Analysis of Film

Insidious.

The film that i am analysing is Insidious. I chose this film because it is similar to the film that our group is creating as it is a supernatural horror, and it uses some of the same elements for example, a flashback at the beginning.

The film starts of with a long shot showing a boy's bedroom, This is a flashback of went he main character was younger. There is some non-diagetic music in the shot which is there to build tension. The lighting in the shot is dark to give a sense of mystery. A dolly shot is used to move the camera around the room and then moves out of the bedroom into the kitchen.

In this shot, a shadow can be seen on the window, as soon as the camera goes into the kitchen, the music gets louder and faster which makes it more sinister and shows the audience that something is going to happen.  The shadow then moves from the window and the camera follows it into the next room. A shadow is used as it keeps the audience in suspense as to who the person is as it creates mystery.

This shot shows a ghost of an old woman in medium shot. The frame is dark which is stereotypical for a horror film as it connotes mystery and makes it more scary . There is non-diagetic music in this shot which is loud and fast, the music is used to build up tension and shows the audience that something is going to happen. The camera zooms into the woman's face until the shot fades to black and the music fades out.

The next shot quickly flashes on and the music come back in loud again. This is done to try and scare the audience and make them jump as they are not expecting it. Red is a stereotypical colour to use on a horror film as it connotes danger and blood which is often featured in horror films. The black background is also stereotypical as it is dark and mysterious.

Then the title sequence begins, also using red writing and a black background. It shows black and white images of the house with clues to the audience that something is going to happen for example, in this shot the chair moves out from the table on its self. This show the audience that something out of the ordinary is going to happen. There is also some non-diagetic music in the title sequence to build tension.

After the title sequence, it cuts to a living room which is filled with boxes, this is shown in long shot. The camera then pans around the room, this is done to set the scene and show the audience that the characters have just moved to this house. In this shot, ambient sound is used to make the audience believe that the characters actually live in the house, and to set the mood for example, a clock ticking can be heard and the stairs are creaking.

A women then comes down the staires and starts unpacking the boxes, this is shown in medium long shot. Diagetic sound can be heard as she unpacks to make it sound more real.

She then puts some books on a shelf, a medium close up is used to show what the books are. the first book is called "Self Healing Through Music" this gives the audience some clues about what the characters are like and helps to get to know them better. The book is also red which connotes danger and could suggest that something will happen with the book.

She then begins to look at a photo album and her son comes to look at it with her. They are shown in medium long shot. The fact that they are sat on the floor reminds the audience that they have just moved into the house as they have no chairs to sit on.

They are then shown in medium close up to show their facial expressions when talking about the photo album.

They are then shown in the kitchen as the camera slowly zooms in. There is lots of ambient sound in this shot for example, the baby is crying, the kettle is boiling, a video game can be heard and the children are arguing, whilst the mother is on the phone. These sounds all make it sound hectic and gives the impression that the women is struggling.




It then cuts to a man who is getting ready in front of a mirror, this is shown in medium close up. This contrasts with the last shot as all of the ambient sounds have gone and it is now quite, this is done to highlight to the audience that his morning is different to the woman's morning. It suggests that he doesn't look after the children as much as the women and doesn't help out as much which could be seen as stereotyping.

In this shot, the outside of the house is shown in long shot, this is done to show the audience that it is now a different time of day and it splits up the scene. Piano music can be heard as well as a clock ticking, this is used as a sound bridge onto the next shot.

The women is then shown sat at a piano singing, she is shown in medium shot. The sound of a baby crying can then be heard and the camera then pulls focus to the baby monitor on top of the piano, this is done to make the audience notice it.






The women hears a sound in the attic and goes to see what it is. She is shown in long shot, in this shot, a hand held shot is used which suggests to the audience that something is going to happen.

A close up is then used to show that the ladder in the attic is broken, a close up is used to make it stand out to the audience and to show that it is significant.

After this, the child is shown playing on his own upstairs in the dark whilst the rest of the family are downstairs in the light, this contrasts the two shots and suggests to the audience that something is going to happen to the boy. He is also wearing a red cape which connotes danger and also suggests that something will happen to him.

Indipendant film Distributor

Left Film Distribution
Left film distribution is a horror film distribution company based in the uk. The work on distributing  new independent movies in cinemas, on DVD, and download. Many of their films are in the horror, sci-fi, action and comedy genres. They describe themselfs as offering "a fresh approach to independent film distribution, audience engagement and social marketing." They have distributed films such as: Alien Undead, Cowboys & Zombies, Ninjas vs Vampires and Stag Night of the Dead.

In my oppinion they would be a good company to use for our film because they have experience in distributing films of the same genre and have experience in distribution small indipendent, such as our film.

http://www.leftfilms.com/#!

