Friday, 11 May 2012
BRIEF
For this advanced project my aim is to create a main product being the trailer alongside the ancillary texts which is the film magazine and poster. Before I can get to this stage a lot of planning and narrative study has to be taken place. In class we studied about the narrative codes giving us ideas on how to form our trailer. Through this knowledge we are able to gather up ideas and write a synopsis of the storyline. We have given out questions to our target market to find out what they want from the film, whether they can afford it and special features that needs to be added. We are in the process of creating call sheets, storyboards and edited it into a trailer with music to calculate the pace, time and angle shots. For the magazine and poster I will creat templates to give me ideas on the colour scheme and positioning. All the planning of the trailer, magazine and poster is to allow me to keep focused on my task and produce a product in which I know my target audience will appreciate.
Thursday, 10 May 2012
Wednesday, 9 May 2012
Tuesday, 8 May 2012
Monday, 7 May 2012
REPORT ON SLASHER FILMS
Why do we watch horror films? We watch horror films as they fulfil a purpose in our society by reinforcing the rules and restrictions and also telling tales of those who contravene. Thrill and the adrenaline rush is what the audience seek in horror books, tales and films. As the years have gone by what has been considered as frightening has differed. In 1940 the part-man, part-wolf was considered as terrifying for that set of audience. But now we may look at this so called “bogey man” and see him as a mythical beast. A famous quote by Stephan King, “if movies are the dreams of the mass culture… horror movies are the nightmares”. This suggests, even though the audience themselves would not consider to be in startling situations such as the characters in horror films, the audience would still have the audacity to sit and watch someone else go through it although the outcome is that the audience themselves would sometimes experience paranoia. Moreover Johnny Sullivan who has worked on multiple horror projects has been writing features since 2002 and this year he is looking to find out why people love horror films. He says ‘I think there are two audiences. Audience #1 is the casual, older moviegoer that doesn’t realize that the movie is a cheap, most-likely-not-particularly-good direct-to-DVD flick. The cover looks good. There’s some recognizable ‘stars’ above the title. I call this the ‘My Parents’ audience. Audience # 2 is made up of genuine horror fans. Die-hard horror fans who know full well that the flick is probably crap, but, hey, it’s a horror movie! They gotta see it! It’s not like they’re going to get to see a ‘Christian Slater fights a giant crab’ movie in a theater! Also, teenage girls. And maybe hipsters trying to be ‘ironic’ by spending money on something named ‘Piranhaconda’.
Horror/ Slasher films are usually made with a low budget as the producers receive low funding from a major studio or private investor. The reason being as there is a lack of audience, or the film maker is young and new to film making.
Films are categorised at their very existence from screen write, to your local store, to how their impact on cultural history is assessed. Companies such as Netflix or LoveFilm rely on genre categories in order for their consumers to take their pick, this is very important for marketing of movies.
The most important and straightforward approach to analysing film genre is descriptive; this involves looking at a film and placing it in the category of which it genuinely belongs in. The film is alleged to have common aspects in which it shares such as structure, theme, or visual style. Moreover other films in this category is analysed reasonably allowing an portion of genre paradigms, or recognisable elements such as costume, location, character, archetypes, shot transitions, or plot content. The descriptive approach involves putting a numerous number of films into small groups challenging this kind of stiff categorization. If two films are similar and placed in the same genre, the audience are likely to reject it as it is unoriginal.
The second approach to genre is functional as the film is perceived as “Collective expressions of contemporary life that strike a particularly resonant chord with audiences”, (Experience and meaning in Genre Films BK, Film Genre Reader 1986). The repetition that occurs in genre films are questions we ought to ask ourselves such as: what is frightening, or what possibilities do we fear? (Horror films), what is criminal? (Gangster films), what is morality? (Melodramas), what is acceptance? (Romantic comedies), what is alien? And what is future (science fiction).
Through genre hegemonic values are either reinforced or shift to the side as genre films are a product of their socio-historic context. This is seen in slasher films when the final girl is mainly obedient, virginal, studious, quiet, timid, serious and not impulsive, plain and sensible. This character sticks a chord in our society as she fits in with the Dominant Ideology of Western (capitalist) Christian Patriarchy. This is when the western society has permitted a capitalist ideology where mainly white middle class male are usually seen as authority in top businesses, churches and politics. In addition the societies we live in perceive that the more money and materialistic things an individual may own this must mean they are powerful and in some extend these people are respected. However this cannot be avoided as this ideology is all around us. Furthermore we are a subject to hegemony through oppression via consent even though we do not necessary agree with. In slasher films, as the final girl is obedient this portrays a message to the viewers that women and girls should be obedient to the male dominant society. This ideology is represented in the film Halloween as Lorrie is everything a final girl should be, and also she is masculine so the male audience can identify with her. In my own slasher synopsis codes and conventions were broken as the female is the subject to the killing rather than the victim. The reason for this is to show the audience that female also have the ability and strength to achieve the same skills men can.
