Character Profile: Lola Robinson

Lola Robinson played by Holly Farrell

Holly has kindly agreed to feature in my opening sequence, in which she will take on the lead role.  Her acting does not have to be amazing (even though I'm sure it is!) because the most important part of a horror movie is creating the right atmosphere and tension.  And Holly, if you're reading this: I owe you one!

Lola is 17 years old, has blonde hair, blue eyes and is upper-middle class.  This is following the conventions of a horror film, as she looks sweet and innocent.  Lola enjoys going out to parties with her friends, but she also tries hard at school.  She lives with both of her parents, who are in their early 40's, and her younger brother Daniel, who is 15.  Lola likes listening to lots of upcoming bands and enjoys going to the cinema with her boyfriend, Theo.  Although this is a lot of information to feature about a character, very little will be revealed in the opening sequence.  Lola is the main character of the movie and she will be the only one seen in the opening sequence.  Daniel will be mentioned when Lola calls for him, however he will never actually be seen in the first part of the film. 

Questionnaire

I have written a questionnaire in order to gain knowledge from my target audience; 18-35 year olds, middle class, mainly white and mainly females. I have used a variation of both open and closed questions, meaning I can get the best answers from my audience. This questionnaire will also allow me to build a detailed audience profile, which will help me tailor my opening sequence to what my target audience expect. Alternatively, I could choose to go against what I find out from the questionnaire, and shock the audience. Although this would be different an unexpected, I feel it would be easier to go along with the conventions of a horror film.

The Coventions of Horror

From watching the opening sequences to three horror films, I have come up with the typical conventions, with examples and analysis.

1. Lots of enigma codes are always raised early on to hook the audience, so it is vital that I do the same for my opening sequence.  This hook captivates the audience, making them want to watch on.  Although I will only be showing the first two minutes of a horror film, it is key that the audience would want to continue watching.  Using Scream as an example, it is easy to see how the audience become curious about the characters introduced, especially when limited information is given out about them.

2. Female victims and lead role's are the most common in horror movies, such as Casey (right) in Scream.  The typical victims in horror films tend to have blonde hair, blue eyes and be fairly young.  To the audience they look innocent and even angelic, showing that they are perhaps naive and a little clueless.  This creates a sense of superiority for the audience, as can feel like they know more about what's going on, and be 'one step ahead'. 

3. In most horror films, the location is very important as it can determine whether a character survives or not.  Large, open areas are most common, as is seen in Eden Lake.  If there are lots of people around, it is most likely the number of deaths will be limited, whereas if a house is situated in the 'middle of nowhere' there is more opportunity for the killer(s) to strike and not be seen.  Big houses are also a common convention of horror films, allowing for more places to hide and more potential ways to make people jump.  For example, the killer could be waiting in a room upstairs whilst the victim is in another part of the house. 

4.  The editing in horror films is usually fast paced and quick, especially when the action begins.  To do this in an opening sequence will be difficult, particularly when I don't want to show too much in the first two minutes.  The editing also has the ability to portray emotions, such as fear and panic, that are key to creating the right atmosphere.  Fast paced editing tends to be a convention later on in the films, and not always in the opening when things often appear calm and normal, like in Frozen.

5. An orchestral style of music is common in horror films, as it can sound eiry and be used to create a atmosphere of suspense.  As well as this style of music, limited dialogue also tends to be a convention of horror films in order to focus on the scary bit, however this was not shown in Scream, Frozen or Lake Eden, all of which contained rather a lot of talking. 

6. Having inter lay titles is another typical convention of horror films, as was shown in Scream and Frozen. By having titles on a plain, usually black, background they stand out more to the audience and have more of an impact.  The font is typically a bright colour, such as white or red, and in bold capitals to be seen clearly and look more threatening. 

