Assignment 1

The evolution of Horror cinematography starts way back to around the 1920’s, still in the silent era with hits like Nosferatu (1922) and Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1920). These classic films contain expressionistic lighting which was used to create a sense of unease, it was done to create dramatic lighting and camera angles to drastically emphasize something specific in a particular scene. The distorted sets would help accomplish the look of madness that would be created for the characters. Once the 1930’s hit it became the “Golden Age” for horror with movies like Frankenstein (1931) and The Mummy (1932) during this time cinematographers had more attention towards dramatic lighting and close-up to increase the horror effect. Lighting also really helped during this time due to building up the moody creepy energy in a scene. With close-up angles, it really helped build the suspension of a character, and with the use of lighting it would create deep shadows that would allow the monster to appear more intimidating. Once the 50’s and 60’s came rolling it was a shift towards psychological films with big hits like Psycho (1960), Peeping Tom (1960) and What Ever Happened to Baby Jane (1962). Obviously, the famous shower scene in Psycho has taken a toll in the cinematography world for future horror films and has inspired many future projects. It carries a combination of quick cuts in addition to the close-ups with high angle shots that becomes a staple for films like this because it allows the character to seem weaker and more vulnerable. Now we start getting to some favorites, The slasher era took place from the 70’s-80’s, where we got major staples like Friday the 13th (1980) Halloween (1978) but also “My bloody Valentine, Prom Night, The Slumber Party Massacre and so on. During this time films like these carry point-of-view shots, basically giving you the killer's perspective as well as tracking angle shots which increases the suspense for the viewer knowing someone is possibly about to die. It has an interesting take because it contains a variety of angles that gives the audience a sense of closeness to the killer but also captures a new technique from what they are used to. The 90’s-2000’s began, the era where we gained almost some sort of POV from the cast. It's a new creative way to film camera shots, these angles are taken as if it was just someone filming themselves with a handheld camera and releasing a documentary look to it. Examples being The Blair Witch Project (1999) and Paranormal Activity (2007) it gives an uneasy feeling of watching something that feels like it shouldn't be watched due to the fact that it expresses a sorta cursed bad voodoo feeling of emotions. Gaining this knowledge about Camera angles/movements gives an understanding of the tools used to create suspense and how different positions create a specific meaning.