Generic conventions of camera work in psychological horror

1. Generic conventions of camera work
in psychological horror film trailers

2. Panning
The gift
Chained
The boy
Panning was used in ‘the boy’ to display where the
location that the film is set in. By panning across it, it
displays the house as unstill and a place that may be very
dangerous. The house is established from a low angle
shown with a horizontal pan which makes the house very
large for the victim and intimidating. It allows the
audience to see the house as if they were looking at it
because the panning motion moves from left to right
which allows the audience to imagine they are in the
victim’s position.
Panning is often used to show the setting
of the horror film and to show long shots
of abandoned or deserted areas . Panning
is usually used in combination with an
establishing shot because it is a way of
showing the large setting to the audience
with a slow pan to make the trailer very
gradual and calm to start off with which
then will change later on in the trailer to
very violent events. These panning shots
make the horror films seem more
mysterious because they take place in
areas that would normally be very quiet so
the victims do not expect anything to
happen to them.
Panning has been used to show the setting and
location around the area of the action. Panning
horizontally displayed a very peaceful housing area
which displayed in contrast with the more scary
scenes in the house to set a mysterious and
unexpected plot from such a calm location. It also
sets a calm and relaxed pace for the start of the
film before all of the action and horror occurs.
Panning was also used to show the body
language of one of the victims in the
trailer. A panning shot was used to show
how she curiously she walked over to look
at something that appeared to be very
strange which foreshadows later events
that happen. Panning allows the audience
to see the whole body language of the
character to get a sense of how they are
feeling.
Panning has been used with an establishing shot type
to set out the scene of where the horror will take
place. The panning shot displayed a very big house
which gave a sense of a very rich neighbourhood
where there will not be any evil people or villains
about. This shot was used to contradict the events
that will occur when they end up in a small dark
house where they become victims of murder.
Panning was also used to show the taxi
driving through very large fields with no sight
of any other people or help so we are made
to feel slightly scared for the passengers as
they have been driven somewhere unusual
with no one else in sight to help them. They
are victimised.

3. Low angle shot
The gift
Chained
The boy
Low angle shots are often either used to
show the villain or the victim. They are
often used with a close up shot from a low
angle because this allows the audience to
feel rather intimidated by how close the
character is to the camera which creates a
sense of fear. Low angle shots are usually
used when the evil events are unfolding
because low angle shots are very
domineering. This shot type is more
commonly used to show the villains to the
audience in a very dominating way because
the villain is above the camera.
A low angle shot is commonly used to put the audience below the object on
screen. Often, to have a dominant effect on the audience watching. A gift has
been placed on the screen right in front of the camera at a low angle so the
audience focus their attention on this scene as it may be quite important. This
trailer is about the evil villain giving gifts t the people he hates so by placing
the gift in front of the camera, the audience notice that this is an important
part of the trailer. This shot of one of the main characters was put
at a low angle because it suggests that this
character is very dominant in the film. This
foreshadows later events that may occur to do
with her so this makes the audience feel quite
anxious and possibly sympathise for this
character. They may also watch more closely
about this character because you know this
character is fragile. This low angle shot also
accentuates the facial expressions of the
character so the audience can clearly sense the
fear.
In this trailer a slightly low angle shot was used when the taxi was
being driven into an abandoned area. This low angle of the car
makes the car seem very big and dominant in how the victims
were taken away. Additionally, by putting the car at a higher angle
than the audience, this shows that the car should be the main
focus. Therefore, the audience may be wondering why the car is a
big focus. This makes the audience slightly worried because they
know that the driver is not taking the victims in the correct area
and the appearance of the large car makes the audience slightly
scared.
In the bottom photo, a low angle shot was used to display to the
audience the hurt and pain that is felt by the victims. The use of a low
angle shot for this scene shows that this character is very important.
This shot particularly scares the audience because they see the victim
right up in front of them so they can sense their pain from their facial
expressions.
Low angle shot has been used to
show the big mysterious house
and particularly the mysterious
door. This shows that the house
is the main setting of the film
because it has been given a very
dominant scene.
From below the house looks much bigger and more
intimidating than if the angle was from up high. This makes the
house seem even more scary because it makes it seem very
mysterious.
In this shot, a low angle has been used
because the shot is from the perspective of
the little boy. Therefore, the shot seems
more realistic so the audience can see the
facial expressions of the lady and the way
that the boy is making her feel. She looks
very concerned.
The use of a low angle shot here to show
the door handle puts the audience at a
low perspective so this may be used to
represent the door from the perspective of
the boy.

