Horror Film: "229"

As one of our first challenges back at college, after having to stay off for a few months due to the coronavirus pandemic, we were set the task to learn and understand how to create a successful horror film. 

I wasn't particularly thrilled about this challenge as I am not a big lover or enthusiast of horror films, I am easily terrified and paranoid after watching something that is scary (whether it is a brilliant, mediocre or terrible film). I find that, a lot of the time with horror films, they are made for the sake of scaring the living daylights out of people through visual effects, jump scares and blood and gore, rather than focusing on the story and building its characters. In my opinion, I find many horror films to be stereotypical and follow the same, basic plots, aspects and elements of its many predecessors.

Although I say I am not a fanatic of the horror genre, I do enjoy psychological horrors/thrillers, particularly Stephen King adaptations, such as 'Carrie' (1976), 'Misery' (1990), 'The Shining' (1980) and many more. 

I do also enjoy the works of Jordan Peele, his only directorial works being, 'Get Out' (2017) and 'Us' (2019), as well as M. Night Shyamalan's films, like 'The Sixth Sense' (1999) and 'Split' (2016). 

Psychological films, such as the ones I've named, follow psychologically distressed characters, presenting their struggles with their own mind or their complicated and destructive relationships with ominous and toxic characters. These films tend to become very disturbing after revealing a plot twist, creating huge problems for the protagonist (or antagonist, the main character can be an unreliable narrator) and watch them try to make it out of the situation, hopefully alive. 

Once our teacher, Kelly, told us we would be creating horror films, she went around the room and asked everyone what horror films they had watched and what their opinion is on the genre. This was also our first lesson with the year one's and most of them said they liked and were familiar with the genre. This meant it would be much easier for me, and some of the year two's, to cooperate and listen to what the year one's had in mind and their knowledge of horror. 

Wednesday 16th September 2020

As I stated before, this was our first lesson with the year one's and we learnt that we were going to be understanding the codes and conventions of the horror genre, as well as using that new knowledge to be able to create our own horror films. 

Firstly, before we got started on figuring out ideas and what horror films we were going to do, we had to learn about the codes and conventions (the rules and elements) of a horror film. Altogether, there were thirteen steps to creating a horror:

1. Main Character (Hero) - They should be an average person but have to be part of a particular and typical social group. Usually, the typical hero of a horror is a high school or college student (e.g. 'A Nightmare on Elm Street' (1984) and 'Scream' (1996)). The hero tends to work on their own, for example a babysitter ('Halloween' (1978)). 

2. Sidekick (bicker and compete) - A good story always has a hero (protagonist) and a sidekick. At the beginning of the story, the sidekick starts off as the hero's best friend, but towards the end they then betray and oppose the hero. Some horror films also have creepy children (e.g. 'Children of the Corn' (1984)), or children who become corrupted by scary characters.

3. Universal Moment - This is an event that an audience can relate to and have experienced themselves. For example, being alone in a house ('Paranormal Activity' (2007) and 'Night of the Living Dead' (1968)). 

4. Location - Cheap movies are usually shot in one location, for a horror film this should be in a creepy looking location, for example, a big house, factory, abandoned building, etc. The location should be quite dark, for example, you can black out windows to make the setting darker and create an eerie, off-putting atmosphere. Another advantage of using a single location is that it can be included within the story, for example, you could block all the exits so the hero is unable to escape.

5. Inciting Incident - Event is towards the beginning of the story, creating the drama and kicking off the story. Inciting incidents can be macro (e.g. an epidemic '28 Days Later' (2002) and 'Shaun of the Dead' (2004)) or micro (e.g. the death of a child 'Don't Look Now' (1973)). 

6. Ghost - Good stories need to have a ghost, this is an event in the past that the hero still fears or is ashamed of. This can either be an actual ghost or a haunting experience that tortures the hero. Ghosts are treated differently in each genre, but in horror the ghost usually takes on a physical shape that is painful for the hero, but they must be able to overcome it, which won't be easy. 

7. Nightmare - Event/Something in the future that the hero is afraid of, it's so powerful that it prevents them from getting what they really want. This doesn't need to be a literal nightmare, just something that worries the hero about the future.

