Assessing Past Coursework

Titles have intertextuality with Scream (Wes Craven, 1996). Long drawn out notes,
Framing of the branches, signifies someone hiding. Shot is not steady, again reinforcing the fact that someone is watching the girl.
False scare used early on, also intertextuality with the name 'Damien', from the film The Omen (Richard Donner, 1976)
Mise en scene (the wall colouring, posters and bedding) are all signifiers of a girl.
Dialogue is good for exposition, but if too much is used it can look and sound very staged.
Elipsis - moves on time.
Throwing clothes and a cut away shot - signifies sexual activity without actually showing anything.
Female gaze
Camera in cupboard - good way to break up shots
could have used a whip-tilt (moving the camera up quickly) to show the reaction to the loud noise
could have used different shots instead of a two shot
Fast paced editing could have been used at the end



Titles - white font on black background signifies realism
Straight away the bottle of alcohol signifies that the character is going to die
Point of view shot, signifies drunk
Framing signifies someone is watching
No diagetic sound
No violence shown
Narrative enigma used for the killer -  only shows the killers feet when dragging the body,  so the audience has no clue about gender, age etc
Effect used to signify CCTV
Diagetic sound - victim moaning
Faster paced editing could have been used to increase tension
Mise en scene works well, can clearly see and hear that the victim is chained up
Intertextuality with Psycho's shower scene - blood going down the drain, and on the wall



Titles - Font is thought through, animations and transitions
Lack of verisimilitude is lost because there is no diagetic sound
Point of view shot,
use of mise en scene and props - kettle boiling, creates tension (heat rising)

Slasher Overview Vodcast

Stalk & Slash Vodcast

SlasherEG6: Terror Train

Terror Train

(Roger Spottiswoode 1980)

PRODUCED BY: Astral Bellevue Pathé Sandy Howard Productions Triple T Productions

DISTRIBUTED BY: Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation (click here to see the full list)

BUDGET: $3.5m

RATINGS: Rotten Tomatoes 36% IMBD  5.7/10 

Killing Scene analysis & Sound

The first shot we see is a long shot of the killer coming towards the victim. We can see that the killer is wearing a mask. The music is non-diegetic long drawn out string notes, which is steadily getting more fast paced to increase tension.

We then see a medium close-up of the victim so the audience can see her emotions.                                               

Then we cut back to a close up shot of the killer in his mask to increase tension. There are high notes to increase the heart-rate.










The next two shots we see are medium long shots of the killer grabbing the victim.

We then see a point of view shot from the victim as the killer is strangling her. 

Then we see a medium close up of the victim and the killer fighting. The editing is very fast paced so that we dont see too much of the violence.



The music is long drawn out notes to subconsciously make the audience hold their breath. 

The violence scenes are edited so we only see a few seconds of each shot, so the verisimilitude is not lost.





Then we see a low angle shot of the killer to show his dominance in the scene.

Then we see a high angle shot of the victim to show her helplessness in the scene.

We see a final close up of the killer strangling the victim, and the music is fast paced and features lots of high notes to increase the heart rate during the killing scene.

Then we see another medium long shot of the killer in the mask killing the victim. We dont see the actual violence again to keep the verisimilitude.

Narrative Representations in 2 Slasher Films

Scream (Wes Craven, 1996)

The first character is a blonde woman. Her blonde hair signifies she is the scream queen of the film. As well as having the stereotypical appearance of a scream queen, she is home alone, which is a common signifier of the slasher genre. We learn that the girl has a boyfriend, which is also anchorage to signify she is the scream queen figure. Equilibrium is portrayed at the very start as well, as the girl is simply preparing popcorn and is on the phone, although she does not know that the man she is talking to is the killer. As she begins to realise, the equilibrium becomes disrupted. This is another example of Todorov's theory being applied to a slasher film. Barthes' theory of narrative engima is also slightly applied to the opening. To begin with we only hear the voice and don't see the physical body. When we do see the killer, he is wearing a mask, so we still do not entirely know who it is and what their motive is. 

