Student Analysis

Retribution- A2 Short Horror Film

The very first shot is an ident for 'Moonlight Productions' the iconography in this shot has a theme of black and white which are both conventional colours for a horror film however, the ident has got white text over a white/light grey background making it hard for the production company name to stand out, even with a drop shadow. The transition between the ident and the next shot is a slow paced fade keeping the atmosphere calm and relaxed, the shot itself is a close up of a Sony alarm clock and usually if this was a big production it would result in Sony having a product placement however, in this case it isn't. It shows the time to be '12:05am' telling the audience that it is late into the night without the need of an establishing shot which is commonly done in horror films. The shot also has a blue colouring on it which would of been done in post-production which yet again adds to the sense that it's a horror film as it makes the shot darker but still visible and also blue is a relaxing colour keeping that calm atmosphere but also possibly causing suspense as the audience wait for something to happen. The following shot transitions again in a slow fade which gives the film consistency and makes it look more professional and don't break the audiences focus. The sequence of the first three shots is similar to the opening of mainstream films with shots in-between the production company indents to give the audience some insight to the film before they watch it. The third shot is similar to the first with text in the middle of a black background but this time white and red text, both conventional colours, red connoting blood or danger. The font is also the same throughout the whole production which can been seen as aesthetically/. pleasing which is also an audience pleasure. 

Throughout the previous shots there hasn't been much sounds except a low static sound with a high pitched note however, that is now joined by a chiming which is almost ear piercing, the audience identify as a wind chime due to it being in the shot, the joining of sounds could connote a build up to something such as a jump-scare, causing tension in the audience. The shot itself has a blue colouring making the shot darker but highlighting the wind chime. The colour blue connoting it's cold, possibly cold like a dead body as a conventional theme for horror films is death, this also connotes something paranormal. However, with it being 12:05am It would expect it to be pitch black with any lighting coming from lamps, artificial lights but in this shot the sky is very light which contradicts the shot of the alarm clock we saw, I'm unsure if this is purposely done or a accidental mistake I hope to avoid when doing my own production.

Just like the beginning there is text between the shots showing who is starring in the Short Film, usually films with overlay the text onto the shot, having the text between the shots is more conventional for a trailer however, it gives the audience insight to who's in the short film. The iconography in this shot matches all the others yet again giving it consistency which white text on a black background, this also makes the name stand out and the main focus to the audience. The transition between the shots to the text is a flash and then the text comes in with a horizontal blur which could connote part of the storyline for the short film that at first it will be a blur and you won't understand but then it will become clear.

This shot is a tilted shot which is conventionally used to show a victim on the floor or sometimes to show disorientation and in this case connotes a terrible event. Throughout the passed view shots the soundtrack has been building up with a higher pitch and fast pace connoting that something bad is going to occur. The shots keep going between the girl tossing and turning in her bed to what looks like a dream or memory you can tell this from the black and white effect added over the dream/memory, conventionally there's usually a vignette effect to connote a dream however, the black and white effect could go with the stereotype of that we only dream in black and white or that it is an old memory fading as it's lost it's colour. The shot's are ordered together at a fast pace making it seems chaotic which can have the audience on the edge of their seats waiting to see what it leads up to. Also, the person in the frame stands out against the light background which her wearing all dark clothing which is conventional for an Antagonist to wear however, you can't make out her identity, leaving the audience with questions and then they want to continue to find out the answers. 

The camera is positioned outside the ajar door and the way it looks makes it seem as if it is a first person shot of someone peeking through. This is also connoted through the use of a shaky, handheld camera and also the way it back away further into the shot. This can give across a creepy and uneasy atmosphere for the audience, since they have an insight into something that the character doesn't know. The colour of the clothes she is wearing is in contrast to everything around her. This is because she is wearing dark colours like black, while the surroundings are a lighter colour of white, making her the dominant focus within the shot. Conventionally, a reaction shot would of been used to show the detail of her emotion, however, this shot gives a full overview of her body language which represents the same thing. 

