Genre - Horror

Horror
Horror film is a genre of film that aims to trigger fear, alarm, panic or tension in the audience, and perhaps disturb them. This often relies on playing on common or psychological fears among the audience and therefore invokes a sense of alarm or danger in the audience. Themes such as macabre (a grim or ghastly atmosphere) or supernatural etc. are often employed to play on the fears of the audience by creating an eerie or terrifying plot, atmosphere, character etc. The plot, characters etc often varies depending on the subgenre of the horror film, however, in general, there are many similarities between each branch of the horror genre.

Conventions of Horror Genre
The conventions of each horror film are often similar among the genre, however, some elements may differ depending on the director's vision or the subgenre of the film etc. The following points describe the stereotypical conventions of horror:

• Setting - the setting of a horror is stereotypically located among a small community or isolated area, however, it is still common for a horror to be set in urban environments, particularly when the streets are dark and narrow alleyways are involved. Large empty cities or rundown ghost towns are common in horrors. The general setting for a horror is somewhere that suggests isolation, which makes the characters seem helpless because nobody is around for them to feel protected and secure. Enclosed areas create a theme of chaos and suffocation, which are effective for jump scare scenes, these areas could include closets or tight woodlands etc. Areas with an eerie background or history are commonly featured in horrors, for example, an abandoned hospital or insane asylum or a graveyard etc. 

• Technical Codes - Camerawork in horrors is typically more expressive than it is natural. This is because shots and angles are used to change the audience's interpretation of the film, for example, a high angle may connote vulnerability of the victim, a low angle may make the oppressor appear larger and more intimidating, a canted angle will make things appear more chaotic and disturbing etc. Point of view shots are useful to let the audience see things from the victim's perspective, this allows the audience to feel the fear the character is feeling because they can see things from their angle. Point-of-view shots may also be used to depict the oppressor's perspective, this may allow the audience to experience fear for the character as they can see them from a predator's angle and therefore know more about what's going on than the character. This may also frustrate the audience because they know more and therefore know what the character should do. Close up or extreme close up shots are useful when depicting the character's fear on their face because the audience is able to empathise with them having seen their emotion and expression in detail. The depth of field may make it harder to see the oppressor behind the victim, which may make the audience jump or make them feel uneasy because they can see blurred movement in the background. Editing can create suspense, tension or chaos, if the editing makes the shots pace faster it'll connote fear and chaos because its fast paced.

• Characters - The protagonist of a horror film is often either a victim or hero. They're typically young and able-bodied so they can, therefore, run from the oppressor. It is common for the protagonist to be sharp-witted as they have to think fast and act quickly in situations that require them to - for example getting away from the oppressor etc. The film may focus on a group of characters (especially teens) in the situation, this is seen in so many different horror films, including I Know What You Did Last Summer etc. It is very common for the group of characters to be killed off one by one, starting with one the audience shouldn't be emotionally invested in. The villain in a horror depends on the type of the horror. For example, if it is supernatural then the villain is generally depicted as a fictional monster eg. a werewolf, vampire etc. The most common form of supernatural villain is a ghost - these are particularly eerie because they're generally harder to kill. However, mindless creatures are often scary, especially when depicted in human form like a zombie. This is unsettling for the audience because it's not seeing a human in a natural state - there is no sign of human left beside their physical appearance. Another common form of character in a horror is creepy children. This is effective because the innocence associated with children majorly juxtaposes the nature in which they're depicted - it's completely unnatural to see a child be scary and this is very unsettling for the audience. Police officers are common in horror films as they create a sense of security or hope. This is why its effective if the police officer is killed off or turns out to be bad because it kills any sense of safety and hope for both the characters and audience, dragging them back into a world of fear and terror. There is almost always some form of relief used in characters, often in the form of overly sexualised females. The females are often portrayed as dumb with loads of sex appeal and are typically one of the first characters to be killed off. There may be funny characters used to create comic relief, however, they're often killed off too because the audience wouldn't take them seriously. It's typical for the character's to treat any paranormal activity as real as this creates a sense of realism for the audience and therefore makes it scarier because it seems real - this can be portrayed through dialogue too. Moreover, objects (including dolls etc) that would otherwise be still, may be possessed etc. This is common in ghost films. 

