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Editing

and Production
Jack Saunders

Premiere Titles
Audio mixer i.e.
backing track/
boom sound
effect.

Title
segment.

Ambient
boom sound
effect

Premiere Titles
This particular shot of the empty crop field was used because it suits the
horror convention of isolation, furthermore the vast strips of land seen in
the shot, with a backdrop of woodland give a sense of no escape. I decided
to put my title the farm here because this shot makes it most obvious that
the location is a farm, moreover the slightly blurred angle with a view of
so many different things in the shot, there was nothing to concentrate on.
Therefore instead of just having the raw shot in there, I put my title there
because there was enough room for it, moreover the color of the font
used thought every bit of text in the trailer blended well with the sunset
sky. In this shot I also spaced out the title text to make the title stand out
and stretch along the dark horizon, moreover I made it move slowly to the
left, as if it were moving with the sun setting; I wanted this because the
slowness of the shot, followed by the fade to black hinted of a upcoming
climax. The title The Farm was kept during the cut to black with a
ambient boom effect, this presents a eerie ambience , furthermore the echo
effect on the boom makes the cut to black seem hollow; like the previous
shot of the fields, again creating the sinister sense of isolation.

Premiere Titles cnt.


I used the repetitive boom effect in my text segments, mainly due to the fact that many other horror/
action films use this to achieve suspense, hinting to the audience that something unexpected is going to
happen, in this case, the boom effects lead up and climax to the shot of the mysterious rusty gates. The
sudden boom effect is commonly used also to get the attention of the audience, making them more inclined
to read what text is on the screenDue to the first half not fully showing the abandoned farm the increase
in pace make the audience more inclined for it to be revealed.

The compensate for the VHS effect, I applied the


Hard Mix blend mode to the title sequences, this
would be applied to all text in my trailer because it
makes it look like a part of the VHS effect, in the
coming soon section for example, the color
distortion seen on the VHS effect also overlaps on
the white text, this makes it look like the title is
fading away due to the poor quality , which adds to
my theme of mystery of what happens next or how
it happened.

Practical effects

Practical effects
When the farmhouse shack is first revealed, I felt like the first shot didnt
show the empty/ abandoned aspect of it. Due to the natural lighting aiding
the shot, presenting a bloomy grey/ blue effect, we used a portable smoke
machine or a vape to create a misty gloom with vaporized water. In many
horror movies, whether it be chainsaw or psychological horror, if it includes
a abandoned factory, forest building, swamp ect. In many of these types of
horrors smoke effects are used. This particular effect also is used in forest
scenes in other horror films where the smoke hides something, or scary
shapes can be seen silhouetted behind the smoke, this adds to the mystery if
whats behind it.
We used the smoke machine to create a cloud of smoke going across the
shot, although this took a while due to the wind rapidly changing, I
eventually got a shot where the smoke creeps across slowly, this effect makes
the contents of what is in the structure mysterious; furthermore makes it
seem like it is in the depths of a foggy forest. This effect fitted the shot and
surroundings perfectly due to the cloudy/ rainy atmosphere and lighting it
produced, therefore it blended with the environment very well.

Color correction

Color correction
To achieve the effect of isolation and empty surroundings, I needed to
washout the color and lower the saturation, most horror movies do
this to make the particular shot look darker and scarier than they
really are, due to filing in the daylight also, created difficulties in
producing the aspect of darkness in many shots.
I set the brightness of every shot to -12.0 to make the daylight seem
darker, moreover I raised the contrast to 6.0 to account for the
darkness, therefor the shot seemed dim yet the raised contrast still
made things visible.
Then I added a black and white/ navy blue tint effect, due to most
horror movies washing out the colors, many put them in black and
white, this allowed the landscape and the shots seem less colorful,
moreover makes the scene seem grittier, like it is constantly overcast/
rainy. I put the tint at 42% because it washed out the saturation,
however wasnt too colorless i.e. black and white.

An example of this is the shots of


the fields; this was so green
beautiful fields were not present, I
wanted to capture the sense of
abandonment and show how the
fields and forest had worn away the
green and overgrown , in contrast
to the gloomy weather. This shows
that it was not been used or visited,
bringing the sense of entrapment.

