This blog shows the processes taken to produce an opening sequence which has satisfaction with a specific audience and follows the conventions of a specific genre.
Before filming our opening film we had to ensure that we selected the best equipment to make our film how we want it and to make it look at a high standard. This wasn't a big challenge for us as our brother was the supplier of the equipment as he works in the media industry. Below are the chosen equipment which we will use and is most appurate for our opening-
DSLR Camera Model: Canon EOS 550d-
We decided to choose this camera for the tracking and over the shoulder shots as it is a lighter product, so is much more portable when tracking a character. The lens we will use is a 18-55mm to capture close-up shots as will as long distance. The aperture is f3.8 giving a clear and enough exposured shot. This camera is mainly for the 'action' shots as the camera is light and a reasonable size to carry.
Steadicam
This Tripod is useful and will be used for the tracking and over the shoudler shots of the character. This epuiqment is used to stabliaze the camera when moving, giving a stable and clear shot.When holding the handle the Steadicam automatially balances the weight of the camera with your movements. This keeps the camera stable and up right.
Shoulder Brace
This is great for on the move shots as it keeps the camera more stable and safe. I feel the fact the Brace is on the shoulder protects the camera more and gives more support with holding the camera up and straight. This Brace will be great for capturing Bird's eye shots as the equipment looks sturdy and very portable allowing us to climb on gates etc to get at a decent height.
Camera DSLR Model- Canon EOS 5D
This camera is very expensive and will not be used for 'action' shots such as tracking as it is to heavy to hold, However this camera will be great for high definition close-up and point of view shots. There is also a setting for deep and shallow push and pull focuses which enhances the quality of our opening. The len we will use is a 50mm with an aperture of 1.8f as it zooms in to give extreme closeup shots, showing detail and colour contrast between the character and different elements.
Spare Camera and Tripod-Model- Nikon Coolpix 18x Optimen Zoom This camera and tripod will be used to record our progress of the production by capturing videos and pictures to show our progress through the film making progress. This camera is lightweight and small so I can easily bring it anywhere. Its also less expensive than the other cameras we are using so we don't have the risk of wasting lots of money if I break it, however with this being my first camera I've manage to have a lot of experience with holding and using it so I'm confident when using it.
To make our film realistic and to connect to our genre of supernatural horror we thought very hard about the Mise en scent of characters. We decided we wanted the Protagonist to look like a victim and innocent. Therefore we thought the best look was a natural and down to earth look with minimum make-up. Just natural make-up such as; foundation, concealer and blusher.
The blusher she is using highlights the cheeks and makes them redder as she will be jogging in the opening so it makes the opening more realistic to the audience. This shows she is exercising and breathing fast.
The hair brush helps to keep her hair in a tight, practical ponytail. This shows the characters has masculine traits and also keeps the hair away from the face when she is jogging.
The Antagonist wears no make-up due to the fact her face will be covering her face. However at the very end the character jumps in front of the camera where she will have black contact lenses to make her eyes all black like this example from the clip of Paranormal Activity-The Marked Ones :
Location: location 1- Morton Pinkney Footpath, Location 2-Brook Street Footpath.
Cast: Jade Suddaby and Holly Suddaby
Props: Water bottle, ipod with earphones
Equipment: Camera Canon 5D, 500D, Steady-Cam, Tripod
Costumes: Jade Suddaby- Black Leggings, Sports Bra, White Crop Top, Van shoes
- Holly Suddaby- Black morphsuit, White Scarf, Black Boots Set-up: 4pm-6pm
Filming Schedule:
-Arrive at first location at 4:00
-Filming for an hour
-Finish at first location- 5:00
-5 minute walk to second location
-Filming for an hour
-Finish at second location- 6:00
We decided to scout out certain locations to see what location will match the genre and right shots for our opening. The location pictures helped us to find what location is more suitable for our opening. Taking these certain pictures of different locations helped us to look at the shot at a camera's perspective and to clearly see how it may link to our genre. This planning also helped us to figure out where the certain characters can be positioned to how it looks through the camera so we can rearrange the way the cast comes in the shot or where they are stood in the shots to make it more realistic and interesting to the audience. Making it a more successful film and linking to the genre of Horror. Here are some shot taken in Moreton Pinkney:
From theses picture we want the audience to see the location gains a sense of abandoness which is a stereotypical trait in the genre Horror as there is a sense of danger and fear because no body is around. The sticks and brunches in the pictures link to the genre of horror with the tension building diegetic sounds they will create an atmosphere of fear as the audience doesn't know where to look as the Antagonist could be hiding behind the trees etc, putting them more on edge. We thought the different locations matched our genre and was effective as it matches openings such as 'The Shining' and 'The Blair Witch Project' this tell us its a reliable location which other horror films have used so we feel its a good location which will link to our genre and make the film more realistic to the audience.
