When deciding on the image to be associated with the company I thought of the rising sun as our company is called Bright Sun Films. I made that the background (image on the left).
I then began editing with the background image to see if there was another alternative that may work better.
Big budget films from American and U.K. studios promote their films through the use of the Internet, t.v. advertisements, posters, billboards and much, much more. This is down to the fact that they have a budget reaching into the millions whilst short films have a very limited budget and cant afford to use these other devices to promote their films. When looking at posters from both America and England there are certain characteristics and devices that are used to make them attract an audience. I will be comparing two films. The first is The Longest Yard. This is an American studio remake of the 1974 film of the same name. The second film is This Is England. This is a British independent film.
When looking at The Longest Yard the are several major tools used to attract the audience. The star Adam Sandler is right at the front. Adam Sandler has a well known fan base and has been the lead actor in a numerous amount of films. As we go back we see many other famous actors, musicians and sportsmen. On the second row there is a Chris Rock, a fellow comedian and movie legend Burt Reynolds (the actor who had Adam Sandlers role in the original). Behind him there is 'Nelly' who is a well established RAP artist. At the back we have many professional wrestlers and ex American Football players. The production company were clever in their use of these stars as they all have their own creditable fan base and use this to attract a much wider audience. They also use the original films cult status as a calling card for the older generation who perhaps were fans of the original film.
They have all the actors in their football clothing and use this as a attraction to the American Football fans as a incentive to draw them in.
This Is England plays more on cultural and historical knowledge to attract its audience. The backdrop is a British council estate reminiscent
of 1980's Britain, a vivid memory for many adults now. The main characters standing against the backdrop show a sense of style reminiscent of the of the skinhead culture of the 1970's and 80's. This appeals to many of British adults who lived in this time and will look back at this. If we look at the actual title each word is a colour of the British flag, a symbolic enticement to patriots. With only one real known actor (Stephen Graham) the film used the awards and reviews it received as an attraction to the audience.
By using these tools and techniques these films attracted a large audience and therefore much more money. A short film on the other hand would use a postcard. Reasons for their choice of advertisement is because the big studio films spend millions on their advertisement and pay to have them displayed in places where there will be a large amount of people. Short films don't have this luxury and must be more creative and attract their audience in other ways.
Short films use postcards as their advertisement. This was introduced to us in lesson, as we all thought we would produce a poster.
