During the editing process, one of the first and most important things I did with the footage was the cuts from the peaceful beach clips to the more intense flashbacks. I wanted these cuts to be sudden to grab the viewers attention and to create the thrilling effect I wanted for this genre.
Another thing I did during the editing process was make the flashback clips black and white. This also helped with the intensity and dark mood but also made it clear to the audience that they were flashbacks. I also put most of these clips in slow motion to further add to the dramatic effect. When it comes to mis-en-scene in my trailer, the props and items in frame are very important to the plot and development of the trailer. Firstly, the setting of the beach location was imperative to set the calm scene before it was drastically changed. The car setting was also important to show that the character is running from something. As far as props go, the "bloody" knife, lit candle, birds, and "bloody" hands were all important in thrilling the viewer and creating the intense mood. Arguably the most important prop in the trailer was the blue scarf, which is what I ended up titling the movie. This scarf was shown a numerous amount of times in the trailer to prove to the audience that it will be very important and symbolize something in the rest of the movie. When choosing music to use for the trailer, I knew I wanted to keep the contrasting dark and ominous vs calm and peaceful tones. To do this, I alternated between a lighter melodic track and a more intense sound. In order to appeal to as wide of an audience as possible and to attract my intended audience, I decided to use music instrumentals from songs of two of the biggest female artists in the music industry, Taylor Swift and Billie Eilish.
For a very long time, the entertainment industry was very male-dominated, specifically in action or thriller content. Having female lead characters in darker and more thrilling films is very refreshing to the female demographic. Using this female created mainstream soundtrack, it will hopefully be more appealing to the women audience members my film would probably attract. In addition to the instrumental music played in the background of the trailer, there is also a voiceover. The voiceover was written and vocalized by me, Carlie Nussbaum, although is supposed to be interpreted as the voice of the character in the film played by Sara Bernasconi. This voiceover was recorded after the camera content of the trailer was made, in order to perfectly time-out the phrases spoken. I also added a 'phone-call-like' sound effect to the voiceover to add another layer to the sound. The locations where I filmed the trailer were the beach, my house, and in the car. The actress in the trailer is my good friend Sara Bernasconi who offered to be the character on camera. Since I wanted an ominous vibe with more calm visuals with a deeper more mysterious undertone, peaceful visuals of the beach and waves were perfect for the film. I also wanted to make sure that I got multiple angled shots of different depths of the actress to make clear to the audience that she would be being the main character. The visuals I took for the quick black and white flashback shots were taken at my house with props I had already had. These quick shot I took as close-up camera shots so that it was clear to the viewer what it was. This also added a dramatic effect. To film my video clips, I used my Canon M50 camera and for a few clips I used my iPhone. For editing, I used the application iMovie and downloaded the music off of YouTube on my MacBook Air Laptop.
For my movie trailer, I knew that I wanted to do something within the genre that I was interested in, and that I typically enjoyed watching. Most of my inspiration came from the shows Big Little Lies, Little Fires Everywhere, and Ratched.
Some ideas that I had for the trailer revolve around a mystery or a murder. But not too gory or intense, more subtle and ominous. I think these type of mystery trailers are more appealing to the audience and make viewers more intrigued to watch more. I'm picturing a lot of my trailer taking place at the beach and I also envision a scarf being a big prop symbolizing something in the trailer. How did you integrate technologies – software, hardware and online – in this project?
When making a film trailer, it is very necessary to use technology. For hardware, I have used my Canon M50 camera, my iPhone, and my laptop to film and edit the trailer. I also used my piano to create music that I can use in the background. So far I have been using iMovie to edit since I am the most comfortable with it and am very familiar with it. I have also started to try out Garage Band to create and edit music tracks to use that will help make my trailer more effective. With these technologies I will be able to make my movie trailer the best it can be. How did your production skills develop throughout this project? Explain research, using different applications, layout and design of your magazine or video.
During this class and this process of making my movie trailer, I have learned so much and have grown so much as a filmmaker. I never knew how many different camera shots there were and how each one affects a scene differently. Throughout this class I have also read a lot about how sounds can affect the emotion of a scene. And one of the most important things I have learned was how powerful silence is in a film. I also learned about mis-en-scene which helps the viewer understand the context of the scenes. I tested out some new video editing applications like Adobe InDesign, but I felt more comfortable with a more simple editing application such as iMovie. I can't wait to continue to use these new skills to create my movie trailer. How does your product engage with audiences and how would it be distributed as a real media text?
Since my product is a movie trailer, it serves as an entertainment and advertising source for audiences. It engages with the audience in the sense that viewers can get excited about the film and can spark a conversation about it. It also can attract certain audience members based on what is used in the trailer to grab people's interest. My product is going to be distributed as a real media text through the internet and television. As a movie trailer, its only way of being presented is through technology. Therefore, my product will be showcased online, in theaters, and in tv advertisements. |
AuthorCarlie Nussbaum is a high school senior and an aspiring film major. She has enjoyed what she has learned throughout this Media Studies course and can't wait to learn more. |