horror research

 Horror uses unique and unusual angles to create confusion and unsettling feel with the viewer. The lighting tends to be dark, underexposed with lots of shadows, making the audience feel tense and on edge. Some horror movies employ a slow burn. They start quietly and carefully build tension scene by scene until they crescendo with a nightmare finale. But other horror movies grab us immediately with a truly terrifying opening. They let us know what we’re in for with beginnings that set the tone for the film and stay with us long after it ends. Many horror movies are shot in summer camps, cabins, hotels/ motels, hospitals, cemeteries, schools, dorms, carnivals, boats, and etc. Settings such as forests, mountains, deserts, and wide-open areas give feelings of uneasiness because viewers do not know what will pop out and attack the character. Scary films usually take place during the night and forests and mountains have a lot of trees that cover the area. The usual age for the target audience of a horror film is 15- 25. The most common reason for this is that young adults and teenagers enjoy thrills. These thrills are more likely to excite a younger audience rather than an older one. One reason we consume horror is to experience stimulation. Exposure to terrifying acts, or even the anticipation of those acts, can stimulate us both mentally and physically.

Film Opening Analysis

 October 27, 2021

                                                                           Us (2019)

                        The movie “Us” is about Adelaide Wilson and her family going back to the beachfront house where she grew up as a child. Haunted by a traumatic experience from the past, Adelaide grows increasingly concerned that something bad is going to happen. But her son insists that they go. Her worst fears became reality when four masked doppelgangers came upon the house, forcing the Wilson's family to fight for their survival. They soon learn there's an entire world of doppelgangers hiding within an elaborate tunnel system beneath the surface

                                   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dm82qvn5Crs

The opening scene in us focus on rabbits being locked up in cages, symbolizing the loss of free will and movement. When Adelaide was switched, Red had more control of her body as she was from the surface.

                                                                 The Conjuring (2013)

Paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren work to help a family terrorized by a dark presence in their farmhouse. In 1971, Carolyn and Roger Perron move their family into a dilapidated Rhode Island farm house and soon strange things start happening around it with escalating nightmarish terror.

                                        https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CCxOkeSB848

The opening scene for  first story of The Conjuring franchise takes us all the way back to Romania in 1952. The series begins with an evil demon attacking two nuns while they try to obtain an ancient Christian relic. While one nun died from the encounter, the surviving nun (Charlotte Hope) wound up taking her own life.

                                                            

                                                                 The greatest showman 

The greatest showman is about a boy wanting to be a circus owner.  P.T. Barnum displays a natural talent for publicity and promotion, selling lottery tickets by age 12. After trying his hands at various jobs, P.T. turns to show business to indulge his limitless imagination, rising from nothing to create the Barnum & Bailey circus. Featuring catchy musical numbers, exotic performers and daring acrobatic feats, Barnum's mesmerizing spectacle soon takes the world by storm to become the greatest show on Earth.

                                https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y4OIFwfDEVg

 

The opening scene of the greatest showman starts off with Barnum performing in a large circus full of people. But then he realize that he was dreaming. 

                                     

Research on film openings.

                                      Research on film openings

• In order to make a good film there are key elements that needs to be included which is mise-en-scene, character placement, representing genre, establishing shot and cinematography. Mise en Scene is a french term which means “place on stage”. This is with in a scene, everything captured in a frame is put there for a reason, and used for representing emotion and setting the mood. The certain costumes of what characters wear could tell the viewer more about the period it was set in, or the beginning of action/ events which are about to take place. Character placement is the scene that has a massive significant effect because it represents different relationships between the people in the film. The lighting in this scene is important as it shows the scene in a very natural way. Representing genre represents the opening scene without revealing too much during it, you still would have to establish genre. Cinematography is the way you present the footage is just as important as the content. How it appears visually is very important when creating an opening sequence. And lastly, the establishing shot is a simple feature which can draw the audience in and give them an insight into where the film is set, and some clues into the plot and narrative of the story. 

• Title sequences are a powerful expression of motion graphics. They are a prelude to the movie. They engage the audience by hinting at what is about to start, whether it’s a movie, TV show, or Web animation. The functions of a title sequence is to set the tone of the movie you are about to see. Even if you didn’t know anything about the movie you get a sense of the genre and pacing of the movie simply by experiencing the first few seconds of an opening title sequence. Title sequences are to engage and excite the audience by hinting at some of the topics, themes, and, in some cases, the challenges that characters will be facing. The intention is to build anticipation, sometimes revealing some of the main character’s traits and possibly setting the stage for questions that will be answered later in the movie. Title sequences create an emotional reaction from the audience, leaving them glued to their seats, waiting for more.

              Compare/ contrast conventions by genre

• Representation: In a drama or a horror film this would be an obvious stereotype in the opening scenes as in a unfortunate turn of events.
• Visual elements: Lighting, framing, composition, camera motion, camera angles, film selection, lens choices, depth of field, zoom, focus, color, exposure, and filtration.
• Character Development: In drama and in horror films some character types have in common are protagonists and antagonist.
• Auditory elements: In horror there are dialogue and music unlike drama and comedy where there are voice overs.
• Plot introduction: In drama and horror movies the plot is usually flash backs and flash forwards, while in comedy they use teasers.