Introduction

Introduction

Welcome to my A2 Level Media Studies Blog that details all of the Research and Planning stages of the project, as well as the final products and the Evaluation.

Original Brief

Original Brief

Welcome! The purpose of this blog is to keep a record of the project that we, as A2 Media Students, have been assigned to complete. The project, or challenge as I like to refer to it, is to create a promotional campaign or package for a new Horror film. This package will include a Film Trailer and two ancillary tasks, a film magazine front cover promoting the Horror film and a poster for the film. In order to maintain professionalism and to maximize the effectiveness of the three pieces, they will share a symbolic link, thus allowing the audience to relate to each different piece more effectively as they become more familiar with the meaning being portrayed. 

Now into more detail about the package. We have chosen to base our promotional project around the Horror genre. The reason for this is that the history of the horror genre fascinates us, as does the effect that horror films have on their audiences. The adrenaline that one receives when watching horror really portrays how horror directors set out to scare, shock and entertain their audiences; we hope to achieve the same with our work.

To appeal to our audience we will use horror conventions within our three pieces, whilst adding a touch of originality. Researching and exploring as well as analysing existing media texts will allow us to become familiar with existing conventions, which, as a result, will allow us to see the potential for growth and change. Analysing horror films will give us as a group a deeper knowledge of how much detail and and thought has gone into creating the different films.

There have been many Horror films that have inspired us to create professional Horror pieces of media including "The Possession", "The Exorcism of Emily Rose", "Insidious" and "The Last Exorcism".  These films are huge, blockbuster titles that are excellent and effective in scaring audiences that follow many Horror film conventions which is something we would like to achieve with our work.

We are all extremely excited and thrilled to work together in producing three different, chilling, professional and effective media texts. The following individuals will being working in our group: Ninette Esshaghian, Miriana Younan and finally myself, Chris Donnellan.

The History of Horror

The History of Horror

Introduction to Horror Sub-Genres

Introduction to Horror Sub-Genres

I will be discussing five different sub-genres found in the larger genre of Horror.  These sub-genres include Possession, Slasher, Psychological, Supernatural, Gothic and Zombie.

Possession
The Possession sub-genre is very relevant in today's society.  More and more people are going to the cinema to watch the latest Possession films.  These films are usually about an object or a person becoming possessed by an evil spirit or entity.  The possessed being then proceeds to show very abnormal, scary and horrific behaviour as if manipulated by evil itself.

One reason why it is so popular is because of the typical conventions that the sub-genre uses to draw in the audience; these conventions include an unknown evil spirit that commits unpredictable actions to keep the audience on their toes, iconography such as blood, religious symbols and antique items.

Possession films use religious imagery, particularly Christian and Jewish religious items, to build a connection between the audience and the film.  These items are seen as objects that can defeat evil so then audience are drawn to these objects with hope that the evil can be destroyed.  The great history of the religions depicted in Possession films leads the audience to believe that the evil spirit has also had a great history, meaning that it is very hard to get rid of it.

One example of this is in "The Possession" where a Rabbi is asked to perform an ancient Jewish ritual to stop the evil being possessing a grown man:



Possession films are usually located in isolated locations with lots of dark history, normally a large house or even a place of worship.  The place of worship ties into the religious imagery conventions of the genre.  The films are set in those isolated locations because it means that the characters cannot get help if they are in trouble.  These places have lots of history because it gives the audience a sense that the evil being has been there for years and will continue to be there at the end of the film.  In the clip above the action is taking place in an abandoned hospital.

Examples of Possession film posters include: "The Possession" and "Insidious 2".

Slasher

The Slasher sub-genre has produced some of the most famous Horror films such as "Halloween", "Friday the 13th" and "Texas Chainsaw Massacre".  Slasher films primarily feature a masked killer, lots of gore and blood, and iconography such as knives, axes and machetes.  The weapons that the killer uses are items usually found in the home, making the audience believe that their own possessions can be used against them.  One example of this is in "Scream" in which a masked killer murders a girl with a kitchen knife.  This scene features lots of conventions of both the Horror genre and the Slasher sub-genre.  The main character is in an isolated mansion in a wealthy suburbia, meaning that that there are a plenty of rooms for where the killer can hide.  Since the mansion is isolated there are no other towns or neighbours nearby to help the main character.  As a result of all of these conventions, this scene is one of the most iconic scenes in Horror film history.

