Planning: Synopsis

Post-Apocalyptic Film Synopsis

Following a global economic meltdown, hostilities mount between the East and the West culminating in a Second Cold War. The Asian superpowers severed trade links to the UN resulting in frozen foreign assets and dispute over goods and oil shortages. In the global turmoil, sporadic cases of societal breakdown have cropped up, even to the extent of pockets of civilisation secluding themselves from others. Rule of law has been stripped of all credibility as people conflict for diminishing resources in a world where money is becoming more and more ethereal every day. 

With the world already on the brink, a localised explosion occurs in an unamed urban environment outside a metropolis, causing the surrounding suburban areas to be quarantined from the rest of the country, with people still inside. This immediately sets off an even more intense political climate, gripping people with angst and confining them to their homes. A journalist bereft of his family, searches hopelessly for reclamation when he finds a wandering soul who takes him under his wing after recognising the journalist’s tenuous mental state. The two then plan to escape the quarantine but what they soon unravel is a myriad of lies, corruption and insanity.

The nature of the shots and content will be similar to Mad Max, The Road or the Fallout game series. The audience will obviously be mainly male, due to the more violent, desolate and dangerous nature of the film’s world. To widen audience appeal, we will show some action and more light hearted, comedic elements (this is common in almost all film trailers).

We will create a grim looking world by using grey scale filters and using locations that are abandoned with no cars, people or any sign of life. This is common across the post-apocalyptic genre. 

Planning: Possible Locations

In Waterfoot, behind the fish in chip shop facing Cordey's, is a decrepit house with boarded up windows, fire damage and all its copper and wiring nearly completely scavenged (cool for if we decide to go for 'survivors' in story'). Adjacent to this location is a useful route onto the river that runs through town. Even better news is that this route leads to where the river stems and appears akin to a dried out river basin which I personally think gives a strong ''wasteland'' ambience, especially if we incorporate a grey scale filter when we film.

If we follow the river down a few yards there is an old mill/factory that has been left abandoned and as a result is now beset with weeds and overgrown foliage; a perfect component for the 'Chernobyl' aura and the feeling of desertion, death and even hopelessness. In addition to this, the area is quiet and riddled with run down metalwork and material, both common in post apocalyptic settings. The most ideal factor for using this location is its proximity to school meaning we film either straight after school or during lessons when it is still bright weather, as opposed to having to trek to a location and run the risk of it going dark early as it tends to do in the autumn.

The second location I noticed is in Bacup. I didn't get as close an inspection as I did with the Waterfoot location, however it is safe to say that the buildings I'm interested in are run down, infested with damage and overwhelmed with free growing plantlife, and definitely evoke an ambience of neglect and dissipation. From what I can tell, the buildings are vacant shells of what they once were, a road leads adjacent to them and little activity goes on around them, therefore meaning they will be relatively quiet, easily accessible and good to shoot inside; given we have permission. The only problem facing us here is that it is a trip from school to reach this location.

 I have also been informed about a possible location in Manchester that sounds interesting and another one, a deserted hospice apparently, near me which I might look into.. in the daytime. There's also that disused hospice on the way to Haslingden but we'd probably require permission and the courage to go up there. I’ve also just gone up to a place not too far from mine and it’s a very promising site. It’s a now a desolate asbestos manufacturing plant situated in the middle of nowhere, enshrouded by excessive shrubbery and corroding barbed fenced wires with a stream coursing through the middle (good for filming any survival shots). With enough imagination the place looks similar to an abandoned test facility like something out of a typical zombie horror.

Planning: Post Apocalyptic Trailer Conventions

Obviously it is imperative for a trailer to show variety in all its aspects such as location, shots and dialogue. We will achieve variety by using a POV shot from the main protagonist’s perspective, perhaps showing him running, an establishing shot which scans across the environment in a panoramic sort of style and shots of destroyed/desolate buildings, dried up land, craters and forests which could show hope that perhaps life can continue as it once did.

