Location of Horror film.

Analysis of Pitch, by Hatty and Sarah

From our pitch, we learnt that we had been too ambitious when planning our horror opening, as the material that we originally wanted to use would not fit well into the 2minute time scale we were given. From our pitch we have decided to change our scenes around to make the scenes shorter and more relevant to what is happening in order to keep within the time. We originally were going to have a mood board on our PowerPoint, however we had technically difficulties uploading our mood board, so we used a previously made one which we handed around the class, but worked just as well.
We realised when presenting our different roles to the class, we hadn’t given our actually roles enough thought to what we would individually all be doing on the actual day of filming. We have now concluded that Hatty will be directing our actor (who instead of Sarah, will be a Mima - a girl from TWGGS), Sarah will be the editor, and Sammy the producer. But on the actual day we will all be helping each other out, with Sammy everything is running smoothly.
From our pitch we also learnt that the location we have chosen fits our genre well, our class also agreed once they saw our photos, which was encouraging as they are at the age of our target audience. Following on from this we thought we chose our target audience age well as it is a teen horror film and no-one in our film will be older than 25, and so that was our maximum age we wanted to aim our film at. Also when we presented our pitch, our audience seemed interested in our plot and intrigued to see the final opening.

The evaluation of editing our convosation.

When editing our conversation, we firstly had to upload our filmed footage onto the computer, and onto premiere using a fire cable, and then cut the film footage down into smaller, more manageable pieces (into each shot) so that we could quickly and easily manoeuvre the clips around. We then put them all into the order of the shots that was desired, by following our previously made storybored, and deleted any clips that didn’t work, or didn’t fit in with our overall conversation. There were a few shots that we had drawn on the storybored but did not include in the overall sequence. This is because we were a bit over ambitious when drawing the story bored and they simply didn’t fit in. Overall, i am pleased with the final result. However, we did not leave 4 seconds either side of the acting when filming, which we now know to do next time, as this caused us some trouble when editing, and resulted in one of our shots being cut slightly short and it is very noticeable.

The role of the editor.

It’s my job as the editor to successfully cut and edit the filmed footage; putting it together to create the overall effect that we wanted. I have to work closely with the director in order to produce the best result, and to make sure that the director is filming in the best possible way to make editing straight forward. I use premiere to cut down footage, and put the shots together in the best possible way.

The role of a director

The director is involved in the early stages of making the film and develops the ideas in the script while working with the producer, and working on how the artistic and dramatics of the film are met. The director works with the producer to make the film happen and to take the project forward. The director also works with the crew and the actors to tell the story of the film. I going to be the director in the opening of out horror film and will try do meet the demands of a director as best i can.

Evaluation of our preliminary task (the planning) Harriet Gordon

For our Preliminary task we, as a group took time to decide what our conversation would be about. We talked about different settings that we could use around the school and we talked about many different conversations we could use. We eventually decided on a good location and conversation for our two characters to have. We used our storyboard that we had made, to in detail work out the different camera shots, angles and sizes, witch we then went on to us in our actual filming , and proved to be very useful.We also planed to have a few seconds at the beginning and at the end of each shot so when we came to editing the film we could have plenty of time in each shot to cut down and edit in the way we wanted, but we got carried away and didn't actually do this when it came to the actuall filming, if we had it would have helped us alot more in the editing . I think that if we hadn't of planned our filming like we did , we would have taken much longer to get the desired result. There were a few things we would have done differently but altogether our planning really helped us when it came to the filming and also the editing of our conversation.

Stephen King's IT (1990, Tommy Lee Wallace)

This film, based on Stephen Kings hit novel in 1978, is a typical thrilling and mysterious horror film.
In this opening, mise-en-scene helps to build tension, set the scene for the rest of the movie. There is a young child’s doll, a tricycle, washing line, abandoned house, etc, many of which are conventions of a horror film. The camera techniques used, create mystery and also are cleverly constructed and edited to put fear into the audience. For example when the young child is being called towards the washing line by the clown, there is a sudden extreme close up which on lasts a second on the clowns face, which comes as a shock to the audience as it is unexpected, and instantly creates the feeling of mystery and uneasiness. There is no soundtrack in the background, just the sound of the harsh wind and lightening, and also the sound of the young girl singing as she rides into her house on a tricycle. This is another connotation on a typical horror film, as it shows the naivety of the child, that she has no idea what’s going on as she is just singing, and also the sound of the song gives quite a sinister feel to the movie. Three characters are introduced in this opening sequence, the clown (obvious baddy) the young naive child, and also the child’s mother. We learn that the clown is a creepy, nasty individual due to his sinister smirk when his face flashes on screen, and also this is made clear due to the fact he is prying on this young innocent girl. The girls innocence is portrayed through her clear naive facial expressions and the way that it is clear from her body language that she is unaware that the clown is about to kill her.
The audience is positioned as if a fly on the wall watching over the situation. Continuity editing has been used, making smooth transactions between each shot, and scene change. The narrative is structured in a way that we firstly see the young naive girl, followed by her mother going inside the house (making the audience aware that the girl is outside now alone) and then this is when the clown begins to talk to the child. Pathetic fallacy has been used, as in one of the opening shots it shows lightening in the sky, and then as the mother calls the girl into the house, just before her killing, it starts to rain. Identification and alienation are both clearly used in this opening sequence. Most of the opening sequence is spent watching the girl as she cycles through her neighbourhood, back into her house and into her garden. We can begin to identify, and like her in this time, watching her sing and happily ride around. However, we only see the clown for 2seconds maximum throughout this opening, this creates alienation towards him as we do not get any screen time with him to develop any sort of liking towards him. Tension is created in this beginning sequence through the use of camera angles and pathetic fallacy as we know that something bad is going to happen. Also the sharp, snappy, unexpected shots of the bad clown creates fear and tension in the audience as we are then ready and almost watching in anticipation in case the clown pops up again.
A normal middle class family are represented in this opening sequence, with children out in the neighbourhood on bikes, a mother flitting around with washing, and the washing line up in the garden. In the very opening credits, the colours used are black, white and red. The red clearly represents blood and death here. There are photos of creepy houses, and young children being shown at the beginning which to me represents as if someone has collected these all together and is watching them, analysing them and picking their next victim.
This film is rated 15, and i think is aimed at people from the age 15 to 35. The probable reading of this text is killer clown out to kill young children, trying to be stopped. However some could argue that it encourages violence within young children as a critic of any violent film could say. I think the readings of this text are pretty straight forward and would be read the roughly the same from people aged 15 through to much older ages and generations.

