Friday, 19 December 2014
Thursday, 18 December 2014
Adobe Premiere Elements: How to add a small ID logo in the corner of a v...
This helped me put on the news banner as Adobe pro elements 10 is a very complicated piece of soft wear.
Stalker news scene - Updated
This is our news scene which will be seen on the TV when our female protagonist is watching it home alone. we used the BBC closing credits to make the audience feel that its real and it relates to them as most English citizens would watch the news and see the closing credit day to day. We didn't make the speaking perfect due to our camera running low on battery and us needing to film more that day, this doesn't matter too much as the scene would be on the TV and the audiences attention would be on the character not the quality of the filming. I have updated it to have a new banner to make this scene look more realistic and more like a actual news report. The breaking news supports our film as its about escaped convicts in the area to it will cause alarm
Wednesday, 17 December 2014
Stalker news scene
This is our news scene which will be seen on the TV when our female protagonist is watching it home alone. we used the BBC closing credits to make the audience feel that its real and it relates to them as most English citizens would watch the news and see the closing credit day to day. We didn't make the speaking perfect due to our camera running low on battery and us needing to film more that day, this doesn't matter too much as the scene would be on the TV and the audiences attention would be on the character not the quality of the filming. VIDEO HAS BEEN DELETED
Monday, 8 December 2014
To do list this week
1) Questionnaire Evaluation - explain your findings and how this has influenced your film trailer
2) Title Research of films in your genre then create practise titles and explain what is effective and why
3) Sound Research
4) Online Tutorials to help with the filming and editing
5) Animatic Storyboard
6) Stereotypical props and character types featured in the opening - explain that the antagonist photos featured in the trailer are conventional as the detective often looks at the suspects. The antogonist is a stereotypical representation as he is a convicted criminal, male, middle-aged, serious and intimidating etc.
2) Title Research of films in your genre then create practise titles and explain what is effective and why
3) Sound Research
4) Online Tutorials to help with the filming and editing
5) Animatic Storyboard
6) Stereotypical props and character types featured in the opening - explain that the antagonist photos featured in the trailer are conventional as the detective often looks at the suspects. The antogonist is a stereotypical representation as he is a convicted criminal, male, middle-aged, serious and intimidating etc.
Thursday, 4 December 2014
Shot types we are using in our film
This is a list of some of the shot types which will be shown shown in our trailer, we will try to use a range of shots throughout.
Over the shoulder shot- This shot will be used when Chloe is sitting down watching the news report, the over the shoulder shot will show the TV and it will tell the audience that she is watching the report.
Close up- We will use this shot when we are showing the expression on Chloe's face, this will be when she is frightened due to the lights going off.
Extreme close up- This will be shown when the Antagonist is in Chloes house. There will be an extreme close up of his eyes, he will be seen to be very serious and intimidating which will link to his character.
Long shot- We will use a long shot when the antagonist is shown to be following one of his victims, we will also use a long shot when the Antagonist is shown to be walking away from the scene with a knife.
Medium Shot- This will be used when Thomas is doing the news report. A medium shot is good as it shows his smart clothing, and it also shows the background, which is important because we are filming live from the scene.
Mood board
On the board we also have the weapon of choice our murder will be using, as we have researched we have seen that each antagonist in a slasher film has had different weapon of choice like in Texas Chainsaw Massacre the main weapon is a chainsaw, or in Halloween Mike Myers uses a kitchen knife more often than not, in our trailer the antagonist will use a meat cleaver to kill his victims.
Our character types are also shown on screen as we see, their will still be a group of people being hunted, and the primary character in the film will be a film, this goes against what the audience would expect from a female character as we are often given a male protagonist as they appear strong and physically able to beat the antagonist.
J RAT production logo

This is the production logo we have designed to add to the beginning of our trailer. The name J-RAT Media Productions comes from a combination of our filming groups names, and we thought it was effective and memorable.
Trailer billing card
We have created a billing card to go on the end of our trailer to add to the realism and make it look like a genuine film trailer. We used the layout from the film Seven's billing card to help us design ours and make it look like the real thing.
