1. AS Media Studies
Ashleigh Groom

2. Researching Intertexts

3. • Horror Genre
• Directed by Paddy Breathnach
• Distributed by Vertigo Films (UK)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHhwiT6eedc

4. Diegetic Sound:
 screaming, panting, gasping, crying, heavy breathing connotes terror and fear,
being scared and is a typical convention of sound for a horror movie
 “its coming” sets up an enigma code, what it is? Entices the audience and adds an
element of fear
 Characters are often heard whispering, connotes fear and is typical of the horror
genre
 Scary story being told, Iconic of group of friends camping, creates a creepy
atmosphere
Non Diegetic Sound:
 Trailer starts with subtle, gentle soundtrack connoting an equilibrium, everything
if fine. Becomes tense when scene moves to woods, builds up throughout the
film becoming quicker and heavier towards end this connotes suspense, fear,
terror, running away and makes the audience more tense and keeps them on the
edge of their seat, keeps their attention.

5.  Setting in an empty woods connotes lonely, dark, unknown
 Dress codes- casual, everyday connotes that these are normal people, makes
them more relatable and makes the film appear more realistic.
 Dark/natural lighting makes the scene more creepy so inflicts fear into the
audience.
 Cut leg with blood/bone, blood splattered on
car wind screen iconic of horror film connotes violence and torture
 Props – axe – connotes murder, terror, torture, violence which are all typical
conventions of a horror film
 Skull appears over female characters face, connotes death, makes the audience
wonder, will she die? And therefore entices them and will make them want to
watch the film to find out
 Blood is seen a lot throughout, this connotes danger, torture, violence, injury

6.  Characters take drugs and experience
hallucinations- audience doesn’t know what's
real, they have to think about it, engaging
 Characters running through woods, typical
convention of horror film, connotes fear and
terror.
 Scary story told around campfire, typical of
the genre, done to scare the audience.

7.  Close up of characters faces through out, particularly blonde female
characters (implies she is the main character) done to show fear in their
faces as a reaction to what’s happening, makes the audience connect
more to the characters and feel their fear.
 Birds eye view camera shot of characters walking through woods, sets the scene,
connotes being alone, abandoned
 Long shot of camp to set the scene, typical setting, camp in woods
 Close ups on characters faces when story is being told to show character
reactions, makes the audience feel the same emotions e.g. scared, fear,
anticipation
 Close up on broken leg, blood/injury is iconic of horror film, gore, meets
audiences expectations
 Long shots of running through woods connotes fear and danger
 Simple editing – cut/fade with white/black effect
 Text speaking directly to audience telling scary story, typography of text is white,
thin font connoting bare, creepy. The word ,legend, is used, makes the audience
wonder is it true or not? Which then entices them, a typical convention of this
genre

8.  ‘Shrooms’ title at end, font connotes creepy, strange
 Camera movement, camera tracks characters as they run, makes the audience
feel like they are running with them
 180 degree rule editing when telling story creates continuity
 Cut away- close up of vines on hands and car and then cuts back to characters
reactions, hallucinations

9.  The narrative of the text follows a group of friends who camp out in a woods.
They take drugs, shrooms and experience hallucinations. Some one/thing
appears to be attacking them but it is not known what, the audience don’t know
what its real and what isn’t. This creates an enigma around the text and will make
the audience want to see the film to find out.
 Binary oppositions (Levi-Strauss)- There are binary opposition between good
and bad which is very conventional of the horror genre and also between
reality/imaginary which isn’t used as often in this genre
 Narrative Theory (Todorov)- The trailer follows Tvzetan Todorovs narrative
theory by beginning at an equilibrium (the start of the trailer, everything is fine)
then a disruption occurs (take the shrooms and experience hallucinations) and
the realisation of the disruption (people begin to get attacked/murdered). The
attempt to repair the disruption and the return to equilibrium are not shown so
this makes the audience want to go and see the film to find out what happens.

10.  Character Theory (Propp) – It is not made clear who all of the characters of
Vladimir Propps theory are in the trailer which gives the audience a reason to see
the film, however the ‘villain’ is clearly shown to be the shrooms. This challenges
audiences expectations because the villain in a horror film is usually a human.