Slasher films usually start with teenagers going to an isolated location and then get killed by the masked killer.  It gives a hidden meaning that you will get punished if you do what the teenagers in the film do, which is usually partying, drinking lots of alcohol and having casual sex.

The reason that Slasher films are popular is because they provide a way non-Horror fans to ease themselves into the whole Horror genre and its different sub-genres.  One criticism of Slasher films is that they are cheesy, however the do create some very scary sequences, like in "Friday the 13th" when the masked killer, Mike Myers, is creeping up to his next victim, creating a tense, dark and scary atmosphere.

Slasher films became popular in the 1980's and have been popular ever since.

These are some examples of Slasher film posters, "Friday the 13th" and "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre":
























Zombie
The zombie sub-genre has had a great influence on popular culture today.  There are many films within the Zombie sub-genre such as "28 Days Later" (and its sequel, "28 Weeks Later"), "Night of the Living Dead" and "Dead Snow".  A Zombie is a dead human being that has been risen from the grave and has a blood-lust for the living. There have been many variations of what a Zombie is, but everyone follows this same principle.  In some films, the Zombies can only move very slowly while in another films, they can sprint much faster than any human being.

Key conventions of the Zombie sub-genre include massive crowds of Zombies in various locations, a group of 'survivours' who are trying to live through the Zombie outbreak and also try to find a cure or a way to stop the Zombies.  Another convention is that most films are very gory; with huge piles of dead bodies, lots of blood and human organs.

These are some examples of movie posters that promote films within the Zombie sub-genre:

Supernatural

The supernatural sub-genre features a very diverse film library and is becoming increasingly popular in today's society.  The supernatural sub-genre can be split up even more into sub-genres such as Possession, Poltergeist and Ghost.  The main way of defining a supernatural film is that an unknown being haunts innocent people.  This can range from simply scaring the characters to harming or even killing them.

Supernatural films often feature secluded and isolated settings like a large house out in the woods.  These locations often have a lot of dark history that relate to the plot of the film.  An example of this would be: "A ghost has haunted this house for 100 years comes back to haunt whoever stays in the house overnight".

Conventions of Supernatural films include a family or a group of people go into an isolated location, horrific imagery such as blood, dead bodies and possessed beings.

Examples of these films include "Paranormal Activity", "Insidious" and "Sinister".

Psychological

The Psychological sub-genre is an interesting genre because of the diverse narratives that each film has.  While many films in the sub-genre have very different narratives, they normally try to play mind games with the audience.  Many of the films make the audience believe something that isn't true (or vice versa), leading them to realise a big twist in the narrative while scaring them at the same time.  They usually create very tense, quiet and scary atmospheres throughout the course of the film, leaving the audience on the edges of their seats.

Psychological films were very popular during the 70's because of one main convention.  The killer or the psychopath was someone who seemed very normal to the audience, like a father in a loving family or someone with a stable job, making them think that anyone can be a cold hearted killer.  In "The Shining" the main villain, Jack Torrance, is a father and a loving husband that kills his family.  In "Psycho" by Alfred Hitchcock, the main villain, Norman Bates, reveals his dark secret and kills people.

Examples of Psychological films include "The Shining" and "The Grudge":

Gothic

Gothic Horror films were some of the earliest Horror films made but became very popular in the 1930's, 40's and 50's.  Gothic films have very specific and obvious conventions that are easily identifiable.  Vampires, werewolves and ghosts usually appear as the evil force and they all try and kill or haunt people.  Gothic films are usually set in isolated locations such as a dark, misty forest at night, or a huge house/mansion in the middle of nowhere. This is to show that the characters have nowhere to escape the evil force and cannot get help from anyone.

The first ever Horror, "Nosferatu" (1920's), is considered a Gothic Horror and many other classic Horror films are as well such as "Dracula" (1958), "Frankenstein" (1931) and "The Mummy" (1959).

Gothic Horrors are still alive today with very popular films such as "The Woman In Black" (2012) and "Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street" (2007).  They follow the typical conventions that were in place back in the early days of Gothic Horror.

