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2. INITIAL REACTION
For this project I would like to do something based upon the film industry as that is the level of
field that I am most passionate about. I have many different focuses on where my head is at
for what I want to do.
I would like to do a documentary style exploring the dark secrets of the film industry. Going
through the powerful secret cults like the illuminati and the celebrities behind them. Along
with the evidence that they are.
I would however also like to do something a little more useful and educational to young
filmmakers. Whilst I am that myself. To have an opiniated documentary. Taking point of a
genre and focusing on what era it was at it’s most pinnacle. As well as talking about the
techniques that were applied and why they were so beneficial at the time.
Along with this a lot of what I have been doing over the summer is looking at some director's
trademarks and what makes there film look like they had directed it. With Tarantino it’s his
in-universe products and car boot shot's that make it seem like he has made it.. It think this
would be very educational to people that are taking directing or anything like that seriously.
It will give them example on how they could make the film their own . As well as examples
upon good story telling

3. MIND MAP: INITIAL IDEAS

4. MIND MAP: MAIN IDEAS

5. JAMES WAN
James wan is a Malaysian-born Australian producer, screenwriter, and film director
of Chinese heritage. He is also the co creator of the horror SAW. The film franchise
which is one of the highest grossing franchise in the world.
In 2003 James Wan and his friend Leigh Whannell started making the plans for
the SAW film. With a small cheap budget film and yet big ideas. They created their
first 15 minute short student film. Which adapted into a $55 million dollar grossing
in the next year. Because the short film was so cheap to begin with Whannell
decided to star in the short film. His performance being so successful that they kept
for the first film. This film was such as success that it created it’s own genre which
was often labelled as ‘torture porn’.
In 2014 he had created his own film production's which was called Atomic movie
productions. Found at new line cinema which began releasing films under his
banner starting off with ‘the conjuring 2’. James wan is an established yet varied
director. His main genre that his work mostly commonly delves into is horror but
has also done non horror projects such as 2016’s ‘Aquaman’. You can argue that
he quite successful when it comes to non horror. With Fat and furious 7 being his
most financially successful film topping up to $350.8M in the box office. James
Wan has come so far from making student films with big dreams to becoming the
first Asian director to have two films making a billion dollars in the box office.

6. QUESTIONS THAT I SHOULD USE IN THE ESSAY
• What are the negatives to making horror films?
• Why directors must be critical of their own work?
• Has originality been a success or a failure in the film industry?
• How much character development is needed for a good portrayal to come through?
• What pointers should be taken when making a horror film/
• Should the villains relating to the audience emotionally be a good idea?
• Should grossing's be taken into account if reviews are bad?
• What direction are horror films going now?
• Is non-linear storytelling confusing to an audience?
Final official question:
• Why classic horror films are so successful and yet still underrated?

7. QUOTES
• “We think craft is important, and the irony
has always been that horror may be
disregarded by critics, but often they are
the best-made movies you're going to find
in terms of craft. You can't scare people if
they see the seams. Not many people
realize this, but I'm a really squeamish
guy.”
• “It’s pretty scary to know how
quickly time flies.”
• “Whether it's a popcorn
movie or some really
intellectual sociopolitical
movie, I think to some
degree they're all
influenced by the social
climate that we're living in.”
• “I guess I have a fascination with the
idea of puppeteering. I think, in a lot of
ways, directing is puppeteering. I guess
I see a lot of analogies between what
puppeteers and filmmakers do.”
• “The Conjuring' was a massive
success, and honestly, it set the
bar quite high. So I was nervous
about making the sequel, and I
wasn't sure if it will still have the
same impact as the first one did.
But that's what moved me to make
the sequel.”
• “I've always said if I had to
pinpoint what's more important
in a scary movie, the
soundscape or the visuals, I'd
pick the sound.’

8. PUBLIC RESPONSE TO HORROR FILMS (JAMES
WAN’S FILMS IN PARTICULAR)
A lot of his films have mixed reviews from the public. It differentiates
depending on the franchise of the film that he has
wrote/produced/directed. ‘The conjuring’ series despite on releasing
two films have received more positive and less backlash than the
SAW franchise. This being because the saw franchise is a lot more
gruesome. Something which many critics can’t stomach and as a
result refuse to watch the films. Whether on the conjuring case it
relies on jump scares and other elements. Something which many
critics say is the pinnacle of horror. Critics' have of course also
commented on his range as a director. With Annabelle Wallis
commenting on his style being very original, brave and genre
bending. This can cause several negative comment as well because
the director is taking the risk of creating something new. This will be
done even if the thing that he has created has been a success.

