CONVENTIONS OF HORROR GENRE:
Secluded Locations:- Most horror films put their characters in locations where they cannot get any help, and help can't reach them.
- These include abandoned towns, empty houses, forests, campsites and old amusement parks.
Examples of films:
- Alien - Space
- Parnormal Activity - House
- Blair Witch Project - Forest
Characters forget about danger/threat:
- Characters conveniently forget the danger/events that have happened.
- Then they go out, expecting nothing to happen.
- This is often when the antagonist attacks.
Examples of films:
- Jaws - tourist still go into the ocean
- The Happening - They think the attacks are over, a scream at the end signifies that it isn't
Jump scares and fake scares:
- Fake scares are scares in films which are not connected to a direct threat, and jump scares are where something/someone jumps out unexpectedy and scares the audience.
- Aliens vs Predators - penguin jumps out of nowhere
- Jaws - Head in the boat, shark jumping out to the boat
- The Shining
Warnings go unheeded:
- This relies on part of human nature;the desire to go where we have been told not to go and do what we have been told not to do.
Films:
- The Final Destination series - Characters don't pay attention to the warnings and prophecies from the protagonist(s).
- Jaws - Tourists ignore Cheif Brody's warning, leading to more deaths.
Technical Codes:
- Camera work is very expensive and not natural; high and low an angle connotes fear.
- POV shots are important because they allow the audience to see the world from the monsters eyes.
- Sometimes framework uses depth of field, makes it harder to see the monster creeping up.
Character Types:
- The main protagonist, often the ‘victim/hero’ of the movie.
- The villain, often a monster, mutated freak, alien or serial killer – tend to have a trademark characteristic as to how they kill (e.g. weapons, and who they kill)
- The stupid/immoral teenagers that always get killed
- Creepy children
- Police officers (either good or bad)
- Many others: Ghosts, zombies, demons, psychopath, stalker, weirdo, werewolf, cheerleader etc…
Themes:
- Good vs Evil
- Depression
- Religion
- Childhood issues
- Revenge
- Supernatural
- Beyond death
- Science gone bad
- Zombie Apocalypse
- Nightmares
- Madness
- Insanity
- Lust
- Envy
- Suicide
- ‘self-consciousness’ – making you question what is real and not.
Special Effects Make-up:
- Prosthetic makeup (also called FX prosthesis) is the process of using prosthetic sculpting, moulding & casting techniques to create advanced cosmetic effects.
Props used:
- Machete
- Knife
- Axe
- Chainsaw
- Usually weapons that inflict a slow and painful death
Victims:
- The slut (promiscuous girl) gets punished for being sexually active
- A group of people, the audience can relate to