Posters of Gothic Horror films include:

Why My Group Chose the Possession Sub-Genre

Why My Group Chose the Possession sub-genre

My Group and I decided to choose the Possession sub-genre because we believe that it is the most interesting genre to create a film in.  There are many conventions to follow and challenge and there are also many different narrative possibilities.  Since Possession films are becoming increasingly relevant in today's society, it would make sense to create a film that will appeal to a wide range of audiences that like to watch the latest Possession films such as "Insidious 2" and "The Possession".

Since the sub-genre is one of the more sophisticated Horror sub-genres, we can target a sophisticated audience that understands the many codes and conventions of the genre. Possession films are very popular, with many successful films in the genre such as "The Possession", "Insidious" and "The Last Exorcism Part 2".  All of these films have grossed at least $15 million worldwide, with "Insidious" bringing in nearly $100 million.  By looking at these figures, my group and I found that these films are very successful and there is definitely a desire for a new, blockbuster Possession film.  We decided to study these films and we were inspired by a range of things, particularly the narrative in "The Possession".

Not only will the film be interesting for the audience, it will be very interesting to create the film itself in all stages of production, from brainstorming narrative ideas to story-boarding to filming and to editing.  We believe as a group that the project will be very interesting to produce and will allow our creative ideas and thoughts to flourish.  This will allow us to develop as media practitioners because of the great opportunity for creative ideas.

Codes and Conventions of the Possession sub-genre

Codes and Conventions of the Possession sub-genre

To be put on Slideshare.

Target Audience Questionnaire and Analysis

Target Audience Questionnaire and Analysis

Target Audience Questionnaire:

Analysis:

Focus Group + Analysis

Focus Group + Analysis

Focus Group Presentation

Focus Group Presentation

Target Audience Profile

Target Audience Profile

My target audience is both female and male and aged between 18 and 30. They are either in university, studying a creative or humanities based subject like Media/Film Studies or Psychology or already have a degree in one of these subjects or one similar. He/she works in a profession that allows them to make use of their creative and imagination skills, so they might be working in advertising or may even work in a profession where they help others, e.g. a therapist.

Fun, clever and sophisticated, he/she is easily like-able as they are also easy going and get along with anyone.  Being creative and intelligent, they love to give advice, making them a good person to go to for help and support. He/she is socially flexible and can adapt to any social situation and will always find time for friends and family and for enjoying themselves. He/she also loves to go for dinner where they can gather with friends and family.  Alongside this, however, there lies a spiritual side and he/she believes strongly in superstition.

Relationships are important to him/her. They like to keep in contact with his/her close circle of friends and family, while he/she is in a relationship with a partner who is their intellectual equal and with whom they would eventually like to settle down and start a family. He/she owns their own apartment, but if she/he is a student they have rented a place with a couple of friends which is a sign of how they are growing up and being independent. Either way, despite their closeness to friends and family, they enjoy having their independence and having a chance to broaden their experiences in this respect.

When not at work or with family and friends, most of his/her free time is spent on their favourite hobbies. One of them is going to the gym and relaxing her/his mind away from work. Relaxation also comes through reading books, most of the books they read are about the mind or on how human beings work. He/She found one book in particular the most gripping and terrifying which as a result became the favourite written by Elizabeth Forbes the book is called ‘Nearest Things to Crazy’.  He/she also loves to eat out for dinner or parties at a sophisticated restaurant or bar. He/she also likes fashion likes to look good and has a unique style.

The target audience love films and a number of different film genres appeals to him/her including action/adventure , mystery and thrillers, such as Inception. Horror films appeal to him/her too. They particularly enjoy possession films, as this sub genre appeals to his/her interest in all things spiritual. His/her favourite possession films include The Possession, Insidious and The Exorcist.  He/she likes these films because they are very effective in scaring the audience and giving them an exciting time, something the target audience lives for.  The films also depict a close family who are brought together to fight the evil haunting them, something that he/she feels is important, a family.

Codes and Conventions of Posters

Codes and Conventions of Posters

To be put on Slideshare.

Codes and Conventions of Magazine Front Covers

Codes and Conventions of Magazine Front Covers

To be put on Slideshare.

