Creating: The Newspaper Article 1890, The Chant, The Torture Pictures

The Newspaper Article 1890

We created this newspaper using Pages on the apple macs. In our film it was used during the beginning of the trailer to capture the narrative of the film and give an ambiguous idea of what the film includes. It shows that the college we filmed in, and the teenagers we followed are all victims of the past and history of the present college they attend. Spirits are around, Devil's attack them and mysterious events are encountered.

We decided to put a story on the bottom of the front cover with the date of 1890. This is a crucial point because it is immediate evidence of the past and history of which the story is based on.

The Chant

We did research on witchcraft and found that during the time of the civil world war, Matthew Hopkins is perhaps the most notorious name in the history of English witchcraft. He's believed to be responsible for the killing of around 300 women. After gathering more research, we found a poem by Samuel Butler, an early defender and critic against witchcraft (1612-1680). He was an English satirist. His most famous poem was 'Hudibras', published in three parts 1663, 1664 and 1678, and which immediately became popular for its biting satire against the Puritans. He wrote:

Hath not this present Parl’ament

A Lieger to the Devil sent,

Fully impower’d to treat about

Finding revolted Witches out?

And has he not within a year

Hang’d threescore of them in one Shire?

Some only for not being drown’d,

And some for sitting above ground.

Whole days and nights upon their Breeches,

And feeling pain, were hang’d for Witches

And some for putting knavish Tricks

Upon green Geese or Turkey Chicks

Or Pigs that suddenly deceast

Of griefs unnatural, as he guess'd

Who after proved himself a Witch

And made a rod for his own Breech.

From Samuel Butler's - Hudibras (first published in 1663).

We then improvised and changed the poem to suit our film. To make it realistic we wanted to give it an olden look which we did by dabbing a wet tea bag on it and then burning the edges.

Step 1: (Teabag Mixture)

Step 2: (Dabbing Teabag on paper)

Step 3: (Burning)

Final Product:

The Torture Pictures
We created the pictures by using uncopyrighted images through google search engine. We felt we needed to use them to show more historical background and storyline of the happenings in the past. Also, they met the horror conventions of suffering, terror, horror, mystery, evil and sinister.

We used the same techniques as above to make it look olden. The only difference is that because we were filming the college students finding the evidence in the library, we emphasised how long it had been there by scrunching it up and piling it altogether.

Poster Analysis- Paranormal Activity 2

The main colours in the poster are all dark. The deep blue looks like a night camera, this gives it a real life effect and makes it more frightening. The red text stands out against the black background. Red suggests danger and blood giving it the horror theme. It is also good that they have used such a bright colour against a dark colour as the title now stands out and people will be drawn to it. The main figure in the poster is of a dog barking at a slightly opened door and a baby standing up in his/hers cot. Although we cannot see anything at the door we know that this must be a ‘paranormal’ event taking place as we know dogs can sense spirits and abnormal events. There is also a shadow on the floor of someone standing at the door although there is nobody there. We can also see a mirror in the poster, in the mirror you can see the reflection of the dog and you can see the cot, however the baby is not in it, this could represent that something (a spirit) wants the baby. A persuasive technique on the poster is a critics review on the film, “your sleepless nights are about to return”, this statement made by a critic will persuade people to go and see the film who like horrors as they go to see horrors to get a rush of fear. “The most anticipated horror event of the year”, this quote on the poster suggests that the film is not like any other horror film out.

The information is important that is on the horror poster as it shows from a critic you are going to get scared and this is why people go to see a horror. It also says that the movie is coming soon, this shows the readers that it is not out yet but to keep looking as it will be out soon.

The poster is effective as it shows abnormal events taking place, e.g. the baby missing in the mirror, this is a type of event that people tend not to see but hear about and they want to see it. The poster communicates effectively with the audience as it states that it is coming soon and also has a critics view on the film written on the poster. The poster is not offensive in any way but it does not state a BBFC age restriction, this could give people underage a false hope to see the film.