The location we used to base our film in didn't need a permission as it was a public footpath walkaway and available for everyone.
Below is our scanning of a permission letter allowing us to film an opening film. Jade and myself are both 16 and by law we have to be 18 and over to complete filming without parents consent. We had to make our parents aware of what we were doing and whether they were happy with us completing the film. We also had to mention the health and safety risks that may occur just to make them aware of what might happen.
Before filming our opening film we had to find castings for the Antagonist and the Protagonist. We needed two people who fitted the correct criteria in our narrative. We needed a victim, female to stereotypically link to the genre of horror and an antagonist with mankinline traits and long hair with a scary presents to play the certain roles required.
Character- Protagonist, Victim Actress- Jade Suddaby Why Casted- The appearance is what we wanted as she looks innocent and sweet creating tension for the audience suggesting she is a threat and likely to be in the most danger. We feel that she looks in good health and has the ability and fitness to jog in the opening. She is the right age to appeal to the right target audience with a young adult look which is the stereotypical victim in many films with our chosen genre. It will also by for practical to cast her as we are working together to produce the film so she can really understand the type of role to play and what we want it to be like. This helps us both to gain a stronger understanding on what works and what doesn't, allowing us to make changes if needed.
Role/Involvement- Jade will be shown throughout the whole opening as she will be the main character and the key focus. She will take part in jogging through certain locations captured on a wide range of shots while being completely oblivious that the Antagonist is following her the whole time until the very end where she looks scared and turns around to see the creature lurking. The shots where she will act oblivious towards the Antagonist creates tension and mystery for audience and shows the role she is playing is vulnerable and in danger. She is also head of Make-up and Costume design as well as co-producer, co-editor.
Character- Antagonist Actress- Holly Suddaby
Why Casted- The appearance is what we wanted as I have long hair to cover my face and to show effect mis es scent that links to the genre and narrative of our opening. We wanted the character to show traits of unpractical and mansline and I felt I'm not really a girly girl to I would be suitable for the role. The fact I'm taking on this role allows me to understand the narrative better and know what works as I helped create our storyboard and like to use my ideas for this role.
Role/Involvement- I will be shown at the end of the opening film in the background with my hair over my face in the neutral standing position to build up tension for the audience. Close to the end I will be behind the Protagonist where she stops and looks behind, I'm cleverly cutout so I've disappeared. When she turns away she is looking at the camera and turns 'evil' with blackout eyes and rotted teeth surprising the audience while I'm in the background and eventually come right up to the camera, leaping forward. I'm also head producer, co-editor, co-makeup and co-costume design.
Other team member- Jack Suddaby
Involvement- co-camera man, supplying special equipment
Experience- Jack is well experienced in the media industry, with a career in photography, DJing and with a current profession in the radio industry. Therefore he understands target audiences needs. Aswell as producing and acting in a couple of homemade films on the sidelines he has now managed to create his own company called SubLime Arts where he produces advertisement for companies and builds up his portfolio. We thought he is the perfect person to help us create our film to a high standard, not just because he's our brother and gives us expertise on our film opening but he has a lot of useful equipment which will improve are opening (refer to equipment post) .