A panoramic shot from The Book of Eli

Book of Eli showing a desolate location

The genre of our film will be a Post-apocalyptic thriller. Some key genre elements that we will employ are large panoramic establishing shots which will reveal desolate and neglected buildings, connoting death, desertion and devastation. We really want there to be an ambience of hopelessness coming from the locations we choose (grim weather is also needed). We will use Non-diegetic lines from the script over different scenes and will mention bible quotes within it as religion can be seen as hope and a light in the darkness. We will involve a nuclear explosion/ cataclysm at some point to allow the audience recognise what genre the film is and know a bit of what has happened in the film.

The Road presents a believable take on a post-apocalyptic world

We have seen through analysis of this genre that costumes and props help bring believable settings and characters to life. To get across to the audience that the protagonist and other characters he meets along the way are living in a destroyed and desolate landscape, we will make them dirty and scruffy; with characters (maybe even the protagonist) having a dishevelled beard and plenty of winter clothing as obviously there will be adverse weather conditions. Other props will include food cans, bin bags and items that would be scavenged and used in a Post-Apocalyptic setting.

A key focus of the film is religion,
and how it provides hope.

Other ways we will establish genre in regards to sound, will be a dissonant Post Rock song that begins melancholic, intermittently fades out for dialogue and then gradually builds tension to a heavy guitar crescendo. Non diegetic and diegetic lines of dialogue can cross over from scene to scene and can be used as slight narrative exposition. Sound effects such as explosions, gun shots and footsteps will also be added to again build tension and stimulate immersion in the films’ world. Regarding actual content of the dialogue, we have seen from many Post-Apocalyptic films and games, that hope is a big factor in a characters’ survival e.g. in The Book of Eli he carries a Bible and an iPod to keep him entertained, and in The Road the Father and son talk about God to keep them motivated to complete their journey. So we plan to use a Bible quote or two that relates to the narrative.

The key point of focus of our trailer will be the locations we use supporting the points of desolation, although we will expose some form of life other than humans which could also show hope and that there is a chance of survival. Another focus of ours is a time lapse of the sky, showing ever-changing weather conditions and environment.

Marketing points for our film will be that it has a bit of everything within it, such as a bit of action, drama, thriller etc. The director has done films such as ‘The Tester’ and ‘Obsession’ so he can bring in an audience due to his name being behind famous thrillers.

The film will first be shown in festivals such as the Sundance festival and the Cannes festival. It will then go to cinemas across the world being a worldwide release, to cut down on pirating. We would also have worldwide premieres to promote the film. 

Our target audience for our trailer is most definitely an adult male demographic, due to subjects of violence, war and a detailed narrative. Usually more female orientated films will include romance and humour, as well as a classic ‘Hollywood’ narrative that is simple to follow, although we will broaden the appeal by showing variety in locations and scenes, containing action, emotion and drama together. The film itself will continue to draw these elements together, as trailers that mislead and mis-sell the final product tend to annoy audiences and spoil initial high hopes.

Planning: Initial Ideas

Initial Ideas

We are more focused towards doing a comedy genre although we would like to make it a hybrid for instance an action/crime/sci-fi comedy. Developing this idea we are leaning towards doing a spoof of already established genres, therefore we can still use the common conventions whilst still putting our own comical twist towards it.

• Horror Comedy (Amnesia-esque)
• Black Comedy (Quentin Tarrantino style)
• ‘Cop’ Comedy (Starsky and Hutch)
• Mockumentary (Spinal Tap, Waynes World?)
• Romance spoof (Date Movie)

 

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    We have also thought about opting for a more mature genre such as a horror/thriller or a spy genre (akin to the Bourne series), although this could be made humorous. Another option was to do a post-apocalyptic genre without any humour as we know of several derelict rundown locations and have a personal interest in the subject.

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      We already know certain websites whose music is all copyright commons which has different variety and genres of music freely available. This means we won’t be constrained to what genres we do. We also have copyright commons music albums from artists such as Nine Inch Nails and Epic Soul Factory available to use. On top of all of this we have friends who are able and willing to record music for us.

