Written questionnaire

We're going to hand out this questionnaire and get audience feedback.

Detailed Description of the Storyline

Genre: Thriller

Description: A woman wakes up every morning distressed due to nightmares. As weeks pass she begins to see her cousin, who she believes is haunting her, for example when she goes shopping. Then at the end of the film there is a twist, it turns out that her family member isn't the one who is dead but in fact, it is herself. She is just simply observing the lives of her loved ones.

The film will start with numerous elliptical edits, showing days passing as she has bad dreams over and over again (the camera will pan over her diary, revealing her name which is part of revealing the ending). This will result in seeing her extremely distressed more and more as it continues. As more time passes, the sights of the family member becomes more vivid as she sees what happened to the family member (however it's actually what happened to her) in more and more detail. This continues for a while until the revelation of how she was murdered is shown through a vision. The women will be stabbed as the onlooker (who is actually the girl but the girl thinks it's her family member) watches, this will be shot so the identities are not revealed, maintaining the mystery and confusion for the ending revelation. As the women see's her more and more, she is also being ignored by everyone else and so believes that she is going crazy. This is portrayed as the women listens in to their conversations, she is not actually involved in them. The women then hears the family member talking to her repeating her name and talking about the murder in her bedroom. The family member is actually just trying to find peace by talking to something of hers and saying "I miss you" in her bedroom. At the end, the family member is shown stood at the girl’s grave mourning her, the grave stone shows her name and a picture of her, revealing to the girl and the audience that she is the one who's actually dead and her family member was the one watching.

Distributor Research

The first possible distributor for our short film could be the video sharing platform, YouTube. YouTube allows content creators to upload their videos to YouTube for free, all that is needed is to create a Google+ account. There are a variety of short films that amateur filmmakers upload, and can be easily found on the site through making a quick search.

Here is a screenshot of searching for short films on YouTube and there are many different films that come up, that may be a variety of different genres. Amateur film makers can also create their account with the name of company or group, such as the top search on the screenshot which the creator is called Digital Sphere Films. This can help filmmakers make themselves known, as many people use from different age groups use YouTube.

YouTube also allows content creators to earn money through monetised videos, through Google Analytics and AdSense, which works through advertisements before the actual video starts, enabling the content creator to make a small amount of money for the amount of video views they get.

 

The next possible distributor for our short film is Short of the Week. Short of the Week are a company of filmmakers, who distribute short films on their website, and also produce short films themselves. Short of the Week selects one film every week to be the best short film, which is displayed on the home page. They also have a Channels page, which lists a variety of different genres and plot lines so that visitors to the site can browse through all the short films that are on the site. The site does, however, have a submission fee, which is $29, and there is no guarantee that your film will be accepted to the site, and there isn't a refund option if your film isn't submitted.

 

 

A final distribution possibility is Journeyman Pictures. For twenty years, they have distributed and co-produced original content. They host feature documentaries and short films on their website. Short films can easily be submitted to their website via email.

 

Research into Genre

Research into Genre

Thriller

Thrillers are characterized and defined by the moods they elicit, giving viewers heightened feelings of suspense, excitement, surprise, anticipation and anxiety. Thrillers generally keep the audience on the "edge of their seats" as the plot builds towards a climax, which usually includes a plot twist, an unexpected ending and or leave the story being open ended. During the main feature red herrings are included to confuse or drive the audience towards a different idea of the conclusion, allowing for a plot twist have much greater effect. A thriller is usually a villain-driven plot, whereby he or she presents obstacles that the protagonist must overcome. some sub genres of thriller include; action thriller, horror thriller, crime thriller, supernatural thriller etc. 

Research into a distributor

It's important that we find a suitable distributor for our film as they are responsible for where our film is distributed to and who gets to see it. Due to our film being an independent short film, I think a good distributor for it would be Future Shorts.

Future Shorts has been running since 2003, they are extremely passionate about helping getting short films seen and so this has created a rapidly expanding platform. This has enabled short film makers to get their work seen by the public on a worldwide theatrical platform. Future Shorts is well known by filmmakers, the press and the industry due to them hosting a monthly short film festival as well as them having their own distributor sales agent, consulting service and DVD label.

They have film screenings in 100 countries in 40 different cities, getting new filmmakers recognition all over the world. They distribute a variety of all different genres, allowing all different types of films to be distributed by them.

I think that Future Shorts would be an ideal distributor for our film because they show all the qualities unknown filmmakers need to get their film seen and be successful.