Poster Overview

Poster Overview

I will be discussing the poster below to find out what they have in common and to see what I can learn from these posters so that I may use these methods in my own creations.  These posters are from (in order): The Possession, The Rite, Insidious, The Last Exorcism Part 2, The Exorcism of Emily Rose and The Devil Inside.

Conventions

Each poster features a number of conventions from the Horror genre, the sub-genre of Possession and general poster conventions as well.  They all use these conventions effectively to draw the audience in and entices them into seeing the film.

They all contain numerous Horror and Possession sub-genre conventions such as isolated locations, contortion-ed bodies, odd eye colours, religious imagery and horrific imagery (e.g. the hand emerging from the girl's mouth in The Possession poster).  These are used to signify the genre, allowing fans of the particular genre to identify the typical features, thus drawing them into the poster to learn more about the film.  

The posters use typical features and conventions of posters as well through the use of layout and the information being displayed.  The all feature a main image which is the most important way of drawing in the intended audience, a tag line to give more information about the film but without giving too much away, enticing the audience further, institutional information telling us important people who created the film and this is used to entice the audience even more if they see a popular or like-able director, writer or cinematographer.  Half of the trailers picked above feature direct address; this is something that occasionally happens within Possession films and largely depends on what the message the main image needs to put across.  When it is used, it makes the audience feel that everything in the poster is being directly addressed to them and that they should watch the film.  It draws the attention of the audience to the poster, allowing more people to see it which in turn leads to more people going to watch the film.  The posters that use these are The Rite, Insidious and The Devil Inside.

Image

Characters

The characters in these poster vary quite substantially since there is a wide variety of narratives in the Possession sub-genre.  All posters feature one sole character and this is to make the audience focus on that character and to understand the meaning behind the main image.  Most of the characters are female, which ties into the "final girl" idea of the narrative, in which one girl stops the evil that is harassing her and the people around her.  This is a convention of the Horror genre so it allows the audience to quickly recognise what type of the film that the posters promote.  The two posters that break this convention is The Rite and Insidious.  A reason for why the posters break conventions is to make the film unique, attracting more attention from their target audience.  Evil is mostly represented as male in Possession films, connoting the idea that the men in the main image of the poster are evil and are looking right at you through direct address.  This representation is very stereotypical, that men are controlling and evil. Gender is represented stereotypically for females as well, showing that they are weak and cannot fight back against the evil.  Using very stereotypical portrayals of men and women make it easier for audiences to identify what type of character they are, since they can only see an image of them from the poster.  It helps to establish the character, the narrative, the mood and the views of the film.

Types of shot

Four of the posters feature close-up/medium close-up shots (The Possession, The Rite, Insidious and The Devil Inside) and this is so we can see the facial expression of the characters in the poster.  It makes the characters look bigger, more powerful and more intimidating, especially the male characters.  It represent the evil that is controlling them, linking in with stereotypical views of males, telling us that they are evil and intimidating.  The Last Exorcism Part 2 features a long shot and this allows us to see the female's whole body.  Her body is positioned in the shape of the number "2", symbolizing that the film is the second film in a series.  The Exorcism of Emily rose features an extreme long shot, showing her walking towards a tree out in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by fog and mist.  This represents the fact that she is weak and insignificant because she is so small in the main image.  It shows her vulnerability and allows the audience to sympathize with the character.

Settings

The settings vary  across the posters but all feature typical setting conventions of the Horror genre.  All of the posters feature isolated locations, surrounded by darkness or fog.  It represents that the characters within the poster have no where to escape from the evil of the film and that no one can help them.  The darkness connotes the idea that something evil is lurking about the area.  The corners of the poster tend to be darkened and this can tell the audience that the evil is creeping in, ready to take over the character in the main image.

Mise-en-scene

Three of the posters share similarities in terms of facial expression (The Rite, Insidious and The Devil Inside).  The characters are looking directly looking into the camera, giving direct address, while holding an angry facial expression.  This represents the anger that the evil in the film holds, telling us that the evil is already inside of the characters.