·       We also had ideas of plans to use filters and software that would augment the shots manually, which would make the trailer more exciting; exactly what you want from a trailer.

·     We also plan similar use of theories in our trailer after researching real trailers and we will be doing another in-depth analysis of a trailer relating to our genre once it has been decided. These theories will constitute to an element of mystery, excitement and reveal the genre which will attract our desired audience.

     Here we have expanded some of our initial ideas in a program called OpenMind 2, where we used a mind map to assess which idea was best. Initial Ideas Mindmap

The Road: Trailer Analysis

The film’s title looks quite bold and serious. It uses a serif font, and a black background with white text, connoting that this film is dark and that it deals with subject matter which isn’t cheery or uplifting. This could also signify the literary value of the film's source novel - a serious film, not just an action/adventure. The title appears only once near the end of the trailer, with institutional information following this. You can see a slight smudge at the bottom of the text, which connotes one of the films messages of humanity ruining the earth that god gave them. The straight line could connote that all of humanity is now equal after it has brought itself to the brink of destruction.

The Hero is the Father, which is a character type heavily present in post-apocalyptic films. Films such as Book of Eli and Mad Max have a hero who is a wanderer trying to survive and perhaps make a difference to the world. His son is the helper, who assists his father on his quest to get to the southern coast as it will be safer. His son is quite young, and so needs protection also. This is again extremely common in this genre, as in films such as Book of Eli and I Am Legend; the hero has some sort of companion who helps them escape danger. Eli has a girl who helps him escape from her Dad’s base, and in I Am Legend Will Smith’s dog gives him a friend and companion in a world where everyone is dead.

The character type of the villain is also shown such as the African American or long haired guy who steals his son. These are also present in many of these films, as in Book of Eli, there is an old man seeking the bible that Eli has, and wants to take it by force.

The location and setting is very important to a post-apocalyptic film such as The Road. Locations have been chosen to reflect that the world is dying due to an unknown cataclysm. In addition, as the film is about a long journey, variety is also important as we see forests, houses and even a beach. The locations have also had grey filters and some special effects to make it even more miserable and dreary looking. Add into this the filters used such as 'chroma-key' where specific colours can be washed out if they are too bright. Also, the film uses chiaroscuro lighting which can be seen in some of the scenes, this matches the dark subject matter, as well as building atmosphere through night connoting uncertainty.

The style and pace of the edits is mostly slow, showing panoramic shots which are interspersed with action, such as a flare gun being shot which heightens the tension of the trailer. Transitions such as fades and static are used for these. They will usually show a few shots from the same scene, and then cut to another scene to show variety. The scenes are then interspersed with text screens that will show one word that links with what the film is about, such as “search” and “move”. This kind of editing is very common as it tries to sell the film as best it can. A good example of the this is the second half of the trailer which ramps up the action and pace, by using a faster tempo soundtrack, and montage like editing.

In this genre of film, typically the narrative will be established by showing that the world is war torn, or ravaged by a natural disaster. Additionally, a hero and a companion go on a journey to accomplish something, usually to get to safety from the dangerous post-apocalyptic world. Many will show dialogue that is quite emotional or thought provoking, to do with surviving at the end of the world. They will then also show action scenes that make modern audiences go to see a film.

The ominous beats of drums are used to start each shot at the beginning, which builds tension at the start of the trailer. They are then used again at the end of the trailer, as it focuses more on the action scenes, and the beat of the drums is in time with jump cuts and quick fades – a key selling point for a lot of modern films.

An ambient soundtrack is used next in the trailer, which is used in time with the text screens used to explain the narrative and key themes the film will tackle; namely, the issue of survival in a post-apocalyptic setting. The mood of the music is very sparse and delicate; perhaps connoting the world is on the brink of destruction. A further use of music is the violin screeching used to connote danger, as the long haired man tries to kidnap the young boy.

Static is used at the start to show disruption in between the credits and this is then followed by lightning strikes and more static, as well as non-diegetic sounds of news announcements over a montage of different catastrophes across the world.