Possible distributor for our short film

Journeyman Pictures

A possible distributor for our film would be Journeyman Pictures. For over twenty years Journeyman has distributed and
co-produced, provocative, profound and original factual content, working with the top players in the industry. They are one of the leading independent suppliers of award winning stories to the world broadcast market and pride themselves on a position at the spearhead of the factual agenda. With a very successful catalogue covering a myriad of subjects and styles; commercial, current affairs, and feature docs, they always keep at heart a central journalistic ethic that goes to the very roots of the company.

Journeyman Pictures may want to distribute our sort film as it has an original storyline, Journeyman Pictures have produced short films such as; Ghosts from the Past and The man who saw too much, these films can be seen as quite controversial as both concentrate on the themes of death and suffering.

 

Your Hands short film analysis

Click here to be directed to the short film

The film starts out with an establishing shot, which is a medium shot of a couple who are sat at a bench. The diegetic sound in the background of the scene suggests that the couple are at a train station, as the audience can just hear announcements. The positioning of the shot shows the manner of the two characters, with emphasise on their hands, with both characters with their hands in their lap. The female character is sat facing the male character, and the way she is holding her hands, as she fiddles around with them suggests that she is very nervous or scared about something, however male character is slouching against the side of the bench, and appears much more with a casual attitude, which could convey that he is not as bothered as the female about the conversation that they are having.

The title sequence for the film is very simple, and appears in sections at the beginning of the film. During the various bits of the title sequence, non diegetic music plays, which is used to give the scene an emotional vibe, as the short film is about a couple who break up at a train station. After the first title sequence, there is a two shot of the couple, in shallow focus, and we see a subway train speed along in the background. Both of the characters glance down at times, however the female character continues to appear more upset, as she bites her lip, which could suggest that the male character is breaking up with her, as the male character only glances down. The scene progresses with them talking over each other, with the shot still being in shallow focus, to emphasis the situation that they are in.

There is then a close up shot of the female character, in shallow focus, to emphasis on her emotions, in which we see that she has tears in her eyes and doesn’t always make eye contact with the male character. The camera then focuses on her hands, where she is continuing to play with them, and she announces to her partner that she is really going to miss his hands. This highlights the plot line of the short film, which could suggest why she is constantly playing with her hands, as this is the only thing she has from the relationship that is breaking down. The characters then share a fun moment, after the female character announces that she will miss his hands, and there are close ups of both characters expressions, which suggests that they did have some good moments in their relationship. As the male character is explaining that he hasn’t had many good sleeps in the last two years of their relationship, there is then an eyeline match, from the male character yanking on her hand to demostrate why, in which her phone is thrown from her hand, to seeing the phone slide across the station pavement. As he picks the phone up, the camera pans to the characters, who are now standing up. The non diegetic music from the start of the short film begins to play again, which could emphasis the emotions of the female character, as throughout the film, she has appeared to be more sad than the male character. There is then a mid two shot of the characters, with them holding each others hands, as they talk about the situation they are going through. The female character continues to press about the situation, however the male character feels less fussed. The non digetic music continues to play throughout this scene, to really emphasis the emotions of the female character.


In the background of the scene, there is diegetic sounds of a train approaching, and there is an eyeline match of the female character worryingly looking, which suggests that there is so much more that she wishes to say to the male character. She proceeds to grab him into an awkward hug and whispers something in his ear, which he doesn’t hear, due to the fast approaching train, which she seems upset about, conveying that what she wants to tell him is quite important. Just before she leaves to get on the train, they awkwardly share a final kiss, and the female character says goodbye to the male character, who we now know is called Jack. The next shot is in shallow focus, with a close up of the character’s hands breaking away, which is a very significant shot for the short film, as this emphaises them finally breaking apart. The female character seems as though she longs for his hands as she continues to reach out as their hands break away. It then cuts to the final title sequence, which is a black screen with ‘Your Hands’ in a large, white font.

In the next scene, the female character is shown in a close up shot of her playing with her hands, as she slowly stumbles through the train carriage. There is then non diegetic music that plays, which gives the scene a mood that conveys the sadness of the scene, as she has finally left her partner behind. The camera then pans up, as she pulls her hands up to her upper chest, with tears forming in her eyes, suggesting that she is heartbroken, and is struggling to keep her emotions together in public. She is shown in a medium close up, with tears forming down her eyes, as she is trying to come to terms with what has just happened. As she glances to the side of her, the non diegetic music comes to an abrupt stop, as she realises that her ex partner has got on the same train and is looking in her direction, and they awkwardly say hello to each other. The two characters then are forced to have an awkward exchange of conversation as he explains that his friend wants him to join playing dodgeball. The conversation is shown cutting back and forth between the characters in close up shots, which allows their emotions to be seen more clearly. It can be seen that they both feel quite awkward about the encounter just after they have broken up at the station, particuarly Iris, the female character, who has just been seen by her ex partner crying on the train.

