OUGD501 - COP3 Proposal (Study Task 6.5)

1. Research question
 - Can design play an important role in the promotion of a movie?

2. Rationale (why do you want to research this topic? what impact will this have on your practice?)
- I want to research this topic because I am passionate about cinema and I want to find out what makes a movie 'good' and what makes a movie 'bad'. By researching the topic, it will be possible to explore how design might play a role in the way movies are perceived by their audience.

3. Contexts (what are the immediate contexts in which your theoretical and practical research will be situated? Political? Social? Technological? Aesthetic? Cultural)
- For the topic, there will be research into the social considerations of film, the role that aesthetic plays in the promotion of a film and the cultural following of modern cinema. By looking at these the theoretical research will be able to inform a practical investigation and ways to use design so that it can make a movie appealing.

4. Theoretical Practice (Identify no more than two theories that will help structure your research - must be appropriate to the theme or question)

Theory 1 - Modern cinema plays an important role in the entertainment business and without it society would be different.

Theory 2 - Design is important in the promotion of anything, as it gives the audience a setting to imagine. With movies, design helps to set a tone, theme or genre to the audience.

5. Methods (Secondary: theorisation, semiotic analysis, textual analysis, content analysis, discourse analysis / Primary: surveys, interviews, focus groups, observations)
- Through the study of modern and old cinema, theories and analysis can be made in the differences in approach and how they are perceived by audiences. By looking into how people perceive good or bad, it may give some explanation as to how design can influence a movie. Using surveys of audience, it will be possible to receive feedback and input. Observing certain films and comparing them will prove what gives cinema quality and how does it entertain people.

6. Practical Outcome (what do you plan to produce/develop?)

- The outcome of the investigation, may be to apply the ideas to design in a way that targets the same audience. E.g. a movie poster, promotional advertisement or DVD cover. This will then provide evidence of how others might perceive the approach.

7. Resources (what resources will you need to access?) 

- Much of the research is likely to be digital based observation, but the practical may involve the use of type and printing methods to produce the outcome. 

8. Summer Reading List (find 5 books that you will endeavour to read in preparation for CoP3 - related to either 3 or 4 above)

- The Story of Film: A concise history of film and an odyssey of international cinema - Mark Cousins

- Notes on the Cinematographer - Robert Bresson and Jonathan Griffin
- Designs on Film: A Century of Hollywood Art Direction - Cathy Whitlock 
- Art of the Modern Movie Poster: International Postwar Style and Design - Judith Salavetz, Sam Sarowitz, and Spencer Drate

- 100 Movie Posters - Tony Nourmand

9. Time Management (Plan of actions from now until 14th Dec 2018)

- Research different sources over summer, including design solutions and appropriation of type.

- Theoretical documenting of evidence, between July and October

- Practical Investigation between September and December.