my production reflections for my horror film trailer and poster

1. Production Reflection
Adam Lepard

2. Production Reflection Day 1 May 8th
I decided to spend my first week of production working on music,
sound design and starting my poster design as I hadn't filmed my
trailer yet. I wanted to prepare the sound for my trailer so my editing
process would be easier.
When I started the first day I knew that the first task I wanted to
complete was making the music for the trailer as I knew that due to
my lack of experience with making music this would take the most
amount of time as I wanted to make a track that lasted the 2 minute
length of the trailer while conveying a fitting sense of horror. As I had
already planned what instruments I would use in my music I already
had a good sense of how I would construct most of my music using
chilling synths and blaring trombones to create a track that escalated
over time to fit my trailer as I planned for my trailer to become more
intense over it's run time.
The key issue with making music in Garage Band especially as a
beginner is that as you add more layers of sound the track can begin to
feel messy and unpleasant to listen to and although I want my music to
sound atmospheric and creepy I don't want it to sound too messy as it
would break the subtle atmosphere I am trying to create. I solved this
problem by lowering the volume of certain instruments when there
was too much going on in sections.
I used low notes of the Jitter Strings synth sound effects to create a
crackling noise in the background of the music which I used as way to
compliment the film grain that I will use in my trailer as I feel like the
two effects feel very similar as if the footage and the music is slightly
damaged which was the aesthetic I wanted to make as I wanted to
create a retro style for my horror film.
I used a Hollow Pumper synth in a long continuous note for the whole
of the track that would get louder over time. I used this to create a
sound effect that resembled a heart beat which meant that it felt like
your heart beat was getting louder over the course of the track.

3. Production Reflection Day 2 May 9th
I started the day by finishing the track I was making in Garage Band for
my background music in my trailer. I wanted to add various small sound
effects in and a main tune that would carry the track allowing me to have
a clear instrument that I could cut my trailer to.
My first task was to add a tune that could be followed throughout the
course of the track. I made a short melody out of fairly high notes on the
piano so that it would contrast with the low droning sounds that I had
used up until now. I repeated the melody up until the last part seconds
of the track where the high notes of the Glass Sky synth take over and
the other instruments go quiet. I had this quiet section at the end as it
feels like a cool down after all the other instruments have been used.
I decided to add in a small section where there a small whimpering
sounds using the Funk Bot synth sounds. I put these sounds into the left
headphone so that it would catch the listener off guard and hopefully
scare them although I didn't make the sound loud as I don't want to hurt
the ears of the listener as it would be unappealing and annoying to hear.
I raised and lowered the sound depending on where I thought there was
too much sound going on at once. I wanted my music to sound
atmospheric so lowering the sound at points was useful as it meant that I
could make my track sound more smooth so it didn't loose any of the
tension in the atmosphere I was trying to build up with the slowly raising
sound of the Hollow Pumper synth.
I could improve the track by having a faster beat that I could cut to in the
second half of the track however this would be difficult to add in without
making the track sound messy so I will improve this tomorrow.
I started a practice design for my poster by editing an image of film grain
to change its colour so it stood out with a contrasting colours. I chose the
colours red and green as this was the colour scheme I had planned for
my trailer. I used an image from Google images for the eyes and overlaid
them on the poster so the eye shape blended into the design, this
created an interesting effect which I may use for my final poster design
but using one of my own photos with one of my actors screaming, this
way I won't need to show. The main way I could improve my poster
design is by having a tag line to fill space on the poster and using either a
graphic design or interesting photo to have a more appealing and self
made.