4. Tilt ChainedThe gift
The boy
The tilt motion is when the camera stays in the same
height and position but it tilts upwards or downwards. Tilts
are often used to slowly reveal the characters mainly the
villains and victims. Tilts upwards are the best way to
reveal characters without showing too much and also
keeping the audience interested. Tilt downwards is usually
because the focus is down below but tilt upwards is
because the focus is at the top. Tilts aren’t used much once
the horror film has started to unroll but at the start they
are used quite often when things are still calm before any
action occurs.
Tilt has been used here to slowly reveal the characters in
the trailer right at the start. Tilts and zooms were used to
show all of the old year book photos. The tilt motion
creates a slower reveal which makes everything seem very
calm but also possibly mysterious as the people in the
year book photos may have some important due to how
much focus is put on them right at the start of the trailer
by the tilt. This tilt motion is also very slow so it makes a
calm start to the trailer which soon changes.
Tilt has also been used here where the victim was first
revealed. Tilt slowly revealed her looking at a baby dial
using the window light to see. This may show that she
has just settled into a new home and all is very calm and
she has a new baby on the way.
Using the tilt instead of a medium or long shot allows us to see more of her body and
her body language for a longer time so we can get an idea of the person that the
victim is. Tilts tend to be used during the start of the film when the main characters
are revealed rather than near the end when the action occurs. Tilts create a calm
movement to show the calm start to the trailer which may then change when the
villain does evil things. A tilt has been used from behind the villain in this shot
because it still keeps the sense of mystery for the audience
as they get a long look at the boy from the tilt but not at his
face. The audience do not know what is coming next
because the camera is very smooth so we expect
something will jump out.
A tilt was used her near the start of the film when things
are still relatively calm and no horror has occurred.
Usually tilts have been used during the equilibrium and
the realisation of disruption. This tilt has started from a
low angle and it shows the old house which displays its
stone high walls. The low angle makes the house seem
very intimidating.
A tilt was used the first time we see one of the main characters. The tilt allowed us to have the character slowly
revealed to us so we get a good idea of their personality. She is shown to look very innocent and kind but soon she
becomes very anxious about the boy.
Tilt has been used to show the
young boy scrubbing the floor. This
allowed the scene to be slowly
revealed to the viewer so that we
wonder who is being slaved. This tilt
motion has raised angst for the
audience who are watching.
A tilt was used here similarly to the way that it was used
above. It showed the door handle being unlocked by
someone's hand but the audience don't see who’s hand
it is until the camera tilts all the way upwards. By seeing
the faces second, the audience will see the anxious body
language of the character first. The tilt is often used to
show the victims particularly because we are worried for
them so by showing what their situation is with a slow
tilt movement it builds up tension.

5. Tracking shotThe gift Chained
The boy
Tracking movement wasn’t very common in this trailer but it was
used to show the movement of the car. Tracking was used from the
front of the car which showed how dangerously the car was driven,
this added to the action in the horror film which added suspense for
the audience because they sense that there may be an accident. It
also allowed the camera to always be in constant movement with the
car so that the audience constantly see what is going on with the
victim who is driving the car. This tracking movement was only used
for a short period of time because it allowed all the other action
shots to merge with it to build suspense. This effect can foreshadow
later evil events occurring because the wreck less driving from the
victim suggests he is escaping something possibly life threatening for
him to drive like that.
A tracking shot was used of the door from the perspective of the victim walking
towards it. This was effective because it put the audience in the victims position so
we see the danger or the villain on the other side of the door when it opens. It
provides a sense of uncertainty for the viewers because they don’t know what is
behind the door. The use of tracking makes it seem much more real because the
camera is slightly more shaky and therefore more realistic. If it was smooth it
wouldn’t seem so real and would seem much more calm. The tracking shot keeps us
in the victims position and therefore up to date with any action that occurs.
Tracking shots are when the camera follows the action.
Tracking shots tend to be used once the horror aspects of
the film have started to unfold, this is because the tracking
shot helps to suggest that things are no longer going
smoothly and by putting the audience in the victims
position we can sense this. The tracking shot is usually
shown of a long shot so that the shot seems more realistic
of a human eye. The tracking shot is usually shown as if the
audience are the victims by putting the audience behind
the camera so we see what the victim would see, this
makes the audience feel very vulnerable to any action that
may occur. Tracking shots can be used throughout the
trailer to show how the action progresses onwards.
A tracking shot has been linked with a panning
movement has been used here to create the
movement that the victims are feeling in the car
when they are being driven away by the villain. The
audience therefore feel as if they are in the same
position as the victim and they get a feel of the big
houses and may start to feel slightly unwelcome in
this area. The tracking shot makes a more shaky
movement that a normal pan which suggests that
the car is slightly bumpy and they are not headed
somewhere safe. This was used at the start of the
trailer to foreshadow other not so smooth events
occurring. A tracking shot has been used here
almost from the perspective of the
car. This made the car seem very
lonesome in the large fields that it
had driven into. By using a tracking
shot we are shown the path that
the car takes so we feel like a part
of the action.

