These re the results from our questionnaire, which we gave to 50 memebers of the public. We gave our questionnaire to 50 members of the public because it gives us a larger sample size, meaning that the resutls would be more accurate, and also the number is a nice easy number for us to convert into percentages. These results allow us to see our results clearly and allows us to include what our target audience would like to see in our film.
Question one- As you can see from the pie chart; the audience prefer the actors being female as 80% of the public chose this and only 20% picked male. This tells us that our actors should mainly consist of female ones as our results show us this. This may be due to the conventions of a horror film as the victim is usually an innocent girl, which from our target audience research, males prefer this, as our target audience shows that males go to watch horror films a little more than females. We will ensure to have female actors present in our opening two minutes, so our audience would appeal to our film. Question two- This question was to show where we should locate our film, which as you can see the highest percentage was an abandoned building, then a home and then a wood. These results show that we should set our film in an abandoned building, however, to make our feel more realistic and to relate more to the audience we can set it in part of the woods and someone's home, as this involves both locations appeal to the audience and would make it more realistic so the audience can feel as if this could happen to them. However we could use an abandoned house this could make the atmosphere more eerie and create tension as its a place the audience would be unfamiliar with. However, using the locations of the woods and someone's home can be easily associated with each and can involve lots of shots, which would be perfect.
Question Three- This question was to tell us when to bring our music soundtracks in to build tension, which this question tell us that the audience would want the music to build up the tension as they feel as though this helps the film have scary factors in the scenes of our opening scenes. We will have to ensure that we have music in our film to ensure tension is building throughout the film, and we have to make sure that they suit the scene which they will be assigned to through the editing stages. Question four- This question is to see what the audience's favourite genre of film was, which as you can see it is horror, which is perfect as we are producing the opening two minutes of a horror film. This means that the people who took this questionnaire is potentially our target audience as in our blog about our target research it shows that stereotypically more males watch horror than females. Question five- Following the previous question, this one is to see what type of horror film our audience prefer from gore (which is the Saw film), to supernatural (Paranormal Activity). This shows that a supernatural film is the most preferable film, however Scream is not far behind. This suggests that we should have some paranormal elements in it to appeal to the audience but also involve murder, which could be present at the end of the feel so suspense can be build throughout the two minutes.
Question six- This film is similar to the previous question but is more to the point as this justifies what the audience would like to see in the film. From our results you can see that they expect a murder in a horror film or some sort of death. In second place was paranormal,which emphasises the popularity of this being in horrors as this was again popular in the previous question. This means that we should either have murder or paranormal in our film.
Question seven- This question is to see how much they watch horrors, which would tell us how much they know about horrors and what they would expect. This also tell us if their other response are valid as they watch various horrors so would know what to expect from one and what would be good to include in the opening two minutes of a film.
Question eight- This finally question is all about the title of our film, which may or may not definitely be used, but these are they ones which have appealed to us so far. As you can see our results show that the name 'HiJack' is most preferred, which is fairly effective as it can be associated with someone being taken, but also could be a characters name. However these names may not be used meaning we may have to send out another questionnaire or ask this question again n the future, to ensure all our audience likes the name of our film.
This is an example of our questionnaire, which we gave out to 50 people from the public. We ensured the people who was given one of these were totally at random to ensure the relibilty of our results was accurate and not at all bias. Say we gaveour questionnaires to all of females, the results would be inaccurate as it would make our film be more appealing for women adn men would not have a say, which is why was do not want to be bias. We collected all these back and created pie charts to see our results clearly and to see what they relfect. These questions would allow us to see what our film should include and what elements we need to include to make sure our target audience appeals to it. Our results are put into pie charts on the blog called 'Results of Questionnaires'.
You need to evidence more of your planning at this stage - aim to include a filming schedule, costumes and props evidenced and commented on, storyboard animatic uploaded and commented on (strengths and weakenesses) actors interviews need to be posted and location research needs to be uploaded. You need to choose or create a fornt for titles. All filming must be done by the end of term - you need to act well together as a group to meet your fast approaching deadline!
Insidious links into our film.. because as the target audience for insidious is mostly ranged around 15-24 year old's; this is the same as our film because both these films are horrors making this the most popular target audience for age groups. Males are mostly targeted for this film insidious, because it is usually males that prefer going to horror related films. They prefer these because they tend to find romances boring as they like feeling frightened and being shown gory and groosum things. Females are less interested in horror films because; they tend to prefer romances- where they can relate relationships into the films because relationship in films tend to turn out all happy and romantic. This is what most girls look for in relationships and if there relationship isn't good then they can pretend that they are the woman in the movie and end up living happily ever after. Women/girls are usually less interesting in horror films because as girls are stereotyped to be week and vulnerable they tend to be the antagonist target in horror films making them feel a lot more intimidated and feel a lot more scared compared to the male audience. The age group that were allowed to see this film were 15 years and above. They have set this for the target audience because as the horror films usually target age groups 15 -25. Any younger and they would loose viewers because most young children don't like being scared and wouldn't like to see a film which uses mundane realism as they will start imagining that it could happen to them, no matter how fake it is.
