Story Board

Research On Storyboards

Storyboards are graphic organizers such as a series of illustrations or images displayed in sequence for the purpose of pre-visualizing a motion picture, animation, motion graphic or interactive media sequence, including website interactivity.The storyboarding process, in its original form (which is still used today), was developed at the Walt Disney Studio during the early 1930s, after several years of similar processes being in use at Walt Disney and other animation studios.

Storyboarding helps directors and other members of the film making team to visualise what a scene will look like and can prepare them for the filming process. It can save a lot of time and money on set as all the shots have already been planned.

Example of a storyboard-horror (snippet)

Notice the arrows-which symbolise the movement of a certain object or character

As you can see, this snippet from a storyboard focuses on reaction shots and close up's of the victim and villian

Background On The Villian

What I think Balthazar will look like as a character

Here is just a quick outline of the past and present traits of our Villian-Balthazar, explaining the motive he possesses to carry out the horrifying actions he does:

From a young age Balthazar has witnessed and been brought up around drug abuse, his parents were users and also injected him. His family became homeless in his early life and he is forced in to a world of poverty. He sells and uses drugs – this is the only thing he knows and means he has to survive (copies parents). His abusive childhood, leads to him murdering his father; thus, believing that his mother will be safer.

Now older, he uses syringes to infect immoral humans. He believes that his blood cleanses people; especially the immoral people, in order to make them through the body. On the anniversary of his mother’s death; he goes on an injecting spree, to purify people. However, he starts a pandemic, purifying with impure blood (in more ways than one).

Narrative For My Horror Film

KEY:

Exposition  

Development 

Complication 

Climax  

Resolution 

NAME OF FILM: REDEMPTION

On New Year’s Eve 2006, 66 individuals went missing in London. These 66 have been immoral and committed a crime that has gone un-noticed by the authority. Balthazar, a hidden villain who is psychologically affected by his haunting childhood, believes the only way to save these hedonistic people is to purify them with his own personal chemical (his blood). Balthazar’s only weapon is his syringe, he uses this to extract his own blood and inject it in to his criminal and immoral victims. Why does he think his blood is so replenishing?

The 66 corrupted return two years later, from captivity, they showed no signs of physical or psychological harm. They had no recollection of their kidnapping; however, the group of 66 keep one crucial secret. The infection is spreading through their blood, which has now become tainted, literally. Because of this they keep their arms covered and are hiding an expanding rash.

Now (2010), news of a pandemic is spreading, with many not taking much notice, assuming it’s 'just another disease' like the Swine and Bird flu. 65 of thise previosuly captured have fallen ill; they have all reported a recolection from four years ago, where they saw a hooded figure approachign them before they blanked out. They then begin collapsing and having a fit that results in death. The one individual that managed to escape the infection by running away from the killers grasp four years ago (the one that managed to get away) is now exempt from the disease (but she knows far too much). She (Dylan Granger) is now 24 and unable to live a normal life because Balthazar is after her, wanting to finish what he started.

Dylan is a beautiful young female, she is strong and investigative; the immoral crime that she commited 4 years ago still haunts her. She was the driver at a 'hit and run' incident, being young (only 20), she paniced and drove away after hitting a mother and a child late one Winter evening. Later that year, after the death of her fellow 65 ex-criminals. She searches for the killer and visits the place of her attack. The underground station of London’s Charing Cross.

After much investigation, Dylan confronts the villain at a secluded station at Victoria in the late evening, Balthazar’s intension is to attack and purify Dylan from her sins. and they battle as she struggles to escape his grasp yet again. She removes the syringe from his hand, resulting in him being weapon less and seemingly harmless. However he bites her wrist releasing the infection within her, Dylan then slits his throat.

What I Want To Gain From My Horror Teaser Trailer

I have simply brainstormed/bullet-pointed certain elements that I want to involve in my final production.

