This is my first magazine front cover analysis for my A2 media studies coursework.

1. Magazine Front Cover
Analysis One

2. I am doing this magazine front cover
analysis to explore how they lure in
their target audience and how it is
used as a promotional tool to
advertise the film in the main image
so that their readers will go to see
the film.
I have chosen this ‘Empire’
magazine front cover that is
advertising the film ‘Mockingjay:
Part 1’ to investigate the ways in
which it successfully attracts its
audience.
Introduction

3. Main Image
The main image on the magazine is of the main
protagonist Katniss Everdeen standing in front of a
damaged wasteland. It relates to the main sell-line as
it is “THIS TIME IT’S WAR” which links in well
with the narrative of the film as the audience will
instantly recognise that it is centred around war. The
main image suggests that this film is of the action-
adventure genre which is signalled by her costume
and props as she appears to be wearing armour and is
carrying a weapon.
A symbiotic link is created between the magazine
front cover main image and the poster for the
film ‘Mockingjay: Part 1’ as you can clearly
see she is wearing the same costume in the
image so the audience can instantly identify
what film it is.
The image is a medium-long shot which is
used to show off most of the character to make
sure she dominates the frame. Her facial
expression is quite serious which reflects that
it is a war film so the topic is important and
shouldn’t be taken lightly. It connects well with
her body language as it is stiff and she comes
off like a soldier.

4. The masthead is the name of the
magazine ‘Empire’. It suggests
that the magazine has a large
variety of films being promoted
inside it and also that it is a very
successful brand that has been
able to build an empire of itself.
This fact is shown true as
‘Empire’ is the biggest selling
film magazine in the United
Kingdom.
Masthead
The typography of the masthead is very
significant to the magazine’s success as it is
presented in an uppercase, bold, sans serif font at
the top of the magazine. It is the largest piece of
text on the cover which is mostly likely because
their audience will recognise the masthead from
far away and will know that it is ‘Empire’
magazine. The sans serif font makes gives the
audience the impression that the magazine is
quite informal and doesn’t take itself too
seriously which could be a reason why it is so
popular.
The colour of the masthead is red which is made
so that it stands out and attracts the audience
easily. The masthead is always the same on each
magazine so it is very distinctive and is easily
recognisable. The masthead might appeal to the
target readership because it almost seems playful
which they would be attracted to and could show
the types of articles that would be displayed
inside. It is used to maintain brand identity as if
people have been reading ‘Empire’ for a while
they will be able to know quickly that it is
‘Empire’ because of the layout not changing and
always remaining similar.

5. Sell-lines
All of the sell-lines featured on this magazine front cover
have the similar subject of blockbuster films being
promoted, “Batman V God” or famous actors/actresses
promoting their films that are going to be released,
“George Clooney Invents The Future”. The sell-lines
reflect the interests of the target readership as they are
ardent film fans and will want to have the latest updates on
popular films coming out so the sell-lines have to indicate
this by giving them a hint as to what is included in the
magazine articles.
Some techniques are used on the sell-lines in order to lure
in the audience such as the emphasis on the actors’ names
drawing the audience in to then read the quote underneath
that they have said about their film. The font of the sell-
lines are similar to the masthead as they are uppercase,
sans-serif, bold texts which furthers the idea of the
magazine being informal. However, the sell-lines are of a
much smaller size compared to the masthead or the main
sell-line; this is so they don’t take attention away from
them but are also read.
The colours red and white are used on the sell-lines in
order for them to stand out in the frame; those put in red to
especially make them stand out. Direct address is not used
in any of the sell-lines which makes it less personal for the
audience but the mode of address is simply the magazine
describing to their readership what the articles inside are
about.

6. Colour The colours red and white are used for the
sell-lines on this magazine front cover. They
create an effect as the pieces of text in red
are made to stand out so the audience reads it
first, then they are lured in to read the text in
white as well. They could also indicate the
type of films being advertised as for
instance, the text in red “Vampire Comedy”
could relate more to violence more than the
other text in white “Tomorrowland” which
is more suited towards the more innocent,
younger audience.
The colours help to lure in the correct target
audience as they are bright and more
seemingly positive so the readership know it
will be a magazine that celebrates and
promotes big blockbuster films instead of
criticising them. The colours are not
introduced in any unusual ways as the way
they are presented is pretty standard and
conventional for a film magazine.

7. Layout In terms of layout, the text to image ratio falls
more to favour text as the magazine front
cover is mainly text heavy and only shows two
images: the main image and one feature article
photograph at the bottom. The layout of the
front cover is used for effect as the main
readership of the magazine will notice the
layout of the magazine first and will know that
it is ‘Empire’ straight away. Also because it is
laid out well, it will draw in a wider audience
to read the magazine if they had not before.
The magazine front cover’s layout follows
general layout conventions as the masthead is
placed at the top of the frame above the main
image, the name of the film being promoted is
placed in the left hand third because that is
where the audience’s eye will go to first and
the barcode is placed in the bottom left of the
front cover which is also a common feature.