Horror Film Conventions

I have previously mention that I would like the music video to have that 'trashy', conventional horror film feel too it, with all the key buzz lines that are used in all horror films, to help set the scene of the parody, none serious feel to my video.Below is a Slideshare I found explaining that the codes and conventions of horror films.

Horror Genre Conventions from CallumCarmichael

You can see the conventional location for horror films are quiet, excluded abandoned areas of isolation, where no one would hear the characters scream. I do intend to film my music video in a very quiet excluded place as previously stated.

In terms of the low and high camera angles I intend to use them, but mainly mixed in with he POT t camera angles. I will use these shots when giving the feel of seeing the band from the audiences eyes looking at the zombies and visa verse, particularly when the zombies a killing two of the band members. I will not be using the high and low angle shots in the penultimate scene, when the last band member is hiding up high, as the zombies will be looking up at the member, making them look like the weaker characters, however they will be the more powerful characters as they ultimately win, and kill the whole band.

The lighting will represent the whole feel of the location and theme to the music video, it will be low lit and have a dystopian feel to it. If I do decide to film in the pub they normally play in, there are stage lights that we might have access to to help create the right lighting.

There wont really be any conventional props, as the weapons will be the bands musical instruments and like most zombies, they wont have any weapons themselves.

The opening to the film 'Scream' has all the sterotypical conventions of a horror film in terms of everything I previous discussed but also convention lines and buzz dialogue.

Although the narrative of the film is very different to that of what my music video will be, you can see the clear conventions in this opening scheme.



The scene is set very clearly, a teenage girl home alone, a weird guy stalking her and shots like the gas cooker lighting to create tension with the audience, and creates a risky environment, leaving the audience ready for the character to die or get injured. There is a lot of silence in the opening scene, and when there is music, it is tension building string instruments which again builds that tension. After the door bell rings and the character shouts who is there, the stalker on the phone even says, 'you should never say whose there, dont you watch scary movies, its a death wish.  you might as well come out here to investigate a strange noise or something', they are drawing attention to the conventions of horror films. Conventions my film will follow. The memeber of the band does go out to investigate what the noise is, and ask, whose there? so meeting those conventions in such an obvious way it makes it parody-like.