• Quick Shots 
• Fast pace
• USP-create a unique plot
• Hand-held/night vision techniques-similar to 'The Blair Witch Project', 'Paranormal Activity' and 'Quarantine'
• Moral panic is created-the audience will think it is real
• No 'cheesy' blood, vampires (or conventional vampires; an innovative take on vampires would be acceptable)
• Todorov-cliffhanger, mysterious
• Slight script
• News report-'missing photos'
• Use of shadows
• Atmospheric Music
• White Noise
• Bass
• Strings
• Heartbeat
• Sense of realism-real life situations e.g. not set in a dark castle which is unrealistic for this century

Researching Current/Past Horror Teaser Trailers

I have decided to research some current horror teaser trailers from films that I feel are very inspirational and represent the typical conventions and effects that I want to explore and re-create in my own teaser trailer.  







As you can see from the above teaser's, I am really drawn to the technique of using a hand held camera. I think this makes the film seem very realistic and I like the idea of making the audience believe that the film is based on a true story, which can in itself add horror and tension to the plot by itself. I also like the night vision effect, as I think that even the most comfortable of places can seem uncomfortable at night. Finally I am really fond of the thought of their being a news report as I think this adds even more realism to the trailer. I feel these trailers are very effective in creating tension and suspense in their teasers which would draw their target audience into making them want to watch the film. An idea that myself and my group are very drawn too, is to base our film in a train station or underground station. Basing the film in a familiar, 'normal' place can add to the horror as the audience's views on these places can seem uncomfortable after viewing (we are possibly imprinting a fear into their minds.)  

Parody Experimentation Film

To develop the filming and editing skills we already had, we were set the task to create a short Parody or Homage film based on or taken inspiration from the horror films we have previously watched and analysed. 

My group decided to create a parody based on the films 'Scream' and 'The Ring' which are both two very iconic films from the horror genre. Having the opportunity to practice using a video camera and being introduced to the editing programme 'Adobe Premiere Pro' has given me a kick start into filming my final outcome. It was also a good way to dicover any weaknesses within the activity, which I can now therefore ammend before filming and editing my horror teaser trailer.

One setback that I primarily encountered was that during the editing process the audio files were misplaced when exporting and rendering the file. But when taking care and concentrating on every small detail, altering this defect wasn't a problem.

Overall I feel that this was a very good starting point to the project as it helped me to understand important elements within the filiming and editing process e.g. transitions and angles; and I am now confident and motivated to produce my final outcome.

(I apologize for the low quality.)

Questionnaire On My Target Audience

I conducted a questionnaire on 10 females and 10 males regarding their preferences and reactions to horror films.

Exploring The Horror Genre

After watching a variation of horror films, I investigated the different themes and elements explored in each one to get a good idea of the different types of themes I can use in my narrative and teaser trailer.

Final Girl Theory

The final girl is a horror film (particularly of slasher film genre) trope that refers to the last woman or girl alive to confront the killer/villian, or in other words, the one left to tell the story. The final girl has been observed in many films, including Halloween, Friday the 13th, A Nightmare on Elm Street, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, Hellraiser, Alien, and The Scream movies.
The term was created by Carol J. Clover in her book Men, Women and Chain Saws: Gender in the Modern Horror Film. Clover suggests that 'in these films, the viewer begins by sharing the perspective of the killer, but experiences a shift in identification to the final girl partway through the film.'


According to Clover, the final girl is typically sexually unavailable or virginal, avoiding the vices of the victims (sex, drugs and alcohol usage, etc.) and she sometimes has a unisex name (e.g., Teddy, Billie, Georgie, Sidney). Occasionally the Final Girl will have a shared history with the killer. The final girl is the "investigating consciousness" of the film, moving the narrative forward and as such, she exhibits intelligence and curiosity. 

Laurie-'Halloween'

Clover also investigates the element that during the confrontation with the killer, the final girl becomes masculinized with the use of 'phallic symbols'. E.g. taking a weapon such as a knife or chainsaw against the killer or in a penetrative way. An example of the final girl theory being used in the slasher genre is Laurie as the final girl in Halloween. She is the first to suspect any trace of a killer or evil presence and is the one to confront and 'attempt' to defeat Michael Myers. She uses Phallic appropriation by using weapons such as a clothes hanger and Knife. 


