Drafting and Planning - Fonts/Titles

Possible Fonts/Titles:

I like this font as it gives quite a 'Gothic' feel which has element of horror.

I like this font as I think it gives an 'ancient' feel. This could be effective as it is about a girl who has been haunting the same flat for centuries.

Drafting and Planning - Main Character

This is an image of the girl I am going to get to play my main 'evil' character. I think she will play a good role as like the other horror villains I have researched, she has long dark hair and dark eyes.

Drafting and Planning - Possible Poster Ideas

I then decided to create some posters to inspire some ideas for the poster of my film.

I chose an image of a 'scary' looking house as, from my research, I found out that most horror films are located in such settings. The house evokes a sense of fear due to the dark colours used. The weather around the house also could be seen as pathetic fallacy possibly foreboding what is to come. Although my film will be set in a flat, I thought it useful to look at other settings and see how they are portrayed in film posters. I don't like the font used as I think it gives a comic feel to the genre of horror. Although I think it corresponds will with the image and the lightning in the background, I think it has potential to distract the viewer away from fear.

I then looked at possible images I have taken for my poster. I thought an image of the front door with the number 'six' on the front would be effect as, like the image of the eye, it doesn't give too much away but would intrigue the reader and suggest a sense of horror as the number six has connotations to the devil and evil.

When I looked at the original image, I realised it did not provoke a sense of fear at all. Apart from the number six, the door appears to be completely normal and therefore has no elements of horror.
I pasted the image into Paint.net and clicked on 'Adjustments.' From my research, I noticed that the colours mainly used in horror film magazines or posters are usually dark making the image quite unclear.I then adjusted the image's brightness and contrast and therefore created a 'horror' feel.

Drafting and Planning - Possible Magazine Layouts

I then decided to create some of my own drafts of magazine covers to think about possible ideas.

I like this layout I created as I think it is typical of a magazine based on a Horror film. I chose this image as I think it is effective in creating a sense of fear. The image does not give much away but the dark colours and blood create an eerie atmosphere. I also think the use of the just the characters eye is an effective way of creating mystery therefore arousing intrigue in the viewer. Similar to the magazines I analysed, I decided to keep the colour scheme as red, black and white as it creates a professional feel yet relates to the genre. I decided to use a 'Gothic' font as, again, it relates to the genre of the film. I kept the font colour to red and black to create a synergy between the image and the film title. Also, that the masthead is red also creates a synergy between the film and the magazine.

For the layout, I chose an image from the film 'The Grudge.' I decided to use this image as, again, I like the idea of using merely an eye but also because I think my main 'evil' character will resemble The Grudge slightly. Again, I stuck to the house colours of black white and red but added grey. I chose this 'distorted' font as it reflects the genre of the film and that it is supernatural. I think the capitals could be effective as they make the film title stand out.

Research - Results of Questionnaire

I then handed out my questionnaire to 10 of my peers, and these are the results I received:

Q1. How old are you? 
5/10 people were 14>18
4/10 people were 19>25

1/10 people were 26+

By this I noted that the people I questioned were mainly in the 15-18 age range which is useful for the film trailer I am going to produce.

Q2. What is your favourite genre of film?

4/10 people said 'Horror'

1/10 people said 'Romantic'

2/10 people said 'Romantic Comedy'

2/10 people said 'Comedy'

0/10 people said 'Thriller'

0/10 people said 'Drama'

1/10 people said 'Psychological'

0/10 people said 'Other' 
This is useful as it shows me the people I questioned are interested mainly in Horror films. 
Q3. How often do you watch horror films?

5/10 people said 'All the time'
4/10 people said 'Sometimes'
0/10 people said 'Not very often'
1/10 people said 'Never'

This is effective as I know that the people I questioned watch Horror film regularly and are familiar with what they expect/like to see.  
Q4. What type of horror film do you prefer?

4/10 people said 'Gory/Violent'

4/10 people said 'Supernatural'
2/10 people said 'Psychological'

This is helpful as it shows me the type of Horror films people are interested in. Also, I think my film will contain elements of both violence and the supernatural. 

Q5. How much of the narrative do you expect to find out via the teaser trailer?
9/10 people said 'Barely anything'
1/10 people said 'A fair amount'
0/10 people said 'Quite a lot'

0/10 people said 'Everything'

This confirms that I will aim to give away as little as possible in my teaser trailer.

Q6. What do you think is the most important element of a teaser trailer?
10/10 people said 'Suspense/Excitement/Intrigue'
0/10 people said 'The storyline'
0/10 people said 'The characters'

This, again, highlights the minimal information people expect to be given through a teaser trailer.

