-
Day 14 Assignments
Reply to post your assignment.
-
6 Replies
-
Chris Grant’s Scary-As-Hell Scene
“What I learned doing this assignment is…?” I feel like I have a good feel for setting these scenes up. Following an emotional map is a good idea for any scene but it seems easier to do with horror – a great surprise.
Horror Situation: Pursued/Isolated
Dread to Hysteria culminating in Release.
EXT. ALMOST IN THE WATER. DAWN
Dread
Cristian, now cut and bleeding, understands that the only way to be free of this mess is to cut it all loose. He remembers the sharks he saw earlier. They are just below him in the nets. The squid fight to get through the nets to him on the other side.
Apprehension
Lightning strikes and scatters the squid long enough for him to swim through them.
Anxiety
Down in the darkness, as he struggles for air, he sees his father’s body, tangled and half-eaten in the nets.
Release
He cuts loose the ghost nets anchored on the bottom and frees the boat wreckage so it can drift free and away from the swarming squid. Slowly the anchors give and the net is dragged off by the current. Cristian is dragged along by it.
He watches as his father drifts away with the tidal pull.
Surprise
He can’t swim back to the boat. The squid rush back into the narrow gap between him and the boat. There’s no way through.
Fear
He shines his flashlight. A squid sees it and pulls up in front of him. Just as before, it seems more curious than dangerous. He flashes it on and off. It seems to mimic him, changing from red to white. Others do the same.
Panic
Suddenly, bullets pierce the water all around him. The squid re-frenzy forcing Cristian to swim through them directly. Tentacles everywhere, his blood in the water.
Horror
He surfaces to the Harbor Master laughing. “It’s beautiful Cristian. Beautiful. Don’t you see the irony?” You’re the only person out here who wants those drugs more than I do.”
He laughs and shoots the water around Cristian riling up the squid in the bloody mess of water. Cristian screams and heads for anything he can grab onto.
Hysteria
He’s pulled underwater.
A squid hits his back. He twists to get it off but they pile on. He flashes his light again to distract them but drops it during the fight. He gasps for air.
As he is pulled down, the current drags the nets past him. This looks like the end.
Release
It’s then he sees his father’s face, drifting past in the net, released, as if forever. His dead dangling arms wave goodbye. Above him on the surface, Cristian sees a silhouette, something floating.
Suspense
He kicks up to it, right through the massing squid, fighting them off on his way up to the surface.He gasps for air and swims towards one end of the cocaine container. There’s a handle. He grabs at it.
Horror
He pulls himself out of the water with a huge squid attached to his legs. He fights with his hands and teeth as it tries to pull him back into the water. He tears off one of its arms and tosses it. The other squid attack it immediately.
Release
He clings to the sides of the trunk, all appendages out of the water. If he moves, he’ll fall back in. But he’s alive.
-
3. In this lesson, I learned that scenes are a flow of an emotion arc. That we can keep our audiences hooked by moving them through emotions as scenes progress. That surprise/releases are part of that arc and should be used to build the overall feeling of horror.
1. Use the Scary-As-Hell scene process to create the Horror Map.
A. Opening Scene
B. Anxiety to Anguish – Anxiety, Fear, Panic, Anguish
C. Anxiety: a knocking coming from within the wall, Fear:
the knocking grows louder, a shadow appears on the wall from something
behind, Panic: a hammer comes down on the worker, and worker turns around
to try and defend himself, Anguish: the hammer falls down repeatedly as
the worker lies helplessly on the floor, stunned and realizing his fate
D. Anxiety: a knocking coming
from within the wall, Surprise: a pair of eyes appear, staring out through
a hole in the wall, Release: a mouse appears, it was only a mouse,
Anxiety: the knocking starts again, Fear: the knocking grows louder, a shadow
appears on the wall from something behind, Panic: a hammer comes down on
the worker, and worker turns around to try and defend himself, Anguish: the
hammer falls down repeatedly as the worker lies helplessly on the floor,
stunned and realizing his fate1. Once you have the Horror Map, write the scene.
INT. DINING ROOM – DAY
Worker One taps nails into a wall. As he taps in nails, he becomes aware that the pattern of his tapping is being mimicked. It sounds like it is coming from within the wall.
Worker One tries tapping out a specific pattern with his hammer. He hears the pattern back. This startles him and he looks around the room.
WORKER ONE
…The fuck?
He catches sight of something in the doorway. Two small eyes staring at him, only six feet from his position. He jumps back, bringing his hammer up to his face.
