Planning- Production timeline

 Hi Blog and welcome back to crunch time! As we are getting closer to our filming days I figured it is essential to build a planning schedule. While I have done a ton of research, there are still a lot of things my group and I has to do to create this film. So many things include picking an overall story, choosing my actors, creating a script, coming up with costumes and makeup, and so many other things. To make this easier for my group and I, I decided to create a list/ schedule of what we plan on working on within the next few weeks. 

Besides this schedule, I also plan on deciding who my main characters are, their personalities and interest and their relationship to each other. All the things I plan on doing like music, script and setting will go hand in hand/connect to build the message of the story. When considering practices, we plan on having multiple collaborative meetings a week with all members. We will also collaborate with our schools TV program, so that they can teach us good techniques when considering cinematography. Throughout the next few weeks, we are going to focus on learning multiple tricks on Premier Pro so that we can learn how to edit, involve lighting techniques and insert sound effects and music that convey to the film.

My group and I can't wait to start producing our long awaited film opening!

Project Proposal

 Hi everyone tuning into my blog and welcome/ welcome back! Whether you have been following my journey, or just beginning to now, you would know that I’m in a class, AICE Media Studies, and creating a film opening from scratch. Alongside with me I’ve been working weeks with my partners Antonella and Maheen researching all about this. After weeks of extensive research we concluded that we will be creating a film opening based on the horror genre.

Our project will be a horror film opening based on paranormal activity. Ultimately, we chose this genre because instead of being violent and gruesome, it creates a sense of tension and fear for the audience. We thought this would be great because typically a wide range of ages could enjoy this. Since most paranormal horror movies focus on the audience depicting what is true and what’s not, we want to include that so we can leave the audience wondering. By using a mix of different sounds and editing skills, mystery will be developed. This film will not only appeal to older horror fanatics but also young-adults who are getting into these movies. Any viewers who love watching a mix of suspenseful and tense movies will strongly enjoy this film. While researching this genre, a social issue we explored and were interested in was the fear of unknown. We came up with the idea of it being based in a forest to make the audience develop suspense and to begin to think what could possibly be in the forest.

Since we are just beginning this film process it was definitely difficult to figure out ways to create it. We are planning to rent out one of our schools cameras and tripod to film. For the editing and sound process, we practiced using Premiere Pro using multiple templates. In the process of this journey I think my group and I will need to learn how to do more camera framing and sound effects to create suspension for audience. 

Our basic plan will involve two characters, a boy and a girl. The girl character will receive an anonymous tip/note which will lead her towards some mysterious setting. We are planning to make this an unsettling forest, a haunted eerie mansion or a dangerous no trespassing zone. Some type of paranormal figure will appear and the audience will begin to use their clues and wonder whether the girl is in danger or not. By using different elements, it will appear obvious that the girl is in danger and will leave the audience wondering what could possibly happen next. Before filming I will prepare using different lighting tactics and sound effects used in other paranormal horror activities to understand the conventions.

All these components are tentative at the moment, but I cannot wait to begin the actual process and see where my group am I’s film ends up.

Research- Publishers/Studios

 Hi everyone! Welcome back to another blog discussing an upcoming film! Today as i’m wrapping up my finals few research posts, I’ll be seeing what the successful studios have done to become such a hit. 

Research

Blumhouse Productions 

One of the most known and successful horror productions of all time have been Blumhouse Productions. The founder, Jason Blum, quickly gained fame straight off the bat for producing the hit movies, for a small price. Some things I learned while researching is that the main reason for their success is the fact that they were able to produce movies with low budget prices which were usually under $15 million. If you were wondering who they were, you could probably recognize them by their top hits such as, The Black Phone franchise, The Purge and Paranormal Activity. Overall, the fact that they don’t need a big budget to create much successful movies are the reason they are as big as they are. By wise money spending ways, they were able to create a sensation within their films. 

Universal Pictures

Out of all the different studios and productions, the one that may sound the most familiar to you is Universal Pictures. For a long time they have been the center of horror movies and have created a countless amount of hits. A few of their most popular franchises include Annabelle, IT and The Nun. They used multiple tactics to control large amounts of views like making use of marketing methods. Specifically their biggest hit franchise being The Conjuring which will always be considered a long-term success.

A24

In contrast with Blumhouse Productions, A24 is focused on auteur-driven horror. Not only are they just any regular horror studio, they also focus hard on the artistic aspects of movies. Some popular movies you may know produced by this studio are Talk to Me and Genetic. They’re often psychological horror films, mixed with eye catching visuals. They usually appeal heavily on the audience because of their intense plots which also received compliments from critics as well.

