Graphic Design Theory Pro-Forma

Robbie Hickman

Desktop Product

Total Film Magazine- Graphical StyleThis is the front cover of an interactive iPad version of the latest issue of Total Film Magazine. There are many references to different films which are bound to appear in the magazine, particularly Skyfall as the large poster of the James Bond film is the only image appearing on the page. This poster is edited into black and white, giving the magazine a traditional style. This type of editing

There are many graphic elements on the page. For example, the large photograph of James Bond and the complex background graphics put together are able to create a powerful illustration taking up the entirety of the page. The shapes in the background establish patterns which are effective as it shows how fairly straightforward it is to create and manipulate shapes. These particular elements, combined with the traditional style, make the magazine look eye catching and aesthetically pleasing.

Colour is also a good example of graphic elements used on the page, as colour can dramatically change any element it is applied to. The image in the background does not possess any true colours, but it does well to show all the coloured text on the page which talk about different films, making it stand out (especially the yellow text), but it is also edited into black and white to provide a dark and slightly unsettling tone and this is effective for representing the nature of the James Bond character. This tone also gives the magazine a traditional style which relates to the age of the James Bond character. The different colours across the page contrast with the traditional style this magazine possesses and also

The page does include conventions of two specific genres: action and adventure. Most of the text on the page seems to refer to movies of the adventure genre (e.g. the Hobbit and Django Unchained) as well as the action genre (with Skyfall and Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter).

Total Film Magazine- Technical Elements of Construction

The layout of the front cover is mainly cluttered text which seems to appear behind the image and also in front of the image, which is in black and white to give a gothic feel. There is 20% image and 80% text. This magazine uses a conventional layout to familiarize the reader with other magazines and maximise the effectiveness of the cover. The masthead is placed at the top of the page just below the tagline ‘YOUR ESSENTIAL PREVIEW’. This tagline entices the reader very quickly, making them want to buy and read the magazine.

Masthead: the image of James Bond hides part of the word ‘FILM’, but it doesn’t make a difference as it is still obvious as to what the word is. The producers make sure that the first thing the reader’s eyes fall upon is the masthead, which lets them know what magazine they are reading. The title ‘Total Film’ clearly labels the magazine’s key focus, which is films. Heading: the heading is printed in yellow capital letters so it stands out against the black and white background. This third font is used to make the overall look of the front cover more interesting as it implies there are many other media sectors with Skyfall as their main focus.

Cover Lines: the cover lines are also printed in yellow capital letters, so they stand out, too. They are featured on the front cover to reference articles that are to appear within the magazine.

The graphics, including type, colour, and image, have all been blended together, but in an inefficient and seemingly-rushed manner as the whole page appears too crowded. The graphics seem clumsily produced and this implies that the producers wanted to convey the manner of the action genre: intense, relentless, containing lots of unexpected twists and turns. The producers of this front cover clearly made the decision to use both lights and darks to provide contrast, as the background is in black and white and the text is in bright colours. There are no white spaces, indicating that the producers wanted a highly detailed front cover for their magazine. They may have wanted to order the elements according to importance, with coloured text being at the top and other drab colours being at the bottom. This is known as hierarchy.

The producers are likely trying to ensure that the audience focuses on the film Skyfall, which takes up the whole front cover of the magazine. It seems as if, no matter where you look, the author wants you to be fully focused on the film. The pieces of brightly-coloured text could also be a point of focus to ensure the audience views what is underneath the yellow lettering, but these are placed along the sides of the page so they aren’t noticed straight away. The main focus is Skyfall. The way the image takes up the vast majority of the front cover makes it obvious that Skyfall is the main article of this particular issue. There are no other images in the article as the producers clearly wanted to ensure the audience was entirely focused on Skyfall. To develop this further, they made the text ‘Skyfall’ larger to convey that the film is the main focus.

Total Film Magazine- Audience AppealThe target audience appears to be those who are fans of action, particularly males as this genre seems to apply to them. Teenagers and adults are targeted as most of the films mentioned on the cover are rated 12A-18, therefore they are age-appropriate.