Note on the side-
Although Jade and myself are both casting in the opening I will only appear in one of the scenes for a short while, So I'm able to shoot the opening to the highest standard. When Jade is off the scene the role of the camera management will change to ensure we are both capturing the shots and care about the quality more than being in the actual shots. This is important to show the audience a clear and stable film opening.
The second costume is much more practical because it is warmer and fits the health and safety requirements. The costume is more realistic for the audience with the running training bra and the lightweight top which shows the character is practical. The hoodie is stereotypical to teenagers and represents the characters personal and age to the audience. We decided to stick with the leggings as they were suitable and link to the idea of running making the narrative more realistic for the audience.
Antagonist (Girl In Background)
We wanted to make the character create an atmosphere of fear and mystery. We wanted to link to the genre of Horror so we chose the colour black to represent death and evil. The morphsuit shows an alien connection linking to the idea of the genre Super natural. The white scarf creates a raggy effect and shows how the character may be represented as being careless and unpractical, linking to masculine traits. The long straggle hair links to the idea of abandonment and carelessness clearly showing the narrative and makes the audience wonder who the Antagonist is. This creates more interest in the opening.
To ensure we thought carefully about the mise es scent in our opening we had to get the right costumes to connect with the characters and narrative, making it easier and realistic to follow for the audience. The costumes had to fit the health and safety requirements and be suitable for the weather and location we were filming in.
Protagonist Costume (Girl Running)-
The bright red top is effective because it stands out and allows the audience to clearly identify the main character, The top is basic and shows the character is natural and important. The colour contrast would look nice is a dark gloomy forest. The leggings are simple and represent clothing of running. I feel the leggings are practical for running as they are tight and stable.
The reason why we didn't decide to chose this outfit is because the vest top is unpractical clothing, although the colour is perfect it doesn't fit with the health and safety requirements as it doesn't work with the weather conditions being a cold winter afternoon the protagonist role may suffer from hypothermia. We felt the character was more suitable in something warmer and safe for running in.
Before filming our opening scene, I have research into different opening scenes which use certain Camera angles which we hope to include in our opening. As we are including a tracking shot in our opening this opening of Silent Of The Lambs is a perfect example of what we want our shot to look like.
(Only up to 2:57 mins)
There is a range of different shots used such as-
-Tracking
-Medium Close-Up
-Long Shot etc.
All theses shots are perfect for our opening scene as they make it more interesting for the audience as it shows different perspectives which builds up tension and is perfect for the genre of Horror. The shots also show the location and the surrounding area which tells the audience that the character is vulnerable and alone showing danger. The tracking shots allow the audience to follow the character getting them more involved in the narrative and connecting with the character and her actions this create tension as the audience doesn't know whats going to happen next.
Below is pictures of our groups storyboard. This is the layout of our shots and what are ideas was on our opening scene. This helps us to plan what are opening is going to look like and makes it quicker to film as we know what exact shot we are doing. We will edit the storyboard if any changes are made during the production but for now this is a brief outline of what we are filming in each shot to make us more clear on the narrative.
After collecting our results of a target audience most suitable for our opening we came to the conclusion that our film best suits the target audience of 15 years and above. This is due to the fact the population many consist of teenagers of this age to watch Supernatural Horrors, therefore the opening will only be suitable for this age groups as it may be distressing or to scary for younger audiences. I completed more research into examples of films with the same genre as ours which as the same certificate of 15 years and above with a few being 18 years.
Sinister Paranormal Activity 4
Here are some examples of film which have a certificate of 18 years:
The Corridor Out Cast
As we have decided to produce our opening aimed at the certificate of 15 we can ensure that no elements of an 18 certificate will be shown in the opening. The 18 certificate has elements such as; Violence, Strong horror, Strong blood and gore. We want to ensure the opening is suitable for our target audience for them to enjoy and not become distressed or harmed by the footage.
We decided to create a questionnaire and hand it around our class to get feedback from the audience about our opening film genre and our target audience, finding out what they prefer to watch and how different elements link to the genre of Supernatural Horror.
