F Bulgarelli Posted February 9, 2008 Share Posted February 9, 2008 Hello everyone, I will be shooting a low budget horror feature in March and I'm looking for references for the look, camera movement, lighting, etc. The story is about a group of people that go on a vacation trip to the mountains and get attacked by a serial killer. Yeah, I know, you've heard it before ;-) Is there any particular films out there that caught your eye? Any comments will be greatly appreciated, Francisco Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted February 9, 2008 Share Posted February 9, 2008 Hello everyone, I will be shooting a low budget horror feature in March and I'm looking for references for the look, camera movement, lighting, etc. The story is about a group of people that go on a vacation trip to the mountains and get attacked by a serial killer. Yeah, I know, you've heard it before ;-) Is there any particular films out there that caught your eye? Any comments will be greatly appreciated, Francisco Yes we've heard it before, so just add a twist ending. They are all really characters in a video game being played on-line by a group of teenagers, or one of them is actually the killer with a spilt personality, or they've all been captured by aliens and are being "observed" by more intelligent beings from a far off galaxy out to study "man", or........well I got a million of em' R, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Buddy Greenfield Posted February 10, 2008 Share Posted February 10, 2008 I liked that Black Christmas remake for a number of its camera angles. I?m not sure if the style of shots they used is cliché or campy or retro or whatnot, but they dialed in something in keeping with the genre that also made it enjoyable to look at here and there. It seemed perfect for off setting a bit of the same old same old. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
James Steven Beverly Posted February 10, 2008 Share Posted February 10, 2008 A few really though there are a BUNCH that I really, really like these I find inspirational in: The Shining Jaws Poltergeist From Dusk Till Dawn Suspiria (Dario Argento) The Devil's Backbone Planet of the Vampires (Mario Bava) Black Sabbath (Also Mario Bava) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Waite Posted February 10, 2008 Share Posted February 10, 2008 Eyes Without A Face Night Of The Living Dead Texas Chainsaw Massacre Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member Michael Lehnert Posted February 10, 2008 Premium Member Share Posted February 10, 2008 I would definitely recommend to study all of George A Romero's (see above) and John Carpenter's films, the latters however only up to the early 1990s. Include non-mainstream works of them, too, like "Martin" by Romero where you can learn alot about narrative construction through the camera work. Also consider Japanese horror movies of the 1980s and 1990s, which are really scary even by todays standard, although they employ very few grizzly slashing effects or jumpy slashers. Channel 4 broadcast several recently, and they sure scared the poop out of me... :huh: Although the storyline you put forward is as smashed-up and trotten-on as an armadillo after an encounter with an 18-wheeler, it is the conceptual approach of the entire film rhethoric you employ for filming that can really make a difference. So it is actually less about chosen camera angles and silly lighting-&-fog and how to "surprise" the audience through "clever" editing or even a twist at the end, it's about the entire approach you choose: the cinematic psychology, if you want! With a hard-working-to-invent-it brainiac session behind you, that'll give you a pretty über-scary result even for today's hardened teenie-slasher audiences. If, however, you are after the usual combine of first-fu**-teenie-movie meets outdoors-slasher-movie, then watching "Nightmare on Elm Street V", "Jason I to X "and, to top it off, "I still really give a poop what you did to everyone last sumer" might suffice ;) ! PLEASE, however, avoid VomitCam ® -style ideas as seen in that "Witch-in-the-Woods-Project" video 8 nonsense or worse: "Cloverfield". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
James Baker Posted February 10, 2008 Share Posted February 10, 2008 Suspiria Rosemary's Baby Peeping Tom The Haunting (the original 1963 version) The Innocents Au Rendezvous de la Mort Joyeuse Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A. Whitehouse Posted February 10, 2008 Share Posted February 10, 2008 Ringu Anything by Hideo Nakata Ju-on Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
F Bulgarelli Posted February 10, 2008 Author Share Posted February 10, 2008 Thank you all, this is really useful. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Waite Posted February 11, 2008 Share Posted February 11, 2008 PLEASE, however, avoid VomitCam ® -style ideas as seen in that "Witch-in-the-Woods-Project" video 8 nonsense or worse: "Cloverfield". Yeah - please, no shaky video camera work. That's a different kind of horror. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Holland Posted February 11, 2008 Share Posted February 11, 2008 "Death Line" ,set on the London Underground tube 1971 . shot buy the late Alex Thomson BSC. But no.1 still to me is " The Exorcist" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Washlesky Posted February 11, 2008 Share Posted February 11, 2008 A few really though there are a BUNCH that I really, really like these I find inspirational in: The Shining Jaws Poltergeist From Dusk Till Dawn Suspiria (Dario Argento) The Devil's Backbone Planet of the Vampires (Mario Bava) Black Sabbath (Also Mario Bava) Planet of the Vampires eh? I thought I was the only one that has seen that. LOVE that movie. Especially their awesome motorcycle leathers/space suits. That film really creates some freaky and moody atmosphere. Cameron totally borrows alot from that flick including the bone ship and dead giants. I thought From Dusk Till Dawn was a comedy. My mistake. The Thing is one of my favorites... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leo Anthony Vale Posted February 11, 2008 Share Posted February 11, 2008 The Seventh Victim Viy The Bride of Frankenstein Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Williamson Posted February 11, 2008 Share Posted February 11, 2008 As Leo mentions, "The 7th Victim" and all the Val Lewton horror films are great. There's a box set that they put out that's really fantastic, specifically I would also mention "Cat People", "Curse of the Cat People" and "I Walked With A Zombie". All of those titles were shot by Nic Musuraca. I've been watching a bunch of Daniel Pearl's films lately, great cinematography in the horror genre even when the movies themselves aren't that good. I'd look at the remake of "Texas Chainsaw Massacre" and "Pathfinder", and I actually thought "Captivity" looked nice as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
