Evaluation 1- Develop or Challenge

 The Title of our Film: Majority of horror titles today aren't very long and usually vary from around 1-3 words to add effect, that stand out. We chose to go for a dated look for ours, with areas that blur out of focus to imply mystery. For our image we chose to feature our pathway, just so you can't see the bridge in the background ao it gets the audience guessing what is at the end of 'The Pathway'. This is a development of the horror genre.

    Setting/Location: This location is very typical of horror films; it is deserted and dark with big shadowy trees. The first locations of horror films are often meant to imply that something bad is about to happen, they make the audience tense and build up fear. Having our victim alone in deserted, creepy woods, tells the audience she is in trouble. Dark woods are often featured in horror films and seen as a bad place to be at night, which plays into our hands of scaring our audience. In all horror films the victims are made to seem very alone and cut off from everyone else, so when they are attacked they seem to be without hope. For these reason our location very much complies with the traditions of most horror films.

 Costumes: The costume of our antagonist is too very typical, often the killers are dressed in black to conceal their identity. In our film the black clothing is used to create mystery about what our killer is as when the first on screen death happens it is make clear the killer cannot be human. In horror films the plot is often based around finding out who the killer is and what their motive is. There for completely hiding his identity

 Props: A warning is a common occurrence in horror films, it is very effective to make the audience feel like there is a bigger picture to the murders and that they have been happening for a long time. Having our note in the first 2 minutes allows us to give the audience some background knowledge so they understand the the rest of the content. Pictures of characters with murdered victims are also common in horror films as the audience can connote from the image that the character was close with the deceased. In ours specifically it tells us our victim was close to the girl giving the warning. Props such as these are common in the first 2 minutes of horror films as they help build up the storyline and set up the tension for the first death.

 Camera work and Editing: In one of our clips we made the camera to appear as if it was the killer approaching the victim. To do this, we walked with the camera rather then keeping it on the tripod. This meant that the clip was shaky, which successfully made it appear as if the shot was coming from the perspective of the killer. We included some fast jump cuts to make it feel like the character is being followed. This will put the audience on edge. Both this camera work and editing is very typical of horror films as they are very effective in rising tension. However some of the editing, such as the pixelated definition of the camera challenges the horror films of today, as many horror films are made to the rule, the more graphic the better. we chose to use the unknown to create the effect we wanted.

 Title font and style: Our title font develop the trends of modern day horror films. This is because, as shown in my research, nower days simplicity is seen as more scary. Horror film fonts tend to be very plain. This makes it seem scarier as it suggests that not even the norm is safe. We have conformed to this and chosen simple as it make the films seem more real.

 Story and how the opening sets off: Our start is very typical of horror films, as it starts with a bang and really captures the audiences attention. We did what most horror films do, teased some of the storyline to the audience and then hit them with a death. This way it forces the audience to watch on as they have seen enough to be intrigued but not enough to guess what the main plot is about.  

Genre and how the opening suggests it: The starts of horror films often happen at night, unlike ours, however the black and white, bleakness of our gives off a similar effect. The characters are often made to seem completely cut off and without hope of survival, like ours. So when they die, they appear to die all alone.

How the characters are introduced: In our first 2 minutes the only main character that is introduced is the antagonist, as the other characters are only there to give the killer a big enterence. This too is again very common of horror films. It makes the characters seem as though they are disposable, and that the killer has rain.

 Special effects:  We slowed the motion of some of our clips right down to make it seem as though time had slowed down for the killer, like it does when you are in a blind panic. This was particularly effective when we slowed the falling of the picture right down. As this signified all loss of hope for the victim. This is very typical of horror films as the slow motion build up makes the action seem faster and more impressive. We hardly used any special effects as we didnt want to make it seem too fake, because this would disrupt the continuity of our film. Most horror films will use minimal special effects of the film doesnt look really un realistic.