Teaser Analysis - Paranormal Activity 2

Paranormal Activity 2 Teaser Trailer

We are told the name of the film at the end of the teaser trailer. This is done so the audience have to watch the whole of the trailer to get the name, this will make the audience either wants to see it or not as they have an understanding of what the film is to do with. We are not told any names of who is staring in the film as it has no big actors in due to the footage been from a normal family, this film is showing real footage of what is happening in the house hold. There is little text throughout the trailer as it is more visual images that get the message across to the audience. All the footage is filmed at night so the background is dark, the writing is white so it stands out to the audience. This is important as the audience have to be able to see the writing easy. We do not see any great action in the trailer as the footage is more mysterious, for example, pots moving on its own, dog barking even though there is nothing there.

The music played is footsteps, this noise makes the audience believe someone is somewhere they shouldn't be e.g. someone breaking in, this shows the film is going to be a horror as the thought of having someone in your house and you do not no is scary.

The speed stays the same throughout the teaser trailer as the footage shown is enough to keep the audience focused. The film is not an action horror, it is a horror which shows things happening in a household which is abnormal. The audience will be concentrating throughout the trailer as they will be looking for these abnormal events happening.

The information given to us shows that the audience will be scared and that they will not be expecting what is going to be shown. This makes the audience want to go and see the film as they have been told they are getting what they have paid to see, a horror.

The information about the film is given through the middle to the end of the teaser trailer. This is done so the audience do not get bored, they will be getting information to tell the audience things about the film its self and what the audience can expect. This film is aimed at people in the age range of 15-24. This is the age range that most people would go and see a horror. Also males are more likely to go and see Paranormal Activity 2. This is common in horror films as males are likely to want to go and see horror and action films rather than other genre films.

Poster Analysis - Drag Me To Hell

The main colours used in the above poster for the movie “Drag Me To Hell” are the women's blonde hair, the black sky and the red of the fire. In most horror films the blonde girl is the first to die. This is because they are normally the most silliest characters on the film. She is obviously the main character in the film otherwise she would not be in the film poster. This film is non stereotypical horror film. The hand that is grabbing the women’s neck helps us to believe that the film is going to be a horror film. The white text that is placed on top of the really jumps of the page and grabs your attention. The small text below the film title is in an orange colour which fits with the fire underneath the text. The women's coat blends into the fire and the sky which links the whole poster together. The white text above the tile gives us a short explanation about what happens in the film. The main figure in the poster is a women screaming with fire around her. This symbolizes death. An object in the poster is someone’s hands dragging the women down into the flames, this shows that someone wants this girl dead. This gives the viewers an idea of what the film is to do with and what might happen. In the background there are houses, it looks like a normal setting, somewhere where you would not expect something bad to happen.

From looking at the film poster the intended audience they would be targeting will be people who are interested in horrors. According to Pearl and Dean the age group would be 15-24, also slightly more males would rather go and see the film, this could just be because of the genre as males are more likely to go and see a horror than females are.

The genre of Drag me to Hell is a horror. We know this due to the dramatic images on the poster. The star in the poster has been used as the USP (unique selling point). There are no expert witnesses quoted on the poster. pleasures that are promised by the poster will be danger, fear, fire, possibly death if not someone trying to kill. The attention is gained threw shock. As the images are graphic and different it draws the viewers in as they have not seen a poster like it before. It will make the audience think what will happen and will want to see it to find out. The tag-line on the poster, “Christine Brown has a good job, a great boyfriend, but in three days, she’s going to hell”, shows that the character (Christine Brown) has got a bad spirit after her and wants her to die as she has done something bad. This makes the audience sure that the films genre is horror.

The poster has important information on it, for example it shows who is the production company (Ghost house productions). This is important as the production company will get more noticed, also if they have a good reputation for their films they will get more people going to see the film as they will believe it has come from a good production company.

I believe the poster is effective as the images are believable and look dramatic. This poster is also very different to a lot of horror posters, this would make me want to see it. I believe it connects effectively with the audience as it gives information in the tag-line which the audience would be interested about. The tag-line gives a bit more information on what the film is to do with. I do not believe the poster is offensive in any way.