9. CLASSIC HORROR FILM TECHNIQUES
Quick cuts –
Not just James wan’s films that have been successful modern classics. Films like ‘IT’ and ‘pet cemetery’ have been successful for employing
classical techniques too. The quick cut is having a shot that only last's up to three seconds which gets used a lot in horror. The only
problem is that it has fallen into the stereotype of horror. So is shown a lot less in modern horror,
Underexposure lighting –
The thing with a lot of classic horror films is the technology wasn’t as advanced back then. Meaning lighting and other things. This means that
not everything was captured on the screen. Already this makes the audience be a lot more engaging to what’s happening on the screen.
Tight framing –
Now this point all depends on the era that it is being made . The camera’s in the 50’s or 60’s were shot on super 8 film camera and other
equipment but from there on technology started to become more advanced. When they are filming on these camera the lens isn't that wide.
So it won't be able to pick everything up. This can confusion but can also cause mystery.
More character depth with the villains –
Characters appear to be more in tune with everything in the classical films. Build up is good when presenting something so scary but there's a
lot of mystery behind the villainous archetypes in horror films. The film is never told from the perspective of the villain/antagonist in horror.
Especially when it's a monster or creature like Freddie Kruger or Jason Vorhees but the problem is the villains are shown a lot less in
modern horror and relies more on the scare that they might be there.
Less uses of gore –
In a lot of classic horror’s there's not so much blood. For example the Dracula films were a massive hit back in the 1950’s. It was there use’s of
storytelling and plot that made the audience want to look away. Not the overuse of blood. This can be cleaver done even speaking from the
past tense. If someone is telling a very creepy story. It’s engaging but there’s not any flashbacks then that’s fine. It all depends on how
engaging it is and how well it’s presented.

10. JAMES WAN FILM TECHNIQUES
Scare factors:
Half seen ghosts
Haunted heroes
Creepy puppets
Self moving objects
Bluish tones
Shades of red
Frequent actors being brought in like Patrick Wilson and Leigh Whannell
He also has a clever technique of taking classic horror and turning it on it’s
head. Giving the classic approach but turning it into something more
modern

11. RESEARCH : EXISTING PRODUCTS
Why are classic horror movie still popular/ Universal monsters modern
perspective by den of antiques
Link
Though it doesn’t mention the director James wan. It does reference in a technique that
he applies to his horror film. For example using the same actor for different films that
he has directed. This video is going back to 1930’s horror where those villains now
have been made into comedies through children’s cartoons. For example Dracula
being used in ’hotel translyvania’. This was because horror still pretty new back then
and the budget wasn’t awfully too big like it is today but for films back then they did
well at attracting the audience. One major thing that a lot of modern movies miss out
on unlike the classics. Is the vulnerable side of the villain. Each different villain is
presented with a fear that almost justifies their actions and makes the film more
interesting . For Frankenstein it’s being alone. For the invisible man t’s about fitting
into society. They all have a lot more emotional depth as opposed to just being there
to be frightening. A majority of the audience maybe able to relate to them. Subtle
references of loneliness are in ‘Frankenstein’. Fantasy was a lot more of a bigger
element back then. There were monsters, vampires and werewolf but now modern
horror’s main focus is just poltergeists. Whilst this isn’t a huge problem because
things die out and the audience find something else a lot more scarier. It would be
interesting if there was a film that would reach on the box office.

12. RESEARCH: EXISTING PRODUCTS
The problem with horror movies today by Chris Stuckmann
Link:
The first thing this video picks up upon is the tension that a horror film can have when there
is no background music there to disrupt the scene. The viewer can feel a lot more
engaged when the upbeat music isn’t heard in the background. He uses statistics and
facts in horror films grossing's that show how far. Not just horror but the film industry
has gone. The profits of a lot of films have gone to ridiculous amounts in the past 20
years. For example ‘the Blair witch project’ has spawned a new found footage genre.
This all started off with student project being filmed and then to have it adapted as the
beginner to a whole new genre is brilliant. The budget for this film was $60,000 and
the grossing was $248 million. This video focuses on how much money modern horror
films are making. The people who produce the films won’t care if they are good or not.
They only care about how much money they are making and they will stop doing
sequels once they have run out of that. A lot goes into marketing in this video. The
points that are being made are true. Marketing can be a bit of a let down these days.
When the product is sold to look good but the audience don’t like it when they go to
see the product in it’s in entirety. Then that could lead to a major disappointment to the
viewers of the film and can lead to a huge increase of negative reviews. Whether it
was done the other way bad marketing/good film. Then it might not do as well in the
box office but have a legacy behind it and maybe a promise of future installments. If
you take ‘the Babadook’ for instance. The trailer looks like there will be some sort of
creature involved in the film but instead the conclusion of the film is that it’s all based
on the psychology of the mother. Whilst it does touch upon an important subject. The
trailer can be found to be rather misleading.

