Editing our opening scene

My task was to edit some of the footage that we had shot already for the final opening to our film. I choose to do the church scene. I imported the footage into final cut, and cut any talking between the media group and the actor, Rebecca's sister. Then I cut the footage so that each shot was not too long, I used the blade tool to do this. this made the sequence look more effective and professional as there wasn't any shot that was too long. 

To make the cuts between each clip of footage smoother I added a cross dissolve to make it not look like any jump cuts had been used and therefore less amateur.

After this I looked for sounds that were already on final cut to use to make the footage sound more like a horror film and conform to the conventions of a supernatural horror. I added the clips where they would be appropriate and layered lots of different sounds on top of each other. To make the sound flow better I used lots of short clips of sound and gradually decreased them in volume each time so that the change would not be as noticeable. 

Finally I added a visual effect to the footage to make sure that it was not as bright and made the main character look quite ill. 

 Overall I think the effect of the scene work very well. The sound work well together and the absence of speaking is not very noticeable. The sequence looks quite smooth and looks very professional. To improve could try to use our own sound effects that we have created. Unfortunately this footage did not save which meant that we had to re-edit it.

Location Mise en scene

Location Mise en Scene

Unfortunately one of our planned locations for filming the flash back shots was not able for us to use.  We decided to find a different location so I thought that my garage would be a good location to use.  The garage is mainly dark colours and is messy and dirty, which fits with our supernatural horror genre.


The first video is showing the garage before I moved some of the objects that would not fit in with our film opening.  I took away the ladder, BBQ, bikes and plastic bags to create a better atmosphere for the opening.

The second video is the garage from the POV of the victim.  We plan to have her on a chair or sitting on the floor against the brown wall.  From her POV you will see the priest and some of the garage.  I feel that this location is suitable for the opening because it is bare and dirty which goes with the conventional horror location.  

Evil Dead Deconstruction

Evil Dead Deconstruction

The opening begins with the production companies, as usual the main large company goes first, in this case TriStar.  Next is the smaller companies of Film District and Ghost House Pictures.  Ghost House obviously specialises in horror films as it features a skull in the title.  The companies are shown again on a black screen with blood red, bold and worn out font, which is conventional for a horror film.

An establishing shot of the woods is in low-key lighting with silhouettes of the trees and thick fog. All together this creates a creepy, ominous atmosphere as the trees look very menacing and as there is limited light, the fear of the unknown is very apparent. There is a slight build up of non-diegetic, low, string music which cuts off when the opening begins which helps to build tension and suspense.   

A mid-shot framing the back of the woman's head is also silhouetted which creates a sense of mystery and the dark colours are typical of a supernatural horror.  There is silence for most of the beginning of the opening which is successful in conveying the emptiness of the woods and builds suspense.  

 A close up shot of the woman's feet walking increases the tension as the audience begin to wonder who she is and why she is walking through such a scary, strange woods.  The grass is dead and dark which connotes death and decay, synonymous with the horror genre.  Diegetic sound of the crisping grass under foot breaks the silence but makes the scene seem more realistic to the audience.

A close up shot of her hand, dripping with blood, is very ominous as it suggests previous violence and danger, key themes in supernatural horror.  The continual use of back lighting keeps the sense of mystery going throughout.

A mid shot frames the woman in the distance whilst a black figure rushes past the camera.  The speed and surprise of the shot makes the audience jump and increases the suspense and feeling of danger.  A parallel non-diegetic sound of something rushing past, almost like a quick, strong wind makes the audience jump and the tension rises. An accompanying diegetic sound of the woman gasping conveys realism within the scene to the audience.

An over the shoulder shot of the woman and a mysterious, silhouetted figure in the distance makes the tension rise dramatically as you still cannot see much due to the low key lighting and fog.  Diegetic sound of the woman breathing heavily conveys her feeling scared and threatened.  Non-diegetic high pitches string sound increases in volume and tempo as the figure comes into view.   

 A series of mixed close-ups and mid-shots framing the woman trying to run away are used using fast straight cuts and a sense of disorientation is conveyed using a shaking hand held camera.  A mid shot of the woman framed against a tree with a scared expression on her face increases the tension as the straight cuts slow down to lead up to a jump.  

 The straight cuts then speed up again as she is attacked by a rabid looking man wearing cut off dirty clothing to which shows he lives in the forest and is maybe not as evolved as the woman.  A mid-shot of the two of them struggling on the floor shows his dominance and violence. A loud, sudden non-diegetic sound of strings is made when the attack begins to make the audience jump and become scared.  Loud orchestral non-diegetic sound is played 

throughout the attack to convey the danger as the 

strings are very fast which is in parallel to what is happening

on screen. Diegetic sounds accompany this of chocking from the woman and grunting from the man to show there positions in the attack.

 The opening ends on a long shot of the two men hitting the woman on the floor.  The location is still scary and ominous with the dark trees and fog.  As the second man hits the woman to knock her out, a loud non-diegetic sound of high pitched string music plays to accompany the diegetic sound of the woman being hit to put more emphasis on the moment.

I feel that this deconstruction has inspired me with our own film opening as it takes place in the same location as part of our opening.  In the editing process of our film I will look back on this film and use ideas from both the diegetic and non-diegetic sound to put the best effects on our opening.

The Conjuring Opening Deconstruction

The sequence begins with the 'Warner Brothers Pictures' to the sound of non-diegetic string and woodwind instruments, that combine to make a creepy sound that links directly to the thriller and horror genre. The non-diegetic music continues as another clips from the production company 'New Line Cinema' plays.

