Characters In My Original Narrative

My film only consists of two people: The Victim and The Villain. Ive decided to keep a relatively small cast as this will make filming a lot easier. By not having as many people, I won't have to organise and plan filming timetables as much. It will also make storyboarding and screenplay easier as I won't have to take into account for too many parts to be played. This will allow me to develop and focus on the two characters better and tell their story in greater detail. If I had too many characters, I wouldn't be able to tell as good a story because its a short film and I don't have that much time for character development.

The Victim: The Victim shall be played by and will be a typical teenage sixth form girl. I decided that by casting an actual student to play the part will make performance better because as it will be just acting out her everyday life. It will also save money on props such as school bags, books etc as she will already have them, therefore resulting in a realistic miss-en-scene. This will make finding a film location easier as I wish to begin the film in our school/ on the school grounds, The Victim will begin the film by walking out of school on her way home. I will use POV and over the shoulder shots to create the feeling that the audience is in the film effect. As she gets further home, I will also shoot in areas where there isn't that much light to imply to the audience that the narrative 'is getting darker'. As she gets closer home, she will become increasingly aware that she is being followed. I will convey this to the audience via close up shots which will also highlight the fear on her face. The film will end in her house and ultimately her death.

The Villain: The Villain will appear very little in the beginning and build up of the film, and the audience won't see the Villain as Im going to blur him out to create the effect of confusion and mystery.

Film Regulations And Certifications

My film will likely be rated 12 on the BBCFC rating scale as there is no/ little violence or gore used that may upset the viewer, there will only be the use of suspense and psychological effects that will create the emotion of fear within the viewer. Im also using no drugs, sexual, or graphical scenes. There will be the presence of a knife being used as a prop however it won't be used to inflict harm upon anyone.

There may be slight gore used towards the end when the victim is killed, however as mentioned previously this will not be shown to the viewer.

Also, with my film being a short film it means it will be produced on a very little budget so there wont be any exotic props used that would create to much fear for the audience. Short films tend to have nice audiences and will only be shown at specific short film festivals where this audience gathers. An alternative way of them being viewed is through online viewing platforms such as YouTube and Vimeo. Subsequently, this makes them very hard to regulate who watches them, to counteract this I may be able to place age restrictions on the video prior to being viewed and when this isn't possible; display the age rating certificate before the film begins,.

Contributor Release Form

I made my own contributor release form for the actors staring in my film to sign. This gives me consent and permission for me to upload the film online to YouTube. This also clears me legally in the case of injury and/or death of a person during production.

Director Analysis: Wes Craven

I decided to do a textual analysis of perhaps the most well known and best horror film directors: Wes Craven.

Craven was best known for creating the A Nightmare on Elm Street franchise featuring the Freddy Krueger character, directing the first installment and Wes Craven's New Nightmare, and co-writing A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors.

Craven also directed all four films in the Scream series, and co-created the Ghostface character. Some of his other films include The Hills Have Eyes, The Last House on the Left, The People Under the Stairs, Red Eye, The Serpent and the Rainbow, and Vampire in Brooklyn.

Craven's works tend to share a common exploration of the nature of reality. For instance, A Nightmare On Elm Street focused on the consequences of dreams in real life. I had a similar idea for one of my proposed films as I'm wanting to create the same effect of 'real life horror'. 

In Scream, the characters frequently reference horror films similar to their situations, and at one point Billy Loomis tells his girlfriend that life is just a big movie. This is an exceptional use of 'reverse psychology' on the audience and creates the exact effect of 'this isn't a movie, this is real life' that I'm going to try and recreate in my film. 

Cravens work tended to share a common exploration of the nature of reality. Night mare on elm street focused on the consequences of dreams in real life. In Scream the characters constantly reference other horror films that are similar to the situation they're in.
I want to do this as well as I believe true horror films leave a lasting effect on the audience and make them go home believing what they have just watched could happen to them. 

StoryBoard

I drew my opening scene of my short horror film. My artistic work is appalling so I may use another method for storyboarding the rest of the film however this was just a trial method and helps me to film regardless.  

What I've Learnt From My Music Video

Music video knowledge from 09loweja

Lights Out Short Horror Film

Lights out is a short horror film that is roughly 2 minutes long. It was produced by the public and wasn't part of any major production/ distribution company therefore being made on a very little budget. It was first brought to my attention via Facebook as it was shared on my news feed. I instantly made a connection with the film and decided to do an analysis of it as I am in the exact same shoes as the people who made it, in terms of budget, actors, equipment etc.

The story starts with an establishing shot of a block of average flats, setting the scene for the audience. This also enlightens me on the fact that the producers haven't gone to any extravagant locations to film, they've literally used their own living space.

Next we see a mid-shot of the actress coming out of what appears to be the bathroom and walking along the hallway to the light switch. The mine-en-scene is her dressed in ordinary female bed wear and what you would expect to see in your average flat, i.e a coat stand.

As the actress turns on the light, that is when we first see the appearance of the 'villain' in the dark at the end of the hallway. We see no details, such as the face, gender, clothing, or figure of said villain, just a silhouette in the dark. This is the exact same effect Im trying to achieve as it 'plays on peoples everyday fears'. It will also make the viewer jump at the same time, but not in the incredibly dull way jump scares do as in the paranormal activity films. This also stays with the audience and leaves a lasting impression with them when they get home. Oddly, theres also no music played throughout the film, amazingly this actually adds to the suspense even more as it kinda makes the viewer feel like they're actually there in the film!

Im considering using this similar effect in my film as I think it gives the film a unique twist and creates a more realistic feel for the audience.

We then see the actress turn the light on, to find the figure gone, she turns it off to see it return, this happens a few times. The camera angle is that of an over the shoulder shot, giving the impression that we are stood behind her, this camera angle also doesn't change throughout the 'light on, light off'. This creates the effect of being frozen in place and unable to take your eyes off the hallway. Id like to use this effect to in my short horror film as it creates the 'as if you're actually in the film' feel Im aiming to create.

On the fifth time she turns the light off, the creature appears in a different but closer spot, making the audience jump again but not as a cheesy jump scare.

We then see the horror in the actresses face via mean of a close up camera shot. Out of fear she tapes the light switch shut to leave the light on as she sleeps, this also plays on peoples fears, especially kids as they leave the light on as they are afraid of the dark.