Essay Feedback

You will need to analyse a range of horror opening sequences in the research section of your blog.

• Use technical terminology, e.g different types of sound

• Link the generic codes and conventions (cliché or challenge?)

• Develop your explanations• Analyse a sequence with titles • Read through your work!

Generic Codes and Conventions in opening sequences

Conventional Cliché Challenge

Convention, cliché, challenge?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oZRuMfDK5N0

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IdbnSZoue20

Horror Openings:

Research and Planning

Learning Objective

To find out who decides which certificate a film is given and what criteria they use to make this decision.

Research Question

How is the certificate of a film decided? This must include research into the certification of specific horror films.

You must present your findings and case study example/s in the research section of your blog.

Psycho (1960), dir. Alfred Hitchcock

“ Being one of the first movies ever to show graphic onscreen violence rather than cutting away, Psycho was one of the most controversial films of it's time (particularly because of the shower scene). The nudity in the shower scene, an unmarried couple sharing a bed, and the usage of the word "transvestite" also caused an uproar; causing the film to face censorship. ”

The famous shower scene!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8VP5jEAP3K4

Independent Research Task

Use the internet to find the answers to the following questions:

• Who decides what certificate a film is given?• How do they decide?• How do institutions go about getting their films

classified?• What does each film certificate mean?

Look at a horror film you know and explain why it has been given a 15 certificate.

BBFC

The UK's film ratings are decided by the British Board of Film Classification and have been since 1912.

Previously, there were no agreed rating standards, and local councils imposed their own - often differing - conditions or restrictions.

For cinema releases, the BBFC has no legal power (technically, films do not even have to be submitted for classification), as it falls to councils to decide who should be admitted to a certain film, but they generally apply the BBFC's certificates, effectively making them legally-binding.

Film Classification and Censorship

The infamous video nasty list was created in 1982 to protect against obscenity. Films on this list were banned and distributors of said films were liable to be prosecuted (some of the films were banned before the list was made). This list banned 74 films at one point in the mid-1980s; the list was eventually trimmed down, and only 39 films were successfully prosecuted.

Most of the films (even of the 39 successfully prosecuted) have now been approved cut or uncut .

Research Task

Create a presentation on what you have found out about film certification and make sure that it goes into the research section of your blog.

Deadline: Wednesday 03/12/14

Horror Openings: Research

Audience Pleasures

Learning Objective

To understand some audience theory regarding audience pleasures and horror films.

To apply this theory to one or more horror film as part of your research.

Discuss in pairs…

Why do we watch horror films?/ Why is the genre so popular and enduring?

Questions

• Why are horror films so popular?

• Why do audiences enjoy horror films?

• Why has their popularity endured over the decades?

• What particular audience pleasures are on offer in horror in the viewing of horror films?

• Also, what pleasures are their specific to different types/ sub-genres of horror?

Audience Theory

Definition

Uses and Gratifications Theory is a popular approach to understanding mass communication. The theory places more focus on the consumer, or audience, instead of the actual message itself by asking “what people do with media” rather than “what media does to people” (Katz, 1959) . It assumes that members of the audience are not passive but take an active role in interpreting and integrating media into their own lives. The theory also holds that audiences are responsible for choosing media to meet their needs. The approach suggests that people use the media to fulfil specific gratifications. This theory would then imply that the media compete against other information sources for viewers' gratification. (Katz, E., Blumler, J. G., & Gurevitch, M. 1974)

Basic model

It is suggested that the uses and gratifications theory has to fulfil one the following when we choose a form of media:

• Identify- being able to recognise the product or person in front of you, role models that reflect similar values to yours, aspiration to be someone else.

• Educate - being able to acquire information, knowledge and understanding• Entertain – What you are consuming should give you enjoyment and

also some form of ‘escapism’ enabling us to forget our worries temporarily.

• Social Interaction – the ability for media products to produce a topic of conversation between other people, sparks debates (etc who is left on the x-factor)

Audience Pleasures and Horror Films

Why Horror?

Apply this theory…

A target audience may be mass or niche

Qualitative Research Methods

• The aim is to discover the preferences of the target consumer and one good example of this mode of research is the focus group

• The producers of a product will select a group which has the profile of their target audience and will show them their product.

• The producers then use the focus group’s response to alter, re-think or confirm the look of their product.

Quantitive Research Methods

• This type of research concerns itself with numerical data.

• E.g. audience figures/ profiling

Quantitative and qualitative research methods are used in parallel in order to research the habits and preferences of the target audience.

Home Learning

Do your own audience research: Who watches horror films (age/ gender)? Why do they watch horror films? What type of horror do they like the most?

Use the IMDB and other online sources for actual audience figures as well as asking friends/family.

Record your findings in the research section of your blog (video interviews, graphs, tables?).

Include quantitive and qualitative research. 1.Who is the target audience of horror films and 2.what do they like?

Deadline: Friday 5th December