Thriller genre history
The first thriller film was produced by Alfred Hitchcock in 1926, it was called The Lodger and was a suspenseful Jack the Ripper story, Hitchcock is considered by many to be the father of the modern psychological thriller film as he has produced so many critically acclaimed thriller films, he was nicknamed "the master of suspense", six of his 15 films in the 20's and 30's were thrillers and almost everything he did afterwards was Thriller, he also produced The Man Who Knew Too Much.
In the 1940's and 50's, Alfred Hitchcock continued producing suspense thrillers such as the Oscar winning film Rebecca which is about a women in danger from her husband. During the 50's the use of technicolour filming techniques became more widely used, Hitchcock began to use it in his films during this time period, he produced Strangers on a Train in 1951 which was about two train passengers who both staged a series of murders trying to outwit each other.
In the 1960's the violence that appeared in thriller films increased rapidly with the release of Peeping Tom, with Carl Boehm as a psychopathic cameraman the film was released prior to Hitchcock's Psycho. After Hitchcock produced the thriller Psycho, which at the time stunned and frightened audiences for its graphic deaths and tension, the film itself is about a loner mother-fixated motel owner who kills the guests at his motel. Spy thrillers also began to appear, films like James Bond were very popular especially during this time because it was the height of the Cold War.
The 70's and 80's had spy films scattered through them and most of the James Bond films were released during these decades. The industry also see's the last Hitchcock film as he died in 1980, he released one of his last films in 1972, it was called Frenzy and it made nearly $12 million. These years also saw rapid increase in the number of slasher films and films tended to be far more violent as the industry began using improved makeup and special effects techniques.
The 90's and films today have seen a wide range of thrillers, there have been several films based on thriller novels, most famously by Stephen King. The 90's was an era of obsession based films with a stalker usually following or becoming obsessed with a certain character an example of this was The talented Mr Ripley. There was however another theme throughout the 90's and this was the hunting down of serial killers, the most famous of which is Silence of the Lambs, which received best-picture in 1991, Seven was another famous thriller of this decade. Since then the thriller genre has started to reuse elements from previous films and add more violence and brutality, an example of this includes The Last House on the Left.
Institution research
These are the six major film institutions (The Big Six). Film institutions are very important as they provide the money for films to be made, and without them, no one would ever get enough money to make a decent budget film. These companies also own studios, providing places in which major films can shoot exactly what they want. The only problem with film institutions funding a film is that they like to have complete control over the project, so if you go to them for money your film may not end up being completely how you originally planned. They are all about making money, and this stops film advancing as an art form. However a lot of good films are made by studios and the film business wouldn't be what it is today without these major institutions.
Warner Bros studios was founded in 1903. It was formed by four brothers called the Warner brothers, and was one of the first companies to make movies with dialogue in it. They also famously started the original 'Looney Tunes', as well as many more successful cartoons. Warner Bros have a very wide range of films. They tend to make high budget movies, to make a lot of money, and their films are shown around the world. Their films appeal to a very wide range of audience as they make films from many different genres. Previous Warner Bros films include: 'Harry Potter', 'The Departed', 'The Dark Knight', 'Slumdog Millionaire', 'P.S. I Love You', 'Charlie and the Chocolate Factory', 'Troy', 'Blade Runner', 'The Wrong Man'.
Paramount Studios was founded in 1916 and is one of the oldest film institutions. Steven Spielberg is a major partner with Paramount as he is one of the leading film directors in Hollywood and this is a major contributor to Paramounts success as he has many fans and followers who will watch anything he puts out, making most of his films instant money makers. Paramount are ranked as one of the highest-grossing film studios in the world. As with Warner Bros, they make a very wide range of films which targets many different audiences with each film. Paramount films include: 'Titanic', 'Transformers' 'Indiana Jones', 'Iron Man', 'Forrest Gump', 'War of the Worlds', 'Mission Impossible', 'Shutter Island', 'Paranormal Activity' .
