Thursday 12 November 2009

Marketing Techniques

Merchandising: Merchandising is a technique that gives the target audience physical products that they could use, wear or eat that will help to promote a film. Usually the product contains a picture or a logo used in the films advertising, so that people can familiarise with which film it is trying to promote
Viral Marketing: Viral marketing is a very effective use of marketing as it works through word-of-mouth. It is especially effective as people are easily persuaded by peers. It can also ascend up the media scale, and can be used in other forms of media such as radio, and television programmes.
Synergy Marketing: Film companies will use success of existing companies to promote their own work. For example McDonalds are regularly used to promote children’s films such as the recently proclaimed ‘Up’ film. They aim at children by using techniques that reflect merchandising such as toys in ‘happy meals’ and balloons. Aiming at children is a very effective use of marketing as they are very easily taken, and can persuade parents into watching the given film.
Product Placement: This is where a film company incorporate other company’s products, so that the audience can familiarise with certain things, and this can help increase a films popularity, but also advertise for other companies. James Bond uses this technique in that some of their most famous scenes include Aston Martins, which is a high class car company.

Wednesday 11 November 2009

Majorie

Majorie Ferguson
She defined four types of camera shots that identify the way males look at women, she created these four types after studying front covers of British women magazines. This runs alongside the male gaze but is more indepth, as this describes what the women are found to be doing whilst the Male Gaze is in place.
Invitational: Refers to the look of a woman with her head tilted to one side, or eyes in contact with the camera. Mainly the emphasis is on her eyes, and to keep the attention away from any other area's of her face her mouth is closed with a small smile, as not to make her look unwelcoming. The aim of the look is to create a mysterious effect, as though to propose an enigma, drawing the audience or onlooker into the film/poster.
Chocolate Box: Basically means what it refers to in other context. The person in question should show no individuality in their looks, but at the same time be pleasing to the viewer with a half, or full smile showing little to no teeth.
Super Smiler: This is what I imagine hair adverts to be like, an open face with a big glaring, toothy smile and generally with wind blown hair. This can come across as arrogant but generally it is not supposed to be like that.
Romantic/Sexual: An intimate view, usually including two people of the opposite sex. Generally there is little to no expression, just heavy lidded eyes and a strong sense of amorous body language.

Trevor Millum
Alike Majorie, Trevor studied womens advertisements generally from magazines and defined 10 expressions.
Soft/Introverted: An almost fictional pose, something that doesn't seem natural with a look that seems asthough she's in a trance. Eyes usually heavy, or completely shut with mainly pouted lips, and no other expression.
Cool/Level: A look that seems asthough the girl is seeing herself in the mirror, shows wide eyes and full straight lips, often the girl has blonde/light hair. This look can seem arrogant, confident and self sufficient.
Seductive:

Gaze and the Male Gaze

The word ‘Gaze’ came about in the 70’s, its a word used to describe a persons view on somebody else. Most of the time, it is an almost involuntary effect when somebody unknown comes into your presence.
The ‘Male Gaze’ is a more specific type of gaze. It is seen mostly in a sexual way, as it is used when a male looks at a female in a particular way, usually this begins at the legs and works up to the face.
Different types of Gaze; The spectators gaze, The intra-diegetic gaze,the direct address to the viewer (also extra-diegetic), the look of the camera, the gaze of a bystander and the gaze of an audience within a text.
Trevor Millum, looked further into the direction of a gaze at a certain person and came up with different forms these being; directed towards others, directed towards an object, directed to oneself, directed to the reader/camera/audience and directed into middle distance.
Paul Messaris, found that in advertising females tend to look in a picture as men would look at them. Using the camera as though it is a male’s vision, this can attract men but also allow women to see how they’d look in the eyes of men.
Promoting films
Above the line: Above the line defines an advertising technique that is hard for the public to ignore, for example, television advertising, magazines, posters, newspapers, billboards and merchandise.
Below the line: Below the line is basically the opposite to above, in the way that you can ignore the advertising as it is a lot more discreet, and is there for the people who are likely to be interested enough to seek for it. Examples of below the line are; interviews, magazine reviews, websites, viral, blogs and social networking sites.
Advertising strategies of ‘2012,’ ‘Bunny and the Bull’ and ‘A Serious Man.’
2012 is an upcoming blockbuster film that’s theme is going to be the end of the world. As this film is set to create a huge reaction from its audience, they have not held back in their advertising.
Their main use of advertising is through billboards and posters this is an ‘above the line’ technique, and is very effective. They use phrases such as ‘We Were Warned,’ this helps to involve the audience as it is directly speaking to individuals and allow them to feel as part of a group, hence the use of the word ‘We.’
They also are using television advertising, which involves showing high action clips from the film, capturing its audience and making them feel obliged to go and see the film in full.
Word of mouth, (viral) also helps to advertise the film, because the film is splitting opinions as to wether or not 2012 could actually happen. This is one of the most effective uses of advertising as peers opinions are very influential.

Shameless Characters Analysis

Shameless 2

Followers