Research: Horror Films

Horror is a film genre that is based around attacking the emotion of fear that was talked about in the previous post and is targeting a negative emotional reaction from the viewer. They often use scenes that startle a viewer, the supernatural and also a frequent theme to draw in the audience. The horror films may actually overlap with other genres of film such as fantasy, thriller or even action. Horror films can often deal with a viewers nightmares, hidden fears and terror of the unknown. Films within the genre often involve the introduction of an evil force, event or personage. Elements include:

• Ghosts: The Shining (1980)
• Aliens: The Thing (1982)
• Vampires: Dracula (1931)
• Werewolves or vicious animals: The Wolfman (1941)
• Demons: The Exorcist (1973)
• Monsters or Zombies: Frankenstein (1931)
• Serial Killers and/or cannibalism: Manhunter (1986)

Horror films have attracted people since the beginning of the cinema industry. It has been said that horror serves the same purpose to adults as fairy tales do to children, for instance to warn of evil in familiar places. As stated above, the purpose of a horror film is to draw a negative reaction from the view and that is exactly what they do; surveys show that everyone has been affected in this way at least once by an image or clip from a horror film. The appeal of horror film to people depend on the people themselves and what characteristics they have, the film itself and the viewing circumstances. I will give more detail on these below.

• The Viewer And The Film:        Researchers have found many motives for wanting to watch horror films, including the need for excitement, the desire to feel intense emotions and the distraction from everyday concerns. Although there are other types of films that can fulfill some of these needs, for example Drama, movies that display violence and fear at the same time have effects that a drama cannot like the violation of social norms. Also, people don't often view horror films alone. They particularly appeal to men as it is a common talking point between a group, a means of self-presentation  and a source of shared experience. Not everyone will like the blood and gore but many will continue to watch because of other goals such as showing their ability to tolerate it or the desire to master the threatening images. The three main appeals of horror films to males are the excitement generated by the film aka sensation-seeking, the wish to see destruction that is shown in horror movies and the satisfying resolution usually found at the end of the film.

• The Circumstances:        Horror films are typically viewed in comfortable, familiar surroundings with friends or co-viewers nearby. Violent entertainment is proven to be less appealing when the viewer is under genuine threat or experiences fear/anxiety prior to viewing, alone. When humor accompanies the film with in a social group of mates, the reaction of fear is milder. Viewers can limit the effects also, by turning away or talking to a friend, even making mockery of the film to make the viewing of it less passionate. When violence gets too real to the viewer, the film will lose appeal so if music and film editing are made minimal or removed it can have a bigger impact on fear and a lesser appeal to the film.

As most of my fears are for real-life situations as opposed to a specific thing it is hard to find a film specifically related to one of my fears. That being said, I still get affected by a horror film in the way it intends to do so when I have negative release of emotions and a build up of anxiety. If I was to state my favourite horror film I would have to say Slither (2006). It's not a traditional film like the Frankenstein films or Dracula films but I like the quirkiness of the plot. The General plot of the film is that a meteorite collides in a small town. Grant finds it and is infected by a parasite worm which installs in his brain and causes him to have a creepy transformation into a monster. His wife, Starla, and a policeman, Bill, will try to stop him and the worms from infecting the rest of the town. Although it is a horror film, it is not that powerful in it's attempt to force me into a release of emotions in a negative way. You could say that this film is not great as a piece of horror because of this reason however I like it for the story itself as opposed to it's ability as a piece of horror. Does a horror film have to be incredibly scary to be labelled good? I say no.

Research: Fear

Fear is an emotion that is induced by a threat which causes entities, something that exits by itself, to quickly pull away from it and usually hide too. It's described as a basic survival mechanism occurring in response to stimuli such as pain or the threat of danger. In other words, fear is an ability to recognize danger leading to the urge to confront or flee it, also known as the fight or flight response or in extreme cases of fear there's a horror or terror response, a freeze or paralysis response. Some psychologists have suggested that there are a small set of innate emotions and fear falls into this category. Other emotions in this category are joy, sadness, panic, anxiety, acute stress and anger etc.

