1. 1) In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and
conventions of real media products?
I have tried to use many horror codes and conventions in my own production either
inspired from media texts which I have studied upon or which I have thought would look
very affective. I made decision about my production after analysing and researching
much media texts. Doing this allowed me to explore the different ways in which media
texts establish a plot, make it look like a horror movie, the different use of camera work,
the use of editing to create affect, the typography which is used and the sound.
As a part of my narrative (plot) I decided to go with the narrative of binary opposites (by
Aristotle and Claude Levi Strauss). The Binary Oppositions theory states that ‘All
narratives are driven forward by conflict,
conflict that is caused by a series of
opposing forces’. Similarly I used the binary
oppositions of good vs evil and young vs old.
The persona of the Protagonist and the
Antagonist allow the audience to realise
who actually is the good and who the evil is.
The symbolic appearance of the characters
allows the audience to see this difference
between the characters. For example in this
screen shot we can see that the Antagonist is wearing white which symbolically means
that her personality is pure. However, in actual fact the antagonist is the opposite of
pure. This is one of the ways in which the Antagonist’s appearance challenges the
common symbolic ideology. Furthermore, the Protagonist is wearing red which
symbolically means that the Protagonists personality can be seen as being aggressive
and evil, however the fact that the protagonist personality is weak and powerless, this
ideology is further challenged. Moreover, I did
some further research in how certain characters
challenge the common ideology of binary
oppositions in media texts. One film which I
analysed was Orphan. Typically the protagonist
would be a young and innocent person. However,
in Orphan the antagonist deceives the audience
as being innocent when she is evil. The binary
opposition of age has been challenged in Orphan.
Furthermore, Laura Mulvey’s ‘male gaze’ theory
has also been challenged. The Male Gaze (1978) theory by Laura Mulvey suggests that

2. women are the object of the gaze and that female character are tended to be displayed
for the visual pleasures of male characters and male spectators. The females in this film
are all seen as being dressed modestly, which decreases the idea of male audiences
being sexually attracted to the female actors.
If I was to make the whole horror movie of ‘broken sapneh’ I would use Pam Cook’s
classic Hollywood narrative structure which includes the introduction to the
hero/heroine, which they then face the problem/disruption, then the hero/heroine goes
on a quest and finally there is a return to normality with a few twists.
In order to make the audience realise what movie of genre they’re watching I used
many codes and conventions to help them
identify that this is a horror movie that
they’re watching. Firstly, I decided to use
low key lighting to signify that something
out of the ordinary will happen
unexpectedly. Furthermore, I used many
candles to make the antagonists actions
look outstanding and effective. The low key
lighting and the flame from the candles
contrasted very well. Moreover, low key lighting is a technical code which is commonly
used in many horror movies. Secondly, in many horror movies the antagonist’s face is
never fully and clearly revealed
for the audience to see. This
makes the audience feel worried
and panicky as it is unclear who
the antagonist is. Similar to this I
did not give the antagonist away
straightaway. In some scene I
decided to show the antagonists
face unclearly. The shot on the
right clearly shots the antagonist and protagonist facing each other; however the
antagonists face is not fully revealed because the net curtain is covering her face. The
net curtain could be a symbolic cover up which the
antagonist uses to make other feel as if she is a peaceful
person. I also used pointed and sharp objects to connote
violence and anger that the antagonist feels toward the
protagonist. The image of the scissors is an example of some of the sharp weapons
which were used in my horror movie to connote violence. Weapons are commonly used

3. in horror movies to connote violence and make the audience feel scared. This could be
because it is a part of the natural human instinct to be cautious and carefully of sharp
objects as we are aware of the potential harm they could do to us.
Similar to the quote ‘actions speak louder than words’ the use of camera shots and
camera movement create a big impact on how the audience feels. As there are many
different camera shot types available
I did a lot of research on how certain
shot types convey certain meanings
to the audience. For example this
shot is an establishing shot. The
establishing shot reflects on the
atmosphere of the whole plot
because it is the base and setting of
the whole movie. Furthermore the
fact that my setting is a big white house this suggests that it is a normal house.
Therefore if anything unusual happens it
would make the audience jumpy. A close-up
tells the audience how the character is
feeling in the present moment as the facial
expressions will indicate the characters
emotions. Furthermore, the screenshot on
the left is of the protagonist falling asleep
and leading the narrative into the dream. In
the present moment the protagonist can be seen as being calm and peaceful through
her facial expressions. However, as the dream continues it become apparent that the
protagonist’s feelings change drastically. This is another reason why close-ups convey
sharp meaning because the shots can be compared to show the difference in change of
emotion of certain characters. A 180 degree movement is commonly used when
characters are conversing. The camera is positioned exactly at the different point where
the characters are there is usually 3 positions. Each position symbolises the perspective
of the different characters.
Different typography can also convey different meaning. The way, in which writing is
presented, especially the title/credits, it allows the audience to have a basic feel of what
is to come in the progression of the movie. Rough and uneven handwriting can be as if a
child has written it or it connote the frustration and anger the
character feels. Similarly, in Orphan the typography connotes

4. anger and rage because of the scratchy and rustic look that has been given to the
typography to present the mixture of emotions. I used a
similar typography with a contrast which I wanted my
audience to feel of a cultural and vintage feel. The white
colour of the typography symbolised purity and
peacefulness, which the antagonist deceives herself to be.
Furthermore the curvy ends of each letter tell the audience
that there is some historical context involved.
Finally the soundtrack of a horror movie opening gives the audience a feel of the genre
of the movie and more of the sub-genre. I researched both about diagetic sounds and
non-diagetic sounds in real media texts. Furthermore, the soundtrack signifies the
character current feelings and the ethos of the scene. A range of different sounds could
cause an effect of confusion for the audience as many different sounds convey different
meaning. Moreover, I have used a range of different soundtracks as first I have tried to
use a soundtrack that would make the audience feel sympathetic towards the
protagonist. Then a more tensed and high pitched soundtrack was used to connote
conflict.