My School Horror Film.

EoinDM

I'm starting on filming my school film tomorrow. We are doing it as part of our Arts Weeks, and since I'm in transition year, I get to partake in all the main activities and also run the week. Anyway..

I was wondering if anyone had any tips for me on making a horror film. It's going to be filmed on a home camcorder with no budget at all, but I was wondering if anyone knew how to make it not cheesey, if you know what I mean.

Any tips about making a low budget horror film would be great!

Thanks.

BlitzKrieg

I was wondering if anyone had any tips for me on making a horror film. It's going to be filmed on a home camcorder with no budget at all, but I was wondering if anyone knew how to make it not cheesey, if you know what I mean.

ughh.

hmm

I tried shooting a horror film a bit back on a shoe-string budget, didnt turn out too great. Best thing to do if you dont want to be cheesy is to make the horror unseen, I dont mean off camera monster (that is cheesy) but more lik building a disturbing atmosphere. Saw a so so student film a few months back that was just about a man walking to work and back, but the filmmaker used the editing, music and simple colour grading to change it into a slow descent into madness. Something along those lines might be best if you dont want it to be cheesy.

because if you want to have a narrative involving some form of horror figure without a budget you cant dress up a fictional fear (ala Jason etc.) so your hand will be forced to go with the masked burgler sort of character and then you run the risk of it either not being scary, or the topic might be too *genuine* my last horror film involved 4 men breaking into a house and tearing it apart looking for a girl and then proceeding to rape her (you dont see the rape, only the intention.) it got a lot of flak due to its rawness of its topic when I was pitching it around and also because it didnt turn out very well in the end.

EoinDM

We started today and it went pretty well. Our idea about the monster/ghost/thing is to not really show it, and build a sort of scary atmosphere, as you said. Hopefully it will all go well. Thanks anyway!

RaptorHouse

how long r u making it , i supose with horror it as to be semi cheesy unless wat ur trying to achieve.. how r u doin the ghost thing like r u usin some cgi or like 1st person stuff ? ps forgot to post up link to Regeneration which is black comedy horror will do when i find it

Shoot-a

I know you've started already but........

Focus on atmosphere,lighting,sound.
Play tricks on the mind to make certain things uneasy.Good angles are important I think espicially because most people think of using an unwholesome amount of dutch angles.I'll email an article I have on making a ghost simply with layers if you want?3d could be v tedious!