8. Trap - Horror films are usually filled with traps. 'Saw' (2004), 'Buried' (2010), 'Phone Booth' (2002) and 'The Evil Dead' (1981) are all stories with traps where the unwary perish.

9. Death of the Sidekick - The hero confronts the physical ghost and during the confrontation there is a struggle which results in the death of the sidekick. This is a moment for maximum dramatic effect, as well as the moment that causes a great amount of guilt and remorse in the protagonist.

10. Confrontation - This causes the death of the sidekick and is the climax of the entire film. It's a risky confrontation (do-or-die situation), in which the hero must now overcome the ghost or else suffer the direct consequences. There are three different types of consequences:

• Physical - Hero could lose their life
• Social - Hero could lose their place in society
• Psychological - Hero has their core beliefs challenged to the point where they can no longer function as a normal, fit and healthy human being

11. Mise-en-scene - This is everything that is in front of the camera, such as set design, lighting, actors, costume, makeup, props, special effects, etc. 

12. Music - Horror film scores tend to feature low strings, children singing or amplified heart beats, for example, 'The Blair Witch Project' (1999).

13. Film Festival - Pick a film festival that debuts horror films, for example, Sundance or Frightfest.

As Kelly was going through each step with us, simultaneously, we had to create a mind map and note down our own thoughts and examples for each step that we could possibly place into our own films. 

After Kelly had finished going through the steps with us, we then had to get into groups and start to plan and create ideas for our own film. Me and Amiliyah got in a group together, along with Nick from year one. Once we all got together, we tried to come up with a few ideas but couldn't really figure out what we wanted to do, this was particularly difficult for both me and Amiliyah as we aren't big horror fans. Nick, on the other hand, seemed to know quite a lot about horror as had watched many before. Me and Amiliyah tried to conjure some ideas up, but we both failed to do so. All we knew was that we either wanted to do a psychological horror or a '80s style slasher (as we both like similar horror sub-genres and the '80s). As we tried to elaborate on those styles and genres, Nick came up with a few ideas.

The first idea Nick came up with was pretty good. It was about a man, distant from society as he lived on his own in a secluded area and home. His wife had passed away and he was struggling to cope with her passing, causing him to become an alcoholic and needing to take medication for his mentality. The film would then go on as the man started to become himself again and realise that he had actually killed his own wife and had been numbing the pain and thoughts through substance abuse. We thought this was a good idea, as with the current conditions of the world, we would only need two actors and keep to one location and stay distanced whilst filming. Although, the only problems I thought was we would need older and mature actors to play these characters and the film was very similar to one a previous second year had done during lockdown. 

As I told Nick the complications, he then started to change the idea around, changing the older man to a young teenage boy who feels as if he is pushed into the outskirts of both his school and home life. Some of the new plot Nick had created was quite confusing, although I remember the way he wanted to end the film. Nick said that the main character, who is now very depressed and upset with his life, has entered his school's talent show. When it's his time onstage, he is performing a magic act, entertaining and wowing the audience. Although, when he performs the end of his act, he then takes his own life in front of the audience. This was a very confusing and disturbing ending which didn't exactly relate to the psychological or horror genre. We also felt this ending was very insensitive, as suicide is a very serious subject matter and audiences watching the film may have known someone close to them who had done something similar.

Afterwards, Kelly came over to listen to our ideas and check in on how we were coping with the task, and she agreed with me on the concerns about Nick's ideas. Once the lesson ended, Kelly again spoke to me and Amiliyah and told us to try looking at the plot lines and synopses of some of our favourite psychological horrors/thrillers to get inspiration for the film. Kelly, herself, isn't the biggest horror fan either, so this was very much a challenge for the entire class. At the beginning of the lesson, one of the first-year students had said they liked the horror film 'The Woman in Black' (2012), which is a very intricate and complex ghost story adapted from the novel by Susan Hill. Kelly had said she had seen the onstage play on the West End and then asked anyone else if they had watched the play version, which I was the only other person who had. I had seen the play during my final year of GCSEs when I still lived in Dubai, seeing it twice in one week (the first being with my friend and the second with my drama class for our live review section of our exam) and becoming very paranoid. This is a terrifying story and was definitely something to keep in mind for horror. 