James Steven Beverly Posted February 12, 2008 Share Posted February 12, 2008 (edited) Planet of the Vampires eh? I thought I was the only one that has seen that. LOVE that movie. Especially their awesome motorcycle leathers/space suits. That film really creates some freaky and moody atmosphere. Cameron totally borrows alot from that flick including the bone ship and dead giants. I thought From Dusk Till Dawn was a comedy. My mistake. The Thing is one of my favorites... That movie was a lesson in creating atmosphere. Mario Bava was simply a genius. Style is also the reason I loved From Dusk till Dawn. I find a lot of humor in horror films, I even find humorous elements in the Exorcist. :D The Thing is an INCREDIBLE movie (the original, though I did like the Carpenter re-imagined version) I also liked the Blob. (both versions actually though how ya gonna beat Steve McQueen) B) And of course the classics, Dracula, Frankenstein, The Wolf Man, The Mummy, the Creature from the Black Lagoon, all the 50s sci/fil and atomic monsters I LOVE 'em!!! Edited February 12, 2008 by James Steven Beverly Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
James Steven Beverly Posted February 12, 2008 Share Posted February 12, 2008 Yeah - please, no shaky video camera work. That's a different kind of horror. HEY, Nothin' wrong with a little shaky cam, It worked GREAT in The Evil Dead series!!! :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member Michael Lehnert Posted February 12, 2008 Premium Member Share Posted February 12, 2008 Yeah, but that was in 1981, and Sam Raimi had to prove something to someone. That was also at a time when most parents of the current slasher-movie cinema-goin' generation of viewers had just discovered MTV and did not contemplate having children of their own... ever. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris dye Posted February 12, 2008 Share Posted February 12, 2008 The Other from 1972 has interesting camera work, I think. Also I like Bava's camera work in Lisa and the Devil. Lush and elegant. I also like these for some of their camera work and lighting: The Innocents The original Black Christmas Let's Scare Jessica to Death Magic Anything from the seventies actually. Even the bad horror movies from this era evoked great atmosphere. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jason Sikorski Posted February 12, 2008 Share Posted February 12, 2008 Rosemary's Baby sticks out in my mind as one of the better horror films I've seen. I also enjoyed my first few J-Horror films (the Japanese original Dark Water was terrific), but I believe they lose their "edge" after a while due to the high number of recurring motifs. When I was a kid, something about the The Gate (a B-movie if there ever was one) terrified the living %*!# out of me. I remember having nightmares for weeks after seeing it for the first time. Subsequent viewings (much later in life) left me wondering why I found it so terrifying. :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Washlesky Posted February 12, 2008 Share Posted February 12, 2008 (edited) Rosemary's Baby sticks out in my mind as one of the better horror films I've seen. I also enjoyed my first few J-Horror films (the Japanese original Dark Water was terrific), but I believe they lose their "edge" after a while due to the high number of recurring motifs. When I was a kid, something about the The Gate (a B-movie if there ever was one) terrified the living %*!# out of me. I remember having nightmares for weeks after seeing it for the first time. Subsequent viewings (much later in life) left me wondering why I found it so terrifying. :) Oh man The Gate scared the crap outta me! I saw that in the theater and havent seen it since. Maybe on cable a few years ago, but I love the build up to the ending. Pretty effective film for building tension slowly with the bugs and the little monsters. Man, I havent thought about that film in years. I absolutely loved The Host from S. Korea, from a few years ago. great classic monster flick for sure To be honest, I love pretty much any horror film from the 70's and 80's, even Slumber Party Massacre and Basket Case. Even Driller Killer with the killer going around with a battery powered drill all the while wearing this ridiculously giant battery belt. Edited February 12, 2008 by Mike Washlesky Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jesus Sifuentes Posted February 13, 2008 Share Posted February 13, 2008 Children of the Corn In the mouth of madness the prince of darkness session 9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeremy Drake Posted February 13, 2008 Share Posted February 13, 2008 it can be argued as to whether or not its a good movie ... but i love the way High Tension (haute tension) was shot Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alex Hall Posted February 13, 2008 Share Posted February 13, 2008 "Nosferatu, eine Symphonie des Grauens" (1922) Directed by: F.W. Murnau Photographed by: Fritz Arno Wagner Classic horror film, beautifly shot. Still creeps me out watching it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
James Steven Beverly Posted February 14, 2008 Share Posted February 14, 2008 "Nosferatu, eine Symphonie des Grauens" (1922) Directed by: F.W. Murnau Photographed by: Fritz Arno Wagner Classic horror film, beautifly shot. Still creeps me out watching it. Iconic film! Wonderfully well done. Top on my list as far as silent horror films as well along side the Phantom of the Opera, Lon Chaney's 1925 masterpiece. The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1920) and Hitchcock's The Lodger. (1927) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member Bill Totolo Posted February 14, 2008 Premium Member Share Posted February 14, 2008 "Silence of the Lambs" always does it for me, and the look of many of Fincher's films would fit the bill. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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