I decided to do some researching into typically associated sound effects with Horror. I created a list with my interpretation of what we might be able to use in our Opening Sequence, where and why... (these would then be searched for as a pre-recorded clip in garage band) My aim of using these sounds would be to give the audience obvious signifiers of when something scary is going to occur but also to modernise it.
Police sirens - end of sequence after scream, cannot see police cars can just hear then so would be a off-screen sound
Instrumental clips, sci fi sounding, creepy, eerie - when shadow walks past bathroom door
Panicking clip - when 'Abbie' runs down the drive in a hurry looking for keys (creates an uncomfortable effect)
Increasing heart rate/beat - feel connected to the character, when speaks to 'George' for second time and realises he is not in the house
Deep heavy reathing - creates a sense of feeling as though your being watched
(as silly as it sounds) the silence of the night - wind being the only thing you can hear is a scary thought, completely isolated and alone
Footsteps - when being followed, could be Abbie or the stranger
This diagram, that our class teacher gave us, I have found very useful when putting together our Opening Sequence as it contains information you need to create a standard opening sequence and displays this in an attractive, fun and easy to read way. I use it as a referral to check every now and then that our Opening Sequence fits the criteria of a published, successful and earning one.
The Shining (1980)
Genres: Drama, Horror, Mystery
Certificate: 15
Directors: Stanley Kubrick
Writers: Steven King, Stanley Kubrick
Cast: Jack Nicholson, Shelley Duvall, Danny Lloyd
Production Company: Warner Bros. Pictures
A family heads to an isolated hotel for the winter where an evil and spiritual presence influences the father into violence, while his psychic son sees horrific forebodings from the past and of the future. SOURCE - IMDb
-------------
MY NOTES;
A man, his son and wife become the winter caretakers of an isolated hotel where Danny, the son, sees disturbing visions of the hotel's past using a telepathic gift known as "The Shining". The father, Jack Torrance, is underway in a writing project when he slowly slips into insanity as a result of cabin fever and former guests of the hotel's ghosts. After being convinced by a waiter's ghost to "correct" the family, Jack goes completely insane. The only thing that can save Danny and his mother is "The Shining".
old (1980) investigating differences from old horrors to moder,
----------
Opening Conventions
Narrative Function-
Characters/ Stars-
Film Lang- MES, Cinematography, ( light and colour)-
After a misunderstanding, Ernest P. Worrell unleashes an evil troll on Halloween.
SOURCE - IMDb
The film begins silently, the first credits show the production company, ‘Touchstone Pictures’. This slide and the next 3 are like this, displaying bright red font with what seems to be blood dripping from them. A shot of dark, spooky looking building is then shown, with unusual shaped clouds in the background, and then a lightning bolt comes down showing the building is in fact a castle, credits also fall down with the weather. The clip is in black and white further adding to the scary effect. This is where the sound begins, which is typically horror music, but at the same time quite funny because it is so over dramatic. The next shot is of the main character gradually moving up into the frame situated in what I presume is a woods, with a terrified expression on his face. It is immediately obvious he has a mental issue of some sort because of his body language but also his costume. He is a middle aged man in a baseball cap and has what I would perceive as a school rucksack. He then notices the lightning bolts and looks in that direction, the camera then follows his eyes to a shot of the sky with the main title showing on it in orange and white coloured font which when put on the screen splashes back. It is clear that the film was made in the 1990’s because the quality of the footage is not as clear as it is today although I think there are purposely edited clips to make it appear like old fashioned. The text does then not move for the next clip of a crowd of people gathering in a bunch and backing away from something, (men generally laughing or not showing too much emotion, woman looking scared). This is again in black and white. From this point the cuts are much faster to match the bouncier music. The clips display incidents of horror such as a man being forced to fall over, the hand of what is considered to be a monster, the primary character looking from left to right, shadows of non-human beings in attacking positions, knifes with blood squirting from them, which turn into credits and much more. The red credits continue throughout these clips, a vulnerable, trapped woman is shown chained up with skeletons in the background however this is not viewed as horrible and twisted but funny because of the contrapuntal sound generating humour. Ernest is then briefly shown in between the following clips of fictional miss-happenings acting goofy, helpless and running away. To add to the comedy, there is a clip of a man’s head poking out from a toilet (hiding) and blown up trees with arms and mouth with sharp teeth fighting what I can only describe as being a spud... As well as giant rock monsters, brains attacking people, wolfs attacking people which are puppets that they haven’t attempted to hide. Demon moon walkers, possessed princesses, cobwebs, vampires, giant spiders and anything else you can think of that is associated with horror! Whenever Ernest is shown he is in colour on a black background, the rest remains black and white and whilst all these dreadful things are occurring Ernest is acting foolish. One transition of credits I found particularly effective is when credits appear gradually from a woman’s screaming mouth.