6. Over the shoulder shotThe gift
The boy
Chained
Chained has an over the shoulder the shot right at the
end which is when the audience are given a chance to
see the relationships between the characters. A lot of
the horror was right at the start and it is only once
these events have taken place when we can see how
these victims are affected. The over the shoulder shot
here allowed us to sympathise with the young boy
because we see him looking very fragile and
emotionally damaged. We also see the relationship of
the two victims because they have been through
similar things. Over the shoulder
shots are very
common in horror
films all the way
through to show the
relationships
between characters
to the audience.
This is because the
audience are seeing
the other characters
in perspective. This
allows the audience
to see how the
events unfolding are
affecting
relationships and
this builds up
suspense for the
audience.
The purpose of this over the shoulder
shot over the villain is to show the
relationship between all three
characters. Particularly the facial
expressions and body language of the
victims in response to seeing their old
school friend for the first time in a
while. This over the shoulder shot also
allows the viewers to see the way that
the villain feels when he sees the
victims. The victims seem very relaxed
but a bit startled to see their old school
friend. The audience automatically
assume then that there is nothing wrong
with their relationship but we later find
out that there is. This shot type is used
throughout the whole trailer so that we
can see the hatred unfold shown by the
characters’ body language.
The purpose of this over the shoulder shot is
not to show the relationship between
characters. It is to show the vulnerability of this
character. She has been put in a vulnerable
position because the audience can see her but
she doesn’t know. We see that all she is focused
on is her computer so she is naive to anything
else happening around her so the audience
wonder if the villain may appear whilst she is
vulnerable.
This over the
shoulder shot is
over the shoulder
of the villain.
The audience can see the effect that he is having on the victims because we see
the house of the victims with the gift left outside of it that he had left there.
Therefore the audience see the things that the villain is doing but the victims
do not see him do this so we start to feel fear for the victims.
Over the shoulder shot has been used right at the start of this trailer because it allows the
audience to see the relationships between the characters and their personalities so that the
audience can get to know the characters . In this trailer, the victim is made to see, very sweet
and innocent by her facial expressions which makes us sympathise for her even further when
she begins to feel victimised.
Over the shoulder shot has also been used when they notice that the doll has escaped which shows
that the doll is very strange and evil. The use of an over the shoulder shot in this situation has allowed
the audience to see the whole scene including the characters’ body language and the setting of
where the horror is taking place. The body language expresses that they are both looking at
something that has bothered them. All of the over the shoulder shots in this trailer were from the
perspective of the victim because then the audience can get a feel for their situation and sense the
fear. The audience may also know more than the characters themselves which may scare the
audience even further because they know what could happen.

