Antagonist costume research

• For our main protagonist we wanted to have a traditional style party dress
• The idea for the main protagonist is to have a dress which is almost unsuitable for her age as it we would like it to look almost childish to reflect her lack of development and show her mental state as not being typical of a teenage girl

• 'The Loved ones' costume is a very good example of what we hope to achieve as Lola's costume is almost barbie-like and girly however does provoke a unsettling reaction with the audience as it doesn't seem age appropriate 
• The bright pink dress does make her appear very girlish however her action contradicts this as she is seen covered in blood which creates a contrast between her costume and actual character
• Lola's make up and jewellery all matches the bright pink she is wearing which again is a very child like appearance   
• I really like Lola's make up as it is simplistic however the bright eye shadow does create a dramatic and striking look which will contrast with the victim's very simple natural looking make up - this will set the protagonist apart from the victims as she will be the only one dressed for the party
• Lola's hair however looks dishevelled and unkempt which reminds us of her psychotic nature and doesn't look perfect
    
• Another example I looked at was 'Carrie' as she also had a very girlish and feminine costume in the prom scene however this again contradicts with her murderous rage
• Also I found the image of her covered in pigs blood after the prank quite interesting and something we could try in our teaser trailer to create a psychotic spin on a girlish dressy costume

Amy Freeman

Victim costumes research

• The actors for the roles of the victims in our teaser trailer will be teenagers around 17 and 18 years of age
• We have decided this as after looking at and watching horror films we found teenage victims to have been a common and popular convention 
• Teenagers convey a sense of naivety and so in a fatal situation can often be lacking in experience and understanding which the killers exploit
• We were unsure of what costume would be appropriate for our victims as we wanted them to be wearing 'casual' and 'normal' clothing
• However we wanted to still characterise our victims and so costume has become a important part in our trailer
• I looked at existing horror films, especially slashers, in order to contrast and compare victims costumes
• Much like what we want for our trailer the victims in horror films are usually dressed in quite plain, casual clothing which makes them look like regular teenagers



Friday the 13th

• I looked at films such as A Nightmare on Elm Street, Friday the 13th, Final destination and Jeepers Creepers which all have teenage victims 

Friday the 13th

Friday the 13th

• The costume of the teenage victims in Friday the 13th shows a very casual look - denim jeans, plain top and hoodie
• The girl here is still effeminate with a pink top, jewellery (bracelets and necklace) and her hair is still very feminine 
• Her make up is also very subtle, would mainly only ever be mascara and eyeliner perhaps a light shade of lipstick/lip gloss
• In the below picture we can see three characters and we can see the different representation of their characters through their costumes
• The middle girl's costume is practical which contrasts to the other female character who is just wearing a shirt making her look vulnerable and sexualises her 
• The male character is wearing just a crew neck t-shirt with a small amount of writing on it and slightly ripped denim jeans which again is a casual look, he also wears a watch and has shaggy, longish hair which is more typical of a teenager

Jeepers Creepers

Jeepers Creepers

• Much like Friday the 13th the character's costumes are fairly plain and relaxed, casual clothing 
• The male character's costumes are very similar as they both have a crew neck t-shirt with writing on and denim jeans which is a very simple costume to achieve for male victims in our teaser trailer 
• Also the female character in Jeepers Creepers does share some similarities to the girl in Friday the 13th as she also wears a plain top and jeans with very simple make up and hair

Final Destination 2

• Once again the costume of the teenage victims in Final Destination 2 is similar to the other films I have looked at
• Both male and female characters here are wearing casual, relaxed clothing including hoodies, denim jeans and casual tops

Final Destination 2

Conventions of costume

• From this research I have found what is a typical look and costume for teenage victims in a horror slasher film 
• Common conventions for costumes are plain, casual clothes, hoodies and denim jeans 
• Female characters usually have very little make up on (just eyeliner and mascara) and they're hair is usually down and has not been styled much at all

Amy Freeman

Shooting Scripts 1

This shooting script is dated due to the change of actors. Tara will be acting in place of Daisy.

