Saturday 10 May 2014
Drafts Of Horror Magazine
For my horror magazine I wanted to copy the conventions of the popular movie magazine Empire because of its layout, taglines, masthead and colour scheme. For the main images I used adobe photoshop to alter the two characters facial structure slightly as well as their colour's, so that they fitted the conventions related to the horror genre. I changed the contrast, the colour scheme and altered the makeup effect on both characters to make them look more sinister. I also use only two characters from my movie as it is conventional to have at least one character being interviewed in a magazine. As well as this i used a faded forest background as a forest is an iconic image in horror films as well as being important to the plot of my movie. The two characters create a code of enigma as we don't know who they are in relation to the movie or why they're like this. As well as this the tagline "Fear has a new face" makes the audience want to see the movie as well as read the article. The magazine almost seems to promote the movie as being a new type of horror genre which will become iconic in years to come.
I created a "plus" section as this is a common convention i found in empire magazine. It focused on different trailers and movies so that it portrayed the genre type I wanted to be associated with my magazine.
As well as this I used multiple taglines which were conventional of a magazine and would also help promote the magazine. Things such as "Superman Vs Batman" would help create a wider audience for my magazine as i shows that it doesnt just focus on one type of genre.
Thursday 8 May 2014
Magazines which influenced my own
Wednesday 7 May 2014
Jennifer's Body
JENNIFER'S BODY
Jennifer's Body is a black horror comedy that was released in 2009. The films Unique selling point would have to be the two main actresses, Megan Fox and Amanda Seyfried, who have been in popular mainstream movies such as Mama Mia and Transformers.
The film was created by 20th Century Fox, so people assume the film is going to be of a high quality and will attract audiences because of this.
The film focuses on the theme of demonic entities and broken friendships, which is shown in the establishing shot at the beginning on the trailer where we see Jennifer swimming across a lake in the middle of nowhere, whilst the non-diegetic soundtrack is bridged over it, which suggests the genre of the film. This is also suggested through the reflection of the forest on the surface of the lake, as the dark overtones could symbolize how darkness has taken over Jennifer.
The inter titles suggest that the film is going to be about teenagers in high school, and because of this the film is targeted at an audience of the same age. The fade effect used on the inter-titles creates a sense of tension and creates mystery around the characters.
Jennifer, in a long shot shows her to stand out against everyone else, mainly because of her costume as it is bright pink. The contrast of colours and her body language suggests she is flirtatious and gives us a sense of who her character is. During this scene, Jennifer, has a direct mode of address with the audience, making us feel as though we are apart of this world.
The main focus of the trailer shows how Jennifer charms men into being alone with her then suggests she kills or attacks them. During one of the scenes her eyes change to a white colour and in medium shot we can see her shadow change into some sort of demonic monster and again suggests she kills someone. This links to the genre of the film as being a horror whilst other scenes such as the dialogue between Jennifer and her friend when she says "I go both ways" suggests a more humorous side to the horror and plays on sexuality as a form of audience titillation and rumors about the celebrity.
The colours in the trailer are conventional of horror films, as there is a strong use of reds and black to suggest the horror genre and foreshadowing danger for the characters. As well as this the lighting used is minimal so the trailer seems more raw and conventional of a horror film.
There is an enigma of how Jennifer became the way she is. A scene that plays on this enigma is a medium shot of Jennifer burning her tongue. We as an audience know that if you did this you would be in pain and burnt, however Jennifer doesn't seem to feel this and after in the close up of her mouth, her tongue is fine. This is used to shock the audience whilst also being arousing, since the focus on her lips and clothing is made to look almost sexual.
Tuesday 6 May 2014
Silent Hill Trailer Analysis
Silent Hill is a 2006 psychological horror film which is one of the few films to be based off of a video game. The focus around the film is the town of silent hill, which seems to be cut off from the existing world. The plot turns on traditional conventions of horror films as the idea of a town which is neither real yet somehow is hasn't been done by the film industry before. The genre of the film is portrayed through the graphic violence in the trailer as well as the locations and non-diegetic soundtrack bridged over the dialogue.
The break in the equilibrium is sudden but is still conventional of horror films, as it is done 30 seconds into the trailer. The lighting and scene changes drastically, as there is now a cloak of mist and falling ash. As well as this Roses daughter is missing, which creates an enigma, as we as an audience don't know where she is or how she escaped the car accident. The question is also raised as whether the mother is actually alive, since we don't see what happens to her during the crash and how she ended up in this almost apocalyptic world.