The social grades for this film are mostly targeted at C1 social class of people; this shows that people with enough money go to see this sort of film. The least social group who went to see this film were C2, this is the skilled working class. Working class means that they don't have a lot of money which shows that either they don't have enough to go to the cinema or want to save there money to have enough for essentials. Although classes A and B have 28% it is still lower than C1 class. This subverts what some people would think to do with money because being it class A or B would mean that you would have quite a lot of money and you could be spending a lot of it on the cinema. However, classes A and B would be dong a lot more different stuff which involve a lot more money like going on Holiday and they might think that the cinema is for lower class people.
The version of this movie I am focusing on was released on 10th February 2012 as a adaptation of the original version produced in 1983. The first thing I noticed when looking at the information for this movie, is that it has been given a certificate of 12a.
The chart that is shown is to show the general target audience, the class range of people who choose to go and watch horror films, although this chart shows vaguely overall horror films it is based on only the film Woman in black.
The Woman in Black's target audience links into our film because it is a horror film and includes scenes that make you jump., and builds tension within the audience. The mise-en-scene also links the target audience in both the woman in lack and the film we will be making together because, we will use mise-en-scene the same way which will attract the same audience as the types of audience will look for the same types of things and mise-en-scene covers a lot in films.
The Woman in Black appeals mainly to the male audience because they are stereo-typically wanting to become a lot more scared whilst watching films as it builds up their adrenaline and gives them a good feeling.
A lot of the female audience probably got taken to see the movie with their boyfriend/husband, this isn't always the case; many females enjoy watching horror movies which subverts the stereotype of only males enjoying this genre of film. As we are using a group of teenage girls as the subject in the opening scene this will hopefully intrigue the male audience because they would be attracted to these characters, we are also hoping this will make female want to see our movie because they will feel as though they can relate to the situation because the characters are teenage girls; teenagers are the main target audience for horror movies and this target audience goes up to the ages 24 if the film is rated 15.
The interviewees in this clip are Liv Tyler and Scott Speedman, which were the main characters in the film, 'The Strangers'.
This video says that the characters in the film did not give the audience much information about themselves and their relationship throughout the film, which created an enigma for the audience even from the opening few seconds of the film. This suggests that the opening scene should not introduce everything about the character as this builds the tension and suspense in the film. This may be perfect for the opening two minutes as this would make the audience intrigued and wanting to watch more. This also suggests that I need actors which would give a good performance, so my scenes will be as realistic as the possibly can.
The actors also say that the having romance element to the film, helped the audience to feel sympathetic and to warm up and relate to the characters more. This is because the relationship problems they were having, may have happened to couples in the audience, which would make them want them to survive in whatever is going to happen throughout the film. Involving a romantic scene in my opening two minutes may be hard as this is only a small amount of time to portray horror elements let alone a romantic scene. I may not include this as I do not want to pack some much in the opening scene, that it would confuse my target audience and may disrupt the story line of my film.
The actors also say that they were having to experience real fear as they were basically put in this house on their own and had to react to the horror which commenced around them. This would give realistic reactions and actions to the horror parts which occurred, which may be ideal for the opening two minutes of my film, as if the acting is realistic then the audience would feel this too.
The use of music and the actors playing the antagonists, also were very effective in this film as the actors said. This suggests to me that in the editing stages the music would generally create the whole atmosphere of the scene, which would have to be scary due to me wanting to build tension and suspense throughout the opening scene. The use of the antagonists not be shown to the main actors of the film, made them feel anxious, which made they react more realistically in the film as they didn't have the slightness clue who they were. This could be used for my scenes, as this would give my actors more of a chance to give a realistic reaction.
This interview involves the actors from the film horror series, 'Paranormal Activity', which this interview is the first of the series. The actors being interviewed in this clip are the two main characters of the film, Micah Sloat and Katie Featherston.
The interview states that the film had no written script throughout any of the filming. This shows how well the characters had to be so the film would be very realistic as the had to react to the stimulus as though it was happening in real life. This Suggests that I need actors which would concentrate and can portray a character which I give them. Also, involving no written script was very effective as the actors can react to the scary events as they would react to them themselves. This could make my opening scene very effective as the actors would be able to adapt and create an atmosphere of them actually being in this situation.
They also say that they were filming in 'all hours of the night', which obviously follow the conventions of a horror as usually the scary and frightening part happens during the night or dark places. This suggests that the lighting and what time of day you film, can affect the atmosphere, motif, and how the shot comes across to the audience. I will have to ensure the lighting would reflect the atmosphere, which I would like to be shown to the audience in my opening scene.
