Analsying Screenshots

1. Shot Types from Horror Movie
Trailers
I have decided to analyse screenshots from the three following Horror Trailers:
The Boy (2016)
The Cabin in the Woods (2012)
Prisoners (2013)
Saw 4 (2006)

2. A high-angle shot happens when the
camera is placed above a character
with the lens pointing down. This
makes the character appear small and
vulnerable.
From these three screenshots I can
see how early on in the trailer high
angle shots are used. The first 2
screenshots were taken from the first
6 seconds of their trailers, showing
the audience straight away how they
are the vulnerable characters in the
film.
The angle is made to show the
characters are being helpless as they
are being looked down on.
The high angle shots force the
audience to look down on the
character, this tells us that they have
no control and are powerless to the
situation they are in.
High Angle Shot

3. Establishing Shot This wide angle long shot is usually shown
at the beginning of the film to familiarise
the audience where the film is taking
place.
This is the best shot you can use to put
into perspective how deserted the location
is or what kind of neighbourhood the
house is in. Usually the location is
deserted, making the character feel more
vulnerable and alone. If the house isn't
deserted and it in the middle of a nice
neighbour is gives the audience a sense of
fear as there are a lot of pleasant people
around you. The audience then starts to
wonder what could go wrong.

4. Close Up Shot/Medium close up’s From these three screenshots I can
see that close up and medium close
up shots are used a lot in horror films.
It is one of their generic conventions
as you get a close image of the
character and you can see their
emotion clearly on their face.
If a close up wasn’t used then it would
be a lot more tricky for the audience
to see the characters facial
expressions.
In the horror genre, close ups and
medium close up’s are used to see
the reactions of the actors/actresses
face.
This shot is the one which captures
the most emotion from the facial
expressions.
Close up shots are used to create
emphasis as they only capture the
characters face and nothing else in the
room. Forcing the audience to watch
their terrorised emotions.

5. The angle’s used for
Weapons
The angles used for weapons in a horror film
can vary from what the situation is. If the
weapon isn’t allowed or isn’t supposed to be
seen then a close up shot is done of it to show
it needs to be keep secret. The close up only
lets the audience see it, making out that no
one else in the scene can see it. The audience
will then believe that no one knows it’s there.
Some characters will be at a disadvantage as
they don’t know what weapons the other
person has.
In other screenshots, medium close ups are
used. The weapon is shown visually to show
that it doesn’t matter if anyone see’s it. This
could be because they are soldiers or spy’s.
Weapons are found mostly in fighting scenes
when the characters bring out their weapons
to fight with.

6. Over-the-Shoulder
Shot
Horror films usually have an over the shoulder
shot to show the audience over someone’s
shoulder who we should be afraid of. This generic
convention is used to make the audience believe
that the antagonist is so frightening that we need
to hide behind someone else in order to keep
safe (the audience is hiding behind a characters
shoulder).
I’ve noticed that all of the over-the-shoulder
shots I found were at the start of the horror
movie trailer. This is to show the audience, at the
start, who is the supposed villain. Later on there
could be a twist, however the film makers want
you to be set on a certain villain so that another
villain could be less expected. The person we see
over someone’s shoulder is usually the culprit or
at least has something to do with it.
Over the shoulder shots also keep the person
you’re looking over a mystery. This is because you
can’t see their face. The over-the-shoulder also
gives the audience an idea of what the character
see’s through their eyes as you are so close to
them.

7. Point of view shot
This shot makes you feel as if you’re the
character for a small moment. You are
looking through the characters eyes,
making the audience just as unsafe and
vulnerable as the character is in the film.
This is a great shot type to use as it makes
the audience feel the pain the character is
going through and builds sympathy
between the audience and character. This
means you are constructing a relationship
between the characters.
From this shot type you can see everything
the character see’s, this builds fear as what
the character is seeing is usually not a nice
sight. In the screenshots I have taken all of
the views in front of you are ones of the
antagonist or something which is signifying
horror.