T the close up of her face as she wipes away ash from her eye is effective in showing the contrast of the scene before hand, as it starts to build suspense and raises questions. The camera also moves from a medium shot of Rose to a wide shot of the sign "Silent Hill" which establishes the town as an omen and sets the movie. The change in the non-diegetic soundtrack bridged with the fast paced cut scene at 53 seconds also helps build suspense and starts the break in the equilibrium. Unlike most horror trailers, there are multiple breaks in the equilibrium. This makes the trailer stand out from the others and is an effective form of promotion, as it is unique and original. The character of Rose is seen to be strong and affectionate, as she is willing to face demonic creatures to find her daughter. As well as this By switching the roles of the mother to this heroic figure shows something that is unconventional and for some creates a sense of mystery behind the females character, as the transition from the her first appearance in the trailer to this character almost seems to reflect on the modern woman as being both masculine and feminine. This breaks the stereotype of women being weak as well as being dependent on men. Another break in this stereotype is when we see a female police officer, however her costume and presentation almost makes her seem masculine. The film also portrays sadistic violence which is shown briefly in the trailer, helping to portray the genre of the film.
A Critical analysis of the Animatic Process of Defaced Film
Trailer
An animatic is defined as a preliminary version of a film, produced by shooting
different sections of a storyboard and adding a soundtrack. The process in
which you make the animatic is made up of many different aspects of making a
film, however an animatic is used to see if the storyboard works and is a
series of still shots rather than moving images. However similarly to a movie
trailer, the editing software that we used (Windows Movie Maker) is how we
created our animatic.
The process of
creating the plot for our trailer was difficult, as we found it challenging to
create an original movie idea and to find locations that were within our
distance, which could be used. The key components we had to consider when
making our trailer were the breaks in the equilibrium, the telling of a story
without giving too much away, and portraying the characters and their
importance to the plot.
Originally we
had created three separate plots, however after many sessions of researching
plots of other horror films similar to ours, like “Identity” and “The Ward”, we
were able to adapt our plots into one final piece, thus creating “Defaced”. The
film “Identity” acted as a stimulus to construct our own adaptation of a
psychological horror. The main themes we wanted to portray in our film were the
unknown and the fear created from it, multiple personality disorder, the
justification of murder (in the sense that the characters want to stay hidden,
so this is how they justify it), the necessity of evil in human nature, the
inviolability of free will (the link to Mark and his split personalities – if
he’s controlling himself or if he is unaware and subconsciously leading his
friends to their doom), memory, and violence.
The title for
the film was a difficult creative decision to make as we wanted the title to
portray the main themes of the film, yet follow conventions of horror films in
the sense that their titles are in some way related to the way in which people
die. Films such as “Saw” and “A Nightmare on Elm Street” are a few examples of
this. Our title was at first hard to come up with as the names that we had
wanted to use such as “Skinned” and “The Unknown” had already been taken by
film companies such as Warner Bro’s and Paramount. That is when we decided to
create a title that not only emphasises the state of murder but also the idea
of vulnerability and great revilement. The idea for this came from African
tribal masks, which are said to conceptually make the user lose their human
identity and turn them into the creature or person represented by the mask
itself. We wanted the title to show this aspect as our plot centres on the
themes of creating a new persona and consequently creating a loss of human
identity.
To begin the
process of the animatic we first had to create a visual storyboard from the
plot we created. By drawing still images we were able to produce what we
thought would create a non-linear narrative for our trailer in the hopes of
getting both a physical reaction such as shock and emotional reaction such as
horror and fear from the audience.
During the
storyboard process it became clear to us that our plot would be difficult to
create a realistic adaptation due to a large amount of actors needed and visual
effects such as realistic pyro effects, aging of the skin and professional CJI.
However following revisions we had made to the plot by taking out a lot of the
actors for the asylum scene, removing the shop and B&B from the trailer
completely we drafted our storyboard. We found that the idea of Defaced was now
more believable and easier to create. Things such as a cut in characters and a
simplification from our original idea of making the plot focus more around the
asylum patients characters rather than who they were pretending to a more cut
down and easier to follow plot allowed us to finish our storyboard with
approximately 74 shots. As well as this we were also able to create a few test
shots of makeup and costumes to see if the characters would portray the genre
we wanted. The test shots showed that the plot was now something we could work
with to create our trailer without the need for a large amount of money, so we
began organising filming dates in which we would get certain scenes done.