Having the scary effects happen to the actors without them actually knowing, allows the actors to give a real reaction to the scary events, which made the film very realistic. This could be could to use in my opening scene as it would make the scene feel more realistic and this would come across as being realistic to the audience who are watching the scene too.
This interview also says that there it was more of an exhilarating fear, which is similar to what was said in the Insidious Interview, which is located further down the page from this blog. They both involve the use of trying to make the horror more tradition instead of including blood splattering scenes and the use of violent dismantlement's of bodies. I will definitely take this into account as this is becoming a more reoccurring trend of having more of a paranormal/non-gore side to the film compared to bloody scenes.
Katie says that they filmed alternate endings, which may not apply to our task, but does refer to taking different scenes and shots. This is important because it allows the editor to pick which shot or scene is better than another which was taken. This also tells me that it may take a long time to actually make my film opening shot, but being patient will definitely give me a shot which would be ideal for my scene. For my opening scene, I will be taking different camera shot and angles of a scene so I can ensure that I produce a perfect opening scene for my target audience.
This post is about researching how the actors are presented on set and off set, which would choose further characters to be in my film and would help me see how much work and effort is needed to create a chilling and frightening opening two minutes of my film.
From the beginning it shows that many takes had to be taken for the director to be happy with the shot and for the shot to be presented how the director wanted it to be seen as by the target audience. This tells me that many retakes of shot may occur so that the perfect shot can be caught, which would make the opening two minutes of my film as effective as I can make it. These retakes also allows the editing process, where the film is put together, have a lot of freedom, as they have a range of shots of the same one to choose so they can present the best scene possible. These retakes shows how professional the actors have to be as it is take after take, which suggests that for my film I should have people who would take it seriously and to be right for the character they will have to play.
This video from behind the scene of the film, 'The Conjuring', shows the differences between when actors are on set and off set. When they are on set, you can see how much passion and concentration they have in relationship to their character they are presenting. This shows that the characters in my film should suit who they are playing and that I should ensure that they can make their character as realistic as possible, including them reacting to stimulus in a normal stereotypically way. However, when the actors are off stage, behind the scene shows how they act around one another, as being all friendly and how they work well together. This suggests to me that I should have people who work well together, not only in front of a camera but also off set, as this would make them feel comfortable when a camera is facing them.
The video also shows various effects they have used, such as the ropes being attached to the girls hair, which when edited, will suggest to the audience a paranormal demon is pulling at the girls hair. This shows how simple or complex the effects can be. This helps me with planning my film as I can use some of the techniques they use for effects in my film, as the genre of this film is also a horror, which is perfect! It also tells me that the effects can be fairly simple but very effective when edited and on screen.
Finally the video also gives me an insight of how many camera are needed for one shot, as this allows them to have different angles and shots of the same scene, which would reduce the errors of film mistake occurring in the scene. This also allows the editing process to juxtaposition shots, which can affect the audience in different ways due to the range of shots taken. This is very important as this can show camera techniques such as match on action, which will presented in my film. I will be sure to film a same scene from different angles and shot, so I can make my opening scene fluent and can involve techniques such as match on action.
I have decided to add this to my research for my film, which I will produce. I thought this would give a good idea what I could include in my film as, Patrick Wilson and Rose Byrne, know what it is like featuring in a horror and to be involved with the effects, which are added to the film to ensure the scare factor is present in the film.
As they say to begin with, they felt as though it was easier when scenes did not involve added effects. This is because they could make it as realistic as they want due to not worrying about messing up the effects which needed to be added later in the editing stages. They also feel as it is easier to react to, even though the effects are seen, for example 'fishing line' as when something is being pulled across the room.
They also say that they are 'trying to bring back the traditional horror', which doesn't involve all the blood-vest and gore. Due to the box offices hitting a phenomenal $41 million dollars in the first weekend, shows that audience definitely love the old school kind of horrors, when demons and less gore are involved. From this, I feel as though elements of my opening scene of my film, should involve elements or even based on these kind of old school horrors, which include less gore and just focus on scaring and making the audience jump.
Furthermore, continuing watching the interview, the relationship between character displayed on character is very important as it has to be as realistic for the audience so it makes the whole atmosphere more normal and realistic. This is why the people I will be using in my film will be very familiar with each other so they would be comfortable in what ever situation they are in for the film.
As all you film fanatics know, all films have a certificate, which shows who can watch the film, which corresponds to the age. These certificates range from a U all the way to 18 rated films. However these certificates should relate to the target audience of the film as if the target audience for a film was for children and the film gained a certificate of an 18, this would cut out a large portion of their target audience, meaning very low and even negative profits. These certificates are decided and classified by the BBFC, which stands for the British Board of Film Classification . These apply these classifications to films so the films are suited for the correct ages in the audience. They are based on the contents and messages within the film.