As the awkward conversation comes to a close, Jack proceeds to sit down, and Iris is seen in a medium shot, panning over the train carriage to find somewhere to sit. The camera pans over to Jack, who has sat down next to a conventially attracted female, who is wearing bright pink lipstick, revealing clothing and is playing with her hair. As Iris awkwardly tries to ask someone if she can sit in an available seat where someone’s bag is, there is a shallow focus close up of her hand pointing to the seat, which continues to convey emphasis on hands throughout the film. There is then an awkward stare off with Iris and the person next to her on the train, and mise en scene becomes important within this next scene, as behind the other person there is a matchmaking dating advertisment that says ‘It’s never too late to find love’. This could emphasis that when a person breaks up with their partner, love seems to be everywhere when you no longer have it.



She is then seen in a shallow focus close up to emphasis on her emotions, before the camera cuts to her playing with her hands, and then it goes back to her face, in which there is an eyeline match, as she looks over at her ex partner, who is then seen also playing with her hands, which could suggest that he is dealing with their break up too. As this is happening, there is also non diegetic soft piano music playing, to convey the sadness that she is feeling. There is then a series of eyeline matches, in which the non diegetic piano music ceases, as she glances around the train at other passengers. There is a clip of a woman, who is seen wiping her nose, with snot on the side of her face, the camera then cuts to a child, who waves at her, and she smiles back, before it cuts to two athletic men, who are using the hand rails as gym equipment, and having a weird conversation about their diet. The non diegetic soft piano music begins to play again, as she goes back to playing with her hands, and is seen glancing over to her ex partner again, who is shown in a two shot, with the conventionally attractive female, who is sitting next to him. Mise en scene is conveyed as being important in the next shot, as her attention swiftly moves to a young couple further down the train, who are holding on to each other and showing public displays of affection. Behind the young couple is another poster, which says ‘Love is all we need’, with the word all underlined, which could show that Iris doesn’t have the love in her life, and that she is lost without it. There is then a close up of the couple, as they are playing with each others hands, and Iris lets out a small cry, before adbruptly stopping, as this is something that was incredibly important to her in her own relationship, and she has lost it.


After this encounter, the camera then cuts to her ex-partner and the conventionally attractive female, who looks over at Jake, and smiles at him in a suggestive flirtatious way. Unable to deal with what she is seeing, she proceeds to stand up from her seat, and accidently almost falls, when she is caught by a man, who catches her by her hands. The conversation is shown with over the shoulder shots, two shots and close ups, as at first, he appears to be quite flirtatious with her, and complementing her. However, the conversation takes a strange, comedic twist, as he goes into a sexually inappropriate rap, and Iris is seen in close ups, showing her reaction to the rap, which is none the less, a confused one. The scene then turns distorted, through camera angles, and the diegetic sounds slowed down and changed. When Iris glances around the train in a dazed manner, the various passengers are seen in a strange way, which could be used to represent all her emotions that she is currently feeling. The scene then goes back to normal, as Iris looks visibly upset and confused, and is unable to compose any sentence. As she turns around, she enters the dazed stage again, in which there is an overweight man, with mustard in his beard, who burps at her. The camera distorts around, as the lights flicker on the train, and more passengers are seen being sexual or violent at her. As she is trying to get her balance, there is then abrupt flashbacks to the scenes at the train station as they break up, emphasising that this is what is playing on her mind, conveying what she will miss the most, which is his hands, as she is manically playing with her hands in the present, and during the flashbacks, the hands are emphasised.

The distorted scene then comes to a halt, as she looks up, in a close up shot, and there are petals falling down, as non-diegetic fairy tale-esque music begins to play. She smiles, and as she looks down back to eye level, there is a magician next to her, who was the one throwing the petals up in the air. He then begins to do a slightly flawed magic act, as she stands there, looking so what confused and awkwardly smiling about the encounter. During this scene, there is a significant talk between the magician and Iris, about her breakup, as non-diegetic slow piano music plays in the background of the conversation. The conversation allows her to come to some sort of realisation, as the magician tells her that she needs to figure out how to smile again. He then hands her a paper flower, before announcing she should get a labradoodle, in a much less serious tone.


He then ‘magically’ vanishes, and in replacement of where the magician is stood, is a poster that reads ‘Enjoy the freedom you deserve’, which suggests that she should try to find something positive within her breakup.

She then pans through the busy crowd, and looks at Jack, and proceeds to walk up to him, with a serious look in her eyes. The camera focuses on Jack, as she approaches him, and then pans up when she is there, to convey Iris having the power in the conversation, as she is looking down at him. She asks him a variety of questions that the magician asked her, in which he appears confused and answers no to.