Q7. Which is most important for you when watching a horror film?
1/10 people said 'A gripping narrative'

2/10 people said 'Eerie music'3/10 people said 'Dark Lighting'2/10 people said 'Mysterious Setting'2/10 people said 'A sense of fear/apprehension'

This shows that most of these elements should be present in my trailer. 

Research - Questionnaire (Target Audience)

After looking at the guidelines the BBFC have in place for certificates '15' and '18,' I have decided that, indeed, my film trailer will fall under one of these guidelines due to its horror content. I then decided to create a questionnaire to confirm my target audience and what they want/expect to see from a typical horror film.
My questions were as followed:

1. How old are you?
   - 14>18  - 19>25  - 26+
   
2. What is your favourite genre of film?
   - Horror  - Romantic  - Romantic Comedy  - Comedy  - Thriller  - Drama  - Psychological -  Other
   
3. How often do you watch Horror films?
   - All the time  - Sometimes  - Not very often  - Never
   
4. What type of horror film do you prefer?
   - Gory/ Violent  - Supernatural  -Psychological
    
5. How much of the narrative do you expect to find out via the teaser trailer?
   - Barely anything  - A fair amount  - Quite a lot  - Everything
   
6. What do you think is the most important element of a teaser trailer?
   - Suspense/ Excitement/Intrigue  - The storyline  - The characters
   
7. Which is most important for you when watching a horror film?
   - A gripping narrative  - Eerie music  - Dark Lighting  - Mysterious Setting  - Sense of fear/apprehension 

Research - Target Audience

Before I started to produce my film trailer, I thought it important to look into the typical target audience of horror films. I must ensure that I have a target audience in mind so that I know how to entertain that particular age range during my teaser trailer.
Firstly, I went onto the BBFC website and looked at the different certificates the body places on films. As I know the content of my teaser trailer will be of the horror genre, I decided to look closely at the certificates '15'  and '18.'
The BBFC deems any film certificate '15' if it includes any of the following:

• Strong violence
• Frequent strong language (e.g. swear words)
• Portrayals of sexual activity 
• Strong verbal references to sex
• Sexual nudity 
• Brief scenes of sexual violence or verbal references to sexual violence 
• Discriminatory language or behaviour 
• Drug taking 

I then decided to compare this to the certificate '18' to see if there is any difference and so I have a better idea of what certificate my film should be, according to the BBFC. The BFFC declares any film certificate '18' if it contains any of the following:

• Very strong violence
• Frequent or very strong language
• Scenes of sexual violence
• Strong horror
• Strong blood and gore
• Real sex
• Discriminatory language and behaviour

Research and Planning - Typical Settings

I started researching the typical locations in which the majority of horror films are set. I decided to look at some well-known horror films and try and think why the directors/writers decided to locate the film in the place they did.

Setting 1: Ancient House


This is an image of the house in which the film 'The Conjuring' was set. The film was released to cinemas earlier this year and attracted some attention due to claims of the film being based on real life events. The house in which the film was mainly located is typical of the horror genre. Merely by the appearance of the outside of the house, it is clear the house is ancient and grand. The use of this type of location is effective as a big house means lots of room/corridors and hallways which create a sense of fear as it is easy to lose your way. That the house is old means that many people have previously habited the house suggesting many people have passed away leaving old traditions which could haunt the newcomers.

Setting 2: Graveyard





These images show scenes from the films 'Frankenstein' and 'Night of the Living Dead.' I think the location of a graveyard is effective as they create an image of death, possibly foreboding what is to come. Also, as the scene from 'Frankenstein' is set at night which adds to the eerie atmosphere the location of the graveyard is already portraying. That it is dark would create a sense of fear the unknown within the audience.

Setting 3: Desert



In films such as 'Tremors' - as shown above - and 'The Hills Have Eyes,' the directors chose to locate the majority of their scenes in a desert. I think the desert is an effective setting as it is a vast, wide-open space suggesting there is nowhere to hide when problem strikes and no way to escape.

Setting 4: Ocean



In the film 'Jaws,' the main location is a beach and the ocean. This setting was necessary due to the content of the film but still is effective for a horror film. The ocean - like the setting of the desert - is vast and wide which, again, creates fear as there is a lack of escape. That the ocean is deep and dark also creates a sense of mystery and the fear of the unknown.

