usually the stereotypical concept of a romantic genre film
-Usually the characters meet by chance
-There is often something or someone that 'rocks' the romance and makes the relationship more of a challenge
-The film will usually focus on both the female and male characters viewpoints
-The love 'story' is the main focus and usually the viewers know that it is going to happen