This film contains a man who dresses up as a clown and murders children. The fact that a clown is the murderer, evokes the idea of childhood fears and that there is more depth to people than what first appears. It's ironic that children are meant to laugh at clowns, and be entertained by them but here the clown is the killer.

The Institutional Context by Sammy Wood

The Industrial Context

The Idea
Before anything gets underway, a story line needs to be discussed and thought about. This includes getting sources of information from real-life events and planning your main idea. Then the Producer approaches the writer and tells them their idea for the writer to create a story. The writer then produces a treatment of the main characters and main story-line and then a pitch is made which includes information about the budget, the market, includes a one-liner and the people that will be involved in the production.

Development Finance
After the pitch has been made, the full script needs to be produced and this needs Development Funding by a Production Company, so they need to be impressed with the story-line and have faith in it to do well, so that they feel confident in putting money towards it to then hopefully make a profit out of it. Distribution Companies then ask to have the right to distribute the film to cinemas, Rental Companies and Broadcasters. Being accepted by the distribution companies, means that they have faith in the film for it to do well and make a profit. However, there are also Private Investors that like to become involved with certain films that they feel will do well.
The next step is producing a script that can work with the budget of the Producer and this is what the producer checks when the writer is writing the script. A step line is then crated and this is when a short written description is made of the scenes and then it should make up a script. The draft scripts and final scripts contain actions, dialogue and transitions between each scene. The producer, director and writer all meet to agree on the ideas and the script of the film.
The producer then takes the Final draft and comes up with a rough budget. The cast that is chosen is a massive persuading point to companies who want to invest in the film. The producer then needs to work out the exact amount of time and money that is needed to make a pitch to a production company. A financial plan is then made by the producer to plan how to fund the money. The recoupment schedule predicts how much the film is going to make. The package has now finally been made with a final draft script, a sales treatment, a list of cast that are being used and Head of Departments, a detailed budget, a production schedule, a finance plan and a recoupment schedule. The producer then shows this to a number of Companies, who he hopes will invest in it.

The People Involved
A meeting then needs to take place to find certain people to fit certain roles. For example, a head of sound, a casting director, a director of photography, a production designer and the line producer need to talk about how they are going to run things. The casting director then chooses possibilities for roles and about 30 cast members are chosen. The director will be present with the story-board artist to contribute to how every shot is going to look. The production line then needs to get to work to choose costumes, find locations and design the set. The visual effects supervisor then chooses the special effects that will be needed throughout the filming. The production unit then get together to discuss methods of insurance etc.

The Filming
The film making then starts to begin. The sound team are responsible to make sure that the sound works. Health and safety needs to be sorted. The stars need to prepare for their roles. The extra’s also need to know what they are doing in particular scenes. The photographer needs to make sure that the photos need to be of high quality. The camera team make sure that they get high quality shots. The focus puller also needs to make sure that particular objects are in focus. The gaffer sets up the lighting in certain positions. The props manager needs to make sure that the hire furniture is not damaged. And the director chooses which angles will capture the audience well. The make-up designers need to make sure that the actors look like the role that they are trying to play. The armourer is aloud to operate the weapons used in a film.
The editing then takes place. The sound editor organises the mix and sometimes songs are made to be used in the film this is called a soundtrack. This is all closely watched. Credits also need to be made. Once all of this has been completed the film reel can be duplicated.

Advertising
A trailer is then needed to be made to market the film and once a distribution deal has been made it can be distributed across certain territories.
Marketing is the next major target point and it is very important. This is where PR companies and advertising agencies are included. The marketing team will need to focus on the right target audience to spread the word about their film and producing positive feedback. Advertising means catching the eye of the specific target audience.
The premiere is the main-point where the stars can sell the film. In the UK cinemas the cinemas make most of the profit from food and drink sold inside the building and not must from the actual sales of the ticket. The cinemas are sent a 35mm film print to show at their cinema. The profit is then told to the production team about the film that they have produced.
Other ways of income are used to make the most profit. In-flight entertainment is used to sell the film to people who haven’t yet seen the film in the cinema for free. DVD copies are also sold and can be rented to the general public. It is also shown on certain channels for a fee or for free. Another type of merchandise can be made by making a game of the film to attract that market of people. Once everyone involved has been paid back the profit can then be announced.

The Evaluation of Filming our Preminary Task by Sammy Wood.

