Comparison Superhero analysis

This is the second out of four trailers for the film 'The last Airbender'. I am writing about this trailer as the main protagonist shares the same power I intend my super hero to possess. This Air bender can control and manipulate the wind as his super power. Although the actual power will not be shown in my trailer, this is the power I would like my superhero to have. The audience will get the impression he has the power to control the element wind but will not know for certain. Clues that will give this away is the possibles shots of the grass waving in the air, the leaves on trees blowing and the cape being blown behind the superhero. This superhero is comparable to my superhero and this film made a respectful domestic gross profit of $131, 772, 187. This film made a profit and so hopefully, because the films could be seen as similar, my film may be successful aswell.

Questionnaire Results: 'What is the best colour scheme for a Super heroes costume?'

Question 8. of my questionnaire asks  'What is the best colour scheme for a Super heroes costume?'. These are the results:

From this pie chart we can see that the shade of black is the most popular colour scheme for a Superhero to have. This can be comparable to Batman who has a dark/ black costume. The second most popular choice was blue (like Captain America's suit). The third most popular colour was orange like Ben Grimm/ The Thing. Many participants stated that they like the black/ dark costumes because it gives a sense of mystery to the superhero. I will tailor my characters costume to be as dark as possible as it is the target audiences most desired colour scheme but I would like my characters costume to be more than just pure black.

Questionnaire Results: 'What is the best type of superhero weapon?'

Question 7. of my questionnaire asks 'What is the best type of superhero weapon?'. These are the results:

From this bar chart we can see that the majority of participants (6) value blades as being the best superhero weapon. Dead pool/ Wade Wilson from X-men origins Wolverine are examples of blade wielding super villains. The second rated weapon was fists with 2 participants voting for it. Many superheroes use fists in combat (like Superman) but many have other weapons. 1 participant opted for guns being the best superhero weapon. Hell boy is an example of a superhero who uses guns. 1 other participant chose thrown weapons as the best super hero weapon. Thor is an example of a super hero who uses thrown weapons (hammer). No participants voted for shields (like Captain America uses) and no participants chose Lasso's (like Wonder woman's weapon) or Whips (like Cat woman's weapon). I will give my superhero blades to use as weaponry in my trailer as my target audience think it is the best weapon for a superhero to have. I originally was going to give him a whip but as it was voted as least popular, I have decided to use blades instead.

Questionnaire Results: 'How are superhero powers best gained?'

Question 6. of my questionnaire asks 'How are superhero powers best gained?'. These are the results:

As we can see from this pie chart, we have a drawn second answer but a definitive first answer. 70% of participants stated that super powers are best gained by the protagonist constructing/designing their own equipment/ suit/ power (like Iron man). 10% of participants stated that scientific experiments are the best way for super powers to be gained (like Captain America and Doctor Manhattan from the Watchmen). Another 10% of participants stated that super powers are best gained by being passed down through the family (Wolverine from X-men). The remaining 10% of participants stated that being bitten by an animal is the best way to gain super powers (like Spider man). As the majority of participants think that constructing own suit and equipment is the best way for a super hero to gain powers, this will be how my character gains his super power in his back story.

Questionnaire Results: 'What's a better storyline path?'

Question 5. of my questionnaire asks 'What's a better storyline pathway?'. These are the results:

From this pie chart we can see that 40% of participants think that redemption is a better storyline path for a superhero to follow. An example of a redemption plot is in Spider man 3 where Peter Parker needs to redeem himself after symbiote attaches itself to him. Peter becomes more aggressive towards MJ and other characters and needs to redeem himself to the city and also the audience. 60% of participants stated that a vengeance is a better storyline path. An example of vengeance would be the life of Batman. Batman's parents were shot dead in an alley way in Gotham City and as they lay dying, Batman swore to avenge them and become a Superhero. As vengeance is the most popular story choice, the back story of my superhero will involve him gaining revenge as opposed to redeeming himself.

Questionnaire Results: 'What Gender of Superhero is the coolest?'

Question 4. of my questionnaire asked 'What gender of superhero is the coolest?'. These are the results:

From this bar chart, we can see that 2/10 participants stated that female superheroes were the coolest. We can also see that 8/10 participants stated that male superheroes were the coolest. I can conclude that the majority of my audience think male superheroes are coolest and therefore I will definitely use a male superhero in my trailer.

Questionnaire Results

I handed out 10 copies of my questionnaire to friends who I thought fitted the criteria of my target audience. They were all aged 15-21. I handed out six copies to boys and four copies to girls. The results I gained from this questionnaire are valuable to creating a back story and an image for my Superhero. All 10 participants stated 'Yes' to the first question 'Do you like Superheroes?'. I predicted this result as the audience I selected matched the target audience of other superhero films I had researched. The results are a good source of information as they were given by the audience most likely to view this trailer.

