Editing and special effects

• I have decided to look at various horror films and trailers to see what editing and special effects they have used. When doing this i have noticed some similarities.

One of the things that i noticed was the use of fast pace cuts and flashing images on screen for example used in 'When A Stranger Calls' which i looked at earlier in my primary research.

Another thing that i noticed is that some films have changed the colours of some of the clips in their films. This helps to give a different atmosphere and feel to the shots creating different feelings for the audience while watching. One of the films that i noticed this in is Paranormal Activity which alters alot of their shots to have a blue tone to it giving a layer of rawness to the film.

Another example of a film doing this is the Saw films, when they use a green tinge to their shots.

Another thing that i noticed while looking at horror films is alot of them use what looks like a crackling which makes it appear to the audience that a handheld camera is being used or that the footage from the film was actually filmed for real. This creats tension for the audience also adding an element of realism. This is 'static interferance' and is used in alot of horror films. An example of this is in Paranormal Activity. The picture below is taken from Paranormal Activity 2 showing an example of this effect.

I have also noticed alot of fades to black. This shows to the audience a passing of time. Aswell as alot of short shots and quick cuts of some of the most exciting moments from the film. This creates interest for the audience however, these shots are not always shown in chronological order. I also noticed in some trailers that there are some silences between some shots which creates tension and have an impact on the mood and the pace of the trailer.