1. Similar Media Works Genre: Horror Sub Genre: Psychological horror Laura Oakey

8. Sound- In physiological horrors both diegetic and extra diegetic sound is used. Diegetic sound is used within the scene, this could be a conversation between the two characters or music that is within the scene or sounds made by objects in the scene. Sound effects are also used with a film to add extra meaning, sound technician’s and editing techniques allow the audience their attention on key sound effects by altering the balance of the diegetic and extra diegetic sound. Music Volume can convey information and affect the audience’s emotions. Loud music can make the audience feel tense and scared as the build up of sound can suggest something is going to happen. Heavy rhythm can cause changes in the body which the mind could interpret as anxiety, fear, or excitement. Lauren Tolliday Technical Codes Lighting- Lighting can be very important in a film, brightness, dim light, or shadow can affect our response to characters. We are more likely to fear a character who is always seen in the shadows as the audience is unable to see their facial and body expression and what they look like this adds tension to the scene. Altering the colour or quality of the picture can also add atmosphere. A red filter could be very effective to emphasize a scene of danger and pain as this denote blood. Soft filters can be used to create white and pale colours create atmosphere as these denote innocence. Camera Angles- Camera Angles can be used to express a point of view or the relationships between people and their environment within a scene. Camera angles can also be used to create an emotional meaning between the character and the audience. For example, a high angle long shot focused on a single person can suggest the person’s insignificance and weakness as they are presented as being small. A low angle shot can suggest that the person is important and powerful as the camera is looking up to them. The frequency and number of cuts can create atmosphere. A small number of cuts in a long piece of film could create the feeling of tranquillity, stability, or calm. On the other hand, the same technique could suggest the monotony of the main character action. Quick, frequent cuts might indicate urgency, excitement, or chaos.

9. Symbolic codes Language- Dialect, choice of words, and slang can all indicate the character’s background, social class, or education. The symbolic meaning in this case is in the form of the words rather than in the content. These are very important as the audience may interpret the character very differently after hearing them speak apposed to just looking at them. The language used explains a lot about a person, the audience is then able to build up an opinion on the character. Costume- The style of dress can indicate historical date or the type of character. A lot of information can be distinguished from a characters costume, it can indicate what the person has been doing and where. Costume can signal a characters personality and plot situations or as metaphors to reinforce the action. Lauren Tolliday

14. The Blair Witch Project Three film students travel to Maryland to make a student film about a local urban legend, The Blair Witch. The three went into the forests on a two day hike to find the Blair Witch, the party sets out to look for facts that prove the legend, equipped only with two cameras and a little hiking gear. They have to admit to be lost in the woods. Eerie sounds at night and piles of stones in places where they have not been before cause the already desperate group to panic and never came back. One year later, the students film and video was found in the woods. The footage was compiled and made into a movie. The Blair Witch Project. Directed by: Daniel Myrick Eduardo Sánchez Date of release: October 27, 1999 Certificate: 15 Country: USA Lauren Tolliday The Blair Witch Project follows the traditional conventions of horror as it makes the audience feel a sense of powerlessness due to the hopelessness of the unknown and the fear of being haunted. Dutch angle shots and close ups allow the audience think and feel what the characters are, this makes the audiences sense of fear even realer. The dark lighting used and the eerie settings connote the sense of the unknown putting the viewer on edge as they don't know what is going to happen next. The Blair Witch Project is similar to most other psychological horrors, the film follows other common elements including its story line. It frightens, panics and invokes our worst fears. Both diegetic and extra diegetic sound is used throughout the film, the sound used impacts the viewer adding atmosphere and tension.

15. Title and year: Psycho, 1960 Director: Alfred Hitchcock Country of Origin: United States Psycho The psychological problems of the antagonist are integral to the plot (hence the title) but the audience is unaware of this until the end of the film, therefore leaving them guessing throughout and adding tension to the plot. The famous ‘shower scene’ uses both diegetic and extra-diegetic sound to convey the horror of the stabbing , rather than showing the full extent of the blood and gore that would be present in other sub genres of horror such as Slasher. The plot of the film is realistic, making the audience consider their own mortality and whether the same thing could happen to them. Audience is aware of the back stories of the characters, making them feel closer to them and more involved in the plot. The film shows how horror can occur in seemingly normal situations, again causing the audience to consider their own safety. http:// www.youtube.com/watch?v =8VP5jEAP3K4 The psycho shower scene is the most famous section of the film and certainly one of the most famous scenes in cinema history. There are many factors that contribute to making this scene particularly effective. These include: Tension and suspense are effectively built up as soon as the antagonist enters the scene. This is achieved by only showing the antagonists shadow behind the shower curtain and not revealing their identity (a convention of the genre) and by allowing the audience to observe this while the protagonist is completely unaware of the predicament she is in. As the shot zooms in closer to both the antagonist and the woman, the sense of being trapped is conveyed to the audience because there is visually less room in the shot. The use of high-pitched strings as extra-diegetic sound when the woman is stabbed conveys the horror of the situation and coupled with the woman’s screams, makes very uneasy viewing for the audience. The sound of the shower continuing to run as the after the woman is killed conveys the sense of life going on without her. The close up of the plughole with the sudden match-on-action to the woman’s eye is shocking for the audience, more so than actually showing her dead. The position in which the woman is slumped on the floor after the stabbing makes visually uncomfortable viewing for the audience. Jenny Carter

16. Directed by: Richard Kelly Starring: Jake Gyllenhaal Date of release: 25 October 2002 Certificate: 15 Country: USA His other companion may not be a true ally. Donnie has a friend named Frank- a large bunny which only Donnie can see. When an engine falls off a plane and destroys his bedroom, Donnie is not there. Both the event, and Donnie’s escape seem to have been caused by supernatural events. Donnie’s mental illness, if such it is, may never allow him to find out for sure. Donnie Darko doesn't get along too well with his family, his teachers and his classmates; but he does manage to find a sympathetic friend in Gretchen, who agrees to date him. He has a compassionate psychiatrist, who discovers hypnosis is the means to unlock hidden secrets. Laura Oakey Donnie Darko

17. Mise- en- scene for Donnie Darko 2001 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2PUFJmsCZLE This clip is the end piece of whole film. The film has gone the whole way through and this is the final bit which shows what actually happens to the characters. The extra diegetic sound of this clip really highlights the emotion and shows the feelings of all of the characters in the scene. The diegetic sound reiterates to the audience what is happening and how things are working out in the story. The clip also makes good use of colour schemes in both the clothing that the characters are wearing and the sets to reflect the personalities of the different characters. Donnie (played by Jake Gyllenhaal) is wearing mainly white and light colours to show his innocence however this is contrasting with the dark set which highlights the evil and the bad things that can come from Donnie. The dark lighting really emphasises the dark feeling about the film and shows the bad things that could and have happened especially in contrast to the light clothing that the rest of the characters are wearing. There is a large range of shots used ranging from wide shots to extreme close ups. The extreme close up shots emphasise the emotions felt by the characters and helps the audience to feel more involved in the film. The wide shots make it clear to the audience what is happening so that they do not get confused and are not unaware of what is going on. The body language of the Characters shows to the audience that something bad has happened and has made the uneasy feeling of the film very clear to the audience. The characters movements are stiff and not natural which really picks up on the sad feeling of the clip. The mise-en-scene helps the audience to get an ever better idea of what is happening in this part of the film. They feel as though they have a more important role in the film and the tension is built up helping the audience to feel the emotions that the characters in the film are currently filming. Laura Oakey