Sub genre research

http://prezi.com/c0vsscpacoeh/sub-genre/?kw=view-c0vsscpacoeh&rc=ref-27577143

Possible Independent Distributor Of Our Film - Research

Brain Damage Films
an independent film company that specialises in distributing low budget horror films. They have released horror films such as: Monsturd, The Abducted and After The Dawn- all of which are low to no budget films. Brain Damage describes itself as: "a full service distribution house and film production company dedicated solely to scaring the hell out of you." They distribute worldwide. You are also able to buy the films they distribute from their website, which means it would make it easier for buyers of this film to obtain a copy.
comment: using this distribution company would be good as our film is more likely to be distributed by an independent company, and an independent company would allow us more freedom to include whatever we like in our film. 

Analysis of the First 15 Minutes of a Similar Film - The Woman In Black

I have chosen to do The Woman In Black for my film analysis as it is similar to the film my group and I aim to create. It's similar because the film features supernatural elements and ghosts, and also due to the flashback being used in our film, it has similarities with the time setting of the film.

 

The first shot of the film is a close up of an old fashioned looking tea set, which then cuts to a close up of an old fashioned doll and various other toys. This close up shot is used to show the detail of the toys to the audience, and suggests by the appearance of the toys that the film doesn't have a modern setting. There is no diegetic sound in the first minute of the film, instead there is non-diegetic music. The non-diegetic music starts off sinister sounding, but quite soft, and creates ambiguity in this scene. The lack of diegetic sound is also effective as it causes the viewers to pay more attention to the sinister sounding music. We are then shown a long shot of three girls playing with the tea set and dolls. This is an establishing shot as it places these three characters in their environment. From the


girl's costumes and props around them it is clear that the film isn't set in modern time. The music then becomes less soft and more harsh sounding when all three girls look into a corner of the room which is out of view to the camera. This sudden change in the music changes the ambiguous feeling to a more ominous one and suggests that whatever the girls are looking at is threatening. The girls then turn and look to the other end of the room, and a

zooming in shot is used on the window, the music also becomes increasingly harsh as the camera zooms in on the window, these elements suggest that the window is of importance. As the girls stand up, one of them drops a cup they were playing with. The smashing sound of the cup is the first piece of diegetic sound to be heard in the film. Limiting the 

diegetic sound in this scene to the smashing of the cup is effective as the only piece of diegetic sound the audience have heard is the sound of something being destroyed, this builds up tension and the ominous feeling of the film even more, as it suggests something far more valuable could be at risk of being destroyed. The next three pieces of diegetic sound in the film are all sounds of the girl's toys being destroyed. While this is happening, close up shots are being used on each toy being destroyed, and the whole sequence appears to be slowed down, temporal editing is used in order to put more emphasis on it. The sinister music is still playing and an echoing effect has been used on the small pieces of diegetic sound which is heard, this gives the film a surreal feeling and also builds up tension. As the girls walk up to the window the camera moves out and match on action is used as they step on a higher ledge which brings them closer to the window.The non diegetic music begins to build up as the girls open the window, sounding increasingly sinister, the girls then jump out of the window and the sinister music fades away. Diegetic  dialogue is then heard of a woman screaming, As the woman is hysterically screaming the camera pans out, giving a clearer view of the bedroom. A close up shot of a toy doll is then shown, whilst the woman is still screaming in the background. The screaming adds juxtaposition to the shot of the doll as dolls aren't usually associated with unpleasant things such as screaming and death. A high angle shot is then shown of the children's room whilst the camera continues to pan out, the screaming then fades out and the shot also fades out whilst a dissolve edit is used to move onto the next shot which is of fog moving.

 The title sequence is then shown to us, using the moving fog as a background image. More dramatic and sad sounding music is used while words emerge out of the fog, images also emerge out of the fog, with a transparent affect used on them. One of the images is of a wedding ring being placed on someone's finger. The mood the music sets doesn't fit in well with these images shown as the images often have connotations of happiness, whereas the music does not. This adds a feel of ambiguity to the title sequence, and makes the music contrapuntal. A close up image of a man appears in the fog, the fog then gradually fades and a dissolve edit is used to show the viewers that this close up shot is of a man looking into a mirror. The Lighting is dull and there

is very little colour, which gives the scene a depressing feel. The man also appears to have tears in his eyes which heightens the depressing feel of this scene. The camera slowly pans out whilst and a blurred figure appears behind him in the mirror, she then says his name and a deep, short sound is used in the non-diegetic music, possibly to suggest his surprise. He then turns around to face the woman, the film then cuts to a long shot, which shows that the woman isn't there and establishes the scene. 

This is the first main character we've been introduced to, he is presented to us as troubled straight away in this scene. We then get a clearer indication of why he's troubled 5 minutes into the film, when a close up shot is used on a picture his son has drawn of him, his dad, his nanny and his mother as an angel in the sky. This shows to the audience that the main characters wife is dead, and adds depth to this character. The film then cuts to a Long Shot of a busy looking city setting. Dim lighting and bland colours are used here again, there is also a lot of fog, which is a typical convention of a horror film. There is then a medium shot of the man and his son, talking whilst a lot of ambient sound is present. This enforces the idea of them being in a busy city setting.