I thought that the filming of our Preliminary teask of the conversation went really well. We didn't break the 180 degree rule and we used the props that were avaliable to us to the best of our ability. However, there were a few things which we have learnt from to improve our filming techniques for the next task. For example, we didn't used the clapper for every shot, which allowed us to have little filming to work with, therefore next time we need to allow 4 seconds at the beginning and end of the shots. Also, i don't think that we framed our shots to the best of our ability because in one of the shots, Hatty's forehead is cut off and this could be improved to make a better picture. I think that we should have taken more takes of the same shots which would allow us to have more of a choice when choosing our shots. Finally, i think that we could have been more creative and use more camera movements whilst filming the shots.

The role of the Producer

I am the Producer in our production of a horror opening sequence. This involves knowing what sells well to the target audience and therefore providing information to the rest of the crew about a story-line. I also, produce the call sheets, so that we can contact everyone involved in the film making and if people are late it is my job to contact them.

Technical Analysis, 'When a stranger calls' by Sarah Campbell

Shot no.1 - 15seconds – fades in, camera tilts to a jaunty angle and then pans right to carnival – longshot house, (bedroom light on) carnival

Shot no.2 - 14seconds – tracking behind two children running, camera going side to side at jaunty angles following them run – carnival, balloons, children, hedges

Shot no.3 – 1 second – midshot – shadow of a man

Shot no.4 – 0.5 seconds – BLACK SCREEN

Shot no.5 – 3 seconds – longshot – shadow of man and dog

Shot no.6 – 0.3 seconds – BLACK SCREEN

Shot no.7 – 0.3 seconds – midshot – shadow of man

Shot no.8 – 0.1 seconds – close up – girls face (distressed?)

Shot no.9 – 3 seconds – midshot – girl on feress wheel

Shot no.10 – 0.3seconds – close up – house/window

Shot no.11 – 7seconds – midshot of girl, pans left to focus on longshot of house – girl, feress
wheel, house

Shot no.12 – 0.1seconds – close up – house

Shot no.13 – 0.1seconds – big close up – house

Shot no.14 – 0.1seconds – close up – house

Shot no.15 – 2seconds – longshot, slow zoom in – house

Shot no.16 – 0.1seconds – close up – house

Shot no.17 – 0.1 seconds – big close up – house / window

Shot no.18 – 4 seconds – crane shot, panning left – carnival spinning ride

Shot no.19 – 5 seconds – longshot + over shoulder shot – two old people +man walking dog

Shot no.20 – 22seconds – longshot, crane shot, panning – street with houses, road sign

Shot no.21 – 0.1seconds – close up – mother on doorstep

Shot no.22 – 1 second – longshot – mother on doorstep

Shot no.23 – 10 seconds – extreme longshot, zoom in, and then slow zoom out – mother on
doorstep (distressed)

Shot no.24 – 0.1 seconds- close up – man

Shot no.25 – 1 second – longshot – man with dog shutting gate to house

Shot no.26 – 3 seconds – longshot/midshot (as if being watched) – kids in carnival, hedge at corner of screen

Shot no.27 – 0.1 seconds – close up – children in carnival

Shot no.28 – 5seconds – longshot – children in carnival

Shot no.29 – 0.1 seconds – close up – children in carnival

Shot no.30 – 2 seconds – fast panning 180degree of carnival

Shot no.31 – 9 seconds – longshot, slow panning right, slow subtle zoom – house

Shot no.32 – 0.1 seconds – close up – house/window

Shot no.33 – 0.1seconds – close up, jaunty angle – house

Shot no.34 – 7seconds – longshot of house+slow zoom in to focus on spoon sculpture – house, spoon sculpture

Shot no.35 – 0.5seconds – big close up – spoons and shadow of man

Shot no.36 --- midshot – carnival rides, house, ferriswheel spinning

technical analysis of the Grudge (2004 Raimi) by Harriet Gordon

1 - 2 seconds - Long shot - Dark alleyway.
2 - 2 seconds - Close-up - House window.
3 - 3 seconds - Low angle - Ankle of man surrounded by photo cuttings.
4 - 3 seconds - Close-up - Man biting his blood covered hands.
5 - 2 seconds - Panning across - Blood covered walls.
6 - 4 seconds - Extreme Close-up - One side of the mans blood covered face.
7 - 4 seconds - Close-up - Dead womans hand over edge of bath.
8 - 1 second - Medium shot - Man grabs cat.
9 - 5 seconds - Medium shot - Young boy hearing commotion hides.
10 - 4 seconds - Extreme Close-up - Girls blood covered mouth.
11 - 1 second - Extreme Close-up - Mans hands covered in blood.
12 - 3 seconds - Medium shot - Mans blood covered hands cutting out
photos.
13 - 3 seconds - Zooming-in - Man into woman’s face with razor blade.
14 - 2 seconds - Extreme Close-up - Dead woman’s eye (left side).
15 - 2 seconds - Extreme Close-up - Dead woman’s eye (right side).

16 - 2 seconds - long shot - wall blood splattered.

