Music....

Now that I have started filming, I've had to start thinking about the type of music I would want in my trailer. I am torn between using songs, or using backing music. If I was to use songs, I would use Imagine Dragons' music as I feel it fits in with the genre of my trailer, but I also think that backing music that you hear in most action trailers also goes well with my trailer. In order to see which one would be better, I've decided to look at trailers which have backing music, and trailers which have songs in the background to see which would go well, and then test them against my own clips/trailer.

The Host:

One trailer that uses songs is the trailer for The Host. It uses the song 'Radioactive' by Imagine Dragons, whom I want to include in my own trailer. I think the way it's used is effective as it relates well to what is being said, and is not taking away from the main dialogue which summarises the film. I think it uses backing music in some parts, only when the music doesn't need to be heard and what is going on in the scenes needs to emphasised. I just really like how this works, the film is similar to the type of film I'm advertising, so this makes it all the more influential to me, I think based on this trailer, my chosen song may fit.

The Other Woman:

This trailer also uses songs. I like this trailer, as the lyrics of the song match what the film is all about, and therefore gives the trailer a meaning. The song I have in mind matches what my film/trailer is all about, and that's effective as it then relates to the audience and persuades the audience to go and see the movie to see what happens in the end. Furthermore it's good advertisement for artists, but also makes the trailer unique as it's using particular songs, not the same style of background music heard in other trailers.

The Amazing Spider-Man 2:

I chose this trailer as it's a good example of dramatic music being used within a trailer, it starts off quiet, then builds up when action starts to build up, and emphasises the dramatic moments within the film. The pace of the music also matches the pace of the film, so the audience can see that the film is fast, dramatic and action packed. The music also helps the audience develop a bond with the characters, makes us sympathise, and therefore resulting in them going out and watching the film in order to find out what happens.

Twilight: New Moon

Finally, I decided to look at the trailer for Twilight: New Moon as it's similar to my film, much like The Host. However this uses dramatic music, which works well. It emphasises the dramatic moments and compliments the happy moments within the film. Because of this emphasis, it allows the audience to be drawn in and makes them want to watch it. I think this could work for my trailer as I have dramatic moments within it, and now that I have seen these trailers, I now feel that dramatic music could work in my trailer.

Possible Music I could use...

There are many possible songs/music I could use within my trailer, I have chosen one song, and one piece of trailer music music which I could possibly use, and explain why I have chosen these pieces of music. 

I chose Imagine Dragons 'Monster' as I felt the lyrics summarised what my film is about, fitting in when foreign creatures invade the planet, and whether or not someone would accept you for who you are.   I also liked the instrumental part in the middle of the song, which I can edit and use in my trailer, I think it works well with the genre of my film/trailer and it's a catchy song, so people will remember it, as well as my trailer. 

For backing music, I chose this. I thought it was dramatic enough, and it could really emphasise the dramatic moments, and the moments which are calm and are used to build up the later shots. The way it builds up is effective, and matches the pace of my trailer. This is also conventional music, as it's a type of music used in most if not all trailers, I also feel that it might be too dramatic, and may match an action film more than my trailer. I would have to test it when I start editing my film.

Filming Practice....

Before I started filming, I decided to go around the school and do some practice shots. I tried to experiment with different angles, shots, zooms and movements to get a feel for the camera and get an idea of what shots to use. I wanted to see how certain shots would look, and see what type of shots I could use in my trailer, before I went ahead with the actual filming.  I then decided to make a video showcasing these clips to practice with the editing software...

First group of shots were mainly tilts, pans and zooms, I wanted to practice holding the camera still while moving to do pans and such. I also decided to do some P.O.V shots of me walking towards a door and opening it to see how effective that would look. I did quite a few foot shots of me walking down the stairs, again this was to see what it would look like and experiment with different angles and shots. I did some medium shots of people walking down the stairs, over the shoulder shots of people reading, panning shots of the car-park to practice introducing a setting, I also did a pan of someone running, which was useful for my trailer as I show people running, so it was good to visualise my shots before actually doing them as I can what angles I want, where I want to film it and how zoomed in I should be. I also did a walk on camera shot, with the camera stationary and placed on a pole, again this could be useful for my trailer. 

I then decided to put all of the shots I had produced into a video, and practice editing with clips, as I had practiced editing with photos. I ordered them in a way which would tell a story of some sorts, that it would make sense when you watch it, and that they seem to flow when played. I used one type of transition called cross-fade as I thought it looked effective when transitioning from one shot to the next. I trimmed certain clips down as I thought some parts weren't as good as the rest and I wanted shorten the length of the video to be less than 3 minutes, which is how long a trailer is generally. Music wise, I used a sample song called Kalimba. I thought this went well with my video as it is upbeat and quick, and showcases my clips. For my trailer, I might use a mainstream song from a band, rather than sample music, as it may suit my trailer better, but for this practice edit, I liked the sound of it. 

