This document provides guidance on effective camera techniques, editing, sound, and mise-en-scene elements for a horror film trailer. It recommends using extreme close-ups, establishing shots, distorted angles, and tracking shots to create mystery. Quick cuts and a lack of resolution are suggested to maintain suspense. Both diegetic and non-diegetic sounds should be used to build tension. Low-key lighting, isolated locations, and symbolic props and costumes can further disorient viewers and hint at danger, leaving them wanting more information.
2. Camera Shot Angles, Distances and
Movements.
We identified the most common effectively used camera techniques in horror film trailers as
being:
•Extreme Close Up’s of characters faces and features like hands and feet, or eyes and mouths.
This allows the audience to relate to the characters emotion or actions in the trailer, focusing on
one part of the body creates enigma because we have a limited view of what is happening.
•Establishing shots of the characters surroundings like a field or a forest also create enigma
because of the isolation. This allows the audience to relate to the characters emotions of fear
when the tension builds up later on in the trailer. They also use pans of settings to increase this
sense of isolation.
•Cantered angles create a distorted image in which the audience can only see part of what is
happening or because its at a cantered angles it is hard to see what is going on, this creates
enigma with in the trailer.
•Tracking shots are used to create a “peeping tom” atmosphere, this creates enigma because it
allows the audience to view from the on-lookers perspective and gives a perception that the
character is being followed. This is even more effective when the tracking shot is hand held.
•Extreme high and extreme low angles are used to create ideas of power and status, this allows
the audience to create perceptions of victims and villains. This also increase tension and enigma
because of the distorted image. This is even more effective when used in over shoulder shots
and midshots of characters faces because of the distorted image.
3. My Horror Trailer
To establish the location in which the action takes place within our horror trailer we will use
establishing shots and pans of the surroundings like a long shot pan of the road that the villain
and victim both live on and meet on and a long shot pan of the woods in which the action takes
place in.
We will make our villain seem imposing in our trailer by the way we film him, you never quite
see his face which creates enigma, we see his feet walking, we see the back of his head, and we
see his face at very high and low angles in very dark lighting, because of this and the added fact
he wears a bowler hat, you never quite see all of his face. This means that there is a sense of
mystery and menace towards the villain creating enigma.
We will make out victim seem weak and venerable because she is a teenager there is sense of
childhood about her, also the type of angles we use, like high angles to give the perception that
she is little and small, create a weak and little view of her. In contrast to the low angles of the
villain this will impose a sense of danger.
We will ensure that the audience is able to identify the stock character types in our film because
of the clothes, gender, age and lighting. For example the victim will be young, teenager, modern
clothes, female and well lit, and the villain will be older, bulky clothes, male and low key lighting.
Female teenagers in particular are stock victims in horror films. Male characters are usually
portrayed as villains, because our horror trailer is a psycho sub genre of horror movies, we have
used the character of an alternative ego which is a child this is also a stock character as it has
the connotations of innocence and purity and this is in contrasts to the characters purpose in
the trailer which is evil and vindictive. (Binary Opposites – Levi Strauss)
4. We will create disorientation with in our trailer by the camera techniques and editing
techniques in our trailer. for example, hand held tracking shots, the shakiness of the
footage is effective in creating a disorientating image, also with in editing our trailer quick
short snap shots of action also create disorientation because of the snap shots that the
audience get.
Our trailer is from the villains perspective and we show this through the camera shots,
like over shoulder shots looking at victim, and the tracking shots of victim. The use of the
female villain there is also an aspect of male gaze in our trailer, which is stereotypical of
horror trailers, not just because of the female character and the shots of her, like the
tracking shot of her, but because there is an aspect of the victim having no perspective
in the trailer, it is from the male villains perspective.
5. Editing and Transitions
The pace of our horror trailer is quick and short snap shots of actions, this creates
distortion and confusion which creates enigma in the trailer for the audience. this effect
on the audience creates suspense and tension which is ideal and effective in horror
trailers.
When assembling our footage we have thought about narrative structure and we have
decided to use Todorov’s theory of equilibrium then disequilibrium and then resolution,
however because we are creating a film trailer there will be no resolution because this
would ruin the enigma created in the rest of the trailer through equilibrium and
disequilibrium to create meaning and the audience would not go and view it because the
audience e already knows the ending.
In our editing we have created eye line matches, graphic matches, cross cutting, fading
to black, text and cut away action matches. This is all to create enigma and meaning to
our horror trailer so that it is effective in drawing the audience in and creating tension
and fear so that the enigma is effective enough that they will want to see the film. (like
real horror trailers)
6. Sound
We will use diegetic and non-diegetic sound in our horror trailer, for example we will use
diegetic sound like heavy breathing and screaming to create fear and we will use
non-diegetic sound like heart beat and music to create tension in our trailer.
We may use a small clip of a sound track whenever our villain is on screen to create
tension as the audience will relate this sound to danger this creates enigma.
The volume of the sound on screen may very because the desired effect, the non-
diegetic sound of music may be quite low in establishing shots but then may get louder
as the action gets quicker to create tension and suspense.
We will also use a sound bridge at the end of the trailer, of the victims scream, to create
enigma from the action scene into the film title at the end this finalises the trailer and
creates fear and tension.
7. Mise-en scene
In our trailer we have used props such as 2 dolls for a graphic match to foreshadow
events in the film we have also used an i-pod, a water bottle in the action scene to drop
to the floor to create suspense.
We have thought about costumes for the characters, for the villain and his alter ego we
have used a black jacket and a bowler hat to signify that they are the same character,
we also have used the for the victim quite tight fighting jogging clothes this creates a
male gaze perspective and keep in theme with other horror trailers of sexualising
women.
When lighting our trailer we have used low key lighting to depict the disequilibrium this is
effective because it creates a distorted image and creates enigma through the
disorientation. We have also used strobe lighting at the end of our trailer this also
creates a distorted image and creates fear and tension therefore creating suspense in
the trailer which is effective at the end to finalise the trailer. Most of the action scenes
arte shot at night this also creates an enigma. “being out after dark”
When thinking about locations we decided to use a quiet and secluded residential area
and a house for the equilibrium for the feeling of safety and security but still; isolated,
when thinking about disequilibrium we chose to use a Forrest to create a sense of
isolation and fear in the audience.
Our iconography in the trailer is the bowler hat because it hides the face of the villain it
creates a sense of enigma. We do not use a weapon because it’s a psychological horror
we only hint at violence as this is more effective and conventional.
8. We also thought about symbolic meaning in our horror trailer, the bowler hat is quite old
fashioned and this hints at control of women by men historically, and because he is
“masked” creates enigma. Also the dark hints at danger and fear of night time and is
used a symbol of death.
