CCR 1

1. CCR 1 By Julia Jin

2. What genre have you made? • POV • Hand held shots: disorganised, chaos • Sense of urgency, creates fear • Aerial shots: provide a point of reference Made to unsettle, frighten and panic the audience but entertain them at once. Horror films have similar codes, conventions and specific symbols to portray the iconography that allows the audience to identify the genre. However, some horror films might challenge these conventions to make the film original and unpredictable. Different aspects of media texts are made to set the horror genre: narrative, characters, settings, props, colours, costume, lighting and sound. • The genre of my opening sequence: • Horror • Supernatural • Themes • Good vs evil • Insanity • Madness • Supernatural • Depression Location: dark/isolated Lighting: low-key • Key iconography: • Blood • Weapons • Creepy/isolated locations • Dark colours/night • Supernatural enitity/magic • Unusual witch objects Costume and make-up: supernatural, demonic posession Character type: villain, hidden real face

3. My opening sequence - The Oracle

4. The Shining1980 Stanley Kubrick Long shots Close-up shots Birds-eye view shot Wide shot Wide shot

5. American Psycho 2000s Marry Harron Medium two shot Close-up Low-angle shot Medium close-up Medium three shot

6. American Horror Story – Coven 2011 Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk Wide shot Low-angle shot Number of 3 Low-angle Establishing shot Low-key lighting

7. Editing The Shining: eyeline match The Oracle: eyeline match Montages Used to communicate a large amount of information over shorter time. Basically condenses information in a limited time frame. Eyeline matches Expresses significant emotion, identify moment of importance, moving forward through time. Shows the audience what the character is focuing on and with close-up of their facial expressions, you as the audience will guess tehir thought process. This edititng technique is in general conventional to all genres to understand The shining: dissolve The Shining: Montage Creates a meaningful link between two subjects by connecting two different shots in the eyes of the viewer. In ‘The Shining’ by using the techniqie of dissolving: creates a sense of temporal continuity and/or visual simultaneity.

8. Editing Coven: shot-reserse shot The Oracle: shot-reverse shot American Psycho: shot-reverse shot The shot-reverse shot editing technique is to to show the comunication between the two characters: the fear of the innocent girl and tarot lady, eg: reaction to face reveal. This is conventionl to a typical horror genre film/TV due being widely used in all genres. An editing technique that starts with a shot of a character, then cuts to a shot of what the character is looking at, and then finally cuts back to the initial shot to show the character’s reaction. The shot-reverse shot in ’American Horror Story’ potrays the main character’s innital reaction of shock and the confortation of the three visiting people. This is shown by the camera being disoriented to show the character’s discombobulated.

9. Titles Kelge (capital) Sans sherif Old chopped off lettters = apprehension, uneased Sense of unfamiliarity English Garden SG (capital) Sans sherif Between “The Shining” “American Psycho” and “American Horror Story”. Foeshadows = magic, witch, possession British Helvetica (capital) Sans sherif Legible, well-defined Contrast colour = disturbing element, misgiving Garamond Classico SC Sans sherif Expensive simplicity = Patrick Bateman Contradicts to his complex character Too simple = suspision

10. Sound The Oracle: non-diegetic sounds, backgorund music The Shining: non-diegetic, diegetic sounds and dialogues The diagetic sounds: Made by the characters on screen and can hear the sounds as sound effects, movements and actions made from the characters. Non-diegetic sounds: a form of commetary sounds, narrating or music that is not from the story, such as backgound music, ambient/atmospheric music or sound effects. Foley sounds: Foley sound is performing live sounds by either replacing the sounds that are in them, or you enhance them American Psycho: non-diagetic sounds, background music, and dialogues Coven: Non-diagetic sounds, intro music, sound effects

11. Sound Pleonastic sounds Sound effects Sound Dialouge Axe – with overlayed supplementary amplified loud thudding crash into walls/door/furniture/people Natural sound – underlying the non-diagetic soundtrack, slight sounds of cards shuffle and metal bracelet dangle Axe – exaggerated loud thudding, crashing, smashing into a tree door. People speaking – build overall tone and creates relationships between chracters