Results-
From the results I can see that the audience mostly enjoy watching the genre of supernatural horror films. They also said that a supernatural Horror suited the target audience of 15 and above. The results have helped us to discover what our target audience could be and the genre. This research also helped us to see what the audience are interested in and makes us aware of what our opening film should be like.
Cathine has given us lots of useful points about creating an atmosphere and ensuring that our cast wear the correct outfits to fit the genre. She has given feedback to use colour grading to show the white and black and the different contrasts to standout and look more effective. She has reassured us that the target audience is appropriate as there isn't any violence involved which I strongly agree with. I may consider including a colour grading to ensure that the colours come out more to the audience.
India has stated that the target audience should be change to 16 and above as thats our age however I feel its important to match the age of 15 and above because a lot of 15 years old enjoy this type of genre. I'm happy that our mise en scent links to the genre and creates an impact on the audience.
We decided to interview three people to give us an idea of what the audience think of our opening ideas and to get advise on what to change to make it a high standard and to link to our genre of Supernatural Horror. This helped us to improve and change are ideas to fit the specific target audience of 15 and above.
This is interview has made us aware of the impact of the mis en scent and how it matches the audience and the genre of our opening. She has told us that there isn't anything to improve so far which makes us more confident with our ideas and makes us aware that our opening matches the target audience.
We decided to ask both male and female audience to take part in an interview so we our aware of how our opening film will look to the audience. This will help us to connect with the audience and make it more appealing for them to watch. The questions below are the ones we decided to ask them, we planned ahead so we were clear of what we wanted to ask them: Questions We Asked Our Peeps (preparation) -
Do you think our narrative matches the genre of Supernatural Horror?
Do you think our Mise en scene are realistic to the audiences?
Does our opening look suitable for the target audience of 15 and above?
Do you have any areas where we could improve or develop our ideas?
This is a short presentation to show are audience are ideas and to gain feedback which will help us to progress further with our film making to make the audience enjoy the opening and to push the standard at a higher quality.
Previously I uploaded a post analysing Insidious, researching the typography and the transactions used in the opening scene to give me ideas for our opening to ensure it matches the genre of Supernatural Horror. I have also analyzed 'The Exorcism Of Emily Rose' to gather effective research which I can used to help our opening film become successful, ensuring it links to our audience target and the right genre.
Here is the 'Exorcism Of Emily Rose' opening scene- (Only up to 2:00 minutes)
I love the effect used as it makes the text link to the idea of supernatural horror which is our genre. The text is clear and a reasonable size so it doesn't over power the narrative. The size shows the importance in the words and the meaning, connecting the audience more and showing them the main focus of the film. We want to create titles which make the audience see the importance and to create an impact on the audience without ruining, overpowering the narrative.
This opening sequence shows the stereotypical typography which links to the genre of horror due to the colour representing death and blood. The colour also stand outs and shows the audience it is important. The transactions are effective as a fade in effect is used to show a sense of mystery and ghost like atmosphere linking to super natural Horror. The credits are simple however they have font which isn't perfectly neat and not in line suggesting the text represents danger or tells the narrative of the film suggesting its not perfect or happy link to the genre of horror. I love the size of the title as it is not too overpowering or intense so the audience can focus more on the scenes and different shots shown so they don't get confused with the narrative and stick with the correct genre.
For our genre of Supernatural Horror, the credits are important for making the audience see a link to the correct genre. To understand the type of typography and transitions needed to represent our opening film genre I research some openings which used good examples of effective credits in order to make our own opening effective.
Insidious 2010-
This opening sequence starts of very slow with 2 minutes worth of credits which appear in a ghost form linking the genre of super natural but also creating tension and suspense in the audience which links to the idea of horror. The stereotypical red title against black can be associated with horror with an icon of death and evil. The red is bright and looks effective against the black background as it stands out and makes the audience see the title is important and means something about the narrative.
The transactions used are fade in and out effects, fading in a green smoke like mist representing a certain presents from a ghost or supernatural being linking to the genre, this also creates mystery for the audience as they don't know whats happening. The typography used shows a connection with the genre which we want our opening to follow. The audience can instantly link to the genre of horror and the ghost like fade effect on the credits represents the supernatural side of the genre.
