Adam Lepard wants to create a horror film scene or trailer exploring the theme of love going wrong. He plans to twist Romeo and Juliet into a modern cult gathering disguised as a party. For his research project, he will analyze films like Climax, Romeo and Juliet, Midsommar, Suspiria, and The Shining that influenced his ideas. He will research lighting, music, directing actors, and surveys to improve audience feedback on his concept. Adam will write a screenplay in pre-production and learn directing skills to get better performances from non-actor talent.

1. FMP RESEARCH
Adam Lepard

2. WHAT IS MY PROJECT?
I want to create a horror film that explores the unusual theme of love as this is an idea that
I’ve had for the past couple of years so I believe that because I’ve had it in my head for so
long I should be able to plan it more easily as it’s a very clear concept to me. Obviously I
won’t have enough time to shoot and edit an entire film so I want to create a scene or
trailer ( possibly both) as this would be much more possible in the time I’ve been given. I’ve
seen horror films that have focused around the idea of break ups and this has always been
an interesting concept for me because a topic such as love seems like it shouldn’t work in
the key role of a disturbing genre such as yet when you think about it there is horror in the
idea of a relationship breaking down and leaving the separated isolated. I want to take my
film in a different direction, finding the horror in the formation of a relationship which is
bound to lead in disaster for the couple. My idea is to essentially twist Romeo and Juliet
into modern day horror film set in a cult gathering disguised as a party. Because I only have
a limited time my one scene will have to be chosen carefully so that the audience can have
some idea of what’s going on in the film. Hopefully as I do some research and explain my
inspirations it should become clear what I’m planning to do in this project and why my idea
works as a horror film.

3. RESEARCH INTENTIONS
In my research I want to look at a range of media that’s inspired
my filming style as well as the idea for for my project. I want to
look at films such as Climax, Romeo and Juliet(1996), Midsommar,
Suspiria(1977) and The Shinning and explain why these films have
influenced me and how I will use specific elements from these films
in my project. I need to research into how I will use lighting in
specific ways to create well lit shot and I could do some
experiments to test out lighting. I want to do some research into
making music as I want to create my own piece of music so I think
researching this would help me to create my music more
efficiently. I want to learn more about directing so I can get the
best performances from them in my project so I want to research
how to direct actors as I think this will make a great improvement
to my project. I need to make a survey so I can get some feedback
on parts of my project idea that I’m unsure on and I think that
reviewing the responses will give me some insight on how to
adjust my idea to make it more appealing to my audience. I will do
some research into who my audience is and what they want/don’t
want in a horror film by seeing their responses to the films that

4. I think that climax is a visually stunning film for a budget of
£2.6 million which isn’t much when directing a film with several
actors. the film is incredibly choreographed so that the dance
scenes a jaw dropping in execution as well as being focal points
of the film that I could re-watch over and over again. Although
I don’t plan on including dance scenes in my film I do find
influence in the films concept of a party going horribly wrong
and becoming a nightmarish horror, I think that the film
could’ve taken this idea in many different places so I think that
my film concept is a kind of response to where I thought Climax
could have gone. I think that the lighting in the film is great at
making the party feel oppressive and tense as the bright reds
and greens take over the screen in a way that almost hurts to
look at, I think this will be incorporated into my film scene
somehow yet I think that the lighting will resemble Suspiria
more just because it’s more easy on the eyes.
CLIMAX

5. This is as much about Baz Luhrmann’s 1996 adaptation of
Romeo + Juliet as it is about the original play. I know that
Romeo and Juliet isn’t a horror film at all but it’s
romantic/tragic elements have impacted how I’ve thought
about making my film. I originally had the thought of a
twisted love story happening within my horror film so I
kind of saw my film as a horror adaptation of Romeo and
Juliet after that point which sounds weird but I think that
it can work. I like the cinematography of Baz Luhrmann’s
Romeo and Juliet especially in the tomb scenes, I think
that the blue cross shaped lighting is great and I think it’s
weird that lighting like that isn’t used more commonly in
films. I don’t think that Romeo and Juliet will have any
impact on the scene that I’m filming for the FMP but I still
wanted to talk about it as it’s definitely been a big
influence on my film concept.
ROMEO AND JULIET