As part of this
process we created a props list, which would help us get a clear idea of what
was needed for the scenes. For the film trailer we needed approximately 32
different props; such as fake blood, a strait jacket and knives, which are all
key images associated with the horror genre, so by following these conventions
we decided to heavily portray them in our trailer. We also needed appropriate
locations, which people could associate with the horror genre, so by placing a
large portion of the action in a forest and a deserted village people would get
this connection. Each location was selected for certain reasons; the forest was
used to show the majority of the action as the idea of concealment could be
portrayed there through the use of specific lighting and camera placement. In
one of our scenes in which Charlotte is being dragged away we are purposefully
never shown the face of the attacker, or if she dies or not, to create a code
of enigma. The village was used as its abandoned –like state would portray the
idea of isolation and help to build suspense. However, the most difficult
location to find was the caravan, as the location for the scenes had originally
been a basement, however after revisions made to the plot we decided on using
the caravan. The caravan was useful in portraying the themes of forgotten
memories, isolation and emptiness, as the scene in which it is used in which
the two Marks talk to one another is used to create a sense of confusion so
that the audience suspects Mark of being the murderer. However, the derelict
and wrecked caravan is also used to show a part of Mark, which he had
forgotten, which is why the location worked so well. The transitions between
the two Marks talking is broken with a negative camera shaking effect to imply
that what is going on isn’t real but rather a part of Mark trying to resurface.
Our soundtrack also added to the suspense of this scene, as the violin and deep
breathing sounds built tension in the scene adding to the confusion.
For the process of the animatic we had to
take still images that followed the action, style and layout of the storyboard
to help put the narrative of the trailer together. When doing this we had to
take into consideration the lighting of the area and the time of day, as
continuity was a key issue faced when taking the photos. We wanted to create a
final product that would portray characteristics similar to that of
professional trailers. Continuity was an issue during the beginning of filming
in relation to costume and lighting, as the scenes we had finished needed to be
recreated due to the images not being strong or bright enough and the actors
being filmed having different costumes on.
After redoing
these shots we were able to finish the scene and edit the images so that the
images flowed more realistically.
When deciding
on our actors we needed to take into deliberation who was available to be
filmed whenever we needed and that they also portrayed the characteristics of
the people in our plot. For the trailer we needed three females and two male
actors, however we also needed extras in certain scenes, such as the early
“escape scene” to help create the break in the equilibrium created by a scene
of a large crowd moving in chaos.
When creating
the “escape scene” we had a clear idea of what we wanted. Films such as “The
Ward” portrayed people trying to escape a mental asylum, which followed the
style and mimicked the chaotic disorder of the scene we were trying to make.
However, we were faced with some difficulties as the animatic only portrays
still images, so trying to create a sense of panic and anarchy was a challenge.
In our group we discussed how we could try and make the scene portray this
panicked rush of action, so when editing our animatic with windows moviemaker
we made the transitions faster to emphasise the break in the equilibrium. We
also added a non-diegetic soundtrack bridged with the diegetic sounds of
screams, fire, sirens and footsteps. Finding the right location for the scene
proved problematic, as the previous scenes of the patients in the mental
institution were filmed in Neville Hall Hospital. However, we decided to shoot
the scenes in our school corridor, but positioned the camera at a low canted
angle so that the scene wouldn’t look like a school corridor but rather a
hospital corridor. The positioning of the actors was also key in making this
scene more chaotic, as we had decided to use a low angled medium close up of
the patients’ legs to conceal the identities of the characters. This was done
so that the audience didn’t know who had escaped creating a code of enigma.
Props were used a lot during part of the scene as to imitate the fast
transitions we needed action, so by placing actors on the floor with blood and
lacerations on them it would show the perplexity of the patients and portray
them as animalistic as their own need to survive outweighed that of anyone
else.
Some shots we
were unable to do. For example, we had originally planned on filming the
majority of the action in a cornfield as the mise-en-scene is commonly
associated with the horror genre, with films such as “Children of the Corn”
using them in their film. A cornfield is also effective in portraying the
unknown as they are connected with aliens due to their portrayal in movies such
as “Signs”. However, due to timing and weather conditions there weren’t any
cornfields, as they had been harvested. Instead we had to make revisions to the
plot and that is how we came about sing a forest instead of a cornfield. We
believe that this decision was useful and in the end benefited our trailer as
audience feedback from questionnaires and interviews believed that the forest
scene was a key image they remembered because of its lighting and overall look.
For the
animatic the length of shots was determined by how much dialogue there was.
When taking the photos for the animatic we had to take into consideration the
script, as this was a key narrative structure, which we had to follow. So when
editing our final piece we had to change certain scenes from 7 to 10 seconds.
When filming the actual trailer the process of using dialogue wont be as much
of a challenge as we will know the precise time in which the dialogue is
spoken. The transitions used between scenes differed depending on the action in
the scene. During the middle of the trailer there had to be a build up to the
next break in the equilibrium so the cutting rate was slower and transitioning
effects limited. Other editing effects we used during the animatic process were
negative images during the caravan scene, a sepia effect added to photos during
the flashback scene and blacking out during title sequences.