Poster Analysis - Sorority Row

The main colour in the sorority row poster is dark colours, grey and browns. These dark colours represent fear. Dark colours represent fear as not many people like the dark. Darkness can also link with death as when you die you get berried underground which is also dark, this could link with the poster as there is a drip of something on the bottom right, this could be mud. There are two different symbols in the poster, one is the drip, this could be blood or mud as I said earlier. The other symbol is the red X inbetween the words Sorority and Row. This symbol represents danger, as it could be a sign of death and the colour red shows fear. The main figures in the poster is girls who look like they are been tourchered. All the pictures look like reaction shots of the girls when they are in danger. From looking at the main images in the poster, we can see the film is set on teenage girls and it is a horror film. The background is plain, this does not matter, as the main image is so strong, this could be put on a blank background to make sure nothing takes the audiences attention away from the tourture pictures. The message in this poster is mostly primarily visual due to the strong images shown; we know the girls are in pain due to their reactions. It is also verbal due to the tag line. I believe teenage girls who enjoy horror films in the age range of 15-25 will be persuaded to this film as they can relate to the lifes these girls use to have- before the torcher. Many stars in the film are used as the unique selling point as this is the only thing in th poster that the audience can see that it is a horror film due to the blank background. From the poster we can see that the aundience that go and see this film are promised to see a group of girls that could be friends get tourchered and maybe killed. The tagline “the sisters of theta pi are dying to keep a secret” comes across effective to the audience as shock, this tagline also gives the audience an insite into the film as we now know someone is keeping a secret, this could be why the girls are getting torchered.
This poster is effective as it shows the audience what they will want to see in a horror, fear, death and torcher. The poster does not have an age concent on; this could give people underage false hope as they could be to young to see it.

Magazine Analysis - The Hulk

The magazine front cover featuring The Hulk captures the audiences attention mainly as it is 3D. As the front cover is 3D it stands out from all the other magazines that will be around it as it is different. As this is the first ever 3D magazine front cover people will be amazed and will be likely to read it.

Empire show a large picture of the hulk breaking through a wall with his hands, this shows how much strength the hulk has. On the front cover the hulk is directly looking at the viewer, suggesting a strong, assured and secure person. As the hulk is by himself in the picture it shows he is independent and does not need anyone around him to fight his battles.

The design, colours and layout are forceful and confrontational. The green of the Hulk is relieved with green writing on the front cover. To show who the green character is the word Hulk has purposely been put in the same colour of his body. Empire have also made another section green as it says “Incredible, The worlds first fully 3D cover!” this is important information as people are likely to purchase to look at the magazine to see the first ever 3D cover. As the green is so bright is shows that he like the magazine stands out from others and he is strong on his own. The large headline “The Hulk Unleashed” has all been put in big bold writing, this shows the hulks personality as everything is big on the HULK.

The cover tells you forcefully that this magazine is for young men and teenage boys and also girls who are interested in action fantasy films.

This magazine front cover tells a story to the readers about the hulk and how strong he is and you can tell which sort of film this will be.

Magazine Analysis - Hellboy 2

The magazine about is HellBoy 2. This front cover catches the audiences attention as the colours are bright and stand out. When colours stand out the audience will see it in the shop and look at it. Red colours represents death, the red stands out from the background colour as it is dark, this is good as it will get noticed more and also it fits in with the genre of a horror due to the dramatic colours. The text of the magazine is red with flames around it. Both red and flames represent danger, this is good as on the picture the creature has horns coming out of its head, this shows it could be to do with hell, this also links in with the name of the film. As we can see the person in the picture is red and comes across like a devil however we can also see he has a rosary bead on his wrist. All devils are against God and believe him to be their enemy, due to this it means he is not a real devil e.g. not as bad. There is nothing in the background of the magazine cover, this will give the film poster more attention as nothing is trying to take the attention away from it. The bright colours and layout are forceful and confrontational. The poster attracts the target audience. Horror is emphasized by the colour of the title and as it has flames. The audience for this magazine would be people between the age 15-25 as this is the age range that are most likely to see a horror film. They would be interested in the colours and the look of this magazine and they will want to read the information about the film

Comparison of Sorority Row Teaser & Theatrical Trailer

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ipdqmMFexeg

In comparison of the teaser trailer to the theatrical trailer they are very different. There is only one clip that is the same in the trailers. This shot is when a girl in the film drinks out of a bottle and something pushes the bottle down into her mouth trying to kill her, however this is a quick shot. Throughout the teaser trailer there are a number of dolly and tracking shots, this is a lot different to the theatrical trailer as they have a number of different camera angles, e.g. at the beginning there is an establishing shot of the school.

