How effective is the combination of your main product and ancillary texts?

Charlotte Page

A Promotional Package Originally, the assignment brief for this project was to

create a promotional package for a new film. This had to

include a teaser trailer, together with a film magazine front

cover that featured the film and also a film poster.

Since the teaser trailer is the main product, the purpose of

the ancillary tasks are to support and help promote the film

by raising awareness of its release through multiple

platforms. This is known as synergy as Ancestors is being

promoted through various subsidiary platforms.

For the ancillary tasks to successfully promote the

Ancestors trailer, both the poster and magazine cover have

a similar house-style to the main product to ensure

consistency.

Existing Products Firstly, here is an example of an existing

product. This is a promotional package for

the film Insidious (2010) consisting of a

trailer which is supported by its film poster.

These products are successful since the

poster supports the trailer as it should, due

to the well developed house-style

consisting of the same colours, dark

lighting, font styles and settings. This

makes the film recognisable across two

platforms.

One of the most noticeable aspects to

these products is the choice of font for the

title. The same has been used for both the

trailer and poster making the title become

significant to the films identity.

Similarly, in the trailer, a shot of the house

is shown and this is mirrored on the poster

suggesting the house will be significant.

Title The style of the title for any film becomes like a logo or unique identity for the main product. Therefore, to allow our ancillary tasks to become consistent with our trailer, all three of our media products use the exact same style of title.

This includes using the same font, the same colours and the same size text. This is to ensure that the ‘Ancestors’ brand is not only consistent but so it becomes recognisable across all platforms.

For instance, the ‘O’ in the title can be seen as symbolic for the red eye of the doll and forms a brand identity.

Likewise, the colours can be seen as effective since the grey could connote the ghostly and chilling atmosphere portrayed in the trailer whilst the red symbolises an element of fear or danger. Therefore, even in our ancillary tasks through the title, the themes of the trailer are still communicated through print.

Font Aside from the font used for the titles, the same text style has been employed for the slogan on the poster as it is in the film trailer.

This font style is one which we downloaded online as we thought this was successful in symbolising the childhood plot of the film as it appears to have a child-like style to it.

Furthermore, as our storyline is based around the idea of generations and the past, the grey colour of this text and the shadow behind it could connote the idea of the past and history.

By using this font for the slogan on the poster supports the themes that are portrayed in the trailer and even though on print, the storyline of the trailer is still communicated to the consumer.

Images The images used for the poster and magazine front

cover are very similar to the kinds of shots which feature

in the trailer and therefore this is another way that the

ancillary tasks support the main product.

Firstly, on both the magazine cover and poster, the doll

features. As something that is so prominent in the trailer,

it is clear that this is central to the plot of the film which

is reflected in the ancillary tasks.

Furthermore, the shots of the doll used for the ancillary

tasks are close-up shots in which this is a shot type that

is regularly used in the trailer, allowing the tense

atmosphere created in the video to be mirrored in the

poster and magazine since only its face is seen.

On the magazine cover, the same actor has been used

as in the trailer. In the trailer, the actor can be seen to

reflect the target audience since she is young and

current and so appearing on the magazine cover

enforces who the target audience of Ancestors is,

making the combination of the magazine and trailer

effective also.

Colour & Lighting The colours used on both the magazine cover and poster are very similar with the black background used on each, grey and white fonts with dark shadows and hints of red throughout. These colours are all stereotypically associated with horror, connoting the idea of the unknown, danger, and evil in which these colours feature in the trailer too. Through colour, this is another way that the ancillary tasks are consistent with the trailer as the horror genre is emphasised across each platform.

Furthermore, with the poster and magazine, the lighting that has been used is very dark. Particularly low key lighting emphasising the shadows. This is something that has been employed in the trailer whereby shadows form and the darkness adds to the unknown. Again, making the products consistent.

House Style Overall, I think that the combination of our main product and ancillary tasks is effective since the house-style is continuous across each platform with the same colours, fonts, shot types and overall style being employed. As a result, the combination of the main product with the ancillary tasks is successful as the connection can be made between each of the products as they all appear similar.

Since these products are consistent, it becomes easier for the audience not only to be able to recognise the horror genre but allows the Ancestors brand to become more recognisable meaning synergy has been successful as the product is being promoted through all of its subsidiary platforms.