6. MIDSOMMAR
After watching Midsommar I have mixed feelings but I think
that it’s been a big impact on my film concept especially in it’s
cult aspects, I think that it’s creepy in it’s presentation of the
cult wearing constantly happy faces and believing that what
they’re doing is good which in itself could be explored more
deeply. I really like the production/set design of Midsommar
it’s homemade, pretty and intimidating at the same time. I
liked the break-up plot of the film and I think that my film will
kind of take the opposite approach. I think that the scene that
I will be shooting will be quite action packed so I’ll probably
take influence from one of the scenes in Midsommar where
the cult discover that one of the main characters is taking
pictures of one of their sacred books and a murder takes
place. I think the cinematography in Midsommar is great a lot
of symmetry is used and the long take tracking shot close to
the beginning is probably the most terrifying part of the film
in my opinion.

7. SUSPIRIA
Suspiria in my opinion is the greatest giallo films that Dario
Argento has to offer, from its awesome set design and
vibrant coloured lighting to it’s sinister Soundtrack and
impressive cinematography. I think that these aspects of the
film have made it influential to me stylistically as I think that
it uses a lot of really fun visual techniques that you don’t
really see in most horror films. The films lighting is used
match the mood of a room and is primarily shown in night
time scenes where characters will be trapped in the
oppressive lighting that has a dangerous feel as if the lights
signify the presence of the witches. The whole concept of a
dance school being governed by a coven of witches was
what inspired my concept of a party being used as a cover
for a cult. Although the story and acting in Suspiria aren’t
exactly masterful I think that it’d be fun to take on a similar
concept and try to re-work it in a way where these elements
are improved which is what I’m kind of trying to do in this
project.

8. THE SHINING
I think that The Shining is great with its use of setting and
acting to create a sinister atmosphere that slowly builds up
over the course of the film until it explodes into an insane
climax. I think that horror films like The Shining are very rare,
all aspects of the film are designed to draw the audience in as
every part of the film is unsettling. Even before we reach the
Overlook hotel there is a deep sense of something being
wrong with the Torrance family mainly how it’s explained that
Jack had broken Danny's arm “by accident”. The hotel feels
like an entity toying with the family and slow turning them
insane and I think that this is something really horrifying that I
want to try and put my spin on in my project or a future
project as I think that the concept of a setting being a threat is
a great idea that can be taken in many directions. I really like
the the symmetrical cinematography in the film as well as the
over the top acting that feels oddly real I don’t think I’ll
incorporate this into my film but acting is definitely something
I need to research.

9. WRITING
Because my plot is very character driven I want to make sure
that I know enough about how to write out a screen play so
that in my pre-production I’m able to make a script for the
scene. Looking at screenplays and how they’re formatted has
helped me to understand what a screenplay is and how it’ll
help me to direct my scene. The screenplay is a useful tool as
it’s basically a script of the film with stage directions and the
added direction of the camera with the screenplay explaining
different shots and cuts.
I’ve tried writing out what will happen in my previous video
projects however because I’d never researched screenplays I
think that my pre-production planning could’ve been
improved drastically as a screenplay can be given to actors so
they have a better understanding of the character and their
lines. It also helps the director to remember little details of the
scene that they might otherwise forget. I want to make a
screenplay in my pre-production so that I can direct my actors
better and have a greater understanding of my scene concept
which will ultimately allow me to make a better project.