This certificate shows that the film is suitable for all ages from ages four to elder people in the audience. The 'U' certificate is used because it is virtually impossible to predict how and what might upset any particular child, how this certificate should suit all audiences. One key element for a 'U' rated film is that it should be set within a positive moral framework, meaning being set in a positive atmosphere. They should also offer reassuring advice and solutions to violence, threats or horror, which is to help the younger ages of the audience to learn the differences from right and wrong, which helps their learning development. There many examples of 'U rated films such as 'The Smurfs' and 'Cars 2'. Many 'U' rated films are cartoons, as this usually attracts this kind of target audience as cartoons are seen as fun and these ages can easily relate to them and what occurs in them.
This rating is considered to be for general viewing, but some scenes may be unsuitable for young children. This is because the film is mainly for children, but in order for the children to see it the parents may have to come and see it with them, which means some scenes must appeal to an older generation, which could include innuendos. These 'PG' rated films should not disturb a child, aged around 8 or older, which is why it is suggested that if you are below this age you should be accompanied by an adult. The accompanied adult, however, can decide if the contents of the film is okay for their child by watching the trailers and judging on how sensitive their child is to specific things.
However there two '12 rated films, which are '12A' and obviously '12' rated films. Firstly '12A' rated films are suitable for ages 12 and above, however people below the age of 12 can go and see it but would need to come with an accompanied adult. This because some scenes may not be suitable for children under the ages of 12, but if their parents feel as though they are old enough to see these they can see them but the adult would need to be with them. However the adult must take responsibility if the film upsets them in any circumstance as this rating advised them to be careful. The '12 rated certificate obviously means that the film is for people with age of 12 or above as some scenes may contain materials, which people under the age of 12 would be unsuitable for them. The use of the red colouring represents the difference between each certificate as the darker one suggests it is more serious and for older audience.
The next certificate is for an audience which individuals must have an age of 15 or above. These kind of films usually have a genre of horror or adult comedy, which is why this rating is usually given to these films. There are many examples films which are rated 15, such as, 'The Ring', 'Role Models' and 'Paranormal Activity' series. Romances can usually be in this rating due to the sexual scenes in them to show intermittent and romantic scenes.
The final certificate is an 18 rated film, which is for no one younger than the age of 18. This is because the scene which are in the film, are not suitable for the younger audience. These are certificates also mean that you have to be the age or above of the rating to purchase this from a shop. This is to stop the younger audience seeing them as these certificates are put on for a reason.
What certificate will my film be?
My film would probably have to be for the ages of 15 and above. This decision has many reasons behind it; firstly, financially, around this age this target audience are looking for jobs so would have money to go and see the films, so this would mean more profits and a larger audience which would purchase tickets and watch the film. As this would maximize the profit of what the film would make, it would still comply with the BBFC guidelines Another reason is that this gives us a broad and wide range of audience, as it is from ages 15 and above. Having this certificate would be ideal as we can use our knowledge of what we 15 years and above like as we were this age around a year or so ago. Also in my film there would be gore, horror and scenes which may disturb and be unsuitable for ages below 15.
The establishing scene of the opening scene has a fading in transition, which shows the close up shopt of, who we presume to be young girls pouring tea into tiny teacups. The use of the close up camera shot, suggests that these objects may have some important to the film as the were the first shot of the whole film. Also having the establishing scene as a close up automatically creates tension as the audience has very little vision of the shot as it doesn't give an insight of the characters or location, which usually horrors consist of. The use of mise en scene is very effective in this opening scene as the use of small teacups and teapot suggests to the audience that the characters in this scene are fairly young as they are still playing 'tea parties' and make belief games. Having involved the imaginary tea pouring out of the teapot into the cups, gives an insight of how youthful the characters are and implies they are girls, as stereotypically girls play with teacups and dolls. On the teacups there are also little birds, which imply innocence for the characters in this scene. Involving thr use of the ting table suggests that they are playing with something small, which could be dolls or some sort of toy, which again symbolises their youth and young age they have. In this shot the focus pull changes from one cup to the other teacup. This forces the audience to focus on these points in the shot, which allows them to remember the objects present in the shot. The pace of this shot is fairly long, which suggests the peaceful atmosphere in the shot and suggests the normality of the day.
The next shot is also a close up shot of, what looks like a handmade doll, which one of the characters are giving tea to. This reflects the youthfulness of the character as stereotypically young girls play with dolls and more imaginary games. The use of having the teacup repeatedly shown in from the previous shot suggests that they are important or have some importance to the film. The look of the dolls as being homemade suggests that this film is set in the past or in a period of time where there was little money, which suggests the characters would be from the past too. The pace of the filming is again fairly slow, which is slowly building up tension as the audience are expecting something scary or frightening to happen, as this is what usually features in the conventions of horrors. The slow pace of the shot is also allows the audience to see focus on certain points of the shot, which allows them to create a picture of the location of the film.