The dialogue is used to show the relationship between the man and his Son, and that they are close and will work together to achieve their goal. The dialogue also gives narrative exposition as they say “how many people are left” “In the world? Not very many” and this establishes the genre as well.

Story is established through some hermeneutic codes such as “why is everyone in the world dead?” and “who are these characters and what are their motives for survival?” These are common questions in this genre and its framework. Proairetic codes also feature, which ask more basic questions such as “who will survive?” when the gun is shown, as multiple other survivors are then shown throughout the trailer. There are also glimpses of thraet/weapons in the fast second half of the trailer which are proairetic codes.

In the dialogue, the father refers to “the coast” and that he will do “whatever it takes” to get there. This draws us in and raises several questions, seeing as this is obviously a major plot point or some sort of equilibrium will be made when/if they get there. The most obvious question raised is “will they get there?” which is the main reason to see the film.

The semantic codes such as the binary opposites of safety and danger play a big part in this trailer – several indoor environments are contrasted with dangerous outdoor locations, filled with possible ‘villains’.

A male audience is definitely the primary demographic here, this could be further split into two categories of teenage males who would mostly go for the action scenes, and adult males who would go more for the thought provoking narrative – “what would happen if the world ended?” The Road does show emotion and personal problems in the trailer, so it could be said to be widening its audience to a female demographic who are into more romantic or coming of age films.

The institutional information of “From Cormac McCarthy Author of No Country For Old Men” shows the audience that the film is based on another novel by a critically acclaimed writer, which establishes credibility and makes the audience think this will definitely be a good film, as a previous film that was based on this novel is well known and did well at the box office.

The trailers USP would definitely be the more emotive side of it, with the man and his son talking and helping each other. Not many films of this genre would dare to do such a thing, as this may alienate its key demographic of males who want all action and no story. The Road does, however, strike a balance between an emotional and seemingly engaging narrative, and gritty action excitement.

I Am Legend: Trailer Analysis

1) The I Am Legend film title appears only once at the end of the trailer following a crescendo of quickly paced edits, and is followed by a short clip from the film and then institutional information. The film title is not only reinforced by the semiotics of the font and appearance, but also by intermittent white on black sans serif titles appearing in between the quickly paced edits preceding the final title. This is because all titles contain features of anaphora (‘’I am’’) which lends greater emphasis to the slogans and the film title, potentially leaving a more memorable impression on the audience; the intention of a trailer is for the target audience to watch the final product after all. The institutional information exhibited at the end of the trailer gives the option to visit the film website and subsequently delve deeper into the movie’s world, background and cast etc.

The film title is a serif font with a pallid silvery hue on a jet black background; in the trailer, the text appears on the screen dynamically, emerging from off screen and moving backwards into place.  The serif font is likely a connotation to more archaic orthography which appears in holy bible scripture, corresponding with the films religious themes alluded to in the trailer – ‘’God didn’t do this, we did’’ (there is actually more discussion of the topic and ‘God’s plan’ in the film itself). The light colour on the black colour, collaborating with the imposing size of ‘legend’, connotes a sense of light, or hope more accurately, persevering over the darkness.  The darkness itself conveys that the film is of a dark, mature themed genre and not a vividly bright, sun washed comedy, for example.

2)We are only really introduced to Will Smith’s character, Robert Neville, mostly because we can assume that he is bereft of his family, due to the shot choices at the beginning of the trailer of chaos and destruction, and because he is alone, and appears quite destitute, in the majority of the trailer. Neville is clearly the Hero archetype in Propp’s character types, which is prevalent in post apocalyptic genres. Neville’s dog, Sam, is the Companion archetype as she and Neville share a reciprocal relationship: for comfort of each other’s presence, assistance in tasks, food and, in Neville’s case, sanity. Sam is portrayed and interacted with more human qualities since she is evidently the last friendly sentient creature in New York. This is more conventional of post apocalyptic films, with I Am Legend taking inspiration from Mad Max and deviating from the original script of ‘Omega Man’, which it is based off.  The ‘Villain’s’ are the ferocious and extremely hostile ‘infected’ that appear similar to 28 days later styled zombies, but nothing more is revealed of them to maintain an aura of mystery around them; what are their intentions? Are they really zombies? Etc. This is an enigma code defined by Barthes. This also doesn’t subvert expectations as all post apocalyptic films I have seen are either centred around biological warfare/ infection causing a percentage of the world population to transform into violent ‘zombies’, or nuclear warfare eroding society and leaving nothing but thuggish gangs roaming the wastes in search of resources and avoiding mutants. I Am Legend was bound to follow one of these, in fact anything different would subvert my expectations.