Superhero Questionnaire

Superheroes Questionnaire

Name:

Age:

Gender:

1.       Do you like Superheroes?

Yes                   No

2.       What is your favourite Superhero film

3.       Why?

4.       What gender of Superhero is the coolest?

Male               Female

5.       What’s a better storyline path?

Vengeance               Redemption

6.       How are Superhero powers best gained?

Scientific Experiments        Passed down through family       Being bitten by an animal                    Constructing own suit/ equipment

7.       What is the best type of Superhero Weapon?

Fists          Blades        Guns      Thrown weapons    Lasso’s/whips    Shields     

8.       What is the best colour scheme for a Superheroes costume?

9.       What is the best way for a Superhero to travel?

Fly          Teleportation        Super Speed         Automobile        Plane

10.       If you could have any Superpower, what would it be?

This is a questionnaire I have constructed on the specifics of my Superhero. It contains both open and closed questions. I will distribute it and record answers. The easiest way to present the answers will be through pie charts and bar graphs. The answers to this questionnaire will help form a back story/ narrative of my Superhero. 

Sound Research Superman Soundtrack analysis

My teaser trailer will have to capture the audience's attention somehow and I aim to do that through having a dramatic soundtrack. Here is an example of a dramatic superhero soundtrack.






        This clip is orchestral and uses many different instruments to build up tension and make the track dramatic. This soundtrack has become very popular and recognisable. The soundtrack is bold and highlights the awesomeness of the Superhero. A friend has offered to help me construct a dramatic soundtrack to accompany my trailer. I will ask his advice on which instruments to use and how we can make it effective

My Target Audience

Here are some pictures of what my target audience will look like:

Some Key characteristics of my audience:

• They will mostly be 15-24 year olds
• My audience will be mostly male dominated but with some female viewers
• Mostly Middle class
• They will view the film with friends as opposed to families or alone
• They will wear popular brand clothes and accessories
• They will have some knowledge of Superhero films and how they work/ the formula
• Likely to buy film merchandise if the film is enjoyable e.g. T-shirts, DVD, Soundtrack CD's

Iron Man Audience profile

This is the table showing the audience for the film Iron Man (2008). This table was sourced from the Pearl and Dean website.

This fourth table concludes my hypothesis. My idea behind the audience profile for Superhero films was correct. The target audiences are very formulaic. The audiences are mostly male (55% or over) that are aged between 15-24 and are mostly within the C1 class. This film is also rated a PG-13. The films all share common audience characteristics that I will target as well to make my trailer realistic and successful. I want an audience like this as the other Superhero films I have analysed are very popular and well known and have the same target audience as I intend to target. 

Batman Begins Audience Profile

This is the audience profile for Batman Begins (2005). The table was sourced from the Pearl and Dean website.

         A trend is beginning to form between the target audiences for Superhero action films. This table has the same characteristics as Superman Returns and Captain America : The First Avenger.
        This film has a highly male dominated audience that are mostly aged between 15-24 years of age that are mostly classed as C1. This film was also a PG-13 just like Superman and Captain America. I may have to rate my trailer as a PG-13 to make it similar to these Superhero films and for my trailer to look realistic.
        I have a hypothesis. The target audience is quite formulaic for Superhero films. I think all Superhero films share similar audience characteristics. I think that all Superhero films will share the same highest age boundary, gender and social class boundary. I will analyse another films audience to conclude or prove my hypothesis right or wrong.
        This film is comparable to Batman Returns which suggests that it will have the same audience characteristics.

Captain America: The First Avenger Audience Profile

This is the audience profile for Captain America: The First Avenger. The table is sourced from the Pearl and Dean Website.

       This table is very similar to the last audience profile I analysed (Superman Returns). We can see that the audience is again, male dominated. However, this film had a higher % of males viewing this film than Superman Returns.
        The highest % age group is again 15-24. The film is rated as a PG-13 and appeals to an older male audience as it is an action film.
        The greatest % of social class to see this film was C1. C1 is lower middle class people. The % of this class is almost double than that of the second highest viewing class.
         This table can be compared to the Iron Man film which is another Super Hero film. This film may have similar audience characteristics.
          This table has the same characteristics as Superman Returns. The categories of highest % were the same in both tables. I think in order for my trailer to be successful, I need to aim for my target audience to be male, aged 15-24 in the C1 class.

Super Man Returns Audience Profile

This is the audience profile for Superman Returns (2006). It was sourced from the Pearl and Dean website.

            We can see many things from this graph. Firstly, 62% of the audience is Male. The audience is mostly male orientated. This is because the film genre is a super hero/ action film and may contain many scenes of action and violence. Action films are typically directed towards the male audience.
            The second piece of information we can see here is that the highest age % that viewed this film was the 15-24 year old category. This again is because the genre is action and also the certification of this film is a PG-13 so you would have to be above this age to view.
            The third piece of information we could see is the percentage of different social classes that view this film. From the table we can see that C1 was the highest with 30% shortly followed by AB with 27%. C1 is the lower middle class whilst AB is upper and middle class. It was more popular among the higher social classes than the working class but not by much. It seemed relatively popular among all social classes.
             At the top of the table it states that this film is comparable to Spider Man 2. This could mean that most superhero films have the same typical audience.
            This is a super hero action film much like the genre of film I hope to make. The characteristics of the audience will roughly be the same. I will be targeting the middle class males aimed 15-24.

