Media research

 

E4

E4 is a British digital television channel, launched as a companion to Channel 4. The "E" stands for entertainment, and the channel is mainly aimed at the lucrative 15–35 year olds. Programming includes U.S. imports such as The Cleveland Show, Desperate Housewives, How I Met Your Mother, 90210, Ugly Betty, Scrubs and 2 Broke Girls. Other programming includes British shows such as Misfits, The Ricky Gervais Show, Shameless, Hollyoaks, Skins, The Inbetweeners and Made in Chelsea. I have decided to focus my research on Misfits as I believe my brief has the potential of becoming a similar programme.

Misfits

Misfits is a British science fiction comedy-drama television show, on the network Channel 4, about a group of young offenders sentenced to work in a community service programme, where they obtain supernatural powers after a strange electrical storm. The Misfits series have uniqueness about them which sets them out from every other sci-fi programme airing at the time being. This I something I hope to capture when creating my short film. The image below is from the opening credits of Misfits.

 

The image immediately gives the viewer reason to ask themselves questions. One question might be ‘why doesn’t the person in the middle have a shadow?’ the answer to this question is totally dependent on interpretation. This is fantastic image for an opening credit image as it give the audience motive to understand or relate to the how the characters may be feeling and why they are seen in the way they are.

Also the person on the far left has a shadow which is pointing in a different direction to the rest of the characters this may be because they are different in some way which is also generating curiosity meaning the viewer is interested. This links well to work because I could slowly entice the viewers into watching by giving them small helpings of information. Opening credits are hugely important in the effectiveness of my brief as they set the plot and give an impression of the rest of the story.

A cloudy grey colour is used I think to show that there is no clarity and the shadows are facing towards us meaning the bright, white light is shining from behind them concluding with the reality that their faces would be in darkness. The images match the sci-fi genre of the programme since the people look like cartoon cut outs. The viewer can only see the hands of one character; this may propose that she is the most superior or powerful as we use our hands with most actions we act.

In one scene the camera shot zooms out and we see a character n yellow about to commit suicide on the roof of the community service centre, and a slow soundtrack is played in the background. This is an example of non-diegetic music which I plan to use in my production. The use of the slow playing guitar music helps to elect the target audience of the show. This is as many young people are seen to attend festivals to listen to music with different instruments in and often referred to as indie music.

The characters are stood in a line together which suggests that they might all have something in common with one another although the programme name contradicts this feeling slightly. The characters used within 'Misfits' help indicate the specific target audience, for example, young people(15-35yrs) are presented throughout the programme; this gives the impression that the programme is purposed for the entertainment of young adults.

My research has shown me how camera angles, music types and use of characters can influence and adapt the way an audience will interpret and understand a programme.

 

 

My Logo Design

 

When designing my own effective logo i knew it had to be five things which were: Simple, memorable, timeless, versatile and appropriate.
 
Through research of companies logos such as McDonalds, Apple and Nike i have learnt that a good logo is easily recognisable and allows the logo to be versatile and memorable. Good logos feature something unique without being overdrawn and complicated. I think this is because of the simplicity of many logo's. As you can see i have not overcrowded my logo with colour or various fonts as simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.

I think it is important to have a sleek but interesting look, which i believe i have accomplished with having the word 'Prestige' written in Chinese. I have chosen the word 'Prestige' as it means the widespread respect and admiration felt for someone or something on the basis of a perception of their achievements or quality. I think this is a fantastic way to summarise an expanding successful company and it has great expectations to live up to. I have chosen to write the word in Chinese as i feel it will create curiosity and fascination of unique design. 

 Research of Nike has taught me that effective logos must be timeless. A brilliant example of this is Nike as they have had the Nike 'swoosh' logo for over 40 years and it is still highly recognisable all over the world. I trust that my logo will be timeless because of its mystery and unknowing.

I tried testing my logo in different colours but first in black and white to ensure that the logo will look good in its simplest form. Colour is very subjective and emotional. This can distract the audience from the overall design or attract the audience but i noticed that this is highly dependent on situation.  For example to gain the status i wanted for my company/ logo i knew i couldn’t be too vibrant as it may portray a young or childish theme. An example of the appropriateness of the logo is the MTV logo which is playful and joyous but it would not be suitable for a law firm.

 To conclude, i believe my logo has achieved the goal of a sophisticated and intriguing style.

 

 

Front cover of RICOplus magazine

 

 

 

 

 

I have decided to do Brief 1 as i think it will suit my specialities best.

The BMW logo is clean and sharp because of its simple yet recognisable design. The logo has 3 main colours black, blue and white/silver which is one of the most distinctive logo designs in the world. When I see the BMW badge I think of a premium company this is because of its sleek look and colours. The logo also makes me think of ‘The Ultimate Driving Machine’ which is the company slogan. BMW’s badge is circle which I think makes it more attractive to many car proud customers worldwide.

I like the HP logo because like the ‘BMW’ badge it is sleek with an acronym and a trendy blue colour. The company is widely recognisable to many because of its simple yet effective logo. I also like that the designer decided to use a white circle with the letter ‘hp’ in italic writing. The rounded edged blue rectangle gives 
the logo a fresh, professional look.

This is the Apple logo; I like this logo because of its simplicity. By using grey and white the company have made it the product seem suitable for all age groups whereas the ‘hp’ logo seemed more trendy and for a younger adult target audience. The apple logo looks inviting and straightforward which is great for immediate customer recognition. The apple in a box gives a sophisticated and smart look.

This is the Starbucks coffee logo/ sign. It is largely recognised around the world because of its popularity and noticeable logo. The black, green and white colours make the sign look more creative when compared to others. The ‘STARBUCKS COFFEE’ in capital letters shows the consumer what the product is straight away so they know what the company does even if they don’t recognise the sign. The crowned lady is interpreted as royalty which shows the finest quality in the company specific area (Coffee).

This is McDonald’s logo. The giant ‘M’ known for being golden like their world renowned French fries. I am researching different types of logos which work effectively in different ways. This logo is effective because it is simple yet people all over the world will see this and know what company it is instantly. The black outlining makes the sign bold which I like because I think it looks more eye-catching.

This is the MTV logo. It is bright and eye-catching because of its orange lettering, bold writing and the black background. The name of the logo is clearly stated as well as what the company does which is showing ‘Music Television’. The white writing on the black background makes the texts clearer to read. Although ‘MTV’ use the giant ‘M’ like ‘McDonalds’ the font and colour used suggests it is a different so people can diffrenciate between the two. 

This is the the nike tick which is the logo for a clothing brand. The company sell footware, bags, hats and other clothing. The company is well known/ identified because of their renowned ‘nike tick’. The ‘tick’ suggests that it is right for people to buy their products and that their products make people feel good. This is an example of how an wordless image can identify a company.

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