4. Production Reflection Day 3 May 10th
When I started producing my poster I wanted to create a similar design to my
practice design however this time I gave myself enough space to have a image of
the main character with a terrified expression on their face. I think that having a
design that incorporates graphic design and my own photos could be useful for
the design as it would allow me to create my own representation of my concept
without being tied down to one specific style of design. So far I have made the
title and tag line using fonts that I chose in my pre production, I used a dark red
gradient on the edges of my font to make it feel like it’s a part of the background
and the bright red in the font also makes it stand out so the letters are more
visible. I need to take a photo that I can use for the focus of the poster and then
if I feel like it’s missing anything I might try adding some graphic designs to it or
try to create different design all together.
I wanted to add some final touches to my music so I made the
introduction of the main melody of the song more of a slow rise
from quiet to a normal volume as I felt like it sounded more
jarring when it started straight away with the main instrument
starting straight away. I also added a beating sound using the
Bright Synth Strings as I knew that I could use it as a way to cut to
the beat while it also resembled the sound of a heart beat so it
could serve the purpose of making an intense sound for the
listener to hear. The beating sound plays alone for about ten
seconds after the music ends as I planned for my trailer to be two
minuets but if it’s longer then this addition will mean the viewer
won’t have to listen to silence if I run out of music.

5. Production Reflection Day 4 May 14th
I wanted to catch up on parts of my pre
production that I hadn’t finished yet so I went
back to further develop my power point. I
started by explaining how I could use graphic
design to make a creative and symbolic poster
design by looking at minimalistic poster
designs made by others and describing how
they were so effective and how I could use
similar techniques in my poster to make an
interesting design. I used the practice designs
for my posters to explain the style and design
details that I would most likely use in my final
poster design. I spoke about the inspirations
for the music I would make for my trailer and
how I wanted a subtlety to my music that
grows louder over the course of the trailer. I
also made a list of sound effects that I want to
record while filming so that I can use the in
the trailer so that I can use these sound
effects to put emphasis on the transition
shots. I need to further develop my pre
production by taking location photos, making
a shot list and a story board. I need to finish
my pre production so that I can progress with
my production however I will do this outside
of lesson so I have more time to work on
production.

6. Production Process Day 5 May 15th I started the day by adding to my pre production by making a
page on the dialogue that I will use in my trailer and explaining
that I wanted to have minimal dialogue so that the viewers
could focus on the visuals but still having enough context from
the dialogue. I made another slide on the budget where I talked
about how I had designed my concept to be cheap to make
while using experimental coloured lighting that I have bought
and being able to make or use pre existing props that I have. I
still need to upload my storyboard, shot list and location shots in
preparation for Sunday and Monday when I will be filming.
I started making my final poster design by
overlaying two images of film grain over each
other and editing the first image to have a green
and red colour scheme as I wanted to have a
similar design to my practice attempts. The
second image put white scratch marks onto the
background which I liked as it added to the grain
effect that I wanted in my poster as it relates to
the visual design that I’ll use in my trailer. I used
the same techniques with the font that I used in
my previous designs by adding dark red and
bright red colour gradients to make the title
stand out from the background. I still need to
add a release date and photo to the poster to
make it look like an actual poster design. I could
add fake review on the poster to make it look
more authentic if I feel like the trailer needs
more in it.

7. Production Reflection Day 6 May 16th Today I decided that I was going to make the
missing posters that I needed to use as props in
the trailer. When making the design of the posters
I thought about what colour scheme would
standout the most as I wanted the posters to look
fairly realistic by standing out so I used a red and
white colour scheme as this is a colour scheme
used in real missing posters to catch peoples
attention. I later added a photo filter to the posters
and decreased the saturation as it created a muted
colour scheme for the posters which I thought
would add to the aesthetic of my trailer as it made
the posters look less harsh as they are less bright. I
created some black and white versions of the
posters as I thought this could also look realistic
like so many posters had been printed out that
they had to be printed in black and white and as I
wanted to show paranoia I think that having
posters in the backgrounds of some of the shots
would be a good way of showing that the threat of
a kidnapper is everywhere as the posters reflect
this. For the images I asked for permission from my
friends to use their photos for the posters so I
don’t have to worry about anyone being angry that
I used their photo in the trailer, I also included
their names, age and height in the posters as this
was something that was common throughout
missing poster designs I looked at for inspiration. I
put there disappearances on the poster and had it
so that they had gone missing weekly to add detail
to the posters and the trailer. I am happy with the
designs of the posters I was going to overlay an
Image of wrinkled paper on top however since I’ll
be printing it out I doubt that I would need to. I still
need to work on the designs for the transition
slides in my trailer so that I can add them in while
editing.

