Evaluation Question 1 In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms an conventions of real media

product? (i.e. of film openings) Setting/Location: In our video production we decided to choose two locations. Unlike most opening sequences to horror films we decided to use two locations rather than one challenging the conventions of a typical horror genre. Another way we challenged the traditional horror conventions is by setting our first scene in a house rather than a typical secluded, dark or eerie location. This makes our video less predictable for our target audience. Often in horror genre conventions, the houses are normally abandoned and isolated. In our production we decided to film in Lilys living room. Our protagonist Lily and her friend Endora are sitting on the floor or a tidy room, this makes our target audience teenagers and young adults familiarise with this type of cosy environment where they feel protected (i.e. their own homes.) However the dim lighting and the doors give away that something unexpected and danger is about to happen. The minimal space also tells the audience that there is less room for the protagonist to move around and escape. In contrast our second scene does follow the stereotypical horror conventions isolated and abandoned space allowing the audience to relate to the plot and predict the consequences. The long dried/dead grass in this public open field adds to the idea that the area unprotected and no one looks steps foot in the area.

The title of the film The name title of our film falls into the codes and conventions of a horror genre. The name of our film is called Satanic deprived from the name Satan the leader of the fallen angels. Satanism is a group of western religions who show their admiration for the character of Satan. This immediately indicates to the audience that the film was associated with the spiritual world of the dead similar to movies such as The Possession and The Pact. The audience can relate the title to the character in which Lily the protagonist is the fallen angel who is in the hands of Satan. Furthermore Lily has disturbed and mocked the world of Satanism by quoting its only a game giving her the term Satanic in other words devil like. The title of the film supports the location/setting because in horror conventions where spirituality is the central theme the main setting is usually in a house, this shows that the title follows the codes and conventions of our genre.

Title and fonts used The title of our film is large and bold emphasising the seriousness of the plot. The font that we used is Baskerville Old Face. This font doesnt contradict the codes and conventions of the horror genre. This is because of the sharp edges on each of the letters indicating danger and pain to the audience. The colour of the font is orange. This challenges the codes and conventions of the genre because we didnt use the typical colours such as red, white of black associated with the genre. On the other hand it doesnt contradict because the audience can relate the colour to the meaning of the title Satanic (the underworld), where hell is not the place to be. The orange colour can be associated with fire and hell giving the audience an idea of where the protagonist might have gone after being attacked. Costume and props

In scene 1, our protagonist and her friend are wearing their school uniform making the audience think its a normal school day for them, therefore not conforming to the typical horror genre but on the other hand it does be in contact to the location; the house where the characters have just come back from school and decided to take part in a dangerous game. The fact that the characters are wearing black and white school uniform suggests that they vulnerable young girls which follows the conventions of the horror genre because the main protagonists are vulnerable young girl, additionally our target audience can relate to them and the film itself as we have targeted at mainly teens and young adults who share similar uniform. In scene the 2 we decided to dress protagonist in all white clothing. We got the idea from The Exorcism of Emily Rose where the main protagonist in the film gets possessed in white clothing. Similarly in our film we did the same following a successful horror film with the right codes and conventions of costume. Another reason why we picked white costume is because white is a signifier of purity, innocence and even infancy, especially in regards to women and this is what starts to show when Lily finds herself in an abandoned field. Moreover in most horror films all these characteristics and behaviour is shown through by dressing the main protagonist in white, primarily when the victim is a woman or a young girl. In this scene we decided to make Lily paler, this tells us that the location is cold and the audience can sympathise with her character. This conforms to the tradition horror conventions as pale skin is often allied with early sign of death. We used minimal props such as white face paint, candles and the Ouija board. In this scene the candles and the Ouija board are the main props. We decided to use candles alongside the Ouija board because after doing some background research we found out that lighting a candle when using the board improves the connection with the person taking part and the spiritual world and by using them alongside each other in our film makes the setting realistic. The candles also foreshadow the danger to come and links to the light in the afterlife. Our film challenged the conventions of a horror genre, this is because our dangerous/threatening object wasnt a sharp object i.e. knife, gun, in fact it was an Ouija Board which is an dangerous object to mess around with.

Camerawork and Editing

These two show the close up shots of the Ouija Board. The second picture shows a Lilys POV turning the board indicating that she is the only one left in the room and ready to put herself in danger by attempting the board on her own. This foreshadows the danger consequences that she can not escape from because she is alone. In addition it allows the audience to put themselves in Lilys shoes and feel as if they are the victim. The close up enables the audience to visualise and think about the possible answers that the spirits might respond to Lilys question making the situation and atmosphere real as real as possible. Most horror films use foreshadowing as a way of indicating what is to come.