11. • Horror Genre
• Directed by James Watkins
• Distributed by Rollercoaster Films
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CYxE1XWrLtc (UK)

12. Diegetic Sound:
 Rustling in forest, connotes that someone is there, someone is watching
 Screaming and crying from victims connotes fear, torture and danger, typical of
this genre
 dog barking connotes danger and aggression
 Shouting from both victims and attackers connotes fear, danger, violence and
aggression
All of these diegetic sounds meet the audiences expectations
Non Diegetic Sound:
 Soundtrack at start is simple and connotes romance, peacefulness. Interrupted
by hip hop soundtrack, connotes disruption and youths. After this the soundtrack
becomes tense and heavy and builds up suspense as the trailer goes on, this is to
make the audience feel tense as they watch adding an element of fear, which is
what and audience expect from a horror movie.

13.  Characters dress codes (victims) are normal and conventional of
everyday people, this is very typical of the horror genre. The man is
wearing a blue shirt and trousers and the women is wearing a pink
dress, these are very conventional outfits for each gender and very
‘normal’. At the start of the trailer the two main characters dress code
s are clean and become very dirty and bloody as it progresses. This meets
the audiences expectations.
 The characters that are the attackers are dressed very casually, wearing casual, baggy
trousers and t shirts/jumpers, this connotes youth. They maintain quite clean
throughout, implying that they are in control, which is what the audience expects
from the ‘bad guys’.
 The setting is by a beach in woods, its derelict, quiet, no one else there (apart from
the protagonists) which meets the audiences expectations and is a conventional
setting for a horror film.
 The colours red and brown are seen al lot, these connote dirt and blood and are often
seen on the victims showing they are in danger
 At the start the two victims gesture codes show them hugging and kissing, an
example of this is when they are in the lake, this connotes that they are very
comfortable, relaxed and loving. This changes throughout the trailer as they
becoming very quick and rushed, there is also a lot of running, this connotes that they
are in fear and danger.

14.  A knife and blade are seen which connote danger, torture and pain, this meets
audiences expectations.
 Fire is seen in the background, this connotes danger
 Bright lighting used at start to connote that the scene is at an equilibrium and
dark lighting used after disruption occurs to connote danger.

15.  Characters are shown running frequently
throughout the trailer which connotes fear,
being chased, danger
 The car, being driven by the youths, nearly
runs over the couple who dive out of the way.
This is connotes violence, danger and being
out of control.
 The main villain ‘Brett’ attempts to stab the
man and torture him. These are conventional
action codes for a horror film.

16.  Editing – simple fade/cut, editing gets quicker towards the end to build suspense
 Hand held camera used at start, connotes being filmed for a home video and makes
the audience feel like they are actually there and makes it more personal. This is a
conventional technical code for the horror genre.
 Point of view camera angle through the bushes
to a longshot of the couple at the camp fire, connotes
that someone is watching, danger
 Close ups on characters faces throughout the trailer, used to show the audience the
characters reactions and emotions usually connoting fear or anger. This helps the
audience to connect more and also inflicts emotions onto the audience, this is very
conventional of horror movie trailers.
 Cut away to close ups of the knife
and the dog, this connotes danger and violence.
 When male character is badly injured there is a high angle shot of the women and a
low angle shot of the man, this connotes to the audience that the women is now in
control, he is relying on her.
 180 degree rule is used between characters confrontations to create continuity
 The typography of ‘Eden Lake’ at the end is white, has a stencil font and it patchy, this
connotes a danger/warning signal.

17.  The narrative of the text follows a couple who go on a romantic break to Eden Lake. While
there they are terrorised and tortured by a group of teenagers. This both meets and
challenges audiences expectations as while torture and violence is conventional of a horror
movie, the fact that the villains are younger than the victims is unconventional. This relates
to the current (especially at the time of release) moral panic of youths being violent and out
of control. It is very typical of horror films to reflect a moral panic.
 Binary oppositions (Levi-Strauss)- There are binary opposition between good and bad
shown through the action codes of the characters and also between light and dark. The
events of the trailer reflect the second binary opposition, at the start when everything was
fine there was bright lighting and when the disruption occurred the lighting was very dark.
 Narrative Theory (Todorov)- The trailer follows Tvzetan Todorovs narrative theory by
beginning at an equilibrium (the start of the trailer, everything is fine) then a disruption
occurs (youths some along) and the realisation of the disruption (steal car, pull out
knife), the attempt to repair the disruption (victims are shown to try and fight back) but the
reinstatement of the equilibrium is not shown as this makes the audience want to watch
the film to find out if in fact the equilibrium is restored.