Technical Analysis of Dawn of the Dead by Sammy Wood

Shot 1 - 3 seconds - Long Shot & Bird's Eye - This hot shows Lewis and Ana asleep in bed.
Shot 2 - 5 seconds - Long shot & Eye level - This shows that alarm clock changing
Shot 3 - 8 seconds - Medium long shot, eye-level & Panning left along the shelf. - This shows a picture of Lewis and Ana on a shelf.
Shot 4 - 9 seconds - Eye-level & Zooming in - This shot is of a slightly open door.
Shot 5 - 7 seconds - Zooming in on the door & the door being pushed open by a figure.
Shot 6 - 5 seconds - Mid shot & eye-level - This shot shows that the figure is a child.
Shot 7 - 3 seconds - Mid shot & Bird's eye - This shot shows Lewis waking up to the sound of the door opening.
Shot 8 - 3 seconds - Close up & Eye-level - This shot shows the father looking at the door.
Shot 9 - 3 seconds - Long shot & eye-level - This shot shows the silohette of the child standing in the doorway.
Shot 10 - 6 seconds - Close-up & eye-level - This shot shows Lewis the father talking to the daughter.
Shot 11 - 3 seconds - Long shot & eye-level - This shot still shows the child's silohette standing in the doorway.
Shot 12 - 2 seconds - Close-up & eye-level - This shot shows the father looking at the door.
Shot 13 - 4 seconds - Close-up, eye-level and panning in - This shot shows the child moving into the light to show that she has blood all around her mouth.
Shot 14 - 2 seconds - Close-up & eye-level - This shot shows Lewis' reaction an he jumps out of bed.
Shot 15 - 1 second - Long shot & bird's eye - This shot shows the wife waking up from being asleep.
Shot 16 - 1 second - Long shot & bird's eye - This shot shows the reaction of Ana when she sees her daughter with blood around her mouth.
Shot 17 - 2 seconds - Mid shot & eye-level - This shot shows the father holding onto his daughter.
Shot 18 - 2 seconds - Close up & Low angle - This shot shows the child biting Lewis' neck and show's Lewis' reaction.
Shot 19 - 1/2 second - Mid shot & eye-level - This shot shows Lewis' reaction from another angle.
Shot 20 - 1 second - Mid shot & eye level - This shot shows the reaction from the mother and then Ana jumping out of bed.
Shot 21 - 3 seconds - Close up & Eye-level - This shot shows the child biting her father and the mother holding onto her trying to take her off.
Shot 22 - 1 second - Mid shot & eye-level - This shot shows the child still bting Lewis and Lewis screaming.
Shot 23 - 1/2 second - Close up & Eye level - This shows the child being pulled off my Ana.
Shot 24 - 2 seconds - Mid-shot & Low angle - This shot shows Ana chucking the child pff and throwing her into the hallway.
Shot 25 - 1/2 a second - Mid-shot & Eye-level - This shot shows Lewis falling to the floor.
Shot 26 - 1 second - Long shot & Low angle - This shot shows the child falling on the floor where Ana chucked her.
Shot 27 - 3 seconds - Long shot & Bird's eye - This shot shows Lewis moving to the bed and falling on it in slow-motion and knocking over the lamp at the same time.
Shot 28 - 1/2 a second - Long shot & Low angle - This shot shows the lamp falling on the floor.
Shot 29 - 1 second - Close up & eye-level - This shot shows the child's face looking up from the floor with blood all over it.
Shot 30 - 2 seconds - Long-shot, eye-level & Zooming in. - This shot shows the mothers reaction.
Shot 31 - 1 1/2 seconds - Extreme long shot to long shot because of running at the screen - The child is running to the same bedroom at the camera.
Shot 32 - 1 second - Long shot & eye-level - This shot shows the mother starting to shut the door.
Shot 33 - 1 second - Long shot & eye-level - This shot shows the child running at the door again.
Shot 34 - 1 second - Mid-shot, eye-level & Zooming in (Child's point-of-view, running at the door.) - This shot shows Ana slamming the door shut.
Shot 35 - 1 second - Close-up & eye-level - This shot shows the door being locked and then the door shaking.
Shot 36 - 2 seconds - Medium close-up & worm's eye - This shot shows Ana helping Lewis because he is violently bleeding.
Shot 37 - 1 second - Mid shot & high angle - This shot shows Ana helping Lewis again.
Shot 38 - 1 second - Mid-shot & worm's eye - This shot shows Ana helping Lewis.
Shot 39 - 4 seconds - Long shot to Mid shot & Panning in - This shot shows the door shaking.
Shot 40 - 2 seconds - Close-up & eye-level - This shot shows Lewis with blood all over him.
Shot 41 - 4 seconds - Close-up & Low angle - This shot shows Ana on the screen with Lewis' bloody hands in the shot.
Shot 42 - 2 seconds - Mid-shot & worm's eye - This shot shows blood everywhere, looking at Lewis over Ana's shoulder.
Shot 43 - 2 seconds - Mid shot & eye-level - This shot shows Ana with blood everywhere and the door shaking in the background.
Shot 44 - 2 seconds - Mid shot & high angle - This shot shows Ana with blood on her.
Shot 45 - 3 seconds - Mid shot & high angle - This shot shows the mother holding material on the blood.
Shot 46 - 1 second - Close-up & Low angle - This shot shows Ana talking to Lewis.
Shot 47 - 2 seconds - Mid dhot & bird's eye - This shot shows Lewis lying on the bed with blood everywhere.
Shot 48 - 1 second - Close-up, Low angle & Panning up - This shot shows Ana grabbing the telephone.
Shot 49 - 1/2 a second - Close-up & bird's eye - This shot shows her dialing 911.
Shot 50 - 3 seconds - Mid-shot & eye-level - This shots shows Lewis lying on the bed with blood everywhere.
Shot 51 - 1 second - Mid shot & birds eye - This is another shot of Lewis on the bed.
Shot 52 - 1 second - Close-up & eye-level - This is a shot of Ana listening to the phone and hearing that it isn't working.
Shot 53 - 1 second - Close-up & high angle - This shows her cancelling the phone-call.
Shot 54 - 3 seconds - Mid-shot & bird's eye - This shot shows the father laying on the bed with his eyes closed, not moving and looking dead.
Shot 55 - 1 second - Close-up - This shows the door rattling.

