Evaluation Task 1

Generic Horror Film Conventions

Linear Narrative

Mise en scene

Helpless victims

Sound

Did our Film develop, conform or

challenge these Conventions?
As a production team we thought
it would be better if our film was
told from a non-linear narrative
as we thought it would make the
film far more compelling as it
could engage the audience more
due to its ability to get them to
think. Challenged.
We thought that we would set
the film in a relatively
secluded/isolated area so that
we could conform to the
audiences natural expectations
but at the same time have the
film shot using light lighting
rather than dark. This was so
that we could get the films
message across that it doesnt
have to be dark for bad things to
happen. Props that we used were
the usual props that would be
expected in a horror film which
include guns, fake blood and
dark clothing. Conformed.
To an extent we wanted to create
the helpless victims scenario but
at the same time develop this
and create a new type of
character progression shown in
our film. We did this by giving
the female protagonist Juliet no
form of weapon but still allowed
her to survive and out whit the
surrounding enemies. This
progression turned the Helpless
victim into the survivor
character. Developed.
We decided to follow the generic
conventions of sound as so many
big film makers such as the
legendary Auteur; Alfred
Hitchcock have proved as the
winning formulas for horror films.
Which is fast and loud nondiegetic sound that can be

Iconography

Camerawork

Character types

added to making the audience

jump or feel scared at any
relevant moment during the film.
Also, the diegetic sound allows
for tension to be created in film.
Conformed.
Iconography is something
audience members have grown
to expect during horror films this
means that for example; in ghost
films people expect to see
haunted houses and swinging
lights, in apocalyptic films people
expect to see the barren streets
and the wandering survivors. We
decided to conform to this so we
could make the audience
members feel as comfortable as
possible watching our film.

The camerawork in horror films is

very expressive and not natural
at all. The use of high and low
angles can be used to connote to
audience members fear and
nightmares. POV shots are key
as they allow the audience to
see the world form the
protagonist/antagonist either to
instil fear into the audience
members or to show them what
is about to happen. Handheld
has become a staple with the
horror genre and in our film we
tried to use handheld to connote
to audiences the characters
vulnerability because as a
director and cinematographer I
wanted to show audience
members very little and leave
the rest to their imagination.
Conformed.
The Main protagonist is usually

Themes

the victim/hero of the film; I took

this convention and flipped it. I
created a protagonist who does
all he can to protect the other
character but inevitably
becomes the films antagonist
who accidentally kills the one he
loves alongside every other
character shown in the film.
Developed.
The themes that we wanted to
connote were also shown to be
generic conventions of the horror
genre; Good vs. Evil, Depression,
Zombie Apocalypse, insanity,
Lust, and love.