Lost- it uses flashbacks to show the characters past and in my TV show, dreams are used to show the characters past. The characters in lost are trapped on an island and the characters in my TV show are trapped in a haunted hotel.
American Horror Story- the first season, called murder house, is set in a haunted mansion which has several ghosts within it- this is a similar setting to my TV show.
The Shining- It is based in a haunted hotel, in which the male protagonist Johnny becomes possessed due to the supernatural forces within the hotel. As my TV series develops, certain characters will become possessed which has been foreshadowed in people's nightmares.
Were these films/TV
shows successful and if so, why? I have watched both Lost and The Shining and they were both
extremely successful due to having well-known actors, outstanding character development
and gripping narratives. Lost consisted of six seasons and each one allowed the
narrative to develop to an even greater extent, with not one episode being ‘dull’
or ‘boring’. The shining attracted many viewers who are interested in
thrillers/horrors that feature paranormal creatures and the film was truly
petrifying at times. I discovered American Horror Story when looking through a list
of horror TV series on IMDb and after researching further into it on IMDb, I
realised that it was a very successful show that is still running which so far
consists of four seasons, the first season being set in a haunted mansion.
Who is my audience?
Who is my audience?
My audience is teenagers ranging from the ages 15-19 because
the TV series is post-watershed so certain parts may be un-suitable for people
below the age of fifteen. My audience should have previously enjoyed thrillers
and horrors, such as the ones listed above, in order for them to enjoy this TV
series and I have purposely made the characters young adults in order for the
audience to relate and engage with them more. Additionally, my audience
consists of both males and females because there is not gender dominance within
my characters and the narrative is not aimed at one particular gender.
What themes are in my TV series?
The themes in my TV series are: entrapment, escape,
friendship, love, conflict, teamwork, determination, control and desperation. Entrapment is shown through the characters being trapped within the hotel and their goal is to escape by using teamwork however, love and conflict are major obstacles that at times, prevent the characters from achieving their goal. As the series develops, the characters become desperate to escape out of the hotel but determination is not all they need in order to help them succeed; they need to learn how to control their nightmares in order for deaths and possessions not to happen. Lost,
American Horror Story and The Shining share themes that are very similar to
these.
What happens in the opening scene?
The opening scene will start at the wedding where Jack and
Clare are saying their wedding vows as they stare lovingly into one another's eyes. After the elderly and quite creepy looking vicar says, “You may kiss the
bride” the rest of the wedding will fast forward up until one of the characters
wakes up in the hotel. The fast forward scenes will show the wedding reception
and the ten friends walking into the mysterious hotel to stay there overnight as the other wedding guests drive home. The audience will
firstly be introduced to the married couple, Jack and Clare who suddenly wake up lying
next to each other, they do not know they are married due to being wiped of
memory therefore are very shocked and disorientated and these emotions are
shown by their facial expressions. The first line would be Jack who
aggressively says: “who the hell are you, and where am I? Clare would then
reply with: “how am I supposed to know, I’m as clueless as you are”. They would then leap out of bed, apart from each other and slowly begin to investigate
around the dark room, full of cobwebs and creaky floorboards and when Jack
opens the door and stares down the long, gloomy corridor, they come to the realisation
that they are in a hotel as they notice numerous doors with numbers on them.
Before they explore any further, Jack and Clare acknowledge that they do not
know each other’s names and Clare asks Jack: “So what is your name anyway?” to
which Jack responds in an extremely panicked tone: “Damn! I’ve forgotten what
my name is! What is up with this hotel, I can’t seem to remember anything”.
Clare would then say: “we should probably get out of here right now before
strange stuff starts happening”.
Jack and Clare would then slowly creep through the eerie
hotel, in order to stay un-noticed, with Jack leading the way until they come across an exit which appears to be jammed shut, not
thinking anything of it; they find their way to another exit which is also
completely locked. At this point, they begin to panic, especially Clare who immediately begins to expect the worst, be as they come to the terms
that they may be trapped inside the hotel. Their next thought is to attempt to
escape through a window so they cautiously walk into a hotel room, which to
their dismay has no windows and is lit by a single lamp, to find Kate and Amelia
(the single Mother and her baby daughter) sound asleep. Kate is very pale
looking due to a rough night and when Clare notices her fully, she screams in
terror which causes them both to wake up. Clare continues to scream which
results in Kate screaming and Amelia begins to cry hysterically; this only
lasts for a short amount of time because Jack shouts at the top of his lungs in
a very angry tone: “just be quiet, all of you!” which almost immediately leads
to silence. Jack fires questions at Kate, asking what her name is, how she got
in the hotel and who Amelia is to which Kate knows none of the answers. Clare
and Jack begin to understand that Kate has also lost all of her memory and she
is also advised by Clare to: “look after the baby, there is no harm in doing so
and we cannot leave her alone in this room”. Jack then suddenly realises that
there may be other people who were staying in the hotel the previous night and
is very eager to go and search for them in case they know a way out. When he
suggests this to Clare and Kate, they are both very apprehensive and argue
against Jack’s idea until he pressurises them, in a very forceful manor, to go
along with him. He does this by firstly shouting at them, then by threatening them as he shakes his fist; Clare and Kate are frightened by what Jack is doing so reluctantly agree with his idea.The three of them slowly walk out of the room in single file,
Kate is holding Amelia as close to her as possible; quiet music plays which is
building up as Jack softly calls: “hellooo, is anyone there, hello?”...
I believe that this would be a very effective opening scene
because firstly, it informs the audience on why the characters are in the hotel
so gives them context, meaning they will be able to understand what is going
on. Secondly, it effectively introduces the audience to the two main
protagonists: Jack and Clare and they almost immediately get to learn more
about their personalities, for example, Jack being aggressive and Clare being
easily frightened. The audience are able to realise that the characters have
been wiped of memory and are trapped in the hotel with no obvious escape, which
in turn should keep them intrigued and wanting to find out more, resulting in
them continuing to watch the episode and the rest of the series. Additionally,
the setting of the hotel and the rooms within it are shown in the opening scene
which gives the audience a clear idea on where the episodes are going to take place
however also leaves them wondering if there are hidden places within the hotel
as they are only given a small insight into the setting.
No comments:
Post a Comment