Analysis of the Opening Sequence of The Amityville Horror by Sammy Wood,

The Amityville Horror (Douglas, 2005)

The Amityville Horror is a re-make of the 1979 version. It is an exciting horror film that has many typical conventions of a typical horror movie. The expectations of these conventions are fulfilled in the opening sequence because of the tension created in the first few minutes. The shots are short and jumpy which creates tension from the beginning of the film, and it draws the audience in so that they concentrate on the information that is being shown to them. Other conventions of horror films are also shown in the opening sequence of The Amityville Horror, for example, gun shots creates tension and showing the blood from the dead bodies creates a scary atmosphere. The text also conforms to the characteristics of horror because the opening sequence is based in a creepy house in the middle of nowhere meaning that if somebody was to need help, there is no one around so the person would not get help, which makes the situation scarier. The use of thunder and lightning in the opening sequence creates a scary atmosphere because of the lack of continuously being able to see what is going on in the house, and only being able to see flashes of the scene at certain times.

Mise-en-scene conveys meaning in the sequence because of the use of props, characters, costumes, locations and lighting. A prop that is used in The Amityville Horror which conveys meaning is the Large House in the middle of nowhere, this creates a feeling that if somebody was in trouble at the house nobody would know about it and it creates a feeling of isolation. Another prop that is used is the book which says on the front of it “Evil is proof of God.” This suggests that he has become possessed from it, which is a general convention of horror films. The graduation photos also make the situation even worse because it shows that he is an intelligent person but doing a really bad thing, therefore wasting his life away. A character that is a normal convention of a scary film is a young infant who is vulnerable and innocent; this is shown in The Amityville Horror when using this stock character that gets shot by the possessed man, this makes the situation worse. Also, the creaking sign outside the house is a convention of horror films with haunted houses. Different camera shot sizes are used to convey meaning as well. For example, an extreme close-up is used on his face and eyes to show the reflection of the television in his pupils, this shows that he has been possessed which is a connotation of a horror film. There are also other camera sizes that show the possessed man pulling the trigger, which creates an impact and makes the shot seem more dramatic. There are also a few long shots from when Ronnie is moving from room to room, and this suggests that he doesn’t care anymore. The camera angle also conveys meaning and in The Amityville Horror there is a part where the camera is pedding down to look at the child just before she is about to be shot. This pedding down shows her vulnerability and innocence, because it shows how small she is. The sound in the background also gives meaning. For example, the thunder creates a scary atmosphere, also the sound of the gun being loaded and fired makes you jump, which causes tension in the film. The dialogue of the unknown voice at the beginning saying ‘Catch them, Kill them,’ creates a scary atmosphere straight away because of the disturbing sound of it. Also there are the creaky floorboards and stairs which are conventions of haunted houses. We can learn a lot about characters through dialogue and non-verbal language. We learn a lot about Ronnie in this opening sequence, when he speaks to the little girl, Jodie, he says ‘I love you Jodie,’ this suggests that its not him committing the crime it’s the soul within him that is making him do it. Through non-verbal language, we can see in his eyes that he is scared and isn’t sure what he is doing. The visual techniques that the director uses are the negative effect before he shoots Jodie, this could suggest that because there is contrast between black and white that there is a contrast to his action, because he is not normally like that. Also, Douglas blurs Ronnie’s face at the beginning of the film, this suggests that because you can’t see the screen properly it makes you confused and creates a feeling of unease because you don’t know exactly what is happening. This could show that he has been possessed.

The narrative is structured in a way which is in chronological order. Because it is organised in this way, it shows the audience the consequences for Ronnie’s actions. From this audience view we can get an insight to why Ronnie did what he did. Also we get the privileged view of the situation in the house as it happens. The techniques of identification and alienation are used to find out information about the characters. For example, we identify with the character Ronnie and learn about his reasons for his actions and this allows the audience to make up our own mind on what we think about him. The major themes in the narrative are death and violence; because we see the possessed man killing everyone and another theme is good relationships because he is explaining how he is sorry to the little child. The tension is created and maintained in the opening sequence of The Amityville Horror on many occasions. Tension is created at the beginning of the sequence when there are close-ups on random objects to create an eerie effect. For example, the alarm clock changing, this creates an unsettled atmosphere. Also, the blurred vision of Ronnie suggests that he is possessed and the voice over in the background of this shot saying: “Catch ‘em, Kill, ‘em,” creates tension and is likely to scare the audience. The lightning and thunder also adds to the tension because the lightning allows you not to see everything that goes on, so when you do see flashes of images, I thought that it was quite frightening because your vision of the event is limited.

The social groups represented in this sequence are families and crazy people. The family is represented in a way which shows that they are a close family because of all the family pictures shown in one of the first shots. Also, the shot with Ronnie and Jodie shows that they are very close because Ronnie tells Jodie that he loves her before he kills her, which suggests that he is not deciding his actions for himself. The social group of crazy people is shown through the character Ronnie; this is because he has been possessed by the devil and is committing crazy crimes that are extremely bad. The ideological discourse that is evident is the values of good and evil and this is shown through the characters in the family as good and Ronnie as evil.