7. Close upThe gift
The boy
Chained
Overall, in horror psychopathic films, close ups
tend to be used to show the facial expressions or
other scenes that may intimidate or scare the
audience watching the trailer. When facial
expressions are shown, this often allows the
audience to either empathise with the
characters or get to know the villains evil
personality. Therefore, close ups are the best
shots to enable the audience to understand
characters more closely.
Close ups have been used here of the
villain. Close ups are a good way of
showing the emotional state of the
characters.
This is a close up of the victim in the film. By using a close up
instead of any other shots, this allows us to feel closer to the
characters and sense their emotions. The emotion here is
fear and this can be seen through her eyes and the rest of
her expression. This allows the audience to sympathise with
her. We can also see that half of her face is in the dark and
half in the light which may show that the later events could
either be positive or negative. We also do not see the
background of the scene, we only see the face which centres
all of the attention on to this.
This is a close up from the perspective of the boy (the villain). This
close up clearly shows the very confused with slightly lowered eye
brows which shows that they are slightly startled and worried about
what the villain could do considering he is only a little boy. By having it
from the perspective of the boy, the audience can see what effect the
boy is having on the victim.
These close ups were shown during parts where the evil unfolds so that the
audience get a sense of fear from the intimidating facial expressions of the
characters. These evil expressions show the villains evil personalities. Close
ups allow the audience to feel much more a part of the action because they
see the character as if they were stood right in front of them.
Here is a close up of another victim of the situation. We see that he has
raised eyebrows and through his eyes we can see that he looks very
worried about the whole situation. This makes the audience sympathise
for the victims but also feel a sense of fear.
Here a close up shot has been used of the villain. The close up shows the boy in very high key lighting being surrounded by low key
lighting. This is shown by a close up shot because it puts the boy in the light which shows he is the centre of attention. The facial
expressions of the boy are very calm and relaxed which is a contradiction to those of the victims. These relaxed facial expressions
makes the villains seem much more evil because he doesn’t have any feelings of guilt of what he is doing. By having close ups of both
the villains and the victims, the audience get to feel the way that both the villain and victims feel in the trailer.
This close up shot is of a knife cutting
the victim. This shows the psychopathic
acts that the villain is performing. This
makes the audience see how evil the
villain is and the audience sense fear.
The audience rarely see gore in real life so to have a close up of
it makes the audience feel very uncomfortable when watching
the trailer. This close up was of the interior
mirror of the car that the villain
was driving to take his victims
home with him. This mirror was
shown with the blurry close up.
The effect of this close up was to make the audience
watching the trailer slightly uneasy because they see the
dark mirror but do not see the villain in the mirror so are
still left wondering what the man looks like. This creates a
more anxious feeling for the audience knowing that this
man does not want to be seen.

8. Point of view shotThe gift
The boy
Chained
Point of view shots are commonly used throughout the
trailer or movie from the point of view of the victim
particularly. These shot types are particularly effective
in order to show to the audience what the victim or
villain see so we can sense the fear or dominance that
they have over one another. Therefore this
foreshadows later events occurring and the audience
are put on edge.
Point of view shot has been used here from the point of view of
the victim. This displayed her reflection through the water to the
audience. By using this shot it creates an illusion that the viewer is
stood next to or is the victim. Therefore, we really feel involved in
the feelings of the victim. Here, we can see her facial expression
through the water so it makes her see rather blurry and unclear.
The effect of seeing this through the water creates a blurry feel and
a sense of mystery of what may happen. Through the water we can
also see anything that appears behind her.
Point of view shot has been used from the point of view
of the villain as he looks through the glass window at
himself. This gives a chance for the audience too see the
facial expressions and feelings of the villain as he looks
at himself through the glass. Looking this closely at the
villain may create a sense of fear for the audience and
may intimidate them slightly as we see that he feels
very confident in himself which is clear from his facial
expression.
A point of view shot was used here in the perspective of the
nanny just after a medium shot of her looking at the large
house. This point of view shot shows a low angle of the large
house and the landlady looking down at the nanny. This
allows the audience to sense the slight intimidation that the
nanny may feel as she sees the large house and the lady
staring down at her. This may foreshadow the mysterious acts
that occur later.
Point of view shot has been used here from the perspective
of the villain as she sees through the crack of the door. This
shot type allows the audience to only see a small amount of
the scene so it leaves us under suspense wondering what
will be through the door, this still therefore leaves the
audience with a sense of mystery.
Here, a point of view shot has been used from
the point of view of the victim. In this particular
shot we cannot see anyone through the mirror
but it does create suspense because the
audience wonder whether they will get to see
the villain. Therefore, the audience are still left
wondering what the villain looks like and can do.
Point of view shot has been used in the
perspective of the victim in this shot too.
This displays what the victims see as they
go through the village and see very large
houses in a slightly abandoned area so
they are isolated from anyone that may
help them if they are in danger.
In this shot the point of
view was shown from the
villain’s perspective which
allows the audience to see
the facial expressions
of the young boy we can see how hurt and slaved he
is b the villain and this shows how evil the villain is.
We see the effect has on the villain and this brings
fear to the audience because we see how fragile and
how vulnerable the young boy is and this makes us
sympathise for him.