Furthermore there are different types of genres being subgenre and genre hybirds. Telling a similar story within the same set of genre paradigm can become boring as there are really only limited number of plots anyway. A subgenre can be successful when it successfully crosses traditional genre boundaries and which pushes genre paradigms in response to external socio-historic factors. This is evident as the current uproar of global warming has allowed filmmakers to create films about recession, from Sam Raimi’s- Drag me to Hell (horror), to Michael Moore’s Capitalism: A Love Story (documentary). In addition genres need to be unsolidified, have a sense of flow, and consistently sprouting set of paradigms otherwise cinema would deteriorate and people will begin to lose interest in the films. Even though there are mainly just seven plots, the film makers need to present those plots to the audience in fresh genre arrangements. As Horror films are one of the most favoured genres, film makers will therefore add in a set of horror paradigms to create interest for the audience before adding other genres in the mix. This is known as the genre hybrid: Horror Romance (e.g. Twilight), Horror war (e.g. R-Point, Dead Shaw), Horror Historical Drama (e.g. Pride and Prejudice and Zombies) and Horror ROMCOM (e.g. Shawn of the dead).
Narrative in genre films is the way of organising and arranging events in time. There are several theories we could look at that demonstrates this. Tvzetan Todorov suggests narrative is simply equilibrium, disequilibrium and new equilibrium which simply suggests in every narrative there is a beginning and an ending to a film although it does not necessary have to be in that particular order. Vladimir Propp was a Russian critic who examined 100 of folk tales and found out the similarities in all of them they each consisted of eight basic characters and thirty-one character roles. The eight character roles are: 1- the villain(s), 2- the hero, 3- the donor- who provides an object with some magic property, 4- the helper who aides the hero, 5- the princess- she becomes a reward for the hero and she’s the object of the villain’s schemes. 6- her father- who awards the hero, 7- the dispatcher who sends the hero on his way and last but not least, 8- the false hero. These character roles can be applied to all sorts of narrative in the media such as the news on the television we often witness the ‘hero’ and the ‘villain’. Finally Claude Levi-Strauss brings forward the constant creation of conflict/ opposition propels narrative. Claude focused and looked at narrative structure on binary opposites. A great example of this is through science fictions. This is evident: Earth- space, good- bad, humans- aliens, past- present, normal- strange, known-unknown. Moreover there are also Binary opposites in slasher/ horror films as this genre can be interpreted as social themes. Some of these binary opposites are good Vs evil, male Vs female, group Vs evil, virginal Vs sexually repressed, dream Vs reality. The reality is to stay awake as the monster is very sexually aggressive whilst the heroine is virginal. On the contrary because my slasher synopsis has broken some of the codes and conventions, some of the binary opposition will have also changed. Some of the binary opposites are female Vs male (instead of having a male sexually aggressive we have a woman. This shows women can also be as dangerous as men in any part of society), light Vs darkness (most of the crime is done darkness rather than broad day light).
In conclusion, slasher film does serve a massive purpose for our society whether being positive or negative through hegemonic values. Although they are made with low budget, there is still a target market for the film makers. Some people notice the cheesiness and low quality of some of the horror films but they still indulge in it, and some just like to watch horror for the excitement of feeling frightened but at the same time knowing you are much safer at that time then the characters in that specific film. Producers need genre films as that’s the way the audience can identify with the film they are watching even though at times the outcome may become obvious. To obtain the films from becoming tedious film makers use genre hybrid to bring an unexpected but original and recognisable film to the audience.