13. RESEARCH: EXISTING PRODUCTS
How James Wan scares you! By Mr Nerdista
Link:
This analysis video is good for it’s comparisons. Using Jack Nicholson's performance in “the
shining to compare it to the character Josh in ‘insidious’ and using that resemblance in the
sequels too. This video also shows how James wan doesn’t follow the trend having a jump
scare that falls flat. He relies on the characters and the suspension. It is at the scene where the
actor/actress is giving off there best performance. The fact that he is able to let the audience
know that the scare is approaching and it still scares you. You need the tension to be placed
before hand in the scene in order for it to settle into the viewer’s mind. As opposed to something
just happening for the flash of a second. In wan’s case for his films. There's a continuity pattern
of before there being a jump scare. There’s silence. This is a buildup that works well as there’s
no scary music to take you out of the scene. Not even through music but through action too. For
example most directors have creepy music and then jump scare. In wan’s case he executes it
in a good way by having no music and slow build up of action to the scare. As opposed to most
horror films having scary music and then sudden split second scare. This can be seen as
example in ’the conjuring 2’ with the valek painting scare. Another clever technique that the
video picks up upon his uses of color and cinematography. Most horror films rely on the dark
and night being the time of the day when the audience get scare. For Wan’s case he can use
the day time as the time setting on where he is letting the scare happen. For any time of the day
it can look just as creepy if has that grey tone to it. Wan also take some new approaches to his
directing. Not just taking classical elements and blending them into his own but he also plays
about with other people’s rational fear. Such as the crooked man or the fear of the darkness. It
doesn’t just focus on poltergeists which is the main subplot of a lot of James wan’s films.
There’s a lot more introduced that the viewer can be afraid of.

14. FINAL SUMMARY OLD VS NEW
Gets to see the monster too much
Bad cgi
To fast and not slow. Slow works for horror.
Independent films most popular
The original music that is played it better. Whilst this point is subjective.
There had been a lot more films winning Oscar nominations before then
there is now.
Films like modern horror classic have to be done well. A lot of them have
fallen into a stereotype of not being played out right
Stereotype examples
• Car never starting
• running and falling over
• Characters splitting up in different directions
• Scare in the mirror cliché
• Creepy children
• The killer is invincible
• Murder in the bathroom
• Dropping the keys
• Creepy dolls
• Children seeing spirits
• Warning in dreams
• Screaming for help in a secluded area
• Death of a pet
• There being no gun

15. BIBLIOGRAPHY
1.) Bloodydisgusting. (4th July 2016) James Wan is the Most Important Horror Director of the Last 20 Years – Link:
https://bloody-disgusting.com/longform/3395107/james-wan-important-horror-director/
2.) Cinemablend. (27th June 2019) Why James wan had never directed a full trilogy –
Link: https://www.cinemablend.com/news/2475726/why-james-wan-has-never-directed-a-full-trilogy
3.) IMDb. (24th December 2018) A Guide to the Films of James Wan | DIRECTORS TRADEMARKS – Link:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3l7_caLKt0Y&list=PLr3T6xfF3Dy7NnyUDt5S6riD6pbPGctu0&index=1(Acessed 15/09/20)
4.) Mr Nerdista. (29th September 2016) How James Wan Scares YOU! – Link:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RQK01Mm7M_Q
5.) Meg Hafadahl (30th April 2020) The Science of Women in Horror: The Special Effects, Stunts, and True Stories Behind
Your Favorite Fright – Link: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Science-Women-Horror-Special-
Favorite/dp/1510751742/ref=asc_df_1510751742/?tag=googshopuk-
21&linkCode=df0&hvadid=463021505964&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=17460005536827676550&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvd
ev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9046293&hvtargid=pla-908779701563&psc=1&th=1&psc=1
6.) Popcorntaxi. (6th November 2013) James Wan and Leigh Whannell: on Making Saw, Low Budgets & Selling Scripts –
Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r5m-SvhbYoQ&list=PLr3T6xfF3Dy7NnyUDt5S6riD6pbPGctu0&index=7
7.) Peoplepill. James wan – Link: https://peoplepill.com/people/james-wan
8.) The new york times. (4th June 2016) James Wan, a craftsman of creepfeast, returns with ‘The conjuring 2” – Link:
https://www.nytimes.com/2016/06/05/movies/james-wan-interview-the-conjuring-2.html#
9.) Thomas M Hipos. (1st May 2010) Horror film Aesthetics – Creating the visual language of fear –
Link: https://www.fishpond.co.uk/Books/Horror-Film-Aesthetics-Sipos-Thomas-
M/9780786449729?utm_source=googleps&utm_medium=ps&utm_campaign=GB
10.) Stephen Jones. (2015) The art of horror: an illustrated history – Link:
https://blackwells.co.uk/bookshop/product/9781495009136?gC=5a105e8b&gclid=CjwKCAjwh7H7BRBBEiwAPXjadowKS5kKpuclF3
0-L5tAyryGF8AZG7fgMX9v6qn1gwHS07eKVukG0xoCyLUQAvD_BwE