The document provides a production brief for a film trailer about a teenage girl who feels neglected by her family and turns to drugs and alcohol. It outlines the project name, format, length, deadlines, group members, target audience of female teenagers, comparable products, rationale behind the text, representations in the text, how success will be tested, generic codes and conventions, obvious and hidden messages, possible publishing suggestions, and resource constraints.

1. Production Brief:
Project name: We have currently not thought of a suitable name for our film trailer.
Medium/Format: It is a social realism trailer with accompanying products. These are a magazine cover and film poster.
Length: Approximately two minutes long.
Deadline: Research and planning: 20th October 2016
Filming, editing and ancillary tasks: 16th October 2016
Evaluation tasks 10th February 2017
Group members: Emily Cooke: camerawork and director
Rebecca Withers: editing and director
Brief overview of
the content:
An 18 year old girl feels unwanted by her family. She becomes involved with drugs and alcohol. One
day, when out with her new friends, she gets left behind and nearly gets hit by a car. She then meets a
boy who helps her build the relationship back up with her mum.
Target audience: The target audience for this film is female teenagers. It will have a certificate rating of 15 so it will be
suitable for older teenagers.
Comparable
products:
• ‘Fish Tank’ – A British social realism drama
• ‘Grassland’ – A drama which looks at alcohol abuse and illness
• ‘Spotlight’ – A drama hybrid which looks at issues including child abuse
• ‘The Good Lie’ – A drama which looks at refugees, a current issue
• ‘Selma’ – A drama hybrid which looks at the social issue of black racism
Rational behind
the text:
The elements that I have planned to use include a soundtrack which will mirror the film trailer tone.
The trailer will have a mixed pace to keep the audiences attention. I will use a range of shots to depict
each scene clearly so the audience stays interested in the film trailer.
Representations in
the text:
The main representation in the text is of teenagers. The beginning of the trailer will highlight how
teenagers conform to the stereotype. This is because of the arguing with parents and trying out new
options like alcohol and drug abuse. There is also the representation of neglect within the trailer. The
main character feels like she is being neglected by her parents and is why she lashes out. She feels
unwanted so finds new friends who take her in.
How to test if it is
successful:
I could create a questionnaire before producing the product to find out what my target audience likes
and dislikes. I could then also create another questionnaire for my target audience to fill out after the
initial edit is completed. This is so they can provide feedback on improving the trailer. I will also carry
out a test screening to receive feedback on my final product.
Generic codes and
conventions:
My film trailer will follow the generic codes and conventions of a theatrical film trailer. It will be
approximately two minutes long, contain titles and create an audience interest in the film. It will
follow the codes and conventions of a social realism film; this is, having dramatic aspects, focusing on
social issues, such as drugs and alcohol and making it realistic.
Obvious messages
in the text:
The obvious messages in the text are of how the relationships of the family are broken. This is
represented through the teenagers perspective of how her mother and herself fight and argue a lot of
the time. It also highlights the struggles of teenage life and the pressure they feel. It is why we have
decided to depict the idea of the protagonist turning to drugs and alcohol for escapism. This is until
she is helped out of the situation by someone else.
Hidden messages
in the text:
The hidden message within the film trailer is how easy it is to go through life with a grudge, in this case
her mother, but not sorting it out. This then leads to a wall in their relationship. In the end, the
protagonist tries to break down this wall.
Possible
scheduling/publish
ing suggestions:
The trailer would be shown in cinemas. This could be in art house cinemas especially due to its genre.
The ancillary tasks would be shown in magazines and the poster could be in the cinema, on buses and
on bus stations.
Resources
constraints:
Time is always a resource constraint within the filming and editing aspect. This is because of my
deadline and locations to film in are restricted. This links with the money constraints. Having a limited
budget restricts many aspects. This includes locations to film, costumes and props, if necessary.
Human resources such as actors can be a restraint. Not having professional actors to portray the image
could be a limitation. However, with the right direction, the cast should be able to create the character
well. Equipment could be a restraint. Depending on what we need, it could create limitations on our
work.