I think that I will follow conventions and use the Final Girl Theory in my horror trailer as I feel that it will create a clearer plot and I feel that both the male and female audience can relate to this character. 

How does 'Psycho (1960)' represent the theme of horror?

Here is an essay I wrote, exploring and analysing in detail how Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho (1960) creates and represents the theme of horror and tension in the iconic 'shower scene'.

In Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho (1960), the theme of horror is created through camera angles, sound and lighting, mise-en-scene and editing; creating tension and atmosphere, especially in the iconic shower scene. The start of this scene presents Marion in her motel room, predominately with good intentions in mind as she has decided to go back to Phoenix and replace her stolen money. We are presented with a close up of a piece of paper that she is writing on, with calculations of the possible amount of money she had taken from her workplace and how much she had spent on her car and room for the night. Of course, she is willing to rid of any evidence that she had taken the money in the first place and decides to rip up the piece of paper and flush it down the toilet (as we pan/track her movements to the bathroom) Throughout this whole process a non-diegetic sound bridge is played, an eerie chorus of strings which crescendo as Marion steps into the bathroom, to symbolise that fact that something negative is soon to happen.

As Marion undresses and enters the shower, we are presented with silence, which automatically creates a sense of tension as we are uncertain whether something is going to happen. As we see Marion shower there are a great amount of jump cuts as the camera changes angles, and we interpret that the whole situation seems to be heading to a positive ending, as Marion is willing to go back to Phoenix and her evening seems to be going well…so far. We hear the diegetic sound of the shower. 

Marion-'Psycho'

The first real element of horror that is created is when we have a high angle shot of Marion shower, and then we see the door open and a shadow appears behind the shower curtain. This creates both tension and horror, but we focus on the tension because the curtain acts as a ‘barrier’ between the figure and Marion. As if what is behind the curtain can be the ‘unknown’ so the audience are unsure of what is going to happen.  The camera then slowly zooms in to the shadow as it draws nearer; further creating tension as we realise that whatever it is, is coming for Marion.  We then hear the iconic strings, which breaks up the peaceful silence and relaxation of her shower, as the curtain is drawn back and we are presented with a mid-shot of a silhouette with a knife, which creates horror as we see a weapon and then we hear Marion’s screams. Also as we hear Marion’s screams we are presented with an extreme close-up of her open mouth, which emphasises the scream in itself and create an atmosphere of panic within the audience. We also get a reaction shot of her face (close-up).  As the curtain is drawn back, we can perceive that it acted as a role of a ‘protective barrier’ between herself and the ‘psycho’. 

The element of horror develops very rapidly in the next 20-30 seconds as the ‘psycho’ attempts and succeeds to repetitively stab Marion and the horror is emphasised when we hear the knife stab into her flesh (which was actually created by recording the sound of a melon being stabbed with a knife). During this short period, the horror develops as we see jump cuts of different angles of Marion’s body and the knife as she is getting stabbed, (which are mainly extreme close-ups and close-ups) we also jump to high angle shots of the blood running down the drain. It also seems as if we are watching the scene from the killer’s point of view. 

After the killer leaves we get a close up of Marion’s hand grabbing at the tiles on the wall as she slowly slides down into the bath. The non-diegetic sound of strings changes pitch and we hear very strong, low sounds, as if symbolising the end of the ordeal and possibly her life.  We also get a close up shot of her hand reaching out and grabbing the curtain as she tries to get help.  We then see her fall to the floor.  Then, as we get a low angle shot of the shower head, the strings stop and we are replaced with the silence that had taken place before the incident as all we hear is the running water of the shower.  We then cut to a tracking shot of Marion’s blood running down the drain. The single element that Marion is bleeding and is dead automatically represents the theme of horror. Tension can also be created in this silence. What if the killer comes back?

We are then represented with a very effective use of editing as the scene fades from the drain to Marion’s open eye. The fact that she died with her eyes open can represent the fact that she did not die in peace and her body still represents the shock and seriousness of the event that had happened only moments before. Finally, we are presented with a tracking shot, in which we get a full view of her motel room. We focus for a second on the wad of money that she had stolen. Maybe this is a moral message that nobody gets away with a bad deed? That this is the lesson that Marion had learnt for stealing money? I feel that this tracking, sweeping/pan shot can represent her soul leaving her body and out the window into the afterlife. This can in itself represent horror as some audience members can be uncertain about the afterlife and are uncertain about what is out there and what lies for them? 