Casting Friends

To cast "friends" that are victims at the part we are looking for a mixture of 4 or 5 boys and girls between 17 and 19 that are reliable and comfortable with heavy make up and pretend torture- therefore need some acting experience or ability.

Name: Caroline
Age: 17
Availability: Benefits of being in sixth form, after school/lunch time filming, direct communication.
Appropriateness: Reliable, used in AS film opening, Has acting interesting and experience in short films and stage productions, studied Drama

Name: Lewis
Age: 18
Availability: Benefits of being in sixth form, after school/lunch time filming, direct communication. Has part time Job.
Appropriateness: Has an interest in acting and some experience, studied drama.

Name: Lily

Age: 17

Availability:Benefits of being in sixth form, after school/lunch time filming, direct communication. Has other commitments with school events.
Appropriateness: Has a lot of acting experience in stage shows, school productions, musicals, dance shows.

Name: Harry

Age: 17

Availability: Also a student so has commitments such as school and extra curricular activities.
Appropriateness: Has close connections in the group so is easy and direct to contact and is also very willing to give up spare time to help. Has a very good understanding about the filming process and experience in short films.

Name: Daisy
Age: 18

Availability: Member of the group so will be fully commited to filming days.
Appropriateness: Has a full understanding of characters and their roles and how each scene should be acted. Also has a lot of previous experience in the production of short films and trailers.

Name: Frankie

Age: 17

Availability: Available in the same free lessons as most members of the group.
Appropriateness: Has previous experience of acting in short films.

Name: Tara
Age: 17
Availability: Has some of the same free lessons as members of the group. Easy communication in sixth form and friendship groups.
Appropriateness: Has previous experience of acting in short films.

• The people finally casted to act the role of 'friends' in our teaser trailer are... Lewis, Tara, Harry and Frankie.

• All actors casted have an appropriate look for the roles and we will use costumes, hair and makeup to over exaggerate stereo types where necessary.  
• They all have acting experience or experience in the production of short films and trailers. This will speed up the process and reduce the risk of poor quality due to acting.
• All actors are close connections which will speed up the communication process and hopefully avoid confusions.

Typing Scene

• Because of the newer concept, we feel that social networking would be highly influential and should be included in the teaser trailer. 
• When deconstruction scenes from Orphan in earlier research I found a scene where the mother is researching personality disorder in children. It was not relevant at the time because it did not add to horror aspects. 
• However, I now feel that it would be inspirational as the fast pace shows the desperation and obsession. 
• Because of copy right reasons, I could not take screen shots from the film so I used a camera to try to recreate shots with ideas relevant to our concept.

 

 

 

 

 

• All shots would be extreme close ups of typing, scrolling and screen movement.
• Jump cuts used between each shot at a fast pace to reflect the urgency and obsession. 
• Well recognised social networking sites such as Facebook and twitter would be effective for getting the audience to understand the concept about social media influence because these websites are popular within our target audience.

Change in Concept and Plot

Because of the difficulty that we experienced when casting a family we have changed our concept slightly and now focus on:

•  The media influence of popularity and social acceptance. 
• The plot will be similar but rather than a family dinner, the protagonist will be hosting a birthday party.
• We will now incorporate torture methods through party games.

Casting The Main Protagonist

Name: Amy Freeman
Age: 17
Availability: Good. part of the group so is committed and willing to give up spare time.
Appropriateness:

• Little acting experience but will be beneficial as she understands the concept well because she is a member of the group and knows exactly the looks and shots we will be trying to achieve. 
• Dark hair and pale skin follows conventions of a horror film villain. 

Name: Lily
Age: 17
Availability: In school so easy to contact and film during lunch, free lessons, after school, but has other commitments in school events.
Appropriateness:

• Enjoys acting but would not pursue it as a career. 
• Has experience performing in dace shows, school productions, stage shows, pantos and toured the uk in musicals Annie and South Pacific.
• Dark hair and eyes follow conventions of horror protagonist.