Sunday, 6 May 2012
SYNOPSIS ANALYSIS
The genre of the film that my group and I are creating is Horror/Slasher. We understand the codes and conventions to produce an incredible slasher film that will automatically attract the main audience and other genre fans; including the tabloids. Slasher films usually have a set of characters that has a particular role, for instance, the final girl who survives the attack from the monster. The final girl is amongst a group of friends who all get killed one by one. The final girl is usually a virgin with brown hair, masculine and nerdy. In some film such as the first Halloween the final girl is seen walking down a windy suburban area hugging her books close to her chest. This represents the ideology in which describes a good teenager and sends out a message that young people should cherish their virginity and concentrate on their studies. On the contrary the promiscuous blond girl ends up being killed first. She is usually blond and not too keen on school but rather into boys and party. She represents the danger of sleeping around with men and by killing her off first illustrates her getting punished for having sex with all those men. The monster is usually a male, with a mask to hide his identity and has some sort of supernatural power for example in Halloween, the monster never dies. The monster represents a penis, robbing the final girl of her virginity as he is trying to kill the final girl; she escapes for he is dangerous and capable of damaging her life if not even robbing her life away from her. In addition thorough out life there is usually a responsible adult warning the youths of the danger of certain decisions. In slasher films this is illustrated through the character known as the benefactor. He is an older person who gives advice to the victims warning them of the monster and providing them with advice that will prevent them from getting killed. Although he does not have a major role in changing the plot and situation in the film, he however provides the audience with suspense and builds tension. Vladimir Propp was a Russian critic who studied 100 folk’s tales and analysed any similarities in structure. His book “Momrphology of the Folk Tale” was first published in 1928. Inside the book you will be able to identify 8 character roles and 31 narrative functions. The 8 character roles are: The villain(s), the hero, the donor, the helper who aids the hero, the princess, her father, the dispatcher and the false hero. Moreover the benefactor fits in the role of “the helper who aids the hero”. Furthermore the ineffective characters being a policeman for example in Halloween does not affect any of the storyline as they are normally clueless in the matter, which in turn raises more tension for the audience and gives them a sense of helplessness as there is no higher authority to help the victims as there is an absence of parental figure as parents are supposed to be around to protect their vulnerable children.
Breaking these codes and conventions that have been set for so long is what attracts the horror film fans as it can be difficult. It is also exciting as we are bringing a new face to horror films and making it so unpredictable. This could be an advantage as the film will have a different twist to it. However this could also lose viewers as it is contrary to what they are used to.
In our synopsis a lot of codes and conventions have been broken, not to change the message of keeping ones virginity safe, but rather to go deep into that and allow people to realise the importance and meaning of sex and responsibility that involves. Instead of having a disfigured monster that represents a penis and is automatically dangerous by the first appearance, we decided to challenge people’s perception and break that convention by replacing him with a mentally disturbed and twisted young lady with a pretty face; however she murders the men in her life as revenge of her dark past. This decision is supported by the Femme Fatale is a woman who is extremely beautiful with a provocative body, powerful, mysterious and quite dangerous especially for men. Example of a femme fatale is the bride of Dracula. This ideology has a social historic context as after the Second World War when men came back from war and to find their jobs had been taken by women who later found out they were capable of doing what the men could, so they began to demand more. The face of Hollywood changed and their films became darker and pessimistic as some directors were awakening by the harsh reality of the war.
Moreover there is a social and historical reason as our film also relates to noir-genre. Noir is a French word meaning Black. Film noir are films with dark content, usually having scenes with dark lighting producing long shadows and claustrophobic atmosphere which emerged after World War II during the 1940s. This can also be noticed in German expressionism as German film directors like Lang and Murnau used light and shadow, and very low key lighting to emphasize the shadowy aesthetic. The theme tends to be dark, underlining a sense of the darker side of human nature and crime. German expressionism was inspired at the time of the Nazi and their control over Germany.
The setting for our movie is in a suburban area where a lot of people can identify with. There will be park scenes which the audience can also recognise as the park is a place where people go with their friends and family to sunbathe, walk the dog, make a picnic and have fun with friends and family. And to have a pretty woman in the park, walking her dog one morning, looks innocent but later its revealed dangerous; this will raise tension for the audience. The season in most horror films is typically in autumn. Reason being is that autumn weather illustrates the end of something good and the beginning of death as the leaves die away from the trees. This is a good connotation as this period is a terrible beginning for the victims. In the film Halloween the final girl is walking towards her house with wind blowing through her hair, and leaves falling. This shot is recognised in some horror film scenes and is known as an iconography. Iconography is like mise en scene, where some certain objects and colours have connotations of a deeper meaning such as red has connotations of passion, anger, danger and even sexual acts. Iconography can be identity in our trailer film as Holly mostly wears black. She wants to be in the background and not noticed and she is odd amongst her peers.
The storyline of our synopsis relates to the film ‘Psycho’ as it involves having a mentally disturbed person who was damaged from a young age and later on grew up psychologically unstable. Our synopsis is illustrating that issues from the past must be tackled immediately as if it is left for long, one will grow up unstable. There is also a sexual message suggesting not only should girls protect their virginity, also men need to, as we live in a corrupt society where a guy will be praised for sleeping with countless girls, however a girl will be called all sorts of ugly names and put to shame for doing the same act.
