2. CHANGES TO THE NARRATIVE
There has been a number of changes to the narrative as the project has
progressed. Largely, this is due to the increased amount of horror films that
I have watched, and has therefore provided me with a greater
understanding of what makes an effective supernatural horror. These are
some of the changes made to the narrative:
1. At the end, Joel and Kerrie become fully possessed by the devil, with the
final shot of the film consisting of them standing perfectly still, facing the
camera, until the camera swerves to show what they are seeing,
whereupon a figure in the darkness will be seen twitching against a wall. I
have changed this because many of the target audience, questioned by my
questionnaire, dislike the convention of one character surviving until the
very end. This more ambiguous ending is therefore more likely to suit their
needs, as well as creating a more unique conclusion to the film.
2, A greater emphasis will be placed on the importance of sleep, and how
each sleep is fraught with nightmares created by the devil that will appear
real to the audience – so they never can be too sure when Joel or Kerrie
are really awake. After rewatching a Nightmare on Elm Street, I realised
how the dreamworld is rarely covered within horror films, and sought to
rectify this within ‘The Basement’ by creating a sense of ethereality to the
narrative.
3. CHANGES TO THE TRAILER
Several key changes
have been made to
the trailer. The
previous idea for the
trailer narrative was
too conventional to
fit the premise of
the film, and this
has been sufficiently
altered. Instead of
the first 30 seconds
using an upbeat
melody and focusing
on character
introductions, the
tension will be built
right from the
beginning. This will
be achieved by using
a greater amount of
static establishing
shots, each of which
will be punctuated
this, a few more ‘scares’
will be added on to the
scares already addressed
in the storyboard and
previous narrative outline.
In order to create
symbiosis with the poster
and front cover, a scene
depicting a wall running
down with blood will
hopefully be utilised, and
there will be greater
emphasis on creating vivid
imagery like this. There will
be next to no dialogue in
the trailer, as I hope to
mirror the complex
narrative through visuals
and sound effects alone. If
this is successful in a way
that emulates The Woman
in Black trailer, I feel that
the trailer will be much
4. POSTER AND FRONT COVER
CHANGES
Very little has been changed in regard to the initial ideas for the poster and front cover. Idea 3,
regarding the bleeding wall, still remains unchanged for the poster, as it is unique and effective in
consolidating the subgenre while hinting at the film’s ambiguity. With the front cover, however, one of
the antagonists will be chosen to be in the main image, dragging an unconscious Joel across the
floor. This is a way to combine one of the scarier ghosts within the film with an interesting human
character, adding a greater element of depth to the film and enticing more of the target audience to
watch it. In all other areas, however, the front cover will remain the same – with a masthead placed
vertically down the side and a jumbled layout similar to Fangoria.
