Connor analyzed conventions of existing film review pages from Empire and Total Film magazines. Key conventions included: - Using a large sans-serif font headline that stands out - Including 1-2 main images of the film's characters - Using a serif font for body copy columns that is easy to read - Including a "verdict box" that rates the film and explains the rating - Maintaining a consistent house style with branding colors Understanding these conventions will help Connor draft ideas that follow expected formats when designing a short film review page.

1. ConnorO’Reilly
9290

2.  Before I start drafting ideas for the short-film
review page, I need to deconstruct some existing
products and understand the conventions and
why they are used so often.
 It is not common for a short-film to have a whole
page review (usually there are more than one
short-film reviews on a page, typically 4-5), so
this is why I have analysed feature length film
reviews as they have the same conventions as
short-film reviews.
Connor O'Reilly 9290

3. CAPTION
BODY COPY
COVER LINES
LOGO
(of this section of the magazine)
DROP-CAP
END BLOB
FURNITURE
FURNITURE
HEADLINE
INDENTEDCOPY
LOGO
(Of the magazine)
SANS SERIF
HEADLINE
SERIFCOPY
TEXTWRAP
FILM REVIEW PAGE CONVENTIONS OF AN EXISTING PRODUCT
Empire Magazine
September 2013
Review of “The
Way,Way Back”
MAIN IMAGES
Connor O'Reilly 9290

4.  Headline –The headline is one of the most important
elements of a film magazine review.This is because it is
one of the first things that the reader sees, so it is
important to make sure it stands out. In this review page,
they use a large yellow sans serif font on a black
background.The colours used are part of the house style
too so a great sense of uniformity is felt by the audience,
which makes it comfortable for consumers. It is a
convention for the headline to be a sans serif font
because it is the easiest typeface to read when used at a
large font size.
Main Image – The main images are also some of the most important elements of a film
magazine review.They are also one of the first things that the reader sees, so it is
paramount that they use interesting images that will attract the reader to read this review.
They tend to be shots of the main character in various parts of the film. It is a convention to
have 1 – 2 main images. In this case, 2 main images are used and do not overcrowd the page.
Body Copy – The body copy is conventionally a serif font because it is a small font size and
serif fonts are the easiest to read at this size.The body copy is typically split into columns in
the bottom half of the page.This review page follows these conventions. It also wraps the
text around an additional image which makes it interesting for the reader to look at.Connor O'Reilly 9290

5. CAPTION
BODY COPY
COVER LINES
LOGO
(of this section of the magazine)
FURNITURE
FURNITURE
HEADLINE
INDENTEDCOPY
SANS SERIF
HEADLINE
SERIFCOPY
FILM REVIEW PAGE CONVENTIONS OF AN EXISTING PRODUCT 2
Total Film Magazine
Review of “The King”
MAIN IMAGE
VERDICT BOX
Connor O'Reilly 9290

6.  Verdict Box – This example had a few extra conventions.One of these is the
verdict box.This is a very important piece of furniture for a film review page
because it acts as a synopsis and a conclusion for the film. It explains how many
stars it got and why it deserved that amount of stars given. It is an important part
of the review because it immediately tells the reader what the film is like. In this
review page, it stays within the house style of the magazine but uses white on
black text to make it stand out.This is a good convention to use.
 Main Image – In this example there is only one main image that takes up just over
half of the page.The overall composition is still comfortable to look at. In my
opinion, one main image is better than several because it allows the reader to
reflect on the type of movie that the review is on.This main image represents the
film as being a drama because there is no action.There is also a suggestion of
romance because the woman is leaning on the man. It is a convention to have the
main image represent the film in the best way possible.
Body Copy – The body copy is sans serif font, which is not a convention of a film review
page. However, it gives a modern feel to the magazine and is not too small, so it is still
comfortable to read.The copy is indented, which allows the reader to know that it is a new
paragraph and gives them time to reflect on the previous paragraph. The columns are split
by dashed lines which also informs the audience that the copy is in columns and makes the
composition nice to look at and read.
House Style – There is a strong sense of house style which creates uniformity.This attracts
an audience because it is nice to look at. In this case, the house style has the colours: blue,
red, white and black. Connor O'Reilly 9290

7.  Doing this research task I have a much better
idea of the conventions of a film review
page.
 I will be sure to include many of these
conventions when drafting ideas for my film
review page such as: a sans serif headline,
strong house style, a verdict box, etc.
Connor O'Reilly 9290