So to summarise:

1. Enigma codes raised straight away

2. Blonde haired, naive, female victims

3. Large, open spaces and big houses

4. Quick cuts to shots, imitating fear and panic

5. Orchestral music, limited dialogue

6. Inter lay titles, bold fonts, usually white or red

Pro's and Con's of Horror

The Pro's:
- Less dialogue, therefore acting does not have to be amazing
- Enigma codes raised early on
- No special effects needed, therefore works well for no or little budget
- Middle class area, meaning houses that could be used for the location

The Con's:
- Can easily look tacky and cheap
- Hard to come up with original story lines and ideas: everything's been done before!
- Difficult to make people genuinely scared and frightened
- The correct lighting effect is hard to create

Despite all of the con's, I am still certain I want to go down the horror route.  I am super excited to get started with this now!

For Sure, It's Horror

After watching several opening sequences for the genre of social realism, I am entirely sure that I want to do one based on the horror genre.  I like this genre much more, and I think there are a lot of different things I could do with it.  However, I need to be careful in not making the opening sequence appear tacky and cheap, as it is very easy to fall into that trap. 

I now realise that my Fate/house of mirrors idea is fairly unfeasible, as that would involve using a lot of other props that I simply don't have access to.  I still like the idea of playing with mirrors, however I would need to do some further research into how I could use them effectively, and not make it look poorly done. 

Another Idea

I did have another idea for the opening sequence, which goes like this:

There is a teenage girl sitting at her dressing table, doing her make-up and listening to music when the phone from the living room rings.  She shouts down to ask her brother to answer it, as she is busy and he is the only other person home.  The phone continues ringing, and she shouts a little louder in case he didn't hear him.  The phone stops ringing so she continues getting ready, moving from the dressing table to the wardrobe to pick out her outfit.  She runs down stairs to see who was on the phone, but finds it hanging from cord.  She looks around the house, trying to find him, and the sequence ends with her at the main door letting out a scream because she's seen something outside.

As I was writing this idea, I was actually getting quite excited at the thought of filming this.  It would be much easier to do, as nothing especially special would be needed. 

And I'm rather happy because I got an A in my preliminary task! Whoop! :)

Eden Lake (2008)

Below is the opening sequence to Eden Lake, directed by James Watkins.  The only version I could find of the opening sequence was flipped, like a mirror, but this hardly detracts from the overall effect.

Plot
A young couple, Jenny and Steve, decide to go away for a romantic weekend break at the idyllic, remote Eden Lake, where, only known to the audience, Steve plans to propose. They are having a peaceful, relaxing time until a group of youths,lead by a male named Brett, appear and pay their loud music and cause a disturbance. Instead of being bullied into leaving, Steve becomes stubborn and stays put, putting up with the noise. After camping out for the night, the couple wake to find that their food has been infested with insects so they decide to drive into the town looking for a place to eat. The movie continues in the same fashion, the youths still tormenting Jenny and Steve until they final get to breaking point when Steve’s car, phone and wallet are stolen. Things then take a dramatic twist when Steve dies and the couple are about to be set alight. The film concludes with Jenny’s screams being heard when she turns up at house pleading for help. Unluckily for her, the house belongs to Brett’s parents, who are just like their son. The apple never falls far from the tree.

Enigma Codes
Pretty quickly, there are several enigma codes raised by the audience. The flashing images at the beginning cause the audience to ask a number of things: are these from before the ‘main’ story-line, or are they flashbacks? Will there be more of them later, and are they a crucial part of the narrative? A number of other questions are also asked; have any of the characters been to Eden Lake before? Why are they driving so far out just for one weekend? Are they safe? How long have they been a couple? How will he propose? Although there are many questions, there are limited answers, as the opening sequence does not focus on these aspects. The arousing of these questions automatically creates a hook for the audience, as they want to find out more about these characters and their backgrounds. It is already known that Jenny is a nursery teacher, however the audience are still left asking what does Steve do for a living? The use of the enigma codes also creates a sense of expectation for the audience, as they expect to, during the course of the film, receive the answers.

