Where it started

The Horror Genre started out in Britain in the late 1700’s in Gothic Horror literature by authors such as Mary Shelly, Bram Stoker and Edgar Allen Poe. It is these story liens that we now see appearing on the big screen for example, Bram Stokers Dracula is a story line and character that has appeared on our screens numerous times in the past 119 years that horror films have been made . The term Horror film wasn’t coined until the 1930’s before that it was called a spook tale, the first of the ‘spook tales’ was created by the Lumière brothers in 1895 which was just a fragment of a Skelton dancinghttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uNReoA8BV_YvHorror movies were first seen in the late 19th century the first on record was made by the Frenchmen Georges Méliès in 1896 he created the film Le Manoir du Diable its only a short film running just over 3 minuets but was the beginning of the horror film genre http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OPmKaz3Quzo

The First Trailers

Before looking at the first horror trailer I have to look at where and when film trailers started. The great train robbery of 1903 is considered to be one of the first film trailers created, the trailer is only a few seconds long and consists of the ending of the film where a man is shooting at the screen being cut and used a the trailer. The trailers have come a long way since this first attempt , they have developed from a short promo to becoming an integral part of the film and its advertisement.

The Rise of the Horror Film From 1896 the horror film became more and more popular. Here is a list of all the horror films made from its start in 1896 to 2000:1890’s-le Manoir du diable

Une nuit terrible

The Haunted Castle

The Bewitched Inn

The X-Rays

Photographing a Ghost

Cléopâtre

The Miser's Doom

Le Diable au couvent

1900’s-Faust and MargueriteBluebeardThe Haunted Curiosity ShopLes Trésors de satanLe Diable géant ou Le miracle de la madonne (The Devil and the Statue)Le MonstreLe Cauldron Infernal (The Infernal Boiling Pot)Le Cake-walk infernal| Le Cake-Walk Infernal (The Infernal Cake walk)Le Diable Noir (The Black Imp)La Maison hantéeLes Quatre cents farces du diableDr. Jekyll and Mr. HydeThe Sealed Room

1910’s-FrankensteinDr. Jekyll and Mr. HydeLe System du Docteur Goudron et du Professeur PlumeMaurice TourneurThe Mask of HorrorThe Spider's WebDr. Jekyll and Mr. HydeThe Student of PragueThe SkullThe WerewolfThe Avenging conscienceDer GolemThe Haunting FearLife Without SoulThe Crimson Stain MysteryHævnens natA Night of HorrorFearDer Golem und die TänzerinAlrauneThe BeetleUnheimliche Geschichten

Horror Films cont.1920’s-The Cabinet of Dr. CaligariDr. Jekyll and Mr. HydeDr. Jekyll and Mr. HydeGenuineThe Golem: How He Came into the WorldThe Head of JanusThe PenaltyIl Mostro di Frankenstein (The Monster of Frankenstein)Der Muede TodThe Haunted CastleKörkarlen

AnitaA Blind BargainThe Ghost BreakerHäxanThe Headless HorsemanNosferatuOne Exciting NightThe Hunchback of Notre DameThe Last MomentThe Hands of Orlac

WaxworksMaciste all'infernoThe MonsterThe Phantom of the OperaWolf blood: A Tale of the ForestThe Cat and the CanaryThe GorillaLondon After MidnightThe Spider's WebThe UnknownAlrauneThe ApeThe Fall of the House of UsherThe Fall of the House of UsherThe Terror

Because the number of horror films made after the 1920’s is so great I will only record the first ten, all the list if film has been sourced from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_horror_films_of_the_1930s

1930’s-The Bat WhispersThe Cat CreepsDr. Jekyll and Mr. HydeSvengaliThe Mad GeniusDraculaFrankensteinThe PhantomCastle SinisterDr. X

1940’s-The ApeBefore I HangBlack FridayThe Devil BatThe Door with Seven LocksDr. Cyclops The Ghost BreakersThe Invisible Man ReturnsThe Mummy's HandSon of Ingagi

1950’s-Bride of the GorillaThe Son of Dr. JekyllThe Strange door The Thing from Another WorldAlrauneThe Black CastleMy Son, the VampireThe Beast from 20,000 FathomsDonovan's BrainHouse of Wax

1960’s-13 GhostsAtom Age VampireBlack SundayBlood and RosesThe Brides of DraculaCircus of HorrorsThe City of the DeadEyes Without a FaceThe Ghost Cat of Otama PondThe Hands of Orlac

1970’s-The Ancines WoodsAnd Soon the DarknessAssignment TerrorThe Beast in the CellarBigfootBeiß mich, LieblingThe Blood RoseBlood on Satan's ClawBloodthirsty ButchersThe Bloody Judge

1980’s-Alien DeadAlligatorAltered StatesAntropophagusApocalypse domaniThe AwakeningBeyond EvilThe BoogeymanCannibal HolocaustThe Changeling

1990’s-The Amityville CurseBaby BloodBandh DarwazaBasket Case 2BloodmoonBrain DeadBride of Re-AnimatorBuried AliveA Cat in the BrainChild's Play 2

2000’s-Ancient Evil: Scream of the MummyBless the ChildBlood: The Last VampireBook of Shadows: Blair Witch 2The Massacre of the Burkittsville 7: The Blair Witch LegacyThe CallingCherry FallsCitizen Toxie: The Toxic Avenger IVThe ConventCrocodile

Horror film plots

When looking back through the film titles that have been released several titles reappear again and again. One of the most frequent is Dr. Jekyll and Mr Hyde appearing 7 times between 1900 and the 1950’s, this storyline is recreated so much because it is a “Classic” horror storyline which has evolved with horror as a genre. Another thing I pick up when looking back though the films is the international ‘adoption’ of the horror genre. The early horror films where made predominantly by the English and the French but as the success of horror film spread more and more country's started to produce there own horror films.

Big Budgets

Movies no matter which genre or era there frim have often had/ got big budgets. In early horror film you could expect the budget for a film to have been about $100’000 (The Blob 1958) compared to a modern day budget of $5million (As Above, so Below). It is a huge difference in budgets.

The Market Leaders

Here are the top 10 Horror film production companies1. BENDERSPINK2. BLUMHOUSE PRODUCTIONS3. CIRCLE OF CONFUSION4. DARK CASTLE ENTERTAINMENT5. DEL TORO PRODUCTIONS6. GHOST HOUSE PICTURES7. PLATINUM DUNES8. ROGUE PICTURES9. TWISTED PICTURES10. VERTIGO ENTERTAINMENThttp://www.ssninsider.com/the-top-10-horror-production-companies-capitalizing-on-fear/

I am adding in Hammer productions because it is one of the most oldest and most successful companies

The 10 Ten Horror Films Created

1. Psycho2. Rosemary's Baby3. Don't Look Now4. The Wicker Man5. The Shining6. The Exorcist7. Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror8. Let the Right One In9. Vampyr10. Peeping Tom