Original photos for my horror film poster

Original photos from our photoshoot in a local cemetery in January 2015.

The photos feature Sam, as Father Crowthorne, posing in a variety of places in the graveyard. Out of all the possible choices, I chose the third image for my horror film poster mostly because I liked the mise-en-scene of the cemetery and the way the gravestones and branches on the tree were composed and especially how the twisted branches could give creepy connotations. I cropped the photo heavily in Photoshop, removing the left hand side of the frame so Sam was composed on the left of the new frame. This would give him connotations that would fit with the magazine cover and make him appear twisted and creepy as he's standing in the graveyard overlooking the gravestones and holding his phallic crucifix which acts as a weapon later on in the film, further representing him to be dangerous and evil. 

Original photos for my horror magazine cover

Original photos from our photoshoot in a local cemetery in January 2015.

The photos feature Sam, as Father Crowthorne, posing in a variety of places in the graveyard. Out of all the possible choices, I chose the third image to be my magazine cover as the shot was well lit and it placed Sam in a red arch connoting danger to the audience. It also is a low angle shot and gives him connotations or power and authority but is also slightly canted too further connote that his power isn't good but is creepy and twisted representing him to be evil and abusive of the twisted power.

Evaluation part 1

Practice trailer: Not So Grave Encounters (2014)

This is our practice trailer- 'Not So Grave Encounters'.

This was made a year before our final trailer and allowed us to explore how to use the college cameras and editing equipment.

We used it to improve and produce the higher standard of work we achieved on "Priest."

Priest film poster

Horror magazine cover

Priest focus group screening

Good Aspects of the trailer 

Good Acting x 5- From all actors, but mainly Sam who's portraying the priest
Use of lighting- The lighting is dynamic and shots are well lit but needs to be darker
Narrative x 9- Engaging and interesting narrative that hooked the audience
Gore Effects x 6- The body horror was well applied and looked believable 
Dialogue x 6- Well written and performed again made the trailer more engaging for the audience
Sound effects x 12- The ones that were added brought more to the trailer and made scenes more impactful
Location x 7- We shot in a church and it improved the mise-en-scene of the trailer as it was a real, set location 
Mise en scene x 5- Props, body horror, creepy location, and restricted narration were the highlights of the trailer  
Intertitles x 3- tod more about the narrative and what to expect from the film
Ending x 2- The editing and body horror effects made for a gruesome and memorable ending 
Cinematography x 13- The wide variety of shots and angles used made the trailer exciting to watch
Tension- The slow paced music mixed with the quick paced shots and drawn out narrative made the trailer tense


Points of improvement 

In need of jump scare x 2- The jump scare was thought about but not added in the final trailer 
Variety of pace needed x 7- Collision cutting and quick paced montages have been added
Background music- The levels will be mixed so dialogue can be heard and have more menacing connotations
Louder screams- Sound levels have been mixed
Too light- Can be fixed by tweaking with the brightness and contrast of shots
Intertitles x 9- Need to be more readable and have been redesigned
Sound effects x 9- Need to be added on impacts to make them sound more realistic

AVG score for the trailer - 7.5