The scene then appears in a familiar style to at the train station, when Iris attempts to tell Jack something, and he doesn’t hear her. Jack grabs her hands, and begins to tell her that he had so much fun in the relationship. However, she seems to simply ignore his words, kissing his forehead and telling him goodbye. There is then a significant shot in which she lets go of his hands, which could convey that she is ready to begin to move on from the relationship. She announces that she is going to walk the rest of the way, and gets off the train when it stops, and is seen in a medium close up, as the train continues its journey. As the train speeds away from the platform, she takes one final look, and then smiles as she walks away. Then, the end credits roll, as non-diegetic upbeat music begins to play, giving the film a positive end.




The genre of the short film is comedy, and this is seen throughout the film in certain sequences, such as the rapper scene and the magician scene. The genre allows themes within the film to be explored as the main character deals with her breakup in public, and the different people she encounters while she is trying to do so. While much of the film has quite emotional vibes, the genre of the film ends up giving it a positive light, as she finally feels she can move on and forget about the thing she was missing the most; his hands.

Short Film Analysis

For my short film analysis, I chose to analyse 'Chainsaw' by David Dinetz and Dylan Trussel.

 

https://www.shortoftheweek.com/2015/12/18/chainsaw/

 

 

The start of the film is extremely slow paced which helps create suspense for the upcoming scenes. There is a long shot of the main character (the man with the chainsaw) slowly driving and pulling up to the carnival. This creates a lot of suspense, suggesting that a big climax is going to occur later on in the film. The slow moving and slow paced scene also gives an indication of the character, it conveys the characters calmness, emphasising that he is relaxed. This suggests that he is comfortable in the environment he’s in and the actions that he makes. There is also a lot of dark lighting, portraying that it is at night which is a common horror convention. The dark lighting creates more suspense and fear for the audience as they are unable to see everything clearly and so there could be something hiding that they don’t notice, creating fear through surprise. The dark lighting also conveys the character as being quite mysterious and also indicates that he might have a dark side to himself. In the background, we can clearly see that the man has arrived at a carnival and the diegetic music is clearly carnival music, emphasising that he is at a carnival. The incidental diegetic music combined with the mise en scene and slow paced editing creates quite an eerie atmosphere for the audience, enhancing its horror genre. There is also the diegetic sound in the background of people talking, this conveys that the man has just arrived in a busy area. Overall this whole seen gives off a chilling, eerie atmosphere, suggesting that the nameless man is going to create chaos around a lot of innocent people.

 

The shot before this faded out black and then faded back into this shot for elliptical editing, this clearly shows that some time has passed. There is a medium shot on the mysterious man and as he is walking around the camera very rarely shows his head, emphasising that they are deliberately making the man faceless to create more fear for the audience. This also means that we can clearly see the chainsaw which conveys danger, which is also a horror convention. The chainsaw being in most shots, even before it’s being used, encourages the audience to focus on it which can create fear. Also, because the shot doesn’t show his head at all, it restricts the audiences view, meaning we can’t see what the man is seeing. This also creates more suspense as we don’t know where he’s walking towards and what he’s planning on doing. This is a bit of a restrictive narrative as it suggests we’re going to find out what happens when it happens and don’t really get any hints prior, apart from its most likely to do with the chainsaw. In this shot we can clearly see that the man is walking through a busy place with lots of people and children, this creates an even more eerie atmosphere as we know that children should be nowhere near a chainsaw. Children are often seen as innocent and so this juxtaposes with the portrayal as the man, who appears to be quite mysterious and dark. As the man is walking through the crowd, parents pull their children away from him, emphasising that he’s seen as an outcast by society and that he’s a danger. The diegetic incidental carnival music is a lot louder in this scene, creating a much more intense atmosphere and making it appear as though it’s building up to a dramatic climax. This scene is also incredibly slow paced which is still connoting the lack of action occurring while also creating more tension and suspense for the audience as they’re questioning what the mysterious man is about to do. This scene also has dark lighting and the dark lighting has been consistent throughout the film so far. This is still creating tension and suspense, and is also making the man appear more mysterious. So far, this film is portraying a linear narrative and has been in chronological order, this is also another horror convention as horrors tend to surprise you and make you jump, so if this film were non-linear and showed us what had happened at the end, the start would lose purpose because it would no longer be creating suspense and tension for the audience.