Audience classifications

After some research on the Pearl and Dean Website, I came across a table with the different social classifications of audience viewers. They are represented in this table.

After some research into these different classifications, I found another table detailing what these classifications were. This table was sourced from Wikipedia.

These are known as NRS social grades and are on a system of demographic classification. The distinguishing feature of each grade boundary is the occupation.

Feedback from my Presentation

Today I presented my trailer idea to my classmates. I reflected upon what my idea was, the back story, when I would film it and where I would film it. I included a slide with questions at the end and gained some valuable feedback that will aid the development of my trailer. Some of the feedback revolved around how I can make my trailer serious as opposed to a spoof like Kick- ass or Super Hero movie. Some of the feedback included:

• Sophisticated/ serious background
• Quick cuts between scenes as opposed to slow transition fades
• Ineed realistic punches and action scenes
• I need to include a range of shots whilst cutting away from the superhero pedestal shot
• Slow motion would be effective
• Blades are the best superhero weapon to have
• The superhero must be male
• I could include a glimpse of a supervillain

I will take all of this information into account and try to make as much of this possible within my trailer.

My Superhero Trailer Pitch

My trailer idea

View more presentations from Bobbie Brown.

This is a presentation pitch of my superhero trailer I will construct. I am hoping to gain feedback from my classmates on whether it is a good idea to go along with. I will record feedback on blogger and if I have positive feedback I will create a questionnaire on the specifics of my trailer which will contain open and closed questions.

October Assessment

Level 4 16–20 marks - definitely level 4 at the moment - A!
• Planning and research evidence will be complete and detailed - a great start.
• There is excellent research into similar products and a potential target audience - similar products yes - now need target audienc.
• There is excellent work on shotlists, layouts, drafting, scripting or storyboarding - not yet but too early.
• There is excellent organisation of actors, locations, costumes or props - diary is up and running.
• Time management is excellent - you have started posting early and consistently.
• There is excellent skill in the use of digital technology or ICT in the presentation - your blog uses varied ICT programmes.
• There are excellent communication skills - your written expression is accurate and formal throughout.
• There is an excellent level of care in the presentation of the research and planning - tiltes and posts are put together with care.

Target: research target audience of superhero films

New equipment

Today, my class and I received new media equipment to help film our projects. We played with the new video cameras and cameras and found out lots of new features we could use. One feature that was appealing to me was the dual footage capture. This means we can film and take photos at the same time. This will be great for production photos to evaluate or comment on after my trailer is made. Another cool feature is the underwater feature. The cameras are allowed to be submerged 1.5 meters into water. I'm not sure if I could incorporate this into my trailer but I will research and plan further and see if I think of any ways to use these new functions in my trailer.

My Superhero Mood board

This is my superhero mood board I reffered to in the last post. I sourced these images from a few books from my local libary. I scanned the images I wanted from the books, and manipulated them onto one page. I structured my mood board so it would resemble a superhero comic book. The images shown on my mood board are from the following books:

1. DC, The Superman Chronicles, Volume 7, 1941
2. DC, The Batman Chronicles, Volume 7, 1942
3. Marvel, The Mighthy Thor vs. Seth the Serpent God #395-400 1966

 

Research and Planning Idea

Today I was about to start making a mood board. I suddenly thought that my mood board would look much more effective if I cut out pictures from old superhero comic books as opposed to finding images off the internet. I would make my mood board, take a picture and upload it onto blogger. The idea of using comic books for my mood board is original and will make it look much more effective than last years mood board. I came up with this idea whilst I was out of the house so I posted it using blogger on my mobile.

Creation of Superheroes

Today I found this programme online called Hero Machine 2.5. It was perfect in designing Superheroes and so I used it to create some possibles ideas for my main character starring in my trailer. This is the website I used: http://www.ugo.com/games/superhero-generator-heromachine-2-5

Here are some possible design ideas.

My favourite design at the moment is probably The Tornado. The tornado looks most original and I think the costume would be most achievable. Effects like the wind would be easier to generate with the weather easier than electricity or fire. The Tornado may be my chosen Superhero for this project.

Practise filming

Today, I went out to do some practise filming with two classmates. Our task was to create a montage of different shots lasting 1-3 seconds each. We captured footage of several different shots such as:

• Establishing shot
• Long shot
• Mid shot
• Close up
• Extreme close up
• Point of view shot
• Panning shot 
• High angle shot
• Low angle shot

We accomplished capturing the footage successfully and we will edit it next lesson. This montage should last roughly 20-30 seconds and will almost look like a trailer/ teaser trailer once finished. A good example of a montage with different shots used is of the teaser trailer of The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo. The equipment was familiar to use even though the last time we had used it had been for our media projects last year.  

Sound research

     Today, I went to the music rooms with my class. We learnt how to use a music programme called Cubase Se 3. We experimented with it for an hour or so by recording sound from the keyboards. We could change the instrument through the programme and it seemed like a good programme to create my trailer soundtrack on. The only drawback is, the programme would not let me hold a note without it fading. I ideally wanted my music to be slow and dramatic which will be difficult to accomplish if the note is not allowed to drone on. I enjoyed using cubase and hopefully I can create an effective soundtrack on it.