Analysing how such a famous, iconic film and in particular this scene, gives me great inspiration to create something which can create such an imprinting effect on the media society. With simple elements such as shadows, sound effects and quick cuts we can create horror and tension within our trailers. 

Laura Mulvey-Visual Pleasure And Narrative Cinema (1975)

Laura Mulvey theory on the 'male gaze' debates and investigates both 'Freudian' and 'Lacanian' theories of psychoanalysis she expresses that: 

• Women are represented as sexual spectacle and objects of pleasure for the characters and audience.
• Men have the gaze to avoid being 'castrated'.
• Men fetish women in buying then overvalued and unrealistic status's 'fetishistic scopophillia'.
• The gaze is constructed through the camera man and production team establishing and framing a shot; by the 'look' within the film of male characters objectifying female ones, the spectators gaze is thereby constructed through these mechanisms.

This theory is therefore supported by;

Suzanne Moore (1988)-'male bodies are only on display in certain conditions-always in active poses.'

Van Zoonen (1994)-'men look at women, women watched themselves being looked at.' 

The 'Male Gaze'

Another element of audience theories and responses, is the representation of women in horror films (and all other genres). This is called the 'Male Gaze'.


To begin with I wrote down what I recognised to be a stereotypical representation of women in horror films; 

• Their position in relation to man
• Married?
• Men are more dominant
• Women are more submissive/smaller
• Camera Angles
• High angle viewpoint, looking down on women
• Pans up to focus on figure
• Low angle viewpoint, looking up at men
• Over the shoulder (through male's eyes)
• Fragile; needs a man's strength
• Costume
• White
• Dresses/skirts
• Slightly revealing
• Low cut
• Tight
• Sacrifice for the greater good
• Blonde
• Victim-too stupid
• Brunette
• Survives-more practical
• Phallic symbols (representation of a penis), in relation to her actions 

Hammer's Dracula-Male Gaze

When watching the trailer for Hammer's Dracula, we had to analyse what elements we believed matched those of the male gaze. I recognised the following;
- A Picture of a female character in bed looking vulnerable and innocent.
-A close up of neck/face (quite sexual/sensual imagery).
-A White revealing dress (white representing purity and innocence) 
-A Pan of a female body.
-A High angle shot of a phallic symbol (crucifix), this also represents dominance. 


Furthermore, looking at the image above; you can see that this has been inspired by the male gaze. You can observe that the female character is wearing a white, loose dress, which is being almost removed by 'Dracula'. She is grabbing on to his arm, for what almost looks like support or safety even though he is to be perceived as 'evil'. 'Dracula's gaze is also cast upon the female in a lustrous manner and his grasp on her is very strong. 


I feel that many film industries and directors focus on the male gaze, mainly because they feel that they need to target the male audience as their target audience, especially the horror genre, as the majority of the audience interested in horror are males. 

Further Audience Theories Research

To analyse and research into how audiences are targeted by film institutions and how the audience respond to horror movies, we were given the task to study a various number of audience theories.

Propp's Theory:

Vladimir Propp (1969) developed a character theory for studying media texts and productions that indicated that there where 8 broad character types in the 100 tales (fairytales) he analysed, which could be applied to other media such as horror:

1. The villian (who struggles against the hero)
2. The donor (prepares the hero or gives the hero some magical object)
3. The (magical) helper (helps the hero in the quest)
4. The princess (the person the hero marries, often sought for during the narrative)
5. Her father
6. The dispatcher (the person who makes the lack known and sends the hero off)
7. The false hero
8. The Hero (who overcomes the villian (defeats it))

The emphasis was on looking at characters not as representing real people, but as functions whose role was to move the narractive forward.

