Bloody Mary - ID# 7
Lyons Township
Movie Trailer
Entry Description
A group of high school friends decide to play a dangerous game. But things quickly turn bad.
Copyright Info
Recent Teacher Comments
- 4/24 11:25 am - POSITIVES: Great shot variety and composition. The creepy-looking locations add to the tension of the story. Great job editing between the reality shots and spooky hallucinations. Pacing is solid throughout, and I want to see how the story resolves itself! ...AREAS FOR IMPROVEMENT: Opening camera spin is a good idea, but goes too fast and is too shaky. Slow down and shoot it multiple times until you get a take that looks professional. The creepy hallucination shots are sometimes over-lit, which takes away from the spookiness.
Judge 1
Positives: "Bloody Mary" utilizes strong visual language - such as stylistic pools of light, a creepy soundtrack, and impactful editing to create an effective horror trailer. The locations/spaces were well chosen to reflect the horror genre, and creates a tense tone in the piece.
Improvements: Further makeup effects could have enhanced the "look" of Bloody Mary to create an even more terrifying sense of dread.The edit and sound mix could also be strengthened slightly to bring out more shock when cutting to the moments of horror - such as Mary appearing for the first time.
Judge 2
Positives: very suspenseful! great use of negative space in the editing. Sometimes a black screen is just as scary as a bloody one. The pacing worked its way up at just the right speed.
Improvements: Too much blood! The bloody mary character was rad but after you see her a few times it loses it's impact. Maybe save your big reveal for the end? And there were a good number of shots that would have benefitted from some cutting. Less can be more with horror. But overall it was great!!!
Judge 3
Positives: You have a great job creating a very creepy horror trailer. One example of effective lighting for a horror movie occurs at about 19 seconds. The low-key lighting creates an uneasy and foreboding mood. Bloody Mary appears behind the main character and almost blends in with the background. The fact that it's almost a subliminal glimpse of Bloody Mary is very effective in that people will see Mary as if they caught something out of the corner of their eye. The quick and jarring cuts further help to make your trailer work. There are several examples of this. One occurs from about 20 seconds to twenty-six seconds.
Improvements: Here are a couple of things to think about that would help to make this even better. Consider using a tripod for the second shot. The timing is fine on the shot you have now. But it would be more effective if you had a smoother camera pan. Also, color correct that shot so it matches the color scheme of most of the rest of your trailer. It looks like the white balance was a little off. That can be corrected during your edit. Be consistent with the lighting as well. Much of your project looks great. Look at the shot at 50 seconds. This would be more effective with the same type of lighting you used at 19 and 25 seconds. I know this is the “could be better” comment area, but you have accomplished a lot with this project. I would like to see the entire movie. You have a strong understanding of how to structure a horror story. I hope to see more of your work in the future.
Judge 4
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Judge 5
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