 

 

While the man is walking through the carnival, the shot cuts to the opening titles and cuts back to the man relatively quickly. This gives us an indication of what the film is going to be like soon, as it suggests it’s going to become extremely fast paced. Each time it cuts to the titles, loud, eerie non diegetic comes on briefly and goes back off as it cuts back to the man walking. This also gives an indication of what the film is going to be like by suggesting that there is going to be a lot of loudness and chaos on the film. The background on the first image (“ELI ROTH PRESENTS”) shows a shadow and the rest of it is dark. This conveys the mysteriousness of the main character while also emphasising he is faceless, nameless and the audience have no idea who he is.The text in this are blood red which indicates that there is going to be violence which is going to result in a lot of blood. The text also starts off being extremely big and then shoots backwards getting smaller, this indicates that it is going to become fast paced and there will be a lot of action later on in the film. These opening titles clearly represent horror conventions through blood, violence, action and dark colours, which helps create an eerie atmosphere just through the titles.

 

We can see a lot more of the carnival as there is a deep focus, indicating that the director wants us to see everything in this shot. In the background we can see a game that has a lot of bright lights, this juxtaposes with the man as he is extremely dark and the game is extremely bright. The game also conveys enjoyment and fun, suggesting that the people there are having a good time which is about to be spoiled. Also, the people playing the game are wearing brighter clothing that’s a lot more colourful than the mysterious mans. This is a clear juxtaposition between the man and them, emphasising a divide between him and society. There is also a lot of deep space between the man and everyone else, this also emphasises the divide, portraying him as an outcast. The lights from the game starts fading where the man is stood. Although he appears to be an outcast, he is still stood in the dimmer light, suggesting he wants to be included but instead he just observes everyone else. As the mysterious man is walking through the carnival, we can hear his diegetic footsteps. This makes the scene feel more intense, and this combined with the scene being slow paced still, helps to create more suspense for the audience.

 

This is the last opening title of the film which it cuts to and it shows the title of the film. This, just like the previous ones is blood red, conveying blood and violence which is one of the main horror conventions. There is very loud non diegetic sound of a chainsaw which also illustrates that there is a lot of violence, emphasising danger and fear for the audience. Just from looking at the titles, we can clearly identify this film as a horror film because of the colours and font. Black is a very mysterious colour and is used in horrors because it restricts what the audience can see, and the blood red connotes violence. The font, especially the “SAW”, looks sharp and metallic, like a chainsaw blade. This also connotes danger. Metallic objects are often cold which conveys the main character who appears to be quite cold. Also, behind the font there is a chainsaw which is on and making very loud non diegetic sound of a chainsaw. This again illustrates to the audience that the chainsaw the main object in the film.

 

There is a medium shot with deep focus, and there’s also diegetic dialogue of the other man wondering where he’s bean, this suggests to the audience that they were expecting someone for entertainment. The mysterious man is a lot closer to the camera, making him appear a lot bigger compared to the other two people. This conveys his power, illustrating that he has more power than them two. There is also a juxtaposition between the two men. The mysterious man is dressed in all black, conveying his dark side, whereas the other man is dressed in blue (a much brighter colour) and is wearing a shirt. This portrays him as a respectable man and also emphasises that he is a much more approachable and nicer person. There is also a light shining on the other male, this connotes his warmth, suggesting that he is quite a friendly person. However the diegetic dialogue of him saying “where the f**k have you been” contradicts this and could suggest that he can get quite stressed and agitated at times. The girl in the right hand corner is dressed in all black and is out of the light. This indicates that she may also be an outcast like the mysterious man, however she is framed a lot lower down than the mysterious man which conveys that she is not a threat. There is also quiet, slow paced, eerie non diegetic music in the background, meanwhile there is also diegetic music from a stereo in the room which is louder. This connotes that the two other characters are oblivious of the mysterious man’s intentions. While the other male character is talking, the shot cuts to a shallow focus of a close up of the mysterious man holding the chainsaw and slowly zooms in on it. This creates more tension and fear for the audience as they don’t know when the man intends to use it. The light is shining onto the chainsaw, this also emphasises that the film is revolved around the chainsaw, which creates more fear as we know that they can be very dangerous.

The mystery aspect of the film is a typical horror convention as the audience are going to be taken completely by surprise when he uses the chainsaw, the non-diegetic music combined with the slow paced scenes and dark lighting are also often used in horrors. This is creating a lot of suspense, fear and tension for the audience which is a horrors main aim.