The film cuts to a scene of the main character in an office setting, a birds eye view angel is used of the room as an establishing shot. There is another character present in the scene, they begin speaking of a woman who recently died, when the death of her child is brought up in the dialogue non-diegtic solemn music begins to play, which suggests the death of her child could be important to the storyline, and also adds ambiguity to the scene.

Once the scene is over it cuts to a long shot
of a train moving on some tracks, this then cuts to a shot inside the train where the camera then zooms slightly towards the main character before cutting to a medium shot of him. He looks out of the window into the distance, and a sound bridge is used to move onto the next scene of a flashback of his wife giving birth. The us of a sound bridge is effective as

it makes the transition between shots less noticeable. A sound bridge is also used when the flashback is ending and it cuts to a scene of the main character at a train station. Elliptical editing is then used whilst he is waiting for a train at the train station and for the rest of his journey to his destination. The main character then arrives at the place he is planning to stay, when he opens the door to the room he's going to stay in, a long shot is used to show the full inside of the room, and slightly sad non-diegetic music begins to play, the room is easily recognisable as the room the three girls we're playing in in the first scene of the film. A close up shot of the broken toy doll is used, and then diegetic sound of rattling and wind begins, which adds an ambiguous feeling to the film.

Analysis of The Shining

Horror film reviews/film websites

Film Reviews:

Rec: http://www.empireonline.com/reviews/reviewcomplete.asp?FID=135508

Nosferatu: http://www.bbc.co.uk/films/2000/10/26/nosferatu_1922_review.shtml

The Phantom of the Opera: http://www.cinemablend.com/reviews/The-Phantom-of-the-Opera-795.html

Dracula: http://www.empireonline.com/reviews/reviewcomplete.asp?FID=15026

Carrie: http://www.empireonline.com/reviews/review.asp?FID=132787

Audition: http://www.empireonline.com/reviews/reviewcomplete.asp?FID=6662

Zodiac: http://www.empireonline.com/reviews/review.asp?FID=11066

Sin City: http://www.empireonline.com/reviews/review.asp?DVDID=10762

Film Websites:

Rec: http://www.rec2themovie.com/

The Phantom of the Opera: http://www.thephantomoftheopera.com/

Sin City: http://www.adamwood.co.nz/sincity/

Treatment - Full Film

Film Title: The Wanting

Duration: 90 minutes

Audience: 15 age certificate, as our film has strong violence and frequent strong language, which the british board of film classification classes these things as fundamental of a 15 certificate film. The film is aimed mostly at male teenagers as the horror genre is known to be mostly enjoyed by males. They will like other horror films, especially ones which include vengeful spirits. It would mostly appeal to people who enjoy independent films, as the budget for the film wouldn't be a lot and the special effects used would be limited, however it could be enjoyed by people who like mainstream too.

Summary/Synopsis: A group of friends discover a ring in a park and take it, strange things begin to happen and the friends realise their lives are at risk, and somehow the ring is connected to it. They look for answers online and discover an urban myth about a murder of a young girl in a park, the friends must find a way to unite the girl's spirit with her possession (the ring). They succeed, and normality is restored.

Suggested elements: Non-linear, flashbacks, non diagetic music, grayscale scenes.

Film Title:  The Wanting

Duration:  2 Minutes

Audience: The film certificate is a 15 as it may scare younger audiences. It is aimed more at teenagers aged 15 above. It is mainly aimed at a male audience as they are stereotyped as liking horror films more than females. They would enjoy other horror films, especially ones about spirits and ghosts. Also, it would be aimed at an independent audience as it doesn't have a big budget and it  doesn't appeal to a wide range of people.

Summary: film starts with flashback, shot in black and white. A girl is seen running through a forest, a man is chasing her, he grabs her, and kills her. The camera then pans to the right and something shiny can be seen in the distance, the camera zooms in to reveal a ring. The camera then zooms out, as it's zooming out it fades from black and white to colour, to show it's no longer a flashback and it's now the present day. Four friends are seen in the woodland area, they spend a lot of time just hanging around in the woods, until one of them discovers the ring. They then put it on their finger. Screen fades to black.

Suggested Elements: Starts off with a flashback of the murder and then goes to a close up of the ring on the ground. Changes to present day and shows the friends going to the park and finding the ring.

Ideas for Final Project

Ideas for Final Project

• The ghostly girl might make it a little too close to 'The Ring'- maybe instead she should hallucinate about something different
• It could be difficult for them to get the ring off her, she doesn't want to get rid of it, they argue and fight
• When on the way to returning the ring to the park, the girl who had worn it could be getting nervous, doesn't want to get rid of it still
• After returning the ring it could be returned to the same girl who doesn't tell her friends it has come back to her, keeps hold of it
• The hallucinations get worse and worse until she goes insane, eventually committing suicide
• Her friends then return to the ring to the body