10. HOW TO DIRECT ACTORS
Something I knew I wanted to do going into this project was to
learn more about how to direct non actors as I found it difficult
to keep them under control when filming. I’ve watched
D4Darious’ series on how to direct actors which has taught me a
lot about the directing process and although I’m yet to practice
the skills I’ve learnt from watching these videos I feel like I’m
more prepared for this project in terms of how I’ll approach the
role of a director. I know now that when I’m working with my
non actors to give them more respect and to let them have
more control over their role so that they can get a better sense
of enjoyment out of their role. I think that now I have more
knowledge about how to work with actors and non actors I can
get better performances out of my actors which is important for
this project in particular as I think that the characters need to be
very expressive in their movements and their voices. I need to
manage my actors without over directing them.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_co
ntinue=5&v=LNK6RtgTj3k&feature=emb
_title
Directing Actors On Set - D4Darious
2014https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XlJV2v
vPG8g
Actors Hate this. Don’t Do It! - D4Darious
2014
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DjBzv0Mcdw0
How to Direct Actors: Working With Non
Actors – D4Darious

11. THE LIGHTHOUSE: TRAILER
I think that the trailer for the lighthouse is great for
introducing the atmospheric elements of the film, the
blaring sound of the fog horn, the use black and white
accentuates the time period and creates an oppressive
mood that will clearly linger throughout the film. the
trailer clearly conveys the direction the film is going in
without spoiling anything yet the viewer can clearly see
that this will be a horror film due to the tension being
built throughout the trailer. I think that I could improve
my trailer making skills by exploring the atmosphere of
my films setting, how will the party sound, how will it look
and how can I convey that film will be a horror without
spoiling any plot elements. I think that by building tension
in the dialogue of my trailer and placing it over the
atmospheric visual aspects of my trailer I can create
something similar in editing style to The Lighthouse’s
trailer.

12. MIDSOMMAR: TRAILER
The trailer of Midsommar clearly shows the film’s folk horror
elements as well as displaying that the film will be about the
breakdown of a relationship of Dani and her boyfriend Chris. The
trailer shows off it’s unique aspect of horror taking place primarily
in daylight which was definitely the first thing that caught my
attention. The trailer only lingers on parts of the film that are
close to the beginning and later parts of the film are only shown
in quick cuts which useful for creating suspense and a sense of
intrigue without spoiling certain aspects of the film which is most
likely a technique that I’ll use in my trailer. I think that the trailer
uses a lot of different shot types with interesting cinematography
in most shot which is something that I want to use in my trailer as
I think that cinematography is a great way to sell the atmosphere
of the film as it can be used to make the viewer feel particular
ways. Something that’s utilized well in the trailer is showing all the
great set design in the film which I think was main atmospheric
aspect of the film, unfortunately because I won’t have a large
budget (or any budget really) I won’t be able to create a set

13. IT FOLLOWS: TRAILER
I think that the trailer It Follows is great at displaying it premise
through dialogue which is something that’ll probably do in my
trailer. What I like the most about the trailer is it’s music, I think
that the soundtrack for film is great at creating a sense of
horror out of weird synth notes and I think that the music from
It Follows will probably inspire the music I’ll be making for my
film scene. I think that the cinematography used in the trailer is
also pretty good at presenting how the film will look and feel. I
don’t think that the acting in It Follows it that good so I’m glad
that It’s something that the trailer doesn’t linger on otherwise I
think that it could put off some viewers. I think that the It
Follows stands out to me as a good horror trailer as the film
has a fairly low budget compared other horror films so it’s
trailer looks really great for what it’s worth which is impressive
as it looks better than a lot of higher budget horror films.

14. LIGHTING
For my lighting I want to use coloured lights to heighten the
atmosphere of the party while also using the lights as an
emotive punch if the mood shifts in the scene as a coloured
light can by used to show a shift in emotion, this is
demonstrated in the prom scene in Carrie where a green light
is used to indicate peoples reactions to the pigs blood that’s
about to fall on Carrie, the light is only used sparingly so it
seems natural with the rest of the film but it expresses the
characters fears. I think this use of lighting could work in my
scene as it would punctuate the feelings of the characters
whenever necessary so the that it would build up a sub-
conscious message to the audience that the coloured lights
represent the characters thinking. Another way I could use
coloured lighting is by flooding the screen with colour like in
Suspiria or Climax so that an emotion can be sustained
throughout an entire scene rather than just in shot bursts. this
idea would also be effective in my scene as it would add an
awesome effect to the cinematography of the scene as well as
representing the unnatural otherworldly nature of the party,
my only issue with this is that I may need a lot of lights for this
which could cost a lot however I think that I could use some
gels that I have from last year with lights that I can borrow

