Conventions of horror films

Conventions of the Horror Genre   Settings in horror films tend to be small towns, urban environments, dark allies, large cities or run down towns, anywhere that connotes the feeling of isolation or being alone. Colours are often dark e.g. reds and black, which link to blood, darkness, danger, evil or death. Props can help identify the horror genre e.g. chainsaws, knives, hammers, shotguns (any weapon that will cause a lot of blood splatter and mess). Common objects include weapons, supernatural icons, masks/disguises and religious icons. Iconography of monsters helps elicit the feeling of fear, disgust and terror e.g werewolves, mummies, zombies, vampires, deformed creatures. Character types:  The protagonist is often the victim or hero.  The villain is usually the monster, serial killer, mutated/deformed freaks or alien. A police officer which can be either good or bad. There are often creepy or scary children (which may be the main villain). Many more following this basic idea, e.g. zombies, stalkers, cheerleaders. There are many themes including; nightmares, lust, apocalypse, religion, childhood problems, insanity/madness, supernatural, science gone wrong, revenge, beyond death, envy, lust, suicide, good versus evil, self consciousness (making you question what is real and what isn't), psychopath rampage. Camera work is unnatural using high and low angles to connote fear and nightmares. Point of view shots can be important in certain horrors as they let the audience see the world through the "monster/s" eyes, this typically happens around the middle or end of a film.  Handheld shots make it difficult for the audience to see what's happening which creates the feeling of fear of the unknown (for example the film 'Cloverfield' was all filmed with a handheld). An extreme close up on the victim's face can help the audience identify with the feeling of fear and horror. It also makes the scene more terrifying because if we can't see the "monster" again it creates the feeling of fear of the unknown. Sounds are important in a horror film, diegetic sounds like footsteps and non-diegetic sounds like a heartbeat create tension. Lighting is very important, under lighting can be used to distort a face to make it look scarier. Also in the majority of horrors many of the scenes will be in dark lighting to scare the audience as they can't see what's happening as easily or to represent evil. Editing can create suspense or tension for example if it hasn't been paced in a while you assume something is going to jump out and scare you, however sometimes they may also have something jump out at an unexpected time to scare you and add more suspense as you will be tensed at all times waiting for something to happen.

Supernatural horror research

Supernatural Horror


It is conventional for a supernatural horror to be set in the home of the protagonist. Other such venues vary, depending on the narrative, but the horror is set at the places that are close to the main character. So this could be at their workplace, in their garden, in the car and so on, but mainly at the characters house. A supernatural presence isn’t easily accepted by a person, and it is not something that one can escape from or fight against, this is what makes this subgenre so terrifying and intriguing. Supernatural horrors are set in people’s homes because it promotes the fear of something unwanted and unfriendly entering your own personal space, making you feel frightened in the one place designed to make a person feel comforted and safe.

The world of the ‘supernatural’ such as ghosts, spirits, curses etc, is a subject that some marvel at, whilst others disregard as ‘make-believe’, it cannot scientifically be defined as true. In order to balance out the ‘make-believe’ with reality, this type of horror is set in a person’s home to establish common ground with the viewer, making the narrative seem more realistic.

There are two common themes that supernatural horrors tend to use, one of which involves a home where the previous residents had died there and a new family moves into that home. This then triggers the occurrence of paranormal events, for instance the film “The Amityville Horrors” takes the format of this plotline.

Other conventional features to the plotline involve the audience being led to believe that a certain character is one that we can trust, when eventually it is exposed that they are the cause of the horror. For example, in “Paranormal Activity” the couple believe they are being followed by a spirit, when in fact; the female character turns out to be the one possessed. Also, in “What Lies Beneath” we are led to believe that the husband is a good and honest man, until it is revealed that he is the responsible for the death of the spirit haunting his wife.

Another basic plotline includes the protagonist being a child, one that was murdered and has come back to seek revenge by tormenting the main character.

Characters

The main characters appear to be ‘normal’ people, who live their lives accordingly. Conventionally female, they are harmless, caring and loving beings. Supernatural Horrors differ to slashers because, the main characters are not being punished by experiencing the horror and in most cases have done nothing wrong to deserve the visit from the spirit. This type of main character occurs in the films, “The Eye”, “What Lies Beneath” and “Drag Me to Hell”.