• Sound - Diegetic sound in horror films is important, including screams to disturb or make the audience jump. Ambient diegetic sounds including footsteps or low, quiet noises from the monster etc. create tension because the audience expects something to happen from those footsteps or noises eg. a character jumps out. Moreover, having these diegetic sounds against silence creates suspense because the near silence is very unsettling for the audience. Non-diegetic sounds are equally as important because they can be used to emphasise tension in specific areas. Heavy, metallic crunching noises are very common in contemporary horror films as it is very disturbing for the audience to hear, particularly as it is reminiscent of machinery which can make the audience feel helpless as heavy machinery can easily injure or kill someone. Moreover, sharp, screeching noises of a violin can be used to unsettle the audience. Heartbeats can be used to create tension, particularly if they get faster because the fast paced thumping creates a sense of chaos and terror as its quick moving. 

• Lighting - Low key lighting is used to make the scene dark and create shadows. This is effective in a horror because darkness is often associated with fear. It also creates a sense of vulnerability and plays on the audience's fear of the unknown because people cannot see as much when in the dark and therefore cannot see everything going on, especially not in great detail. Well-lit scenes may suggest honesty, as this is a traditional method used to imply to the audience that the characters are being truthful - especially seen in classic tragedy plays. Flickering lights is very common in stereotypical horror films.

• Props - Weapon props are prominently used in horrors, especially when the villain is brutally murdering one of the victims. It is common for weapon props to be used in order to create the most graphic, painful death and therefore scare or disturb the audience. Common weapons used in horrors are sharp weapons eg. chainsaws, axes, knives. Guns aren't particularly used because they're seen as quick and not so graphic which won't unsettle the audience as much, but they may sometimes be used, particularly shot guns. In zombie horrors, guns and blunt weapons are very commonly used. In supernatural horrors, monster-specific weapons would be used. For example, salt may be used to tackle ghosts or silver bullets may be used to tackle werewolves. In supernatural horrors, it is very common to see old books used in which a spell is read out and therefore drags the characters into the world of horror because of the spell. Props that are eerie may be used, for example, tattered dolls, in ghost horrors these props are often possessed. Props that connote danger or fear are also used. 

Target Audience

Target audience for the horror genre is relatively similar throughout the entire genre - because of the scary or graphic nature of the film genre it will generally be aimed at adults - particularly young adults as older people may find it tasteless etc. It would not be targeted at squeamish people, as they wouldn't be able to sit through it or even want to watch it at all. On the other hand, it could be aimed at relatively squeamish people because then they would genuinely find it scary and want to watch it for the rush etc. Moreover, if they find it genuinely scary then the film follows its purpose of actually invoking negative emotions in the audience. There are some variants of horrors that may be aimed at slightly younger people, for example, The Woman in Black has a younger target audience as the imagery isn't overly graphic and it isn't too scary so its appropriate for younger audiences. However, this being said, the general target audience of a horror film would be adults (especially young adults). Certain horror films may be aimed at men, particularly when the idea of a sexualised female character is employed because this (as a generalisation) would be what stereotypically appeals to a man and therefore they would feel inclined to watch it. Moreover, its a common misconception within our society that men are tougher than women and that women are squeamish, this, therefore, makes films of this nature be aimed at men because people assume that it would not appeal to women, this isn't always the case, though. 

What do Film Companies Do to Attract these Audiences in Terms of Marketing? 

In order to market these films to these audiences, the film companies need to direct it at these audiences by airing trailers etc. in places these people will be. They also need to make clear what kind of genre it is to, therefore, appeal to the audiences that would typically be associated with the horror genre. The film companies make it clear what genre it is with the following techniques:

• Posters, Banners etc. - Posters are used to advertise the film in areas in which the trailer cannot be shown - posters are more public and have to be quick to read because people will see them in their day to day lives instead of being sat down and paying attention to it as they would be if it were a trailer. Horror film posters will need to suggest the dark, scary theme through the use of aesthetics. This would include dark colours and dim lighting in the photo (if there is a photo) which will connote fear. This aesthetic is so common in horror film posters that it has made it so easy to identify a horror poster. Any text on the photo will be in a scary looking font as opposed to happy, bold bubble writing that will look too happy to associate with a horror film. The content of the actual photo on the poster will contain something to do with the plot, however, won't give away too much. Moreover, the content on posters cannot be too graphic because they will be displayed in public and therefore cannot be too inappropriate for squeamish people or children have to see them too, however, they still often depict pictures that will disturb the audience eg. mutations or people contorting in weird manners. It is very common for horror posters to include a prop from the film, eg. a tatty teddy bear or a chair in a dark shadowy corner etc. It's also extremely common to use an extreme close-up of a character's face, which will generally depict fear in their expression. The lighting will be quite contrasting however the shadows are the most prominent feature to connote fear. The colours will be very unsaturated and dim, as bright, bold colours are more lively and therefore wouldn't be appropriate. Sometimes it is hard to distinguish what is actually being depicted in the image.  Posters have to be intriguing as they don't really have a chance to get across a lot of information about the film because its just one image, however, they cannot include loads of detail because people will just look at them quickly when passing by. The posters below are examples of horror movie posters. The one on the left shows a close-up of a person's face who is wide-eyed and screaming - suggesting that they are terrified. The most prominent colour is black however there is a contrast between the small amount of highlight of the face in the image. The font is in red, which is appropriate because red can be associated with blood and evil. The image of the right shows the same sort of aesthetic: the close-up of the face, the red writing and the prominent colour being black. Upon closer inspection, it can be seen that the face's eyes are in fact screaming mouths, and it looks really unnatural and therefore disturbs the audience. 