We then see a medium shot of the other man saying diegetic dialogue “cool chainsaw” in a sarcastic tone, indicating that he just thinks it’s fake. This connotes that the man is oblivious to the main characters plan and therefore has no input in it. This also conveys the main characters intelligence because he picked Halloween to go on a killing spree, when no one would suspect anything or get in his way. The mysterious man then gets told to go with the girl to “make him look scary”. The diegetic dialogue at the end then echoes into non diegetic sound to emphasise the word “scary”. This connotes that it’s going to be a much scarier night than was intended. The non-diegetic eerie music gets louder as he’s walking out of the room and then it fades into black while the music is still getting louder. This creates more tension as it suggests a climax, building up to something big is about to happen. The shot then fades into the next scene and the non-diegetic music comes to a sudden stop, indicating that is was just a false alarm to create a bigger shock later on in the film when they’re more unsuspecting.

The scene then cuts from the man and becomes incredibly fast paced, cutting between different shots of the carnival. In each shot, we see an extremely lively and loud carnival with diegetic sounds of people talking and the rides moving.  This emphasises that it is very busy with a lot of people there, having fun, which creates more fear for the audience as they wonder what the mysterious man is going to do to them.

 

 

We then see a shot reverse shot of close ups between the couple and man selling tickets, which there is then this medium shot in between the shot reverse shot, this illustrates a clear juxtaposition between the two. The couple are wearing white and blue which conveys calmness and friendliness whereas the ticket man is wearing all black and has black circles around his eyes, this conveys a sense of hostility. There is also diegetic sounds of the carnival in the background which, again, emphasises that it is very busy, loud and energetic.

In the close ups we can see another clear juxtaposition between them. The man is shot with a low angle medium close up to convey that he has the power to give them tickets, however there is also desaturated colours around him which portrays his cold personality. The couple have the complete opposite, there is a close up on them with saturated colours which conveys their warmth and friendliness. There is also a shallow focus on them with no deep space, emphasising that they have each other, whereas there is a deep focus on the man showing a lot of deep space, which emphasises he is alone. There is then diegetic dialogue of the boyfriend, in a sarcastic tone, “yeah, $40 for a haunted house, we better die” which creates a sense of irony in the film as the audience know that there is a very high possibility that the man with the chainsaw is going to kill them.

 

 

The scene then cuts to a close up on a shallow focus of a dull, flickering lightbulb. This creates a lot of suspense as the audience or the characters can’t really see what’s happening, the focus on the light bulb emphasises this. This is also an example of a restricted narrative as we find out things as the characters do, however we already know that the man with the chainsaw is there which the couple doesn’t know, which is an example of a non-restrictive narrative. This horror film, like a lot of others, uses a mixture of restrictive and non-restrictive narrative, this is because a restr4ictive narrative creates shock and fear for the audience, and a non-restrictive creates tension as the audience are wondering what’s going to happen and in this case, they are wondering if the couple are going to get hurt. There is also really loud, eerie, tense non diegetic music that goes off as the lights flicker, which adds to the tension and suspense created as the audience know that this isn’t going to be like any other haunted house.

 

The shot then cuts to a medium close up of the couple surrounded by darkness with a little bit of light shining on them, making them the audiences focus. The darkness surrounding them can create fear through the element of surprise as the audience or characters (restrictive narrative) can’t see what is there or have any indication of what might happen. In this shot we can see both characters faces, the man is smiling which suggests he thinks it’s going to be fun and thrilling, however the girl looks extremely scared and there is diegetic dialogue of her saying “I am scared, let’s just go”. This indicates that she is scared quite easily, even when she knows that the haunted house is just for the carnival and nothing bad should happen to her. The scene has also become very slow paced and there is tense, eerie non diegetic music which suggests that something is about to happen. The man also knocks on the door, laughing, acting as the whole thing is a joke just as they are about to enter which creates fear in the audience for him as he might walk straight into danger. Also, the light is red and red often indicates danger. This suggests that the couple are in actually in danger and the man laughing at the haunted house is not good. The couple appear very average and normal which can also create more fear for the audience as this can happen to anyone, including them.

 

 

 

The scene then cuts to a medium close up of the mysterious man on the other side of the door which conveys danger as now the audience knows (non-restrictive narrative) that he is in the haunted house with them. It is extremely silent when the shot is on him and you can hear the diegetic sound of him sliding the door hole back. This creates a lot of suspense and tension for the audience as they wonder what he is going to do to the couple. The mysterious man is also surrounded by darkness and is wearing all dark which connotes that he will be well hidden and most likely watching the couple as they walk through the haunted house.