Sources

-https://www.blumhouse.com/

-https://scariesthings.com/2023/11/11/ranking-the-greatest-horror-production-studios/

Research- Color/Typography

 Hi everyone! Today as I’m wrapping up my last bits of research, I’ll be learning about color/typography. I think this element when film making is very important when trying to appeal to the audience, and convey the “fear” factor.

Research

Horror films don’t just convey their story through acting, they do it by using a mix of technical elements that use ways to affect the audience. Some the most prominent elements within typography is lighting, color and camera techniques.

The first element within color/typography that I’ll be researching is lighting and shadows. Horror movies prominently use low-key lighting and darkness to add intensity. Using these often makes the audiences thoughts and imagination got to wonder about the unknown. An example of this is the movie The Exorcist, where Father Marrin was standing near a foggy streetlight where the lighting is used to make him seem mysterious and leading the audience to create fear and suspicion. 

Another technical element was the use of color in horror movies. As I’m researching, I realized colors in horror films are symbolic and emotionally driven. For example, the color red often signifies a sign of danger and harm, while soft colors like blue and green hint towards isolation. In the movie Suspiria, a use of bright red and unnatural lighting creating a scene where the atmosphere is unsettling before any horror is actually happening.

As i’ve researched previously, typography and sound design helps create fear in the story before the story itself is told. Sound design in horror often is created through silence cuing towards suspense. Also, typography plays a role in effecting horrors done and marketing. Films like The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, uses typography in the sense that it is rough and uses aggressive typography through the title and headings to hint towards fear and gruesome events before the audience watches it.

Reflection

By researching about this I realized that films depend heavily on appearance through marketing and through the film itself. By having good typography, the audience will be influenced to press on it and watch it. Color and typography works hand in hand with other technical elements to evoke feelings from the audience. These elements are intentionally created to convey emotion from the audience which improves the audience perspective on it.

Sources

-https://putracetol.com/typography-in-horror-design/

-https://slowburnhorror.com/2021/09/10/the-meaning-of-color-in-horror/

-https://nofilmschool.com/horror-camera-angles

-https://theasc.com/articles/terror-through-lighting

-https://mediatech.edu/how-horror-movies-shaped-filmmaking/

-https://www.slashfilm.com/1913024/best-horror-movies-cinematography/

Research- Character Types

 Hey blog, hope you guys are doing well! As I’m wrapping up my research on the horror genre, I figured it was important to research about the different character types in horror films and what use they provide to the film. 

Research

Horror films are composed of specific characters to create and build a story to the audience. One of the most prominent character types is the “protagonist”, also known as the “final character.” This character helps the audience engage with character, and view the movie through their perspective. A popular example of this is Laurie Strode in the film Halloween, whose character is very aware of her surroundings and used calm and cautious behavior when put in pressure. By making this character seem intelligent in a risky situation, this horror film was able to give the viewers someone to rely on, and follow in the eyes of while danger is prominent.

Another primary character type in a horror movie is the antagonist or the monster. This is often the character that portrays a larger fear like death or the unknown. This character is usually mysterious, silent or unknown to make them seem more dangerous. An example of this is Michael Myers in the movie Halloween. This character is important because he’s masked and shows no motion, which makes him appear more different than how ordinary humans are. Another example of an antagonist can be seen in the film It follows. The entity in this movie develops fear because it seems almost ordinary in everyday life. These villains force the protagonist to be constantly fearful, and dealing with harm.

Additionally, horror films often have secondary character types, like victims or authority figures. These characters often help the plot keep moving forward. These characters often developed danger by creating a slow pace, which ultimately failed to protect others. For example, in the film Get Out, the secondary characters play a specific role in developing fear within the audience.  Their behaviors appear polite and then slowly reveal secret threats. These rules help create a conscious of trust in vulnerability and ultimately makes the protagonist role more vulnerable, and in harms way.

Reflection

By researching about character types, I learned that they are important to how horror films build the story. Protagonists help the audience connect with the story while antagonist create the deeper fear beyond physical danger. The secondary characters enforce isolation and build tension by doing things like creating threats or obstacles. This Research helped me understand the different roles character characters have in horror films in how they go, hand in hand, creating suspense and impact on the audience.

Sources

-https://nofilmschool.com/classic-horror-movie-character-types

-https://www.indiewire.com/features/general/get-out-review-jordan-peele-sundance-2017-1201772958/

-https://halloweenmovie.fandom.com/wiki/Primary_antagonists

-https://screenrant.com/halloween-every-main-protagonist-final-fate-alive-dead/

-https://www.huffpost.com/entry/the-most-overlooked-underrated-characters-in-get_b_58c3049de4b0a797c1d39c5b

Research- Mise-en-scene

Hi blog! I recently researched on my previous posts about technical elements but thought it was also important to research in depth about mine-en-scene. I always thought it was interesting how mise-en-scene is used all throughout films in all different types of ways. To research this I will be reading multiple articles, researching mise-en-scene elements within horror movies and then taking notes on how it creates the effect it does.