The sequence ends with Ernest showing he has had his limit of horrifying things and falls over.
The closing shot is of the moon as the soundtrack comes to a stop. The film is a comedy on a scary subject therefore irony is a main theme. I chose to analyse this film to ensure my opening sequence didn't end up being comedic or convey slapstick comedy in a cheesy way as this opening sequence did.
'It was supposed to be the safest room in the house.'
Panic Room (2002)
Genres: Thriller, Drama
Certificate: 15
Directors: David Fincher
Writers: David Koepp
Cast: Jodie Foster, Kristen Stewart, Forest Whitaker
Production company: Columbia pictures corporation
A woman and her teenage daughter become imprisoned in the panic room of their own house by 3 criminals. SOURCE - IMDb
I chose to analyse the opening of Panic Room because it is similar in how it seeks to scare its audience (as I learnt watching the whole film), and its genre is similar to that of the film I would want to produce. Before the film begins the production company is shown, in this case Columbia. As the screen then fades to black sounds generally found in a busy street are heard along with an eerie piece of music. We then see an establishing shot of a city in the U.S.A which is evident by the shape of the buildings where Columbia is again shown. It then flicks to the next shot which is of a building closer to the distance in the previous shot as an actor’s name is present. This is continued in a cohesive manner, occasionally moving from one shot to the next in a more exciting transition. The buildings shadows are included, likely to be to make the city appear darker to set the scene. The camera movement I found interesting because the camera is always slightly edging forward it is never completely stationary. The range of different angles used are also interesting.Behind the credits showing on buildings there is traffic and pedestrians present in the background just to clarify that the film is not set in a ghost town. The music that had remained throughout all of the previous clips mentioned then changes suddenly when the title of the film is shown to highlight the name and from this point forward the music is of a different nature, louder, more dominant and fast paced with a slight ticking sound joining it. The amount of time between each new shot speeds up also. After a short time the music then returns to the soundtrack from the beginning of the sequence only with added sounds. The credits them self appear 3D and don’t stand out against the buildings because they are grey. Just over 2 minutes in, the background changes to a park in daylight with a reasonable amount of people spread out, this is when the dialogue begins but it is off-screen. The main character is then established, walking towards the camera in a street, the music is still faintly present.
Below is a tally chart I created to explore into different age groups, finding out what their favourite genre for film is. I asked 40 people from each age group and these are the results I got:
As you can see from the chart, Horror was popular with all age groups but teens and under 25's in particular. Therefore I decided the Opening Sequence story board I was to design would be of this genre, targeting 16-25 year old's as my audience, I thought this wouldn't be to difficult seeing as I am in that category so I would just ask friends of a similar age what they thought as well as creating something I myself would enjoy.
Our class teacher set us the task of going on a 'Harry Potter Scavenger Hunt'. Our assignment is to search for marketing strategies that the HP corporation has used to promote the new film installment. Here's what I found;
Harry Potter 7 game, compatible with the Nintendo DS. Another means of promoting the new film as it is evident that a mass amount of children have a nintendo, and are therefore likely to see this game and then want to see the film.
Harry Potter 7 advertisement, targeting HP fans and probably more so men because they have consciously included an attractive woman in this photo with the intention of making a man druel at the premier of this film. '100 days to go' this count down innately makes us want to go and see the film because it gives us that buzz of waiting for something desirable then being able to have a grasp of it, along with the excitement of counting down (like advent calenders) :).
Harry Potter 7 game for the XBOX 360 console, targeting the fan community of both HP and fans of fear and competition by personally involving them, interactively, in the wonderful world of HP.
Harry Potter 7 movie poster found in cinemas, targeting movie/ HP lovers. Clearly this particular example is a contribute to the main star. Majority of people would only have to see Daniel Radcliffe's face to know it's about HP because they have made an association between the actor and the film. The dark colours used in the poster signify the genre of the film, (the name of the film does this also) and the glows of light in the background represent the magic.
Harry Potter 7 book, targeting people of all ages who are HP and reading fans. It creates enigma, in the sense that we immediately we want to pick up the book as the locket is pleasing to the eye in terms of we seek to open it (perhaps representing the goals of the book).
My last example a print screen by very own trusty laptop, showing some facebook pages supporting, promoting and distributing the new film 'Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows', targeting people who are familiar with socialising websites such as facebook, twitter ect.
