This document outlines genre conventions for stalker/slasher films. It discusses iconography including low-key lighting, settings like houses and alleys, dark costumes for killers and bright for victims. Narratives are nonlinear, spanning 5-20 years with flashbacks, and involve stalkers seeking revenge after being bullied. Characters include the "final girl" survivor, anonymous killer who was previously bullied, and stereotypical teenagers. Sounds include non-diegetic music and effects and diegetic dialogue and silence. Cinematography uses shots like close-ups and over-the-shoulders to build tension through a fast editing pace with few transitions.

1. Genre Conventions
STALKER/SLASHER

2. Iconography:
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Lighting
 Low key ambient lighting - night time
 Silhouette - mostly used on the antagonist
 low/high key chiaroscuro.
Setting
 House
 Underground stations/ empty platforms
 Dark alley ways
 Dark basement
 Outside the club.
Costume
 Dark clothing – killer/victim
 Mask - killer
 Hoodies - killer
 Bright clothing - victims
Props
 Knife – killer/victim
 wrist watch - killer
 Cameras - killer

3. Narrative
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Time Frame
 5 – 20 years
Linearity
 Non-linear – may contain flash backs of the antagonist’s past
Plot
 Stalker gets bullied then comes back a few years later to seek revenge

4. Characterisation
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Stock types  The victim "final girl“ - a lot films in this genre usually have only one survivor. The survivor is
generally a female. She’s portrayed as a good girl, whereas other victims usually get involved with
things they shouldn’t.
 The antagonist - usually a male. His identity is often anonymous. This is achieved using a mask or
by never showing close ups of his face. He is also often quiet which produces his mysterious
character. He is frequently very big and strong making it almost impossible for anyone to attack
him. On the other hand, when he was younger he was the complete opposite and often got bullied
by his victims
 The protagonist – Usually a friend of one of the victims who is first to take notice of their absence.
 The police are often involved with the activities that occur in a horror and especially slasher films.
They are either extremely unreliable/unhelpful, and get killed, or turn up at the end of the movie
when it’s too late to save any of the victims.
Stereotypes  Teenagers
 Sporty - The brave one who is not afraid to step up and face anything.
 Cheerleaders – exaggeratedly vain
 Nerds - the quiet one who hardly interacts with others and is usually the nervous or most
suspicious character

5. Sound
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Non-Diegetic sounds –
 Sound effects such as loud bangs, instruments and noises/whispers to either relate to different
moods of the trailer or to be in sync with the cuts within the trailer.
 Music is also used to express the mood of different scenes of the trailer.
Diegetic sounds  Dialogue of conversations often over the phone – killer calling victim
 Silence is used a lot in stalker/slasher movies and also in horror movies to create a sense of
foreboding.

6. Cinematography
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Shots  Close ups – used to highlight emotions
 Two shots – used to show two people in a frame, usually in conversation
 Long shots – used to see characters full costumes
 Mid shots – used to show a person from the head to their waist. This shot allows the audience to
analyse their costume at the same time viewing of the persons facial expression and body language.
 Over the shoulder shots – used to either show someone being followed or someone following
someone else.
 Tracking shots – used in order to follow the movement of a subject on a fixed track
 Panning shots are similar to tracking shots however they move from left to right without a fixed
track.
 Establishing shots – used at the start of a film or a scene to highlight the location
 High angle shots – used to provide a view looking down which makes a person or an object appear
smaller in the frame. This is often used to add a sense of weakness.
 Low angle shots – used to provide a view looking up which makes a person or an object appear
bigger in the frame. This is often used to add a sense of power and dominance.

7. Editing
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Hollywood continuity - straight cuts. Invisible editing, made to look real
Most horror, slasher/stalker movies are fast paced in order to build up tension to a climate.
Flash backs are sometimes used to show a moment in a film in which the audience is shown an event
that occurred in the past which could have affected the present.
Slow/fast fades are mostly the only transitions used to make the film look more realistic