Opening Titles: Idea 3

 As the genre of our film is Gothic Horror, I thought it interesting to have our opening titles in Gothic Calligraphy (which I am currently undertaking to improve my handwriting.) The picture to the left shows the highest standard of Gothic Calligraphy by my teacher.
Gothic calligraphy styles became dominant throughout Europe, having evolved from the Caroline script in the 11th Century, and in 1454, when Johannes Gutenberg developed the first printing press in Mainz, he adopted the Gothic style for his books, making it the first typeface.


This is an example of some of the work that I have produced. It doesn't quite reach the standard of the writing above, but I believe its effectiveness would remain the same. Gothic writing is characterized by its thick lines, narrow letters and compactness.




Below: The title of our film (R.I.P) and the names of our director, lead actress and camerawoman in simple Round-hand calligraphy. Right: Half of our directors' name. I have yet to lean the letters 'E' and 'N'.

Horror Themed Posters

Posters are a crucial  element in the advertising segment of film distribution. They inform the audience about the premise and atmosphere of the film. This poster, advertising the independent Australian horror film The Loved Ones, is an excellent example of this. The basic plot of the film surrounds a rejected female prom date who kidnaps and tortures the man who "broke her heart." The poster is unusual as it does not appear, at first, to be a horror film. Its primary colour scheme consists "girly" colours, mainly pink, purple, red,   and lavender blue. The connotations of these colours are generally ones of affection, comfort, warmth, childishness and perhaps innocence. This gives the film an additional edge, as it plays on a conventional teenage activity; going to a prom, being turned into something hellish. Near the bottom of the poster, the colours become darker and more typical of a standard horror poster, and one first notices the blood on Lola's hands. The photograph depicting the couple indicate the target audience; young adults.


In this case, a song, the same one of whom I analyzed the music video for, has been transformed into such a similar poster. The tag line, which is very typical of a film, is a a lyric from the song. Show Them All You're Not The Ordinary Type. Although the song is very upbeat and has nothing to do with murder, it can be alternatively interpreted as demonstrated by this poster. Interestingly, when the song was first released, it was believed that it was about murdering a bandmate that left the band. However, the band refuted this, stating that this was not the case. Anyhow, the title gives a 'horrific' impression. The lyrics of the song also feature typical words associated with the horror genre. May your feet serve you well/And the rest be sent to Hell. This can been seen in poster via the hand print, perhaps suggesting a person attempting to escape from the 'Hell', be metaphysical or intrinsic. The birds may in contrast suggest a release or a flight from danger. If I retreat/ Words, wars, and symphonies/ Make room we're taking over here would seem to support this.

This is probably my favorite film poster. I like the fact that the tag line 'orders' the viewer to think about 'something frightening', indicating that the film holds a similar premise and that the film may be more that it appears in terms of just simple killing. The poster's colour scheme is very effective. The monochrome background is a brilliant contrast to the blood red title with the devils numbers written inside. The child's shadow being in the shape of a wolf suggests an unharnessed evil. It combines both the attributes of a warrior and the devil. Furthermore The wolf's residence is a forest, dark, impenetrable and lonely, antithesis of reality.  The wolf was especially evil in the folklore, literature, and Church teachings of medieval Europe, as seen in the story of "Red Riding Hood." Early Biblical sources present a contrast between the wolf symbolizing bloodshed and destruction versus the symbol of the wolf and the lamb lying down together representing peace and the coming Messianic rule, connecting to the "childlike" and more pleasant qualities, as reflected by the poster. Also, the use of a noun indicates importance, "it may be The Omen" and highlights the danger associated with it. It also makes it personal to the viewer, creating a sense of fear with in them.

Planning: Voice Over (?)

Since finishing Birthday Letters by Ted Hughes, I have started reading Crow, which is a lot darker and ominous, linking perfectly with our genre of Gothic horror. Crow's direct engagement with the natural world to unified mythical narratives and sequences. We though that we could have a voice over of a couple of lines during the opening or the end of our film to increase its dramatic effect. Below, I have typed some of the poems that I think would be appropriate. I personally  think that Conjuring Heaven would be best as it ties in the most with our storyline of someone disappearing  and essentially becoming nothing.

A Kill
Flogged lame with legs
Shot through the head with balled brains
Shot blind with eyes
Nailed down by his own ribs
Strangled just short of his last gasp
By his own windpipe
Clubbed unconscious by his own heart

Seeing his life stab through him, a dream flash
As he drowned in his own blood

Dragged under by the weight of his own guts.

That Moment
And the body lay on the gravel
Of the abandoned world
Among abandoned utilities
Exposed to infinity forever

Crown Frowns
Is he his own strength?
What is his signature?
Or is he a key, cold feeling
To the fingers of prayer?

He is a prayer wheel, his heart hums.
His eating is the wind -
Its patient power of appeal.
His footprints assail infinity.

With signatures: We are here, we are here.
He is the long waiting for something
To use him for some everything
Having so carefully made him.

Of nothing.

Conjuring Heaven
So finally there was nothing.
It was put inside nothing.
Nothing was added to it
And to prove it didn't exist
Squashed flat as nothing with nothing.

Chopped up with a nothing
Shaken in a nothing
Turned completely inside out
And scattered over nothing--
So everybody saw that it was nothing
And that nothing more could be done with it

And so it was dropped. Prolonged applause in Heaven.

It hit the ground and broke open--

There lay Crow, cataleptic.

Roles, Props and Costumes

Roles
Director: Barween
Editor: Maria
Camerawoman: Aalyiah
Antagonist Actress: Cynthia
Ava Van Camp: Sandra

Props
Shovel
Crucifix

Costumes
Antagonist/Cynthia: All black outfit with a baseball cap and heavy-duty black boots, preferably Dr. Martens or Caterpillar
Ava Van Camp/Sandra: Dark colours, sneakers, small amount of make-up, minimal amount of jewellery to avoid reflection, and also to demonstrate that she is not wealthy.

Storyboard: Main Task

Establishing shot: the church and close by graveyard. Sets the scene- GOTHIC: bare trees, bleak sky, gravestones, church etc. Ominous atmosphere. Diegetic organ music play.  

Point of view from the attacker: long shot. Individual sitting in a pew. Diegetic footsteps- then stop. Non diegetic organ music continues. 

Mid shot from the front: attacker hidden through the shadow. Individual is a young, isolated woman, crying.  Organ music accelerates. 

ECU of the woman's face, tears are visible on her face- clear emotion. Music continues. Heavy breathing in the background.

Man approaches and knocks her out (not seen). Long shot of a person dragging the girl out of the church and across the graveyard, carrying a shovel. Diegetic music peaks, becomes more tense.

Man buries the girl, unknowingly, next to her mothers grave. Close up of the grave. Fade out and credits role with the music.

Planning: Gothic Font

These wine bottles label uses Gothic font and imagery to appeal to a wide audience of wine- enjoyers.

In Roman times, soldiers of the 4th legion who graduated with honours in achieving victories for the Empire were rewarded with a plot of land in Villar de Anerdo, which then became known as Campus Veteranus. This, in turn, gave us the name Campo Viejo.

More than 100 years ago, Don Melchor de Concha y Toro. Toro reserved for himself an exclusive batch of his best wines. To keep strangers away from his private reserve, he spread the rumor that the Devil lived in that place, hence the name: Casillero del Diablo, The Devil's Cellar.







The sticker/logo, depicting the Devil's head, on the bottle emphasizes the Gothic theme.

Jane Eyre