Questionnaire- Primary Audience Research

Here is a screenshot of the evidence of the process of my questionnaire. I created 10 questions that will help my group get an idea of the target audience that our horror movie opening will be aimed at.

I then printed off 20 copies and asked 20 people to fill in this questionnaire. Next I will present my findings and then analyse the data to help construct a target audience profile.

Company history

Universal was founded by Carl Laemmle, Mark Dintenfass, Charles O. Baumann, Adam Kessel, Pat Powers, William Swanson, David Horsley, and Jules Brulatour. 

The Company was founded on April 30, 1912, in New York. Laemmle, who emerged as president in July 1912, was the primary figure in the partnership with Dintenfass, Baumann, Kessel, Powers, Swanson, Horsley, and Brulatour. Eventually all would be bought out by Laemmle. 

In 1926, Universal opened a production unit in Germany,  This  produced three to four films per year until 1936, migrating to Hungary and then Austria in the face of Hitler's increasing domination of central Europe. With the advent of sound, these productions were made in the German language or, occasionally, Hungarian or Polish. In the U.S., Universal Pictures did not distribute any of this subsidiary's films, but at least some of them were exhibited through other, independent, foreign-language film distributors based in New York, without benefit of English subtitles. Nazi persecution and a change in ownership for the parent Universal Pictures organization resulted in the dissolution of this subsidiary.

In the early years, Universal had a "clean picture" policy. However, by April 1927, Carl Laemmle considered this to be a mistake as "unclean pictures" from other studios were generating more profit while Universal was losing money

There highest success was ET in 1982 which have them domestic gross of $435,110,554

Horro film themes/narratives

https://bubbl.us/?h=25f994/4cbb74/24KzDR8PFfPN.&r=1125417328

Genre Research

Post Evaluation

Preliminary Evaluation

A mid shot of the interviewer showing the bloody wallet to the suspect

During the process of planning, filming and editing our preliminary exercise we had learnt a lot from the experience as a group. However, we did in fact encounter many problems. Although we will use this to our advantage as in the future to enable us to create a good piece for our final coursework.

Firstly, one of the problems which we faced was to do with the fact  that we changed part of the script during the shooting which led to a rush in actresses learning their lines. This emerged because  the time frame in which we were to complete the preliminary exercise was limited and ideas kept striking us with regards to the script and shooting and therefore last minute changes were made.Which unfortunately resulted in us having to edit the shots that we were reading from the scripts or when lines were read  incorrectly. But now we have learnt from our mistakes so for our main coursework film opening as a group, we will ensure that we all take time to learn our lines and stick to the original script throughout. This will guarantee us a good time management and we will be able to stick with our planned scheme of work to ensure that there are no interruptions whatsoever to the flow of the continuity editing of the film we will be working on.

Secondly, one the main issues was simply the use of camera. Although we had taken some shots intentionally by blurring the "suspect's" face however, it was not changed completely  but rather kept as it was throughout which will definitely send signals of misconception to the audience. This mistake is partly due to the fact we had to learn about camera work at a later stage which compelled us to set up the camera in an un-precise way due to pressure. which is responsible for the   technical difficulties we encountered during the editing process. As the camera man of the group I have a sensation that this was a huge learning curve for me as I have never recorded. However, after seeing our preliminary exercise it is safe to say that we have learnt from this experience and we are willing to take a step further to make our course work an ideal one or supposing we get the chance to redo the preliminary exercise we would know how to make it perfect both camera and editing wise.

Finally, we would say that the planning was good and the story board really allowed us to select the appropriate camera angles for this exercise. In addition, For the next exercise we plan to take forth what we have learned from this preliminary and we hope it will enable us to develop as a group and individually to produce a good horror film opening.