In the teaser trailer there is only one actor in it and the villain. This is very different to the theatrical trailer as there are over seven main actors staring and also other people in the backing shots. The people in the backing shots in the theatrical trailer help give of a different vibe to the beginning of the trailer, the beginning of the trailer is happy and how a teenager’s lifestyle is e.g. parties. However in the teaser trailer there is no fun sprits at all and you can also not tell which age range this film is targeted to.

The music in both trailers is very different. The music in the theatrical trailer is very upbeat at the beginning and changes throughout the trailer as the horror like shots are brought in. In the teaser trailer the music is more slow and repetitive, not something you would imagine to be in a horror, the only time the music changes slightly is when the girl gets the bottle pushed down her throat quickly, the music at this point goes loud, this is the jump shot of the teaser.

There is no voice over in the teaser trailer like there is in the theatrical trailer. This could be because this is a trailer that is teasing the audience, due to the fact it is teasing the audience it would be too much to have a voice over, as it will be giving to many things away.

Overall the teaser trailer and the theatrical trailer are very different and do not have many comparisons.

Teaser Analysis - Sorority Row

We are told the name of the film at the end of the teaser trailer. This is done so the audience have to watch the whole of the trailer to get the name, this will make the audience either wants to see it or not as they have an understanding of what the film is to do with. We are not told any names of who is staring in the film it is a teaser trailer so not much is given away to the audience as it is just suppose to tease them so they are likely to go and watch it and see for themselves what it is about etc. There is no text throughout the teaser trailer as it is more visual images that get the message across to the audience. As the girl gets a bottle pushed down her throat by a mysterious person dressed all in black we know the genre of this film is a horror. All the footage in the trailer is filmed in the day, however even though the natural day light is shown it is surrounded by black darker outlines, this takes over the light and dark images symbolize smoothing bad is going to happen. We do not see any great action in the trailer as the footage is more mysterious, for example, the girl walking around the house by herself drinking, the girl puts her head back for her to be able to drink her drink and she see’s someone in black above her. This gives of a scary feeling as this person has being in her house the whole time without her knowing. The music played is slow relaxing music, more like something you would have in an advert more than a horror, however the music soon changed to a loud thump at the very end of the teaser trailer as the girl gets a bottle thrown down her throat. This will be the jump shot as the music changes suddenly. The speed stays the same throughout the teaser trailer as the girl is casually walking around her house, however the speed changes when the villain in the trailer as it speeds up, this is to build tension. The only information given about the film is the title at the end of the film; this is enough for people to research the film. This film is aimed at people in the age range of 15-24. This is the age range that most people would go and see a horror. The film is targeted at teenagers as the whole film is about teenagers going through abnormal horror events.

Trailer Analysis - I Spit On Your Grave

In the trailer for ‘I Spit on your Grave’, we are told the name of the film at the end of the clip. They have done this as people will have to watch the whole clip before knowing the name of the film. Doing this draws people into the trailer and will then have an idea of what the film is about.

In the trailer we are not told who is in the film, this is because there are no big actors who are in the film that people would recognise.

The information given in ‘I Spit on your Grave’ trailer is given the same way throughout the whole trailer. It is on a dark background, this symbolises a creepy unaware atmosphere. The writing flashes on this white background, this stands out and also fits in with the rest of the trailer as there are flashing scenes in the clips.

In the trailer we see a girl been watched, this gets the audience thinking as they do not know what is going to happen next. We also see fighting in the trailer, this shows us that the girl has been kidnaped and she is fighting to get away. This draws watchers in to the trailer as they will want to know the outcome of the film- if she gets away etc. As you do not find this out in the trailer people are more likely to go and see the film when it comes out. This is what the film makers want as they are making money.

The sound in the trailer is firstly diegetic sound. The sound of creaking doors and screams shows that the film is a horror film as we can hear fear in the girls voice and also her crying. There is then an up-beat tempo when she has been kidnaped, this upbeat music shows her trying to get away from the man who has taken her. This music draws the watcher in and will want to know the outcome of the horror film.

There is a voice over in this trailer, the voice of the man talking is suppose to be the man who has taken the girl, you know this because what he is saying. The man has a low deep voice, this fits in with the horror theme as it comes across creepy.