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (Marcus Nispel, 2003) 

The start of this opening goes against Todorov's theory of equilibrium as he said that we should start with equilibrium, encounter a dis-equilibrium and then solve this by creating a new equilibrium. The film starts off with images of a crime scene and police officers, which signifies dis-equilibrium. We then go to equilibrium as we view the 5 main characters, which is not the order in which Todorov suggested it should be. Carole Clover's theory of the final girl is also reflected. The first character the camera fully focuses on has brunette hair and appears to be the sensible one out of the group. This character is the stereotypical final girl, used in many slasher films. However, she appears to have a relationship with one of the boys in the group, which goes against the stereotypical final girl character, who, in Clover's book, supposedly does not have a boyfriend. We then see people in the back kissing. Both the boy and girl are blonde, which signify that these characters are most likely dumb, and sexually active. The girl is the stereotypical scream queen, which is the binary opposite of the final girl character - the theory of binary opposition was created by Levi-Strauss. Within the group, there is a character who is framed as 'the other'. He wears glasses and is nerdy and appears to be the only character within the group to not be in some kind of relationship which signifies he is different. He appears to be the annoying one, who the others do not like very much which therefore means the audience do not empathize very much with him. 

Prelim

Location: Linton Camp

SlasherEG4: Halloween

Halloween, John Carpenter, 1978

Directed by: John Carpenter
Budget: $320k
Total Gross: $60m
Run Time: 91mins
A psychotic murderer institutionalized since childhood for the murder of his sister, escapes and stalks a bookish teenage girl and her friends while his doctor chases him through the streets.


During the titles for Halloween there is tense music. This is created by long notes, these make you hold your breath. There are also piano notes to speed up your heart beat making it slightly irregular  making the opening shots more likely to shock the audience. There is a black background and orange writing, next to the writing is an image of a pumpkin with the light flickering inside it. The slow zoom is aimed at the pumpkin. 
There is a long drawn out note and the person enters the house. They automatically know where the knife draw is to get a knife which makes the audience think the person knows whoever lives there. After the killing happens and the person goes out side it is revealed that it is a child that is the killer. This shot shows the boy centered in the frame and the trees framing the shot nicely. There is more exposition and then a 15 year ellipses. 


The directors titles are shown as 'directed by ....' 
Exposition is given on screen with the time and place. A steady cam is used in this opening shot. This is a good way of making the point of view shot very steady and giving it a quite ghostly drifting feel. 

The opening shot is an establishing shot of a house. Like Psycho the film starts by showing the environment it is in rather than the people or main characters. Again it creates the idea that this story could happen to anybody and makes it more believable. During this opening shot there is non diagetic sound of children playing/trick or treating, this helps establish that it is Halloween and the sound of childrens laughter can sound quite creepy. The shot is a point of view shot and appears to come from behind a shelter or tree, making it look like they were watching or spying on the house. There is a blue tint on the footage which creates a cod lifeless atmosphere and like something isn't quite right. 

SlasherEG3: Black Christmas

Black Christmas, Bob Clark (1974)
Directed by: Bob Clark
Budget: $686k
Total Gross: $4m
Run Time: 98 min
Production Companies: Film Funding Ltd. of Canada, Vision IV, Canadian Film Development Corporation
Distributors: Ambassador Film Distributors, Warner Bros (Click HERE to see a full list


Killing Scene: 40:11

 The first thing we see is the woman climbing up the ladder to the attic. The music is long drawn out piano notes which builds up the tension.

The next shot is a point of view from the killers perspective of the woman getting stuck in the entrance. This is signifying to the audience that the woman is being stalked.The music is increasing in tempo, showing that a killing is about to happen.

The next two shots are a close up of the woman squinting in the dark looking for something, then the woman seeing a dead body. The camera zooms in on the dead body and then goes back to a close up of the womans face reacting.

close up of woman seeing dead body

camera zooms in on the dead body

This show is another point of view shot from the killers perspective, but this time he is holding the weapon and aiming for the woman. The next few shots use fast paced editing so we dont actually see all of the killing.

 Then we see a shot from the perspective of the victim. She sees the killers hands and the weapon. The shots are very quickly edited and we only see each shot for a second before the next shot is shown.





We see a shot of the woman screaming as the weapon is thrown towards her.





