Horror Genre Report Unit 6 LO4

Horror Genre
The horror genre is a genre thats changed in the sense of what scares us now,
and how CGI has dramatically improved. From Movies to games, graphics is key
for horror.
Films
Who watches Horror Movies?
The horror genre has been around for decades beforehand, its only in recent
decades that horror movies have targeted teens as their main audience this is
due to the fact that the horror genre has slowly associated more with teen
culture and younger adults. A variety of films appeal to their genre in different
ways, such as violence, scares and gore all carefully crafted to have a low age
rating thats given to them by the BBFC. The horror movies we see today, some
we might consider suitable for children - well 20 years ago they would be
considered an 18+.
Children will see advertisements for games such as Dead Space 2. This is
considered a sci-fi horror movie and will be in the hands of children and teens
due to the inefficient methods of gate keeping and the fact it was carefully
crafted. Another way you can see that horror tends to play more towards teen
audiences. The final destination series as opposed to older classics such as
Dracula, which scared everyone.
Through horror movies often comes follow up games, such as Resident evil.
And in some cases action/horror games lead to horror movies Assassins Creed.
Male audience is drawn to horror movies more than girls, due to the fact that the
male audience is also more dominant gaming audience, so their game
preference may continue over into their movie/drama preference.

Codes and conventions of horror, conventions are the generally accepted ways of
doing something in a film. There are general conventions in any medium, such as
the use of interviewee quotes in a print article, conventions are genre specific
and have to suit the style of the film. Like scary lighting and camera angles for a
comedy, it just wouldnt work. Codes create a meaning through sign systems
and they can be divided into two distinct categories:

Technical

Symbolic

How the camera works in a film is an example of a technically code and all the
ways that the equipment is used to tell the story through a media text.

When it comes to Symbolic codes, they tell us whats beneath the surface of
what we see. For example, a characters actions show you how the character is
feeling.
Some codes can fit both categories, for example music can tell us which codes
and Technical and which are symbolic.
The study of genre uses codes and conventions in almost every situation, you
cant talk about camera work and discuss the technical code of it, without saying
how it is used conventionally in horror.
For example lighting is a technical code, and it is used in some way in all film
genres, not just horror. It is a convention of the horror genre that side and back
lighting is used to create mystery and suspense an integral part of any horror
movie.
The distribution of horror movies, the films are distributed through big
corporations such as Lionsgate theyve distributed films such as The Last
Exorcism and The Cabin in the Woods.
When it comes to British horror films, companies such as Hammer Films have
distributed movies such as The Women in black Let me in and The Curse of
Frankenstein.
There are many formats in which horrors are broadcasted. They are broadcasted
on DVDs, Television, Books, Audio Books, and Radio etc

Formats
DVDs

Some Companies release horror DVDs such as New Horizons Pictures they
sell older productions through sites such as the Amazon
Marketplace, other companies have other means of distribution such as
direct sale through an online BigCartel storefront - but still producing new
product, much of their original output is pricey and out of print such
as, Discotek extreme. Asian Film releasing company extraordinaire that
keeps an on again-off again storefront on Ebay under the seller name
discotekmedia.

Radio Dramas

http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio/programmes/genres/drama/horrorandsupernat
ural
Some Companies release horror dramas on the radio, you might listen to
them in the car or anywhere where you might bring a radio.
http://theaudiodramadirectory.com/horror/ Companies such as the link
provided, give descriptions and their own links to other radio dramas.

Films

The highest grossing franchise of all time was the

Paranormal Activity series, the first in the series
made over $193Million worldwide, which is insane
considering their budget at the offset which was
$15,000.
And what might be the most profitable film of all
time is The Blair With Project, it grossed well over
$240 million worldwide on a $60,000 budget.
These are some extreme examples of horror films
winning the publicity lottery, but it doesnt happen
in any other Genre.
A few years ago we saw The Purge which cost
$3Million and made over $65 Million domestically,
it burst the opening records at $34 Million on the
opening weekend. Another film such as Insidious
Chapter Two, this made an amazing $75 million
domestically on a low 5Million budget, proving
that horror needs to affect you psychologically as well. Perhaps even more
amazing was the first in the series, two years earlier the first film made
over $50 Million on a very love $1.5 million budget.
There are many companies that produce horror movies but some more
recognizable ones include; Circle of Confusion Dark Castle
Entertainment, Del Toro Productions, Ghost House Pictures and platinum
Dunes.

How have horror films changed over time?