The following shot is similar to the previous one, but with a different doll. This suggests that there are multiple characters in the opening scene, which could suggests sisters are playing together or they are all friends. Having used a different doll suggests that the characters families may have not as much money as they cannot afford to buy the dolls, but on the other hand shows how different time was in this film compare to the now-a-days. Having the focus pull on the doll suggests that this may have some importance to the scenes to follow but also allows the audience to focus on what is important in the scene, the doll and the teacup. This pace of filming is again slow, which is gradually building up tension and suspense in the opening scene of this film.
The medium low angled shot allows the audience to see the location of where the opening scene is set, a child's bedroom. The medium shot allows the audience to see the location, which suggests that the film is definitely set in the past, as the furniture is all made of wood, rather than all the high tech furniture around now. Also the walls being a grubby green colour suggests the atmosphere of the scene as being dull and empty, motif. The use of mise en scene, lack of carpet again suggests the film being set in a simpler time. Having the film being set in the past can follow the conventions of a horror, as the horror is usually due to something happening the past. The characters in the scene shows the innocence of them due to the clothes being frilly and something which your parents would dress you in when you were younger. The hair tied up, also shows that the children are cared about as their parent or guardians helps them do their hair and dress them for the day. Having toys scattered all over the floor adds to the effect of the location being in a children's bedroom as this is what usually what happens in a children's room. The medium shot also allows the audience to see the characters, which are three young girls, which suggest the normality of the day as they are all playing happily together. Having the shot low angled as well, allows the audience to feel part of the film as if they are one of the children over viewing them playing. The use of the lighting illuminates the girls more than anything else in the shot, which suggests they are the most important thing in the shot. The slow pace shot allows the audience to focus on the characters and their actions they are doing in the shot. This medium shot also shows the relationship between the characters, as the placement of them shows that they are close as there isn't much space between them. This suggests that they friends or have some kind of relation between each of them.
The close up shows another doll, which we presume to belong to the last character. This shows that the girls are close as they are playing together and the atmosphere is all happy and playful. Having the use of the dolls being constantly repeated, suggest the significance they have to the film. The close allows the audience to focus the doll as the focus pull is the dolls face. The pace of the shot is faster than the other close ups, which suggests the horror is about to begin. Involving the girl brushing her hair, shows what a stereotypical girl would do at a friends house, which shows their youth and the age the girls are. The next shot is also a close up of the children tucking in one of the dolls. Having these close up shots suggests how girls are treated and what they are seen to grow up as, as involving the girls playing with dolls and caring about them suggests how girls were brought up during this time as girls were only allowed to do what they are 'meant' to grow up to be; looking after children, house work etc.
The medium shot of the two girls, which follows the shot above, shows the two girls smiling at, who we presume to be the other girl. This shot suggests the closeness of the two girls as they are the only once in the shot, which suggests they are closer with each other than with the other girl. This shot also allows the audience to see the expressions of the girl's faces, which makes the atmosphere warm and calming, as the girls are gleaming and smiling. However the music int the background, makes the whole scene feel creepy for the audience as the use of the the non-diagetic music being in a nursery theme style,which makes the audience feel uneasy. The pace of this shot is slow, which again increases tension. The next shot is of the other girl, which is smiling back at the girls. Having only one of the girls being on their own, suggests that they are more important than the other two girls, as she has a shot of with only her in it.
The next shot, although the camera is close to the ground, the camera shot is slightly high angled. This suggests that the audience are looking over what the girls are doing as the camera is focusing on the dolls, which makes them feel as if they are part of the opening scene. The focus pull is again the dolls in the scene, which suggests they are very important to the film.
The next shot is a high angled shot, which involves the girls to stop playing and to look towards the camera. This suggests that the camera is acting as though they are a person and the girls are looking up towards the person, which creates an enigma for the audience as they do not know who it is or what it is that the girls are staring at, which also creates suspense and tension. This shot also allows the audience to see the location of the room and suggests that this film is set in the past. The high angled shot allows the audience to feel part of the film as the position of the camera suggests its through whoever is standing at the door. The pace of this shot is again slow, which create tension and suspense as the audience does not know who this person or thing is!
The composition of the previous shot and this shot being put next to each other in the editing process, creates tension as the shots jumps from at the door way to a low angled shot of the girls on the floor. This shot furthermore increases the enigma due to the action of the girls looking over their shoulders, what are they staring at? The use of the eye line match shot, which shows what the girls are looking at, the window. The enigma is continued , but makes the audience feel as though someone may be at the window. The use of zooming into the window suggests its importance and suggests the characters are drawing in their concentration to this part of the room.
The medium shot of the girls standing up automatically makes the audience feel uncomfortable as the characters are still looking towards the window. This suggests that something bad or unnerving is about to occur, which follows the conventions of an horror thriller. This shot is then followed by the two close up shots, which focuses on the characters clothes (mise en scene), which suggests the period of time this film is meant to be set. Also the pace of these close ups are fast, which are increasingly building up tension and suspense for the audience.
