My Own Tag lines

After looking through many tag lines I have made a list of my own tag lines that I will use in my poster and trailer.

1. The end is just the beginning - This gives a sense of mystery and that something bad is coming.
2. Kill them but make sure their dead - I am using a direct mode of address in this tag line and making it obvious that they will have to kill.
3. Death is your only sanctuary - I am again using a direct mode of address by saying 'your' which gives a sense of threat to the audience.
4. Kill or be killed - I am making the audience feel like there is no way out of the situation which is something that zombie tag lines constantly try to use.
5. You cant escape - Again I am using a direct mode of address to let the audience now that there is no way out.
6. The dead will come for you - This tagline is using the direct mode of address method to make the audience feel threatened.
7. Run. Hide. They will come for you. - In this tagline I am using the direct mode of address.
8. Stand and Fight. Run and Hide. - This is addressing the audience directly by giving them orders which is seen in many horror tag lines.
9. Run. Hide. Your days are numbered. - Direct mode of address is being used here.
10. The dead will rise - This is a statement that will be eye catching to many viewers.
11. Death is just the beginning - This is another statement.

I will now conduct a focus group on these tag lines to see which is the most popular

After I conducted the focus group I then worked out the average and this is what I found.
1. The end is just the beginning - 7
2. Kill them but make sure their dead - 5
3. Death is your only sanctuary - 6
4. Kill or be killed - 3
5. You cant escape - 3
6. The dead will come for you - 2
7. Run. Hide. They will come for you - 6
8. Stand and Fight. Run and Hide - 7
9. Run. Hide. Your days are numbered - 7
10. The dead will rise - 4
11. Death is just the beginning - 8

The most popular tag lines seemed to be number 11, when constructing my poster this will be the tag line that I shall use.

Full Cast & Crew

Full Cast & Crew


Main Protagonist
Robert Hughes
Robert Hughes was born June 2nd 1978 and is an American film and television actor. From a young age Robert has always been interested in acting. He studied the performing arts at Nottingham University.
Existing Films:
- Under the Bridge
- Shredded 2
- Slash
- Just From Home


Actors
Ben Clark
Ben Clark was born October 23rd 1976 and is a Canadian film and television actor. His career began in 1990 wish his first independent film, The Bridge.
Existing Films:
- My Heart
- Home
- Slice
- Over Again


Jessica Lind
Jessica Lind was born on November 23rd 1980 and is an American Actress. Her first major part was in the TV series called Abroad. From a young age she has always been interested in becoming an actress.
Existing Films:
- Me & You
- Riding Alone
- Gone
- Run & Hide


Mark Harbour
Mark Harbour was born January 13th 1973 in England. His first successful film was in 1999 in a movie called Payback. He studied the theatrical arts at Manchester University.
Existing Films:
- Fearless
- Ridicule
- Blind

Oscar Reed
Oscar Reed was born February 12th 1990. He is a American TV/Film actor. His most major role was in the famous TV drama called Hidden Talents.
Existing Films:
- Slash
- Syndicate
- Travel
- Scream once


Sarah Weild

Sarah Weild was born July 28th 1985. She is an American Actress who had a major in Drama at the University of Manchester.
Existing Films:
- Once More
- Darkness
- Scarred

Crew

Production Company – Dimension Films

- The Last Exorcism

- The Last Exorcism 2

- Dawn of the Dead

Production Company – Dark Castle Entertainment
Existing Films:

- Jennifer’s Body

- The Hills Have Eyes 2

- 28 Weeks Later

Distribution Company – Fox Searchlight Pictures

      Existing Films:

- 28 Weeks Later

- The Darkest Hour

- Vampire Sucks

Director – Neil Marshall

Neil Marshal was born 25th May 1970 in Newcastle upon Tyne and is a English film director, editor and screenwriter. Marshall directed his first feature film called Dog Soldiers in 2002.

Existing Films:

- Doomsday

- Dog Soldiers

- The Descent

- Centurion

Writer – George A. Romero

George Andrew Romero was born February 4th  1940. He is an American film director, screenwriter and editor. He is best known for his gruesome horror films about hypothetical zombie apocalypse.