The screen is black with the diegetic sound of talking, which continues throughout. The light clicks as an extreme close up of a dolls right eye can be seen, and the camera begins to zoom out until there is a straight cut to a mid shot of an interview taking place.

A straight cut to an extreme close up of the interviewers both in the frame with low key lighting as the interview scene now gives basic background information for the audience to establish what is happening as the camera begins to zoom out. There is an extreme close up of one of the characters before the camera then proceeds to zoom in on a picture of the doll.

There is then a straight cut to an extreme close up of one of the speakers, and as the line 'but then things got worse' is said, the non-diegetic sound of a quiet string instrument begins to play. A further straight cut leads to a flashback that contains classic horror conventions such as: low key lighting, letters in blood, a creepy doll, eerie music, a room destroyed (scribbling, cutting out of people in pictures etc) and shadows.

There is then quick straight cuts of damaged items with the sound of loud non-diegetic piano music which increases as the lights flicker and the sound of quiet clicking (like that of bones breaking) is heard which is disturbing for the audience, linking well to the horror genre.  A high angle shot of a character throwing the doll away allows the audience to wonder 'what will be the consequences' as the eerie music build up. There is the diegetic sound of the bin closing before the screen goes black.

Suddenly there is a thumping, as a faint light that allows the audience to see the girl in bed as she gasps at the realisation that the doll is making this noise. There is the diegetic sound of the door squeaking open and footsteps followed by the mid shot of the front door opening before a sudden straight cut to a close up shot of the dolls face before the camera begins to zoom out.

The camera cuts back to a close up of the girl's face and the on-screen diegetic talking between the interviewers and the other characters continues. As the lighting is again low key you can only see half of their face. The only light on the interviewer is backlight and there is an extreme close up of the male interviewers nose as he explains the situation. A straight cut to the eye and mouth of the female interviewer in low key lighting interrupts, before the camera pans back to the male talker.

The straight cut to a picture of the doll which is the subject of the debate, reminds the audience of the scary situation they are facing and this is distressing for the audience, linking back to the horror and thriller genre. Finally, there is a straight cut to the female interviewer and then back to the girls. As the interviewer says 'it wanted to get inside of you', the non-diegetic music begins to build due to what she said being disturbing and causing tension. The girl's look uncomfortable in a mid shot, which suddenly straight cuts to an extreme close up of the dolls face as the sequence ends.

Survey Results

What Villain would you find most frightening?  

The results for this question show that our target audience would find a child villain the most frightening, which is a major component of a supernatural horror.  But with the second answer being demon, we could incorporate the two villains together as we have already considered the use of a demon to go with ideas of possesion.




What time of day would you find most effective?




The results from this question signify that night-time would be the most relevant for a supernatural horror as expected.  We have already considered using night-time as it is the most appropriate for genre, although we will have to consider lighting techniques to use it effectivly.

What location would you most like to see in a supernatural horror?



 The results are quite close for this question, family home just about beats wooded area so we could easily use either location.  In this sitution we had already discussed using an urban area such as an alley way, but we can easily encorperate all three location together.

What style of music would be most effective?





Classical music wins this by quite a way so this is definitely the music genre we will be using.  Orchestral music is often used in horror films to create an eerie and frightenign atmosphere so we will most probably be using this genre of music.  
Would you like the music to be...?




 It is indicated here that sections of music should be played instead of no music or music being played throughout.  This is in parallel to what we had already discussed as it is effective to use some sections of either silence ot just diegetic sound.



Which character would you be most sympathetic towards?



As expected the child is the person chosen who most people would feel sympathetic towards.  Although our audience think that a child would be appropiate, it would be more practical for our group to use a teenage girl as we have already discussed this point.

What type of injuries would be most appropriate for genre?

 The results are quite tight for this question so all injuries indicated would be appropriate for our film opening.  We have already conducted research on bruising and cuts and how to recreate them so theese two are probably the two we would use.



What kind of haunting would you like to take place?

 Unseen demon is the largest answer, and would be appropriate for genre.  We had already discussed using an unseen villain as then we do not have to worry about creating a realistic creature that is also scary.  We can base a lot of the opening on the fear of the unknown.

Location Research 

A huge convention for a supernatural horror location is an old, traditional house.  The house is usually large and maybe disused. In the case of the woman in black, the house has no current inhabitants and is falling into disrepair.  The use of mainly grey and dark tones creates an eerie atmosphere and the sheer scale of a large, empty house is quite frightening to the viewer.  

 A main location which is used in supernatural horror is a normal, everyday location such as a family home.  This makes the film as realistic as possible as it relates to every single viewer.  The fear that this situation could happen to anyone brings the audience further into the film.  Other films which use this location are Sinister, Insidious etc.

For my own location research I went to an alley way behind my house.  I thought that this would be an appropriate location for a supernatural horror as it is an empty place where there is no one around, this is good for horror as being alone, without help of others is quite scary.  It is also quite enclosed so there is no here for the victim to run.  The garages are quite dirty and urban looking which ties in the horror genre.  I like the graffiti on the wall because it gives off the atmosphere of not a very nice area which comes in parallel of being a dangerous place to be.  I also took pictures of the same location when it got dark.  I prefer the location in the darkness as it is more spooky and appropriate for genre.

To evaluate I would say that a dark location would definitely be more genre appropriate but maybe a change of lighting throughout the opening would also be effective.  The gratified, dirty location would also be very effective and appropriate for genre as it creates a more creepy, dangerous atmosphere.