Before and after Colour Correction/ Effects,


Comparison

Animation / Special effects

Although my trailer is about psychological


possession and a unknown supernatural entity
haunting the farm shack, I needed to give the
audience of my trailer a brief view of a ghost like
figure.
Due to the shot of my character turning around
being extremely fast the animation did not
necessarily need to be high quality, therefore , I
automated it in the shot at a specific point,
therefore it would not move whilst the quick pan
shot occurred. I made it black because it does not
need to be awfully visible for such a short amount
of time, moreover the black stands out with the
natural light in the background. I'm using this
effect to create uncertainty in the audience, relating
what is wrong and what is chasing him/ possessing
him. This shot is a subtle cliffhanger in unraveling
the truth of what it actually is. I believe showing
the monster for as little as possible make its screen
time as important and memorable as it is sinister
and scary.

Screening &
Video Filters

In certain parts of the trailer, a VHS/ Noise stock


footage is used. In the beginning of the trailer the
helper is holding it, however when the main character
goes back, the camera is stolen, therefore the VHS
tape recorder is being used by the monster. The
footage is then found and recovered. This is used in
the title credits/ reviews too to make it look like raw
footage.
Many 90s films as well as modern use this, such as the
Blair Witch Project, the VHS filter achieves a gritty
effect of the remains of a recovered tape found in the
woods. The footage goes well with the washed out colors
and the noise effect, moreover I also use a noise effect to
make the filter seem more legitimate and retro (42%
noise) . I used a screen effect to make the effect blend
with the background.
The POV shot of the helper being chased after leaving
the protagonist (start of trailer) also is aided by the VHS
effect, making thing seem less visible and gloomy,
therefore using the POV makes the audience see very
little; uncertainty is created once more. I like the VHS
effect because the noise filter adds a sinister sense to even
the most innocent of shots.

VHS and how it applies to Horror


Why this effect?
Overall this effect (VHS) was used to make some shots seem more
difficult to see when the camera movement was rigorous, or shaky;
for instance, running sequences.
In connection to the main story, the supernatural entity who chases
the second character at the start ( the one who originally owned the
camera) steals it, due to the fact it is a ghost, it posses a aspect of the
technology, therefore the effect from then on is only used when the
audience is seeing through the monsters eyes. However there is
another shot of the monster after the quick pan animation shot, it is
seen to be grainy, like the camera technology.

Conventions

Multiple horror movies use VHS cameras, however also recovered


film from a previous owner, the blur and damaged footage is
difficult to see, therefore making a innocent sight look slightly
wrong in a sinister sense. I used this in my trailer because it
suggests the footage had been found or left to be found, this makes
the events seen look more like a reality in the eyes of the audience.

Editing and sound


For my main backing track I used a royalty free backing
track on Soundcoud called Harbringer of Doom this is
a low pitched rumble ambience which is a constant
noise which always creates suspense and tension, no
matter what the shot is; I believe this track builds up to
either a rapid climactic event or just a fast pace
sequence. I used exponential fade to blend this track
with my boom/ heartbeat sound effects so the sound
had a smooth continuity.

Like some classic horror movies, I wanted the high pitched


striking of violin/ cellos to also blend in with the buildup to
the reveal of the monster. I used a track named Insidious,
Void Figure 7 which I bought. These high pitched sounds
made it seem like something was coming / creeping towards
the main character; which it was, as the striking and plucking
of the stringed instruments gets harsher, it leads to the
reveal of the ghostly figure I also used a beeping sound from
a hospital heart monitor, although is achieving the effect of a
camera running out of battery, the close relation with the
hospital sound brings the sense of death to even a subtly
camera beep.

Both tracks are combined at the end , violins with a background


ambience. This means there isnt a complete change in mood due
to having a different track. Both tracks work well together
moreover keep continuity and suspense alive without playing
down the atmosphere, in music, when all instruments and sounds
are finally added, it brings a more powerful effect.

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