STUDENT FILM OPENING ANALYSIS

Psychological Horror

Student Film Opening – ‘Awake’https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C1xx2oZy-Nk

Mise-en-Scene◦ Costume – The only character in this piece is wearing every day clothing appropriate to the time of day, she is in

pyjamas. The reason for her wearing pyjamas could be that the group wanted the film to come across as close to real life. This could be so the storyline is more realistic and believable.

◦ Lighting – The lighting throughout the film opening is dependant on what is going on in the film at the time. For example when she is in the kitchen normal kitchen lights are switched on and no other artificial lighting is used, this adds to the normality factor. However when she is running through the graveyard at the beginning of the film opening the lighting is low key lighting. This was obviously filmed during the day when it was getting darker. This helps give the film a more naturalistic feel.

◦ Actors – There is only one actor in this film opening, she is in her late teens which applies to the target audience as the target audience for this genre is people under 35. Her body language shows that she is anxious and on edge for the whole of the opening as it is clear that she knows she is being watched and stalked.

◦ Make-up – There is minimal use of make up throughout this scene as the actor is made to look very natural so there is a close to real life representation. There is no use of blood or extra make up.

◦ Props- Normal house hold appliances are seen in the scene. The picture with the coloured in face is a significant part in the scene as it helped to establish the genre. There were no other props used however there was lots of clutter in the background to show a normal household.

◦ Setting – The majority of this film opening is set in the girls house, it is a naturalistic setting giving the film a naturalistic feel making it more realistic so that the audience can relate to the storyline. The house is fairly cluttered making it more believable and true-to-life.

Meeting Film Opening Conventions◦Throughout this film opening, may conventions are met, for example the use of a studio logo and titles. However some conventions are challenged

in this film opening, studio logo being one of these things as it wasn’t created by the media group. Additionally the costumes do not fit in with the

generic conventions for this genre as it is similar to everyday life. Also make up hasn’t been used extensively in this film opening which also

challenges the conventions for this genre as typically blood or sweat is used in these kinds of films.

TitlesAs mentioned before the studio logo does not belong to the media group meaning there would be copyright issues. The names of cast, writers and directors appear on the screen in really small white font, this does not connote the genre of the film therefore doesn’t fit with the genre. It could have been in a different colour and font to help establish the genre, this would’ve fit with conventions of this genre better. The title of the film is not shown until the end, this breaks conventions. The colour is also not relative to the genre therefore doesn’t fit well with what has just happened.

Sound – Diegetic & Non Diegetic◦The sound throughout this changes between non diegetic and diegetic. The

non diegetic music creates tension in the atmosphere which builds up to the end of the film opening when the girl opens the door. The song which plays when she switches on the radio has the lyrics ‘I’m gonna getcha getcha getcha one way’ this could foreshadow the events to come or the back story of her getting stalked.

◦ The diegetic music is dialogue, the brevity of the lines is often short so that it has impact on the audience and leaves the audience wondering what is going to happen next. In some of the diegetic sounds, excess wind sound can be heard. This makes it look unprofessional and affects the continuity of the film.

Editing◦ The editing in this film opening is generally fast paced, jump cuts and straight cuts

are used mostly which co-insides with the generic conventions of horror. The editing is sometimes sketchy making the film lack continuity meaning the quality of it is reduced. Some of the cuts are matched well and it often flows well. The clock in the background of the shots changes time in big chunks over a few seconds of footage. This should be taken into consideration when putting the final piece together.

Creativity◦ There are certain aspects of this film opening where the

levels of creativity are good, for example the use of camera angles when the main character is in the kitchen are good as it portrays her as vulnerable while undertaking everyday tasks. I also like the close up of the photo on the fridge as her face is scribbled out. This has a good affect as she believes she is being stalked. However there are some aspects lacking in creativity for example the titles at the beginning haven’t been created by themselves, they have just been copied and used from another production company. These could have copywriting issues. I think that they could’ve make a production logo appropriate to the genre making it more unusual.

Camera Handling & Variation◦ The camera man or woman uses interesting shot variety throughout the film

opening, for example filming the girl from the outside through the window. However sometimes the interest of the audience could be grabbed by using POV shots to show the action from the eyes of the protagonist. The varied shot types are often and are generic conventions for this genre. The main focus of the camera angles is to show the vulnerability of the ‘target’ and show a stalker watching her. However the 180 degree rule is broken so the audience feel disorientated, this is not used in an appropriate place in the film opening so it is not effective.

Appropriate Content◦The content in this film opening is appropriate to the brief as it fits with in

the time frame and it meets several conventions for this genre. The group have been creative as they have challenged some of the conventions which add to the unique selling point of the film (USP). The way they have used the conventions enable the story to be slowly revealed creating lots of enigma keeping the audience interested.

Casting/Performance◦ The protagonist in this film opening is a teenage girl around the

age of 16/17. For me personally I don’t think that she fully committed herself to the role and she could’ve portrayed it better and more believable. However I think the age of the main character is suitable for the genre as the target audience for this genre is people under the age of 35. To improve this I would cast a girl who had previous acting experience who would be able to portray the role better so the character was more relatable. It is not evident that she has had previous acting experience in this film opening.

Conclusion/Evaluation◦Overall this film opening contains material appropriate to the task in the

way that they have produced a film opening of a certain genre which co-insides with generic conventions. There are many areas throughout this film opening which would be improved for example the attention to detail with continuity and the casting should’ve been chosen more carefully so that the character can be portrayed to evoke emotions from the audience. But all in all this was a good effort.