Saturday, 5 May 2012
TIME LINE of SYNOPSIS
TIME LINE ON "THE KISS OF DEATH" TRAILER
FOR CLOSE READING PLEASE CLICK ON THE IMAGE
Friday, 4 May 2012
DRAG ME TO HELL TRAILER ANALYSIS
The first scene in the trailer is of a freeway suggesting the film will be based around a lot of people and a busy environment; unlike slasher films which are set in a suburban place where most of the audience can identify with. The first sight of our main character is a slim blond lady who is likely to be the subject of a victim typical to a horror film. She is driving a car portraying she is a working woman and independent. The next scene is of her and her manager having a conversation on a promotion position. The shoulder shot portrays her blouse which is not revealing, her attire comes against the male gaze theory which explains how media portrays women as vulnerable weak through their appearance. However this young lady holds a secure job in the city, she drives and dresses sensible. Gustav Freytag is a German playwright and novelist who has done a study on the 5-act of dramatic tension layering out the theory in a pyramid. These five parts includes exposition, rising action, climax, falling action and revelation. According to the Freytag’s pyramid we have already seen the setting, location and the main character in just a few seconds of the trailer. In Freytag’s pyramid The Rising Action is a conflict that frustrates the main character as an old woman comes in the work place demanding for a mortgage in which she cannot pay for. The main character does not following her heart into giving the woman the mortgage but instead declines her from it. This shows that her work has taken over her life as she seeks for promotion.
As the scene changes, change in non-diegetic sound is heard. In the car park the main character is alone with just two cars. This implies she is very vulnerable in that situation in case she was to be in danger. The climax in Freytag’s pyramid is where things turn better or worse for the character and in this case it turns extremely frightening. Climax hit when the main character is being attached by the old lady in the previous scene. Close up is identified as the main character’s face is shown to be in horror by the old lady’s attack. The long shot is shown as the main character is being dragged out of her car by the old woman. This is also another connotation to why the title of the film could be “drag me to hell”. It is also unusual for a woman in horror movie to be the course of the killing and moreover to be an old lady with so much strength. Through this the audience can see that the old woman is supernatural in a sense or perhaps she has a demon within her. The conventions are twisted and subverted as the young lady who is meant to be naturally stronger then the much older woman is actually the victim and the weaker one. Furthermore the young lady known as Adrian Barraza is a total opposite to the old lady in the film. This is known as binary opposite introduced by Claude Levi- Strauss. Clause Strauss suggests that narrative can only end on a resolution of conflict, creating a conflict or opposition propels narrative. Opposition can be light/dark, or conceptual can be love/hate.
Diegetic sound is heard as the wind passes by almost slowing time when the old lady pulls a button from the main character’s coat holding it close to her face and the lighting hitting it as if it is a source of power. The low angle on the main character makes her seem inferior and vulnerable compared to the old lady. This shot fits in with the male gaze because even though the main character is independent in her life style and how she lives, she is still seen as weak and vulnerable physically.
Suddenly from 1 minute 31 seconds in the trailer, the music fasten, there montage of short and sharp scenes including one with a demon outside the window who is shown as the aggressor. Now questions and tension raised and enigma code for the audience as to who is this demon? Or whether is the demon connected to the old woman in the car park. Moreover the house seems like a family raising more questions to whether they have links to the demon on the window. In the trailer near the ending there is a dialogue she has with a man telling her the demon will not leave her till “she burns in hell for eternity” this brings forward enigma code to whether she survives or not even though most horror film the blond girl dies.
Trailers follow the same pattern as a film. They have a beginning, middle and end. Tvzetan Todorov’s suggests narrative is simply Equilibrium when the character undergoes their daily routine in this case the blond lady is seen driving on a freeway to work with non-diegetic sound making the scene seem positive. Disequilibrium is when there is a disruption on the daily routine in this case the blond lady (Adriana Barraza) is being attacked by an old woman who she refused a mortgage earlier at work. now that the character has seen there is a disruption in her life she find means to solve the matter, and this is seen when Adriana Barraza is having a dialogue with a man who is explaining to her what is going wrong in her life and how to solve the matter. Furthermore there seems to be obstacles in the way for the solution to work. However New Equilibrium suggests that the solution has been found to the problem. Throughout the trailer the pace increases as the number of shots and flashes of light increases because of the dramatic climax in the film. The intense orchestra fastens the pace drawing in the audience to watch the film. There are no voice overs except for the dialogue she has with who seems to be the guy that could help her survive this torment, the old lady, her boyfriend and her manager.
The end of the trailer is when the typography “Drag me to hell” appears. Reminding the audience exactly what they have just seen in the trailer revolves around the name of the title. The word “hell” itself portrays torture and pain within film. The none-diegetic sound illustrate a sense of darkness and danger, demons tormenting the young lady, and the screaming of a female when the typography appeared at the end of the trailer suggests the genre of the film is none other than horror. Adrian Barraza is a famous actress and her being the main character will attract her fans to watch the film even if the trailer in itself may not have been so convincing and horrific.
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