After the lesson, me and Amiliyah then started to have a look on IMDb at some psychological horror/thriller synopses and plots. They were all very ominous and sinister sounding, then making me and Amiliyah think about creating something that was very dark and possibly unpleasant, we were both really thinking on how we could push the boundaries and our own abilities as filmmakers. Me and Amiliyah then started to have a conversation about dark and disturbing topics presented in films and TV shows, even documentaries, that we oddly like to watch yet are interested by. 

We then got onto the topic of true crime and serial killers, as the class had been discussing earlier about the new ITV drama that premiered at the beginning of the week called 'Des' (2020). The three-part drama follows the 1983 arrest of Scottish serial killer, Dennis Nilsen (portrayed by David Tennant), and the investigation that followed into Nilsen's disturbing acts of violence and murder. We both started to speak about how we could possibly create a type of psychological horror that involved a serial killer, though not making the serial killer the central character (for them to be the antagonist) nor glamourising their acts and crimes. We both thought it would be a good to have the leading role be woman, referring to the classic horror trope of the final girl. The 'final girl' is the lone survivor in a horror and confronts the killer/monster, and is usually the only character left to tell the story. 

Me and Amiliyah now finally had a rough idea of what we wanted to do and started to create a story and now coming up with a concept for our horror film. With inspiration from the show 'Des', we thought it would be an interesting challenge to also set our film in the '80s, where we could really play with the situation of a killer on the loose and intruding someone's home. Technology was still not advanced as it is now and it would be a struggle to get to the phone (landline) quick enough, as well as be able to call for help. As Amiliyah was taking notes and I was figuring out the story, we also kept speaking about particular styles of shots we could do, as well as the mise-en-scene, mainly thinking of lighting, colour, props and makeup. As this film is set in the '80s, we had to think about finding a location that is the style of '80s England, both a street and house. The look we were thinking of, thinking back to 'Des', was the harsh, dark, Thatcherism, realism of '80s England (particularly the North East) instead of the bright, neon and vibrant style many see in films and television (e.g. 'Stranger Things' (2016- ), 'Heathers' (1988), 'GLOW' (2017-2019), 'Pretty in Pink' (1986), etc). 

The film follows a young, ordinary, working woman arriving home after a long, hard day at the office, excited and getting ready for date night with her boyfriend. Once she finishes getting herself ready, she now waits for her partner, but he never shows up. She thinks he may have stood her up until she gets a call from his mother, asking his whereabouts. The protagonist then becomes fearful for her boyfriend, as ghosts from her past start appearing in her present and an unwelcome guest has made their way into her home. 

After we finally got a rough outline for our film (pretty much our whole outline as the film only needs to be ten-minutes or less), I said that I'd create a mood board for the film, after we had spoken to Kelly about the film in our next lesson, to get some inspiration for the films vision and style. I then started to feel much better about the project as this is a story I am interested in developing and creating and still make it ominous and horrifying, as well as having the challenge of bringing one of my worst fears and nightmares to life.

Thursday 17th September 2020

I asked Amiliyah if she could send over the notes she made of our horror outline so that I could elaborate and define them, creating the full plot of the film, as well as figuring out some new ideas and changes we had discussed (mostly figuring out flashback scenes and how the serial killer links to this story). In my opinion, writing an outline of the full story is helpful as it then acts as a guideline when you start to create your script. Planning the story out, whether it's a fleshed out and detailed outline or rough notes of the structure of your film, is crucial before starting a script as it can be difficult, sometimes, to jump straight into writing the script and not knowing what is going to happen and your reason for telling this particular story. It was also helpful to create an in-depth outline of the plot so me and Amiliyah could show it to our group, and Kelly, to understand the whole story, hopefully getting a nod of approval and being able to develop the script and start the pre-production process.

Monday 21st September 2020

When me and Amiliyah came in for our lesson, we first went to speak to Kelly about our horror film idea. Luckily, she really liked the idea and was intrigued by how we were going to pull it off, also saying we could go to her for help about anything '80s. Now all that was left to do was tell our group, Nick, about the idea of the horror film that me and Amiliyah had come up with, hoping he'd like it and start developing the film.

As soon as I got home, after the lesson, I then created a mood board to help inspire the style of the film, as well as show the group the vision and visuals me and Amiliyah had discussed. This mainly included the inspiration of the film, as well as a few camera shots, colour, set design and makeup that could be in the film. 