Research 

The term mise-en-scene refers to anything that is placed in front of the camera like setting, lighting, costumes, props and the actors placement. It plays a huge role on how horror films build tension and convey fear to audience. To not get confused with cinematography, which is built on camera work, it primarily focuses on the visual effect a director builds on screen without using sounds or movement. Every aspect that has to do with an object, a costume or details has to do with mise-en-scene and is specifically put their to make the audience feel uneasy.

 Additionally, in horror, films, lighting, and color are often two components that work together with physical aspects to create tension. The use of low-key lighting and shadows are examples of mise-en-scene, which makes the audience question what they’re unable to see. An example of this is in a dark setting they may see abandoned houses or Erie buildings that give a sense of danger being around. Costumes and makeup also take part in this, for example: Pale skin, worn down clothes and abnormal outfits hint towards a threat being around without real words being spoken. The visual effects also include props like, teddy bears or bloody objects which help build a horror feeling in the atmosphere, conveying an unsettling feeling.

 

A good example of mise-en-scene is in the film Get Out. This is because the home appears clean, bright and welcoming, but in reality, there are tiny details that make it unsettling. The costumes appeared normal while background details such as the placement of servants or family members hinted towards danger before the plot is really shown. The calculated use of setting and visual detailing Allowed horror to develop overtime rather than using typical elements like jump scares.

Reflection

By researching mise-en-scene, I learned that it plays a huge role in creating fear. Every visual detail is specifically chosen to create discomfort. Horror doesn’t always depend on action or violence, but also visual storytelling, creating a sense of tension before anything actually happens. This research helped me realize how this is used to guide the audience’s emotion and build up fear.

Sources

-https://nofilmschool.com/mise-en-scene-horror

-https://nofilmschool.com/mise-en-scene

-https://www.byarcadia.org/post/horror-film-101-behind-the-mise-en-sc%C3%A8ne

Research- Technical elements

Hey blog, welcome back! Now that I know a little more about who enjoys horror films and what they’re intended to do, I want to study the technical elements that make them the way they are. In this post, I’m hoping to learn more about how to create a horror film by researching multiple articles and taking notes. I will be letting you guys know my key take aways, and what popular films used these elements.

Research

Horror films depend a lot more on technical elements to create the feeling of fear and uneasiness rather than depending on a story line alone. One of the most important technical aspects I took away was cinematography, especially the lighting and the camera angles within it. For example, horror films usually use low-key lighting to create shadows that limit what the  audience can see. This forces the audience to imagine what these figures could possibly be. An example of camera shots could be tracking shots. Films like The Shining use slow tracking shots and wide framing to make the empty area appear abandoned and threatening making the setting itself create a sense of fear.

Another component of technical elements that are prominent in horror are sound designs which are often more important than even the visuals. Films within the horror genre use eerie background music amd ambient noises are use to build fear. Also, random moments of loud sounds are prominent to create jump scares, while random silence is the build up of suspense for them. In the film Psycho, a sound of a rusty violin echos during a shower scene which built up panic alone by just using music. Sound often plays a major role in horror films because it warns the audience of danger  before anything visually appears on screen.

Additionally, the use of special effects practical techniques help create a more realistic and uncomfortable setting. Most filmmakers often prefer practical effects like prosthetic makeup and physical blood effects because it makes the movie seem more believable and realistic. The film, The Thing, has creatures turning into things in a more graphical way making it uneasy. Using these techniques make the threats seem real and evoke the emotional fear from the audience. It also makes the fear more real and almost believable.

Lastly, The use of editing and pacing plays a major role in creating the horror experience. Most horror films use a slower pace and longer takes to make the audience uncomfortable while waiting for something to happen. When some type of scare occurs, fast cuts and sudden edits are used, so that the viewer builds up a sense of fear and discomfort. The mix of slow buildup and quick action makes the fear more intense. Horror films like It Follows, rely on extended shots to keep building up the plot and making the threats clear.

Reflection

By researching, I learned the horror films use a very specific use of technical elements to evoke the fear out of the audience. Rather than just telling a story, the technical elements are the real foundation. Cinematography, sound, editing and special effects work hand in hand to create specific emotions from the audience at specific moments. This research helped me have a better understanding on horror as a genre and that it requires enhanced technical skills to create the real psychological tension and fear.

Sources

-https://www.elratonmediaworks.org/northern-new-mexico-film-tv-blog/30-horror-making-techniques

-https://collider.com/best-horror-filmmaking-techniques

-https://nofilmschool.com/basics-of-horror-cinematography

-https://www.afi.com/robert-detail/53260-PSYCHO/