In The Possession, The Last Exorcism Part 2 and The Exorcism of Emily Rose, the costume design is very similar.  We see the female characters dressed in a dirty, white gown that covers most of their body.  The white gown represents the innocence that the characters have, which ties into the fact that they are female, since females are sterotypically seen as innocent and weak.  However, the dirt on the white gown shows that her innocence and purity have been taken away by the evil being that is possessing her.  In The Devil Inside the character is wearing a nun outfit, tying into the religious imagery that is used quite often in Possession films. Insidious shows a boy wearing a red jacket.  Red often represents blood and evil in the Horror genre and through the costume, the audience can identify what genre the film falls into.

The body language seen in the poster varies a lot and there are not many similarities to discuss.  We can then conclude that the evil that possesses the characters takes many forms, and the way that it controls the person's body differs from possession to possession.  One similarity that can been seen is within The Possession and The Last Exorcism Part 2.  Here we see the possessed character bending backwards in an unnatural position.  It tells the audience that the character cannot fight back against the evil being since it is dominating and controlling her actions.

Positioning within these posters are very similar with just one exception which is The Exorcism of Emily Rose.  Each poster shows the character in the centre of the frame, drawing the attention of the audience most effectively.  The characters also fill the frame of the poster, making the audience more likely to be drawn into the poster.  The Exorcism of Emily Rose breaks this rule by placing the main character to the left of the frame and having a tree placed the right of the poster, leaving nothing but fog and mist in the centre.

Colours

The colours used in the posters are very similar, with each using the conventional colours associated with the Horror genre, white, black and red.  These colours are used not just in the Possession sub-genre, but in the Horror genre as a whole.  White represents the innocence the purity that the characters have.  It can also represent the light that is fighting the darkness and the good which is fighting the evil.  Black is used for a number of reasons, one of which is to represent the darkness that lives inside of the characters.  The lighting helps to show the darkness, often surrounding the character and the borders of the poster, telling the audience that the evil is creeping in, taking over the characters and the film itself.  Black contrasts with white, connoting the idea that there is a battle light and dark, good and evil, and purity against impurity.  Red is a typical colour used in Horror films because it is associated with blood. Blood is Horror iconography so it allows the audience to clearly recognise the film is part of the Horror genre.  Important information like the release date for the film is also shown in red and this is to attract our attention, making us remember the important information.

Text / Layout

In every poster, the title of the film is placed at the bottom of the frame, this is to allow the audience to be drawn in by the main image, and then to the title, making it more memorable for the audience.  The tagline is placed either just above the title or at the very top of the frame because this is where the eye goes first, from top to bottom.  Having the title placed at the bottom of the frame means that it will be the last thing that the audience sees, making them remember it more.  Some of the posters also have the phrase "Based on a true story".  This is to make the audience believe that the events in the film could happen to them at any time, meaning that the audience become scared.  It also helps with the immersion that the audience will have when watching the film, because they believe that everything in the film is real and can happen.

Conclusion

These posters are very effective in conveying the genre that they represent while also drawing the attention of the audience, giving them key information about the film but also enticing them to see the full movie.  I would like to use the same conventions and representations that these posters show for my own work, since the posters are very effective and influential.

The Last Exorcism Part 2 Poster Analysis

The Last Exorcism Part 2 Poster Analysis

Introduction

I will be analysing the poster for "The Last Exorcism Part 2" to identify which Horror and Possession conventions it uses and which ones it breaks and try to find the meaning behind every detail of the poster.

Poster Conventions

A lot of poster conventions can be seen including the main image, the title, a tagline, institutional information and a release date for the film.  By following these conventions the audience can easily identify that this piece of media is a poster.  Not only does the poster include common features of a poster, but it also presents to us a number of colour and layout conventions as well.  Dull colours like black, grey and white are used since they are conventional of the Horror genre.  Features of the poster are displayed in a very conventional layout, with the title, institutional information and the date present at the bottom of the page, the main image filling the frame and the tagline placed at the top of the page.  By using these poster conventions it allows the audience to easily identify that it is a poster promoting a Horror film.

Main Image

At the centre of the image and the frame is the main character levitating off of the ground with her arms stretched out wide, as if she is being crucified.  This ties into one of the main Possession film conventions which is the use of religious imagery, since we associate this body position with Jesus being crucified on a cross which is one of the most well known instances and stories of the Christian faith.  Particularly western people will understand this reference since Christianity is the leading religion in the United Kingdom, the United States of America and Italy.  Through this representation we can assume that the target audience for the film is a member of the western world.  The way religious imagery scares people in this poster is the fact that the demon inside of the character is making her perform this position, twisting the idea that religion is meant to be holy and free of evil.

