Planning for Ancillary Texts
Magazine Film Review:
From my research of magazine film reviews, I have gathered some of the commonly used layouts. As you can see from the images, all the layouts contain a dominating image which takes up the majority of the double spread. This will be a key point to remember when creating our short film review, as it has to be an epic image that will catch the readers' attentions. I therefore plan to have a large image that dominates the review; this image shall convey our overall message to show the skating subculture in a positive light. This image could be one that features our local community of skaters in Lloyds Park, as a range of ages come to the public skatepark to practise their skills and to just enjoy eachothers company. Here is an example of some of the pictures that we could use as a dominating image; these were taken during our film sessions:
Another thing I have noticed from these film review layouts is that the name of the film needs to be bold and should be accompanied by a tagline. These also aid in drawing the readers' attention, therefore making them want to read the review. From looking at reviews in Empire, taglines appear to be more effective if they're short and simple. Slight humour may also be added to provide the reader with amusement. For our magazine film review, I plan to have a "short and sweet" tagline. This could be a rhetorical question or short statement in relation to the skating subculture. Since it is a documentary short film, the tagline could reflect the importance of a factual report.
General information such as the name of the director/producer, actors involved, release date and the length of the film are also considered as key factors of a magazine film review. Our film is a short so it will definitely be no longer than 15mins in length and even though our actors aren't famous film stars, it is important that we mention them as without them our documentary wouldn't be possible. This type of information is seems to be generally placed in a small box at the top of the page under the film name, in which I plan to do the same.
I also plan to include a star rating placed at the end of the film review as this is what decides the readers' verdict.
Template 1
Template 2
Template 3
Template 4
During my research I also found an article on 'How to write a Short Film Review', which I will use as a basic structure/guide:
http://www.ehow.com/how_5211353_write-short-film-review.html
Famous film magazines such as the ones pictured above, use a similar structure like the instructions given. However each review they have differs in terms of the way the reviewer uses persuasive language, as every critic has a different creative flare. I will use inspiration from each of these film magazines when writing our review by considering the placement of the following conventions:
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General Information
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Main body of the review
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Summary of our short film
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Large, dominant image
Despite these instructions, magazine film reviews do differ according to the genre of the film, the style of the magazine and the preferences of the reviewer; these 4 steps are merely considered as guidlines.
"Into Film Workshop about Film Journalism" by Charles Gant
Tips for writing a film review:
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Writing for various magazines: the tone of voice should change to suit and reflect the audience of the magazine.
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Don’t second guess the reader - write from the heart
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Most film critics rate out of 5.
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Don’t get bogged down explaining what the film is about = waste of time
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Have a passion for what you do. You will have an advantage, as it will come through in your writing.
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Be entertaining but still informative.
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Detail is needed in the review - look at technical aspects and include quotes.
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Do not spoil the plot of the film with your review.
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Number one: spelling and grammar.
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Pick a cast member to discuss, someone who gives a strong performance so you can expand.
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BE CONCISE!
Specifics Related to Documentary Film Reviews
Here is a brief plan of what we may write in this ancillary text:
The purpose of this documentary is to inspire, inform and use experimental methods to adapt to the 'short film' category, giving an insight into the benefits behind skateboarding. It is evident that the main message the directors want to get across to the audience is the 'positive side' of London's skateboarding subculture and how important skateboarding is to those who take part in the sport. Not only do the directors want their short film to be inspirational to those who skateboard, but it is clear that they also want to reach out to the wider community of people who do not skateboard. Perhaps their intended audience is therefore anyone from young teenagers to those more mature in age who have an interest in documentaries, media, skating and film.
This documentary short has been filmed in an array of places within London, from the directors' local skate park, to the main hub for skateboarding in Southbank. In particular, the interview at 'Slam City Skates Store' was intriguing as the film captures a more personal insight into skateboarding from a worker, who was also a contender of a skateboarding competition. The discussion reveals the determination needed to be a skater, along with his view of the skateboarding community in London, offering both positives and negatives as "some skateboarders would rather turn their backs on a kid than help them" improve their skills. This interview is a key part of the documentary since it allows the audience to grasp the whole sport, but in a succinct yet informative and interesting way.
Overall, the technical aspects of this short film are pretty impressive. The young directors have done well at capturing the raw essence of the skateboarding community within London through a range of camera shots and angles. They have also managed to document the different age groups involved in the sport, reinforcing their main message. The footage chosen to document is sharply focused on the purpose of the film, while the additional instrumental music in the background brings the documentary short to life, making more a smooth continuity throughout.
Film Poster:
Here is a gallery of images we have thought about using for our film poster. Our main aim is to try and stick to some of the short film poster conventions, while also putting our own unique and personal spin on it. As a result of our short film being a documentary, there isn't really a main "character"; Khi Graham is our main interviewee but we both agreed that the poster would be much more attractive and stand out if we used an image of one of the skateboarders doing a trick or a community of skateboarders.
However, we do plan to stick to the conventional simple style, small amount of text and bold text because we think that sometimes too much going on can be overpowering and lose meaning.
We chose these images because they show the skillset within skateboarding, linking back the theme of dedication that we mention in one of our interview questions; the difficulty level of the tricks skateboarders do.
It's Not Raining
(Anton)
It's Not Raining
(Futura Light)
Styles of Font Considered for Title:
It's Not Raining
(Lucida Sans Unicode)
It's Not Raining
(Helvetica)
The fonts we have considered here are pretty simple and bold. From our research into documentary film posters, many use these fonts styles; fancy, italic font isn't conventional of a short film documentary.
Here is our colour wheel, we plan to use a combination of some of these shades within our poster. Despite the typical short film poster convention being that colours reflect the actors, we have decided to challenge this and use dull colours, even though we are trying to spread a positive message about the skateboarding community in London.
As stated in our mise en scene page, skateboarders wear street style fashion, which contains clothes and shoes of dark colours, yet this doesn't represent their personality; many skateboarders are creative and are passionate about the sport. We are thus educating the audience to "not judge a book by its cover", a vital life lesson.
By Ashley Fontaine