The main characters are likely to be troubled by something that has happened in their past, which leads other characters to view them as mentally unstable once they speak of supernatural interaction.

Usually the first impression of the audience on the paranormal is negative, however, as the narrative progresses, the audience come to realise that this spirit is actually present for a reason and that it is not just there to mindlessly torment. Usually, the paranormal presence is there to help the protagonist unveil a mystery, to guide them and help them understand something more clearly.

Costumes

In supernatural horror, the key to costume is simplicity, this is so that the audience’s attention is not diverted away from the action in the scene, so we can identify the mood of the character and distinguish between different character personas.
The main character is likely to wear studios and conservative attire, nothing provocative or revealing. The main female character is likely to be a grown woman and so she wears clothing that is smart and sophisticated when leaving the house, whether that’s for work or play, and is also likely to wear casual garments, such as jeans when relaxing at home. She is likely to wear neutral, pastel colours, such as light greys, baby blues, soft yellows, nudes and creams. The make-up of the female character gives her a natural, fresh faced look.
During the more horror-induced scenes we are likely to see the character looking erratic, with dishevelled appearances and unkempt hair and make-up.

The creaking of a door and the curtain blowing in the wind by the open window are common occurrences, as they symbolise the entry of the unknown. These tend to take place in the earlier stages of the narrative, as their occurrence only minutely indicates the presence of a ghost or spirit. In supernatural horrors, there is always the scene that involves the protagonist looking into the bathroom mirror, to see that beside her own reflection is the reflection of the ‘ghost’.

Often we see the main characters participating in a séance in an attempt to contact the wondering spirit, to find out what it wants. Often, we see scenes of the protagonist in the bath or asleep in bed, having some kind of vision or nightmare of the spirit during relaxation.

The discovery of the spirits past: this involves the protagonist exploring their house and finding clues that further inform them of the life the spirit once had, why they are being haunted and what they can do to solve it. For instance, in “Deadline” the main character searches the attic in order to find out more about this ‘visitor’ and she finds video tapes of the couple that once lived in the house, from here, she discovers why she is being haunted and how she can help. A similar event happens in “What Lies Beneath” when the protagonists, visits the home of the woman haunting her, where she speaks to the dead girl’s mother about her disappearance.

Other conventional occurrences include flickering of candles, peering through the ‘key-hole’, evidence of unknown wet footprints, squeaky noises such as creaking doors or floorboards, dripping water and the protagonist hiding in a darkened corner like a vulnerable child.

Weapons

Uses of weapons in supernatural horrors come out of what is surrounding the victim, for instance, household appliances, kitchen utensils, ornaments, and garden equipment anything that is sharp, long and or heavy. This subgenre tends to have less blood and violence as it is more focused on paranormal events.

Sounds

For the musical soundtrack, it is conventional for this subgenre to use orchestral music as it suits the narrative of scene. Empathetic sound is used to reflect the mood of the characters in scenes of fear, panic and chaos. Contrapuntal sound (sound that doesn’t match the scene) is used to create a juxtaposition of sound and image, for instance, in this genre, especially ones that involve a child-ghost, you can create contrapuntal sound by adding sound  that is supposed to be sweet, innocent and endearing to a scene where something terrible is about to occur. Adding child’s laughter to a scene like this can make it appear sinister.
Other uses of sound, usually asynchronous and parallel include faint whispering, children’s laughter, crazed laughter, an old woman cackling, sounds like these are usually presented to us as we view the protagonist hearing them as if they are coming from another world.

Horror/Thriller

Horror fiction is a genre of literature, which is intended to, or has the capacity to frighten its readers, inducing feelings of horror and terror. Horror can be either supernatural or non-supernatural. Thriller is a genre of literature, film and television that uses suspense, tension and excitement as the main elements. The primary sub genres of thrillers are: mystery, crime and psychological thrillers. NEED TO ADD HISTORY FINAL GIRL THEORY, CAROL CLOVER? title sequences

NEEDS TO BE LINKED TO OUR FILM-JUSTIFY WHY OUR FILM WOULD BE A 15!