Sony Pictures is another of the film studios in 'the big six'. Although you wouldn't think that Sony would be in the big six it does own Columbia Pictures, which is a much more well known company. Another slightly less well known, but still widely appreciated company that they own is Tristar Pictures. As Sony are primarily associated with gaming and electronics their film side isn't as well known. Despite this, they are still one of the highest grossing companies in the world. Most of their money comes from the fact that they are already such a big company so people have heard of them so will trust in them. They also do a lot of advertising for their films through their other products (such as the PS3 gaming console). Sony Pictures films include: 'Spiderman', 'Men in Black', 'Gladiator', 'The Da Vinci Code', 'Quantum of Solace', 'Hancock', 'The Pursuit of Happyness', 'The Adventures of Tintin, 'The Social Network', 'Bucky Larson: Born to be a Star'.
Walt Disney Pictures is probably the most famous film institution, mainly because most people grow up watching most of their films and TV shows. Disney are famous for their traditional family movies and cartoons but recently have made more action films for example 'Tron' and 'Pirates of the Caribbean' to reach out to a larger target audience by doing something a bit more appealing to teens and adults. They also own a large number of institutions: Touchstone Pictures, Pixar, Marvel, and most recently Lucasfilm. Pixar are seen as one of the best film institutions in the world, as they consistently make excellent films. Their films are enjoyable for both children and their parents, making them a real money maker. Pixar and Marvel both stray from producing a large number of films, opting instead for taking their time with each one and increasing the quality of the films. The quality of the films aren't as high as Marvel , but are more 'fun'. This is what makes for millions of fans as everyone is on edge waiting for them to bring out the next film. Through these companies Disney manages to get a huge amount of money, and it is a big factor in their recent success. Disney films include: 'The Lion King', 'Toy Story 3', 'The Avengers', 'Pirates of the Carribean', 'Beauty and the Beast', 'High School Musical', 'Tangled', 'Thor', 'Finding Nemo', 'Hannah Montana', 'Bambi', 'The Princess and the Frog', 'Alladin', 'A Bug's Life' .
Universal Pictures is another major film institution. They have large theme parks around America which help promote their business, helping them make more money. Universal, like many other film institutions, make a large range of film genres to target a large market of people. They are another company that go hand in hand with Warner Bros and Paramount as they are all in it more for the money than for the art form of making films itself. However they don't disappoint bringing out big budget films that have been highly successful and have made many films that are seen to be classics for example 'E.T' and 'Jaws'. Universal films include: 'Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy', 'E.T', 'Bourne Identity', 'Despicable Me', 'Back to the Future', 'A Beautiful Mind', 'American Graffiti', 'Love Actually', 'Bruce Almighty', 'Jaws', 'American Gangster', 'Mamma Mia!', 'Jurassic Park', 'King Kong', 'Meet the Fockers', 'The Mummy'.
20th Century Fox is another very large film institution well known across the world. 20th Century Fox was one of the film institutions that started a little later compared to the other big companies. This institution is owned by a news corporation which also own the Fox television channel which helps in making them a lot of money. The TV channel has pumped out many shows that the world has loved for many years. They sometimes even make films from the TV shows they play on their channel for example 'The Simpsons Movie'. 20th Century Fox tend to make very high budget films and like many other institutions, make films for a wide range of genres. Many people criticize them and say that the company is nothing more then a logo where as other institutions have more to show for, like Universal with a theme park and Sony with its electronics. However 20th Century Fox are still a widely well known institution. Famous 20th Century Fox films include: 'Avatar', 'Star Wars', 'Independence Day', 'Home Alone', 'X-Men', 'The Simpsons Movie', 'Ice Age', 'I, Robot', 'Marley and Me', 'Taken', 'Minority Report', 'Prometheus', 'Die Hard', 'Speed', 'Alien', 'Eragon', 'True Lies', 'Titanic', 'Moulin Rouge!', 'Road to Perdition', 'Night at the Museum', 'Austrailia'.
Finally, Lionsgate Entertainment was originally formed in 1998, it is based in California where it is able to produce different types of media products from movies to TV dramas to music, Lionsgate is the most commercially successful mini major film and television distribution company in North America and the seventh most profitable movie studio, with total income estimated at around $2 billion. Although not part of "The Big Six," Lionsgate is still a widely known and successful company. Lionsgate are known for producing highly successful film franchises such as The Hunger Games series, as well as this they have also produced several successful horror films such as Cabin in the Woods, The Possession, Sinister ,Texas Chainsaw 3D, and the SAW series.
