Horror Still Shot Analysis

1- Describe your shot and identify in what way it could be seen as representing horror.

- The shot is a LA, CU with low lighting. The lighting used way artificial. It is a shot of a white female teenager grabbing onto a metal fence. The shot has a frame within a frame, with the use of the fence. There is a shadow behind her of someone. The back ground of the shot is a white wall.

- The shot represents horror as it shows evidence of entrapment. Also the low lighting and expression on the girl's face, which is highlighted by the light, helps represent that the shot is a horror shot. The fact that the light is unnatural makes the shot feel unnatural. The light also exposes what's going on behind her and so creates a feeling of fear. The whites of her eyes are highlighted and so the fact that she looks scared is highlighted. The fact that the light is shining on her, and we see a shadow behind her, emphasises that she's the victim. Her unnatural, distorted position and her hands grabbing hold of the fence make us feel uneasy. The shot overall feels unnatural, which is disturbing and so represents horror.

2- What did you actually do to achieve the effect?

- We found an enclosed space, above the ground with a metal fence surrounding it. The actress (Alice) went inside while the person taking the shot (Matt) stayed on the outside. We cut out all light except one with we shone upwards from below the camera. We took the shot from a LA and did not use flash as it revealed too much of the background.

3- What is succesful about your shot?

- The shadow created from the light is successful, as is the low lighting which helped create the shadow. The angle of the shot works well as it seems unnatural, as it is a LA and is at a slightly distorted angle. The enclosed spaced was good, as it highlights the feeling that she is the victim. Also the distance works well, as it ensures that we can see the characters expression.

4- What would you do differently in hindsight?

- Looking back I think the shot needs more light focused on the hands so we can see them grabbing on a lot clearer. There is also a bit too much going on in the background, and too much of the white wall is showing. It also would have been better had the actress looked a bit more like a victim through the use of make-up, props and costume, for example if she had a bloody nose or cuts on her face. Also it would be better if we could see more of her face so that we could see her expression even more clearly.