Existing Films:

- Night of the Living Dead

- Dawn of the Dead (1978)

- Land of the Dead (2005)

- Night of the Living Dead (1990)

- Survival of the Dead.

Writer – James Gunn

James Gunn was born August 5th 1970. He is an American writer, film maker, actor, musician and cartoonist.  Gunn began his career in film making with Troma Entertainment. James Gunn's first major Hollywood screenplay was Scooby-Doo in 2002.

Existing Films:

- Scooby-Doo

- Dawn of the Dead

- Slither

- Super

Writer – Rowan Joffe

Rowan Marc Joffe was born in 1973 and is a British screenwriter and director. His first two screen writing projects (Last Resort and Gas Attack) both won the Best new British Feature Award at the Edinburgh International Film Festival. 

Existing Films:

- 28 Days Later

- The American

- Brighton Rock

- Last Report

Producer – Marc Abraham
Marc Abraham is an American film producer and president of Strike Entertainment. Previously, he was a founding partner at Beacon Communications, a financing and production company founded in 1990.
Existing Films:

- The Last Exorcism

- Dawn of the Dead

- In Time
- Slither

Producer – Christian Colson

Christian Colson was born on the 15th September 1968 in Argentina. He is a British film producer and is best known as the producer of the 2008 film Slumdog Millionaire.
Existing Films:
- The Descent
- Centurion
- 127 Hours
- Eden Lake

Producer – Eric Newman
Existing Films:
- Children of Men
- Dawn of the Dead
- In Time
- The Thing

Executive Producer – Alex garland
Alex Garland was born in 1970 and is a British novelist and screenwriter. Garland studied at the University of Manchester.
Existing Films:
- 28 Days Later
- Sunshine
- The Beach
- Never Let Me Go

Executive Producer – Paul Smith
Paul Smith is the executive producer of Slumdog Millionaire and the chairman of Celador Films.
Existing Films:
-  Slumdog Millionaire
- The Descent
- Dirty Pretty Things
- Centurion

Co – Producer – Michael D. Messina
Existing Films:

- Dawn of the Dead

- Dune

- The Dead will Walk

Composer - Tyler Bates
Tyler Bates is a music producer and composer for films, TV and video games.

      Existing Films:

- Dawn of the Dead

- The Darkest Hour

- Halloween/ Halloween II

- Day of the Dead

- The Devils Rejects

- The Dead Will Tell

- Doomsday

Cinematographer - Adam Swica
Existing Films:

- Diary of the Dead

- The Haunting in Connecticut

- Survival Of The Dead

- Zombie Beach Party

Film Editor - Michael Doherty
Existing Films:

- Land of the Dead

- Diary of the Dead

- Survival of the Dead

- Spreading Ground

Casting Director – John Buchan
John Buchan was nominated in 2005 for best mini series casting for Revelations.
Existing Films:
- The Virgin Suicides
- Splice
- Survival Of The Dead
- Diary Of The Dead
- American Psycho

Production Designer – Richard Bridgland
Existing Films:

- Fright Night

- Resident Evil

- AVP.

Art Direction – Arvinder Grewal

-          Existing Films:
      - American Psycho
      - Dawn of the Dead
      - Jennifer’s Body
      - Resident Evil: Afterlife

Set Decoration – Steve Shewchuk

-          Existing Films:
      - Dawn of the Dead
      - Resident Evil: Retribution
      - The Skulls 3
      - The Haunting in Connecticut.

Costume Design – Denise Cronenberg
Denise Croneberg is a costumes designer. She was born in Toronto and is the sister of Canadian film director David Cronenberg.
Existing Films:

- Dawn of the Dead

- The Incredible Hulk

- Eastern Promises

- Dracula

Production Management – Jason Leib (Post Production Management)

      Existing Films:

- Dawn of the Dead
- The Strangers

Production Management – Michael MacDonald (Unit Production Manager)

Existing Films:

- Dead of Winter

- Dawn of the Dead

Teaser Pictures - Location Shots

In this next post i am experimenting with locations for my 'zombie' to first enter the city and also for establishing shots and empty streets. I have chosen to put an actor in my frames so that I can get a clear vision of what I think the frame will look like.