It seems that many of the large film institutions that started right at the beginning of film making are the most successful production companies in recent times. This makes sense as they have had the most time to evolve and grow to what they are now, giving the audience the best possible films they can make for us to enjoy.
How our audience wanted our antagonist
The of the questions on the Antagonist also helped us a lot. Our group was unsure whether to make the antagonist visible or non visible. The results of the question swayed us in favour of visible, with 65% of people saying so. Also the results of the question on antagonist characteristics helped us show what the character will be like in the trailer. In the trailer the antagonist is seen to be creepy, mentally unstable and intimidating.
*Favourite horror sub-genre questionnaire results
When asked what their favourite horror sub genre was the majority of people said thriller, So we decided to make our film a Thriller. Before we recorded this questionnaire, we were unsure whether to do a thriller or a psychological horror.
Results from our questionnaire about our protagonist.
This question of our survey wasn't a must for us as in the trailer we don't see a protagonist. we have thought of one as a detective but he did not make it into our trailer
Feedback from our questionnaire about our antagonist
Location questionnaire answers
When deciding our location the questionnaire results helped us massively, as we were unsure on where the film would be located. With 40% of the people saying to use a house, we decided to use that. Also we agreed with 20% of the people as we chose to film some of our shots outside near a park.
Age and Gender results
These results show that the majority of people we asked were between the ages of 16-20, also it shows the most of the people we asked were male. We decided to set our age certificate to 15, so the questionnaire results are still helpful to us as only 5% of the people we asked were under 15.
Tuesday, 2 December 2014
First day of filming
-On the 30th of November we filmed for the first time. This is Thomas Cunningham in our film. this is the scene where he is reporting in news about the new dangerous convicts that has escaped the mental hospital. His costume was very good and he looks professional new reporter due to the suit and trench coat. This scene is the establishing shot of our trailer as it tells the audience what the trailer entails and what the movie will be structured on.
- The weather was good, as there was no rain, this meant we were able to film without any distractions.
- We were not able to film all of the shots
- We have filmed around half of the shots that we need to do
-We are going to look over the shots in the coming days and see if we need to re film them
- The rest of the shots needed are at a different location
-These shots will be filmed in the coming days
- We feel the quality of the shots are a lot better than last years filming
- The camera quality is very good as we used a GoPro
Monday, 24 November 2014
Film script
starts off near the crime scene, were Tom is reporting the murders.
THOMAS: We are now reporting live from the scene of a murder investigation. We believe that the source of this murder is from the recent outbreaks from the West Park Avenue mental asylum.
PRODUCTION CREDITS
insides Chloes living room while she's watching the news report
THOMAS: We would advise anyone within the area to stay inside until the murderer is caught, the police have informed us that this man has the potential to go on endanger the lives of others.
To the first murder outside under the bridge.
(long shot of a stramnger being followed by the stalker.)
( reverse shot of the other end of the pathway showing murderer walking off and showing the victim laying dead in the background)
TITLES- BASED ON A TRUE STORY
ALEX: Who is it? (shouting, while looking at pictures of potential suspects)
( back to Chloe's living room face timing the detective/ boyfriend )
CHLOE: This stalker person is really creeping me out Matt, when will you be home?
ALEX: I'll be a few hours, you'll be fine, don't worry about it.
CHLOE; What was that?
ALEX: what?
CHLOE: I just heard something
ALEX: Dont be silly, i'll be home soon anyway stop worrying
CHLOE: Okay try and be as quick as...
ALEX: Chloe.... who's that behind you..
she turns around and lights turn off , Chloe screams
MURDERER: You better hurry home. ( fade to black transition)
TITLES- STALKER
THOMAS: We are now reporting live from the scene of a murder investigation. We believe that the source of this murder is from the recent outbreaks from the West Park Avenue mental asylum.