What does the 15 symbol mean?

 No-one under 15 is allowed to see a 15 film at the cinema or buy/rent a ‘15’ rated DVD.  15 rated works are not suitable for children under 15 years of age.

Are there any limits on what sort of theme a work can have at 15?

No theme is prohibited, provided the treatment is appropriate for 15 year olds.

Is 15 really stronger than 12A?

 Yes. 15 works are stronger than 12 or 12A rated works and could include any of the following:

• strong violence
• frequent strong language (eg 'f***').
• portrayals of sexual activity
• strong verbal references to sex
• sexual nudity
• brief scenes of sexual violence or verbal references to sexual violence
• discriminatory language or behaviour
• drug taking

How much strong language is there in a 15?

There could potentially be a great deal. At 15 there is no upper limit on the number of uses of strong language (eg f***).

Occasionally there may be uses of the strongest terms (eg 'c***'), although continued or aggressive use will not normally be passed 15.

What about discriminatory or offensive terms?

There may be racist, homophobic or other discriminatory language, and the work could explore themes relating to this.

However, at 15 the work as a whole must not endorse discriminatory language or behaviour.

How much sex and nudity is allowed at 15?

At 15 sexual activity can be portrayed, as long as there is no strong or graphic detail. Some sex scenes can be quite long at this category and may involve some nudity and movement. Though nudity may be allowed in a sexual context there should be no strong detail.

There are no constraints on nudity in a non-sexual or educational context.

There can be strong references to sex and sexual behaviour, but especially strong or crude references are unlikely to be acceptable unless justified by context.

Heterosexual and homosexual sex and sex references are treated the same.

Can there be strong violence?

Yes, at 15 violence may be strong. It should not dwell on the infliction of pain or injury, however, and the strongest gory images are unlikely to be acceptable.

Strong sadistic or sexualised violence is also unlikely to be acceptable.

Easily accessible weapons may not be glamorised.

What about sexual violence?

There may be detailed verbal references to sexual violence (for example descriptions of rape or sexual assault in a courtroom scene or in victim testimony) but any portrayal of sexual violence must be discreet and have a strong contextual justification.

What about horror works?

Many horror films are rated 15. At 15 there can be strong threat and menace (as long as it is not sadistic or sexualised), although the strongest gory images are unlikely to be acceptable.

Can you see drugs in a 15 rated film or video?

At 15 drug taking may be shown but the work as a whole must not promote or encourage drug misuse.

The misuse of easily accessible and highly dangerous substances like aerosols or solvents is unlikely to be acceptable at 15.

What about dangerous behaviour or things teens might copy?

We consider the risk of potential harm to impressionable teenagers. For example, dangerous behaviour such as hanging, suicide and self-harming should not dwell on detail which could be copied.

Audiences in Detail

Audience


It would be a 15 certificate, aimed at people from 15 to early to mid 20's. As a group we decided that people who aren't in that age group would not be able to enjoy our genre of film. It is also aimed at a mix of ethnicities because the character have different backgrounds as there are white and black characters. This means our film could relate to more people. It is also aimed at males because it involves physically attractive girls who drag the attention of the male audience. It can also relate to a female audience because the audience could easily relate to the situations the characters are placed in because they are female and because it has a good dramatic storyline. It would also be a mainstream film because the majority of horror thrillers tend to be mainstream because the audience it attracts tend to like getting scared. Our film uses middle class people so it attracts the middle class audience. It also demonstrates a lot of social status because in our film, the ones that get bullied seek vengeance.  

Characters (who's who)

Characters:

Girl A - Paige - Veronica Jones
Girl B - Amanda - Jeneva Williams
Girl C - Robyn -Bianca
Girl D - Becca - Scarlett Mason
Boy - Josh - Daniel Newman

treatment full film

Film Treatment (Full Film)

Title: 'Vendetta'

Duration: 95 minutes

Audience: It would be a 15 certificate, aimed at people from 15 to early 30's, aimed at a mix of ethnicities - as there are white and black characters, aimed at males because it has pretty girls in it and females because it has a good dramatic storyline, would be a mainstream film as it's a bit of a paranormal styled film and they tend to be mainstream.