The use of the low angled close up shots of the girls shoes stepping on to the objects suggests many things. Having the girls smash their toys and the dolls with their feet, suggests them throwing and saying goodbye to their childhood, which makes the audience feel as though something bad is going to happen. It also makes the audience confused as one minute they were pampering the dolls and the next they have walked all over them without any care in breaking them or anything.
The medium shot of the girls walking into the camera, makes the audience feel as though they are walking towards them, which makes them feel part of the film. The use of the mise en scene, of the clothing, suggests the purity of these children, which makes the audience confused on why they are walking to the window if they are pure and innocent. This shot is then followed with the camera being place behind the girls, as they are stepping up on the ledge of the window. This makes audience guess what is about to happen, which subverts the convention of a horror as usually a scary part occurs in the opening scene rather something which the audience can guess. The slow pace of the shot builds tension and increases the enigma for the audience. As the girls jumps the audience are as confused as anything as one minute they are playing and the next they have just jumped out of the window! The use of the music increasingly building in volume, increases the tension of what has happened. The use of the female screaming, implies that the girls have died. Having the camera panning out of the window, could suggest the girls life fading as they are falling through the air. This also allows the audience to see contrast from beginning of the shot to the end.
The close up of doll, suggests that it would never be touched again and that the love for what the girls had for the dolls has disappeared. This could imply how the girls families feel as they are would never be touched or held again in the same way.
The camera then pans out again and stops in an over the shoulder shot of a person dressed in black. This makes the audience feel as though this person is the cause of what has happened as they are seen to have just watched what has happened, without any reaction of stopping them. But who's shoulder is this? Is it the Woman in Black's?
The Conjuring is an Amercian Paranormal and supernatural Horror film, which was released on August 2nd 2013. The director of this film was James Wan, which also directed the films 'Insidious' and the 'Saw' films. When these films were being made they had to think how their film would appeal to their target audience and what they would need to include to keep their audience intrigued and stuck to their seats.
This is a chart to show what type of audience watched 'The Conjuring', which was collected by and from the Pearl and Dean website. These results subvert the stereotypical view of the male gender watching horrors more than women as the percentage level is lower than the women's one. There are many reasons why this could have occurred, which one reason could be that the main character was a womenly figure, which the male audience would rather have a male character being more of the main character and have more control in the film. Another reason could suggest that due to the release date, not a lot of horror films were released during this peroid of time, so this horror was a big hit. This could of be a cause to the female percentage to be higher as they hadn't seen a horror for a while due to films not having this genre. The release date was also in the summer holidays, which the target audience of this film, would be on their school holidays or off work, so would have more free time to watch films and go to the cinema. As the percentage of the female audience was 54% and the males was 46%, it shows that this film was more popular with the female audience than the males.
The ages in the results, shows that their target audience was mostly ranged from age 15 to age 24. Having no percentages below the age of 15, automatically shows that the certifacate of this film was a 15. Having this as their broader target audience, follows the stereotypical target audience for a horror film as they are usually aimed at this age group; this could link to the popularity of females watching it. Having a 15 rating allows there to be scary scenes, gore and more adult scenes, which follows the conventions of a horror film.
The class rating for the film varies from different classes. AB stands for upper and middle class, C1 stands for lower middle class, C2 stands for skilled working class and DE stand for working and non working class. As you can see the highest rating in these results are from C1 as it is 46%. This suggests that the lower middle class watched the film, which could be their target audience. This could link to the rating as ages 15 and above are beginning to apply for jobs or are working at their jobs. This suggest that these working people may have watched it to escape the reality and the stress from their jobs and to relax watching a film, which could be real or not. Due to the release date, this may have affected the results as this target audience may have had a lot of free time as the release date was in the summer meaning they could go and watch this and enjoy it. Classes AB was the lowest percentage, which could be due to them being in a much higher class than C1. This could suggest that class AB prefer more intellectual and true stories and the genre, horror, are not their kind of film to watch. DE has a percentage of 18%, which could be because they are a non working class meaning they have more spare time to watch films.
From this research, it suggests that the target audience for an ideal horror should be for ages 15 and above. This is because we can have scary and gore elements to the film but would still be suitable for ages 15 and above. Also having this age certificate for our film would allow us to have the broadest target audience, which would bring more profit to the film, and appeal to a larger range of people compared to an 18 rated film.
This is our preliminary task, which was our first task, having needed to include certain camera rules.