This magazine appeals to the audience in a number of ways. The front cover has a unique style; most magazines out there include links to real life stories on their covers , but this particular one features names of new movies rather than stories. This front cover also features a famous movie character who is appropriate to the action genre appearing on the page.

The way the image is edited into black and white not only adds a feeling of mystery, it makes the image look a lot more interesting than it would if it was in full colour. The use of different colours on the page e.g. yellows and reds make the magazine look appealing to the audience; if the pieces of text were edited exactly like the background and image, it definitely wouldn’t be as engaging.

The layout of the magazine attracts the audience as there is lots of detail on the front cover. Although it appears clumsily cluttered and rushed, it wouldn’t fail to impress its audience. People who watch action films don’t want to miss anything, and the producers of this magazine wouldn’t have wanted them to miss anything either, as there is hardly any empty space on the page.

Total Film Magazine- Constructed MeaningMeaning: This particular magazine constructs meaning through various different ways. To begin with, the graphics featured in the background image of the Skyfall poster create a mood and atmosphere that is slightly unsettling, as well as a sense of mystery which best describes the main character in the film.

Specific audience members may create meaning from the graphics. The dark mood created by the drab colour of the poster in the background could be describing the James Bond character and the things he has to go through in the movies he appears in. It also gives a gothic feel which audience members could relate to how old the James Bond character is. The audience may also create meaning through the choice of film. Total Film is all about blockbuster films that take up more than one screen, these include large, well known franchises. The James Bond series is a good example, and here we have Skyfall. Instead of being framed, the cover image dominates the look and tone of the cover. The audience may convey this idea of James Bond being a figure of great significant importance. The audience will also convey that the magazine is making a promise to give them its complete picture. The lines ‘your essential preview’ and ‘complete global access’ support the fact that the magazine is promising the reader they will have all the information they need within the magazine. The audience might assume they are being offered a glimpse into the world of movies through the coloured text at the top of the page. The audience also assumes the text at the top provides authority, declaring in bold red lettering ‘this is your essential preview’. This claim is unproved, but audiences will always be looking for real opinions in a magazine and they assume this magazine includes that.

Genre: It is clear as to what genre is being shown on the front cover: action. In action movies, we would expect to witness various sequences involving gun fights, car chase scenes, and fair amounts of tension and suspense throughout. The page features characteristics of the action genre; with a character holding a weapon and appearing as an authority figure, and seemingly concentrating on something unknown to the audience, something which he will attempt to solve.

Ideology: The values which appear to be conveyed in the front page seem to be personal values, as the many things featured on the page attract different kinds of people, even though they are in the same audience.

Web-Based Product

Game Magazine- Graphical StyleThis is the home page of a website called Game Magazine. The content all over the page, as well as the name of the website, makes it very clear as to what media sector is being shown: Digital Gaming.

It is also made clear that this is an E-Magazine website, as it features different articles to select, links to latest news, and one large article which is the latest piece of news. These aspects also appear in print newspapers.

There are conventions of one specific genre: adventure. Video games utilize graphics and animation to create a unique experience which many people would never find in movies, though many video games nowadays are all aiming for one thing in common: to blur game and film together. As a result, a highly adrenaline-evoking and usually adventurous experience is created for the player.

This is a gaming website, and all games follow a certain style of art. The games shown on the page are Saints Row: The Third and Battlefield 3. These games feature almost photo-realistic characters, and thus a sense of realism is provided. This web page seems to focus on this particular style of art because of the choice of images.

The producers of this web page included a large image in the background, taking up the whole empty space behind the page. The producers wouldn’t want to have any empty spaces whatsoever because if video games need a lot of detail during the animation and development process, then so do the web pages for them.

There is hierarchy on this web-based product. The way the word ‘game’ appears in blue lettering and the other words appear in white lettering might just show how much the producers want the viewers to understand the type of media sector that is appearing on the page, as ‘game’ appears to be highlighted so attention is drawn to it.