PRODUCTION CREDITS
insides Chloes living room while she's watching the news report
THOMAS: We would advise anyone within the area to stay inside until the murderer is caught, the police have informed us that this man has the potential to go on endanger the lives of others.
To the first murder outside under the bridge.
(long shot of a stramnger being followed by the stalker.)
( reverse shot of the other end of the pathway showing murderer walking off and showing the victim laying dead in the background)
TITLES- BASED ON A TRUE STORY
ALEX: Who is it? (shouting, while looking at pictures of potential suspects)
( back to Chloe's living room face timing the detective/ boyfriend )
CHLOE: This stalker person is really creeping me out Matt, when will you be home?
ALEX: I'll be a few hours, you'll be fine, don't worry about it.
CHLOE; What was that?
ALEX: what?
CHLOE: I just heard something
ALEX: Dont be silly, i'll be home soon anyway stop worrying
CHLOE: Okay try and be as quick as...
ALEX: Chloe.... who's that behind you..
she turns around and lights turn off , Chloe screams
MURDERER: You better hurry home. ( fade to black transition)
TITLES- STALKER
Targets this week for your group
1) Questionnaire Results
2) Script
3) Animatic Storyboard
4) Shot List
5) Mood Board
6) Diary of Filming and Editing
2) Script
3) Animatic Storyboard
4) Shot List
5) Mood Board
6) Diary of Filming and Editing
Saturday, 22 November 2014
Ted 2 - Official Trailer (HD)
From this trailer we can see that this film is a comedy, the trailer shows many conventions of comedy. At the start of the trailer we see ted marring a woman, this would suggest the film is a comedy as the target audience of 15 - 30 would find it amusing.
the non-diegetic sound in the establishing shot of the location sounds up beat and cheerful telling the audience that this could be a happy story, especially when ted announces him and his wife will be trying for a baby. what works well with the sound is that when a joke is about to be told the music stops so it focuses on the joke making the audience hear it. highlighting the comedic aspects of the film making people want to see it.
Wednesday, 19 November 2014
What Is the Difference in a Horror Movie & a Thriller?
In this video it explains the difference between a horror film and a thriller. Looking back at this video we can understand that our trailer/film would correlate more to a thriller film not horror. I can say this because in the video he explains that a horror aims to make the viewers scared and to make them feel uncomfortable while watching the film. A thriller aims to keep the viewers on the edge of their seats and to feel nervous towards the character. in our trailer there wont be any jump scares or scary monsters but there would be allot of suspense.
Monday, 10 November 2014
Title research
This is an idea for our title, we are going for the red bold font. The red will connote blood and danger
Thursday, 6 November 2014
Conventions of horror films
The conventions of horror films are: murders, female with sex appeal, 'jumpy scenes' and creepy music. In a horror film the intention of the film is to scare the audience. To scare the audience the main theme of horror films are peoples worst nightmare. So for example a serial killer, a clown or a ghost. Also tension is created by creepy music. The music is usually very slow paced. The camera shots in horror movies are mostly long shots and close ups. Close ups are used to show the facial expressions of the characters, most of the time the close ups are on the character that is being attacked. This is because it enables the audience can see and even feel their fear. Long shots are used to show the whole setting, sometimes long shots shows things creeping up behind someone, this creates tension. When the audience can see something or someone creeping up behind a person in a long shot it creates dramatic irony.
In almost all horror films there is a teenage girl being killed. The girl is seen to be the damsel in distress. Also she is seen to be fragile and helpless. The girl always seems to be alone in a place far away from anything. This makes the girl vulnerable.
The target audience for horror films are young people aged 16-30 Many teenagers will want to watch a horror film as they will feel as if they can relate to the film. Teenagers are used most of the time in horror films. Also young people will want watch horrors as they will want to see blood and gore, which is shown a lot in horror films. The colours used in horror films are usually black and red. This is because stereo typically these colours connote evil and death. Teens would would be the target audience because they usually want to have adrenaline rushes and they also want to have the shock factor. Older people will not be the target audience as they will feel that horror films are boring and unrealistic as they would of seen many before.