 The next shot is from the bottom of the ladder, and all we see is the woman being dragged up into the attic whilst screaming. Loud high pitched string music is played all throughout the killing scene.

The next shot is a scene change to a man knocking on the door, and we dont see the body of the woman.

PP - SlasherEG2: Prom Night(Remake)

Prom Night 
(Nelson McCormick, 2008)

Budget: $20m (estimated)
Box Office: $43m (USA) £1.2m (UK)

The first titles you see are white on a black background and in a serif font. This is a very clear convention across a lot of slasher films.
 The titles then carry on as the opening shot is shown, the titles are to the left hand side of the screen in the same font as the original. The shot is doing a panning shot and following a specific car.

opening shot

panning shot

It is heavily raining in these opening shots. This is a common convention of a lot of slasher films as it sets the mood that something bad may happen.

more titles

 The shot then changes to a close up of the final girl character of the film. This final girl is not the stereotypical final girl, and at first may be mistaken as a scream queen due to her blonde hair which is usually a characteristic of a scream queen.

OTS shot

close up

close up

The final girl character then goes into her house, not finding anybody. There is then a close up of a blood covered hand, revealing that her Dad is dead and she hasn't realised. This is an example of dramatic irony, when the audience are aware of more than the characters.





She then sees her dead brother and hides under the bed, there is a good example of close up here. She then sees her mother get killed from her view under the bed by the killer.

the mother

main action

After this opening sequence it then switches to the present tense and you find out this was a dream she is retelling to a councillor. The main action of the film starts here.

SlasherEG1: Eden Lake

Eden Lake

(James Watkins, 2008)

PRODUCED BY: Rollercoaster Films, Aramid Entertainment

DISTRIBUTED BY: Optimum Releasing, The Wienstein Company (click here to see the full list)

BUDGET: 

BOX OFFICE: $6k (USA) $5k (UK)

RATINGS: Rotten Tomatoes 83% IMBD - 6.9/10

The first thing we see is and ident for Pathe films. Then we see "Rollercoaster films present..." written in a sans serif font, and in a blood red colour. The music builds up tension with long drawn out strings. As the strings get louder, a woman's screams get louder also creating more tension. There are flashes on the screen of first a forest, then it flashes straight back to a black screen. Then this is repeated for about 20 seconds but with a close up shot of a lake, then of  a woman who has blood all over her face, and they are shown in a sepia tint which intensifies the red of the blood. The text 'In association with Aramid Entertainment is shown at the bottom of the screen in the same style of writing as the "Rollercoaster films present...". Then there is another flash of someones hands tied with rope to a wooden post, and this is also in a sepia tint.

The notes increasingly get longer as we see another shot of the woman's face crying and screaming. Next there is a white flash and a peaceful looking lake is shown. Then there is an extreme close up of the woman screaming please, then a black background with the title "Eden Lake" shown in the same font as before in the centre of a black background. 

slasher genre conventions

alfred hitchcocks PSYCHO led the way for more killer films in the '60s, including, MANIAC, SATAN'S BED & STRAIT JACKET. While most of these didn't fit the traditional mold of the slasher genre, they wouldn't have been made if not for the success of PSYCHO.

Though it didnt really catch on until 1976, THE TEXAS CHAIN SAW MASSACRE directed by Tobe Hooper was released in 1974 and the slasher genre changed forever.THE TEXAS CHAIN SAW MASSACRE  is about of a group of teens who wind up in a backwoods town where they're slaughtered.  it was this movie that redefined the genre with its sick and twisted subject matter. also it never actually happened, as the ad campaign claimed.

in 1975 BLACK CHRISTMAS directed by Bob Clark was released. .BLACK CHRISTMAS is about the events that take place over three days around Christmas in a girl's sorority house when a madman, breaks in and begins killing off the girls. This was the first horror film to star John Saxon, who went on to make many more horror appearances, including roles in three of the NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET films.
What makes BLACK CHRISTMAS so crucial to the genre is that it established things that would quickly go on to be imitated by lots of other films to follow. there was the use of the camera as the killer's point of view (often HALLOWEEN is credited as the first film to use this method, and it went on to be used endlessly in the FRIDAY THE 13th films). also We never learn the motivation of the killer -- which makes the film a little scarier... and again, this was copied in films that followed for example HALLOWEEN.