Classic Horror Film Poltergeist
Horror movies have really changed over time, Films such as Poltergeist, an
American classic made in 1982, a supernatural horror film that was directed by
Tobe Hooper and Steven Spielberg, two extremely famous directors known for
films such as Jurassic Park and The Texas Chain Saw Massacre as well. Steven
spielberg had a clause in the contract that unfortunately prevented him from
further filming of The Poltergeist whilst he was filming E.T, so it was level to
Hooper to take the lead. The plot was about a family whose home is invaded by a
malevolent poltergeist essentially who abducts the familys young daughter. Films
like poltergeist use suspense and other means of scaring the audience, an
increase in volume and costume design as well. Using more natural tools to give
a scary effect such as wire and string etc.
Modern Day Horror Movie - The Conjuring

Then we have modern day films which vary hugely, films such as The Conjuring,
which was made in 2013, an American supernatural again to keep them classed
the same. Its based on a true story about a real couple called Ed and Lorrain
Warren, they were paranormal investigators and authors of books, they were
associated with many cases of haunted houses, trying to save the dammed and
the families living in them. The story follows the Perron family, and the disturbing
events that take place in their farmhouse in Rhode Island 1971.The conjuring
doesnt use psychologically stimulating thought processes and it doesnt use
creepy suspense filled music like the classics. This films plan is to use its money
and CGI abilities to scare the life out of you through other means. It uses jump
scared and all kinds of terrifying effects. The CGI can do anything that they need
making the impossible possible.

Over many years, horror has been forced to adapt and change to suit a changing
audience, also to not become predictable and boring continuing to entertain
and scare new viewers keeping it original. Some of these changes that have
become more apparent in these stories include the plots becoming a lot more
complex and psychologically confusing and stimulating, along with a change
around the effects, gore and blood and even the way that the films are shot
(camera angles etc.) This is effectively to shock the viewers even more, mixing
things up and keeping us on our toes.
How its changed over time:
In the 1930s the horror films were based on literature and films such as Dracula
(classic) and Frankenstein were made. In the 1970s the idea of realism was
brought along to the genre and more relatable films were created to frighten us
such as murders and serial killers (The Legendary Psycho) and (Halloween). In
the 1980s slashers were among the popular choice of horror films such as
Nightmare on Elm street. Special effects were starting to be used more and more
during this time, creating creatures and monsters as villains films such as An
American Werewolf in London and The Thing were created. And in the 1990s,
psychologically stimulating thrillers were the craze, abusing the publics fear of
the unknown such as The Blair Witch Project, this was the first of its kind and
changed the genre of horror completely, it introduced a completely unique style
of filming and script writing. Films with religious connotations such as Se7en
where victims had to pay for their sins. Following on to films such as Saw.

An example of horrors and horror re-makes that have changed over the years
would be films such as
Films such as The Crazies, this film is a remake of the low budget original made
in 1973 that stared Timothy Olyphant and Radha Mitchell, it could be said that
this is everything a remake should be, it was creepy and re-imaginative,
containing just enough original content and ideology to make it a fantastic film.
How women are represented in films
The way in which women are represented in films is something that should have
changed dramatically over the years, but didnt. In fact it hardly changed,

women are still portrayed as weak and in need of help almost always. Living
perfectly fine and managing to stay alive on their own, until a problem arises and
suddenly they cant even walk on their own. Females in horror films are
portrayed in an even more stereotypical fashion than high school boys. Thanks to
the help of movies and television commercials, women have been stereotyped to
have a perfect figure, perfect hair, perfect form and makeup. Even when the
world is being attacked and blown up by alien spaceships around them, everyone
might be dead but somehow their makeup hasnt even smudged? The idea of a
perfect women is the reason that horror films force us to see these obvious and
cheese stereotypes. The majority of horror movies show female characters in
fear, screaming and hiding behind their male body guards more than they are
doing anything else in the film. Our society has branded women as weak and
spineless, in almost all horror films the female victims are the party girls and the
most sexually experienced and the pure innocent good one lives, its the same in
every story and with or without intending too, it can make anyone whos not a
virgin, or super smart and perfect feel awful about themselves, making them
believe in some cases society doesnt concider them good enough to live.
Women are never portrayed to figure out how to defeat the evil man because
its always a man as well, they are shown to be constantly running, the women
never outsmarts the man or is a step ahead. In the end the villain dies because
of a stroke, or a rock falls on his head or its just pure luck. Women have been
portrayed as a sex symbol who cant look after themselves and who deserve
what theyve got coming to them since the beginning of horror movie creation
and probably, they will continue to be portrayed this way.
When it comes to the male roles, they are villains, superheroes and victims; they
are charismatic, smart thinking, strong and dangerous, sexy if they are the hero.
If they are the villain they are big, scary larger than life, strong and dangerous
and again sexy.