For our
soundtrack we had to choose between a list of different titles from “Horror
Classic Hits” and “Sounds of Horror”, which use both string instruments and
computer emulated sounds to create a soundtrack similar to that in classic
horror movies. However the main issue was finding the sound that complimented
the scene in a way that didn’t overpower the dialogue and didn’t take the focus
away from the action. The soundtrack also had to build suspense to create a
shocked and fearful reaction when certain scenes, such as the knife and forest
scene. The film “The Ward”, “Identity” and “The Hills Have Eyes” are all films,
which build suspense through its soundtrack. “The Ward” uses similar techniques
to portray madness and identity to our own trailer, as the main protagonist
suffers from multiple personality disorder, yet it is unknown to the audience
till the very end of the film. As well as “The Ward”, “Identity” follows a
similar plot to this. Both films are effective as they keep the audience
guessing and build up suspense through the film. The use of non-diegetic
soundtracks in both films are equally important as well, as they mimic the
action around them. This idea of mimicking the action is what influenced us to
use a slow paced soundtrack in the car scene, as the slow and soft bass notes
from the string instruments creates a sense of impending doom.
Our animatic
appeals to our target audience as shown from our audience research where we
interviewed a group of 6 people roughly around the age of 18 and asked them
questions about key images they remembered and what was effective in the
trailer. They found that the mixture of male and female characters in our film
trailer portrayed different and unique characteristics and relationships, which
helped, create a more realistic group of friends, rather than being too
generic. This showed that our film trailer would appeal to a larger audience.
As well as this the brutality of some of the scenes and the enigma the trailer
creates is its unique selling point. However our subtitle of “You’ll Never Want
To Leave” confused the audience due to its phrasing. From this we were able to
change the subtitle.
Before making
our final trailer I would change certain props used in the animatic, such as
the makeup used on the patients. Originally I had wanted to use an almost white
foundation to make the complexion of the patients more sullen and dead to
emphasis their imprisoned mental state. However, due to our budget and lack of
resources I couldn’t obtain the makeup needed. As well as this I would have
preferred to use liquid latex to create the mask-like effect, but again there
were issues with our budget. In relation to our soundtrack, due to the fact
that the process was rushed in finding the albums previously stated, I felt
that the soundtrack didn’t work as best as it could have. However, now that we
are moving onto our actual trailer we have to use a soundtrack, which is
copyright free. We have begun planning our new soundtrack in hopes of creating
it ourselves using a piano, drums and string instruments, as well as
computer-generated sounds.
In Fear Trailer Analysis
IN FEAR
In fear was released in 2013. It is an Irish psychological horror film directed and written by Jeremy Lovering.
The film focuses on two characters, Tom and Lucy, who decide to go on a trip to a secluded hotel. The main focus on horror is when the two characters are in the car, as moral conflicts seem to arise between the two. The opening scene of the trailer is conventional, as it shows an establishing shot of the location the film is set in, so the audience gets a sense of where they are. The non diegetic soundtrack played over the action in the trailer adds suspense and helps build up to the break in the equilibrium. The break is conventional as the scenes become faster and to mimic this the soundtrack becomes louder yet the dialogue, which during the beginning of the trailer was long and established the characters, was towards the end shorter and more effective. The code of enigma in this trailer would be who the man was who got hit by the car, how did Lucy's clothes get in the middle of the road, and is Tom behind these strange events.
The trailer's unique selling point would have to be the fact that it is an Irish horror, which is uncommon among the film industry. As well as this the female actress is also well known in other teenage films, such as "Beautiful Creatures" which was an American blockbuster that was successful in both the UK and the USA.
The trailer is also conventional as it shows iconic images such as close ups of eyes, blood, locations such as a forest and the scream at the end of the trailer, which is used to create a physical reaction from the audience.
What was effective about the trailer was the inter-titles used to promote the film such as, "the best British chiller since the Descent."
The trailer alternates between medium close ups and medium shots throughout the trailer. An example of this is during the scene when both Tom and Lucy are standing outside the car in the forest. The scene cuts quickly to a long shot of the car with the diegetic sound of the cars alarm going off. This scene is effective in portraying the themes of the horror genre as it is unexpected and creates a sense of enigma as we as an audience don't know why this has happened.
Both Tom and Lucy portray stereotypical characters. Lucy is seen to be fragile, however the break in this stereotype is that she seems more intelligent than Tom. Although in contrast to this when she says "Ti saw someone" Tom ignores her. Tom is made out to be a dominating character as he is very demanding of Lucy and often leaves her in the car, perhaps to create this illusion that he is her knight in shinning armor.
The trailer lasts two minutes which is also conventional of horror trailers and is vague about the plot.
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