Researching Taglines
Taglines should be short but clever in order to stick in the audience's mind. We looked at a variety of taglines from horror films.
Sinister - 2012
'Once he sees you, nothing can save you.'
This is effective as the use of 'he' in stead of using his name gives him a sense of mystery, encouraging the audience to look into watching the film as it is natural for humans to be curious, 'Nothing' also applies to no one, suggesting that no person or item will be able to help them in their situation. 'Save' also implies a sense of urgency and helplessness. The personal profile 'you' is effective as addressing the audience directly puts them on the spot, encouraging them to watch the film.
This is effective as the use of 'he' in stead of using his name gives him a sense of mystery, encouraging the audience to look into watching the film as it is natural for humans to be curious, 'Nothing' also applies to no one, suggesting that no person or item will be able to help them in their situation. 'Save' also implies a sense of urgency and helplessness. The personal profile 'you' is effective as addressing the audience directly puts them on the spot, encouraging them to watch the film.
saw v - 2008
'You wont believe how it ends' and 'In the end all the pieces will fit together.'
'You wont' challenged the audience and also challenges what is possible to achieve in horror films. It implies the ending is so absurd or horrifying that it's almost impossible, yet the producers have somehow achieved it. The personal pronoun 'you' also addresses the audience directly. This can create a sense of intimicy with the audience, persuading them to watch the film. 'All the pieces will fit together' is also clever as 'Saw' is short for 'Jigsaw' whilst also referring to the sharp tool used for cutting things.
'You wont' challenged the audience and also challenges what is possible to achieve in horror films. It implies the ending is so absurd or horrifying that it's almost impossible, yet the producers have somehow achieved it. The personal pronoun 'you' also addresses the audience directly. This can create a sense of intimicy with the audience, persuading them to watch the film. 'All the pieces will fit together' is also clever as 'Saw' is short for 'Jigsaw' whilst also referring to the sharp tool used for cutting things.
Let Me In - 2010
'She will keep you safe. She will keep you close. She will keep you forever.'
This tagline is an example of the rule of 3, a rule which suggests groups of 3 is more appealing to an audience and is used by many as a form of persuasion. However, we thought this tagline was quite long and so when creating ours, we kept the length in mind. The repetitions does however make it easier to remember and will therefore stick in the audience's head. Again, the personal pronoun 'you' creates an intimate relationship with the audience.
This tagline is an example of the rule of 3, a rule which suggests groups of 3 is more appealing to an audience and is used by many as a form of persuasion. However, we thought this tagline was quite long and so when creating ours, we kept the length in mind. The repetitions does however make it easier to remember and will therefore stick in the audience's head. Again, the personal pronoun 'you' creates an intimate relationship with the audience.
The WOman in Black 2: Angel of Death - 2014
'She never forgives. She never forgets. She never left.'
This tagline again shows the rule of 3, repetition and exclusion of any names.
This tagline again shows the rule of 3, repetition and exclusion of any names.
Conclusion
We decided that our tagline should be short and clever with a reference to the theme of our horror. We also thought it best to not include any specific details and just refer to him as 'him' as we wanted to reflect this ambiguity in our poster and magazine cover. After much deliberation, we decided on the tagline 'his life is your wager.' This used the personal pronoun 'your,' creating the sense of pressure we wanted to achieve. 'Wager' also relates to the ongoing theme of gambling prevelant thoughout our trailer, magazine and poster.
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