in 1978 John Carpenter's HALLOWEEN was released.15 years after teenager Michael Myers was locked away for the brutal, murder of his older sister, he escapes from the asylum and stalks a group of teenage girls. like Hitchcock had done in psycho , John Carpenter's slasher relies more on scares than gore as there's very little blood or graphic violence in the film.
It took some time for HALLOWEEN to find its audience (though not years like with the TEXAS CHAIN SAW massacre ). people started to pay attention to halloween even though it featured no major stars. The big studios, who hadnt payed much attention to the slashers until now, realised that they could make a large profit. the market was filled with imitators including PROM NIGHT and TERROR TRAIN. several films exploited HALLOWEEN star Jamie Lee Curtis (whose mother, Janet Leigh, was the legendary victim in PSYCHO),

in 1980 one of the most popular HALLOWEEN imitators -- FRIDAY THE 13TH was released. A group of camp counselors are stalked and slashed days before the opening of summer camp and from here Camp movies started to be more popular. FRIDAY THE 13TH was an instant hit and opened the floodgates for more slashers.A sequel was released the following year, and since then the friday the 13th franchise has become huge with 12 films altogether, including a remake of the original film which was released in 2009.

Possible Distributors for our film

Top 10 film distributors in the UK in 2012;

1. Sony: $336.4m (£209.9m) 17.9%
2. 20th Century Fox: $306.5m (£191.2m) 16.3%
3. Warner Bros: $235.5m (£147m) 12.5%
4. Universal: $219.3m (£136.8m) 11%
5. Walt Disney: $197.4m (£123.2m) 10.5%
6. eOne: $129.5m (£80.8m) 6.9%
7. Paramount: $125.8m (£78.5m) 6.7%
8. Lionsgate: $109.3m (£68.2m) 5.8%
9. Momentum: $82.1m (£51.2m) 4.3%
10. Entertainment Film Distributors: $59m (£36.8m) 3.1%

(SOURCE: http://www.mi6-hq.com/news/index.php?itemid=10724)

Low budget indie films & distributors:

e.g 
Donkey Punch
Budget: £700K
Gross box office: £18k £295k
Distributors:

• Optimum Releasing (2008) (UK)
• NonStop Entertainment (2008) (Sweden) (theatrical)
• European Film Partners (EFP) (2009) (Netherlands) (theatrical)
• Kanibal Films Distribution (2010) (France) (theatrical)
• Madman Entertainment (2008) (Australia) (theatrical)
• Magnet Releasing (2009) (USA) (theatrical)
• Film1 (2010) (Netherlands) (TV) (limited)
• Indies Home Entertainment (2009) (Netherlands) (DVD) (Blu-ray)
• Indies Home Entertainment (2009) (Netherlands) (DVD) (retail)
• Madman Entertainment (2008) (Australia) (all media)
• Madman Entertainment (2008) (New Zealand) (all media)
• Magnolia Magnet (2008) (USA) (all media)
• Magnolia Pictures (2008) (USA) (all media)
• Mongrel Media (2009) (Canada) (DVD)
• Movie Bank (2009) (Netherlands) (DVD) (rental)
• RTL Entertainment (2011) (Netherlands) (TV) 
• Sandrew Metronome Distribution (2009) (Finland) (DVD)
• Universum Film (UFA) (2007) (Germany) (all media)
• Vertice Cine (2012) (Spain) (DVD)

I think that Optimum Releasing would be a good distributor for our film as they have experience distributing low budget indie films and also have previously distributed films such as Kill List (2011, Ben Wheatley) which is a similar genre to our film.

My Definition of Distribution

A film distributor is a company or a person who is responsible for the marketing of the film. Film distribution requires the materials and rights of the producer and the cooperation of the exhibitor to promote the film. Distribution can be divided into three stages - licensing, marketing and logistics. (paraphrased from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Film_distributor and http://www.screenonline.org.uk/film/distribution/distribution1.html)


http://www.screenonline.org.uk/film/distribution/distribution1.html

http://www.launchingfilms.com/

http://entertainment.howstuffworks.com/movie-distribution.htm