In almost all horror films there is a teenage girl being killed. The girl is seen to be the damsel in distress. Also she is seen to be fragile and helpless. The girl always seems to be alone in a place far away from anything. This makes the girl vulnerable.
The target audience for horror films are young people aged 16-30 Many teenagers will want to watch a horror film as they will feel as if they can relate to the film. Teenagers are used most of the time in horror films. Also young people will want watch horrors as they will want to see blood and gore, which is shown a lot in horror films. The colours used in horror films are usually black and red. This is because stereo typically these colours connote evil and death. Teens would would be the target audience because they usually want to have adrenaline rushes and they also want to have the shock factor. Older people will not be the target audience as they will feel that horror films are boring and unrealistic as they would of seen many before.
Age certificates
This would be suitable for people aged 4 and over
All ages are admitted, but some scenes may be unsuitable for young children
It is suitable for people aged 12 and over, but in some cases the parents may feel that some things in a 12 film are unsuitable.
This is suitable for ages 15 and over. 15 rated films contain adult themes, strong language and drug and sex references.
Films under this category do not have limitation on the bad language that is used. Hard drugs are generally allowed, and explicit sex references along with detailed sexual activity are also allowed.
Representation in our film
There are many types of representation and stereotypes in Horror films, this is a guide to some of the typical stereotypes that can be expected to be seen in Horror films such as Halloween:
The Female Victim-
The female victim are often portrayed as being vulnerable and in need of protection, by the films protagonist or hero, this kind of representation began in the early days of horror as the main character was often heroic and almost always male. The victim isusually young, blonde and attractive, which helps to appeal to a wider male audience. However this character is often seen as having an annoying and stupid personality, They are often the one character the audience wants to be killed. They are usually never killed first but are normally saved until one of the last victims, they will normally die in the most graphic way possible. The director will often use this character to help build suspense in the audience, as she will often be on edge and very easily scared by loud noices, this would make the audience far more jumpy.
Non-Believer-
Hysterical Character-
This kind of character is often female. They are normally the character who doesn't want to investigate anything suspicous, she is normally the most likely character to be left behind in a situation. This would normally lead to her to eihter being killed first or left till last. Her emotional outbursts would help build suspense in the audience and it could also build hysteria in the audience making them more jumpy and frightened.
Evil Character-
Evil characters are varied and can range from serial killers to demonic possession. If the antagonist is a human they often wear masks, so we can't identify them and it also leaves mystery as we don't know what they look like under the mask, they will also never expose their emotions which means as the audience we can never connect with them. As human's they don't react normally to injuries, and they can often reanimate after the protagonist thinks he's dead, this hints to the audience that there is something unnatural. The unnatural creatures such as Demons are known to play on the fears of the audience and films that contain these monsters in them are often the scariest because they take place in places normally associated with safety such as homes, but they also make the most innocnet looking things the victims worst nightmare. This character is strikes fear in the audience everytime they appear on screen and they are also what builds the most tension.
The Female Victim-
The female victim are often portrayed as being vulnerable and in need of protection, by the films protagonist or hero, this kind of representation began in the early days of horror as the main character was often heroic and almost always male. The victim isusually young, blonde and attractive, which helps to appeal to a wider male audience. However this character is often seen as having an annoying and stupid personality, They are often the one character the audience wants to be killed. They are usually never killed first but are normally saved until one of the last victims, they will normally die in the most graphic way possible. The director will often use this character to help build suspense in the audience, as she will often be on edge and very easily scared by loud noices, this would make the audience far more jumpy.
Non-Believer-
There will also often be a character in horror films who is portrayed as cocky and overconfident, they will often try and convince others in the film that there is no antagonist and that they are overreacting. This character can be either sex but is often portrayed as a male. The characters cockiness is usually the thing that gets the character killed off, there death is oftenly near the beginning. The audience will normally be reassured by their calm attitude and belief that there is nothing wrong, however when they are eventually killed this calm attitude disappears and the other characters often become panicked and this can lead to other deaths.
