The document discusses how the media product conforms to and challenges conventions of real horror movie openings. It adheres to conventions like using a sudden flashing title with loud music, having a dark red title color, and killing off main characters early. However, it also subverts conventions by having a thin, non-masculine killer who uses his hands instead of a weapon. Overall, the opening both follows standard horror movie techniques but also aims to surprise audiences by breaking from the expected killer archetype.
Powerpoint exploring the locations used in television show Time Clash
How a student film opening both conforms to and subverts horror conventions
1. In what ways does your media product use, develop or
challenge forms and conventions of real media
products?
Question 1
2. In many ways, our media product
subverted and conformed to the
conventions of real media products.
These conventions of real media
products include the title, the production
logo, the opening credits (actors names
and director) and the colors of these. The
timing of the title in correspondence to
the music is also included.
3. When comparing our movie opening’s conventions to
the conventions used in other horror films such as
Cabin in the Woods, they are very similar in the way
that the opening title appears. In cabin in the Woods,
the title appears by flashing up on screen suddenly
which is what our title does. Also as the title flashes up
there is a loud scream which plays to almost scare the
viewer. As our title flashes up on screen, there is very
loud music.
4. Also, the colour of the text that we used is a dark blood
red. This is commonly used in horror films like the
Cabin in the Woods. This is another way in which our
movie opening conforms to the conventions of real
media products. In out title we have also made the H
and the T in the words hidden and trees to highlight
that they are the most important words in the title.
This is also done in the title of the Cabin in the Woods,
but they have mad the entire words The and Cabin,
larger then the rest of the title.
5. Another convention in the opening of our film has in a
way been subverted and conformed to. Not often in
horror films do the main characters die first. But in our
movie opening this is what happens. Another film that
this occurs in is the movie Psycho by Alfred Hitchcock.
In Psycho the main character is the first to be killed by
Norman Bates and in our movie opening the Main
character is the first to be killed.
6. In our movie opening we decided to make the killer
more sinister by concealing his face beneath a bright
green mask. This is similar to many horror films as the
main villain in the film is given an iconic image so that
viewers remember them easier. Some examples of
masks being used to make a villain more iconic are,
Friday the 13th, Scream and smiley.
7. In most horror films, the killer/villain is male, tall and muscular.
Whereas in our movie opening, our killer is very thin and does not
have a very masculine figure. This subverts the usual conventions
of a horror movie opening. Killers such as Leatherface from the
Texas chainsaw massacre is a huge masculine man. Also, in a
normal horror film, the male killer usually uses a weapon, e.g.
Leatherface uses a chainsaw, but in our movie opening, our killer
who is male only uses his hand which subverts the conventions of
a normal horror film.