The camera rules which we needed to include in our preliminary task were:
-180 degree rule
-Shot reverse shot
-Match on action
Match on action is the a shot which cuts to linking shots, almost seamlessly, for example in our preliminary task, the having the hand reaching her shoulder then it cuts to a a extreme close up of her actually making contact with her shoulder. Shot reverse shot is a shot which jumps from one face to another to show the relationship between characters in the shot. An example of this in our task would be when the characters are talking as the camera jumps between them. The 180 degree rule is when cutting from one person to another, however you cannot cross the imaginary 180 degree line or it would confuse the audience watching. An example of this in the preliminary is, again, when the two girls are talking; the camera jumps from the left hand shoulder of one of the girls to the other girls right shoulder, which is following the 180 degree rule as the camera is not crossing the imaginary line.
We also used various camera shots and angles to reflect the feelings of the characters and to make our audience feel and relate to the character in our preliminary task. The establishing shot is shown on screen through a fade in transition. The establishing shot is a medium shot, which is behind the character, which makes the audience feel as if they are part of the film, as if we are walking behind them. This shot also allows the audience to see the location of the our preliminary task, which is a school. The lighting and colours of the walls in the shot symbolises the girls mood in this scene, which is pathetic fallacy. The next shot is a close up of her pulling the chair out and then a medium shot involving her sitting down on the chair. This is the use of match on action filming. The close up following this, allows the audience to see the expression of the character due to the text she has received. It suggest she is the main character in our task. Having a low angled camera shot creates a little enigma as the audience do no know who this person's feet are. The medium shot next, shows the audience the relationship between the character as this is the first shot of the character being in the same one. The use of the 180 degree shot and the shot reverse shot, allows the audience to relate and feel party of the scene. It also allows them to see their reactions to each other and the mood the characters are in. Having the close up, close up and then extreme close up shot add tension and expresses the anger and upset the character is feeling. The match on action used in the final shot shows the we understand how to use it as we have used it so more than once precisely cutting it to ensure fluency.
These interviews are to show how the people in our film is filming about being in the film and just gives us an insight of what they know and how they feel about horrors in general.
The people involved are Kathryn, Layla and Charlotte, which would all have parts in our films from acting to filming to directing.
This is important for us to have these interviews as it allows people to see the development of how we produced our film and how all our ideas finally came together at the end...
High angle shot- This allows the audience to see the location of the film, which makes them relate to it due to the setting being an everyday place, which people walk down every day, in this case, the street to her house. Also the use of pathetic fallacy reflects the mood of the character, even before the character is probably seen. This also feels as if the audience is looking over the events which is happening, which involves them more within the film.
Close up- gives an insight of the characters life, due to the text received. Also the gives the audience the time of the day.
Close up- This shows the rejection the character has to the text, which suggests that she is annoyed or aggravated by it. This may make the audience become intrigued to the relationship of these two people and may expect another character being present in the rest of the film.
Medium shot- This show allows the audience to see the surroundings the character lives in and gives an insight of her daily life. Also shows the class she lives in due to the objects and size of the house.
Close up- This just shows the action of the character and creates a little tension as focus on minor things makes the audience begin to think.
Medium shot- allows audience to see what the character is seeing and gives an idea of what the house looks like.
Medium high angled shot- allows the audience to see the whole room due to the use of mirror and use of the high angled shot. It also makes the audience feel as if they are looking and overviewing what is occurring and what will...
Close up- shows the action the character is doing and as it is a normal action which people do everyday, the loud bang makes the audience jump as they are focusing on what the character is doing.
Close up- Adds tension and suspense as the audience does not know what is behind the door...
Extreme close up- allows to see the reaction of the character, as the eye usually holds lots of emotions, for example, if it is watery it means they are upset or scared, or if they are widened it suggests they are shocked or frightened. It also creates further suspense and tension.
Eyeline match shot- This creates an effect as if the audience is looking through the characters eyes, which makes them feel part of the film. Lowers tension as nothing was outside the door, is it a noise from the house or was it something or someone...
Close up- This is similar to the earlier close up, which suggest that this is important thing to remember as it is repeated. But what is she shutting out?
High angled medium shot- This repeated shot,ensures that there is nothing but her in the room when she is about to bend over. This makes the audience relax as they can see all the surrounding so nothing scary would happen yet at least.
Close up- This shot again is repeated, this could show significance to the film as it is repeated.
Medium shot- The use of the music, tiptoe through the window, scares the audience due this music being used in other horrors but also due to the scary effects to it. This would make the audience scared as they are wondering how this person got in, which is a big fear which people have in their own life, especially when you are home alone. Having this as the final shot makes the audience, although scared, want to carry on watching, as they are inquisitive to what has and happened, will it happened and who is the masked clown...
Long shot- Having the establishing shot as a long shot would allow the audience to see the location of where our film is set and also follows the conventions of a horror film, as usually the scary events occurs during night and in a spooky location, in this case the woods. It also suggests that the three people in the shot will have something to do with the film as they are in the centre of the scene.