Suddenly, the eyes drop to the floor and scamper towards him. It is a small mouse. He sighs with relief and turns back to his task. As he taps in another nail, the repeat tapping starts again. He looks around and calls out to his work buddy.
WORKER ONE
Jeff, is that you?
The tapping continues now, even without him putting nails in the wall. He lays his hammer down and peers through a hole in the wall.
WORKER ONE
Jeff, what are you doing over there?
Worker One pulls out a flashlight to try and see to the other side. As he does, a shadow covers him, being cast from a figure behind him. He turns, but not in time to stop a hammer from coming down on his head. He screams and falls to the ground.
His flashlight rolls away and casts both his shadow and the shadow of the figure attacking him on the wall in the background. We hear gut-wrenching sounds as Worker One puts his hands up to defend himself, taking blow after blow from the hammer of his attacker.
-
Judith’s Scary-as-Hell Scene – L4 – homework
What I learned doing this assignment is how to develop a scene first by creating a horror situation, adding emotions and then actions.
EXT. ASYLUM – NIGHT
The brick building sits in an isolated area by the edge of a forest. The lights blast out of the asylum’s windows casting eery shadows outside.
INT. ASYLUM – HALLWAY/MANIAC MARLA’S ROOM – NIGHT
An ATTENDANT 1 stands in front of room thirteen. She puts the key into the lock, doesn’t turn the key but the door swings open. She steps back. Stares.
She reaches inside and flips on the lights. The inmate’s bed is empty. She listens. Peaks inside.
She backs out and is startled by ATTENDANT 2. SCREAMS.
ATTENDANT 2
Why did you go in there for?
She points stupidly at the room.
ATTENDANT 1
She’s gone.
ATTENDANT 2
Bathroom…she’s gonna get out.
ATTENDANT 1
I don’t think so. I knew this would happen.
ATTENDANT 2
Get a grip.
Attendant 2 enters the room.
INT. MANIAC MARLA’S ROOM – NIGHT
Attendant 2 moves slowly. Flashing a light about the room. He checks under the bed. Then the bathroom.
ATTENDANT 2
Sound the alarm. Maniac Marla is gone.
INT. ASYLUM – HALLWAY – NIGHT
Attendant 1 runs down the hallway. She gets to an alarm on the wall and pulls. The blaring sound is deafening. It wakes everyone up as evidenced by screams and shouts. The luny been has gone luny. The inmates pound on their doors wanting to be released.
The asylum’s WARDEN appears drousy and half-way dressed.
WARDEN
What the fuck is going on?
ATTENDANT 2
Maniac Marla is gone.
WARDEN
Gone. No way.
ATTENDANT 1
Yes, sir.
WARDEN
Who pulled the fucking alarm?
Attendant 1 reluctantly raises her hand.
WARDEN
Well find her.
Each attendant goes in a different direction. The Warden shakes his head. He watches his help freak out, then joins in the search.
He checks the door of each room. The rest are locked.
As he moves down the hallway, he hears a window breaking. He moves in the direction of the sound. Stops short. Attendant’s 2 body lays sprawled out on the ground. He looks about.
Approaches the Attendant, feels his neck when suddenly out of nowhere Maniac Marla appears. She swings a bat and connects with the Warden’s head. He falls to the ground.
Maniac Marla reaches down and pulls the asylum’s keys from around his neck.
She sashays toward the double doors. Cooly unlocks them. She pushes both the doors open and disappears.
Attendant 1 comes around the corner. She sees the bodies on the floor and the open doors.
ATTENDANT 1
There’s gonna be hell to pay.
-
Paul’s Scary-as-Hell scene.
3. What I learned from this assignment is how it helps to start with deciding on the emotion you want to cause and then move to the action that provokes that emotion. Excellent!
Title: No-Man’s Land
INT. BAR ON THE MAINLAND. NIGHT.
Customers are mainly men. At the bar, a small group is listening intently an EFFIMINATE MAN.
EFFEMINATE MAN
And I swear, they don’t charge much.
MAINLAND MAN 1
I’m in!
[Suspense]
MAINLAND MAN 2
Sounds too good to be true to me.
MAINLAND MAN 3
Oh, come on! When did you last get laid? At least a decade ago by the looks of you!
General laughter.
MAINLAND MAN 3
It’s a deal. Let’s go!
EFFEMINATE MAN
And I’m picking up the tab.
The Effeminate Man leans over the bar to the bar-maid and settles the check for the whole group.
MAINLAND MAN 1
Look, guys! I told you it was a good deal.
The group hustles out of the bar. The Effeminate Man leads them across the road to the pier where a small boat awaits them.
