Synopsis 2nd Draft

On a small estate in Manchester lives poor old Anna, a loner who’s been rejected by most. There is nothing wrong with her, she is just lonely, until a young man named Cole moves in across the street. Isolated, lonely, rejected, Cole and Anna were made for each other. Anna gets to know Cole and their relationship develops into the possibility of something more. However, one night Anna hears a noise from Cole’s house and a lot of banging, she goes to check on him Anna cannot find him, and no one else can either. As suspicions rise and Anna becomes determined to know what happened, a dark figure starts to haunt her in her daily life. The dark figure doesn’t do anything but stand there and watch her, getting closer and closer as she frantically searches for clues of Cole’s disappearance. The police won’t help her; she’s a suspect, why would they help her. Anna becomes paranoid; to the extent she locks herself in the house. But what was that noise upstairs?

Story Board Example - Insidious

 This is an example of a storyboard for the following clip from the film Insidious

Chosen Sequence

I have decided to chose a scene from the dis-equilibrium part of the narrative. In the sequence Anna is walking down a dark path on her way home from work when she feels as if someone is watching her. She hears noises all around her and doesn't see the dark figure behind her but the audience do. She then continues to walk home and starts to walk faster as noises seem to get louder and closer, all the while the audience keep seeing the dark figure getting closer and closer to her. She finally reaches the house and gets inside, knowing there shouldn't be anyone in but when she locks the door, she hears noises upstairs. She goes up to look and doesn't see anything but then hears someone walking up the stairs so she hides in a cupboard with only a small hole to see through (which is all the audience can see through). She sees the dark figure walk up the stairs and walk past the room she is in and straight into the room next to it. She comes out of the cupboard and sneaks down the stairs all the while the dark figure is in the background staring at her when she doesn't know. She runs to the door and tries to open it but drops the keys, causing a loud noise. Then she looks up at the ceiling and hears a loud panting and grunting getting louder and louder before a loud deep scream form upstairs. She picks up the keys and frantically tries to open the door while the audience can hear a loud banging as someone comes down the stairs and bursts into the room behind her. She opens the door, slamming it behind her and locking it but the dark figure just stands there at the back of the room staring at her as she runs away. That is when the sequence ends.

I have chosen this sequence because it is the fist time when Anna realizes that the dark figure she is seeing is real and that it can get to. This is what triggers her intent to try and find out what happened to Cole. I also chose it because it would allow for more creative cinematography and editing to enhance the far and other emotions. For example when the dark figure is shown the camera could dolly-zoom and tilt to give a sense of madness and that he is getting closer to her.

Synopsis Draft 1

The film is a horror set in a normal housing estate at night and features a young girl Anna (21), an average girl who doesn't really fit into any individual group but doesn't stick out from a crowd. The only person she is really close to is a boy named Cole (21) who has recently moved in a house near Anna. The narrative opens with Anna getting to know Cole and their relationship starting to develop. This all stops however as Cole goes missing one night as Cole and Anna are walking home together and no one knows where he is. After he has disappeared, Anna starts to feel as if someone is watching her as she goes about her daily life, she sees dark figures in the distance, faces in the windows of her house and feels as if someone is watching her while she sleeps. This is all while she is trying to find out where Cole is and how he disappeared as the police don't seem to cooperate with her, as she is a suspect. This reaches it's peak when Anna is so scared of leaving the house she locks herself in, but then she hears someone walking around upstairs. The narrative ends when the police find a letter in Coles room and find that Cole isn't missing and is stalking Anna but when they find Anna she is dead in her room, along-side Coles body. This film is mainly aimed at the teenage/ young adult market because they are the people who are most likely to see a horror film but the subtle horror style and narative type might attract a higher age range and wider demographic aswell because it may appeal to them.

Development of characters

The characters in my film would have to fit in with one of the Propian Character Types to make their roles in the film be visible and make the narrative fit the conventions of a horror and what those types of characters conventionally do. For example  The Dispatcher must set the the hero their quest and must be the one to make hem do it.

Ideal Casting

 Elizabeth Olsen (hero/victim) 

Elizabeth Olsen

For the hero of the narrative i would get Elizabeth Olsen for the role. This is because of her role in the fil Silent House, a remake of the Uraguyian film of the same name. In this film she had to play a hero and a false hero at the same time because she first seems like the victim in the narrative but then the villain  then the victim again and she achieves this transition seamlessly through her great acting. I would chose her because she plays her characters realistically because in many horror films the victims seem to have no sense and walk right into a trap, Olsen doesn't play characters like this so the audience will expect her to have sense and will create shock when she still can't get away from something that is after her.

Jack Reynor (villain)

For the villain of the narrative i would ideally have Jack Reynor. I chose him because he played a role in the film What Richard Did were he plays Richard who is a privileged rich boy who's entire life is changed by one act of violence. His role in this made him seem like the victim who had something to hide and he performed that role very well and he doesn't over do it. I think he would be good at playing the role in my film of someone who looks innocent at first but then has something to dark to hide. Also, The fact he looks innocent might provide contradictions of what a dark villain should look like, which could create shock when his identity is revealed and his actions are explained.

