Codes and Conventions of a film magazine.

1. CODES AND CONVENTIONS
OF A FILM MAGAZINE

2. The Masthead:
The masthead is usually splashed across the top of the page
in large font. This is because, as the title of the magazine, it
is important that the audience know what company
produced the magazine as it may convince the audience to
buy the product if they like that particular brand.
The magazine title usually matches the headline to create a
sense of unity with the cover page, meaning it changes from
issue to issue in order to suit the theme of the featured film.
However, the font of the masthead always remains the same
to produce consistency for the company, making it easily
recognisable for the audience.
If the masthead is well-known, then the main image can be
placed in front of the title as there is no risk of confusion in
the audience interpreting the company.

3. Puff:
A puff is one of the most common codes seen on a
movie magazine cover page. It is a short piece of text
that is used to pull the reader in and persuade them to
read the magazine as it will most likely offer
something interesting inside that the audience would
want to read.
The puff is conventionally placed inside a pug, which
is a shape (usually a circle) that is designed to look like
a sticker. It is normally a bright colour in order to
attract the audience to look at it and read the puff.

4. Colour:
The colour scheme is a very important code for movie
magazines. This is because colour plays a vital role in
setting the mood for the cover page and therefore the
film and helps give the audience a sense of the genre.
For example, the magazine on the right has white and
pink colour scheme, showing that it’s going to a feminine
film but as the background is a dim blue, it may suggest
that it’s going to have dark tones to it.
The pink neon title also connotes what time this movie is
set in, as neon is overall associated with the 80s.
In order to b successful, the colour scheme must work
and not be too overpowering and distract the audience
from the rest of the magazine.

5. Protagonist:
As film magazines are conventionally focused around one
upcoming movie, it makes sense for the main image to be the
protagonist of the film. The character is conventionally
placed in the centre of the page and is positioned in a way
that best reflects the genre of the film.
For example, the magazine on the left is focused on the new
Superman movie. As this is an action film, the main
character, Superman, is positioned with his shoulders back
and his facial expression serious, in order to portray him as
both strong and masculine and this body language is
conventional in this genre.
Along with this, the mise-en-scene is also important. The
costume that the protagonist is wearing, which is his
superman outfit, reflects the film as a whole and makes it
obvious to the audience that it is a superhero film.

6. Cover lines:
The cover lines are short sentences that state what’s
going to be included inside the magazine issue. These
entice the audience to pick up and/or buy the magazine
as they are intrigued by what the cover lines say.
They persuade the audience by giving insight to articles
that are about popular topics or celebrities or are
intriguing to the audience and pulls them in.
The cover lines are conventionally placed on the edge of
the page and usually start halfway down. They may
overlap the main image and are usually in a smaller font
than the masthead and headlines.