Wednesday 23rd September 2020

On this day, we had a new addition to the group, Robyn in year one. This was now a great opportunity to tell both Nick and Robyn about the story me and Amiliyah had created and hear their feedback and opinions on it. 

I struggle to try and explain ideas and stories vocally as I get nervous and anxious to express my thoughts and vision, as well as not being able to explain them as concise as I possibly can. So, Amiliyah took the lead on telling the group our idea, as I handed over the outline for them to take a glimpse at and look over. 

We didn't get much feedback from the group, other than the story wasn't horrifying enough and would probably be too difficult to film (mainly with the '70s and '80s setting). Nick did also mention that we could possibly make the story modern, but we thought that may lose the effect of isolation as technology and criminology is much more advanced now than it was over thirty-years ago. It's much easier, in modern times, to be able to contact someone immediately in a time of trouble, as well as catching a serial killer easily through forensics. 

Robyn then started to speak about her own opinion of horror films and certain films she's seen, she had the same interests as everyone in the group when it comes to horror, saying that horrors must have a story and a purpose. She said she mainly likes psychological horrors, afraid of how natural and realistic the stories are until they distort reality and make the characters, and audiences, question everything. This was good that she had the same interests as the whole of the group, so we were all on the same page and could come up with something new and frightening. 

As we all tried to come up with a new idea, we then decided to tell each other our own fears and what we are afraid of. We got a large piece of paper and each noted down all the things that scare us.

After noting down our fears, we then went around the table and discussed what we had written down and why they scare us. Some of us had similar fears, this helped as we then understood why we are afraid of these certain things and could then involve them in our film. Once we had finished discussing our worst fears, we then started to plan a new idea for the film. I mainly took notes as Robyn started to create a story. The story follows a young woman who seeks professional psychological help for her distressing and disturbing thoughts of her worst fears, but as the film goes on, we see her mental health deteriorating as her biggest nightmares are now becoming real, delusions. 

I came up with some of the ideas within the climactic scene of the film where the protagonist meets with her therapist (towards the end of the film). We still wanted a challenge whilst creating the horror, making sure to not keep it too simplistic. For the climactic scene in the counselling session, I tried to think of the types of effects (blood dripping down walls, distorted faces (makeup), flashing lights, etc) we could involve in that scene that brings all of our teams fears together. This was also good to think about the atmosphere dark and tense atmosphere of the scene, as well as setting the tone for the entire film and, for myself, understanding how to bring your own fears across in a film. 

After finishing the notes, just a rough outline of the film, I then sent the notes over on Teams for Robyn to look over again as she was going to be writing the script. This was good that Robyn was going to write the script as she had mainly come up with the concept of the film and also could visualise the entirety of the film in her head, so leaving the task of developing the script to Robyn was a good decision. Once Robyn had the script ready, we could then read through it and be able to start our pre-production and planning for filming.

Wednesday 30th September 2020

As we arrived at college for our lesson, Kelly told us Robyn was unable to attend ad had not yet finished the script, she had written about four-pages. This was difficult as without a script, we couldn't really get started on pre-production work. 

Instead, me and Amiliyah started to think of locations that we could use when filming, this was quite difficult as we also had to think about the laws and restrictions during the current circumstances. Mostly, we thought of only places in and near college that we could use (still difficult to think about as we didn't have a script). 

We also had a look at music from certain horror films, as well as listening to music that we found eerie and appropriate for a psychological horror.

Saturday 3rd October 2020 - Self-Isolating

We were told we had to self-isolate for two-weeks (starting from Thursday 1st October) as a student in our bubble had been tested positive for coronavirus. This was a huge problem on our horror film as the script was not finished yet, we hadn't done any pre-production and wouldn't have time to actually film and edit the horror in time for Halloween. This was a nightmare and shows the problems and implications the current events have caused, as well as understanding the issues that has arisen for the film and TV industry, with only a few projects starting production again and also learning the problems underdeveloped projects (in the industry) are facing. 

