This document discusses common iconography and tropes in horror films and media. It outlines settings like urban alleys and isolated locations that are often used, as well as unnatural dark lighting with harsh contrasts. Props help identify character roles through items like crucifixes or weapons. Character stereotypes include protagonists who survive threats, villains portrayed as creatures or killers, and troubled adolescents. Common events involve discoveries of strange happenings, chases through remote areas, murders of loved ones, and climactic encounters between villains and protagonists.

1. Iconography of Horror
Symbolic representation, especially the conventional meaning attached to
an image or images.

2. Setting
Conventional settings of a horror include:
-urban locations (ie a dark alley way)
-remote isolated locations
-dark lighting

3. Lighting
Lighting is often unnatural, usually darker than reality or
the contrast between light and dark is harsher.

4. Props
Props are a way of identifying the character and their roles.
examples of this include:
- Crucifix: Identifies that the character is from a religious
background or leads a religious life. (often seen in super-
natural/psychological sub-genre)
- Weapon: Identifies that the character may be innocent
(using the weapon for protection), or the threat (using the
weapon purposely to kill). Types of weapons vary between
the two sides, the innocent usually using a smaller, more
vulnerable weapon compared to the killers.

5. Props (continued)
- Fictional Characters (ie zombies, beast’s etc.) often show
disbelief as well as terrifying fear from the victim’s reaction

6. Characters
Character stereotypes:
- Protagonist: usually outlives/survives the killer/threat,
Last to die within a group of people or uncovers the threat.
- The Villain: Usually some sort of creature, mutated freak,
serial killer or an unseen spirit.
- Naïve, immoral adolescents.
- Disturbed Child: Rather being targeted by a villainous
character or is a villainous themselves .
- Character on the religious path (ie rabbi, priest).

7. Events
- Discovery: where a character that something is strange/
things aren’t appearing to be normal.
- The Chase: usually through an remote, large open
location with few/no other people around. Or usually
through a home with obstacles in the way.
- The Murder: Where the protagonist see’s a loved one/
close friend being murdered by the villain
- The Encounter with the Villain: A battle between the
villain and the protagonist, where the villain attempts to
kill the protagonist but gets away.