CoP3 Proposal-Option One

Name:

Rebecca Hollingsworth

E-mail:

rh251313@students.leeds-art.ac.uk

SUBJECTS OF CONTEXTUAL RESEARCH ALREADY UNDERTAKEN

Level 4:

As semiotic texts, what sorts of reality do adverts during the 1950s construct and how?

Level 5:

How does society impact upon animal’s habitat loss, and does the nature of environmental campaigns affect our response to such issues?

AIM AND/OR OBJECTIVE OF YOUR PROPOSED C.O.P.3 PROJECT

The impact of the Harry Potter stories On society? How did the Harry Potter series shape a generation? Why did Harry Potter become such a worldwide success? How did it revolutionise supernatural story telling? How has this encouraged kids (and adults) to read? How are the books different from the films, for example regarding the portrayal of key characters? Why was it so successful across multiple media platforms? Controversy of content – cultural non acceptance of the witchcraft storylines What are the most important elements that made Harry Potter so wildly successful? How did different media platforms like film, book and online forums help make Harry Potter a success? What made it different to other books in terms of its range of appeal?? How did the products change to suit the needs of different target markets?

1.     What research needs to be undertaken into the general and specific contexts of your practice?

Why was Harry Potter such a huge success What made it different? look at what the directors and producers say about what makes it special. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2199561/Be-seen-book-Its-just-cool-say-children.html Why do people like fantasy stories? Takes them away from the real world? ‘Separate book covers were created to get more adults on board in addition to children’ How this crosses generations Sparking interest in reading – did it change reading habits/ encourage reading? How the audience grew up with the cast: How the stories, especially the films, got darker as the audience got older / the series progressed – age appropriateness. Who is the client group? Targeted adults too Background on the scope of its reach: Sale figures for films and merchandise The Brilliant Methods That Made Harry Potter A $15 Billion Brand – link to news article Customers who feared their local bookstore would run out of copies responded by pre-ordering over 700,000 copies prior to the July 8, 2000 release date, according to Gunelius. Statistics Costs of film production? Cost of book production? Profits/ income generated The stories about a boy wizard and his friends spurred young people's interest in reading -- and more book sales Fan base fan fiction generated – Pottermore – perfect 21c marketing campaign - Guradian fan sites-MuggleNet.com and The Leaky Cauldron.org Initially, Warner Brothers tried to put a stop to the many fan blogs that were popping up with numerous lawsuits. Fans fought back and eventually Warner Brothers realized its mistake: the wiser move would be to encourage fans to continue talking about Harry Potter. link to news article The number of Harry Potter fan pages is estimated to be in the thousands in multiple languages. They include everything from news, photos and videos to podcasts, contests and merchandise. link to news article “When Harry Potter first came out the Internet was just getting started and big corporations didn’t understand how it worked,” says Jeff Gomez, president and CEO of Starlight Runner Entertainment. “They’re finally starting to realize that it’s important to allow customers to personalize the way they experience a brand.” link to news article Other formats / merchandise / experiences Look at the book covers and merchandise and film posters to find out what was different in relation to target audiences reached J.K. Rowling is discerning about merchandising deals -- she famously said "no" to McDonalds Interactive games Harry Potter studio tours-fans can see the set Orlando-Harry Potter world The Wizarding World of Harry Potter theme park at Universal Studios has drawn in millions of visitors J. K. Rowling's compelling personal story has also fueled interest -- she was once a single-mother living on welfare who is now richer than the Queen of England J.K. Rowling is discerning about merchandising deals -- she famously said "no" to McDonalds Research visits Warner Brothers Studio planned – June 2015

2.     What approach will you take and what processes, methods, materials and  tools  are to be involved in research into your practice?

New range of book covers - both adults and children Posters to advertise the books Make items linked to reading such as book marks Make interactive items to encourage reading such as puzzles A Harry Potter fun pack? Stickers, magnets, magnetic book marks Practical considerations Illustration based Experiment with block colour, line and shape – try a variety of styles to move away from my usual look, more stylised and graphic rather than loose and painterly..

3.     What preparation or investigations do you need to undertake for your creative practice to take place?  Research visits Go on a studio tour Really look at what the directors and producers say about what makes it special. Literature search articles interviews social media official and unofficial sites websites from related attractions making of…YouTube Contextual referencing book illustration fantasy pitched for different ages examples of illustrators with suitable styles comment on styles used for existing formats

4.     What research do you need to undertake regarding who your creativity is for?

Look at who is most likely to watch and read Harry Potter Design a fun pack which adults would be happy to purchase for their children, which would contain items appealing to all ages. Establish what literacy based materials exist already via research and incorporate these ideas in to the activity pack. e.g. ·       puzzles, games, stickers, for children ·       items supporting literacy which make it fun

I plan to ask people of different age ranges what they like and don’t like about existing illustrations, such as those used on book covers, I will use the feedback to help design the graphic elements on my practical work.

Primary Sources of Information
1.         Description	Research visit - Studio tour.
Location
2.         Description	Speak to fellow students about their thoughts on the impact Harry Potter had on them in terms of the books and the films, note the main themes emerging to inform the illustrations.
Location
3.         Description	Survey asking kids questions about existing formats – what appeals.
Location

Secondary Sources of Information
1.	articles
2.	books
3.	Scholars
4.	Youtube videos
5.	Online interviews
6.	Websites

Perceived problems or difficulties: Finding a topic or main question- can I write how it’s impacted on a generation? Do I look at the promotional side of it and how that helped people get involved and interact?-Pottermore? How did it help children to fall in love with reading? What can I do for the practical? Re-do the covers and make additional merchandise? As this has been done before, I could then develop new merchandise ot form an activity pack which support children’s learning and literacy.