Reflective Horror Sequence Analysis

When we were deciding the 'storyline' for the film, I eventually came up with the idea of a serial killer with a mask on roaming around the college. I did say that the killer could stalk particular student's to make it more effective; but the person I was picturing to be the serial killer didn't actually want to be the killer. However, the idea of the serial killer being in the school did get put down for the main idea. Our audience was aimed at teenagers aged 15 and over.

When we were filming, I felt like I was the only one who was being positive and it was slightly off putting for myself although I didn't stop trying to be positive. We took it in turns to film as the first shot was of the schools sign and entrance. We did this to set the scene for the audience. The shots then continue into the school, and then fades into black.

The next shot is a close up of the killer moving towards the camera and past it. The camera then cuts to two teenagers, which shows us the film sequence is indeed set in a college. The two teenagers are made to look as if they are running from someone, possibly away from the serial killer. My critique for this shot was that, as I was in the clip I tried to be positive and acted like I was actually being chased and my group member I was with didn't quite act like he was being chased.

The next shot was of a door closing at the top of the stairs. This was made to make the viewers feel tense as to who made the door close. The shot is a medium to long shot. After that there is a shot of people walking towards and past the camera. This is another way of showing that we're in a college. It can also make the viewers feel tense as to what's going to happen to the other college students. The camera then flashes to white and fades out to a new scene.

In the next shot we see a hallway which leads to some stairs, which is panned up the stairs. I did this shot to make the viewers question if the killer is up there or not. I then recorded my shadows walking past the wall to be the killers shadow walking past. This was also to make it a bit more tense. I then walked around outside where there were bushes, making it feel like someone was going to pop out. As nobody did I particularly focused on a bench that was old and broken slightly, this was to represent loneliness and solitude.

The next thing I filmed was a spiral staircase that had a door open at the top. I thought that it would make a good ending to the sequence as the mystery is yet to be solved. I used the lighting in the area as well to my advantage because it is low-key lighting and low-key lighting doesn't make you feel as safe as high-key lighting.

Throughout the project, I felt like it was me doing everything myself as the others wouldn't help as much as I would've liked them to. One of them did more than the other but only a bit. I felt like I was doing it on my own, like it was mostly me who was filming, coming up with the idea, bringing what I could to make a mask & editing and embedding the film on my own and on my own youtube channel.

The Shining - Analysis

 In this scene the boy Danny, riding around on his bike, it starts from a long shot of Danny riding down a hallway. The camera is in a darker area to where Danny is, which can give a sense of insecurity. When he turns around the corner the music gets louder, this is to give the effect of getting people on the edge of their seats as they feel like somethings going to happen to Danny. Danny is also wearing red and the bike is partially red as well and the colour red connotes to danger and blood. The camera then tracks the boy as he rides down another hallway and then turns around the corner. As he stops the camera stops as well, and we see two doll-like girls holding hands as illustrated above. The camera cuts to a close up of Danny and then back to the back of Danny. They start talking to him by saying, "Hello Danny." in unison and they drag out the word 'hello'. The non diegetic sound starts to go quiet after they say that. This could emphasize that something is going to happen. The camera cuts back to Danny who is looking very fearful at this point, but in a way everyone would if someone you haven't met already knows your name. His breathing is more frequent as they start talking again saying, "Come play with us." The non diegetic sound then goes louder for about 5 seconds and then it gets louder by adding a gong-like sound to the non-diegetic sound. The camera then cuts back to the long shot of the girls and Danny's back which the non-digetic sound being drawn out. They repeat, "Come play with us Danny."

The non-diegetic then kicks back in accompanying a cut to the girls on the floor covered in blood. The blood is on the walls and there's also an axe in the picture. The axe could be the murder weapon as it is covered in blood. The axe also foreshadows what is going to happen later in the film as Danny's dad uses an axe to try to kill Danny and Danny's mother. As I said earlier, Danny is riding a bike that has red on it and is wearing red could be the meaning of the reason he is seeing the girls, as red connotes to blood and danger. They start saying "forever and ever." In between shots of this and how Danny first saw them in the hallway. The shots are quick and sharp which creates a sense of tension. The camera then cuts to Danny who is really scared, and then cuts back to the girls who are closer to the camera this time as the camera has moved closer to them. They keep repeating "And ever" which could emphasize that because they died a horrible death then they could be wanting Danny to die the same way they did. However, as they did do repeat the words "and ever." The camera gets a closer shot of them until the 3rd shot which is Danny covering his eyes in a close up. Afterwards, he peeks out of them and he sees nothing and there was no sign of the girls. This could suggest that they are in fact, ghosts or figures of his imagination.

In this scene it's shortly afterwards Danny writes 'redrum' on the door his dad is indeed breaking down with the axe. 'Redrum' spelled backwards is 'Murder' which could suggest that a murder had already happened in the bathroom as it is a bathroom and the bathroom is where the old woman was. This could mean the film is always foreshadowing the things that are going to happen, as the axe in the scene with the girls is what killed them, so the dad intends to kill his family with an axe as well. Then the bathroom scene with the woman could be where she died and now because his wife is in the bathroom he intends to kill her there too. The non-diegetic sound also kicks in here as well as it creates the feeling of tension because it makes me feel that the wife is going to die, and that he is going to kill them both. Also the way she is screaming at the dad is ear piercing and suggests that she is terrified of her husband at that moment, it also suggests that a murder is going to happen in the bathroom.

In this camera shot it is a close up of him saying, "Here's Johnny." This is him imitating Ed McMahons introduction of Johnny Carson. Afterwards, he moves back to open the door and his wife cuts his hand in defence and the blood splats onto the door as well. He moves away holding his hand yelling in pain. The lighting is high-key lighting which would usually make us feel safe. This contrasts with the non-diegetic sound and the screaming of his wife. The shot then cuts to an over-the-shoulder shot as we're in a completely different scene because the guy who was showing them around at the start is on his way over. The lighting in this shot is low-key lighting with only the car lights being the brightest. The sound then turns diegetic as the characters can hear the car pulling up to the hotel. As it does, jack turns around to stop. The shot being a mid shot because the shot is no longer than the waist. The non-diegetic stops when they hear the car and the sound turns completely to the Diegetic sound. The next shot is Danny running towards the camera as the camera tracks him backwards. When Danny stops the shot is a mid-shot. The lighting in this shot is high-key lighting as it is well lit, the sound is diegetic because you can just hear Danny's footsteps which he would be able to hear as well. The next shot is Danny hiding in the cupboard as it is a close up. The lighting is low key as it is a confined space. All these shots, scenes and different lightings can all go to the Horror Genre, because there's blood and other horror conventions as well like the axe acting as the murder weapon.