Short film: Planning

Setting

My film will take place in an empty forest as to the audience it connotes a gloomy deserted place but filled with trees and obstacles in which things could be lurking. I feel it is a good space to film as I could create many interesting and different shots within a forest to improve the quality of my film.

Sound

There will be no dialogue in my short film to create suspense and enigma. The audience will therefore have to work out what is happening in the scene as no character is informing them. No dialogue will leave space for an eerie ambiance which will create the horror effect.

However throughout the short film I may include non-diagetic music to enhance the suspense at certain points.

Costume

I have decided that the costume will be casual clothing as the film is based on a young girl. I have come to this conclusion as using this girl in casual every day clothing will mean that the audience can relate to her and therefore create empathy towards her. This means that the horror elements will have a larger impact on the audience as they would feel they are in the film also.

Lighting

I have chosen to have natural lighting for my film as it is set in a forest which is known by most people and is a natural place where no artificial lighting will be portrayed. Also, having natural lighting will present the film as realistic and relatable to the audience making them feel more involved in the plot.

Plot

I have decided on a plot that is simple with the use of Todorov's equilibrium theory, however, with a twist. My previous research has informed me that some people feel the plot of horror films can be quite confusing, therefore, that is why mine is simpler. The young girl is walking in the park and gets followed by something unknown, she is then chased through the forest and just as the audience are expecting something to happen she wakes up as it is a dream. However, a man (shadow) appears in her house and she gets killed. As many have said they do not enjoy the gruesome side of horrors, I have not included any as you do not see the killing, only the shadow.

Audience research analysis

I asked a variety of people about their personal opinions regarding horror films through a questionnaire and received results that are able to help me produce my short film.
I found that the most popular film genre is romantic comedy, however, there is a niche audience who have a strong enjoyment with horror.
I also found that about a quarter of the people who completed the questionnaire watched and were familiar with short films where as the remainder were not due to reasons such as that they are not as advertised, they don't have a very good plot and because they were not aware of them. Finding this, I know that in order for my short film to be successful I will have to make it more accessible for the and create better advertisements to be recognised by the audience. As well as this, regarding the comments about the unappealing plots being featured in many short films, I know that I am going to have to be certain that my film has an interesting story line, perhaps with a twist.
In addition, I have also found that viewing films online is very popular. I will upload my product to a website featuring short films so people can access it as they do with other films. This means that more people will be able to view the film as it is easy for them to get to.
Through the feedback, I observed that the top three media platforms that films are advertised on are television, online and film posters. If I was to advertise my short film I would use these methods so that it is well known and the audience are aware of it.
The majority of the people that answered the questionnaire agreed that they do enjoy watching horror films with a few stating they don't. This suggests that using horror as my film genre is a good decision as it is popular. The reasons why some of the audience did not enjoy horror films was because a lot of them have predictable plots, they are too gory and they sometimes go "too far" in terms of seeing deaths on screen. I can take this information to ensure that my short film is not similar to many already created and that it is not too violent or gruesome.

Audience Research

Horror film research

I have done some research into the genre of horror and as to why people may like them or why not. I can use this research in order to produce my own short film so that it is successful in terms of the audience thinking it is enjoyable and effective.

I have browsed on a number of websites containing views of horror films and why people enjoy them. This is what I have found:

The question is: Why? If our best selves find the horrific so repulsive, why do we pay good money to watch it again and again?

It's not merely an attraction to blood and gore, experts say. People who liked the "Saw" series, for instance, wouldn’t necessarily derive such pleasure from watching a steer being slaughtered in a meat-processing plant. Researchers say one reason we watch is because the thrill calls up primal behavior, mainly in males, to assess threat levels. (The typical horror-flick viewer is a male adolescent between the ages of 15 and 45.)

"People go to horror films because they want to be frightened or they wouldn't do it twice," says Jeffrey Goldstein, a professor of social and organizational psychology at the University of Utrecht in the Netherlands. Goldstein edited a book on the subject titled, "Why We Watch: The Attractions of Violent Entertainment" (Oxford University Press).

"You choose your entertainment because you want it to affect you. That's certainly true of people who go to entertainment products like horror films that have big effects. They want those effects," Goldstein said.

He and other social scientists suggest we watch for different reasons, which include enjoying the adrenaline rush, being distracted from mundane life, vicariously thumbing our noses at social norms, and enjoying a voyeuristic glimpse of the horrific from a safe distance.

http://www.livescience.com/7949-horror-movies-people-love.html

This website has informed me that mainly sensation seekers are the type of people to enjoy watching horror films, This suggests that these people will be my target audience and in order to make the film enjoyable I will have to make sure the effects of it on the audience will be enticing and thrilling.

Short film practice continued

Mise en scene

The short film takes place in school classrooms and a hallway suggesting that it is about school children.

The film is set in natural lighting due to the surroundings of the school. The unedited natural lighting presents the naturalistic and simplistic school environment.

The costume is the school uniform as the film is set in school and the characters are school girls.

Sound

There is  no non-diegetic sound in the short film, only dialogue between two characters. Again, this presents the scene to be more realistic to the audience. The absence of non-diegetic sound also allows the audience to focus purely on the conversation between the characters which is the important part of the plot.

Editing

The editing within the short film is very minimalistic, there is a white blur in between the scene in the classroom to the scene to the hall way and vise versa. This bright blur represents the difference between imagination and reality as the character is day dreaming in a lesson. 

The other forms of editing are the jump cuts between all shots, Jump cuts are used to show the reaction of both of the characters whilst in conversation so the audience can see all of the action.

No other editing is used to keep the film minimalistic as the film is based on a persons life which would need to be relatable to the audience.

Short film practice continued

Camera shots/angles

Medium shots - Throughout the short films I have used many medium shots as this presents the character involved and also enough of the setting that is necessary. It also catches any important movement or facial expressions to be seen by the audience.

Long shots - A long shot is used to portray the movement of the character and the fact they are travelling to one destination to another. It also shows the subject in the setting (the school corridor).

 Medium close up - I have also used a medium close up, mainly to focus on the characters confused facial expression. The camera is also placed behind the door showing the character through the window to create a variety of shots within the film.

Reaction shots - I have also used reaction shots in the film to portray the conversation between two characters. It shows the facial expressions of the characters throughout the conversation capturing the feelings that they may have which adds to the plot.

Low angle - A low angle was used to emphasise the power of the villain in this film. Low angle shots portray a superior side to a character making the audience feel inferior.

High angle - A high angle was used to make a character look inferior to the audience, the high angle portrays the character to have a lack of power compared to other characters and is in need of help.

Short film practice

As preparation for the main task of creating a film or trailer, we have worked in groups to produce our own short film within lesson time to explore the different ways of camera use, shot angles and movements. This task has allowed us to test our own knowledge on our ability to use a camera effectively using many of the shots we have previously learnt about.

This was our finished result:


KATIE jess lucy from Bishop Walsh on Vimeo.