Character Establishment
Within the first minute, the main characters are established. Both Steve and Jenny are seen to be young and lively, therefore there is the assumption that they will not face any great difficulty in their time away.  They are represented as an innocent, sweet, 'normal' couple who have done no wrong.  Jenny is upset by a mother slapping a child, showing her caring nature as a nursery worker, which makes the audience warm to her.  Steve appears less worried about this, however stereotypically, men tend not to show their emotions.  Although the audience may not know it, another group of key characters are also introduced in the opening sequence: the youths on the bikes.  Immediately they are established as reckless and daring, as is shown when they bike in front of Steve's car.  All of the characters are limited in development, however there is an idea that something big will happen, as is foreshadowed by the flashing images shown at the beginning.

Location, Location, Location

There are a variety of locations established in the this opening sequence, the main one appearing to be the quarry Steve takes Jenny to.  All of the locations are established in a number of different way, from a close-up shot of a child's face in the nursery to an Ariel shot of the actual quarry.  Many roads are shown, representing the idea of a journey and a long length of time.  This length of time is also shown through the editing, which I will come onto in the next section.  The locations appear to be harmless, thus making the audience feel like there is no immediate threat to the characters. 

Editing

As is a typical convention of a horror movie, there are very quick cuts showing lots of different images.  Due to the fact the the opening sequence begins like this, the audience automatically know that something is going to happen, or has happened already.  This creates the element of suspense.  The sudden change of pace to longer shots matches the action, as everything looks like it belongs and nothing is out of place.   The sense of time passing is represented through the way the film cuts to different roads at different parts of the day, showing that it has gone from day to night.  This tells the audience that the characters are a long way from home.  Several continuity techniques have also been used in this opening sequence, and there is one shot in particular where the audience feels it's impact. Eye line match is used to show to a close-up of the dogs face, making both Jenny and the audience jump.  This is the first time in the movie that we are made to jump, as up until now nothing that would imply it was a horror film has happened. 

Can you hear that?

The use of sound is crucial in this opening sequence, most importantly when Jenny and Steve are in the car on the way to Eden Lake.  On the radio, a news story can be heard about parents not being able to control their children.  This is a key part in the film because as we discover whilst the film progresses, the parents of the youths have no control over them.  Although this a diegetic sound, Jenny and Steve do not seem to be listening, engaged in their own conversation.  The radio is then made louder to the audience whilst there are shots from the car's point of view, supporting the idea that the film will be something to do with out of control children.  There is also non-diegetic sound used in this opening sequence, through the use of a musical score.  At the beginning of the film, the music played is much more dramatic and a characteristic of a horror film, whereas the music used to accompany the journey is much more relaxed.  When the dialogue is playing, the sound can be heard from both characters points of view, unlike in Scream where it is heard from Casey's. 

Titles

Following the conventions of film, the titles appear at the beginning and whilst the action is happening.  The audience  expects, as they give us information about who's in it, who made it, who directed in and so on.  In relation to the footage, the titles are not at the centre of the screen, but they are still clearly visible to the audience.  The colour of the font also makes the titles stand out, as the red and white contrast against the black and grey.  Like in Scream, the red is used to symbolise blood, however none has been shown in the opening sequence. 

Mise-en-scene

The mise-en-scene is Eden Lake has played a key role in making the locations and the characters seem normal.  This makes the audience familiar with what's going on, as nothing shocking or different has been presented to them.  The props used are also unexciting, again showing that there is nothing out of the ordinary about the characters or the locations.  The collaborative effect of the costume and make-up once again make the characters seem typical, as they do not look like they are from Hollywood and are rich and wealthy. 

Target Audience

Due to the fact that nothing horror related has happened yet, it is a little hard to say who the TA would be.  However, because I know what happens in the film, I would say that the TA is 15 to 30 year olds, mixed gender and of mixed race. 

From the opening sequence I would say the film has the ability to be quite good, however like Frozen, I think it could take a while before the horror aspect comes through. 

Frozen (2010)

 Below is the first ten minutes for Frozen, a British-American horror film directed by Adam Green.