-Setting

We are not given much information about the setting featured in the poster, however we can make assumptions based on two items within the frame.  The wooden floorboard suggests that the character is in a house or a lodge since these places tend to be the only places with floorboards.  Dust and paint on the floor connotes the idea of isolation, suggesting that the place has been abandoned since it hasn't been cleaned.  The wall behind the character is dirty and grimy, suggesting that this place wasn't looked after.  Dirt surrounding the edges of the wall represents the evil creeping in towards the character a the center of the frame.  Having the poster in black and white suggests to us that setting has some dark history surrounding it.

-Lighting

Judging from the shadow to the left of the main character, the lighting must be coming from the top right of the image, shining down onto the character in the centre of the frame.  Lights shining down from above represents heaven and holiness, suggesting a theme of religion and more specifically, Christianity.  Further supporting this theme is the shadow cast from the character which looks like a cross, a major Christian symbol that most western audiences will recognise. This is very conventional of a Possession film to feature religious imagery.  The character at the centre of the frame and she is well lit and easy to see, allowing us to clearly see who she is, what she is wearing and what her facial expression is.  Towards the edges of the poster the lighting becomes darker, representing evil closing in on the character.  It also directs the audience's attention to the female character since it the most well-lit feature of the poster.

-Mise-en-Scene

--Costume

White dresses are a symbol of innocence, purity and femininity; however the female shown in the poster suggests that these characteristics have been lost or tainted.  This is mainly due to the dirt on the dress and the style of the dress as well.  The dress is not revealing and is quite long, meaning she is not sexual-ised in any way which is a contrast to the female leads in other Horror sub-genres like Slasher.  Dirt on the dress represents the fact that her innocence and her purity has been lost or tainted because of the evil she is experiencing.  It creates a contrast to what a white dress actually symbolises, scaring the audience because their expectations are twisted and turned into evil.

A second piece of costume is used to tie into the most familiar Possession convention which is the use of religious imagery.  The character in the poster is wearing a rosary, a symbol of the Christian faith which is a popular faith in the western world, linking with the film's target audience.  This particular item suggests to us that she has not given up hope of defeating the evil fighting against her and that she can rely on her faith to be rid of the evil.

--Facial Expression / Body Language

Facial expression plays a major role in this poster, with the character looking up and screaming.  Screaming is a very conventional thing to see in a Horror text because it shows that the character is scared or is in pain, usually both.  When we see that the character is screaming, we assume that she is being scared or hurt by something that we cannot see, leading us to believe that she is possessed, letting the audience know that the poster is promoting a Possession film.  Having her eyes closed suggests that she does not want to see what the evil is doing to her or it could mean that she is closing her eyes in pain, further reinforcing the idea that she possessed.

Body language has been used very effectively to convey both genre conventions and the way the character feels.  In terms of genre conventions, we see the most common feature of a Possession film, the use of religious imagery.  We can see the character stretching her arms out, forming a position that resembles on of the most recognisable images in the Christian faith, Jesus on the cross; once again reinforcing the genre's conventions, making the film's genre easily identifiable by audiences.  Her head is bent backwards making her look up, suggesting that she is in pain or she is looking for some sort of hope.

--Colour

Only black and white are used within the poster and it used to give great impact for the audience.  The use of black and white suggests that what we are seeing in the poster has happened in the past.  This creates the fear of the unknown for the audience, since we do not know what dark secrets the past holds.  Colours become particularly grey around the character suggesting that her life, soul and innocence has been taken away from her and now she is just a lifeless shell to house the evil inside of her.

--Positioning

The character is placed in the centre of the frame to draw the audience's attention towards her. However she is raised slightly off of the ground, showing the audience that she is levitating, a common convention of the Horror genre, and a typical behaviour of a possessed human. Through this use of positioning the audience can easily identify that this trailer is promoting a Possession film.

Title

"The Last Exorcism Part 2" 

Tagline

"God asks. The Devil commands." clearly showcases conventions of the Possession sub-genre of Horror by tying in with religious beliefs.  This tagline suggests to the audience that the Devil is more forceful and powerful than God, making the audience fear for what the Devil will do next.  It also links in with the main image, telling us that it is the Devil that is controlling the main character.