EFFEMINATE MAN
All aboard for the time of your lives!
The mainland men walk up the gangway onto the deck. Suddenly:
[Scare]
MAINLAND MAN 2
Aghhh!
He stares at two red eyes, apparently suspended in mid-air. The Amazon steps forward into the light, smiling coquettishly.
[Release]
AMAZON 1
Welcome aboard!
MAINLAND MAN 2
Oh, god! Thought you were the devil for a moment.
EFFEMINATE MAN
Relax! I told you. You’re gonna have the time of your lives.
Other Amazons emerge from the shadows and each takes a man seductively by the arm.
EXT. STREET OUTSIDE A BROTHEL. SAME.
The group has reached the island and is brought by the Effeminate Man and the Amazons to a brightly-lit brothel. As soon as they enter, they realize it’s not exactly what they expected. Like the Coliseum in ancient Rome, men are being dragged into the center of a large room, one by one. Frantic women are screaming for blood or testicles.
FEMALE MC
(Pointing to the man who has just been dragged in)
Execute or castrate?
WOMEN’S SCREAM
Execute! Execute!
FEMALE MC
Are you sure?
WOMEN’S SCREAM
Execute! Execute!
WOMAN IN CROWD
My turn! My turn.
The newly arrived, mainland men look on in horror. They try to escape, but the Amazons have a firm grip. They are forced to look on in horror as a woman from the crowd steps forward and takes the blood-stained knife from the MC and plunges it into the man’s chest.
[Hysteria]
The mainland men fight with their captors, but there are too many women against too few men.
END
-
Dan’s Scary-As-Hell Scene
What I learned doing this assignment is… how effective it is to write a scene emotion-first instead of action-first.
Horror Situation: See another killed – Nora sees “Kendall” eating the family dog
Emotional arc: Anxiety to Panic
Filler emotions: Shock, Fear, Suspense
INT. GRADY HOME – EVENING
Nora is cleaning up after dinner. She stops when she hears SCRATCHING sounds coming from the basement door.
She slowly approaches the door as the scratching sounds get louder. More vicious. Like something is desperately trying to get out.
Nora creaks open the door – GASPS as something from the inside pushes it open further, and scurries past her feet.
It’s the family dog, ROOFUS, who wags his tail at her.
NORA: Roofus! What were you doing downstairs?
Nora hears the sound of whistling coming from upstairs. Roofus scurries up the stairs. Nora stops to hear the sounds of Roofus’ paws running toward a door. Followed by the sound of a door slamming shut.
Nora starts to go back to the kitchen, but stops when she hears the sound of a high-pitched screech. The sound an animal makes when it’s being attacked.
Nora runs up the stairs.
NORA: Kendall? What happened?
Nora stops at Kendall’s closed door. She presses her ear to the door to hear the loud sounds of CHEWING.
NORA: Kenny…?
Nora opens the door to see: KENDALL WITH A MOUTH FULL OF BLOOD, chewing on ROOFUS’ LIMB.
Nora screams – causing Kendall to look up at her, and frown. Kendall growls at Nora, and hops over her bed with supernatural grace. She runs toward the door, screeching.
Nora instinctively closes the door to protect herself. Kendall bangs on it loudly from the other side.
NORA: What is wrong with you!? Stop it! You need help! Kendall, please stop–!
Kendall BANGS the door down, making Nora get out of the way so it doesn’t knock her over. Nora runs through the hallway screaming, not even looking back as her daughter pursues her.
-
Lisandro Boccacci’s Scary As Hell Scene
What I learned doing this assignment is that you can track the emotions and make sure there are enough emotions in a scene, and that the right actions correlate to the spark of the emotions to come.
in this scene their escape route has been cut off, this is the horror situation I’m using at the end of Act 1. the rooky character’s relationship with other officers: they don’t trust him fully as a rooky and he is trying to gain the groups respect.
EXT – PARKING LOT – NIGHT
FEAR: The driver starts their car and try to drive away… but its too late…
SCARE: there’s a clink sound and then a violent tug, that scares the group.
SHOCK: their car is hooked up to a tow truck
DREAD: and the dog is let loose, viciously barking at them through the car windows.
RELEASE: They are still safe inside the car.
APPREHENSION : the other cops tell the complainer that he was used to set this whole thing up, they knew about his friendship with the younger brother
Denial: he doesn’t want to believe that it was a set up
<font face=”inherit”>FEAR: he was played and they </font>don’t<font face=”inherit”> respect him, he is </font>afraid<font face=”inherit”> at how much they </font>don’t<font face=”inherit”> like him. </font>
Log in to reply.