In the image above I felt that this would be quite effective if there was a zombie standing out by the bridge looking upon to the empty city, of course these shots will be taken early in the morning to get the best empty atmosphere of London.

Both the pictures above I decided to take at close up from behind the actor to give a sense that someone is watching you and that this quite and calm atmosphere is not all that it seems to be.

The intended effect of the image above to capture the intensity of the first zombie entering the city. I decided to take it from this angle to show how insignificant the humans are compared to the living dead and that there lives are being threatened during there day to day life.

In the image above the zombie would be standing at a different angle, maybe a close up from behind the shoulders but still with the same background. This was to use a high angle shot to show vulnerability among the humans and how they don't know what is going on yet.

The three images above I felt were quite effective and were excellent shots and locations to use for a zombies first entrance into the city. The locations for these shots were in a underground car park in Westminster. although there is only a little bit of what seems to be litter on the floor I feel that this gives the shot a more intense feeling and a message that London is abandoned. When I go back there next time I will bring a few more empty cans and bits of rubbish to emphasise this.

The shot above I feel in a very exciting shot, the lighting is at the very end of the tunnel and is shot from on the ground. He is just entering the open air ready to attack.

The shot above was to signal to the audience that the zombies are coming and I would have a few zombies being shot in different locations to give the feel that they are coming from everywhere and surrounding the areas.

With the shot above, if the street would have been empty I think that it would have given a much better desired effect of emptiness of London, especially with the canted framing which is already signalling that things are going wrong. 

Next time I go to London I have a much better idea of how the frame will be set up and what different angles I could use.

Teaser Pictures - Experiments with lighting

In this post i am experimenting with lighting to see how i can make a 'zombie' seem more threatening depending on where the light is being set.

Poster Pictures

These are potential poster pictures. I wanted to capture London when it was most empty so I travelled down to Westminster at 5AM to capture the pictures. I think they are very effective for a zombie movie as it is suppose to represent emptyness.

Poster Layout 4

Poster Layout 3

Poster Layout 2

Poster Layout

In my next few posts I have sketched a number of poster layouts to show that I understand the conventions of posters and when I come to making mine, mine will have a lot of the same conventions.

POTENTIAL PRODUCTION COMPANIES

Potential Production Logos

In this post I have chosen some logos that would be used to produce my film. My reason for choosing these production logos is because they have been involved in making other horror films such as 28 Days Later, Dawn Of The Dead and American Haunting.




After looking through many production logos for independent films and mainstream Hollywood films this has helped me to have a clearer picture of what companies will produce mine. Something that I have noticed is that although independent film might produce a film, a mainstream company could pick it up for distribution which why some of them prove to be such a success.

POSTER GENRE CONVENTIONS

After looking through a number of different zombie/horror posters I can see conventions that come up time and time again:

- Isolated setting

- Red font

- Previous horror films

- Central image is of a zombie or something scary

- Darkness

This will definitely help me when I come to making mine and I will make sure that my poster holds some of the same conventions.

POSTER GENRE CONVENTIONS

From this poster I can clearly see conventions coming up in many horror/zombie posters. The red font, isolated setting and tag lines with a direct mode of address.

POSTER GENRE CONVENTIONS

I have noticed that in this poster there is something that symbolises isolated setting which is something I noticed 28 days later poster and this seems to be something that is associated with horror films. This is a convention that I will most likely be using in my own poster.

POSTER GENRE CONVENTIONS

I can see certain similarities in these zombie posters which will in the end help me into developing my own zombie poster. The tag line of the this movie is directly addressing the audience, this is to create threat and intensity. The colour red is splattered on the poster to represent blood, red is the colour that people associate with danger. The main picture of this poster is a zombie and you can tell this my his physical behaviour. After looking at a number of zombie posters I know I will have a much greater understanding of the kind of things to include in a zombie poster.

POSTER GENRE CONVENTIONS

After looking through poster conventions i then decided to look through genre poster conventions. I found many similarities in the way they address the audience. This is done through colour, through quality of the image and the setting and background.