Genre

Conventions of a
horror
TOM KEENS

After my research these are the main conventions I saw within horror films:

The soundtrack is slow and eerie predominantly used to build up suspense. There are
also points of sharp music rises or volume when pieces of action happens.

There are hidden narrative enigmas used to hook in audience this may be things like
back stories or why things are happening.

Close ups are common shots used in horror genre normally to portray emotions or
reactions of the characters, this gives a more direct link between audience and film
maker.

Using pathetic fallacy to show the mood of the scene (I decided to do the opposite of
this to make the audience not expect what was about to happen.

Jump cuts is a common transition used to combine scenes together, and uses a large
number of shots put together in a short space of time. The scenes normally become
edited quicker together when there is action to make the audience feel more on edge.

We normally see the lighting being quite dark when there is danger to conotate the
danger being faced and vulnerability.

How my trailer met the

conventions:

In the scene when the young boy realises he has been left he is
shown in the dark night scene which is a very convention idea
used within the horror genre.

I have used a dark and sinister soundtrack throughout my piece

but done high pitched sounds when there is something scary
going on. It also indicates that something major is coming up.

When we are revealed to the main antagonist we see him in a

close up showing him with a dangerous but slight smirk, this
shows his slight mental illness and finding the situation funny.

I also used low camera angles when showing antagonists to have

a surrealist effect that is much larger and powerful than he is
making him more intimidating for the audience.

How these conventions make my

trailer successful.

My main aim was to have a direct link between audience and the
characters resulting in a more personal and hard hitting trailer.
This is mainly done through camera angles, trying to keep the
camera shots close or within the action to position the audience
in the trailer themselves.

I have included numerous narrative enigmas within the trailer to

hook the audience to come and see the film. By hiding certain
information it gives me much more scope for what will happen in
the film.