This shot is positioned as a high-angled shot possibly connoting there is someone behind her however, it could also connote us the audience watching her going down the stairs into the darkness, making the audience feel mire involved in the film. The darkness could represent the evil lurking in the shadows and the top of the stairs is the lesser evil, almost like a heaven and hell situation as heaven is seen to be higher up and in the sky and hell to be dark and below, this can also act as a transition between her passing into whatever nightmare is about to unfold. As she gets close to the darkness there it a sudden pitch change connoting that something is about to happen which would have the audience on the edge of their seats with suspense.

The transition to this shot is the camera panning to the right and stopping at a medium shot, unlike the previous scenes this shot has no blue tint/colouring to it, this could be due to her turning a light on connoting any danger has gone away but realistically even then the blue wouldn't completely fade, this disturbs the consistency of the scene slightly. Also, I the background there is a mirror, which is typically known to catch people out when they are creating these films, since you can sometimes see the camera operator in the reflection. The fact that you can't see that here shows that they clearly thought out their positioning and the details that comes with it. 

Just like the previous shot there is no blue tint to the shots which could now suggest the end dream/nightmare and her waking up, the shot is still dark due to it taking place at nightlight however, there is some lighting coming from the kitchen lights. The character is doing a sequence of mundane tasks which makes the film more realistic but also creates a relaxing atmosphere as the audience know this is something ordinary to do. You can hear diegetic sounds such as cupboards opening, water being poured and the character tutting but you can also hear an echoed drum thud (non-diegetic) which creates suspense and it connotes something is going to happen, the pace of the drum is very slow connoting it's not going to happen yet but soon. As the character closes the fridge door a black cloaked figure appears which the audience know wasn't there before, the second that figure comes into the shot there is a sudden burst of instruments creating a chaotic flow of instruments which would jolt the audience and create a jump-scare, this is something conventional within a horror film but also known to be an audience pleasure, but also going back to the slow pace of the drums, with it connoting that something wasn't going to happen straight away led the audience into a false sense of security making the jump-scared more effective as they weren't prepared for it. This is the first shot with the Antagonist in it and something that is conventional within horror films, that this fit has done is for their identity to be hidden adding a sense of mystery creating a question for the audience that they then continue watching to find out the answer.  The next shot (last right) is a reaction shot which is usually a close up shot to show the detail of their reaction however, in this case it is a medium shot as the character moves their body towards the camera but it still works just as effective as if it was a close up, the reaction itself doesn't happen straight away making it seemed a bit delayed which then broke me away from the suspense of what was happening which is something I hope to avoid happening in my own production. Also, in the first two shots their is a kettle in the bottom left of the frame, before the camera positioning was very good when it came to avoiding mirrors and reflections however, this time you can see the camera in the reflection of the kettle and with the direction of the light, it highlights the kettle even more making it a big focus point. 

This shot of the character walking up the stairs is in slow motion yet again to build the tension of everything that is happening since the audience now know there is someone else in the house. As the character reaches the top of the stairs the drum thuds from the previous scene began again as before it was just a quite string instrument, this is similar to what is done in horror game called "Slender The Eight Pages" where after a certain point/objective a thudding starts which indicates SlenderMan is coming after you, in the game this sound is used to panic the players and in this film it could have the same effect, to make the audience panic and have them peeking at the screen and waiting for something to happen. The lighting in this shot is very small with it only being at the top of the stairs and reflecting of a wall which is what makes almost a silhouette of the characters legs making them stand out against the white wall and a main focus point for the audience. 

The next scene is all done with over-shoulder shots and a handheld camera which made the shots shake, this could connote the fear that the character was feeling towards what they see before them, this shot also allows the audience to see everything exactly when the character does making them feel more involved and apart of what's going on. This is scene is something done is a a few horror films with the disappearing of the antagonist and then reappearing of them in the same frame, this shows off the special effects and skills of the people behind the production, in this case having the camera handheld makes the transition of the antagonist not flow as well and the whole frame moves slightly, it would of been better placed on a tripod keeping everything in the frame still during filming making everything flow better when putting it together in post-production, but even though it was slightly stuttery the scene was still effective and connoted that the antagonist is a supernatural being such as a ghost/spirit and with them being cloaked in something black connotes that they're evil.