Fear should be distinguished from anxiety because fear is related to the specific behaviors of escape and avoidance whereas anxiety is the result of threats which are seen to be unavoidable or uncontrollable. Fear almost always relates to future events such as worsening or continuation of a situation. Fear can also be an instant reaction to something presently happening. All people have an instinctual response to potential danger which is important to survival of every species. Fear can be a manipulating and controlling factor in an individuals life.

 

Common Fears And How They Affect Me

 

According to surveys, some of the most common fears are of demons, evil powers, insects, spiders, snakes, heights, water & drowning, small spaces, bridges, social rejection, failure and public speaking. Here is some information on a few other fear that have been proved to be the most common.

• Death: A lot of psychologists have been interested in the fear of death and how it can impact on the life of a person. One of the most interesting theories that they have studied is how the fear of death can influence religious commitments. Top psychologists have stated that those who are most firm to their faith and attend regular religious practices are the ones who are least afraid of dying. Another survey showed that  church-centered religiousness and spiritual seeking are distinct ways of tackling fear with death and old age. Shelly Kagan says that the conditions needed for fear to occur are that the requires something bad to happen and there must be a non negligible chance of the bad things to happen in the mind of the person with the fear. This means that death is a very common fear because everybody has a non negligible chance of dying; it happens to everybody at one point. I would say this is one of  my biggest fears because I don't know when it will happen to me.

• Heights: A fear of heights is also known as Acrophobia and it belongs in a group called specific phobias. Most people experience a slight degree of natural fear when exposed to a height especially if there is no protection, however some people people can be quite confident in these situations. Sufferers of a fear of heights can experience a panic attack in a high place and become too agitated to get themselves down safely. It can be triggered when looking down from a height or by looking straight up at a height.I personally have a fear of heights and I think at it is of the thought of falling from the height. It is a possibility that the actual fear is of death and the fear of heights it a knock on effect from this phobia. My fear has probably developed through me getting older and having more challenges or opportunities to experience heights and I have not learnt to deal with each step and it has gradually got worse and worse.

• Public Speaking: The fear of public speaking is official called Glossophobia, and can also be called speech anxiety. This is just one branch of a collected group of fears called social anxiety disorder. The symptoms of a fear of public speaking are;
-Intense anxiety prior to or at the thought of having to verbally communicate with any group,
-Avoidance of events which focus the group's attention on an individual,
-Physical distress, nausea or feelings of panic in such circumstances.
I think that my fear of public speaking has come from a want to not be embarrassed. Public speaking is an intimidating thing and if you make a mistake it can have long and hard consequences. It has developed over time from getting older and being expected to make presentations to a class or stand in an assembly. Although I would try to avoid public speaking I can not get out of it sometimes so at times my fear can be improved by practice. 

Below is my class work. We had to write down 2-3 of our fears and explain how they came into existence within our lives and how they have developed in time. Rebecca used the green pen, Jack used the blue pen, Jake used purple and I used the orange pen. I have magnified my work and in case my writing can not be read well, I have written what it says.

"Anything that could kill me. The concept of death isn't the worst part of 
knowing we all die, it's not knowing how you will die. This is what scares 
me. This fear has developed by me getting older, and realizing that there
 are hazards everywhere."

"Heights. The idea of being at a level where if you fall you will probably
 die scares me. This has developed as I've got older and you can go to 
greater heights"

Main Task: Set Brief

The titles and opening of a new teen horror film, to last a maximum of two minutes.

All video and audio material must be original, produced by the candidate(s), with the exception of music or audio effects from a copy-free source.

Preliminary Task

This is the piece of film that has been made to practice my skills in pre-production, production and post-production. I had the same editing task as my test edit on a previous posts but as opposed to being given pieces of footage, the group I was in had to plan the film and film all the clips to add into the film. To do this we had the storyboard planning and a location planning to do which are on previous posts too as well as the casting where we had to consider and pick the actors that will star in the film. The product that we made is blow and then underneath that are some questions and answers about the process and experience of making the film.