Towards the end of our media product we will have to produce an Ident for the beginning of the opening. An Ident is important as it shows the audience what company produced the film. Indent's vary from the way they are presented and viewed depending on the type of genre the film is that the film company produce.
This is a clip of some examples of well known Indents that link to the genre of Horror-
From these Indents it shows the sort of non Diegetic, low key lighting and typography that link to the genre of SuperNatural Horror. When the audience views the certain Indents they can instantly link to the genre of the whole film just by looking at the intent and the certain stereotypical traits of a horror film. When creating are Indent I want to ensure I include all the right elements to make it a realistic indent that the audience can link to the right genre of supernatural horror.
Just spotted this advert online and its exactly how we are considering representing the Antagonist is our opening as the mise es scent links to the theme and genre of horror with the raggy clothes and dark makeup and the use of darker filters. This really sets an atmosphere of fear and horror. I love the non diegetic music because it builds tension and shows a connection to the narrative and the representation of the character.
As we are including a Protagonist who will be running in the opening, in order for it to be realistic and tension building for the audience I want to enhance the breathing as if she was doing excerise. I manage to find a heartbeat audio which helps us think of ideas and links to the idea of a girl running:
As we are filming our opening in a woodland location. We like the idea of have ambient sound of; branches braking, leaves and the trees. This makes it more realistic for the audience and builds up the tension linking to the genre. The sounds also allow the audience to connect and understand the surrounding area (location). I found a few examples that link to some ideas of different sounds we could include.
Here is an example of an Ambient sound of Rustling Branches:
In our opening film we are going to include diegetic sounds to ensure the opening sounds realistic and looks more tension building with the audience. As we are filming our opening in a woodland location I have researched into different sounds that link to this. We are considering including the sound of birds and wildlife therefore I have found this example of birds singing which I feel likes to the genre of Super natural horror and makes the narrative more realistic for the audience.
Here is the example of singing birds:
Another soundtrack that links to our ideas and narrative is the music of Woman In Black. This is perfect music for our opening as it starts off with a slow beat and high key and then towards the end the music gets faster and low key. This builds up tension and makes the audience more scared. This music really links to the genre of Super Natural Horror because the music is creepy and builds up tension which makes the audience think something is going to happen.
For our film opening we will be producing a soundtrack ourselves which will run all the way through our opening. Before we start making it I'd thought I could research possible soundtracks which link to our narrative and genre to give us ideas on what our own soundtrack can be like to make it effective and interesting for the audience as possible.
Here is an example of a soundtrack that links to our genre and narrative-
(Alton Towers Th13teen Advert Soundtrack)
I chose this soundtrack to research because its perfect with linking to the type of Antagonist that might be in the film and is slow and erry which makes the audience fear for what happening next and the certain high key sound creates tension for the audience and makes it more interesting to view. Although this soundtrack is not for a opening film I feel it links perfectly to what we want to express through our opening, the idea of fear and supernatural being and how sound can change the audience mood and experience when watching.
Here is the actual advert for the Alton Tower Th13teen:
I have decided to work in a group with my twin sister as it is perfect because we can film together, this puts us in advantage because we can work on track to the deadlines instead of having to meet up with a friend to film it where it could be unreliable and effect the film standard. My twin has useful abilities on ICT so will help to create an effective opening with using certain effects and edits to make it link to the genre of Horror. This advantage of us working together to produce a film opening allows us to both get to the location easily and to access certain props to make the film more realistic. I feel working with my twin allows us to discuss ideas and give each other feedback on the opening which will push are opening to a professional standard which the audience will enjoy. Check out her blog - jadesuddabyfilmmaker.blogspot.co.uk
(Only up to 3:40 mins) Key Character Types
As the opening starts with a fadein effect of a little boy lying in bed suggesting he is ill the camera slowly moves to a panning shot of the whole room showing props such as a teddy bear and mutlicoloured bed sheet inppling he is a young child and just an normal little boy. The audience link the idea of him being awake stereotypically shows how children have nightmares and are afraid of the dark, this instantly makes the audience work out that he is a vitum and vulnerable suggesting he is the Protagonist is this movie. The Supernatural Horror genre normally uses a young and scared child to make the audience feel sorry for the child and create more tension in the narrative.