I Am Legend is clearly being sold on star appeal as Will Smith is a renowned actor with an illustrious career and many accolades and awards under his belt. The unique selling point to the film could be the lengths that the production team went to transform New York into a desolate wasteland, boasting shots of a Times Square completely barren and neglected. No other film in memory has done so to the sae extent, not even Omega Man. I cannot really say Will Smith is the USP as other post apocalyptic films use famous actors as prominent roles – The Road has Viggo Mortenson and Charlize Theron for instance.

3) The locations in a trailer are crucial for the audience to derive what genre the film is, and post apocalyptic genres are no exception. In I Am Legend, a devastated New York City, overwhelmed by exuberant foliage and wildlife is chosen, or more accurately created, to reflect the human catastrophe that has befallen the world. Although the primary symbolism is of death, the encroachment of nature upon the city symbolises new life and adaption – perhaps even the slight notion that without humans the natural world would thrive, whether this is a bad thing or a good thing is subjective. The city is made even bleaker with greyscale filters and cgi augmented buildings emphasising neglect and the impact of plantlife flooding through the city.

In contrast, Neville’s home base is completely divergent from the bleak chaos of the outside world; his house appears untouched by the wrath of the infection and is well organised, modern and warming – safety is the ambience felt of it. This is reinforced by the salient changes from a typical house, such as the heavy locks on the doors and windows which sheds light on the reality of Nevilles situation and the fact he is always never too far from danger. This could also be interpreted as a flaw in his personality. Although he yearns for contact with other human beings, accentuated by his abnormal behaviour in the video store where he uses mannequins to simulate a video store we, as the audience, would be used to but that he hasn’t seen in years, he cages himself away behind steel fortifications which is juxtaposition.

4a) The style and pace of the edits in the beginning segment of the trailer are quite slow, though reveal dramatic and upsetting scenes from before the cataclysm has occurred to its fullest extent. It also reveals some panoramic shots of New York. Notably, the sound is slightly subdued and new shot transitions are accentuated by a thick, slightly muffled (akin to an explosion in a far off distance) resonating bass drum which I think delivers a pensive mood, as though Neville, who is voicing over this part, is recollecting moments from his past. This segment uses fade to blacks and then straight cuts to the next shot, up until it reaches the production company logos.

After the production logos cuts are relaxed and fit to the music. They also display a variety of locations and activities that the character performs, although all are lacking danger to fit with the soft music. Instead of the scenes being interspersed with text on screen, which is a common trope of trailers, the white sans serif text is overlayed onto the shots, fades in then out. This leisurely edited and deliberately balanced editing style is effective in conveying Neville’s life, his equilibrium at this point, as routine and unchanging whilst also illustrating his solitude.

After day shifts into night, the editing ramps up with tempo whilst the content is primarily octane pumped action and horror and the music is now consistent with the new quickened tempo and more energetic. The drum beat in particular is more aggressive, louder and faster to be consistent and reinforce the action in the latter segment of the trailer. Now, unlike before, screen with just white on black text intersperse the action that is happening in between; the text has dramatic messages containing anaphora to enforce the message of the film and lend a more memorable, understood title.