The target audience of this film would be late teens and early twenties. I think this because of the fact that it is a certificate 15, therefore it is aimed at older ages than 15 and I think the limit to the age of person to watch the film would be about 25 because I think people older than that age would find the genre not very interesting and wouldn’t necessarily be phased by the horror aspect. Different people have different opinions on certain media texts. The preferred reading of the opening sequence of The Amityville Horror would be that Ronnie will get caught in the end therefore he will get what he deserves. The negotiated reading of the text would be that because of their own values/beliefs, they find the thought of Ronnie being possessed quite disturbing and against what they believe in in their religion. The oppositional reading of the film would be that it wasn’t his fault because he was possessed by the spirit in the house and therefore the blame shouldn’t be on him. My evaluation of the film is that it is quite drastic and extremely violent; I think that this evaluation is influenced by my age because I am more naïve then an older person would be and am therefore more likely to believe the horror and scariness of the movie. Also from a girl’s point of view, I think that girls look more deeply into situations than a boy would, and would therefore find the sequence scarier. Because my family and I have always watched romantic/comedy/action films, I find violence in films very difficult to comprehend.

There isn’t a famous actor that has been used in this opening sequence. This could allow the director to spend more money on other aspects of the film and not waste money on the opening scene that doesn’t need to be spent on because the characters aren’t in the film throughout it. The studios that produced this film are Dimension Films, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, United Artists, Platinum Dunes and Radar Pictures. The budget was $19,000,000. The strategies that were used to market the film were trailers in adverts and in cinemas and posters and advertisements.

Analysing the Opening Sequence of Halloween by Sarah Campbell

Halloween (1978, John Carpenter)

The opening scenes of Halloween help to set the mood for the movie. the camera work, sounds, lighting techniques and characters all work together to help build tension and prepare the audience for the rest of the movie. The genre of this film is horror/thriller. This piece of text conforms to the normal stereotypes of two young lovers home alone, but also challenges the stereotype of a young naive looking boy, being a cold hearted murderer.

Mise-en-scene conveys a lot of meaning in this sequence. Firstly, it is set at night, so everything is in the dark with shadows. A large, creepy, old isolated house is used which is the classic sort of location in a horror film like this one. There are pumpkins that scary faces have been carved into, with a candle inside creating a flickering light and shadows. All these things help to convey a creepy, tense atmosphere, ready for the rest of the film. Handy cam is used throughout the whole of this first opening sequence. It is shown as if we are looking through the eyes of the killer, so it shows us walking up to the house in the dark, watching two lovers through the window, climbing in the house, finding the girl etc. The use of handy cam makes the camera jumpy and jolty and it makes it hard to see what is going on, and as we can see it through the killers eyes, we only have one view on the situation, meaning anyone could be round a corner or behind and the audience doesn’t know. Tension is added to the film by using this technique. Near to the end of the introduction, before the killer makes his first kill, he places a mask over his eyes, meaning that half of the screen is black with only a strip across the middle where one can see what is going on. The fact that the audience can only see through this small amount makes one quite edgy and unsure of the situation, almost as if there is something going on that they don’t know about. There is no sound, it is silent with the occasional shrill high pitched squeaks when something significant, or something that should be noted happens, again adding tension and a sense of thrill.

The audience are positioned as a part of the narrative, as what they see is supposedly what the killer child is seeing. The narrative organised as first the killer watching his target through the window, coming into the house, taking out a knife, watching as the boyfriend leaves the house, climbing up the stairs and then killing his sister. The major themes are obviously death, possession maybe, although it doesn’t actually state that the boy is possessed, but from the look on his face at the end of the opening sequence, it becomes apparent that he is. I feel that the purpose of this introduction, is mainly to build tension and fear for the rest of the film. It clearly sets the scene in this creepy old house, which maybe has some sort of curse over those who live in it, and due to the camera techniques used (handycam) and the silence, with occasional unexpected shrill sounds, tension is built and maintained throughout.

This opening ends in a confusing and unexpected way. Throughout the beginning you do not know who the killer is as you are seeing things through their eyes, but at the end the camera zooms out from a close up to a longshot of the killer, and it is a young boy about the age of 5, holding a knife covered in blood. This is unexpected and prepares the audience for twists of events. This young, innocent looking child seems to be possessed, which is a connotation of any horror film, using young vulnerable children and also the idea of possession and supernatural bad spirits. Another connotation of a horror film is using a young attractive girl that gets killed. The use of the young boy as a killer is ironic, and also challenges the stereotype of a small, sweet looking child.

I would say that the main target audience for this film are males between the ages of 18 and 45. This is because the film is an 18, so therefore can’t be aimed at any younger, and also some of the scenes are quite horrific, which the older ages could find make them feel uneasy and genuinely scared. Also it is normally the younger generations that seek the sort of thrills that horror films bring. I think that people could criticize this film as if a young child saw it then it might put ideas into their head, as it shows them getting out the knife and killing his sister. But this is most likely one of the reasons they have rated it as an 18, so that young naive children don’t get the wrong idea when watching it.

By using a young child, it challenges the stereotype that we have of a child being young, innocent and who wouldn't hurt anyone. This again helps to make the film more scary as it makes the audience think that the child must be possesed, and therefore brings the idea of the supernatural into the film.