Narrative structure

Structure ; I think i will use the todorov narrative structure because i believe that it focused more on what goes wrong which is similar to what horror films focus on and i will suit the way conventional horror narrative. Also it could follow the Binary Opposition theory because the 'light v dark' story-line is the mostly used in horror films and is sometimes the literal story-line with something dark against something light. This will make the film suit the genre and make it recognizable as a horror film but it can't be too conventional as it will be bland and it needs something unexpected to happen to make the narrative just as interesting as the events of the film, which isn't usually the case in horror films

Story Type ; I think the 'spider and the fly' plot would be suitable for the genre as it involves a victim and a villain that is very dangerous and isn't easily stopped by the victim. This would be a suitable type because of a lack of budget which means only a simple villain can be made, this means a sinister and hidden villain would be a more realistic option. This could be more effective as it could make the villain seem more realistic and domestic. 

Example ; An example of this format would be the paranormal activity series as it has the protagonists being trapped with the anatagonist and shows that they can't stop or get get away from it. Also, it fits the 'spider and the fly' story type because it shows the protagonists; Micah and Katie, as victims rather than heroes which makes them seem more vulnerable and the the ghost/haunting seem more powerful and dominant.

Examples of Horror Films

Mama (original short with interview with Guillermo Del Toro)

This two minute indie short from Spain captures the claustrophobia and panic of a domestic horror while also being supernatural and creepy with the warped mother figure that is the focus of the short. This is currently being made into a feature length film and is being produced by Guillermo Del Toro who is famous for Pan's Labyrinth and other twisted films. This is a good example of a horror film because although it was very short and doesn't really feature much action, the domestic an claustrophobic setting makes this a very creepy and tense short film. The one shot technique where the there is no editing, makes the tension build up because the lack of editing loses the disconnect from the events on the screen and creates tension. 

REC

REC is a Spanish cult horror film from 2007. This is a good example of a horror film because the use of a story but the fact it isn't obvious at first glance, makes the events seem more believable and focused on the characters and their experiences. Also, the use of a found-footage format puts the audience in the action so when something runs at the screen - it runs at the audience which makes the horror seem more personal. This can sometimes be a negative in a film because it is used as a gimmick but in REC makes the format seem natural and the fact they are news-reporters makes the use believable. Furthermore, the use of mise-en-scene in the character design creates terrifying monsters which shock the audience and are genuinely scary without going over-the-top and seeming un-realistic. This film has some of the scariest scenes in film history but they only work in context with the rest of the film which makes the whole film work and become enjoyable. 

28 Days Later

28 Days later is a British horror film from Danny Boyle. This is a very good example of a horror film because it uses a variety of stylistics which create a sense of panic and madness with the zombies in the film. Also the first use of running zombies breaks the conventions of the zombie film genre and makes the zombies seem much more terrifying. Furthermore, the film doesn't just have zombies as the antagonists, the use of people as the main antagonists shows an in-depth criticism of human nature and shows people as just as bad as the zombies they are fighting. This makes the characters look more vulnerable and in more danger, creating tension. The film was made on a low budget using basic cameras, this made the quality of the film look more like the news because of the grainy style. This makes it seem more surreal and realistic at the time, creating fear in the audience.

Iconography - Horror

Horror rely's on the use of iconography to create a response in the audience and enables fear or tension through the recognition of these objects or settings. For example a domestic setting is used is to create verisimilitude and to make the events seem more plausible even though the events are supernatural and not real, this creates a sense of insecurity and makes the audience scared and leaves a lasting effect on them. Horror mainly uses supernatural iconography to make the antagonist in the film seem more scary because of the fact we don't know anything about them or what they are capable of, creating fear and suspense in the audience. The iconography also includes human-like figures. This is because we find warped versions of ourselves scarier than something that is completely unrecognizable and un-relate-able . This means the audience can create emotion for them whether its compassion or fear. 

Genre choice

I have chosen the genre of horror to focus on for my creative project. I have chosen this because I believe that the horror genre allows for more creative film making and allows for more subtle choices to create an effect. Films like the Rec series or the paranormal activity series are examples of how simple effects and choices can create a substantial effect, for example the use of the found footage format were the action is shown through the view of a hand held camera used by a character, creates the effect of drawing in the audience and enhancing the fear of the events by making the audience feel more involved and less safe. I believe the choice to use the horror genre will allow me to use more unconventional techniques but will also provide a lot of examples of how very different styles of film making can create different results.

Aims and Context

Devoid - Aims and context

British Horror thriller with 'noir-ish' features
Extract of a film - takes place in at the starts of the last act of the film
Key demographic - Late teens and young adults (15-25) who are interested in horror and thrillers, not basic audience but people who are sort of interested in film
Keys stylistics - Performance and cinematography