2. Night Night Nancy
This short film follows all the
typical codes and conventions
in a horror film. I felt that all of
the micro-elements used to
construct the enigma codes
that surround the genre of
horror are all followed and
challenged throughout this
short film.
3. Camera Angles/Composition - The camera
angles used throughout this short film reflect
those of typical camera angles in a short
film, for example, many close up shots are
used to demonstrate the protagonists
emotions and add a sense of ambiguity as
to what else is happening in the rest of the
setting. POV shots are also used throughout
to allow the audience to relate with the
protagonist and engage the audience
further.
4. Lighting - The lighting used throughout
this short film is consistently low-key until
the very end adding emphasis and making
the ending scary. This engages the
audience as a common fear is the fear of
the dark and so by turning the light on in
the bathroom it engages the audience as
they anticipate what's been lurking in the
dark.
5. Diegetic and Non-Diegetic Sound - The sounds used
throughout the short film follow all of the typical codes and
conventions used to build horror, suspense and tension. For
example, Night Night Nancy features a lot of ambient sounds
as well as sharp music building tension. The short film also
features fast paced music which mimics heart-beating and
has an identifying affect on the audience as they engage
further with the narrative. Diegetic sounds such as breathing,
crying and her ringtone are also used to build suspense and
allows Nancy to communicate to the audience without words
which intrigues the audience.
6. Mise-en-Scene - Props are commonly used in horror
films such as knives, masks, dolls, photographs and
blood to create fear in the audience and this short film
does exactly that. The villain is seen carrying a knife
and wearing a mask which makes it appear scarier to
the audience due to the fear of the unknown. The
setting is also identifiable as it is Nancy's house which
makes the audience fearful of their own houses, for
example if the setting was in a circus then only a niche
audience would find it identifiable as not everyone visits
the circus.
7. Editing - The short film begins with log duration shots
to introduce the character and set the scene for the
short film. The use of the text messages being
displayed over the shot allows the audience to engage
with the narrative and the girls boyfriend even though
we don't actually meet him until the end. As the
narrative continues, the short duration decreases and
more jump cuts are included to add a sense of
suspense and build tension. The montage of shots
almost compresses time and builds tension for the
audience
