Q1. In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

One of the recent trends amongst films in the horror genre is the hand-held camera technique. This convention emerged after the success of the independent film, The Blair Witch Project. Since then, various other films have also incorporated this concept of found footage such as Rec, Cloverfield and Paranormal Activity. My film Live Evil also conforms to this convention, but I decided to develop the way it is used in order to provide my audience with something new and interesting, in order for my film to stand out amongst other films using this technique.. Instead of filming the entire film using the hand held camera, I decided to only use this technique for the footage inside the DVD found by Rebecca. This will allow there to be a clear distinction between what is happening in the DVD and what is happening in real life since that was filmed using normal camera shots and angles.

In relation to the use of camera angles and shots, I decided to conform to the convention but at the same time develop the use point of view shots in my film. I developed this technique by combining it with the hand-held camera footage in the DVD. Usually you wouldn’t expect to see this kind of shot in a found footage film because it should contain only the recordings done by the protagonist/victim. However by adding in this POV shot it makes it seems as if there is something alive within the film and that the original footage has been meddled with. This helps to reinforce the fact that the DVD in the movie was created by amber the antagonist as a death threat, a warning of what Rebecca would soon be experiencing.

Another convention of horror films that I have conformed to is the use of high angle shots. In the beginning of my film a high angle shot is used to show Rebecca picking up the DVD on the floor, this is followed by the camera tilting upwards, this movement is used to represent that the evil present inside the DVD has risen from below and the unfortunate events will now begin to take place. A low angle shot is also used to show the footsteps of the killer and the victim when they are walking. This is used to build up tension in the scene since the audience are able to see that from the pace both characters are walking in, one is closing in and speeding up (antagonist) and the other is hesitant and unaware of what is coming behind them (victim). This offers the audience knowledge the main character doesn’t have so they feel more engaged in the film.

The setting where most of the actions sequences take place in my film is also a conventional location found in many horror films such as the pet cemetery and Drag me to hell. I decided conform to this location because it would help create a horror film atmosphere since it contains various old and worn out grave stones scattered around the cemetery. It also contains lots of trees- like a forest; both of these characteristics allow the cemetery to seem large, abandoned and old with a lot of history. This helps to create the impression that the main character is lost and helpless since there is nobody around to save her. It also provides a suitable location for her to die in since that it is a place associated with death.

An additional convention that I conformed to in Live Evil, is the used of eerie non-Diegetic sounds and sound effects. Throughout my film I applied various different sound effects in order to emphasise the importance of an object, person or action. For example in the scene where Rebecca opens the DVD case a sound is used in order to represent the fact that something evil has been released. Likewise, a sound effect is also applied to the shot where the killer turns away from the camera, this sound is synchronised with the movement made and helps to illustrate the importance of that character as well as create tension since it shows that they are a threat. However I did not conform to the convention of amplifying diegetic sounds to show their significance, instead I replaced these natural sounds with sound effects, for example when Rebecca is hit with a torch light the sound of the torch hitting her is not heard but the physical impact is still expressed through the use of sound.

One of the conventions I challenged in my film is the fact that when Rebecca is killed in real life, the murder takes place during the day instead of the night like in the DVD. This comes as a surprise to the audience since they would expect her to be safe during the day however things don’t turn out that way. Similarly my film doesn’t incorporate a lot of shadows and dark places, the audience can clearly see the things surrounding the main character and the villain. However the use of shadow to conceal the true identity of the antagonist is still used.

Another convention I challenged is in relation to the genders of the characters. Usually females are presented as the victims in horror films, but in the case of Live Evil only one female is killed compared to two other males victims. This convention is further challenged by the fact that the villain in my film is also female.

Overall I decided to conform to certain conventions because they complimented my film's narrative and image. Other conventions I chose to develop or challenge in order to provide my audience with something new and enjoyable that would allow my film to stand out in the market.