4b. In this genre of film, typically the narrative will be established by showing that the world is war torn, or ravaged by a natural disaster. Additionally, a hero and a companion go on a journey to accomplish something, usually to get to safety from the dangerous post-apocalyptic world, or, in I Am Legend’s case, to discover a cure for the infection that has decimated mankind. Many will show dialogue that is quite poignant or thought provoking, to do with surviving at the end of the world – for instance the routine displayed in Neville’s life, the most affecting perhaps being ‘Survive’, which isn’t something we, as an audience living in a comfortable, civilised western world, can fully comprehend, but are still intrigued by. We are generally interested by hardships and dystopias, and then gain comfort by watching how we believe someone would overcome them. Action scenes are also used to appeal to modern audience who now come to expect glossy crescendos boasting impressive CGI and gritty events, especially so in genres, such as post-apocalyptic, that have action/thriller components.

5. The aforementioned perceivably portentous bass drums used to start each shot at the beginning segment of the trailer build tension at the start of the trailer, whilst also gives us a bit of insight into Neville’s demons. Drums are again used at the end of the trailer with more tempo, and military and aggressive ambience as it focuses more on the action scenes; the emphasised beat in the rhythm of the drums is in time with jump cuts and quick fades – a key selling point for a lot of modern films.

After the production companies at the start, a melodic, ambient soundtrack is used next in the trailer, which is used in time with the cuts to new shots and overlay text used to explain the narrative and key themes the film will tackle; namely, the issue of meeting survivors and then actual survival in a post-apocalyptic setting. The instruments, as far as I can perceive, are simply a piano, that plays sparse delicate chords, an acoustic guitar, which plays a slow and continuous background melody, and then finally a violin sets in with a hauntingly pleasant yet melancholic ambience. Perhaps this is connoting the world of mankind is on the brink of collapse, which isn’t particularly a bad thing for nature, and it is the fault of humankind only. The music is peaceful because, despite the immensity of neglect and death wrought by the infection, the world is at peace.

The dialogue emphasises Neville’s solitude, as only he is talking throughout the whole trailer.

6)  The narrative is a pivotal part of a trailer as it cannot be fully divulged, but enough clues, in the form of voiceover excerpts and enigma codes, have to be delivered to the audience in order to appeal to them and intrigue them enough into watching the full production. Some narrative is established through some hermeneutic codes such as “what is this infection mentioned at the start of the film?” and “what happened to all these people?”, ‘’why is New York empty, why is Neville alive?’’. These are common questions in this genre and its framework. Proairetic codes also feature, which ask more basic questions such as “who will survive?” when he is thrown from the window.

In the dialogue, the Neville refers to “helping” the infected, and that he will “fix them’’. This draws us in and raises enquiry into his intentions, seeing as his endeavour to find a ‘cure’ for the infection is obviously a major driving plot point or some sort of equilibrium will be made when/if he discovers it. The most obvious question raised is “will he succeed?” which is the main reason to see the film, aside from the explosive action and tense horror scenes that are demonstrated in the quickly paced montage towards the end of the trailer.

The semantic codes such as Levi Strauss’ binary opposites of safety and danger play a big part in this trailer – Neville’s home and recognised locations to hunt and harvest crops is contrasted with dangerous outdoor locations, and dark chiaroscuro lit buildings that are riddled with dangerous infected. Another prominent binary code is that of day and night. Where day holds elements of safety and familiarity, night beckons the infected and therefore danger – hence why the general mood of the trailer goes from absorbingly melancholic to disconcerting and frightening when night is mentioned.

7) A male audience is definitely the primary demographic here given the horror and action elements.  This could be further split into two categories of teenage males who would mostly go for the action scenes, and adult males who would go more for the thought provoking narrative – “what would happen if the world ended?” ‘’Is this dystopian future possible?’’. I Am Legend does show emotion and personal tribulations in the trailer through the bereavement of his family, so it could be said to be widening its audience to a female demographic who are into more appealed by films containing sentiment, hence why they prefer romance and dramas. The trailer doesn’t actually reveal any age ratings but we can infer from the ambience of imminent peril and horror alongside the brief, yet brutal, action snippets.