Preliminary Exercise

Genre Research

Iconography

http://prezi.com/dahjv3gcwtdo/?utm_campaign=share&utm_medium=copy

Genre Research

he Manor of the Devil” – with bats, castles, trolls, ghosts, and a demon – played by Georges Méliès himself, you can see the elements of gothic horror are already firmly entrenched by this time in the public psyche. Silent films in the teens and 20s were still exploring the possibilities of this new filmmaking medium. Several experiments were conducted including the first Frankenstein adapted by Thomas Edison’s studios in 1910 and Dante’s Inferno by Giuseppe de Liguoro in Italy in 1911. But the heart of horror in silent films would start to beat only after conclusion of the first world war and in ashes of the tattered country of Germany. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OPmKaz3Quzo)

GERMAN EXPRESSIONISM-  German Expressionism was a style of cinema that emphasized expression over realistic depictions of reality.

Title Sequence Research

Nine frame analysis

Nine frame structure analysis of thriller film openings

The nine frame structure has been created to show how the opening of a film has been constructed. It shows 9 different camera shots and how they are put together in order to appeal to the audience to and engage them within the films narrative so that the viewer continues watching the film. This is evident in the film The Cabin in the Woods (2011)

It is notable from the frames that the aim of this opening sequence is to create tension and curiosity for the audience as the first three frames are full of fire and red and black colours that are associated with the horror genre as they connote danger and fear, which is what the cabin in the woods is made for.

 Here is an explanation of all the frames in this example:

1. The first frame establishes the film institution which is important for films to do so that the company can get recognition and be associated with the film, especially if it is a success as it can allow the company to become a successful brand meaning that people may watch the films just because the institution, in this case Lionsgate made it. 
2.  The second frame shows a picture of a man in a hood standing over a dead body. The image has been made out of blood. Blood is also associated with the horror genre and suggests that there is murder and violence involved in the movie so it meets the horror genre code and conventions.
3. The third frame shows the fire getting bigger and brighter. This makes the opening even more intense and represents that there are big and scary problems that occur in the film. It also makes the film seem more scary as it's people burning in the fire.
4. The forth frame is very different to the first three as it's no longer images but has cut to the actual film. The sign says "Enjoy a Cup of Fresh Coffee" which is completely juxtaposed with the horror codes and conventions. It adds a comical effect to lighten the mood of the opening sequence which engages the audience even more. 
5. (5-8) The next 4 frames are of the two characters talking about  every day issues- ones that don't seem relevant to horror. This shows that the film uses a sub-genre of comedy and a bit of digression to make the audience even more curious to what is going to happen in the film, it increases the anticipation.
6. The last frame shows the title of the film "The Cabin in the Woods." It is at the end of the sequence so that the film can be introduced which allows the audience to recognise and remember the name of the film and wonder how the opening will lead to them finding a cabin in the woods. 

Title Sequence Research

The basic nine frame structure is looking at the first 9 shots of a particular film. These frames are all extremely important and they may not be relative at first , however, they can prove to be important later on during the course of the film. Example: "The Conjuring" (http://www.artofthetitle.com/title/the-conjuring/) A nine frame structure can help establish small aspects of the narrative for a movie in a very discreet manner. Usually , we as the audience receive information from the title sequence but we never absorb the information. The first frame is usually the most important frame due to the fact that it is the establishing shot, in this instance we see the first family which is the "Warren Family". It is the first thing the audience see. Here, see a Picture of a family . The picture is in black and white and automatically there a specific connations that come into your mind when you think . Firstly, the black and white could signify the importance of time in the film. The second frame shows the second family involved in the movie. The name of the film is written in bold black font just as the initial family and the photo is still in black in white which signifies they both must of equal importance. The third frame shows the who the film is by. It states the film was directed by James Wan. This time the font changes to white due to the fact that the colour pallet and the background also changes. The background changes to a large house/ mansion which automatically ticks the list for typical horror film settings. Simply through having a establishing shot of the house introduces the audience to the plot. The fourth frame shows the individual who wrote the film. The Text is written in white font and it is in contrast with the image in the background. The image is of a newspaper which has direct relevance and it is in contrast with the subtitle. .