What did you learn from the experience of filming the footage required for your preliminary task? What went well and what could have been done better?

During the preliminary task, I have learnt many things that I can take forward into other tasks with in my Media Studies course. In the production stage, I learnt how to film a basic piece of footage using the iPad, and also how to get the best out of an iPad camera. I have learnt how to control the light when filming by positioning the camera differently. One part of the production process that went well was the pieces of footage that we got, the acting was good within the piece.This was obviously an important thing to us but then we had some faults like the set up of the camera, we had a mix of landscape and portrait. Other things that I have learnt during my preliminary task is the post-production techniques - for example I have learnt how to add things to my film, not just take parts away from the clips. Adding things like music and transitions are very basic and easy to do but only when you have learnt to do it, and I learnt this by actually doing it with my preliminary task.

What is the difference between pre-production, production and post-production?

Pre-production:
This is the beginning stage of all film making. It is the original plans that have been put in place to start the image of the proposed film. Our planning to this film was the original research into movie editing, camera shots and movements and how to use the iPads. In further films we wont need these but for this project it was essential. In other films, like this one too, we will need to research the genre on which the film will be based. Other planning will then be the storyboard, the location planning and casting.

Production:
This is the filming of the clips needed to produce your piece. It is literally what it says on the tin and is just filming all the film either in order or in a random order using all the camera shots that you think you may use based on your storyboard. This is the shortest part of the three processes and seems the most simple but can have bad consequences if there is a mistake, i.e. having to re-film a section or all of the film depending on your circumstances and resources available. 

Post-production:
This is the end section of making a film. It is the final chance that you have to make your film the best it can be, so you can cut out clips that you don't want or don't necessarily need and you can add extras to improve the over-all finish of the film. This is probably the most important part of the film making production stages as it is the last chance you have, before publishing the piece, to make sure all the requirements have been met like having a high level of continuity and match on action; without a high quality post-production process the film may fail!

How easy did you find editing with iMovie? Explain at least 4 different skills or techniques that you learnt during this process.

Now that I have learnt how to use iMovie in my test edit and the preliminary task I find it very easy to edit things into a film that makes sense. The sort of things I have learnt in this task are minimal but essential for a film that makes sense with match on action. This includes:

• Transitions between frames
• Incorporating music and sound effects
• Reducing or removing sound or volume
• Clipping footage
• Adding text or titles to the film piece

This list is just a selection of the techniques learnt during the preliminary task, they are the main things that I will need to make a successful film as well as good content. They will always be needed to make sure that the audience has an understanding of the mood/tone (music), has a clear understanding of where a character has moved too (transitions) or just to give a brief preview of the genre (opening credits and music combined).

What is continuity edition?

Continuity editing is all about getting a film that moves on swiftly which will involve editing it to have match on match action. This means that when two clips are put together there should be no sharp changes in camera positions when the camera angle is the same. Continuity also involves having one movement of a character, so for example if you wanted to change the camera shot or angle when a character is walking down a corridor, the end point of the first clip and the start of another should match so that the character is at the same point in the switch. Without this sort of continuity, the film will be 'jumpy' and will look incredibly unprofessional.

What do the following terms mean; a) match on action, and b) shot / reverse shot?

a) Match on action is a media term that is used to describe a part of the continuity of a film. The term itself means that a section of footage must fit together like two jigsaw pieces; perfectly or not at all. The idea is that the end of one clip must correspond with the start of the next otherwise it will look like the character had jumped ahead of the film or has jumped behind. Match on match action is probably the biggest part of the post-production process.

b) Shot/reverse shot is an important type of camera angle within the media, especially in our preliminary task. The knock knock joke means that there is frequent changes in dialogue in the film so the camera must move from on character to another instantly. This is called a shot/reverse shot which moves the camera to another character without showing any movement of the camera; it is an instant move to a camera shot from one position to another.