The clip opens with an establishing shot of “Maurice Purley Photography” (shop) with cars passing by, accompanied by music. The cars look old fashioned and dated which could represent the time in which it was set. Following this, is a medium long shot of a family of 4 including the grandmother, father, mother and son. Who we presume is the photographer, judging by his actions, appears in the shot for 14 seconds and then exits the frame however we can still hear his voice (off-screen diegetic sound). The costuming of the family suits both their age and gender, for example, the teenage boy is wearing a casual t-shirt and navy blue bottoms. In the background, there are no props apart from the newspaper which leaves with the photographer. There is also no scenery, just a backdrop for the photo which is made up of dark colours, smudged together to give a cloudy, muffled effect. The mother is in the centre of the frame, and appears to be the most important character. Body language of the father and son suggests he does not want to be there. Facial expressions of the mother and grandmother on the other hand shows they have probably organised/ planned the family photo. The lighting in this shot is low key, as the flash of the camera supplies the light. The sound is diegetic for the duration of the clip. Accents portray the family’s ethnic background (being British).
In this clip there is only one individual however you can here the photographer. Judging by his costume (or lack of it), we presume he is a boxer. As far as make-up is concerned, it appears he has some means of this on his face and body to make him look wet and shiny as a boxer would be during or shortly after a fight. The body language almost contradicts itself as he is laughing with the photographer yet posing in a way to seem aggressive and strong, this is also shown through his facial expressions. The lighting in the clip reflects off his body adding to his ‘sweaty and toned’ appearance. The colours of the mans shorts and gloves, red, black and white, could be seen to represent the colours of the English flag as well as symbolising competitiveness. This clip shows a typical stereotype of someone involved in sport.
The clip opens with the photographer questioning and conversing with the lady in the shot. She is dressed as a nurse in a blue and white dress with a white hat to match this. There is one prop present, an antique wooden chair. The women of orient decent, appears to be miserable, this is portrayed through her facial expressions as well as her body language seeming fake or put on. This is also stereotypical of working class people. The hair and make-up of the women is very minimal and ordinary. We assume from observing the mise-en-scene that she possibly represents a nurse during the Vietnam war which would explain her sad conveys.
This clip is of a mother holding a fairly new born baby. The backdrop has now changed to a plain white screen and the mother is dressed in a simple white dress which creates a heaven like piece of imagery, the baby representing angelic innocence and purity as they are bare naked and celebrating the start of a new life and generation.
The final clip opens with five smartly dressed men, in suits and ties, representing their status, expertise and level of authority or importance. Four of the men are standing, while one man is sitting in a chair in the center of the frame. The slightly elder man who is seated is dressed in a three-piece suit, where as the others are wearing only suit jackets and trousers, this could suggest he is of a higher importance. The body language of the men makes them appear successful and professional this is because they are standing up straight which makes them look proud of what they have achieved as well as their happy facial expressions. The voice over is the photographer speaking and any other sound present is non-digetic. Again, the lighting is low key. The colour of the backdrop is dark, and the men’s suits are also dark which makes them blend in, however their white shirts and pale skin makes them stand out. The men in suits are stereotypical of working class English men, in the 1920’s.
'When there's no more room in hell, the dead will walk the earth.'
Dawn of the Dead (2004)
Genres: Action, Drama, Horror, Thriller
Certificate: 18
Directors: Zack Snyder
Writers: George A. Romero, James Gunn
Cast: Sarah Polley, Ving Rhames, Mekhi Phifer
Production company: Strike entertainment
A nurse, a policeman, a young married couple, a salesman, and other survivors of a worldwide plague that is producing aggressive, flesh-eating zombies, take refuge in a mega Midwestern shopping mall. SOURCE - IMDb
-----------
MY NOTES;
Ana, a young beautiful nurse finishes her day-shift at the hospital to return home to her beloved husband, they make love and sleep together. The next day, after her husband is killed by her neighbor next door, he suddenly comes back to life. She discovers the chaos happening in her neighborhood and escapes from her home. Soon after coming to her senses in the woods, she encounters a cop and other survivors, they decide to find safety in a mall. Soon more survivors come, and they learn that if they want to stay alive, they should stick together as the world is overrun by an army of undead. Can they survive the horror in this horrific global chaos? When there is no more room in hell, the dead will walk the earth
again gory, although our opening sequence does not portray any of this as far as the eye can see but if the film was to continue i imagine ther would be
------------
Opening Conventions
Narrative Function-
Characters/ Stars-
hook audience/enigma/action codes-
Film Lang- MES, Cinematography, ( light and colour)-