The film had a budget of $325,000 and made $47,000,000. Jamie Lee Curtis is a main character in this film, however was not famous when this film first came out, so carpenter didn’t chose stars to be in his film, most likely to keep the budget low. Trailers and posters were used to market the film. The trailer for Halloween is very dark and full of shadows, with high pitched shrieking in the background of a low over voice who is roughly telling the story. It has red fonts symbolizing blood and death and also has flashing images of violent, scary scenes, but still keeps mystery of what is going to happen, leaving the audience without an ending, encouraging them to see the film and find out for themselves what happens.

Analysis on the opening sequence of 'The Ring' (2002)

The film belongs to the horror film genre. The audiences generic expectations of the film are meet instantly in the begging of the film, as we see a creepy looking house, its dark, raining and the tradition of trees with no leaves on is present to give it a really scary feel. The text does conform to the characteristics of the genre as there are two teenage girls alone in a house and they are messing around telling each other scary stories and naturally in horror films, these stories unfold in the film.

Mise-en-scene conveys meaning in the opening sequence by using the typical characters, locations, props and themes to give the audience an understanding for the story. The two girls are also in school uniform showing their youth and venerability. There is a shot in the opening sequence when the phone rings and the camera zooms in on the clock, focusing on the time that the clock is showing, emphasizing the significance of the situation. There is also another zooming in shot where one of the characters faces is focused on to show the afraid expression on her face showing the terror in her eyes. There are many shots throughout the opening sequence where camera shot, size angle and movement is important as they all create tension and suspense. We learn through non-verbal language and dialogue that the characters used for the opening are looking for a thrill, and they are young, and easy targets for the audience to put themselves in the same position as the target audience are of a similar age. The director also uses blurring of the background so you focus on the character in the shot, and there is also a part when an image is reflected very quickly in a blank TV screen making the character jump, adding to the tension of the film.

There is no narration in the opening sequence; there is only set dialogue from the two characters. Once we get further into the opening sequence there is a lot of tension and suspense, this is shown in the deep breathing of the character and the expression on her face. Tension is created and maintained by a lot of jumpy things happening in a short space of time. There are effects used, like water seeping out of the bedroom and the flash of images witch create suspense and tension throughout, and keep the audience looking out for the next fright. There is also a part where the character is walking up the stairs and the camera slowly pans backwards towards the room with the water seeping out from under the door, she also takes a long time to open the door adding to the question of what’s going to be behind it.

The social groups represented in the opening sequence are young teenage girls, as they are the only two characters we see in the opening of the film, this is shown in the fact that they are home alone and exposed. The ideological discourse evident in the film is that certain people may view the film differently because of their certain beliefs, and as there are unnatural things involved may mean it is viewed differently because of those beliefs. Semiotics as a framework shows how representation is constructed as we look at the situation that the two characters are in, and the signs and symbols used in the opening sequence which gives us and idea of what the characters are like and by the way they act, and also a incite into the rest of the film.

The target audience for the film is mostly aimed at younger people who want to get scared, and have a thrill from watching. The possible audience readings for the film are that, even though its made up, this could be real and because its set in a house with normal props and characters, it makes it all the more realistic for the audience. As a teenager myself, and the characters I can see are also teenagers, I can put myself in there perspective and think ‘what would I do’, even though its fictional. I think many people at a similar age to myself would enjoy watching the film, as it can be fun to get scared and have that thrilling feeling which is there from the opening. The ideololgy present in the film is that there is obviously evil of some sort present within the film , and us as humans are scared of this. This makes the film have a scary and unknown feeling and makes the audience have views that the story involves supernatural things, and things that are not farmiliar to everyday life.

There is no star in the opening of the film, but normally it would be important to use a star as in brings in the audience to watch the film. The film is and industrial film, and has been produced by DreamWorks pictures. DreamWorks is a major Hollywood studio who produce and distribute many different films. There were many ways in which the film was marketed, TV advertising, before film adverts in the cinema, billboards and magazine advertising, are all used to boost ratings and bring the audience in. In the opening I would say that it is hard to see a particular institutional context as you only see two teenage girls, however you could say that the teenage girls are the social group involved just by looking at the opening sequence. It is a also good to have teenagers in the film , and to have them as your target audience, as they are a loyal audience who have the time and the money to go and buy the DVDs and watch the film at the cinema.

Anaylising the Opening Sequence of Gothika by Sammy Wood

Analysis of the Opening Sequence of Gothika (Kassovitz, 2004).

Gothika is a horror film directed by Mathieu Kassovitz in 2004. In Gothika the audience’s expectations are fulfilled because from the very opening scene we learn about a character being possessed by the devil and this is a typical convention of a horror film. Also this character is a stock character of a horror film; this is because she is a typical character that you would have in a horror movie. The text conforms to the characteristics of the horror genre because it’s location is set in a mental prison which gives an eerie and scary atmosphere. Also this first stock character is talking about how she cut her step-fathers throat open. These examples are conventions of typical horror movies.