12. Camera and Mise-en-Scene The Shining The Oracle American Psycho Camera & themes: use of conventional symbolistic props as death card, candles, crystals, old items (books), skull, jewellery. Hidden evil identiy, possession, demonic presence. Close-up, extreme-close up, medium-close up shots, tracking shots, establishing shots. Camera & themes: use of mirrors, facial close-ups, doubblegangers, nudity, circular movements, tracking shots, geometrical patters (corridors), jump cuts, ironic sinage, one-point symmetry, and slow/fast zooming (trombone shots) etc. Camera & themes: vice and violence. Madness and blood. Use of materialism and comsumption (everything is unauthentic) wihtin idenity and isolation. Eye-line matches, close-ups, extreme-close ups, tracking shot (disorieted), wide shots, two shots etc. Setting & lighting: isolated room with dark background, precarious, threatening, exposed. Low-key lightning, purple/blue LED lights suggesting “magic”, hence dark magic Setting: isolated, deep in the montains, large empty spaces, cold, essentially a trap for humans (maze). Unlike to typical haunted hotell settings; reflected madness and electricity to represent Jack’s deranged mind. Setting & lighting: everyday life (NYC), suit/ banking, the high end life style to emphasise the further isolation (in the mind). High-key ligting, offiece enviroment, city lights. Bright/light appartment where it is most bright suggets it’s contradicting to his personaly but connotes the state of mind he is at. Lighting: not a lot of shadows, much chiaroscuro lighting (less light) might be seen as counter intuative: an essential part of Kubrick’s vision, and a key aspect of the horror.

13. What are the genre conventions of the genre? • Props • Killing objects: knife, gun, poison • Blood • Locked doors • Torchlight • Witch related props: • Candles • magic cards • Crystals • Insents • Ancient/old table decor • Setting - isolated locations • Abandoned house • Basements • Graveyeards • Dark forests • Night time The Familiar Made Strange This occurs when something close to the characters start to act or look unusual or not as expected. There is often certain elements to the character that is close to a human but some small changes to tell something is off. This indicates a subconscious danger and will generate fear. • Different levels of low-key lighting • Suspense and mystery • Shadows: fear and tension • Sound • Non-diagetic eerie music • Starts slow and low • Scilence • Creates tension, panic and built up • Characters • Groups of friends: teenagers • Vanuerablility: families, females • Last man standing • Attacker • Masked - unidentifiable • Colour • Direct connection to emotions • Muted colours to lower the mood • Purple and black hints to dark magic

14. How does this help create an idea of the: Characters, Narrative, Tone/Atmosphere, Audience Reaction?

15. My opening sequence challenge conventions? compared to The Oracle The Shining Challenged: the horror genre at the time, created cultural phenomenon and defined the genre. Explored isolation and psychosis (madness) in the mind. Trapped the audience in his mind. Not challenged: certain typical horror genre conventions as low-key lighting (corridors), eerie non-diagetic soundtracks, settng (old/abandoned/isolated) and colourpalatte (muted/dark). Challenged: the typical traditional horror genre in the sense of no jumpscares, physical violence, blood, graphic imagery etc. Not challeged: the mise-en-scene such as low-key lighting with candles as certain conventional elements as “demonic” make-up and costume. As well as eerie non-diagetic soundtrack and editing (shot-reverse shot, tracking). Also the concept of “good vs evil”.

16. Groups Present in Opening Sequence Isolated dark location with black magic symbolism Non-diagetic soundtrack - builds tension, suspense, something unsettling up-rising. Diagetic sounds – silence, cards shuffling Skull, crystals, candels = witch, magic, dark Different close-up shots = mysterious, forshadows bad things will happen Tarot reader represented as the evil Non-diagetic soundtrack – tension, forshadows ”it” is causing the danger. Pleonastic sounds – card shuffle, ready to begin ritual Hidden idnetity – invinsible, mysterious attack Facial expressions – satisfaction, control Girl represented as the innocent Non-diagetic soundtrack – tension, forshadows she will be in danger. Face expressions – fearful, anxious, distressed

17. Theory and representation Fiske: Denotation and Connotation Denotation: dark and undisclosed location Connotation: isolated, fear, foreshadowing danger Colours contribution Denotation: dark “magic” colours Connotation: supernatural entity, possession Levi Strauss: Binary opposites  Bad vs Good Black magic possession vs Innocent Girl  Strong vs Weak  Supernatural vs sweet, young girl

18. The End