Genre Conventions

My chosen genre for the film is a horror; I have found the codes and conventions of the genre that I can either adhere to or subvert.

Sound -

Sound is a vital element of horror films and it is used to contribute to the suspense in the film. The music tends to build when something scary or suspenseful may happen. This could often be used to put audiences in a false sense of security when watching, if the music builds and nothing scary would occur for a long time. Typically there would be digits sounds of creaking, banging, slamming and footsteps. Additionally, children's toys (preferably antique ones) are used to make sounds and the hauntings of youth is a common theme in horrors (such as the woman in black).

Mise-en-scene -

Gore is often used and things such as knives, chainsaws, saws etc. are used as, when shown in the film, the audience could explicitly see the pain being inflicted on the characters. This would evoke terror and possible disgust from the viewers due to the graphic nature of the gore. Blood is also used heavily in correspondence with the gore. In order to create the gore, prosthetics and special effects makeup is often used. The costumes in a horror are not majorly considered unless it is a dated/ period horror (such as the woman in black) or the antagonists have something to identify them, such as a mask (as seen in several films like the strangers and the purge). The lighting for hours is usually dim in order to create shadows and conceal all that is in a room, making it easy for a killer to hide in the rooms.

Setting -

The locations are usually dark and isolated, which helps to generate a defenceless nature of the victims as they are vulnerable and left without help. Places like cabins and forests are a major cliché for the location of horrors, yet they still remain prevalent in contemporary horror films (i.e. Cabin in the Woods and The Forest). More recently, using locations such as ordinary homes (such as in Paranormal Activity, The Conjuring and Annabelle) are used to emphasise that people may not be safe, even in their own homes. This would create a fear that most people would relate to as they may fear being home alone.

Character types -

Common character types for horrors are the victims/ protagonist, the villain / antagonist and the indignant support. The victim is the person(s) who would become terrorised by the villain character. Usually, it is a woman, teens or children who are the victims, this is due to the defenceless stereotype surrounding these character types. They would often be unintelligent as they would not find logic to get out of their disastrous situations, often leading to their inevitable demise. The villain is not always human; it could be a spirit or inanimate object (such as a doll). They would terrorise the victim and potentially injure or kill the victims in order to isolate the protagonist. The indignant support is a character who attempts to intervene, such as a police officer or a sheriff. They would tend to not believe the victims and wouldn't help or they are murdered.