Hero-
Almost always a male character they are often seen as strong and very masculine, they rarely show enough emotion given the situation, and are often either the only one to survive or the last character to survive. There is an increasing trend in which this steretype is being protrayed by a female lead instead of male character, this can broaden the audience and attract females and males, as females could be attracted by the strong female lead as well as the strong male lead.
Hysterical Character-
This kind of character is often female. They are normally the character who doesn't want to investigate anything suspicous, she is normally the most likely character to be left behind in a situation. This would normally lead to her to eihter being killed first or left till last. Her emotional outbursts would help build suspense in the audience and it could also build hysteria in the audience making them more jumpy and frightened.
Evil Character-
Evil characters are varied and can range from serial killers to demonic possession. If the antagonist is a human they often wear masks, so we can't identify them and it also leaves mystery as we don't know what they look like under the mask, they will also never expose their emotions which means as the audience we can never connect with them. As human's they don't react normally to injuries, and they can often reanimate after the protagonist thinks he's dead, this hints to the audience that there is something unnatural. The unnatural creatures such as Demons are known to play on the fears of the audience and films that contain these monsters in them are often the scariest because they take place in places normally associated with safety such as homes, but they also make the most innocnet looking things the victims worst nightmare. This character is strikes fear in the audience everytime they appear on screen and they are also what builds the most tension.
Prop research
The most commonly used props in a horror movie seem to be
masks and weapon-focused. A hockey mask or some form of face-covering is
stereotypical of the genre, adding to the fear the antagonist instills to the
audience as their identity is hidden, raising enigmas. Famous examples include
Mike Myers from the Halloween film franchise and Hannibal Lector.
The mask is an effective prop for this genre as part of
every horror is the build-up to the antagonists reveal, showing them gradually
to the audience to create suspense and tension. With the use of the mask the
suspense of the film is not deflated as soon as the villain is revealed to the
audience, as there are still questions raised surrounding the man behind the
mask, what he really looks like and why he is after the protagonists rather
than showing the full picture straight away. This is why we are thinking of
using a mask in our trailer, as this will allow us to show off our villain
without giving to much away and still giving the audience
questions.
Another key area for props in this genre is
weapon-focused, normally what the antagonist uses to hunt down the
protagonists. The most commonly used are knives (like Mike Myers, above),
chainsaws (The Texas Chainsaw Massacre) and machetes (Friday the 13th), all
weapons that would create a lot of blood and gore. This makes the antagonist a
more credible threat and plays on audience fears of stabbing and obviously,
dying. We are using a ghost/poltergeist as our villain so a weapon prop would
not really be fitting with the villain so we may not use this f
Costume research
Our film is based on the idea of having 4 main characters, 3
of these will be the "victims" and a escaped murderer who is hunting
them. The murderers costume will be most important as it needs to convey the
evil nature of our antagonist in order to unsettle the audience and make him a
credible threat. It would not make sense to have our murderer dressed in a
hoodie and jeans and wearing trainers as a murderer must be psychopathic and
therefore would not dress casually. Therefore the costume needs to convey to
the audience the idea of the murderer being crazy and therefore be abnormal. We
are already planning to have our murderer in some form of mask which will help
to put across the idea of his lunacy and make him a credible threat, it also
conceals the murderers identity adding mystery and suspense to the character as
the audience won't be able to tell who or what is under the mask. For the rest
of his costume, we thought about him wearing black, muddy, worn-out work boots
to as these would be conventional footwear for a killer to use. An example
would be the character Zep from the original Saw film.
The rest of the killers costume would ideally be mostly
black, which has the practical benefits of making them harder to identify in
shots which we can use to our advantage in teasing the character to the
audience in our trailer without fully revealing him. Black trousers, a black
jacket and black gloves with the mask would make our killer look creepy and
reveal almost nothing about him to the audience, further helping to make the
character intriguing and terrifying.
For our victims, costume-work will be easier to decide on as
there is a broader range of acceptable outfit. It is conventional for the
victims in horror films to be relatable for the audience, making it easier to
put yourself in their shoes and therefore making the scenario more frightening.
This is why most of the time teenagers are the victims in these films as
teenagers are the main target market for the horror genre. Our 3 victims will
also be teenagers and will dress accordingly in t-shirts, hoodies and trainers.