This shot is a conventional reaction shot with it being close up to the characters face showing the detail of their emotions and actions. We can hear some diegetic sound such as, a connection loss beeping indicating that whoever they're calling they can't reach connoting that she is by herself in this and also that she is the only one in the house (apart from the Antagonist) which the audience didn't know before. The distress on the characters face in clear which would make the audience feel empathetic towards them, making it more personal for them as they root for the character to survive and get through what's happening, this is also the only scene with any dialogue in which gives it an effective impact after hearing just the odd diegetic sound to now hearing the character speak, adding to the fearful and anxious atmosphere.

As the character looks out of the windows it cuts to a first person shot of what the character can see, which is a person standing under a streetlight. The streetlight itself acts as spotlight lighting on the person below it, highlighting them to the audience. This person isn't cloaked connoting that they aren't the antagonist but someone else, maybe someone working with them, these are the sort of questions that the audience would think as the identity of this person is also hidden which is a conventional thing to do for an Antagonist. Unlike when the antagonist was shown there isn't any sudden burst in the soundtrack, it remains the same connoting that perhaps this person isn't has important in the storyline as the antagonist is. 

The iconography in this shot is similar to the rest of the film with the exception of it being black text on a white background this. The text on the paper says "Why Sis?" connoting that the character did something to one of her siblings and with the antagonist possibly being a supernatural being this connotes that the antagonist is haunting the character due to something she did to them and that they're a sibling of the character. It gives the audience a million scenarios to go through and wonder which is the correct one. The text itself is scribbled onto the paper giving it a sinister look however, what would of been better to link to what is shown at the end would of been to have some of the paper burnt off to show the link between this note and the person in the last shot.

A very popular thing to happen in horror films is self-moving furniture or self-opening doors and this is something that this film has taken on board. There is no soundtrack until the door is opened with diegetic sound of footsteps and a whoosh sound effect as the door opens, as the doors opens the cloaked figure it there, this isn't as big of a jump-scare as it was when they appeared behind the fridge door however, it would cause a bit of shock within the audience as the antagonist is associated with evil and nothing good so there presence would cause unease. The antagonist stays still for 1 second then goes off to the left, they seem to hover along the floor as usually when someone walks like bop up and down slightly but the Antagonist doesn't do this which is confusing due to the footsteps head earlier that also aren't audible now anyways, the Antagonist walking away suggests to both the audience and the character to follow them which would make the audience anxious and build up the suspense.

The character does as predicted and follows the Antagonist, this could be seen a cliche which can be both an audience pleasure and very off putting for the audience. There is high pitched build up from the character running down the stairs to them opening the front door, this would build up the suspense having the audience on the edge of their seats as they wait to see what is going to happen. Usually in a scene like this the character is more hesitant to follow the random Antagonist in their house and the scene goes a lot slower however, them being so quick to follow it could connote that the character knows exactly who the antagonist is and why they're here meaning they have lost the fear that they had before and are in more of hurry to follow the Antagonist to speak to them then they are to run away. The shot then cuts to a POV shot of what the character can see which to begin with is a modern day street with barely any light and then suddenly a boy dressed in black with what looks the left half of his face injured pops up into the frame suddenly. The left side of his face connotes that something terrible happened to him and maybe it links into the question of "Why Sis?" as maybe it's her fault he has the injury which actually has some black around it connotes burns as though he was in a fire, the darkness of the make-up for his injury makes his eye seem whiter and pop out making him look strange and almost insane. Him suddenly popping up into the frame acts a jump-scare as it's something that the audience might have sensed but wasn't sure would happen but also as he appears there is a sudden change in pitch in the soundtrack but also it is much louder which would of also made the audience jump.

The ending credits have the same iconography as there has been throughout the whole film with the colour scheme of black and white. The ending credits give recognition to the people in and behind the film but also allows the audience to see everyone involved and see if they recognise any names. Especially after jump-scare, it gives the audience time to calm down after the sudden holy of adrenaline they would of experienced. Even though this was a short film, like I mentioned before the structure of it was more of a film opening as a short film has a beginning, middle and end with the end usually answering any of the questions the audience thought and giving a conclusion to the storyline however, this ending doesn't really answer anything but leaves the audience with just guesses and unanswered things, this is usually a cliff-hanger but with short films there conventionally isn't a sequel.