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Evaluation

Lucy Warriner
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ë ulnerable characters being chased or killed Ȃ commonly a young girl
to seem more vulnerable.
ë
killer that is usually a stalker or someone who is creeping up on or
chasing their victims.
ë he killer is usually disguised in black or in a mask.
ë he lighting is low-key to build atmosphere.
ë iegetic sound is quite minimal at the beginning of the film to build
tension.
ë on-diegetic sound is used Ȃ such as music to create tension.
ë
well recognised character/figures associated with death as the killer.
ë
hero or heroine who survives and kills the stalker/killer.
ë he titles and credits create connotations of death and horror.
ë he conventions we followed when filming our opening included a victim being chased Ȃ
however the victim in our opening is shown to be running through the woods before the
killer is shown, so that the audience is unaware of who she is running from to start with.
ë We also used the convention of eerie music to build the scary horror film atmosphere,
this also helped identify that the victim is running from something dangerous/scary
before actually showing it.
ë We used a vulnerable-looking character of a young teenage girl as the victim who is
being chased.
s shown by the screenshot below, the character follows all the
stereotypes of a typical victim in a horror film Ȃ young, blonde haired, realistic clothes.
ë
lso shown on the screenshot are
an example of the titles of our film.
s
most horror films do, we used the bright
bold red writing to connote blood and
death. Our film logo was also in-keeping with the
horror/slasher genre as we downloaded fonts from
www.dafont.com that reflected those used in horror
films. We also changed the colours red and silver to
Reflect the colours of blood and the metal of the axe.
We used the two axes to represent the production
Company logo Dz
xe productions.dz he audience
Would be aware they are watching a horror film as
Soon as this logo is shown at the very beginning.
Production Logo
ë We also used the mise en scene of a knife ( a generic convention) and the
costumes of the victim and the killer to establish the slasher/horror genre.
he black cloak we used for the killer symbolises death
and the knife creates an iconography of the horror genre
so that the audience know they will be watching a
violent/gorey film as soon as it starts.
ë iegetic sound was kept to a minimal and
the only sounds that either of the characters made were
screams and gasps of the victim to emphasise the fear.
We used sound effects and added them onto our film
to create these sounds ->
ë he sounds used to emphasise the appearance of the killer was non-diegetic
sound of the scary music. Other diegetic sounds we used were the natural
sounds of the birds in the woods and the footsteps of the victim running.
ë Conventions we challenged include the lighting, although we used relatively
dark lighting, it was not as dark as horror films usually are to begin with. We
needed to film in the light to get a clear picture as the equipment we used was
not specialised enough to film in the dark.
ë We also didnǯt include any gorey or violent scenes within our film opening, as
we wanted to build up the anxiety and for the audience to wonder what will
happen to the victim after she goes back to sleep, it keeps them gripped.
ë
nother convention we challenged was the fact that the killers are usually
male, although you can not see the face of the killer we used very well it is still
distinguishable that we used a female. his was to give a twist to the plot and
would make the audience wonder why she wanted to kill the victim Ȃ whereas
if it was a male killer the audience may just accept he was a murderer.
  


   


ë Social groups represented within our film
are young adults/teenagers. We used a
young girl as the victim so that the
audience that are most likely to be
watching could relate to her.
ë We also used a character that was very
stereotypical of a victim in a horror film, a
young blonde teenager. In the media and
films blondes are very stereotypically
Dzdumbdz, therefore the audience watching
will feel the victim has little chance of
surviving.
£ he vulnerable character is on her own in the woods as soon as the opening
begins, the audience are unaware of why she is there. his situation will keep them
on the edge of their seat as it is unusual for a young girl to be running through the
woods, this also exaggerates the vulnerable side to her. Young females watching will
be able to put themselves in the characterǯs shoes therefore will engage and relate
with the character.
 
  


 

ë Our product is a film therefore it needs to go through the production,
distribution and finally the exhibition Ȃ which is when the final product is
shown in a cinema or on a  . Film products are also broadcast on digital
satellite and terrestrial  .
ë efore the exhibition of the final product, it needs to be copied and distributed,
this stage is where the United International Picture distributing company
would decide whether the film would be distributed
nationally, internationally, whether the film would be
distributed in cinemas or go straight to  .
ë
s our film was low budget Ȃ it would probably not be distributed in a cinema
and would most likely to straight to  .
ë
lso as our film was made in the UK it is likely to be released in the UK only, as
the cost to make enough copies for the worldwide audience would likely make
a loss rather than a profit if it was released all over the world or in the US
.
 

