Textual Analysis: Magazine front covers;
As I am creating a film magazine front cover for my brief, I am analysing three different film magazine front covers, and one T.V magazine front cover so I understand the conventions of magazine front covers. I am analysing Entertainment, Total Film and Empire, and also Radio Times. The third one I am analysing is Empire magazine.

Conventions are followed by most magazine covers, they have a main image cover lines, masthead and others, and I am analysing the conventions so that when I create my cover it does follow the conventions, but sometimes magazine covers go against conventions, and I am also going to go against some conventions as I want to make my cover unique.

Empire:
Empire magazine is a monthly British film magazine, and features films, listings and interviews with actors.
Masthead: The masthead is at the top of the cover, and from the three covers I have analysed I have found they all have their masthead at the top, as this is a convention of magazine covers, as at the top the reader can see it, as when they're stacked on shelves you can only see the top of the cover, and if it was at the bottom you wouldn't see what magazine it is, I am going to follow this convention for my front cover and put the masthead at the top. Also like the other three covers the masthead is partially covered up by the image, and this is a way of showing the popularity as even with the masthead covered we know what the magazine is, and this is seen on many other famous magazines such as Vogue and Elle, as these are very famous magazines they can have their name partially covered and people will still buy it, I have also found that this is also a convention of many magazine front covers. The masthead is in bright, bold letters, which again is a convention as they need to draw the reader in, and having a boring masthead would not attract anyone to the magazine. The colour of the masthead is bright red, an this colour is very bright and stands out against the background, and instantly draws your eyes to the cover, but the colour also reflects the image on the cover, as the image is about public enemies, and the red represents danger, suggesting the man on the cover is dangerous, and it is also conveying to the audience what the genre of the film is, as red represents danger, the films that often go with danger are Action films, therefore suggesting that the film is an Action film. The colour also reflects the colour theme of the cover of red, black, grey and white.

Image: The image on the cover takes up the whole cover, and on the other three covers I have analysed the image also took up most of the cover, as the image is the main focus of the cover it has to be noticeable, and this is also a convention of most magazine front covers. The image also represents the genre of the film as Johnny Depp is holding a gun, and this is iconography of Action films, as all Action films feature some sort of weapon, and there is also a target on the bottom of the cover, which are often seen in Action films when someone is shooting at someone, and this again represents the genre of the film. The clothes Johnny Depp is wearing also help convey to the audience, what the man he is playing is like, and the image shows him to be dangerous, and on the wrong side of the law, as he is all in black, which is a convention of burglars, and this suggests that maybe he steals from people and is not nice, and he is also wearing black gloves which are associated with crime and murder, wearing black gloves so as not to leave fingerprints, and this again suggests that he is dangerous and is not to be trusted, and also the hat is quite representative of old criminals, it makes him look like he is mafia or a gangster, and this is also represented by the smart clothes he is wearing, and this suggests he is in charge, and does not run around for other criminals, and he is also carrying a rifle which is the biggest signal that he is dangerous, as most people do not carry a gun around with them, there is also smoke around him, and this signifies that he is mysterious and can't be caught by the police, as you cant catch smoke, and it conveys how he is wanted by the police, and this is also reinforced by the target on him, suggesting that the police want to kill him, and they only ever do that if the person is very dangerous, and the colour of the target is also red, and again this suggests danger. The image all conveys that he is a dangerous man, and is a criminal. The image also represents the target audience for the film, as you can see it is aimed at men, as they are the target audience for Action films, and with it also being a gangster film women cannot relate to it, but men can.

Subheading: The subheading reinforces the image of Johnny Depp being a criminal and dangerous, as it says 'Public enemies', and this reflects the image as it portrays him to not be trusted, and a gangster. The subheading also makes the audience not like him and see him as the enemy, because by saying public enemies, it seems like everyone is against him, and there must be a reason for everyone not liking him, therefore the audience start to think of him as an enemy and not trust him. The subheading also says 'Johnny Depp steals summer', and this subtly conveys to the audience that the character he is playing could be a theif. The subheading is in grey and this also reflects the colour of the smoke, conveying to the audience that these public enemies have not been caught, and are very slippery and sneaky, the colour also goes with the colour them of the cover, and this is also a convention of magazine front covers, as they all have a colour theme on their front cover.

Cover lines: The cover lines represent the genre of the cover and the magazine, as the cover lines are about heroes of 2010, and this represents how the cover is about good guys, and bad guys. The cover lines are about Robin Hood, Iron Man 2, and Clash of the Titans, and the main characters in these are all thought of as heroes, and good guys, but Robin Hood was a criminal but everyone thinks of him as a hero, and this could reflect the image and the character Johnny Depp plays, that he is thought of by the police as an enemy, but he is really a good guy. The cover lines also represent the target audience of the films and the magazine, as the films are all Action films, it is evident that the magazine is targeting males, as men can relate to the characters, and not many women enjoy Action films, also the main protagonists in all the films are male, and this makes it impossible for women to relate to the film. There are also cover lines on the bottom of the cover, representing how these are just little extras and are not the main stories, and these are also about men Jack Black, and Peter Jackson's new Sci-fi film, and these are also aimed at men, but I think all the cover lines are really aimed at young men, as they're the main demographic of Action films, but there is also Winona Ryder's name along with the men, and this signifies how the magazine is also aimed at women, but they are not the main audience of the magazine. There is also a cover line at the top of the cover about Harry Potter, and an exclusive look at the film, and the audience of Harry Potter is both male and female, so this appeals to women whereas the other stuff doesn't, and Harry Potter fans may buy the magazine just to have a look at the next Harry Potter film. The cover lines are also in red and white, representing the colour theme, and they also stand out against the background, so people can see the stories, and this is also a convention of magazine front covers.

Extras: On the cover there is the iconic logo of the ghostbusters, and it says Dan Aykroyd speaks, and he was one of the main actors in the film, and this appeals to all the fans of ghostbusters, as they want to know if they will be a third ghostbusters, and as they have an actor from the film speaking, it makes it seem more plausible so people buy it to see if it is true, and it also goes with the theme of the cover, as the ghostbusters hunt ghosts, the heroes hunt the bad guys, and it represents the cover theme of good and bad. It also conveys the audience of the magazine and film, as most of the people who watch ghostbusters are male, and this appeals to males, again conveying that the people who read this magazine are mostly male. The logo is also in the colours that are the theme of the cover, red and black signifying danger, and the bad guys, and the white signifying the good guys. I have also found that on the covers I have analysed there are little extras, and I have found this a convention of magazine covers, and I am going to follow this convention and add extras on my cover.

Date/issue number: The date and issue number are conventions of magazine covers, and are found on most front covers, the date and issue number are at the bottom of the cover, and are there to help the readers and the audience, and the barcode is also at the bottom corner of the cover, and I have found that on the covers I have analysed the barcode goes at the bottom. The price is also near the barcode, and the price of the magazine is £3.99, and this is quite expensive and it represents how this must be a very good magazine, as most magazines cost around £2.00, and this suggests that this has exclusive features in it that other magazines don't.