Poster review: Displaced (2013) Two characters are shown on the poster this implies that

these are the protagonists of the film. The main focal point of the poster is the two characters peering through the diagonal slit, this creates the impression that they’re in hiding. The characters are positioned one in front of the other, with the older character being positioned at the back which connotes mystery and suspicion as they don’t show any interaction with the toddler. The use of the black scarf creates a mystery towards their identity; this is effective because it keeps the plot and narrative to a minimal of which is given to the audience to engage and attract them to the film. The use of the scarf means that their facial expression is hidden, again keeping their identity to a minimum. The positioning of the characters implies that the older character could be looking for the baby and creating the impression that it could be a parent. The only feature the audience can see is the eyes, this is effective because eyes reveal a lot about a person’s emotion, and these eyes are looking down implying that the character is emotional. The older character’s body position shows that they’re anxious and scared, this shown by them fiddling with their hands. By having the hands in the picture it allows he audience to see that they’re wearing a wedding ring, this further supports the view that they’re the parent of the toddler. The positioning of the characters show that they’re not engaging with one another, this suggests that the parent could be looking for their toddler, this is supported by the use of the title ‘displaced’ and creates the impression that the toddler may have been kidnapped.

The colours used in the poster are dull and simple; this reflects the genre of the short film (drama) as it creates a mystical theme. The poster consists of a colour theme of pink/orange top which then fades into a grey/black colour at the bottom. By using pink, orange, grey and black colours it is effective because it will attract both female and male audiences, widening their target audience. The pink and orange colours at the top represent a sunset/sunrise view; this is also implied by use of a sun positioned at the point where the sky meets the land. By giving the impression that it’s early or late hours suggests that it’s more likely to be a kidnapped as this the peak time of kidnaps as they’re less likely to be seen.

From just looking at the poster, clues about the narrative are given away, in particular the use of the title ‘Displaced’. The word ‘displaced’ instantly suggests that something isn’t in its correct place, by putting the title and main picture of the poster together it implies that the baby has been ‘displaced’ and again suggests that the baby may have been kidnapped. The title of the film is positioned in front of the characters; again implying that one or both of the characters has been ‘displaced’. The colour of the font that was chosen is white; this juxtaposes the narrative that is given as the colour white is associated with goodness, innocence and safety. However, this juxtaposition is effective as it makes the audience question the narrative of the short film and therefore engage with the poster, this will therefore encourage them to watch the film. By using the colour white it is plain and simple but is effective as it stands out on the bland background, it also creates a mystery which supports the genre of drama as this is a convention of dramas. It creates the impression that the film will include dramatic events and the ending could be either happy or sad.

The background of the film poster is a long aerial shot of a urban town, the use of this aerial shot is effective as from the title ‘displaced’ it creates the impression that the two characters are somewhere within the town, but their location is hidden. The fact that their location isn’t revealed could suggest that the short film will consist of a search party looking for the toddler.

At the bottom of the short film poster are the credits, this is the usual positioning of credits on a film poster. These credits show us the location of the film, the producer and the editor. This information is effective as it reveals more information about the film to the audience, for example it tells us that the location is the Middle East which connotes that the aerial shot is of a town in the Middle East. Above the credits are sponsorships and awards that the film has won, this is effective as it shows the audience that the film has been successful and therefore reassures them that the film is worth while watching.

There are no stars’ names placed on the film poster, this implies that the film doesn’t contain any well-known actors/actresses. There is also no age certificate on the film poster, however due to the suggested narrative being kidnapping it implies that the target audience will be for an older generation as it is an emotional topic. Due to the film being produced by a small production company, there is no surprise that no well-known people are acting in the film.

The main image of the film poster is the two characters, this suggests that they are the main focus and focal point; this is done by them being positioned in the centre of the poster and the picture being a medium-close up shot. By using a medium-close up shot it allows for the audience to see the facial expressions of the characters and will be the first impression of what the narrative is. The colour scheme is also a feature of the poster that hints towards the narrative but also the genre of the short film.

Another suggestion towards what the narrative could be is created by the positioning of the characters; this is done by the toddler being positioned in front of the urban town whereas the older character is positioned in front of the sun-rise/set. By having the parent in the sky it could represent her in heaven and the toddler having to live life without a parent. This narrative can also be supported by the title ‘displaced’ as it could refer to the parent being in the incorrect place, as they should be living as a parent to their toddler, but instead she is ‘displaced’ in heaven. The images, mise-en-scene and title of the film create a number of different narratives, this is effective as too much information isn’t revealed to the audience and therefore it will encourage them to watch the film. A different narrative that is suggested is that the parent and toddler could be being forced out of their home, this is presented by the use of the two characters being faded in front of the a town and the title ‘displaced’ implies that they been forced out of their home which is seen as they’re correct place. This narrative is supported by the written text as it includes the location of the ‘Middle East’ this can be linked to the issues and conflicts that were in Syria in 2013 (the year the film was produced )where 250,000 people lost their homes.

The genre of this short film is drama and when looking at this poster it is clear that it is a drama genre, it is shown through the colour scheme, picture and title. The title ‘displaced’ implies that the narrative could possibly include the parent searching for their toddler, and could involve dramatic events. The long aerial shot of the urban town keeps the narrative a secret, and implies that the toddler could be anywhere in the town, again suggesting that the narrative of the short film will include dramatic events. The main narrative of the short film isn’t revealed in the poster, this is typically found with film posters because they don’t want to give away too much to ensure that the target audience are intrigued and therefore watch the film.

The target audience for this film isn’t revealed in the poster, this isn’t effective as it doesn’t tell the audience if the film is targeted towards them, for example how do they know if they’re old enough.