  

ë he audience for our film would be a young adults and teenagers, so around
the ages of 15-25, possibly up to 30, due to the age of the characters.
ë orror films usually appeal to male audiences more than females as the
themes of violence and death is quite masculine, such as the mise en scene of
the knife and the character of the killer.
ë herefore our media product is more likely to be viewed by men. owever the
main character of the vulnerable victim is more likely to be relatable by
females as they might recognise themselves within the character.
ë We addressed and attracted our audience by using a thrilling plot line that has
twists and unexpected turns which the age range of our audience are likely to
enjoy watching.
 þ
 
ë he equipment used to create the film sequence were: digital camcorder,
tripod.
ë Whilst filming we discovered we needed to use the tripod to hold the camera
still and to get a more professional-looking frame which was more steady.
ë We also had to decide what sort of camera angles to use to create a certain
effect. Such as close ups Ȃ for emphasising the emotion and expression on the
victims face which engages the audience.
lso, the high angle shot of the killer
created a sense of power which in turn made the victim look more helpless.
ë Other camera angles we used whilst filming were low angle to make the victim
look more vulnerable and weak and the dolly shot and a long over the shoulder
shot Ȃ both of which give the sense of the killer chasing the victim and help
give a point of view of the killer so the audience can see where the killer is in
relation to the victim.
ë
dditional camera effects included the downward tilt at the very beginning,
followed by the slow pan through the woods.
slow pan was also used when
the character wakes up to slowly create anticipation and reveals the twist at
the end of the opening and will shock the audience when finally revealed.

Over the Shoulder olly Shot

 ë
fter filming, we used the programme iMovie to edit. he first task was to cut
the frames that were not needed and to cut any jumps that would have affected
the smooth continuity. We also needed to make sure that all the frames were in
order so that the film sequence made sense, as we did not film all the frames in
the chronological order.
ë Some frames we edited to create a slow suspense, and in contrast we also sped
up frames to create the effect of the killer character being faster than a
Dznormaldz person like the villain would run. Which makes the audience feel
scared for the victim as it appears she will not escape.

£ ext we added the sound effects and the music.

ere is an example ->

£ he music was added to create

atmosphere and suspense. We chose music that
was similar to music used a lot in horror films, so
the audience would recognise the genre as soon as
the music starts. he music also has sudden bangs
that we used in moments that would make the
audience jump.
Sound effects such as screams and gasps were
added where the victim needed to emphasise her
expression. We added these as we did not have a Frame Ȃ Slowed down
microphone to make the diegetic speech loud
enough as the sound on the video camera was weak.
ë Some of the transitions between frames we edited
such as the fade to white screen to make it more
obvious that the chase sequence was a dream.
ë We found that we had to film our sequence in the
light and edit the lighting afterwards to make it
appear darker like generic horror films as the video
camera we used was not sufficient enough to film in
the dark.
ë he location of where we were filming made it quite
hard to stand the tripod flat as the ground was
extremely bumpy, therefore a lot of the frames were Fade to White
hand held to make sure that the frames were straight
and not slanted.
ë he final task when editing was adding our titles and
credits. We found that we had to make sure they were
placed in the correct places Ȃ as in they didnǯt cover
actors faces or get in the way of any important
expressions. We added the date at the very beginning
of the film as done in alloween II, as this convention
is also generically used in horror films and especially
the sub genre of slasher. We used the specific date of he first title
Dz13thdz as the number 13 has negative connotations of
bad luck Ȃ which in this films case could be that the
victim does not survive.
 
 þ
ë From the preliminary task and the progression
towards creating the final product we learnt that
thorough planning Ȃ such as the storyboard
including all the camera shots, timings and
characters actions helped us organise the main task
when filming.
ë We also found that because we had not researched
into a particular genre before filming the
preliminary Ȃ that a specific genre was not used.
herefore before filming our main task we did
thorough research into our chosen genre horror and
the sub genre of slasher.
ë
lthough we had planned what shots to use where
and the order of the sequence on our storyboard, we
learnt that making a storyboard helped develop the
film whilst we were filming as we could chop and
change camera shots or angles that didnǯt quite he Establishing shot Ȃ
work as we thought they would. E.g. we changed the high angle downward tiltï
establishing shot from a sweeping pan inside the
woods to a downward tilt to set the location.
ë We also found that during our preliminary task we didnǯt use much variation
within the use of camera angles, and although we followed rules such as the
180 degree rule when the characters were speaking and the match on action
shot to keep continuity, we did not use advanced camera shots to create
effects. For example, when filming our final product we used shots such as
extreme long shots to emphasise the distance that the killer was away from the
victim Ȃ yet still watching.

ë he comments we have received from people that have viewed out film have
all been very positive in contrast to the comments from our preliminary task Ȃ
which proves we have improved out skills through planning, practice and
developing ideas.
 
 i 
 
ë he contribution to the planning was very equal as both I and olly Whitaker
did the research, storyboard and decided upon the plot and camera shots
together.
ë Whilst filming the main task, I filmed the sequence whilst olly was the actor
of the victim.
lthough I filmed, we discussed the shots, action, angles and
locations of the each frame together before filming so that they were a joint
decision.
ë Editing was also a joint effort as before either of us made any changes to sound
or lighting etc, we discussed what we thought would work well and evaluated
together after each change whether we thought it worked or whether we
thought it needed changing further.