Wednesday 14th October 2020 - Self-Isolating

As the year one's were still able to go into college, and we would have been having our lesson that day, we started to discuss what we could possibly do for the horror film. This was a huge issue now as, like I stated before, we hadn't prepared or planned anything as we still did not have a script and new laws and restrictions had been put in place, causing most of our scenes and locations (those being set in a house) to be scrapped from the film. We then had to think about alternatives and contingencies, thinking of how we could film certain scenes or changing scenes completely to be able to film them in college. 

Robyn said she'd be able to finish the script off and me and Amiliyah also asked if she would be able to prepare some pre-production work for the visuals and style of the film (character breakdown, design ideas, locations, makeup and costume). This would then help us once we got back to college the following week, being able to discuss production and then start filming immediately. 

Saturday 17th October 2020 - Self-Isolating

A few days before we went back to college (after having to self-isolate) Robyn had finally finished the script and sent it to the group, via Teams. 

I thought Robyn had done a really great job on the script, there were some great changes from what we originally discussed that I think benefitted and made the story much more interesting, terrifying and shocking. I told Robyn my only concerns with the script was:

• the swear word at the beginning, mainly because we have been advised not to use bad language.
• the scenes set at the main character, Emma's, home (due to the recent laws and restrictions made in the UK, not allowed to go into other people's households).

Robyn then made a few changes to the script, mainly cutting out the swear word from the beginning, as well as changing the name of the film from '237' to '229' as, apparently, the original number she used for the title was the number of the haunted room at the Overlook Hotel from 'The Shining'. This would have been quite a nice nod to 'The Shining' although there is actually a documentary titled 'Room 237' (2012) about the creation and development of the Stanley Kubrick's classic film, adapted from the hit Stephen King novel. Robyn then mentioned that she had created a casting call for college, although we wouldn't be able to use this as we needed to find cast straight away as we only had a week left to make and edit this film ready for Halloween. 

We also discussed that we will sort out shooting schedules, risk assessments, casting, locations, and possibly makeup (although we would have needed to book this in advance) when we went back to college the following Monday.

Monday 19th October 2020

After two weeks of having to self-isolate, I was now back at college and ready to start developing the horror (as best we possibly can in the short timeframe we now had). Robyn and Nick were able to stay back, for an hour, after their lesson and discuss what we could do for our film, trying to work around the new restrictions that were enforced recently. 

We now had many problems as we didn't have enough time to film the entire horror, as well as trying to think of alternatives and contingencies for certain scenes and also trying to work around everyone's schedules (as the year one's had another horror project they needed to finish before Halloween). We then spoke to Kelly about our problems we were facing and she told us to try and get as much done as we possibly can, whether it be one or multiple scenes. We all agreed upon filming the first scene of the film, where the protagonist is speaking to her therapist about her evolving fears and problems. We discussed on, possibly, trying to also take elements from the support group scene (towards the end of the film) into the therapist scene, showing the horror tropes an elements within the film, but I think we decided against it as we weren't able to get makeup in time and also wouldn't have enough time to film it all (due to our schedules). We all decided that the following day would be our shoot day, giving us time on Wednesday to edit it altogether.

Once we sorted out the scene we wanted to film, Amiliyah then created a group, on Teams, asking some of the year two actors (as first year actors were having to self-isolate) if they would like to be a part of the film. The only characters involved, in the scene, were the protagonist and the therapist. We said for the actor wanting to play the protagonist to wear casual clothing, as for the actor playing the therapist to wear formal clothing (blouse and smart trousers or skirt). Luckily, two actors replied straight away, Sophie Laverick (protagonist) and Sadie Paterson (therapist). Robyn was then going to send the scene, from the script, to them later on for them to give a read over and try to practice for the shoot tomorrow. 

Once we had casting sorted out, we were then going to sort the rest of filming out tomorrow (setup of shots and location).

Tuesday 20th October 2020 - Shoot Day

Once me and Amiliyah arrived at college, we created a risk assessment before we could start any filming. 

We didn't have much to place on our risk assessment as it was a straight forward scene we were going to film, although our main risk was, of course, contracting COVID-19. We all definitely didn't have the virus but we definitely needed to take precautions whilst filming, this is something I have great knowledge of as every day we are being made aware to take precautions to stop the spread of the virus and I also recently took a few courses on COVID awareness.