15. MUSIC
Music is possibly the most important aspect to my project as the
scene that I’m filming will playout sort of like a music video. I want
to make a piece of music that feels loud and heart racing to draw
the audience into the atmosphere of a party however I also want to
give the music a strange aethereal quality to give a sense of
discomfort to the track. Listening to music and thinking of how it
would fit into the films has helped a lot in my search for sounds that
would fit my theme. I think that a lot of songs by Home such as
Decay and Resonance have the strange quality that I want as they
use lots of different synth noises to create their songs. 1969 by
Boards of Canada has a darkness to it’s eerie synth notes, heavy
drumming and distorted singing which I think would be something
that I could incorporate into my track as I could use a warped voice
that eludes to the cult activity. all the songs I’ve mentioned so far
don’t have the fast pace I desire however GhettoMusick by OutKast
has the heart racing pace that I want in my music. I think that the
trick to making my music is to incorporate different elements from
my musical influences, if I’m too limited on Garage Band to make
the right track to fit my concept then I will most likely use one of the
tracks I’ve listed as any of them could work as a back-up incase
something goes wrong.

16. ONE TAKE TRACKING SHOTS
The protector (2005) Prachya Pinkaew
Hard Boiled (1992) John Woo
The Shining (1980) Stanley Kubrick
I want to film a long take for the scene I’ll be presenting as my
FMP production as I think that this will show my skills as a
director as well as being something that will challenge me. I
started looking at films that used one take scenes and I came
across The Protector (2005) which had a great use of setting,
stunts and choreography in it as the main character fights his way
up a flight of stairs. I think the scene had some great energy to
it’s visuals however it’s sound design and music were lacking in
energy so in a way this was a disappointment however I think the
shot is a good starting point when it comes to looking at how
exciting a long take can be. The long take from Hard boiled is
incredible in it’s use of setting, stunts and action and I think that
this shows just how impressive a long take can be but I think that
I won’t be able to create this much excitement in my shot as
there won’t nearly be as much action however my scene will
make up for this in its horror. For horror based long takes I
looked at The Shining as this was the film that practically made
the long take tracking shot by using the Steadicam to follow
around Danny on his bike. The shot doesn’t really have much
going on but it builds up a tension which carries on into the next

17. CREATING TENSION AND FEAR
• Jump scares
I think that Jump-scares need to be done right in order to be
genuinely terrifying, this means that they need to have been set
up through a build up of tension and they need a flash of
something that looks and sounds scary. This type of scare
works in the short term and shouldn’t be used a lot in a film or
it’ll lose it’s impact as the film progresses, this is something that
I might do in my film scene.
• Rising danger
Rising of tension/danger is something commonly used in
horror films to keep audiences scared for a long period of time
as the character becomes more and more likely to be
hurt/killed often this is done by making the audience care
about the character or making the film extremely immersive so
the audience also feel this danger
• Dramatic Irony
Dramatic Irony is when the audience know something
that the characters don’t which is often used to make
the audience panic about the well being of the
characters. I am going to be using this in my film
however because the scene I’ll be shooting won’t have
HORROR FILMS: 3 Ways To TERRIFY An
Audience - Screenwriting Tips. Scriptfella-Mar
23, 2019https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j1AFiqV0jU4&t=539s

