The document discusses genre conventions and the filmmaking process for a student horror film project. It describes conducting audience research to determine the target demographic of 12-17 year olds and the genres of horror, love, humor, and death they wanted. Based on this, the students chose to film at an isolated bungalow location to fit horror conventions. They considered elements of mise-en-scene like lighting, costumes, and character positioning to convey meanings and drive the plot. Specifically, they used bright lighting for happy scenes between the main characters and darker lighting when the doll was present to show its mysterious nature.

1. Genre Conventions

2. As part of the film making process we had to choose a genre this was
determined from the audience research we collected. This would then
help us to come up with a fresh idea and be able to link it well with the
audience and make something they would enjoy.

3. The audience research we used was Online Questionnaires, Real Time
Questionnaires, Focus Groups, Face to Face Interviews, and Vox Pops,
with this we were able to collect and calculate real data and be able to
make a real and authentic film from this raw data and this meant that it
would be more enjoyable for the audience.

4. From the audience research, we concluded that our target audience
would be 12-17 year olds this means that we would try to make a film
that would appeal to younger audiences, the audience research also
shows that they wanted us to create a horror film with themes of “love
and romance” “humour” and “death” this would make it more
enjoyable for the audience as they would see a horror film with a love
story and see how they interact of one another as they are married.

5. We also had to consider the location of where we were filming. The school owns a cottage in Wales, this would have
been a promising location but with the school not allowing us up there to film it made it difficult, then we found a
bungalow in Kidderminster which was occupied and they were more than happy to allow us to film in their home
and this gave us a chance to explore the location in full detail and plan how the film would work in this location.
This was a suitable location because it is on its own and in an open space this fits the convention that most horror
films show a isolated location and this means that the main characters would be more isolated and more at risk if
and when the doll would attack.
The drawbacks of this location include that the home appears more modern on the interior and this didn’t make the
house look older which was our original intention and and doesn’t reflect the age of the female character who
previously lived there as well as we originally intended. Another drawback of the location is that it doesn’t give the
impression that the couple have moved into the new home and there was no further effort to make this possible
To improve this we could have cleared the spaces we were using and this would make the house appear more
empty and look as though they have just moved into their new home, this would have meant we would move the
bedding and wardrobes and have more boxes around the home

6. As part of this we had to consider the elements of Mise-En-Scene for
the film, the elements include, Settings and Props, Costume, Hair and
Make Up, Facial Expressions and Body Language, Lighting and Colour,
Positioning of Characters within a Frame.

7. With this it meant that we had low lighting whenever the doll was near,
this would show the audience the evil preceding within the doll and
when the main characters are alone there is bright lighting was used to
show them together as a happy couple and showing the audience that
they are relaxed around each other.
This worked well because the bright lights around the home were used
to show Daisy and Matt’s innocence and this shows the audience the
connection between the couple.
This was a drawback as there was many bright lights and with this it
means that the scenes with Matt and Daisy in were too bright

8. Settings and Props
The settings and props included the bungalow with which we filmed the
trailer in, and the box of dolls and the main doll the film would revolve
around. This is so the audience would get a sense of how they would be
isolated and in danger when the doll is near.
With this the location is clearly laid out throughout the film as you see the
characters walking in and around the bungalow and this means that the
setting is clearly laid out
The main issue with this location was that the bungalow appeared too
modern for the film and this house doesn’t look as though it has been
abandoned
We will think more carefully about the location this means that we would
pick an abandoned location or derelict building and this means that it will
look more fitting for a horror film

9. The Costumes
For this Matt would be wearing the same clothes as he would be
working away this would include a shirt and jeans as he is an IT
specialist and doesn’t need to wear a suit and tie, while Daisy would be
home alone this means that she would wear a lot of comfortable
clothing such as lose tops, jeans and pyjamas this shows that she is
comfortable when she is at home but wears a red top when the doll
disappears and this would signify the danger of the doll and danger in
the scenes.

10. Facial Expressions and Body Language
There are facial expressions clearly shown when Daisy and Matt move
in as Daisy had a big smile on her face to show that she is happy to be
living with Matt for the first time since they got married. As well as this
Daisy uses a confused expression when looking through the box of dolls
as she is unsure why they are in the garage and no one collected them.
As well as this Matt shows a face a worriment as daisy has found a
creepy looking doll and Matt would be worried as it was randomly
placed in a garage and was left there

11. The body language these two characters show clearly gives off the
impression they are married as they are always standing really close to
one another and when they are hugging they are taking each other in
with a warm embrace and this means that they show much love for
one another and are happy together. Then when the doll starts to act
up they become slightly distant as they begin to argue about the
mysterious events and Matt thinks Daisy is freaking out over nothing.
Their body language also shows how they are scared of the doll
because when Daisy sees the bath of blood she runs out of the
bathroom and is shaking in fear when she says “can we please get rid of
this thing”.

12. Lighting and Colour:
Lighting and colour was used to show the personalities and character
traits in the characters and the doll, when Daisy was on screen there
would be bright lights, this shows how innocent and naive she is as she
is a primary school teacher which means that she is very happy being
around children and is excited to have her child. With this there is also
bright lights when she is on screen because she is home all of the time
so she has made her claim that this is her home.
When the doll is on screen the lighting is much darker this shows the
audience that the doll is very mysterious and we get this impression in
the first shot of the doll as the whole trailer is much darker after the
doll is introduced.

13. Positioning of characters
In 17 of the shots in the whole trailer Matt and Daisy are seen side by side and very
close to one another this shows either them hugging or sitting close to each other
and this shows how they are married and have love for one another and this gives
the audience the impression they really care for one another and when they argue
they are further apart as this means that the doll is coming between them to tear
them apart and attack them soon, with this the doll is always really close to Daisy
and this means that the doll would have made hr a target and is waiting to attack
or kill her and seeing this in the trailer would make it more enjoyable for the
audience and they would want to see what happens to her character