'filmsite.org' describes horror films as unsettling films designed to frighten and panic, cause dread and alarm, and to invoke our hidden worst fears, often in a terrifying, shocking finale, while captivating and entertaining us at the same time in a cathartic experience. Horror films effectively center on the dark side of life, the forbidden, and strange and alarming events. They deal with our most primal nature and its fears: our nightmares, our vulnerability, our alienation, our revulsions, our terror of the unknown, our fear of death and dismemberment, loss of identity, or fear of sexuality.

Typical locations used in horror films would isolated and secluded locations such as dark woods, a haunted house on a hill, or perhaps a basement or cellar.

Typical characters used in this genre are vulnerable victims, usually female, and also the 'monster' which can be anything. We also see a hero, and sometimes we see the 'law'; police etc.

Typical media language is very important in the typical horror film; using low-key lighting and use of close-ups/point-of-view(stalker) shots, low and high angled shots and canted angles to build tension and suspense. This is also established with use of sound, usually orchestral and dramatic strings and non-diegetic sound.

Typical mise en scene featuring in films of this genre would be weapons, often very gory weapons such as blades. In almost every horror film we see lots of blood and perhaps entrails would be used in order to produce a very graphic scene.

We are also going to follow the typical narrative structure, whereby the protagonists will be reeled into a precarious situation leading to a shocking and terrifying revelation, which the characters will then react to.

We can break this formula down into a variety of sub-genres as listed here:
-Gothic Horror
-Techno-Horror
-Body-Horror
-'Stalk&Slash'
-'Torture-Porn'
-Psychological Horror

We're going to use a combination of the 'Stalk&Slash' genre, whereby a group of teenagers are attacked by a monster, and the 'Psychological Horror', whereby the identity of the monster will remain unknown so as to build tension and fear.

Other films that use these conventions are horror flicks such as 'Scream' (pictured right) which is effective because the villain's face always remains unknown, which is scary because the villain's identity is left purely to our imagination.

Ryan, Joe, Mark