Setting 5: Cabin/Campsite



The film 'Friday the 13th' was located mainly in a remote cabin in an isolated forest/wood. This is effective as it puts the victim in a vulnerable place as they are alone and away from society. The use of the cabin is also effective as they are not usually made of strong, brick walls like that of a typical house. This creates, again, a sense of vulnerability about the victim as there is nothing to protect them. The forest in which the cabin is located also includes a large lake. Again, like 'Jaws', the use of water is effective as it is unclear creating a fear of the unknown. Also, forests are typically places in which people lose their way. The various trees act as an obstacle representing the lack of escape for the victim.

After this research, I have devised some factors which I think important in a typical horror film location. I will try to incorporate these into my film trailer as much as possible;

• Isolated 
• Dark
• Mystery 
• Uncertainty
• Obstacles  

Research and Planning - Typical Horror Villain

As I want to make my horror trailer as realistic as possible, I decided to research the typical 'evil' characters of well known horror films. I wanted to do this in order to get ideas for when I create my evil character.



'The Exorcist.'



'The Grudge.'



'The Ring.'

I decided to look up images of these characters as I think they are the most well known evil character who are most like the character I want to create. The typical conventions I noticed they obtain is often long, dark hair which is not kept in good condition. It usually has a wet-look and often covers most of the characters face. Another thing I noticed was that the film makers often like to draw attention to the characters eyes. Not only are their eyes dark and therefore mysterious, the skin surrounding them is also dark and often wrinkled creating a disheveled look. Ironically, the character are usually dressed in long, dirty but white robes. I think this is strange as the color white usually had connotations to innocence and purity which is in total contrast to the role these characters play. However, the robes they wear do sometimes look like hospital gowns. This could be effective as it suggests a state of possible mental illness, acts which are out of the ordinary.

Organisation - Location

This is an image of one of the hallways in the flat which I will film my trailer. Typical horror films are usually set in big, old houses which have many winding hallways and corridors. Therefore, I think this is a good location as I will be able to film a scene here. As there is no exit to this hallway, a character could become trapped and therefore suspense and fear would be created.

This is an image of the lift within the flat. I like the idea of using the lift as a prop because it is a small, confined place which people may feel trapped and alone when inside. Also, people usually think a lift would be a better, quicker escape route in danger. However, as it is run by electricity, it can break easily. Also, sometimes the lift can be slow in getting to work, for example pressing the buttons and waiting for the doors to close. This could be effective in creating horror and tension within my trailer.

In the inside of the lift, there is a large mirror. Mirrors are often used as props within horror films to reveal the 'evil' character to the audience.

This is an image of the staircase in the flat. I think it is a good setting for my horror trailer as there are many levels to the stairs making a challenging escape route.

This is an image of the front door to the actual flat in which the 'strange happenings' will take place. The door has many locks and handles which is effective as it could cause an obstacle trying to get inside, back into safety possibly. Also, I think it is significant that the number of the door is 'Six' which could relate to '666' which has connotations to the devil and evil spirits.

Drafting and Planning - Ideas for Film Title

As I have now devised the narrative of my film, I started coming up with possible film titles. I thought of the following to suit the content of my film:

• 'The Girl that Never Left'
• 'Strange Happenings'
• 'Strange Activity'
• 'Who's There?'
• 'Flat Six'
• 'The Presence'
• 'Strange Presence'
• 'The Happenings' 

Research and Planning - Izetan Todorov

Izetan Todorov was a Bulgarian, structuralist linguist who published influential work on narrative from the 1960's onwards. He said that all stories begin with an 'equilibrium' where any potential opposing forces are in balance. He then says that this is disrupted by some event which then results into a series of events. However, these problems are eventually solved to restore balance in the world of fiction.
Todorov suggested that narratives are constructed with 5 man stages:

1. A state of equilibrium at the outset
2. A disruption of equilibrium by some action
3. A recognition that there has been a disruption 
4. An attempt to repair the disruption 
5. A new/re-equilibrium

I will enforce this structure into my film as I think it will help me create a typical therefore realistic narrative. My narrative with therefore consist of the following structure:

1. The 3/4 girls will be content at the beginning of the film, they will have just moved into their new flat excited to begin the University lifestyle, they will begin their normal, everyday lives
2. The first strange occurrence will happen, however, the girls will ignore it and think they are wrong, that it is just a coincidence 
3. After a series of strange events, the girls will realise it was no coincidence and something strange is going on within the house
4. The girls will try and solve the problem by confronting the evil force
5. Eventually, the evil force will be turned out of the house