Newby Member - producing a horror film.

This is not only my first post on this site, but it is my first post ever on any forum.

Hello!!

Looking through the various threads, everyone seems really cool!!

I am in the process of producing a horror feature film. I have always been a bit of a film buff, but when it came to the genre of horror, I was a little in the dark. A screenwriter friend of mine sent his script of a brilliant suspenseful horror, agreed to produce it and now I am hooked!! I can't get enough of them.....I had truly missed out on fabulous filmmaking up until now.

As I prepare my financial package to investors, I really have to sell to them why the film should be made and why they should part with their money.

I could really do with some expert help (ie. you guys)and find out why exactly you LOVE horror movies. What is it about them that excites you? Is it the gore or the suspense? Why do you enjoy being scared by them? What kind of things scare you? What are your favourite horrors and why?

I would really appreciate your feedback.

LET's GET MORE HORROR MOVIES MADE!!

HUGE THANKS!!!!

Best wishes,

TheChillingChick

[newb]

As an "older" member here who has "seen it all" my first advice would be to get an intelligent script with a well thought out story....not just a bunch of obnoxious twenty-somethings passing as teens running away from some "pyscho" in a mask of some sort.

Take chances on something different. We can handle it.:D

[Doc Faustus]

Definitely true. Look to the routes of low budget horror and look at how good it is. Look at Carnival of Souls, look at Bloodfeast, look at the Texas Chainsaw Massacre, look at Eraserhead, look at Driller Killer and look at Evil Dead. There is plenty to do with low budget horror, but it always needs to bring something special to the table and look at an aspect of the genre or of our culture that isn't being looked at. If you remember that, you should be fine. Don't just put a guy in a spooky mask and a plaid shirt and make a cannibal redneck movie. Don't just buy caro syrup and makeup and make a generic zombie movie. What do YOU find scary? It doesn't matter if anybody else does, if you find it scary you can make it scary much easier than if you focus on the things that have been accepted/established as scary.

[The Mad Monk]

Like the previous posters have said - do something different. I would find it refreshing to see a modern low budget film without wisecracking, pot-smoking, horny teenagers (or as newb put it, "obnoxious twenty-somethings passing as teens"!), but rather concentrating on endearing lead characters, and a bleak or haunting atmosphere.

I would also say the soundtrack is important. Avoid rock/metal/rap - a minimalistic approach, like a few notes repeated on a piano, or a steady pounding single drumbeat, is much better.

[carpenoctem]

Im a newbie here as well, so nice to meetcha! Oh, how Ive always wished more horror filmmakers would survey the masses before churning out another static copy of regurgitated trends.

Im 28, and Ive seen a LOT of horror. By no means have I seen it all, but the first thing I look for when I go to purchase, rent, or watch a movie is something that grabs me, sinks its teeth into me and says 'WATCH ME!'

This can be anything: the plot, the characters, sometimes even the case. As jaded as I am, I should know better than to rent a movie just because the case looks interesting. But sometimes, there comes that one movie where I just cant wait to research before I take the chance. And, sometimes, Im pleasantly surprised!

The catchy thing doesnt necessarily have to be 100% different, but something old presented in a different light is always intriguing to me. For example, I am a huge zombie buff. One of the downsides of zombie flicks is that a vast majority of them possess one universal trait: the zombies walk around like lobotomized lemmings. Recently, I rented the dvd remake of Day of the Dead. Not going to lie, being a zombie fanatic, I was not really impressed about it. But one thing that I thoroughly enjoyed was the fact that the zombies actually RAN, jumped, maintained some intelligence. This fascinated me. I loved Romero's Land of the Dead for that aspect alone. There is an example of taking something that has been done 3000 times before but giving it an injection of new vision. Sure, some parts in the day remake were a little much (Zombies jumping 3000 feet and running 9000mph) but it was still cool in a corny sense.

I dont always want to walk away from a movie saying "omg that blew my mind.' Some movies just dont do that..they are more subtle. Today's horror is all about in your face CGI and excessive gore with almost no emphasis on developing the story or the characters. Sometimes, though, one slips through the cracks of my vision and I walk away realizing that wait a second..there was minimal to no gore, but the story was so freaking awesome and the characters well presented that I didnt even freaking notice.'

I hope this helps..I kinda just started typing and let go, lol.

[Roderick Usher]

Make sure the story is compelling, the characters are well drawn and the scares are earned and horror fans will flock to you, if you...

GET A STAR... films without 'em don't get funded or seen

Spend money...lots of it! Get a distributor. Pre-sell to foriegn territories. Announce your film at AFM or another film market. Create buzz with cool poster art and a website that looks professional.

Either that or become one of the hundreds of low-budget horror flicks produced every year that falls through the cracks and never finds an audience.

but then again, what do I know?

[neverending]

To answer your question- it's the mythic struggle of good vs. evil that makes me, as a horror film fan enjoy the genre. Ordinary people put in extrodinary circumstances that have to rise to the occasion and defeat evil.

I'm very much into producing indie horror, so if you think a collaboration might be interested, msg me :-)

Originally Posted by TheChillingChick

This is not only my first post on this site, but it is my first post ever on any forum.

Hello!!

Looking through the various threads, everyone seems really cool!!

I am in the process of producing a horror feature film. I have always been a bit of a film buff, but when it came to the genre of horror, I was a little in the dark. A screenwriter friend of mine sent his script of a brilliant suspenseful horror, agreed to produce it and now I am hooked!! I can't get enough of them.....I had truly missed out on fabulous filmmaking up until now.

As I prepare my financial package to investors, I really have to sell to them why the film should be made and why they should part with their money.

I could really do with some expert help (ie. you guys)and find out why exactly you LOVE horror movies. What is it about them that excites you? Is it the gore or the suspense? Why do you enjoy being scared by them? What kind of things scare you? What are your favourite horrors and why?

I would really appreciate your feedback.

LET's GET MORE HORROR MOVIES MADE!!

HUGE THANKS!!!!

Best wishes,

TheChillingChick

[BrothersShamus]

I agree, it all starts with a unique story line, try and take things that other films have done and turn them on their head. Of course interesting and compelling characters and a uniquely creepy story all need to be there as well.

Good Luck, I have produced a few movies and directed one with 3 more in the oven now, all I can say is just go out and do it no matter what your situation or how hard it may seem.

[MisterSadistro]

If you have to ask, you are in the wrong field. This is the exact reason so many horror films now are worthless because producers try to target an audience rather than having a true feel for the medium. Just my two cents.
CK