The Poster

The Magazine Cover

The Trailer Editing

The first step after filming was to import the footage which we had filmed onto the computer. We used Apple macs for the editing process and the software which we used was called Premier Pro. With only being able to use one computer at a time to edit we both decided Sarah would be more useful operating the computer because she has more experience with this program and knows where everything is which would save time. At times when we worked alone we would take notes on what needed to be done and worked on those.

The footage was taken from the camera and put onto the computer, we copied onto the mac and Adobe premier pro was opened and imported the stream of clips. They were dragged onto the video bar and we started to cut and re-arrange clips, using the razor tool to cut and the selection tool to move them, the zoom in and out made for more precise.

To make clips shorter Sarah used the rate stretch tool to shorten the length of the clip, this can be used to lengthen clips too.

To insert a title.


At the start of most trailers there is an image which tells the audience the trailer is able to be viewed by anyone or a specific age group. We called it the green screen. To capture the green screen, we found a trailer on Youtube and paused it at the right point. For the best image we made the video full screen and made a screen dump by pressing Shift+Apple Key+4. The image saves onto the desktop where Sarah imported it, dragged it to video bar before adjusting the size and rendering it.


A convention found commonly in horror films is a fade to black transition and we used this a lot in the start when introducing the poison pen captions. This was achieved by selecting video transitions > dissolve > dip to black.

To get an audio track for our trailer we used a converter which converts videos on YouTube into mp3 format so it can be used as a music track. This is downloaded as a file which we imported to Premier Pro and added it to the audio bar so it plays whilst the trailer plays. Like the footage we were able to click and drag the audio to determine when it starts. The music enters after the Bruckheimer Films clip. The audio we chose to use was an Evanescense instrumental.

To create the typewriter effect on the 'SCORPION EYE' we had to create 12 different frames each with an added letter until it eventually spelled 'SCORPION EYE' we had to make sure the letters didn't move too much from the frame before but some movement was good because it makes it seem more jumpy.

The Poster Editing

Step 1: Background

Before we started filming, we went out and took

photos of the area which the film would be set in. We thought this would help inspire our plot. After looking through these photos for one which would be suitable for a background we found one. It shows a long path leading into the darkness and is framed by trees and overgrown shrubbery. (This photo can be found on the setting section earlier in this blog)

We decided that the general colour

scheme of our poster should be predominantly blue and white to create an eerie moonlit feel.

To make the photograph more suitable I adjusted the hue and saturation of the photo and tinted it blue. At this stage the photo seemed too light so I made a black background and adjusted the opacity to about 26% then added a dark vignette border which is common in a lot of horror film posters and can give the effect of something emerging from the darkness. This will also help the main image of the protagonist stand out.

Step 2: Protagonist and intruder photos

In the last day of filming

we took photos of the two main people in this film. The main protagonist who is played by Helen Palmer and the intruder portrayed by Joe Phipps. We took a lot of different photos and out of about 20 we decided this one was best for Helen's character. Her face is serious and looks directly into the camera, her hair is messy but is kept out of her face so it stands out more. The eye make-up is smudged and uneven to give the impression she has been crying or panicking. Firstly, I used the magic wand tool to remove as much of the background as possible which was easy because of the contrast of dark hair on a yellow wall. I then cut around more precisely with the lasso tool with a high feather so her hair blends into the dark background and looks as realistic as possible.

These three images show the stages of development from the original cut out of Helen to the one which we used on the poster. In the second image I used the clarify tool and set the maximum number of 20.0 which emphasises the shadows which were already there making her face look slightly more sunken. I then duplicated the layer, added a blue hue then altered the opacity to very low so the skin seems pale and cold. In the final image I have used the warp brush to make her head narrower and a darkening brush under the eyes and on the cheek bones to give a gaunt almost skeletal look. The corners of her mouth have been altered to remove any hint of smile that might have been in the photo and her lips have been made pale and thin.

The Print Section

This is a collage of 8 different posters for different horror films. A very prominent similarity is the picture of a face in the center of the poster. Apart from number 4, 5 and 7 not a lot of action is happening and the effect this gives is eerie and silent. In these exceptions the face is still centred in the poster layout but instead of a calm expression fear is shown which could possibly mean it is less of a psychological and thought provoking film and just a more obviously scary film. Apart from number 4, all 7 of the photos have the subject looking straight into the camera. Even the images without eyes, because of the positioning of the photo we can imagine eyes looking straight at us, it can be unsettling to think of what can be lurking in the darkness of the eye sockets. In number 2 the lack of a mouth and eyes (the main features that portray emotion) create an extremely sinister image with a face that lacks a conscience or emotion.