Mise-en-scene conveys meaning in the opening sequence of Gothika. For example the stock characters, firstly there is Chloe, the possessed character which is a connotation of a horror film and there is Miranda (the character of Halle Berry) who is a pretty character trying to help Chloe from the situation that she is in. Also the security guards in the sequence show that the location, where the scene is set, is dangerous and therefore people should be protected. Also by having a prison as the main location, has connotations of dark and gloom and a tense atmosphere. Also the room which the questioning is going on is dark, which makes it difficult to completely see characters facial expressions and doesn’t allow you to see exactly what is going on, which again creates an eerie atmosphere. The camera techniques also convey meaning to the opening sequence. An example of this is in the very first shot, where there is a close-up on Chloe. It emphasizes what she is saying and allows the audience to focus on her. Also, when the camera is panning along the prison cell bars, it conveys the meaning that Chloe is dangerous and therefore needs to be isolated away from other people where she could do damage. Another camera technique that conveys meaning is when Miranda is walking up a corridor and there is a mid-shot of her, then in the background you can see an extreme long shot of Chloe struggling and trying to get away from the guards, which shows her anger and her problems. Sound anchors the images in Gothika in many ways to give meaning and to give an exciting atmosphere. The voice of Chloe gives meaning because of the para language, because the sound of her voice is scary and monotonous, also her voice is quite quiet in places, so the audience really needs to concentrate on what she is saying. Also, when she is being taken away, she is screaming and struggling which creates tension. The voice of Miranda is calm and soothing, so we learn through her voice that she is a nice character trying to help another person. The soundtrack is weird and eerie and quite quiet, so that you can hear the screams and shouts of Chloe to make the atmosphere tense and so you can hear her reactions over the music. In the opening sequence of Gothika we learn a lot about the two characters through the dialogue and non-verbal language. Through listening to the characters conversation we learn that Chloe is extremely violent character because she describes how she killed her step-father. Also she explains how she ‘Cut his Adam’s apple in half, like a piece of fruit on a summer’s day.’ This makes her seem even more disturbed because she is making a terrible act seem pleasant by using a nice simile. The para language of Miranda’s voice is soothing and relaxed, which shows she is caring and is trying to help. The non-verbal language of Chloe’s voice makes the dialogue sound scary and the way she speaks is quiet, which therefore means that you have to listen carefully to what she is saying. Visual techniques that have been used by the director are the use of lighting. In the prison the room is very dark, which has connotations of mystery and because it is a bad place it means that bad things will happen there. Because the prison is dark, it means that there is little visibility, which has connotations of death and violence and is therefore foreshadowing future events.

The narrative in the opening sequence of Gothika immediately informs us about the characters because we learn the Chloe is being possessed by the devil and is in the mental prison. Also we learn that Miranda is somebody who works at the mental prison to try and help people like Chloe. It is organized and structured in such a way to give you information straight away about the characters and the reasons for why they are in that location. The audience has a privileged position in the opening sequence because we are allowed to be in the cell whilst Miranda is talking to Chloe, which gives the audience insight to why she is there. Also, the audience is allowed into the mental prison unlike any member of public. The techniques of identification are used to let the audience have an insight to the characters. This happens in Gothika where we learn about the character Chloe and we learn what she is like. The major themes in the narrative are violence, death and being possessed because we learn that Chloe killed her step-father, and before that she cut his throat open and we know that the reason she is in the mental prison is because she has done these things and know she is being possessed by the devil in the evenings. Tension is created and maintained in this sequence by the location being set in a prison, which has connotations of darkness, also learning about the fact that Chloe thinks she is being possessed which creates suspense. Also when Chloe is being taken away for getting angry at Miranda she is screaming and shouting and saying to Miranda that ‘she is dead.’ This would create a scary atmosphere and would be difficult to take from Miranda’s point-of-view.

Social Groups that are represented in this sequence are people that have problems and need help. We find this out through the character of Chloe being possessed by the devil. The beliefs and values that is evident in Gothika are good and evil and this is shown through the characters of Miranda and Chloe. Also, in this day in age we live with science and new technology, however many people still have religious beliefs, and this narrative can effect us because of the fear of the unknown. This mean's that because science has given us answers about ideology, it can not necessarily prove or disprove the existence of the devil and because we know that there is evil in everyone, we fear people who have this illness to the extreme because they are a danger to society.

I think the target audience of Gothika is early twenties to early thirties; this is because I think that anybody under twenty wouldn’t necessarily find it interesting because of the weird ideology and beliefs. Also I think people over the age of thirty would not find the film interesting. Many people would have different opinions about the meaning of the film. The preferred reading of the film would be that they understand that people do have these types of problems, but hope that Chloe gets better and becomes a better person. The negotiated reading of the film would be that they understand that people may have those types of problems, however due to their beliefs they don’t believe that somebody could be possessed by the devil. The oppositional reading of the opening sequence of Gothika would be that they want to watch a film, so they watch it anyway but do not go along with the intentions of the film. I read and evaluate the text by thinking that it is quite violent and tense and that it could happen in the real world. I also think the way in which Chloe speak about how she killed her step-father quite disturbing because she says “I cut his adam’s apple in half like a piece of fruit on a summer’s day,” by comparing the act to a pleasant simile it makes the action worse because it comes across that Chloe thinks that it is okay. I think that my evaluation is influenced by my age because I would believe the scene and I would become more involved than an older person would. My gender also influences my evaluation of the text because again I am more naïve than boys are which would make me find the situation scarier.

A famous actress has been used in Gothika called Halle Berry, and she has been in many films before Gothika including one of the Bond films. This means that she is noticeable and would mean then men would also be attracted to the film because of her, which would mean good publicity. Gothika is an industrial film produced by Warner Bros’ Pictures, Columbia Pictures Corporation and Dark Castle Entertainment. Strategies that have been used to market the film are trailers that have been produced to give an insight to the film and posters and advertisements to display.