The whole practice session was extremely useful as it allowed me to get used to the camera again, and also test out possible shots which I could use within my trailer. The editing practice was useful as well as it allowed me to get to grips with the editing software again, and gave me ideas of how I want my trailer to look, e.g. what transitions I want to use, whether or not I want it to cut, the type of music I want, how long I want each clip to be, effects I may want to use and so on. The practice also allowed me to practice trimming clips and fading the music in and out so that it doesn't just start and end abruptly. 

I have lots of possible ideas now, and the filming also allowed me to test possible locations that I could use in my trailer. From this, I have decided to not use inside the building for the majority of the trailer, but outside in the forest area. There will be one shot filmed inside the school building, but apart from that it shall be filmed outside. Shots I shall include will be close ups, pans, tilts, zooms, medium shot, long shot, wide shot, high angles, two shots and over the shoulder shots.

Locations....

In addition to my storyboard, I thought I would go and take photos of possible locations I could use for my trailer. I have decided that I would use a mixture of both out of school and in school locations. I took a variety of shots, some outdoors and some indoors, some high shots and wide shots. I found that there were several good places to film in the school that didn't look like in school areas, and looked like alley ways and town areas which suit my trailer idea perfectly.

My locations are:

• Forest (Sixth Form)
• School Building
• Town Center
• Railway Bridge
• Outside of school building

The first shots are of forest location ideas. I need a forest type location to not only match my poster, but to also coincide with a scene in my story board. I felt that the school forest was okay, but I may take some photos of other forest locations. The trees look too sparse, and there isn't enough forest. However this may be a good location for the running scene, and possibly the romance scene.

I like the ragged, demolished look, it goes with the apocalypse type feel I want from my movie trailer. The deserted feel as well adds to it, a place of refuge. I think the best time to shoot these shots would be during Winter while the trees are still bare. I also like where the massive mud field is, as again it adds to that depressing , apocalyptic feel and matches what my trailer is all about. Other scenes I think would look good shot here would be the fight scenes because there is a lot of space here, also a lot of movies have fight scenes outdoors, and the genre in which my film is based include films which have had outdoor fight scenes, films such as Twilight and The Host for example.

This location is good for the introduction shots of my male character, I can see him walking down the steps and past the camera, the buildings don't look too school like. so I can get away with them being offices or even a university. I think either sunny weather or possibly cloudy weather may suit this shot, I really think that this could be effective for that particular shot. These locations are also good for establishing shots, wide shots and panning shots introducing the setting, and possibly the running scenes.

These locations could be good for the running scenes as well. These areas could also be good for the fighting scenes as well, open space, building backdrop, hiding spaces. These settings look very urban which is perfect for my film/trailer. 

These locations are perfect for my running scene, the window on the top floor gives a perfect high angle shot as well. I like where the bins are placed as it looks more like an alley way rather than the back of a school, which is perfect for a couple of particular scenes within my trailer. The two levels of the high angle shots are great for choosing the right shot to use, but also gives a good selection of shots to use, the way they look, how effective they are etc. 

Again, I will probably shoot these scenes during the Winter as it looks better when the all damp and grey, rather than sunny as it adds atmosphere and matches the mood of the scene, danger and worry, it would not look right if it were sunny and warm. 

These classroom type areas are perfect for the cast introduction scenes. These areas are similar to what I pictured on my storyboard and in my head. They are open, light and don't look like school classrooms, again allowing me to get away with pretending it's an office or something similar.

After reviewing my storyboard, I was able to compare my scenes to their locations, and I felt that the locations worked well with my scenes. Also, my chosen areas don't look like a school, therefore I can get away with it being filmed in school, without the need of doing it outside of school. 




Finally, these panoramic shots are perfect for my pan shots and introduction of setting. I noticed that in a lot of trailers they have aerial shots of the city or town that the film is based in and introduces it in this way, I can't do aerial shots so I decided to take some shots from the top of a railway bridge which gives just as good shots. These are effective in introducing the setting of my movie. I have also got a town location for another introduction shot, showing a bustling town center and this will match the voice-over I currently have.  I really like the high angle shots of the rail way lines and buildings, especially in this clear weather where you can see for miles. It really adds to the establishing shot, and looks quite professional. 





I think I will use most of these locations, and I may add or change some locations depending on what looks right when I film. These locations are good as they don't look like a school so I can get away with filming it there, I will try and get angles which do look like a city area or university, and not look odd.