Essay on Biology: Comedy and Theme Song

Submitted By mstorr
Words: 1406
Pages: 6

How are media forms used to shape enigma codes in this trailer?
At the start of the trailer the audience enters the cinema into a calm atmosphere, but as the trailer proceeds, the lights go out in the house which makes the audience become restless and tense as the supernatural activity happens in the house. At the end of the trailer there is no resolved equilibrium which will entice the audience to go and watch the film to find out the ending and question “what happens?” . Additionally, the actors used in the film are unknown making the paranormal activity more realistic to the audience.
The camera work in the trailer uses point of view shots as characters are filming in their house with a hand held camera. This allows the audience to connect with the characters as everything is shown from their point of view, meaning that a consumer finds out information at the same time as the characters. Similarly the hand held camera puts the audience in the same position as the character which omits any dramatic irony as they know no more than the characters. The camera movements are very shaky to reflect that the characters are filming and using a hand held recorder. This is a convention of a horror genre as it makes the audience feel involved as they share the nerves and unease that the characters do in the moment. The choice of camera movement allows the film to look more realistic. Mid-shots and close-ups are used to show the audience’s genuine screams of shock and fear to certain scenes in the film for the people consuming the trailer either at home on computer or on TV. This again creates enigma codes such as “What happened on the screen”. They get an idea of how horrifically terrifying it is but also have curiosity to the supernatural film and essentially, the reactions from people in the cinema is a review for the consumers.
Despite there is no use of background music, diegetic sounds are used in the trailer to create a tense atmosphere. The diegetic sound of the audience screaming reminds the consumer of the trailer that it is a horror film as screams and shrieks are another convention of the genre. As they cannot see what is happening on screen it encourages them to imagine what is going on and thinking the worse thus, building high expectations. The white noise of the video camera creates a sense of mystery as it feels like the audience is becoming more distant.
Lighting used throughout the trailer is dark and this is typical convention of a horror genre as darkness connotes the idea of the unknown and danger. The colors in the house are quite plain and simple reflecting the modern house – also adding to the realism of paranormal activity of 21st century- that is contrasted by the black and white colors. Black suggests evil and mystery whereas white implies purity and innocence, demonstrating the contrast between the goodness of the characters and the evilness of the supernatural in and around the house.
The trailer uses mode of address through the slogan "experience it for yourself" by doing this the impression is created that the trailer is directly talking to the audience and encourages consumers to go and watch the film as they are persuaded to experience and perhaps compare their own experience of the film to those shown in the trailer.
How is the teenage experience of the central character represented in this trailer?
The central character, 15/16 year old Juno, is represented relatively positively. She is portrayed as an intelligent, humorous, sensitive teenager who deals with the unplanned pregnancy with maturity and plans to give her baby up for adoption. Juno is the character we are encourage to identify mostly with – a everyday girl who isn’t the alcoholic and crazy teenage girl that majority of teens are portrayed as. The dialogue such as describing the baby looking like "a sea monkey" shows Juno's character as vulnerable but confident as she can include humor despite the serious issue. Furthermore