Another character that appears in the opening is a old witch like creature which instantly makes the audience work out that she is the antagonist of this film due to the stereotypical scary face which the audience can associate with death and evil. This type of creature appears in genre films of supernatural horrors as they are the supernatural creature. The creature looked like the stereotypical witch seen at Halloween this links to a connection with the child and how they see creatures. The antagonist first appears in the window as a dark shadow figure creating tension and mystery towards the audience as they are waiting to see the creature somewhere else. The creature then appears in person to show the audience the evil and death like creature that is perhaps affecting the family. Later on the opening shows sections of the house showing supernatural events happening in the house suggesting the antagonist is a ghost or spiritual creature affecting the house and the family.
The opening shows the audience different sections of the families house showing they are ordinary people making the audience more scared knowing the supernatural event can happen to anyone.The opening also reveals a close up picture of the whole family showing a stereotypical family being happy and enjoying life suggesting they mean no harm and putting them as Protagonist characters as they look vulnerable and harmless this may suggest they are in danger by the antagonist.
Stock Characters
The stock characters aren't clear in the opening however as the only actual person the camera showed was the boy in bed the audience can assume the character is the main character as he is the most important character shown and the rest in the picture are the stock characters, family who are perhaps being affect as well by the creature but not to the extent of the child.
Narratives And Stock Situations
From the opening the audience can gather that this antagonist creature is affecting the family shown in the picture and perhaps affecting the child most as he is the only one that has been showed in this opening inppling he has some importance perhaps the family stock characters try and protect him and end up in more danger by the antagonist. The antagonist maybe a ghost or some kind of super natural creature which may be haunting or getting revenge from the family. The genre normally uses a historical event affecting the antagonist which makes them strive for revenge against the family and normal ends with only a few survivors sometimes only one.
Genre Iconography
The filter used is a dark and gloomy filter which instantly links the audience to death and evil. A panning shot is used to show the child bedroom and the stereotypical props such as teddy bear and multicolour bedsheets inppling his age and showing he is a vulnerable child. The panning continues to the next room tracking the dark shadowy figure on the window creating tension for the audience and building up fear. The angle then changes quickly to a tilt and tracks into a dark room showing the creature as it fades to light around the creature making it more realist and ghost related. The scene then fades out to a backdrop of black with half the screen tracking different objects and sections of the house perhaps showing some kind of importance which the audience can relate to as the film continues. The supernatural events created by CGI shows the audience the creatures powers and abilities showing in a certain way how the creature is affecting the family. The non-diegetic sound in form to be the background music creates tension and shows a thriller element and fear to what's happening next. The elderly woman is shown holding a candle to outline her face making the audience instantly drawn to the creature with the back drop in pitch black allowing her to stand out.
Themes Of The Genre
There are many themes that link to the genre of Supernatural Horror such as creating an antagonist which is supernatural ghost like with the fade effects used and the terrifying element of her appearing in certain places to scare the audience. The theme of historical importance or a past event may be the theme in this opening as a ghost holds past experience and perhaps a certain event has affected the antagonist changes and ways to behave towards the family. In most Horrors the antagonist wants revenge due to a event in the past that the family has done or what the antagonist jealous about.
Typography
The use of typography really match the genre of horror due to the red of red representing blood and danger. The credits are in red with a black background to make the colour standout to the audience, also a fadein effect is used to show a ghostly presents and to link with the idea of Supernatural. The title "Insidious" is clear and bold showing the audience the importance of the word and how is links to the narrative. There is also a flicking effect to show the link to old and historical which links to ghosts and spiritual creatures. The text also has an effect so it fades to the background and turns to green smoke this shows the audience a link to the creature and how she travels as it looks like a ghost passing through the letters.
