Film Poster Analysis

 


Explore how codes and conventions are used to construct meaning in the theatrical poster for the horror film Midsummer (2019)

Codes and Conventions are the typical things we expect to find in a media product
It is unconventional
Directors may feel that audiences have become bored with the conventions of horror film, and seek to offer them something different. This is for purely financial reasons, as it allows the producer to potentially target new audiences.
This conforms to Steve Neale's theory that films must strike a balance between repetition an difference

  • The layout and design is simple (not overcrowded) they havent filled up the poster with text it is a close up shot o the character which fills the frame and then text running down the centre of the image with the name of the film in a larger font at the bottom.
  • The font is unconventunal for a horror film poster, this font looks more like it would be used in an old fashion romantic genre film 
  • They have used composition and framing of the subject so that we only see part of her face and part of the hair andthen the flower thing she is wearing on her head. 
  • The image is a close up in focus shot of half her face as she looks up at something we cannot see. She is crying with a tear running down this creates a hermenutic code for the audience as we can't see what is happening to her
  •  The bold blue color backdrop behind the subject makes her stand out even more. The image is bright and somewhat colorful with the flower crown sitting on her head
  • The image is framed so we can just see the the collar of the top she is wearing. It looks like an old fashioned blouse or something similar which suggests the film is not a modern setting but more this is further anchored by the serif font which implies a sense of purity, goodness and sophistication
  • She would be wearing make-up and her hair is done in plats however this is mainly covered by the flower crown
  • "let the festivities begin" is a seemingly non-threatening and positive phrase 
  • Binary opposition between the bright and cheerful colour scheme and warn high key lighting however her expression on her face makes her look distraught and in pain 
  • Some of the conventions of horror are jump scares, low key lighting, dark colours, young children but none of this poster suggests anything like this 
  • One part of this poster that is conventunal is the crying women. This is an hermenutic code of the horror genre as it creates tension for the audience and makes them ask questions
  • The women on the poster is hegemonically attractive

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