Plot
Three friends, Dan, Joe and Dan's girlfriend Parker, spend a Sunday afternoon at a ski resort.  They don't to pay full price for three ski lifts, so the bribe the attendant to let them all go on one.  On the way up the ski lift stops, but it quickly restarts again and they enjoy the whole afternoon skiing.  As the evening draws closer, the resort decides to close early as there is a storm coming.  Wanting one last go on the slopes, they remind the attendant of the bribe from earlier and convince him to let them have their final go.  The attendants then switch, and thinking there are no more skiers left on the slopes, he shuts the whole thing down.  This causes Dan, Joe and Parker to become stranded on the single ski lift, cold and frightened.  The ski resort does not open during the week, so they must find a way of getting to safety before they die from frostbite and starvation. 

Enigma Codes

In contrast with Scream, there are fewer enigma codes raised the the opening sequence of Frozen.  The main characters are established straight away, so there is little doubt over who's who.  Nothing horror related happens in the first part of the film, so the questions the audience can ask are limited.  However, a few questions are in need of answering.  Will Jason be an important character later in the movie? Why does Dan look up at the ski lift?  Is the three of them on one ski lift dangerous? The audience have not been given a great deal of information in the opening sequence, therefore there are not too many questions that can be asked. 

Character Establishment

Within the the first few seconds after the titles, the three main characters are established.  They are comfortable speaking to each other, so it is obvious to the audience that they are friends and know each other.  The relationships they have with each other are not known straight away, however it soon becomes clear that there is a couple in the trio.  There is limited character development in this first part of the movie, although the learn that the Dan and Joe are willing to use Parker's sexuality to get the things they want.  All three characters are represented at easy-going, relaxed young adults who are enjoying an afternoon out together.  As the opening sequence progresses, we see that they three characters are not afraid to manipulate others, such as the ski lift attendant. 

Location, Location, Location

Like in most, if not all films, the location for Frozen is established through the use of an establishing shot.  The location is a ski resort, so the shots of the mountains and slopes deffently help to create that setting.  In a many ways, the ski lift itself is also a location.  It is fairly key, as the characters will spend really all of the film on it.  The audience does not know it yet, but this establishes and foreshadows the location in the rest of the movie.  This importance is shown through the shots at the beginning of the opening sequence, where the camera tracks the movements of the ski lift wire.  The location suggests that there are lots of people around, so if a killer was looking to murder these three characters everyone would see.  This makes the audience feel at ease and not on on the edge of their seats, like they would be watching Scream.

Editing

Going against the conventions of a horror movie, the editing is not fast to match the action.  This is simply because there is no action! There are no transitions between the shots, just simple cuts which match the simple story line that has been played out so far.  Nothing dramatic or horror related has happened yet, so the editing does not need to be anything different from average.  Continuity techniques have been use in this opening sequence, such as shot/reverse shot, but nothing that particularly stands out. 

Can you hear that?

Unlike in Scream, there is a mixed use of diegetic and non-diegtic sound.  It is mostly diegtic sound that is used through dialogue, however there is backing track playing when there are establishing shots.  This is a very simple way of using both sound types, as it is effective but does not over-whelm the the audience.  The dialogue is heard form all three characters perspectives, making the audience feel no alliance with any one in particular. 

Titles

Directly opposite to what happens in Scream, the majority of the titles in Frozen appear at the beginning.  This is a typical convention and characteristic of a film.  Most of the titles appear before the 'main' film begins, allowing the audience to see what the film is called and who stars in it.  The name of the movie appears in white, linking to the snow and ice, and is in the centre of the screen so it is the main focus of the audience.  It is a bold, large font therefore fills up the majority of the screen, standing out greatly against the black background.

Iconography

Going against what we would expect to see in a horror movie, the opening sequence contains no blood, death or horror of any sort.  This is very unusual, as there is only the slightest hind that something might go wrong with the ski lift wire.

It looks like it could be a good film, however it seems to be a bit slow in getting the ball rolling.