8. Production Reflection Day 7 May 17
Today I wanted to make the designs for the transition slides that I will use in my
trailer. I used a texture of cement from Google images to overlay on top of the symbol
I made for the film to make it look less flat while also wanting it to look damaged and
grainy which was an aesthetic choice that I wanted to used throughout my trailer and
poster. I chose the rectangles for the logo of the film because I wanted the to
represent a decent into horror as the shapes lower from left to right, the design of
the symbol was meant to be fairly minimalistic so that it would be recognizable due
to its simple shapes. For the rest of the slides I used the Sinister Black font that I had
also chose to be the font choice for my poster so the two products would be
connected by the font, I may also include the symbol I made in my poster design so
the trailer and poster look more connected due to their similarities. I chose to have
the text descending in the slides to replicate the symbol I made as I thought that I
could animate the words appearing one by one to add to the style of the trailer. I
chose a colour scheme of red, black and white as these colours stood out as they
contrasted with each other while having the red suit the theme of horror as it links to
the colour of blood and implies danger. I think that the slides look well suited for a
horror trailer because of the choices that I made while thinking of the colours, font,
symbols and placement of my text however there are some slides that I will need to
animate to add to the style and flow of the trailer. I still need to film my trailer so I
might need to change the design of these slides if the footage looks to distinct from
the slides.

9. Production Progress Day 8 May 21st
• I managed to film most of the footage that I
needed for my trailer over the weekend. I
started the day by getting rid of all the
footage that I didn’t want to be in the final
cut of the trailer so that I could focus on
putting all the clips I did want into the order
that I wanted.
• I edited the colour of the clips to match the
same colour that I used in my experiment
with grains and added the same grain effect
to the footage I had and although this only
gave the footage a subtle change it was
definitely the style I was aiming for as it
made the footage look slightly old so I
believe that I achieved the aesthetic I
planned for.
• For the shots where the main character is
walking and then disappears I used the
same technique as I did with my music video
by having the shot of Nathan not in the
image being cropped out and overlaid on
top of the shot of Nathan so that the
environment doesn’t change when Nathan
disappears, this looks more smooth when
Nathan disappears however this shot is only
to show a threat the Nathan’s character
could be the next to go missing so I’m afraid
it may not be clear enough for the viewer
and they could think that Nathan’s character
has actually gone missing so I might need to
either cut the shot or place it close to the
beginning of the trailer so it looks like the
stylistic choice I intend it to.

10. Production Progress Day 9 May 22nd
• I began animating the slides I made in the first
week of production so that the text would
appear on the screen one at time. I used
animations in these slides because it gave these
slides a greater sense of style which I knew could
put emphasis on and improve the flow of the
video if I timed the animations with the beat of
the music or if I made sound effects for the
animations.
• I decided to end the trailer with a video of my
character with a static VHS overlaid on top. I
thought this would be an interesting aesthetic
choice for the end of my trailer as it further
shows the theme of paranoia as the viewer can
barely make out the image underneath the VHS
static which would make viewer feel paranoid as
they can only speculate on what was happening
on in that clip. I made the sound for the static in
Garage Band by creating crackling noises using
various synth sounds layered over each other.