This is a mid-shot of the protagonist running away from the spirit and the type of movement we used to film this is the Dolly movement. In horror films, it is quite often that most cameras use the dolly movement to show the victim running or the antagonist chasing the victim. In addition it makes the audience feel as if the Lily is running towards them for help.

This is the evil spirits POV shot chasing Lily. This allows the audience to see the world from the monsters eye. In horror films, this tends to happen in the middle or in the end. We followed the convention of the horror genre by putting it in the end and hand-holding the camera. The handheld shots make it difficult for the audience to make out what is happening. We filmed this with handheld camera to promote the feeling or terror and unknown that Lily is experiencing..

Story and how the opening sets it up In the first scene the protagonist is setting up the camera. This instantly tells the audience that it is filmed like a documentary and gives them the sense that they are witnesses of the events that are taking place or about to occur, furthermore it makes the audience wonder what she is filming and why. Next the wide shot shows her joining her friend Endora and sitting opposite her. This tells the audience that at the moment the protagonist is safe as she is assisted by her friend. She puts her finger on the Ouija and persuades Endora to take part by prompting her by saying its only a game this immediately tells the audience that Lilys prompt may not be true and what they are taking part in a dangerous activity. After the glass shifts to No Endora feels nervous so she stands up to leave leaving Lily and the threatening object (Ouija Board) on their own. This creates suspense as it indicates that she is a vulnerable target. In most horror conventions it is very rare that the protagonist is with another character whilst being chased or attacked by the antagonist. We normally see this in thrillers and action movies i.e. a male and a female holding hands to run away from gun shooting. When Lily starts blowing out the candles, the main sound effects comes in, this sets up the story as it hints the audience that an evil presence is lurking nearby.

Genre and how the opening suggests it In supernatural horrors it is very rare that the film is set up like a documentary. We opened our film to an image of TV bars and the beeping noise, then the image of our protagonist appears and she is checking the lenses. This immediately makes the audience question what they are filming and why. Furthermore it sets up the location and setting as most homemade documentaries are made at some ones home for example Paranormal Activity; when the main female Protagonist sets up cameras in every room of her house to film the sprits. Our film explains that supernatural horrors are often to do with spirits of the dead and people like to film the experience of communicating with them and their actions. The close up shot of Lilys makes the audience aware that the protagonist is a young vulnerable teenager. Later on when Lily sits on the floor, the audience become more aware that the film is to do with a supernatural horror. This is because of the props that we used such as the Ouija board and the candles.

The Ouija board is used by spiritualists and people who want to communicate with the dead (usually of a loved one) however in this case Lily is using the board as a time passer. She persuades Endora to take part just for fun by saying its only a game thus informing the audience that its more than a game and that is a dangerous one. From the start the audience can sympathise with Endora who hesitates to take part in the game, this makes it obvious for the audience that she will leave and Lily will be left all alone all vulnerable just like most characters in supernatural horrors. How characters are introduced

Our protagonist is introduced in the film on the first shot. She is setting up the camera ready to film herself and her friend Endora taking part in the Ouija board. The close up shot of Lilys face enables the audience to see how young and fresh faced she is. Her soft facial tell the audience that she has this vulnerable side to her foreshadowing her weakness. When Lilys first lines are spoken, it immediately tells the audience that there is someone else with her furthermore it also tells the audience that she is a devil like character willing to take risks. The second Character Endora is introduced using a wide shot. She is the shy and mature mannered one who gives up her free will and takes part in the game. The audience might also have guessed that at some point Endora will give into the game, leaving Lily all alone and the target victim. Special Effects

Some of the special effects that we decided to use are the TV bars and the beep sound, camera grids and a flashing REC symbol. We used these filters because we wanted to set up our film as a homemade documentary and make it appear as realistic as possible. The camera features makes the audience feel as if they were filming the action and they were there to witness it all. Later on in the video the camera changes to a darker colour and the filming appears to have been disturbed, scratched and almost as if the camera is about to fall of the tripod., this without more ado informs the audience that something is not right and there is another presence in the room.

In the final scene, the audience can see the world from the evil spirits eyes. We conformed to the traditional codes and conventions of a horror by using a red filter to show the spirits POV chasing Lily; red symbolising blood, danger and hell. We also added the strobe effect to present the spirits movements in slow motion blur. This gives time for the audience to get a close up look of Lilys terrified expression and how the spirit is getting closer to its victim, making the audience more anxious to know what is going to happen.