Summary/Synopsis:

Girl A running through a forest, shot of a girl who's been hung, back to girl A running, shot of another dead girl, back to girl A running, she trips turns over, screams and screen goes black.

You see Girl A, B and C walking to school bullying Girl D, a boy is just in ear shot and sees what's happening. They all get to school and Girls A, B and C go off to class. You see girl D going to library talking to the boy from earlier, he feels sorry for her and just tries to reassure her.

(titles)

See girls A, B and C going home, wonder where girl D is. Go home and start going on phone/computer/doing hair ect, says on facebook girl D has killed herself, they don't believe it, see a picture of girl D hung. [first 2minutes]

[Rest of storyline]

Close up of picture of girl D hung, pulls back to the setting, 'CSI' tape and police at the scene, hear them saying she committed suicide but it's unknown why.

Girl A, B and C still be nasty about her, saying nobody cares/nobody liked her ect. Close up shot of a picture of the boy where he has commented saying RIP, pulls back to the boy in his room, talking to himself saying girl D didn't deserve it and he hopes she gets her own back on the 3 girls, curtains blow and papers rustle creating a paranormal feel.

Close up to window and dark outside, turns to day, you can hear screaming pulls back into room and it's the room of girl B, written on the window in mud it says 'Look what you did!'

She calls Girl A who says she's being crazy, someone is just pranking her. Girl B goes to school with girl A and C, cut fade to black and girl C and A saying goodbye to girl B who has to stay late for some extra credit work so she has to walk home on her own later on. Girl B is on the phone as she walks home as she's scared walking along the forest path (which is a short cut to get home) she hears a girl crying and walks away from the sound which gets louder until it turns to howling then screaming, by this point girl B is running. She trips and lands in barbed wire then roles down a hill, the barbed wire getting tighter, cutting and eventually killing her, by this point she has dropped her phone and you see a close up of the phone and girl C just shouting "hello." You pull back from the phone and there is police tape around the scene, they say it's another accident and that it's weird how close it is to the place girl D died. People are writing on girl B's wall saying RIP, someone on anonymous says she deserved it. Girl C starts to get freaked out, Girl A says it's a coincidence and that girl b was always clumsy and should look where she's going more, girl C is insistent that girl D layed the barbed wire out to kill girl B. That night girl C wakes up to see 'you're next' carved into the end of her bed. The next day girl C has a sick day, figuring if she doesn't go near the forest she'll be safe. Shot of girl A asking where her phone has gone when she's in class. Girl C wakes up to the sound of her phone buzzing with a message from girl A saying 'help me, i'm at the old farm, i need you!' (spelt badly as though it's being rushed), girl C tries to call her and when the phone answers she can hear screaming (which you assume is girl A), girl C runs to the old farm with a dissolve shot to pass time, when she's there she looks around but can't see or hear girl A then she spots girl A's phone inbetween the flour grinder which then drops and crushes her to death. You hear her screams fade out as the camera pulls out from the barn and you see a police car going to the scene (following the trace from girl A's phone). Police tape again surrounds the scene and they again say it was an accident as there is no sign of anyone there so again count it to an accident as it's an old abandoned farm. Girl A is now very paranoid that she's next, her parents say it's daft and that girl C and B just weren't being careful. The next day she stays at home, you see her watching tv, on laptop ect (fast pace) and that night her parents go out whilst she's sleeping. She wakes up to the door banging and as she knows her parents were going out just figures it was them. she goes downstairs and written on the living room wall in what appears to be blood it says 'last but not least!' Girl A starts shouting and crying, the front door flings open and wind blows through the house, she hears a girl crying and howling behind her, she runs out of the door, not looking behind her, see her running through the forest (scene 1 again), she falls on the floor turns over and screams, then a dark black figure envelopes her and as it pulls back and girl A is completely mutilated. Black cloaked figure moves away, music devil town fades on, boy from beginning of film is seen taking off a cloak, he goes into an en suite bathroom starts washing his hands and there's a shot of the sink so you see watered down blood running down the drain, he splashes water on his face and wipes it, pulls a creepy smile and the shot freezes on his face fades off and the end titles come on.