Ideally, most of the victims costumes will consist of bright colours like white
in order to contrast with the darkness of the villain and to make them seem
more vulnerable in a dark environment as they stand out more. Each costume
should also be tailored to reflect each characters personality, helping to make
them more identifiable to the audience. A good example is from the costume-work
in The Cabin in The Woods, which can be seen below. You have the
"jock" character wearing an American football jacket to show he is the
strong, sporty and typically stupid one in the film. Then you also have the
contrasting choice of costume for each of the female-characters, with the
blonde woman wearing a short skirt and the ginger woman wearing jeans, making
the audience sympathise more with the ginger woman as she seems more
respectable and less promiscuous than the blonde woman.
We have also had an idea for a fake news report to feature
in our trailer, with a news reporter setting the scene to the audience. If we
end up going along with the news report idea, we would likely have our news
reporter in a smart suit and tie to add to the realism, as this is typically
what you'd expect to see in a real life news report.
Questionnaire
These will be the questions that we will ask our audience, we hope that this will give us a better idea of what the target audience want to see.
1.What is your age and gender?
2. What would be a good location for a Horror film?
- A house
- A park
- A Forrest
- A school
3.Would you prefer the Antagonist to be a person or a ghost that cannot be seen?
4.What would you expect the Protagonist in the film to be like?
5.What would you expect the Antagonist in the film to be like?
6. What is you favourite genre within Horror?
- Blood and gore
- Ghosts
- Thriller
- Psychological
7. What is your favourite horror film? and why?
8. Would you prefer the Antagonist to be realistic or to be a character that is sub-normal?
9. Would you prefer if the Horror film is based on things that actually occur? e.g. stalking murder etc
10. Do Horror films containing blood and gore appeal to you?
11. What would you expect to see in a horror trailer?
1.What is your age and gender?
2. What would be a good location for a Horror film?
- A house
- A park
- A Forrest
- A school
3.Would you prefer the Antagonist to be a person or a ghost that cannot be seen?
4.What would you expect the Protagonist in the film to be like?
5.What would you expect the Antagonist in the film to be like?
6. What is you favourite genre within Horror?
- Blood and gore
- Ghosts
- Thriller
- Psychological
7. What is your favourite horror film? and why?
8. Would you prefer the Antagonist to be realistic or to be a character that is sub-normal?
9. Would you prefer if the Horror film is based on things that actually occur? e.g. stalking murder etc
10. Do Horror films containing blood and gore appeal to you?
11. What would you expect to see in a horror trailer?
Wednesday, 5 November 2014
Character research
Firstly we have our reporter, Thomas Cunningham. He will be our character who is in the establishing shot, telling the audience about this 'mysterious killer' who had recently escaped prison/mental asylum. Thomas should be wearing a reporter type clothing such as a trench coat and a shirt making him look the part (below), we may have to try and find a border in editing to make our establishing shot look more realistic we will need to find a new broadcasting sound to start of the establishing shot.

We now have one of our main characters within the trailer. This is Chloe Young, she will be our female who is targeted by our mysterious killer. we decided to use a female character as stereo-typically they are known to be the weaker more vulnerable race relying on males to be their savior. she will be wearing casual clothes as she is only a teenage girl in our film with no profession. In the insidious 3 trailer Chloe is like the girl in the wheel chair character.

We now have one of our main characters within the trailer. This is Chloe Young, she will be our female who is targeted by our mysterious killer. we decided to use a female character as stereo-typically they are known to be the weaker more vulnerable race relying on males to be their savior. she will be wearing casual clothes as she is only a teenage girl in our film with no profession. In the insidious 3 trailer Chloe is like the girl in the wheel chair character.
Monday, 3 November 2014
Research and Planning targets
Alex your group needs to make some decisions about your film as soon as possble. The posts listed below ideally need to be completed this week.
1.
Location research – you need to decide on the setting
of your film ASAP, include google earth images and pictures you have taken.
2.
Description of the actors and interviews
3.
Prop research
and analysis
4.
Costume ideas
5. Questionnaire and feedback on your initial
ideas
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