The trailer begins with a series of long clips, they speed up throughout the trailer as the man kidnaps the girl and when the horror starts in the trailer. They do this in this trailer as in most horror films it draws the views in as they get excited to know what will happen and this draws them in, as they do not know the full outcome they will want to go and see it when it comes out. The speed through the trailer does alter, it starts of slow (equilibrum) then gets faster through the middle of the trailer (disequilibrium).

The information given is words that symbolise fear and horror ‘some crimes are so brutal that if your survive your only option is revenge, show no mercy’. This information is given once the girl has been kidnaped. The information is given at different stages of the trailer, e.g. when the girl is trying to get away the information given is, ‘some crimes are so brutal’ this shows that the girl is getting attacked badly. When the girl takes control of the situation and tortures the man the information given is, ‘your only option is revenge’. This is given at this point of the trailer as the girl is attacking the man and getting revenge.

The type of audience this trailer is aimed at is people above the age of 18, i think this as the girl who is attacked is a normal girl who is of this age range doing things normal people do until she is attacked. As she is at home alone people can link to this.

How To Make The Burnt Character Look

To create the burnt witch look for our horror teaser trailer, we researched ways of doing this on Youtube where we found an American girl teaching viewers how to look like a zombie. Similarly, this fitted in with how we wanted our character to look. Below are the two video's we followed:

We bought the equipment needed for this procedure for it to follow through smoothly.
Below is an image of what we used: paints, eyeshadows, tissues, glue, vaseline, paintbrushes, paper plates, laptop to view the tutorial on.






Firstly, we needed to have brown and burgundy paint at the ready for the later stages of applying it and we already had brown so we mixed yellow, green, red and then a little bit of black later to make the burgundy mixture for the scabbed parts of her face.






Then we started ripping the toilet tissue into pieces to put on her face.
I then applied PVA glue to the area I was applying tissue to (cheeks) and then moved on to her chin and nose. I left it to dry for 30minutes. I also made sure the layers of tissue were wrinkled together to give a realistic burnt, scary look.




I then dabbed brown paint on her face, and then a layer of dark, mucky green paint was applied. Using a toothpick, i broke part of the tissue/glue mould to create a fake wound and put the burgundy red on it. Then i applied black eyeshadow on her lids to make a dramatic look.


Finally, she safely removed the mould and her skin wasn't affected either thankfully.

Below is also a picture of 'before' she experienced the 'burnt character' look.

Questionnaire For Horror Teaser

To create a survey in which we could target and collect data from people in order to meet the audience's demands, we used a website known as www.stellasurveys.com.

We asked various questions on horror interests to help us identify what will make a successful product. We sent the link to 10 people, 5 of which are girls and 5 boys, to receive a fair and representative data collection based on genders needs.

Trailer Analysis - Drag Me To Hell

The link for the trailer is as follows: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7X68gYEQZiI&feature=related

The audience are told the title of the film right at the end because the trailer consists of clips that all contribute to the narrative and in order for the title to be memorable and effective it is placed last.

The audience are not told who is starring in the film, as they are not well known actors/actresses in the film industry, however instead Lions Gate and Ghost House Productions have used the directors name to market and promote the film as he is reputable and successful. Viewers are presented with titles of previous successes such as 'Spider Man' to persuade and encourage people to watch the film. Reviews are also shown with positive reinforcement from newspapers, further promoting the film. Further information we are presented with is equilibrium, which is at the beginning point of the trailer, establishing that she has a good job but wants to become manager therefore, tries to make a good decision declining a customer's third grant, subsequently, introducing the disequilibrium of her being cursed which continues to develop from one minute into the trailer. Dialogue says a lot about the film too as the significance of the lady warning the woman that "Soon she will come begging to [her]" connotes a sense of danger, threat and horror.

The mise en scene of the main antagonist conforms to the conventions of a horror as she has a glass eye which indicates possession, evil and terror. The use of iconography also conforms to the horror genre as there is a knife used as a weapon, suggesting violence, intrusion, pain and aggression.

The speed of the trailer is steady paced at the beginning as the narrative is only just introduced however, it builds up and as soon as the disequilibrium is recognised, the speed becomes erratic, snappy and faster. This creates an impact on the audience's nerves and makes them feel panick, suspense and tension which is initially what a horror film is set out to do.

The target audience of the film is for over 15's as it contains sequences of horror, violence, terror, disturbing images and language.

