In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

Conventions of horrorConventions of horrorI had researched and analysed the first two minutes of a number of films in relation to the horror genre. I analysed four

films which were Resident Evil, Silent Hill, the Sixth Sense and Wrong Turn. Each had their own unique style regarding storyline but similar use of camera shots, sound, editing and Mise en Scene.

The main conventions that I discovered while viewing the films were the lack of clothing on characters which may suggest the characters vulnerability. The Lighting that was used throughout the movie. Majority of the horror films were set at night, where not much daylight would be. This really boosts up the audiences involvement within the film as they are even more limited to what they can see.

The sound that is used really hints at the genre of the film. I viewed each film once without sound, and once with and the difference is incredible. The choice of music that each film uses fits perfectly with the mood on the scene and creates that horror atmosphere. Synchronous sound and Sound Bridges are another effective way to pull the full potential that sound holds on a movie. Matched with the perfect volume, scares and tension can be created in addition to forming an event.

The camera shots that were used were effective in relation to limiting the audiences viewing distance. In all films and more specifically in Resident Evil there are a chain of shots from a Close-up to a mid shot and finally to a Long shot, slowly revealing more of the characters location to the audience. The reason to why this is so effective is that the audience tends to put themselves in the main characters shoes and simply without knowing the location the audience cannot begin to understand which of the many situations that these characters could possibly in are in which dramatically increases the potential of the atmosphere of the film. Close ups are usually used to show character emotion within horrors and are extremely effective in forming together a scene. These shots tend to be held for a long or short length of time depending on what emotion the director wants to create. For example if the shot was held for a long duration of time, it is likely that the shot is trying to emphasis an event, by creating tension within the scene. If the shot was held for a short duration of time, it is likely that the shot is immediately introducing a new event.

Using Camera ShotsUsing Camera ShotsUpon watching Resident Evil I took an interest on the very first shot which was an extreme close up of a characters eye. I felt this was an extremely powerful shot to open a film with, being that it gets the audience thinking immediately and makes them feel really uncomfortable. I took this interest into consideration for my project and had an attempt in creating my own extreme close up shot of an eye. Creating this shot I found a fair challenge due to the camera positioning and track distance and the amount of pressure I had to stay completely still. After many failed attempts I finally had filmed attempt that I was satisfied with.

The shot I took of my eye is also placed at the very beginning of the Film and used to draw the audiences attention immediately. It is combined with audio that gradually gets louder and becomes silent after the shot has been displayed.

From the first two minutes of Wrong Turn there was a chase scene. I took interest of the Point of View shot from the woman running towards a car. I found it interesting how much power the shot held, not only was the shot forcing the audience directly into the womans shoes but also how the car symbolised the escape. I decided to try out the technique myself, and created a scene with blur effects that generated a fainting effect from Ryan. I was very pleased with this shot and believe it fulfils the role. Although these shots are similar to what a horror films forms and conventions may be due to the PoV shot etc, I also believe that they challenge them simply by the order they have been placed in. For example the film opening with the eye is a very effective techinque and not used often for openings of the film. It is a very interesting way for the audience to begin to build a relationship with the character.

VFXVFXVFX was definitely a strong point for the film. I had decided to attempt and challenge the forms and conventions by creating some of my own effects. I had used colour correction techniques to darken the colour of the scene and give it more of a scary mood. The first noticeable effect would be the green filter. I believe that this challenges horrors forms and conventions because of the type of shot. Instead of the audience being directly involved in the scene via PoV shots and close ups, the audience are viewing the film from another camera. Meaning that they have not yet been put in any characters shoes and have a view of the scene in an unique way. I decided to use this effect multiple times to create confusion and wonder to the

audience regarding who or what is watching him and why. The next VFX is introduced during the mirror scene. I had some problems while burning the disc, but for some reason this scene came out jittery. During this scene the audience can see what look like bugs crawling up the characters face. I believe that this is also challenging the conventions as this would be a surprise to the audience due to the bugs being a unique antagonist for this part film. In addition I also believe that this can be similar to the conventions of horror, the reason being is that from watching horror films and openings I have discovered that there are a lot of surprises revealed to the audience, however this can also be argued as a challenge convention due to how early the effect is introduced into the film. The final effect that I used in the

film is placed at the end, where I have covered my face with a variety of effects and mattes to create a unique look for myself. I believe this effect challenges the conventions as this is introduced quite early in the film, in addition the occurrence is to the main character which would be unexpected. However a horror film containing an antagonist that has a unique look could also be argued to be common.

Mise en SceneMise en SceneThe Lighting in the film is very limited, throughout almost the full 2 minutes the clip is filmed during a dark period. This could arguably be recongnised as being similar to the forms and conventions, as most horror films are filmed in the darkness. However I believe that the location of the film is unique and challenges the forms and conventions. Having a horror that is filmed in the bathroom in the first two minutes is extremely rare from what I

have researched. Although not intended originally, our character has very little props involved apart from the obvious clock. We used the clock as a symbol for the audience to recognise that mid night is an awkward time to be waking up from sleep. We originally planned for a horror themed book and jacket to be in our movie but thought it would be more useful if we left them out. I believe that this symbolises even more vulnerability for the character as well as challenging the forms and conventions. It can be argued that it is uncommon to have little to no props in the first two minutes. For example from researching previous horrors I discovered that it was common characters to have weapons. It can also be argued as being similar to the forms and conventions as it symbolises the vulnerability state.

Conclus ionConclus ion

Overall I believe that The Birth of a Nightmare is great in challenging forms and conventions, through lack of props, unique storyline and location of shots. The original aim for the storyline was to attempt to create something different and unique, than the commonly shown violence and use of make-up. I believe that the storyline creates lots of questions from the audience however doesn’t make it too confusing so you can’t understand what is going on. We achieved this through many different shots specifically the Point of View shot and VFX.

The Film is also similar in terms of forms and conventions from horrors. The lighting, lack of props and location of set are the strong points and provide similarity with other horror films. The set location being inside a flat was quite difficult to work with at the beginning. We chose a flat as it acts as a barrier against the rest of the population, meaning that our character is excluded from the majority of the population and cannot receive help from them. After some difficulty in creating shots I am satisfied with the overall quality.