I studied this theory on the Horror/Thriller movie 'Drag Me To Hell' (2009)- which is a pretty recent movie, to compare and analyse this theory within this modern movie's narrative:

Poster-'Drag Me To Hell'

• Hero- Shaun San Dena (A psychic who has a seance to draw out the Lamia to kill it for Christine)
• Villian- Mrs. Sylvia Ganush (An elderly woman who attacks Christine and casts a curse upon her)
• Lamia (The Powerful demon that is sent by Ganush to literally drag Christine to hell)
• Helper/donor-  Rham Jas (A young psychic who informs Christine that she is cursed and introduces her to Shaun San Dena)
• Princess/false hero- Christine Brown (A young bank employee who is cursed by Ganush after refusing an extention on her mortgage)
• Dispatcher- Clayton Dalton (Christines boyfriend, who offers to pay for the seance fee's after she gives up.)

Todorov's Basic Narrative Theory:

Todorov suggested that stories begin with an equilibrium or status quo where any potentially opposing forces are in balance. This is disrupted by some event, setting in chain a series of events. Problems are solved so that order can be restored to the world of the fiction.

Extended Theory:

• Exposition (background info, and into to characters)
• Development (progress of situation)
• Complication (main action)
• Climax (confrontation)
• Resolution (restoration)

Example: 'Scream' (1996)

Poster-'Scream'

• Exposition: 'Casey' is introduced and the audience seem to believe that she is one of the main characters throughout the film, but gets murdered but the masked killer (Who is also introduced and begins the process of the situation). The plot is beginning to outfold, as we realise that the killer uses horror movies as a base for his murders.

• Development: As the entire school are informed that their fellow classmates had been murdered the situtation is all to clear that the ideal is not over. The main character 'Sydney' recognises that the time is very near to the anniversary of her mothers brutal death and begins to wonder if this killer has anything to do with it. As the principle of the school is also murdered we realise that the killer is not planning to stop there.

• Complication: Sydney starts to believe and accuse her boyfriend of being the killer, which complicates things as she does not want to believe this and eventually rules him out as a suspect as he is 'murdered' later on in the film. Furthermore, all the characters end up going against eachother, accusing eachother of being the killer, which then results in most of them dying.

• Climax: The audience (and Sydney) finally realsie who the killer(s) are and the whole plot is revealed, which is suprising to the audience as Sydney's boyfriend is one of them.

• Resolution: The 'good' characters overcome the 'evil' and they kill the killers and the rest of the world goes back to their normal lives.

Paul Wells Research Into Horror Films (2000)

Paul Wells discovered after asking 4 focus groups (16-25, 26-40, 41-55 and 56-80) what was the first and most recent horror film they had watched;

• The relationship to being frightened changes with age and relates to factors affecting emotional responses - e.g. those of 58-80 years old felt that their interest in horror was at their prime during their younger years rather than enduring with age. They were also scared of the configurationof night and dark-reminded them of walking home in the dark as youths in the war (blackout). They had experienced the real horror of WW2.
• That young audiences are harder to shock
• That audiences between 1970's and 1990's are more 'anaesthetised' to explicit special effects.

Audience Theories Research

What is genre? (Horror)

"Horror is what you might feel if you went, for example, into a jungle, or a place where you had lost all your bearings, where you were no longer sure of anything. A place where you begin to suspect that there was something present which you couldn't pin down; something which you wouldn't be able to identify but which could be dangerous and destroy you" - Nigel Kneeled in Wells, 2000

To get a good idea of what the horror genre stands for, i researched and brainstormed what 'genre' meant to me and what different types of genres there were in the film industry;

Genre:

• Translated to 'Type' in French
• Classification
• Pro's: indentifiable group
• Con's: May not 'fit'-hybrid genres
• Essentially a means of grouping different texts together and classifying them.

Genres in the film industry:

• Horror
• Comedy
• Thriller
• Romcom (Romantic comedy)
• Drama
• Satire
• Parody
• Slasher
• Sci-fi
• Fantasy
• Action
• Adventure

The Brief

To create a promotional package for a new film, to include a teaser trailer, together with two of the following three options:

• A website homepage
• A poster for the film
• A film magazine front cover, featuring the film