Other Text

Other Colour

Conclusion

The Possession Poster Analysis

The Possession Poster Analysis

Introduction
I will be analysing the poster for The Possession to uncover the true meaning behind the poster, why the creators chose certain elements and to learn from the poster so I can use that knowledge for my own poster.  The Possession is a film within the Possession genre of Horror and is very interesting to analyse.  My possible narratives and have been greatly influenced by the film so I believe that analysing this poster will allow me to learn a great deal into making a poster for a Possession film.

Poster Conventions

The poster fulfils the general and layout conventions of a typical film poster but doesn't break any conventions.  This is an image showing a typical film poster layout:

The main image fills the frame, attracting the audience's attention towards the centre of the poster.  I would say that the poster does a very good job at drawing in the audience's attention through the main image, since it is a very effective and memorable image, making the audience more likely to see the film.  The title of the film, The Possession, is placed at the bottom of the poster in the centre of the frame.  It is positioned like this because it will be the last thing that the audience will see, making them more likely to remember it.  The tagline, "Darkness lives inside", is placed just underneath the title and this is done to ensure that the audience will see it and remember it.  Institutional information is placed right at the bottom of the frame so the viewer does not have to look at it.  There is one thing that is placed on the top of the poster and that is the phrase "Based on a true story".  It is placed there because it will be the first thing that the person will see, meaning that they will remember it for longer.

Main Image

The main image shows a young girl in a white gown with a hand coming out of her mouth and covering her face.  She is bent backwards, facing upwards as this hand is coming out of her. This tells us that she is possessed by an evil spirit and is taking over her by force.  She cannot fight back and must endure what the evil being is doing to her.

-Setting

There are two things in the main image that tell us something about the setting of the film.  The first is the background, a wall behind the girl that looks old, cracked and dirty.  This can lead us to believe that the film takes place in an isolated location, since the wall gives the impression that no one is there to look after it.  Two of the most likely places for the setting to be are either a prison or a mental institute.  These two settings scare us since they are associated with having dark histories, evil things that happen in these areas that no one speaks of.  It creates a mystery that the audience try desperately to solve, allowing their minds to wonder and think of terrible things that might have happened there thus making the setting even more scary.  The idea also links into society's greatest fear, the fear of the unknown.

The second feature of the main image that tells us about the setting is the costume that the girl is wearing.  While it only seems like a white gown, we only see the costume up until her shoulders so we do not see the rest of the costume.  We can interpret the costume as a straight jacket then since we do not know what else the costume could be, further linking the setting and connoting the idea that The Possession is set within a mental institute.  Another interpretation that supports the idea of the girl wearing a straight jacket is the hand coming out her mouth. Her hands are locked into the straight jacket, not being able to move them, so the hand tries to break free from anywhere it can, and in this case that place is her mouth.

This setting is very conventional for the Possession sub genre and helps to fulfil horror conventions since audiences are scared of settings that they believe have a dark history.

-Lighting

The light is coming from the top right corner and shining down onto the girl.  Since the lighting is this way it gives off two major effects and meanings that the audience can identify.  The first is that the bright light is shining above the girl, representing heaven, is her way of defeating the evil inside of her.  She is looking up into heaven to find a way to stop it.  It shows the fight between good and evil and further promotes religious imagery in the Possession genre.

The second major effect and meaning is the darkness surrounding the bottom left corner of the image.  The darkness spreads from the bottom to the back of her head and this could represent the evil making its way through her body and that it is taking control over her.  It also connotes the evil that is fighting against the good, and the darkness fighting against the light, further supporting the religious imagery being used in the Possession genre.  The darkness can also link into the fear of the unknown since we cannot see what is hiding beneath the shadows and we also do not know what the evil being inside of her looks like.

These effects create fear amongst the audience and make the mood of the image more bleak, scary and frightening.

-Mise - en - Scene

--Costume

In the poster we see the girl wearing some sort of white gown.  Since it is a close up shot, we cannot see what the white gown really is.  There are a few theories to deduce what the costume is.  One is that it is a straight jacket and that she is in a mental institute.