Medium shot- This shot involves the camera being half behind a tree trunk and the other half would be the focus pull, of the girls walking and gossiping. As the camera is half behind the tree, it creates the feeling at something is looking at the girls form behind, which is what we wanted to achieve. This would make the audience become intrigued and scared as they would want to know who or what this thing is. The camera would also fairly jerky panning from behind the tree and back, to imply that they are not trying to be seen.
Close up shot- This allows the audience to see the expression and reaction of the girls face due to the noise she has heard. The girl in the foreground would be our focus pull, to emphasis her importance and allows the audience to focus on her. The background would be partially blurred, as the girls are laughing and drinking.
Over the shoulder shot- This makes the audience feel as they are part of the film as they feel as if they are looking over her shoulder and in the her eyeline. This allows the audience to feel what the character is feeling due to her friends running ahead.
Extreme close up shot- This would add tension and suspense as the noise has again repeated, this would keep the audience on the edge of their seats. This shot allows expresses the fear the character has as are breath is condensing in the air.
Long shot- This long shot shows the audience what the character is seeing through her eye, (eyeline match), which allows the audience to again feel part of the film, making them feel their fear and anxiety
Close up shot- Having the close up of the hands would reflect the sheer panic and distress the girl is feeling which would build up the tension for the audience as they would want her to escape from whatever is behind her and causing those noises. The camera would also be jerky and unstable to represent the character running, which would make the audience feel as though they are the character running due to the eyeline match used.
Close up shot- This shows what has happened and is a stereotypical element which occurs in horrors as when the character is escaping they always seem to fall or stumble. This would make the audience agitated as they want her to escape. The use of these close ups being in a row builds up tension as they do not show much to the audience.
Close up shot- Before this shot is shown the transition of it coming on the screen would be fade in and then fade out, fade in and then fade out, to suggest that it is through the characters eyes, which are startled on what has happened so keeps blinking slowly, trying to adjust her eyes. This would make the audience feel uncomfortable as they want to see what is on the character's hands and what the object is in the background of her hands. The camera would then adjust to show blood and her friends body all cut up in the background.
Long shot- This shows the location of where she has landed but adds tension as they is a blurred figure in the background of the shot.
Long shot- This shows the figure getting closer, adding tension.
Long shot - and closer...
Medium shot- The figure is still getting closer. These shots would be fairly quick to add tension and a scare factor for the audience. It would also add the effect of the figure jumping and jaunting towards the camera, which would be scary to see.
Close up shot- This would make the audience jump as the shot before would involve a little pause at the end to make this shot have a scare factor, ( which follows conventions of a horror as involving scary elements to it). This shot would be very quick so it would scare the audience but makes the audience unable to see what it actually was.
Title of film- This would suddenly appear on the screen to have a big impact on the audience as this would make it more memorable.
Setting:
- The setting of a comedy film usually depends on what kind of comedy it is, for example a romantic comedy.
-Generic places of comedies usually consists of high populated place such as, cities, towns and usually bright sunny places.
-Social comedy: homes, bars, clubs
-Teen comedy: usually set in high schools and small towns.
Characters:
-Usually the main character is an idiot, very accident prone, unlucky.
-Smart people in these films are usually socially awkward, to ensure comedy is involved
-Regular people in the films are associated with accidents and usually sarcastic characters.
Themes:
-Gross out
-Parody
-Anarchic comedy
-Slap stick
-Romantic comedy
Main events:
-A family man who wants to escape his life
- Adventure in trying to get a girl who is seen to be out of their league
-Can associate with drugs and escaping the police etc.
-Unlucky man wanting more and to change his luck and life.
Target audience:
-This kind of film can be for any age depending the type of comedy.
Question one- As you can see from the pie chart; the audience prefer the actors being female as 80% of the public chose this and only 20% picked male. This tells us that our actors should mainly consist of female ones as our results show us this. This may be due to the conventions of a horror film as the victim is usually an innocent girl, which from our target audience research, males prefer this, as our target audience shows that males go to watch horror films a little more than females. We will ensure to have female actors present in our opening two minutes, so our audience would appeal to our film.
Question Three- This question was to tell us when to bring our music soundtracks in to build tension, which this question tell us that the audience would want the music to build up the tension as they feel as though this helps the film have scary factors in the scenes of our opening scenes. We will have to ensure that we have music in our film to ensure tension is building throughout the film, and we have to make sure that they suit the scene which they will be assigned to through the editing stages.
Question five- Following the previous question, this one is to see what type of horror film our audience prefer from gore (which is the Saw film), to supernatural (Paranormal Activity). This shows that a supernatural film is the most preferable film, however Scream is not far behind. This suggests that we should have some paranormal elements in it to appeal to the audience but also involve murder, which could be present at the end of the feel so suspense can be build throughout the two minutes.
Question seven- This question is to see how much they watch horrors, which would tell us how much they know about horrors and what they would expect. This also tell us if their other response are valid as they watch various horrors so would know what to expect from one and what would be good to include in the opening two minutes of a film.