The content appearing

on the page isn’t cluttered like the Total Film Magazine. There isn’t as much text, making it easy for people to locate the links and view them. Also, the web page is interactive unlike a magazine cover.

Game Magazine- Technical Elements of Construction

The graphics have been produced in a way that differs from the Total Film Magazine, which had text and colour cluttered everywhere with the large image that took up the entire page. This particular web page is set out in a much more tidier manner, thus making it much easier for the viewers to locate important aspects.

The graphics also do a great job to enhance the design and structure, creating an experience for internet users. They also ensure that the attention grabbed isn’t distracted in any way as everything else on the page fits with the gaming genre.

The producers clearly decided to make a web page that could intrigue the audience and create an impact. The impact could be either emotional or entertaining , and video games usually create those feelings for the players. The producers of this web page probably wanted to generate that same feeling within the viewers.

The title ‘Game Magazine’, as well as the other pieces of text on the page, are shown to have baselines because of the way in which they are accurately positioned. Much of the text is in block capitals so it stands out and also provides a sense of action. Scans have also been included.

Two different posters for two different games have been placed so they take up much of the page. This ensures that no matter what the viewer’s eyes focus on, the genre of gaming still appears.

The centre of the page seems to be the point of focus, as the image is in high-key lighting which attracts the viewers’ eye.

The producers wanted to create a page that wouldn’t have too much type and images cluttered together. Therefore, there are no spaces that are left empty; a large image of a video game in the background fills the large space behind the information at the centre of the page. Although the image is effective as it takes up the whole background, there is still empty white space behind it .

Game Magazine- Audience AppealThe target audience for this product is mainly teenagers, as that particular age group are currently living in a generation where video games and graphics are developing. Adults are not targeted as video games didn’t exist when they were teenagers, while they were living in a time period where games weren’t invented yet. Teenagers, on the other hand, are still growing up in a time period where video games are still developing.

The product appeals to fans of gaming as it includes images of two different video games which not only attract the viewers’ eye but also take up the whole space behind the page and provide an image for the article in the centre. The lighting in the images do well to intrigue the viewers because it makes them stand out .

It is clear as to what style is appearing on the web page. The images are photo-realistic, from games which also follow that particular style of art. The characters in the images appeal to the audience as they support the action genre; that genre also appears in these games. The way soldiers and mercenaries are depicted also evoke a sense of action within the audience.

The different colours featured in the images, as well as the colour blue highlighting the word ‘Game’ appeal to the audience as they make the page look eye-catching. They also add to the appearance of the characters and describe the mood of the games they are in e.g. purple is related to wealth, power, and ambition, whereas orange is red and yellow combined, thus giving positive and negative connotations. These connotations could give the audience ideas as to what the games are about.

The page bears many similarities to a magazine as it includes a masthead, a heading, and cover lines for articles. The style of writing appeals to the audience because it is in large capital letters. This style is intriguing and can attract lots of viewers. The writing doesn’t reveal any personalities within the producers, but it does show how the producers want to communicate with the audience.

The layout appeals to the audience because there is hardly any text and images compared to the Total Film Magazine, which had text cluttered everywhere. This makes the page much easier for the audience to read and find what they are searching for.

Game Magazine- Constructed Meaning

The graphics do well to generate feelings within the audience. The bright colours, lighting, and camera angles create an atmosphere filled with action and suspense, and audience members could assume that the page is attempting to convey what will appear in the games featured. The smoke might also give the impression that the producers are ‘hiding’ any other features that might otherwise spoil the experience they want gamers to have while playing video games.

The high-key lighting creates a light mood which differs from the Total Film magazine cover, but the way the two images feature a dark cloud, obscuring whatever it is behind the characters in them, provides an atmosphere filled with dread. The smoke also does well to provide a suspenseful atmosphere.