11. Production Reflection Day 10 May 23rd
• I wanted to add sound effects to the animations
slides I did this by creating a beat in GarageBand so
that I could repeat this beat for each word that
appears so that the appearance of each word feels
more significant as the sound effect gives it impact.
Once I created these sound effects I added them
into the animation slides at the end of the trailer
add it worked surprisingly well because I had timed
the beats to match the appearance of each word.
• I repeated the process with different synth sound
effects for each moment in the trailer where I
wanted to make very clear cuts to the beat which
made important shots in the trailer more impactful
as the beat stands out, my intention with these
shot were to make them more intense and I believe
that it worked as the synth sound effects don’t
stand out too much from the instruments that I
used in the backing track so they feel natural in the
trailer however they differ just enough to make the
shots I used them in feel more important.
• I still need to record the sound effects for my trailer
so I can add them to the more violent shots in the
trailer, I think that by recording myself sharpening a
knife and chopping up cabbage it would make
some great sound effects to amplify the violence of
some shots.

12. Production Reflection Day 11 May 24th
• I added the footage that I filmed last night to my trailer
which added a considerable amount of time to the trailer
which I used to make the sequence of the killer breaking
into the main characters house, The footage that I filmed
worked pretty well and all the shots were in focus which
saved me from having to film again. The red coloured
lighting worked fine for the most part even though it took
a long time to set up on my own, I went through a lot of
effort to make the shots look like they were part of a
sequence by using the red lighting.
• I made a beat for the sequence I made so that I could cut
to it. I used synth sounds for the beat so it wouldn’t be
out of place with the other instruments I used in the
trailer.
• I decided to work on the final design for the films poster
by adding an image of Nathan looking shocked as I
decided that it would be better than spoiling the film by
showing the killer or something cliché like a knife. I think
that by having Nathan on the cover it shows that the film
will focus on Nathan’s personal struggle with the horror
around him giving the cover a link to the theme of
paranoia. I used a pin light overlay on Nathan to make
him look like he’s part of the film grain so the poster
looks more natural as he doesn’t stand out from the
background.
• I overlaid the same symbol I used in my trailer on
Nathan’s face as the negative colours made his face look
distorted and creepy which I intended to mean that the
source of horror is coming from this symbol yet the lack
of explanation for the symbol makes the viewer intrigued.
The symbol covers Nathan's eyes and negative colours
turn his eyes red which created a great effect as it stands
out while feeling like it suits the poster as it adds an
element of horror. Although the symbol basically has no
meaning I wanted to add it to the trailer and poster
design anyway as to me it is one of the main sources of
intrigue and mystery in my project as I think that viewers
would want to watch the film to see what it could mean. I
still need to change the title as I don’t think that it suits
the poster design now that I’ve added the image so it’s
just a case of changing the font and colours.

13. Production Reflection Day 12 June 4th
• Today I mainly worked on adding the sound effects to my trailer however
I began by changing the font to my trailer to the same font I used for my
tag line. I think the new font suits the poster more as it stand out more
and it works better with the colour scheme of the poster.
• I like the poster overall because I think it’s vivid colours show my
inspiration from Dario Argento’s lighting in Suspiria an the symbol I
overlaid onto Nathans face creates a strong sense of mystery and the
bright red eyes it gives him and his shocked expression clearly show the
genre of the film however I still need to make some quick adjustments to
the titles position to finish my poster.
• I added in the sound effects I recorded while filming alone to my work
and the sound effects I made cutting up cabbage and sharpening a knife
worked really well and created great sound effects to intensify the shots
of violence, I’ll be mainly using these shots in the second half of the
trailer to show that there is a real physical threat to the main character as
well as the mental threat of paranoia established in the first half of the
trailer.
• I used these sound effects to cut to different shots of violence as it
sounded more impactful like this. I still need to find a way of separating
all the violent shot from each other so it doesn’t seem to overwhelming
so I will continue this tomorrow
• I created a short sentence to summarize the film in the trailer so that I
could make the themes of the film more apparent while using it on a
pretty uneventful shot. I the same font choice in this shot as I did for the
rest of the trailer so it still suited the aesthetic of the trailer. I still need to
film one more shot of the missing poster before I can add it in and finish
my trailer