Once we had the risk assessment sorted out, we were then able to start filming. Luckily, we were able to start filming earlier than we planned as Robyn now had some spare time to help us with filming. We were told that Sophie Laverick wasn't able to attend filming but this wasn't a huge issue as we were able to get another actor, Sophie Ashcroft, to fill in for her. Sadie was now going to play the part of the protagonist and Sophie playing the part of the therapist. 

Once we found our actors, we then headed to the studio to grab a camera and tripod for our shoot. We originally wanted to use two or three cameras, as the scene is a conversation between the protagonist and therapist, we wanted to have a 180-degree rule setup, but some of the other groups were filming their own horror films and had taken quite a few of the cameras. Before we could start filming, we needed to charge the battery of the camera, as well as find a location to film in.

As the battery was charging, me and Amiliyah went location scouting as Robyn stayed back and went through the scene with the actors, speaking to them about how she envisioned it to be acted out. Me and Amiliyah first had a look in a classroom that wasn't being used, we thought this was a great location as the room was very bare and on the wall behind had a few posters about physical and mental health (that could possibly be seen in a doctor or therapists office). There was also a desk that had a computer and keyboard placed on it, as well as a few sheets of paper that weren't very visible. We thought this would be a great location to set the scene, although Robyn did say she'd rather film it in the office near our studio as there was a sofa in the room. Me and Amiliyah did have a look in the office but we didn't think it looked like a clinical and professional office a therapist would work in and be allocated to. We also wouldn't have been able to do a 180-degree rule setup in the office as it was quite small and the sofa and desk and chair were in an awkward position to film around. We told Robyn it would be best to film in the classroom as we could get the angles we wanted and have more room to set the camera up.

Once we finished finding our preferred location, we then went back to the studio to collect the camera and actors. We went back to the classroom where we were filming and set the scene up, although when Amiliyah setup the camera (positioning it where both actors would be in shot, centre) we had a minor technical difficulty with it. We were having issues with the filter of the camera as the shots were looking grainy and was presenting a few random, out of place pixels of static. We were then able to get help from our teacher, who was covering our lesson that day, fixing the problem of the filter. Luckily, the static did go away although the shots still looked quite grainy, this was mainly due to a problem with this particular camera as it, for some odd reason, is stuck zoomed in on shots (slightly out of focus) and unable to zoom out. 

After we got the camera sorted out, we then got onto filming. This didn't take to long as the actors had learnt their lines very quickly and knew what they were doing, this was very professional and well done on their part. We first started filming the both of them together in the scene, then moved onto Sophie from Sadie's side and then of Sadie from Sophie's side. It took us less than fifteen or twenty minutes to film the entire scene which was great, only having to do a few retakes. The only problem we had during filming was when we filmed Sadie, we used natural lighting (sunlight through the classroom window) in the scene which Sadie was facing away from. When looking back at the first take we did of her, all you could see was her silhouette. We needed to keep the lighting the same from the other shots we filmed, for continuity reasons. All we did, to slightly fix the problem, was close the blinds over half the window, only behind Sadie, where she was positioned and seated, and allowing the light from the exposed side to still come through and lighten the shot. The next shot we then did of Sadie was much better as we could now see her physical features and appearance. 

Me and Amiliyah then stayed back in the classroom to clear it up but also to film an opening shot for the scene. We decided to get a shot from outside the window as the leaves on the trees were now yellow and orange, as we are nearing the end of autumn. This was a lovely shot to get as autumn usually is associated with the scary, Halloween season and the shot Amiliyah took, of the trees outside, we would be able to colour grade and colour correct (as well as make harsh, dark and sharp) the shot. After we got that last shot, we were then done with filming and ready to move onto editing the following day.

Wednesday 21st October 2020 - Editing

As soon as me and Amiliyah arrived at college, we signed logged onto one of the computers and started editing the horror.

We only had eight shots of footage altogether, this wasn't too bad as mainly two of the retakes we did were the perfect shots we wanted in the scene, and we only needed to use the one good shot of the trees outside of the window. We then placed all the footage onto the premiere pro software, adding the three main shots we were using (centre and two sides (Sophie and Sadie)). This didn't take too long to edit between the different shots, making it look like a tense conversation between the protagonist and therapist. Sometimes it would be quite difficult to edit the shots together to look like a smooth and natural conversation, but because we had to film the scene roughly five times (twice from the centre of 180-degree rule, twice of Sadie and one of Sophie), the actors dialogue was different in each take. This was slightly difficult but I was able to work around the situation, either shortening or extending the audio/dialogue over shots or piecing it together with different shots. The continuity of the actors positioning and movement wasn't a huge problem either as each take they did they made, almost, the exact same movements as they had done in the previous takes, this was helpful as they had also blocked the scene before we started filming. 