 

 

As the couple are walking through the haunted house, the shot quickly cuts to a close up of a skeleton while loud, screeching non diegetic music is on, which makes the audience and characters jump. However the boyfriend seems quite calm and not scared at all which juxtaposes with his girlfriend who is extremely terrified right now as she was screaming. This would most likely make a lot of the audience jump, however they know that this is actually a part of the haunted house so there is a lot of suspense revolved around the unknown, what the mysterious man is going to do. This builds up more tension as it still hasn’t happened yet and no one knows when it will. The boyfriend is still finding the haunted house funny and begins to play with the skeleton, this suggests that because he believes that none of this is real, he is less likely to run and will be in more danger. Also it conveys him as quite an immature and fun character. The tense, non-diegetic music is still playing and gets louder as they walk away from the skeleton, indication that they are walking into danger.

As the couple continue walking through the haunted house there is a few more surprises that is by the haunted house. The boyfriend appears to get a little shocked as his diegetic dialogue suggests this but then he changes it into an immature “wow”. This generally supports gender stereotypes as he is acting tough and fearless in front of his girlfriend, meanwhile his girlfriend is extremely scared and needs protecting. The tense, non-diegetic music continues as they walk even more, continuing to get louder which suggests they are still walking towards danger. The couple still haven’t come across the man with the chainsaw yet which is still creating suspense for the audience as they know that he will surprise them and make them jump very soon. As they’re walking through, the dark lighting is maintained to keep the mysterious man hidden and to keep the tension and suspense there.

 

In this medium shot, there is red lighting, just like when they was near the mysterious man before (near the door). This indicates that they are near him again and the red signifies that they are in extreme danger. The non-diegetic music is a lot quieter now, however it is still there, and this also suggests that they are near the man as before the music got louder as they were getting closer. Or the this could of purposely been done to make the audience think that there is nothing about to happen so they get relaxed, and therefore more shocked and surprised when a man jumps out. The scene is no longer extremely slow paced, however it has increased a little bit in pace so it’s more in between, this could have also helped to throw the audience off guard as it gives more of a sense of normality and relaxation

 

 

A loud diegetic chainsaw noise then suddenly starts and the shot cuts to a medium close up of a man with a chainsaw. As soon as it cuts the scene immediately becomes more fast paced cutting between him and the couple until the boyfriend, this conveys panic and adrenaline as a lot of the audience may believe it is the main character and also the girl is screaming a lot, indicating that she is scared. In this shot, the man is surrounded by complete blackness, restricting the view of both the audience and characters (restrictive narrative). This emphasises that no one can see what’s going to happen next, creating more suspense and fear. However the boyfriend does not believe the chainsaw is really and is just another part of the haunted house, which it is. The boyfriend says “this is fake”, again emphasising that if he didn’t believe that was real then when the mysterious man with the real chainsaw comes he most likely will believe he’s fake too.

After there has been a shot reverse shot between the couple and this man, suddenly loud, tense, non-diegetic music comes back on as the camera zooms in on the man and we can see the mysterious main creeping up behind him. This creates a lot of tension as there was a complete twist, shocking the audience again. The scene is slow paced as he’s walking up to him, this creates suspense because no one is really sure what he’s going to do except that it’s not going to be good.  Also, there is a lot of deep space around the man in the white shirt, which emphasises that they are all alone and don’t have any one to help or protect them except each other.

 

 

The mysterious man then decapitates the other man which is shown using a medium close up with a shallow focus on the body. This forces the audience to focus on it, emphasising what has just happened. In the background, you can slightly see the main characters face enough to see his expression which is rage, this conveys he is extremely angry and does what he does to release rage. However we don’t get a clear view of his face which keeps the man’s identity unknown. The scene is also incredibly fast paced now with it cutting between extreme close ups of the chainsaw cutting through his body (emphasising the power he has and his cruelness), the couple and of the body itself. This conveys the action going on on-screen. Also there is a lot of blood in this scene which is a typical horror convention as it represents violence and evil which most horror films have an antagonist. There is also extremely loud diegetic sounds of the chainsaw and screams the girl which emphasises that the man is out to harm people with his weapon, suggesting that they’re next.

The boyfriend is insisting that this is all fake and that he isn’t scared by anything as there was diegetic dialogue of him saying “you got fake blood on my clothes”. This connotes his lack of fear as he is more bothered about his clothes than the man who just got murdered in front of him, emphasising that he thinks the whole thing is a part of the haunted house. There is also multiple canted angles used when cutting between close ups of the couple, this conveys the lack of normality and that this wouldn’t normally happen in a haunted house. There was also a canted angle on a close up of the boyfriend which connotes his disorientated view, that he still thinks it’s not real. The girl juxtaposes with his view however and says “we should get out of here”, indicating that she wants to get away because she believes they’re in danger. Meanwhile, the boyfriend is shouting at the unknown man because he is mad the he got “fake blood” on his clothes. This is most likely going to frustrate the audience as he’s just putting himself in more danger rather than just getting away from him, like most people would do.