Trailer Analysis - Sorority Row

The audience are told the title of the film right at the end because the trailer consists of clips that all contribute to the narrative and in order for the title to be memorable and effective it is placed last.

The audience are not told who is starring in the film as they are not well known actors/actresses in the film industry yet and appear to be an ensemble cast, however some of the actresses are well known with teenage audiences such as Leah Pipe who starred in 'Drake & Josh', 'Malcolm in the middle' and 'Ghost Whisperer'. Briana Evigan is most well known for the hit film 'Step Up 2' whilst Audrina Patridge is recognisable for starring in 'The Hills'. These actresses will draw in female teens. It is rated 15, therefore its target audience will be for teens aged 15 and over.

The establishing shot of the trailer is the high school building which is then followed by the shots of the pool party, which establishes their age group and the target audience. They're having fun at the beginning which is the equilibrium. Thirty six seconds into the trailer, we are introduced to the disequilibrium which is that five sorority girls inadvertently cause the murder of one of their sisters in a prank gone wrong. The resolution is introduced at one minute sixteen seconds as they agree to keep the matter to themselves and never speak of it again, so they can get on with their lives, only they don't realise the disequilibrium will haunt them as at one minute fifty seconds, their dead sister appears to have come back from the dead to kill them.

More action in the trailer contains religious connotations, as a male uses a cross as a weapon to kill the sister. The mise en scene of the ensemble cast conforms to the conventions of a horror as guns are used and the cast dragged a body into a well or ditch which is a sinister act, which indicates possession, evil and terror. The use of iconography conforms to the horror genre as blood signifies danger, alert, anger, devil, violence and warfare. The fire is symbolic of love being spoken as an internal flame; it can be used for strong emotional feelings such as love, hate, desire and determination. Also, it has chaotic and war related connotations.

The speed of the editing throughout the trailer isn't consistent. It is steady paced at the beginning and has quite lengthy shots until the disequilibrium sinks in and the shots become quicker and shorter. It then goes back to being steady paced as a potential resolution is present, however, the disequilibrium continues and the speed of the shots get faster and shorter again. As the trailer comes to an end the speed of the shots is viscious, showing a gun, spinning weapons, an actress trying to escape, fire, screams and shocked facial expressions, blood and the cross weapon near the females neck pointing towards it. The last shot is of an anonymous antagonist in a black cape. This signifies a devious feel, mystery and terror.

How To Make Fake Blood

We searched youtube for videos to find out what ingredients people use and the cheapest, most practical and easy way to make fake blood. After researching thoroughly, the most common ingredient in nearly every video we viewed was corn syrup however, as the videos were recorded in America, we had to search the equivalent to corn syrup which is sold in England. We found that this was Golden Syrup so we bought this from our local supermarket. Similar, we substituted the corn starch with flour.

The following shows our steps of making fake blood:

Step 1: We poured Golden Syrup into a jug.

Step 2: We then measured out the correct amount of flour to add to the jug of golden syrup.

Step 3: We then added water to the mixture.
Step 4: Once we mixed the ingredients together, we added a few drops of Red food colouring.
Step 5: Once we mixed the red food colouring into the mixture, we added Green food colouring as directed by the video to darken the mixture.

This created a more realistic looking colour blood.

Questionnaire Results

We presented our data in a number of ways to view, compare and analyse it clearly and effectively.
- Tables




- Pie Charts

Websites Used

We used www.youtube.com to research popular horrors get clips to get inspiration for our horror and so we could see the conventions that other horrors had used in the teaser trailers.

We used www.pearlanddean.com to research popular horrors to establish our target audience. Eg. age, gender, population, social class. This helped us decide what type of horror we are producing, who will be interested in watching it depending on mainly age and gender.

We used www.google.com as a search engine whilst researching inspirations for our horror teaser trailer. For eg. Matthew Hopkin's Witchcraft history plot.
We used www.blogger.com to showcase and organise all our research, planning and evaluation of our horror teaser. For example, research of teaser trailers, planning of film budget, information from Pearl & Dean, analysis of teasers , screenshots of our production progress, and evaluation of whole product.

We used www.stellasurveys.com to target and collect data from people in order to meet the audience's demands in terms of their interest of horror films. This was to ensure we met the criteria and produced a successful teaser trailer.