Scream was a 1996 film, created in the genre of horror, it contained many of the conventions of horror that I will be using in my own
•Dark/shadowed lighting - faces will be shadowed - main character's face half shadowed to show the split personalities between antagonist and protagonist
•Face paced editing so audience are filled with adrenaline
•Tension building music
•Point of view shots – so the audience can relate to the character
•Close ups to understand the character’s emotions – fearful of victim
•High angled shots of the victim to show vulnerability
•Low angled shots of the killer, to show dominance and power
•Isolation, or just alone
•Isolation, or just alone
•The “who done it?” theme, used in Scream by the murder always wearing a mask when killing
Most horror films contain dark lighting with heavy use of shadowing, by using dark mise-en-scéne, means the audience can’t distinguish things properly or the surroundings of the scene, playing on the natural fear of the unknown. Shorter clips, as the fast-paced editing evokes panic from the audience, point of view shots; using this camera angle means audience can relate to the fear of the character, as they feel they are in the position of the character too. Isolation of characters and the “who done it?” theme are also conventions of horror as it means the audience feel they can’t trust any of the characters and also as if they are by themselves and can’t get anyone’s help. I also found that the use of silence was a convention of horror films and evoked fear from the audience, as the lack of diegetic and non-diegetic sound caused the audience to constantly be on edge as they are waiting for sound.
Most horror films contain dark lighting with heavy use of shadowing, by using dark mise-en-scéne, means the audience can’t distinguish things properly or the surroundings of the scene, playing on the natural fear of the unknown. Shorter clips, as the fast-paced editing evokes panic from the audience, point of view shots; using this camera angle means audience can relate to the fear of the character, as they feel they are in the position of the character too. Isolation of characters and the “who done it?” theme are also conventions of horror as it means the audience feel they can’t trust any of the characters and also as if they are by themselves and can’t get anyone’s help. I also found that the use of silence was a convention of horror films and evoked fear from the audience, as the lack of diegetic and non-diegetic sound caused the audience to constantly be on edge as they are waiting for sound.