No matter what the costume is, we can gather meaning from the colour of it.  The white gown represents the innocence that the girl has and that she was once pure before she became possessed.  The lighting darkens the look of the gown and this could represent the fact that her innocence and purity has been tainted by the evil being inside of her.

--Props

The hand rising from the girl's mouth is grey, old and rotting (notice the dent where its thumb meets the hand).  This connotes the idea that the hand is part of a dead person. The nails and the hand itself is dirty, meaning that maybe that the body that the hand is part of was buried into the dirt.  We can interpret the hand as the personification for death itself, hinting that the girl is about to be killed and that death is taking over her life.  Another thing that reinforces this interpretation of the hand is that the fingers are pressing against her skull, meaning that the evil being is trying to take away everything from the girl, merely making her a shell for the evil to live in.

--Facial Expression / Body Language

The hand covers the girls face so we cannot see her facial expression, however if we imagine that the hand isn't there, she may look like she is screaming or crying for help.

Her body language shows that she is unable to help and defend herself, since her neck is bent backwards and she is facing the top of the poster.  She is looking for a way to break free from the thing inside of her.  It shows that she is desperate and makes the audience care for the girl, making them more scared to find out what is inside of her, making her into this unusual body position.

--Colour

The colours in the main image are white, black and grey.  These colours are seen as depressing, bleak and scary and this reflects the image as a whole.  Black represents the darkness and the evil inside of her that is taking control over her body.  The white background and the white gown represents the contrast between darkness and light, and good against evil. It tells us about the girl's innocence and purity, making us relate to the character more and emotionally connecting us to the film.  The grey colour of the hand represents the mix between black and white, telling us that while the girl was innocent, that is no longer the case.

--Positioning

The girl and the hand are positioned at the centre of the poster, focusing our attention to the main image, drawing in the audience and make them want to see the film even more.  The hand being placed above the girl shows that the evil has dominance over her and that it controls her, making us more scared about the demon that is possessing the girl.

Title

The title of the film, "The Possession", clearly tells us that the film is about someone being possessed.  Using the word "Possession" allows us to identify what sub genre that the film falls into.

The narrative of the film is very clearly suggested through the title but doesn't reveal too much about the plot, enticing us to come and see the film.

Tagline

The tagline for the film is "Darkness Lives Inside" and this can connote a number of things. This can be interpreted into a literal meaning; that the evil inside of her lives there and that she cannot escape or break free from it.  It also can mean something else, the fact that darkness lives inside all of us and that everyone has a little bit of evil inside of them.  This can scare the audience and entice them even more to see the film.

Other Text

In the poster there are two other pieces of text that need to be discussed.  The first is the institutional information placed underneath the tagline.  It tells the audience who created the film, giving us the director's name and names of other important people who made the film.  If someone sees that the film is being directed or written by a certain person that they like, they will be more enticed to see the film.  This text is accompanied by the date in which the film is released, which can be seen in red.

Another piece of text is the phrase at the top of the poster: "Based on a true story" and this entices the audience even more, making them believe that the events in the film could happen in real life, scaring them even more.

Other Colour

Four colours are seen in this poster, white, black, grey and red.  Red is a typical colour that is seen in the Horror genre and that is because it represents some Horror iconography, blood.  It is also a colour that attracts attention, making the audience look at the important information that is coloured red.

White is used to represent the innocence and the purity that the girl has in the main image.  It is also used for the text at the bottom of the screen where the lighting gets darker and this shows the contrast between light and dark.  The audience can also see the text clearly because it is coloured white.

Black is used represent the darkness and the evil that is being portrayed on screen.  The phrase "Based on a true story" is written in black and is placed above the girl in the main image, connoting the idea that the evil is always on top of her and is in control over her.

Grey represent the mix between good and evil, the fact that the girl has lost who she really is and is just a shell for the evil to live inside of her.

Conclusion

Overall the poster follows many Horror and Possession conventions that effective entice the audience to see the film.  It uses many techniques to ensure that a deeper meaning is established to give us insight into what the film is about and what it is trying to teach us.  It is a very typical Possession Horror film poster and allows us to easily identify what genre is falls into through the use of codes and conventions of not just Horror films, but poster conventions as well.