14. Production Reflection Day 13 June 5th
• I started seeing if LUT’s could improve
the colour grade of my footage however
with most of the LUT’s that I had
downloaded changed the original image
too much so the aesthetic looked
extremely forced and unsubtle so after
spending a while seeing what would
work I decided not to use them as it
would take too much of my time which I
need to spend on other areas of my
editing such as the sound design and
where I need to put each clip.
• I wanted some of the sound effects to
fade in/out so I used audio transitions
for these sound effects so when they are
introduced into the trailer it feels more
natural. I also put a fade out at the end
of the trailer so it’s less jarring when the
trailer ends. I still need to add some
cutting sound effects to the shot’s of
gore in my trailer so I will be working on
that tomorrow.
• I have finally printed off the missing
posters so now I can complete the trailer
once I film the posters.

15. Production Reflection Day 14 June 6th
• I started by making some colour corrections to the
shot’s in the forest as I thought the lighting was too
bright so I turned down the highlights so the clips
weren't too exposed, this worked great and it
suited my concept for my colour scheme really well
so I was happy with the result as it fit the tone I was
trying to set.
• I felt like one of the beats I made for a sequence
was out of place so I removed it and replaced it
with a new beat for the animation where the film’s
symbol is introduced. I chose to have a higher pitch
for this beat as it contrasts the low pitched synth
sounds that are in the backing music for this
section of the trailer. I think the new beat for this
clip worked fairly well but if I change my mind then
I will make a different beat for this section.
• I finished my poster design today by by changing
the titles font to resemble common traits of titles
from giallo posters. The slice marks in the font
stood out to me as it suggests that the film will
have traits of a slasher film in it. I added a red drop
shadow to both the title and tag line mainly
because it used the colour scheme of the poster
but I think that this also made the text more eye
catching. I also scaled up the image of Nathan so
there was less empty space. I’m happy with how
the design turned out so I don’t think I’ll need to
make anymore changes to it so I can focus on
finishing my trailer.

16. Production Reflection Day 15 June 7th
• I started the the day by adding in the final footage I had filmed and
making sure I cut the the clips to the beat of the the song and put
them in the right place. I edited the footage of the symbol in the
notebook so that the bright colours of the red and green lights were
more vibrant, I did this by editing the colour balance and highlight
tints of the clips to make the colours pop. I edited the shot of the
green and red light in these clips in a way where the two shots are
flickering mainly because I thought that it looked surreal so it would
make a nice transition into the second more nightmarish act of the
trailer however the shots also reflect the red and green colour
scheme I wanted to show in my trailer.
• I slowed down the first shot in the trailer of a zoom out from the
missing posters as it made the shakiness out the zoom look more
purposeful so but it also gave me more time for a voice over at the
start of the trailer.
• I made a version of the trailer where I haven’t added the voice over
and I sent it to my friends so I can get feedback and this helped a lot
because it helped me learn where I can make shorten clips and
where I need to make small changes to the exposure of the clip but
as well as giving me advice it also gave me a lot more confidence in
what I’d made.

17. Production Reflection Day 16 June 11th
• I wanted to make this my final day working on my
production so added in my voiceover that I
recorded over the weekend and cut it to fit the
segments of my trailer where I felt there needed
to be a voice over to carry the sequence after I
was satisfied with this I made a few last colour
changes to my video basically making sure the
blue light was more visible in the shot where
Nathan is being attacked I just did this by
increasing the visibility of blue highlights. After
this I exported my video.
• After my peer feedback I decided that I needed to
increase the volume of my voiceover to make it
clearer as this was the main issue that there was
with my video so now hopefully the trailer will be
a lot more clean to listen to.
• After my feed back I also changed the title font to
my poster one last time because I agreed with the
criticism that the title font I was using looked a bit
worse than it could, so I changed the font one last
time to one that looked just as bold however the
font looked like it had a grain on it so it suited the
overall design while maintaining the same white
and red colour scheme and effects such as the
drop shadow. I’m happy with the changes I made
to the design and I think the new font is the best
suited to my the themes of my project.
• Getting feedback for my work made me feel more
proud about my work so I feel ready finally put it
on YouTube and my portfolio.