Once we had got all the shots together and audio synced perfectly together (sometimes needed to increase the audio gain of certain audio clips), me and Amiliyah then started to look at sound and music on YouTube. For the beginning of the scene, the shot of the trees, we wanted to have the sound a quiet street playing (possibly the sound of a car passing by and birds chirping), for a few seconds, before hearing the characters midway through their conversation. We were able to find a one-minute audio file that was ideal for the opening shot, we then downloaded the file and then placed it in premiere pro and edited it over the opening shot. We then needed to find some music to add towards the end of the scene, used as foreshadowing when the therapist tells the protagonist about a support group she must attend. Music for horror films is sometimes quite hard to find, specifically for a horror that is also psychological, as many of the copyright free music we listened to was very overpowering and wasn't suited for our horror. Although, when we searched for music on YouTube, it didn't take us long to find a fitting song for the scene named 'The Haunt'. This song was perfect for the ending as it was slow and quiet, creating an ominous and tense atmosphere within the scene, and it didn't overpower the actors speech. Both the audio and music were simplistic yet effective. 

After we finished working out all the audio and music for the scene, we then added a title for the end of the film. This was very simple, editing the title of the film along with the music, using the video transition 'film dissolve' at the beginning and end of the title to fade in and out in time with the music. 

Lastly, we then colour corrected the beginning shot of the scene, fading the shot slightly as the sunlight was very bright on the trees, as well as sharpening the the yellows and oranges of the leaves on the trees, also increasing the vibrance. 

Once we were finished, we looked over the scene again. We were happy with what we had and exported the video. Although, when we watched the exported version of the scene, we then noticed how grainy the shots were, again this was a problem we had with the camera and we were unable to fix the problem. As we were finished with the scene, we then emailed it over to Kelly, again, apologising we weren't able to film more.

Evaluation

Kelly's feedback on our horror was that it was well done, but if we had added a jump scare or flicker towards the end then it would have finished the scene even better. In my opinion, I don't think a jump scare would've worked as this is the beginning of our horror film and would have been quite out of the blue. From our original, intended story, it would become much scarier later on as this would be when the protagonist's worst nightmares were becoming a reality, with this being a psychological horror. So, the beginning of the film was intended to be subtle before the madness arrives toward the end of the film. I do agree we could have added a slight flicker at the end of the scene, creating a sense of distorted reality and delusion from the perspective of the protagonist. Originally, for the beginning scene, we wanted to have cutaway shots when the protagonist speaks about the strange images and incidents she was involved in, as well as when the therapist reiterates events she had spoken of previously. For example, there is a part where the therapist says "attacked by a swarm of wasps that were hiding in your shower head", and then we wanted to try and get a shot of this happening (I'm not sure how we would have filmed this as we couldn't have used real wasps but) we could have had a shot of the protagonist in the shower, hearing her screams of terror as her brother appears and the wasps have disappeared suddenly. The scene would have been more effective if we were able to get cutaway shots, just like the example I have given. 

I think the scene we did was alright, could have been much better with more time and if we weren't living in a pandemic. Although, I think we definitely would have done much better with more communication between the group (was very much something we lacked in), as well as prepping and planning. 

I was upset we weren't able to do all of our horror as we had a great idea and it would have been really interesting to see the end result of the story and film. I also was upset that we couldn't do our original idea (the 'Des' inspired horror me and Amiliyah had originally created) as this was something I was much more interested in and wanted to develop further, although the rest of our group didn't find it scary and I don't think they liked the story very much. 

This definitely wasn't one of my best efforts, this was a very challenging task, in my opinion, as I am not very familiar with the horror genre as I am not a fan of the genre. This still doesn't excuse that I could have done much better on the film and story, wanting to, at least succeed, in new territory and have greater knowledge of the genre.