We then see a close up of the main character with his hair covering his face. This again emphasises the fact that he is nameless and faceless and the audience don’t know who he is, creating a fear of the unknown. Due to us not being able to see his face, we are unable to see any emotion, however he is just stood there, staring at the couple (as the boyfriend yells at him), which conveys his lack of remorse. There is loud, intense non diegetic music playing which conveys the energy in the scene as the girl is frightened and the boyfriend is angry. The non-diegetic music also has a lack of emotion in it which conveys the main character as he appears to not care at all. Also in this shot, the background is almost completely black, also connoting his darkness and lack of emotion. The scene is also still quite fast paced, with it only staying on this shot for a few seconds before cutting back to the couple, this also indicates energy and panic/anger in the scene.

The scene then becomes extremely fast paced, cutting between the man walking towards the couple and him getting closer. This emphasises fear as the man is position higher up in the frame when he’s walking towards them, which conveys power and control. There is also several more canted angles on the boy, again connoting that this isn’t something that would usually happen in a haunted house. There is then several extreme close ups it cuts to that is of the chainsaw and the chainsaw cutting the boyfriend. These shots emphasises how brutal the main character is, clearly portraying him as the antagonist. This also shows a lot of blood a violence which is a common horror convention to be used. There is also extremely loud diegetic sounds from the chainsaw, making the violence even more intense for the audience as it creates more realism, the scene being fast paced also adds to intensity of the scene, creating more fear.

 

There is then a medium shot with a deep focus of the girl running away from the chainsaw man. The background is black and blood red, this emphasises danger, blood and violence as well as emphasising that she cannot see much behind her, conveying that the chainsaw man may be closer than we think. Also, her hands and arms blur a lot as she’s running, this connotes her fear as she is running as fast as she can. This also illustrates the final girl theory as at the start of the film, she was scared and hiding behind her boyfriend, and now her boyfriend’s dead she is becoming more independent and fighting for herself. There is also diegetic sounds of her panting, emphasising desperation and fear, however she is no longer screaming and instead just running. This also supports the final girl theory as she is using her initiative more and trying not to give him any hints as to where she is. There is also fast paced editing to convey the girls panic and desperation to get away.

 

 

The girl is then cornered and there is a low angle shot of the man coming closer to her, which juxtaposes with the high angle shot on her. This clearly juxtaposes with each other and conveys the man as being in more power and intimidating whereas the girl is more vulnerable. This supports gender stereotypes as males are generally seen as being more powerful than women. Also this is the first shot where we can actually see his face, which shows him looking remorseless with a slight smile, connoting his lack of empathy for others and his enjoyment out of harming others. As the man is stood there, the non diegetic music stops and there is diegetic dialogue from the man. At first he does slow laughter before shouting "boo" at the girl. This also emphasises his lack of empathy for others and also conveys him as not caring about human life.

 

 

This next shot is a medium close. The window in between her and the others shows a clear divide between her and everyone else, emphasising that she is completely alone and has no one to help her. Due to it being a haunted house, the others seem totally unfazed by what is happening, suggesting that they think it’s all part of the haunted house. This helps connote the girl’s desperation as no one believes it’s real, this is also portrayed through her constant diegetic screams, shouting “help”.

 

The scene then goes into slow motion as the man begins to brutally murder the girl with his chainsaw. The non diegetic, opera like music playing  illustrates that the man is enjoying it. This also creates quite an odd atmosphere for the audience as you would expect it to be fast paced. This illustrates that the main is indulging in every moment and enjoy every second of it. 

The scene cuts between numerous shots (close ups of the chainsaw, close ups of the girl and close ups of blood dripping) which emphasises how brutal the man is as it forces the audience to focus on the pain he is inflicting. This is also helped by all the shots being a shallow focus on the skin, chainsaw and blood.

 

 

There is then a deep focus medium shot of the girl lying, murdered, on the floor. This conveys the extent of damage the man did. All the diegetic music then stops as there is diegetic footsteps of the man walking towards her, he then bends down and eats some of her corps. This also conveys his lack of remorse as he happily eats his victims. There is then a canted angle of him walking out, dragging his chainsaw, which conveys he is extremely abnormal and also emphasising that the people watching are wrong with thinking it's all just an act.

 

 

The camera then pans on the man as he closes the door on another one of his victims, indicating that he has no guilt and can just walk away without caring at all. There is also diegetic sounds of a radio, conveying that this situation appears extremely casual for the man.

 

 

This is the last shot of the man, walking out exactly as he walked out. This indicates that he does this often and remains completely unfazed. It also emphasises how busy the area is, as there are a lot of people he's walking past, which creates irony because no one suspected a thing.