18. ASPECT RATIO
I think that aspect ratio is something that I want to
incorporate into my scene and trailer as it can be used in
various ways to create cinematic effects. I’ve researched into
various uses of aspect ratios in the video SFX Secrets: The
Power of Aspect Ratios by Fandor, I found this video useful
in explaining the uses of aspect ratio in film as it’s helped me
come to a decision on how I will film my scene. After
watching the video I’ve decided to do an experiment where I
film a short video and see whether it looks better in a 21:9
ratio or a 4:3 ratio. I chose these two aspect ratios as I think
that the 4:3 ratio would be useful for creating a
claustrophobic atmosphere to the scene causing a rising
tension as the characters and the audience feel trapped. The
21:9 ratio could also work well as a wide screen effect that
make the scene feel more cinematic as well as giving the
setting some space which would be essentially the opposite
of the 4:3 ratio as the visuals would isolate the characters
making the scene visually threatening. I then watched some
tutorials on how to make aspect ratios in Premiere Pro so I
will test if this works in my experiments so I can make a
conclusion on which aspect ratio to use.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bcQaLx4oF
Hw
Stan Arthur: Premiere Pro: 21:9 vs. 16:9 Get
the Screen Aspect Ratio You Want Without
Exporting Black Bars. Mar 11, 2016
Fandor. SFX Secrets: The Power of Aspect
Ratios. Mar 1, 2018
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SotdCmhFR
QU

19. SHOT TRANSITIONS
I want to end the one take shot with a transition to another
scene, I’ve looked at transition shots from films and thought
about how I want to do this and I was inspired by 2001: A Space
Odyssey and Lawrence of Arabia and their use of cutting to link
together the scenes that we’re transitioning between with a
theme. In 2001: A Space Odyssey a bone being throne into the
air cuts to a space ship floating in space, this not only tells the
audience that the film is now set in space but it also show that
humanity has progressed from being apes to creating vehicles
that can travel through space, the shot not only shows a change
in setting but a change in time. The match cut from Lawrence of
Arabia is a great transition as it cuts from a lit match being
blown out to a sunset both being connected by light being
extinguished. I think that I should film some experiments where I
test out how to edit and film match cuts so that I’m more
confident with this idea when it comes to the production aspect
of my project.

20. AUDIENCE
• In last years FMP I already found my ideal audience
specification which was for an audience aged 16-21 as this
was the largest percentage of people going to watch
horror films. I think that my audience would mainly be
males as the protagonist of the film is male but I think
that my product will still appeal to a female audience as
the film switches perspective halfway through to the
female love interest of the main character however the
scene I will be shooting is from when the male character is
still the main focus of the film. The film would most likely
appeal to those with a working class background however
I’m not really making the film for anyone with a specific
background.
• I want to explore the reactions of audience members to
the films that I’ve placed as influences to my concept so
that I can get a better understanding of my audience and
so that I can improve on things that audience members
disliked. I think this will help improve my work as looking
at the what people liked and disliked from my influences
can help me to make my product as appealing as possible
while keeping my original vision and staying true to my
influences.
Brent Lang. (2016). Horror Movies Make Tough Times Less Scary for
Studios. Available: https://variety.com/2016/film/news/horror-
movies-1201900551/. Last accessed 6th Feb 2020.
My FMP audience research 2019

21. AUDIENCE
The reviews of Midsommar are very spilt, it’ll either be a 4-5 star
review or a 1 star review as there were many people that are
probably more used to watching long films with slow paces which is
evident as there's a lot of character and plot development in that
time however this is also the films downfall as the plot is subtle and
character driven so anyone that finds the characters annoying will
hate the film as well. I think that because the cult is the main source
of horror in the film it also divided audiences as the cults motivations
are difficult to understand and you have to dig to learn about their
motivations. The film requires quite a bit of audience participation to
fill in the blanks so I want the plot of my film and the motivations of
characters in my film as I think this will be easier for regular film
goers to understand and appreciate the film. In terms of the scene I
will be making I’m planning on throwing the audience into a scene
with lot’s of action as I think that this would sell the type of horror
film I’m making without requiring much context to understand what’s
happening in the film.