• Trailers - trailers are an effective way to get across more information about the film to the audience. Horror film trailers often include jump scares and set the mood of the film by establishing the conventions of a typical horror film. Using jump scares in the trailer will attract the target audience because the trailer alone is enough to make them scared and therefore make them want to watch the rest because its the kind of film they're into (obviously because they are the audience targeted for these films and therefore enjoy being scared). They'll be aired before TV programs that are of the same genre so the film companies know the target audience will be watching, it will also be placed in cinemas before the beginning of another horror film so the target audience is targeted that way. 

• Campaigns - Campaigns are a good way to draw attention to a film, for example, setting up actors to scare passersby in busy areas or pranking people through scaring them etc. This will draw attention to the film because people are physically involved and interacted with, therefore making it more memorable because a physical memory was made and they'll feel inclined to go and watch the film. Moreover, because they're physically involved, they'll feel like the film company is talking to them personally and therefore feel special and thus go and watch the film. 

Example of a Horror Film Opening: 

The Conjuring (2013, James Wan)
This horror film opening begins with a group of people discussing paranormal activity in a room. One of the characters say 'you're gonna think we're insane' when the other characters whom they're seeking advice from replies, 'try us.' This suggests that the idea of supernatural happenings is completely normal for the characters. Creating this sense of normality makes the audience feel enmeshed in the film because a feeling of realism is portrayed by acting that supernatural existing is normal or real. If this sense of realism isn't conveyed then the audience would sit through the entire film not scared because if the situation isn't realistic then they will not feel danger or fear themselves- they cannot relate. It can be seen within the first few seconds of the sequence that a stereotypical prop portrayed in horror is introduced; a creepy doll. This establishes perhaps a key 'villain' in the film and also sets up an eerie theme by disturbing the audience with such an unsettling looking toy. The overall tones of the image are very flat and unsaturated and the lighting is fairly dim, however, there is heavy, natural lighting on the character's faces (half lit up). I think this links to them sitting around in the circle iterating their problems - there's a feeling of honesty and this is further reinforced by putting natural lighting on their faces because this connotes truth. The two characters listening to the other characters question why they let the ghost inhabit the doll - this suggests that they know a lot about it as just this small amount of information leads to this negative reaction. Suspense music slowly builds in the background however it is almost unnoticeable. It cuts out when a flashback sequence begins and the only sounds heard are diegetic sounds, including the girls from the previous scene laughing. Cutting out the tense music correlates with the mood conveyed by the girls laughing - laughing is associated with happiness therefore tense music would not be fitting with the light sounds of people laughing. I believe this effect is created to give the audience a sense of inevitability, as given the context of the flashback, the audience knows this mood is suddenly going to plummet, especially seeing as the flashback immediately follows the line: 'but then... things got worse'. This is proven when the girls suddenly stop laughing and the music resumes because a note is found - presumably written by the doll as its found in the hallway. The music builds up to an overwhelming level as they find more scary things done by the doll eg. writing on the wall etc. With this, the scene becomes chaotic with the inclusion of overwhelming, screeching music, flickering lights and the character's clearly becoming overwhelmed with fear. The music calms when the character's focus on a crayon rolling into the room from the hallway. This silence creates impatience, frustration and tension in the audience because the audience is expecting more to happen when all of the chaos is met with the anticlimactic silence and image of a small crayon rolling. The music suddenly builds again - so quickly it almost takes the audience by surprise which is particularly effective because they'd already be on edge due to the nature of the film - meanwhile, one character grabs the doll and takes it outside to the bin, ignoring her friend's pleas no to. This further creates a sense of inevitability because the audience realises that something bad will happen to the character who threw the doll out because ghosts are stereotypically malicious and vengeful. Moreover, it makes the audience wonder how the doll got brought back inside for the scene at the beginning to take place, playing on that sense of inevitability again.