Pre - Production: WEBSITE RESEARCH

To create a unique, dynamic and attractive website, I need to make sure it has all the elements needed to make an audience excited for the upcoming film. I need to make sure it's always up to date and that it looks elegant and professional. I have decided to research into what makes a great film website, and look into film websites that already are out there and see if there are any similarities that stand out. Doing so, will help me to create a website that is simple yet enticing.

A very interesting and helpful article I found was by Will on moviestud.io.com at https://www.moviestud.io/blog/film-website-guide/ 

Will goes into great detail about creating film websites, information that is needed, and tips on low budget film website creating.

''If you’ve already made a trailer for your film that should go front and center on the homepage. There is no better way to market your film than by showing (specially selected parts of) it. That is what your audience came to see.''

On the website, an idea I have is to take an attractive still from the film teaser, and place on the front landing page of the website. This will not only straight away give the audience something to see, but it will entice them into wanting to see the actual teaser. Will discusses this idea below,

''The content you want to feature on your site drives the design. For a film site you might want a splash screen featuring a trailer, a still from your movie, or your poster art. Film is a visual medium so the front page of your site should reflect that. The other pages of your site will differ depending on what content they contain.''

Looking at some websites below, I wanted to see what they put on the landing page, a basic view and see what the similarities are. 

I found that on the over view, all of the websites have a striking image on the front, usually with the main actor posing for the photograph, or a picture that looks like a still from the film. Due to not being in production yet, I would either have to set up a photoshoot, or as I said earlier, use a still from our teaser which I am leaning towards. I noticed that overall page usually fits on the screen, there is no need for scrolling as all the information is right there in front of you. The name of the film, release date and the main actors are featured large on the screen - these are the basic pieces of texts that cover the front page - with the occasional advert that is linked to a teaser or video.

Each film has a very individual colour scheme to fit with it's film and the genre; being a mystery drama, our film is going to be very dark with dark purples, blacks and reds - but making sure not to make the red colours too much like a horror film. The colour theme on the websites stick very basic on the front, but adverts and links are in bright colours so it attracts the audience's eye to click it. I want to put a link to the teaser on the front page in a bright colour so that it sticks out different from the colour scheme we will have. All the imagery is very interesting, non of the pictures are boring and most of them relate to the film somehow. For example, looking at 'A Walk In the Woods' the two men are clearly wearing back packs and in the background we can see the woods. The picture is extremely striking and although the colour scheme is very neutral and calm, the fact that the two men are stood in a discussion on the edge of the cliff, is very enticing and would want the audience to know what will happen.

In the film website to the right, they have chosen very bright and happy colours such as blues, reds and yellows, which match the colours of the actors. The producers have thoughtfully put two well known actors in a happy pose very large in the centre of the page, which would entice viewers immediately. They have chosen a location for the background that immediately tells the audience that the film is going to be set outside of a normal house and the two will be going on an adventure.

I want the website for our film to be very enticing and draw the audience in, guessing what sort of story is behind the picture. I want a picture of our actress close to the screen, with someone behind her watching her.
''Pan'' to the left is the type of theme I want on the website. It is very dark and mysterious and shows an adventure on screen. The colours all work extremely well together and they have clearly reached out to all ages of audience, with the 'Play Games' link on the front of the website. The colour theme uses a lot of blacks and dark colours to create a very fantasy like picture.

Moving on to targeting the audience with the immediate website homepage; The film 'The Intern' has a very mature look to it. Not only is one of the actors a little older, but the picture doesn't have any fancy effects, it is very simple and elegant.

Looking at the website below; I found some tips on creating a promotional film website.

http://filmcourage.com/content/create-a-website-for-your-film

Gareth Macleod says that, ''You only need five things on a teaser page. You need  the title, the trailer, some concept art or stills, Facebook and Twitter.''

This will make the website simple, with all the information, without making it too overpowering and confusing for the audience. It will be elegant and not cluttered with un needed information.

Next, I wanted to look more closely at what links are on the landing page that can entice our audience.

I found that on each website, they are all quite similar and simple. The main pages I found on every single one are;

• The Home page: This is the landing page and is what the audience first see. It has a large image and a few pieces of text on it. It is similar to a poster, but doesn't have all the text over it. It is very simple and elegant.

• The Story: This usually has a bit of background behind the story and a small synopsis so that the viewers can get an overall idea of what the film is about. 

• The Cast: This allows the audience to see who is in the film, any recognisable actors, and a little background behind them for any agents who notice the film.

• Social Media Links: These are always heavily featured on film websites. They direct viewers to personal social websites that they can keep even more frequently updated on. The main pages are Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. These often have unique cast pictures from on set and information on screenings and worldwide release dates. 

• Videos: This includes the teaser/trailer, behind the scenes footage and any additional clips that have been added.

I found that each website creates links and pages unique to their audience and film genre. For example, ''Pan'' is aimed at a younger audience therefor they have made it worded to apply to younger audiences with links such as ''Meet the characters'', ''Fun and games'' and ''Discover Neverland''. All these will encourage the audience to click the links due to the nature of what is written.

The Content.

I found when looking at all these film sites, that thought, detail and care has gone into every single page. There is a unique, relatable image for each page and the colour theme runs throughout. 

On the film website to the right, they have used the characters film genre to create a humorous, yet simple page to encourage the readers to watch. 

I also found that many film websites create a very personal and relaxed page which talks about all the producers and directors involved. This will both help the audience get a better understanding of the behind the scenes of the whole film, and also allow the crew to have a page for themselves so any filmmakers can also see what skills we have and films we have made.




To entice my young audience into being interested and keeping up to date with the website, I want to create a 'videos' page with behind the scenes things on it. When we begin rehearsing and getting together more, I want to interview the team and film extra bits of filming so that the viewers can see what it's like to create a film. It will also be good to here opinions of the cast and how they are feeling filming.

Overall, looking at film websites and researching into what actually goes into a website, has helped me very much in creating some ideas of what I want to portray on the site. I have better knowledge and understanding of the professional and elegant look that film websites go for, along with all the links and information that is needed.