Chosen Genre

Researching my Chosen Genre 

• I thought that looking more into horror/psychological thriller genre films would be interesting and productive to make sure that as a group we could make our final piece look very professional with the use of different elements, especially as we weren't quick to decide on our genre and considered rom-com for a while as well and so our research was more divided between two genres than some other groups. We want our film to be original but fulfil expectations of our genre.

Common camera angles and movements

• Various camera angles and movements are used to make the thriller genre more melodramatic. When looking at a variety of horror and sinister films I found that in general, there are a lot more camera movements than there would be in e.g. rom-com. This is not just the classic handheld camera while someone's running scene; I noticed that even in quiet scenes of dialogue, the shot / reverse shot technique is used with a slightly moving camera tracking round the characters, giving the sense that nothing is stable 
• A common camera angle is a POV shot this is used to allow the audience to feel sympathetic towards the characters and is often an important shot when filming a horror. This shot also puts the viewers in to the character's position allowing them to feel more scared. This shot is usually filmed from the protagonist’s perspective, but there are also POV shots taken from the villain's perspective to give a sense of spying on / stalking the main character.
• For example shown in this photo; this was taken from the father perspective, allowing the audience to sympathise with him.

• There is always a sense of there being something out of view of the camera, hidden in shadows or just behind the reach of the lens. This means you can also use the camera to create a jump - suddent changes of direction etc.
• There are generally  tracking shots of the characters, running or walking along side of them this is good shot in most horror to convey panic and discomfort.
• Looking at horror and psychological films another common angle is a 360 degree shot which tends to represent something significant or someone who is confused and disorientated.
• In certain films there is usually a key prop that is used to kill the victim; they normally convey that this could be an important object in the beginning of the film and allowing the audience to identify the murder object later on in the film. There is normally close ups to show the significance.

Props to be taken into consideration – Murder weapons/ papers of proof / images

• The action tends to happen at night in most horror and psychological film, when the night time comes it allows the viewers to get the sense that something is going to happen e.g. a murder. For example the film below – ‘Buffy The Vampire Slayer’

•  Common lighting that is used when a murder is about to take place is usually the moon light or street lighting, allowing a more spooky effect. Overall murders or any other action that is about to take place is normally filmed in dimmer lighting. As shown above.
• In this screen shot below, a murder is about to take place, however the only lighting is provided is the moon light and street lights.

• Costume is an important factor in looking at films; this is because you can tell what character they are more likely being by their clothing. For example a mysterious man in a long coat and a hat, can usually be compared to the murder in the average horror film. However this is not always the case as the audience could be wrong from their initial thought of the character.

Costume that we need to take into consideration is:

Everyday clothing and trends
Coats and hats
Knife for mother? Or cooking that looks sinister?

• The victim is usually conveyed as very vulnerable character, they tend to wear day to day clothing as shown in the screen shot above.
• The location where the action is about to take place has a wide range of locations from fields to houses etc. This is shown in the screen shot below.

We need to look for spooky houses and grave yards.

• In horror/psychological films a common editing technique is dynamic cutting and jump shots. This is to build up the tension and make the action more effective, allowing the audience to get a sense that something is going to take place.

Characters who usual appear in horror films

• There is usually a very vulnerable character that is oblivious to everything that goes on around them.
• There tends to be a close friend that is the person who is killed first or is found out to be the murderer.
• There is always that character that is portrayed to be the murderer, however this person is usually found as innocent.
• Rebel – this is someone who is normally the antagonist and usually has a counterpart. This person tends to be a troubled young adult and is seen as a confident outcast.
• A young man  who is found to be very heroic.
• There is usually a romance; however this is not always the case.
• Experienced character – monster killer (tends to have plenty of weapons)
• There is almost always a survivor at the end of the film

Conventional ways of using sound

• It is commonly found that in horror films there is a use of non- diegetic music, for example a sinister like music. This helps create an effective and dramatic atmosphere before the action is about to take place in the film.
• There is always a use of enhanced sound in these types of films for example screaming, footsteps, wind blowing, rustlings etc. This adds to the tension and mystery.  This is  a use of  ambient sounds  to create mystery in some way or form.
• There is a use of dialogue in most films, to tell the audience what is going on; there is rarely a voice over. However if there is a voice over it is usually telling the audience about someone’s past or something that could of happened many of years ago.

 Iconography

Typical iconography of a horror/psychological film is normally victims and people with numerous weapons. There Is usually a hiding place where the victim hides and looks to for safety, however they always get found by the murderer for example ‘When a Stranger Calls’ she hide under the bed only to be found moments later.

If filmed in a forest or outside the character usually trips and falls when running away from the murder or end up injuring themselves.

If filmed in a house there is usually a lot of glass around and everything in the house is wrecked from the windows to the walls.