22. AUDIENCE
I have to admit that I found climax more enjoyable in concept
than I found it’s plot in execution and I found a couple of
reviews that expressed my feelings as even thought the plot
disappointed me I really like the dance choreography and the
visuals were stunning. I think that I’ve already focused on how
my plot will differ from Climax and by adding an emotional
weight to the film being the main characters story arc so that we
have something emotive to move us through the film which I
feel was missing from Climax. The main thing that I’m taking
away from the reviews is to make my film in a way where it
doesn’t come across as an arthouse film which I wasn’t planning
on doing in the first place but I’ll need to make this clear
through my directing style which shouldn’t be a problem in the
scene I’ll be filming. I think that because I’m filming a scene that
the audience will have little emotional investment in I could run
into the issue of them feeling disconnected to the characters
and environment of the film however I’m willing to take the risk
as I know how the scene will play out and I think it’ll be great at
showing my skills as a horror director.

23. AUDIENCE
I’ve stated before that the lighting and cinematography are the
main influences of Suspiria for me and these were typically the
main this pointed out as being great about the film as the
acting and the strange voice acting caused by the dubbing was
pretty bad and the plot is fairly typical. I chose these two
reviews as they reveal the faults of the film which is it’s bad
acting and voice dubbing which has shaped how I will film my
project as I want to disguise that I’ll be working with armature
actors by blasting my films soundtrack while filming so the
audience can barely hear what the actors are saying yet I will
have subtitles on the video, doing this might sound weird but I
think that as well as covering up bad sound quality it will bring
the audience into the atmosphere of a party where you can’t
make out what others are saying. Although this may be risky I
think that it shows that I’ve taken learnt from the issues of my
FMP last year and the issues with Suspiria.

24. AUDIENCE RESEARCH
I wanted to look at the audience statistics for The Shining as it’s
a key influence of mine as well as one of the most iconic horror
films of all time so I thought it would be interesting to see what
people thought about it. Lot’s of reviews of The Shining are
pretty similar, they praise the acting and the directing and they
announce it as the greatest horror film they’ve ever seen but I
wanted to look at the negative reviews of the film as these are
always the most interesting to me. In most negative reviews
the audience members found the film boring and the acting of
Shelly Duvall to be annoying and over the top. I think these
reviews have valid points, the films length and use of tension
can be misread as meaningless scenes that linger on too long. I
found a review that says that a lot of the events in the hotel
don’t have an explanation such as the ghosts and Jack
Torrance’s insanity however these are are all things that are set
up in the dialogue and behavior of the characters, I think that
with a lot of negative reviews people take things at face value
hoping that the film will spell things out for them where The
Shining needs the audience to participate in active viewing in
order for the film to be scary.

25. AUDIENCE RESEARCH-INFOGRAPHICS
Horror films tend to attract a slightly
younger audience, predominantly under
25s. It is said that roughly 42%
of horror audiences are women, with 58%
being men. Horror films tend to
intertwine with thrillers in the way that
viewers seek out a certain thrill/scare by
diving into a world which isn't their own.
Horror Audiences
Female
42% 58%
Alex Gilbey. (2015). Horror Film Research. Available:
https://cmpalexgilbey.weebly.com/uploads/3/8/8/7/38878453/ho
rror_film_research.pdf. Last accessed 7th Feb 2020.
0
20
40
14-17 18-24 25-34 35-49 50+
Age of horror audiences
genral population Horror film audience

26. SURVEY
Questions I want to ask in my survey
• What age is the participant?
• What interests them about the horror genre?
• What don’t they want to see in horror films?
• What scares them in horror films?
• Would they watch a horror film with minimal characters, 2 or 3? (this
doesn’t apply to my film concept but it does apply to the scene I’ll be
filming)
• Do they think horror films are better when they experiment with the
genre?
• What’s their favorite sub-genre of horror film?
• What colours do they associate with horror?
• What sounds disturb them?
• What sticks with them in a good horror film?

27. SURVEY