Analyse your preliminary task as a piece of continuity editing. What are the strengths and what are its weaknesses?

I think that in the preliminary task, we did an alright job in the three stages of production, (pre-production, production and post-production) but it was not extra-ordinary or above and beyond. I think that our main strength was the post-production process when we got to editing the footage that we had collected. The reason for this I think is because we had all the material in front of us and we could visually see exactly what we needed to add or change to make the film better. This differs from the earlier process

as we had to plan with no real aid other than what content we needed to have in it, so we had to almost start from scratch and build a frame for the piece. After this we had the production section, where we had the framework of pre-production when we did this we could actually see what faults we had and we had to think there and then of what needed to be done to correct this. In this process was where we had our biggest faults! Unfortunately we had forgotten about rule number one which is to film in landscape and this meant we had a mix of portrait and landscape shots - this gives an unprofessional feel to the film. The content within the film was also a big strength within the film, although this is not due to us as a team directly as we had actors, it shows our capability of casting the correct characters. The only criticism I have off the content is that it's quite plain and when I've compare it to other groups' I would say they have more unusual and possibly more enticing films because of their 'wacky' nature.

This is an example of what the post-production can do, we
have added a title screen to show the audience what the film
is, and on this section we have also added music to add
tone to the beginning of the film.

This was a section where we used the landscape camera on
the iPad, this was what we were meant to do when filming,
but it didn't all work like this; see image below.

This is the shot that we got terribly wrong when we filmed
it is portrait, this then gave the film a lack of continuity
because it has a lack of consistency. 

My First Project

For this task, I was given a selection of different film clips that were filmed by a different group and I was told to edit the clips together using iMovie to make a short piece of film that made sense. What I mean by make sense is that there is match on action, which means that all the clips that I put together must follow on from each other and not jump between actions within the film; this gives me continuity in my work. Below is my test edit:



While doing this test edit, I have learnt the basics of the iMovie software on the iMacs. What I mean by the basics is simply how to cut clips down to get the piece of footage that I need, how to alter the sound on particular clips within the film, adding sound effects and music to the film being produced and using transitions within the piece of film. Unfortunately due to lack of time on this particular test edit, I was unable to add music and sound to it, however during extra time I have learnt how to do it and I plan to add that to my preliminary task piece of film - the same applies with transitions.

The acquisition of these skills will definitely help me in the preliminary task as I will need to incorporate them all into my film.The basic clipping of small pieces of footage will obviously come in handy as I will not be able to film it all in one go, I will want to have a few takes and clip the best parts of the shots. Also, the different camera angles will need to be clipped and slotted together and I need to have a strong ability in match on action to pursue the continuity aspect of the whole task.

Sound adjustment is another big skill that will be involved in producing my preliminary task, Knock Knock. The reason for this is that the piece is set in the school which has a lot of ambient noise which is not good to have. The noise adjustment allows me to chose how much ambien noise I want, if any at all. It also allows me to make some part of the clips louder than others if it needs to be.

Transitions can help a lot in the Knock Knock film, as it can reduce the need of a cut,the previous frame can swiftly move into the next by using a fade out transition, for example. This will give the film a more professional look and will also improve the over-all continuity of the piece. I can also use them to help communicate certain messages like a change of location.

Music and sound effects can also be really helpful in the preliminary task as it can give off many messages to the audience, for example it can help set the mood or tone of the film. A dark piece of music can help signify that the film is of a dark nature - a more depressive or sad film. A brighter and more jolly piece of music can tell the audience that this film is happy. It can also signify genres of film, for example it could use dark music to build tension in a horror film. Sound effects just literally add emphasis to a situation or an action from a character. In my Knock Knock piece, I can use music to signify the feelings of my characters; for example my character could be feeling very happy so I would need to use a fast and up-beat piece of music.