9. Hand held cameraThe gift
The boy
Chained
Hand held camera wasn’t commonly used in the boy.
It was only used from the victims perspective to show
how she was looking through the crack of the door. By
using hand held camera for this it made it seem more
realistic because it was a more shaky motion than if it
was shown on a tilt or pan.
Hand held camera was rarely used in chained. It was used to show
how unsteadily the man walked over to the little boy. The camera
was placed so that it put the audience in the perspective of the
villain so we could get a sense as to how unsteady he was as he
walked. This makes the villain seem like a monster because of the
motion of the camera from his perspective as if he is the one
holding the camera. It puts the audience in the perspective of the
villain which allows us to see the victim and sympathise for him
because we see how small and fragile the young boy is up against
this big villain.
Therefore by using the hand held camera instead of a tilt or
pan it allowed the audience to get a sense of how rough this
man is and how badly he is treating the young boy. A tilt or
pan movement may have expressed that everything was calm
in the house.
Hand held camera movement is a good way of showing that
the action or events occurring are really unsteady and
unsettled because the camera tends to be slightly wobbly
and unsteady. It shows the characters may feel very anxious
or disturbed which then reflects back on the audience
because they think something will jump out or a bad event
will occur. Hand held camera motions allow the audience to
feel in the perspective of the villain or victim so we can
experience what they are seeing first hand which often builds
tension as the scene unfolds. It makes the audience feel a
part of the action and as if the filming of the action has been
unrehearsed.
Hand held camera has been used here to show how unsteady and
instable the action is that is occurring. The victim is running so by using a
hand held camera it seems as if you are running with them so you are a
part of the action. This puts the audience into the position of the victim
so we can sympathise with her. We can also see her facial expression
which seems very anxious so we feel the same way about her.
Hand held camera has been used here to put the
audience at the fore front of the action again. By
using hand held camera, we see the cars in front of
us moving very fearlessly as if we are in another car
and so we feel unsafe slightly. The whole
unsteadiness of the action may foreshadow the later
evil acts that occur. This creates a sense fear for the
audience because things aren't going smoothly.
Hand held camera has been used to show the villain
who seems to be a stalker waving at the victims holding
binoculars. Hand held camera has been used as if the
victim is holding the camera which creates a sense of
nervousness and instability. This demonstrates to the
audience how the victims feel. Overall, hand held
camera is a good way to show nervousness and
instability because it makes it seem as though the
filming and the action has not been rehearsed
By making it more of a shaky motion it seems much more realistic for the viewers and raw footage because creates a sense of unrehearsed
action because the filming is not very smooth. The more shaky motion also creates a greater sense of unexpectedness being shown to the
viewers which makes them think that something bad is going to happen or someone will jump out.

10. Medium shotThe gift
A medium shot has been used
here near the start of the trailer.
The medium shot is very useful
in portraying body language. In
this shot it shows one of the
main characters very happily
settled in to her new home with
a baby due. This sets a mood of
a very settled family and
happiness, later to be destroyed
by the evil acts of the villain.
Medium shot has been used here during a dialogue
sequence when new characters are introduced. By
using a medium shot the audience are able to be
introduced to the characters by seeing the top half
of their body which allows us to focus on their
facial expression and body language. Here, we see
that the facial expressions of the victims look quite
startled to have met an old school friend. This
contradicts the facial expression of the villain who
seems very calm because he expected to see these
people. Only the audience know that he had
planned to meet them because he is a stalker.
The boy
A medium shot has also been used in ‘the boy’ much like how it was
used in ‘the gift’. A medium shot has been used to introduce the new
nanny to the family and the boy. This allows the audience to get a
feel for the personalities of the characters and the nanny. We see
that the nanny comes across at first very innocently and young and
bubbly but once she speaks to the parents and the boy we suddenly
see a change in her calm body language and lively personality.
Therefore, the boy has obviously had an effect on the nanny and the
family she is looking after is not what she expected. This leads to the
later events occurring which she also does not expect.
A medium shot has been used her when another character sees what the boy can
do. This medium shot shows the angst, shock and worry that this character is
feeling. Medium shot is really useful to sense the emotion and facial expressions
of this character. These feelings reflect on the audience and make us feel the
same as he does as if we are put in his position because we sympathise with him.
Chained
A medium shot
has been used to
show the way that
the villain is
treating the young
boy as a slave and
how he isn't
feeding him
properly. By using
a medium shot
we are able to see
the top half of the
young boy and his
body language.
The way that he is lifting his bowl
up really high to drink the milk
because he is starving he
desperately needs to eat it and
quickly. This allows the audience to
sympathise with the boy which
makes us really uneasy when we
see later on in the movie the ways
that the man continues to treat
him. A medium
shot was
used here
the first
time that
the villain
was properly shown to the audience. This
shot along with the dialogue of the villain
saying “you will eat what I cant finish, you
will clean my house”. This allows the
audience to see his evil facial expression
and personality.
Overall, medium shots
are commonly used to
show a dialogue
sequence between two
or more characters as
we can see their facial
expression and body
language.