Key Character Types
At the beginning there is a baby which the audience can assume is around 1 or 2 as the baby is standing up in their cot. The baby is crying suggesting he is vulnerable and wants attention. This also tells the audience that the baby's parents aren't around suggest they are ill reasonable and careless to abounded a child at this young of an age, making the audience feel sorry for their baby and instantly makes the audience know the baby is the protagonist due to the baby's size and i'll capability of a ordinary stereotypical baby, However the baby shooks the audience by getting out the cot and opening the door which with a baby that young is unheard of, suggesting the baby has some sort of special ability or power linking to supernatural. The birds eye view shot of the bedroom shows how small the baby is and how much bigger and powerful everything is about him. The birds eye shot of the baby crawling down stairs and running around the house suggest their is a ghost or some kind of supernatural creature. The fact the baby is running around without any guidance stereotypically makes the audience feel the baby is in danger instantly putting the supernatural creature as the Antagonist.
The birds eye view shot of two adults suggest they are the parents of the child. The quick reaction and running shot of the woman concerned about the baby instantly shows the audience she is perhaps the mother due to the stereotypical response of the mother caring for her child who is in need. while the man what looks like the father of the child due to the connection with the mother leaves the child, However later on the father acts in a concerned and panicked way as what sounds like his other daughter comes in. The argument with the daughter shows the father's personality to the audience and how he has mankinline traits due to how he is the one using power and controlling the situation, instantly undermining the girl showing a stereotype of woman being weak and vulnerable, showing the audience she is the
victim. The father and mother also look like the victim of this situation, concerned about their children and what happened suggesting they are also the protagonist characters as they are completely unaware of the antagonist controlling the baby. Stock Character
The girl isn't shown in the opening suggesting she is the stock character as is shows she may not be important to show just yet, however she may be the victim in this situation suggesting she could be in danger as the film continues by the antagonist as girls are stereotypically the ones in danger. From the opening the audience can gather she is perhaps a ill reasonable person as she was not there to look over the baby suggesting she is lazy and perhaps careless when looking after the child, this also shows the little respect she may have for her parents and her family as she allowed the little child to become in danger by the antagonist,
Narrative And Stock Situations
The antagonist is affecting the protagonist child when the other family members are not there suggesting the child is an easy target. The antagonist maybe affecting the child mentally or physically to request revenge or order the child to complete a deed that they can't complete alone, affecting the family more as the film continues. Making the parents more protective and concerned about whats happening to their child, trying to stop the antagonist from happening putting them in more danger. Mean while perhaps the stock character tries to solve whats happening. due to the realist home style camcorders around the house links to how she is going to record the supernatural events that are occurring. Genre Iconography
The beginning of the film starts with a blue blurred out filter affect to make the film more realist when the lights are turned out and also to inform the audience that no one else is home. The diegetic sound at the start makes it more realistic to link to the idea of a homemade video. The opening cuts to a lounge setting of what looks like the down stairs by using s panning shot of the house showing the audience is an ordinary house suggesting the events can happen to anyone. The prop of the dog going up stairs makes the scene more realistic to what would actually happening and creates tension in the audience thinking a creature or something scary is going to happen. The blue filter makes it almost hard to see the baby creating for tension as the audience doesn't know where the baby might appear. As the parents appear the lighting changes as they turn the lights on suggesting they are safe as darkness links to danger, this shows the audience the atmosphere change and makes it more of a calm environment as the audience can see where everything is clearly . The blue burred filter is used again in the baby's room suggesting the baby's in danger and unsafe as the atmosphere changes, suggesting the antagonist is harming the baby. The scene with girl uses a tilted angle to show only the mother and father and not the girl suggesting she isn't the important one in the narrative.
Themes Of Genre
Moat supernatural horrors use the theme of revenge this may be the case for this opening. Perhaps the antagonist is trying to get revenge from the family by affecting their baby. The supernatural events in this film link to the idea of a ghost or spiritual creature affecting the mind and being of the victim.The antagonist may be a past or historical creature haunting the family. The blue filter is a link of darkness and danger linking to a stereotypical horror.
