Outside of the box

"Thinking outside the box"

After reading up on various symbol meanings in films , I realized they have all been cleverly used to link the villain to the crime and acts like a riddle for the audience. The Silent hill symbol inspired me to make a clever symbol to set up my horror mystery. However this means I will need to think of a background story for my Killer's character  so I can design a symbol to mark his victim in my opening.

Research - slasher killers background stories

Freddy Krueger
-Is a fictional character from Wes Cravens A nightmare on Elm street.He is a disfigured serial killer who uses razor modified gloves to slaughter his victims in their dreams.
It was revealed that he was a child killer that was hunted down by a mob of angry parents and cornered into the boiler room he used to kill his victims in. This ended in him being burned alive in the boiler room leading to his burnt skin in the film and why he came back , seeking revenge.



Jason Voorhees
-is a fictional character in the Friday 13th film series.He first appeared as the son of the murderer Mrs Voorhees , a camp cook turned murderer.He then became the main antagonist who would stalk and kill his victims at camp crystal lake.In his original appearance Jason was a mentally disabled boy and is silent throughout the films. Drowned ad a child it is apparent he is not an ordinary character and follows in his mothers footsteps.



Leather face
-is a fictional character in Texas chainsaw massacre.He wears a mask made of human skin and engages in murder and cannibalism alongside his inbred family.However he is controlled by his family to commit these crimes as he is just a "big baby" and kills in self defense.



Both Jason voorhees and leatherface have mental issues and are controlled by their families to commit these crimes. The audience can't help but feel some sympathy towards these characters as they are portrayed as innocent as well as evil. I like the idea of the main killer having a sad past as it creates sympathy and a deeper reason of why they kill unlike Freddy krueger who kills for personal pleasure.

symbol meaning

Symbols in films

The symbol left on the victims body in the opening is vital to the story-line of the film as it is what links the murders of Star Cross to the earlier murders of Trevor Emanuel . I have seen many horror films involving certain symbols/signs so I  have looked up their meanings to help create Trevor's "Slaughtergraph".

Halloween VI (Slasher)- In Halloween IV the camera reveals a tattoo on Michael Myers wrist. This is the symbol of thorn (Thurizas) which is a third rune. This holds the meaning "Gateway,with thorn's of resistance".Thorn is relevant to Michael Myers character as it is a rune of challenging, testing as well as protection and defense. Thorn is also seen as a tribal curse which is inflicted on Michael .
There is an old poem to go with this rune which again show Michael s impact on the curse.Thorn can be seen as good and evil.

Poem "If urgency tells me to tie the opponent with magic , then I dullen the steel of my foes so that their swords will not cut anymore.
In the Latin alphabet the surviving thorn rune looks like a "P" with a neck-splint.

Silent Hill (Horror /mystery)- The symbol in silent hill is very important to the story line as the film was made after the game. The symbol appeared in the game frequently and in the film. This symbol is the Halo of the sun and is the main symbol of the order , the religious group behind the strange goings on in silent hill.

The letters around the outside are mainly the Hungarian alphabet but again holds different runes with different meanings and fortunes. For example the symbol includes the rune "Wynn" which is meant to bring joy and relief. This symbol holds many significant symbols and references to families in the game so I mapped it out in the image above.

Sinister (Horror/mystery/thriller) -Throughout the film sinister a there is a symbol which appears on the attic films and in the house. The symbol is the Pagan symbol of the Bagul. Also known as Mr boogie and the evil-doer. He is the Babylonian god of darkness , collects and consumes the souls of children. Unlike the other symbols with different runes and meanings , this one connects the villain with his occupation , which is less of a puzzle.

                       

Costume ideas

Costume ideas



My film is set in modern day however the clothes Victoria is wearing will later reveal the old footage is of an earlier murder compared to the recent one. So her clothes need to look dated /vintage. Victoria will need to look girly to emphasize her vulnerability


Dress- Using a white dress will make Victoria look girly and innocent. This emphasized by the clean white dress. This will also show of her legs . However this dress will most probably get dirty and stained during the progress and will leave my victim cold throughout.This will result in having to buy a dress to prevent ruining mine or Alanah's.

Jumper and shirt - This looks dated and will keep Victoria/Alanah warm during filming as it is cold this time of year. The grey of the jumper looks grungy and dated. But this does not looks as feminine which can cause problems but keeps in theme with the genre of the film.