18.  Character Theory (Propp) – When applying Vladimir Propps character theory, the
villain Is clearly shown to be the youths, particularly ‘Brett’. The hero appears to
be the woman from the couple and the man the princess. This challenges the
audiences expectations as the hero is normally a man and the princess a woman.
No other characters are really shown in the trailer apart from the villains, hero
and princess which is conventional of the genre.

19. • Horror Genre
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nCU0k_jbCUo • Directed by Bryan Bertino
• Distributed by Rogue Pictures

20. Diegetic Sound:
 Creaking of swing, creepy, connotes that someone is out there, don’t know who’s
swinging on it so sets up and enigma code and is scary for the audience.
 Banging, loud, someone is there, makes the audience scared, who is it?
 Whispering connotes being scared, hiding, fear
 Screaming connotes being scared, pain, fear
 Record player, not necessarily conventional of horror film, jamming of record
player builds up suspense and gets faster as the trailer building up suspense more
and more. This directly effects the audience and makes them feel tense and is
very conventional of this genre.
 The victims asks “why are you doing this to us” and the villain replies “because
you were home” – this adds an element of fear because its connoting unprovoked
violence, could happen to anyone for no reason
Non Diegetic Sound:
 Piano soundtrack at the start, simple, connotes romance and love.
 Soundtrack becomes heavier and faster, building up suspense.
 Moments of silence, connotes being alone, danger, makes the audience feel fear

21.  Characters dress codes (victims) are normal. The man is wearing a suit which connotes
romance and a wedding. The women starts in a silk dress which connotes romance
and then changes into everyday clothing which just connotes being a normal,
everyday person. This is conventional as the victims are usually shown as everyday
people in horror genres and romance is usually a subtle theme that occurs in horror
films.
 The characters that are the attackers are dressed in everyday clothes, but with masks
on. This connotes mystery and makes the audience scared as they don’t know who the
attackers are, this meets the audiences expectations as hidden identity and masks are
very conventional of horror films.
 The setting is in a large house in the middle of no where by some woods, this is a
conventional setting for a horror film trailer as it connotes being alone and helpless.
 At the start the two victims gesture codes show them hugging and kissing, connoting
romance, love and being comfortable in their surrounding
as well as having privacy. This changes throughout the trailer
as their gesture codes then connotes that they are in fear and
danger by hiding, running, heavily breathing etc.

22.  An axe and gun is used as a prop, this meets audiences expectations of the horror
genre and connotes violence, murder, threat and anger.
 Roses and wine is shown at the start of the scene which connotes love and
romance, this is not conventional of a horror film and shows that everything is at
an equilibrium at the start
 Dark lighting is used throughout the trailer with the light appearing to come from
natural sources, this creates a lot of shadows and connotes mystery and hidden
information. Shadows are iconic of horror films.
 Villains in masks are often shown in the background lurking in the shadows, this
is conventional of horror genres and makes the audience actively involved in the
film because they are wanting the character to turn around and see.
 There is a medium shot of blood splattered on a wall, connotes
murder, violence, death and is conventional of horror.

23.  Editing – fades are used at first but develops into cuts which get faster as the trailer
goes one, this builds suspense and make the audience feel the suspense.
 Establishing long shot of house at start, sets the scene
so the audience know where its taken place. Also connotes
that the house is being watched.
 Point of view shot from main characters, shows the audience what the characters can
see and therefore connects the audience with the characters
 Long shot of woman standing in the kitchen in the foreground with masked mam
stood in the background lurking in the shadows, tells the audience she is in
danger, audience want her to look round therefore making them more
involved, shadows connote mystery, a dark side.
 Close up of phone in the fire, connotes abandonment, helplessness, alone, cut off
 Near the end there is a long shot of a young masked girl stepping out from the
shadows. This connotes mystery and is done to scare the audience. Goes against the
audiences expectations by one of the villain being so young.
 A hand held camera is sometimes used, this connotes chaos and makes the audience
feel like they are there in the scene.