The title in all of these posters is at the bottom below the image of the face and above the film credits. This is so the face grabs the attention of the reader first and then their eyes are drawn downwards like reading a piece of paper, to the title of the film which uses it's own unique font to stick in the mind of viewers. A unique aspect of the Friday 13th poster (number 2) is the fact that instead of the title of the film, it just says the release date which is in fact Friday February 13th. Strongly linking the audience with the film because the day that most of them will see it will be the day it is set on.

The Re-shoot Schedule

1. Chase scene through forest path

Too shaky because filming running alongside actor.

NEXT TIME: Film long shot and have actors run towards camera.

RE-SHOOT: 25th November 2010 3:30pm - 4:00pm (beginning to get dark)

2. Break in scene

Continuity error, door wasn't open enough in one shot, next shot the door was too open.

NEXT TIME: Film both scenes and have door open all the way in each then match during editing

RE-SHOOT: 25th November 2010 6:00pm (completely dark)

3. Running out of house

Reflection of person filming in front window.

NEXT TIME: Film from an angle which doesn't reflect in the window and for the shot directly in front of the window use tripod and stand away. Tripod is less obvious and can hardly be seen

RE-SHOOT: 25th November 2010 6:10 (completely dark)

4. Restless sleep

Doesn't look realistic.

NEXT TIME: Take some practice shots judge what needs to be different, and mess up hair.

RE-SHOOT: 25th November 2010 6:30 (can't see outside so time is not essential)

5. Blurry waking up shot

Unable to shoot because actor is unavailable

NEXT TIME: Use look alike, someone with same build and size. Make sure the camera doesn't focus enough to see detail

RE-SHOOT: 25th November 2010 6:45

The Filming Schedule

October 12th

• Film the setting in day and night
• Forest area to set scene in during the trailer.
• Use pans and zooms.
• Must Be slow to create an eerie feel.
• No actors needed.

October 13th

• Re shoot night setting earlier (at dusk) not sufficient lighting to shoot in darkness

October 29th

• Film front door scenes with protagonist (Still camera looking at door slight tilt to represent something unusual)
• Pick up mail montage, change appearance of arm so it looks like its on different days (Close up on mail, only see hand and wrist)
• Reading letters and putting on the table. (Over shoulder shot then short pan around to see table)
• Actors needed - Helen Palmer

November 14th

• Film the break in
• Gloved hand opening door shot from inside and outside (Pan from letters on table to door, close up on door handle)
• Pick up knife (Close up on knife block, slowly pulls out menacing blade)
• Shadow in frosted glass door (Similar to front door shot static camera, bright kitchen light contrast with dark figure)
• Protagonist wake up shock (Point of view shot from the intruder looking at protagonist, point of view shot from protagonist at intruder, blurry to show awakening from deep sleep)
• Also film alcohol sequence where actor slams a bottle of drink down on a table and rolls over asleep. Under the influence = Vulnerable (shot from the level of the protagonist on the couch. Camera pointing at where the bottle will be put down)
• Actors needed - Helen Palmer, Joe Phipps

November 20th

• Chase scenes through forest (tracking shot of both protagonist and intruder)
• Running out of the house (shot from front, back and side to get different angles of running to, away and past the camera)
• Take photos for poster, magazine and other print advertising.

The Target Audience

Our film will have an age certificate of 15 and the audience we expect to draw in are male and female teenagers and adults between about 15 and 25. The characters in the story are young adults which the target audience can relate too. Also the plot is relatively simple so will not require a lot of thinking which can put a lot of people off watching a film. To attract this kind of audience, the trailer has shown parts of the film with action and thus created a quick paced exciting advert as opposed to a slower more explanatory trailer which one might expect on a more mature film aimed at older adults. This trailer will predominantly be shown in late afternoon to evening in between shows like X Factor, Misfits and other highly rated television programs and channels like E4, which the intended age group are likely to watch and conveniently released during winter when this age group are looking for things to do that don't mean being outside in the cold weather.