Pinafore - A feminine type of clothing , still shows body and legs. This has a school girl look to it which can emphasizes the vulnerability of a young girl .This looks old and dated so is a possible option.

Doc Martens- are an expensive brand of shoe. However I already own a pair of these so will not go into my budget. They will last well in the muddy woods and keeps with the vintage theme. Unfortunately I have size 8 feet whereas Alanah has size 7 feet so they may be loose.

Brogues- are back in fashion and cheap to buy. Both me and Alanah own a pair of these. They look "old school" and fit the image. These may not be suitable for slippy mud but may be used.

I also have this hat. Clearly looks old. May not be suitable in the wind but will keep alanah's hair dry. The colour may not match the rest of the outfit.

Character

Characters

Know I have chosen my Premise I have a clear idea of what characters to include in my film opening. My film opening sounds complicated as my scenes consist of two different scenes merged together. This will be the murder itself and the aftermath of the murder not necessarily in that order. 

Main Character -

Character name : Victoria May

Character Age - 16

Character Appearance - Young , Slim , Long hair 

The main on screen character is my victim who is a teenage , slim girl who is being chased by the killer. The victim is female as young girls are seen as more vulnerable than young men which will emphasize she is in trouble and is defenseless against the murderer. Casting a female actress for this part will be easier as I have close friends who fit the profile.

As most of the scenes are based on Victoria and the rest are shots of the crime scene it isn't necessary for any more characters too be shown,But this doesn't mean I won't add scenes of other characters in to show a definite time difference.

Character confirmation- My close friend Alanah is more than happy to play the part of Victoria . She fits the character profile and took Drama for G.C.S.E so is good at acting. Having a close friend to play the part is great as it makes it easier to cooperate with her and she will not be embarrassed to act like a "looney" . She is happy for me to do her face paint and makeup which works well.

(Me on the left. Alanah on right)


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Film Genre

Film Genre

From my early survey , my target audience revealed the most popular horror sub-genre is slasher. My research and personal interest in horror films shows that slasher films are extremely popular. However I believe many slasher films are very similar so I decide to merge it with another sub-genre crime/detective.

Typical slasher story line- masked killer tortures/stalks group of people and kills them one by one . The killer is revealed at the end but however this is not the end of his reign of terror.

Many slasher films do not end up showing the killer getting caught or murdered as it sets up another plot for a sequel. This applies to these slasher films-

-Halloween

-A nightmare on elm street

-Dead silence

-Friday 13th

Definition :

Slasher film- A horror film involving a single villain who commits a series of murders using a sharp , signature weapon.

Mystery Film- Mystery film is a sub-genre of the more general category of crime film and at times the thriller genre. It focuses on the efforts of the detective, private investigator or amateur sleuth to solve the mysterious circumstances of a crime by means of clues, investigation, and clever deduction


Why? 

In most slasher horror films there is a sense of mystery . This is used to create fear as the group of harassed people are clueless as to who the murderer is . This also creates tension in the audience as they will not know who it is until the end of the film. My film however will emphasis the mystery as it will keep the audience gripped onto the story line and eager to find out who this murderer is. To show my film opening is a slasher and mystery horror I will include a murder , clues and hints plus a crime scene.

Pros and Cons

Location : Pros and cons

When taking photos of the woods I considered the bad points as well as the good points about the location. It became apparent that many people pass through this location so is full of man-made problems I will have to avoid.

Problems-

1.Litter - As these woods are located behind an estate many people tip rubbish and litter as no one can see it. This however creates a problem for me as this rubbish not only makes it look dirty but will take away the horror vibe for my film. I will have to make sure none of this is visible in my film.

2. Graphitti -The tunnel where I would like to film is covered in colorful graphitti. This would not be a problem if around 90% of the walls weren't covered with rude and offensive words and pictures. As I do not want to promote this behavior or offend my audience with these images they will have to be hidden in my shots.

3.Signs and adverting - As the walkway is extremely close to the motorway , various signs and advertising are placed around the location. This cannot be visible in my film as it shows civilization and takes away the horror of isolation.

4.Pylons - The fields have a line of pylons which again can cause problems as they look ugly and modern . 

Motorway - The main problem is the woods are so close to the motorway the  sounds of cars going past is extremely loud and overpowers any dialogue . This means I can either use no dialogue in my film opening or film it in silence and narrate over it.

Location

My Filming Location