Iconography

Along the way, we have tried to pick out key elements used in most horror trailers that we would like to use in our trailer. Here are a few screen shots that have particularly inspired us:


Editing:

This long take is framed for 5 seconds to emphasise the prevalence of the doll. Long takes are often used in horror films to give the audience time to absorb the horror and familiarise themselves with the emotions felt by the protagonist. We plan to use various long takes in our horror trailer to enhance certain elements of horror that our characters or setting may portray.









These 2 shots show the audience that an unwanted presence is in the house. They are both establishing shots with a contrasting depth of field, the first shot makes the audience aware of the person, as the second one is used to scare the audience as she enters the room and becomes more prevalent. When watching the 'Annabelle' trailer, these screen shots stood out to us because it highlights the psychological element to the trailer, as the woman is unaware of what is going on in her surroundings. Therefore as our sub genre is psychological horror we will consider using a similar shot sequence in our trailer.

After closely analysing the three trailers, we also noticed that common editing features that were apparent in the horror trailers were fast pace editing and lots of fades were used. In our trailer we will definitely use lots of fast paced editing because this will present our audience with lots of shots in a short space of time which creates tension and anxiety on the audience members behalf as they are unsure on what is going to happen next; leaving them wanting to watch more. The fast pace editing will also contrast nicely with the long takes that we also plan to use in out trailer.


Lighting:









Low key lighting is used to create dark shots such as this framing shot. This represents the intense mood in the room, as the woman rummages through the wardrobe. The darkness also emphasises the thought of something waiting in the wardrobe, adding to the horror. Stereotypically, this scene plays on the fact that there are eerie things hide in the wardrobe, or the 'skeletons in the closet' ideology. We plan to use low key lighting in our trailer to maximise the horror effect.

Drawing upon the low key lighting effect, the two images of the house perfectly demonstrate how we would us different lighting in our trailer to show the down hill turning point in the trailer- where the horror starts to arise. Stereotypically, trailers start with happy non-diegetic music and the first image of the house demonstrates this happy feeling due to the high key lighting that is used. Contrastingly though, the second image uses low key lighting. Both of these clips appear in the same trailer which demonstrates to the audience through the lighting that the theme in the trailer are going to become more dark and sinister and the horror themes start to prevail. We are inspired by these contrasting sequences as we feel that this really highlights how the darkness represents the unknown and knowledge that something is wrong.



Shot types:

This sequence of shots are separated by quick cuts to contrast between the lighting of each shot. The lighting behind the woman sewing is perceived as natural light, presenting her as the innocent protagonist whom the audience are made to empathise with. Conversely, the darkness of the doll sat on the shelf implies the doll is the evil antagonist. This clearly suggests the roles each character plays, allowing the lighting to suggest a poignant component of the story. The high key lighting behind the woman also presents her vulnerability, as she has nothing to protect her from the terror, in comparison to the artificiality of the low key lighting above the doll. The contrast between these two shots is effective by creating an artificial heart rate for the audience.  

Framing shots are used throughout the trailers we've analysed, usually long takes, clearly showing the protagonist's surroundings. 

Framing shots accentuate the protagonists surroundings. Children are often used for these shots as although we can't see their faces and their expressions, their size in comparison to their surroundings highlights their vulnerability. The use of just one person or item in the framing shot implies the isolation that horror trailers intend to effect audiences with. It also conforms to the psychological horror genre, as it allows audiences imaginations run wild as each viewer will interpret differently and will have a different effect on everyone.

A recurring technique used in horror trailers is the use of establishing shots of the house where the trailer is set. There are usually 2 establishing shots of this house; in the day and at night, using a natural contrast to emphasise that the main body of horror happens during the night. The house shot also makes the trailer more psychologically effective, as it shows the audience that a horror story could happen to a normal family, living on a normal street; suggesting it could happen to them. By taunting their imagination, trailers can enter the mind of the audience to persuade them to watch the whole film. 

 

Close ups are used in horror trailers to clearly show the protagonist's face. Close ups not only show expression, but they also feature their surroundings. Close ups show expression, detail and often set the mood, especially for eye line match. We plan to use close ups to express the fear a protagonist feels, giving the audience a clear image of facial expression.

Extreme close ups are commonly used during the climax of horror films to maximise the sense of audience being able to visually see what the protagonist is feeling. We plan to use extreme close ups at the moment the protagonist realises there is horror in the house, and at the climax of action, as we feel this would be a good technique to show the cycle of horror often portrayed. 


Props:










Props play a large role in horror films, however from our analysis we have identified that more subtle props are used to purvey fear in psychological horrors. Rather than the stereotypical kitchen knife featured in slashers, or a masked antagonist associated with zombie horror; psychological horrors use dolls, baby monitors and traditional children's toys to represent how the psychological genre creates terror by making a materialistic prop come to life by introducing a spiritual presence; unknown to the habitants of the house, but clearly obvious to the audience. Many props will feature in our trailer, as they almost speak, during silence.

 

Doors are also common in psychological horror, as they present the notion that the protagonist is always trapped and can't escape the inevitable terror they face. By using a long depth of field extreme long shot of the actor, with many doors in shallow depth of field, the audience see the isolated actor with no hope of escaping and are made to feel empathy for the protagonist; an easy technique to grab the audience's attention. In our trailer, we want to use this technique as its such a subtle technique that can make a long shot or extreme long shot look more effective, conforming to the horror genre.





Protagonist

Post trailer analysis there was a clear trend in the gender of the protagonist appearing in the horror trailers; they were all female. Females, in particular, in media mediums such as films, are often portrayed as the inferior, weaker character. This ideology has been apparent throughout the horror genre when analysing our trailers because we often see the women as the antagonist character who is being scrutinised by the terror. This stereotype associated with women however, we think makes for an effective horror trailer because they are already seen as weaker characters, therefore by making them the target in horror films makes them appear even more vulnerable. 
In the above shots there is a mixture of medium close up shots, establishing shots, two shots and aerial shots. Obviously, the medium close up shot is one that is commonly used in horror films to demonstrate to the audience the distress and terror on the characters face. The third establishing shot in particular is very effective, because she is surrounded by typical homely things however due to her insular posture and fear on her face, the audience are aware that she is actually in complete isolation. This is also apparent in the last aerial shot which makes the woman look very small and as though she is being watched over.
In our trailer, we are definitely going to use a female as the lead role so that the extra element of vulnerability is apparent in our trailer. Our thoughts on who the lead protagonist should be will hopefully coincide with the audiences view after conducting audience research in the form of questionnaires.


Setting















In the majority of horror film trailers we have watched and analysed, there has always been a framing shot of the house where the horror will prevail before it happens and then there will often be another framing shot of the house in perhaps a lower key light to show the turn in the trailer as things start to go wrong. These framing shots are effective because they give an audience a clear indication of where the main basis for the horror is. We also like the contrast between the two framing shots in the Insidious trailer; one in the day and one at night. The second framing shot at night is stereotypical of the fact that when it's night time, this is when horror often prevails.


We also found that often outdoor space such as woodlands are used when the horror is at it's peak in which you often see the antagonist running away from the horror. We like this idea as well because it means that not all of the horror is happening in one location; the house. Woodlands also have an eerie element to them especially at night because it shows complete isolation and the fear of the unknown as you often don't know where you are or where you are going; making your character more vulnerable. The contrast between the horror prevailing in a house then into an outdoor space is very effective because houses are associated with being homely and safe, whereas, you wouldn't use those lexemes to describe woodlands.