24.  Close up of her hand locking the door, connotes she is scared, doesn’t feel safe,
danger.
 At the end there is a close up of the masked villains face with a blurred effect, this
connotes fear and mystery and sets up and enigma code, who are they?
 Simple white font is used which is conventional of a horror film and has shadows
going over it, connoting mystery and evil. The text says “inspired by true events”.
This inflicts fear into the audience which is what they expect from a horror film
and will therefore want to see the film.

25.  The narrative of the text follows a couple staying over for the night in a large
house in the middle on nowhere who then get terrorised by a group of people
who are hidden in masks with unknown identities.
 Binary oppositions (Levi-Strauss)- There are binary opposition between good
and bad shown through the dress codes, the ‘bad’ guys wear masks and the
‘good’ characters don’t.
 Narrative Theory (Todorov)- The trailer follows Tvzetan Todorovs narrative
theory by beginning at an equilibrium (the start of the trailer, everything is fine)
then a disruption occurs (banging on the door) and the realisation of the
disruption (burnt phone, writing on window, axe through door), the attempt to
repair the disruption is only slightly shown (man with gun) but the end result, the
reinstatement of the equilibrium, is not shown as this makes the audience want
to watch the film to find out if in fact the equilibrium is restored.

26.  Character Theory (Propp) – When applying Vladimir Propps character theory, the
villain Is clearly shown to be the masked people. It is unclear who the other two
characters are, and isn’t shown if one of them is a hero or princess so therefore
could challenge this theory. This is quite conventional of some horror films as
there isn’t always a hero, just victims.

27. • Horror Genre
• Directed by James Wan
• Distributed by Lions Gate
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b1lgXhFbXy4 Entertainment (UK)

28. Diegetic Sound:
 Yelling and screaming from victims connotes pain, panic and suffering, typical of
horror genre
Non Diegetic Sound:
 Voice over talking about killing – enigma code, who is it? Get the audience
actively thinking about the text
 “let the games begin” used as a catchphrase, audience becomes familiar with it
 Voice over of victims ‘he wants us to saw through out feet’ connotes blood, gore,
torture. Different concept from other horror films as they have to inflict the pain
upon themselves so draws audiences attention
 Soundtrack is heavy and suspenseful, sounds mechanical and builds up
throughout the trailer making the audience suspenseful, very conventional of this
genre

29.  There is a medium long shot of a figure with dark, hooded, cloaked dress codes. This
connotes dark, evil, mysterious and death (grim reaper) and makes the audience
wonder who this person is
 The characters that are victims are casually dressed implying that they are just normal
people. This is a typical convention of the horror genre.
 The settings vary but all are dirty and abandoned.
 Newspaper articles are shown about murders, tells the audience what’s
happening, connotes that this had been going on a while, more than one victim, serial
killer
 Medium point of view show of a saw on the floor as voice over says about swing
through their foot. Put the audience in the body of the victim, makes it
personal, makes the audience feel the victims fear.
 Close ups of victims showing their fear and pain, audience feels their emotions, typical
of horror genre.
 Blood stains connote danger, violence, pain, murder, torture.
 A bore is shown, mysterious connotations, sets up an enigma code, what is the
relevance of this? Makes the audience want to find out

30.  Editing – cuts, get faster at the end, builds suspense
 Video camera effect at start, connoted being watched, stalked, recorded
 Medium shots of victims in lethal contraptions to show the audience the way in
which they could die to meet audiences expectations of a horror film
 High angle shot of man hitting something with a slab, from point of view of
victim, makes the audience feel the fear of the victim, makes him appear more
violent and dangerous.
 Cracking, fuzzing effect used like an old TV, connotes technology/mechanical like
a video game
 Text is white with a green tint and a glow. Simple font. Conventional of horror
genre and connotes a video game.

31.  The narrative of the text follows a man who doesn’t kill his victims, he finds ways
for them to kill themselves in a number or torturous, gruesome ways.
 Narrative Theory (Todorov)- The trailer doesn’t particularly follows Tvzetan
Todorovs narrative theory as there isn’t a clear structure to the narrative. No
equilibrium is seen at the beginning which is quite unconventional of a horror
movie trailer.
 Character Theory (Propp) – This text challenges Vladimir Propps theory by not
showing a character for each clear role suggested in the theory. The is a lot of
mystery surrounding what character plays which role which can be quite
conventional of a movie trailer of the horror genre.