The graphics highlight the characteristics of the action genre because of the choice of images and their colours. For example, the producers chose an image which features a group of people seemingly ready to fight and solve a situation, and placed it in the centre of the page.

The values conveyed on this page are of personal ideologies, because gaming attracts one audience which is teenagers, who have a personal interest in playing video games. The atmosphere generated by the graphics seems slightly comical, because of the position of the characters in the central image, and this might reflect on other people’s opinions regarding what entertains them.

Motion-Based Product

Skyfall Title Sequence- Graphical Style

This title sequence features conventions of the action and adventure genre. It is similar to the Total Film Magazine cover, which featured the exact same film on the page. They both share the same conventions, but differ to each other as the title sequence is moving and features colour, while the image on the magazine features a black and white still image. The various graphic elements appearing throughout the Skyfall intro not only show aspects of the storyline, they seem to create the whole story and set the scene for the film. Subjects that are not mentioned and do not appear during the course of the film are explored in this intro, similar to other James Bond intros, and this adds to the graphical style of the intro. The intro has many mysterious and somewhat strange things appearing, thus it follows many different styles of art, with pop-art and photo-realistic images appearing. The intro appears visibly stunning, with a wide variety of graphical elements appearing, one after the other, to create an opening sequence that is visually distinct from any other.

Skyfall Title Sequence- Technical Elements of Construction

In the title sequence, the graphics have been produced in a way which mirrors the storyline of Skyfall. The intro is supposed to be Daniel Craig’s journey through the events of the film, right after falling into the water at the opening. A lot of it is CGI, and like any other James Bond title sequence, there are transitions from one sequence to another.

The producer(s) of this intro would have set out to create something which differs from previous James Bond film openings, which were realistic, and create a more graphic title sequence with Skyfall. For example, the bullet holes weren’t realistic looking- they looked more like holes in paper. It is obvious that the only disadvantage of the decision to use graphical elements was that CGI was heavily relied on to make this title sequence.

The moving graphics in the intro are presented in a slow motion, timed with the slow music, and composited in such an effective way so it appears as though it is all just one, 4 minute-long moving image. The perspective also changes throughout; some graphic sequences are made to look further away or closer, and the camera angles change.

Skyfall Title Sequence- Audience AppealThis product is the opening title sequence from Skyfall. The target audience for the film is fans of action, which consist mostly of men, but the title sequence could attract another audience: fans of horror or mystery, because the title sequence gives a brooding and ominous tone.

The product appeals to the audience as it features a variety of different colours throughout the sequence. The colours black and white give a gothic feel to the intro, but they both have positive and negative connotations, possibly relating to the struggle between good and bad. Blue is nature’s colour for the sky and water, and it also relates to peace. The colour red, however, is a colour which evokes a variety of emotions and relates to love and passion, and blood and death. These emotions also reflect the personality of the James Bond character.

The gothic style of some of the graphic sequences also appeal to the audience as they provide a great deal of information about James Bond, reflecting on his unsettling personality.

The content of the title sequence appeals to the audience by adding a sense of mystery and tension.

Skyfall Title Sequence- Constructed MeaningMeaning is constructed from this title sequence. The graphic elements featured throughout, including the firearms and dragons breathing fire, make the whole sequence appear darkly menacing in nature. The whole scene evokes a wide range of emotions including sadness, anger, and worry. The nature of the James Bond character is always displayed in the opening intro for the films he appears in, and this one focuses on his past as well as the things he will have to deal with during the course of the film.

The graphic elements, song, and moving images create an atmosphere which is brooding, dark, melancholy, ominous, spooky, and suspenseful. The song ‘Skyfall’ by Adele has a rather disturbing feel, and this adds to the mood of the title sequence.

The graphics make the audience feel a wide range of emotions from the tension, for example, Bond being dragged down into the unknown generates a feeling of uncertainty. The audience is made to think they are following the character on a journey into the darkness, which has connotations of mystery and suspicion. The graphics have done this primarily though the low key lighting in most areas, meaning the audience is unable to see what is happening and this creates tension.