Suggested Elements:

Music later in the film (due to copyright): Devil Town by Daniel Johnston, Vendetta by Slipknot, Aria from Goldberg Variations by Bach(end scene)

Graphic scenes, make-up, realistic looking death scene.

Film Treatment(2mins)

Title: 'Vendetta'
Duration: 2minutes (start)
Audience: It would be a 15 certificate, aimed at people from 15 to early 30's, aimed at a mix of ethnicities - as there are white and black characters, aimed at males because it has pretty girls in it and females because it has a good dramatic storyline, would be a mainstream film as it's a bit of a paranormal styled film and they tend to be mainstream.
Summary/Synopsis:
First 2 mins:
Girl A running through a forest, shot of girl D who's been hung, back to girl A running, shot of girl B dead, back to girl A running, shot of girl C dead, girl A running she trips turns over, screams and screen goes black. (Title of film comes up) fades to next shot.

You see Girl A, B and C walking to school bullying Girl D who is shy and quiet and just tries to ignore them, a boy is just in ear shot and sees what's happening who is angry about it but doesn't react. They all get to school and Girls A, B and C go off to class. You see girl D going to library talking to the boy from earlier, he confronts her and asks why she doesn't stick up for herself, he uses expletives to describe the girls, but she says she doesn't see the point she doesn't want to make it worse. He feels sorry for her and just tries to be nice and asks what music she listens to, turns out to be similar music to what he likes, they become friend and things seem to be ok.
end of the day shot slides across from library to corridor and girl A, B and C leaving. Skips to shot of Girls A, B and C walking down a path home asking where girl D is and still bad mouthing her, boy from earlier again walking within earshot, can see he's angry at how they talk about her - close up of his face.
Girls A, B and C all get home, you see them each on the phone, doing there hair, on the laptop (as they do so titles come up) they're on the phone and see on a social networking site that Girl D has killed herself (as her picture shows title comes up) Girls A, B and C think it's fake until someone uploads a picture of Girl D hung. (end?) Close up of dead girl which pulls out to the scene where the girl killed herself - a forest area.
End

Suggested Elements:
Rhythmic editing with point of view shots and hand held camera.
Wipes used to move between scenes.
Girl hung with a rope in a forest, blood coming out of nose and mouth.
Flash frame of bullies when Scarlett looks at them (not necessarily all of them) they turn a negative/darkened/red colour to imply it's Scarlett that's going to kill them.


Characters:

Girl A - Veronica Marsh - PLAYED BY Paige Parker
Girl B -  Jeneva Williams - PLAYED BY Amanda Mthombeni
Girl C - Bianca Jones - PLAYED BY Ayesha Gay
Girl D - Scarlett Mason - PLAYED BY Rebecca Bankes
Boy - Daniel Newman - PLAYED BY

Idea 2

Idea 2


Horror/Paranormal
Supernatural Thriller

• Girls doing an art project.
• One of the projects has to look like she has hung herself, but she accidentally kills herself. 
• The girls she's with, leave her.
• Dead girls comes for revenge in a spiritual form to seek vengeance against the other girls.
• The other girls blame each other for supernatural things happening.
• They go to the dead body to tell clear their conscious by burying the body.
• Ghosts hangs them both. 
• All the girls lay there dead in a line, dog walker finds body, screams & it ends.

I formed this idea by looking at the conventions of a supernatural thriller.

Idea 1

First 2 mins:
Girl A running through a forest, shot of a girl who's been hung, back to girl A running, shot of another dead girl, back to girl A running, she trips turns over, screams and screen goes black.

You see Girl A, B and C walking to school bullying Girl D, a boy is just in ear shot and sees what's happening. they all get to school and Girls A, B and C go off to class. You see girl D going to library talking to the boy from earlier, he feels sorry for her and just tries to reassure her.
(titles)
See girls A, B and C going home, wonder where girl D is. Go home and start going on phone/computer/doing hair ect, says on facebook girl d has killed herself, they don't believe it, see a picture of girl D hung.


Rest of film:
Girl D has killed herself, Girls A, B and C get killed for bullying Girl d, you think it's the 'ghost' of girl d but it's the boy girl d talked to in the library.